Welcome to the playground: a blog about music and creativity

I’ve been re-listening to this week’s playlist quite a bit, mulling over and chewing on it and whatnot, trying to pull out some deeper defining characteristic(s) upon which to expound. But I’ve been mostly unsuccessful, no matter how many times I listen and how more familiar the songs become to me. The best I’ve been…

I gasped a little when I saw that Janet Jackson released a deluxe edition of her 2008 album, Discipline. I had just been giving the original a re-listen (see Playlist No. 2301), so this recent drop sent an eery shiver through me – like my private thoughts had somehow contributed to its coming into existence!…

Chill and boppy is the vibe this week, with some familiar friends like Toro y Moi, Aluna, Arlo Parks, and Madison McFerrin. It’s been a minute since I’ve heard from moby, but he recently dropped a track alongside his newly-formed record label, always centered at night, and the hymn-like vocals of Gaidaa. I was delighted…

My listening meandered strongly in a Brazilian direction this week, perhaps a continued backlash against the rainswept dreariness we’ve been experiencing. I realize the term “Brazilian” music is as broad and meaningless as “American” music as a descriptor, but there is often a common unifying exuberance in music having its root in Brazil – whether…

This week’s playlist skews a bit vintage, with a couple of new Skrillex(!) tracks and a “Toxic Las Vegas” mashup (yes, comprised of the two songs by the artists you have in mind) that reminds me of the days of Girl Talk and DJ Earworm’s annual mix (I know, can you believe it? Y2K is…

As always, this week has some familiar characters who have recently dropped some new tunes – Metric has a fun electro remixed track with CVCHE, Goldlink makes an appearance, as does Chet Baker (to give you a sprinkling of the spectrum being covered). I also gave Ari Lennox’s most recent album (dropped September 2022) a…

Welcome to 2023, friends! I don’t know about you, but this new year came quicker than I was ready for. By extension, I’ve been less-than-stellar at keeping up with posting my weekly playlists… As such, we’re starting again with some spiffy numbering system! As a refresher, these weekly playlists are a snapshot into what I’ve…

This week is a little poppy with a solid foundation in jazz. There’s also an exuberant and playful song by Esperanza Spalding, who is one of my favorite contemporary jazz artists. “I Know You Know” is a playful love song I imagine singing to my beloved to remind them again that I love and adore…

This week’s playlist comes in hot and keeps the tempo up. We start with “PURE/HONEY” from Beyonce’s recent RENAISSANCE album, which makes me want to put on HBO’s Legendary, as it’s dripping in vogue references (it’s perfect to hit your catwalk (or duckwalk, if you’re a real baddie)). There’s another remix of “Harder” by LION…

This week gives you a little bit of a DJ fantasy, with a couple of bops by Peggy Guo. When I say “DJ fantasy” I’m often thinking of Peggy Guo’s cool but somewhat vintage (and thereby timeless?) sound, images of cool clubby avant-garde Berlin club-goers come to mind. We also have an absolutely CLASSIC track…