Summer Gathering Playlist

As we turn over the page of April on our calendars and watch May appear, many aspects of summer tag along with the new month as we inch into the summer season. Warmer and longer nights, more ease in our academic schedules and fresh, ripe produce all elevate our motives to spend more time with one another. Now that it is safer to do so, we are able to celebrate the lift of certain coronavirus restrictions and the beginning of summer, and what better way to enhance the energy of summer gatherings than with an upbeat, funky playlist.

Included in this set is “Booster Seat” by Spacey Jane, which illustrates the feeling of being a child in the backseat of a car, watching their parent control the vehicle. Many college students may feel like this, where their childhood is quickly flashing past them, urging them to grasp control of their lives and relive that youthful era. Summer grants room for our immature selves to reemerge and is an excuse to pull out the squirt guns, Capri Suns and act like we did when we sat in booster seats.

The harmonious and abrupt sounds throughout Spoon’s 2007 hit “You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb” pumps up listeners, motivating them to mimic the quick taps of the drums with their feet. Although it’s an upbeat song, Arcade Fire’s “Wake Up” does the same, especially nearing four minutes into the song. The repetitive high piano chords and quick drums are a motivator to stop what you’re doing and prance around your backyard.

Let this playlist serve as a reminder to be carefree and absorb the additional rays of sunshine that we have for the next few months. Happy listening!

“Booster Seat” — Spacey Jane

“Tuesday” — Hippo Campus

“Ocean to City” — High Highs

“tarde” — Bratty

“Border on Border” — Night Moves

“Think It Over” — The Night Café

“Brazil” — Declan McKenna

“You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb” — Spoon

“Fire for You” — Cannons

“Hate It Or Love It (feat. 50 Cent)” — The Game

“Ayye” — Mac Miller

“Baby Hold On” — Eddie Money

“Changing of the Seasons” — Two Door Cinema Club

“You’ve Got the Love” — Florence + The Machine

“Wake Up” — Arcade Fire

“Strange or Be Forgotten” — Temples

“Ronson Princess” — Clarence James

By: Katie Morris