Albums/tracks that saved your life

[TimmyWing]

I've been meaning to do a thread like this for a while, but suddenly I've found myself in quite a rough patch, and hopefully hearing some other people's stories might perk me up a bit. Comparatively these ones might seem a little inconsequential, but trust me - they seemed like matters of life and death at the time.

There was a house party a long while ago, back when our year had just finished school. It was decent - there was a pool, good company and all that - and for the end of the night I had a sleeping bag, which I took out when a bunch of us claimed the chairs in the living room. Late in the night, one of my friends, who had gotten far too drunk and had vandalised some of the neighbour's property, was dragged in and had to be showered (don't ask). In a sleepy daze, I wasn't sure what was going on, but while I was awake I went to get some water. I come back to find my sleeping bag gone (yeah, guess who took it?) and everyone fast asleep. I was panicking - it was freezing and I had no other things I could use to keep warm. So I curled up on the armchair, struggling for warmth, and started using music to comfort me - flicking through albums on my phone. Eventually I get to The War on Drugs' "Lost in the Dream"; I'd downloaded the album after having gotten hooked on "Under the Pressure" but I hadn't listened to the whole thing yet. Putting it on, the calming power of the layered music put me fast asleep, and I'm not sure I'd have been able to get there if it weren't for that album. Maybe that's why I treasure it so much, but I feel (and hope) that I'd have felt the same way whenever I heard it all.

More recently: last year for spring break I visited a friend of mine in Birmingham. Overall it was a good week - we recorded some music, and another mate and I went to see Morrissey there - but one night at the club, the guy I was staying with got into a fight and was punched in the face. On the way out, he found me and told me what had happened, but neglected to arrange anything for me while he got into a taxi and went to the hospital. So there I am, alone in this club - not drunk enough to distract myself from the situation. His university halls were very secure - you needed a card to get into the building, and a key not only for his room but for his corridor as well (and getting into his corridor meant you could at least sleep on the sofa in the kitchen). Eventually I left, making my way back to the halls and still not quite sure what would happen. All the way (and for that whole week, basically) I was playing M83's "Hurry Up, We're Dreaming" [dream-themed albums seem to affect me a lot], and it matched perfectly the brightly lit landscape of Birmingham at night, and the fist-pumping optimism of it all helped pull me through. Once I got to the halls, I gave up hope trying to get in and even found a nearby hedge to lie down in, at least for a while. Eventually, I got into the building after following someone else in, but still couldn't get into his corridor. So I had to sleep on the hallway floor by the door, until my friend came back from the hospital early in the morning. It would have been a lot more traumatic, I think, if I didn't have Anthony Gonzalez encouraging me throughout the night.

I don't know if it ever had a positive effect, but listening to "On Fire" by Galaxie 500 always reminds me of a girl I fell hard for a couple of years ago. She was and still is in a long-term relationship, and maybe I haven't really been able to get over her yet. If any one song helped me out the most through that, I'd say it was "All Things Must Pass" by George Harrison.

So tell me - what are the albums and tracks that pulled you through when times were tough?

[BleuPanda]

I always find myself circling back to sadder or oppressive albums when I'm feeling down. Sufjan Stevens is especially effective with that. I guess it's one of those things where I'd rather feel solidarity than comfort. Something like Carrie and Lowell makes me feel less alone in my depression, like it's something other people go through and that's okay. Upbeat music does the opposite, creating this feeling of anxiety as I try to comprehend the differences between my surroundings and feelings.


I can't think of particular moments, but these are some of the songs that really, uh, cheer me up? I used to have a sad song playlist on spotify for when I was in a certain mood:
"Dance Yrself Clean" and "Someone Great" by LCD Soundsystem
Pretty much the entirety of Sufjan Steven's Illinois and Carrie and Lowell
Elliott Smith's entire output
"Hyper-Ballad" by Bjork
"Spanish Sahara" by Foals
Radiohead's Kid A is surprisingly effective at this
Sun Kil Moon's Benji
Closer and Unknown Pleasures

[JWinton]

Great thread, certainly the more emotive artists have been the ones that have helped me through rough times. I know that regardless of what I'm going through that just listening to music won't change the reality of the situation that I face, but music can change how I feel, and so can change how I feel when tackling different issues.
Some artists let me deeply explore feelings of hurt such as Joy Division (especially the second half of Closer) and the Smiths (How Soon Is Now? and most of The Queen is Dead album). They have helped me through, recently, some incredibly stressful times that had encompassed my whole being. Closer especially helps me put into perspective my troubles considering that it was released following Ian Curtis' suicide, you can see his fractured state of mind when composing what is some of the most emotive and beautiful songs I've ever heard.
My troubles recently with stresses that I wish not to specify, are part of the reason why Carrie & Lowell was my favourite 2015 album because I could, to some extent, relate to it. And whilst it didn't solve my issues, it somehow made me more able to accept what had happened. I guess it let me explore my darker feelings whilst listening to it normally at night, so I could then manage during the day.
I also find that the more aggressive alternative artists, such as The Replacements, Nirvana and Pearl Jam, are particularly more important to me when I'm angry or simply confused with how I feel. They offer such an incredible release of energy that initially deepens my original feeling but later makes me forget it. Alternative rock (in its various forms over the years) feels like it was almost made for me.

[PlasticRam]

I don't know about saving my life, but these are albums that I have a strong emotional connection to:

Listened in the car when I was a child:
The Beatles - 1
The Beatles - Revolver

Subject matter touches me:
Kanye West - 808s and Heartbreak

First listen was mind-blowing:
Kanye West - Yeezus

I'm hoping to have another great experience tomorrow listening to new Kanye album for the first time.

There are tons of songs I listened to as a child/have strong emotional connection to, too many to count.

[GucciLittlePiggy]

I could go on and on about albums/songs that comfort me when I'm down ("Reflektor" and "Trouble Will Find Me" are among my favorite I'm-lonely-and-I-need-to-cry albums), but I can only think of one particular case where an album "saved my life."

Throughout my high school years I dealt with an increasingly severe case of depression that peaked during my first semester away from home at college. I feel comfortable talking about it because currently I am fortunately far away from the feelings (or lack thereof) that I experienced back then. It was during the 2014-2015 winter break that I started listening to Chance the Rapper's Acid Rap mixtape which my roommate highly recommended. He insisted it was the best thing to listen to stoned (for the record, I think good kid, m.A.A.d. city provides the best experience on that front). I was absolutely entranced by Chance's upbeat production and unabashedly positive lyrics. Normally, positivity in anything just annoyed me and made me feel worse because I couldn't connect with those emotions, but maybe I was feeling particularly vulnerable at this time. More importantly, though, I identified with Chance in a way I rarely do with artists. During one particular listen to the album I had what I can only assume was a manic episode, I felt happier than I likely had ever felt in my life and I couldn't imagine ever slipping back into the depression that plagued my existence for the previous half-decade. I distinctly remember messaging my then future girlfriend that I felt like a "king" . Unfortunately, this mania didn't last and I came crashing back down with a series of bizarre and frightening panic attacks and I had to finally seek much needed help.

Though Acid Rap may not have quite "saved" me, considering I fell back to my old defeatist ways of thinking, the mixtape did provide comfort in dire times and today I can say it's had an indelible impact on my life and personal outlook. Life will throw shit at you from every corner but the sole barometer for your quality of life is your own perspective on it. "Everything's good," he says, and dammit, he's right!