I made alot of mistakes. Regrets linger in my mind from time to time, wishing I could go into the past and change the outcome. However, all things go. Even regrets wither away because I realize that whatever went wrong in the past was an invaluable lesson that has made me a better person. All things go. Every thing in our lives has a beginning and an end. Even though it’s sometimes hard, I try to live in the moment because I never know when it will all end.
“I made alot of mistakes, in my mind, in my mind.”
In the dead of winter when the world is in a slumber as it’s blanketed by the snow, all I need is you wrapped under my arms. All I need is your warm soul touching mine. All I need is your smile to light up the grey skies outside. All I need is you and only you.
Track Listing:
Perth - Bon Iver
The Plains/Bitter Dancer - Fleet Foxes
The Funeral - Band of Horses
We Won’t Need Legs To Stand - Sufjan Stevens
Easier - Grizzly Bear
Sé Lest - Sigur Rós
Lakehouse - Of Monsters and Men
Minnesota, WI - Bon Iver
Yellow Light - Of Monsters and Men
Detlef Schrempf - Band Of Horses
The Past And Pending - The Shins
La Noyee - Yann Tiersen
Avril 14th - Aphex Twin
Fuck Me - Yann Tiersen
Horchata - Vampire Weekend
Generator ^ First Floor - Freelance Whales
Mykonos - Fleet Foxes
Fine For Now - Grizzly Bear
Smoke - Moddi
Armchairs - Andrew Bird
“One kind word can warm three winter months.” -Japanese Proverb
I always found that music speak stronger than words. The melodies evoke a feeling that cannot be simply expressed by the written word. So this is my way of saying thanks for all that you have done for me.
Track Listing:
Chicago (Acoustic version) - Sufjan Stevens
The Suburbs - Arcade Fire
Ready To Start - Arcade Fire
Meditation Song #2 (Why, Oh Why) - Cloud Control
The Funeral - Band of Horses
Crystalised - Gorillaz
Falling In Love At A Coffee Shop - Landon Pigg
Postcards From Italy - Beirut
Ready, Able - Grizzly Bear
Outro - M83
“For each new morning with its light, For rest and shelter of the night, For health and food, for love and friends, For everything Thy goodness sends.”
Movement III: Linear Tableau With Intersecting Surprise - Sufjan Stevens
The world is a mesh-mash of wonderful things. Things that happen without notice or foreshadowing. Things that happen inexplicably in our chaotic and volatile universe. Random coincidences coalescing to cultivate greatness in our human hearts. For when everything feels in the right place, for when everything is going your way, for when all that you ever hoped for is breaking through the molds of your wild imagination and finally becoming a reality, know that the universe has a knack for constantly creating wonder where previously there was none.
“Why not seize the pleasure at once, how often is happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparations.” -Jane Austen
Sometimes you have to dwell in the darkness to see the light. You have to live life. There will be sorrow, heartbreaks, and anguish. However it is all temporary, the dawn follows the darkness. You will feel joy in your heart again and again. That is what makes us human, our capacity to feel everything.
Track Listing:
The Sound Of Silence - Simon & Garfunkel
Rolled Together - The Antlers
Thirsty - The National
Islands - Young The Giant
Futile Devices - Sufjan Stevens
Aviéntame - Cafe Tacvba
Anjos - Julianna Barwick
Spanish Sahara - Foals
Norwegian Wood (The Bird Has Flown) - The Beatles
Scarborough Fair/Canticle - Simon & Garfunkel
Latika’s Theme - A. R. Rahman ft. Suzanne
Brooklyn - Woodkid
After Glow - Foals
Helplessness Blues - Fleet Foxes
“The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenement halls and whispered in the sounds of silence.”
It’s a been a long long long time since I have seen your lovely face. A long time since I have kissed those lovely lips of yours. A long time since I have heard your angelic voice that soothes my being. A long time since I have caressed your soft skin. A long time since I have embraced you tightly in my arms and felt that perfect warmth. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you. I would tell you that I miss you but that would only make me miss you more.
The violin is one of the most beautifully sounding instruments in the world. Its sound is striking yet soft at the same time. No other instrument can stir the feelings inside of you as well as the violin can. And to hear two of my all-time favorite songs, Chicago by Sufjan Stevens and Clocks by Coldplay, two songs that have taken me to the most beautiful places of my imagination mashed up and covered in violin is an experience I doubt I will go through often. This is what heaven must sound like because this song is pure audible divinity.
“Closing walls and ticking clocks, going to come back and take you home.”
One morning a few years I woke up and listened to this song. At that very moment something miraculous happened. All of a sudden I felt awakened, as though my eyes were finally open to the beauty of the world. This was a moment in my life where I was in transition, I was redefining who I was, learning about new ideas and philosophies that were helping me grow as an individual. However, that one faithful morning as the sun was softly kissing my face and the sweet sounds of the birds outside was swaying through the air, I woke up and listened to this very song. And when I allowed the folky rhythms of Sufjan Stevens seep through my soul, it all clicked. I felt bigger than myself, I felt bigger than the world, I felt as though I was one with the universe. It was as though I finally felt connected with the world and everyone in it. I transcended the material world and became truly enlightened. I can’t explain exactly what I felt or why, but I can say after this moment of transcendence a weight was lifted from my shoulders and I felt truly free. I realized that everything in this universe is connected, every action we take affects everything around us, as if we were one being. That’s why that feeling of connection, whether you feel it with someone, something, or even a song, is the most beautiful feeling in the world.
The divine lord of indie folk goes electronic in the appropriately titled, The Age of Adz. Right now we are living in an age of relentless attention-seeking advertisements, rampant amount of independent artists, and a plethora of media outlets that sucks us into the vacuum of sensory overload. There are so many genres and influences that the lines that clearly differentiated the world of art are beginning to blur into a worldwide collaborative that encompasses all forms of expression. Times’ are changing, Sufjan Stevens is changing, and our reality is changing. Human expression through the arts is evolving exponentially in both sophistication and innovation. A new frontier is ahead of us and Sufjan Stevens, among the rest of the countless number of cutting-edge artists, are the new pioneers for the new era of art.
All Delighted People (Classic Rock Version) - Sufjan Stevens
A saying goes, “Between Hipsters and God, there is Sufjan Stevens.” A beautiful arrangement of instruments, wonderfully deep lyrics, and a feeling akin to watching an epic film. Sufjan Steven’s newest EP, All Delighted People, is proof that he is a genius of modern music. You can tell that his style from his previous orchestral album, The BQE, carried over to this. Especially with most of the songs longer than six minutes, it has this feeling of grandeur to it. Just like Simon & Garfunkel’s soundtrack for The Graduate or The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club, this album feels important as though it had this epic tale behind it. A subtle narrative behind the intricately constructed rhythms, taking people on a journey through an epiphany of deeply-rooted emotions.
“Our lives depended on the visions through the night.”
My name is Ariel Viera, I'm a twenty-something year-old hedonist from the greatest city in the world, New York City, who is constantly high on life. This is the music I passionately love.
If you want to ask me a question or want to chat you can email me at: avierazen@gmail.com
