Kids these days and their darn electronic music.

My parents are endlessly mystified by the fact that I actually prefer riding the bus to school as opposed to getting driven. Sure, the social anxiety that goes along with the bus riding experience isn't fun, but what I like the most is being able to just stare out the window and listen to music. Since riding the bus isn't particularly taxing on one's brain, it allows me to just let the songs soak in. I get inspired very heavily by music, so I would say that I like riding the bus so much because it's a time for me to get inspired. Well, riding the bus along with walking the dog are both enjoyable experiences - menial tasks plus music a very happy and inspired girl make.

I would say that this is my 'inspiration' playlist, but the problem is is that I have a lot of inspiration playlists. So, here are 5 songs from the playlist that inspires me for one of the stories I plan on writing. As of now, both the story and the playlist are called 'dirty weather'. I also do some of my best creative thinking when the weather is of a certain type. It's a little hard to describe perfectly, but to me, 'dirty weather' is like November, when it's grey and overcast and sort of dreary and foggy and misty and cold, but not too cold, and there are maybe some dead leaves but for the most part the trees are dark and bare. Whenever I walk the dog and listen to these songs during this type of weather, it's just inspirationpalooza for me. Let's get started.

1.) Untrust Us by Crystal Castles

This is one of my favorite songs of all time, mostly due to the fact that it just puts me in this very dreamy sort of mindset. The distorted vocals make me feel like I'm being talked to by someone who doesn't exactly have the greatest grasp on speaking, and given the content of the lyrics ('Cocaine is not good for your health, cocaine is not good for you') it's as though I'm being warned by a ghost that things are a little unsavory up ahead. The musical dissonance of harsh guitar chords at the end just cements the dreamlike atmosphere, as though an average dream has very quickly devolved into a frantic nightmare. I can't really describe why I love this song so much, but I do. It just gets my creative juices going, and combined with some grey skies, it's an awesome listening experience.

2.) Suffocation by Crystal Castles

Just a warning, Crystal Castles is going to be featuring heavily in this little list. They're my favorite band, so it shouldn't come as a surprise, but even so, there's going to be plenty of artist repeats. Like most of their songs, this one also has a dreamlike feel to it, and since it's a pretty somber song, it goes well with gloomy weather and a gloomy mood. My favorite part is from 3:12 to the end, where an almost angelic sequence of chords is played, steadily getting louder and more powerful as though you're approaching a sort of soothing finality only to suddenly peter out at the end. Listening to it is an almost exhausting experience, with your anticipation building and building only to reach a shuddering disappointment. It makes your head feel cloudy and it makes me think.

3.) Violent Dreams by Crystal Castles

This song starts out sounding very thoughtful, with sluggish, distorted (and I believe Icelandic?) lyrics making you feel like someone's musing about nonsense. It goes on slow and easy for a while, rather calming but a little chilling, up until the 1:40 mark, where the vocals begin to skip and repeat. It's a disorienting effect, and makes you wonder if what you're thinking is real, until it sharply cuts off at 2:14, going back to the soothing bit at the start of the song. The jarring contrast is like a relief from a steadily building anxiety, and it makes my thoughts jitter. Like the title suggests, it's like you're having a violent dream, but like dreams tend to do, the action suddenly stops and cuts to something else and you're left with that lingering tremor of fear. It's an eerie sort of song, and goes really well with overcast skies. 

4.) I Am Made Of Chalk by Crystal Castles

This is the last Crystal Castles song, I swear. This one's pretty emotional to me, because it gives off a sort of mournful, pleading vibe. The screeching and gurgling 'vocals' sound like tormented creatures begging for release, and it makes me think of a gradual loss of sanity. At the start of the song, the 'vocals' sound angry, but at 0:24 the fury dies down and becomes grudging and sad. It personally makes me think of someone choking while trying to speak, like when you're having a nightmare and you can't move and it's terrifying and frustrating and you just want to wake up. It doesn't really sound like a 'song', but it's really intense to listen to, and, well, it gives me lots of feelings.

5.) Do The Tron by Blockhead

This is a very chill song, both in that it's relaxed sounding and makes me feel cold. When I listen to it, I think of standing outside in winter and being bundled up but still feeling little twinges of cold, but it's a pleasant sort of cold. It's a good song for wandering outside to, and the humming throughout makes it feel almost like a lullaby. It's sort of sleepy-sounding, to go along with the dream theme that's prevalent in this playlist. I dunno, I just like it a lot. 

It's really hard to describe why things inspire you and how they inspire you, so I guess this list could be taken as two things. One, me desperately whoring out my favorite band, and two, a 'these songs are rad as heck' playlist. If you're going to listen to any of these songs, I suggest you do so when the weather's not so sickeningly sunny and bright.