Gallery hoppers, Spotify stalkers, bookworms, Letterboxd users and anyone who enjoys art, this is the place for you. Makes Ya Feel highlights art across all of its mediums, small and large-scale, that (you guessed it) makes ya feel!
Spring at Middlebury is (finally) in full swing, and despite a brief snow fluke, it seems like it is planning to stay. With April coming to an end and campus finishing to bloom, I find myself listening to music that reflects the growth that is so present throughout the month. These albums sound like spring to me: warm and forgiving.
So, here are three of my most listened to albums that encapsulate April in all its showers and late-month flowers.
Rocket — Alex G
This album by Pennsylvania native Alex G is always on my rotation when spring arrives; its twangy, distorted sound provides the perfect soundtrack for any kind of spring day. Each song feels vast — like a huge grassy field — and incorporates sounds from nature, creating an unforgettable atmosphere.
“Bobby” in all of its country-twang glory is a song that explores a speaker watching his friend struggle, but promises to clean up his messes for him. “I know you,” the speaker sings, showing his friend that he doesn’t have to struggle in silence. Then there’s “Witch,” a fun yet eerie keyboard song about the struggles of being young through the metaphor of a witch: “No matter what you do/The witch burns you.”
One of my favorite tracks “Poison Root” features the sound of a dog barking in the beginning, and blends folk and psychedelic styles together. The final lyric “Now I know everything” is repeated several times, suggesting the speaker has successfully completed a journey. It is a hopeful song that is both extremely grounded and excitingly undefined.
The final track on the album, “Guilty,” uses a saxophone to create a sound reminiscent of jazz and early folk styles of music. Despite its lyrics which highlight feelings of unworthiness and insecurity, the instrumentals serve as a parallel; mellow and hazy, they argue that the harsh feelings the speaker is feeling are merely temporary.
Anak Ko — Jay Som
This album by Los Angeles based singer and producer Melina Duterte — better known by her stage name Jay Som — is a vibrant dream-pop story about change and individuality. The title is Tagalog for “my child,” and was inspired by messages Duterte received from her mother. It is this very intimacy that weaves the album together.
“Superbike” is airy and intricately layered with fuzzy melodies and personal confessions like “I’ve fallen from your lips/Straight to your fingertips.” The speaker dreams of leaving her lover behind by envisioning speeding down the highway in a motorcycle. The song takes heartbreak and turns it into an ethereal and liberating image that cannot help but get stuck in your head.
If “Superbike” is a fantasy, then “Devotion” serves as a stark contrast where the speaker becomes grounded and introspective. Here, the speaker acknowledges wanting to change, but also acknowledges that growth is not linear: “Just takes some time/To come back down to earth.” It is honest in its lyrical content, but still retains the whimsical instrumentals that appear throughout the album.
Foxbase Alpha — Saint Etienne
Saint Etienne is an English band from the 90s who are known for their unique sound that blends alternative and electronic dance styles together. “Foxbase Alpha” was their debut studio album, and to this day it is the perfect album for spring.
The first track “This Is Radio Etienne” is a mere 42 seconds long, but immediately brings an atmospheric feeling to the album, immersing listeners into their sound. The next track is a cover of Neil Young’s “Only Love Can Break Your Heart,” where the band takes the classic folk song and reimagines it into a dubstep electronic song. Listening to it not only makes you want to start swaying, but it also sounds like a perfect spring day where the sun is out and you cannot help but bask in the feeling of it all.
Then there’s “Kiss and Make Up,” which incorporates similar dubstep electronic elements to help tell the story of someone who is apologizing to a romantic partner. Lyrics like “I could never hate you” and “Let’s kiss and make up” add to the song’s playfulness. It’s a song for every occasion; I played it in the background during dinner parties with friends, studied to it and danced around with it blasting in my headphones.
My personal favorite track is “Spring,” a whimsically upbeat song about nostalgia, youth and (you guessed it) spring. With samples from “The Time Is Right For Love” by Bobby Reed and “Funky Drummer” by James Brown, this song is instrumentally complex and fun to listen to. This soundtracked my walks to and from class and kept me excited as the days progressively got warmer. “It’s only springtime” the speaker sings, and indeed it is, in all its simplistic joy.
Ellie Trinkle '26 (she/her) is the Senior Arts and Culture Editor.
She previously served as a News Editor and Staff Writer. She is a Film & Creative writing double major from Brooklyn who loves all things art. You can typically find her obsessively making Spotify playlists, wearing heaps of jewelry, or running frantically around campus.
