With heatwaves on the horizon, it’s getting to that point where the only option left to survive the scorch is to embrace it. That means endless beach days and fervidly sweaty nights on the dancefloor. Yet a more important question than how to endure the heat is what songs will be bumping through it all. From ebullient synth-pop and anthemic drops of electronica that feed the fire in your body to the jangly refulgence of guitars—no two summer songs sound the same—but every single one of the fifteen we’ve compiled below will still send you drifting through a montage of visions containing all your coming summer reveries.

Keep an eye out for part two of this list where we’ll revise and finalize all our end-of-summer favorites!

This feature was produced by Sandra Burciaga Olinger, and written by David Sosa

1. Chappell Roan “Good Luck, Babe!”

Nurse the bittersweetness of a summer fling with “Good Luck, Babe!” the latest bit of addictively shimmering pop balladry to be unveiled by Chappell Roan. Bathed in a radiant shower of propulsive synths, her electrifying vocals come loaded with a familiarly intoxicating melodrama that leaves you ravished in its afterglow. The specific agony of catching feelings while ensnared in a “sexually explicit kind of love affair” never sounded so painfully blissful.

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2. LP Giobbi feat. Portugal. The Man “Bittersweet”

By the time Dotr—the upcoming album from LP Giobbi—arrives in the fall, its lead single, “Bittersweet, will have been almost assuredly crowned one of the summer’s riveting anthems. Boasting a groovily magnetic and spiraling melody, you’ll find yourself fully enthralled from the moment its bass-driven funk gets its hooks in you. Enlisting Portugal. The Man only elevates the song’s euphoria and will have you floating, dancing, and jamming along in seconds.

3. Sabrina Carpenter feat. Mark Ronson “Espresso” Remix

Building the hype for Sabrina Carpenter‘s hotly-anticipated summer album Short n’ Sweet, lead single “Espresso” rightfully dominated the charts and fan playlists. But the subsequent reworks by Mark Ronson have injected new life into the coyly swaggering pop banger, the “Working Late Remix” syncing the track to a club-ready soundscape of glitzy synths and throbbing beats.

4. TSHA feat. Rose Gray “Girls”

Arriving on a wave of thrumming electronics, “Girls” (feat. Rose Gray) is a rejuvenating, self-hyping offering from TSHA. If the title wasn’t a dead giveaway, this one’s for the girls—its blitzing synths and bass dousing you in affirmations to live, dance, and love with fearless abandon.

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5. Suki Waterhouse “Supersad”

Don’t let the title fool you; nothing screams summer more than the driving-rock anthemics that tear through Suki Waterhouse‘s new single “Supersad.” A percussive headrush complete with sunburst riffs and glowing overtures of devil-may-care liberation, it’s exactly the kind of song you hitch your heart, soul, and soon-to-be hoarse throat to as you barrel down a coastal highway. Leave all your worries, anxieties, and toxic inhibitions in the dust.

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6. Portraits Of Tracy “The Afterparty (Disco Version)”

Another rework that somehow manages to deliver a rapturous, flawless reimagining that morphs the final track of Portraits Of Tracy‘s third album, Drive Home, into a dizzying disco catharsis. “The Afterparty (Disco Version)” unfolds as a cyclone of rapid percussion and furious instrumental samples, a clamor of rousing, layered cries launching the whole soundscape toward its guitar-sizzling finale.

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7. Peggy Gou “Back To One”

In truth, very likely, every song found on Peggy Gou‘s debut album, I Hear You, belongs on this list, but “Back To One” is undoubtedly one of its standout moments. Rocketing forward to the entrancing pull of darting beats and scintillating synths, it checks all the boxes for the kind of gleaming, paradisial anthem you’ll want to play in the background of those summer nights spent on the dancefloor.

8. Sofi Tukker “Throw Some Ass”

Now, this track truly has everything: shuddering claps of bass concocted by Tucker Halpern, Sophie Hawley-Weld‘s angelic voice, urging you toward a therapeutic ass-throwing. When the beat hits on “Throw Some Ass” it crashes into you like a tidal wave of thrilling electronica—leave it to this one to accelerate the dance party from 0 to 100 real quick.

9. Empire of the Sun “Cherry Blossom”

Empire of the Sun is responsible for one of the enduring summer anthems—“Walking on a Dream”—so it should come as little surprise that in previewing their new album Ask That God, they’ve unleashed another energizing soundtrack. With “Cherry Blossom,” the duo once again proves that giddy romance and glittery electro-pop make a radiant pair. All hail Emperor Steele and Lord Littlemore for gracing us with a heavenly bit of musical magic.

10. LA LOM “Danza de La Lom”

The self-titled debut album from LA LOM can’t come soon enough, but when it does, it’ll transport listeners to the sweltering Latin dance halls from which it draws its sizzling instrumentals. “Danza de LA LOM” is just a first taste, but the rumble of its percussion and the simmer of its guitars are enough to confirm that it’ll have you swooning. Grab your lover and spend an evening lost in the song’s torridly amorous rhythms.


11. Aaron Frazer “Easy To Love”

A time machine back to when songs dripped with soul and honeyed love, Aaron Frazer‘s “Easy To Love” is an irresistible earworm devoted to the ecstasy of a new love. One driven by an incessant backbeat and a melody that dazzles and whirls you with its spellbinding instrumental exchanges. Let Frazer’s dreamily, suave voice lead you by the hand through a sublimely funky and balmy favorite.

12. Balu Brigada “So Cold”

Sporting jangly guitar lines and the buttery bounce of bass, Balu Brigada‘s “So Cold” is the very definition of a summer night lament. The push and pull of its erratic but enticing melody sends you reeling through memories of hot-and-cold flings and tempting evening rendezvous. Who doesn’t love a deliciously jittery rock piece to get you moving?

13. Delaporte “Madriz Madriz”

Unleashing a feverish pummeling of bass, Delaporte‘s latest single, “Madriz Madriz,” pulses with an unabashedly freeing energy. The track’s soul-charging drops and synth flourishes keep you locked into the duo’s mesmeric soundscape—leaving you awash in its momentous and overwhelming highs.




14. Stephen Sanchez “Baby Blue Bathing Suit”

Another head-over-heels, beach-combing romancer, this time starring Stephen Sanchez‘s crystal clear vocals as he daydreams over the heavenly wonder of a girl in a “Baby Blue Bathing Suit.” Breezy, doting, with just a tint of that vintage sound that makes his music so charming, the single carries all the sunny yearning that comes with a summer infatuation.

15. SASAMI “Honeycrash”

Leave it to SASAMI to unleash a conflagration of smoldering rock as her bid for a summer hit with “Honeycrash.” Rolling thunder sonics and red-hot riffs collide with volatile passion as she sings about a love that has since been consumed by flames. When the romance ends in a crashed and burning wreckage, you’ll let your heart cling to this track until the memories are nothing but ash.

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