Fit
by Windmill
"Please pull your weight
And wait for me to
Fit in"

Mm, these posts are becoming mainly about songs that I have emotional connections with. This one takes me back to Christmas. I was going through one of the bleakest periods of my life and I was having quite severe episodes on a regular basis. I got into Windmill's album Puddle City Racing Lights at the time and it was fairly comforting.

Dillon's vocals are easily the most distinctive thing about his music. They take a bit of getting used to but I don't remember it taking me that long before I was totally infatuated with it. It's bizarrely beautiful and just adds to the incredible range of sounds.

The instrumentation on the album is spectacular and puts me in mind of Pure Reason Revolution and Sigur Ros. I can only describe the instrumentation as being overwhelming.

It just seems to be an awful shame that when I listen to this now, a lot of sadness is brought back.

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

Warning Sign
by Coldplay
"I started looking for a warning sign
When the truth is
I miss you"

This is another track that has really strong emotional attachments for me. There was a day over the summer when I went to London with my family. I remember being sat on the train on the journey home and listening to this song, whilst staring out of the window. And I noticed that the first few chords of this song make me feel really hopeful. They make me think about the future.

I hadn't met Andrew yet at this point. The plan was that he was going to come down a month later. We were both really nervous about it and I spent a lot of the time completely convinced that it would all fall apart after he left. But I had a moment on the train where I was feeling really calm and optimistic about it and I think this song brought it on. Anywho, give it a listen because it's pretty :)

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

All My Friends
by LCD Soundsystem
"And if it's crowded; all the better"

I got into LCD Soundsystem after my dad played North American Scum lots in the car. Sam and I both went out and bought the album but as far as I remember, it was then quite a while before what this song reminds me of.

It reminds me of long drives at night. I felt really alive speeding along watching the dark landscape changing around us. I felt happy and I felt as though I belonged. Listening to this song completely brings back that feeling. I couldn't count the amount of times that we've counted in, waiting for the first line: "that's how it starts..."

Sam's dad complained that this one was repetitive. And yes, it's repetitive but at the same time there are all these tiny little variations as it slowly builds up and when his voice comes in, you're absolutely begging for it and it's a gorgeous relief.

I love this song.

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

How to Fight Loneliness
by Wilco
"Smile all the time,
Shine your teeth to meaningless"

Mm, I decided to post this track today because I'm feeling quite down and there's nothing like a depressing song full of disillusionment to make you feel better about feeling lonely. Wait...

Okay, so maybe Wilco isn't a great cure for that. But this is a great track. The vocals really work with the tone of the song and add to the total bleakness. Meanwhile, the instrumentation works really well too, particularly the chord progression. It's pretty gorgeous stuff.

However, this is pretty bleak so if bleak really isn't your thing, maybe give this one a miss.

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

Birdland
by Patti Smith
"It was if someone had spread butter
On all the fine parts of the stars
Because when he looked up
They started to slip"

Mm, I was encouraged to start posting again and figured... why not?

Recently I created a playlist entirely devoted to the new love of my life. And no, Andrew, I don't mean you. I mean Patti Smith. This song is utterly exceptional. I went through a period of about three days where all I would listen to was Free Money and then I delved a bit more and stumbled upon this track along with poppies and it was a gorgeous few days, ignoring the virus-y fever.

My dad said that this song reminded him of his father.

I wish I had more to say but to be honest I think that sums up what I love about Patti Smith. There's something incredibly intimate and real about how she describes life. The scenes that she describes are like nothing I have ever experienced or felt but I still feel incredibly connected to her.

Besides, this song is gorgeous <3

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

Dismantle Me
by The Distillers
"I will always bleed the truth"

This blog became quite difficult to keep up with as everytime I wanted to share a song with you lovely folks, I couldn't find anywhere that I could link it from. But then I discovered the joy that is Spotify. What a beautiful day that was. Anyway, from now on all my links will be to Spotify so hopefully you have it installed and if not, I will have it linked at the side from now on.

I've never really been especially into The Distillers but there was a track that I really liked when I was in my mid-teens and naturally, Brody Dalle always stuck with me. However, thanks to Spotify, I have been listening to them a bit more and I absolutely love this acoustic track. It reminds me a lot of The Dresden Dolls.

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out
by Cat Stevens
"There's a million ways to go"

Day 6, apparently.

Listen to it here!
..and enjoy :)

I Love My Dog
by Cat Stevens
"I love my dog
As much as I love you;
You may fail
My dog will always come through"

Genius. I'd love to use this song in a documentary about bestiality.

Listen to it here!
..and enjoy :)

Here Comes My Baby
by Cat Stevens
"In the midnight moonlight Ill be walking a long and lonely mile.
And every time I do, I keep seeing this picture of you."

Phwoar. Now here's a jaunty tune. You've got to have a little boogie. Maybe. I'm very tired whilst typing this so it may sound a little drunken. Again, I absolutely adore the instrumentation. It's completely perfect for the song. One of the things I have found about Cat Stevens that I love is how complex the layers of instrumentation are. Gorgeous. I always notice something new and delicious :)

Listen to it here!
..and enjoy :)

Don't Be Shy
by Cat Stevens
"You know, love is better than a song
Love is where all of us belong"

The piano at the beginning of this song is so beautiful, and then the way the guitar creeps in. I love it. And the way he uses his voice is just spectacular. How anyone can not be in love with this man is a mystery to me. Seriously. I find this song really comforting... Comforting is definitely the right word :)

Listen to it here!
..and enjoy :)

Lady D'arbanville
by Cat Stevens
"My lady darbanville, you look so cold tonight.
Your lips feel like winter,
Your skin has turned to white"

This is easily one of my favourite Cat Stevens tracks because it's got a real air of pre-raphaelite and gothic storytelling and illustration. The lyrics are beautiful, yet quite dark and macabre. I absolutely adore the instrumentation in this song... and the background vocals... They fit perfectly with the lyrics

Listen to it here!
..and enjoy :)

The First Cut is the Deepest
by Cat Stevens
"I would have given you all of my heart
But theres someone whos torn it apart
And shes taking almost all that Ive got
But if you want, Ill try to love again
Baby Ill try to love again but I know
The first cut is the deepest"

I'd like to apologise first, not to you but to myself really. This blog is for me more than it is for anyone else. I need to keep doing stuff to stay busy and I've not been keeping up with any of my blogs for a while now.

I decided that I'd return with a Cat Stevens week. I realise that Thursday is an odd day to start a week... but shh.

So I thought I'd post this song because I've not posted it on Facebook yet, basically. I bought the 'best of' recently and since then I have tried listening to something else once (The Raconteurs) and had to turn it off before even the first track was finished. And then Cat Stevens returned promptly.

Cat Stevens. His lyrics are gorgeous, his guitar playing is gorgeous, his voice is gorgeous. In short, he's the love of my life. WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL THIS TIME, CAT?! To think for ages I kept listening to 'Father and Son' again and again and completely missed other tracks.

I hope you'll come back to hear more Cat Stevens this week, especially Tom, you Cat Stevens virgin, you.

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

Ruby Love
by Cat Stevens
"You'll be my day and night"

How gorgeous is this? *swoons* You've just got to love Cat Stevens. There is something undeniably beautiful about his music. His voice is very soothing. I decided to share this song with you for two reasons:

1. I heard it in the car the other day and had forgotten that this was a Cat Stevens masterpiece
2. I just ordered The Very Best of Cat Stevens... at half six on a Sunday morning.

Now I think I might get some breakfast and go to bed.

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

The Heritage
by Martin Grech
"Every man must learn to love his demon
His demon's name is yours."

'The Heritage' is easily my favourite Martin Grech song to date. It comes from his most recent album 'March of the Lonely' which was very different to his other stuff but I totally welcomed it because he pulled it off so (seemingly) effortlessly. Most of his music has been very dark and become heavy but this album is acoustic and very pretty. He is an absolute poet.

Listen to it here!
And enjoy :)

Perfect Gentleman
by Wyclef Jean
"Forty grand, looked into her eyes, I saw tears falling
down, type of tears that money couldn't buy"

I'd like to start by saying that I am not posting this song because I have any particular love of it. I've heard it a couple of times lately thanks to the Pepsi Chart albums that I keep playing in Sam's car. Anyway, there are a few things about this song that I do like:

1. It really makes me laugh because it's ridiculous.
2. The way he says things because it's ridiculous.
3. The title because it's ridiculous (can you see where I'm going with this?)
4. The line "Just 'cuz she dances go-go//It don't make her a ho, no" because it's ridiculous.

On the other hand I do really like the line I've quoted at the top ("Forty grand, looked into her eyes, I saw tears falling down, type of tears that money couldn't buy") because it's so poignant. And he has got quite a nice voice, even if he does say 'Mexico' in a very strange way.

Listen To It Here <3

Electricity
by Orchestral Manoevers In the Dark
"The chance to change has nearly gone
The alternative is only one
The final source of energy
Solar electricity"

I like listening to this album all loud. It sounds good loud. Really loud. It just washes over you in a lovely way. I love the vocals in OMD. They're strange but beautiful, all the same.

These blogs have lost all evidence of effort.

Listen To It Here <3

Starlight
by Supermen Lovers
"Heart is pure and thoughts are clear"

Does anyone else remember when this song came out? It's very fun and funky and I remember that at the time, it was one of those songs that just everyone loved. Or maybe my memory has been distorted by time and joy at being reminded of this song by a trance dance mix I was listening to earlier?

Listen To It Here <3

Do You Remember The First Time?
by Pulp
"We've changed so much since then
Oh, yeah we've grown
Now I don't care what you're doing
I don't care if you screw him
Just as long as you save a piece for me"

I was listening to this song in the bath earlier. I want to ramble on about this... but I am feeling absolutely wretched...

Hopefully it will suffice that I love this song. Jarvis has a pretty accent.

Listen To It Here <3