Let’s pretend your biggest worries right now involve finding a beach towel, a ride to some beachy locale, and keeping sand out of the radio. And if you’re particular about your summer playlist you can needle drop your way through the 21 tunes gathered here to get some ideas.

We kick things off with a new songs from Austrialian band Beddy Rays. “Morning Light” has a rollicking indie rock sound not unlike The Front Bottoms or Catfish and the Bottlemen. Definitely singalong-able. It’s hard to finger on just what Murfreesboro, Tennessee band Piglett is doing style-wise. And I really like that. Their recent album On The Upswing alternates between moody alienation and slightly less moodiness. “The Rock in Your Shoe” is a sweetly melancholy number carried along by its spare electric guitar work and vulnerable vocal attack. I really dug Jody and Jerms 2025 LP Love Descends so a new single from the band was a welcome development. “Grace” is no disappointment, marrying their impressive range of stylistic elements – folk, pop, indie rock – with their usual aplomb. Why isn’t Richmond, Virginia’s Dazy a big star? Everything about this act’s sound and demeanor says huge impact to me. Their recent double-sided single “Big Problem” / “Gravity” sounds like a cross between Beck and Sugar Ray and that’s a winning combo. Toronto’s Zuffalo sound like a seventies throwback on “Hellos Are Free,” a track from their recent album Flock of the Town. The vibe is the rock side of country rock, a bit Band-like or reminiscent of The Jayhawks.

Cheeky Chris Stamey has put out an album covering old tunes but dubbed it Modernism. That could have a number meanings ranging from sarcasm to interpretation. Whatever the intent, it’s an inspired collection drawing from The Kinks, The Beatles, The Everly Brothers, Sly and the Family Stone, and many more. But I’m drawn to the mesmerising reworking of Stamey’s own tune “Of Time and All She Brings to Mind.” I keep hearing REM. But that’s hardly surprising becasue when I listen to REM I often think I’m hearing the Stamey’s previous band The dBs. Ryan Hamilton has a new LP Haunted By American Dreams and right now I’m loving “That Girl” and its particular mix of chiming guitars and a Tom Petty melodic drive. Definitely replay-able again and again. Leeds band The Rise and Fall offer up a range of choices on their second long-playing release Coma Chameleon but I found myself drawn to the driving, sonorous “Pigs.” The guitars never let up while the vocals sounds like a blend of church monk chorus meets Pugwash. And that is a good thing. Vista Blue are so on top of popular culture. They’re always coming out with timely cuts about politics, sports and entertainment. This time they draw inspiration from the summer smash movie The Odyssey with “Wooden Horse.” The song notches down their usual frenetic pop punk attack for a more measured melodic pace, to great effect. First Leeds now Sheffield, Yorkshire’s music scene is definitely getting a look in. This time its First Prize with a pleasant song entitled “Goodbye to the Day.” I hear more than little of 1980s Haircut 100.

On “Whenever” My Raining Stars so evoke a melancholic late 1980s UK guitar vibe it was like I was transported back to Manchester’s Arndale walking street. “It Will Take Me A While” from the same LP Toy Club is pretty sweet as well. Scottish lush guitar pop masters Dropkick are teasing us with a song well in advance of a new LP Throughlines, coming out in October, cleverly titled “Side Note.” The mood is dreamy but with a touch of unresolved tension. Definitely LP appetite whetting. I initially thought the title to Lolas new single was “Summer Song” but turns out the band has turned out another bit of hooky pop with a political theme. The actual title is “Summer Smog,” effectively soundtracking our world on fire 2026. Not that we need reminding but The Goods are here with “Summer’s Almost Gone.” But here’s the good news – this track is jangle-gorgeous. Almost like Teenage Fanclub meets the Beach Boys. San Fran’s Richard Turgeon may have (slightly) slowed the pace of his prolific releases but he spares nothing on the creative front. His new single “Let’s Hide Away” captures the uncertainty of our present times, balancing an earnest, low-key vocal against an alternating spare-versus-wall of guitars backdrop.

It feels like it’s been a while since we’ve heard from Philadelphia’s 2^nd Grade. “Cellophane Girls” reminds me how much I’ve been missing them. Just listen to these shimmering lead guitar lines and subtle melodic hooks. Bliss! Another reliable set of guitar hook-masters come in the form of Seattle band Shake Some Action. Forget the Pacific Northwest for moment, this act sounds like they’re from swinging London 1966. That mod elan is definitely there on their latest solo single “Last Long Weekend.” Now for something a bit different, Ben Guterl from Forth Wanderers and Dan Howard from Victoryland team up as Billboard Style doing a song called “Billboard Style.” The track has a relentless drone that is curiously soothing and danceable to boot. Westside Cowboy have got a new LP out It Goes On with cool tunes like “Kick Stones (The Boys)” and “Pin Up Boys” but I’m going to double back their January EP So Much Country ‘Til We Get There to showcase “The Wahs.” This is another track with a relentless quality to, banging on with buzzy guitar backdrop and a sunny singalong melody. The tenor of the new Hardwicke Circus single “Behind the Lines of Reason” is all 1980s sonic melodrama. Definitely montage worthy.

Wrapping things up this round is a fantastic tip from our friend Ralph for Melbourne, Australia band Hexham Heads. Last year they put out a fine self-titled EP but the track that me hitting replay again and again is “In Time,” their contribution to most recent Popboomerang collection, Shake Your Popboomerang 4. Light, jangly, with just a touch of XTC here and there.

Let’s pretend its mid-July rather than mid-August. Plenty of time to give your newly completed summer singles playlist a few workouts. And you hit the hyperlinks to plenty of raw material for it here. Definitely.

Photo courtesy Thomas Hawk Flikr collection.