Music
8 Spotify playlists to soundtrack your summer
Summer's here – season of the music festival, Carnival, and (theoretically, at least) some long, hot days. Here are eight playlists you should follow to keep your summer sounding great throughout.
Depending on where you live, the hope and dream of a constant blue sky and permanent heatwave might be too much to ask. Still, summer months mean longer days and a brighter outlook, and you’ll need the right balance of tunes to accompany you along the way.
Summer is the sound of festivals, of late nights spent losing time with friends and family, of early mornings filled with the promise of discovery and – if you’re the type to have a pair of headphones around your neck at almost all times – a daily adventure through music.
Here are eight of the best Spotify playlists to keep you company, rain or shine…
1. CARIBOU’S EPIC MIXTAPE
At the beginning of 2015, the ultra-inventive Dan Snaith – aka Caribou – treated the world to a 1000-song playlist of some of the most important audio in his life.
It’s a testament to Snaith’s appreciation for music – and his superb taste – that three-and-a-half years on, his epic collection (minus a few that first made the cut) is still as compelling as it was on day one, and also serves as an excellent summer soundtrack.
As you can imagine, there are too many names to list here, but rich pop from Amerie, iconic statements from A Tribe Called Quest, relatable smooth heartbreak from Justin Timberlake and timeless musings from Nina Simone ensure that nobody is going to switch this one off at a barbeque.
2. SUMMER HITS UK
The Creative Summer Sounds Department (not a real department) at Spotify scour the length and breadth of the UK in order to keep your summer as lit as humanly possible, sunburn optional.
This fresh assortment of the brightest new sounds in pop, hip-hop, dance, r’n’b and indie-flavoured rock brings together essential originals and rousing remixes while showcasing an enviable, ever-evolving patriotic platform.
3. DANGER MOUSE JUKEBOX
Super-producer Brian Joseph Burton, better known as Danger Mouse, keeps an enthusiastic eye on all things old and new in the realm of psychedelic, soul, indie rock, new wave and post-punk sounds.
Both the kind of ‘impress your mates with your mad eclectic taste’ montage and a regular home for the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Julian Casablancas and Beach House, Danger Mouse’s weekly assembly is especially effective when chilling out beneath twilight stars.
4. SUMMER THROWBACKS
Back to those who eat, breathe and sleep music for a living at Spotify and the green-coated streaming giant’s official rundown of sunshine-friendly classics of years gone by.
Who doesn’t love a big helping of nostalgia, eh? The Summer Throwbacks line-up plays host to undisputed belters, a rake of ‘guilty pleasures’ and earworms that probably never left your head to begin with. Think of it as one of the more strange but highly attractive festival offerings imaginable, as the likes of Fatboy Slim, The Notorious B.I.G., Rihanna, Calvin Harris, Bruno Mars, Shakira and, er, Peter Andre collide...
5. PLAYED BY JAMIE XX
As the title suggests, this is a deep dive into the world of Jamie xx, specifically the tracks he finds himself opting for when taking over radio airwaves, nightclubs and cavernous arenas.
Much like a good DJ set from the man himself, this is all about the build; from all-time life-affirming anthems by Orbital and the profound contemplation of Sampha to clever pronounced gloom from Joy Division and Lana Del Rey (a summer is allowed to be overcast too, you know), Jamie has both your day and night sorted. Can’t really fault him too much for peppering it with deep cuts from The xx, either.
6. NME BEST SUMMER SONGS EVER
The print edition of the NME may well be dead and gone, but its spirit lives on in the form of this catalogue of seasonal bangers.
Constructed as the 2010s began to unfold, NME’s ‘Best Summer Songs Ever’ is another chance for vintage diamonds and contemporary gold standards to shine together amidst the fight for your sun-soaked attention.
Heavy-hitters like The Beach Boys, Vampire Weekend, Nate Dogg and Warren G, The Kinks and Paul Simon dance alongside slightly more hidden gems from Memory Tapes, Gold Panda, Pond, Sky Ferreira and Cults. Who said NME was just about Arctic Monkeys? Oh wait, they’re here, too.
7. HIT THE ROAD
“The most trusted voice in music” puts its money where its collective mouth is as Pitchfork staff present an array of mid-tempo rock, pop and hip-hop designed to accompany a long journey with adventure on the brain.
While their 31-track Summer Roadtrip effort is more suited to being in front of the wheel than at the mercy of a bus driver and heavy traffic, there’s no law against revving it up during your commute, either.
Whether it’s miles and miles of open road or a slow crawl to work, the likes of Frank Ocean, LCD Soundsystem, Alessia Cara, Talking Heads and Japandroids do their utmost to keep you moving.
8. THE GRANDEST STAGE OF ALL
Spotify’s game attempt to harness the hopes and dreams of a nation comes to the fore in tandem with the English national football team’s challenge for – and inevitable crushing exit from – the 2018 World Cup.
Even if you’re not enamoured with the beautiful game, there’s really no escaping it when it rolls around every four years. So whether you’re a die-hard with the Three Lions crest inked on your chest, or you simply don’t care for 22 lads knocking a ball about a pitch, the ‘England’ playlist could be the one thing that unites everyone.
It’s all here. Baddiel, Skinner and the Lightning Seeds’ beloved terrace anthem. Vital turns from Queen, Blur and The Verve. The odd marriage of Europe, Pet Shop Boys and Monty Python. New Order and the best football song ever recorded. Toploader. Toploader are involved.
Celebrate this extravaganza of British triumph, and hold it ever close when Gareth Southgate’s men crash out in the quarter finals.
Want a hit of new music every Friday? Follow our 4pm Finish Spotify playlist
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