When I was learning to drive I remember being shocked at how little I needed to push the accelerator in order to get the car moving. Momentum was much more involved than I anticipated. There was a lot of brake-tapping.
I don’t know where I developed this full-throttle mindset. Probably somewhere between the PlayStation game, Hot Wheels Turbo Racing, and the boating school episodes of SpongeBob. In Hot Wheels Turbo Racing, holding down X (the video game accelerator) was a requirement to being competitive. I was able to understand loops and enormous ramps launching cars over canyons wouldn’t be involved in real-world driving, but for some reason that understanding didn’t translate to gas-pedal-usage.
I did eventually figure things out behind the wheel before barreling down my childhood street at an ever-increasing rate of speed. Now I consider myself a pretty good driver — not too meek, but not overly aggressive either. And it all started when I realized I wasn’t supposed to lay on the accelerator the entire time. This concept is also the key to creating a great playlist.
I want to start by saying, I wouldn’t call myself a musical person, but I do thoroughly enjoy music. I like listening to it, I like reading about it, and I like discussing it. A couple of highlights of 2020 for me were listening to the podcast, Music Exists, reading Meet Me in the Bathroom, and making a new Spotify playlist.
My playlist making days date back to Limewire fueled iTunes mixes. I remember in tenth grade I made an iTunes playlist called, “Unskippable.” It was more of an EP. Not many songs made the cut due to the rigid guidelines as suggested by the title — they had to be songs I never skipped when they came up on shuffle. I wish I could remember the full set-list, but it certainly included, “Wet Sand,” by The Red Hot Chili Peppers, and, “New Slang,” by The Shins. There were only like five songs on the playlist.
Of course, there came a time when one of the songs would come on and I wasn’t feeling it, and I would send my thumb towards the skip button. I felt like I was betraying my sense of taste. And even though a part of me understood it at that moment, I don’t think I fully realized until this past year that you can’t create a perfect playlist by including only “perfect” songs.
I put together my new playlist while reading Meet Me in the Bathroom. I would utilize Spotify’s radio feature. It allows you to search a song and then jump into a playlist based off that song (or artist).
I started by first listening to a playlist based off the song, “Lost in the Supermarket,” by The Clash. After listening to that for a while, I found myself wanting some more of the alt-country I was listening to in the same mix. So, I made a playlist and added all the songs from the, “Lost in the Supermarket,” radio, and all the songs from my Jason Isbell Radio. I wanted to add some pop-rock, and Counting Crows radio was thrown in as well.
Once I had that base it was just a matter of listening through a few times, removing a song here or there and maybe tacking a few on that I would come across.
Did I love every song in my playlist? No. Is it actually a perfect playlist? No (well kinda). But above all, I wanted to be able to put it on at the beach or at a party without every song being a must-listen. The guy who turns up the music and is like, “you’ve gotta listen to this track,” is a second cousin to the guy who makes you watch this, “hilarious,” video he found on YouTube. I don’t want to be that guy. I like Radiohead too, but I wouldn’t advise throwing Kid A on a playlist you’re trying to break out at the beach.
I want to pause for a second and say — if you’re making a playlist just for you, throw whatever you want in there. But, if you want to be in the running for the person who is being handed the (now proverbial) aux cord, you’re going to have to be more strategic with the Radiohead and Bon Iver. A song or two of that ilk that fits the vibe of the playlist is actually a great way to introduce people to bands they may not have listened to otherwise.
I don’t want to prescribe anything too strict. But I would say you need songs that are still enjoyable even if you aren’t paying 100 percent attention. Earlier I mentioned some 2020 highlights. What I’m about to share might be the highlight.
I was at the beach early on a Saturday with Lacey, I had the playlist going, and, “Walk On the Wild Side,” by Lou Reed was playing. A middle aged woman staying in one of the rentals on the beach came down off her deck and walked by us to the water’s edge. As she did she was bopping her head slightly and singing along. That is pinnacle of playlist pride.
In the past I would build playlists song by song. I would go through my library and pick out all of my favorites and think I was creating the greatest playlist ever. But that was me slamming on the gas. I wouldn’t have put, “Walk On the Wild Side,” on there — it wasn’t even in my library (although I knew the song).
There need to be songs between favorites the way there used to be when the radio was the only way to listen to music. I want people listening to assume it’s just a great radio station, and not a playlist I made. The way a great radio station used to be there in the background at a summer job — constant and reliable, not demanding too much attention.
Lemmen's Nursery 