雪の内に春はきにけりうぐひすのこほれる涙今やとくらむ
“There’s still snow / Yet spring is here / The warbler’s / Frozen tears / May be melting even now.”
In the Kokinshū, an anthology of Japanese waka poetry from the Heian period, spring’s arrival is heralded not by a change in weather, but by the song of the uguisu, a Japanese bush warbler (songbird) whose first cries are proof enough of the season. Despite cold days still ahead, suggestions of spring are all around us: lengthening light, rare 60-degree days and the promise of spring break. Let this playlist serve as our uguisu — for spring is, more than anything, a state of mind.
1. “Spring” — Saint Etienne (1992)
“Spring,” Saint Etienne’s most beloved hit, follows a girl coaxing a lovesick boy defeated by a winter of heartbreak. Its stylish sound, inspired by 1960s pop and ‘90s UK club culture, is made for warm weather. It’s best experienced via bootleg YouTube lyric videos, where visuals are replete with Ken Burns zooms and crossfades of oversaturated florals — the very epitome of spring aesthetics.
2. “The Super It” — Stereolab (1999)
A genre-bending amalgamation of ‘60s French pop, krautrock, Brazilian tropicália and whatever else musicheads want to classify the French-English band Stereolab as, “The Super It,” to me, is simply a pleasant, bouncy track made for sunny times.
3. “Waters of March” — Art Garfunkel (1975)
Amid a sea of covers, Art Garfunkel’s take on the bossa nova classic “Águas de Março” is certainly my favorite. His stripped-down instrumentation and bemused vocal delivery give the song a piecemeal, awkwardly peaceful quality — much like the sudden realization that spring has sprung.
4. “Another Dream” — Brenda Ray (2006)
What begins with the sound of a babbling brook blossoms into a lush soundscape of chimes, whistles, melodica, koto, keyboards and percussion. “Another Dream” is true to its name in all the best ways: tranquil, ephemeral and over before you want it to be.
5. “Rainy Tapestry” — Lamp (2004)
Romanticizing the rain is one of my most cherished pastimes and the Japanese indie band Lamp does it like no other. “Rainy Tapestry,” a smooth and comforting mix of jazz, city pop and bossa nova, tells of, per the Genius Lyrics English translation, a “one-sided love blooming in the monsoon.”
6. “93’ Til Infinity” — Souls of Mischief (1993)
Souls of Mischief’s “93 ‘Til Infinity” is a hip-hop classic about the group’s friendship and day-to-day escapades in Oakland, CA. A reminder that days of strolling through Hamilton with the squad in flip flops and capris are near: “This is how we chill from ‘93 ‘til.”
7. “Time Today” — Kero Kero Bonito (2018)
To me, there is no greater feeling than that of having an abundance of time, and given daylight savings, we have it in spades. Oh, to wake up feeling like, as Sarah Bonito sings, “I got so much time today. I got hopes and dreams and plans all yet to be made!”
8. “Frog” — Ren Carter, Liv Grace (2021)
Much like a frog, this dance electronic track by Ren Carter featuring Liv Grace is bouncy and sprightly. It even features a sample from renowned nature broadcaster David Attenborough’s 2014 BBC documentary, “Fabulous Frogs” — a fitting tribute to the small but mighty amphibians that herald spring.
9. “Nabi” — Peggy Gou, OHHYUK (2021)
“Nabi,” the word for butterfly in Korean, is one of Peggy Gou’s most laid-back tracks, a deviation from her typical deep house, 90s dance brand. The single’s cover art by Seo Inji is also one of my favorites: a pink 3D plane of butterflies and water droplets, a merging of what is digital and natural.
10. “2 Arabesques, L.66: No. 1 in E Major” — Claude Debussy (1891), performed by François-Joël Thiollier (2004)
Light and restorative, Debussy’s “Deux Arabesques” is the kind of music that gives you exactly what you need, and much like the coming of spring, helps one breathe a bit easier after a long winter.
11. “Touch” — Daft Punk, Paul Williams (2013)
Much like the spring semester, “Touch” doesn’t quite pick up until about halfway through but, once it does, nothing compares, and the chill of winter becomes but a mere memory. For a pair of robots, Daft Punk has a great understanding of what it means to feel.
12. “born again freestyle (shed a tear).mp3” — Samba Jean-Baptiste (2025)
The corny lowercase title ending with .mp3 gives off a sentiment I find comparable to that of an adult who still uses Snapchat, but there’s just something about this track that slows life down.
13. “BIRDS” — Turnstile (2025)
Baltimore natives, Turnstile, who graced this column back in early October, have since swept the 2026 Grammys, winning Best Rock Album for “NEVER ENOUGH” and Best Metal Performance for this track. While metalheads are up in arms about the classification (one fan griped that “for the academy, anything loud and scary = metal”), what is spring without “BIRDS?”
