Music for Programming • Hacker News Board

Re: Music for Programming

#51

Post by da_chicken » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 2:47 AM UTC

I've had three main tracks that I've used for the past 8 months or so.

The first one is a 1-hour mix of "In Motion" from the soundtrack to The Social Network: https://youtu.be/bCxPmMbZjuk

The second is a 1-hour mix of "It Has to be This Way" from the soundtrack to Metal Gear Rising Revengance: https://youtu.be/jKGDib6qZBo

The third is a 1-hour mix of "Clock Tower" from the soundtrack to Dead Cells: https://youtu.be/plwhysPCxXI

Re: Music for Programming

#52

Post by justonceokay » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 3:07 AM UTC

dvh wrote: post #4

Don't laugh, but for me, it's Abba. Their entire discography is ~3 hours which is how long I can maintain peak concentration. Their songs are consistently good so that I don't need to skip a song, but not too good that I would stop working and start listening. Plus I've never heard Abba song in any good movie so it doesn't remind me scenes from a movie I would want to rewatch. Of course I don't listen to it every day…

As a dancer it’s funny to me that programming and dancing both seem to be better with a disco soundtrack. Or house, or funk. Anything with a strong backbeat.

Re: Music for Programming

#53

Post by slicktux » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 3:12 AM UTC

soma.fm Channel: DEFCON Radio Best programming music!

Re: Music for Programming

#54

Post by __david__ » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 3:51 AM UTC

I discovered long ago that psytrance/goa was perfect for me. It works almost as well as caffeine and I can work for hours and hours as long as it’s blaring.

Re: Music for Programming

#55

Post by stevebmark » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 4:17 AM UTC

nine_k wrote: post #49

stevebmark wrote: post #33

This seems focused on one very particular taste in music of droning semi-random lo-fi synthesizers. I find this unlistenable without any kind of percussion.

The fact that it works for the author, but totally does not for you is a big fat sign that says: search what works for you . More than that: search what works for you in a particular state of mind . You are a special enough snowflake to require a personal playlist, and it's not easily guessable. Sometimes what works best for me is Bach's violin concertos. Other times it's MBR [1]. Yet other times it might be some Kei…

Wow I've never thought about listening to music I like before?????

Re: Music for Programming

#56

Post by nine_k » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 4:23 AM UTC

stevebmark wrote: post #55

nine_k wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The fact that it works for the author, but totally does not for you is a big fat sign that says: search what works for you . More than that: search what works for you in a particular state of mind . You are a special enough snowflake to require a personal playlist, and it's not easily guessable. Sometimes what works best for me is Bach's violin concertos. Other times it's MBR [1]. Yet other times it might be some Kei…

Wow I've never thought about listening to music I like before?????

Not all music I like makes good work music. For instance, I cannot work with code while listening to songs: the verbal center apparently gets overloaded.

Re: Music for Programming

#57

Post by jerrygoyal » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 4:30 AM UTC

my go to coding playlist for years https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVuvGj-9l_yXpuZwSqo...

Re: Music for Programming

#58

Post by porjo » Mon, Apr 06, 2026, 4:34 AM UTC

stevebmark wrote: post #33

This seems focused on one very particular taste in music of droning semi-random lo-fi synthesizers. I find this unlistenable without any kind of percussion.

Agreed! I like music that can be enjoyed either active or passive listening. The main requirement is that it have no vocals. Here's my go-to Spotify playlist while coding.

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1IKenYEiooONuxxawKtNOm?si=...