Crate digging: Stages of love

As we move through February, themes of love constantly surround us. No matter what situation your romantic life is in, here are eight songs you might be able to resonate with.

Crush: Take A Chance With Me – NIKI

By Emily Wong

Indonesian artist NIKI reflects on her youth through the simple and acoustic “Take A Chance With Me,” highlighting her bittersweet lyrics on falling in love with playful ukulele strums. Singing, “Heart intangible, slips away faster than dandelion fluff in the sunlight,” NIKI praises the person she secretly admires by comparing them to “dandelion fluff” in order to emphasize that they’re so special to the point of being out of her reach. While using one voice to idealize this person, she layers another in the chorus to mirror her clouded thoughts. Repeatedly chanting, “Why can’t we for once / Say what we want, what we feel,” NIKI illustrates the struggles of mustering up the courage to confess her feelings. She ends the song softly singing, “In the end we only regret the chances we didn’t take,” her quiet, remorseful voice silently urging listeners to learn from her mistake.

Desperation: Sorry haha I fell asleep – Egg

By Ella Shen

Known only by their stage name Egg, the singer-songwriter is best known for their unique musical covers, having only a handful of released original songs, including one of their most popular songs “sorry haha i fell asleep.” The single tells the whimsical fantasies and disillusionment of falling in love. Set in the texting phase with a crush, its lyrics flood with thoughts of overthinking and navigating the struggles of an online romance. Egg’s originals (and covers) are simplistic, usually accompanied by their ukulele or piano; “sorry haha i fell asleep” creates a tranquil ambiance with their gentle ukulele strumming, bringing out the vulnerability of raw and desperate romantic feelings. It’s perfect to desperately fall in love.

First love: Young Love – Kip Moore

By Hebe Wang

Artist Kip Moore first released “Young Love” in 2013. Described to be an us-against-the-world type of song, Moore describes a series of rebellious acts performed in the name of love. Though the song largely describes “Young Love,” the themes of the song are similar to those of a first love, mainly centering around the immaturity and pureness of the first love due to inexperience. Aside from the lyrics, Moore sings in a raspy tone, providing a mature voice that allows listeners to feel a reminiscent mood, like a mature adult reflecting back on their young love.

Honeymoon phase: Drowning – Backstreet Boys

By Ekroop Kaur

“Drowning,” released in 2001 by the popular ‘90s boy band the Backstreet Boys, is a perfect, slow love song to describe the honeymoon phase. The honeymoon phase exemplifies the head-over-heels love that a couple has, and “Drowning” captures its essence. The song also includes transcendent drum beats which crescend at the end, portraying the growing romantic feelings in this phase. The lyrics “Every time I breathe, I take you in / And my heart beats again / Baby I can’t help it / You keep me drowning in your love” showcase this intoxication of love that is representative of a couple’s relationship at this stage. The boy band also sings in a tone filled with desire and passion, allowing the listeners to experience the feeling of sparks and butterflies in your stomach when love-struck.

Disillusionment: Lovesick – Laufey

By Tanvi Rao

Icelandic singer-songwriter Laufey’s “Lovesick” is a melancholic interlude to her enchanting second full-length album “Bewitched.” In the track, she pines after a lover who is slowly slipping away. Beautiful orchestral melodies carry the poignant feelings of disillusionment in a relationship, as Laufey sings “Getting twisted in my head / Dreams are nightmares in my bed / Since the last night that I spent with you.” While the melody of the chorus is reminiscent of an enthralling fairytale romance, the mournful lyrics demonstrate the painful reality of falling out of love. With this clever contrast, Laufey is able to effortlessly convey bittersweet emotions: the blissful dream that is love, and the disappointing sense of reality that sets in when you open your eyes.

heartbreak: Wurli – Dominic Fike

By Saanvi Haridas

After disillusionment, the unfortunate event of heartbreak follows, a vexing but numbing emotion that is perfectly captured in Dominic Fike’s “Wurli,” the 13th track on his 2020 album “What Could Possibly Go Wrong.” The song combines transcendent synths, catchy beats and hypnotic vocals to express the pain and pique that comes with a confused heart. In the track, Fike explains what it’s like to be in a toxic, controlling relationship and to no longer be in love. Along with the invigorating flow of the song, its repetitive lyrics put the listener in a trance, mimicking the mindless emotion of being controlled by someone you love. One line in particular stands out: “I’m a glorified doorstop,” conveying the realization of being taken advantage of and a broken heart. The song eventually finishes off with the melody ebbing back and forth while getting gradually louder, ending the song with a growing doubt of “what’s next?”

Jealousy: Nevermind – Phoneboy

By Andy Mei

After break up and heartbreak comes jealousy and longing, two emotions perfectly encapsulated in Phoneboy’s track “Nevermind,” featuring the dynamic vocals of Jason Magnaye. With its upbeat yet bittersweet vibes, this song delves into the rollercoaster of post-breakup feelings hidden under a veneer of positivity. It portrays two lovers caught in a cycle of desire and exasperation, unable to resist the attraction that pulls them back together despite their clear disdain for each other. Through its aggressive drum beats and resounding guitar chords, “Nevermind” establishes an infectious pulsing melody that balances both angst and listlessness and captures the cyclical nature of the story. Layered on top of Phoneboy’s strong rhythm are Magnaye’s equally catchy lyrics like “I pulled the trigger / And hit your line” or “And I know you’ll never be mine / The cycle callin’ my line,” which create a deceptively upbeat song perfect for listeners looking for a post-breakup love song.

Moving on: In Two – Will Paquin

By Shelby Yeh

In his single “In Two,” Will Paquin accepts his ultimate incompatibility with his lover as he overcomes the debilitating experience of cutting ties. Drowning the listener immediately with a rushing barricade of acoustic staccato, Paquin immerses the listeners in the overwhelming scene of his thoughts. Recognizing the imbalance in his relationship, he reflects, “Is this even a game / If in the end I let you kill me?” Though detaching from his partner is as painful as severing himself in half, he accepts that his devotion to them is just as self-sacrificial, realizing that he was “never meant to be by [their] side.” The song leads us into a messy, butchering crescendo; as he sings, “I cannot escape from the sight of you / Half of me is half of you,” the song fills with yelling voices and crashing percussion. In a concluding acceptance, Paquin abruptly severs off the musical chaos in the last line, rerouting our focus to his own, now soft, voice — a gentle surrender: “I’ll have to cut myself in two.”

About the Contributors

Emily Wong, Arts and Entertainment Editor

Emily joined the Tribune to express her voice on important issues and stayed for the journalism community who made the experience even more enjoyable. She was previously in the Journey program in middle school. In her free time, you might catch Emily secretly watching her K-dramas, scrapbooking, or watching travel vlogs. This year, her goal is to produce more high-quality articles she can be proud of. If she could be any other person on the Tribune, she would be Abby for her kind heart and admirable work ethic.

Ella Shen, Editor-in-Chief

Ella joined the Tribune to improve her writing skills, but stayed for the people, the experience, and the snack cabinet. She was previously photography, multimedia, and managing editor, and is now the co-editor-in-chief. Her goal for this year is to help foster a supportive and fun environment for everyone in the class. Ella enjoys hiking, running, and camping, and wants to hopefully live in a van and go thru-hiking in the future. Her dream for 2 years has been to convert and live in a van... If Ella could be anyone else in the Tribune, she would be Abigail, because she is the most kind and hardworking person she knows.

Hebe Wang, Staff Writer

Hebe joined Journalism to improve her writing skills and also to gain people skills. She was in J1 last year. In her free time, Hebe enjoys learning about biology and listening to music. Her goal for this year is to become a better interviewer and to write more interesting articles. If Hebe could be anyone on the Tribune, she would be Trisha because she's one of the few people that she knows relatively well since they sat next to each other in Journalism 1. Another reason is that Trisha has better writing skills than she does.

Ekroop Kaur, Lead Copy Editor

Ekroop joined stayed at the Tribune because she wanted to be a part of a student-led class where she could write about issues she cares about and raise awareness about them. When Ekroop was in J2, she was a copy editor and part of the Web squad. She is now the Lead Copy Editor. Her goal for this year is to find unique angles to write about and be more involved in the class. In her free time, Ekroop loves to take (long) naps and get boba or Juice Zone with her sister. If she could be any other person on the Tribune, Ekroop would be Shreya A. because of her extrovertedness, and how she loves to talk and make jokes about everything.

Tanvi Rao, Arts and Entertainment Editor

Tanvi joined the Wildcat Tribune to develop her writing skills and step out of her comfort zone, and she stayed for the amazing community. She has been on the Tribune for four years, and this is her second year as the Arts & Entertainment editor. Her goal for journalism is to try out new kinds of stories, especially multimedia! One fun fact about Tanvi is that she's an expert at making smoothies. If she could be anyone else on the Tribune she would be Suhani, because of her excellent style and dedication to Trader Joe's.

Saanvi Haridas, Features Editor

Saanvi joined the Wildcat Tribune to get out of her comfort zone and expand her writing skills. She stayed for the growing community of the class. Saanvi’s goal for journalism this year is to write a variety of different stories and to learn to take more meaningful and impactful photos. In her free time, she likes painting random objects while listening to music. One interesting fact about her is she absolutely hates clowns. If Saanvi could be any other person on the Tribune, she would want to be Ananya, because she's super funny and is her favorite junior in the class.

Andy Mei, Arts and Entertainment Editor

Andy joined the Wildcat Tribune in order to get more involved with student life on campus and help inform other students on a variety of topics. He was in Journalism 1 last year. Andy enjoys listening to music while riding his bike or hiking, snacking on chips and fruits while watching documentaries and video essays, and reading fantasy novels late into the night. His goal in journalism this year is to be able to diversify the topics he writes about more and write an article in every section. If Andy could be anyone on the Tribune, he would want to be Mr. Bathke, since he would be able to manage and watch over the paper without directly getting involved in the writing process.

Shelby Yeh, Arts and Entertainment Copy Editor

Shelby joined the Wildcat Tribune because of how empowering it was to see issues circulating in classrooms. She loves that the Tribune is almost entirely student-led and that it represents DVHS as authentically as possible. This is Shelby's second year in journalism, and she can't wait to add to the Tribune's wonderful record of student thought. Shelby loves to read almost anything, but she particularly enjoys poorly written young adult books for their unintended humor. She also spends her time trying as many types of tea as possible, but her favorite category is green tea. If Shelby could be any other person on the Tribune, she'd be Annie because of her fantastic bangs and artistic ability.

Kimberly Cui, Staff Writer

Kimberly joined the Tribune for the high school newspaper publication experience and stayed for the free monthly bagels. This is her third year in journalism; in the previous two years she was the Features Editor and Photography Editor. Her goal in journalism this year is to further engage with the DVHS student body and live her senior year without regrets. Kimberly has a terrace farm in her backyard. If she could travel to any time period, she would travel to the 1920s so that she can throw her own opulent Gatsby-inspired parties and live like Jordan Baker. If Kimberly could be any other person on the Tribune, she'd be Grace Z for her work ethic or her former co-Features editor Drishti because she wants to know what it's like to be unsettlingly obsessed with the Kung Fu Panda soundtrack.

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Crate digging: Stages of love

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