People Years, "Commonly Known"

I try to keep my resolutions humble so I don't embarrass myself. (I stopped resolving to lose weight a long time ago. Turns out the constant stress of covid and having my remote working days be a constant ball of chaos led to me eating less at last.) I resolved at the start of this year to listen to more new music. Like a lot of successful resolutions, this required active measures.

Every time I thought about putting one of my tried and true albums on or a playlist filled with old faves, I stopped myself. I was good with this until quarantine flung me back into the warm arms of the familiar. However, as New Jersey's public spaces have opened up, so has my Spotify. It was also good that I enjoyed so many of the new songs I discovered that they ended up being "old reliables" in the midst of the pandemic.

Back when I was a college professor I had a pre-lecture ritual (especially in larger intro classes where my energy was key.) I would indulge in a little caffeine or nicotine and listen to a song to get me in the mood. The song had to be propulsive and upbeat. For my first year as a prof "Omaha" by Moby Grape was my preferred warm up song.

In distance learning "Commonly Known" by People Years became my go to. I know nothing about the band, I just heard the song on a music podcast and immediately fell in love. I played it for some friends this week and they too started bobbing their heads almost immediately. It has that rare combo of push, hooks, and melody. And jangle? Oh yes it has jangle. (As an REM superfan, I am a sucker for jangle.)

These days so much amazing music is being made but the fractured nature of the musical landscape makes it so hard to find. If you find yourself thinking you don't like any new music, it might be that you just don't know where it is. Dig a little bit and be rewarded.