It was the time when Stephen Speaks’ “Passenger Seat” and Five for Fighting’s “Superman” followed you wherever you went, playing over and over and over and over. In the years when I had CDs and CDs of mixes and compilations, here are nine of the full albums that made it into my library.

Cibo Matto – Stereo Type A (1999)

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Featured track: Moonchild
I will forever associate Pascal with Stereo Type A. I was just entering second year  college when my brother lent me this album. And in the second semester while I was laboring on my first computer programming major subject, I chose this album to go with it, mostly because of its techy, digital sound. And now it is my soundtrack for programming.

1. “Working for Vacation”
2. “Spoon”
3. “Flowers”
4. “Lint of Love”
5. “Moonchild”
6. “Sci-Fi Wasabi”
7. “Clouds”
8. “Speechless”
9. “King of Silence”
10. “Blue Train”
11. “Sunday Part I”
12. “Sunday Part II”
13. “Stone”
14. “Mortming”

Utada Hikaru – Distance (2001)

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Featured Track: Addicted to You
My parents bought this for me in China, way before the CD made it in the Philippines. Heck, it was so fresh, I’m pretty sure I didn’t even know that the album existed yet. This album was the first I listened to upon moving into my dorm, the Men’s Residence Hall. Yup, you read it right. For those not familiar: The Men’s Residence Hall is the dorm for freshmen in UPLB. It used to be just for guys, but later, three out of five wings were for girls. They kept the old name, obviously.

This album was also the one I listened to on the travel to and from QC every Monday and Saturday morning as I tried to counter the bus music.

1. “Wait & See: Risk”
2. “Can You Keep a Secret?”
3. “Distance”
4. “Sunglasses”
5. “Drama”
6. “Eternally”
7. “Addicted to You”
8. “For You”
9. “Kettobase!”
10. “Parody”
11. “Time Limit”
12. “Kotoba ni Naranai Kimochi”
13. “Hayatochi-Remix (Bonus Track)”

Coldplay – A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002)

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Featured Track: Clocks
My sophomore dorm room walls are very familiar with the tune of “Clocks”, “Warning Sign”, and…well…this whole album. ‘Nuff said.

1. “Politik”
2. “In My Place”
3. “God Put a Smile upon Your Face”
4. “The Scientist”
5. “Clocks”
6. “Daylight”
7. “Green Eyes”
8. “Warning Sign”
9. “A Whisper”
10. “A Rush of Blood to the Head”
11. “Amsterdam”

Maroon 5 – Songs About Jane (2002)

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Featured Track: Sunday Morning
There was a computer shop called Abode that I frequented during college up until I graduated. I mean, literally. I was there so much that the whole family of the owners knew me, and they would give me free hours, and they even let me sleep there when I was finishing my thesis. I first started going there in my sophomore year, initially to program Java. Those three days when I would work more than 8 hours there at a time, this album was in my playlist.

1. “Harder to Breathe”
2. “This Love”
3. “Shiver”
4. “She Will Be Loved”
5. “Tangled”
6. “The Sun”
7. “Must Get Out”
8. “Sunday Morning”
9. “Secret”
10. “Through with You”
11. “Not Coming Home”
12. “Sweetest Goodbye”

Phantom Planet – The Guest (2002)

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Featured Track: Anthem
I first heard California on Yahoo Music over at Abode (yeah, the computer store?). I looked them up instantly. Ah, yes, one of the many artists I learned about from Yahoo Music. And, by the way, as much as California rocks, my favorite track remains to be “Anthem”.

1. “California”
2. “Always on My Mind”
3. “Lonely Day”
4. “One Ray of Sunlight”
5. “Anthem”
6. “In Our Darkest Hour”
7. “Turn Smile Shift Repeat”
8. “Hey Now Girl”
9. “Nobody’s Fault”
10. “All Over Again”
11. “Wishing Well”
12. “Something Is Wrong”
13. “California (Demo)”
14. “Always on My Mind (London Version)”
15. “The Guest (Live at the Troubadour)”
16. “This Is What You Get (Demo)”

Sugarfree – Sa Wakas (2003)

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Featured Track: Telepono
I first heard about Sugarfree from my brothers who knew Ebe personally. But it wasn’t until “Telepono” that I fell in love with their music. I heard it over the radio at the mothership—Burger King—right outside the school gate. I hunted down their album. And then went to watch them when they had an 11-peso concert with Imago and Cambio.

1. Burnout
2. Hintay
3. Mundong Malungkot
4. Taguan
5. Fade Away
6. Unang Araw
7. Mariposa
8. Telepono
9. Tummy Ache
10. Los Banos
11. Insomnya
12. The Allan Song

Smallville: The Talon Mix (2003)

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Featured Track: Remy Zero – Save Me
Junior year saw me getting addicted to Smallville. I would go to Imee’s room next door to work on a project…and take breaks to watch Smallville’s first season. Haha! Fun times. I think I only really loved Smallville until the 2nd season, but the Talon mix remains in my library. True, majority of the tracks there are already in my library, but who cares, right?

1. Save Me – Remy Zero
2. Inside Out – VonRay
3. Island in the Sun – Weezer
4. Superman (It’s Not Easy) – Five For Fighting
5. Nuclear – Ryan Adams
6. Lonely Day – Phantom Planet
7. Fight Test – The Flaming Lips
8. Don’t Dream It’s Over – Sixpence None The Richer
9. Wave Goodbye – Steadman
10. I Just Wanna Be Loved – A.M. Radio
11. Everything – Lifehouse
12. Time After Time – Eva Cassidy

Gavin DeGraw – Chariot (2003)

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Featured Track: Crush
After hearing Follow Through, Chariot and I Don’t Wanna Be, I decided to check out Gavin DeGraw’s other tracks. Loved ‘em. Again, it was one of those albums I played to tune out noise when I needed to concentrate in programming. I think I listened to this the most in the second sem of junior year when Imee, Renee, Gladys and I were working on our CMSC 128 project.

1. Follow Through
2. Chariot
3. Just Friends
4. (Nice To Meet You) Anyway
5. Chemical Party
6. Belief
7. Crush
8. I Don’t Want To Be
9. Meaning
10. More Than Anyone
11. Over-rated

Damien Rice – O (2003)

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Featured Track: Delicate
My good night music. Because it rocks so hard even when it’s so delicate and quiet.

1. Delicate
2. Volcano
3. Blower’s Daughter
4. Cannonball
5. Older Chests
6. Amie
7. Cheers Darlin’
8. Cold Water
9. I Remember
10. Eskimo

And that awesome track concludes my College Soundtrack (for now). I don’t know if you noticed, but there wasn’t a 2004 album listed here. There are a few albums I listened to then, of course, but I guess I’ll save those for next time.

What were your college sounds?