Position: Content Director<\/strong><\/p>\n Year: Senior<\/strong><\/p>\n Summer Jam: Green Onions by Booker T. and the M.G.\u2019s<\/strong><\/p>\n This 1962 instrumental may seem familiar to fans of <\/span>The Sandlot<\/span><\/i> and <\/p>\n Name: Ben Hitz<\/strong><\/p>\n Position: Rotation DJ<\/strong><\/p>\n Year: Senior<\/strong><\/p>\n Summer Jam: Summer Babe by Pavement<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Name: Doug Bybee<\/strong><\/p>\n Position: For The Record Host<\/strong><\/p>\n Year: Senior<\/strong><\/p>\n Summer Jam: Geschichten Aus Erster Hand by Klaus Johann Grobe<\/strong><\/p>\n This Germanic duo\u2019s groovy tunes are the perfect soundtrack for cruising in a Volkswagen or taking the Deutschebahn. Their new album <\/p>\n Name: Ellie Fehlig<\/strong><\/p>\n Position: Multimedia Staffer<\/strong><\/p>\n Year: Junior<\/strong><\/p>\n Summer Jam: Sleeping Lessons (RAC Mix) by The Shins <\/strong><\/p>\n Although the original song is already bangin\u2019 as it is, the RAC mix adds a calmer, more diverse, summer feel perfect for chillin\u2019 by the pool, a peaceful road trip playlist, or even a rainy day spent inside. As summer is often a time filled with Name: Mason Kilpatrick<\/strong><\/p>\n Position: Station Manager, Host of At the Movies<\/strong><\/p>\n Year: Senior<\/strong><\/p>\n Summer Jam: \u201cLittle Honda\u201d by The Beach Boys (cover by Yo La Tengo)<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201c Chorus:<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cFirst gear, it\u2019s alright.\u201d Living life at normal pace is pretty chill, especially when you practice daily social norms. <\/span> \u201cThird gear, hang on tight.\u201d You are getting deeper, reaching for the height of your experiences. You still brace yourself, as you could end up making a decision that lasts longer than the summer.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cFaster, it\u2019s alright.\u201d You begin to go all in, with no regard for future consequences. Are you truly alright? Or do you crash and burn? That is what the end of summer is for.<\/span><\/p>\n While this song didn\u2019t encourage me to buy a Honda, it definitely helped me understand my previous summer experiences as a young teenager. \u201cLittle Honda\u201d is also my favorite Yo La Tengo cover of all time, and I would highly recommend it. The cover basically takes the layer of lo-fi fuzz and turns it up to 11.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
\nfrequenters of the <\/span>Skate<\/span><\/i> main\u00a0menu, but the barking guitar and steady drums remind me of lazily cruising down dirt roads on dry summer afternoons![\"BookerTandTheMGs2\"](\"http:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/BookerTandTheMGs2-300x226.jpg\")
with the windows down. The spontaneous and funky key solos are perfectly reminiscent of aimless outdoor adventures through knee high grass with friends. Its easy for me to leave this song on repeat for hours before I realize how long I’ve been listening to it and there’s something quintessentially summer about that.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Pavement\"](\"http:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/a3599719520_10-300x297.jpg\")
Pavement had long been on my To Listen list until this summer when I finally had the chance to delve into the genius and quirky songwriting of Stephen Malkmus. I heard Summer Babe in a friend’s car while on the way back from a camp trip at the lake in early June and it could not have been more apropos. Malkmus\u2019 deadpan, lackadaisical delivery backgrounded by lazily riffing fuzzed out guitars is a\u00a0perfect background to those hot, languid summer afternoons when you have nothing better to do than drink cheap beer and shoot the breeze with good friends. Bob Nastanovich\u2019s accented drumming add fireworks to this otherwise subdued summer jam. Titular associations aside, Summer Babe is my soundtrack to that season that begs to be appreciated idlely and unhurried.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Klaus](\"http:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/kjg-LP-300x300.jpg\")
\u201cSpagat Der Liebe\u201d became a fast favorite of mine with its dancey beats, slinky basslines and plunky synths. The lyrics are all German, but that\u2019s no prerequisite for getting down. \u201cGeschicten Aus Erster Hand\u201d is my favorite track, sounding like an interstellar discotheque full of aliens getting down. Roughly translating to \u201cStories From First Hand\u201d, all one really needs to know is \u201ck\u2019mon baby, let\u2019s dance\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n![\"RAC](\"http:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/artworks-000033643049-exir0v-t500x500-300x300.jpg\")
\nmonotonous daily activities, this tune mirrors that with its repetitious a\u00a0nd light melody, yet contradicts it with lyrics such as, \u201cEviscerate your fragile frame,\u201d and, \u201cJump from the hook,\u201d symbolizing the impulsive moments of summer. Supposedly, this track is about James Mercer\u2019s insomnia \u2013 hence the name of the song as well as album title, <\/span>Wincing the Night Away<\/span><\/i> \u2013 which is fitting for those summer back-to-school nights where sleeping schedules have yet to be normalized. <\/span><\/p>\n![\"Little](\"http:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/MI0001521294-300x295.jpg\")
Little Honda\u201d is a classic Beach Boys hit that encompasses the mindset of a summer attitude. It was the weakest charting track from the three singles released off the 1964 album, \u201cAll Summer Long.\u201d Upon first listen, the track popped because of its placement between serenading love tunes (\u201cHushabye\u201d and \u201cWe\u2019ll Run Away\u201d). \u201cLittle Honda\u201d is a minimal surfer-rock, pop song with plenty of that early 60\u2019s fuzz sound to spare. The harmonizing humming throughout the verses, and the excitement-driven, background cheers in the chorus, are some of my favorite backing vocals on any Beach Boy song. I find the lyrics to be highly connecting, despite my lack of interest in vehicles. The newborn desire to a drive a date (in that fresh Honda) reminds me of the blossoming flame that is born with every summer love many experience. Despite my severe fear of extreme acceleration, the chorus is easily the best part. It captures the youthful essence of summer experiences (and could be applied to life in general).<\/span><\/p>\n
\n<\/span>\u201cSecond gear, I lean right.\u201d As you begin to explore and gather new experiences, you feel more of a sensation. Personally, you need to adjust your mindset to get on board.<\/span><\/p>\n
![\"Coasting\"](\"http:\/\/kjhk.org\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/a2354301671_16-300x300.jpg\")
entire discography is has been the soundtrack of my summers for years, but this year I discovered myself listening to COASTING just as often if not more. This Brooklyn duo automatically won me over with its lo-fi production and catchy hooks. Their album \u201cYou\u2019re Never Going Back\u201d was released in November 2011, yet feels to me like a summer release. The song \u201cPirates Cove\u201d is by far the best track on the album. The lyric \u201cI\u2019m going to be somebody\u201d is something most people can relate to and is something I think about a lot more when it\u2019s summer and I don\u2019t have school to distract me. The simple rhythms and chords give more attention to the vocals and the production quality making it a solid lo-fi track.<\/span><\/p>\n