1. Death Cab for Cutie
On their 2015 album "Kintsugi," "The Ghosts of Beverly Drive" has a California summer feel with a jab at the ones in Beverly Hills who are often deceived to believe everything they hear. "Where all the news is second hand, and everything just goes on as planned." It's all gossip and secret hidden emptiness from so much excess of essentially having anything you want to buy. Also on "Kintsugi," "Ingenue" describes the young fading beauty as essential to seize by making the most she can from love and reaching future dreams of seeing the world. "The currency of being 23, it turns from gold to dust." It's about making the most of our fading youth by taking as many adventures from experiences in love.
2. Local Natives
Personally, I'm a huge Local Natives fan, so when I first heard "Sunlit Youth," I was in love. I basically knew the whole album by heart in less than a week. During that time, there was nothing more freeing than riding droptop, while belting the chorus to "Everything All at Once." It's about the greatest love with the rush of moments and everything you could ever want right in front of you. "Dark Days" is a deep song that describes the limits of what we are able to know leading to doubt in a positive way of being okay with possibilities in uncertainty. As a result of this uncertainty, it conveys how we turn often turn a blind eye to others on the corner in the pursuit of money.
3. Tame Impala
Their 2015 album "Currents," "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" shows that people are hard to accept change and sometimes they won't understand when you have to move on. We get hard headed for stubborn nature humans and forget that we often don't have to depend on one single option. Also, their 2012 album, "Lonerism," features "Be Above It" which represents rising above hate by not letting harsh people influence our expressions and sense of individuality.
4. Portugal. The Man
His latest single "Feel It Still" speaks to all the rebels who sometimes like to bend the rules for fun and it's catchy in a good way. "Someday Believers" on his 2013 album, "Evil Friends," shows that we all not that different. We all have dreams and in the end who are we to judge? We can't ever really know anything at all when all knowledge has an angle and is coming from humans who inherently have biases and different perceptions of reality.
5. The Mowgli's
"So What" off their most recent album,"Where'd Your Weekend Go?" is the perfect upbeat song to give you perspective and get you back in your spirits you're feeling down or just a perfect song to celebrate a great day. "So what if you know how to dig through the trash and come out with gold." It's upbeat and if you know how to dig, it's just a reminder to let it push you and forget anyone who looks down on that. "Open Energy" is another great, but a much different song from "Where'd Your Weekend Go?" because it has a slower rhythm with pretty, relaxing harmonies. Personally, I really love their versatility in that way because you kinda never know what sort of sound you're going to get.
