You’re over your Spotify mixes, your YouTube playlists are becoming repetitive, and wading through your muso friend’s ever-pretentious song suggestions is less appealing than listening to Nickelback’s “Photograph” on repeat for the rest of time. We get it. To relieve your decision fatigue, we’ve asked the hottest rising artists to compile their favorite tracks of the minute.
Here, Maude Latour shares the songs to be your buoys in a sea of summertime sadness.
Maude Latour, “Starsick”
Well, okay. I’m biased. But for me, this song is about realizing my existential lows are what makes my transcendent moments of pure joy possible. Love and adoration for my best friends. So human, this is my existential crisis coping mechanism in a song.
Janelle Monae, “I Like That”
I didn’t know I needed to feel strong until I heard this song. It was surging from my veins, the true divine power of the woman Janelle Monae is. She is such an incredible human, sing this walking down the street and self-love will be pouring in through the crevices of your soul. Thank you, Ms. Monae.
Lake Street Dive, “Good Kisser”
Nothing like a belt-y song to your ex boyfriend to remind you what it is like to feel strong and angry but channel it into freedom. You will feel it in this song.
Adam Melchor, “Real Estate”
Yes. You will cry. Everyone I have shown this to, including myself, has bawled. Everything will pour out of you. But sometimes we need that.
M.I.A., Rye Rye, Afrikan Boy, “Paper Planes (Blaqstarr Remix)”
Every time you forget this song, it comes back into your life. MIA tells you how to be a badass. That is the feeling we need to take us through the mentally challenging moments. Just let this song do its magic, no matter how many times you’ve heard it. It’s just so good.
Active Baby Music Workshop, “Prelude No. 1”
Well, this song is beyond important to the world. This is pure emotion, human human emotion, in the timbre, these notes, these genius notes. Classical music is where I started and will be where I end.
Phoebe Bridgers, “Scott Street”
This song is for the quiet walk alone when things were just bad. Life in retrospection. This is a sacred song. Special, special song. Also Motion Sickness and Funeral. This is a special song. Please, if I can give you anything.
Joni Mitchell, “California”
Joni knows how to sing to your mind. The details, the people, this is what music is meant for. Picture her in her time. Picture how she communicated through these words, it’s insane. Live through this track. Wow.
Julian Casablancas, “I’ll Try Anything Once”
This song is the bittersweet fabric of life itself. There is nothing more alive than these sound waves. It is sacred.
The Voidz, “Human Sadness”
Well, it needs to be on here. If you can handle it, this song is a full on trip around the galaxy that will take you to every single one of your demons and force you to come out in child-like state at the end. You might not be ready for this intensity, but I do believe to have a mentally clear head also consists of these emotions. If you listen to it please DM me so we can talk about it at length.
Check out Maude Latour, below.