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The Roundtable: Nap Time

Who do you want to play you to sleep?

Everybody loves to sleep, and some people like music to listen to while they sleep. I, for one, hate listening to music while I try to sleep, but this week our writers get asked a tough question. What band would you pick to play you to sleep for the rest of your life?

Mark Steffen - I'm going to have to go with Xiu Xiu.  That seems a little out there, but remember: you do your best creative thinking in your sleep.  What could help you dream of weird, awkward, perverse, truthful things more than Jamie Stewart screeching about biting, fucking, hurting, loving and blowing things up?  If nothing else, the resultant plethora of demented dreams would make me appreciate my relatively normal waking-life a lot more.

Dominick Mayer - By all accounts I should say Iron and Wine, but I don't really enjoy it, an effective sleep aid though it might be. So, I'm gonna go with Sigur Ros on this one. Now, this does have its hazards, me falling asleep sobbing being chief among them, but this having been said their music is in most cases a sonic lullaby. If you don't see the lullaby quality, get their "Heima" DVD and watch them play in snowy forests. So gorgeous. Plus, there are worse things than having a trio of jovial Scandanavian men lull me to sleep. I mean...er...uh...football and other man things...

Amy Dittmeier - I use to have a bedtime play list, a compilation of soothing songs by different artist that helped me fall asleep during those difficult nights.  Thing is, these were all different musicians who were for the most part didn't have soft and sweet music in their repertoire.  I don't listen to what people would call nice music.  My music library has a lot of guitars, a lot of anger, and a lot of bad language.  This doesn't make for an ideal bedtime lullaby.  Even some of my "softer" artists such as the Frames, Damien Rice, and Death Cab for Cutie are omitted from this question because of their depressing music.  I don't want to wake up and kill myself in the morning.  I think the goal of picking a band to play you to sleep is to wake up refreshed and not suicidal.

But there is less harsh selections in my collection that could act as a sleep aid.  Dario Marianelli is a film composer who won an Oscar for his original score for Atonement and has written music for V for Vendetta, Pride and Prejudice, and last and certainly least The Brothers Grimm.  Though the Atonement soundtrack is q uite incredible, it's a little too dark and percussive to fall asleep to.  But his score to Pride and Prejudice is perfect.  It's uplifting, gorgeously composed, and is the soundtrack to my personal dreams about meeting Mr. Darcy in old timey England.  I don't think a full concert orchestra could fit in my studio, but if it could that's what I would want to fall asleep to.  Or if Dario could just bring a baby grand and play me the piano, I guess that could work too.  I'm not picky.

Andrew Scott - Some may have that certain pair of pjs, or maybe a special midnight snack they have to have before they even think of hitting the hay, but in my case, and maybe yours too, I have to pick my bedtime music. Often times I switch around my bedtime mix or pick a new album to try out, but no matter what, I always have that one standby band that has never let me down. Don’t take this the wrong way – I’m not instantly put to sleep because of the dullness factor, but because of the amazing sense of relaxation that follows.

Bloomington’s own Husband&Wife is my bedtime band of choice.  Given my druthers, I’d have them playing though Operation:Surgery every night at my bedside.  With a serenity and sincerity unmatched by most bands, Husband&Wife deliver an amazing sound that both encompassed the happiest and most depressing moments in life simultaneous.  Their serious representation of sorrow and lightheartedness makes for truly emotion evoking songs. 

While all this emotionalism may be a bit overwhelming for some, I challenge you to listen to an album all the way through and tell me you aren’t filled with overwhelming joy.  And everyone knows you should never go to bed angry.  Give them a listen here.

Posted by Wes Soltis on Oct 23, 2009 @ 9:00 am