Tune into the Project Calm issue 11 Spotify soundtrack

This issue’s Project Calm playlist is a nurturing, musical hug and you can find it on Spotify – or tap the link below.

We were so inspired by the power of water and the female spirit while making this edition of the magazine that the powerful anthems of Florence and the Machine and Eurythmics were immediate additions to our office playlist. Peppered with songs dedicated to change, symmetry and planting ourselves with purpose, we’ve struck a harmonious compilation designed to immerse yourself in.

1. Mother – Florence and the Machine
2. Growing Pains – Birdy
3. Roots – Billie Marten
4. Here Comes the Rain Again – Eurythmics
5. I’ll Be Your Mirror – The Velvet Underground
6. Mother Protect – Niki and the Dove
7. Symmetrical – Allen Stone
8. Balance – Future Islands
9. Catching the Butterfly – The Verve
10. Rooting for You – London Grammar
11. Perfect Symmetry – Lights and Motion
12. Scotland – The Lumineers
13. Autumn Leaves – Eva Cassidy
14. Water Flow – Klyne

The stories behind the music

Mother – Florence and the Machine

Though it kicks off our playlist this issue, the rousing anthem, Mother, is the final track on Florence Welch’s third album, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful. Written in the midst of a relationship breakup, Mother is a “prayer for relief” wrote Rolling Stone. The repeated chant of “Oh Lord won’t you leave me/ Leave me on my knees/ ‘Cause I belong to the ground now/ And it belongs to me” – a wish for solace and solitude.

Here comes the rain again – Eurythmics

As fresh today as it was in 1983, Here Comes the Rain Again makes the cut for Eurythmics’ greatest hits. Written by bandmates Annie Lennox and Dave A Stewart, it follows an unusual chord structure that heightens the lyrics. “The whole song was about that undecided thing,” says Stewart. “It’s like wandering in and out of melancholy.” We’ve included the full five-minute version.

Rooting for you – London Grammar

UK trio, London Grammar, released Rooting for You on New Year’s Day 2017, and it has a decidedly bare, almost choral feel to it. Hannah Reid’s unmistakable alto tones start the song: “Let winter break/ Let it burn till I see you again...” before she soars with that incredible range she has into “It is hell and you are the only thing I’ve ever truly known.” She wrote it as an a cappella, and the music was written around it.

Want to catch up with all our playlists? You can find us on Spotify.

Listen to the playlist and enjoy a moment of calm

Photo by Daniel Gaffey and Julia Caesar on Unsplash.