A Year Through The Ears — Glenn Platt’s 2014

My advisor, Glenn Platt, head of the Interactive Media Studies program at Miami University of Ohio, created his “year in review” Spotify playlist, “GP Best of 2014 — A Song A Day For A Year.”

The first time I saw Glenn this year, the conversation instantly sparked the inner musicophiliac in both of us. An intense, vulgar debate immediately began over which of us had developed a better playlist.

A petty argument?

Sure.

But one that we have not shut up about even over a month later.

No matter what, whether this review sings his praises or entirely bashes his selection, I am consciously aware that I am surely about to disappoint my boss, professor, and friend.

So…

Let’s do it!

If you have never met Glenn, once you start shuffle listening to this playlist, your emotions are likely going to rest between excited, slightly intrigued, and incredibly confused. Amongst the songs are tracks from breakouts like Ages & Ages, Clean Bandit, and The War On Drugs, in addition to interesting picks that may have skipped under mosts’ radar; Astronauts, Woods, Ought.

Beyond these wonderful tracks though is what can only be described as a random collection of noises.

Literally.

Tracks of just ambient noises.

A “song” that features a recorder player in a Subway restaurant that sounds like middle school concert putting a soundtrack to someone’s sandwich order, would not feel even slightly out of place.

Let me take it back a bit.

Yes, this playlist is sprinkled with the nice, “standard” best-of picks from the past year including Jack White’s “Lazaretto” and Ryan Adam’s “My Wrecking Ball.” By all means, I completely endorse and encourage the placement of those highlights on this list. But, just as you start to get into a groove listening to these tracks, you’ll abruptly then hear something like “Fragile Shell” by Jani R or “Sun Riders” by 36.

Something Pitchfork would probably identify as “the shit.”

You’ll be looking at the playlist bewildered as to what is happening. These songs act as strange, long pauses that have been used to randomly break up this otherwise well picked collection. I’d compare it to when Nicolas Cage decided to lean into this faux, action-packed persona and in turn, left the serious acting to make recent pictures like Left Behind and Rage. It was interesting initially but has only done more and more to confuse us.

In order to get the full effect of this collection, I intended to place Spotify on shuffle and was going to give the playlist the time it deserved. But Glenn’s Song Per Day 409 song collection (more than a song per day), is “30 hours and 7 minutes long.” I have found a few hidden gems here and there and am overall fairly impressed with what I heard (“You go Glenn [Coco]”).

I would love to actually listen to an “abridged” version of this list that I might better fully process. I mean, I’d be so impressed if someone, anyone, could create a playlist that not only had hidden gems but popular favorites in one, shorter list.

Which reminds me. My playlist is 101 songs and under 7 hours long.

Here’s the BestO2014.

Happy New Year!