October was so scary, it took me a whole week before I could look back on it.
I’m being haunted by the very real ghost of my Masters’ research. Will I finish in the one remaining month I have? Or even spookier – will I be able to keep listening and blogging to the extent I want? The good news is, both answers are probably yes.
But before I forget, here’s the Lazy Monthly playlist (on Spotify). You can skip this whole article and just go there to here this month’s haul! It’s completely replaced on the first of each month, so save what you like.
Overall
I broke 3k this month!! I somehow squeezed in 3,056 plays, averaging 99 plays per day. I listened to more songs than last month, (2,606 unique tracks in October vs. 2,329 in September) but fewer artists (1,652 unique artists in October vs. 1,699 in September). That’s how you know I was digging juuust a little bit of album listening.
Alright so I know the plays by days is looking a little…limp…towards the end of the month. It’s 10/10 due to the little 4-day bender I took in Jamaica. But I cry because look! There wasn’t a single day where I listened to less than 30 songs. I’ll accept my gold star anytime now.
Last month, I was talking about my 5 days with over 100 plays. This month, I tripled that! Is it musical insanity? Is it working too many hours in a day? Let’s maybe just go with the first idea…
Top Artists
Would you believe me if I said I never really listened to Radiohead before? This month I took down OK Computer, In Rainbows, Hail to the Thief, Amnesiac, Kid A, and King of Limbs in one day. Then went back for Moon Shaped Pool a few days later. They all clawed their way into my soul. Emotions, man. Still glad I didn’t have anywhere to be that day.
I actually can’t talk about most of the artists on this list yet because they play pretty central roles in some blog posts I’m drafting now! But if you’re into spoilers, check out Folk Physics, Squirrel Flower, and Sweet Valley. I’ll link to each of those posts here, once they’re out!
I do want to point out the Dodos, who played their 2008 full-length Visiter at Brighton Music Hall this month. It was a great show that helped me reunite with my best friends from college. And that album was my jam in high school. They normally wouldn’t be such a big part of my listening, but I’m glad they were this month.
I was also digging King Garbage’s Make It Sweat for being a sultry little thing I can’t get out of my head lately. Chrome Sparks made it in because of their early EP My ❤, which is another nostalgic pick for me that I went back to and still loved. It’s a little more electronic but also good for feelings.
P.S. I see you Darwin bb. Check out the documentary about him.
Top Tracks
Hoo it’s a neck-and-next finish for Lady Wray’s raw, sweet ‘Piece of Me’ and Benny Sings’ ultimate earworm ‘Passionfruit’ this month. I think ‘Piece of Me’ really earned the win here. It’s got these little vocal runs that I love, and the lyricism is kinda breathtaking?
The first four songs are pretty standard stuff for me. ‘All I See Is You’ is my top track since August, and I haven’t been getting tired of it at all.
But song five, ‘Waveland’ by Noam Pikelny is one of my heart-hitters. Meaning it’s a beautiful song I listen to mostly when I’m really sad, or really thinking deeply about feelings. Noam’s playing is unbelievable in general, and this song is a special one.
On a lighter note, shout out to hometown heroes Tipling Rock, Camino 84, and Folk Physics for being from Boston and coming out with songs I can’t get enough of. ‘Did I Ever Tell You?’ has the prettiest little guitar chord outro I’ve heard outside classic bossa nova, and the song as a whole is straight-up indie sugar. These three artists are really keeping things fresh out here and I can’t wait for more tunes from them!
Discovery Donuts
The discovery donuts are getting more realistic! Restarting a last.fm is a weird thing to do, but time is already starting to fix it.
I discovered some awesome things in October. But I’m glad I spent a little more time with each artist than I usually do. There’s so many ways to listen and I just don’t want to miss any of it! And going back to old artists is a big part of that, too.
Goodbye, Octember!
We had a spooky time. Thanks for the THREE-thousand tunes! Onwards to dreary-ass November but also big important changes in life.
This has been your October edition of Lazy Monthly.
What were YOU listening to this month?
Lazy Plays 
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