As I’ve grown around music and music has grown around me, I have tried my best to keep up with new artists.
I’ve heard that generally, people absorb new music into their lives until they’re about 30, then stop, as they feel comfortable with the collection they’ve amassed. When I entered my late 20s, I regret to report that I too began sinking into this musical grave. I had a collection of about a thousand songs on my ipod from the past two decades, and little had changed in a very long time.
Thankfully, I began to get bored. The music of my youth didn’t cut it anymore, and the repertoire I had was getting stale following thousands of plays. I found myself desperate for new and exciting sounds but had no idea where to find them. I felt stuck in musical limbo.
In 2014, Lethbridge was introduced to something wonderful: a brand-new radio station playing what it called “Modern Music.” Upon tuning in, I knew exactly what it meant. I finally had access to all the alternative artists and music I had read about in magazines like Rolling Stone, but never got to hear on mainstream radio (not in Lethbridge, anyway). This was awesome. This was cutting edge. This was exactly what I needed to kick my musical rut to the curb.
Over the next two years, new (to me) music flowed into my ears and on to my ipod, thanks to the radio station, and newly discovered free streaming services. These new songs were quickly setting the bar for my musical tastes, and I listened to them far more often than my old standards.
One day, I had a thought: if I met up with an old friend from high school and we took a road trip, what songs would make up the playlist? What were the absolute best tracks I had that were worthy of sharing?
Wound up with excitement, I wasted no time creating a playlist that I felt was lightning in a bottle; tracks that could be enjoyed over and over again without becoming tired. Tracks that I simply referred to as Cool Tunes.
Five years on, this living, breathing collection makes an appearance in my house every Friday night; it signals the weekend and good things to come.
Songs stay on for a time, then are removed to make room for new discoveries. What’s “cool” is always growing and changing, as I do.
Here are five of the best songs on Cool Tunes right now, and why. (You can also check out the video for each song below the explanation).
Song: Ride Artist: Twenty One Pilots
When you first hear this band, it’s hard to fathom that the wall of sound they produce is created by just two people (Tyler Joseph and Josh Dun). The duo is somehow able to combine lyrics and melody seamlessly. Ride is no exception. The short punchy notes created by the piano at the start of the song always trigger a sense of excitement in me. When I hear them, I can’t help but feel thrilled to listen, ready to appreciate the track’s natural flow.
I just wanna stay in the sun where I find/I know it's hard sometimes/Pieces of peace in the sun's peace of mind/I know it's hard sometimes/Yeah, I think about the end just way too much/But it's fun to fantasize/All my enemies who wouldn't wish who I was/But it's fun to fantasize
Oh, oh/I'm falling so I'm taking my time on my ride/Oh, I'm falling so I'm taking my time on my ride/ Taking my time on my ride.
Every time I hear this song, I get visions of myself doing cool things like sky diving, zip lining and other extreme sports. To me, the “ride” the band is referring to is the ride of life, and all the fundamental questions we ask ourselves along the way. It contains a deep “make the most of things” message, wrapped up in great rock sound.
Song: Green Light Artist: Lorde (real name: Ella Yelich-O’Connor)
I’ve never been a huge Lorde fan. The whole goth look and songs-with no-melody vibe she had going on in the early days just didn’t float my boat. But, 2017’s Green Light was a breath of fresh air. She had grown into her early 20s and experienced her first real heartbreak. Upon hearing this, I was fully prepared for the song to be drab and depressing, in a way that only Lorde could pull off. It starts out that way, with her spitting the lyrics:
I know what you did and I want to scream the truth/she thinks you love the beach/you’re such a damn liar.
But soon, the tempo changes and I’m hit with an infectious power chord piano riff and the urgent pulsing of a kick drum.
Oh honey I’ll/come get my things but I can’t let go/I’m waiting for it/that green light/I want it.
As Ella sings about her pain and desperate desire to get the green light to move forward with her future, I just want to rejoice in it all. This is a breakup song that makes me want to break dance. Pure pop genius that could only be accomplished with the help of Jack Antonoff, arguably one of music's biggest writers and producers today.
Song: Thugs Artist: The Tragically Hip
This song comes from my favourite Hip album: 1994’s Day For Night. It was one of those albums where every song could have been a hit single. But, when I first heard Thugs, I knew it had that distinct Hip sound, and yet, was somehow different. Drummer Johnny Fay introduces the track with a subtle yet powerful drum beat, followed by an equally awesome rolling bass line by Gord Sinclair. Guitarists Rob Baker and Paul Langlois come in next, adding depth to the drums and bass with perfectly accompanying power chords. Even though no vocals have made an appearance at this point, the brilliance of the instrumentation alone has already helped me understand the song’s title. These sounds blended together scream sheer confidence and bravado.
When I finally hear Gord Downie enter, singing:
Everyone’s got their breaking point/with me, it’s spiders/with you, it’s me/thugs in perpetuity/when we’re excited little birds around the feeder/the cat’s indifferent or he’s just furious/it seems that he’s never neither/I do the rolling/you do the details.
I feel like I’m in the song, sitting in the getaway car while I wait for my partners in crime to finish the bank heist we’ve all been planning for months. The track has this “don’t mess with me” vibe that says, “We’ve done this a hundred times before; as long as you do your job and I do mine, everything will be fine.” And, let’s be honest: the line I do the rolling/you do the details IS pretty damn cool.
Song: Good Grief Artist: Bastille
I first heard this song in 2016 on the radio station I mentioned earlier in this post. An English band formed in 2010 who had already released several singles by the time I arrived at the party, I fell in love with Good Grief immediately.
The song’s power lies entirely in Dan Smith’s incredible vocal delivery.
Caught off guard by your favourite song/I'll be dancing at a funeral, dancing at a funeral/Sleeping in the clothes you love/It's such a shame we had to see them burn, shame we had to see them burn
What's gonna be left of the world if you're not in it?/What's gonna be left of the world, oh
Every minute and every hour/I miss you, I miss you, I miss you more/Every stumble and each misfire/I miss you, I miss you, I miss you more.
Although the subject of the track isn’t necessarily happy, the way Smith belts out the lyrics with such vigor and optimism makes me want to sing at the top of my lungs into my hairbrush microphone.
Song: Try Artist: P!nk (real name: Alecia Moore)
I’ve been a fan of this incredible woman for more than 20 years. Her song writing and music only seems to become more amazing and powerful as the years go on, and when I first heard Try, I was blown away. It’s a haunting power ballad about a couple who have seen their share of pain and problems but are desperate to pick up the pieces and attempt to put their love back together. Sung in a beautiful, gut-wrenching manner, the song has me frozen in its grip, unable to focus on anything else.
Where there is desire, there is gonna be a flame/Where there is a flame, someone's bound to get burned/But just because it burns, doesn't mean you're gonna die/You gotta get up and try, and try, and try/Gotta get up and try, and try, and try/You gotta get up and try, and try, and try.
I’ve likely heard this song close to a thousand times, but whenever it comes on, it feels like the first time. Its honesty, brutality and beauty are something of which I never tire.
As humans, we all feel moved by music. But, thanks to music’s variety and versatility, what catches my ear may not catch your ear the same way. You might have an entirely different set of tracks that you consider “cool”.
I love sharing songs, hoping that someone out there might appreciate them as much as I do. If you liked these tracks, check out my entire Cool Tunes playlist here.
What are some great songs that you never get tired of? Help me keep my musical mind open by sharing your Cool Tunes in the comments below!
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