Music Monday: Summer Playlist

Hello everyone,

I'm writing this as what feels like a Mediterranean  storm of humidity is passing through my town. This weather is so welcome for several reasons:

• The copious amounts of ice creams/lollies I can survive off of
• Barbecue and picnic season giving me many opportunities to do two of my favourite things- eat and see friends and family
• Lemonade just tastes 94948992498492 times better (insert Luke Hemmings sweet lemonade on a hot day quote)
• PIMMS!!!

and finally, for my favourite songs which get tucked away during the grim and gloomy months, full of energy and desperate to spring into shuffle.
I want to start posting playlists and making them on Spotify so that I have something to link you guys to, and as I type this, the very (biased, me?) incredible summer anthems playlists I've conjured up is playing (and distracting me, lip synch battle I'm coming for you). I have so many songs I've held onto over the years for how GOOD they make me feel when the sun is out, and they're also there, ready to play, when I need a little cheer up. For someone who wants to make a living as a writer I feel like I'm not really selling this to you. I don't know how to explain it. Do you have one of those songs, or a bunch of songs, that makes you feel like you're glowing? Or that reminds you of  festival, or just a really great period in your life? I feel like that's what most of the songs on this playlist relate to.
I'm gonna list most of my favourite summer songs below, with a little description, mainly because there's about 80 on the playlist and this will be super long if I name them all.  What I hope you'll take from these songs, if you give the playlist a chance, is that same fizzed up feeling of good energy in your life, which is perfect for this time of year. Serotonin coming at you in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1:


Some Kinda Summer


It's My Life- No Doubt
I feel like No Doubt (and Gwen in particular) are doused in cool, which is just what I need during these sweaty, humid weeks. With this song, I love how kind of disconnected the tame verses come across compared to the louder, faster and energy infused chorus. Also I just really like pretending to be Gwen Stefani.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubvV498pyIM


California Dreamin'- The Mamas and the Papas
This will be played every summer until I die. It's a cliché thing to say, but it has a way of transporting me and making me nostalgic for a festival/concert I wont get to see live, because of the year the band/song comes from. Woodstock nostalgia anyone?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-aK6JnyFmk


Juicebox- The Strokes
Julian Casablancas is my holy grail when it comes to summer, be it for his solo work, collabs with The Lonely Island or his masterpiece catalogue of sound with The Strokes. I won't ever tire of this song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoltwBHXCx8.


Don't Stop (acoustic)- 5 Seconds of Summer
It's just quite refreshing to have a song which isn't as loud as all the others, but still has something fun about it. I love the little claps during the song,and I really love acoustic 5SOS (and any form of Don't Stop, DO NOT HATE!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xE7z3CXMafo


Swings and Waterslides- Viola Beach
It's such a bittersweet one this one isn't it? Whenever I hear this song I think of the potential this band had to really catapult into the mainstream cool. I can hear this song in the back of my mind on a stage at V Festival or Glastonbury and it's incredibly saddening to think this band won't produce more bangers like this. Let the music live on.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btSa91diKio


Buzzcut Season- Lorde
God I love every single think about this song. The high pitched echoes that come into the verses, and also how visual the lyrics are. I have so many memories of riding the bus to uni, listening to this song as the sun blared onto my cheeks.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pstVCGyaUBM


Our Day Will Come- Amy Winehouse
Yet another heartbreaker. I love Amy with all of my heart, but there's something about her voice that just screams summer to me. It's quite heart-breaking to think that great summer feeling clashes with her passing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLwccfUjdUk


You're Such A- Hailee Steinfeld
This is the one of the newest additions to my summer anthems, but it's bound to be a keeper. Hailee, or Hailz, has such a powerful, in your face sound that I love. Nearly all of her songs could make the cut, but there's something so YES GIRL SLAY about this one which really grabs my brain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OL-JMV2sFwk


Wolf Pack- The Vaccines
THE VACCINES. MY LOVES. This is one of my favourite songs of all time and it really catches my heart during the summer. I tend to tuck the Vaccines away for the most part of the year, because they either make me really emo or super buzzing in the summertime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lk-ODO0zAUw


A- Punk- Vampire Weekend
Vampire Weekend are my summer band. Every summer since I was 12???? they've been there, keeping me dancing through the sweat and smog. I love, love, love this band with every part of my teeny heart. I have such fond memories of their music, I really hope they add more music to my summer starved heart soon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XC2mqcMMGQ


Blue Blood- Foals
Forever one of, if not, my favourite bands. Foals inject so much excitement and energy into my bloodstream. I feel like a good 79% of their songs are summer ready and deserve a place but there's something about Blue Blood that I can't shake off.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw6oWkCojpw


End Up Here- 5 Seconds of Summer
2 5SOS songs? Yes, I know I'm trash but this song is probably the one song in the world which makes me grin from ear to ear. All I can think of is ROWYSO tour, Ashton solos, cocktails and the very best tour of all time. I never want to forget it so here it is, another aussie summer anthem.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpCO9eQ3NQw


Boyfriend- Best Coast
I'm pretty sure this has been put on EVERY playlist I've made since the age of 15. It has the best summer vibes. Seriously, if you've never heard this song, go and grab some juice and a calypso and tell me this is the best summer song of all time. Also the lyrics are #relatable.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uqphb_WM1rM


Serotonin- Mystery Jets
Well, it's in the name really. This song will just make you feel good to be alive. It radiates through the speakers and there's something so hypnotic in the whispery vocals. Also the reference to ocean just adds an extra depth to whole summer feeling it gives off.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAyMpUFboA4


If you made it this far then hooray!!!!!! If you'd like a less waffley description of these songs then here's a link for the spotify version :) please let me know what you think and also, what are your go to summer songs?
Thank you for reading,
love, Aimee :) x