Weekly Playlist 8/23, Except Late

Every Friday, I share the highlights of what I’ve been listening to over the course of the week, from old favorites to new discoveries. This week, I’m doing it on a Sunday because I spent my weekend out in the wilderness.

It’s a bummer that I’m getting this playlist up two days late. It would’ve been a fun one for the weeked.

It kicks off with “Manipulator” from Ty Segall, an artist I’m not super into, but that guitar riff cannot be ignored. Nor can the one in Paramore’s “Ain’t It Fun.” Some of Paramore’s most interesting and best stuff has come out of the last few years.

LA band Twin XL is one of those opening bands you don’t want to skip, and “Good” is one of their best songs, especially for summer. The same can be said of “Green Light,” the best song on Lorde’s Melodrama, and “Need You Now” by Cut Copy, perhaps one of their best in their entire discography.

We close with a new track each from some of pop’s most famous ladies. Miley Cyrus’ “Slide Away” is a breakup song disguised as a guitar- and synth-laden lazy summer jam with a good hook, while Taylor Swift’s “Lover,” along with “The Archer,” is the best of her pre-album singles. “Lover” is a return to the style Swift does best, as opposed to the ways Reputation and, to a lesser degree, “ME!” and “You Need to Calm Down” fell flat.