Winter music needs to be sad. It reminds us of the chances we
missed, the fragility of our own lives, and renews our
humanity. It is not the wild cavorting of Spring, or the malaise of
summer, and that is okay. That is fine.
My own winter is elusive. I can only feel it coming on in my joints,
a cold that I can't shake, as my tastes in music and photography
start to drift toward the solitary. This is not depression, but
rather an affirmation of the darker parts of myself. I welcome it.
Enclosed is a list of songs for the impending cold. I have included a short impression, in lieu of a review.
Winter Music List:
1. Josephine by Tori Amos
"So strange, victory.
Twelve-hundred spires, the only sound, Moscow burning."
When we finish rebuilding the world to make ourselves worthy of their love,
how much of them will be left?
2. Please, Sister by The Cardigans
"I know love is a hot, white light."
Love turns us into ridiculous people.
3. (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by Cat Power
"Baby, baby, baby can't you see? I'm on a losin' streak."
They will try to understand us,
and they will fail.
4. Mariner's Revenge Song by The Decemberists
"It took me fifteen years, to swallow all my tears."
The longer we live,
the more we have to explain.
5. And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda by The Dubliners
"But nobody cheered, they just stood there and stared.
Then turned all their faces away."
We will fight for things that we do not understand.
6. Racing Like a Pro by The National
"You're dumbstruck, baby."
We will become unrecognizable to ourselves.
We will look in the mirror and wonder where we have gone.
7. Dad's Breakdown By Psapp
"And as for shades of gray, well I like grey, its a friendly, comforting color.
And it was good enough for Giacometti."
Don't ak us why we do the things we do.
We don't know.
8. Bed of Lies by Matchbox 20
"It's not enough just to be lonely."
Sometimes it is time to go.
Sometimes we have to face an empty house.
9. Heartless Romantic by The Dears
"You're just unloveable."
Every single one of us knows that we can never become one flesh.
We are discrete.
When they die, we will be alone again.
But what if we die first?
Can we live with that possibility?
10. Kicking the Heart Out by Rogue Wave
"If music is my lover, you are just a tease."
Every day, while I warmed up my engine,
I would listen to this song.
Nothing has warmed me so well since.
11. Middle Distance Runner by Sea Wolf
Well I'm so proud tonight,
of the woman you've become.
And I'm just too tired to fight.
So darling, I'll succumb.
I had never heard Sea Wolf when I went to Lubbock a few winters ago,
but this song seems to belong to that trip, that feeling.
The sky was gray and mournful,
the whole world seemed to be whimpering in the cold.