For Every Occasion

For some, there are movies for every occasion; for others, a dress. For me, there's music. I have playlists for rain, snow, sun, clouds. Traveling in a car, for example, has an entirely different selection of songs than when I'm going for a walk. Walks are very complex for me: playlists for sunny walks in the neighborhood are a whole different creature than my walking through a field when it's cloudy. I have playlists for my moods. Your basic sad, happy, angry playlists - but it doesn't stop then. I have playlists for grey moods and discouraged moods; for bright moods and euphoric moods. I have camp playlists, beach playlists, winter playlists, sleep playlists. It may seem over the top, but I believe there is a perfect song for every occasion - you just have to be able to find it.

One of my favorite feelings is when I'm walking down the hallway and the perfect song begins to play. I can't help but smile.

Playlists - in my opinion - are the perfect way to organize the billions of listening opportunities out there in the world. Maybe that's why I have so many.

I've been contemplating this post for almost a week now, and am still utterly confounded. Which playlist is the best to share, the best to show "my" music? Which songs should I choose; songs with profound personal meaning or catchy lyrics or both? When and if I ever pick a single playlist, how am I ever expected to pick out a mere five songs that can accurately speak for those unchosen many? Frankly, even as I write this I have not come to the conclusion to any of these questions. Music is such an important aspect of my life; I abhor questions such as "what's your favorite song?" or "who's your favorite artist?" Does the person posing the question honestly expect me to be able to respond to such complex questions with a single answer? I have yet to discover a subtle way to convey my hatred of singling out the select few out of billions of options to those poor unaware fellow humans who have the audacity to ask me about "favorites" in music.

But however much I abhor having to chose out songs, I love sharing my love of music even more. Therefore, here are five songs which I hope will accurately represent my playlist for watching thunderheads roll in during a rainstorm (especially applicable when this occurs in the early evening):

1. Love Is Blindness - Jack White
This song for me is perfect because of it's change in dynamics (volume). It's begins softly, subtly, like the rain. But as the verse progresses, one can feel the guitar rift begins to build up in the backgroud. Then when Jack White belts "Love is blindness, I don't wanna see", for me, it's a perfect represention the cracks of thunder that's overpowering what started out as the soft pitter-patter of raindrops falling from the sky. At the end, Jack White has just finished the chorus, loud and sharp like thunder, when the last note is held until it hates into nothing. Just like thunder, it ended as quickly as it came.

2. The Sea Is A Good Place To Think About The Future - Los Campesinos!
This song also has the change in dynamics seen in the previous song, but this song waits until the very end to let loose. It also seems to climax and then have a resolution/let down towards the silence at the end. The rhythm throughout the song also reminds me of rhythm of raindrops hitting a roof. The line in the song "waiting for the tide, to drag to the ocean, to another sea's shore" reminds me of the feeling of being swept away that overcomes me during thunderstorms.

3. Dust Bowl Dance - Mumford & Sons
I must say, I love this song. For me, it is truly an example of how meaning changes with your tone of voice. Thunder has different tones for me - tones of it's danger and power. The piano at the beginning is like the drip drip of rain. The name "Dust Bowl" seems so oxymoronic in a playlist about rain and thunder, but everything else seems to fit. The anger that is portrayed in this soon reminds me of the children's story I was told of how thunder was the sound of the clouds fighting each other. The drums coupled with the heavy guitar rift emphasizes the tension in the sky that caused the clouds to go to war. The ending may sound calm and remorseful, but I detect revenge - the basis behind which the next "war in the clouds" will begin.

4. Hurricane - Thirty Seconds To Mars
The silence at the beginning seems to be the calm before the storm - the music that begins is full of contained energy that is unleashed during the chorus following what seems to be a break. The downbeat on the word "kill" seems to emphasize the warlike beauty of thunder. The lyric "crash, crash, burn" has always reminded me of storms. The haunting hums seems to be that void in-between the cracks of thunder. This song is just perfect for watching something so powerful move towards you, unleashing it's torrential rains and heart stopping spontaneously noise.

5. Soldier's Eyes - Jack Savoretti
Unlike the others, this song is continuously soft. Even the title seems forlorn. It's the end of the battle - the thunder is gone and the rain retreats. This song may seem out of place, but I guarantee if you listen to it during a storm, you too will understand.

At last, I am done. I know I've spoken a lot, but I still feel as though I have failed in doing what I set out to do - justify selecting those five songs. Maybe listening to them as the rain falls around me and the thunder cracks overhead will make me feel more accomplished.