District Seven/Enchantra Playlist, otherwise known as “folk rebel love songs”
(a partial gift/bday present for @trip-downtheriverstyx )
Tracklist (*this playlist is sponsored by delta rae):
Til the Casket Drops - ZZ Ward
Take Me There - Delta Rae
From the Wreckage Build a Home - The Wind and the Wave
Out of the Badlands - Delta Rae
Would That I - Hozier
Thistle & Weeds - Mumford and Sons
Enemies - The Lone Bellow
Come Back Alive - Delta Rae
Sons & Daughters - Allman Brown
The Morning Comes (Acoustic Version)
explanations below the cut…
okay, so this one is a lot more atmospheric and cinematic than...lots of other playlists i’ve done so i shall lead you through it like we’re going on an adventure, baby.
Til the Casket Drops - ZZ Ward
A house made out of glass will surely shatter, So we built a fortress of red bricks and ladders, The ground, it started shaking, The bombs are falling, We could've walked away, We had a warning,
You asked me how long I'd stay by your side, So I answered with only just one reply,
'Til the casket drops, 'Til my dying day, 'Til my heartbeat stops...
Okay, so...I lied. In terms of the “journey” this song doesn’t really fit to go first, but--it’s such a good mood setter and was the first song I decided on for this playlist actually. It has always been a helle song, but it’s never really Fit anywhere. But what is a better opener than a song about death and devotion in the middle of a war?
From the Wreckage Build a Home - The Wind and the Wave
We were racing down a road littered with crosses Right down to Jalama Beach and even though we missed the sunset We jumped over barbed wire and cacti Just to fall into the sea, skinny dippin' youngins, you and I We're built to last We're built to last Oh, we're built to last We're built to last Well now it's clear you're the wind and I'm the wave Oh together we can brave all the things we never knew So I'm making room on a boat I built for one We can sail into the sun, till our skin's as tough as diamonds...
The next three songs all have the vibes of running away. Of getting out of a desperation. Of being convinced to leave a situation for something better. Which is just such great imagery for thgau!helle. After all, last time, Belle had to convince Hades to join the Legion, to give him something new to fight for. “I’m making room on a boat I built for one” ugh...it’s just...the Vibes. This would be a great song for romance in District 4 but I’m stealing it.
Take Me There - Delta Rae
Baby, when you call my name It's like a warning There's danger in the things you say But I think I want it Every single move we make Feels like a chance to win So come on, baby, take me there...
THIS is the runaway song of my dreams. Less rebel/dystopian vibes. Though, it still has that vibe I’m going for with like...convincing your lover to run away with you. This one is just...probably the sexiest one? Ahaha. “There’s danger in the things you say / But I think I want it.” /grooves to this song. I’ve definitely posted this on Belle before and I will not apologize for reusing it.
Out of the Badlands - Delta Rae
Don't trust the teachers Don't trust the preachers That the world is round We'll find out for ourselves Once we break past the shell On the edge of this town I got some twenties and tens In a Maxwell House can With the lid on tight To get us over the hot sand Out of the badlands Into the night Oh, there's a billion little stars Oh, let's pick out which one is ours Oh, girl, I need you by my side...
And now we are on the road. This is a great rebel song. “Don’t trust the teachers--We’ll find out for ourselves.” Love this part because it’s like...dystopian government trying to control education and Belle was a teacher giving her students illegal books. Also, the way they sing “there’s a billiiiiiion litttttttllleeee staaaars” ugh it gets me every time.
There is also the like “oooh, ya oooh” which actually appears in a couple of songs. The vocalization I love because it’s like Emotional and also very folky, which is the vibe.
Would That I - Hozier
With the roar of the fire my heart rose to its feet Like the ashes of ash I saw rise in the heat Settle soft and as pure as snow I fell in love with the fire long ago With each love I cut loose I was never the same Watching still living roots be consumed by the flame I was fixed on your hand of gold Laying waste to my loving long ago
So in awe there I stood as you licked off the grain Though I've handled the wood, I still worship the flame Long as amber of ember glows All the "would that I loved" is long ago...
I was really torn between Work Song and Would That I for Hozier on this playlist. Both are EXTREMELY helle songs. And EXTREMELY dystopian love song vibes. However, I went with Would That I because of the wood/fire imagery. Both because of Hades, obvs, but also District Six being Lumber/Mining and where helle comes from.
It’s also something Hozier does so well which is like...love songs where both parties are active participants? If that makes sense? Like a lot of love songs is one person singing to another and that person...you don’t really know their response or their actions. But in this song--the fire and the wood are kind of two players on the same playing field. “So in awe there I stood as you licked off the grain” and “that the sound of the saw must be known by the tree” UGH. ugh.
Our heroes are now in Enchantra and ready to fight for their cause!
Thistle & Weeds - Mumford and Sons
Spare me your judgements and spare me your dreams Cause recently mine have been tearing my seams I sit alone in this winter clarity which clouds my mind Alone in the wind and the rain you left me It's getting dark darling, too dark to see And I'm on my knees, and your faith in shreds, it seems Corrupted by the simple sniff of riches blown I know you have felt much more love than you've shown And I'm on my knees and the water creeps to my chest But plant your hope with good seeds Don't cover yourself with thistle and weeds Rain down, rain down on me Look over your hills and be still The sky above us shoots to kill Rain down, rain down on me But I will hold on I will hold on hope...
This song pairs SO well with Would That I, in my opinion. It was actually the inspiration for the title of helle’s two paras from last time: Thistle and Weeds. In terms of narrative, this song is when they are battle worn. It’s been years. Nothing has happened.
The needle feels as if it has moved so insignificantly, but there is still hope...
Enemies - The Lone Bellow
Hear you singing in your sleep Song of the night bird calling me Spread its wings out like a flame Try my best to say your name Saw that bird up in that tree Where you carved out names so deep Feel the warmth inside it speak Try my best to hear you breathe We should've been enemies We should've been enemies Break the bones of something dead Feel it hold on to what is left Let the earth it's on give way Try to bury what we've made...
This is also one where all hope feels as if it is lost or slipping through your fingers. Where all the death and destruction starts to feel like...am I on the right side? Am I any worse than the enemy? But you always have the person you love pulling you back and reminding you what you’re fighting for.
Also, the first part there with “singing in your sleep” and “spread it’s wings out like a flame” and “carved out names so deep” -- more flame and wood imagery, hella.
Come Back Alive - Delta Rae
Call me back darlin' When you hear me call your name If I don't hear you I'll think somebody came If I can't find you I'll wait on down the hill And if you don't find me I'll think you been killed And if you don't find me I'll run on down the road...
Delta Rae is on here so much because they tend to handle subject matter that is like gritty and gothic and historical and very folky, in that folk for the revolution kind of way. This song is clearly about someone who is on the run, probably from a corrupt government -- honestly, it gives me big Jim Crow vibes (probably bc there are other songs that def reference that and Black Lives Matter.)
It is about worrying they’ll come home safe and what has happened to them. Which...if that’s not at least one part of your dystopian love story...well... It gives me big “The Hanging Tree” vibes.
Sons & Daughters - Allman Brown
And I, I'll wrap myself around your heart I'll be the walls of his heart And I, I'll keep a light on To call you back home And I'll build a fire, you fetch the water and I'll lay the table And in our hearts, we still pray for sons and daughters And all those evenings out in the garden, red, red wine These quiet hours turning to years And it's all to come for now we're still young Just building our kingdom but it's all to come...
And here we end on two songs that are a little more hopeful! We are not out of the woods yet, but the dawn is coming. We have waited years for this. There is a little house, with a family, and you are building your life up again.
The Morning Comes (Acoustic Version)
'Cause the devil's in the details and he's taking his toll Sending good men down the foot trails of some lost lonely souls So I'm working the graveyard, I don't sleep till it's light Ain't calling in favors, I can't swallow my pride And the bank's on a mission, they want to read me my rights But they ever show up around here, they're going to be in for a fight 'Cause the devil's in my hometown and I ain't telling him no 'Cause it's my family, it's my love now, that I'm scared to let go
Can I be blamed if I'm angry? Can I be saved if I'm barely clinging to hope? I'm clinging to hope When I say oh, oh Rain don't change the sun Jealous is the night when the morning comes But it always comes...
This is one of my favorite Delta Rae songs and it just fits so well here. It is such a melancholy song, but a hopeful one. “Rain don’t change the sun / jealous is the night when the morning comes.” The acoustic version especially plays at my heart strings and I just love it.
The way they sing “can you blame me if I’m angry / can I be saved if I’m barely clinging to hooooooOOOOooooope” always just puuuuulls at my heart. It is so beautiful and those questions are so important. Especially when you’ve won the war but there is still so much hurt and pain at the end.
