#mágica intuición by la piba berreta & anyi is also definitely up there on my imaginary bedroom-pop-tiktok-hit of the year list

[a-moth-to-the-light]

Songs of the Summer, 2023: #10

[intro & rules]

Blister by Clara Cava & Kaeve (May 4, 2023)

this is an ode to having Our Table, at the coffee shop, (and to the drives I know so well, the ones I could—and do, perhaps inadvisably—make while crying, or while half-asleep at the wheel because the depression would like us to not exist anymore, please, the ones that take me home before I even stop to think about where I'm going) it’s nice to have favorite things, I think “Having a favorite person is overrated,” I say, lighthearted, and ask what kind of drink you’d like. “Instead, I have a favorite macaron.” (the thai iced tea ones, in the box of thirty-six from the big freezer at the grocery store by our old school)

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Clara Cava keeps winning, which is good because it’s an absolute crime that I hadn’t done a proper review of any of the many songs I love from her on this blog yet—no “No Vaya a la Fiesta”, no “Cosa Suya”, no “Protagonista”, no “Te Pense un Monton” (or the 8-bit version, which is awesome, too!!).

So, I’m very happy about this addition, but I still kind of can’t believe a song that’s basically a Mario Kart OST—every time I hear its instrumental, I can’t help but think of that water park racetrack from the mushroom cup??—became one of my favorite songs of the summer, and of the year for good measure. Hell, this song technically came out a couple of weeks before my summer started, but I’ve loved it enough this summer to make an exception to my own rules and put this on the main list. I’m obsessed with “Blister”—even after four months of leaving this one on repeat, I still find myself craving it—and, by some miracle, Kaeve’s voice hasn’t even started irritating me yet.

The atmosphere of “Blister” just works. It’s yet another embarrassingly chill addition to this list, but it’s such an easy song to like—the Mario Kart nostalgia & my emotional attachment to Clara Cava’s voice (which you can thank “Cosa Suya” and “Protagonista” for) certainly help it out, but even without my personal reasons to love it, “Blister” has this sweet, genuine innocence to it that combines unexpectedly well with its produced-in-a-garage aesthetic. It’s just messy enough to balance out the sugar-sweetness of Clara Cava’s performance and the fluffiness of the instrumentals, so the whole song comes out irresistibly charming. I have no idea if this got any traction at all on TikTok, its my bedroom-pop TikTok hit of the year. I didn’t put Clara Cava Mario Kart lofi on my 2023 bingo board, but you’d better believe I’ll be putting it on next year’s in the hopes we can get something like this again!

#muppet hair dye from the music video is my favorite moment of the year btw #mágica intuición by la piba berreta & anyi is also definitely up there on my imaginary bedroom-pop-tiktok-hit of the year list #fans of supalonely or aespa’s lucid dream will def like that one! #songs of the summer 2023 #my fave songs #clara cava #kaeve