As far away as September feels to me, I can't believe we're almost at the end of this last full Autumn month, too. It's a scary time of the year (Halloween pun intended, feel free to hate me), because getting closer to the end of October does not only mean my birthday is creeping up on me, aka my annual reminder that I'm one step closer to death, but also that there's going to be only two months left of 2017. What else adds to the severe case of chronophobia this year, is the fact that we're all thinking about where to go to uni, a life choice that might or might not fuck up the upcoming years of our lives.
As I'm walking across the town centre, passing the Halloween decorations that are being strangled by way too early Christmas lights, I start thinking about how much has changed within one year, simultaneously as it hasn't. It's like with Liam Gallagher, who used to be known for being the vocalist of Oasis and now suddenly came out with a brand new solo album, that sounds nothing like the band we used to associate him with. Over time, we leave behind a little bit of ourselves, while also creating new versions, new stories, new sounds, which is what 'As You Were' proves so beautifully. And if we're being really honest here, we're all slightly fed up with Oasis (if I hear Champagne Supernova one more time on the radio in the common room at college, I might break something), so it seems as if everyone benefits from this radical change. Well done, Liam, time to get out the champagne.
Favourite music video of the month - Queens of the Stone Age's guitar-less live version of Villains of Circumstance on BBC2
Speaking of radical changes and new sounds, there's another musical gem that I found at the beginning of the month. You must already be familiar with my love for Queens of the Stone Age, especially their new, fresh album that came out this year. Well, prepare yourself to be impressed again, because this time, Joshua Homme performed a guitar-less live version of Villains of Circumstance on BBC 2, completely blowing me away with creating such a transformed, alternative version of one of my favourite songs of theirs. I feel like through this live performance, he got to decompose all of the song's elements one by one, giving us the opportunity to actually listen to the full construction of this masterpiece. It brings out the complexity of the song, and made me look at it in a completely different way. Mostly because I had tears in my ears blocking the view.
Favourite album of the month - MASSEDUCTION
I'm aware I've already expressed my love for Liam Gallagher's comeback, but, hey, plot twist: Sorry, Liam, your album was surprisingly good, but there was another artist this month that was truly a breath of fresh air. I feel like I'm slightly cheating on all of the other artists and albums I could've focused on this month, because St. Vincent's new album MASSEDUCTION only caught my attention because I was browsing through Spotify one morning and suddenly a pink butt appeared on my screen. Her album is strangely sexy and seductive, and I don't know if that's because of the electro-pop sound of her music, or because the lyrical side of it is even more impressive than the melodic one. She talks about our addiction to social statuses, pills, as well as romanticism. She does it so beautifully, that it's easy to get carried away in the music, although 'I can't turn off what turns me on' sounds like a clear message in Masseduction, which she surely made sure you'd be aware of hearing. MASSEDUCTION is a nice contrast to my generic rock music, which usually dominates my monthly playlists, and I'm sure that 'Masseduction', 'Pills' and 'Los Ageless' will continue to accompany me on my way to November.
Favourite artist of the month - Colouring
So many artists, so little time. I'm fortunate enough to say that this is my only chronic problem in life. There's so much more music to discover that I almost get a little dizzy just by thinking about it. However, this time, I got a little help from my friend Grace, who introduced me to 'Heathen' by the band Colouring. They're still a relatively small band, with "only" around 220,000 listeners on Spotify each month, but their modern electronic sound is so unique and pure, they perfectly matched my current musical mood. It didn't take me very long to fall in love with 'The Wave' and 'I Heard It Through The Grapevine', and I can say for sure that I'm more than committed to this new relationship. Both Colouring and St. Vincent create similar electro-pop songs, although they're both pushing the boundaries of their genre. The best way to distinct these two is to point out that St. Vincent is perfect to listen to whenever you feel like you're taking yourself on a date or want to walk down the street looking and feeling sexy, whereas Colouring should be saved for the moment you want to nourish your mind and soul with a glass of wine (or any other preferable beverage).
No matter if live performances, albums, or artists in general, you can tell that this year's winter depression is creeping up on me quite early this year. As surprising as it sounds, I still have a couple of rock gems up my sleeve, which I'll talk about in my next post about my monthly playlist of October. So stay around a little longer, and I might be able to drag you out of that dark hole of winter and autumn melancholy with me.