A soundtrack for the slog
Editor’s Note: Let’s get real. Working can be challenging, stressful or just plain boring. But the right playlist can help ease the burden—and keep us going. So we asked our splainer fam for help. The result: An eclectic mix of movie soundtracks, rock, pop and old school classics. You can check out the full playlist over on our Spotify account!
- ‘PIMP’ by Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band: Arcopol Chaudhuri recommends listening to the entire album. For him, the first song ‘PIMP’ became an instant earworm after listening to it in ‘Anatomy of a Fall’. He tells to not “do household chores while listening to it. You might die. No, really”
- ‘Kholo Kholo’ by Raman Mahadevan: For Garimendra Verma, this song “reminds me that I am as potent as the sun, and all I got to do is match the rhythm of my heart with that of earth.”
- ‘Internal Flight’ by Estas Tonne: Pooja has two long suggestions. One is Internal Flight, and the other is ‘Synth, Sitar & Sax’ by Evan Hatfield. For her, they “really allow you to get into a flow”.
- ‘Aria’ by Argy: Kaustubh Khade suggests this super upbeat song for his working woes.
- ‘The Final Countdown’ by Europe: Nikita listens to this song because it “keeps me awake while I work while allowing me to groove to it.”
- ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song’ by Fugees: For Rachna Kucheria, the reason to check this track is simple: words and rhythm.
- ‘Give Me a Kiss’ by Crash Adams: Jiya really enjoys the beat in this song.
- ‘Am I Dreaming’ by Metro Boomin: Jithin really likes the two animated Spiderverse movies and loves this song, and also recommends ‘What’s Up Danger’ by Blackway too.
- ‘Left Right’ by Ali Sethi: Agrima enjoys this Ali Sethi song for its rap, hindustani style and good beats.
- ‘I Want To Break Free’ by Queen: Nidhi says that you can listen to most songs by Queen while working: “this one is just so catchy!”
- ‘One Day Like This’ by Elbow: This is Anurag Tagat’s pick, along with ‘Jungle’ by Dhruv Visvanath. He notes that “they're sweeping, powerful songs with a message about determination and often make you see the bigger picture.”
The splainer team’s picks: Our Advisory editor Arunima wanted to put ‘You’re Doing Very Well’ by Danalogue on our list: “This is kinda cheesy, but it's like meditative therapy for me and keeps me on track especially if I'm having anxiety about something.” For Aarthi, the song that instantly lifts her up is ‘My Body’ by Young the Giant as “the chorus goes ‘My Body tells me no, but I won't quit, cause I want more’ against a fast-paced rock beat and that is incredibly comforting and encouraging”. She also recommends this unreleased gem ‘Back that Up To The Beat’ “cuz it’s Madonna!”
PS: Check out the splainer fam’s other recommended playlists—songs to get your karaoke groove on, tunes to feel your zen, their favourite cover versions of songs, music for your next travel trip, songs you’d want to sing in the rain and songs to dance to in your underwear.
