Summer music suggests the activities of summer: backyard barbecues, trips to the beach, vacations, good times with friends. At the very least, summer music puts one in a summer mood, which can vary from easy-going to excited, characterized by tones of positivity and possibility. In this article, we choose nine recent tracks and one bonus track that suggest summer to us. We hope they brighten your day and perhaps decorate your own summer playlist!
Our cover image comes from Happy Shave Ice, a blog started by a family who fell in love with shave ice in Hawai’i, returned home to Florida, and made shave ice their personal obsession. What better summer story is there than this?
Candyfloss Mountain ~ Bubblegum Bouncy Castle (Métron Records)
The entire album, Escape from Candyfloss Mountain, is ebullient and upbeat, the score to a non-existent 80’s video game. Synths dance with abandon across a candy-colored landscape, which includes a licorice desert, cola waterfalls and strawberry clouds. With so many charmers, it’s difficult to pick the most summer-sounding track, but we’re going with this club confection.
Caterina Barbieri ~ Math of You (light-years)
Myuthafoo was recorded at the same time as Ecstatic Computation and is billed as its sister album. The connection is clearest on “Math of You,” a sister track to “Fantas,” that album’s breakthrough cut. Bright synths engage in harmonic interplay, growing ever more complex and appealing.
follow ~ Glimmer
The standout single from the Australian band’s debut album, “Glimmer” falls into the subgenre of feel-good post-rock, which is exactly where we want to be right now: not worried about a thing, just kicking back and enjoying the summer sun as it glimmers over the ocean.
Leaving Laurel ~ better days will come (Anjunadeep)
Taken from the album when the quiet comes, “better days will come” is soothing and sedate, in the manner of trance tracks from the early 00s. The full album is a eulogy to a friend, but this track is a statement of hope; we will get through this, whatever this may be.
Lyndhurst ~ Swimming
“Swimming” is the debut track from the debut album of a debut duo. The duo knows it has a summer track, describing the piece as “a sunny offering … an electronic hug for the upcoming warm weather, and a soundtrack for summers yet to come.” Platforms will be out on July 14.
OrageOrange ~ Shipwrecker (Shimmering Moods)
Inspired by Caliban’s monologue in The Tempest, An Isle Full of Noises is a breezy, stormy concept set, anchored by its languid signature track, “Shipwrecker.” Wait for those drums to kick in at 1:03; their arrival is like the safety of shore.
Past Palms ~ Summer Prayer
As we’ve featured Past Palms in this feature before, we went looking for the annual Past Palms EP, only to discover that the artist’s latest track was released on the autumnal equinox. The artist calls it “a moment of gratitude for the season that just passed,” but it takes on new meaning at the start of the summer: a prayer that we might drink in the season and enjoy it while it lasts.
Penguin Cafe ~ In Re Budd (Erased Tapes)
Penguin Cafe’s upcoming Rain Before Seven is described as riding a “wave of optimism,” never more apparent than on this early single. Balafon and piano contribute a Caribbean vibe, in line with the lush outcroppings of the cover, although perhaps a bit too hot for actual penguins.
Samuel Sharp ~ Twinkly Tide (Blackford Hill)
Sax, loops and delays are all it takes to make Consequential a happy contender. When listening to “Twinkly Tide,” one can imagine splashing one’s feet in the water, watching the foam and spray. The sunlight reflects on the surface, casting twinkles to and fro.
Suki Sou ~ Petrichor (Curious Music)
We end our list with its gentlest piece. “Petrichor” is the sound of summer rain and the scents that escape from soil and asphalt whenever a shower begins. Summer isn’t only about sunshine, but its partner. The track is taken from Notes on Listening, the composer’s debut release.
Richard Allen
a closer listen 