A few months ago, I realized that a good number of songs I regularly listen to have the names of months in their titles, and are about that month in some capacity. This sparked the idea: a playlist of 12 songs, one per month, in calendar order, representing the year. It’s a little late now and although it feels like years of 2021 have already passed, think of this hour of music as a way to bring in the new year—hopefully a slightly better one than 2020. I already knew about half of the songs, and discovered the others through research, but I love them all, and I think you will too.
January: “January Wedding”—The Avett Brothers
I’ve subconsciously known this song forever, thanks to my parents. While it doesn’t really match the cold that’s often associated with January, the song evokes light reflecting on snow and the fresh start of a year’s beginning. The song, as the early lyrics describe, is simple but beautiful.
February: “February/Stars”—Darlingside
This song is an awesome manifestation of Darlingside’s mood—chill indie folk with calm sounds but catchy melodies. It’s also a great embodiment of February and its emotions. I particularly love the difference between the first and second halves of the song, and the way they stand apart while still remaining congruous.
March: “Late March, Death March”—Frightened Rabbit
We know that March in Ithaca can be… well, not very nice. It’s still dark and cold, but wetter, although definitely not spring yet. This song, maybe more than any of the others listed, is a classic indie rock song, with electric guitars and bass and drums and everything. This conveys the nastiness of March, but in a way that’s quite nice and even somewhat anthemic. I think it’s extremely catchy, and it’s my favorite discovery I made for this playlist. This song bangs.
April: “April Fools”—Rufus Wainwright
Talk about a killer chorus. “April Fools” is an awesome earworm with fun lyrics. If you’re not singing along by the end or at least nodding your head, you must have the wrong song. This is how it feels when spring really comes. Rufus Wainwright’s flat-out strange voice and the little electronic sounds make it a song you’ve never heard before, but one I suspect you’ll come back and listen to again.
May: “Third of May / Ōdaigahara”—Fleet Foxes
Fleet Foxes also fits into the indie folk sound, with choral harmonies and plenty of great guitar parts. I know it’s eight minutes long and there are some weird parts, but their sound is just so nice. Live in the space of it.
June: “June Hymn”—The Decemberists
“June Hymn” is a wonderful song by one of my favorite bands. The instrumentation, especially the harmonica, gives this song a perfect early summer feeling. When I listen to it, I hear light, bright foliage and picnics.
July: “Fourth of July”—Sufjan Stevens
If there was an award for saddest song… If you don’t already know Carrie and Lowell, Sufjan Stevens’ masterpiece of an album, go check it out, but this track alone is so serene and powerful even on its own. Listen with your eyes closed.
August: “august”—Taylor Swift
If you see the name Taylor Swift and are immediately turned away—I get it. That used to be me. Then I picked up 2020’s “folklore.” I try to refrain from using the word “vibe” to describe music, but of all the songs on this list, this one deserves it. It has impeccable august vibes.
September: “Pale September”—Fiona Apple
What is the genre of this song (or of Fiona Apple in general)? No one knows, but it doesn’t matter. The semi-orchestral arrangement, steady piano, and floaty vocals have a strange but pleasant effect, and while it doesn’t quite feel like the beginning of school, the song perfectly illustrates the changing September weather.
October: “October”—Broken Bells
“October” is another song with a classic indie-rock sound, which fits the height of fall oh-so-well. This song conjures images of walking through colored leaves in crisp air, the picturesque fall we always seem to have for at least a week or so. The groove is undeniably great—enjoy listening to it.
November: “November”—Gabriel Kahane
Gabriel Kahane is known for his indie rock/folk/classical style that nobody else totally shares, and you can hear it in this song. It’s about the 2016 presidential election in a roundabout way, and the semi-classical piano part meshes well with Kahane’s soft tenor, telling the story of a train ride he took.
December: “If We Make it Through December”—Phoebe Bridgers
Phoebe Bridgers is a relatively new artist to me, but her songwriting and sound are just incredible. Yes, this is a cover of an old country song by Merle Haggard, so Phoebe’s tremendous lyrical craft is not on display, but her soft and devastating voice is powerful nonetheless. Despite all the excitement of December (a break from school, holidays, etc.), this song captures some of the darker but calm feelings of the period—those of endings, the coming cold, and the darkest time of year.
Bonus Track: “The New Year”—Death Cab for Cutie
Now if you’re like me, you end your playlist on a downer. If you’re not like me, here you go. The song that gives this playlist its name is an explosive little piece of alt-rock featuring the minorly strange (and arguably somewhat iconic) voice of Ben Gibbard, Death Cab for Cutie’s frontman, with a simple, yet eloquent song about the ever-complicating world. I don’t need to detail the prescience of this message in today’s world, and we can only hope to take Gibbard’s energy into the months ahead of us. We’ll need it.
Scan for the playlist here, and follow me on Spotify at “Tsar Mixolydian.”