Armin Thomas and Gus Lamb
Here are some of the Arts Editors’ favorite songs at the moment that we hope you take into consideration.
Armin’s Picks
Dschinghis Khan – Mosaku
This is a ‘70s song about the great city of Moscow, the capital of our new Russian friends/overlords. It’s got a sick beat, and that chorus always gets me every time. It’s like I just spontaneously break into doing the Hopak. Also, the lyrics are in German, so if you want to learn another language, listen to this song. An English speaker listening to a German song about Russia. I love the world.
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Xi Yang, Li Huanzhi – She Hui Zhu Yi Hao
Gotta love the Revolutionary songs. The point of listening to the song is not saying that “socialism is good”, it’s about appreciating the ardor for progress and forward motion that China has. This song makes me want to fly down to the Strait to liberate Taiwan.
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Patrick Doyle – Non Nobis Domine
From the 1989 film adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Henry V”, this song is one of those “Hallelujah” moments that makes atheists wonder their beliefs are correct at all. From the single voice at the beginning to the entire chorus of the English army, this song kills it on all counts. English 1, French 0.
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Franz Liszt – Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6
A classical one on here, but by no means any less in standard and quality than any of the others. Liszt’s fine musicianship shines through, especially during the Lassan section that conveys a melancholy demeanor. The final octave section is basically proto-metal, it’s just so addicting. Playing those octaves on repeat is probably one of the most annoying things a pianist can do ever.
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Katy Perry – Firework
This song is pretty old in our short attention spans, but it’s got an infectious buildup to the wicked awesome. I mean, they even used this song as a central plot element in a movie about bringing down a North Korean dictator, if I remember chorus, and the energy unleashed on that suspended ninth of “firework” in the chorus is correctly. Jokes aside, there is a reason people still listen to this song six years after it was written (where has Friday gone?). Definitely a recommendation from me.
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Gus’s Picks
PWR BTTM – Ugly Cherries
PWR BTTM is a queer, punk-rock band from New York that I first heard on NPR’s Youtube, when the band performed their own Tiny Desk Concert. In their performance, the duo showed crazy musical talent and vibrancy that singled them out as artists in my knowledge of music. My two favorite songs on the album are Ugly Cherries and C U Around.
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Nat and Alex Wolff – Disappointed
My favorite TV show growing up was The Naked Brothers Band, and Nat and Alex Wolff were the first musicians I ever saw perform live, so it has made me really happy to see the two brothers continue their careers in both music and movies over the past few years. Although, I do not think anything either of them will ever do will make me feel more than I did when the music video for their song “Banana Smoothie” premiered on Nickelodeon a melancholy ten years ago, their recent music is awesome. Disappointed is a song off one of their albums, Black Sheep, and I also recommended Thump, Thump, Thump and Greatest Prize.
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Isaiah Rashad – Heavenly Father
Lordy, give me something for my soul.
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The Shins – Name For You
The Shins have been on my list before, but I chose them again because they’ve been releasing new music! Within the past couple months, James Mercer, who basically is the entire band, dropped two singles of the band’s first album since 2012, Heartworms, which will be fully released in March. The Shins’s newest single is Name For You, a catchy song which has gotten me even more excited for the album. I cannot wait for The Shins to make a comeback this spring.
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Kraus – Three
My friend Jack’s brother makes noise-rock music, which is a type of experimental rock with a lot of heavy drums, guitar, and feedback. He came out with his first record, End Tomorrow, this summer and was recently featured as a rising artist on Pitchfork, an online music magazine. He says his music is made to help calm anxious people. Listen to Kraus if you are feeling nervous.
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