THE ONLY SPRING PLAYLIST YOU´LL NEED THIS YEAR

It smells like rain and fresh lavender, mown grass and damp soil. It feels like warm-ish wind flowing in through open windows in classrooms, like a new beginning. Spring is here, and so is the only playlist you´ll need this season.

I´ve added my favorite quotes from the songs (as lyrics are so important to me when it comes to listening to music) and also notes on why I like the song & what they make me feel while listening to them. They might be a bit messy or confusing, but this is how I would recommend songs to my friends, so here you go! I think the best way to understand what I´m saying is by listening to the songs while reading my words.

I may have no musical talent at all, but music is such a passion of mine. It bring out every single side and every single inch of creativity out of me, and I want to share my latest favorites with you. I hope you appreciate and enjoy the music as much as I do.

Scan this Spotify Code and listen along while reading this post!

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Loving Is Easy- Rex Orange County

Rex Orange County is one of my favorite artists that I discovered recently, his music is so unique without pushing it. This is such a groovy tune that makes me feel like I´m in love, listen to this and let it brighten your day.

“When you can’t even hide it
And it didn’t take forever to find it”

Morning Marc E. Bassy

This sounds like waking up next to the person you love would feel like. It´s a chill song that´s super easy to listen to.

“Would you stay here from the sunset to the sunrise?”

Subtle Thing- Marian Hill

I´ve loved “Down” by Marian Hill since traveling to California with my dad, and when I foun this new song of theirs, I was soo excited. It´s a little weird, but in the best way. I don´t think I could dance to this because the beat and the way she sings is so special, and that´s what makes this song so cool and memorable. It´s really unlike any other song I´ve ever heard before.

“We always play in tune
I love the way we move
Heard your favorite record on the day before we met
Every time I hear it now I kinda start to sweat”

“I always see you when I’m out on the street
I wanna talk and you appear on my screen”

Talk Show Host- Radiohead

I discovered this song while watching Romeo & Juliet (Yes, the one with Leonardo DiCaprio). The entire movie is a piece of art including the soundtrack, which had me hooked from the start. This is the song that ended up in my playlist because it´s so damn badass. If you ever feel lost inside yourself and society and can´t put it to words, whoever wrote this song has done exactly that.

“You want me?
Fucking well come and find me
I’ll be waiting
With a gun and a pack of sandwiches
And nothing, nothing
Nothing, nothing”

Through and Through- khai dreams

I don´t remember finding this song, but I know that what got me interested was the voice in combination with the beachy ukulele music. If you´re like me and are obsessed with Blackbear´s voice, then listen to this song. It sounds so much like his voice that I had to check if it was him or not. (If you´re into Orange Rex County, I´m sure you´ll be into this)

“I only think about it in the night time
Always in the night time
Up too late lying on the floor
Thinking I’ve been here for so long
Just a little too long”

A 1000 Times- Hamilton Leithauser + Rostam

This songs tells a story of it´s own, and aaa guys this song makes me feel so alive. I can´t even describe what it is about this one, but I listen to it and feel like moving to Brighton (please don´t ask me why, but this is the city that came to my mind) and buying flowers and dancing on the streets.

“Just being able to close your eyes when you hear some lyrics and go somewhere. It’s worth taking the time to do that” -a quote by songwriter Rostam

“I had a dream that you were mine
I’ve had that dream a thousand times”

“But I don’t answer questions, I just keep on guessing
But all that I have is this old dream I always had”

The Prologue- Halsey

Back at it again with Romeo & Juliet. The song starts off with Halsey reading out the Prologue (surprise, surprise) of Romeo & Juliet and continues with music and her own lyrics. Halsey album Hopeless Fountain Kingdom is directly inspired by the 1996 movie Romeo & Juliet, which is clearly visible in the cover art and released music videos.

I love Romeo & Juliet and have slowly been getting more and more interested in not only the original play, but also everything that was inspired by it, especially in pop culture.

“Hands so bloody, tastes like honey
I’m finding it hard to leave”

Girl Crush (Spotify Single)- Harry Styles

The directioner in me will never die, but this song is all Harry. His raw voice and the beautiful, heart wrenching lyrics get me every time. Listening to it right this moment brought tears to my eyes.

The original song is by Little Big Town, and just as great, only with a female (non Harry) voice. (Let me repeat, directioner.) Only after researching and really analyzing did I realize that this songs was written out of the perspective of a woman who is jealous of another woman and what she has (a man).

Harry didn´t change the pronouns, which I am so happy about. I hate people changing pronouns when covering songs, it´s not wrong to sing out of the perspective of the opposite gender whether you relate to the lyrics or not (which I guess is a question of sexuality which wouldn´t be anyone´s business anyways?? So… just saying.)

“I want to taste her lips
Yeah, ’cause they taste like you”

Your Shirt- Chelsea Cutler

This song is about the narrator missing her ex, and wondering why it can´t be the same as it used to be while also feeling lonely without them. It´s a very flowy song that is easy to listen to, much like Morning. Perfect for showering, or car rides (with the windows down)

I feel like this song is a very uplifting way of portraying a breakup and everything that comes afterwards. It sounds happy, but listening closely to the lyrics changes the mood.

“My bed where you left me
Tangled up, now it’s noon
In your shirt that you gave me
Half asleep, wishing I still had you”

Malibu 1992- COIN

“At 4AM, under flickering fluorescent light, we carelessly wrote. Then, we put it on the shelf,” -Chase Lawrence, band member

The song sounds exactly like what Lawrence said. Again, this song tells the story of a break up. The narrator is comparing a current relationship with the one he is reminiscing on in the song. It seems to me like he is realizing that he´s not over her, like he thought he was. Here´s my interpretation:

A couple moved to Malibu (or she moved to Malibu to live with him). She´s originally from Ohio, and when the two break up she leaves Malibu because she doesn´t have enough money to stay there. Now, 20 years later, he still thinks of her daily, while he feels she has forgotten him and Malibu (a metaphor for their relationship, which she also left) and moved on to being a “trophy wife” for an “old man in New Jersey”, where money isn´t a problem like it was in Malibu, 1992.

“Oh, I did it again, I did it again
Oh, I must still want you”

Jane- Roy Blair

I don´t have much to say about this song other than I really love the vibe and lyrics of this. It tells another story, this one being a little more complex than previous ones. It´s not clear to me whether this song is about a love interest or family member, although I do know that the song was named after Blair´s aunt because the song reminded him of her and the time they spent together.

“The best thing about not having you around
I can finally hear myself think out loud”

the broken hearts club- gnash

Gnash feels heartbroken after a breakup and dreams up a “broken hearts club” filled with people who are going through the same thing as him. One of the things I like most about this song is that he uses the pronoun “we”, which to me means that both members of the ex-relationship are members of the club, meaning that both of them are broken-hearted over the end of the relationship, which is something that is often ignored or overlooked. The end of a relationship, any kind of relationship, is painful for both members, not only the one being left etc., and this song really opened my eyes to that again.

“We hate every little thing about the people that we love
We’re the let-down, we’re the lied-to, where the lost go and it finds you”

She´s On My Mind- JP Cooper

I feel weirdly protective over JP Cooper, who I discovered when his song “September Song” was super popular last summer. I like a lot of his songs but didn´t know this one until I heard it on the radio in Portugal, immediately naming it the “Portugal Song” (Please tell me I´m not the only one who does this haha). It´s so much fun and me and Christina spent a lot of time dancing to it 🙂

“She’s on my mind, she’s on my mind
She’s on my mind, she’s on my mind
I can’t sleep at night
‘Cause she ain’t by my side”

Delicate- Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift is one of my guilty pleasures. While my friends always roll my eyes when I listen to her music, I actually really like it. I prefer her old songs over her new songs, that´s for sure, but she´s a really good singer and all she does (and gets the most negative feedback for) singing about past relationships, with really relatable songs. (Note that all the other songs I´ve listed had male singers and were also about past relationships and exes, so can everyone just accept that this is pure ignorance towards Taylor)

The lyrics of this song are so real and really fit in with the whole “let´s not fall in love but act like we´re in a relationship” mentality everyone is currently following. It also seems to be about a secret relationship, which is always fun to listen to. If you liked Wildest Dreams, you´ll like this song too.

“This ain’t for the best
My reputation’s never been worse, so
You must like me for me…”

Somewhere Only We Know- Miki Ratsula

This song is a cover, but so beautifully and well done. Miki´s voice is so soft and I love how she transformed this song into something completely different without taking away from the essence and original vibe of the song. I also love a good ukulele cover, always.

The original song is one of my favorites, but this version is so much easier to sing along to in the shower haha.

“Is this the place we used to love?
Is this the place that I’ve been dreaming of?”

I Spend Too Much Time in My Room- The Band CAMINO

To me this song is clearly about depression or anxiety, and it depicts it in a very beautiful, humane way instead of “over exaggerating” it. It forces the listener to understand the daily struggle of living as a teenager while tendencies to mental illness.

I love listening to this song because of the beautiful melody and relatable lyrics. I wish I could put the entire song,  but here´s one of MANY good quotes from the song. Please take time to read the lyrics if you´re interested!

“I know I’ve said I liked being alone
But I care way too much about what they think
So I spend too much time on my phone”

Beach Island- Jeremy Zucker

This song is chill and easy to listen to, and although I don´t say this a lot, the lyrics don´t mean a lot to me. I just really love the way they flow with the music in this song.

“And Lucy you can let all your hair down
And lay out all your troubles for me
The smell of licorice in the air”

Coffee & Cigarettes- Vic Mensa

I love Vic Mensa´s voice in this song, and the guitar in the background, and the lyrics. Man, the lyrics. They tell such a nice story about the first girl he was involved with. Idk this song is so full of emotion to me, I immediately added it to my Spotify playlist when I heard it. I think you really need to listen to this song to understand what I mean.

“You were only 17
Fallin’ in love with everything
Except for me, except for me, except for me
These cigarettes is burnin’ like a dream
And all this money heals everything
Except for me, except for me, except for me”

Yes I´m Changing- Tame Impala

First of all, that title. Yes, I´m changing. Yes, I am changing. It´s like he´s replying to a complex question with such a simple yet powerful answer. I love it.

This song is about the narrator leaving a relationship because he´s not the same person he was when it started. If you are going through something similar, or basically through any change, this song is really good to listen to. (Tame Impala in general is a really good artist to listen to.)

“Yes I’m changing, yes I’m gone
Yes I’m older, yes I’m moving on
And if you don’t think it’s a crime, you can come along
With me”

Please Don´t Lie- Hugo Helmig

This song has been all over german radios over the past couple of days, and even though I´m not really into radio music (ReAL mUsIC Isn´T On ThE RAdIo) I really like this song. I hope I don´t get sick of it too quick with it playing on every radio station daily.

It´s about a really current topic: social media and people posting pictures that might not be true to reality, and essentially “lying”.

“Please don’t lie to me, do you have it all?
Please don’t lie to me, you know I can’t ignore
When you’re posing for a perfect picture
While you hide behind your pretty smile”

Shake It Out- (MTV Unplugged, 2012)- Florence + The Machine

I´m sure you know this song, and isn´t it the perfect ending for a spring playlist? It´s so positive and all about strong, new beginnings. Isn´t that what spring is all about? Leaving behind all the burdens of the end of the last year and embracing the better weather and new possibilities that come with the new season?

“Cause I like to keep my issues drawn
But it’s always darkest before the dawn”

“And it’s hard to dance with a devil on your back
So shake him off, oh whoa”

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I hope you enjoyed this post and all it´s rambling. I just really, really love music and analysing songs and such. If you enjoyed this post and want to see more like it, please let me know in the comments! Also tell me ALL about your favorite songs! I´m always on the hunt for new songs!

This post is also a collab with lovely Jeanne from Femme Garrel, who is also posting her own spring playlist over on her blog. I promise you, if you love this one you´ll love hers too! Find her post here!

kisses x Antonia