Spring 2023 Playlist: Annotated
So, my dad died. It sucks. And even though I’ve been curating songs for this year’s Spring playlist for a while, I think the selections reflect the trauma of the situation—musically, if not lyrically. But they also reflect the sweet nostalgia of memories, and the rawness of fresh starts.
1) “Thank U” by Alanis Morissette - A while back, Peloton did an Alanis artist’s series, and that’s when I remembered this song existed. I began listening to it nonstop and got very good at singing it alone in my bathroom. Singing Alanis alone in one’s bathroom is extremely cathartic. I recommend it.
2) “Smalltown Stardust” by King Tuff - I grew up in a generic Chicago suburb, and this song makes me nostalgic for a small town childhood I never had.
3) “Hospital” by Madison Cunningham - This song popped up on my Spotify Discover Weekly playlist the week my dad entered hospice. The lyrics are referring to a metaphorical hospital, but trust me—when most of your time is spent driving to and from a literal hospital to watch a loved one die, the distinction doesn’t matter.
4) “Sweater” by Qwerty - Qwerty is a local Louisville band whose music feels like it should be on the Sad Alternative Millennial Girl Protagonist movie soundtrack, if that makes sense? Perhaps we should all be discarding our sweaters since it’s spring, but given that I’ve spent most of my spring in Wisconsin with Dad, layering is still necessary.
5) “$20” by boygenius - I suppose I should thank boygenius for releasing their album the very week I most need a good cry. Get it all out at once.
6) “Everywhere I Go I Bring the Rain” by Caroline Rose - Springtime: famously rainy! Also: you can try to block it out / you can kick and scream and shout / but you’ll never run away from your pain.
7) “Doomed!” by DM Stith - Here’s the thing: anytime DM Stith releases new music, I’m going to find a way to squeeze it onto one of these playlists because he’s one of the most unique artists I’ve ever heard. This song captures the blustery vibes of early spring well.
8) “A&W” by Lana Del Rey - Lana Del Rey is one of my favorite genres of sad. She does a single, specific vibe impeccably, and I hope she never stops. Lately I’ve had the urge to fly to LA and buy an overpriced coffee and wander around beneath palm trees in the non-aggressive heat listening to Lana and being vaguely sad. Need to find a way to make this happen.
9) “늑대가 나타났다 There is A Wolf” by Lang Lee - I don’t know much about the Korean folk scene, but if Ak Dan Gwang Chil and Lang Lee are any indication, it is excellent. Upon fully listening to this playlist for the first time, the transition from Lana to this song was much better than I expected.
10) “Mark on You” by The Mountain Goats - This is the version of the song from The Jordan Lake Sessions rather than the original Bleed Out version—I find I’m not a huge fan of the production on Bleed Out. But that’s okay, because The Mountain Goats will always be my therapy, no matter what. I saw them in Lexington in February, and I’m seeing them again in Louisville in June.
11) “It Don’t Come Easy” by Ringo Starr - This song has been following me around lately, and I interpreted that to mean it wanted to be on the spring playlist. It’s a good song! A classic!
12) “Melt Through the Floors” by Rubblebucket - I try to avoid songs that directly mention the season in question on my playlists, but I made an exception for this one. I don’t know how to explain it, but it sounds like grass growing.
13) “Nobody Gets Me” by SZA - I find this song utterly charming. The lyrics and situation of the song are so messy, but the melody and orchestration are so earnest. It’s like a song someone might have written in their bedroom in high school on an acoustic guitar, but taken up a few notches. It’s lovely.
14) “Let the World Turn” by Death - When you think of springtime, you think of Detroit’s legendary Black punk band Death, right? Seriously, though—the shifts from slow and pretty to fast and chaotic in this song feel very springlike to me.
15) “Candy Apple Red” by Annabelle Chairlegs - Picture this: the weather has been consistently gloomy, but then there’s one day where it’s 65 degrees and sunny. Your seasonal affective disorder melts away in a fiery burst of energy, and you find yourself outside in shorts meeting friends for various meals on various patios. This song is that day!
16) “Héroes” by Paralisis Permanente - Love a good cover. A Spanish post-punk band covering Bowie? Even better. Although I just read their Wikipedia page and the end of their bio is a mega bummer. I suppose I did kick this post off by saying this whole playlist would skew depressing.
17) “18th Century” by Turbo Nut - Another local Louisville band. I have a long-term plan to convince all my friends and loved ones to move to Louisville with me, and putting bangers like this on my playlists is part of the strategy.
18) “modern love” by Jesse Jo Stark - Decidedly not a Bowie cover. Songs where women do lots of high-pitched sing-screaming are just good, I don’t make the rules.
19) “Rubedo” by Messa - We have officially entered the “metal interlude” portion of the playlist. I never really got into metal until my dad was diagnosed with cancer last year, which I’m sure says something interesting about my psyche. But metal is such a vague term—I lean more towards the doom/occult rock part of the spectrum. Anyway, please enjoy this Italian metal band.
20) “Into the Wild” by Green Lung - Continuing with our metal interlude: I believe Green Lung appeared on one of my Discover Weekly playlists last fall. They badly want to be Black Sabbath. It’s cute.
21) “Dust” by Opus Kink - If they’re not careful, Opus Kink may become one of my favorite bands. I appreciate maximalism. And spring is maximalist, when you think about it—throw every kind of weather in there. I’m stretching the metaphor, I know. The band released this single on my 35th birthday, so I will pretend it was a special present just for me.
22) “Forgiveness” by Rina Sawayama - Needed to transition out of the hard, noisy part of the playlist, so I decided to go with this power ballad by Rina Sawayama. It gives me glam vibes, it gives me early Lady Gaga vibes. It’s a song about grappling with the past.
23) “So Long, Bannatyne” by The Guess Who - One of my dad’s favorite songs by one of his favorite bands. So long, Daniel John. I miss you already.
Need more spring music?