Going through my previous playlist and scrolling all the way to the top always feels a little bit like a therapy session for me. What did I feel? What was I experiencing? Who was I? What made me listen to this and, sometimes even more importantly, who made me listen to it? My playlists don't just feel like a mix of random artists and songs I listen to in order to feel like a soccer mum who's so down with kids. It's more like a reflection of what's been going on with me and what thoughts have been riding roller coasters in my mind over the last couple of weeks. I've always been convinced that September marks a special time in the year, because it is the month of transition. It's a time where we still hold on to what's left of summer, which is always a different life to the one we have outside of our idyllic summer phase, while also getting out our tea collection and books that will comfort us during the upcoming rainy, melancholic days. It's not just a month that lets us experience the change of the seasons, but also the change I think each and everyone of us feels when life starts getting serious again. As the wind gets a little colder and the leaves change their colours, we replace our shorts and colourful summer tops with turtleneck jumpers à la Steve Jobs and jeans in funeral-ready colour schemes.
I can almost see the sun brightening up the sky when I think of all the times in September I listened to Tame Impala's 'Mind Mischief' and Boy Pablo smoothly setting the mood with 'ur phone'. Perhaps I could already feel that summer was coming to an end, and nostalgia hit me right in the very deep parts of my soul, when it brought back classics like Pulp's Disco 2000 , The Virgins' Impressions of You, Will You Be There? by the Sherlocks and Australia by the Shins. Some part of me was still holding on to my Germanness and for the first time in forever, I intensely listened to a German rock band called 'Kraftklub'. The lyrics in 'Blau' and 'Karl-Marx-Stadt' cracked me up every time, but the most important part was, obviously, the music and the way they so perfectly portray the younger generations of Germany. Their very German 'Sprechgesang' in their vocals only contributes to mixing together so many things I love in only one song: rap, indie, rock and, of course, the special ingredient, Germany.
Finally getting off the train of my nostalgia trip, we dive ride into the second phase of September. Both Foo Fighters and Nothing But Thieves came out with new, amazing, although quite unusual, albums in September. Concrete And Gold is an album I had never expected a garage rock, post-grunge band to write. Perhaps they were inspired by the melancholy that autumn brings with it, because most of their new songs are way softer and melodic than my previous favourites like 'Best Of You', which has a powerful intro that captures you and sets the mood immediately. Happy Ever After (Zero Hour) however, was a sudden breath of fresh air and exactly what I needed to be accompanied by during September's grey and rainy autumn days. Foo Fighters definitely held on to their key elements of rock and post-grunge, with powerful lyrics and authentic vocals from Dave Grohl, but with a surprising, but definitely not bad, dash of Beatle-esque melodies, which I think you can hear especially in Sunday Rain. What I found interesting was the fact that Nothing But Thieves seemed to be going down the same road. Their new album 'Broken Machine' is way softer than I had expected, creating a nice contrast to another song of theirs called 'Ban All The Music', which made it back into my playlist thanks to them reminding me of their existence through their new album Broken Machine. Sorry and Broken Machine are ideal to listen to while dramatically walking through the September rain, so if you enjoyed Foo Fighters' new releases, I'd highly encourage you to check out Nothing But Thieves new album, too.
Now that we've made it through all the rock and indie genres, it's time to take a step back and breath a little. What would rainy September days be without a little bit of Tom Misch, Barbarossa and Childish Gambino? They definitely helped me get through my first days of college, and man, was I productive. I'm pretty sure Barbarossa's vocals manage to speak directly to the deepest parts of my mind, making me focus like never before while feeling completely zen. Tom Misch has pretty much become a regular in my work playlists, and had now, yet again, made it into my playlist with his classics 'Wake Up This Day' and 'The Journey'. I've even gone a step further and cheated on Spotify by going on YouTube for a change, where I found an amazing acoustic live cover of Wake Up This Day and his collaboration with Carmody So Close. Thanks for helping me stay sane, highly appreciate ya.
I hope you found some new favourites, and maybe even reunited with some artists who have been hiding quietly in your subconscious.
What have you been listening to? Is there a particular artist you always put on as soon as those September feels hit you?
I'd love to know.