Pandora's New 'Stranger Things' Station Takes Listeners Back to the Summer of 1985

Stranger Things is all about ‘80s nostalgia. From subtle (and not-so-subtle) references to movies to movies like E.T. and The Goonies to the era-specific fashion, the entire Netflix series is a major trip down memory lane for anyone who lived through the Reagan decade. 

And then there’s the music. The synth-heavy score immediately evokes the 1980s. Plus, each season has prominently featured songs that the characters would have been listening to at the time. Who could forget Will and Jonathan Byers shared love of The Clash’s “Should I Stay Or Should I Go” in Season 1 — or the way Will used the song to communicate with his mother when he was trapped in the Upside Down?

Season 3 of Stranger Things arrives on Netflix on July 4. This season is set in 1985, which means the characters will have the year’s hottest hits playing on their Walkmans as they wander the new Starcourt Mall. And fans can listen right along with the new “Stranger Things Summer of ‘85” station on Pandora. 

Pandora’s ‘Stranger Things’ station transports listeners to 1985

Even if you don’t remember 1985 personally, chances are you know its songs. Madonna, Wham!, Foreigner, and Tears for Fears all topped the charts. So did songs like “St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion)” and “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” from hit movies like St. Elmo’s Fire and The Breakfast Club. 

The Stranger Things Pandora station (which went live on July 3) pulls together some of the year’s most recognizable hits in one perfectly retro mixtape. Among the songs you might hear are hits from Huey Lewis and the News, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, and Stevie Wonder.

The Stranger Things station even has its own DJ, Casey Hawk, who might just end up as one of the Mind Flayer’s latest victims, according to Pandora.

The ‘Stranger Things: Soundtrack’ is out July 5 

Dedicated Stranger Things fans might not be content with just streaming 1985’s biggest hits. In that case, you can buy the official soundtrack to Season 3 on July 5 on digital, CD, and cassette (how retro). A vinyl version with a bonus mini-poster and a 7”-inch single hits stores on July 26. Exclusive colored vinyl variants will be available at Walmart, Target, and Urban Outfitters. The soundtrack will feature 15 classic tracks, plus an original cast recording. 

In addition, the original score was released digitally on June 28, with a vinyl release to follow in October.   

As for the show itself, here’s what to expect from Season 3, according to Netflix. 

It’s 1985 in Hawkins, Indiana, and summer’s heating up. School’s out, there’s a brand new mall in town, and the Hawkins crew are on the cusp of adulthood. Romance blossoms and complicates the group’s dynamic, and they’ll have to figure out how to grow up without growing apart. Meanwhile, danger looms. When the town’s threatened by enemies old and new, Eleven and her friends are reminded that evil never ends; it evolves. Now they’ll have to band together to survive, and remember that friendship is always stronger than fear

Stranger Things Season 3 premieres on Netflix on July 4. 

Read more: The ‘Stranger Things’ Cast Is Already Scaring Fans Before the Premiere

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