Hello, Monday peeps! We’ve been having really cold temps here in the Pacific Northwest – but at least the rain has gone away, so while we’re freezing over here, at least the sun is shining! And we might get some snow next weekend – I love snow, so I’m all for it!

Since it is Monday, that, of course, means music! This week’s theme is “Artists, bands, or songs that make you think of cold weather.” Put on a sweater or jacket, and let’s get this cold party started!

Let’s start with a song that always reminds me of cold weather. This California-based alternative rock band formed in August 2011, and for this particular song, the lead singer said that this track posed the biggest problem in expressing the emotions he wanted to convey. He explained:

“That song has done so much for us and it’s a super solid song but it was the first one we wrote. We have grown a lot and have gotten our sound more locked in since that song. It still feels right alongside all the other songs but it definitely is the hardest one to put other tracks around.”

The song started similarly to how many others do. One of the band members said:

“One day Jesse was at my house and I was playing guitar. And he said, ‘Hey that’s pretty cool, let me record that.’ And it just so happened to be ‘[this song].’ When we got done writing the song, when it was all said and done we were like ‘Okay this is pretty good we should keep writing songs.

I think ‘[this song]’ might’ve been the best song we’d ever written, but I didn’t think it was going to be the best song we’d ever write. It was kind of like getting a Platinum record, like a little tap on the butt. ‘Good job, keep going.”

Here’s The Neighborhood with “Sweater Weather”:

Next up is a song that sort of fits the theme – I know I get all “wrapped up” in a blankie or coat or even a heated vest when it’s cold. 😉 This song is a collaboration between an English artist and an American rapper and was described by the English artist thusly:

“We were just writing different songs, and I said, ‘Why don’t we just try this other song today, something a bit disco-y, something a bit old school,’ and that’s what we came up with. We didn’t think it was going to be a single when we were writing it, really. We just kind of went with the vibe. Sort of instantly we felt, ‘This is actually a really good song and this could be a hit,’ you know? That was kind of the vibe behind it.

Disco music is something that I love – Earth, Wind & Fire especially, Chic – that era of music is really popular and I love performing it on stage.”

Get ready to dance, here’s Olly Murs with “Wrapped Up”:

Next is a song that definitely refers to cold weather – I mean, winter is usually cold, right? This folky ukulele ballad is the closing track of this artist’s Christmas EP from 2014, I believe. The songs were penned by the artist with her team of writers – they put together the EP in less than a week. The artist tweeted at the time:

“I love/am so proud of my talented friends! We put this EP together in under a week in my home stu (studio)! It was a long, productive slumber party.”

The Boca Raton, Florida native is used to sunny and warm Christmases (the annual temperature in her hometown is 77°F). In this song she refuses to let the hot weather melt the magic of being with her bae over the festive season by doing wintery things such as ice skating and chilling by the fire.

Give a listen to Ariana Grande with “Winter Things”: 

Last but certainly not least is a song I shared a couple of months ago, and it definitely fits in with the cold weather theme. It’s a cover of a song by one of my favorite acapella groups, who did a wonderful job on this. The original band said about this song:

“It’s lyrically fairly meaningless. As an introduction to the record (this was intended to be the opening track on the album), we thought it would be nice to start it with a simple jam that’s focussed on singing – on the record, it starts with a tongue-in-cheek harmony thing that we hoped would make people laugh or something, but I think it just confuses them. This is my favorite song to play live, though singing it live is sometimes difficult because the lyrics are so vague. Weird how that works!”

The song’s original intent was to be like “Whistle While You Work” from Snow White – something to hum along to as you do the dishes. The words tell a more painful story about loss of innocence. He explained:

“From first grade to high school, I spent every day with the same bunch of kids. And it was weird to see how people I had known so long would change so quickly – suddenly they’re drug dealers. I hated it. How did our friendships become less important than wearing a backwards baseball cap?”

Enjoy Pentatonix cover of Fleet Foxes “Winter Hymnal”:

That’s a wrap for this week – have a great Monday! See you on the dance floor!

Now, onto the particulars of Monday’s Music Move’s Me: Photobucket

I have the supreme honor and privilege of being a co-host with the inimitable Xmas Dolly and our musical cohort, the awesome Cathy from Curious as a CAThy, and Alana of Ramblin’ with AM!

Want to join in the fun? It’s easy – just find a tune that rocks your boat, post it and link up – don’t forget to grab Xmas Dolly…er, um, I mean her button…over at her place here. Check out Xmas Dolly’s sidebar for the random themes we sport each week – and you can always ask for a specific theme of music you like, too. Check out the other music lovahs and let’s jam!

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7 Comments

  1. I’ll be so happy when the colder weather moves out for good…well, at least for several months. I’m tired of it all! It looks like we may be on the upswing of thermometer in the coming days. While it won’t be a tropical paradise, it’ll certainly feel tons better than it has. Isn’t that the craziest thing about New Orleans getting almost 10″ of snow last week? Hopefully you’ll get a chance to see some snow before winter is over. 😉 Have a boogietastic week, dear Stacy! xo

  2. Excellent choices. Is Ariana Grande always going to look 13 years old? Pentatonix is such a creative group. I am always and never surprised by the sounds the create. Well played. Have a blessed week.

  3. There is tiny Ariadne up for an Oscar. I’m not one for her songs but she is a very good singer if she studied more. I don’t like penta…but I like this song whichbyou introduced me to bVk in Dec or Nov. ?? Very good.

  4. I think Sweater Weather was quite popular when it first came out (and still is) but I must have missed it; I’ve only heard it once or twice before. My favorite this week was the Ariana Grande song.