It’s the end of my birth month and it was like a music Roller Coaster ride for me, composing a list that includes new, old and not so old tracks that I had on repeat for the whole month of June.
I felt like the universe itself had dictated what I listened to this month. I don’t know how that happened, but whenever the climate changes or with every drop of rain that fell down from the sky, I see signs around me that would generate a song in my head and would then reverberate through my consciousness, pushing me to listen to find that particular song in my extensive mp3 music collection.
Therefore, this playlist is the result of such a crazy process. If you fancy to listen, click on the title of the song.
1. The Kills – Future Starts Slow
I am totally in love with this duo since they released their first album in 2005. This track, most especially, had captured my heart and my infernally tapping feet. The arrangement of this song is original and very signature “The Kills” sound.
No, there’s no mistake in having their name written in all CAPS, because that’s how the band’s name is stylized.
Anyway, I’m not known to like slow-tempo music. However, when the lyrics are as touching as this record from indie band Walk The Moon, I cannot resist having it played in my console over and over again. It’s heartwarming and it’s just so painfully beautiful.
3. The Police – Message In The Bottle
A relatively old track, Message In The Bottle is one of those classic records that will not go out of style — for me. I mean, I’ve been listening to Sting singing of “a hundred billion castaways looking for a home”, striking a chord of consciousness into my soul the moment I heard it during my early childhood days. Since then, this song has been an all-time favorite.
4. The Joy Formidable – Little Blimp
From the moment I heard their demo version of Cradle, I’ve always been on the lookout for more The Joy Formidable. It’s probably because Ritzy Bryan – the vocalist and lead guitarist – reminded me so much of Catatonia’s Cerys Matthews. Both bands are from Wales, maybe that’s one of the reasons. But TJF’s unique sound in today’s music generation is what makes them adorable. They’ve been rocking my world ever since that first demo record. This new track is from their sophomore album “Wolf’s Law“.
I’ve been immersing myself into a lot of indie rock music for years now and I felt guilty that I haven’t paid attention to the local music scene. I blame bands like Vampire Weekend and the rest. It’s because of their fresh and upbeat (almost pop-ish) melodies that I got hooked in the first place. Although this track is years older, I still rock to it. And I’ll probably continue to rock to it after twenty years. Who knows?
6. Little & Ashley – Modern Life
Like most indie music, this song has such a relaxing and catchy tune that became an immediate favorite of mine this month. Their sound is so reminiscent of the new wave sound of the ’80s that made me feel nostalgic, not to mention lamenting the fact that there are few artists that can recapture the zeal of that era, bringing such a fresh and original flavor in music today. I admit that I wouldn’t have stumbled upon this track on my own if not for a little help from my TV obsession. Sometimes, I think that there’s more to watching TV than just visual entertainment. Several TV series feature amazing artists/musicians in their soundtrack repertoire.
It’s become rare for me to love a newer band (those who rose to fame here in my country after the 90s), which is so sad really. So . . . going back to homegrown music and searching fa and wide to get back my love for good OPM records, I finally settled down to a group that I heard about two years ago. However, when I read that Franco disbanded last year and frontman Franco Reyes is going solo now after parting ways with former band members, I wanted to start choking someone . . . anyone. Franco Reyes is without a doubt possesses one of the sexiest voices in OPM rock now. But together with the others, they made a helluva good music. What a shame!
Because of this, my subconscious prompted me to play the track (again — while typing away) that made me really listen to them . . . and that is Castaway.
This is the first time I had two songs from the same band in this segment and it’s well worth it. I mean, WALK THE MOON has been under my radar since I heard their single “Tightrope” a year ago. Their slightly up-tempo beats, catchy tunes, and sing-along themed songs are so adorable that I cannot resist being fixated on them. It also counts that the frontman — Nicholas Petricca — is kinda handsome. 😉
9. Twenty-One Pilots – Holding On To You
Relatively new to my music radar, this song became an instant “SUPER LIKE”! Maybe it is because this duo’s style might be slightly reminiscent of Eminem (back when he was still serious about his rapping) without the destructive angst, mixed with vocals that are has some indie elements to it, and a musical arrangement that sounds so fresh and catchy.
I practically grew up in the 90’s – alternative rock’s golden years. The decade introduced some of the most influential bands in recent history. But there are those who made small waves compared to bands such as Smashing Pumpkins, Nirvana and Foo Fighters. One of them is Ash. I was introduced to this band after watching a Cameron Diaz and Ewan MacGregor’s offbeat rom-com flick titled “A Life Less Ordinary“. The story might have been a bit preposterous, but the soundtrack is awesome. Since then, I’ve always been in the lookout for more of Ash’s music.
So . . . that’s my personal list of top 10 most played songs this month. Just like my previous lists, I want to be clear that this list list is in no way connected or related to other chart lists out there. This is my own and therefore doesn’t restrict to a particular year, era or genre. These songs are the ones on repeat whenever I have my player on.
THE GOOD . . . THE BAD . . . AND ME. 