The nine hundred and fifty-second song: Chicago - Sufjan Stevens

Being married to a big fan of Sufjan Stevens, I've heard and loved a lot of his music as well, including a great live show. Chicago is one of those great pieces, going between large, swelling choruses and small vocals with some accompaniment. It's just lovely to listen to and it works so well to just set that mood. It's a little bit of perfection in what it does.

The nine hundred and fifty-third song: Todo cambia - Mercedes Sosa

It would be hard to beat Sufjan Stevens, but taken on its own Mercedes Sosa gies a lovely performance, a Spanish chanson with some traditional instruments and sticking to what we knew. It's sensitive, sweet and simple, and works as one of those works that's not tied to its time as many other songs are, with a sensitivity that comes through strongly.

The nine hundred and fifty-fourth song: I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor - Arctic Monkeys

And here we go with a real shift in sounds. We covered a lot of the rock of this era last year, but there's a specific sound to the Arctic Monkeys' sound that comes through - a clear accent, a real garage feel to the sound, something quite unpretentious and simple in lyrics and sound, in a way that lets the message stand out while having a real dance rock vibe still. It's nothing as complicated as it could be, but that's what makes it work.

The nine hundred and fifty-fifth song: Hard to Beat - Hard-Fi

I do think Hard-Fi's music connects more with me - a more polished, electronic sound that brings its structure in more. While Hard to Beat isn't the track of theirs that I remember the most, it works really well and makes for a rock song that sets its message and moves along.

The nine hundred and fifty-sixth song: Fix You - Coldplay

While Coldplay is now one of the biggest bands of the current era, and we hadn't had a song from their first two albums, you can see why this is the track we're covering. There's something sad in this, something reassuring, a sound of grief and comfort that carries its emotion to you in a way that's rare, an example of how deep music can touch you. It's an absolutely worthwhile track.

The nine hundred and fifty-seventh song: Let’s Make Love and Listen to Death from Above - CSS

This is a surprising synth pop album, with a lot of synthesizer sounds with similarly mechanical-sounding vocals that create a big dance track. It's a bit odd, but it works.

The nine hundred and fifty-eighth song: Best of You - Foo Fighters

The loud aggression of this anthem creates a feeling of encouragement as well - drawing out the best. It's a strong set of vocals and a strong sound and message, where it all blends together to do that well, and the statement it makes still stands strong.

The nine hundred and fifty-ninth song: Hoppipolla - Sigur Ros

Not really dispelling Iceland's musical reputation, there's a fairy tale feeling to this track, an ethereal sound with quiet lyrics and a slow progression. The builds are slow and deliberate, never meaning to unleash but instead to soar. It's a perfect little story that got compiled well.

The nine hundred and sixtieth song: Hope There’s Someone - Anohni & The Johnsons

Hope There's Someone is a simple, sensitive song, a lament of loneliness that pierces you and hits that hard. Anohni's emotional vocals carry the song, the piano welling up occasionally but not doing as much to set the mood, and the whole sound reverberates and hits you deep.

The nine hundred and sixty-first song: Welcome to Jamrock - Damian Marley

We're ending on a fair reggae album. Damian Marley's song doesn't stray into very new territory, but it's produced and set up well enough that it works as a track even if I'm not overly fond of it.

The six hundred and thirty-third album: #633 Dwight Yoakam - Buenos Noches from a Lonely Room

Although there are some other flourishes, this is mostly a pretty straight up country album, with the lyrical content that sometimes entails - the violence discussed feels a bit disturbing, and it's a bit too woe-is-me in other places to feel like it pulls it off - it lacked genuineness in what it's trying to say. 

The two hundred and thirty-third classical recording: #869 John Cage - Sonatas and Interludes

We're going back into the avantgarde - just over an hour of various short works, played on a "prepared piano", creating 45 notes using bolts, piece of rubber and an eraser. You can tell it's different from the start, the sounds aren't quite right and are a bit unsettling. It creates a beauty and coherency from that you wouldn't quite expect from it. For a lot of the work, it remains small and sparse, a very attractive small sound that draws your attention, even if sometimes through confusion.

The two hundred and twenty-seventh TV show: #937 In The Flesh

Some shows are absolutely worthwhile watching, while also being absolutely draining and difficult to watch at the same time. A story that discussed zombies, brought back to sanity and normality... as long as they take regular medicine and with make up so they don't stand out. There are mixed feelings about this - anger the killers came back, denial of the situation, or excitement to have time with those that were lost. There are many allegories you can look at - immigrants, racism, LGBTQ+ people (especially as our main character is gay) - and there's something to be said for the power of fantasy to provide a way to discuss these without directly naming them. In the Flesh pulls it off well, both the gentle paranoia in the first season and the wider concerns in the second, with some great performances that sell everything so well. It's hard to watch, in a way that becomes incredibly engaging, and I'm so glad I got the chance to watch it.

The six hundred and thirty-second album: #632 The Sugarcubes - Life's Too Good

While the focus of the Sugarcubes is on Bjork's vocals and presence - something that overshadows even their first album - it's fair to say that other members contribute as much. While Einar Orn's vocals weren't liked by everyone, his nordic vocalizations create a punk metal presence that draws the tracks away from purely ethereal avant garde and gives it a contrast the music really benefits from. It emphasizes the off beat nature, the commentary on the poppy happiness that would be there, and draws your attention to the oddness and darkness of the lyrics.

The nine hundred and fortieth song: Rebellion (Lies) - Arcade Fire

The art rock from Arcade Fire hits differently - while there's something accessible about it, it also eschews the simpler tracking of other contemporary rock bands in favour of some more esoteric sounds. Rebellion has an anthemmy chorus, but also has a feeling to it that makes it seem more out there, with string sections seeming to feature more heavily, and it's a gorgeous result here with a dark message.

The nine hundred and forty-first song: Take Me Out - Franz Ferdinand

Here's that other side. Not a world changing lyric, but instead a straightforward rock song with an irresistible beat that sticks in your head and an in built call and response. It's more accessible and feels more fun, but it's also a contrast that works well.

The nine hundred and forty-second song: Perfekte Welle - Juli

The heavy hard rock sound of Perfekte Welle also manages to evoke the optimistic happiness of this track, a jubilant celebration of a good day, a good wave of things happening. The lyrics help, but even musically it shines through.

The nine hundred and forty-third song: I Predict a Riot - Kaiser Chiefs

Another indie rock track from this era, with an optimistic rock sound gleefully predicting a riot following various instigating incidents. It's darkly happy and strangely engaging for it, telling its story while having that party feeling, a real punk undertone of ironically celebrating it.

The nine hundred and forty-fourth song: Can’t Stand Me Now - The Libertines

The drug-inspired garage rock of the Libertines stands out here as a more mellow sound, slightly slurred vocals that removes a lot of the threat that could be in the music. After the explosions of energy before this, this feels simpler and more straight forward, a sound that works but feels a bit out of time as well.

The nine hundred and forty-fifth song: Float On - Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse's track also goes for this subdued energy - high energy for their doing, but not something that stands out as perking you up like that. It's nice and pleasant with another catchy beat, even if not as attention grabbing.

The nine hundred and forty-sixth song: Jesus of Suburbia - Green Day

I've discussed my appreciation of Green Day before, and American Idiot still works both in giving you that release for bottled, hyped up anger and feeling like contemporary commentary. The switches in music hit really well and it's still a great song in all its parts and when combined.

The nine hundred and forty-seventh song: Mein Teil - Rammstein

It's odd this metal band hasn't appeared before, since Rammstein feels like such a large presence in the metal world as I've known it for some time before this. This is a good example of what they do - loud and aggressive, demanding your attention and thoughts, while playing with the irony of the images they use. It's got to hit you right, but that's what happens for me.

The nine hundred and forty-eighth song: Portland, Oregon - Loretta Lynn featuring Jack White

We're taking a brief break from full on rock to have a country track, although you wouldn't tell from the experimental opening. It's a strong duet, the two voices work well together and the additional production lifts Loretta Lynn's track further. She stands out strongly in this, and remains the star, but it meshes so well.

The nine hundred and forty-ninth song: Points of Authority - Jay-Z with Linkin Park

Since this might be the only moment where I get to go into it, I can say how much I loved Linkin Park. I grew up with it and their angsty metal sound hit me at a point where it resonated heavily with me. Even outside that, their heavy metal still shaped my music tastes. I'm not sure Jay-Z's additions work too well here - the past references and mix feel a bit much, and I don't think it gives me what I want, but there's something here that does work for me.

The nine hundred and fiftieth song: The Art Teacher - Rufus Wainwright

There's something about this song that hit me more than I would have expected. The simple music makes the lyrics hit a lot more - lyrics filled with an interest in how people think, an exploration of someone Rufus Wainwright isn't, but filled with details of their life that make them seem a lot more real. It's properly aimed to hit you and perfect in what it does.

The nine hundred and fifth-first song: Dry Your Eyes - The Streets

I'm strangely fond of The Streets' work as well, even if it doesn't match my usual tastes as much. Mike Skinner's storytelling is a lot more effective than a lot of hip hop and the sad tone of this track helps to set the tone. There's something encouraging in the encouragement to move on, while also admitting the longing doesn't end just because of that. It uses simple lyrics, real to life, but that's what makes it so raw and engaging.

The six hundred and thirty-first album: #631 Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation

Sonic Youth's double album feels like it's a bit much - while I enjoy punk, the noise rock is a bit too overpowering and, considering the long length of the album, too frequent to not become off-putting. Even just halfway through, it feels like it's shown its ideas and is doing more with its existing sound, which is fine, but little more. 

The two hundred and thirty-second classical recording: #412 Antonin Dvorak - Slavonic Dances

There's something really good and upbeat about these pieces, based a lot on more upbeat dances. Played with high energy and keeping the energy, it feels like a bigger production of these traditional music styles. It's fun to listen to and for the most part you can see how these could be danced to - it does drag you in like that.

The two hundred and twenty-sixth TV show: #24 The Adventures of Robin Hood

The adventure stories of the fifties give you what you expect. Some action - usually fairly mild as there aren't major stunt teams - and a lot of standing around and talking. There are plentyof bards to give diegetic music and the story stays fairly clean. It's fine, but not as action-filled as you'd want from these stories, while the stories are mixed to simple - or, like the episode I'm writing this to, spending a lot of time on the technicalities of archery, clearly from someone having focused their research on it.

The one hundred and twenty-ninth book: #1020 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens

The Muppets Christmas Carol is a regular Christmas movie with the in-laws, so I've seen it plenty of times now. One of the brilliant parts of it is how it uses so much of the book's original dialogue and text, but still makes it feel accessible. The book is suited for it - it's pretty short, especially for Dickens' usually work - and the dialogue is kept simple for the time. Add to that the strong visual descriptions, where the ghosts in particular are well described. It's sentimental, of course, but it's a really good, readable book.