I have an angry playlist. I listen to it when I feel angry as a way of channelling the strength and sense of purpose I often feel when angry. Sometimes it’s quite a cool feeling - embracing that emotion. This is a selection of the best tracks from my own playlist that help channel my anger in a positive way; that essentially help me let off steam. They aren’t all thrash metal or horrorcore, I’m a lot subtler than that, thank you very much. These tracks are about releasing contempt, cynicism, and brooding anger, both musically and lyrically. These are about dealing with anger in a real way, not just about incitement to literal aggression. As follows:
“Holiday in Cambodia” – The Dead Kennedys
Hardcore punk is perhaps a fairly obvious choice for angry music; the Dead Kennedys an archetypal example of the genre; and “Holiday in Cambodia” their best known song. But it is a thrashing stamped of political aggression that pulls no punches, and a fast pace to get that angry heart pumping.
“Grounds for Divorce” – Elbow
Deep, dark guitars rule this track, which have a formidable power and pulse. Good for angry walking.
“Devil’s Spoke” – Laura Marling
Since Laura Marling makes soft, low-key folk, this might be an odd choice for some, but through this song the guitar has an inexplicable disquieting affect on me. She also has a passive aggressive quality that is very typical of an angry woman.
“Catch Hell Blues” – The White Stripes
Again, the guitar in this track has a sinister, menacing quality throughout it that is a complex, rotating ball of anger, with various parts, all of them angry. Great for when all you feel is just fucking pissed off.
“Beetlebum” – Blur
Swelling, pulsating, low frequency guitars wind throughout this track, which are perfect for brooding negativity.
“Get Innocuous!” – LCD Soundsystem
The slow, repetitive nature of this track’s development for me epitomizes the anger you can feel about a frustrating situation that slow grinds away at you, making you more and more angry, never being resolved, just perpetuating.
“96 Quite Bitter Beings” – cKY
Again, as this track is essentially metal in its origins, the link to anger might be a bit more obvious. The snarly vocals spiting bile and the jagged guitar riffs are perfect anger material.
“Perfect Day” – Lou Reed
Whilst the BBC may have chosen to develop a positive interpretation of this track, Lou Reed’s original version, though sedate, is riddled with a brooding, introverted negativity. Its quiet cynicism regarding a seemingly perfect day that is actually riddled with heroin addiction is great for when feeling particularly despondent and angry at life in general.
“Song for Clay (Disappear Here)” – Bloc Party
Eerie and pained, the beginning of this track reflects the quiet desperation that often goes hand in hand with anger. Then the track explodes with fast, thundering guitars at an aggressive pace, great for releasing bottled-up tension, especially when feeling disillusioned.
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