Songs to Survive a Heatwave To

Climate Change, Temperature

The academic year is here, and with it, a playlist to remind you why you can be glad summer is over! As many of you may be aware (some of you probably much more than you’d like to be), numerous parts of the world experienced intense heat waves over the past few months. Just a few weeks ago in LA, temps soared into triple digits for days. The playlist for this edition of The Tech compiles songs to take you back to those toasty days so you can either (A) relive the joy and lack of responsibility of the summer or (B) remember how suffocatingly hot the summer is and be grateful that it’s over. In either case, hopefully you enjoy the following songs:

  1. Indian Summer (HOAX)
  2. F**k June (Half Young)
  3. July (HUNNY)
  4. Heatwaves (Glass Animals)
  5. Heatstroke (Khalid)
  6. Texas Sun (Khruangbin & Leon Bridges)
  7. Hot (Cigarettes After Sex)
  8. I Burned LA Down (Noah Cyrus)
  9. Smoke & Fire (Sabrina Carpenter)
  10. HOT TO GO (Chappel Roan)
  11. Burnin’ Up (Jonas Brothers)
  12. So Hot That it Hurts (VOILA)
  13. Sweatshirts in the Summer (DOUBLECAMP)
  14. Melt (Quinn XCII)
  15. Broken Summer (DJ Snake ft. Max Frost)

Bonus Song: Fire (Official UEFA EURO 2024 Song)

Hot takes from the weatherman:

Disclaimer: I’m particularly opinionated about the songs on this Volume of “Songs to do Something To”, starting with Indian Summer by the band HOAX. I’m still trying to figure out how common this is, but in Southern Oregon (where I’m from), we are very well acquainted with the phrase “Indian Summer”; the lingering effects of summer weather that reaches into September and October to extend the warm, dry season. Personally, I love a good Indian Summer (you get to see all the leaves change colors without the bite of the cold!), although some of the hottest days of the year pop up during these autumn heatwaves (like those we saw in Pasadena at the beginning of the month). Thus, it only seemed fitting that this indie-pop banger lead off the playlist for us.

Next, I want to take a second to acknowledge Heatwaves and explain myself. Was it overplayed? Yes. But is it still a phenomenal song with vibes that perfectly convey a sunsick mirage fever dream? Absolutely. Case in point.

On the other hand, Heatstroke might be one of my favorite songs of the summer. In some ways, it reminds me of Feels Like Summer by Childish Gambino (as featured on the Volume 3 Playlist) seeing that they both have heavy R&B elements that are a vehicle for social commentaries on climate change. But what I find particularly compelling about this song is actually the album it’s off of. This summer, Khalid released his fifth album, Sincere. Personally, I was a huge fan of his first three albums, but was less than thrilled by Scenic Drive and some of his more recent singles, so I didn’t have high hopes for his newest release. However, I admit I was completely wrong. Sincere shares similarities with American Teen and Free Spirit that have been missing in Khalid’s more recent music, while adding the depth that comes with the maturity of being seven years older.

Lastly, let’s talk about the stretch of songs featuring our Disney Stars and girl bosses. Noah Cyrus (Miley’s little sister) always impresses me with her unique and eclectic music. From dance to folk, she’s pursued a variety of genres with I Burned LA Down being a phenomenal singer/songwriter ballad that I was thrilled to include on “Songs to Survive a Heatwave To”. In my mind, she’s a complete girlboss, which leads me to HOT TO GO and Smoke & Fire, songs penned by other girl bosses absolutely dominating the music industry at the moment. To begin with, I felt like it would be sacrilegious of me not to include Chappell Roan (particularly a song with the word “hot” in the title) on a playlist meant to evoke summer nostalgia, seeing that she basically took over the world over the course of the season. The only person who could possibly challenge her dominance as the pop princess of the year would be none other than Sabrina Carpenter. So I threw on Smoke & Fire, a song from her early career, which is honestly still a banger if you ask me. With all of this Disney child-star energy, I also felt obligated to include Burnin’ Up, so for all my Jonas Bros fans out there, this one’s for you.

Bonus: While the Olympics were the summertime entertainment for many of us during the later half of the break, it’s worth remembering that the UEFA cup made for an exciting June and July. I Love how UEFA literally produces songs for their tournaments, and since this one also had an extremely apt title, *Fire *made the playlist as the 12th man to complete the roster.

With that, welcome back to campus! Hopefully everyone had amazing summers despite any apocalyptic or unpleasant weather conditions, and this playlist gets you through your first few weeks back on campus.

Cheers,

Your local pyromaniac