Stereogum has been one of my favorite websites for some time now. The up-to-date music news the site features is always accompanied by solid opinions pieces and, best of all, monthly mixtapes (June 2012 and May 2012 are both solid lists with 10+ songs). I’ve been downloading these mixtapes monthly for over a year now, and Stereogum tends to introduce me to some of my favorite bands with all of their free Mp3s.
Today, Stereogum released the links for downloads to their “Cruel Summer 2012″ playlist, a double-download of 24 songs to serve as background music for all of your summer get togethers. This is an especially solid lineup this time around, including many of my current obsessions. DIIV shows up on the second part, leading off the mix with “How Long Have You Known?” Port St. Willow also makes an appearance on the second part, and Lemonade (one of my favorite bands on True Panther Sounds) is also there. Tanlines’ “All of Me” is featured on the first part of the mix, and A$AP Rocky also has a contribution. It’s a solid mix of alternative, indie, and rap, and it might just be the perfect mix for the rest of this hot, hot summer.
You can download the mixtapes here.