13 votes

What is some noteworthy music that is quarantine/COVID-specific?

Posted by kfwyre
Tags: ask.recommendations, quarantine, lockdown, coronaviruses.covid19

I'm curious to know what music is out there that:

  • is explicitly about the world's current COVID-related situations, or
  • had its recording/production significantly influenced by those situations.

Examples of the former would be Koffee's "Lockdown" or Chromeo's Quarantine Casanova, which have their influences right there on the label.

An example of the latter would be Charli XCX's How I'm Feeling Now (mildly NSFW album art), which was created in self-isolation while collaborating over Zoom with producers and fans.

I'm interested in seeing what's out there, not necessarily getting specific recommendations for music, so you don't have to consider anything you post an endorsement.

31 comments

  1. scrambo
    Link
    Gama Bomb released a song called "Living for the Lockdown" it's very good imo

    Gama Bomb released a song called "Living for the Lockdown" it's very good imo

    4 votes
  2. Deimos
    (edited )
    Link
    Chromeo put out the EP "Quarantine Casanova" in June, featuring the tracks: Clorox Wipe 6 Feet Away Stay In Bed (And Do Nothing) 'Roni Got Me Stressed Out Cabin Fever

    Chromeo put out the EP "Quarantine Casanova" in June, featuring the tracks:

    1. Clorox Wipe
    2. 6 Feet Away
    3. Stay In Bed (And Do Nothing)
    4. 'Roni Got Me Stressed Out
    5. Cabin Fever
    3 votes
  3. [4]
    3d12
    Link
    I quite enjoyed this collection: https://signorawardrecords.bandcamp.com/album/quarantine-doom-jazz I've also started releasing music this year. While it hasn't been specifically about quarantine,...

    I quite enjoyed this collection: https://signorawardrecords.bandcamp.com/album/quarantine-doom-jazz

    I've also started releasing music this year. While it hasn't been specifically about quarantine, it's definitely been an influence. I get the feeling that going into next year we'll be seeing a lot of releases influenced by COVID.

    2 votes
    1. [3]
      kfwyre
      Link Parent
      Awesome, and congrats! If there's anything of yours you're willing to share here, I'd love to hear it.

      I've also started releasing music this year.

      Awesome, and congrats! If there's anything of yours you're willing to share here, I'd love to hear it.

      1 vote
      1. [2]
        3d12
        Link Parent
        Thanks very much! It's been an interesting journey, that's for sure. We just released our first single last weekend actually, I'd be delighted if you'd check it out: https://youtu.be/TtxzPdB4-P4

        Thanks very much! It's been an interesting journey, that's for sure. We just released our first single last weekend actually, I'd be delighted if you'd check it out: https://youtu.be/TtxzPdB4-P4

        3 votes
        1. kfwyre
          Link Parent
          I am all about this! What a great groove! Thank you for sharing.

          I am all about this! What a great groove! Thank you for sharing.

          2 votes
  4. moocow1452
    Link
    No Covid collection is complete without the stylings of Chris Mann in his new album Viral/Viral Vol. 1 with hits like Hello (from the Inside), My Corona, and Daycare Closed.

    No Covid collection is complete without the stylings of Chris Mann in his new album Viral/Viral Vol. 1 with hits like Hello (from the Inside), My Corona, and Daycare Closed.

    2 votes
  5. [3]
    Wolf
    Link
    Life Inside by Verzache is a good song about the pandemic. So is Outside by Dumbfoundead & SATICA.

    Life Inside by Verzache is a good song about the pandemic. So is Outside by Dumbfoundead & SATICA.

    2 votes
    1. [2]
      kfwyre
      (edited )
      Link Parent
      YouTube links for anyone interested: Verzache - Life Inside Dumbfoundead & SATICA - Outside Also, both of these were great and were exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. Thank you!

      YouTube links for anyone interested:

      Verzache - Life Inside
      Dumbfoundead & SATICA - Outside

      Also, both of these were great and were exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. Thank you!

      2 votes
      1. Wolf
        Link Parent
        Glad you enjoyed them!

        Glad you enjoyed them!

        2 votes
  7. [4]
    wcerfgba
    Link
    Lockdown jazz: Covid Nights by The Backstage

    Lockdown jazz: Covid Nights by The Backstage

    2 votes
    1. [3]
      kfwyre
      Link Parent
      That video didn't work for me (probably a region issue). Here's an alternate link in case it's not working for anyone else.

      That video didn't work for me (probably a region issue). Here's an alternate link in case it's not working for anyone else.

      1 vote
      1. [2]
        wcerfgba
        Link Parent
        Hah, and your link doesn't work for me. Can someone explain the point of YouTube region locking to me? It just seems incredibly frustrating without actually providing any benefit to copyright holders.

        Hah, and your link doesn't work for me.

        Can someone explain the point of YouTube region locking to me? It just seems incredibly frustrating without actually providing any benefit to copyright holders.

        2 votes
        1. cfabbro
          (edited )
          Link Parent
          In general, the point is to drive people towards the company that paid for the distribution/publishing rights for that content in their region. And the overall benefit is more money (and less...

          In general, the point is to drive people towards the company that paid for the distribution/publishing rights for that content in their region. And the overall benefit is more money (and less risk/expense) for the copyright holder, who gets to sell those rights to multiple parties around the world who will then take care of the distribution for them in that region.

          However since most companies are only willing to pay for exclusive distribution/publishing rights in their region, that means the original copyright holder and all the other companies with similar rights elsewhere are usually contractually obligated to block consumers outside their respective regions from accessing that content through their own distribution networks.

          Those deals and obligations made way more sense and were far less noticeable to consumers when TV, movie theaters, radio and physical media were the primary ways to distribute content around the world (though not entirely, see: DVD region codes), but unfortunately those same obligations usually apply online now too, which results in noticeable inconvenience for online consumers, and also manifests in messy/clunky/weird ways sometimes too. E.g.

          Like what you and @kfwyre just discovered on those The Backstage videos, on YouTube you will sometimes see the exact same video uploaded multiple times by the same channel, but each copy has totally different region blocking settings. That may seem totally pointless at first, however if you look at the metadata/description on each of those copies, you will see totally different publisher info listed on them, which is the real reasoning behind them doing that.

          2 votes
  8. JakeTheDog
    Link
    This is just a collaborative single, from a niche genre, but it came out early on and I thought it was hilarious because it basically is a blunt PSA about taking care of yourself (e.g. not...

    This is just a collaborative single, from a niche genre, but it came out early on and I thought it was hilarious because it basically is a blunt PSA about taking care of yourself (e.g. not touching your face)
    https://soundcloud.com/dub-beans/touch-feat-astronata-send-4-afruit-bsn-posse-jaby-pot-aslamin

    2 votes
  9. Grzmot
    Link
    Blink-182 - Quarantine is a single released this year and explicitly about the COVID-19 measures.

    Blink-182 - Quarantine is a single released this year and explicitly about the COVID-19 measures.

    2 votes
  10. vili
    Link
    Terence Trent D'Arby, who for the past twenty years has gone by the name Sananda Maitreya, put out a song titled Mr. Skeleton back in April. He lives permanently in Italy these days, so he was...

    Terence Trent D'Arby, who for the past twenty years has gone by the name Sananda Maitreya, put out a song titled Mr. Skeleton back in April. He lives permanently in Italy these days, so he was pretty much in the middle of the European first wave.

    As a personal note, I absolutely love TTD's/Sananda's music from the 80s and 90s, but when he went independent and changed his musical approach around the time he also changed his name, I started to drift away with each release, to a point where I can't really make myself listen through a new album in one sitting. But I do quite like this track, even if some of the lyrics are a bit... well, a bit like his lyrics have been these past two decades. Give it a listen.

    2 votes
  12. ruspaceni
    Link
    A while back a friend streamed a game called Hard Lads which is based on this video where some lads bash eachother and then kiss. Surprisingly fleshed out game to be honest. I caught myself...

    A while back a friend streamed a game called Hard Lads which is based on this video where some lads bash eachother and then kiss. Surprisingly fleshed out game to be honest.

    I caught myself grooving to the soundtrack so checked out the artists other stuff and some of it was by "Lynks Afrikka" and fyi, that's the British version of axe body spray so you know its gon' be good ! I don't know how to describe the vibe of this artist so I wont even bother, but it's certainly a confident vibe.

    They decided to make a video every day for a week (i wonder why) and released the self isolation tapes which consists of a few singles (one now removed it looks like) loosly exploring the pandemic, recession, or even just absurd social commentary as well as 2 live dj sets.

    This thread just made all this stuff come flooding back to me so now i'm binging them all again.. it's gonna be weeks before I can get Extra sad cream out of my head.

    2 votes
  13. soks_n_sandals
    Link
    I can't stop listening to Anderson Paak's Lockdown. The song is so poignant and his flow is soooo good.

    I can't stop listening to Anderson Paak's Lockdown. The song is so poignant and his flow is soooo good.

    2 votes
  14. andre
    Link
    Curriculum by Apathy (of Demigodz fame) is short and sweet - it's seen a lot of playtime from me.

    Curriculum by Apathy (of Demigodz fame) is short and sweet - it's seen a lot of playtime from me.

    2 votes
  15. 3d12
    Link
    Here's two that came out relatively recently: Bring Me the Horizon released an EP: POST HUMAN: SURVIVAL HORROR They released the single Parasite Eve a few weeks ago in anticipation of this EP,...

    Here's two that came out relatively recently:

    Bring Me the Horizon released an EP: POST HUMAN: SURVIVAL HORROR

    • They released the single Parasite Eve a few weeks ago in anticipation of this EP, which has overtones of separation brought on at least partially by the pandemic.
    • This EP also contains Ludens, which is a song that they actually released back in November 2019 to coincide with the release of the video game Death Stranding. Amazingly, this song became rather prophetic, with references to a "world covered in cables" and forming connections "when we can't even shake hands" -- totally fits the theme of the video game, which kind of ended up being reality this year? Kojima, you crazy devil.
    • Also, there's a song that's a reference to a diary entry from Resident Evil and they did a track with Amy Lee from Evanescence that I like quite a lot. Check it out!

    Puscifer released the album: Existential Reckoning

    • If the name sounds familiar, this is one of Maynard Keenan's projects. (The others being Tool, which had a release in 2019, and A Perfect Circle, which had a release in 2018. Dude's on a roll!)
    • Crazy vibes on this album. Puscifer is one of those bands that kind of changes genre with each track, and this trend keeps up, but perhaps to a lesser degree than on their first two albums. They seem to be settling into a stride and finding a specific sound, but it's pretty amazing. I love the thick square waves on this track, it feels very meditative. And the single they released ahead of the album, Apocalyptical is quite catchy. The video (linked back <- that way) is also pretty entertaining.
    • In case the parallel wasn't obvious from the opening track of the album our "existential reckoning" is likely interpreted as COVID, climate change, or a combination thereof.
    2 votes
  16. petrichor
    Link
    Twenty One Pilots released a single: Level of Concern. And this is cheating, but M83 released a remix of Solitude.

    Twenty One Pilots released a single: Level of Concern.

    And this is cheating, but M83 released a remix of Solitude.

    2 votes
  17. [3]
    ohyran
    Link
    Not really Covid related but since Husband-dude just seems like he has the flu or Covid this song is my theme song right now since I am very much a mother-hen-kind-of-worrier and he actually looks...

    Not really Covid related but since Husband-dude just seems like he has the flu or Covid this song is my theme song right now since I am very much a mother-hen-kind-of-worrier and he actually looks like a "teddy bear on heroin"

    2 votes
    1. [2]
      kfwyre
      Link Parent
      I'm so sorry to hear that, and I saw in your other post you were exposed to a positive COVID case too. I'm hoping for the best for you two. Cute song, though!

      I'm so sorry to hear that, and I saw in your other post you were exposed to a positive COVID case too. I'm hoping for the best for you two.

      Cute song, though!

      1 vote
      1. ohyran
        Link Parent
        Thank you. It seems ok. Like it was the symptons but not the illness so he's staying home a week since the advice from our health ministry is if you get symptoms you stay at home in isolation for...

        Thank you. It seems ok. Like it was the symptons but not the illness so he's staying home a week since the advice from our health ministry is if you get symptoms you stay at home in isolation for a week.

        2 votes
  19. [2]
    3d12
    Link
    Also this is 100% noise but I wanted to point out that this thread's shortlink is https://tild.es/sux :)

    Also this is 100% noise but I wanted to point out that this thread's shortlink is https://tild.es/sux :)

    7 votes
    1. kfwyre
      Link Parent
      I'm officially auctioning off this topic and its associated high-value vanity URL! Serious offers only. Payment must be in the form of high-value Pokemon cards or premium unground spices. Serious...

      I'm officially auctioning off this topic and its associated high-value vanity URL! Serious offers only. Payment must be in the form of high-value Pokemon cards or premium unground spices. Serious offers ONLY. No I won't drive 100 miles to meet you. Yes, I do have a robust skincare regimen, thank you for noticing. SERIOUS offers ONLY. Contact me by carrier pigeon, and I'll have my pigeons get in touch with yours in order to begin negotiations and also a game of Monopoly because I can't find anyone else to play with me. Do they try to buy up the railroads first thing? And what are their thoughts on how Free Parking should be handled? SERIOUS OFFERS ONLY.

      8 votes