Spurred on by a brief shower thought, iâve tried my hand at making a playlist âfor the bad daysâ: songs (mostly rock) with big, soaring crescendos that feel like an out-of-body experience. Your âBitter Sweet Symphoniesâ, your âHoppĂpollasâ, your ââHeroesâ-esâ â the songs that make you have faith in humanity, and make you not want to jump out of a thirtieth-storey window so badly.
Iâve been asking around for suggestions on the usual (Discord) channels, and have got some cracking songs in return â so, do any of you want to try your hands at it? Iâd love to hear your ideas. :-)
Hereâs the current set of songs on the playlist, to give you an idea of the general âvibesâ â exceptional examples are highlighted in bold.
- The 1975, âI Always Wanna Die (Sometimes)â
- Bleachers, âRollercoasterâ
- Arcade Fire, âMy Body Is a Cageâ (thx, Pike)
- David Bowie, ââHeroesââ
- Kate Bush, âCloudbustingâ
- Coldplay, âViva La Vidaâ
- Daft Punk, âGiorgio by Moroderâ
- Elbow, âOne Day Like Thisâ
- Sam Fender, âThe Dying Lightâ
- Fun; âSome Nightsâ
- Keane, âSomewhere Only We Knowâ
- LCD Soundsystem, âDance Yrself Cleanâ
- The Naked and Famous, âHigherâ
- Oasis, âDonât Look Back in Angerâ
- Oasis, âChampagne Supernovaâ
- Radiohead, âAll I Needâ
- Radiohead, âVideotapeâ (live at Bonnaroo)
- Porter Robinson, âUnfoldâ
- Sigur RĂłs, âHoppĂpollaâ
- Snow Patrol, âChasing Carsâ
- Suede, âLife is Goldenâ (thx, Pike)
- Tame Impala, âLet It Happenâ
- The Verve, âBitter Sweet Symphonyâ
- The War on Drugs, âI Donât Live Here Anymoreâ
- The White Stripes, âSeven Nation Armyâ
- The Who, âBaba OâRileyâ
Cardiacs - The Everso Closely Guarded Line
i have listened to... a maybe unhealthy amount of Cardiacs. but this song in particular has two crescendo parts which are in a whole league of their own holy shit
To preĂŤmpt the inevitable: I mulled over adding âA Day in the Lifeâ, but decided against it, as the only kind of out-of-body experience its climax reminded me of was a bad <span class="all-sc">DMT</span> trip.
My Body Is a Cage by Arcade Fire. There's a video on YT that someone did where the song is set to scenes from Once Upon The Time in the West, crescendo timing at a great point.
Life is Golden by Suede although it doesn't have a crescendo as such, it lifts and breaks at multiple points.