If You’re Angry And You Know It…

If you’re angry and yo know it, clap your hands! Stomp your feet! Snap your fingers! Carve your name in your ex-boyfriend’s leather car seats! Oh, wait. Got carried away! I was joking with my friend Debi Smith, who you can find and follow on her two blogs, Hunter’s Lyonesse or Chocolate Wasteland. If you track with us, you know joking is a daily occurrence for the two of us! LOL! But we started talking about fun playlists, and pondered a POd playlist. Of course…she ran with that ball, and the playlist on the blog today was born! Enjoy! 🙂

FROM DEBI…

Music was meant express feelings. Composers have been using it for over a thousand years to elicit emotions from their audience. We see it in tribal chants, Polynesian mele (song), opera, ballet, musical theater, the music industry, and movies. I would venture that the last two are the most familiar to you. Great composers pace tension and give us beautiful highs in the movies they score. My band friends will agree that John Williams is one of the best composers alive. He took two notes and combined them in a slowly increasing tempo to build the tension as a shark fin coasted through water. We hold dear the music that makes us feel good, comforts our sadness, lets us work out our anger, and moves us to take control of our lives.

Sometimes when you’re angry you just need to ride the violent waves before paddling in to shore. We might need to do paddle out further or dive under a wave to not harm anyone or anything. But once you have it under control you can come in to the safety of sand under your feet. Then there are the times when you are writing and you need some music to get you through an argument or a fight scene. Broken hearts make for great angry music, but being tired of people and their…antics does the same, too.

As with my previous list, these are my personal preferences and listed by alphabetical order.

“F%#k You (Very Much)” – Lily Allen

So you say/It’s not okay to be gay/Well I think you’re just evil/You’re just some racist who can’t tie my laces/Your point of view is medieval/F%#k you/F%#k you very, very much/’Cause we hate what you do/And we hate your whole crew/So please don’t stay in touch

I had a hard time deciding between this song and CeeLo Green’s “Fuck You”. I chose this one because it is deceptive, like being cussed out in French by someone smiling the whole time and you don’t understand a word. You know from the title it’s a heated lyric, but when you listen to music, it’s like bubble gum. An aural juxtaposition even sweeter than “Getting Better” by The Beatles.

“Never Again” – Kelly Clarkson

I hope the ring you gave to her turns her finger green/I hope when you’re in bed with her you think of me/I would never wish bad things but I don’t wish you well/Could you tell by the flames that burned your words

I don’t think Kelly’s My December album got the recognition it deserved. This was an edgy album for her and she took a big risk doing it which is why I like her more knowing she can balance her artistry between “Never Again” and “Stronger”. It shows everyone, especially females, that it’s okay to be angry, strong, happy, and independent without being a bitch or having to put on a face.

“My Songs Know What You Did (Light ‘Em Up)” –  Fall Out Boy

A constellation of tears on your lashes/Burn everything you love, then burn the ashes/In the end everything collides/My childhood spat back out the monster that you see.

I fell in love with this song as soon as the video was released. It’s a head-banging, seat-dancing song that speaks of anger so deep that it leads to violence.

“I Hate Myself For Loving You” – Joan Jett

I hate myself for loving you/Can’t break free from the things that you do/I wanna walk but I run back back to you/That’s why I hate myself for loving you

Sometimes our anger is directed inward instead of at another person. Have you ever been in a relationship you knew was bad? You were treated like crap but there was something about them that kept drawing you back time and again?  Yeah. That.

“You Oughta Know” – Alanis Morissette

Did you forget about me Mr. Duplicity/I hate to bug you in the middle of dinner/It was a slap in the face how quickly I was replaced/Are you thinking of me when you fuck her?

There is nothing like Alanis’ Jagged Little Pill album. It normalized being angry for women. I can’t count how many times I put on the CD when angry just to help me work it out.

“Just A Girl” – No Doubt

Oh I’ve had it up to here/Oh am I making myself clear/I’m just a girl/I’m just a girl in the world/That’s all that you’ll let me be/I’m just a girl living in captivity/Your rule of thumb/Makes me worrisome

Are you a female and sick of the negative stereotypes about women? Tired of society trying to box us in instead of letting us out to be ourselves? Me, too. Sometimes you need sarcasm just to deal with it.

“So What” – P!nk

So, so what/I’m still a rock star/I got my rock moves/An d I don’t need you/And guess what/I’m having more fun/And now that we’re done/I’m gonna show you tonight/I’m alright/I’m just fine/And you’re a tool/So, so what/I’m a rock star/I got my rock moves/And I don’t want you tonight

P!nk does a perfect balance of in-your-face anger, heart-wrenching ballads, and empowering songs. If you’ve ever seen her “VH1 Storytellers” episode, she wrote this song about her husband before they were married while they were broken up. She performed it at the opening of his club when he asked her to help out. How much more in-your-face can you get?

“Sound of Madness” – Shinedown

I created the Sound of Madness/Wrote the book on pain/Somehow I’m still here/To explain/That the darkest hour never comes in the night/You can sleep with a gun/When you gonna wake up and fight for yourself

I loved this song from the first beat. I was on my way back to Louisville from doing a training in Georgetown, KY. Lexington has better rock stations that Louisville and I was enjoying the new rock while I was in the area. I was banging my head in the car at a stoplight thinking this is perfect when you are completely fed up with the people who continually wallow in self-pity about their circumstances, but never do anything. Yes, time with them slowly builds up the anger until you finally explode and yell at them to put up or shut up.

“The Kill” – 30 Seconds to Mars

I tried to be someone else/But nothing seemed to change/I know now this is who I really I am inside/Finally found myself/Fighting for a chance/I know now this is who I really am

It may not be quite the outright angry song as the others, but it comes from anger in a relationship that went wrong somewhere. This is me, you still want at me? Go for it.

“Before He Cheats” – Carrie Underwood

And he don’t know/That I dug my key into the side of his pretty little souped up 4-wheel drive/Carved my name into his leather seats/I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights/Slashed a hole in all four tires/Maybe next time he’ll think before he cheats

Cheating has its consequences. I’d say a name being carved into your leather seats would be the modern day equivalent of a scarlet letter.

Want this whole playlist? Here ya go! You’re welcome. 🙂