The Internet is rife with workday-themed song and video countdowns, but all too many are stuck in the past. We all know "A Hard Day's Night" and "Taking Care of Business" are emblematic of the daily grind, but what about some more modern selections? To fill this void, I've created an indie-pop playlist for the workplace, featuring twenty-first century songs that capture all of the clock-watching, axe-grinding, and even boss-lusting of the nine-to-five contingency.
(Not all the YouTube links are to official videos, but I figured user-created is better than nothing at all.)
Belle & Sebastian: "Step Into My Office, Baby" (YouTube) Indie-pop darlings Belle & Sebastian explore all of the intricacies of employer-employee relations in this whimsical ballad. I tried to count all of the innuendos and it made me wish I'd gone into accounting.
Stars: "Elevator Love Letter" (YouTube) Whether or not you're unlucky in love—or your place of work even involves an elevator—it's hard not to relate to Stars' female vocalist Amy Millan's weary plea: "Elevator, elevator, take me home."
Tokyo Police Club: "Be Good" (YouTube) This song is a bizarre mix of fast-paced and soothing, encompassing all the hectic qualities of adult life with lines like "hard day, long face" and balancing them out with a more subdued chorus.
Rilo Kiley: "Pictures of Success" (YouTube) A bleak but beautifully orchestrated glimpse at the futility of trying to make it in the world. It's a great song if you're in the mood for something heavy, otherwise try Rilo Kiley's "A Better Son/Daughter" for a "I can do better!" anthem.
The Strokes: "I Can't Win" (YouTube) Waiting for your boss's approval can be tiring, but at least the Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas has your back. This upbeat song about being rejected is energetic enough to make you want to try again tomorrow.
The Walkmen: "We've Been Had" (YouTube) There's nothing like a dose of American-dream disillusionment to help cancel out a disappointing day at work. Or, if you don't want to think too hard, just listen to the pretty meandering piano.
The Format: "Career Day" (YouTube) A good song for the ambitious (or perhaps overly ambitious). In "Career Day," The Format highlights the difficulty of balancing the personal and the professional via elevator imagery and a repetitious outro.
Ben Folds: "Fred Jones Part 2"(YouTube) A simply and poignant tale following the titular character as he's forced into retirement. I recommend a box of tissues.
Death Cab for Cutie: "Gridlock Caravans" (No Video) Even a Subway convert like myself can appreciate Ben Gibbard's quick, isolating portrait of the four-wheeled commute. (This one's kind of rare; if you can't find the band's Stability EP, try "Company Calls" and "Company Calls Epilogue" off We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes.)
Voxtrot: "Fast Asleep" (No Video) These Texas hipsters have a variety of vaguely work-related tunes, but this one's my favorite; it's about the value of hard work. Vocalist Ramesh Srivastava sings: "One day you will learn there is some beauty in the thing that makes you sweat."
I have my entire 30gb worth of music on my harddrive at work. I've been in the mood for power metal lately so I've been listening to a lot of:
Kamelot Symphony X Blind Guardian. Dragonland
Or if something is annoying me I listen to my favorite band: Opeth.
I don't listen to music at work, I can't concentrate with music playing unless it's 1) super overplayed pop radio, or 2) classical
@black_lie@xanga - I'm sort of the same way, but I absolutely need music at other times — like when I'm walking, subway-ing, or working out.
My mind is a wreck with depressing thoughts/memories. The music that helps me focus depends on my mood, and what's bothering me. It definitely can't be anything related to my thoughts though, or else I feel worse. Love songs make me cry in pain. Lust songs make me feel enraged, because they promote the behavior that's the bulk of societal erosion. At my worst the sound of good heavy metal sooths me. I like Megadeth because they communicate serious issues that get my mind off my personal problems and sound great at the same time. People should hear their lyrics and understand their music is as clean and professional as any great symphony orchestra, like Metallica, but not as harsh or dark. Unlike Metallica they simply want to point things out, mainly the unnecessary dark side of humanity and consequences of mass ignorance, and make you think without using a hateful tone.
I usually swap between techno and modern instrumental...if there were an All-Disney-All-The-Time station I'd listen to it, but I just want the songs from the movies and not rides, amusement parks, et cetera. Oh, and after Michael Jackson died I listed to him for two weeks.
@i_r_keiko@xanga - Hehe, my favorite Disney song is "I'll Make a Man Out of You" from Mulan. And stuff from Aladdin (:
THE STROKES FTW. This list wins. Oh my god, Voxtrot ftw!!
Are You In? by Incubus has been getting me through everything, lately.
mmmm the format. <3
Handsakes by Metric (Buy this car to drive to work, drive to work to pay for this car) haha.
Since I work as a teacher at a day care, I am almost always listening to music. During the time between now and the day after Christmas, most of us are listening to a lite station that plays holiday music. During nap time, each room (we are a fairly large center) tends to go for chants, classical or contemporary music. We're pretty diverse in that.
As for me personally, I need music. It helps me focus a lot. I tend to go for rock music (only when I'm not at work because of the lyrical content). But if I'm at work, I'm listening to artists like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. I also put on soundtracks like Dirty Dancing and Memoirs of a Geshia. I pretty much stay with Dirty Dancing because a) I can enjoy it and b) the kids really enjoy it.
The only music I don't play with the stuff that I know the teachers hit the repeat button on or if it's children's music (with the expection of a few Disney albums). I can't stand 99% of children's music. There's no way that I can sing along or tolerate it because of the high pitched voices and lyrical content. Mily Cyrus/Hannah Montana is another that I can't play. Not only is she not talented, but there's things that she does that I don't agree with.
Comments (10)
I have my entire 30gb worth of music on my harddrive at work. I've been in the mood for power metal lately so I've been listening to a lot of:
Kamelot
Symphony X
Blind Guardian.
Dragonland
Or if something is annoying me I listen to my favorite band: Opeth.
I don't listen to music at work, I can't concentrate with music playing unless it's 1) super overplayed pop radio, or 2) classical
@black_lie@xanga - I'm sort of the same way, but I absolutely need music at other times — like when I'm walking, subway-ing, or working out.
My mind is a wreck with depressing thoughts/memories. The music that helps me focus depends on my mood, and what's bothering me. It definitely can't be anything related to my thoughts though, or else I feel worse. Love songs make me cry in pain. Lust songs make me feel enraged, because they promote the behavior that's the bulk of societal erosion. At my worst the sound of good heavy metal sooths me. I like Megadeth because they communicate serious issues that get my mind off my personal problems and sound great at the same time. People should hear their lyrics and understand their music is as clean and professional as any great symphony orchestra, like Metallica, but not as harsh or dark. Unlike Metallica they simply want to point things out, mainly the unnecessary dark side of humanity and consequences of mass ignorance, and make you think without using a hateful tone.
I usually swap between techno and modern instrumental...if there were an All-Disney-All-The-Time station I'd listen to it, but I just want the songs from the movies and not rides, amusement parks, et cetera. Oh, and after Michael Jackson died I listed to him for two weeks.
@i_r_keiko@xanga - Hehe, my favorite Disney song is "I'll Make a Man Out of You" from Mulan. And stuff from Aladdin (:
THE STROKES FTW. This list wins.
Oh my god, Voxtrot ftw!!
Are You In? by Incubus has been getting me through everything, lately.
mmmm the format. <3
Handsakes by Metric (Buy this car to drive to work, drive to work to pay for this car) haha.
Since I work as a teacher at a day care, I am almost always listening to music. During the time between now and the day after Christmas, most of us are listening to a lite station that plays holiday music. During nap time, each room (we are a fairly large center) tends to go for chants, classical or contemporary music. We're pretty diverse in that.
As for me personally, I need music. It helps me focus a lot. I tend to go for rock music (only when I'm not at work because of the lyrical content). But if I'm at work, I'm listening to artists like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. I also put on soundtracks like Dirty Dancing and Memoirs of a Geshia. I pretty much stay with Dirty Dancing because a) I can enjoy it and b) the kids really enjoy it.
The only music I don't play with the stuff that I know the teachers hit the repeat button on or if it's children's music (with the expection of a few Disney albums). I can't stand 99% of children's music. There's no way that I can sing along or tolerate it because of the high pitched voices and lyrical content. Mily Cyrus/Hannah Montana is another that I can't play. Not only is she not talented, but there's things that she does that I don't agree with.