Spotify's summer sound effects feature lets you pretend you're somewhere that's not your bedroom
There are a few sounds in this world that I wouldn't mind never hearing again. One of them is the haunting, grating din of seagulls.
If you haven't been to the beach for quite a while because of *gestures broadly at 2020*, you might find Spotify's new tool useful.
Wish You Were Here is Spotify's latest digital experience (which sadly has nothing to do with Pink Floyd), which allows you to transport yourself to somewhere far, far away through the power of music and some sound effects. And, yes, those sound effects do include the not-so-dulcet tones of seagulls in the distance.
It's pretty straightforward — you simply go to wishyouwerehere.atspotify.com and select a song and a location from the multiple choices on offer.
Those locations include: the beach, a pool party, a campfire, a block party, a restaurant, a BBQ, a rooftop party, a carnival, a detour (which is basically a road trip), and the park.
You can choose from a selection of songs, including Harry Styles' "Watermelon Sugar," Jawsh 685 x Jason Derulo "Savage Love," Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande's "Rain on Me," The Weeknd's "Blinding Lights," Dua Lipa's "Break My Heart," to name a few.
You can also make a song + sound effect mashup and send it to a pal in the form of a digital postcard.
Listen, it's not gonna replace your summer holiday. But it could serve as a momentary distraction from the burgeoning existential dread we all feel. Fun!
Wish You Were Here is available to both Free and Premium Spotify users around the world.
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Rachel Thompson is the Features Editor at Mashable. Rachel's second non-fiction book The Love Fix: Reclaiming Intimacy in a Disconnected World is out now, published by Penguin Random House in Jan. 2025. The Love Fix explores why dating feels so hard right now, why we experience difficult emotions in the realm of love, and how we can change our dating culture for the better.
A leading sex and dating writer in the UK, Rachel has written for GQ, The Guardian, The Sunday Times Style, The Telegraph, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, Stylist, ELLE, The i Paper, Refinery29, and many more.
Rachel's first book Rough: How Violence Has Found Its Way Into the Bedroom And What We Can Do About It, a non-fiction investigation into sexual violence was published by Penguin Random House in 2021.
