Vibes 2021 Playlist - Song Selections 1

This is a post, the first post, about where I talk about how I selected songs for the Vibes 2021 Playlist. So here is how these posts are going to work: I am going to talk about how I picked songs for the Vibes 2021 playlist for certain artists, at certain chunks at a time. If you haven’t seen my general post about the Vibes Playlist and the rules that are in place, click here to read all about it. I’m not going to reiterate all the rules here. These Song Selections posts are going to detail FIVE artists I’ve considered and how I reached the conclusions of which TWO songs they have released this year to be put into the Vibes Playlist, each. I will also say if this is a new arrival or an artist that made it the previous year. Also, I will probably do a list of people I considered who didn’t release any music this year or their music was too hype to make it; that will most likely be in a separate list at the end of the year. These are in no particular order, as I will be rearranging the final Vibes 2021 playlist later. Let’s begin.

1) Zed’s Dead - New Addition

So Zed’s Dead surprised the hell out of me by releasing a very chill album this year, which was way out of their usual wheelhouse. The album in question: Catching Z’s which came out March of 2021. So they are a new addition to the Vibes Playlist from last year and I will be surprised if they make it on there next year. Literally this whole album could be on the playlist so it was really tough to choose two songs. Upon writing this, the only other Zed’s Dead releases from 2021 are Alive, No Prayers, and i think you’re cool -Acoustic. Without Catching Z’s, Alive would definitely be on the Vibes Playlist, but it doesn’t compete with the massive vibes of the album. Check out the whole album, it is really good. For the playlist, I chose the opening track when i die i’mma come back and i think you’re cool. Now you might be thinking, why not choose the acoustic version of i think you’re cool, and after listening to it, it just doesn’t hit the same way as the original to me, the synths really carry it and give it a rhythm that is hard to not bop along to. It has almost like an 80s feel to it that is super sick. For when i die i’mma come back, I just think the track is so strong and seriously gives you the feeling of wanting more. The song is only 1:53 long and it doesn’t really get going until around the 45 second mark where it establishes the groove. It starts off so ethereally and just drops you right in, I really dig it. While the whole album is vibey goodness, the only other song that I seriously considered was lost birds, but it doesn’t have a solid enough rhythm as the others and is a little ambiguous in nature. Still, it is a phenomenal song.

2) Ashe - New Addition

Ashe has been on my radar for a few years now with some killer features with Quinn XCII and Shallou and the Moral of the Story EPs. This year, Ashe’s releases, at the time of writing this, were the album Ashlyn and the release of a few singles: The Same and Real Love. The few singles didn’t really hit the way Ashlyn did, so really it came down to choosing two songs from this album. I’ll get more into analysis of the album when I do my top 10 albums of the year, since it is one of my favorites, but after listening to it maybe five or six times in a row, I finally came down to the two songs that I wanted for the Vibes Playlist. The most obvious selection was of course Moral of the Story, which you may be saying, hey, that came out in 2019 originally. To which I say, you didn’t read my Vibes Playlist rules in the overview, where I say this is fair game, since it was rereleased on this album. This song has such a great message and packs a huge punch. In the context of the full album, it really is the peak of the journey and it is expertly placed. The other track is I’m Fine, which reminds me of a mix Queen and Billie Eilish with all of the back up singing (even though they’re all Ashe) and the groove. While it’s true for most of the album, I really love vocal-forward the track is. The chorus has a very simple and subdued drum beat and guitar rhythm and Ashe’s vocals just grab you and hold you. The other tracks under serious consideration were Me Without You and Serial Monogamist. Me Without You has some killer strings, and even more killer harmonies in the background and nearly edged out I’m Fine. Especially when part of the hook is “Go Find Yourself” essentially translates to “Go Fuck Yourself”; damn that’s good songwriting. Again, I got heavy Queen hints from Serial Monogamist (there is straight up a little piano interlude that sounds exactly like it came from Bohemian Rhapsody). The alternating piano and guitar punches during the verses that crescendo into the chorus is really great.

3) CharlestheFirst - New Addition

Again, another surprise for me, where an artist I wasn’t expecting to have super vibey songs proved me wrong. Normally, CharlestheFirst makes some great experimental bass music, but there were a few songs of of his march album SOLUS that were in consideration for the playlist. The only other release besides SOLUS for 2021 at this point is the single Banshee, which is way too wubby and experimental for the playlist (although the outro of the track is sweet). The first and most obvious choice was For Now, with it being super down tempo and contemplative. Soft vocals, a strong message and super light and airy, the song is a total vibe. The other tracks considered were To Depart, To Seek, Figured U Out, and Clarity. I really like the atmosphere of To Depart, To Seek, but it’s a little too out there for the playlist, especially the second drop in the song. I was really back and forth between Figured U Out and Clarity after ruling out To Depart, To Seek. I thought that Figured U Out might be too similar sounding to For Now and considered choosing Clarity to show more diversity from the artist. But then I thought, is Clarity too upbeat, so should I go with Figured U Out? I really like how once the vocals start in Figured U Out, they just keep going and carry you all the way to the finish line. For Clarity, while it is upbeat, it has a great bounce to it. Ultimately, I went with Figured U Out for the long phrases of the synths in the background.

4) RAC - New Addition

I missed the boat on RAC last year, as I hadn’t heard the album BOY at all until midway through this year, after I heard the song Passion randomly on an artist station. But alas, RAC is on the playlist this year, so hurrah! At the time of writing, the only RAC releases are from the EP YOU, which consists of 5 tracks (again no remixes, so the Halls of Sarah remix is not being considered). This album is really great, I briefly considered every track from it, but here is a quick run down of my reasonings. First, Clair De Lune is a little too ambiguous or vague and never really establishes a good groove to make the cut. Jacaré is really great, very timid and peaceful but it is too short; it definitely leaves me wanting more, similar to when i die i’mma come back from Zed’s Dead but it doesn’t stack up to the remaining tracks as a result. Feel You immediately hooks you with the dreamy vocals and somber chords and just builds and builds those feelings until the end. It’s a very bitter sweet song about holding onto the moment of being with someone you love more than anything and how those moments can’t last forever. Palavra is a great little tune, also pretty short. The layered strings and percussion is really cool. It feels a lot like a little palate cleanser between Feel You and Halfhearted. Which brings us to the last track to discuss, Halfhearted. This is another heavy song, dealing a lot with mental health and feeling like a burden. It is very introspective and ethereal; it almost reminds me of Eastern music, I’m not sure why, like being in a desert oasis. However, it did not grab me as much as Feel You and Palavra, so those two are going on the Vibes playlist.

5) ford. - Returning Artist

So ford. is really throwing me through a loop of the rules for the Vibes Playlist, as most of his releases this year are remixes, reprises, and stripped down versions of songs, mainly of his album The Color of Nothing from last year, collected on the album The Color of Nothing (Reprise), naturally. If I considered the acoustic version of i think you’re cool for Zed’s Dead, then the reprises and stripped down versions will also be considered, new rule. That only leaves us with a few options overall, which are thursday drive; mid-day - focus piece; In My Eyes - stripped; and both 4:38am - Bedroom Reprise and the original 4:38am. Yes, I know the original was also on The Color of Nothing, but it was also included with the release of the Bedroom Reprise in May, so it is an option. After all of that, it doesn’t matter because I decided to go with the only two 100% new tracks: thursday drive and mid-day - focus piece. I’ll be the first to say that I should have included In My Eyes on the Vibes playlist from last year instead of Talk; I’m honestly not sure what I was thinking there; but the stripped down version just doesn’t pack the same punch as the original. thursday drive is a beautiful track with some killer harps, distorted lofi-sounding piano and some nice low drawn out synths. The focus piece is a simpler and more reflective track, purely piano and some ambient nature noises, and just a tiny hint of string harmonies. My favorite part of both tracks is the ambient nature noises for sure, it just gives such a relaxing and serene feel to the tracks. Just a side comment as well, the fantompower remix of Living, Breathing is crazy good, listen to that while you’re exploring the rest of the reprise album.

And there you go, five artists, ten songs, and a whole lot of me explaining what I hear. This is my first post talking about this stuff and I’ve never really made posts about my thought processes like this before, so be easy on me. I am not a music critic nor a professional writer. And I don’t claim to know anything either. Let me know what you think of my selections, and I’ll make another post about more artists soon! It’s already November and I would like to get the Vibes playlist done by New Years, so I need to pick up the pace. As always, if you have any suggestions, hit me up!

Much love.