Now Playing: February 2023

Our February edition of Now Playing features dim lighting for vinyl, the sound of the khaen, the rhythm of running feet, and some Spotify recs, all from our contributors!

Parth Shah

I like playing instrumental music for my creative writing students while they write in-class. My most recent playlist addition is “Low Key Gliding” by Hal Walker. The sole instrument used is the khaen, a Laotian wind instrument that feels nostalgic and electronic, simultaneously.  

Avery Yoder-Wells

My best friend, who’s really into thrifting and collecting strange little items, found a great wooden record player the other day! He had to take it all apart and fix it up, but it plays smoothly now. Everyone older than me is right—things just sound richer on a record player. Fleetwood Mac became a whole new experience. (Rumours, the second disk so we could listen to “The Chain,” because that's the Fleetwood Mac song from the TV show we watched together last year. It might be the most mainstream choice, but it's still a really good song.) But, hanging out with my best friend, and reading snippets of poems in low light, probably improved the song just as much as the record player.

Joy Guo

Last November, brimming with bravado and hope, I signed up for a half marathon in April 2023. Early Sunday mornings are now the church of the long run. I load up my phone with podcasts about maritime crime (Outlaw Ocean) and running tips (Running Rogue), and playlists of songs that ferried me through high school (Avril, Michelle Branch, Fall Out Boy). Lately, however, I leave my earphones at home. I love the ambient sounds of streets slowly opening their eyes: neighbors walking their dogs, the occasional car creeping past, the slapping drumbeat that my sneakers make on the pavement. I pause my watch and stop and listen. 

Veronica Winters

I like to listen to music on Spotify that’s not mainstream, yet very beautiful. I came across these artists and songs that I find spiritual:

Maneesh de Moor “Forest Cathedral,” Starling Arrow “Into the river,” Liquid Bloom and Parangui “Heart of the Mother,” Ajeet “Haseya”