playlists – K. M. Alexander

April 9, 2021April 9, 2021

Gleam Upon the Soundtrack

In the past, I’ve released my book playlists before the launch of the book. These tend to be inspiration playlists, not the music I find myself writing to. (If you’re interested in a “writing playlist,” let me know in the comments! I’d be happy to assemble something. There’s very much a “type” of music I listen to when writing a Bell Forging Cycle book.) Since Gleam Upon the Waves has been out for a little over a week, I thought I’d go a step further and not only share the playlist but give a few details, why I chose particular songs, and how I felt they reflected (and inspired) aspects of the story.

First, the playlist! Jam out, roaders.

Not a Spotify fan? The playlist is also over on YouTube.

⚠️ SPOILER WARNING⚠️

The following details will contain Gleam Upon the Waves spoilers. So, if you’re still reading, I’d recommend avoiding the rest of this post until after you finished the book. For the rest of you, let’s head deeper into the playlist.

Continue reading →

October 11, 2017

Revisiting the Bell Forging Cycle Playlists

My taste in music is… uh, eclectic. It’s not uncommon for me to be listening to southern gothic country, switch to hip-hop, move to bluegrass, then pivot to classical. I like variety. Often, songs serve as an inspiration for a setting or a character, more often I’ll find a song that captures the mood I am trying to evoke in a difficult scene. Over the years, I’ve created and shared playlists of songs that have inspired the books in the Bell Forging Cycle. I’ve posted them below (with new album artwork!) for your listening pleasure.

As I’ve begun preparations to write the fourth book (yep, it’s happening), I’ve been going back and listening to each playlist. It’s fascinating how each captures my emotional state while writing the individual novels. Introspection and discovery abound in The Tunes Were Right, there’s a root-inspired personal darkness that’s explored in the Old Broken Playlist, and the songs in Red Litten Tracks carry a frenetic punk-like energy that nails the dread that hangs over Wal. Of course, all of three have an undercurrent of jazz that runs like an artery through the soul of the Bell Forging Cycle.

How does music inspire you in your creative pursuits? Do you enjoy listening to playlists from authors? Which of these three are your favorite? Leave a comment below and let me know!

When you're feelin' it. — Jimmy Pesto Jr. is feelin’ it.

Want to stay in touch with me? Sign up for Dead Drop, my rare and elusive newsletter. Subscribers get news, previews, and notices on my books before anyone else delivered directly to their inbox. I work hard to make sure it’s not spammy and full of interesting and relevant information. SIGN UP TODAY →

September 29, 2015September 29, 2015

Red Litten Tracks

We’re now one week away from the release of Red Litten World, so I figured it’d be fun to share a playlist of songs that inspired me during the writing of the book. If you’re a longtime reader you’ll know I have done this before with the other books in The Bell Forging Cycle. Personally, I always find it fun to see what music influences a writer. So I enjoy sharing these with everyone. You can listen to Red Litten Tracks using the embedded Spotify player, or visiting any of the links below.

Spotify | Rdio | YouTube

Aaaand… here’s the playlist. As with previous playlists, you can click on any of the names below to read about the band on Wikipedia. If you want to listen to the song, the song title links to videos on YouTube.

Man Man — Loot My Body
Sleater-Kinney — No Cities To Love
Echo & the Bunnymen — The Killing Moon
Pixies — Silver
Louis Armstrong — West End Blues
Dark Dark Dark — Daydreaming
Iggy and the Stooges — Gimme Danger
Coleman Hawkins — Body and Soul
Wintersleep — Oblivion
Wolfmother — New Moon Rising
The Temper Trap — Soldier On
Crooked Still — Ain’t No Grave
Jack White — That Black Bat Licorice
Soko — We Might Be Dead By Tomorrow
Bang Camaro — Out On The Streets
The Cramps — What’s Behind the Mask
Marvin Gaye — Inner City Blues
Dave Brubeck — Unsquare Dance
The National — This is the Last Time
Phantogram — Black Out Days
Polk Miller — Old Time Religion
Jace Everett — No Place To Hide
Run the Jewels — Blockbuster Night Part 1 (Explicit)
Kaiser Chiefs — I Predict A Riot
Marty Robbins — Big Iron
Snooks Eaglin — Saint James Infirmary
Interpol — Evil
The Bastard Fairies — The Earth Died Screaming
(Note: This was a cover of a Tom Waits song by the same name. However, The Bastard Fairies don’t have a video for this cover. So instead I’ve linked to the original song.)
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club — Rival
Four Tops — Simple Game
Death from Above 1979 — Black History Month
Agnes Obel — Pass Them By
Ben Nichols — The Last Pale Light In The West Lyrics

Did you enjoy this playlist? Check out the playlists that inspired the previous two books in The Bell Forging Cycle:

The Tunes Were Right

The playlist for my first book The Stars Were Right, starting off with a smooth jam from Marion Black and mixing in an eclectic mix of jams from Johnny Cash, Scorpions, Andrew Bird, and more.

Old Broken Playlist

You’ll feel the dust on your skin and the hard pan beneath your boots in this playlist for Old Broken Road. Featuring tracks from folks like Future Island, BRMC, Woodkid, and Louis Armstrong.

So there you go! The latest playlist for my soon-to-be-released novel, Red Litten World. I’d love to hear what you think, feel free to leave me a comment or shoot me an email with your thoughts.

Remember, you can still preorder Red Litten World on eBook for Amazon Kindle, Apple iBooks, and Kobo devices. Pre-order copies will arrive on your reader on launch day. There’s also still five days left to enter for a chance to win a free signed trade paperback of Red Litten World during the Red Litten World Giveaway. Super easy to enter, winner will be selected this Friday!

Seven days!