It is midnight and you haven’t started your essay; these tunes will get you through till sun up and let you feel like you have achieved at least a pass.
Let's face it, first years of university are a waste of time, but one thing to be discovered is the relative ease found in listening to music whilst writing away essay after essay. When it hits 4am you will find yourself with sore eyes a terrible essay on something that you will never care for again, but remember the CD's that you would listen to? I thought this was a very personal thing, but I soon found that it was quite common to listen to the same CD on repeat whilst writing away feverishly 2hrs before the essay is due.
Below is what will hopefully get you through the 2:30am to 3:45am barrier, the time when you start to consider the late penalties, the time when your pillow couldn't be softer, this is the time when you want to give up, but you cant or your lecturer will have your balls, or if you're a woman they will have your.... other things.
With the prevalence of I Tunes, gone are the days of the one album, back in my day I remember still using a tape player and taping songs off triple J at 3 am for my ultimate mix tape. It's embarrassing, I feel like I am in Degrassi Junior high in the late 80's, but at 17 maybe I was just too poor for a CD player.
17 Songs that will get you through the night on repeat from across the ages -
1. Kids: MGMT - Yes I know this is overplayed, but this has been played for some real hard tasks, on repeat it still works for me, its repetitive almost hypnotic tune keeps you going.
2. Graffiti: Maximo Park - I got this song from somebody somewhere at sometime around 2005, it was cool at the time and I remember listening to it on repeat whilst failing a subject on writing, I guess that's what brings me to where I am today, with a chorus that says "ill do graffiti if you sing to me in French" Nothing makes sense and I guess that essay didn't either.
3. Search And Destroy: Iggy and the Stooges - I am pretty certain after 13 years of Catholic School I can comment on something from the Bible. I am led to believe that the 11th Commandment for Moses was the following. 'Thou shall play Search and Destroy on all mix tapes'. The Israelites loved this commandment and rocked out in the desert for years to come, a commandment that has sadly fallen by the wayside, but following this edict from a higher power it's on here, end of argument.
4. With you forever: Pnau - There is something about hypnotic sound of this song that got me through assignments. Your toes waggle, your head swivels and you break through into that 3rd paragraph, and essays don't seem too hard when songs like this play.
5. Politik: Coldplay - When I did my HSC in 2003 I remember listening to this song on repeat for hours and hours, I had borrowed the CD about 8 months before hand from a friend and had 'forgotten' endlessly to give it back, it always worked for me when I was bored of studying to keep going till I finished this song. This one is one of those songs that go straight over your head as you write away dreading the fools who thought referencing and footnoting would be fun.
P.S - As bizarre as it may sound, listen to the piano solo bit at the end in reverse I reckon it sounds better, but that may be just me getting all weird on you.
6. Real Thing: Russell Morris - This song is intense, it's a psychedelic song from the 60's, it's Australian and it was produced by Molly Meldrum. Now before that destroys it, this one goes for about 6 minutes, the last 3 minutes are some kind of acid freak-out that keeps you typing, I am not sure how or why, but it works!
7. Such Great Heights: Postal Service - A song loved by all those who watched the Movie Garden State, I have not. I discovered this song purely through osmosis, I awoke one morning thinking I had written the coolest song ever, only to realize it had already been written by someone far more talented and I had merely woken up with the radio on. This song is lovely, and a great love song, but it really helped me once when I had to do an essay on Post War Asian politics, seriously if anything can get you through the boredom of that, its good enough for that CD.
8. Babe I'm on fire: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - This song is ridiculous, it goes on for over 15 minutes, the video clip goes for 19 and if you make it through this song with remembering all the lyrics, you are a genius. He wails about the end of the world, refugees, Falling in love, himself, and whatever else he wants he runs out of breath, and by the time you are finished this song if you are still typing you should be finished in bed, and onto your 3rd dream by the time Nick shuts up.
9. Passing through: Augie March - I find this one gets me all passionate and the words seem to get far more meaningful and intense as I follow the drum beat along, it was only introduced to at the back half of my uni career, but I'm glad I found it.
10. Golden Path: Flaming Lips/Chemical Brothers - There is a trend amongst these songs. All of them seem to be repetitive and very long, this one is no different. This song is so multi-purpose and when Wayne Coyne pleads to us "please forgive me I never meant to hurt you" you would swear it was your lecturer, pleading for forgiveness as you think of all the ways you would love to maim them with the sea of text books that surround you.
11. Funky Kingston: Toots and the Maytals -A reggae song where someone screams the words 'Funky Kingston' every once in a while. What else do you need to know?
12. Sunday Smile: Beirut - Whilst I write this article its 2am, and I have had this song on repeat since about 12:30. Its melodic, my father thinks it sounds like a funeral march, but it has Piano Accordion in it, you could call it a pretty song.
13. Da Funk: Daft Punk- It's the same tune looped and looped and looped again for over 5 minutes This is awesome you are hammering away at the keyboard, you find yourself getting your groove on to get a drink, its 4:30 you feel revitalized with only a few more paragraphs to go.
14. Time: Pink Floyd - This is one of those albums if you have it you will have used it for your heavy essays, dust it off once a year, and play Dark side of the moon twice, it will still be playing by the next semester. The chimes and the haunting talking will scare the shit out of you, especially if the security light in your back yard goes off at the same time.
15.My Generation (Live at Leeds): The Who - Many who know me will attest to my love for The Who. In this version they take a 3 minute song and stretch it into 15 minutes. Its got all you need an upbeat first few minutes then as the song stretches out, you forget what you're doing and its 11 minutes later the song hasn't finished and you realize you have been staring out the window since the 2nd bass solo.
16. Someday: The Strokes - I think on about 93% of my 'mix tapes' this song always squeezes its way in. It has to be one of the best songs ever, but as you write a conclusion and you think 'what a piece of piss!' this essay was, this song will bring a smile to your face.
P.S Don't forget to edit and re read.... Pfft seriously who does that at 4am? Not me, probably a reason why I never got given a deans medal for awesomeness.
17. Freebird: Lynard Skynard - It had to be done, and clocking in at over 10 minutes, if this thing doesn't get you air guitaring on your desk as the essay prints out onto the floor at 5am nothing will, and if you don't do at least 3 of the solos on mouth guitar you don't deserve to pass, I am sorry, but that's the law.
You are there, finally. Yes, it is all done, and as you staple it to the sounds of Freebird, try and get it done earlier next time, but considering that will never happen just use this CD and you will be all over it like a rash, or a cheap suit, or whatever is funnier.