Maria
As a person who loves being alone, and besides, can work remotely, I kind of have nothing to complain about when I’m in self-isolation. But I miss my family and friends, my favorite places in the city, and traveling, and movie theaters, and music concerts – the whole world without the threat of a dangerous and new virus, I guess?
So, sometimes I'm sad and that’s okay, but I just really want to hear the simple “everything will be alright” - even if it's not simple at all. If you want to hear something like this too, I want to share with you the super-new, like literally just released, track The Sun Will Rise Over The Year by the wonderful and crazy-talented British singer-songwriter Roo Panes. Maybe it will help. :)
And If you want to listen to something more powerful, with a dark swirl of energy in each note – because I definitely do sometimes – go forward to the great song Time Only Moves by Imany, an amazing French singer with an incredibly magical voice and unforgettable music style.
Zoya
This month was unusual. Being isolated from people made me sad and even depressed (can’t wait to just take the subway and see real people!). But music always helps, right?
My antidepressants this month were two songs: Sirotkin - Планы на это лето and Kapelle Petra - An irgendeinem Tag wird die Welt untergehen. The first song is in Russian and it gives you this warm feeling that everything will be alright. The second one is in German and the main idea of it is that life is hard sometimes but it’s not the end yet. Positivity to all of us!
Anna
This week I’ve been humming U2’s Song for Someone, especially the part about
“If there is a light / You can't always see / And there is a world / We can't always be/ If there is a dark / Now we shouldn't doubt / And there is a light / Don't let it go out.”
That’s all I’m trying to focus on right now – keeping that light on. And thinking about Bono rocking it.
Catherine
I’ve spent this month listening to quite a weird bunch of tracks and artists, but today I’d like to mention two things that keep me going from day to day.
First of all, Full Circle (yes, the whole album) by the ethereal Hælos, who never fail to take me to the wonderful and mysterious sci-fi worlds I seem to love spending my time in. It was the very first track, however, that hooked me in with its “there arise among human beings people that seem to exhume love as naturally as the sun gives out heat” – if that’s not a sparkle of hope then I don’t know what is.
Second comes an eerie rendition of The Parting Glass by Hozier released this week. Apart from the usual deep clear voice and a Hozier-y honest performance, the song is a perfect combination of nostalgic and hopeful, making you look gratefully at the cherished past so that you can appreciate what you have in the present.
Kseniia
One of the most impressive cultural events of this month for me was The World You Live In, a live-streamed concert by the Japanese band Dir En Grey. As their shows got postponed due to the pandemic, they decided to perform without the audience, although with more than 35,000 people watching it live via YouTube.
I feel like the show reached its peak near the end with a more than 10-minutes long performance of one of their latest songs, The World of Mercy. I had an opportunity to visit their actual concert twice in my life and I missed it both times, but after seeing this live stream I certainly won’t miss the next one.
Ethan
7 Skies H3 by The Flaming Lips – Part 1, Part 2
The days begin to lose their form. The line between day and night blurs more each rotation. Dreams and life become inseparable and often engage with each other in a game of two. Even though we try to deceive people and give value only to those positive things in life, to truly live is to feel, even sadness. In negative emotions, we venture to the unknown and make conscious our deepest vulnerabilities and faults. In them, we can continue to forge a path based on truth.
This 24-hour song showcases the real-time state of mind of a regular man who loses something precious to him and this song tries to show how his mind was the first 24 hours after that loss. The song was released by the American Rock band The Flaming Lips, in a limited edition of 13 copies, on flash drives encased in real human skulls, for Halloween 2011. No one can deny the band's nature for experimenting and adventuring into the unknown territory of the human mind which makes it a perfect listen for those who dare to enter this 1440 minute journey in this time of self-isolation.
