Midweek Crisis #7

Nostalgic vibes for the hard times 🌧. Featured: WILLIS, Aslan, Stevie Nicks, The Band, Green Day, Woody Guthrie, Delachute

Aug 18, 2021

Good morning,

It’s Wednesday again, so we’re about to listen to something together. Grab your cup of coffee or tea, and join me ☕️🫖🎧.

The past two weeks were like a weather rollercoaster here 🎢. Hot, sunny days were battling with colder, rainy days. One day you had to put on your sweater weather clothes to change into shorts the next day. It inspired me to make a new playlist: “Weather songs for the sunny days, rainy days and both ☀️🌧🌦”.

Lately, I’m feeling super emotional. There’s a lot on my plate right now, and I’m desperately seeking some relief in music 🎧. I think it will be visible on today’s playlist. You’ll find various genres blended together in one, kind of nostalgic, musical cocktail 🍸. If you’re in a similar state of mind, I think you may like it.

Without further ado, down below you’ll see my 7 picks for today’s 7th issue.

Have the best day imaginable and enjoy Midweek Crisis #7,

Stygi

Something For The Rainy Days ☔️

WILLIS - I Think I Like When It Rains

“I Think I Like When It Rains” by the WILLIS is an opening song from today’s bonus playlist - “Weather songs for the sunny days, rainy days and both ☀️🌧🌦”. I like its melancholic, calm vibe, and indie rock sound. It kind of reminds me of “Don’t Let Me Down” by The Beatles. Check it yourself:

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Something Touching ✨

Aslan - Crazy World

I found this touching song while watching the "Normal People" TV series (on HBO Go). Christy Dignam, the lead singer of the Irish rock band Aslan, wrote it in the ‘90s. The story behind his music is uneasy. As a child, he was sexually abused. In his adult life, he struggled with heroin addiction, which was hurting his family. Then he got incurable cancer. Dignam once told in the interview how bad he felt during a gig, singing “Crazy World” (that begins with words: “How can I protect you in this crazy world?”). When he looked at his wife, he cried and thought about how he hadn’t been able to protect her, and their daughter from his demons.

Interesting fact: the band got its name after the lion from “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe” by C.S. Lewis 🦁.

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*Check out the New 2020 Pandemic Edition Video

Something from the ’80s 👯‍♀️

Stevie Nicks - Edge of Seventeen

I bumped into it while watching the „Physical” series (Apple TV+), a dramedy taking place in ‘80s California. Stevie Nicks wrote this song in December 1980, deeply touched by the assassination of John Lennon, and her uncle dying of cancer. The spirit leaving the body in time of death is symbolized here as the white-winged dove 🕊.

The "Ooh-ooh-ooh" part of the song is meant to resemble the singing of the white dove from the opening lyrics: "Just like the white-winged dove Sings a song Sounds like she's singin' ‘Ooh-ooh-ooh’ Just like the white-winged dove Sings a song Sounds like she's singin' ‘Ooh, baby, ooh’ Said, whoo". Nicks came up with the idea to use this in her song while reading a restaurants’ menu. Check out this story on her Instagram profile.

stevienicks

A post shared by @stevienicks

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Something Intriguing 🤔

The Band - The Weight

It's a truly awesome song from the ‘60s. The kind you listen to for x hours on repeat 🎧🔁, and a neutralizer for the negative vibes. I love its folk style, beautiful piano chords 🎹, and enigmatic story.

“The Weight” by The Band tells us about a traveler who looks for a place to stay, and people he meets along the way in his long journey. The song is loaded with different biblical motives - Nazareth, Moses, Luke, Judgement Day, and the Devil himself 😈. Robbie Robertson, the head songwriter and vocalist of the band, claims it’s about "the impossibility of sainthood". Check out the song that’s on the Top 50 of Rolling Stone’s “500 Greatest Songs of All Time”.

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Something Sentimental 💾

Green Day - She

“Dookie” by Green Day was the first album I stole from my older brothers’ room. It was on a cassette that I played on my blue Sony walkman 🎧. On the cover, it has these crazy cool illustrations. And on the inside, there were handwritten song lyrics. I remember being struck by this shade of punk rock music ⚡️.

The song I liked the most, more than the widely known “Basket Case”, was “She”. Billy Joel Armstrong, the bands' lead singer and guitarist, wrote it for his then-girlfriend Amanda. She was a feminist, an activist, and a muse for Billy Joel. The “She” song is his statement for her, that she was being heard, and cared for. As I was a troubled teenager of the ‘90s, it’s not surprising that the text resonated with me at that time on many levels.

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Something For The People 🤝

Woody Guthrie - This Land Is Your Land

Have you ever heard about the alternative anthem of the USA? Some Americans consider it to be Woody Guthrie with his song “This Land Is Your Land”. He wrote it in 1940 as a socialist answer to the national anthem “God Bless America”. While the second one places the country above its humble populace, Guthrie’s song puts the people first. It’s honest, simple, and catchy. On the one hand, he praises the beauty of his country, protesting economic oppression at the same time.

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Something Disturbing 😬

Delachute - Caligula

Delachute, the masked artist from Montreal, gave me thrills with this song and its story. As you can read on his webpage:

`“``This song was inspired by a case I was working on. The guy killed family members so he wouldn’t ever have to worry about money again. From planning to executing, the whole process was explained in details and it haunted me for a while.`

`He was idolizing Caligula, a Roman Emperor known for his legendary cruelty. During his reign, he had many of his family members executed. Like many murderers, Caligula had a very troubled childhood filled with violence. He sometimes claimed to be a god and one of his favorite quote was “remember that I have the right to do anything to anybody”. Our guy was in that same state of mind.”`

Delachute’s job was to bring victims or victims' family members to federal prison for hearings to meet the criminalist, and ask the question: “Why?”. In the “Caligula” song, he made an incredible contrast between the subject and the music. Mellow, pleasant melody combined with a character study of a murderer. If you don’t listen carefully you think it’s just a beautiful indie rock ballad. Now, knowing the story behind it, hear it yourself: