Desert Island XI - QUARANTINE ISLAND - Group 2 Listening Thread

[bono_212]

I meant to mention, LN7, but thank you for bringing this J. Views track into my life. It's been on repeat over here today.

 

[gump]

Hey tourist, thank you for your detailed comments. I really appreciate them. I am glad you found some new artists you enjoyed. And if this list (and DaveC's) gets you into Talking Heads, I'll consider it a job well done.

Television's Marquee Moon is as classic as it gets, and I'll definitely suggest that as a first album to check out. The title song is incredible.

Annie Clark (the artist behind St Vincent) is one of the very best guitar players there is, which you couldn't know from the song I selected. But do check out Strange Mercy (Cruel is my favorite song there).

I'm getting more and more into Lana recently. I think her latest album, Norman Fucking Rockwell, is brilliant (it was my favorite album of last year).

Thanks again, really liked reading your comments.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

For the most part, outside of that one, I thought that the transitions were pretty much fine. That actually comes out of the one "failing" this list has for me and that's that the sound is too samey. These are a lot of fairly similar artists and for an extended period of time.

With that being said, I already knew going in I love most of these songs, so of course I had a GREAT time listening to it. The only song I think I didn't like, which took me by surprise, was the Simple Minds track .

I'd definitely like to hear a bit more about your stories behind the songs, I was a little surprised by how short your write-up ended up being. But if it's something you'd rather keep private, I of course understand!

I'll have a hack at giving a follow-up walk through of the songs right now. In some sense it's personal, but not in the sense that I wouldn't share. More just that it's not easy to tell without writing a novel for each song. What's a mental note in my mind can be a book in writing, and preferred to attempt to let the music do the talking a little bit, rather than bore people with my life story. Anyways... I have tons of writing (and programming!) to do for Desert Island, but since I'm on deck for people listening right now, I'll have my go at it now.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

So, my playlist is actually broken up by instrumental tracks every 6-10 songs. Each instrumental is a sort of "break" from the past. I'll marker the instrumentals and write a summary of each section.

Okay, full story mode.

Section 1.
1. U2 - "Elvis Presley and America" - The Unforgettable Fire (6:23)
2. The Killers - "This River is Wild" - Sam's Town (4:38)
3. The Airborne Toxic Event - "Innocence" - The Airborne Toxic Event (6:50)
4. Dan Black ft. Kid Cudi - "Symphonies" - The:Hours Recordings - The Debut Years (3:49)
5. Twenty One Pilots - "Holding on to You" - Vessel (4:24)

Spoiler

The year is 2010 and I'm a freshman in college. I've left my home and am starting totally new. I've left behind a lot. In high school I was always pretty much the social floater. People liked me but I was not really close to anyone, so the friends that I relied on were not really the type I wanted to keep around. Moving to Orlando, I had nothing but time to explore various different aspects of me that I never really did before. Music, fitness, my emotions, my sexuality, the sort. That was definitely the year I became obsessed with U2. Also the year I "learned to run." I was never the most fit of people, and I'm still not. But running was something that helped clear my mind. When I learned to run, it was a turning point in my life to get out of some pretty dark places. Every morning for about three weeks straight, with the same shortlist of songs to try and squeeze out 10 minutes of running. Streets, EPAA, Bittersweet Symphony, and Bad. Freshman year was still rough, but it had me realign which type of people I valued. I was lucky enough to be able to "hand pick" new friends leading into sophomore year. Some of my best friends egged me into smoking weed, and I treated it like it was my virginity. I was obsessed with music, and wanted my song to be playing the first time I smoked weed. EPAA. There's some flow into the next song, but it's not really there. Why? I remember taking one hit and saying... no... no it's okay. Change the song.Put Kid Cudi on, this is just weird haha. Anyways, another "hand picked" friend of mine was a kid from high school that absolutely just took the most shit. He was not well liked at all. He was bullied. Richard was also a Killers fan though, and by coincidence, he and I managed to end up going to the Killers first two shows after Battle Born was released. So, EPAA was a giant build up of a static me, supercharging solo until my journey truly begins. This was designed to emulate my experiences a little bit... before I start my playlist for real with The Killers, I want to get my song out there, like Sonic doing his little spin before rolling away.

So by the end of sophomore year I'm pretty much like, fully explored out on the static me. I've got my gay online world and I've come out to people, but I'd still never been on a date. I didn't know any other gay people. I'm 20 at that point. All that good stuff happens when I meet a fella named Kyle, hence the song Innocence. But the first love is not love at all, just mutual beloved experience. I channel a Symphonies next to suggest, hey, all the love in the world for that first experience, but I'm an explorer and need to have experiences with other people. The feeling was mutual. For a while, I was invincible. I could date whoever I wanted, whenever I wanted. It was easy. A naive mind that doesn't know hurt is happy. Though my mind is fragile. I struggle with anxiety and at times depression. Eventually the hurt came, one after another. One particular fellow, a Disney gay (local Orlando lingo for someone who works at the parks and isn't originally from the area), stood me up in a very miserable way. Holding On to You was a mentally unstable episode of mine encompassing that experience, culminating in a bit of road rage where I very well could've died. I liked the hard part at the end of the song, transitioning into some silence and a more pensive instrumental track.

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6. Augustines - "The Instrumental" - Rise Ye Sunken Ships (3:51)
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Section 2.
7. The Knife - "Heartbeats" - Deep Cuts (3:52)
8. Twin Shadow - "Beg for the Night" - Confess (3:42)
9. We Were Promised Jetpacks - "Quiet Little Voices" - These Four Walls (4:21)
10. The Walkmen - "The Rat" - Bows + Arrows (4:22)
11. Night Terrors of 1927 ft. Tegan & Sara - "When You Were Mine" - Anything to Anyone (3:55)
12. Bleachers - "Wild Heart" - Strange Desire (3:20)
13. Majical Cloudz - "Downtown" - Are You Alone? (4:09)
14. Wintersleep - "Weighty Ghost" - Welcome to the Night Sky (3:39)

Spoiler

I'm now entering my final year of college. I've got the perfect friends, the perfect house for college, I'm able to make amazing experiences happen. Everything's going great, but I'm still pretty alone. I'm perhaps a bit stupid in love - the classical INTJ, who is paradoxical in idealist demands but realist expectations. And, as you all know, I'm quite a bit of effort to deal with. So then along comes Jason, that sociopathic piece of shit. If you're ever wondering why my attitude changed, I'll credit this experience. For this, I'll save you the long story, but if you know the saying "being kept at arm's length," now imagine if that happens, but the arm holding you back also has an unbreakable grip on your collar, refusing to let you go.

Heartbeats was something he introduced to me. It's maybe a little twisted to include it as part of my narrative, but I do love the song to death, and it coincidentally is (roughly) about amazing first experiences followed by unrequited love and rejection. A couple of songs through the journey with some mental screaming and struggles, etc., ..., when you were mine, etc., you get the gist. Next twisted part, but Downtown was also introduced to me by him as another one of his favorites (and chronologically, too). The song is basically about falling under someone's spell. Obsession. I was obsessed. I've later come to understand this experience as emotional abuse. I was routinely broken down and brought back up again. Queue Weighty Ghost. I was gunning for some funeral vibes here, with a reflective tone. Waking up one day, looking in the mirror, and seeing that that dream I'd built up was actually a nightmare. I wasn't the same. I needed to dream it all up again. So fuck it, time to go on an adventure.

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15. Phoenix - "Heatwave" - Heatwave (4:20)
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Section 3.
16. Santigold - "Who I Thought You Were" - 99 Cents (3:49)
17. Gordi - "Can We Work it Out" - Can We Work it Out (4:21)
18. CHVRCHES - "Do I Wanna Know?" - triple j Like A Version (4:18)
19. Zola Jesus - "Dangerous Days" - Taiga (4:30)
20. Arcade Fire - "Half Light II (No Celebration)" - The Suburbs (4:27)

Spoiler

I've graduated college and I'm off to travel France and the UK and Ireland to get some different perspective. My first time out of the country alone. Je ne parle pas francais. Over a month, I spent the time learning to be social solo, with different people in different places. All in the meanwhile, I got an opportunity to reflect on my life after five years of grueling-paced undergrad (I did two degrees). For a while I really thought about going back after that fellow. It took two years to really recapture my own mind. This section is a series of songs reflecting upon the massive ride that was my final year of college, and seeing off Orlando, where my coming of age began. June of 2016. It's my birthday, and I've doubled that up as a moving-out party, because I've made the decision - I'm moving to England to live the adventure I so desperately need to continue. Fortunately, I had all of my friends there with me that night, as this was the night of the Pulse Nightclub shooting. That really set the mood for my goodbye to Orlando, and while the lyrical content of Half Light II was maybe not representative, the tone really does indeed set "no celebration." I never forgot sitting there in that car, a glutton for punishment with this song going, looking at that house for the last time. It felt straight up Fresh Prince. "When I got here, I was a relative. For the past six years, we've been family."

I'm now starting to think I avoided writing the whole story because it's all sad!

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21. Eno · Hyde - "Return" - High Life (9:00)
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Section 4.
22. Modest Mouse - "Lampshades on Fire" - Strangers to Ourselves (3:08)
23. Simple Minds - "Reel to Real" - Reel to Real Cacophony (2:50)
24. Partenaire Particulier - "Partenaire Particulier" - Le son des années 80 (4:06)
25. Nour Al Zain & Ghazwan Elfhad - "Gaynalk Bhaya" - Gaynalk Bhaya (4:07)
26. Animal Collective - "Summertime Clothes" - Summertime Clothes (4:34)
27. J. Views & Wild Cub - "Into the Light" - (4:31)
28. Future Islands - "Ran" - The Far Field (3:26)
29. Ought - "Desire" - Room Inside the World (5:19)
30. The Horrors - "Something to Remember Me By" - V (6:40)
31. The National - "I Am Easy to Find" - I Am Easy to Find (4:31)

Spoiler

Admittedly, this section is abrupt. I ran out of bandwidth, but this is supposed to capture two years, which in their own right were filled with more experiences than I could justify this late in the playlist. This is England, Italy, France, Texas, and DC all together. Modest Mouse is supposed to provide a little more of an aggressive tone here, as by now I'm just out of emotions and more a cold and calculated machine on a mission to soak up the world. The series of songs from Modest Mouse through Animal Collective is intentionally designed to be increasingly more confusing, loud, obnoxious, and dissonant. I'm doing 120 hours a week on my master's project, sitting in a shisha cafe because it's the only thing open late enough to continue working. Nour Al Zain is playing, and pardon my French, but this is way fucking beyond that at this point. One year, 20 countries, 4 continents, 30 flights, 54 trains, and a master's degree all in one go. So yeah, I threw a bunch of confusing and loud sounds in languages I don't speak - pulling that together with Animal Collective seemed to be a good way out of it. The latter half of this section is more of a mature reflection of living life on the road, consistently leaving things behind every step of the way. Each one of these songs thematically presents this in some way or another. I wrap things up with I Am Easy to Find. No sense in me explaining that song directly, so to quote Matt Berninger:

"What makes you you? It’s about how often we lose an idea of ourselves, or we can’t catch up to who we’re becoming. And you can be found—that’s why we’re not alone. When you get totally fucked up and you’re in that dark space, you can send a little text to somebody. You can connect."

Maybe you got more than you bargained for, but that's the short version of this!

 

[LuckyNumber7]

LN7's list:

It's good to know your audience, because opening a mixtape with a really weird and meandering six minute early U2 track might not work in other circles but it works here!
The Killers track that follows is a fun one and fits alongside U2 due to its bombastic nature.
I am not a fan of Twenty One Pilots at all, sorry, but thankfully you have "Heartbeats" by the Knife soon after and this is a modern classic! Hadn't heard it in a long time but it's a great choice.
Twin Shadow and the Walkmen were other standouts on this part of the playlist.
An instrumental Phoenix track!
Holy shit, I had never heard this CHVRCHES cover of Arctic Monkeys. Hmmm. It's cool, I would have preferred hearing the original as I think the vocal delivery on that one is a lot better, but thank you for making me aware that this exists.
The stretch from Zola Jesus -> Modest Mouse is all really strong
"Summertime Clothes" is one of my favorite AC tracks.
And finally, when I first read through your list I saw the National song you were closing with and I had it in my mind that the song was "Hard To Find" off Trouble Will Find Me. So while listening it was a tremendously pleasant surprise when I realized it was actually the title track off last year's album. I like this song a lot more than the one I was anticipating and I think it makes a great playlist closer.

Good shit.

Haha I'll chalk it up as me knowing my audience, though I've been known to make many people unwillingly experiment with EPAA.

Appreciate the feedback, and I'm glad there's some new content in pair with some already-appreciated music.

 

[LuckyNumber7]

Onto LN7.

Elvis Presley In America will never top any of my U2 lists, but it really is a gem. The second half of the song especially is just great and I wish they’d put something out like that again. The guitars for the last half are excellent as well. The only gripe I’ve ever really had with that song is that some of Bono’s esses are really piercing. But that’s a production thing. The flow into The River Is Wild really works for me, and after my posts about gump’s list, I’ll tongue-in-cheek amend that statement because this is my favorite Bruce Springsteen song. I like the instrumental of Innocence better than the vocals - they weren’t my favorite. The next couple flowed well together but I didn’t care for them. Twenty One Pilots is one of the few bands I actively avoid, and if we are listening to the radio in the car, I will change the station. Just never have liked them at all.

The Instrumental was pleasant and atmospheric. Heartbeat was nice and upbeat. I’m not sure if I’ll investigate The Knife further, but I did like that song. And then Beg For The Night. I love it. Confess was near the top of my album of the year the year the year it came out, and it’s aged very well - I was just listening to this record a bunch a couple months ago and used Five Seconds on my own list. Then as I was listening to Quiet Little Voices, I kept thinking it reminded me of something that The Walkman would release. So when The Rat started then, it was about as perfect as I could imagine. The Rat is one of my favorites by The Walkmen - I only like Heaven better.

And then there’s When You Were Mine. I love this. Never heard of Night Terrors of 1927 but it’s definitely going into my list of artists to check out. Wild Heart is one of the few by Bleachers that I’ve heard. I like everything I’ve heard by them so I think I also need to add them to my list. The next section was solid but lesser than what preceded it. It kinda melted together as I was working. Downtown was my favorite of the group, with the moody atmosphere. Picked back up for me at Can We Work It Out. And I liked the Arctic Monkeys cover a whole lot more than I expected to! Dangerous Days was alright also. Not my favorite.

Half Light II is a song I’d forgotten about. That album is an album I admire so much and I always enjoy it when I hear it, but rarely find myself seeking it out. Return was difficult for me to get through. It felt like a lot longer than it was. Probably one of my personal weakest points so far. Modest Mouse is a band I wish I could like more. To me they’re like Red Hot Chili Peppers in that I almost always like the music but the singer just gets in the way of me really liking it. Reel to Reel was not what I would expect from Simple Minds. I didn’t dislike it, but for me it was just kinda... there. As I type this minutes later I don’t recall it. Probably because it’s onto another song, granted, but yeah. The next one reminded me of some generic 80s synth pop. Usually I like that stuff, but I always have difficulty with different languages in pop music. I mentioned that on Laz’s list. It’s just a me thing. Gaynalk Bhaya is not in a genre that’s in my wheelhouse, but for what it was, it was solid, but not something I’d come back to.

Then we get to Summertime Clothes. Top two Animal Collective to me. Always love it. I’ve never heard of J. Views, but I really like Wild Cub, so I really enjoyed Into the Light quite a bit. Ran was alright, but probably not enough to get me to check Future Island out more. And I did not care for Desire. But then wow! Something To Remember Me By is just about perfect. I listened to an album by them way back and kinda wrote them off as I didn’t care for it much. This changes everything. I’ll have to dig into them for sure. And then the ending with I Am Easy To Find was nice. The National are one of my favorite bands, and although this isn’t one of my favorites by them, the lower bar they set is still higher than most bands in my estimation.

Final thoughts:

I liked this list a lot more than I thought I would on paper. My favorite discoveries are When You Were Mine, Into The Light, and Something To Remember Me By. Favorite section was Twin Shadow->Majical Cloudz.

Least favorite parts were 21 Pilots, Eno • Hyde, and Ought.

Overall very positive about this list. The flow was fairly good - there were parts that jumped a bit but I didn’t make any specific notes about that. Thanks for participating and helping me discover new stuff!

Glad you were able to find new stuff on it. Thanks for your feedback!

For the record, you can lump Twenty One Pilots and Imagine Dragons as two acts of that time whose rise to fame was followed by some really awful music, and I no longer like either. But that I'm still a fan of that song, and it was highly relevant for that slot.

As for Night Terrors of 1927, unfortunately they came and went pretty quickly. I was really thinking nobody would like that song, so I'm glad you did! And as for Bleachers, which is actually strangely just Jack Antonoff from Fun., his first album is a banger. He's a great guy, and though I don't think his second album is up to par with the first (a bit tacky), overall I'd still recommend his music.

Okay, I owe a lot of people a lot of feedback on their own lists. Thank you thank you thank you for listening everyone so far, and thanks again for all the feedback. I have about ten pages of reviews to write and ton of charts to make for you all!

 

[namkcuR]

I started this group off with GAF.

Gaffer! This list is exactly what you called it - "A Bunch of Good Songs"!

This was a super fun of mix of old favorites, new(to me) tracks from artists I'm familiar with, and new discoveries from artists I'm not so familiar with.

Old Favorites - REM, Tom Petty, Blondie, Bowie, Beatles, ABBA, Bruce - all classic tracks. I was particularly tickled you chose that Blondie song because I'd used it myself for the Retro Island Mini-game probably a decade ago.

New(to me) tracks from artists I'm familiar with:

Prince - Starfish and Coffee is stupidly catchy. It's still in my head.

Costello - I feel like I've heard this song before, it sounds very familiar.

Brian Eno - The man is a genius.

The Who - It's The Who!

The Cure - I love the Cure, but I'm not familiar with Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me. I know I should be, but I've just spent much more time with Disintegration and Wish. Quality track.

New discoveries from artists I'm not so familiar with:

Manic Street Preachers - One of those groups I should be more familiar with. This track is melodic 90s guitar goodness

XTC - Fun and catchy, melodic, bouncy rhythm.

Big Star - Big Star's praises have been sung here for years, and though I've never really dug into their catalogue, every time I hear a song of theirs, I usually end up liking it. This is no exception!

Great job man, I had a ton of fun listening to this one.

 

[cobl04]

Lucky Number 7 man. Your list was up today. Again, overall, really enjoyed it. Plenty of great songs. It probably had the highest number of songs I didn't like of any playlist so far, but on the other side of that coin, it was also a list that didn't suffer from any issues of lag or homogeneity as others have.

EPAA was a cool opener. The Killers I've never been able to get into. I think there are just so many other artists out there with that sound and aside from those three big hits way back when, I've never been able to find another Killers song that can match them.

We came to Airborne Toxic Event, which triggered me, because it took me back to a previous DI comp, where there was a list either by you, or maybe AtomicBono (was that the name?) that I really didn't like much from, and that name stuck in my head, cos the song stuck in my fucking iTunes for years until I went and cleaned it up and deleted it. (Rancid in Laz's list also triggered me, cos it took me back to an IWB list, which I almost universally disliked, haha. No hate IWB if ya readin. Just not my thing.) Anyway, this Airborne Toxic song seemed quite good tbh! Some almost LC! vibes at times, quite enjoyed it. I'm long past the point of caring about Kid Cudi, this track was a bit strange and not my thing, and then the 21 Pilots track was, aside from the Royals abomination on Laz's list, the worst song I've heard in this comp so far. Get why people would like it, but no thanks.

(I've paused here to read your summary, thanks so much for doing that! Felt really nice to connect to you a bit and hear a bit about your story. Also, the whole thing makes much more sense now! I wish I'd read that first. Big fan of using playlists to explore a lifelong rite of passage.)

From Knife to Walkmen was a fantastic run, then some songs I didn't like, then Heatwave, which sent me down a rabbit hole!! "Woah! This song sounds SO familiar. Me humming until I get the track I'm thinking of. ...consider things... from another point of view... Must be a cover or something. Lead to me finding out that DB Boulevard's certified banger Point of View, which was a MASSIVE hit in Australia, do you know it? And anyway, turns out that song is a cover/sample of this super old obscure Phoenix song! What a cool discovery." Speaking of Australia, we saw Gordi live, I think she opened for... Gang of Youths when we first saw them.

Major, major, major points for Return. You've got way better music taste than I thought. I think historically I've shit on you a bit over the years, and I apologise for that.

I really didn't like that Modest Mouse album. Left me cold as. Reel to Real was really cool, not something I'd expect from Simple Minds, probably how some people feel about Numb. Didn't like any of the next three songs, and the transition into Summertime Clothes was awful, but, reading your explanation now, it doesn't really matter. (Opinion: Animal Collective have one good song.)

Last five tracks were great, loved the JViews song, Future Islands are great, The Horrors track was great (dude sounded a lot like Paul Banks at one point) and my favourite song from my potentially favourite National album to finish.

Great job man! And keep living your life.

 

[bono_212]

LN7, I am going to come back to your write-up, especially since I requested it!

For now, I'm taking the dog and the baby out for a stroll and taking The Tourist's list along with me.

 

[iron yuppie]

Gump part 1: I really, really liked that this took some chances with genre-hopping. The playlists I have heard so far have been pretty conservative in that regard, so hearing some jazz, soul, and a string of hip-hop was refreshing, not to mention directly reflective of your city-scape theme. Loved the transition from Cliff Brown into Beastie Boys - though maybe the lyrics of the BB track are a bit on-the-nose? - and Stevie Wonder into Bobby Womack. Lots to look forward to in the second part, which I hope to get to tonight.

 

[Hewson]

LN7, I am going to come back to your write-up, especially since I requested it!

For now, I'm taking the dog and the baby out for a stroll and taking The Tourist's list along with me.

They don't need you...

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

I started this group off with GAF.

Gaffer! This list is exactly what you called it - "A Bunch of Good Songs"!

This was a super fun of mix of old favorites, new(to me) tracks from artists I'm familiar with, and new discoveries from artists I'm not so familiar with.

Old Favorites - REM, Tom Petty, Blondie, Bowie, Beatles, ABBA, Bruce - all classic tracks. I was particularly tickled you chose that Blondie song because I'd used it myself for the Retro Island Mini-game probably a decade ago.

New(to me) tracks from artists I'm familiar with:

Prince - Starfish and Coffee is stupidly catchy. It's still in my head.

Costello - I feel like I've heard this song before, it sounds very familiar.

Brian Eno - The man is a genius.

The Who - It's The Who!

The Cure - I love the Cure, but I'm not familiar with Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me. I know I should be, but I've just spent much more time with Disintegration and Wish. Quality track.

New discoveries from artists I'm not so familiar with:

Manic Street Preachers - One of those groups I should be more familiar with. This track is melodic 90s guitar goodness

XTC - Fun and catchy, melodic, bouncy rhythm.

Big Star - Big Star's praises have been sung here for years, and though I've never really dug into their catalogue, every time I hear a song of theirs, I usually end up liking it. This is no exception!

Great job man, I had a ton of fun listening to this one.

Thanks man! Yeah, those three artists you listed that you're not too familiar with are three of my favorites. Manic Street Preachers, check out their album The Holy Bible. It might not be for everybody but I think it's one of the best and most powerful albums ever.

The song I used is off Everything Must Go, the album that followed The Holy Bible, and it's also a great one. Probably a bit more accessible, too.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

Tourist's list:

First of all, this thing had excellent ***flow*** throughout. Really thoughtfully put together.
The list is populated by a lot of bright, synthy, dancey indie pop songs. This is not my favorite genre, but I still enjoyed it and appreciate being introduced to so many new artists. And there were definitely some standouts.
I totally recognize the Family of the Year song but I can't remember where I've heard it. Might have just heard it on the radio at some point. Catchy.
The Generationals track was one of those standouts.
My ears perked up a bit when the Author track started because the guitar tone was different than anything else on the list...it was crunchy.
Carly -> Gambino is cool. They'd make a good 21st century celeb couple.
Colourist, Wild Nothing, and Twin Shadow were all new tracks to me that I really liked.
Also have to say I love the cover art for your list. Where the hell is that?

Good shit.

 

[the tourist]

Tourist's list:

First of all, this thing had excellent ***flow*** throughout. Really thoughtfully put together.
The list is populated by a lot of bright, synthy, dancey indie pop songs. This is not my favorite genre, but I still enjoyed it and appreciate being introduced to so many new artists. And there were definitely some standouts.
I totally recognize the Family of the Year song but I can't remember where I've heard it. Might have just heard it on the radio at some point. Catchy.
The Generationals track was one of those standouts.
My ears perked up a bit when the Author track started because the guitar tone was different than anything else on the list...it was crunchy.
Carly -> Gambino is cool. They'd make a good 21st century celeb couple.
Colourist, Wild Nothing, and Twin Shadow were all new tracks to me that I really liked.
Also have to say I love the cover art for your list. Where the hell is that?

Good shit.

Thanks dude! Glad you found some stuff you enjoy! The picture was one I took last year at the Evergreen State Fair, which is in Washington state.

 

[gump]

Gump part 1: I really, really liked that this took some chances with genre-hopping. The playlists I have heard so far have been pretty conservative in that regard, so hearing some jazz, soul, and a string of hip-hop was refreshing, not to mention directly reflective of your city-scape theme. Loved the transition from Cliff Brown into Beastie Boys - though maybe the lyrics of the BB track are a bit on-the-nose? - and Stevie Wonder into Bobby Womack. Lots to look forward to in the second part, which I hope to get to tonight.

Ha. Yes on the Beastie Boys song. The lyrics are silly but I find them endearing. And some of the post-9/11 motifs work for the current situation ("Dear New York I hope you're doing well
I know a lot's happened and you've been through hell"). They are such a essential NY band, though, and namedropping a bunch of neighborhoods works for the playlist, I think.

I'm glad you liked that transition. It took a while to find a version of Take the A Train that would work there, and I love the intro in this version. To me, that intro is the sound of NYC. Hope you'll enjoy the second disc.

 

[iron yuppie]

Yeah I used a good amount of jazz on my list and transitioning in and out of it was not easy.

 

[iron yuppie]

There really is no one else like Tom Waits. It's a small miracle he can craft a romantic song out of that voice.

 

[cobl04]

His 70s records are my favourite, before someone took a sledgehammer to his throat. Not that I don't like his post-70s work, I do, but the more lovelorn, romantic, piano-led, bar lounge, almost-easy listening style of his 70s records kills me.

 

[iron yuppie]

Gump, the feeling of your playlist is lockstep with your intended concept. Part 2:

* The Patti Smith track was a riot - evocative of the urban sleaze it seems to be describing - and following it with Iggy Pop, who always sounds like he just woke up in the gutter, was a nice touch.

* The Television track led me to some good background reading on the band because I was wondering what the connection to NYC was.

* I have always felt Lana Del Rey is too prone to meandering, but that kind of drifting atmosphere makes sense in this context.

* Geese of Beverly Road will always strike a chord no matter how many times I hear it.

* I appreciate the efficiency of this list - while I am always down for early Elton John and some of the other artists you mentioned in the prelude, there is a clear sense of editing here that contributes to the impression of the list as a whole.

 

[the tourist]

Hey tourist, thank you for your detailed comments. I really appreciate them. I am glad you found some new artists you enjoyed. And if this list (and DaveC's) gets you into Talking Heads, I'll consider it a job well done.



Television's Marquee Moon is as classic as it gets, and I'll definitely suggest that as a first album to check out. The title song is incredible.



Annie Clark (the artist behind St Vincent) is one of the very best guitar players there is, which you couldn't know from the song I selected. But do check out Strange Mercy (Cruel is my favorite song there).



I'm getting more and more into Lana recently. I think her latest album, Norman Fucking Rockwell, is brilliant (it was my favorite album of last year).



Thanks again, really liked reading your comments.

I’m putting Lana Del Ray into my non-DI listening queue. I’ll put Norman at the top. Also I have heard the guitar comment about St. Vincent but I think every song I’ve heard has been fairly devoid of guitar. I’ll have to check her out further.

 

[cobl04]

“Surgeon” has her best guitar imo

 

[LemonMelon]

I have many thoughts on gump's list.

First of all, I liked it very much and it's my personal guess for the list that will win the whole thing. If you seriously want to win DI in 2020, you have to keep your list under 2 hours; this one had efficiency, classic song choices and a clear concept to help it resonate with a plurality of listeners.

With that being said, the list being shorter meant more of it stood out on first pass, so I have more specific commentary.

First of all, I loved the Clifford Brown/Max Roach track. Highly evocative and striking opening the list. It worked extremely well with the Wu-Tang and Tribe tracks to evoke the sound of New York.

And then there's the Beastie Boys track. As the Clifford Brown/Max Roach track went along, my mind buzzed with different jazzy Beastie Boys songs that would make for a great transition (many of them on Ill Communication), but this one...I've just never been a fan of it. Not the track, not the album. Maybe my least favorite by them. It's very clearly the right pick thematically, but it didn't work as well in this section as I wish it had.

Living For the City is a masterpiece, but I didn't like how it was used in this part of the list in terms of mood. I'm over here chilling with Phife Dawg and the Abstract, and then...well...I'm back to being depressed as hell, all in one track. I really think this one needed a buffer, some way of blending in with the rest of the list.

Loved the Bobby Womack track and didn't know it going in.

Most of the rock section towards the end of the first half was well-sequenced and generally comprised of classics. I forgot about that great New York Dolls track. I was impressed by how well Talking Heads transitioned out of Bobby Womack.

I did NOT like the Le Tigre track and didn't think it benefited the flow amongst these 60s and 70s rock songs. That one is a skip for me.

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs needed to be on this list, but I didn't particularly care for the song choice. Along with the Beastie Boys, maybe an instance of your theme showing up too literally in the song choices at the expense of potentially stronger picks that could have worked to evoke the theme in other ways.

The second half was in general a lot more consistent in terms of quality and mood and I loved most of it.

The opening run of Patti Smith/Iggy Pop/Tom Waits was fantastic and I didn't know the first two tracks. That Patti Smith song is a keeper.

While I enjoyed all of the individual tracks from Joni Mitchell, Television and Eleanor Friedberger (it's one of her best solo tracks), I didn't get what this section was going for. My gut tells me that this section needed fleshing out or that the songs need to be shifted around to different parts of the list.

I can't listen to New York anymore because I have terrible memories associated with it, but it's a great song. Lana was great too. Hell, I love all the songs at the end of this list and it all flowed great. The last half dozen songs made for a fantastic run.

It's a great list, and with a few additions and a couple subtractions, it would be one of my favorite DI lists ever. Just a few sections needed a little fleshing out and a couple of tracks were not near the artist's best work because the theme came first in that instance.

 

[Joey788]

Alright, LN7 is up.

- I think you did a great job of setting moods and finding ways to gradually deviate from them until you found a new mood to latch onto. There were lots of familiar names, but mostly unfamiliar songs attached to them. Some of the artists I love, while others do nothing for me.
- Enjoyed the start of this one. “Elvis Presley and America” was an unorthodox opener, but I think it worked in setting a cloudy, early dawn vibe.
- I haven’t listened to “This River Is Wild” in more than a decade. I was disappointed in Sam’s Town when it was released. But maybe I need to give it another chance. This tune isn’t bad at all. Also, what do you all think is the best Killers album besides Hot Fuss? I still must give it to Day & Age. I’m looking forward to the new one though.
- I liked both “Innocence” and “Symphonies.” But I absolutely can’t stand Twenty One Pilots and this track did not change my mind.
- That Augustines song reminded me a bit of The Decemberists. I’ll need to check out their work. The instrumental was a nice reset, but the flow was a bit sudden into The Knife.
- Twin Shadow is just fun. The only time I saw him live, he closed the set with a cover of “Panema.” It was fantastic.
- We Were Promised Jetpacks and The Walkmen gave your list a big boost of energy just when it was needed. Both songs hit all the right places.
- I like this collaboration more than most of Tegan & Sara’s recent pop albums. Night Terrors of 1927 is also an awesome band name.
- The segment from Bleachers to Phoenix lost me, as I’m not a fan of any of those artists. I’ve seen Bleachers at a festival though and do have to say they put on a good show. I also have no problems with Jack Antonoff as a producer. Why is he so controversial in that role?
- Santigold and Gordi made for an excellent back-to-back segment. The CHVRCHES track fell flat for me, but then major points for including Zola Jesus. Her music is excellent, and I feel like she gets less credit or success than she deserves. She’s a one-of-a-kind performer.
- “Half Light II” is a great, intense cut to pick off The Suburbs.
- “Return” was another unknown for me, but one that I immensely enjoyed.
- The next few tracks didn’t work for me. Modest Mouse and Simple Minds were alright, but “Gaynalk Bhaya” and “Summertime Clothes” were big misses.
- Your playlist wrapped up in a very strong manner though. “Into the Light” led perfectly into “Ran,” one of my fav Future Islands songs.
- “Something to Remember Me By” would’ve been the obvious pick to wrap things up, like it does on The Horrors’ album. But after 20 seconds of so of silence, you hear the lovely piano of “I Am Easy To Find” and it just works so well. I’ll admit that The National track didn’t do a ton for me on my first listen through the album. But now, I’ve grown to really love it. Wonderful melodies and set of lyrics – and those wordless harmonies was a beautiful way to wrap this up.
- This playlist was hit-or-miss for me in some of the song selections, but when it hit, it really worked. I appreciate the more off-kilter choices made throughout and adored the ending segment too.

 

[Axver]

Alright, time for Ruckman's list.

The intro is absolutely not at all what I would expect to hear from Coldplay, although I suppose I get it as an album closer. The transition into Marooned was really effective - I rate Division Bell quite highly among Pink Floyd's output but admit this track has gone a bit overlooked for me lately. In turn, Marooned led really well into this Frusciante jam; I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. I've had a few people in the past urge me to listen to his solo material (hello out there djerdap!) but had never got to it.

In fact, the whole sequencing is remarkably good - from the opener to Thom Yorke it is just astounding. I basically didn't notice track changes and would find myself thinking "oh I must be at least two minutes into another artist". This has a really haunting, unsettled atmosphere. It's excellent; you've crafted something that fits the times. Nick Cave as a closer is the ideal full stop. I honestly know almost nothing about Ryan Adams except that there was a woman on here obsessed with him and that he then got cancelled, but this track was rather good - in terms of individual songs, if removed from the larger context you've created here, I just might (har har) even say it's the best.

I'll hit up the second section shortly.

 

[Axver]

Annoyingly, the Fastball and Edna Swap songs are not on Australian Spotify - heads up Cobbler. Fortunately for my own nostalgia, The Way is, a track that still slaps today, but only four other songs from All the Pain Money Can Buy are available here. (In a prior thread I raised this problem, funnily enough because I'd been listening to The Way, never expecting someone would use a deeper cut from the album.)

Anyway, here they are on YouTube.

Fastball, Good Old Days:
Edna Swap, Torn:

Interesting journey through nineties nostalgia. Once or twice a year I find myself lining up a whole bunch of tunes that were all over Australian rock radio in the mid/late nineties. Some of these are familiar, some aren't. This might be the first time I've heard a Barenaked Ladies song not called One Week. I had a "holy shit" moment with the Del Amitri song - I didn't recognise the title on your list at all, but the moment the first notes began, yeah, I can still sing along to this (except that I thought the chorus was "the right time, the wrong me"). The mix during the verses is a pain in the arse through headphones, with the vocals just in the right channel. I also had no idea who was responsible for She's So High; I wondered if this would be the song I expected, or another with the same title. Couldn't say who I thought actually did it, it's just one of those Generic Nineties Rock Band songs in my memory.

I'm sorry, though, I couldn't take the Tom Petty song seriously after his rhyme with "played from the heart" was "roadie named Bart", I literally started laughing. I was enjoying its pleasant chords but oh man that lyric is "stop helping god like a little old lady" territory.

Gotta be honest, I'm not sure why I've never listened to much Foo Fighters because I dug Learning to Fly back when it came out and it still holds up today. Although my idea of a highway drive is a bit heavier - namely Kyuss. If you don't find yourself speeding during almost any song from Welcome to Sky Valley, you have no pulse. (I say as someone who's too blind to drive, but has egged on drivers to go faster during said album.) Interesting that you thought some of us might not be psyched for the Lit song - I've never heard of the band or the song before. It's fine? Am I meant to object to this band?

HOLY SHIT THIS IS THE ORIGINAL OF THE NATALIE IMBRUGLIA SONG?! I was surprised years ago when I found out Natalie's banger was a cover but I'd never looked up the original. I had in my head that it would be some niche sixties folk tune or something. This goes hard.

The run after Torn through to Blind Melon really runs the gamut of nineties nostalgia for me. What's the Frequency Kenneth is, without a doubt, one of my favourite REM songs. I was surprised when you suggested in your write-up that About a Girl is *not* a ubiquitous Nirvana tune - it's one of the first songs I think of when I think Nirvana, as someone who has only ever been a casual listener at best; it's good. At the other end, The Flaming Lips can go fuck themselves. The RHCP track didn't do all that much for me; I probably would've preferred one of their bigger hits.

I've always thought I need to listen to more Smashing Pumpkins and this song, totally unknown to me, suggests that instinct is correct. It seems like they're the formative nineties reference point for so many of my friends who are into/make shoegaze music. Can't count how many give some variation of "yeah I was 13 and loved Smashing Pumpkins, then I discovered MBV/Ride/Alcest/whoever".

I have somehow avoided NMH up to this point in my life, unless I've expunged something from my memory during past DIs. This isn't as bad as I thought it would be, though it doesn't really commend itself to me. I also expected to hate the Sheryl Crow song but it's quite pleasant and fits well with the list and your desired vibe for this section. (Also I keep forgetting that Sheryl Crow and Shania Twain are different people.)

Ha, wow, I remember this Jennifer Paige song. Wouldn't have given it a thought since I last heard it on the radio over twenty years ago, and not sure I'm thrilled to be reminded of it. Speaking of Natalie Imbruglia above, I think of this song in conjunction with her other hit, Pash.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed my sequence of "oh wow, this!" I enjoyed your tour of the nineties. I'd have made a few different choices, as I'm sure we all would have, but - like part one - this all sat together really well, and, as intended, it was a blast. Thanks for a good time, I needed it this evening.

 

[cobl04]

Funnily enough, there was only one song from LN7's list that wasn't available - the fucking Like a Version

 

[iron yuppie]

HOLY SHIT THIS IS THE ORIGINAL OF THE NATALIE IMBRUGLIA SONG?! I was surprised years ago when I found out Natalie's banger was a cover but I'd never looked up the original. I had in my head that it would be some niche sixties folk tune or something. This goes hard.

I was wondering about that too. The little research I did suggested the Imbuglia version was the original, but I guess that was wrong.

 

[Jerry Dunk]

I have listened to two of these lists so far, have not had time yet to write out my thoughts. Hopefully soon.

 

[iron yuppie]

Tourist: I'm about half-way through your list, and I think I'm getting a pretty clear impression of what your kind of jam is . This has been a great list for the work I'm doing while listening: breezy and well-paced. Sounds like a Sirius XM channel, which I mean as a compliment because I love Sirius radio. Second half a little later.

 

[iron yuppie]

“Surgeon” has her best guitar imo

The solo on that reminds me so much of Floyd's Have a Cigar.