Thirty Days of Music, Day Eleven

This is a trickier category for me to nail down as I do have a problem with overexposure. Sure, like every person I’ll inevitably come across a tune that’ll be on repeat some nights (Recent examples include “Anything Could Happen” by Rialto, “Rhythm of Yourself” by the Molotovs, and “Up in Suze’s Room” by Paul Weller). However, there will absolutely be a time when I finally break free of the cycle and go out of my way to avoid that song for a while before I start to dislike it and its rent-free presence in my brain.

So what we’re looking for today isn’t just a song. It’s a lightning in the bottle kind of tune. Like I say, tricky.

Day 11: A song you never get tired of

2020: “Blinding Lights”, The Weeknd

A tune not made in the 90s? A tune that was brand new back in 2020?? What was I on???

Well, a good time, that’s what I was on. Ages ago I noted that Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” had been a modern day equivalent of Blur’s “Song 2”, being overused and in promotional material here, there and everywhere. The same could be said for “Blinding Lights” at the start of the 2020s, because Christ what wasn’t it used for? Every third advert you’d see on the telly, soundtracks for films and video games, themes for sports events etc. etc.

Being routed in an 80s sound with it’s synths and electropop feel, in a roundabout way this song felt fresh. It was a pop song with its own identity, able to easily stand head and shoulders above the other stuff in the charts at the time. It felt good, nay rewarding, to listen to it over and over again. Everything about it just clicked, and I never once felt like I was hearing it too much. A nod to the past, a look to the future, and granted eternal life as a result. “Blinding Lights” is timeless and I likely will never tire of hearing it.

Eee, God. Now I’ve got to find another song like it. Wish me luck.

*A DAY ON AND OFF OF THOUGHT LATER*

Sod it.

2025: “Beetlebum”, Blur

It’s a cop out, but it’s true.

Haven’t tired of it since the day I was born. 27 years on, still going strong as one of my faves. Once again, extensive thoughts on this song are available at the very beginning of this blog.

I really need to get out of the 90s, this is getting ridiculous.

Thirty Days of Music, Day Ten

Now this might be something we’re more familiar with, season of jolliness be damned.

Day 10: A song that makes you sad

2020: “No Surprises”, Radiohead

I mean, the possibilities are endless when it comes to sad Radiohead songs. You could make a 2 CD compilation album out of them. “No Surprises” is probably the most obvious choice as, when you get older and chewed up by the daily grind, it speaks to you more and more. And again, with the pandemic raging on at the time a lot of us were probably relating quite heavily to the lyric ‘Bruises that won’t heal’. Nowadays a lot of people on both sides of the political spectrum may consider the entire second verse a call to arms: ‘You look so tired, unhappy/Bring down the government/They don’t, they don’t speak for us’. Good job this song sounds as sad as it makes us otherwise it would surely have been poached for a party conference by now.

There we go, there’s the appropriate sadness all nice and laid out for us. And now, more!

2025: “Into My Arms”, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

Same year, different side of the world. The Boatman’s Call boasts a myriad of sad songs but it hits you in the gut right out of the gate, doubly so if you’re just coming off listening to one of the album’s predecessors like Murder Ballads and Let Love In. The customary goth rock? Shelved. It’s all pianos and the most heartfelt lyrics ever penned by Nick. Ironically, despite its melancholy it is meant to be a more optimistic song expressing a firm belief in love over interventionist Gods, and letting nature run its course. Yet the performance boiling solely down to the piano and Nick’s beautiful singing…it’s a struggle to stop those waterworks from springing into action.

Right, just a quick heads up – I’m going abroad for a few days with some friends and I’m going to try and schedule the next few installments of Thirty Days of Music. I’ve never tried this at all since I started the blog so if it doesn’t work and there’s no posts between now and next Monday, apologies in advance.

If it does work though, excellent, see you tomorrow!

Thirty Days of Music, Day Nine

And now on A-Side Glance, we’re going to stop and consider an emotion that’s become an increasing rarity as time has gone by, as we’ve gone from literal to virtual caves.

Happiness, as decreed by the 30 Day Song Challenge.

Day 9: A song that makes you happy

2020: “Wild Wood”, Paul Weller

In my rather limited repertoire back in the day, I did consider a few Paul Weller songs to be ones that made me happy – “Sunflower” and “The Changingman” to name a couple. But “Wild Wood” struck a chord with me due to how gentle it was, the laid-back folky vibes ideal for the springtime, and the lyrics struck a chord too. Again, peak pandemic time, we were all stuck in the wild, wild wood and we were all waiting on a way out, waiting for that golden rain.

*(most of) Us when the vaccines finally rolled out*:

Incidentally, while it’s on my mind, I did Spotify Wrapped a few days ago. Paul Weller was one of my most listened-to artists for the second year running. So much for the variety I’ve been trying to tout on this blog for most of the year. Most listened to song was “He’s the Keeper”, another Weller song and one that was from an album that I think is my least favourite of his…? Make it make sense, music Gods!

Ok, another song that makes me happy.

2025: “Rayners Lane”, The Real People

Excellent, I finally get to stop and talk about the Realies! If my memory serves me correctly, I first checked these guys out via Britpop Memories on Twitter – They normally have anniversaries primed and ready and one was for the cult Britpop favourite What’s On The Outside. I checked it out and yeah, quality album. If you like Oasis’ early style of sound you’ll like the Realies, mainly because they did actually take the Gallaghers and co. under their wings for a few years. There’s a bit of history between the bands which I won’t bore you too much with, save for the fact that I still will not play “Don’t Go Away” on the radio given that Noel took advantage of Marshmellow Lane being trapped in limbo and stole the chorus from “Feel the Pain” to make it.

Anyway, I digress.

“Rayners Lane” definitely makes me happy whenever I hear it, it’s a grand old knees up of a tune, nice and simple to the point where I’ll be teaching it to the kids when or if they arrive. Very British, very poppy, perfect for the time it was made. Could’ve and should’ve made more of an impact.

I wish I was musically talented as for yonks I’ve wanted to have a cover made of this but instead of using the London Underground, it would be for the Tyne & Wear Metro:

It’d probably go something along the lines of this:

‘I caught the train

To Percy Main

I bought a ticket from Wallsend

Got shanked along the way’

Thirty Days of Music, Day Eight

It’s Christmas season so of course I’m going to talk about drugs and alcohol!

Day 8: A song about drugs or alcohol

2020: “Animal Nitrate”, Suede

What’s better than a song about drugs? How about a song about domestics fuelled by drugs! It’s a track that delights in how f*cked up it is, from the customarily awesome guitar work from Bernard Butler, to the singing and songwriting of Brett Anderson. It’s a staple of the early Britpop era for a reason.

Now for my 2025 choice, instinct has told me to keep it Britpop. However I would like to say my instinct is trying to keep things plain and boring so before I go for something different, here’s a couple of Britpop songs about drugs and/or alcohol:

Am I forgetting anything? Oh yeah, this lot from Oasis:

  • “Cigarettes and Alcohol” (Duh…!)
  • “Morning Glory”
  • “Champagne Supernova” (probably…)
  • “(As Long As They’ve Got) Cigarettes in Hell”
  • “The Hindu Times”
  • “Pass Me Down the Wine”

Imagine if I’d chosen any of those for today, that’d be a right cop out. But no, instead let’s go for…

2025: “Come Together”, Spiritualized

When it comes to Mr Jason Pierce esq., you are guaranteed songs about love, and songs about drugs. Sometimes even a combination of the two. Truth be told I could recommend you a good chunk of his discography but I’m going to settle what is arguably an outlier on the immortal record Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space.

Most of that record is a quieter, downbeat and placid affair as the tunes ruminate over life as a heartbroken druggy (Unintentionally, mind you, as the story goes that all these breakup songs were written and ready before his girlfriend and bandmate Kate went and married Richard Ashcroft). Then there’s “Come Together”. An out-and-out, balls-to-the-wall, manic mess of wailing guitars and Jason nearly compromising his typical deadpan delivery with each venomous serving of the word ‘f*ck’. It doesn’t take much to work out what this is all about, with Jason singing about apes around the napes and, in one of the most beautifully debaucherous pieces of songwriting, how little Johnny ‘dulled the pain but killed the joy’.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, there’s a reason this album beat out OK Computer and Urban Hymns to be named best of the year 1997 by the NME. Haven’t listen to Ladies and Gentlemen… yet? Right that wrong today. I’ll see you in the morning for Day Nine.

Thirty Days of Music, Day Seven

Thirty Days of Music, Day Seven

Sunday, Sunday, here again. And I’m low-key proud of myself for actually managing to do this consistently, normally I’d have given this up by about day four. Anyway, let’s stop before going on a tangent and see what we need to choose today.

Right. Well I’ll preface this by saying that I am not happy with 2020 me chose back in the day.

Day 7: A song to drive to

2020: “Judas”, Fozzy

Oh deary me. Well I did say I had a casual relationship with wrestling and it definitely came into play here. Fozzy singer Chris Jericho was one of the top guys in fledgling promotion All Elite Wrestling at the time and his self-sung theme song was one of this defining features. And it’s not bad, it is definitely a song that you can drive to. It’s just that there are a million billion other better options.

On that note, let me consult my playlist full of driving songs titled ‘Roadblock’.

2025: “Perfect Me”, Blossoms

You may recall I gave “Perfect Me” a moment of praise back in September as it had been a genuine highlight of my time doing the Tuesday Breakfast show on Spark Sunderland. It was always fun to make an hour of the programme more indie-oriented with Fontaines D.C, Sam Fender and Inhaler and what have you. But Blossoms was the cherry on the cake, and “Perfect Me” was a song that never failed to make me smile. I hope it was the same for the listeners that were driving into work on those Tuesday mornings, whether they be on the move or stuck in traffic. A good way to brighten things up for a few minutes.