SOBER SOC

My top 6 favourite music artists of all time! – Boris Yu

Hey Sexy Sobes,

My experience with sober soc started with a familiar experience. I never really understood the joys of alcohol and I made a promise with a friend when we were both very young that we would both wait until we were 18 and drink our first pint together. (Both kept the promise btw)

It was always weird to me that people love drinking alcohol, but what some love more is pressuring people to drink. Now I am 19 and enjoys the casual pint but still don’t see the excitement. Not saying that you shouldn’t touch a drop of alcohol before you are 18 but it’s a good skill to socialise with people without a reliance on alcohol.

Then I joined sober soc probably the best decision I made in DCU!!!
The people are so nice and friendly and now on committee as the PRO, the atmosphere within the committee is comforting and wholesome. (I swear Gibby did not pay me to say this)

As we are approaching the holidays and the new year’s I would like to recommend you some of my favourite artists below. These songs feel better than alcohol (In my very bias opinion), better than a kebab (I love kebabs, but this is pure facts) and better when listening with friends!!!

Porter Robinson
One of my favourite DJ and song writer. Discovered him years ago with his song shelter a true masterpiece btw. His unique understanding of electric music is so beautiful and reflective. Really became my favourite when he released his first few tracks of nurture in his music event secret sky.
His new album Nurture is by far one of the most joyful and awesome journeys I’ve been on.

Recommended tunes
Musician
Look at the Sky
Mirror
Shelter
Goodbye to a world

Joe Hisaishi
This man was my role model and inspiration for picking up music and studying it for 6 years of secondary school. The man that made the studio Ghibli films magical. Spirited away and Howls moving castle. There is not much I can comment on other than that he is the definition of nostalgic music and a god at composing it.

Recommended tune
Merry go round of life
One summers day
Summer
A town with an ocean view
The name of life

Ryuichi Sakamoto
Another Japanese music composer for film. (Not a huge fan of movies but a huge fan of movie music soundtracks) I knew him trough a song called Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence. His true craftsmanship is shown in his works. The attention to history and detail is easily heard in his soundtrack that he composed for the film the last emperor it was the last movie to ever use the Chinese royal palace as a shooting ground for film. (Great film btw)

Recommended tunes
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
Rain
The last emperor
Wuthering Heights
A flower is not a flower

Sapient Dream/ Slushii. I wish I could pull off that hair.

Sapient Dream
He is now known by many as Slushii however there was a time he was known as sapientdream and many of his songs had a style of sorrow and reflective tone. His music is sampled by many artists for rap beats. Unfortunately, his music recently is nothing like the era of sapientdream however his songs still resonate with me on a different dimension. Love his tunes when having the DMC’s (Deep meaningful conversations) at my friend’s house at like 5 in the morning.

Recommended tunes
Past lives
Walls
Stargazing
Night sky
Sleep

FKJ/ French Kiwi Juice the King of Improv.

FKJ aka French kiwi juice
Found his music trough a gem of a song known as Tadow and was impressed once I found out it was done in 1 take and most of it was improvised?!?!?!!!!!!!
Do you know the pure skills required to do what this guy does is completely nuts! His live session Ylang Ylang available on YouTube is a weekly watch for me.

Recommended tunes
Tadow
10 years ago
Ylang Ylang
100 roses
Brother

Radwimps (they make some banging soundtracks)

Radwimps
I grew up watching anime and the openings all slap ranging from Naruto to one piece (recent arcs SLAP btw) to JOJO and you get the idea. Came across a movie called Your Name in 2016 absolute masterpiece and the soundtrack was so unbelievable I came crawling for more and I discovered these lads. Recently they did the soundtrack for the same studio that made weathering with you also a 10/10 film because they had a 10/10 soundtrack. Drop everything and go listen Right this moment!!!!!

Recommended tunes
スパークル
前前前世
Sparkle
Grand escape
Is There Still Anything That Love Can Do?

These are some of the artists and tunes that I feel you could have a listen to and enjoy, let us know your reviews on the sober soc Instagram that you follow by now. (You follow it right ??????)

Other than that, that is all from me enjoy Christmas and the new year!!!

GOODA BYE MY BESTO FRIENDO,

Boris Yu/Mr. PRO/ Jack of all trades/Busy Bori/ insta guy/ your best friend ❤

Blog is back Baby

Hello Sober blog oh how i have missed you. For those who are unaware the Sober blog is a special place where you can basically write a blog about whatever you want, sometimes we get very deep and reflective, other times we talk about our favorite type of music, our relationship with alcohol and so much more son please join me your very technologically inept Chair/ Substitute Webmaster Andrew Gibbons for another year of writing whatever is on our mind. If you ever want to write a blog yourself don’t be afraid to message us or one of our committee members.I’m not sure if I want to get deep right away or maybe ease you all into the blog first.

I think I’ll ease you all into it. Sober is of course events you can remember, where we provide events and promote the idea that you don’t need to consume alcohol to have fun. We are not against drinking alcohol and are by no means any pioneers of Sobriety but we want to provide a safe and inclusive space for everyone in college. That is Sobers’ goal.

My story with Sober is a strange one to say the least, I was basically chased around the Clubs & Socs fair by Former S.U man Dylan Mangan who was Sobers P.R.O at the time, he eventually convinced me to join and I did reluctantly. I didn’t really understand what Sober was at the time so it wasn’t a society that I was interested in. But then I became more involved in Sober and now it’s literally my favorite and most cherished society in DCU. It was my best decision in college to join this society. I’ve met so many incredible people who are friends I will have for life.

We call Sober a family because we are all so close knit. Some of my absolute best friends have been on the Sober committee and I know from experience that they will always have my back no matter what. I get sick quite a bit, it’s a long story but every single time I was sick everyone in Sober always made sure I was okay. Did any work I had to do and never made a single complaint. The members, committee and former committee of Sober are some of the most amazing, special people I have ever met. I always felt welcome in Sober, I was never intimidated by anyone or anything. It’s such a special society and I’m so lucky to be able to be the Chair of the Committee this year.

Blog is going to come back in a big way over the coming weeks and second semester. I can’t wait for all the wonderful blogs to come! You don’t want to miss it!

Stay Trunky Kids,

Arrivederci,

Andrew/Gibby/ The G/ Gibdog/ Gibbylicious/ The Gibbinator 2000.

The Last Blog – Ruth Guildea

Hello, hello, hello! If you don’t know me or it’s been a while since you have heard from me, my name is Ruth and I am the chair (actually Gibby is now the chair) of Sober. I am currently finishing up my degree at DCU and well… it is time to say goodbye.

I like to imagine there is a glass cabinet in my mind and it has different moments held behind its transparent door. All the life defining moments you know? The fragments all taped together in one framed picture. First and last days of school, meeting my best friends and boyfriend, family events, first job, and first day on the Sober Committee. I did not, at all, want to join any society. I found the start of college hard and I worried that I would never find my tribe in the three precious years I was going to have at DCU. One night, before I was set to meet some friends from home, Killian (our current PRO, next year’s treasurer, and the boy I mentioned from the glass cabinet) asked me to pop along to Sober’s UGM and see what I thought. I was unwillingly nominated for Pat’s Rep BUT I actually kind of wanted it after seeing the people already in Sober talk about it. When I was elected, I suddenly felt that college wasn’t going to be so hard.

This feeling has stayed with me when I became Events Officer and this year, becoming chair. I am beyond blessed to have sat on three committees that all became a part of my family, a part of my glass cabinet. I guess I wonder if it was fate or was it luck? I could have told Killian no, I could have declined my nomination but something just felt right. Sober has a way of making you feel like you can be you. Was it fate or was it luck? It doesn’t matter now. Last year’s committee picture in Henry Grattan is still my screensaver on my laptop, Ruairí Egan’s Sober print hangs on my wall, I wear the merch made by our BDOs, and I have my Sober pin on my bag.

These past few weeks I have been pretty emotional (ask Roisín my gorgeous vice chair!), I have just wept anytime we talked). I have received an offer to do my masters in Queens, Belfast and the thoughts of leaving DCU and the home I have built has been pretty daunting. That is the great thing about homes though, you can always come back to them. The door is always open, the kettle will be on, and someone will always be in a Sober jumper. But it’s time. I have bought the frame and the collage of Sober Soc pictures will sit in the cabinet any day now.

At every Sober meeting, the committee will share their peaks and bleaks to bond us all together so I will share mine one last time. My peak of my three years was meeting so many amazing people and getting to be a part of their lives. From my first hangover hub to my last, movie nights, Soberbowls, Sobars, and everything in between- these people have helped me have the best experience of everything. As for my bleak? Maybe not having Soberstock 2020 (if you know, you know).

As hard as it is to leave Sober and DCU behind, I cannot wait to look back at my time here and share the pictures in my mind with the new people in my life. So this is goodbye.

The glass cabinet mindset has served me pretty well.

Some of Sobers loveliest pictures over the years

Flaws – Andrew Gibbons

If you’re anything like me the most complicated relationship you’ve ever had is with yourself. Throughout most of my life I haven’t had a very high opinion of myself. Whether it was my weight, ability at sports, feeling like I was always the least favorite friend, there was always something nagging at me in the back of my head. I then found out I had “obsessive anxiety” which basically means that in order for me to function normally I have to constantly be worried about something and this causes me to become both mentally and physically incredibly sick at times.

Remember that time I chilled out with a Kitten for a day and named her Cookie.

This caused me to go down a downward spiral of self-loathing because “how can I feel so dreadful and have such horrible thoughts running through my head when I’ve lived a relatively normal life”. I struggle a lot with this feeling. This isn’t something that just got magically better for me but I’ve learned to live with it in some regard.

This may sound very strange but there’s apart of me that is glad it hasn’t gone away. Like the way I think, is apart of who I am. If my anxiety suddenly got better, and I thought differently. I feel apart of me would be lost. For better or for worse I’m Andrew, nobody else. I don’t want to be anybody else. I may be a mess but I’m my own mess.

We all have our own problems and how we deal with them is up to us. I’m not very good with dealing with my problems. It takes me a long time before I really figure out a way to solve it. It’s like an assignment that I constantly put off until the last second. I know I can probably figure out some way to deal with it but I just don’t want to. What if it doesn’t work? What if after trying so hard to deal with my problems it becomes worse or it doesn’t work out at all, I’ve done so much and got nothing to show for it. This is how I’ve lived for a long time. But man living like that is no fun at all. It’s a leap of faith, be ambitious, try to reach the highest peaks you can get to.

Overcoming your own problems can be a high enough obstacle to climb but then having ambitious goals and dreams on top of that can seem like such an incredibly difficult task that you begin to think why bother when I can just go for a snug, warm nap instead and stay where you are.

Take it one step at a time. It’s a big mountain to climb you don’t need to sprint to the top. Take the steps you are ready for. One of the hardest things I’ve ever done is go on nights out. I was terrified of going out because I was afraid people would make fun of me, I would do something stupid. Just small things that stopped me from taking that step.

For most people mustering the courage to go on a night out with your friends may not be a huge milestone but for me it was. It was a massive change for me. Which leads me on to my last point. I felt guilty for such a long time because I thought my problems were stupid and that people would tell me I shouldn’t feel like this because I’ve no “real problems” to worry about.

Don’t let anyone tell you how to feel. Your problems are relevant to you. If something truly upsets you, worries you or even makes you ill. That problem is relevant, no matter how small it is and don’t let anyone tell you different. Express your emotions, don’t keep them bottled up forever no matter how silly they may seem. You are you, flaws and everything, you are the main character of your story. So tell your story the way you see fit, embrace your flaws and reach for the highest peak you can but do so in your own time .

You are all so special x – Andrew

Love and Loss – Roisín McArdle

I’m sitting here at 8:29pm on a Monday night writing this piece from my car, at the beach. Not where I expected to be at the end of third year on a monday night. Right about now, I’d imagine I would be running between XG14 and the solas room, finding any excuse to join an event of some sort.

Over the last year, we all have experienced more love and loss than I believe anyone thought possible. These are two very conflicting feelings, love and loss, which makes it all the more insane that we’ve experienced both of them at the same time; insane and confusing. Coming to the end of my time in DCU and my time with the incredible SoberSoc, I’ve had more than enough time with my own thoughts to think about everything that’s happened not only in the last 12 months but throughout my time in DCU. Anytime I’ve tried to write about it I find those two emotions always fighting for the front seat in my head; love and loss. The question I’ve always ended up with is the same – Can they live alongside each other?

Let’s talk about loss. We’ve all lost this past year. We’ve lost out on a year on campus, we’ve lost out on travel, on job offers, on friendships and relationships, pretty much life as we know it all of a sudden became this big bubble of loss. Sounds negative, right? While going through something personal recently, a friend of mine said something very wise to me. The only way out is through. If we don’t allow ourselves to discuss what we’ve lost, we can never allow ourselves to get past it.

As someone who has been involved in society life from day one, the loss of my on campus time has been pretty grave for me. I feel like that part of myself has been slowly disappearing, the part of myself I really really liked. The girl who would run a mile in her underwear around campus for charity. The girl who would miss the last bus home to support her friends in their show. The girl who’d split herself in three if it meant that no one was let down. COVID has seemed to make her disappear, and that’s hard to deal with. I’ve had some incredibly tough blows in the last few weeks in my personal life through relationships and job offers, meaning looking ahead and not seeing the plan I had once thought out so clearly. Lastly, I lost my granny to COVID-19 in April of last year. My granny was my best-friend, my role model and one of the most special people in my life. The pandemic meant that I couldn’t grieve in the way I’ve always known, making a difficult situation even harder. I feel knocked and worn out. I’m a pretty private person, and my losses are things I’m still dealing with, but I share with you all in the hopes that you take one thing away – your losses matter. Whether it’s a friendship, a job, a holiday, a grievance. Your loss is your loss. Big and small.

My losses have made me realise just how much love I have alongside them. In the last year, me and my family have become closer than ever before. From taking turns at doing the cooking, to welcoming new puppies into our house, it’s been time with them I never thought I would need, but I did. I developed a stronger love for spending time at the beach, which brings me so much joy and I feel so lucky to have had so close to me at this time. I’ve seen my community come together in ways that I would’ve never imagined, banding together to make sure no one was ever alone. That is love at its strongest.

My time in DCU has awarded me with friendships that I had only ever read about in books. The kind of friends that will stay up till 5am with you on your bad nights. Who will make sure you’re never without a lift home. Friends who, when you hear a song, you’ll know to run to the dance floor because there’s a full dance routine and she needs a partner. Friends who convince you to dance on a pole for charity just because they say please. Friends who, for the rest of my life, I know are a phone call away. You know who you are. DCU has given me the chance to travel all over the world with friends, from theatres in London to ice rinks in Budapest. I’ve been given opportunities to volunteer, to act, to dance, to fundraise, to speak, to be the best version of myself – a better Roisín than I ever thought possible. DCU has given me love in its most raw and incredible form, and I can only hope I’ll experience that again sometime.

Love and loss don’t always have to fight for the front seat in your life. In times like these, it’s now more important than ever to be gentle with yourself and know that what you’re feeling is more than valid, it’s important. I get some sense of imposter syndrome as I speak about loss, as I am still working through my own. Somedays it feels like I’ll never be over the losses I’ve been through recently. But it’s one foot in front of the other for me, and if it’s the same for you, that is okay. Without the loss, how could we ever see and appreciate the love? The only way out is through.

I feel forever in debt to DCU for the love that it’s given me, and something about signing my last blog post for Sober Soc is really, well, sobering. This society has been integral to my growth and I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved together. My committee are my family, and I could not have experienced it all without my partner in crime, Ruth. I’m in awe of you everyday girl, I’ll miss you!!

Sobersoc, I cannot wait to see what you do next. I’ve no doubt you’ll make me proud.

Forever and always, your vice-chair,

Rosh Xx

The First Year Takeover!!!

The college year is coming to an end and we’re feeling a bit sentimental so we decided we’d have a little look back at our year. We’ve had many events including Hangover Hub, movie nights and our new Happy Hour. Unfortunately covid has destroyed in person events again this year, but it didn’t destroy the sense of family you feel as a part of sober! We decided to ask three of our first year members what they felt at the end of their first year as a sober member and they have some lovely things to say!

Emmet Bellew
Starting college in the midst of the pandemic was certainly a strange experience. Between being only on campus once every two weeks or the ever-present social restrictions, it quickly became clear that I would have to find friends in a new way. That is how I found about Sober Soc. I remember watching their promo video as I was browsing the list of DCU’s societies and thinking the society seemed like a group of chill and friendly people. Well, when I showed to my first Sober event that is certainly what I found. Everybody was so welcoming and Sober Soc definitely played a big part in me settling into online college life in DCU.

Ciara Carragher
When I first started DCU, as many other first years, I attended many society events with an open mind to find which ones to join that I’d like to be a part of. When I went to the sober quiz event, I first noticed the inclusive and friendly atmosphere of the society that immediately drew me in. After attending most of the hangover hubs on Wednesday afternoon, I’ve realized that this society is so welcoming to anyone who comes along and joins. All of the committee are such nice people who made the first years feel welcomed and comfortable from the moment we joined. You don’t have to be sober to join as one might think, it’s just a safe place to socialize and have fun without the addition of alcohol at events! I’ve really enjoyed attending the weekly Hangover hubs where you can just have a chat with a cup of tea. It’s a great way to break the week and socialize, especially with the absence of campus life. I hope to be a part of this society for a long time!

Robbie Sweeney
Sober was one of the first societies I joined in university and honestly I’m so happy I joined , the overall friendly vibe really made my first year in university amazing. I love attending hangover hub because the activities and conversations are always inclusive and the committee always engages & involves new members in conversations. Probably my favourite thing about sober is the people within the society, they are all so amazing, super cool and very friendly 🙂

They’re so wholesome!! We love you too first years ❤️

It’s My Party and I’ll Cry if I want to – Síofra O’Dwyer

Truer words were never sung, Lesley Gore. My mum always used to sing this song in the car on the way to school, and little did she know at the time it was a prophecy for her youngest daughter. I’ve cried at my eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth birthdays – and there was a common factor at all of these events, as one might expect: alcohol.

The best way that I can describe my relationship with alcohol is that it enhances. If I’m in a good mood, a woo woo and a baby guinness can make me feel on top of the world. Everything is funnier, more attractive, technicolour. Conversely, if I’m feeling stressed, anxious, or down in any way, a drink will knock me for six and I’ll end up bawling my eyes out. It’s something that took me a long time to admit to myself because I didn’t want to give up on the fun that drinking can bring, but now that the pandemic has aged me 2949603 years, I’m old and wise and can admit that the one thing that alcohol doesn’t do is cheer me up.

For context, here’s a list of some of the reasons I’ve cried while drunk. Enjoy.

I thought my mum was mad at me (she wasn’t).
A random boy told me he hated me.
Someone told me my boyfriend at the time cheated on me (he didn’t).
***Homophobia***
The Leaving Cert.
I thought my friend was mad at me (she wasn’t).
My friend fell asleep in the bathtub with the door locked at my birthday party and I thought he was missing (and that I, as host, was the one who lost him).
Someone tried to shake my hand (hope I don’t have to clarify that this was during covid).
Lockdown!

A good cry is one of my favourite things in the world – it’s therapeutic and the sleep you get after it is lethal. A drunk cry doesn’t necessarily share these attributes though. The next morning, I tend to wake up feeling frustrated that my emotions got out of control, guilty that I ruined the night of whoever ended up looking after me, and sad as I’m faced with yet another ruined pair of SoSueMe eyelashes (although isn’t she cancelled now, so that’s not really relevant).

I’m getting by in lockdown and I’m very fortunate to be in the situation that I’m in, but there’s no denying that the current circumstances bring a pretty much perpetual underlying stress or sadness. It doesn’t take much for alcohol to pull that to the forefront and send me into a salty tailspin of misery. So I’ve definitely found myself drinking less since the pandemic hit, which is no bad thing. I am, however, looking forward to (hopefully) a summer riding the highs of post-level-five life, where my mood will be too good for even vodka to drag down.

Here’s hoping that twenty one will break the tradition of crying on my birthday – I’ll keep you all posted.

Love, Síofra x
https://youtu.be/mIsnIt1p978
Banger

Mother’s Day!

Happy Mothers day you beautiful Sobes. Here at Sober Soc we celebrate Mother’s day by thinking of our amazing Sober Mom’s!!!

Our always fabulous former Events Officer Chloe McDonnell

Another truly unbelievable former Events Officer Sorcha Murphy!

Our absolutely amazing former Chair Aoife Brady

We truly have been so lucky with the amazing people Sober have had in the past and of course the present. Don’t worry Sober Dad’s the day will come for you too, but today is about our Sober Mom’s and how truly incredible they are. Today is a really special day, so take a step back, have a break and spend the day with your Mam if you can or the Mother like figures in your life.

We are living in a really odd time at the moment, and days like this can be a really lovely break or be very difficult. So please look after yourself. Take a break for a day. Sit back listen to your favorite song, watch your favorite movie or call a friend or a loved one. Today is Mother’s day but you can always just celebrate the amazing women in your life too. This is a day that hopefully is filled with love. So try your best to ignore any worries that are in the back of your head and try to have a lovely day.

I really hope you all have a really special Mother’s day, one that’s filled with everything that makes your Mam happy. Happy Mother’s day to you all, and Happy Mother’s day Sober Mom’s we miss you all so much.

Stay Groovy Kids-
Andrew/Gibby.

Lennon or McCartney? – Ruairí Flynn

It seems like an innocuous question. Or at least, it’s a question that we should expect from our culture of extremes and not enough middle ground, with Beatles or Stones, Blur or Oasis and Spots or Stripes. On the one hand, it’s kind of pointless. Like yin or yang? We’re talking about one of the most influential and famous writing duos in music history, who were at the helm of some band whose name escapes me. But I find it pretty interesting that this simple question has a lot to it that’s worth exploring, about the differences between the two men, their perception from our culture at large and what our preferences say about ourselves. And a lot of what I say is plagiarised from the comments of this YouTube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSwUzM_nTGM

“A little better all the time,” Paul “It can’t get no worse” John

Often, the lore of an artist overshadows them as real people, as Bowie once said, “I am only what the greatest number of people believe me to be.” The public eye creates characters and sometimes caricatures out of its subjects. George wasn’t really all that quiet, John wasn’t necessarily just a tortured artist and Paul wasn’t just a happy go lucky man prancing around in the meadows. But I can’t deny these reputations take on some meaning.

Let’s take the question; Lennon or McCartney? The breakdown of answers in the video are fascinating. A great number of musicians refer to Paul, he is the most well-rounded and talented Beatle as a musician and songwriter, while actors often name John, he has a more attractive (and dysfunctional) image. Furthermore, the cooler the person thinks of themselves the more likely they say Lennon. All these things give us some insight into what is more attractive in our culture.

The truth may be that people lean more towards Lennon because of all the things he represents in our unhealthy obsession with celebrity. He had a troubled past, struggled with demons in many forms and died, still young, fighting for a cause. Lennon is deified. In one sense, he has taken on a greater meaning that people attach to him with hope while others attempt to tear that down to reveal some ugly aspects of his life. Either way, he has lost humanity and is no longer viewed as mortal. The lore has overtaken the man. Now look at McCartney. A well-adjusted, level-headed man who has lived to his elderly years. He has no great scandals, has a great public persona and no need to be lauded or adored yet precisely because of these things, he is uncool (to some). He is too familial and familiar, not our traditional imagining of a rockstar (which has been deeply tarnished in recent years but we won’t get into that.)

So let me finish this by discussing the music. Looking just at the Beatles music, the yin and yang of the duo is shown with ones they wrote individually. “Strawberry Fields Forever” and “Penny Lane” are written about their homes with much different results. For every “Blackbird,” there is a “Julia” and for every “Helter Skelter,” there is a “Yer Blues.” But together, music would be a lot poorer without the songwriting pair of Lennon-McCartney. So when someone asks Lennon or McCartney? Just say Harrison.

Songs that had me feeling some kinda way in 2020/2021 – Tarryn McCoy

Listen, I know everyone is sick of talking about lockdown and the pandemic, because that’s all everyone seems to talk about, so I decided to use this space to talk about some songs that had me feeling some kinda way in 2020/2021.

Drivers License Olivia Rodrigo

Tarryn is an Icon oh my god

Oh my god. Drivers License man, song of the century!!! The way I ugly cry/scream/belt this song is so unnecessary, it sounds awful, even worse my boyfriend is usually beside me while I sing it oops. Do I feel personally attacked by the blonde girl lyric? Yes but in the best way possible. I can’t even drive and I feel so SEEN. Imagine being 17 and having the ability to write something like that, it’s so crazy because when I was 17 I literally couldn’t read. Also note I am wearing an oodie with otters on it, and otters hold paws whilst sleeping so they don’t float away from each other, and that also has me feeling some kinda way.

Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat Steven McRae, Robbie Fairchild

ROB KENNY WHAT A BEAUTIFUL MAN.

I haven’t seen any of my friends in months, and last summer my dear friend, and Sober alumnus Rob Kenny came down to visit me for a week. Something about Rob that I just adore is how much he makes me laugh, yet when he whipped out this Irish ass dance/jig/tap dance to Skimbleshanks The Railway Cat I swear to god I think about it at least once a day. I can’t even explain it to you, so here’s actual footage, enjoy.

Sofia Clairo

YAS CLAIRO GIVE US NOTHING!!! I love her so much honestly. I remember listening to Sofia around the same time I came out as bisexual (happy rainbow week!!!) and it just had me feeling so warm and nice, rather than sexualising girl on girl relationships which is so common in the media, it actually offered a really romantic outlook on the whole thing. That was really comforting to hear, because I always kinda knew i was bi, but had that inner conflict of “oh maybe I’m not and I just think girls are pretty or I just want attention”, but Sofia was one of the moments that made me think “oh no, this is real”.

Just Like Magic Ariana Grande

If you haven’t listened to this song I highly recommend that you do, because when I heard this song for the first time I felt so inspired to just better myself, and around that time I was really struggling with my mental health. To hear so much positivity, with manifestation as a central point of the song was so inspiring, and it actually helped me spur myself on and keep going. If you try your best to radiate positive energy, positive energy will find its way to you.

Forgive Me Chloe x Halle

Chloe x Halle deserve all of the hype in the world, just listen to their album Ungodly Hour, the harmony lines, the production level, it all just WORKS. Beyoncé is a producer on the album and you can really hear her influence throughout the album, but Forgive Me is just one of those songs that you wish you had written, it really is genius.

WAP Cardi B ft. Megan Thee Stallion

Okay how do i talk about this without getting into trouble, you all know it. I don’t need to explain it, it’s amazing I love it. You know what I mean.

The entirety of Harry Styles’ album; Fine Line

Doggos and a can of Monster in the sun what a Vibe

This album is an actual masterpiece, hate on Harry stans all you want but it is just so well crafted and put together, his whole heart went into this album. From COUCOUUUUU to his screaming at the end of Sunflower Vol. 6, it all just radiates beautiful energy. I have a sappy story for this album actually, my grandmother who was my best friend in the entire world passed away in December 2019 and I was naturally distraught. To be candid, I was plunged into a state of depression and grief, then Fine Line was released, the first song on the album is Golden, which is this beautiful, upbeat, warm song that just radiates happiness. The first time I listened to the album, I heard the opening of Golden and felt this overwhelming sense of warmth, you know when you hear a song that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and you just think to yourself, “this is special”, Golden was that for me.

Lyrics like “so you wait for me in the sky” and “I don’t wanna be alone” hit me so hard and I actually felt something for the first time since my Nanny had passed away. To honour that, I actually have the word golden tattooed on my thigh, and it is my favourite tattoo that I have. If you ever want to feel some warmth from a song, Golden really is it, also if you really want to feel some kinda way there’s a video on YouTube of Harry singing Golden live with additional lyrics in the final bridge. On a less sad note though, here’s a video of me last summer with my two dogs listening to Fine Line and having a lovely time.

Special Mentions

RAIN ON ME Lady Gaga with Ariana Grande

Forever Labrinth

In My Head Ariana Grande

Garden (Say it like dat) SZA

Be Honest Jorja Smith

I have a million more songs that had me feeling some kinda way, but I don’t want to bombard you with information. Everyone has songs that mean something to them on a personal level, whether you sit crying to a song about a breakup, or you want to have a dance party in your room, just do it. Embrace the feeling of being overwhelmed by emotion, now is the time to have a cry in your room to Drivers License, but then get back up and stare at your ass in the mirror to WAP.

I hope you all have a lovely week, lots of love from your Extraordinary Member,

Tarryn xx