10 Songs To Add To Your “Seasonal Depression” Playlist
As we arrive into the last few months of the year, we are greeted by everyone’s favorite grouping of holidays. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and Seasonal Depression. If you have yet to prepare your playlist to carry you into the new year, here are 10 tracks you can’t miss.
#10: Stick Season — Noah Kahan
‘Stick Season’ is a beautiful acoustic melody bathed in simplicity and the melancholic ache for forward motion, much like the rolling drums. Kahan sings of the desolation that lingers in the time between Fall and Spring, an ache for the past and the inexorable, looming future. The catchy but quick track is the perfect addition to your morning routine.
#9: Julia — Mt. Joy
‘Julia’ is an incredibly groovy love letter embellished with a yearning electric guitar and lead singer, Matt Quinn’s vocal fluidity. If a track could possibly embody the rare innocence we feel when falling in love with a stranger, Mt. Joy has accomplished that. ‘Julia’ absorbs you with it’s sweet slowness and melodic cadence.
#8: Beautiful Strangers — Kevin Morby
‘Beautiful Strangers’ is a deep and majestic tune, stretching out in defiance of the world beyond it. The instrumentals are meditative and gentle, offering comfort and solitude in a world that is at odds of us, representing the sanctity we find in music (and a voice like Kevin Morby’s). Clocking in at 6:16, giving you just enough tranquility to power through your day, your lunch break, or your sunset drive home.
#7: Atlantis — Seafret
‘Atlantis’ is a tender ballad of love and loss whose instrumentals take you through the peaks and valleys of grief. It’s aching, climactic choruses embody the feelings that arise in that moment, the inevitable realization of the curtain closing. Similar to the submerging of Atlantis, this song pulls you under with lofty harmonies that give way to intricate acoustic stylings like waves crashing on the shore.
#6: Slow Dances — Winnetka Bowling League
‘Slow Dances’ is written as a diary entry of possibilities, exploring the different endings and ‘what if’s’ of a burned bridge. Engulfing you into a hazy, indie-pop dream-state, the instrumentals move back and forth like a metronome between traditional indie rock and a swaying melancholic groove, never really finding it’s resolve. Winnetka Bowling League masters the musical personification of uncertainty on this track.
#5: Never Said It Was Easy — Palace
‘Never Said It Was Easy’ is a lush, double-sided coin, as ambitious as it is lovelorn. Lead singer, Leo Wyndham’s vocals spill over sampled, unquantized piano and textured harmonies that blend together beautifully. This track takes the cake for harnessing beauty in the simplistic sounds while being anything but basic.
#4: Listerine — Cece Coakly
‘Listerine’ tells the story of the way people linger, the taste they leave on your tongue and what happens when you take off the rose colored glasses. The tune boasts nothing out of the ordinary, but the sound is nostalgic and leaves you longing for another listen. The instrumentals are full and the vocals are the perfectly delicate counterpart that carry you from start to finish.
#3 Texas Sun — Khruangbin & Leon Bridges
‘Texas Sun’ is a simmering number that gently kisses summer goodbye. Leon Bridges’ vocals are mellow and drizzle like honey over the tantalizing western-acoustic sound brought by Khruangbin. The two artists seamlessly dissolve into one on this track, answering the question “what would Bob Seger sound like in 2022?”.
#2: The Idea of You — Grady & lovelytheband
‘The Idea of You’ is a bittersweet recollection of new age dating in which bedroom-pop personalities lovelytheband and Grady joined together in lavish, layered unison. The unapologetically honest track offers a solid acoustic ambiance with catchy lyrics that spill over the sides and a instrumental drop-out that will have you singing along after the first listen. This song embodies the change of pace from late summer into fall.
#1: Pieces — Andrew Belle
‘Pieces’ is a soulful, sobering ballad placing equal emphasis on both ambiance and attitude. It’s ominous opening transforms into an all-encompassing chorus, building you up as Belle meets the arrangements halfway with heart-aching lyrics that create a completely ethereal listening experience. Belle has created a rich but delicate sound that lingers in the air even after it’s stopped playing.
