Friday, May 2, 2014

Study Albums


I don't know about anybody else, but I can't study or get work done without a little music in the background. With a little bit of music, I can concentrate and not focus on other noises in the room. And with finals coming around (at least for me; my last of grad school [winning]), I thought I might share some albums I like to put on to get in the academic mood.

Selected Ambient Works Volume 2 (1994)- Aphex Twin
Ok, probably an obvious choice, but ambient music is really great to study to. It's very mellow music that creates a soundscape and never rips you away from what you're doing. The long instrumental tracks really get me to focus up and can really put me in the right head space. Plus, it's just a great album.






A black background with a wavy, white, hill-like shape on the bottom. The words "Nine Inch Nails Ghosts I–IV" are featured in the middle.Ghosts I-IV (2008)- Nine Inch Nails
The only Nine Inch Nails record anyone would ever be able to study to. Described by Trent Reznor as "a soundtrack to daydreams", it definitely sounds that way, and is another sort of ambient album that can really play well in the background, becoming incidental music to any sort of book work.






The Garden of Brokenness (2005)- William Basinski
Honestly, any William Basinski album does the trick for me. His mix of electronic, piano, strings and tape loops always creates a great, melancholic mood, and is always a good study tool for me. If you're looking for some great music, check out William Basinski for some poignant and moody material, especially the rewarding and challenging Disintegration Loops series.






A grainy black-and-white photo of billboards.The Tennessee Fire (1999)- My Morning Jacket

This album is a little more difficult to explain as a study album, since lyrics tend to take me out of the study groove, generally because I'm paying attention more to the words than my work. This album, along with Evil Urges, to a lesser extent, seem to be the exception to this rule, in that while they are great albums with great lyrics that can be listened to with no distractions, they seem to get me locked into that work attitude through sheer mellowness. Other groups like Fleet Foxes, the Wailers, or jam bands like the Dead and Phish can sometimes give that response from me too, but the sparse instrumentation, dreamy reverb, and overall chill atmosphere of this record has me spinning it regularly when I study.


F#A#∞ (1998)- Godspeed You! Black Emperor

This album's lengthy instrumental tracks focus on mood, with a good deal of string drone and emphasis on post-apocalyptic imagery. With all the carnage described in the spoken word intro and in other spots throughout, it's ironic that this album is a very calming experience to me. A lot of their other records work for me in this fashion too, along with the earlier material of the side project Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra. Definitely a worthy listen on its own as well if you're at all into post-rock or drone music.


Feel free to share any records that you play when you're getting your study on. As for me, I've got to find another way to procrastinate before finals. I'll start by trying to process Corazón.



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