A sudden heatwave has struck London and we’re rinsing it for all it’s worth. And where there’s sun, a solid summer soundtrack should follow, so we’ve recruited the musicians featured in HERO 15 to dig deep through their record collections and mix a killer playlist with maximum hit-rate. Next up we’ve got former-Smith Westerns frontman Cullen Omori taking over music duties. A sharp pop current runs throughout his debut solo record, New Misery, and for his DREAMSTAR playlist the 25-year old musician pulls some of his favourite A-star earworms together for a mix destined for late night dance floors…

“This guy hasn’t moved all day, I think he’s fucking dead,” says a nonchalant hospital warden at the sight of a dead-behind-the-eyes Cullen Omori. When, slouched in front of a TV, the musician-come-patient is suddenly stirred from his slumber by an on-screen girl giving him the eye, and escapism hits.

Scoring relatively low on the subtlety scale, this visual narrative accompanying Omori’s lead solo track, Cinnamon, clarifies the musician’s recent mindset. Having hit a rut with his breakthrough group Smith Westerns, Omori discovered a fresh lease of life via solo music and seized the creative freedom he ultimately craved.

Having disbanded Smith Westerns at the tail-end of 2014, the Chicago-born musician considered his options. Reverting to a 9–5 lifestyle, he skipped between routine jobs, including regular cleaning shifts at a hospital. But soon the scent of dried blood and disinfectants grew stale and – swapping scrubs for synths – Omori began writing again.

Two years later a fully realised solo record, New Misery, has come to fruition, and Omori has found his muse. By means of an impassioned modus operandi – “I want to create accessible music that is challenging and uncompromising” – the 25-year-old knows what he wants, and more importantly, he now knows what he wants to avoid. It’s this headstrong challenge that piqued his creativity and set him back on course.

Ray of Light by Madonna

Speed to my Side by Rollerskate Skinny

Out of Touch by Hall and Oates

Rookie by Fatal Jamz

Being Brave by Menswear

Operator by Jim Croce

In My Darkest Hour by Chris Bell

Le Sud by Nino Ferrer

Never Tear Us Apart by INXS

Don’t Cry by Guns N’ Roses

Paper Scratcher by Blind Melon

Cullen Omori plays at Birthdays,N16 8BJ on 24th May. Tickets here.