Summer Mix 2021, Part 2: Night

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Here’s Part 2 of my annual summer mix, for your evening/nighttime enjoyment.

The tracklist, along with YouTube and Spotify versions of the playlist, are at the bottom. But first, some notes:

  • The best song of 2021 so far is the opener to this mix: “Be Sweet” by Japanese Breakfast.
  • “Impact” needs to be played on a sweaty, covid-free dance floor as soon as possible. (Also, that song made my top 10 of 2020 last year.)
  • As I’ve said many times, Amber Mark is the most underrated R&B artist we have. By the same token, Caroline Polachek (formerly of Chairlift) is currently our most underrated pop artist. “Bunny is a Rider” is a bop.
  • If you try not to dance during “Watch Your Step” by Disclosure and Kelis, you will fail miserably.

Tracklist (meant to be played top to bottom, no shuffle):

1. Japanese Breakfast: “Be Sweet”
2. SG Lewis ft. Robyn & Channel Tres: “Impact”
3. Silk Sonic (Bruno Mars & Anderson Paak): “Skate”
4. Laura Mvula: “Church Girl”
5. Natalie Bergman: “Shine Your Light on Me”
6. The Avalanches ft. Leon Bridges: “Interstellar Love”
7. Disclosure ft. Kelis: “Watch Your Step”
8. Tuxedo: “Doin’ My Best”
9. Madlib: “Road of the Lonely Ones”
10. Majid Jordan: “Waves of Blue”
11. Kid Cudi: “Tequila Shots”
12. SZA: “Good Days”
13. The Black Keys: “Stay All Night”
14. Kevin Morby: “Campfire”
15. Caroline Polachek: “Bunny is a Rider”
16. Amber Mark: “Worth It”
17. Bedouine, Waxahatchee & Hurray for the Riff Raff: “Thirteen”

Five (*15!) Quality Tracks: May, June, July 2017

 
I fell very far behind on Five Quality Tracks, and for that I apologize. Here are 15 tracks from the last three months that grabbed me, surprised me, and moved me. (By the way, I should note that these tracks are NOT in order of how much I like them. The order is arbitrary.)

1. The National: “The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness”

When I saw that the National had released a new single, I knew it would be good. But I didn’t know it would be this good. The National don’t “rock out” that often, usually opting for more deliberate mood pieces, but they let their hair down a little bit on “The System Only Dreams in Total Darkness.” The song is built on an insanely catchy drum beat and bass line, with that punchy five-note guitar riff punctuating the song throughout. There’s even a guitar solo! Matt Berninger’s comforting baritone, the one we know and love, is present here, but my favorite part is when he passionately raises his voice an octave, exclaiming “I cannot explain it, ahh-ahhh, any other, any other way!” The song is incredibly gratifying and portends well for the coming album.

 
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