Music to Grieve to
listen to sad music and feel better with andrew
featuring artists like
The Staves, Robb Murphy, Colin Hay, Shelby Lynne, Dawes, Tim Minchin, Radiohead, Nick Cave, First The Winter
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Listening to sad music after losing a loved one, being diagnosed with a terminal illness, or finalizing a divorce might seem counterintuitive, but this somber sounding activity has been proven to help.
Nothing can prepare you for grief, nor is there a right or wrong way to deal with it, but sad music is an easily accessible and highly effective tool that can help you begin to heal.
The music on this list is not designed to cheer you up – although oddly – after listening to it, you’ll likely feel better – it’s designed to meet you where you’re at – to connect with how you’re feeling – to create a space where you can just sit and be with your grief and to know that – that’s OK.
It covers all genres and all topics so it’s likely that not all tracks will resonate with you – but some will – and some will shake you to your core – according to the science – this is a good thing!
A Life in Full Color (song for Louis) – Gerhardt
25 September 2021
Why write a song reflecting on the suicide of a beloved friend? Why send it out into the world? What purpose does that serve? Ever since Gerhardt reached out and sent me this beautiful track, I’ve been reflecting on those questions – and while I don’t have an answer, I have an idea of one…
A Further Look at Loss – Andrew Wasylyk
13 April 2021
I was feeling sad – and I know why, but damn it’s so hard at times.
I’ve sat and watched as circumstance came in and deconstructed my defences one by one – constant pain leading to lack of sleep to lack of writing to lack of self care to lack of confidence to lack of hope to – STOP!
Paralysed – The Staves
31 March 2021
There’s this idea in life that just because you know a thing it makes it easier to deal with.
Like sitting down with a therapist, driving through your history until you find the behavior that causes you, many years later, to run away from connection or drink too much or insist on cleaning everything 3 times.
Lux Aurumque – Eric Whiteacre
26 January 2021
Aaaah yes, the choir – the harmonies, the frisson, the hairs standing up on the back of your neck as a soprano haunts your soul.
This is a winter track – best listened to while looking out the window – watching the outside – inclement weather is the perfect accompaniment…
Fables – Yard Arms
16 December 2020
I’m all too familiar with the effects of becoming dependent upon drugs and alcohol – I don’t wish that on anyone – let alone myself – but in the immortal words of Irvine Welsh:
“People think it’s all about misery and desperation and death and all that shite, which is not to be ignored, but what they forget is the pleasure of it…
Honestly – Second Hand Poet
8 December 2020
I’m trawling along the bottom again – I don’t know why – honestly…
It’s the not knowing that kills – and not just you, but your loved ones too as you can’t articulate and are forced to watch as they project and hurt…
Break the Bottle – Jess Silk
19 November 2020
God I love the story tellers.
The lyricists who construct a reality you can step into, to experience it as if you were there – as if you knew the characters – who do it so seamlessly that – even if it is by proxy – you get to feel the emotions for real.
That’s the point of this list – it’s designed to make you feel – to connect with the emotions that we’re oh so good at keeping hidden, buried under guilt and social conditioning. Because when we don’t deal with those emotions – well – that’s when the bad shit happens…
Graveyard – Lucy Schwartz
12 October 2020
That chorus hook could launch a thousand love songs, instead it’s here – working for you – creating the safety net for those of us who dared to try and ended up failing on the battlefield of love.
Damn – Nat Lefkoff
30 September 2020
I’m here again because I’m sad.
Which is kinda OK really – this being the music to grieve to playlist – but it’s more than the normal sadness – and while it’s not quite despair – it does feel overwhelming.
I could give you the exact point in time and particular reference – which you would all understand, if not necessarily appreciate – but that’s not the point of tracks like this…
Insecure- Max Million (Feat. Maria B)
9 September 2020
Insecure is a thought provoking and self empowering anthem, created on the soul purpose to inspire and uplift.
Featuring Mariea B adding a Rythmic Blues
I Loves You Porgy – Nina Simone
22 August 2020
I’ve loved this song for as long as I can remember – certainly long before I understood what it was about.
There’s so many ways to appreciate it – from the gorgeous melody to Nina Simone’s stunning delivery, to the whiteness of its writers and how Porgy and Bess continues to force us to look at systemic inequities in American life: race, gender, disability and poverty…
Gin & Lemonade – TOVE
23 July 2020
Who’s up for an alcohol induced ascent above the madness? And I’m not talking about some upbeat energetic overview where you’re in a balloon or an airplane and you’re feeling great about it all – no – I’m talking about a loose edged experience, laid back and fuzzy, where ‘cos you can’t see the ground, you don’t have to worry about it…
The first visual memory I have is that of the white upright piano in Singapore, Hell and the Dark Forces lived at the bottom, Heaven and the Angels at the top, they would play battles through my fingers and I was hooked.
As a psychology graduate I studied how sound affects human performance.
As a musician I compose instrumental music that stimulates your brain but doesn't mess with your language centers, leaving you free to be creative and brilliant without distraction.
As a curator I research how music can improve your life and create flow - I can tell you what music to listen to when studying for a test and why listening to sad music can make you feel better.
As a creator / contributor at musicto I’m part of a global creator community that collaborates through music. You can learn more about our community here.