Barring some unforeseen catastrophe, this will be my last article for the Iron Warrior. And as such, I’m striving for this article to somehow be a commemoration of my time at university, as seen through the lens of music. So I’ve decided to create a list of songs demarcated by the term I was in when I found them. All of these songs came out within a couple months of the term they’ve been attached to, and none of them are related to each other in any way apart from the fact that I listened to all of them a ton throughout university.
Fall 2010 (1A) – Lost in the World (Kanye West)
Coming to university is a big change in someone’s life, so it was fitting that I had “Lost in the World” as the soundtrack for my transition. Kanye West’s anthem of losing yourself in the big(ger) city, only to bounce back stronger than ever, resonated with me as I left my small town to discover something new.
Winter 2011 (1B) – Not In Love (Crystal Castles ft. Robert Smith)
Previous to “Not In Love,” it was impossible to believe that Crystal Castles would make anything that could be described as “approachable.” Even the original (for them, the song is originally by Platinum Blonde) version that appeared on their second album was noisy and harsh. But then the goth-noise duo recruited the father of all goth figures, Robert Smith of the Cure, to sing lead vocals in the re-done version of the song and that created a monster. “Not In Love” keeps the squealing harshness of Crystal Castles’ more typical works, but instead of burying the vocals deep in the mix, they let Smith slather his voice in melodrama and belt away. It’s a gorgeous, haunting and towering piece of work, and it stands alone in Crystal Castles’ discography.
Fall 2011 (2A) – Marvin’s Room (Drake)
Daylight Savings Time sucks. Just as it starts to get darker early in the day, we go ahead and make it darker even earlier. But this gloomy part of the year is when Drake thrives, almost making up for everything else. He’s released his last three albums in this time span, working on the fact that most of his music is best listened to when it’s dark and frigid out. And “Marvin’s Room” is the darkest, coldest, and sparest song in Drake’s catalogue, making it perfect for a winter night alone.
Summer 2012 (2B) – Cry Like a Ghost (Passion Pit)
Passion Pit’s music is like a bad candy apple – sickly sweet on the outside with a rotten core. That’s not to say that the music is bad (Passion Pit have made two of my favourite albums), but rather that they cover up themes of depression, heartbreak, and dependency with layers of chirping pop music. “Cry Like a Ghost” is probably the most extreme example of this, with a chrome-plated, rafter-raising chorus belying lines about alcoholism and abuse. And as such, “Cry Like a Ghost” is a perfect song for those hot, sticky nights where your mind is a little clouded (from studying or drinking, you pick) and you need a little jolt of life.
Winter 2013 (3A) – Play By Play (Autre Ne Veut)
Autre Ne Veut deals in urgent, anxious, and sometimes downright frightening music. If you had to pigeonhole his work into a genre, I guess R&B would be the closest thing, but that would be more for the heart he puts into his singing than the smoothness of his voice. “Play By Play,” the leadoff track of Autre Ne Veut’s second album Anxiety, is the strange product of someone who grew up listening to Prince and Ready for the World but couldn’t imagine themselves on a stage of that size. It’s a huge song, from the opening arpeggiated keyboards to the infinitely repeated closing couplet: “I just called you up / to get that play-by-play / don’t ever leave me alone” but it would never be described as “pop,” at least not in this world. “Play By Play” is R&B bursting at the seams, trying to contain the demons that are hidden inside of it.
Fall 2013 (3B) – Hannah Hunt (Vampire Weekend)
Vampire Weekend consumed the last half of my 2013 with their unparalleled album Modern Vampires of the City. It was unique in a way few albums are, simultaneously expansive and insular, immediate and deep. “Hannah Hunt” starts out innocuous enough, with a whispered tale of cross-country travel that mixes fact and fantasy. But then, as the travel companions drift apart while still in the midst of their travels, the song rips at the seams and pours out. It’s an anthem for new beginnings and rebirths, perfectly combining sadness and hope to form a gorgeous whole.
Summer 2014 (4A) – Ben’s My Friend (Sun Kil Moon)
School in the summer, despite the poor connotations it may have, is a blast. More free time than if you were working and being able to work outside in the warmth make summer school a severely underrated commodity. But in spite of this, the song I kept coming back to definitely can’t be described as “fun” or even particularly relatable for someone just finishing up university. “Ben’s My Friend” is a sung/spoken tale of mid-life crises and severe writer’s block, something that I’m hopefully years away from experiencing. And yet Mark Kozelek’s on-tape fear that he’s, to quote James Murphy, “losing his edge” hits closer to home than I would’ve expected. Whether he’s discussing his worry for his aging mother, his sister’s new boyfriend, or the fact that he’s getting too old to go to Postal Service concerts anymore, “Ben’s My Friend” is an honest, jarring look at getting older in a different light.
Winter 2015 (4B) – Wesley’s Theory (Kendrick Lamar)
Currently, Kendrick Lamar is on such a level that he is able to chase his creative whims to their logical extremes and still produce music that is entirely approachable. “Wesley’s Theory” is the first track off of Lamar’s new album To Pimp a Butterfly, and it’s an opener for the ages. Kendrick flits back and forth between rapping, scat jazz, and baroque orchestration without skipping a beat. The themes are heavy, as is typical with Kendrick, dealing with race relations and disillusionment in the USA with deft metaphors and allusions. But in spite of this, the lyrics and cadences bounce around in your head for days afterward. “Wesley’s Theory” is a perfect combination of approachability and density, and an incredible portal into the rest of the album.
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