Hooray for love!: A Valentine's Day indie music playlist

Is “On the Lips” the best song to name drop David Blaine in its opening line? Well, it’s one of the best songs ever, so the answer is almost definitely “Yes.” Greta Kline sings of the feeling of seeing somebody out and about, like on the subway, and dreaming of what could be if you made a connection. It’s a wistful song of what could have been, but hopeful and beautiful enough to kick off this playlist.

The Regrettes were teenagers when they put out their debut album, with frontwoman Lydia Knight barely old enough to drive. Her (totally reasonable) lack of maturity is evident in the lyrics to some songs, but “Hey Now” is just a straight jam. It’s about meeting somebody new who drives you wild, and it’s a killer track that will get stuck in your head.

Martha tends to take the more somber and reflective route on their songs, and the British band manages to sneak some of it into this song as well. As you may be able to tell from the title, “The Winter Fuel Allowance Ineligibility Blues” is partially about the pressures of austerity and not being able to even afford to heat your place. Not all is lost, though. As they sing in this song, “You know I love you ‘cause the heat is on when you come ‘round.”

Angel Olsen has a lot of songs of regret, and perhaps there’s even some of that in “Shut Up Kiss Me.” However, the song has too much energy in it to be a downer, and Olsen is determined to make things work with her hopeful paramour. It doesn’t seem like it may be the healthiest thing, but maybe it will work. If you make “Shut Up Kiss Me” your dating ethos, you may have a problem, but the song is straight fire.

If you aren’t with the person you want to be with, the longing can get intense — especially when you are young. “Grease” has an entire song about summer loving, but Anika Pyle and the other dudes in Chumped weren’t so lucky. Instead, the now-defunct punk band (though check out Pyle’s new act, Katie Ellen!) sing achingly about waiting all summer long for your crush to come around. And they never do. But you would wait for them all summer.

OK, so this song is a little somber too. Hey, it’s the middle of the playlist. We’re bringing you down a bit before bringing you back up. There’s a deep anxiety and uncertainty about the relationship at the heart of “I Admit I’m Scared.” It’s right there in the title. As Gabby’s anxiety grows, so does the intensity of the vocals and the music until the song explodes. It’s a beautiful song, perfect for when you are wondering where your future lies with the person you are with.

Charly Bliss, the foremost practitioners of their self-styled genre, “bubble-grunge,” often are more silly or winking with their songs. They don’t sing much about love, but they do have a song dedicated to the therapist of their frontwoman. There’s no hiding the head-over-heels romance at the heart of “Heaven” though. It’s their most overtly romantic song, but it’s still a slice of pop-punk perfection. 

This is a beautiful song, like basically every Alvvays song. The Canadian indie pop band makes gloriously pretty music. You want romance? This is a song about tossing aside concerns to just plea to marry your sweetheart. Who needs the floral arrangements and breadmakers? Just marry me, Archie.

The relationship at the heart of “Killer” is definitely different from the one in “Archie, Marry Me.” Bridgers seems less sure of things. Can the killer in her tame the fire of you? Can a song be romantic and also reference Jeffrey Dahmer? The answer to that first question is unknown, but the latter is evidently, resoundingly in the affirmative.

“Paul” is a story song, because nobody in Big Thief has ever been a rural moonshiner driving around with a star-crossed lover. However, the choruses are just so evocative and romantic in their own way. After all, the final lyric is “and I’ve been burning for you baby since the minute I left.” If that doesn’t belong on a romantic playlist, what does?

We’re getting into a few songs that are a bit older, though not old, with the closing track from Wolf Parade’s stellar debut, “Apologies to the Queen Mary.” This would have a great closer for this playlist, too, but we wanted to go a little softer. Consider this the crescendo. “This Heart’s On Fire” is propulsive, high-energy and the perfect way to capture the power of love...not like that Huey Lewis song.

David Berman, in the early days of Silver Jews, would write story songs of scorned lovers and fringe dwellers that were as much poetry and music. Then he found love, and his wife, Cassie Berman, joined his band. How fitting is it that David and Cassie can both be heard singing on this, the final song from the band’s final album? This is a more practical love song than others, but it takes all kinds.

Sure, a song from 1988 sticks out on this playlist from a time standpoint. On the other hand, the sound and content fit perfectly. Plus, it’s just a beautiful song. It’s simple, and it never says anything overtly romantic. And yet, is there any line as romantic as “I just wanna be your tugboat captain?” Of course, since he is yearned from this, and saying it is a place where he’d be happy, one assumes he is not where he wants to be. Maybe Lloyd Dobler should have blared this from his boombox instead of “In Your Eyes.”

“In San Francisco” sounds so mournful, but it isn’t. There is just an aching sound in the vocals that hits you in the spine. While the first verse focuses on heartbreak, the second verse is a truly beautiful declaration of love. We’re bringing you down, and maybe making you tear up, but perhaps they will be tears of joy.

“Two Slow Dancers” closed Mitski’s “Be the Cowboy,” which came out only last year. It’s a perfect closing song. It really only works as a denouement, which is a little tricky, because it’s not all THAT romantic. Well, it is, but in a somber way. It seems to be about two reunited people sharing a dance they don’t want to end because they don’t want to go back to their lives apart. On the other hand, the song can be what you make of it. It could certainly evoke something more beautiful; something more positive to you. Whatever it makes you feel, there is an undeniable romance to it even if it is tinged with regret.