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What are your top 3 focus songs?

Gracie Gregory (she/her) on July 29, 2020

At the risk of sounding like a Martian that got plopped into Williamsburg, Brooklyn in 2004 and is trying to blend in... I'm getting back into play...
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Mary Dee

It's not everyone's cup of tea but I quite like extreme metal when I'm coding. It wasn't something I listened to much before but I find that the heavy repetitive sounds get me into a rhythm. Most of all there's no distracting vocals - just a death growl or scream! It works for me anyway.

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Raunak Ramakrishnan

On a similar note, I love listening to classical music and jazz while doing focused work.

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Totally.

I only recently discovered the incredible work of Joseph Bologne โ€” a Black classical composer who (of course) I was never taught about in school. Apparently Mozart was extremely envious of Bologne and even stole one of his ideas in his Sinfonia Concertante!

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Mary Dee

I have just looked him on wiki! Incredible that someone so accomplished isn't more widely known. (Well, perhaps it's not so 'incredible' but that's another issue, I guess.)

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Mike Bybee • Edited

Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Antonin Dvorak, and Dmitri Shostakovich get my creative juices flowing.

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John Peters

Kind of Blue is great coding music.

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John Peters

I love light Jazz while coding.

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Mike Bybee

Opeth was my favorite band (until Haken just overtook them with the release of Virus on Friday), but their earlier growls-only stuff (everything before Still Life) puts me to sleep. I like it, it's just not nearly as engaging as Mikael's melodic vocals whether he mixes them with growls (Still Life - Watershed except Damnation) or not (Damnation and everything since Watershed).

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Mary Dee

I have heard of Opeth but not Haken. I will check them out! I was always more into classic rock (Black Sabbath, Motorhead etc) but over the last year or so moved into the darker sound. MGLA currently the band I'm listening to most while I work.

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Mike Bybee

Unlike Opeth, Haken has always been prog with mostly or completely melodic vocals (though their earlier stuff has bits and pieces of a Faith No More/Mr. Bungle influence).

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Edenn Touitou

Chainsaw death metal is a must. Groovy to get the rythme, growly to not get disturbed by the vocals. My tops are Bloodbath and Entombed (of course), but also Krypts, Chthe'ilist, Undergang, Solothus...

Some atmospheric black metal (and shoegaze) bands are also a good way to stay focus without being over pumped up or excited. (Glaciation, Alceste, Downfall of Nur, Mgla, Kval, Spectral Lore and Mare Cognitium)

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

I've actually heard this from a lot of my dev friends/colleagues! I haven't explored the genre much but I should start :) Thanks!

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Carter Roy

How about cinematic music? No vocals, pure focus.
It has to be hans zimmer.
Hero - Kung fu Panda
Dark knight theme
Lone Ranger - Overture

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Daniel Schulz

I'm with you on that
Hans Zimmer - Mountains (Interstellar)
Daft Punk - Rinzler (Tron Legacy)
Nier Automata - Memories of Dust

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Carter Roy

I've gotta check these out, thanks!

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Sean

If we're going with Hans Zimmer then The Amazing Spiderman 2 theme.

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Carter Roy

That's an amazing suggestion. This list should have top 10.

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Hard second this. The Spiderman 2 score is amazing and I haven't even seen it.

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Pierre-Adrien Buisson

Inception's Time track too

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Nick Taylor

Iโ€™ve been listening to a lot of Survive this year. I also love Trent Reznor and Atticus Rossโ€™ collabs.

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Trent Reznor is a genius.

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Mike Bybee

Both discs of The Fragile together (still my fav album of all time). Great for getting a large chunk of work done. That album is such a journey.

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Joe Doss

I really gravitate to metal and hard rock when I need to get things done. These three tracks are super motivational to me and the lyrics on all of them are super great!

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Michael Tharrington

Where is The Midnight?!?!?!

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Felippe Regazio

I like to listen to lo-fi trip hop when needing to focus on something : )

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Yep, the best.

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Felippe Regazio

oh! also... ive been listen to it all day long :P

youtube.com/watch?v=lZ-pFRiZGQY

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Gino

Don't have specific songs, but Cyberpunk 2077 music is great. Also anything by Rammstein (I don't even try to understand the lyrics). Finally, the new Doom soundtrack is great for some metal in the background.

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Mike Bybee • Edited

For me, lyrics aren't a problem as long as the music is intricate enough to keep them from taking over. On that note, below is my recent post about the new Haken release. It feels like an instant 50 point IQ boost for me. They're at the top of my list of "flow" state music.

dev.to/stereoplegic/tunes-for-brai...

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Thank you!

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Michael Tharrington • Edited

Hmmm... top 3 is too tough, but I'll concede to top 3 for where my heads at today.

  1. Fela Kuti & Ginger Baker's "Let's Start" โ€” this tune kicks off an excellent live album, aptly titled Live!

  2. I really dig working to the film director/composer of rad synth sounds John Carpenter's tunes as they definitely scratch that 80's itch. I totally relate to your line "It makes sense that synth/electronic music helps me (and many other people) do work related to tech, I guess!" I think it does! ๐Ÿ˜€ The theme for Escape From New York has been one of my go-tos recently. Here's a really cool live-in-the-studio version too.

  3. "The Man in Me" by Bob Dylan has been a regular for me recently as I'm learning to play this one. It's just a really awesome tune and it doesn't hurt that it was featured in The Big Lebowski โ€” linking to the soundtrack because it's so good.

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Yessss great list. The Escape From NY theme is so good and is perfect for this purpose.

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Matteo Vignoli • Edited

Uhm, what about:
1) Complete silence;
2) If unattainable, white noise
3) If no silence and no white noise, scream "shut up!!" and recurse

BTW Hans Zimmer rocks! But I would lose myself in the music, I cannot listen to it while coding

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Complete silence is a true bop!

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Hussein Al Hammad

I normally prefer instrumental progressive metal. I find many albums flow nicely so I have favourite focus albums rather than specific tracks. My most read post on here is about this:

If I have to pick 3 tracks, they'd be:
1- Seven Insignia by Sunset in the 12th House
2- Station by Russian Circles
3- (II) by Toundra (the full album ๐Ÿ˜…)

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dvd

I like irregular music to work to. I often search Spotify for phrases like Avant Garde classical or free jazz. It's not the sort of stuff I listen to in my leisure time but it helps me focus. Other times I've listened to audio books in languages I don't understand, use archive.org for this. It sounds weird but I find it really helps

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

That's super interesting. I'd be curious to know the psychology behind irregular background sounds helping folks focus (and sleep!)

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Heiker

If I had to choose songs to focus I guess I would reach for the latest album of Nightwish. Since english is not my native language the lyrics don't distract me, Floor Jansen's voice becomes another beautiful sound that blends well with the music. Here are the songs I would choose.

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Thanks for sharing!

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Rakesh Sagar • Edited

Ignoring the rule of three coz
I AM REBEL

Default case:- Stuff by the red hot chili peppers
Good bye angel
Rain dance Maggie
Look around
Other side

When deadline is far away and work is chill:-childish Gambino's
red bone
feels like summer

When I need an evil plan to conquer the world:-
Rammenstien's Engel, Deutschland, feur feil
Metallica's king nothing,
Slipknot's psyco social (banjo cover)

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Ruanna

I am all about playlists too! I still listen to ones I made 10+ years ago ๐Ÿ˜†. I made a couple different writing playlists that have a collection of downtempo and instrumental songs (Tycho, Explosions in the Sky, M83, The Album Leaf, etc.) and also instrumental songs from movies (like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind). Those playlists help me get in the writing zone. :)

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Samuel Amagbakhen

Dej Loaf - Desire
Era - Ameno
Dej Loaf - Liberated

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Kamil A. Kaczmarek

Hey,
You may want to try functional music like brain.fm -> it works really good for focusing.

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James Bubb

Oooh, it's been Metallica recently (Death Magnetic) but also some Photek or Squarepusher I find is good for focusing.

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Hugo

This is the song that I listen to the most while I'm coding.
cover

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Ah, I love this. Thanks for sharing!

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Helder Burato Berto

Normally, I listen Lofi, Blues or Hip-Hop classics from 80-90y

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Sean
  1. Paid My Dues - NF
  2. Faucet Failure - Ski Mask
  3. Keep It Mello - Marshmello
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AbhayaMaskey
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Galuh Utama • Edited

Iโ€™ve been listening to RATM while working lately. Work has been incredibly long and tiring and endless lately and so I need more adrenaline.

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John Peters • Edited

Claude Debussy

Emerson Lake and Palmer

Primus

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Gracie Gregory (she/her)

Debussy <3