PB & Jams: Hammocking in McCarthy Quad

 

If you’ve ever walked past the hill on McCarthy Quad, you know that “hammocking” is a very popular pastime at USC. With perfect weather almost all year and the shade from trees that don’t lose their leaves (because this is Southern California), the only thing you’re missing is the right playlist of chill music – which is exactly what I put together this week! To put it simply, the best way to describe these songs in one word is “vibe-y.”

Below, I highlighted a few of the featured artists:

 

Billie Eilish

To be honest, I know very little about Billie Eilish, but two of her songs still managed to make it to the top of this playlist. With most songs, I typically prefer the originals over remixes, but “Ocean Eyes” is a strong exception. My favorite version is probably the Astronomyy edit, which is the one I included, but I accidently stumbled upon Blackbear’s remix while working on this playlist and am also very impressed.

Oh Wonder

I’ve been obsessing over Oh Wonder for the past few months, so naturally, I included two of their songs, “All We Do” and “Landslide.” Depending on how I’m feeling, I will oftentimes pick one of their songs and listen to it on repeat for a few days. This week, it’s “Landslide.”

First Aid Kit

I typically associate “Shattered & Hollow” by First Aid Kit with the one time I woke up at 4:00 AM to watch the sunrise – especially since that’s how I felt at that hour of the day. I don’t know if I recommend waking up that early, but this song definitely makes you feel like you are one with the Earth. If not that, then it might induce nihilistic delusions…either or!

Banks

It’s been a long time coming, but Banks finally released her new album, The Altar, on Friday last week, and I’ve been worshipping it every day since. This playlist could’ve easily become a tribute to Banks, but I restrained. Still, it’s only fair that I throw in two of her new songs, “Gemini Feed” and “Mother Earth.”

The Chainsmokers

If you’re tired of listening to “Closer” by The Chainsmokers – or you’re in that weird phase where you can’t help dancing to it, but you also hate that it does that to you – then you can now obsess over the song they released just last week: “All We Know.” In my opinion, it’s pretty much just the relaxed version of “Closer.”

Paulina Ordaz is a sophomore majoring in psychology. Her column, PB & Jams, runs every other week on Monday.