Sundays are for nesting, especially once winter rolls around. That’s the philosophy guiding this cold-weather playlist curated by Empire of the Sun’s Nick Littlemore. Designed for lazy, slow Sundays during the colder months, Littlemore (also one third of PNAU) has selected a choice cross-section of sounds, from Aphex Twin and Tangerine Dream to Duke Ellington and Sun Ra. While a slow, chilly Sunday might start with a sleep-in, Littlemore also suggests heading out for a reflective adventure with these songs as your soundtrack. “Walk out the front door and push play,” he tells Apple Music. “Take a very long journey [and] let the music show you places. Let it lead you to water to watch the boats or the bush to smell the spring coming on.” With that atmospheric prompt firmly in mind, read on for Littlemore’s reflections on five songs in particular. Plaid, “Ralome” “[This] soundtracked a good deal of my weary Sundays when I was at university. Those heady days, this cryptic tune inking the room in its velvety textures, haunting me happily.” Brian Eno, “By This River” “A call to find a spot by the Thames or the Tiber, or any other body of water you can find! Come prepared with a blanket and some refreshments, stretch out and drop into the gentle world of the master of ambient moods.” Mica Levi, “Love” “Mica Levi makes music unlike anyone else and she communicates on a higher wavelength, one that speaks to the title. She has done some wonderful film scores. Films are essentially Sunday items: a time to escape the week. Sundays are a chance to start again. We love that the first day of the week is a rest day. Let’s rest hard.” Yasuaki Shimizu, “Semi Tori No Hi” “This tune found me in Tokyo and it takes me back there every time, wandering through the myriad streets and alleyways. There is a softness coupled with great and strange rhythms. Let it accompany the pathways of your mind making tapestries as golden as the Sunday sun.” Ram Dass & Boreta, “Imagine” “This is my prayer for a better world. I take this tune as medicine, a tonic for the week. I try to meditate silently but I always fail. Guide me, Mr Dass: Let us follow the sound to a new future.”

Empire of the Sun: Slow-Burn Sundays

Featured Artists