Selected Ambient Works
90s electronic, Autechre
I love 90s electronic for concentration. But I’ve gotten into Tycho recently.
Tycho is great! Check out Emancipator as well!
Incunabula, their debut album as Autechre, is also fantastic:
Grindcore
Instrumental heavy metal.
Post rock for me. It’s a wide genre that is sometimes classical in nature to punk metal.
Techno, house, trance, or nintendo music.
Second this, love the trance and Nintendo tunes! There’s some good lofi Nintendo mixes on YouTube that get me through work
Depends on the kind of concentration. If I’m programming or doing some kind of math, I want fury. I’m reaching for Slayer or Megadeth or the Doom sound track. Nothing like Angel of Death to plow through something.
If it’s more contemplative, power ballads. Something I can sing without focusing on it. I Want to Know What Love Is. Keeps pace, but it’s more emotional. Keeps me in that thoughtful place.
Cooking, woodworking, cleaning. Something active but not on the whole fast. Heavy metal, southern rock, or blues. Kiss, CCR, Lynyrd Skynyrd, BB King. Something even tempo that can pick up and come back down. Freebird followed by Fortunate Son is a good example.
LoFi
beats to concentrate/relax to
Either ambient instrumental music (lots of Brian Eno) or any music that I know all the words to (so that my brain doesn’t have to actively process the lyrics).
Anything without vocals so that it doesn’t force me to actually think about it, just vibe.
Lately Chikoi The Maid (maidcore rock) or Gnome (the Father Of Time album, just-riffs-rock?) to some dnb/techno stuff, depends on the mood and how hard I need to focus - faster is better then.
Lofi covers of video game music. Mostly Zelda, because I am a dork.
I’ve been listening to breakcore lately. Gets me in the mood for serious work, it’s like a microdose of adhd meds
When I was in the office, always metal. At home I’m more likely to listen to classical, but still metal if I need to be totally focused.
When I really need to concentrate I put on music in a foreign language. Mainly German because I’ve found a lot of German bands I like. Some of my favorites that sing mainly in German:
- Wizo
- Die Ärzte
- Die Toten Hosen
- We Butter Out Bread With Butter
If I need to think, I prefer absolute silence (noise cancelling headphones).
If I’m doing something mindless, I’ll put on a podcast or audiobook.
House music. Nearly everyday while I code. Mostly Chris Luno sets.
Usually none, sometimes classical music, Viennese Classic especially
