So here it is — the real deal. It’s not a curated playlist to impress anyone, just a raw list pulled straight from my headphones over the past month or so. Some tracks I’ve loved for decades. Others crept into my life unexpectedly and got stuck.
If you are a rare individual who likes Bruce Cockburn and Dio, Kendrick Lamar and Dream Warriors, AC/DC and Holly Cole, this might seem like a perfectly normal mix of music. But to everyone else, it is not so. But it’s honest. That’s the whole point of Underplayed.
Here are a few that stood out — not necessarily the best, but the ones that made me feel something.
🎤 “My Definition of a Boombastic Jazz Style” – Dream Warriors
This one mattered. It hit me at a time when I was almost entirely metal — distortion, solos, aggression. Then, this shows up on the radio and became playlist for me before I the word playlist had been conjured. Cool, jazzy, clever. Canadian. It didn’t just sound different — it felt different. Maybe there was more to hip-hop than I thought. That track permitted me to explore. I continue to chase that feeling to this day, and I’ve found a few gems, but nothing hits quite like this.
⚡ “Rising Power” – AC/DC
My playlist would almost always feature something from AC/DC. This is the opener from Flick of the Switch — and somehow, still one of their most underappreciated. There is no big chorus. No radio bait. Just pure, unfiltered power. It sounds like they rolled out of bed, plugged in, and hit record — and it works. Dirty, lean, and mean. This is the AC/DC that doesn’t care what you think, and I love that about it.
✍️ “You Pay Your Money, and You Take Your Chance” – Bruce Cockburn
There’s resignation in this one but also defiance. Bruce always walks that line — quietly raging against the world while still finding grace in it. The phrasing, the mood, the line delivery… it’s all so measured and powerful. It’s the kind of song that doesn’t beg for your attention — it just earns it, line by line.
🧠 “DNA.” – Kendrick Lamar
Controlled chaos. This song is everything Kendrick does best — rapid-fire flow, layered meaning, and beats that punch through your ribs. If “you are what you listen to,” this track has been on my latest playlist because it says I’m holding on to righteous fury under the surface. And maybe I am. There’s a reason it’s been spinning more than anything else lately.
🌌 “All the Diamonds” – Bruce Cockburn
This song is on a playlist for reflective moments. Short, quiet, devastating. I don’t have a good way to describe what this one does. It feels like stepping into a cathedral alone. There’s something sacred about it — not religious, but spiritual in a way I think Bruce understands better than most. You hear it, and it feels like he’s offering you a private moment he didn’t plan to share.
🤘 “I Believe in Rock’ N’ Roll” – Twisted Sister
My playlist needed this reminder. Yup. I do. And this song reminds me why. This isn’t just hair metal attitude — it’s a full-on rock manifesto. Somewhere beneath the sleaze and volume, there’s heart here. You can hear the desperation of a band that needed to be heard. There’s something raw in that that I connect with, even all these years later.
🔥 “We Rock” – Dio
This is a staple on any rock playlist I make. It’s what belief sounds like. Ronnie James Dio never phoned it in, and this is one of those tracks where every word feels like a mission statement. There’s no irony. No wink. It’s just pure conviction. And honestly? That’s pretty damn refreshing in a world full of posturing.
🎷 “My Foolish Heart” – Holly Cole Trio
I remember exactly how I fell in love with Holly Cole (metaphorically). Back then, my go-to station — Q107 — had to air a weekly classical music segment thanks to CRTC rules. They made it crystal clear that classic rock didn’t count. One week, they featured The Holly Cole Trio. I was hooked instantly.
I went out and bought Girl Talk the same week — and never looked back. This track, in particular, still hits me like that first listen. Quiet. Intimate. Absolutely in control of every note.
💥 “Fear on the Bridge” – 3 Inches of Blood
This one snuck in while I was hunting for something heavier and more ridiculous — and nailed both. It’s chaotic, but glorious. Power metal meets sea shanty with a voice that sounds like someone is gargling gravel through a megaphone. It shouldn’t work, but somehow it does.
🧪 “Sing a Mean Tune Kid” – Chicago
Before they got soft, Chicago was dangerous. And this track? It’s proof and this song is on playlist after playlist for me. It was an almost ten-minute assault with one of my favourite lead breaks ever — Terry Kath in full beast mode. His tone, phrasing, attitude — it’s electric from the first note to the last. It’s messy in all the right ways. You can almost hear the band daring each other to go harder. This might be my favourite Chicago track because of their incredible catalogue. And nobody talks about it.
This wasn’t a flex. It’s just what I’ve been living with lately. Some of it will stick around; some won’t. But every track gave me something — even if I’m unsure what it was. If you found a track in here you forgot you loved or never gave a shot, I’d say this list did its job.