Build-Up

Nothing beats a good build-up to any piece of music. I totally agree with Jason Silva when he says, "music is a kind of painting in time [...] it's a subjective experience that you actually step into, and that actually unfolds in the dimension in which we live and breathe." It's an experience that is different from sculptures and paintings, because with music, we "step in" and we simply allow it to take over. The pace, the volume, the rhythm, they're all out of our control. It's something that requires our time and attention to fully appreciate. We start with the intro, the first beat, the first rhyme, and we just see where it takes us. There's a certain trust that we have to surrender when we immerse ourselves in it. 

This explains why I love music that starts out tame and slow and gentle. They ease us into the experience, almost as a film or a play does. An atmosphere, a character, and a tone is introduced, which would take the listener some time to really take in and imagine. It's almost like an invitation at first, as if the song is luring you into its zone. And it is only when this invitation is accepted that the song can take over fully.

This playlist of five songs is a dedication to this build-up, this invitation. You may play it as you read along. I hope by the end of it, you're all built up and ready to go. Enjoy!

1. Death and All His Friends - Coldplay

This one, I listen to when I'm down. As the song builds, you go along with it, so it's great. It has clear points, like steps where the song grows, and I love dissecting it. There's actually another song attached to this. It's called "The Escapist," the last song in the album, and it's also the song that introduces "Life in Technicolor," which is the first song in the album, so it's a cycle. You can listen to the album and repeat it without any cuts. The last song leads you back to the first song. 

No, I don’t wanna battle from beginning to end

 

I don’t want a cycle of recycled revenge

 

I don’t wanna follow Death and all of his friends

0:00. It starts out with a soft intro, just Chris Martin and the piano. 

00:35. That's Johnny Buckland on guitar.

1:18. Bass enters. That's Guy Berryman. Many of my friends have a huge crush on him. 

1:48. Will Champion on drums. Everyone's in.

2:18. And it's the guitar at center stage again, this time with the drums and bass at its foundation.

2:44. Vocals come back in, but it sounds more like an anthem now. More than one voice, almost screaming.

3:39. "The Escapist" begins

2. Awake My Soul - Mumford and Sons

Lend me your hand and we'll conquer them all
But lend me your heart and I'll just let you fall
Lend me your eyes I can change what you see
But your soul you must keep, totally free

This song does exactly what the title says it would. Like many of their songs, it's the intense acoustic strumming that really gets the pace going. 

3. Hey Jude - The Beatles

And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain

Don't carry the world upon your shoulders

For well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool

By making his world a little colder

You start out with just Paul McCartney and next think you know, there's a bunch of people screaming. The song was always meant to uplift. Originally, it was written by Paul for John Lennon's son Jules, but it may have also been written for himself or for the band, given that the band was going through a rough patch at the time. 

4. Snow (Hey Oh) - Red Hot Chili Peppers

The Hendrix-inspired guitar riff off the start is gentle, but it also feels like it wants to take you somewhere. And then the bass enters, and you're just hooked. It's a subtle build-up to the end, so it's a nice and slow progression.

The more I see, the less I know,

the more I'd like to let it go

Many surmise it's a song about drug addiction and the attempts to escape it. "It's about the repeated failure to start your life anew and how difficult it can be to get rid off old ways of thinking, and destructive ideas we become so attached to," says lead singer Anthony Kiedis.

5. Sweet Child O' Mine - Guns 'N' Roses

Wherever you are when you hear that intro, it's unmistakeable. It's Slash's invitation and you just know something big is coming next. 16 seconds in, that beautiful bass-line slides under. All the while, the drums maintain the tempo, almost like a countdown. And then Axl Rose enters with his distinctly piercing but soothing high note. 

Throughout the song are 2 mini solos and one main solo that goes all the way until the end. Each one builds it up for the next, and by the end of it you're just pumped up and ready to go.