REVISED Songs for If You Are in a Funky Feel-Good Mood

If You Are in a feel-good mood, (which I hope you are, because those are the best moods) then you're likely to be bent on one of two main types of music: generally lighthearted songs, like "It's a Beautiful Day" by Michael Bublé, or funky lighthearted songs, such as "Send Me On My Way" by Rusted Root. Both are for sunny moods, but funky light-hearted songs are for when you're feeling especially punchy. They often include humor and an excess of originality. The songs I'll be discussing this week definitely fit that trend. If I had to peg them [the songs I'll be discussing], I'd consider them all alternative rock. I say this because their genre contributes to the moods that they emanate. 

1. "Young Folks" by Peter Bjorn and John

Right off the bat, this song opens with a pulsing rhythm that imitates maracas gone wild. Then, a catchy whistling verse. You don't have to worry about the party stopping, because the beat carries throughout the song. Never does it slow down or lose its celebration of life. When I was deciding the topic I wanted to do this week, this song immediately came to mind. It's impossible not to feel at least an inkling of joy while you listen to it. 

The listener can feel even more joy if he or she thinks about the song in the scope of its genre. "Young Folks" has a smooth rock syncopation to it, yet it's not your generic rock song. On the other hand, calling this song just alternative wouldn't encompass enough of it, either. It's not just about being unique and doing its own thing. It takes rock and makes rock its own thing, making it something new and exciting and a sound to think of other than AC/DC. Rock has many forms. It has hard grit, with raw sound and biting intensity. There's also a softer side to rock that maintains the intense emotion synonymous with the genre, yet shows that emotion in a new light. Songs like this take that emotion of rock and turn it into a third category: a purely emotional category that can add its own sounds but still remain rock, albeit alternative rock, at the core because of its fervent persistence. "Young Folks" shows the world of generic music that a song can fit into a genre because of something more that just music alone: it can fit because of emotion. Quality. Impact. That emotion and impact is pure, yet dense, joy, and awe at the distinctiveness achieved in a world of uniformity.  

2. "Send Me On My Way" by Rusted Root

If you want to be "sent on your way" to ineffable joy, this song is a great place to start. It has a very similar beat to "Young Folks": catchy, yet unique and not tiresome. This song truly encompasses the meaning of alternative- Rusted Root's distinct vocals and fast pace sometimes leave the listener wondering what they're even saying. It makes it that much more funky, and contributes to the mood because you can delight in improvising your own lyrics for the indecipherable parts. For example, the chorus says, "I would like to hold my little hand, and we will run and we will, and we will cry we will." Not what you guessed? Me neither. (Or, if you want to take funky fun to a whole other level, spout out the lyrics as you hear them, words or not. Then, later, read the lyrics as you listen, and see how far off you were.) The song also has a bridge of pure, exuberant joy. If you can listen to it and not want to explode into what looks like a fast-forward Peanuts dance, then you, my friend, have a lot of restraint. 

"Young Folks" is alternative rock because of its raw emotions. While it has an incredibly similar vibe to "Send Me On My Way," they are alternative rock for different reasons. "Young Folks" is a solid 50/50 blend of alternative and a smooth rock sound. "Send Me On My Way" is alternative rock as in crazy rock. Weird rock. Rock that makes you almost question if it's rock, but at the same time you know with conviction that it is without knowing exactly why or how. Rock that is like if all of the songs that first come to mind when you think of rock had peppier, more psychedelic relatives. While "Young Folks" is a blend of alternative and rock, "Send Me On My Way" is rock which is incredibly, alternatively unique. It knows it's out there, and it doesn't care. It wants to make it difficult for you to classify it, and it succeeds. It succeeds in being funky. It succeeds in breaking the rules to a level of pride at the boundaries it overcomes and the victory it reaches. It succeeds in putting you in a feel-good mood. 

3. "Odds Are" by Barenaked Ladies

Contrary to what the band name might suggest, the Barenaked Ladies are an all-male group. They're about as funky as they come. They make songs about absolutely anything they choose, from postcards with chimpanzees ("Another Postcard") to buying exotic pets like llamas or emus ("If I Had a Million Dollars"). Believe it or not, "Odds Are" is pretty casual for them. It's a great funky lighthearted song to listen to because the waves of the music are uplifting, as well as the lyrics themselves. "Odds are that we will probably be alright" is not only sung to you, but by the end of the song, you even begin to believe it. 

Compared to the other songs, "Odds Are" is definitely the most out there. "Young Folks" and "Send Me On My Way" are both alternative in the name of something indie and, well, alternative. "Odds Are" is alternative in the name of "well, where else would I put it." The Barenaked Ladies have a style that is so witty and unconventional that it can only be described as alternative. But, as with the other two, it holds to rock roots, while changing the rules and putting a new spin on what listeners think of when they think of the rock genre. Audiences think of many things when they think of rock, and even alternative rock, I can assure you, but "Odds Are" is not the first thing that will come to mind. "Odds Are" shows that unconventional sounds are still sounds, and sounds worth hearing. The level of sheer and utter what-the-hell-idness it possesses puts the listener in a feel-good mood at the fact that they were brave enough to attempt it-- and better yet, pull it off. 

All of these songs are great funky feel-good options to listen to. But would they be as funky-feel-good if they fit into  a genre set perfectly, fitting specifications a,b,c,d exactly as called for? No! Part of the funkiness of these songs is that they are not the perfect representations of any one genre. They're the triangle pegs in the square holes of music genre classification. Do they "fit" into the square holes of alternative rock? Sure. But these songs are triangles-- they're not like the squares of AC/DC, or Radiohead, or Bon Jovi. With these songs, there's room for improvisation. There's room for interpretation. There's room to be funky.