Hafsol.

Sasha Anders, a 21 year old Exams Officer finds comfort in 'Hafsol'.

"The song I have chosen is 'Hafsol' by Sigur Ros. It's a relatively new song. I could have gone for something much older and seeded deeper in my music taste, but Sigur Ros are a band that I'd see as many times as I would get the chance. I wouldn't ever get tired or bored of them. Their songs, sets and performances make me tingle, and make the hairs on my neck stand on end. The same euphoric feeling you get from seeing someone you've missed, or simply cannot live without.

I can't say this song has saved my life, but every time I hear it, it brings back a hundred happy memories." :)

The thing that I love about Sigur Ros is how they mostly sing in 'Hopelandic' - which is basically gibberish. But what this allows us as listeners to do is listen and

derive our own meanings from the unspoken words and melodies.

- And that opens the music up to a whole new level of interpretation, which I find really fascinating!

I hadn't heard this song before you brought it to my attention, but I'm sure I'm gonna have to pop it on my iPod in a bit :) 

Thankyou Sasha for sharing your song! :)

Check the song out below, all 9 minutes and 47 seconds of it!

I think it's great! & LOL at the random cats in the video (It's not the official video)

xx

Bonkers & Hospital Beds.

For 21 year old Mk Angelo King, two songs have really helped him out in the past couple of years. Them both being cover versions of 'Hospital Beds' and 'Bonkers'.

"Starting with a song that saved my life, which I just happened to find one day when my Mp3 player was on shuffle - Florence And The Machine's cover of Hospital Beds (Cold War Kids Cover). 

As I was in and out of the doctors and hospitals last year (and going into surgery soon) this song helped me pull through (and still does). The song takes me back to laying there being thrown everything you wish you'd never hear by a doctor. The guy in the cubical next to me told me it was okay and fueled me with optimism about my health - a stranger someone i didnt know really helped me out. These lyrics of the song relate to how it was:

"I've got one friend, laying across from me. 

I did not choose him, he did not choose me.

We've got no chance of recovery.

Laying in hospital, joy and misery" 

These lyrics just made me believe i could be okay. 

As well as this I believe there are people out there and of course music (in general) that can help pull you through when you have no strength!

Another song that is generally a 'Happy Song' is the King Blues' version of 'Bonkers' (Dizzee Rascal Cover). 

After I split with my ex last year, I went to the Godiva Festival and saw them there. I thoroughly enjoyed myself for the first time in months and they were great! 

And now every time I hear that song it just makes me dance, sing and just generally makes me happy" :)

Woah, I'm really liking that Florence & The Machine cover :)

It's also nice that you can identify with the cover versions and not the actual originals! 

And I'd just like to point out how once again an important song has been identified by the famous 'shuffle' on an Mp3 player - which is really interesting! 

And finally I'm glad everything is working out for you and music has helped/is helping you overcome tough times.

Thankyou Mk for sharing your story and songs :)

Make sure you check out the songs below!

xx

The Remedy.

For fellow BMUS Commercial Music Performance Student, Emmanuel Folorunso - his favorite song is 'The Remedy.'

He explains:

"This song, 'The Remedy' by Ayiesha Woods allows me to free my mind easily. When I listen to the lyrics they make sense to me and remind me what life and everything is about."

I hadn't heard this song before you brought it to my attention but I really like it!

Songs like this that provide hope really make me smile :)

Anyway, I love the lyrics from the chorus:

Free your mind 

And the peace of God will follow 

Just give yourself a little time 

Don't worry 'bout tomorrow

Thanks Emmanuel for sharing your song :)

& please check his band out on facebook HERE.

Myspace HERE & his blog HERE :)

& Check out the song below!

xx

Firework.

So it's Guyfawkes Night! - It felt appropriate to write about Katy Perry's 'Firework' :)

So we all saw the less-than-flattering performance on X Factor.. 
But I'm not going to sit here and talk about how I don't like Katy Perry or whatever most people do on the internet nowadays because to be honest I'm a bit of a fan. And not to mention that this song 'Firework', personally gets me motivated and makes me smile, (especially on a bad day). :)

Anyway, I happened to be looking through Youtube and found 'the story behind Firework' which has made me respect Katy even more.

Check it out :)

"I think that in life people are challenged to get to where they wanna be, to reach their goals. And hopefully they can hear this song and find out that those challenges aren't really difficult to get past."

          Katy Perry

The lyrics in particular are very simple yet inspiring. Not to mention the instrumentation - where the strings and quirky synths make it much more interesting than the typical happy 'pop song'.

Here are my favorite lyrics from the song:

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag?
Drifting through the wind
Wanting to start again


- - -


You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July


Cause baby you're a firework
Come on show 'em what your worth


Boom Boom Boom
Even Brighter than the 
Moon Moon Moon


If you're unfamiliar with the song?
 I think you should listen & watch the video now :)!




Not only is this one of my favorite songs at the moment but I think it's capable of making you feel better on a bad day :)


Thanks for reading :) xx

You Can Go Your Own Way.

For 21 year old Beth Hamer, the song that really helped her through a rough time was 'You Can Go Your Own Way.'

(Wow. I want to go there)

She explains:

"A song that has really helped me is Fleetwood Mac's You Can Go Your Own Way. When my boyfriend of a year and a half split up with me, it gave me hope. I'd listen to it and it would make me feel strong. Make me feel like i could actually get through the situation."

Thankyou Beth for sharing your story! :)

I really like the lyrics / melody of the chorus:

You can go your own way

You can call it another lonely day

Not only is it really catchy but also more importantly, the emotion of the song is clearly present! :)

Check the song out below!

xx

Swamp Song.

For 21 year old Melissa Robles-Foley, the song that she can identify with most is Tool's 'Swamp Song'.

She explains why:

"Quite a difficult decision really but a song that has definitely helped me is 'Swamp Song' by Tool... 
When I listen to this song i feel like i can identify with it, the words make sense to me in whichever way I choose to construe them at that time... the anger and annoyance in (the lead singer), Maynard's voice is exactly how i wish i could say it/sing it."

Thanks Mel for sharing your song :)

Woah this an angry song aha! 

I hadn't heard this song before you introduced me to it! 

But I can see how it helps you!

 I think this is probably the equivalent to when I listen to Bring Me The Horizon (when I'm angry)!

Anyway, check out the song below!

xx

The Rain.

For 19 year old Jonathan May, 'The Rain' has managed to cheer him up remarkably!

(P.S we're not talking about real rain here)

Jonathan explains why: 

"From December 2009 right through to January this year, I was going through an emotinally rough spot.. But whenever I heard the song 'The Rain' by Calvin Harris, it always cheered me up for some reason."

"Even today it still cheers me up a bit" :)

Thankyou Jonathan for sharing your song :)

Woah my first thought is 'the beginning of the song is random!' Aha!

But wow, does it turn into such a positive little number!

I love songs that make you smile!

These lyrics are also very inspiring for a bad day:

These are the good times in your life 
So put on a smile and it'll be alright!

I also like how these lyrics are repeated four times for the chorus! It's like he's drilling positivity in your head - that's how it seems to me. And I'm not complaining :)!

Check out the song below! 

                                (I am so adding this song to a 'bad day' playlist!)

xx