i listened to something new everyday in january (‘new’ playlists and albums)

I’m doing pretty good with my new years resolutions let me tell you. One of them was to listen to different music and to branch out more with what I listen to. So I set myself a goal to listen to something new every day in January, just to get the year off to a good start. This is that challenge. I will leave each thing with the Spotify link and then thoughts if I have any.

1st: 10 Things I Hate About You OST

A fantastic start to the year. We’re talking midnight hit and I was listening to this. It’s a classic, one I was somewhat familiar with before (as an album, not just through the film) but I had never spent time just listening to it before now. Letters To Cleo deserve so much more. They gave us so much. And then this album has other great hits like F.N.T, War and Wings of a Dove. It’s so good.

2nd: drusilla (btvs) inspired playlist

I listen to a lot of Buffy inspired playlists, and I have a few of my own made. I was craving a Dru one and this one seemed so solid. It’s a work of art actually. There are so many really good songs here, it’s hit after hit. It’s 90s grunge with some 2000s pop but like Maneater type songs, with some modern songs on here too. It’s a perfect Dru playlist I think.

3rd: ARTPOP – Lady Gaga

Another technical cheat because I had listened to ARTPOP before. But not for a while and my bad memory meant that I only really remembered a few songs. Which is crazy because this is a totally memorable album. She rally should have re-released this for the 10 year because it has aged so well and pop music really has caught up to what she was trying to do here. It’s a fantastic piece of art.
My favourite songs are: Aura, Venus, G.U.Y, Sexxx Dreams, Swine, Dope, Applause. Obsessed with her just total removal of Do What U Want she was so right for that.

4th: Titanic Rising – Weyes Blood

I have intended to listen to this playlist so many times. A load of the songs on it come up on playlists and are suggested songs so frequently. So I finally listened to the whole thing. Her music is like moody pop, think Caroline Polachek’s slow songs. Her voice is insane, the lyrics are incredible. It’s a good time.
My favourite songs are: A Lot’s Gonna Change, Andromeda (always), Titanic Rising, Picture Me Better, Nearer To Thee

5th and 6th: lorelai gilmore inspired playlist

This playlist is a long, homage to one of my favourite characters ever. We’re talking 17 and a half hours hence the two day occupation. I wanted to listen to music that Lorelai would listen to, and this playlist did me very well. It’s a perfect combination of 80s and 90s rock and pop with some crooner classics and 2000s songs put in. With some modern songs that are super speculative but work so well. It’s so worth a listen, please do it.

7th: everything by Paris Paloma

Another cheat one, because I love Paris Paloma (I’m hoping to catch her at Reading eep) and I’ve listened to this playlist before. But I have no memory of the songs past the first few and so they feel new to me. I hope her full album comes this year. I need it. Her vibe is Florence and the Machine like but even more whimsical and old feeling. I recommend drywall, as good a reason, labour, He Thinks He’ll Keep Her, Tell It To my Heart, underneath, It’s Called: Freefall. To name a few.

8th: Living While Starving – Car Seat Headrest

It’s Only Sex is one of my favourite songs ever, and I’ve been meaning to listen to more of their songs for so long. This post was a good excuse to finally do just that. This is a short EP but it has the aforementioned song on it. All 5 songs are bops, I have a special love for Oh! Starving. I will make sure I listen to more of their stuff asap.

9th: Fuzzy – Evangeline

I was going through Spotify looking for recommendations and this album came up. I thought I’d give it a go and I did not regret it. I also don’t really remember the specifics I’m sorry. It’s been like a month. I remember this being a good album and enjoying it, but I cannot give you more information. I will revisit it, but listening to things after the post, to remind me is not the point here. The songs that are liked on Spotify are: Mystic, Windansea, Hermione, Neighborhood,

10th: When The Pawn… – Fiona Apple

I very much took this post as a chance to listen to albums I’d been meaning to, and that I’d heard a good amount of songs from but never the whole thing. Which meant there was a wave of Fiona Apple. She’s a legend, I knew that before I started listening to her but her music really is that good. The songs of hers that are saved on my phone are On The Bound, Paper Bag, A Mistake, The Way Things Are and I Know. But Fast As You Can is exceptional too. I adore her.

The full title of the album is:

When the pawn hits the conflicts he thinks like a king
What he knows throws the blows when he goes to the fight
And he’ll win the whole thing ‘fore he enters the ring
There’s no body to batter when your mind is your might
So when you go solo, you hold your own hand
And remember that depth is the greatest of heights
And if you know where you stand, then you know where to land
And if you fall it won’t matter, cuz you’ll know that you’re right

11th: Fetch The Bolt Cutters – Fiona Apple

I really have listened to this album before, a few times actually. I even think I may have included it in a prior post. But I wanted to listen to it, and there are some songs that I don’t remember so I cheated and included it. It’s an incredible album. In the top 20 of the 2020s so far for sure. If you know you know, if you don’t please listen to it.
My favourite songs are: I Want You To Love Me, Shameika, Under The Table, Ladies, Cosmonauts

12th: The Bling Ring OST

I had a hankering to listen to Crown on The Ground which led me here. I love The Bling Ring a lot, and the soundtrack is a perfect extension of the film and the world. I had a really good journey home listening to it. Big fan. Highlights include, Crown on the Ground, 212, Bad Girls, Halleluwah and Super Rich Kids

13th: Very Necessary – Salt-N-Pepa

I was in a mood. I think Salt-N-Pepa are incredible and deserve more recognition. I think I was listening to Shoop and thought to listen to the full album which was a great choice. Legends truly. The songs I best remember are Whatta Man, None Of Your Business, Step, Shoop (obviously) and I’ve Got AIDS which floored me entirely. God I love them.

14th: Carpet Bed EP – Ethel Cain

I have listened to this EP before, but in the context of Ethel’s entire discog and never as its own thing. She can do no wrong, there is no Ethel Cain song that I don’t love. Misuse Oh I think is my favourite here, but has 4 songs and is 15 minutes long so listen to the whole thing.

15th: a high femme/camp playlist

Boy I hope the Spotify links here work, or that urls show for the widgets. I typed in ‘dykette’ into the Spotify search bar and this playlist came up. It’s incredible. Just so much fun, so my thing. I had a whale of a time. I did make my own version of it like a week later because this version has some songs I don’t like and some singers I really don’t like. But I am very thankful for this playlist for inspiring me and existing and renewing my love for lesbian songs because the lesbian playlist I had was boring me to tears.

16th: Golden Age – Ethel Cain

Again, I hadn’t listened to this song independently before. And I think I kept both of her EPs on repeat for a while as I did things at work. Again, no wrong, she’s a genius. Please listen to her.
My favourite songs were: Sunday Morning, Head in the Wall and Golden Age

17th: Under Feet Like Ours – Tegan and Sara

The first of an actual wave of Tegan and Sara albums. I am going to do a post talking about all of their albums and their music progression so I will keep what I say here brief. But this is for sure my favourite of their albums (so far). It’s their first, and the unpolished-ness and rawness is just incredible. It’s like grungey and Fiona Apple esque honestly which I would not have assumed their music to be like, knowing what I know of their later stuff. I adore this album. I need it on vinyl. A new favourite for sure.

18th: This Business of Art – Tegan and Sara

The second Tegan and Sara album. It has the same grungey feel of their first album, but also shows their progression as people as it feels more adult. Again, I will keep this brief for the post but I like this one a lot too. It’s up there for me for sure. I will save my favourite songs for the post but it may be hard for me to pick. This mass of Tegan and Sara was very funny to see reflected back in my Spotify stats.

19th: Home – The Chicks

The first of a few albums that I found while on shop floor and in need of something to listen to. This one has their version of Landslide, and Travelin’ Soldier which are iconic songs. I also really liked Godspeed, White Trash Wedding and Tortured, Tangled Hearts

20th: If It Was You – Tegan and Sara

Back to it. This album shows more of a shift to the Tegan and Sara I was familiar with. It’s still heavy, way heavier than I thought it would be. But it’s more produced and there’s more instrumentation. It’s so nice to be able to track how their sound changed over time like this.

21st: So Jealous – Tegan and Sara

This is the Tegan and Sara I was familiar with. This album has You Wouldn’t Like Me and Where Does the Good Go which are hits and were super important on early Grey’s Anatomy. It still retains the moodiness of their early stuff and helps me to understand their sonic journey. I really liked this one. It really had me, that’s all I’ll say here.

22nd: The Con – Tegan and Sara

This album marks a return to their initial sound a little, while retaining the rounder production of their last album and the vibe a little. Like the songs I mentioned from So Jealous that are on Grey’s are super reminiscent of some of the songs here, but executed differently and yeah more like their first albums (moodier and heavier, prevalent guitars and drums). My liked songs from it are mostly from a straight run of the tracks which I think is pretty funny. This is up there in their discography for me for sure.

23rd: Never Not Never Not Never Not – Rosie Tucker

I scoured my sapphic playlist for an artist I needed to explore more and Gay Bar and Rosie Tucker felt like a good way to go. I really like that song and the style of it. It’s like early 2000s drama esque and reminds me of a mix of Regina Spektor and Lucy Dacus. Which sounds like a damn good combo to me. I need to listen to more Regina Spektor. Her post is coming (next year at this rate).
My favourite songs are: Gay Bar, Spinster Cycle, Real House Music, Habit, Lauren (which went into the sapphic playlist)

24th: Sainthood – Tegan and Sara

I won’t lie, I have like no memory of this one. In my defence, I listened to a lot of their music in a short amount of time, it was bound to merge together. I have relistened to it for this though and will do a lot of relistening for the post on them. Whenever that comes. It’s like So Jealous sonically, but with more like synth sounds in there. Like it’s kind of industrial which is a super cool thing for them to explore. I paid this album dust, I need to give it more of my time.

25th: Utopian – Liza Anne

Cheerleader has been in my Spotify recommendations for months now and it’s a great song, so it was time I listened to the full project it’s from. Liza Anne’s music is like BETWEEN FRIENDS level of character and fun but with a full band and general heavier production. It’s just a lot of fun and the production is so clever. I need her to dominate the soundtracks of coming of age films because this album is perfect for that.
My favourite songs are: Cheerleader, Rainbow Sweater, Shania Twain Is Making Me Cry, Treat Me, Utopian, Pack Light

26th: MADRA – NewDad

I didn’t know much about NewDad before listening to this project, but I for sure was not disappointed. Their sound is like Pearly Drops kind of atmospheric but heavier. It feels super 90s and I love it. Like they could open for Mazzy Star. Doing this description is making me remember how much I loved this album. I need to put it in my rotation.
My favourite songs are: Angel, Sickly Sweet, Change My Mind, In My Head, Nosebleed, Nightmares

27th: KILLYJOY – Coach Party

I was exploring Spotify for suggestions at this point, and Coach Party is a band that keeps coming up for me, so I figured this was as good a time to check them out as any. Their music is like heavy, very much rock for this time. They’re like Wargasm vibes. Not massively my thing but I did enjoy parts of it and I’m happy to have finally checked them out. My favourite songs were: Parasite, Micro Aggression, Be That Girl, Hi Baby, Always Been You.

28th: Bring It On OST

Full disclosure; I have never seen a single Bring It On film. I don’t know why I haven’t, I just didn’t really hear about them until I was like 17 and I haven’t had any interest in getting to it. But the culture around it and from what I do know of them. There was no way that the soundtrack wouldn’t eat. It was another work listen and I had a good time at the till listening to this. It’s pretty much what you would expect from a Bring It On soundtrack and it eats.

29th: Bridget Jones’ Diary OST

Another that I listened to at work. It’s a classic 2000s British film soundtrack like Robbie Williams is on it. With a couple of exceptions I don’t pay attention to the music in these films, so it was nice to actually pay attention to the soundtrack of it. And listening to it made me want to watch it again, boy is this film good.

30th: ROACH – Miya Folick

Give It To Me is one of my favourite songs ever, and this album had been on my ‘to listen to’ list for a while. I remembered in the eleventh hour. It’s a masterpiece. The songs are all so good, I love her style and her tone. Her voice is soft but uber powerful and forceful. And her lyrics match that. I went into this blind which was a really good choice I think. A load of these songs are singles, but I like that I literally had no idea what this would sound like. And I absolutely was not disappointed.
My favourite songs are: Oh God, Get Out of My House, Drugs or People, Mommy, 2007, Cartoon Clouds

31st: Death Of A Fantasy – Lauren Sanderson

I had been meaning to listen to a full Lauren Sanderson project for a while. I’ve listened to a few odd songs here and there, but never a full album of hers, and I’ve been aware of her since she supported Finneas. This is an album for sure. I don’t think her music is really my thing. I will stick to odd singles here and there. But I love this for her and for lesbianism. A lot of lesbian music being made right now is like kind of juvenile pop so I like this variety. QUEEN BEE and Girl From the Internet are the songs on this album that are on my lesbian playlist.

This was a very long post, thank you for sticking through it. I will probably do this again in like September. That sounds fun to me.

Georgia

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