Hi all. We”™re testing a new ”˜group author”™ feature today, so hopefully you”™ll see a kickass avatar next to this post indicating that it”™s yours truly behind the ol”™ keyboard”¦ Bear with me if it doesn”™t work, as I”™ll be panicking behind the scenes trying to figure out why it”™s knackered”¦
So far this afternoon I”™ve been listening to a playlist by Sean Adams of DrownedinSound.com, and bopping like a loon. I suggest you check it out, as featured on Spotify”™s blog.
Our playlist today was lovingly crafted by Ben Hawling, and is the second of his “The Soundtrack To My Life”¦” series. It”™s a nostalgic trip through 2007, and is truly an aural treat.
(Part 1, entitled “2006”, can be found here)
[David]
70 Spotisfaction Wednesday (9 Jun) – BHawling.
- I Can Only Disappoint U – Mansun
- Setting Sun – Howling Bells
- I Like Birds – Eels
- Get Real Paid – Beck
- Breathe In – Frou Frou
- Hundred – The Fray
- Arc Of Time – Bright Eyes
- Beating Heart Baby – Head Automatica
- Buddy Holly – Weezer
- Such Great Heights – The Postal Service
- Little Of Your Time – Maroon 5
- The Unshockable – Maximo Park
- Like A Feather – Nikka Costa
- Here Comes The Fuzz – Mark Ronson
- Can”™t Make A Sound – Elliot Smith
- Just A Test – Beastie Boys
- Feathers – Fields
- The Way I Are – Timberland ft. Keri Hilson
- It”™s Not About You – Scouting For Girls
- Goodbye Mr A. – The Hoosiers
- Watch Me Fall Apart – Hard – Fi
- Good Life – Kanye West
- Brazen (Weep) [Perfecto Mix] – Skunk Anansie
- Bodysnatchers – Radiohead
- The Night Sky – Keane
- One More Time – Daft Punk
- Singing For The Lonely – Robbie Williams
- Crack The Whip – The Spinto Band
- Silent To The Dark – The Electric Soft Parade
The soundtrack to my life”¦”¦”¦.. 2007!
As with 2006 before it, 2007 was full of key life molding moments, all of which were supported by an excellent soundtrack! This year charted my transition from the first year of university to the first half of my second year, and all the friendships and dark times in between.
January – March
The start of the year saw the end of a 3 month long relationship for me, and the gathering of a new set of friends, as I moved into a new house on the uni campus. I was still at the height of my Mansun obsession (still ongoing) at this point, but was also embracing new music from around the time, such as Howling Bells and The Fray. My new room was on the second floor of the house and neatly overlooked the SU bar, which was awesome. As the days got sunnier, and as I watched the sun stretch across the fields, a whole host of sun drenched melodies and tracks entered my ears, including Eels, Frou Frou, Bright Eyes and The Postal Service. Both Eels and Bright Eyes seemed to fit the atmosphere of those lazy days, in completely different ways. Whereas Frou Frou and Postal Service provided the blissful ethereal paint upon the warming canvas. A housemate also got me into Head Automatica at this time, and I remember walking around listening to ”˜Beating Heart Baby”™ non stop.
April – July
Maroon 5”™s second album came out around this time, and despite being full of heartbreak songs, was never out of my ears purely down to its infectious pop hooks. When hanging out in our house one day, a friend claimed that listening to Elliot Smith reminded her of chilling out on the grass and watching the clouds as the sun streamed across everything. I immediately agreed, and quickly got into his ”˜Figure 8”™ album. After hearing some of Mark Ronson”™s ”˜Version”™ album, I bought his more hip hop influenced album and instantly loved it. This coincided with my fascination with 2 many dj”™s, who use Nikka Costa”™s ”˜Like A Feather”™ a lot on their bootleg albums. That summer was fuelled with smiles and dancing, woop!
August – October
I first got into Beastie Boys in the summer of this year, and never looked back. I was given the Fields album by my sister Jo during August, when I was working full time in Moss Bros and had no money. It provided a light in the dark. Also I loved the energy and charm that the band omitted in such a short album. As I was staying at home a lot at this time due to no money, I was watching a lot of television. Thanks to a recent installation of Sky, I had all the music channels, so watched the launching of Scouting For Girls and The Hoosiers, plus loads of R & B tracks. My second year fresher”™s week was good, but I still had no money, and was annoyed at the way some of my new housemates were acting. Anyway, Hard-Fi”™s ”˜Watch Me Fall Apart”™ summed up my feelings here. ”˜Good Life”™ represents the moment I got paid, and got a massive student loan installment, meaning I could buy a shit load of stuff. This track seemed to sum up my attitude towards spending loads of money and generally being rich and happy. What a fool!
November – December
Radiohead released the amazing ”˜In Rainbows”™ in October of this year on the internet, and I paid £5 for it. I went to Swansea to visit a friend that week so listened to that album all the way there and back on the train. I picked up a copy of Paul Oakenfold”™s remix compilation album at this time and the Skunk Anansie track appeared soo haunting, yet beautiful. Keane”™s charity single ”˜The Night Sky”™ came out here and always reminds me of walking through Oxford wearing a green jacket and scarf in the height of Autumn while the leafs fell all around me. One of my favorite memories! For my 20th birthday, me and my housemates went out to a club. At five minutes to midnight, they played ”˜The Way I Are”™, one of my favorite songs of that year, followed by ”˜One More Time”™, my favorite song ever!! Was such a great moment surrounded by close friends hearing the best music! I re-visited Robbie Williams”™ ”˜Sing When Your Winning”™ album in December as it reminded me of my youth. I bought The Spinto Band”™s first album, and Electric Soft Parades”™ ”˜Holes In The Wall”™ for a tenner in a record store and tended to listen to them both as I traveled to work in Oxford from Cheltenham over the Christmas holidays of 2007.
Ok, so overall, not as eventful as my 2006. But 2007 was awesome in soo many other ways. The majority of music that I got into in 2007 remains my favorite songs or band”™s to this day, and it is all down to the memories. You see, even though nothing much happened to me, nothing notably bad happened either, making 2007 great”¦”¦.when compared to 2008!
Nuff said!
Ben Hawling