Compared to the other 2 lists this month, this one was a bit easier to make. There was a little difficulty to be had, but I was able to assemble the music on here quicker. As you can see by the title of this post, these are 10 songs that make me laugh and/or smile. These aren’t the only songs that have this effect: there are way more tunes that give me some positive. The 10 that are here are just ones I thought of immediately, so that’s that. With that said, here are the 10 songs that make me fell all warm & fuzzy. Let’s begin!
10) Ebro - Got To Move (Song)
I feel so bad for putting this so low on the list! The guy that made this song & video is a very dear friend of mine. Known him for nearly a decade, Ebro is a wonderful human being that has a gorgeous smile & beautiful. On top of that, he can crossdress like a master, and has a hell of a set of vocal pipes! This song got put out fairly recently, which is probably why it’s so low on the list. Regardless, Ebro’s voice is at the top of the game, as it’s vibrant energy & force grabs a hold of your soul, and it’s sure as hell not going to let go. The music video just adds to this, as it’s usage of quirky humor adds to the fun. Please, give the video a watch. The sassy one needs the views!
9) Ministry - Under My Thumb (Song)
Okay, I got a funny story about this one. My folks are fans of the iconic Rolling Stones track, but when I played them the remake by one of the world’s most iconic Industrial Metal band it was pretty much a “Nope” kind of situation. Flash forward to a little later in 2008, when I happen to be playing it for 3 friends of mine. One of them was a little hippy-ish at the time, and was a huge Rolling Stones fan. By the time I was done, his reaction was to slowly turn his head towards me, and go “What the fuck was that?” In addition to be a cover that follows the spirit of the original surprisingly well, my friend’s reaction got me & the other two that were with me laughing, and that makes me smile. Speaking of funny story....
8) Nocturnus - Lake of Fire (Song)
I had known about the Sci-Fi flavorings of Nocturnus for about a year by the time that the 2017 Cosplay Society Halloween Party took place. Their unique take on Death Metal set them apart from the Florida scene, especially with their usage of keyboard & sound effects (Which is a huge no-no among Death Metal purists). I digress: I’m always the guy at the UNYCS that asks the DJ to play metal songs, and 2017 was no exception. Lake of Fire does take a little bit of time before it assaults you with it’s barrage of guitars & drums. The moment that the instrumentation started, I had a female friend go “Yep, that’s Josh’s song”. Moments like that will always get me to keep a song in my head.
7) One Must Fall: 2097 - Menu (Song)
I was a wee lad when this game came out. A little over 7 years old, to be exact. I had be playing the demo for quite a bit by the time of October the 10th, 1994, and I was familiar with the music that played in the menu. However, something about it felt different once I got my hands on the full game. There was something.....more withing the track. Something that wasn’t there in the demo, but seemed to come out once everything was revealed. I never had any true connection to console gaming in the 90s, so when it came to soundtracks like what was in One Must Fall: 2097, I have my own gaming memories from my childhood. I shall forever hold this simple piece of game music close to me heart, and will continue to do so until the day I die.
6) Cannabis Corpse - Dawn of Weed Possession (Song)
Goofy & brutal stoners. That is the best way to describe Cannabis Corpse. Simultaneously a tribute to one of the most iconic Death Metal bands in the entire world, and a hilarious group of guys that just weed. They might look like amateurs that probably won’t go anywhere, but it’s shocking at how skilled they actually are. 2019's Nug So Vile continues this mix of brutality and hilarity, and it’s perhaps the best song on the album that keeps me coming back & laughing. Dawn of Weed Possession, besides being absolutely goofy, is also a tribute to the Maniac Cop horror franchise. At first that seems like a mix that can’t work, but somehow it does to hilarious effect. It can’t be explained, so check out the link above to see what I mean.
5) Sabaton - Primo Victoria (Song)(Live)
I think it’s a safe bet to say that Sabaton will forever be one of the most unique Power Metal bands in the world. Forgoing the typical fantasy trappings in favor of historical warfare (WW1 & WW2 especially), they’ve conquered the world thanks to their legion of fans. You can thank songs like this for their well-deserved fame! The title track to their very first album as well as the first track you hear, you’d think a song about Normandy wouldn’t be an upbeat tune, but you’d be surprisingly wrong. The band definitely has nothing but respect for what they’re singing about, but they also put in quite a bit of infectious energy that’ll get you jumping. I can’t think of many other songs that can effectively help close out a concert quite like this one.
4) Everfrost - Actraiser (Song)
Hey, it’s Everfrost again! No, I’m not tired of bringing them up!
Actraiser was the first song that I ever listened to from these beautiful Finnish weebs, and I’m glad that I did! It’s melancholy aspect prevents it from getting even higher than it already is, but don’t take that as a knock to it’s overall quality. Actraiser is the definitive example of Anime being distilled down into it’s essence, and transfused into Power Metal to such a degree you can’t tell both sides apart. There’s a lot of warm & fuzzy in this track: without giving the story elements away, one of the main characters in Winterider begins having self doubts about protecting the group he’s with, but said group comes together for this character, basically say that they’re there for him no matter what is going on. If that’s not what Anime & Power Metal can accomplish, then I don’t know what does! speaking of Anime.....
3) Silvervale - Home (Song)
If there is an example of one good thing that happened during the plague ridden year of 2020, it would be the rise of the Vtuber. Whether in Japan or in the western world, this somewhat new form of entertainment allowed for content creators to connect with their fans without having to get close. Here in the U.S., Vtubers have really gotten popular, especially with the formation of Vshojo (The American/Western counterpart to Hololive, which in and of itself was a Vtuber agency for Japan/Asia). Though I’ve watched many of the entertainers in Vshojo and enjoyed them, the one I seem to constantly go back to is Silvervale. In her lore, she’s a Sakura Wolf girl that just wants to make a lot of friends & have fun with people. Since last year she’s gotten her model upgraded, and just a few weeks ago her facial animations have gotten a big boost, but the thing she’s wanted to do was a get out a song, and she did!
Home is a melancholy, almost dreamlike tune. There’s not really much in the way of instrumentation: there’s a little keyboard, some piano, and what I think is a pinch of Japanese instruments. What’s really the meat of the track is Silver’s voice. She sounds so cute in her livestreams, but on here there’s a lot of depth & soul with each word that comes from her mouth, and for her first time singing it sounds incredible. As she’s stated a few times, she made Home as a way to show her love for her fans, and it’s that dedication to her fanbase that makes me smile so much when I listen to this.
2) Queensryche - Best I Can (Song)
My jaw hit the floor when I first discovered this song last year. Actraiser certainly surprised me, but Best I Can took me completely by surprise. There have been plenty of uplifting metal songs throughout the decades, but as far as I know there has only been this track about a kid that gets into an accident with his father’s gun, and we later see that he’s permanently crippled....but that doesn’t stop him from trying to accomplish his dream. If anything, the accident just emboldens his desires, and that’s incredible if you ask me. The beginning is a little haunting, but that goes away once the main part of the song comes into play. As for the band that crafted this song, I can say that I’m not surprised that they did it. Queensryche were always on board with making music that had a societal connection, especially when they released Operation Mindcrime 2 years prior to the album Best I Can comes from. Regardless, the message of “Never Give Up” might be hokey sometimes, but it’s done so well on this track it doesn’t come across as lame. Best I Can makes me smile quite a bit, but there is one song on this list that just manages to pass it in terms of happy.....and you won’t be surprised as to what it is.....
And before we get to my number one, I wanted to cover some honorable mentions. Like I said above, there are hordes of songs throughout the 30+ years that have made me laugh or smile. The songs here do exactly just that, but maybe not as much or as strongly as everything else on here. Still, they do their job, and they do their job well. With that out of the way, here are my honorable mentions.
HM1) Travis Meyer - Devil Went Down to Jamaica (Song)
I’ve been listening to this, on & off, for over a decade and a half. Much like Dawn of Weed Possession, this song is pure stoner comedy. Certainly not as graphic as the previously mentioned tune, but maybe packed with more green goodness, this parody of the iconic Charlie Daniels track is lovingly well-made. Maybe a tiny bit crude in terms of it’s humor, but the spirit of it’s source material shines through the smoky haze.
HM2) Led Zeppelin - All of My Love (Song)
Like I stated back in 2019, In Through The Out Door is the only Led Zeppelin album I’ll ever like. The more Synth oriented direction, not to mention personal issues among the band members, led the group to create what is their least Led Zeppelin sounding album ever. All of My Love was the song from the album that stuck out to me, and even before I properly listened to the record, I always kinda had a thing for it. An ode to Robert Plant’s son who died two years prior, the mix of love & melancholy seemed odd to me when I was younger. When I got old, I understood why, and that brings a dignified smile to my face.
1) Van Halen - Jump (Song)
You shouldn’t be surprised by this.
The death of Eddie Van Halen in October of 2020 sent waves throughout the Rock & Metal communities, and you can still feels ripples once in a while five months later. Long considered an 80s music icon, his passing as all but assured that there won’t be a return of these legends to the stage ever again. Regardless, the music that he & his compatriots made is some of the best that Hard Rock/Hair Metal can provide, and Jump is in my view the best song they’ve ever created. Like I stated back in June of 2019 (Which you can read here), this song is just pure distilled happiness. The over the top keyboards, the cheery melodies from the guitar, bass, & drums, and David Lee Roth’s strong vocal work all come together to create a phenomenal track (Ironic, given that Roth left after 1984's subsequent tour). It recalls a much happier time. A time where we didn’t have to worry about a plague. A time where we weren’t at each other’s throats over so much bullshit, and a time where we were smiling a lot more. It’s this pure innocence that makes me smile & laugh so much, and it’s that laughter and smiling that has me put Jump as the number 1 song of this list.
And those were the 10 songs that make me laugh and/or smile. Maybe in the future I’ll do another one of these, but for the moment I think I’m good. This list was a relief for me, given what I put out back in January. Well, we got April near, so see you all then for more content. Until then, be sure to laugh or smile a little!
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