Slackie Brown’s ‘Summertime Smooth’ – Summer ’21 Playlist

With July 4th weekend quickly approaching, the excitement and anticipation of a (somewhat) “normal” season builds with the rise of each digit on the thermometer. Here are some tunes to help you have your best post-vaccine summer — we made it through!

Benny Sings – “Rolled Up” (feat. Mac Demarco)

While you may not have heard of him, Benny Sings is somewhat of a veteran in music, releasing his first album in 2003 and working as a songwriter and producer for tracks such as Rex Orange County’s “Loving Is Easy.” The first single released from his album Music, “Rolled Up” features guest vocals from Mac Demarco. It could have been a marketing ploy to get more ears on the track, but since it lured me in and prompted a listen, it worked. It also works on a musical level, as Mac begins the vocal duties with a laidback take that fits right into the start/stop nature of the rhythm section. Then Benny starts — and the laidback vibe is taken to new heights. The juxtaposition of voices works so well, because once Benny begins, you are immediately drawn in deeper. His tone of voice is so unique that you can’t help but roll along with the rather minimal instrumental arrangement.

Troy Sivan – “Easy” with Kacey Musgraves feat. Mark Ronson

A remix to Sivan’s song from his 2020 release, the new “Easy” is decidedly more heartbreaking than the original, adding vocals from Kacey Musgraves and 80’s style production from Mark Ronson. I’m a sucker for a banger that pulls on the heart strings, and this is one of the year’s best examples of such a song, as Kacey’s verse (comprised of new lyrics) elevates the song beyond its initial conception.

Dayglow – “Crying on the Dancefloor”

Dayglow is the one-man operation of 21-year old Sloan Struble whose excellent second album was released in late May. As a bedroom producer of sorts, Struble is not afraid of opening up about the music of yesteryear that influences his approach and sound, as he explains in his funny-yet-informative YouTube videos about how a particular song came about. Imagine a young Kevin Parker of Tame Impala, if he — instead of listening to great psychedelic music when growing up — listened to yacht rock and pop hits from the late 70’s. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot more of Sloan in the future. “Crying on the Dancefloor” is a bit of a companion piece to Robyn’s all-time great, “Dancing on My Own,” as Dayglow borrows the sentiment and flips it to the male perspective — which, as it turns out, does not end up with dancing your ass off as a way to cope with your emotions, but rather, feeling embarrassed by the lack control over the overwhelming emotion felt when seeing an ex-lover across the dancefloor.

Claud – “Soft Spot”

As the first signing to Phoebe Bridgers’ label Saddest Factory, Claud’s debut album comes after a slew of singles and EP’s. “Soft Spot” is the stand out, as Claud stops the pre-chorus short to sing the refrain, then adds a steady bass and washed out drum kit as the vocal slips into falsetto. Simple quarter note down-strums, a double-tracked vocal, and great melodies over choice reverb equate to song that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Lucy Dacus – “Brand0”

On her third album, Home Video, Lucy Dacus confronts past traumas and intense moments with a contrasting touch of floating melodies that almost distract you from how devastating the lyrics are in actuality. “Brando” is, for my money, the best representation of this; with a breezy aura, a mid-tempo rhythm, and beautiful acoustic guitar accents, she makes sure you don’t miss the heartbreak in the first chorus by cutting out the lo-fi rhythm and synth bass, simply strumming chords while singing the refrain, “All I need for you to admit / is that you never knew me like you thought you did.” For a three-minute pop song, it is a devastating realization of putting yourself through a relationship in which you are undervalued or misunderstood, which immediately makes you want to start it over and listen to the lyrics even more intently.

Listen to the full official Slackie Brown ‘Summertime Smooth’ – Summer ’21 playlist below: