Syd Matters 2005 album Someday We Will Foresee Obstacles borrows its title from the poignant lyrics of it’s 2nd track: “Obstacles”. The intricate but carefully articulated guitar patterns weave through layers of reflective vocals to perfectly capture the feeling of early Autumn in the Pacific Northwest…
Although he’s probably best known for his 2003 cover of Swedish electronic music duo The Knife’s “Heartbeats”, it’s José González “Far Away” that wins him a place on this playlist. Written exclusively for Rockstar San Diego’s open-world wild-west epic: Red Dead Redemption, “Far Away” has become something of a classic example of video game music done right.
Track 2 is “Short Change Hero” by The Heavy. The track featured on the band’s 2009 sophomore release The House That Dirt Built. The Heavy are one of those bands whose name you might not know but you’ve probably heard their music because it seems to turn up everywhere…
“Runnin’ Down a Dream” from Tom Petty’s solo album Full Moon Fever was featured to excellent effect in Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Although only a moderate billboard success on its initial release in 1989, it had become a staple of classic rock radio stations by the early 1990s. Reflecting this trend, the song appears on the in-game classic rock radio station “K-DST The Dust”.
Murder by Death – Sounds like a metal band, right?… wrong. While this 5-piece folk-rock clan may ride parallel universe tracks when it comes to the dark themes of Metal music, when it comes to the instrumentation, vibe and composition, they’re on the polar end of the cosmos.
Imagine yourself a dimly lit, smoke filled speakeasy, ripped leather booth (stuffing exposed), and a neat glass of warm bourbon in hand… enter “The Chaw”. A Brooding, sulky, psychedelic blues rock band with a rattlesnake bite, desert vibe. Hailing from the California, East Bay area,…
Taken from the quintessential existentialist 2004 film “I Heart Huckabees”, which was ever so charmingly scored by Mr. Brion himself. This playful ditty pokes fun at the exhausting, never-ending quest for the meaning of existence.
A methodically slow swell of keys that float angelically behind a cinematic, ominous string section. Roll the percussive crescendo….the curtain explodes open and BLAM!!! you’re in.
“Here” may be one of the strongest opening songs on a debut album I’ve ever experienced. Jon Crosby, the mastermind behind VAST, is essentially screaming out to the universe “I’m fuckin’ HERE!”
Lyrically, the song’s a seekers utopia as much as it is a mid-evil torcher device.
Do you endure on an epic, never-ending quest in pursuit of answer to all things life?
This song feels like the sun coming through the window of your car, taking polaroids with your friends on the drive to Vegas. Like the light in the morning in your penthouse suite, messy hair and a stranger leaving out the front door…
Pour some champagne girls, we’re going out tonight. This song is a fleeting romance, dancing in a stretch limo, sparkling wine and the tang of a shot. A glittering gold song that’s just as fresh and glamorous the first time around than it is the hundredth…
This song is falling in love, warm blushing cheeks and catching eyes. A sweet, pink, nostalgic song that lends itself perfectly to dancing in your apartment with your hairbrush. The rush of a young romance, of kissing behind the bleachers and holding hands. But this song is more than sweet, more than nostalgia, as it dances delicately into a smooth retro vibe that leaves a fizzy aftertaste on your tongue…