Songs to mourn the dog days of summer

Welcome to This Week’s Playlist, where we look to current events for some melodic curation inspiration. Tune in every Friday for a mix of news, commentary, and of course, music.

Did you know that the “dog days of summer” are an actual thing? That’s right — it’s not just the title of the basically iconic Florence + the Machine song, but also a term used to describe the hazy days of summer at its zenith, the period of long afternoons that turn into warm nights. After the initial rush of “school’s out!” and right before the panic of “school’s back,” this is the stretch of the year that seems limitless.

Not to destroy the illusion, but uh, the dog days are over — as of this past Tuesday, in fact. So in honor of the passing of the year’s sweetest spot to be, we’ve put together a playlist of sounds that conjure those slow stretches of time. Fuzzy, faded, and full of hope, music for staring into the sun and channeling its shine.

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