“Reunion" by M83 + Pseudo-80s Playlist, Sunday, January 23, 2022

Hurry Up, We're Dreaming contain's M83's biggest hit, "Midnight City." Everything on Hurry Up, is calculated to give listeners, including M83's sole member Anthony Gonzalez, the maximum amount of nostalgia. After a song-length, mood-setting intro, "Midnight City" builds on a riff for three minutes before climaxing in a saxophone solo, unheard in most music since 1988.* Track three, "Reunion," builds on layers of guitars and harmonies by one singer. This guitar-based M83 is a bit rare in their catalogue, as most of M83 is programing in synthesizers with touches of guitar here and there. But a guitar-based track is no-less nostalgic. It's that '80s chord progression heard in New Wave rockers and glam hair metal that sounded so cool to a young Gonzalez, listening to music in his bedroom growing up that bleeds into this song. The lyrics beg for a reunion with a loved one who has gone away. 

A NEVER-ENDING DANCE. For today's post, I wanted to revisit an idea I had last week, when I was wanting about The War on Drugs' "I Don’t Live Here Anymore.” I thought that song sounded like an anachronistic ‘80s rock song, so I was wondering how many other songs I wrote about that could also fit into a fictional ‘80s playlist. For this playlist, I decided to make it in YouTube because some of the songs are remixes or special tracks not available on Spotify or Apple Music. I'll post the links of the blog posts if I wrote about that song along with a short description why I think that song belongs on the playlist. This will be an evolving playlist, so check back later. Also remember one entry per artist. Here’s the playlist:

1. "Reunion" by M83. Today's song of the day. Of course "Midnight City" would have been an excellent choice.

2. "We Owe This to Ourselves" by Anberlin may not be the most nostalgic sound, but stylistically, the band leans into post-punk  of U2, The Smiths, and Tears for Fears. 

3.  "I Don't Live Here Anymore" by The War on Drugs is the song that inspired me to make this playlist. With a touch of Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, and the wistfulness of "The Boys of Summer," this song is a calculated nostalgic staple.

4. "Run Away with Me" by Carly Rae Jepsen. Emotion was basically an '80s album 20 years too late. The saxophone on this track puts the song in the running, but I've also written about "Boy Problems," which is a bit too modern, and the Fuller House theme "Everywhere You Look," which would be my second choice.

5. "Blind Lights" by The Weeknd. I've talked about how Mic the Snare said about "Blinding Lights": "It's just like that one song. Uh? Which one?"

6. "This Is Heaven" by Nick Jonas. Sax solo, right?

7. "Balconies" by Paper Route is a kind of comfort song with its repetitive keys.

8. "Dark Age" by Acceptance. Taking a break for "Cold Air," which has a very The Outfield harmony, "Dark Age" has a post-punk feel to it, too.

9. "When We Were Young" by The Killers. Bruce!

10. "80s Remix: I Want It That Way" by The Backstreet Boys. No, the original wasn't very '80s sounding. In fact, it's quintessential '90s listening. But I found this Mohamad Shaxi remix to capture the '80s quite well. 

11. "Don't Want to Feel It All" by White Lies. Many of this band's songs are '80s-inspired, as the band even calls themselves a post-punk group. Most of the band's songs could fit on this list, including "Big TV."

12. "Someday" by Aaron Sprinkle ft. Matty Mullins. This is also a nice early '90s-sounding song. For his 2017 album Real Life, Sprinkle delves into his influences in the '80s and '90s.

13. "If Pumped Up Kicks was an '80s song" (Synthwave Cover) by Foster the People. YouTuber Phillipp released this distorted version of the 2011 hit. 

14. "Into the New World" by Girls' Generation interpolates "The Boys of Summer," so this electo-K-pop hit sounds like the '80s.

15. "Bad Love" by Key is another retro-sounding K-pop hit. His "Forever Yours" ft. Soyou is another great candidate, but I'd like to save that for a '90s-influenced playlist.

16. "Closer" by Tegan and Sara is a '80s slumber party anthem of sexual exploration. Really most songs on their 2013 Heartthrob would work, too.

17. "80s Remix: Rihanna - Diamonds (1987 Version). This version by Hong Kong-based DJ  Yung Sebastian unfortunately fades out as the singer as she hits her most impressive notes of song. But it's a fun reimagining of the 2012 hit.
18. "Let's See It" by We Are Scientists. The band's second album also contains some good New-Wave-influenced post punk.

19. "Glory Days" by Betty Who is a summer anthem with some in-your-face guitars and '80s-styled production. 

20. "Surrender" by Spoken. While the growling scream in this song wasn't popular in the '80s, the chord-progressions in many Spoken songs sound '80s-inspired.

21. "Calling You Out" by Ex Box Boys is another band that sounds like The Outfield.

22. "summertime sadness (SxAde synthwave remix)" by Lana Del Rey, uploaded by YouTuber SxAde: Lost Levels. 

23. "I Feel You" by Wonder Girls. This music video has a similar concept with "Addicted to Love": beautiful models pretend to play instruments and dance around in a music video. Anyway, this wet-summer K-pop song has '80s/early '90s written all over the video's color palette and musical timbre. 

24. "Soothsayer" by Of Monsters and Men. Big '80s drums and powerful female vocals.

25. "Higher Power" by Coldplay is the lead single of last year's Music of the Spheres.

26. "Dance or Die" by Family Force 5 is an '80s-inspired boyband song.

27. "Easy on Me" by Adele. Maybe '90s, maybe '80s, maybe '70s, but when Adele puts the cassette in the tape deck, we have all the feels.

28. "Somebody That I Used to Know" (1988) by Gotye ft. Kimbra is one of the best '80s remixes.

29. "Make It Up" by Shura is one of the more subdued tracks on her debut record, Nothing's Real.

30. "Little Dark Age" by MGMT is an '80s-styled synth-pop video.

31. "Machines" by Paradise Now isn't specifically '80s, but the big chorus could fit in with the hair bands.

32. "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" by Katy Perry. The video, though.

33. "Rose-Colored Boy" by Paramore is from their vibiest record, After Laughter. This music video looks like a '70s or '80s news show.

33. "White as Snow" by Haste the Day is an '80s-sounding metal song.

34. "Up in Flames" by Years & Years. Influenced by New Order and The Pet Shop Boys, Years & Years shows off their synth-pop on this bonus track to Palo Santo. 

35. "Shine Like Stars" by Holland clearly has some post-punk influence heard in the chorus.

36. "Counterfeit" by Wolves at the Gate is a protest song with a huge chorus. Reaganomics anyone?

I hope you enjoyed this crazy playlist. I'm sure everyone would have an opinion about what should or shouldn't be included, but for tonight, we'll leave it at that. I'll add to this playlist as we go through the year.

*I'm aware that saxophone solos were in songs before "Midnight City." 1988 is purely hyperbole. 

Read “Reunion” by M83 on Genius