Music To Code To

(Disclaimer: Your mileage may -- and probably will -- vary.)

In 1975, psychiatrist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi coined the term Flow, which Wikipedia describes as "a flow state, also known colloquially as being in the zone, the mental state in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. In essence, flow is characterized by the complete absorption in what one does, and a resulting transformation in one's sense of time." We've probably all experienced being "in the zone" at one time or another in our lives, and most of us would probably agree that we do our best work when we're "in the zone".

As a software developer, music can be a help or a hinderance. It can be a distraction, or, with the right music, it can become a background soundtrack which helps us attain flow. In my personal experience, I've found that even if I love a particular song or album, it might not be a good fit for me to listen to if I'm trying to concentrate or be productive. But certain music has that "x-factor", that quality I can't quite define that makes it a good fit for me personally if I'm trying to be fully immersed in my work.

Here are some picks that work for me. As musical tastes are quite subjective, it's highly unlikely that this list will be a perfect (or even partial) fit for anyone else, but regardless, I thought it would be something interesting to write about.

Here goes...

Oingo Boingo: "Boingo Alive"

Most people probably know musician Danny Elfman as the guy who wrote the themes to The Simpsons and 1989's Batman (which was also used for the 1990s Batman: The Animated Series), but before he became a composer, he led the band Oingo Boingo, which is a rock band which has also been described at various times as punk and alternative. They're known for their hits Weird Science (written for the 1985 film of the same name) and Dead Man's Party. My favorite tracks of theirs are the harder-edged ones where they make good used of their horn section(!). On Boingo Alive, the band plays 31 of their songs live in the studio (it's not a traditional live album), offering up different takes on many of them than what was found on the original album versions. I prefer some of these different versions to the originals.



Iron Maiden: "Live After Death"

Iron Maiden have released several live albums, but most people consider this, their first, as the best. Recorded mainly at Long Beach Arena in California in 1985, it includes material originally found on their first five studio albums. This is one of those great, consistent albums that I can play from beginning to end without wanting to skip a track. Also, they perform a lot of these songs just a little bit faster than the original album versions. A classic!








Crime Jazz

Crime Jazz is actually a genre of music (who knew?) and if you've ever watched a 1970s cop or detective TV show or movie, you've heard it. Comedian Bobcat Goldthwait once referred to the 1970s as "the lowest cultural point in the planet's history", and while I'm not sure I completely agree, I definitely think the '70s were...well, kinda weird. Crime Jazz is what's commonly referred to as library music by film studios, stock music that they use in various projects. The 2009 blaxploitation send-up Black Dynamite made judicious use of Crime Jazz, and they even released a soundtrack of the movie comprised of it, with excellent liner notes about the history behind this music. Whenever I listen to this, I get my work done, then feel like I could step outside and get into a car the size of a house made entirely of steel and corinthean leather, because that's how they rolled in the '70s.


KISS: The First Three Albums

Again, this goes back to that whole "x-factor" concept: I couldn't really tell you what it is about the first three KISS albums that make them a good fit for me to work to, but for whatever reason, be it the songs or the production quality, there's just something about these first three that really help me to get in the zone and be immersed in my work.

DragonForce: "Ultra Beatdown"

I honestly don't know much about these guys, despite owning three of their albums, this one being my favorite. They're British, have been described as "Nintendo Metal", and every song sounds like it's about 200 beats per minute. This album is like the musical equivalent of coffee.












So there you have it, my admittedly eclectic selection of coding music. I'd love to hear what anyone else finds useful to code to, as it might work for the rest of us, and the very least would be interesting to hear about.