Music writer Farah shares her playlist for October
September and October hold responsibility for a lot of us, representing a new academic year whilst subconsciously preparing for the looming wintery months ahead. With the change of scenery from summer, our playlists need some refreshment. To give you some suggestions, I’ll offer eight songs released this year that I listened to this month.
‘Epiphany (Freestyle)’ – Pa Salieu
Just five weeks after the British rapper was released from a 21-month prison sentence, Pa Salieu released a two song EP titled Epiphany/Crash (Freestyle), a likely ‘first-day-out’ concept of song musicians release after serving prison time. ‘Epiphany (freestyle)’ strikes me as a profound self-reflection and firm acceptance of the self. Salieu wisely raps behind an upbeat and electronic instrumental as he expresses contemporary political issues: ‘Everyone deserves to eat, like the communist / Greed always falls in power, ask Boris’. This comparison of power and money may introduce us to his own resilience through adversity, but his smooth flow depicts a song you can enjoy sonically, one which may have more to offer if you scratch below the surface. I had to include this song first, as it is my favourite on the list.
‘In the Modern World’ – Fontaines DC
Straight off their fourth album, Romance, Irish band Fontaines DC delve into themes of detachment and escapism in the fifth song ‘In the Modern World’. The song is inspired by a trip to Alaska that band members Grian Chatten and Conor Curley embarked on to escape the pressures of fame. The two band members were introduced to an anaesthetic drug that launched them into a state of dream-like detachment. The lyrics reproduce this idea of satisfaction in a place others may feel discomfort: ‘I feel alive / In the city / You despise’. The dark guitar riffs alongside the optimistic melodies and backing vocals craft a paradoxical romanticism, a theme the album is based on. This results in the song being undoubtedly enjoyable to sit back and consume.
‘Ever Seen’ – Beabadoobee
It is no surprise that Beabadoobee makes this list. Her third studio album, This Is How Tomorrow Moves, is one of my favourite records released this year. Beabadoobee’s sweet, refreshing vocals discuss just as sweet a topic on the eighth track ‘Ever Seen’, originally released as the third single for the album rollout. Alongside an optimistic guitar riff, the singer discovers a newfound appreciation for herself and her boyfriend, triggered by her own struggles with vulnerability found during a mental breakdown. I feel as though the song is relatable, presenting the change of perspective when experiencing mental obstacles in a relationship. Beabadoobee touches on this concept numerous times during the record, but this one stood out to me the most.
Beabadoobee’s sweet, refreshing vocals discuss just as sweet a topic on the eighth track ‘Ever Seen’…
‘Somebody Come Through’ – Wasia Project
Siblings William Gao and Olivia Hardy make up the duo Wasia Project, whose classical training allows them to explore a blend of sonic experimentation, from bedroom pop to classical instrumentation. ‘Somebody Come Through’ is the fourth song on their second EP, Isotype. Since forming in 2019, I think Wasia Project are profound experts at capturing the melancholy in the sounds and lyrics of their music. The lower bass guitar develops at a frequency through the song to feel like we are chasing something, with no success or satisfaction for this. The lyrics are structured through numerous rhetorical questions: ‘Why? Oh, why do I still feel / Like nothing ever changes?’. And this cycle repeats, questioning why the narrator can never escape this feeling of mental paralysis. The narrator keeps exploring this failing relationship until the song gorgeously fades into nothingness at the end.
I think Wasia Project are profound experts at capturing the melancholy in the sounds and lyrics of their music.
‘Brief Perfume’ – Field Medic
If there was ever a time to enjoy Field Medic’s seventh studio album it would be the time of year where we are descending into darkness and the comforts of a fireplace, hot drinks, and muted colour. As the tenth song off dope girl chronicles, ‘Brief Perfume’ is a muted lo-fi expression of the intimacy of sensuality. The flashbacks followed by the repeated ‘Do you like that? / Breathe deep, sweet perfume’ crafts the idea that a smell is like a memory. The memories may be gone but they have left a lingering emotional impact. I perceive this song as a poetic expression for nostalgia and reflection – the ‘silver flashback’ displays this return to the past memory, perhaps cherished yet bittersweet.
‘All Falls Down’ – Lizzy McAlpine
Lizzy McAlpine’s introspective songwriting is channelled through the confessional lyrics on her third studio album, Older. The album explores themes of personal development and moral growth, specifically in the fifth song ‘All Falls Down’. We all understand time is an eternal concept, but it is not until you look back at past experiences that you understand how much of that time can sway you as an individual. This is something McAlpine explores in the lyrics, as she explicitly states ‘Twenty-two was a panic attack / I can’t stop the time from moving and I can never gеt it back’. The pressures of growing older suggest a lack of agency McAlpine feels while writing, expressed in the chorus where the song really does fall. The notes in the chorus descend, utilising word-painting as a technique for the expression of pessimism, and a lack of control on time. The raw, acoustic instrumentation of this song ties it together, expressing a feeling of vulnerability and self-awareness.
‘Big Dog’ – Kevin Abstract
Released as a single alongside ‘Tennessee (feat. Lil Nas X)’, Kevin Abstract blessed us with his single ‘Big Dog’, a complicated discussion on a relationship bordering on the edge of love and lust. Abstract’s vocals are at the forefront of the song, with a fluid and passive flow atop a lush, ambient production, offering space for discussion and introspection. The repetition of ‘Love conquers sex and desire, okay?’ highlights his attempts at prioritising a fulfilled and romantic relationship with his partner, to thus put an end to the complicated dynamic. As the song flows through both verses, the perspective is placed on the love interest, and his feelings for the narrator: ‘His eyes closed, how deep his sleep? / Do he think of me? Do he dream of me?’. The fast-paced discussion of love and lust ends with an ending of piano chords, which is so perfect for the narrative of the song. It seems to come to this satisfying ending, where desire is resisted and thus replaced with this rich, happy piano.
‘Colourblind’ – Daydreamers
What a way to bring the song recommendations to a close with a song that sounds like it just came out of a coming-of-age indie film. Newly formed band Daydreamers only have five singles out on streaming platforms, all released in 2024. But judging by the pop-driven instrumentation, and relatable themes of desire and confusion, I feel as though they will only gain fans from here, me being one of them. The song explores the concept of emotional blindness, and the innocence of being unable to see warning signs, or ‘red flags’ in a partner: ‘’Cause all your red flags look like / Green lights’. The upbeat instrumentation of the song manages to soften the underlying emotional struggle and insecurity within the lyrics, creating a piece which I think presents a subtle feeling of being dynamic yet introspective.
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