Every Wednesday, the ugly hug shares a playlist personally curated by an artist/band that we have been enjoying. This week we have a collection of songs put together by Chicago-based musician and recording engineer Seth Engel of the project Options. 

When you put on an Options album, those songs are made for motion, fast and faithful, for sure. With a healthy blend of attuned fixations and a need to raise a ruckus, Seth’s most recent album Beast Mode is a tried-and-true pop joyride hurtling down the boulevard with the windows down and the booming wind forcing the hand of the volume knob. But as a collection, these songs live in moments, flashes of thoughts scribbled on the back of a cereal box to make a note before the feeling is running out the door. It’s a project that is littered with excitement, pipetted with passion and destined for glory.

As an recording engineer, Seth has worked on countless records from artists such as hemlock, girly pants, mister goblin, Joey Nebulous, Cusp, Moontype, Proun and Ratboys.

About the playlist Seth said;

Here are some songs that I love listening to in the car while driving, ideally with the windows down and on a long stretch of road. This is one of my favorite ways to focus on and connect with music. There’s a bit of an inherently predictable vibe with some of these choices, and perhaps some choices that might make you scratch your head… but all of these tunes are thoroughly driving-with-the-windows-down tested & approved by me. Enjoy!

Listen to Seth’s playlist, aptly titled ‘Driving (With the Windows Down’, HERE!

You can listen to Beast Mode and the full Options catalog out everywhere you find music!

Written by Shea Roney | Photo Courtesy of Options