"Blinding Lights" by The Weeknd, Wednesday, January 4, 2023

For the third year, The Weeknd's "Blinding Lights" makes my playlist, although last year the song was represented by Sam Tsui with production by Kurt Hugo Schneider. I find the cultural discussions around the song fascinating: how a song from 2019 predicted the loneliness and isolation of the world, the greater concept in the record After Hours complete with thematic story-telling music videos and conceptual live performances leading up to and during the release of the record. "Blinding Lights" was the omni-present hit in 2020 that worked whether you were a drug or sex addict, a celebrity dealing with the dark side of the industry, or none of those things. A lot has been said about this synth pop track a lot better than I can prepare in an evening, so I'll leave you with a podcast that talks about it pretty well. And for the rest of the post today, I'm going to leave you with a Spotify Edition of my Pseudo '80s Hits from last year. Kids make sure to cover your ears, there may be some gratuitous sax.

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