List
Music for Summer Listening 2025
Here are some albums that are perfect for summer.
-
For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women)
2025 by Japanese Breakfast (Musical group)Get this itemWith this title, you might expect Japanese Breakfast’s newest effort to be more of a sedate wallowing than the grandiose, synthy-bordering-on-baroque rock that it is. Michelle Zauner elevates sadness to mythic proportions and examines it as literary tragedy. The album itself is short enough to listen to in one brief sitting, but for a taste try "Picture Window." Suggested by Amy G and Brenna.
-
Expert in a Dying Field
2022 by Beths (Musical group)Get this itemNew Zealand indie rock band The Beths’s album is upbeat in defiance of the sobering intimacy of its content. It’s an album about the knowledge and changed habits you’re left with at the end of a relationship, but it’s about moving forward and growing from it, too. Try starting your big summer road trip with the up-tempo "Knees Deep." Suggested by Amy G.
-
Good Together
2024 by Lake Street Dive (Musical group)Get this itemFor their eighth studio album since they formed in 2004, Lake Street Dive took a novel approach to finding inspiration for their new songs: using a 20-sided die to aid in selecting chords and time signatures. The result is their classic soul- and swing-inspired pop with a decidedly eclectic and improvisational big-band feeling. (Check out the title track, in 7/14 time!). Suggested by Amy G.
-
End Beginnings
2025 by Sandwell District (Musical group)Get this itemA techno record for summer nights, when the heat of the day is gone but the memory remains. On their second full-length album–first in 15 years–the group expands its sonic palette a bit to include some atmospheric elements that add depth and texture to the jackhammer beats. Suggested by Adam.
-
Alligator Bites Never Heal (CD)
2025 by DoechiiGet this itemDoechii has had quite a year. From an epic Tiny Desk Concert to a show-stopping performance at the Grammys, she’s taking the rap and hip-hop world by storm. With fantastic wordplay, addictive beats, and even some unusual breathing techniques, this album solidifies her as an artist to keep an eye on. Suggested by Brenna.
-
Sable, Fable
2025 by Bon Iver (Musical group)Get this itemThis album goes from vulnerable to radiant, from prologue to book, and shows a new path forward for the band while harkening back to their folk forward roots. This one is a great choice for those summer days where the rain and the sun dance around each other. Suggested by Paul.
-
Let Me Do One More
2021 by Illuminati HottiesGet this itemIlluminati Hotties’ Sarah Tudzin coined the term ‘tenderpunk’ to describe her act’s classic punk influence combined with soft indie singer-songwriter emotionality. It’s easy to hear what she means on "Let Me Do One More." This is one of my quintessential summer albums, with the bouncy, exciting, and sometimes frenetic energy of tracks like "Pool Hopping" holding their own alongside the softer and more vulnerable late-summer-evening tracks like "The Sway." Suggested by Amy G.
-
Mestizx
2024 by Ferragutti, Ibelisse GuardiaGet this itemEx-Chicagoan and titanic percussionist Frank Rosaly and his partner Ibelisse Guardia Ferragutti present their first album as a duo. This is a rhythmically propulsive collection of songs with serpentine melodies and grooves. Brilliantly synthesizing the pair’s Puerto Rican, Brazilian, and Bolivian backgrounds, the album feels both familiar and uncanny, and a prime candidate for heavy summertime rotation. Suggested by Adam.
-
Forever Is a Feeling
2025 by Dacus, LucyGet this itemLucy Dacus is one of my favorite vocalists in indie rock music. Her velvety vocals lend surprising mellowness to this meditation on the highs and lows of anticipating, beginning, and committing to a new relationship. Listening to the album almost feels voyeuristic in its tenderness, whether it’s a love song of devotion like "Best Guess" or the open yearning of lead single "Ankles." Suggested by Amy G.
-
Highway Prayers
2024 by Strings, BillyGet this itemAfter picking up two Grammys since 2021, Billy Strings continues to release some of the best bluegrass music out there. Sometimes veering into jam band territory with excellent instrumentals, this is a long album that’s perfect for a lazy summer afternoon. Check out standout tracks like “Gild the Lily” and “Leaning on a Travelin’ Song.” Suggested by Brenna.
-
Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!
2023 by Dixon, McKinleyGet this itemWith an opening track featuring essayist Hanif Abdurraqib reading Toni Morrison, you may as well add this album to your summer list. Occupying a space confidently overlapping jazz and rap, Chicago artist McKinley Dixon’s dynamic lyricism shines with his literary touch, backed by dynamic string instrumentation. I love the smooth flow of the title track, and the more energetic "Run, Run, Run." Suggested by Amy G.
-
Sufferer Sounds
2024 by Bovell, DennisGet this itemThis superb collection highlights the mid- to late-1970's work of producer and musician, Dennis Bovell. In addition to being a songwriter and performer of immense depth and feeling–look no further than “Come with Me” on this release–Bovell produced some groundbreaking records by iconic artists including Pop Group, Fela Kuti, Steel Pulse, and The Slits. You can’t go wrong with Reggae in the summer. Suggested by Adam.
-
Prelude to Ecstasy
2024 by Last Dinner Party (Musical group)Get this itemThe Last Dinner Party’s bold baroque pop is straight theater, landing somewhere among MARINA’s The Family Jewels and Kate Bush’s The Kick Inside. The album oozes with drama, with big orchestral breaks that include flute or mandolin. "Nothing Matters," their powerful and at times overwhelming lead single, is a great encapsulation of their sound for first-time listeners. Suggested by Amy G.
-
The Very Best of Talk Talk
2025 by Talk Talk (Musical group)Get this itemLikely most well-known for their 1984 hit, “It’s My Life,” England’s Talk Talk was on a singular trajectory moving from the early synth-based pop to emotionally resonant, immersive, and inscrutable jazz-inflected long-form songs that marked the latter part of their career. This compilation presents highlights from their entire catalog in chronological order, so you, the listener, can savor their evolution. Suggested by Adam.
-
The Age of Pleasure
2023 by Monáe, JanelleGet this itemI know I can always rely on Janelle Monáe to deliver an album full of Afrofuturist grooves. Departing from their high-concept albums like The ArchAndroid and Dirty Computer, Monae’s goal with The Age of Pleasure was to write “a love letter to the [African] diaspora,” and they delivered a hedonistic, high-energy album that veers into blusterous self-celebration. And as a bonus, check out Doechii’s verse on "Phenomenal," predating her meteoric late-2024 rise. Suggested by Amy G.
-
Mayhem
2025 by Lady GagaGet this itemLittle Monsters rejoice! The tracks on Lady Gaga’s newest release are reminiscent of her early albums, with funky beats that will make you want to hit the dance floor. I’m here for it. Suggested by Brenna.
-
Javelin
2023 by Stevens, SufjanGet this itemSufjan Stevens is back in full singer-songwriter form with contemplative, heartbreaking reflection and lush instrumentation. This indie folk album was released shortly following the death of Sufjan Steven’s partner, and this lends a metatextual layer of grief to the longing typically exhibited in his work. Still, even as the songs fall into the despair of foreseeing the end, there’s a hopefulness and ascension to be found. Suggested by Amy G.
Bookmatch
Bookmatch allows Skokie Library cardholders to receive a custom list of titles prepared for you by the library's expert staff.
Try Bookmatch