Category: Playlists

Great tunes to add to your own playlists

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Friday Favorites (10/2)

Friday Favorites

As a young art student, I was exposed to the first alternative music I’d ever heard through my teacher’s playlists during our classes. This week’s Friday Favorites are dedicated to (mainly) 90’s-00’s alternative music which reminds me of my entry into the artistic world. I still love to listen to these songs while creating content and working on projects. Hope you enjoy! 

Bad Timing – Bombay Bicycle Club 

One of my favorites from this band ever. Rich melody, lots of texture to the song. As a plus, the album art is one of the coolest designs ever. 

Clementine – Elliott Smith 

Soft vocal tones and beautiful acoustic guitar encompass this relaxing track, perfect for a rainy day of painting. 

Never Gonna Give You Up – The Black Keys 

This track features beautiful instrumentals, a catchy drum beat, and R&B style vocals and message. This song transports the listener right back to 60s jazzy R&B. 

Houdini – Foster The People 

A favorite from this band, the song Houdini encapsulates the best part of alternative indie rock. This track is sure to bring you into an upbeat and creative mindset in no time. 

Sleepyhead – Passion Pit 

Passion Pit fits better within the electronic/indie genre but nonetheless it is an important part of any art-making playlist. 

To listen to all of these songs and more, check out my playlist on WKNC’s Spotify. 

– Miranda

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Night of Fright Playlist

A perfect collection of non-traditional, mixed-genre ambient music for the month of October. 

  1. Skeleton Kiss – Fright by Christian Death 

  2. Season of the Witch by Lana Del Rey 

  3. Heads Will Roll by Yeah Yeah Yeahs 

  4. October by Broken Bells 

  5. No Rest for the Wicked by Lykke Li 

  6. Harsh Realm by Widowspeak 

  7. Baptism by Crystal Castles 

  8. Batcaves by Kap Bambino 

  9. Special Death by Mirah

  10. Witch by the bird and the bee 

  11. A Forest – Tree Mix by The Cure 

  12. I Put A Spell On You by Creedence Clearwater Revival 

  13. Don’t Look Back by Kissing Cousins 

  14. Do You by Carina Round 

  15. House of the Rising Sun by Lauren O’Connell 

  16. Venus in Fleurs by Grimes 

  17. Whales Tails by Cocteau Twins 

Listen to the playlist here. 

– Miranda

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Playlists

Fall Favorites

Time to put on those faux fur Uggs and head to the nearest Starbucks for a pumpkin spice latte because it’s finally fall! Just kidding. Please don’t do either of those things. Instead, embark on an autumnal auditory adventure with this playlist of my fall favorites!

  1. September by Earth, Wind, & Fire: The 21st night of September marks the final day of summer in the Northern hemisphere, so this song is the perfect way to ring in the fall. I promise this is the last time I’ll be Septemberposting. Until next year.

  2. Autumn Leaves by the Bill Evans Trio: During his time in the Miles Davis Quartet, Bill Evans played an integral role in the recording of Kind of Blue, which is considered to be one of the most influential jazz albums of all time. Immediately after he recorded Portrait in Jazz with his own trio. Their rendition of the standard “Autumn Leaves” really captures the aura of the season with only the textures created by a piano, drums and upright bass.

  3. Where We Used To Live by the Esbjörn Svensson Trio: Following Bill Evans and company is the Esbjörn Svensson Trio with another jazz composition. Whereas “Autumn Leaves” portrays the warm, energetic side of fall, “Where We Used To Live” evokes feelings of melancholy and longing.

  4. Fall in Love by Slum Village: For this classic, J Dilla sampled Gap Manigone’s “Diana in the Autumn Wind”. The result was an intimate instrumental perfect for the Slum Village.

  5. Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground by The White Stripes: With this track, The White Stripes offer us a slightly more aggressive approach to the autumnal sound. It would be the perfect song for angrily raking leaves in your yard.

  6. Thriller by Michael Jackson: Of course, fall isn’t just pretty leaves and flannels. It’s also the spookiest time of the year, and there’s not a single song more synonymous with Halloween than Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”.

That’s the playlist! What are some of your favorite fall songs?

– DJ Mango

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September 2020 Sample Platter

Sampling is the recontextualization of a preexisting work in a new composition. While this practice is utilized across genres, it has become a cornerstone of the hip-hop tradition. Since its inception, producers have been sampling soul records, funk records, world music and even cartoons to create head-bobbing beats. Drawing from numerous styles and time periods, here is a sample platter of some of the spiciest samples in hip-hop music!

  1. Late Nights & Heartbreak by Hannah Williams & the Affirmations: Courtesy of producer No I.D., this song was sampled in the titular track of Jay-Z’s 4:44. It’s the perfect backdrop for Jay-Z’s intimate confession of infidelity in his relationship with Beyoncé.

  2. Try a Little Tenderness by Otis Redding: This soul ballad is wonderfully composed – it slowly builds in tempo, volume and urgency, and ends with Otis showing off his chops in a fiery finish. His vocal riffs were chopped up by Kanye West to create “Otis”, which features one of my favorite beats of all time.

  3. Bam Bam by Sister Nancy: Hailed as a Jamaican dancehall classic, this song is perhaps the most frequently sampled song in all of popular music. It has been recontextualized more than a hundred times by the likes of Kanye West, Jay-Z, and Lauryn Hill. Read the full story here!

  4. Why Can’t We Live Together by Timmy Thomas: If you were around in 2015 and 2016, you’ll remember how inescapable Drake’s “Hotline Bling” was. The song was everywhere, and for good reason – it’s an earworm. The bossa nova-style groove comes from Timmy Thomas’ 1972 track Why Can’t Live Together.

  5. One Step Ahead by Aretha Franklin: Ayatollah chopped up this soul classic to create the beat for “Ms. Fat Booty” by Mos Def.

  6. Whores in this House by DJ Frank Ski: Based on the title alone, I’m sure you can guess which song this was sampled in. That’s right – the iconic vocal line appears in Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion’s “WAP”, aka Ben Shapiro’s favorite song.

  7. Pots ‘N’ Pans by Anthony King and John Matthews: An obscure early electronic song sampled by Don Cannon in Pusha T’s “Numbers on the Boards”. The result is one of the most head-bobbing hip-hop tracks in recent memory.

  8. What Will Santa Claus Say? (When He Finds Everybody Swingin’) by Louis Prima: This Christmas tune was sampled in Kanye and Kid Cudi’s 2018 project Kids See Ghosts. “4th Dimension” is now a contender for my favorite holiday song.

I hope this sample platter has given you an eclectic taste of hip-hop source material. What are some of your favorite samples?

– DJ Mango

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Playlists

Friday Favorites 9/25/20

Happy Friday everyone! Here are the tracks that I’ve been vibing with for the past week (playlist here):

  1. Sock It 2 Me (feat. Da Brat) by Missy Elliot: This track was one of the first hits of Missy’s solo career, and with Timbaland’s signature production, it gives us a taste of their killer creative chemistry.

  2. Mutha Magick (feat. BbyMutha) by Black Noi$e: Noi$e’s erratic production is a perfect fit for BbyMutha’s appearance on this track. In less than two minutes, the mother of 4 drops a handful of lyrical gems that will have you pressing repeat for sure.

  3. Baby by Donnie & Joe Emerson: Ariel Pink’s 2012 cover of this song made it an underground classic. Its soulful vocals and laid back groove make it a DJ Mango classic – it makes me feel like I’m floating.

  4. 12.38 (feat. 21 Savage, Ink & Kadhja Bonet) by Childish Gambino: Despite Donald Glover’s celebrity as a musician, actor and director, he’s relatively lowkey. The release of his latest Childish Gambino project was also lowkey, and it went under my radar for a while. “12.38” is definitely a standout.

  5. MANGO (feat. Adeline) by KAMAUU: This new track from KAMAUU explores the idea of an unselfish love. It’s also funkier than a week old pair of gym socks.

  6. September by Earth, Wind, & Fire: This classic is a celebration of the final days of summer and a fantastic way to ring in the fall. Interestingly enough, the 21st night of September holds no special significance – it just sounded good, so the writers went with it. Check out my full discussion of the lyric here!

  7. TRICK DADDY by ICECOLDBISHOP: BISHOP’s aggressive and eccentric delivery makes him an oddity in the hip-hop soundscape. Singles like “TRICK DADDY” have me excited for his debut!

  8. Chameleon by Jenae Ailia: Jenae Ailia’s unique blend of neo-soul, indie and R&B is quite ear-grabbing. They’re a new artist to me, but I’ll certainly be on the look out for their new stuff!

– DJ Mango

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Playlists

Genreless Workout Playlist

  1. Happier – Bastille, Marshmello

  2. Body – Loud Luxury, Brando

  3. Na Na Na – My Chemical Romance

  4. She Works Out Too Much – MGMT 

  5. LDA – FIDLAR 

  6. The New Workout Plan – Kanye West 

  7. Twerk – City Girls, Cardi B 

  8. King of the Beach – Wavves

  9. Fat Lip – Sum 41

  10. Master of Puppets – Metallica 

  11. Icon – Jaden 

  12. Never Be Like You – Flume, kai 

  13. Wake Bake Skate – FIDLAR 

  14. Jackie Chan – Tiesto

  15. Higher – Wevlth

  16. Like I Do – David Guetta, Martin Garrix, Brooks

  17. No Option – Post Malone 

Check out this high-energy, genreless playlist designed to get you through an hour-long workout with songs that vary in genre completely. Hope you enjoyed, and feel free to comment below your favorite song to workout to. 

– Miranda

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Playlists

Shut Up and Hand Me the Aux

With being a DJ, I get very excited when my friends hand me the aux chord. I love creating playlists and setting the vibe for a car ride. I usually let my friends have aux because I like listening to new music that I could find because of my friends. But when I get handed that aux… you know it’s on!

Below are the top 10 songs that I play depending on who I am with, the vibes I’m feeling, and something that will make my car ride not feel so long. When I am with my friends who listen to metal, I tend to play more metal songs. Majority of my friends do not listen to metal so it’s a good thing The Saw is diverse in all kinds of music!! I know when I have aux that I can play anything that I want, but I like for everyone in my car to enjoy what they are listening to. It’s the DJ in me!

Metal Up Your Ass:

1.    High Hopes – Kublai Khan

2.    Grotesque Impalement – Dying Fetus

3.    Nail in the Coffin – Bent Life

4.    Nothing Left – As I Lay Dying

5.    Brimstone – Whitechapel

6.    No Other Way – Boundaries

7.    Black Pill – Ingested

8.    Evisceration Plague – Cannibal Corpse

9.    Sire of Sin – Cryptoposy

10. Burning Blood – Six Feet Under


Dumb Bitch Hours

1.    He Say She Say – Mulatto

2.    15th and the 1st – Gucci Mane

3.    Cap A Lot – Fredo Bang

4.    Wood Worm – Noel

5.    Cabin Fever – Wiz Khalifa

6.    How U Luv Dat – Young Dolph

7.    Suge – Dababy

8.    Boogie – Brockhampton

9.    1800 – Snoop Dogg

10. A Lot – Isaiah Rashaad


~~Vibing~~

1.    Bootsy Bellows – Wiz Khalifa

2.    Special Affair – The Internet

3.    Amphetamine – Smino

4.    Why Worry – Isaiah Rashaad

5.    Rules – Doja Cat

6.    Diamond & Gold – Mac Miller

7.    South Beach – Ty Dolla $ign

8.    Murder To The Mind – Tash Sultana

9.    Egyptian Joint – Young Bull

10.Gosha – $not

What is in your aux playlist?

Stay Metal,

THE SAW

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What if We Made Eye Contact Across the Parlour Like in Pride and Prejudice (2005)?

(Image: Hugh Thomson (1860-1920) / Public domain)

“Pride and Prejudice” is perhaps my favorite novel ever written. It is the perfect mixture of humor and elegance, and it’s my go-to reread book. It would be embarrassing to say how many times I’ve read it, especially since I’ve lost track at this point. If you haven’t had the opportunity to pick it up, it’s a lovely, satirical story written by Jane Austen about the expectations and pitfalls of upper-class women when it came to marriage in the 18th century. The Bennet’s, a family on the fringes of the English gentry, have five young daughters who their mother is desperate to marry off before money runs out. Elizabeth Bennet, our main character, forms a spiteful (yet enticing) relationship with Mr. Darcy, a member of the most elite family in England. It is a delightfully witty and heartwarming novel and I 10/10 recommend.

Listening to this playlist makes me feel like I’m living a life of luxury on the English countryside in the late 1700s. Now I know this time is crazy romanticized, especially since the vast majority of people were not a part of this elite class, but a girl can dream. I’m normally not a big listener of classical music, but these tracks are just too beautiful.

1. Liz on Top of the World – Jean Yves Thibaudet (Pride and Prejudice 2005 Soundtrack)

2. Yes! – Dario Marianelli [feat. Jack Liebeck] (Jane Eyre 2011 Soundtrack)

3. Suite Bergamasque, L. 75: III. Clair de lune – Claude Debussy

4. Awaken – Dario Marianelli [feat. Jack Liebeck] (Jane Eyre 2011 Soundtrack)

5. Concerto in D Minor, BWV 974: II. Adagio – Johann Sebastian Bach

6. Moonlight Sonata – Beethoven

7. Moceaux de Fantasie, op. 3: no.1, elégie – Sergei Rachmaninoff

8. The Secret Life of Daydreams – Jean Yves Thibaudet (Pride and Prejudice 2005 Soundtrack)

– DJ butter

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Playlists

Friday Favorites (9/18)

These new releases are sure to have you grooving out until the next installment of my Friday Favorites series. Enjoy these tracks which range from rap to R&B with some genreless surprises added too. Be sure to check out all of my Friday Favorites on Spotify.  

Can’t Decide – Amine 

Catchy and smooth, this track from Amine’s new release Limbo is my top choice. It’s a great slow jam perfect for dancing or taking a drive through the night. 

Afterlife – Flatbush Zombies 

This single is captivating and esoteric, from the simple bass line to the haunting piano melody with some creepy, interesting album art to top it off. 

Woman – Lianne La Haves and Nao 

This track is the first project Nao has released this year, and it does not disappoint. She gives us vocals reminiscent of early Erykah Badu on this funky track that will captivate your full attention, and Lianne La Haves’ clear vocals pair perfectly. 

Endorphins – tobi lou 

Another new release from tobi lou, this one mirroring Frank Ocean’s style in Blonde but still bringing the classic and immaculate tobi lou energy. 

Inhale – Bryston Tiller 

Tiller is one of my favorite mainstream R&B rappers, known for his smooth vocals and “trap soul” beats. This track is short and sweet but I can’t get it off my mind; it’s also his first single release of 2020.  

Hope you enjoyed! 

– Miranda 

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Playlists

Sad Bangers

There is a certain levity in listening to sad music during moments that aren’t specifically sad. In my opinion, sad music can be enjoyed regardless of your current emotional state. This is untrue of other kinds of music – try listening to “Happy” by Pharrell while in the midst of a breakup and you’ll see what I mean. Whether you’re on a late night drive or crying in the club, this is the playlist of sad bangers that will help you capture that oddly specific vibe you’re going for:

  1. King of Carrot Flowers Pt. 1 by Neutral Milk Hotel: The opening track on In the Aeroplane Over the Sea finds Jeff Mangum juxtaposing playful childhood memories with traumatic ones.

  2. Nowhere2go by Earl Sweatshirt: The release of this song in 2018 marked Earl’s return from a brief musical hiatus. “Nowhere2go” gives us a brief update from him as he touches on his feelings of isolation and despair.

  3. Broken Bones and Pocket Change by St. Paul & The Broken Bones: On this track, singer Paul Janeway bares his soul over sorrowful horn lines from his band. His powerful voice is the perfect vessel for the emotional tone of this song.

  4. Self Control by Frank Ocean: As the king of sad bangers himself, Frank Ocean is known for his ability to convey emotional states in a way few artists can. “Self Control” is a slow burner that deals with a fundamental disconnect between two lovers, and features one of the most transcendent outros of any song I’ve ever heard.

  5. Heavenly Father by Isaiah Rashad: The melodic and upbeat nature of this song definitely betrays its heavy subject matter. “Heavenly Father” finds rapper Isaiah Rashad reflecting on the lack of guidance in his life from his estranged father and God.

  6. Good News by Mac Miller: The lead single from Mac Miller’s posthumous album Circles paints a picture of his tired soul, and describes the pressure he felt to hide his pain. The intimate lyrics combined with the gentle instrumentation make this song a truly bittersweet experience.

  7. Ex-Factor by Lauryn Hill: This classic by Ms. Lauryn Hill describes a toxic relationship that is all too familiar to many of us. The resonant lyrics and beautiful music make this song a certified Sad Banger™.

That’s the playlist! What are your favorite sad bangers?

– DJ Mango