Music vs. the misery
I've always thought Valentine's Day was kind of a silly holiday, designed to make singles feel inadequate and couples feel pressured to do something "extra special" to prove the worth of their couple-ness.
I'm not a romantic, you could say.
To that end, I made a special Valentine's Day mix, with songs about couples in dysfunctional relationships or people with unhealthy passions. It's funny and sad, for a day that's mostly pathetic.
1. Alone Again Or - Calexico
Yes, there's been a lot of these guys on the site as of late, but I'm really digging them right now, and this song (originally recorded by Love) is a great one about loneliness and wanting to be loved.
2. Apply Some Pressure - Maximo Park
I liked this song the first second I heard it. Lead singer Paul Smith sounds so manic and so desperate.
3. Modern Romance - TV on the Radio
This is a cover of the Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs song, but something about TVotR's a capella version is all the more haunting.
More after the jump.
4. Evil Angel - Rufus Wainwright
Rufus knows a little something about bad choices.
5. Tymps (The Sick in the Head Song) - Fiona Apple
Fiona is so delightfully miserable, and this is actually one of her more uplifting songs.
6.The Seed - Cody ChesnuTT (Gilles Peterson mix)
In the past, whenever his name came up, I always thought that Cody ChesnuTT was a country singer (I may have been thinking of Kenny Chesney, or something). Well, he's not, and he does the boastful R&B singer thing quite well. The lyrics border on misogynistic, but he's so proud of that, that you have to admire that.
Why the Gilles Peterson mix and not the Roots version? The stripped down instrumentation lets you better appreciate the lyrics.
7. Tears Dry on Their Own - Amy Winehouse
I've pimped her out before, and now she's finally making inroads in the States. She just seems so tragically assured of unhappiness in the future, which makes her a perfect fit for a cynic's Valentine's Day mix tape. Also, she has the audacity to sample from "Ain't No Mountain High Enough." There are indications that her wild life and party girl style might take her through Lindsay Lohan territory, but hopefully she'll keep it together and channel it all into the music.
8. Hit Me Baby (One More Time) - Fountains of Wayne
FoW's slowed down version of the Spears classic reveals the emotional depth of this song, which here sounds like the last ditch plea of someone trying to save a dying relationship.
9. Combat Baby- Metric
Because sometimes all we really want is someone to fight with.
10. The Gentle Preservation of Children's Minds - Irving
I can't quite place my finger on what makes this an anti-Valentine's Day song. I think it's just misanthropic in general, which makes it eligible for inclusion. (It's my list, I make the rules.)
11. A Lack of Color - Death Cab For Cutie
From "Transatlanticism," the album before "everyone" knew Death Cab, this song really is a heartbreaker. It's a song from the point of view of a devastated cheater that actually evokes sympathy. Probably because it's clear that he's never getting the girl back, and he knows it.
12. The Mayor of Simpleton - XTC
"A Lack of Color" is so freaking depressing that I had to follow it with something upbeat, and you don't get more upbeat than XTC. The main character may have intellectual shortcomings, but he knows from love.
13. You to Thank - Ben Folds
This song describes my dream wedding: an accident in Vegas.
14. Landslide Baby - Beulah
Four of the six members were going through divorces or difficult breakups while this album was written and recorded, so the whole thing is understandably bleak. This is a song for the angry, empowered. "I'm better off without you" part after any breakup.
15. Amitriptyline - John Vanderslice
Manic depressives make very bad boyfriends.
16. Bizarre Love Triangle - New Order
I had a boss that used to do a funny dance to this song.
17. The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get - Morrissey
The title kind of says it all. We always are more attracted to those who shun us.
18. Three Quarters Late - One Ring Zero
I've written about these guys before, too. The meaning is hard to decipher, on purpose, I think. But he doesn't have the girl anymore and that makes him sad.
19. Step Into My Office, Baby - Belle and Sebastian
The story of a female boss coming on to her male employee. It's very sweet.
20. Atoms for Peace- Thom Yorke
To my ear, Thom Yorke solo sounds a lot like Thom Yorke with Radiohead. Anyway, this is just the kind of creepy love song you'd expect from him/them. "Eat your artichoke heart," indeed.
21. By Your Side - CocoRosie
Not a cover of the Sade song, with "By Your Side" the Casady sisters strike a good balance between quirky and annoying. Nothing says Valentine's Day like fidelity and spousal abuse.
