I MADE YOU A PLAYLIST, Vol. 6: "Kindling"
A campfire state of mind. 🔥
Hello, hello, gather round! You’re receiving this particular edition of I MADE YOU A PLAYLIST because I recently attended a backyard fire pit event where no one knew what music to play, and I found myself without a sufficient fire-friendly playlist to offer. It was also inspired by my grandpa’s land in Brown County, Indiana, where he used to boil sap to make maple syrup every winter and where my dad and his siblings have continued the tradition in recent years. This is 100% where I pictured myself the whole time I was crafting this newsletter:
January is inarguably the bleakest of the winter months. It possibly makes you sad and probably makes you dread going outside. BUT—the way I see it, peak winter is an opportunity for peak coziness. You can’t be “cozy” when it’s 89 and humid in the middle of July. It just doesn’t work. So we’re going to take advantage of the frost advisory and light a dang fire!
*The fire can be real or pretend, both are equally acceptable for the purposes of this newsletter.
LISTEN
Pharmakon by Humbird
Humbird’s 2020 LP exudes top-notch cozy cabin vibes but also packs some pretty ominous undertones. (Like, perhaps you’re sharing your Airbnb with a few ghosts or there’s a spooky old portrait hanging in the hallway…) Despite their moments of darkness, I find these songs very comforting. “Bone Heat” is my favorite, partly because of the cool production but mostly because of this line right here:
Dreams that I have had drift along throughout the day
Like a cloud I caught but held too tight, and so it turned to rain
Oh, and “Eve Boards a Train” will haunt my dreams for a long, long time.
— h/t @SpencerDukoff for this rec
READ
Blair Braverman’s Ode to the Campfire for Outside Magazine
This is a lovely essay that needs little explanation, though I would like to highlight a quote from the piece that goes hand in hand with the mood of the playlist you’ll encounter later: “That’s the thing about sitting around a campfire: it makes even the smallest moments matter.”
Dana Stevens’ Review of Greta Gerwig’s Little Women for Slate
It’s absolutely no secret I love this movie, but I’m throwing this review in here anyway because it’s my favorite and also because this time last year I was in MAXIMUM obsession mode and saw Little Women in theaters three times. It’s a flawlessly cozy film and therefore the perfect flagship poster child for an entire category of cozy films called Figgy Pudding Movies—a label coined by Rachel Syme, one of my favorite writers and Twitter presences.
Chapters 15 and 16 of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s A Little Princess
If you’re at all familiar with A Little Princess, this is the scene in which Sara and Becky wake up to find warm blankets, new clothes, and the best breakfast ever waiting for them in their cold, sad, dilapidated attic room. I think about this scene LITERALLY all. the. time. It crosses my mind whenever I’m snuggled under a particularly heavy blanket, or anytime I have a fresh cinnamon roll or sausage-and-egg biscuit for breakfast, or when I’m really full but keep eating anyway because the food is so delicious and I know it won’t taste the same under any other circumstances.
This is some of the best descriptive writing I remember reading as a child. Also, I promise I’m not the only one who is obsessed with this. If you’d like to scroll straight to it, the part I’m referring to starts toward the end of Chapter 15 and continues through the beginning of Chapter 16. (If you really can’t swing the text, the movie scene is *almost* as magical.)
FOLLOW
Loré Pemberton paints adorably quaint woodland scenes that remind me of children’s books and usually make my heart explode in some tiny way. She illustrates whimsical places like “Cold Hollow” (Why are these squirrels making me so emotional?) and sweet indoor setups like this one, which features the window seat of my dreams.
My recent favorite is this very wholesome update from Mr. Mole, which maybe (definitely) made me shed more than one tear:
A letter from Mr. Mole:
Dear Friends, I’ve kept to myself lately especially as the soil begins to settle & freeze. And while the tunnels are cold & hard, my burrow smells of soft earth & bergamot. I’ve found company in my books & I’ve knit myself a fine pair of wool socks & a set of pale yellow mittens. Still, I think of spring, the hummingbirds dancing in bee balm, the river bubbling on its way & fresh earth in my paws. As the snow falls, I imagine the forest bright white, the wild branches & brambles scribbling their shapes on the blank page it offers & all my friends sleeping quietly as we wait for spring.
From, Mr. Mole, who is sometimes lonely but mostly content.
*immediately writes letter back to Mr. Mole*
PLAY
In my experience, the hallmarks of any excellent campfire or cabin scenario have nothing to do with music and everything to do with hastily-scavenged marshmallow roasting sticks, tinfoil-wrapped potatoes that always take too long to cook, and happy voices rising above the crackle of the fire as everyone squints and smiles and shivers and pretends the smoke isn’t bothering their eyes at all.
But in those moments when everyone is too busy licking melted marshmallow off their fingers or too entranced by the pretty flames and welcome warmth to spark any new conversation, you want whatever song is playing in the background to enhance the mood rather than disrupt it, right? Right.
This playlist is called “Kindling,” and it’s a little woodsy, a little country… toasty and warm with the occasional moody chill. It’s important to note that these songs work for virtual and imaginary fires as well—like, for example, crammed couch hangs with five different scented candles burning at once, or dinner gatherings with extra chairs pulled up to a table full of pasta and half-empty wine bottles. This playlist simply requires a *campfire state of mind.*
No matter what your fire looks like, if you choose to listen to this thing I’ve spent hours creating, please know this: My greatest wish is that it simply just ~fades~ into the background. The songs are solid, of course, and there is much to appreciate when you listen closely. But secretly I hope most of the time you’re hardly paying attention to the music because you’re too busy having fun. ✨
Kindling
Kids Fallin’ In Love - DOPE LEMON (one of my favorite finds from the last few months)
October Road - James Taylor
Millionaire - Chris Stapleton
Funny How Time Slips Away - Willie Nelson (time is confusing. Willie gets it.)
Hey Mama - Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats
Lowlands - Bonny Light Horseman
Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You - Bob Dylan (unsurprisingly, Nashville Skyline BobDyl is my absolute favorite BobDyl)
Almost (Sweet Music) - Hozier
Pharmakon - Humbird
Country Road - James Taylor
Ohoopee River Bottomland - Larry Jon Wilson (thanks to Brent Cobb for this recommendation. Larry rocks.)
Starting Over - Chris Stapleton
Santa Ana Winds - Waylon Payne
From Eden - Hozier
Be Here to Love Me - Townes Van Zandt
Deep In Love - Bonny Light Horseman (you could very easily lull me into a hypnotic state with this on loop for hours on end, and I wouldn’t be mad about it)
I’ve Got This Friend - The Civil Wars (pour a hot toddy out for this talented duo… long may their harmonies reign)
Cannonball! - Buck Meek
Money - Widowspeak
Willow - Taylor Swift
From Dusk to Dawn - Fever Dolls
Wildfire - Mandolin Orange (fact: you can’t listen to a Mandolin Orange song and stay stressed! this one works, too)
Don’t Cry - Charley Crockett
Rome Wasn’t Built In A Day - JD McPherson
My Loving Doesn’t Cost A Wish - Tattletale Saints (+ their cover of “Dancing Queen” is just lovely)
I Just Want to Dance With You - John Prine
Feet Off The Ground - Brent Cobb feat. Jade Bird (pure MAGIC)
Olivia - Rayland Baxter
On Trees And Birds And Fire - I Am Oak
Real Love Baby - Father John Misty
Don’t Want to Say Good-bye - Cut Worms (his quirky album from last year is worth a listen)
Morning Stay - Doc Robinson
Gentle On My Mind - Robert Ellis feat. Courtney Hartman
If Not For You - George Harrison
One of These Days - Bedouine
Still Holding On - Andrew Duhon
Supply & Demand - Wilder Woods
Marinade - DOPE LEMON
Hey Girl - Them feat. Van Morrison
I Can Help - Charley Crockett (bonus: he is a kind and wonderful gem of a human)
Keep the Fire Burning - Anderson East
Had I Known You Better Then - Hall & Oates (if you haven’t listened to Side A of Abandoned Luncheonette, do so immediately)
Harvest Moon - Sunflower Bean (to be fair, I love all “Harvest Moon” covers, but this one is especially nice)
Re: Stacks - Bon Iver (Justin Vernon = cabin vibes / cabin vibes = Justin Vernon, they are one and the same)
Winter’s Lament - Jamestown Revival
Listen to the whole thing here.
Or find it right here if you’re an Apple Music user.
Okay I suppose it’s time to go ~tend to the fire~ 🤗 Stay warm and toasty, happy and healthy, and thanks for being here!
Natalie