Coming back to campus is an exciting time for freshman and returning students alike. As the seemingly endless hours of summer are replaced with homework, extracurriculars, and social commitments, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the start of another school year. Fortunately, you are not alone in experiencing notions of burnout before classes have scarcely begun. 

Whether this is your first time on campus or your thousandth, I invite you to step away from your homework for a moment, close your eyes and simply chill out alongside these songs.

Sea, Swallow me – The Cocteau Twins and Harold Budd

This mystical melody has always made me feel like I am floating in the ocean, untouchable by the plethora of responsibilities that linger beyond my eyelids. Despite possessing not the faintest idea of what The Cocteau Twins are saying in this song, I’m inclined to believe it is something brilliant. If I could taste this song, I am sure it would be sweet and airy like angel cake, leaving you the perfect amount of satiation. 

White Ferrari – Frank Ocean 

Nothing makes me think more of an open road at dusk like “White Ferrari.” It comes as no surprise that this song is one of Ocean’s most played, housing over 232 million listens on Spotify. One aspect I have always adored this song is the tranquil lyrics relating to love, alternate dimensions and the afterlife; it always manages to take me back to a simpler time when nothing was as serious as it needed to be. 

Peas – Boylife 

Perhaps the definition of calm, “Peas,” is one of those songs you can listen to on repeat and never tire of. Despite carrying a bleak narrative of a parent watching their child move away after losing a friend, the calm strum of a guitar combined with lead singer Ryan Yoo’s smooth vocals offers a moment of reflection on our place in the eyes of our loved ones. Perhaps holding a degree of disregard for the lyric’s narrative can offer a happier listening experience; however, I feel that we must always honor the artist’s intended meaning. 

Apocalypse – Cigarettes after sex 

While many people may claim that TikTok made this song mainstream or even go as far as saying the popular platform ‘ruined’ it, I am here to argue that it deserves all the attention it has gained. From its stunning imagery of hollowed-out pianos to the illustration of finally leaving behind the past and its bitterness to embrace the present alongside its highs and lows. No matter what is going on in my life, this song always manages to make me feel a little stiller and more present amid the constant demands and obligations of college.

Andromeda – Weyes Blood 

There is no other way to describe this song than timeless. Nurturing themes of femininity, love, mythology and, of course, astronomy, Weyes Blood crafts an anecdote rifting alongside that of the forgotten goddess Andromeda, who was offered to a vicious sea monster due to her parents angering the gods. While Andromeda is saved in the end, Weyes Blood offers an introspective twist to this myth by incorporating the reality of escaping one’s comfort zones and learning to live with the disappointment that often accompanies this life.