Image Credits: Hima ( @transparentalia ), background by Kesenia Tikhomirova
A short and bittersweet(?) SwissAus playlist for Day Five of @hetaliaaustriaweek ! There are a lot of reasons I love this pairing, but oops I do think my biases still show through a bit. Liner notes under the cut!
“I Think We’re Alone Now” by Tiffany
And then you put your arms around me and we tumble to the ground
It’s hard to imagine the pressures of being a child!Nation; a (semi) immortal being who is imbued with meaning and duty, but is still a child nonetheless. I love how silly child!Austria seems to be in canon, and even though a young Switzerland is often seen berating his inability to fight or assert himself around the other Nations, I think a young Austria also teaches Switzerland how to still be a grubby little kid, sneaking behind their leaders’ backs and rolling around in the fields where a budding romance is ripe to be sown.
“Little Lion Man” by Mumford & Sons
But it was not your fault, but mine, and it was your heart on the line
This is a song I very much see from Switzerland’s perspective. He holds himself as an impartial soldier, always needing to be strong for others (Austria, Liechtenstein), but in doing so, he pushes away those he wants to love. And at some point, Austria takes his pushing to heart and so they drift apart, Switzerland left to regret the role he played in breaking Austria’s heart when they were younger.
“Garden Song” by Phoebe Bridgers
The doctor put her hands over my liver she told me my resentment’s getting smaller
Both Nations are stubborn and even if they both miss each other’s presence in their lives, the wounds that defined their early relations take time to heal. But at some point you wake up and like a blink of an eye, time has passed, and even old wounds, too, start to fade.
“About You” by The 1975
Do you think I have forgotten? Do you think I have forgotten about you?
Again, I feel like a lot of Austria and Switzerland’s canon relationship has to do with this mutual question of “did you forget me? did you forget everything you meant to me?” while both of them hold the same answer in their hearts.
“I Remember You” by Rilo Kiley
And my all acquaintance be forgot but I remember you
I gotta admit, my favorite SwissAus AUs are ones where they reconnect after falling out of touch for years. Similar to “About You,” it’s all about the question of “did you forget me” and how easy it is to be together again even after years passing.
“Get Yourself Another Fool” by Sam Cooke
Now I know the rules, get yourself another fool
I can see this song from either’s perspective. I think both felt burned by how close they got in childhood before going their (intentionally) separate ways, and because both are terrible at talking through it, they both feel used as a result. Both of them feel like their love was never meant to be, but it’s the kind of conviction that grows in your heart when you haven’t had an actual frank conversation about it with the other, thus trapping them in the cycle of believing the other will only ever break their heart.
“Maps” by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Wait, they don’t love you like I love you
And yet, and yet...Even when they believe the worst about each other and themselves, there’s still a part of them saying that nobody will ever love you like I love you. I often think of Switzerland as Austria’s first love, and it’s hard to match that feeling with another.
“High On A Rocky Ledge” by Moondog
How many chances would be taken in my hopeless pursuit of the Schnee-Mädel-Edelweiß?
Perhaps a bit too on the nose? If you couldn’t already tell, I do view SwissAus as a pairing of perpetual regrets and hurt haha. I love them as first loves, and I think that their relationship when they were younger left something irreparable in both of them. But it will always be a feeling of needing to scale the tallest mountain to achieve what they want, and that perhaps their love just isn’t meant to be in this life, that they missed their chance.
“Anna Walks Away, Alone” by Anton Karas
(no lyrics)
The concluding song to The Third Man which is set in post-WWII Vienna, Karas’ zither score evokes such a feeling of 'things that could have been but never came to be, that were walked away from.' Here in the final shots of the film, the main character misses his shot with the leading lady. Or perhaps he never had a chance at all.
I made one for Arthur today and thought it’d be convenient if people knew Alfred’s also existed from about two years ago :,)
Was talking to a friend about Arthur and his relationship to the sun and I swear, the second the sun is out, regardless of temperatures, Arthur’s on a bench. I promise you, you’ll find him on a bench outside.
Magic by Mystery Skulls just fits the upbeat vibe.
Mr Blue Sky by Electric Light Orchestra, Alfred got those pretty sky blue eyes + the first thing that jumps in my mind is with this song is the guardians of the galaxy, and you know for a fact he’s into marvel movies and space soooo….
Party in the U.S.A, Forth of July and American boy are pretty self explanatory, it’s in the names and the vibe is pretty on spot.
Video games by The Young Professionals, what can I say? He likes video games and this song gives of a sense of nostalgia.
Empty page by The Crane Wives is a bit more complex, I really think the lyrics are a good description of Alfred’s thoughts about himself in his childhood and teenage years, at least how I picture Alfred, especially at the start. Also it’s just a really good song, go listen pls pls pls-
Apocalypse by Brye, this one is like the one above but his thoughts about himself now as an adult, a bit dark…
Sorry this took so long I get distracted easily lol, I’m going to stick with 8 songs for each character I think!