Lockdown can be boring. Joe Wicks’ HIIT classes are fine during the day, but as night falls, what do we do to stop us twiddling our thumbs or gestating in front of Netfilx? Well, if you do venture a web search, you’ll find everything from live-streamed concerts to ways to replicate a music festival at home.
Actually, there seems to be quite a lot of things to do in lockdown to break the monotony and stave off cabin-fever, especially when it comes to music – and who doesn’t need more music in their lives right now? I mean, what better way to pretend you’re still a socialite than flicking your lightshade from side to side, cranking up the volume and enjoying your own Living Room Disco? And for those of you who like to whistle, tap, or croon while you work, Spotify has you well and truly covered – and so does PA Business Support! Here’s what we’ve discovered in isolation…
The What Hi-Fi “Music for Self-Isolation” playlist is awesome. It’s an upbeat, humorous mix, with highlights that include some truly hilarious references to staying healthy and not going out, from Outkast’s “So Fresh So Clean” to the Bobby Womack classic, “Home Is Where The Heart Is”. “I’m Bored” by Iggy pop and “I’m Not Living In The Real World” by Belle & Sebastian may also resonate with a lot of you right now. Our favourite has got to be “Lost In The Supermarket” by The Clash, which aptly describes how the sanctioned trip to buy groceries is often the highlight of our week! Very droll, What Hi-Fi.
The shenanigans continue, as does the quarantine party, with the playlist of the same name on Spotify. Here we have (of course) Britney Spears’ “Toxic” alongside “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” by The Police (you knew it was coming!). Then there’s more of the same with Coronavirus Beats Not To Panic To, featuring a genre-defying mix of songs like “It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)” by R.E.M. and “Wash Off” by Foals. It’s a one-stop shop for all your apocalyptic needs.
There is something eerily morbid about all this, but it’s certainly been ‘a thing’ over the past few weeks, with everyone from celebrities (like Tom Hanks’ wife, Rita Wilson, who put together “Quarantunes” after they both caught the virus), to government bodies, to news organisations, all sharing their isolation selections. Even the Vietnam Ministry of Health produced a coronavirus handwashing song that launched a TikTok dance challenge which you can watch here if you haven’t seen it already…if you have, then we’re truly sorry.
If you need more visual stimulation, then Luxury London’s Working From Home (WFH) selection offers you (as they themselves describe it) a “mash-up of Korean indie, alt-rock, contemporary classical, soul, disco and R&B bangers to get you through the day”. It’s a another eclectic mix, with music from what seems like, literally, everyone, from Bob Seger to Nina Simone, Michael Kiwanuka to Drake…and even a bit of Abba. There are some great tunes in this one, and if you can listen to all of them without skipping, you are truly broad-minded (or truly bored).
And once you do reach the end of the day, if you’re having trouble relaxing or getting to sleep, the “sleep” category on Spotify is always a good bet. Heavy-lidded titles such as, ”Peaceful Piano”, which has over 5.4 million subscribers, or ”Nightstorms”, will have you drifting off into the clouds. And if that doesn’t work, we’ve got a real treat for you: a song that’s been scientifically engineered to induce sleep: Marconi Union’s “Weightlessness” is based on research into the way your heart beats, breathing patterns and human stress responses to different sounds. It comes highly recommended for anyone with anxiety as well as children, who are meant to be particularly responsive to it.
So if you’re stuck at home when everyone and their dog are either creating playlists, doing dance challenges, or hosting online raves, then you haven’t really nailed quarantine, have you? You’d better get going!
If you can’t wait to start your own quarantine party but have far too much work to do…then you need a virtual assistant – give us a call and we can provide you with someone to take on everything from diary management to marketing support and much more.
