Music to Be Alive To
make sure that every moment of life is valued with aarushi aggarwal
featuring artists like
Shubh Saran, Alfa Mist, Noori, Ritviz, Tame Impala, Mumford & Sons, Band of Horses, The Paper Kites, Charlie Parker
I like to believe that the wheel of emotions was built because humans are intended to experience the entire range of emotions. This does not mean that we do not chase happiness; of course, human life is wont to do that. But that does not mean that we do not savour the other moments of pain, anguish, failure and heartbreak that inevitably puncture our daily life. Moments like these which challenge our existence and incentivise us to do better and to be better.
Experiencing these emotions is an integral part of every human life and as such, we should take pride in our ability to really feel the way we do and celebrate it. Every celebration needs music so one ought to think of this playlist as a celebration of life. If your life were a movie then this playlist would be your soundtrack: ranging from the victory dance to the gut-wrenching pain.
The diversity is not limited to emotions alone. The playlist is widespread in the genres it represents too. It features as much jazz as it does indie peppered with blues induced country and Indian music. Language is no barrier because love and life are experienced universally. The combination of these tracks does not make a coherent story, rather a muddle that reflects the confusion and non-linearity of life. Love, joy, loss, anger, frustration; all find a place here to make sure that every moment of life is valued; to make sure that at every moment, we are alive.
Early Summer – Ryo Fukui
2 April 2019
I’m making my big comeback and there ain’t no better track do it with than this.
A lot has happened in the two months since I fell off the face of the earth. Apart from falling completely in love with hip-hop jazz, I discovered the genius of Ryo Fukui while drinking green tea at a friend’s. I don’t think life is quite the same since…
With A Little Help From My Friends – Joe Cocker
6 February 2019
I came across this track in a show, as a frequent source of some fascinating new music. The sequence gave a sense of the fleeting, of that which exists in a brief passing moment. Yet, this track lends permanence to it: as if to say that this brief experience will last a lifetime…
Jeep’s Blues – Duke Ellington
9 January 2019
The overwhelming emotions that the end of a year and the beginning of a new one bring, definitely need a banger. And though this one goes back about six decades, it sets the tone for what will be your 2019 – loud and chaotic yet melodic and beautiful with equal parts of highs and lows…
Let it Happen – Tame Impala
18 December 2018
With this track, this playlist finishes a year and I am stoked. It’s a milestone for me certainly: I have learnt so much about my own perceptions of music and why I listen to what I do listen to. Which is why I am doubly excited about this week’s track…
Christmas Lights – Coldplay
12 December 2018
It’s going to be particularly hard to write about this track: not for the track in itself but for Coldplay. Coldplay has been my favourite band looonggg before they became everyone’s favourite band, long before they decided to go pop and use electronic instruments…
Angst in My Pants – Sparks
5 December 2018
I’ve said this about a lot of my tracks before: movies and shows are two great ways to be introduced to new music. Now, Angst in My Pants isn’t exactly new but I didn’t exist in 1982…
Wona – Mumford & Sons, Baaba Maal, The Very Best and Beatenberg
14 November 2018
This track is, in so many ways, the truest representation of my playlist. For starters, it amalgamates musical traditions, a marker of this playlist. It is emotionally rich: mixing an acute anthemic beat with a mellow vibe…
That’s How I Got to Memphis – Tom T. Hall
30 October 2018
A friend once remarked to me: almost everything that one has lost can be acquired again, other than one’s innocence. And although I first heard this song long before this thought was expressed to me, it has been fused with it almost as though it was the description I did not know I was seeking to the song…
Springtime – Shorthand (feat. Banjo Earth)
17 October 2018
A college dorm dream of having one’s own band is as fantastical as living on Mars. As a prime example of genius talent meets effort, Shorthand is living that fantastical dream, sending all their fans into a frenzy with a sound that is so new and unique….
I Don’t Stand a Ghost of a Chance With You – Joe Pass
2 October 2018
Bringing back some good ol’ jazz this week.
For a virtuoso of Joe Pass’s stature, there are terribly few people who still listen to him. Considered one of the greatest jazz guitarists of the 20th century, Joe Pass is not unlike his contemporaries…
Paint It Black – The Rolling Stones
11 September 2018
How does one begin to write about the genius of a band whose reputation has sustained itself for over five decades? Whatever one can say, will be insufficient…
Saari Raat – Noori (Coke Studio Sessions: Season 2)
4 September 2018
It’s been over a month since I left India — the longest that I have been away from my country all my life. In my previous trips abroad, ‘home’ was not really very far away. The short vacation would be over and I’d be back to my old life. However, knowing that I will be away for the rest of the year has different connotations…
