National Day weekend is approaching — and that usually comes with a blip of nostalgia for many of us.

The crux of that fleeting feeling is the songs that have clouded our memories of past televised parades. Where else in the year would Singaporeans happily drift along with the soaring choruses of ‘Where I Belong’ or the honeyed balladry of ‘Home’?

Songs like these — with hooks that pack an instant dopamine rush — were also imbued with a not-so-subtle attempt at fostering patriotism. It’s a national holiday, so we embrace it (at least for a day).

But what about the rest of the year? For many of us, the Singaporean experience isn’t centered around the joy of being in this country as much as the complications that come with it. On the 55th year of Singapore, we’ve mixed some of our beloved Singaporean artists — with their incredible music over the years — onto one handy playlist to commemorate this.

With the limit of songs kept at 55, many of our personal favourites didn’t make the cut, but we think this gives a good inkling of the vital power that exists within our heartlands.

We’ve picked 55 distinct songs that form a slice-of-life peek into our gerrymandered neighbourhoods. ⁠These voices pulsate beneath — and cleverly glide across — the plasticized sheen of the Little Red Dot.

Stream the playlist above and check out the full tracklist below.

• Force Vomit – ‘Last Nite I Said Goodbye’
• The Stoned Revivals – ‘The New Way’
• Concave Scream – ‘Horizons’
• The Pinholes – ‘Renungan Manja’
• Astreal – ‘Lover and the Sea’
• B-Quartet – ‘Shoebox’
• The Observatory – ‘August is the Cruellest’
• Amateur Takes Control – ‘Communication Downbreak’
• LC93 – ‘Hypocritical Society’
• Sial – ‘Sial’
• Wormrot – ‘Still Irrelevant’
• Fuse – ‘Poison’
• A Vacant Affair – ‘We Are Not The Same’
• West Grand Boulevard – ‘Now We Will’
• Caracal – ‘Welcome the Ironists’
• Plainsunset – ‘Regina’
• Xingfoo&Roy – ‘Anchor Forever’
• Forests – ‘Tamago’
• The CB Dogs – ‘The Army’
• Boredphucks – ‘Baby When You’re Gone’
• Sotohead – ‘Keep Calm and Eat Nasi Lemak’
• Cashew Chemists – ‘Over You’
• Sub:shaman – ‘Apnea’
• I Am David Sparkle – ‘Jaded Afghan’
• .gif – ‘Only Yours (feat. Bani Haykal)’
• Halal Sol – ‘Contusion’
• Tserg – ‘Serenity in a Crowded Place’
• aspidistrafly – ‘Gensei’
• Gema – ‘Rush’
• Leslie Low – ‘Singapore In My Bones’
• Cheating Sons – ‘Honeymoon’
• Obedient Wives Club – ‘Baby Bye Bye’
• Monster Cat – ‘Mannequins’
• Hanging Up the Moon – ‘Hold the Colours’
• Pleasantry – ‘False Realities’
• Cosmic Child – ‘Cats, Cats and Cats Again’
• Subsonic Eye – ‘The Tired Club’
• Sobs – ‘Astronomy’
• TAJ – ‘Taj Yo’self’
• Golden Mile Band – ‘Thai Whiskey’
• Mediocre Haircut Crew – ‘Zelda is the Princess’
• BGourd – ‘Fair Price’
• Fauxe – ‘Laut’
• Intriguant – ‘Chika’
• Kiat – ‘Syndicate (feat. Vendetta)’
• The Steve McQueens – ‘More Than We Know’
• Fzpz – ‘Trickster’
• Charlie Lim – ‘Premonition (feat. Weish) [Yeo Remix]’
• Jema – ‘Muller (feat. Mean)’
• Ffion – ’14 Grand’
• Linying – ‘Paris 12’
• yeule – ‘Pixel Affection’
• Night Dives – ‘Cathedral’
• Kin Leonn & Hiroshi Ebina – ‘A Secluded Channel’
• Eswandy Sarip & Hell Low – ‘Orang Singapura’

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