By: Nejdana Houshyar, SFU Student
What does it mean to be human? Is it achieving your career goals, passing your exam, or facing death? Or does being human simply mean the ability to feel? In today’s society, conversations about artificial intelligence are constantly circulating in schools, online, and in personal circles. To take a break from this dreadful topic and also to resist the artificiality of today’s digital world, listen to music that captures human expression, emotion, and voice. The ability to feel, I believe, is humanity’s greatest skill. Here are three electronic songs that, in their lyrics, production, and melody, all highlight this ability.
“How to Pretend” by Lucy Bedroque
“How to Pretend” explores love and the emotional chaos that comes with romantic connection. Bedroque depicts a relationship with misaligned attachment styles, resulting in a cruel game of push and pull. The production on the chorus creates the song’s charm. As it swells, Bedroque’s romantic emotions burst. These feelings of love are especially evident during the final chorus, where his vocals break away from the familiar melody, culminating in one last exclamation to his lover. The song is incredibly human, with its unique production — that incorporates bells, drums, harps, and synth to create a dreamlike feeling — relatable lyrics, and emotions all coming together to create an unforgettable listening experience.
“Music” by underscores
“Music” is an upbeat, energetic song about the feelings of infatuation. The songs’ production is unparalleled, and it’s all done by underscores (April Harper Grey). Each beat, instrument, and synth is layered to captivate the listener and transport them into underscore’s head as she blends her love for music with physical and emotional expression. This song is packed with human emotion and blends its lyrics perfectly. The song is a declaration of love; each line before the drop encapsulates the feelings of yearning for someone, so when the beat finally drops, the listener feels all those intense feelings released. My favourite line from the song is, “When I’m with you, it feels like music.”
“Amygdala” by Ecco2k and Bladee
The amygdala is responsible for the control of emotions and behaviour in the brain — it controls both negative and positive emotions in humans. In Ecco2k and Bladee’s song “Amygdala,” they grapple with existence and the dichotomies of the world. They pair bleak lyrics with an experimental electronic beat, confusing the listener’s own emotions. The beat is very repetitive, with the melody and rhythm only breaking in the third verse, where they repeat, “I want it / Iconic,” and I believe the duo did this on purpose to mirror the lyrics to the beat. What makes the switch in the third verse so significant is that it is the only part in the song where the lyrics actually match the beat. The third verse stands out in contrast to the rest of the song, which features existential lyrics set to a party beat.
Now, whether you’re dancing, crying, or having an existential crisis, I hope you know and feel that you are human through these songs.
