{"id":9566,"date":"2024-11-11T10:37:18","date_gmt":"2024-11-11T09:37:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hucbald.nl\/?p=9566"},"modified":"2024-11-11T11:02:30","modified_gmt":"2024-11-11T10:02:30","slug":"music-month-october-luc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hucbald.nl\/en\/2024\/11\/11\/music-month-october-luc\/","title":{"rendered":"Luc’s Music month of October"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hi Hucbald! I\u2019m Luc, a first-year who\u2019s new to this whole thing, but I\u2019ll try my best. I\u2019ve been lent the digital pen to write about my musical journey the last 31 days. On y va!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With memories of Brat Summer still fresh in our minds and presents already being bought for the holiday season ahead, October finds itself in a strange (and, in my opinion, underappreciated) position. It\u2019s the time of blocked noses, rainy days, and, of course, the first period of the academic year coming to an end. This means deadlines. This means exams. This means inevitable procrastination (guilty as charged). And, in my case, it means relying on music to stay up and running. Recently, our good friends (or overlords, you tell me) over at Spotify bestowed luck and wisdom upon us in the form of the daylist<\/em>, which gives us a scarily accurate indication of our musical moods throughout the day. So, without further ado, please let me take you through a day in the life in October with me \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n\n

MORNINGS<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That damn alarm again\u2026 It\u2019s time to wake up properly this time. I\u2019ve found myself listening to Fleet Foxes<\/strong> (as pictured) a lot in the mornings last month. Actually, that\u2019s a lie. They were in my earbuds pretty much at any given point throughout the day. But it\u2019d be lame to discuss just one artist here, so we ball.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their ethereal, harmonizing vocal layering combined with cryptic lyrics (their book of lyrics and annotations is the best thing I\u2019ve purchased this year) and pleasant folksy instrumentation (who the hell uses a mandolin anymore?) scratches my indie folk itch just right. But it\u2019s their bittersweet melancholy that makes their songs so applicable to autumn. Songs like Helplessness Blues<\/em> and Going-to-the-Sun Road<\/em> (featuring Brazilian singer-songwriter Tim Bernardes, who adds his saudade<\/em> flavour to the song in Portuguese) make you yearn for the greener grass of spring and summer, whilst I\u2019m Not My Season <\/em>and If You Need To, Keep Time On Me<\/em> try to make up for the out-of-placeness this month provides. Blue Ridge Mountains, Ragged Wood <\/em>and Bedouin Dress <\/em>are the folkiest of the bunch \u2013 perfect for your fall forest walks \u2013 whilst I Am All That I Need \/ Arroyo Seco \/ Thumbprint Scar<\/em>, a buy-1-get-2-free package deal, inspires you to keep on keeping on. If you haven\u2019t before, give these Seattle folksters a spin by clicking on the playlist on the bottom of the page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AFTERNOONS<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s afternoon now, which means it\u2019s time to get locked in. It\u2019s time to become absolute academic weapons, folks. No, this is a no-procrastination zone from now on. And who else to offer us a pulse than Tom Misch<\/strong> or Mr. Jukes<\/strong>? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both are London-based beat flippers with an affinity for funky bass and gentle guitars. Strip the hiphop-inspired drums from Tom Misch\u2019s songs, and he\u2019ll sound like a singer-songwriter who can hold his own, but add them back, and you\u2019ve got something to bop your head to. Need proof? I got you. The intro to Insecure<\/em> should speak for itself. But it\u2019s the combination of rap and the jazzy guitarwork on Water Baby<\/em> (featuring Loyle Carner) and It Runs Through Me <\/em>(featuring De La Soul) that seals the deal for an afternoon study sesh, sounding carefree and ready. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Jukes is the solo\/side project of Bombay Bicycle Club frontman Jack Steadman, which he started after their 4-year hiatus nearly 10 years ago. Swapping out his guitar for the life of sampling, he created songs like Leap Of Faith<\/em> and Blowin Steam (Open Up Your Mind)<\/em> with De La Soul & Barney Artist, respectively. Both tracks offer great vertical neck muscle workouts as well as a great pulse to walk on during your inevitable study break. The same can be said about Ruby<\/em> and Vibrate<\/em> (the latter featuring Barney Artist once again) <\/em>\u2013 taking your stride without a care in the world, onto a successful exam period. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

EVENINGS<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After having our musicologist\u2019s dinner (a deserved break from Adorno), we should shift our attention back to studying. This is it. This is the final stretch. This is where a 5.4 becomes a 5.5. To put our minds at rest, and to prepare for a good night\u2019s sleep (which in the end is more important before an exam than anything!), 11 mind-easing songs could do the trick. I\u2019m thinking of songs like Amsterdam <\/em>and Dandelion Wine<\/em> by Gregory Alan Isakov<\/strong>, two melodic gems from Nick Drake<\/strong>\u2019s Pink Moon (Place To Be <\/em>& Which Will<\/em>), and Beirut<\/strong>\u2019s Postcards From Italy <\/em>& Perth<\/em>. The latter is a great recommendation if you\u2019re into European folk, which is impressive, given that it\u2019s an American band. Furthermore, there\u2019s two acoustic tracks from Mr Jukes\u2019s main project, Bombay Bicycle Club<\/strong>, in the forms of You Already Know<\/em> and Let You Go<\/em>. Two soothing and soft tracks from a band I hold very dear. We can end things on low intensity with Ben Howard<\/strong>\u2019s What A Day<\/em>, which sounds like a fitting name for the day we\u2019ve just had. Now we\u2019ve gotta get ready to do it all again tomorrow. Go us!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s that! Thank you for reading and listening. All the best now for November!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can listen to all (and more) mentioned tracks down here;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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