There are also those albums that make me instantly think of summer, probably because they were first a part of my life during warm times. Both are cool, and lately I've been making a mental note of such bands/songs/albums. To continue with my list post tradition of late, here is my list of Songs that Sound Better During Warm Weather.
John Mayer- "Why Georgia"
To be honest, now adays I don't give John Mayer much time out of my day. But last night I heard "Why Georgia" played somewhere randomly and I was instantly flashed back to the summer when I was 15 and my girlfriends and I first got Room for Squares. One of them got a new Dodge Neon that summer, and it was a big "ironic thing" for us to drive around listening to track 5, "Neon." Yeah, we were cool. We were 15, we were girls, and we went to see John Mayer. Actually, we met his band while we were having lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe in Cleveland before the show at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a part of this MTV2 summer concert series- I think we're on TV somewhere. And, my escalator (going up) took me immediately past John Mayer (going down the opposite escalator), where I took a picture this picture:
Anyways, I heard "Why Georgia" last night and it was the first really warm night of the season, and life just felt like it was all in place.
"Everybody is just a stranger
But that's the danger
In going my own way,
I guess that's the price I'm going to pay every day."
Band of Horses- "Island on the Coast"
This song is great for summer road trips, especially with the windows rolled down. I think it really explains itself and it's summeriness, just give it a listen:
Vampire Weekend- "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa"
Really, any song from their debut self-titled album is summer-ific. However, something about "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" just makes me want to sit around with hipsters in striped bathing suits on a beach drinking PBR. With beach balls and bikes. This song also captures the friskiness of spring in a very...honest way. You'll see what I mean:
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart- "Gentle Sons"
There's just something epic going on here, reminds me of the same building intensity of waves and of my home watering hole, Lake Erie.
Led Zeppelin- "Gallows Pole"
I got Led Zeppelin III in my freshman year of college at Ohio University. I immediately connected with this Zeppelin album more than others, but then spring time hit, and let me tell you, it hit hard. I remember drinking a lot, studying a lot, all while being in the sun a lot, and being dehydrated at frequent intervals. All the while Zeppelin III was playing in any way I could make it play, whether over real audio or just constantly in my head. This album as a whole is really great when listened to outdoors, especially "Gallows Pole," which has a crazy mystical and almost western/southern film sense to it, and all around sounds heartwarming. Check out this video of Robert Plant and Jimmy Page playing it, with Robert giving a brief telling of the history of the song at the beginning:
Peter Bjorn and John- "Up Against the Wall"
This song is connected to another college memory, this time a not so optimistic one, but one that is certainly reflective of how instrospective and emotional I tend to become when the warm weather of May hits. In "Up Against the Wall" the melancholy, repeated melody is met by the ultimate match of equally melancholy and repeated lyrics, emphasizing the sensual violence often felt in the discontent between two lovers. It seems to be the great embodiment of spring's sexual tension- with utter abandoment and cyclical masochism, "Up Against the Wall" is the perfect song to follow the track immediately before it, "Start to Melt." Someone on YouTube was kind enough to host a video of both songs playing back to back, check it here:
Happy springtimes everybody!
D.
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