10 Songs That Will Take You From The Lowest Of Lows To The Highest Of Highs
Music has an omnipotent power over all of us. It defines the emotions we have. It makes the movies and television we watch more interesting. It is quite literally the soundtrack to our lives. Music can take you to the lowest of lows and the the highest of highs. There are some songs out there that have the ability to do both.
Strictly speaking from a more cynical point of view, these songs take you to your lowest emotional level, yet if you're like me, somehow can make you feel happy. Don't ask.
1. "The Drugs Don't Work" – The Verve
This is a terribly depressing song delving into the idea of drug addiction and realizing they don't work, per the title. Drugs are how people cope with the sadness of their reality, but it's an ill-advised coping mechanism. Listening to this song will drag you all the way down to the level of an addiction. I've nearly cried while listening to this, then thought:
"Good thing I don't gotta deal with that," and instantly felt very happy about my own existence.
2. "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate" – The Flaming Lips
There are but five lines in this song, one of which is:
"But life without death is just impossible."
Pretty ruthless reminder that we're all going to end up in a hole in the ground, but as the song fades out and I'm done contemplating my own morality, I like to remind myself:
"I'm not disintegrating at the moment!" and then feel pretty happy about my current situation.
3. "High And Dry" – Radiohead
Radiohead is known for making its audiences feel all the feels, and this song is one of their best tributes to tears. Nobody wants to be left all alone with, "The best thing you ever had has gone away," but boy do I feel relieved by the end of the song (after having contemplated everything that is depressing in this world) knowing I haven't lost the best thing I have ever had!
4. "1979" – The Smashing Pumpkins
Coming straight from the album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, it would see obvious that the songs would be depressing in nature, and with the lyric "Forgotten and absorbed into the Earth below," it comes to fruition. It's a 90s song that makes you feel equal parts nostalgia and "where-has-all-the-time gone?!" After that moment of reflection, I like to come out on top, rather than absorbed by the Earth below.
5. "Stop Crying Your Heart Out" – Oasis
Well, the title of this number from Oasis actually oddly leads listeners to an Oasis. Once you've cried for 5 minutes straight (the length of the song), you can finally take the advice of the song's title and find yourself in a better place: an oasis, if you will.
6. "Black Sun" – Death Cab for Cutie
This song is the epitome of what this article is all about, depressing songs that can actually make you feel happy. With the lyric "And there is hope within despair," it's rather obvious that Death Cab For Cutie understands how to feel extremely sad, yet somehow happy.
7. "Suffering" – The War On Drugs
"Will you be here suffering? // 'Well I hope to be'"
It's ironic, because this song offers you up the chance to join the band's vacuum of sadness for a moment, but then it fades out shortly after that lyric, thus you rejoin the real world and don't need to suffer any longer. Pretty great, right?!
8. "Sideways" – Citizen Cope
On a repeat Citizen Cope reminds us that "These feelings won't go away," and for the length of that song and the emotional rollercoaster it puts listeners through, that is very, very true. Although, they do vanish once you move on to another track. You'll be happy when you realize that those feelings have in fact gone away. Hooray!
9. "Goner" – Dr. Dog
The entirety of this track is about imagining if you were a goner, i.e. dead. It's a pretty difficult thing to wrestle with, but once the song reaches its end, you realize you just listened to a song and are actually not a goner at all. you're alive, so be happy about that!
10. "Imagine" – John Lennon
This song is a bit more ironic in being depressing, because John Lennon asks you to "Imagine" various things that would make this world, but unfortuantely most of them will never be possible. Realizing that is a but depressing, but it somehows elicits a feeling of happiness, because you too may realize that:
"[They] may say [you're] a dreamer // But [you're] not the only one."
CONCLUSION: White men like to make you cry, but also happy. It's a weird revelation, I know, but that's what they do. Everybody on this list is a white male lead group. Anyway, feel those feels–both high and low.