I have been procrastinating over this jam for months… Between the beaches of Tangalle and the slopes of Gulmarg, my life has been in flux over the past few months. But music has been a constant. It has centred me.

My process for discovering new music is not at all well defined. I read blogs and newsletters, follow artists, listen to podcasts and of course, get lost in Spotify’s labyrinth of curated playlists.

But much of what I tend to listen to over and over again, reflects my mood or how I am feeling at the time. So music that resonates today may not necessarily be what I would chose to listen to tomorrow. Or next week.

This particular selection of songs is a good example. The songs are probably not for everyone, but for me, at this unique moment in time, they express where I am at.

After dark, this is music I like to watch stars by.

1. Cherry Blossom – ALA.NI
2. Tomb – Angelo De Augustine
3. Lebanon – J. S. Ondara
4. Mere Saath – Lifafa
5. Him and Her – FUR
6. On Ice – Michael Nau
7. Stag – Goat Mumbles
8. Just Like Honey – The Jesus and Mary Chain
9. My Narrow Road – Roo Panes
10. The Novelist – Richard Swift
11. Back, Baby – Jessica Pratt
12. The Bug Collector – Haley Heynderickx
13. Shedding Skin – Mutual Benefit
14. Float On – Mark Kozelek
15. I’ll Come Too – James Blake

Playlists: Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube

ALA.NI’s Cherry Blossom is just a stunningly beautiful song. Her style is reminiscent of the Billie Holiday era but her voice is her own. ALA.NI says it best: “This song is about friendship, trust, and lust which are the key elements for any true love story.”

I am blown away by Angelo De Augustine. His voice. His lyrics. Tomb is the deepest but most delicate love song I have heard in a very long time.

J. S. Ondara has the most unique voice and his song Lebanon is powerful, folky and inspiring. His life story is as unique as his music. He was born to a poor family in Nairobi, grew up obsessed with GN’R, won a green card in a lottery and today is signed recording artist. He expresses his life full of struggle and eventual success through his music.

Lifafa has gotten a lot of press lately in India and for good reason. His music is in a word… incomparable. The production is exceptionally complex with intelligent beats, sounds and heartfelt lyrics. You must listen to his album Jaago which is full of great tracks. Mere Saath resonates with me though… especially the lyrics in the chorus “Come with me… and forget.”

Him and Her by FUR (yes.. it rhymes) is a fun indi-pop song. We all need these don’t we? Front man Murray says the song is: “about trust and distrust in a relationship. Trying to tell if someone trusts in you and how that can lead to you seeing them in a completely new light. Then, ultimately, the battle of deciding whether you want to be with them anymore.”

I guess this is the fun section of this playlist… ha! Michael Nau’s On Ice is just a carefree song which makes me want to tap along and feel good.

Here comes the twist. Stag by Goat Mumbles is dark and mysterious song that defies genre. In the movie of my mind, this song is playing while a kid is on the dancefloor looking for a partner while the club spins around him. Lights flash.

On a bored night home I decided to re-watch Lost in Translation and became obsessed with the song Just Like Honey which closes out the movie. Bill Murray leaves Scarlett Johansson (my 20s crush) on the streets of Tokyo after whispering something inaudible in her ear. In a recent interview Sofia Coppola said: “That thing Bill whispers to Scarlett was never intended to be anything. I was going to figure out later what to say and add it in and then we never did. It was between them. Just acknowledging that week meant something to both of them and it affects them going back to their lives. People always ask me what’s said. I always like Bill’s answer: that it’s between lovers – so I’ll leave it at that.” Perfect.

Somebody very close to me introduced me to singer songwriter Andrew ‘Roo’ Panes and I just cannot stop listening to him. Andrew wrote that My Narrow Road is about: “the way people work and the journey of relationship. It’s a beautiful but tough road to love someone other than yourself.” So true.

The Novelist is a piercing song by the late Richard Swift. It leaves me with a feeling of desperation and incompleteness.

Something about Jessica Pratt’s voice makes me believe her. Back, Baby is a sad song which is underscored by her repeating “Sometimes, I pray for the rain” over and over.

I love the horns at the end of Haley Heynderickx’s cute song The Bug Collector.

Sticking with the insect theme, Mutual Benefit’s song Shedding Skin is about the transformation of cicadas. Fun fact, a friend and I produced some (pretty awful) psytrance tracks back in 2003 under the name Psycada, a play on cicada.

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Mark Kozelek’s cover of Modest Mouse’s Float On is raw and enigmatic and brought back memories of what now seems to me like a different life.

I’ll Come Too is an unexpected song by James Blake that speaks for so many people who struggle with opening up and just being themselves. It is a reminder that you need to be true to and love yourself before you can be true to and love others.

Playlists: Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube