An Empty Bliss Beyond This World

• How often do you use your ipod (or phone or whatnot)? What is your perfect playlist for ____ (fill in the blank - it could be your perfect playlist for a sunny day, for a road trip, for thanksgiving, etc.) Choose 5 songs, note the song and artist and why you chose this song

I couldn't decide on an atmosphere to attempt to portray through a collection of songs, but then it started to rain, and I remembered how happy I am in the rain. So I will embody the rain in a playlist here.

I listen to my ipod often, my phone is the bane of my existence, as they serve opposite purposes. One let's me hide within myself and gives me the power to direct my feelings towards the emotion of my choice, the other force me to be a part of society, who is constantly connected and constantly accessible.

I feel that with adapting music to rain, it is natural to lean towards somber moods, however I find that I tend to prefer songs that are not necessarily sad, but ethereal and haunting. Things that make you feel like you are in a Wes Anderson movie. If the music is so perfect that it melts into a soundtrack for your movements and you feel a newfound importance in whatever you are doing, a new grace and fluidity, then it is working.

•  Ágætis byrjun, by Sigur Rós. Sigur Rós is an Icelandic post-rock band headed by front man Jonsi Birgisson. They are known for their heavy use of reverb, and Jonsi playing his guitar with a cello bow.  Ágætis byrjun means "An Alright Start", and it is a beautifully ethereal song. There is something so odd about listening to lyrics you can't understand. You have to define the song yourself. Especially in the rain, Sigur Ros is enchanting.
• Subterranean Homesick Alien, by Radiohead

. "The breath of the morning

I keep forgetting

The smell of the warm summer air"

Thom Yorke sings about an alien abduction. His friends don't believe him. It's such a sweet, somber story.

• The Caretaker's "An Empty Bliss Beyond This World". I find this the absolute best thing to listen to on a rainy afternoon, playing chess, attempting ballroom dances and reading Nietzsche with best pals. This is an extended ambient project by James Kirby. An Empty Bliss is based on the haunted ballroom scene of The Shining. It's haunting nostalgic melodies, combined with James' layering of sampled 78s has a chillingly strange effect. When I was first introduced to this project, I interpreted the surface noise from the original vinyl that he sampled as rain, and ever since, the two go together charmingly. 

I feel to be fair, that I must give some attention to rain's unforgiving sister, snow.

So, here are two songs that are hauntingly perfect to listen to when traveling through snow's mysterious light.

• Our Falling Snow by Sleep Party People. You will have to get used to the odd vocals. Observe the depth.
• Confutatis Maledictis from Mozart's Requiem. This piece starts out like a lion, and I could listen to the first 3 measures over and over and still be amazed. At a certain point in the song (0:20), a strange delicacy takes it's place, and the human voice hypnotized you. This is the best part to listen to with snowflakes flying past.