Songs of summer 2013

“Heart Attack” Demi Lovato
Lovato kicked the season off hardcore with the lead single from her new album “Demi.” While the rest of the album mostly fizzed out, “Heart Attack” has the high-energy drumbeat and loaded vocals to keep it on the playlist way into the dog days of summer.

“Young & Beautiful” Lana Del Rey
Say what you want above the polarizing “Bel Air” songstess, but this single from “The Great Gatsby” is her finest work ever. The haunting piano melody and lyrics of a doomed summer romance will have you dreaming of hazy disco halls and air smoky with cigarettes and glitter.

“Alive” Krewella
Every summer playlist needs that song you can blast while you’re running and you just know your legs won’t give out until it’s over. “Alive” is that song this year. It’s pretty generic EDM with even more generic lyrics, but I’ll be damned if that hook and bass drop don’t get me every time.  

“Blurred Lines” Robin Thicke ft. T.I. & Pharrell
I’m not saying sexual consent isn’t mildly underplayed in Robin Thicke’s first truly great and sexy single, but show me one person who just doesn’t want to boogie when it plays. That’s right, I said boogie. Plus, I really want to know what rhymes with hug me.

“We Can’t Stop” Miley Cyrus
Okay, yes, the video is a real acid trip and Miley is hell bent on becoming a white Rihanna, but this song is pure pop perfection. I didn’t think she could top “Can’t Be Tamed” or “Party in the U.S.A,” but Miley did. The only argument I need is the lyric “We run things / things don’t run we.” Case closed.

“Get Lucky” Daft Punk ft. Pharrell
Pharrell seems to be the man of the summer with his second appearance of the list, and it’s his silky smooth vocals that transport this groovy Daft Punk tune to other worlds of masculine R&B excellence.

“I Need Your Love” Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding
This is the closest Harris has come to matching the flawlessness that is his Rihanna track “We Found Love.” Ellie Goulding provides the alien-esque vocals that will have the dance floor packed well after the sun goes down.

“Ooh La La” Britney Spears
Don’t let my adoration for the princess of pop get in the way. This single for “The Smurfs 2” soundtrack is mostly bubblegum nothingness built around Spears baby-with-a-chest-cold vocals, but it’s a lot of fun for a song from a movie that looks as unnecessary as the Smurfs sequel.

“Don’t Save Me” Haim
The California threesome’s debut album from Jay-Z’s label doesn’t drop until September, but if this single is any indication, we have a lot to look forward to from these girls. The song’s vocals and lyrics are reminiscent of an amped up Steve Nicks, providing a track as chill as it is electrifying.  

“Bound 2” Kanye West
“Yeezus” has floored the critics and made the masses hesitant, but it’s a masterwork and the best song on the album is suggestive of Yeezy’s early “College Dropout” days. West raps himself, “This that prom shit / this that what we do don’t tell your mom shit,” and it’s true. It may not be traditional, but it’s a love song this cynical soul can get down with.