I’ve written many papers over my college career, several of them articles for this fine website. I’ve written them all in a variety of places, moods, and on a variety of subjects. But there is one thing that stays pretty constant in all my writing: I listen to music. I’m the kind of person who needs music to live.
Whether I’m cleaning, cooking, doing homework, or walking to class, I’m always listening to music. I listen to a pretty wide variety, from Faroese throat singers to German classical composers, but this year, I’ve realized that there were mainly two albums that helped me make it through this year:
The Human Condition by Jon Bellion
This album was my summer, basically. I spent this summer working my first retail job, and it killed me a little. I’m an introvert, and all those hours spent with people I did not know was honestly one of the most draining experiences of my life. My previous jobs, in a library and a factory, were pretty insular, quiet affairs that essentially left me to just my thoughts for hours on end. Not so in retail. I was new and constantly being talked to, trained, and asked questions. I felt dead when I finally came home every day. I would prop my aching feet up on the couch, put my headphones on, and listen to Jon Bellion.
This album was very personal for him, and it was very personal for me. He was brutally honest, for one thing, about things that often times Christians just simply aren’t. He asked himself and God the hard questions. He put to amazing melody and killer beats the stark, dark thoughts that often swirled around in my overwhelmed brain after a long day. But the beauty of this album was not just that it asked those questions and exposed all those dark thoughts. The beauty is in its construction. The last song, “Hands of God”, not only samples several earlier songs on the album, but it also melts into the first, “He is the Same.” It is sort of a completion of the circle. “Hands of God” holds the promise that all those earlier concerns, legitimate though they are, are ultimately out of our control. There is a release of all of the pain and doubts as the grand choir and sweeping powerhouse vocals just sort of lift you into a better state of mind. Personally, I’m still not over the genius of this album and cannot recommend it enough. Fair warning though, there is some language, so if that is against your convictions, you might be a little less enamored with the whole album.
The War by EXO
This was the album that got me through my first semester of junior year. EXO is a South Korean band that regularly ruins my life in the best way, but they outdid themselves with this album. On a purely musical level, this is one of the most satisfying things I’ve ever heard. Baekhyun, D.O, and Chen’s vocal skills shine so bright I’m still blinking the spots out of my vision. Chanyeol, one of the rappers, played a large part in producing the tracks and it shows. There is a smoothness, a sort of refinement that wasn’t always there in their other works, when they were still trying to fit into the boy band box. This is a much more mature album, not just content-wise, but musically.
Whether I was taking a shower to start my day off right, or staying up until 3:00 AM to finish a paper, The War was often my first choice. I could displace myself from the everyday mundanities of studies and just life in general through this album. This is appropriate since the whole album was marketed with a sort of chill, tropical vibe. Personal favorites are “The Eve,” which starts off the album, and “Forever.” They’re chock full of smooth vocals and enjoyable rap verses and something about them makes me just happy to be alive and aware enough to just listen to them. So if you need a little mini-getaway in the middle of life and all its pressures, check out The War, please. You’ll be doing yourself a favor.