Tear-stained cheeks, tubs of Ben&Jerry’s, early morning calls, high school canteen love … we’ve all been there. In my personal experience, nothing comes close to music playing an almost healing factor in making and breaking up. From folk to soul to pure soundscapes, here, follow a few personal favourites:

Ray LaMontagne – This Love Is Over

Album – God Willin’ & The Creek Don’t Rise

With a sound similar to Otis Redding and Nick Drake, Ray LaMontagne is an American singer-songwriter, this track is taken from the album ‘God Willin’ & The Creek Don’t Rise,’ released in 2010. With a distinct contemporary Folk style, this song takes me back to high school. Where does it take you?

Air – Playground Love

Album – The Virgin Suicides

I stumbled across this band around the time I watched The Virgin Suicides, Sofia Coppola’s feature length directorial debut, and was hooked. A French electronic duo with heavy influences of Pink Floyd and lesser known European electronic artists like Tangerine Dream and Laurent Garnier, Air has been on the scene since 1995 helming the age of space-rock and neo psychedelic. This album is characterized by a lack of lyrics but this track takes a detour from that and renders something absolutely beautiful.

Cat Power – Wonderwall (cover)

Chan Marshall, or as known by her stage name, Cat Power is an American singer-songwriter. With a cigarettes and scotch voice, critics have rightly labeled her style including heavy influences of soul, blues and folk. With collaborations with artists like Eddie Vedder and Dave Grohl to her name, she’s a less known but extremely talented singer with her originals topping the charts back in early 2000s. Personally, I’m not a big fan of covers, especially when it comes to classics but there’s just something about this track. See for yourself.

The Roots – You’ve Got Me

Album – Things Fall Apart

A hip-hop/soul duo formed in 1987 in Philadelphia are known for their jazzy and eclectic approach to hip-hop featuring live instruments. Sometimes hailed as the first legitimate hip-hop band, in this track they collaborate with Erykah Badu, known as Eve Of Destruction back then. Erykah Badu, known best for her Billie Holiday vocals and a deep soulful sensibility to her voice lends her voice to this single.

Submotion Orchestra – Sunshine

Album – Finest Hour

A seven piece band formed in 2009 in Leeds, UK with their influence of bass, ambient electronic and smooth vocals that somehow sits on an axis between Bonobo and London Grammar. In this particular track, the texture is created by the lush keyboards and trumpets to compliment Ruby Wood’s vocals and Ruckspin’s production.

Mononome – Don’t Come Back 

EP –  Come Close

A sample based composer, Mononome belongs to the new wave of Greek hip-hop electronic producers and emerged into the Greek electronic scene in 2007. Dusty vinyl samples and jazzy layering, this particular track, is a personal favourite with its distinct Jazz sounds on top of hard drums and chop loops.

Trentemoller – Miss You (Neus Remix)

Album – The Last Resort

A Danish electronic composer and producer, Trentemoller broke out into the electronic scene in the late 1990s and established his place as a respected producer by remixing the works of high-profile artists like Moby. This particular album was his detour from traditional electronic sounds to more experimental soundscapes. The original of this track remains a classic, this particular remix by Neus (or Gael), a French producer who came onto the scene in 2010, strikes the chord with me. You don’t get to mix sounds of artists such as Trentemoller without possessing serious ability.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TMR-kE7-gM

Nitin Sawhney – Homelands

Album – Beyond Skin

Nitin Sawhney, is a British-Indian music composer, producer and producer. His sound usually combines influences from downtempo electronic and nu jazz and themes of multiculturalism, politics and spirituality. This particular track with the vocals of Sawhney and British-Brazilian singer Nina Miranda, has a heavy ethnic influence rooted in the India-Pakistan nuclear situation. Although making a political statement, this track has a particularly haunting quality to it.

Bob Dylan – It Ain’t Me Babe

Album – The Other Side Of Bob Dylan

“The only wrong Dylan ever did to his women was by leaving them,” is a quote often used to describe Dylan’s hold over women, and the simplicity with which he expresses his feelings. Originally written for his girlfriend, Suze Rotolo, the first lines of the song is a parody of the Beatle’s track, “She Loves You.” Much is said about Dylan’s music world over, but this is one track that never gets old.

Ella F. & Louis Armstrong – Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off

Album – Ella And Louis Again

This particular track, a special duet between jazz stars Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, is probably the most self-explanatory song to exist on confusion of love.

Instead of offering up comforting words, I’ve given you songs that will serve as memorable companions through this. Let them add a tinge of sweet to the bitter and you’ll be good [much like a whiskey sour].

Featured Image: huffingtonpost.com