Pandemic Playlist: Our Top 5 'phat' tracks to get you bouncing, bopping and vibing while under quarantine
It's all about vibing and thick texture on today's Pandemic Playlist, my musically-charged friends. You ever put on a playlist and stopped to notice a particular number that hits you with an infectious thump in your chest, gets you bopping your head, and practically lifts you off your seat in the compulsion to bounce to its sheer phat bassy beat-driven awesomeness? Listen to five songs in our list below that do just about that... Oh, and please turn up the bass is the highly recommended advice on this one.
AFI - 'Prelude 12/21'
With only a minute and a half runtime, and in the spirit of the song's title, AFI's 'Prelude 12/21' comes as the best intro to our list. The song opens in an eery Christmas winter melody as AFI frontman Davey Havok sings "This is what I brought you, this you can keep. This is what I brought, you may forget me. I promise to depart, just promise one thing. Kiss my eyes and lay me to sleep" before a powerful resounding beat kicks in over synth stabs. Playing out like a type of musical announcement of sorts, the song begins to add more layers. Although AFI is usually known to produce more alternative rock/emo-laden tracks, 'Prelude 12/21', surprised many fans when it released in 2006 with its slow-tempo hip-hop themed rhythm.
Hollywood Undead - 'Everywhere I Go'
Hollywood Undead have frequently pushed out numerous bangers such as 'Undead', 'We Are', 'Comin' in Hot' and more, but ever so often we are introduced to a track by the mask-wearing rap-rock outfit that really gets the blood pumping. 'Everywhere I Go', off their debut album 'Swan Songs' should certainly list as one of those numbers as it features a more dance/party-oriented theme compared to its Hollywood Undead nu-metal counterparts. Unlike the original version of the song, complete with explicit lyrics and sexual themes, the censored version could be regarded as more catchy, as cheeky "ewweps" on the DJ mixer blur out the profanities in perfect accord to the music. Probably the thickest track in our list, 'Everywhere I Go' strikingly fits the bill to get you bouncing around your home while under quarantine.
The HU - 'Wolf Totem'
There are many bass-drop or bass-boosted playlists out there and we wanted to give you something a little different today. Very likely to be a unique listening experience for many, The HU's 'Wolf Totem' is remarkable and impacting, to say the least. Appealing as an utterly ethnic take on metal, the Mongolian group, The HU, use traditional instrumentation such as the Morin khuur (aka horsehead fiddle, which is a Mongolian stringed-instrument) and Mongolian throat singing to an amazing effect. An electric guitar with distortion is nowhere to be found on this heavy metal track, and we get a powerful mix of music with vocals (including war cry chants) you don't hear every day in the world of music. Cranking up the bass and volume on 'Wolf Totem' is amazing to hear with the traditional instruments and can surely be regarded as another thick track.
Audioslave - 'Revelations'
A few Audioslave songs could easily slide into this list as well, but 'Revelations', apart from being super catchy and thick, is a track many don't often bring up in Audioslave discussions. It's hard not to notice the stirring "hmph" in your chest cavity as Tom Morello plays a cocky guitar riff at the song's opening groove before leading to Chris Cornell's beautifully gruff vocals. The drums are in-your-face powerful, the bass guitar work is funky, Morello brings his signature scratchy guitar-playing in betwixt, Cornell belts out some of his best vocals, and the entire song is just masterful. Over-colorizing the song with too many words and descriptions would be an injustice, and so, clicking the link below is the best thing you can do right now. Click it in three, two, one...
Run DMC - 'It's Like That'
For those looking to get a little nostalgic, the last song on our list just had to be from Run DMC. Whether the hip-hop group from Queens knew it or not, they probably had a lot to do with the origin of the slang "phat" for describing a beat. 'It's Like That', as many an '80s-'90s kid would recall, became a staple go-to track for your usual pumped-up house party back then, where your average joe couldn't resist the urge to push through the crowd to the dancefloor and try their hand at being the next breakdance hero. But for those who could breakdance, pulling out some mean dancefloor moves in musical partnership with this glorious track; boy, what a sight to see and what an experience to remember. Synth stabs, "oompts, oompts, oompts" on the beat, and all, 'It's Like That' still holds up as a catchy banger today.
Pandemic Playlist is a daily list of songs that will keep you entertained instead of feeling drained while you're isolated at home. Look out for a fresh selection of great tunes from MEAWW to refresh your mood every day!