College is an exciting, perplexing, and often scary place. But more than anything, in my opinion, it’s a welcome change.
With its ups-and-downs and seemingly endless amounts of hectic days, music is often an escape that transports me—and, I assume, my iEdit subject—to a place of comfort. Perhaps it’s a song or playlist that you associate with a certain memory or person, general nostalgia of a bygone time, or something that is simply sonically calming, but music is of utmost importance for plenty of people.
That seems to be true for Sofia Laboy, assistant news editor and proud Jersey girl, whose iEdit reveals her sentimental feelings for her hometown and highlights the mixed feelings that college and leaving home can often conjure in all of us.
In a move that for some reason feels right for Sofia, but maybe no one else, her playlist starts off with “Rattlin’ Bog.”
It’s a favorite among college students for pregames, but Sofia seems to have a unique amount of enthusiasm for the song.
“Rattlin Bog starts the playlist because every good thing in life starts with a rattlin’ bog,” Sofia texted me in a summary of her playlist. The opening song hypes up the listener for a wild and emotional ride.
While Carlyle Fraser’s “Rattlin’ Bog” is a welcome surprise, the next nine songs flow well together. The songs, though not necessarily all of the same genre, all whisk me away with a feeling of nostalgia—the warm-tinted lens with which I view the past strengthens as I move sequentially in the playlist entitled “Emotional Whiplash.”
“Take It Easy” by the Eagles, “Read My Mind” by The Killers and “The Promise” by When In Rome all run along a similar thread in my view. All three use different sonic forms—from an acoustic guitar-based low-fi vibe to what sounds like synth-pop—yet describe the all-too-familiar feelings that connect with moving away to college.
Missed opportunities and asking for a second chance are just a few themes present in the latter two songs of this group, while the chorus of “Take It Easy” attempts to reassure me that everything should be ok.
The fifth song, Taylor Swift’s famed “All Too Well (10-minute version) (Taylor’s Version)” is probably the greatest example of the two-sided feelings that manifest themselves in the consciences of many young adults. Reminiscing on a failed relationship, Swift weaves masterfully in and out of various memories that were once beautiful but are now haunting and painful.
The next triplet of songs continues the concept. “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac, “Northern Attitude” by Noah Kahan, and “Cleopatra” by The Lumineers all create an environment of both joy and regret.
“Well, I’ve been afraid of changin’,” Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac sings.
Sofia said that Kahan’s newest album, Stick Season, makes her think about how proud and grateful she is for her small town in New Jersey. “Northern Attitude,” a song from that album, credits the narrator’s attitude to where and how he was raised: His upbringing is an unchanging part of his life and personality, no matter where he lives or how his life continues to change.
Sofia, although she’s always busy as an assistant news editor, had enough time to choose the perfect closer: “Vienna” by Billy Joel.
Joel’s classic song never fails to make me emotional, and I imagine the same is true for Sofia. The soul-piercing part of the chorus, “When will you realize Vienna waits for you?” is a beyond-classic line.
That question is something all college students—inherently ambitious, especially at a school like BC—should ask themselves.
Sofia’s collection of songs is the perfect reflection playlist to take a step back from college life for a bit. Sonically, lyrically, and conceptually Sofia provides the perfect template for a walk around the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, where you can contemplate all that has changed since you decided to attend BC.
