What September Sounded Like (Spotify Playlist #1)

September was… a lot. Equal parts stress, sadness, and a desperate need for noise to drown out the shit show in my brain. Lucky for me, music does what therapy sometimes can’t, it gets me out of bed, into the car, through the workday, and occasionally allows for a cathartic bathroom floor breakdown. So here it is, my little September Spotify playlist.

🎧 Listen to my full playlist here

Deaf Havana - Car Crash & Kids

This month, Deaf Havana weren’t just a band on my playlist, they were a full time coping mechanism.

I’d been rinsing their catalogue like it was scripture as their Manchester show at New Century Hall was looming (3rd October, and was fucking amazing by the way), which is why they've taken up most spaces on my playlist this month.

What Deaf Havana do best is walk the tightrope between melancholy and euphoria. They so effortlessly showcase the subdued, almost fragile melodies, before swelling into that trademark wall of sound, soaring guitars, James and Matty's beautifully layered vocals, the kind of build that makes your chest tighten before it lets you breathe again, which is why they will most likely take up space on future monthly playlists.

Take Car Crash, it doesn’t romanticise the wreckage, it leans into it. Jagged riffs, raw delivery, and lyrics that feel painfully confessional. It’s ugly and beautiful in the same breath, and that duality is what makes it stick. This song makes me feel so many emotions all at once and I'm so here for it.

Then there’s Kids, which hits on the opposite frequency, a nostalgic, almost rose tinted anthem that still manages to sting. It’s a reminder of everything you’ve outgrown but still carry around with you like an old scar, it's a bitter sweet song that I haven't been able to let go of yet even with the new album taking hold of me.

Hollywood Undead - Comin’ In Hot

I’d love to say I listen to sophisticated, niche tracks on my morning commute… but no. At 6am, I need to pretend I'm 19 again and not on my way to my very adult toxic corporation desk job. Comin’ In Hot is loud, brash, borderline stupid and exactly what I need when I’m fighting off road rage and the creeping despair of another workday. It’s not art, but it is pure unadulterated energy. Sometimes that’s just exactly what you need.

Michael Aldag - Saturday

September handed me Michael Aldag, and I haven’t looked back. His latest release, Saturday, hooked me so hard it became one of those dangerous songs, the kind you listen to 45 times in one sitting before finally realising you need to fucking stop and put on some Celine Dion to chill the fuck out. What I love about Aldag is the way he dresses up the challenges of being young and emotionally messy in neon production, letting you dance to your own spiral. It’s not trying to be profound or deep and that’s exactly what makes it stick. Pop doesn’t need to be deep to hit you in the gut, sometimes it just needs to feel like the truth you were too embarrassed to say out loud.

Saturday is that truth. It’s pop with teeth. And honestly? I can’t get enough of it lately.

Stray Kids - Karma

The Karma album dropped back in August, but let’s be honest, I’m still living in it, and if you know me, you know I will be for a very long time, because when Han Jisung tells me “lets go and see the light”  you best believe that I am well and truly going to go and see the bloody light, it becomes a daily ritual and the morning affirmation that I so desperately need. If I don’t get at least one track from this album in my ears, my day feels incomplete, like forgetting my tea flask, or leaving the house without my lip balm.

Stray Kids have this incredible ability to make everything feel urgent, dramatic, and hopeful all at once. It’s not just K-pop, it’s adrenaline and pure love disguised as music. Karma and Stay Kids in general aren't leaving my rotation anytime soon.

Saja Boys - Your Idol

Yes, I’m still in my K-Pop Demon Hunters phase. No, I don’t care if the hype has cooled off. Your Idol is campy, ridiculous, and honestly brilliant. It’s one of those tracks that gets stuck in your head like an accidental tattoo. Every time it comes on, I laugh at myself for still being obsessed, not just with song, the album, but with the impending second movie, I will turn this up loud and proud for months to come i'm sure.

The Monthly Recap

Song That Saved My Commute

Comin’ In Hot - Hollywood Undead

Repeat Offender (Most Played Track)

Saturday - Michael Aldag Pretty sure I’ve singlehandedly boosted his streaming stats this month.

(Not so) Guilty Pleasure

Your Idol - Saja Boys (K-Pop Demon Hunters Soundtrack)

Emotional Wreck Anthem

Car Crash by Deaf Havana.

September in Sound

So that’s where I’m at, Deaf Havana therapy sessions, Hollywood Undead nostalgia, Michael Aldag obsession, Stray Kids adrenaline, K-pop camp, and a few sad little breakdown anthems for the lonely nights. September was messy, but at least it had a killer soundtrack. Let me know your September Playlist in the comments!

🎧 Listen to my full playlist here