Celine Song, director of A24’s “Past Lives”, curated a playlist on Spotify that sounds how her movie feels. The playlist is called “love songs about cities”, which reminisces on her recent directorial debut. Her film, “Past Lives”, has a heavy emphasis on cities. Cities, and the distances between them, are almost characters in its story. So, this playlist from Song personifies how she feels about these characters, and how she wrote them for her film.
You can find this playlist here:
Set list
Song starts her playlist with “Come Back From San Francisco” by The Magnetic Fields: a chill, slow-burn track, similar to the vibe of “Past Lives”. The playlist surges in energy as the songs descend, ending with “Blue Night On Jeju” by Deul Guk Hwa, finishing the playlist with a total of 46 songs. For those unfamiliar with the film, taking a peek at the trailer is the perfect place to start.
Each song in “love songs about cities” has the name of a city in their title. Each one focuses on a specific part of the world and its significance to the artist, whether that be visually or emotionally. Johnny Cash‘s “Girl in Saskatoon” reminisces on, just as the title suggests, a girl in Saskatoon, and how the town Saskatoon played a role in his memory of her.
“Past Lives” Visuals
If you don’t have time for the full film, the trailer will give you the visuals for the playlist. Imagining the South Korean and American cities as you listen to the songs makes it more immersive. Picturing the large concrete buildings and landscapes hold the ambience of each song.
But regardless of having seen “Past Lives”, “love songs about cities” draws every listener to think of their own city. The architecture and intimate moments that each of these artists admire about their song’s title-head location. If you’ve seen it, what did you think of “Past Lives”? What song reminds you of your hometown?
