13 Songs to Beat the Back-to-School Blues

We all know that September means the end of summer, and more importantly, the end of summer holidays. This makes it the perfect time to change up your music collection to help improve your back-to-school mood. Here are 13 songs specifically chosen to keep you energized for the new school year!

1. Introduction by Voxtrot
September marks the start of a new school year, ripe with opportunities. Introduction channels this feeling and puts it into song form for you to enjoy again and again, even as the school year progresses.

2. 5 Years Time by Noah and the Whale
This UK single is catchy and upbeat, perfect for finding the motivation needed to once again hit the books and focus in class.

3. Don’t Stop by Fleetwood Mac
Sometimes all we need to make a bad day better is some good old-fashioned cheering up. There’s no disaster you can’t handle when you’re armed with this three-minute dose of encouragement.

4. Giving Up the Gun by Vampire Weekend
One thing that’s great about a new school year is the variety: new people, new classes and new music. Both the style and lyrics of this song break away from the common mold, keeping your IPod from becoming repetitive.

5. Journeyman by Iron Maiden
Not your typical metal track, this song features the intensity that characterizes the genre, but without the musical style some people don’t enjoy. This means both metal fans and non-metal fans alike can enjoy this when settling down with a textbook or during long transit trips.

6. Another Brick in the Wall (Part II) by Pink Floyd
We all know that school means homework, and this late ‘70s hit is perfect for the righteous anger that comes from slaving away at a computer for hours.

7. Eleanor Rigby by The Beatles
Eleanor Rigby has a soft and soothing melody and lyrics that are great for relaxing during or after a busy day. Sometimes it really helps to take a moment to refocus before getting back to the stress and worry of school.

8. Casimir Pulaski Day by Sufjan Stevens
It would be overly optimistic to expect a school year that doesn’t have at least a few days when everything goes wrong. To help deal with these moments is Stevens’ touching story of heartbreak, with a soothing melody that can’t help but be comforting.

9. All Nightmare Long by Metallica
Sometimes it’s hard to focus on homework when there is so much else to do, but this song is sure to have you focused and energized enough to make it through the piles of work you’ve been assigned.

10. Plenty of Paper by Eisley
Fresh ideas can be hard to come by, but nothing can get those creative juices flowing better than a song about cutting the moon in half and “shiny motor cars/with eyeglasses full of stars.”

11. At the Hop by Danny & the Juniors
Even with school and homework, there is always time to hang out with friends, and this blast from the past is a great reminder of how much fun can still be had, even during the school year.

12. Take a Bow by Muse
Matthew Bellamy’s droning vocals are all you need to tune out the rest of the world and make the boring transit ride home a time to sit back, relax and enjoy some excellent music.

13. Pick your own!
Now it’s your turn! Choose a song that reminds you of summer. It can be a song you heard on the radio, or from the soundtrack of a movie you watched, but choose one that brings back good memories that you can escape to on the next rainy day.