Job Search Mix – Mike

When will they call me back? I know I’m smart enough for this. Maybe I should tweak my cover letter. I’m doing all the right things. It’s a numbers game.

The job search internal monologue can be pretty unsettling. I’m generally an optimistic person, and I’m confident that I’m a skilled candidate in my field, but sending out emails and resumes and hearing nothing back — that can start to chip away at even the most positive outlook.

I wanted to write about how this is affecting my listening patterns, but when I started thinking about it I realized that the only change for me has been an unusually high influx of new stuff, due to all the free time I have. So, instead, I want to kick off WPC’s first imaginary mixtape by picking some songs that I think embody job search emotions; for me, that’s a constantly swirling tension between optimism and nervousness.

Beautiful Lunar Landscape – Empty Screen (stream)
This is a jazzy post-rock track with gorgeous harmonies between the male and female vocalists. Their voices play off of each other well, with his feeling melancholy and hers hopeful, and the band behind them provides a calm and lovely background. At one point near the end of the song, the vocals stop and the music swells violently, only to have the two singers return and seemingly suppress the outburst.

Sixtoo – Secrets That Houses Keep
“Secrets” is an eight-minute series of instrumental hip-hop sketches that smoothly fade into one another. The music is at times wistful, uplifting, and sinister; overall, it makes for a moody experience and is a great metaphor for trying to convince yourself of something important.

Amon Tobin – The Killer’s Vanilla
Somber organ melodies laid over a thick concrete break weigh this track down, but a stately string arrangement tries hard to pull it back up. As the song progresses, the drums spiral into a complex panic and instruments begin to melt into each other — is this the sound of things falling apart or coming together?

Subheim – Hollow (stream)
This track has a menacing low end with cold digital rhythms bubbling and popping on the surface, but there’s an ephemeral vocal sample floating above to balance it all out. Maybe things aren’t as impersonal as they seem…

Broadcast – Ominous Cloud (stream clip)
“Oh I’ve got to get away / from this town, don’t want to face / the ominous clouds.” This fuzzy, distorted pop song features a struggle between Trish Keenan’s cheerful delivery and the somewhat depressing lyrics she’s singing. I’ve always liked music that juxtaposes emotions like this, and I think it’s a great fit for this mix.

Camera Obscura – Dory Previn (stream clip)
A song that mourns lost love while acknowledging the emotional release of moving forward. Like the Broadcast tune, I think this one manages to handle both positive and negative feelings at the same time.

~ by Mike on July 28, 2008.