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i work a physically intensive job, so setting aside time to center myself and tend to my mobility is very important to me. that said, a surprising amount of work goes into finding the perfect backing track for these quiet moments of remediation, and andré 3000’s ‘new blue sun’ has been a haven for me since its release.
the lead melodies on its opening track incentivize thoughtful, intentional breathing, and encourage reflection in ways simple guided meditations simply can’t measure up to. on more than one occasion, i may or may not have been moved to tears by its ethereal cascades of emotion :’)
when the talking heads over at headspace just can’t cut it, three stacks comes through ^_^
here are some other picks that put me in an ideal headspace to face the world, ever poised on the precipice of collapse:
• brian eno — ’music for airports’
• hiroshi yoshimura — ‘music for nine post cards‘
• adrianne lenker — ‘instrumentals’
• floating points & pharoah sanders — ‘promises’
i should do a playlist of these…
Aug 3, 2024
Related Recs
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ambient music is cool!!! it doesn’t just have to be background music for tasks it can also be beautiful! but yes i will study to ambient music… and soundtracks and such things.. anyway here‘s the list
Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks (Extended Edition) - Brian Eno
Ambient 3: Day of Radiance - Brian Eno
Ambient 1: Music for Airports - Brian Eno
I also have one playlists I like working to which is this Tame Impala instrumentals one (linked in the post)
Mar 16, 2025
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if i'm staying at a place where i can make breakfast before leaving the house i love spending the morning in some quiet solitude with some synthy soundscapes before i head out for the day. feels like standing in a healing spell, gotta charge up that XP if i'm gonna be out on my feet all day after.
Aug 5, 2024
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I am a background music girl through and THROUGH! I also used to religiously listen to Chopin but now I listen to tonnes more instrumental music;
Dev Hynes' scores for Queen & Slim and We Are Who We Are are so addictive to me and so unique, I love listening to them while studying.
Piero Piccioni is a composer that made scores for old Italian films and the Camille score and Amore mio aiutami score are my favs for studying when it's sunny.
I'm seconding the other reply left to this q. Whenever I'm doing the most boring work and I have no motivation I shuffle the Succession soundtrack and pretend that what I'm doing is super important and going to save the world.
Berlioz is an artist I listen to exclusively when I'm studying late. Jazz is the perfect vibe for late night studying but sometimes I just want to fall asleep so jazz-house is perfect because it keeps me awake enough.
Hiroshi Yoshimura's Surround album is a lot more ambient than my other recs and can put you to sleep if you listen late BUT is very calming and gorgeous and runs almost no risk of being distracting.
Mac DeMarco has a whole 9hr album of 90% instrumentals that I'll listen to sometimes.
Low-key also drum and bass... this is verrrrry hit or miss I'm aware. I can only listen in certain circumstances but sometimes when I need to do a lot of work quickly I'll just slap on an instrumental drum and bass playlist and hammer it out. Listened to Entanglements by Alix Perez for a while last year, but usually just find a playlist. Dnb tends to feature samples with words but I don't find them distracting typically as they're not at the forefront of the mix.
I also find that if I listen to music in a language I don't understand, the lyrics don't distract me as much. I've been listening to Eliana Pittman's self-titled album recently while studying but this could potentially apply to any album.
OMG okay that's all I have. I feel insane.
Mar 11, 2025
Top Recs from @bulkyheadphones
cartoonishly gory and melodramatic it may be, i have found a lot of catharsis in living vicariously through araki‘s articulation of queer angst, and how life in rural america can literally feel like stepping into hell itself; if you like irreverent protagonists and seeing bodily harm done to nazis, it’s a must ^_^
Aug 1, 2024
depending on the day of the week, (usually a random wednesday on which i feel the more ravenously coveted releases of SAW vol. 1&2 can be overlong and at times unwieldy), drukqs is to me the most evocative distillation of aphex’s predilection for acid-break brutalizations and madcap sonic textures.
it is, somehow, one of the albums i return to most and yet one of the last i’d ever recommend to a sane individual — and ironically, one of the worst to listen to while stoned. i can’t vouch for it enough
Oct 2, 2024
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so far, turning 24 has brought with it the sobering realization that my life won’t simply happen to me, and all the boring, healthy, ritualistic sh*t—once seeming like baseless naïveté spouted unanimously by people who had this epiphany far sooner than i—actually works. so far, 24 has been about catching up to the me that i wanted to be by now, and giving myself grace for keeping her waiting.
that baboon from bojack horseman might’ve been onto something. it does get a little easier, on the condition that you keep trying. i’m gonna go make some tea
Oct 1, 2024