6 Feel-Good Bands That Will Make You Feel Happier Instantly

We independently assess all our recommendations. Purchases through our links may earn us a commission.

Everyone has bad days. Everyone wakes up on the wrong side of the bed once and a while. And even the happiest people in the world feel a little blue sometimes. And, when you feel a little down in the dumps, the first thing you need to do is acknowledge that it’s alright to feel sad. After that, you should think about ways to try to get yourself out of a negative thought pattern. For me, listening to happy music and dancing around my kitchen usually helps a lot. 

And that’s not just my personal experience. In fact, many scientific studies have suggested that listening to music can physically reduce stress and even ignite the pleasure centers of the brain in a similar way to food, sex, or even drugs. Listening to music is also believed to help you sleep and also help you feel more alert while you’re awake. Just as going to the gym can help your body feel lighter and more energetic, listening to music exercises your brain in such a way that makes you feel lighter and more energetic mentally. 

And, if your intention in listening to music is to get yourself out of a funk, it doesn’t hurt to turn on something upbeat with a good message. So, in this article, I want to introduce you to 6 feel-good bands that will hopefully make you feel a little bit happier instantly. 

1. The California Honeydrops

The California Honeydrops are really the band that inspired this article. I was lucky enough to see them live a few months ago at the Wonder Ballroom in Portland, Oregon, and every member of the band literally had a smile on their face for the entire duration of the concert. Somehow, even their songs about heartbreak and infidelity seemed uplifting and ebullient. Now, whenever I’m feeling a little sad, I just listen to a few tracks off of their most recent 2022 album Soft Spot, and I feel better instantly. 

Their genre has been described as retro-soul, and their sound has been compared to Booker T as well as Sly and the Family Stone. Every member of the band is an unthinkably talented musician, which means their catalog is full of mesmerizing solos on trumpet, saxophone, trombone, percussion, and more. 

Songs to Bump:

• When It Was Wrong
• Tumblin’
• I Miss You Baby, Pt. 1
• All Day, All Night
• Coming Around

2. Watchhouse

One of the best remedies for a heart full of sorrow is a good cathartic cry. And, if you’re looking for a band to make you weep tears of joy, I would strongly recommend Watchhouse. Formerly known as Mandolin Orange, this folk duo is comprised of Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz. Their music is sweet, nostalgic, melancholy at times, and joyous at other times. Seriously, if you listen to their 2015 album Such Jubilee all the way through, I can almost guarantee you’ll end up in tears, calling people to tell them that you love them and hugging the nearest person to you. 

Watchhouse’s musical style includes harmonizing vocals over mandolin, acoustic guitar, banjo, and violin. They’ve been characterized as American roots music, folk, and bluegrass. But, personally, listening to Watchhouse makes me feel as if I’m sitting around a campfire in the heart of the country with the people I love most. If you’re up for a good cry, go check them out. 

Songs to Bump:

• Hard Travelin’
• Old Ties and Companions  
• Daylight
• Turtle Dove & the Crow
• Echo

3. Chronixx

If you asked anyone what the happiest kind of music is, there’s a pretty good chance that they’d say reggae. So, it felt necessary to include at least one reggae group on this list, and the first one that came to mind was Chronixx. Now, Chronixx is actually the name of the band’s frontman (a man named Jamar Rolando McNaughton, who wrote his first reggae song at the young age of 5 years old). However, Chronixx is supported by a talented band of musicians. 

Personally, Chronixx’s music makes me feel as if I’m sitting under a palm tree on a Jamaican beach and watching the waves gently crash against the sand. And it would be pretty hard to feel sad in such a scenario. If you need an introduction to Chronixx, make sure you check out his NPR Tiny Desk Concert. And don’t forget to sway and move your body a little bit while you listen. 

Songs to Bump: 

• Skankin’ Sweet
• COOL AS THE BREEZE/FRIDAY
• Here Comes Trouble
• I Can
• Never Give Up

4. Hippo Campus

Now it’s time for the indie rock entry to this list. Minneapolis-based Hippo Campus was formed in 2013 when the band’s members met at the Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists. Most of the musicians were training in jazz, and Jake Luppen, the group’s lead vocalist, was studying opera. Take those influences and blend them into upbeat indie rock, and you have Hippo Campus’s iconic sound. 

Now, not every song from Hippo Campus is designed to flood your brain with happy chemicals. However, they definitely have some tracks that will make you want to jump with joy. I would recommend starting off with their sophomore album Bambi from 2018 and then moving on to their more recent work. Plus, you can feel good about supporting this band as they’re notorious philanthropists and proponents of gun safety.

Songs to Bump:

• Golden 
• Way It Goes
• Vacation
• baseball 
• Buttercup

5. Bee Gees

For those of you out there who prefer a more vintage sound, I thought I would include the Bee Gees, the biggest disco group of the 1970s. The Bee Gees, comprised of brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb, formed in Queensland, Australia, in the late-1950s and enjoyed minor success through most of the 1960s. However, with the release of the song “To Love Somebody” in the late ‘60s, the Bee Gees were cemented as one of the most beloved groups, and they would remain at the top of the industry through most of the 1970s. 

The hallmark of the Bee Gees is the tight harmonizing vocals of the three Gibb brothers, with Robin bringing the lead vibrato and Barry delivering his signature R&B falsetto. Of course, when you think of the Bee Gees, you probably imagine a crowded disco club full of afros, bell-bottom pants, and extremely bright colors and patterns. So, if you’re ever feeling blue, just blast the Bee Gees in your living room and imagine you’re at a club during the Disco Era. 

Songs to Bump:

• More Than a Woman
• To Love Somebody
• You Should Be Dancing
• Subway
• Stayin’ Alive

6. Vulfpeck

Sometimes, when you’re feeling a bit anxious or sad, one of the best things you can do is take a walk. And, when I go on my power walks, I like to put in my headphones and listen to Vulfpeck. This Ann Arbor-based funk band has the ability to make me feel like a cartoon character, to make the Sun shine a little brighter, and make the trees seem as if they’re swaying to the beat. 

One might characterize Vulfpeck’s sound as laid-back funk. Many of their songs feature high-pitched vocals, while others are instrumentals. Their latest album Schvitz (released in 2022), is great to listen to while you’re commuting to or from work, while you’re lying in a hammock, or while you’re cooking dinner. But, really, any song by Vulfpeck is almost guaranteed to put a smile on your face. 

Songs to Bump:

• Back Pocket
• 1612
• Earworm
• Romanian Drinking Song
• Animal Spirits