The Music Museum

Hi, I'm Indigo. I unearth, collect, and organize music. Have a look around at my shelves and see if you can find something you like

[mp3-librarian]

a mix of nostalgic club hits and new releases

[mp3-librarian]

a dude sits outside in the parking lot below my apartment building at 2am with a guitar and sings. this is his set list

[mp3-librarian]

FCKIN IN LOVE → Fefe Dobson

This song is synonymous with a single day in August of 2022 for me. I had been awake all night, hadn't eaten, walked 9 blocks to my partner's apartment building to move their car at like, 8am to get it out of the way of the people who were hired to clean the parkade. Walked home through an alley, found a nightstand in great shape next to a dumpster. It was made of real wood and was heavy as fuck. Regardless, I proceeded to carry it home the remaining 8 blocks, taking frequent breaks as I was very weak and a tad delirious. Finally got it into my apartment building, left it on the balcony to make sure that any bugs or critters in it wouldn't infest our apartment, then had a shower, ate, and just before I laid down to sleep at around 9am, I got a call asking if I wanted to come in for an interview for a job asap. So, I got dressed, hopped on a bus, went to the interview, got the job, then came back home at noon, discussed with my friend/roommate if she wanted to go to Pride with me that night (she said yes), then I passed out for four hours, woke up, got dressed for Pride, and proceeded to stay awake til 2am with her. Fefe Dobson was the headliner of the Pride Festival Concert, and she had just released this single, so despite not knowing a single lyric, my friend and I screamed our voices hoarse singing along. It was stuck in our heads for days afterwards.

[mp3-librarian]

Folsom Prison Blues → Johnny Cash

This song has a ton of nostalgia for me. My dad used to play old country music on Sunday mornings while we were moping around and slowly getting our day started. I was a late sleeper, so I'd often wake up to the distant rumble of Johnny Cash through the walls of my bedroom.

I enjoy Folsom Prison Blues not only because of the nostalgia, and the beauty of Cash's voice, but also because of the story it tells and the iconic phrasing. It sounds like the chuck chuck chuck of a train on the tracks.

[mp3-librarian]

Pink Pony Club → Chappell Roan

This song is such a comfort in it's content and attitude. The acknowledgement of a parent's disappointment, the curiosity and pull of whatever is calling you nonetheless; it's so damn relatable and such a vivid mix of emotion. It makes me feel better about having pursued what I've pursued in my lifetime. It didn't come without a cost, and sometimes, I reconsider those costs with a twinge of regret. But this song reminds me of the conclusion that I've come to after every instance I've reconsidered my decisions. The gravitational pull of the decisions I've made would be eternal, because they're related to who I am and who I want to be. Denying that gravity and denying that fundamentality to my existence would have only caused me harm. Having pride in what makes you happy and what fulfills you is the goal, and if someone really loves you, they'll value that happiness over their opinions of your lifestyle and choices. As long as those things don't hurt yourself or others, the goal is to live and let live. Pink Pony Club encapsulates all of those contradictory emotions: shame and pride, regret and conviction, love and loss. I have a deep respect for Chappell Roan as a performer and artist for capturing this experience so vividly and accurately. I'm really excited to see what she does in the future.

[mp3-librarian]

Atlas ⇾ Coldplay

This song is slept on. This is by far my favourite Coldplay song of all time. The gentleness of his voice, the slow build in instrumentals, across the song, and of course the theme. This song played during the credits of Catching Fire, and not only does it contain direct references to the film, it also alludes to Katniss' perspective, that she is (and has been for most of her life) Atlas, holding up the ceiling of the world to stop it from crushing the people that she loves. She ensured that her family didn't starve after her father died, she volunteered in her sister's place for the Games, and once she reaches the events of Mockingjay, she's reduced to a pawn, and yet, she doesn't know that. That responsibility that she's felt all her life continues to haunt her, and her invasion into the Capitol fails in Mockingjay because she assumed that she was the person who had to continue holding up the sky and protecting the people she loves. She never knew/it never occurred to her that there were other people that were going to hold up their sections of the sky with her, or that they would take away that responsibility from her to place it on themselves or other subordinates. It's the natural result of a parentified child that has known nothing other than holding the ultimate responsibility. It's something that I relate to and struggle with, and it's something confronted in this song.

[mp3-librarian]

Arrival of the Birds ⇾ Johann Johannsson

I'm in awe every day that this was composed. The swells in the strings, the plucking of the violin eventually joined by the piano, it's all gorgeous. I feel like a leaf on a gentle breeze when I listen to this.

[mp3-librarian]

American Triangle ⇾ Elton John

This song is haunting for sure. I don't make a habit of listening to it often because its so bitter and haunting. I have some nightmares that are linked to this song, and it's also affected my creative writing. There's a lot to unpack in this song, but I encourage as many people as possible to listen to it. Even if you never listen to it again, listening to it and doing the research on what its about is worthwhile.

[mp3-librarian]

All The Stars ⇾ Kendrick Lamar, SZA

I can't put my finger on what exactly it is about this song that makes it feel like ascending (it might be the strings), but I swear that I have an out of body experience every time I listen to this song. The two reoccurring notes throughout the song sound like the blipping of a moon rover or radar. This song captures that anti-gravity sound perfectly.

[mp3-librarian]

All That You Are ⇾ Solid Audioworks

This song captures such an ethereal wistfulness. I find it so calming. I envision looking out across a vast valley from a mountain so high that there are clouds below me.

[mp3-librarian]

1979 ⇾ The Smashing Pumpkins

This song was elusive to me for a number of years. I had heard it on the radio dozens of times, but never managed to catch the title or artist. It also resided on an unlabeled secondhand CD that someone had burned their playlist into, which I had received in a box of CDs that my mom picked up because someone was giving it away for free. I eventually uncovered the title years later, when I happened to stumble across The Smashing Pumpkins and decided to listen to Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Lo and behold, this song was among the track list. I think 1979 captures a nostalgic youth, full of doubt and misery, and somehow, hope and treasured memories at the same time. Worrying about the future, yet appreciating simple pleasures. The immortality of being a teenager, yet occupied with one's own mortality and the mortality of the world around them. It's such a unique mark of being a teenager. I think it transcends whatever era the teenager in question is from. I know I can anchor myself and my memories from that time in this song. I was born decades after people who were teenagers in 1979. But my first car was made that year. I look back on it fondly. I listened to this song in that car, and drove late nights into the horizon. I miss it all, and treasure those memories dearly.

[mp3-librarian]

My Top 100 Songs As Of July 2023

It seems like not that long ago I made this playlist. My partner and I each made a playlist of our top 100 songs, and each time we were in the car together, we'd start from wherever we left off in each person's playlist, and listen to each song one by one. We were getting acquainted with each other's tastes, and giving each other the opportunity to explain why certain songs were in our top 100. When I was making this playlist, I struggled. I have over 2000 songs in my likes on Spotify, but I was unexpectedly too harsh, and my initial draft of this playlist was only about 75 or so songs. When I went back through my likes, I was a bit more lenient, and eventually ended up with my final list of 100 songs. Not every song is important content-wise. Some are just in the playlist because they sound nice. But the majority are impactful, for different reasons. My plan is to slowly work my way through the playlist and explain the majority of the songs in their own posts. Hopefully I make it through.

[mp3-librarian]

Damasiadas Mujeres ⇾ C. Tangana

My friend posted about this song in a discord server, remarking that it was a bit R rated for their tastes, but was a good song nonetheless. I decided to check it out. Despite finding the instrumentals (particularly the opening) quite odd, I found myself returning to it to listen. There's a lil section at the end (2:09 to 2:24) that is my absolute favourite part of the song. The instrumentals shine their brightest in that section, and I think it shows off the bass and depth of sound the best.

[mp3-librarian]

Make U SWEAT! ⇾ Knock2

I discovered this song through this taekwondo YouTube video and HAD to have it. The anticipation that was built up through the song just feels absolutely epic, and more and more I have been gravitating towards songs with ENERGY. The depth of the bass is also very appealing. I enjoy songs with dimensional sound quality, and the dynamics in this track are top tier.

[mp3-librarian]

the trinket collection

mp3-librarian · Playlist · 26 songs · 4 likes

30112021 - the trinket collection - update 7

[my “currently listening” playlist]

Current tracks (reverse chrono):

⋘ 1 day ⋙ I’m So ⇾ MIYAVI, NVDES, Seann Bowe ⋘ 1 day ⋙ promise ⇾ Kohmi Hirose ⋘ 1 day ⋙ In The Shadows ⇾ The Rasmus ⋘ 1 day ⋙ To Stardust ⇾ Andrew Huang ⋘ 1 day ⋙  夜天 ⇾ QUEEN BEE ⋘ 1 day ⋙ KING BITCH ⇾ QUEEN BEE ⋘ 1 day ⋙ Long Nights  ⇾ MIYAVI, Sonita Alizadeh ⋘ 46 days ⋙ Warrior ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 46 days ⋙ Horizon ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 46 days ⋙ Fire Bird ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 46 days ⋙ She Don’t Know How To Dance ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 46 days ⋙ Heat Of The Night ⇾ John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band ⋘ 46 days ⋙ True Playa ⇾ Illbethatmf ⋘ 46 days ⋙ HARCHOK ⇾ Goos ⋘ 46 days ⋙ My Universe ⇾ Coldplay, BTS ⋘ 74 days ⋙ Electric Odissey ⇾ NKOHA, ndls404 ⋘ 74 days ⋙ LMLY ⇾ Jackson Wang ⋘ 74 days ⋙ LAY YOUR HANDS ON ME  ⇾ BOOM BOOM SATELLITES ⋘ 149 days ⋙ Dragon  ⇾ Built By Titan, Skybourne ⋘ 149 days ⋙ All That You Are  ⇾ Solid Audioworks ⋘ 263 days ⋙ how will i rest in peace if i’m buried by a highway?// ⇾ KennyHoopla ⋘ 295 days ⋙ 薩哈星球 ⇾ 蕭敬騰 ⋘ 311 days ⋙ Let it go ⇾ Eric Chou ⋘ 320 days ⋙ 无药可救 ⇾ 張杰

Added tracks: 

Long Nights  ⇾ MIYAVI, Sonita Alizadeh KING BITCH ⇾ QUEEN BEE 夜天 ⇾ QUEEN BEE To Stardust ⇾ Andrew Huang In The Shadows ⇾ The Rasmus promise ⇾ Kohmi Hirose I’m So ⇾ MIYAVI, NVDES, Seann Bowe

Tracks dropping from the list:

⋘ 46 days ⋙ Play我呸 ⇾ Jolin Tsai ⋘ 46 days ⋙ La La La ⇾ AREA21 ⋘ 46 days ⋙ Boom ⇾ Major Lazer, MOTi, Ty Dolla $ign, WizKid, Kranium

Notes: 

I should have added Long Nights about a month earlier, but kept forgetting. At least it is here now. 

[mp3-librarian]

Long Nights ⇾ MIYAVI, Sonita Alizadeh

I’ve been on a MIYAVI binge as of late. I started with one song a year ago, and then I collected another one, and then another, and then I realized Spotify was feeding me an artist that had more than one song I liked, so I decided to delve further into his discography, and I’m really happy with what I found.  This track feels like screaming into the night sky, hoping someone else would hear and come for you. That you aren’t alone. That there is a place out there that will welcome you.  I’m not an immigrant, nor a refugee. But I understand the loneliness aspect of it, and to a certain extent, the feeling of being lost. But what really hurt when I listened to this song was this line:  “It is not my choice to become a refugee. Hey world, accept my apology” Someone having to apologize to the world for their existence because they are told they are a burden makes my chest ache. It wasn’t their choice. It wasn’t their fault. They’re the ones dealing with the long nights. They’re the ones with all of their belongings on their back and their hopes for the future in their hands, looking for a place that will become home.  The other line that hurts is this: 

“Long nights might make it hard to see, but the sun always rises inside of me.” Hope is fueled from within. It’s what keeps people walking after kilometers, and what keeps their eyes on the horizon.  I highly recommend this song, for the heartache, and for the understanding it gave me about what it means to be a refugee.  This is a song I would like to scream the lyrics to with a crowd of people into the night sky. There’s kinship in being lost, I think. 

[mp3-librarian]

the trinket collection

mp3-librarian · Playlist · 27 songs · 4 likes

16102021 - the trinket collection - update 6

[my “currently listening” playlist]

Current tracks (reverse chrono):

⋘ 1 day ⋙ Warrior ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 1 day ⋙ Horizon ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 1 day ⋙ Fire Bird ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 1 day ⋙ She Don’t Know How To Dance ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 1 day ⋙ Heat Of The Night ⇾ John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band ⋘ 1 day ⋙ Play我呸 ⇾ Jolin Tsai ⋘ 1 day ⋙ La La La ⇾ AREA21 ⋘ 1 day ⋙ True Playa ⇾ Illbethatmf ⋘ 1 day ⋙ HARCHOK ⇾ Goos ⋘ 1 day ⋙ Boom ⇾ Major Lazer, MOTi, Ty Dolla $ign, WizKid, Kranium ⋘ 1 day ⋙ My Universe ⇾ Coldplay, BTS ⋘ 28 days ⋙ Electric Odissey ⇾ NKOHA, ndls404 ⋘ 28 days ⋙ LMLY ⇾ Jackson Wang ⋘ 28 days ⋙ LAY YOUR HANDS ON ME  ⇾ BOOM BOOM SATELLITES ⋘ 104 days ⋙ Dragon  ⇾ Built By Titan, Skybourne ⋘ 104 days ⋙ All That You Are  ⇾ Solid Audioworks ⋘ 218 days ⋙ how will i rest in peace if i’m buried by a highway?// ⇾ KennyHoopla ⋘ 250 days ⋙ 薩哈星球 ⇾ 蕭敬騰 ⋘ 266 days ⋙ Let it go ⇾ Eric Chou ⋘ 275 days ⋙ 无药可救 ⇾ 張杰

Added Tracks:

My Universe ⇾ Coldplay, BTS Boom ⇾ Major Lazer, MOTi, Ty Dolla $ign, WizKid, Kranium HARCHOK ⇾ Goos True Playa ⇾ Illbethatmf La La La ⇾ AREA21 Play我呸 ⇾ Jolin Tsai Heat Of The Night ⇾ John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band She Don’t Know How To Dance ⇾ MIYAVI Fire Bird ⇾ MIYAVI Horizon ⇾ MIYAVI Warrior ⇾ MIYAVI

Tracks dropping from the list:

⋘ 28 days ⋙ Where The Lonely Ones Roam ⇾ Digital Daggers ⋘ 28 days ⋙ Move Like A Soldier ⇾ Kristina Maria ⋘ 28 days ⋙ found & lost ⇾ Survive Said The Prophet ⋘ 66 days ⋙ Dollar Bills ⇾ Built By Titan, Skybourne ⋘ 66 days ⋙ Butterfly ⇾ MIYAVI ⋘ 66 days ⋙ Drive You Home ⇾ Jackson Wang, Internet Money ⋘ 104 days ⋙ Palm Tree Escape ⇾ Hans Zimmer, Rodrigo y Gabriela

Notes:

Yes, there’s a lot of MIYAVI in this update. It’s because I decided to explore his music a bit more, and found a ton that I liked. I’m obsessed with Fire Bird in particular. 

I also remembered a movie I watched years ago called Eddie And The Cruisers. I don’t remember much of the movie itself (I need to rewatch it), but I do remember absolutely adoring a song on the soundtrack, so I tracked it down and it is now on this playlist. If you listen for it, its the one with the delicious sax solo during the bridge.