Maybe it’s all this beautiful weather that we’ve been having in the Bay Area, but I feel like laying in the park and watching the birds and bees dance. “Summer’s Shown” is the perfect track to accompany me on my daydream. With just enough late-60′s melodies, wrapped around blissed-out harmonies, Liftoff’s “Summer’s Shown” may be accompanying you on all of your summer adventures, or at least the ones detected to peace and love.

Liftoff
“Summer’s Shown” (download mp3)
from “Sunday Morning Airplay”
(Fort Knox Recordings)
“Summer’s Shown“ (play)
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OK Go always seem to come up with the catchiest hooks that accentuate their longing-pop melodies and noisy-guitar tones, all placed over a steady rockin’ beat. The energetic chorus of “Here Comes the Fire” stays in your head long after the song’s final over-charged note. In other words: The perfect pop song.

OK Go
“Here Comes the Fire” (download mp3)
from “adidas / MLS Represent – Rock The Pitch”
(Adidas/MLS)
“Here Comes the Fire“ (play)
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Godspeed is one of Canada’s most famous bands. One of the archetypes of the post-punk sound, a style of instrumental music that builds and descends in epically long tracks. After releasing an EP, Godspeed released a double album (totaling a whopping 9 songs), “Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven.” This title track is a beautiful introduction to their sound. This song builds and builds until it crescendos making you feel like raising your skinny fists to the heavens!

“Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven“ (play/download mp3)

Buy/Listen to all of Godspeed’s music.

Punchy, catchy post-rock from UK’s now defunct stars, The Rakes. “Retreat” is the title track to The Rakes’ first EP, released in the US on Dim Mak Records. This gem is begging: “slacker’s anthem.”

“Retreat“ (play/download mp3)

Buy The Rakes music at Amazon

Ah the yummy post-rock guitar-scapes of Mogwai. This should be the soundtrack to hiking up Everest with the complete hardcover Tolkien in your backback. Cascading layers of über-proggy goodness.

“San Pedro“ (play/download mp3)

Buy Mogwai Stuff

Quite possibly the definition of ‘cool riddim’, “Robin Hoods Of The Ghetto” was originally released during the apex of Bob Marley’s international success. A winning formula that focused its power on exposing the injustices and struggles of poor people across the world, Cool Runnings followed Marley’s humanitarian cue with classic tunes like this one, re-released last October by Bristol Archive Records.

Cool Runnings
“Robin Hoods Of The Ghetto” (download mp3)
from “The Bristol Reggae Explosion 2 ‘The 80′s’”
(Bristol Archive Records)
“Robin Hoods Of The Ghetto” (play)
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Guilty Simpson’s latest EP, Close Curtains, stays true to Guilty’s ear-to-the-street lyrics. Guilty hooked up with Austin’s Boom Baptist on this remix. Get a taste of “golden age hip-hop” for the 2012.

Guilty Simpson
“Close Curtains (Boom Baptist Remix)” (download mp3)
from “Close Curtains b/w Unbelievable”
((iN)Sect Records)
Guilty Simpson – “Close Curtains” (play)
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