Writing Playlist

Basically I know only too many writers who need to listen to music while they write, so I thought I'd see just what music that is. What music gets you the most inspired? You can't say "Every kind there is" either...think of specific artists or songs that really get you in the writing mood. It could be a cool way for everyone to get new ideas on what songs to listen to next time they write.

Anyways, usually I like to listen to things like Sigur Ros or The Album Leaf. For a more lighthearted part of the story, I'll listen to the Beatles or Coldplay, or sometimes if I'm really out if ideas for music, I'll listen to a soundtrack for a film I really like. It's like a ready-made playlist for me. Some films I'm thinking of include Garden State, ALmost Famous, or Juno (I know if just came out, but I loved it so much I went out and bought the soundtrack right away.

Now it's your turn

My writing playlist generally includes these bands, if I just take a quick glance at my current one:

The Beatles
Bright Eyes
The Cure
Death Cab For Cutie
The Decemberists
Delays
Dire Straits
Editors
Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly
Guillemots
Jimi Hendrix
Joy Division
Kings of Leon
The Maccabees
Phoenix
The Postal Service
Regina Spektor
The Shins
The Smiths
Sting & The Police
The Stone Roses

I like all of these bands because many of them have a mellow sound and usually interesting lyrics. it seems to activate some sort of part of my brain that helps me to write. I also enjoy film soundtracks, especially Master & Commander and Lord of the Rings, because they always seem to evoke something.

I listen to a lot of popular stuff. I can write to pretty much anything, but I like stuff that I know all the lyrics to so I can sing at the same time. A lot of my favourites are:

Kelly Clarkson
Christina Aguilera
Carrie Underwood
Alicia Keys
Billie Piper
The Veronicas
Beyonce
Destiny's Child
Evanescence
Rouge Traders

And that's just some of them.

Firestarter: I really like your list. Mine looks sort of similar.

But in addition to stuff like Bright Eyes and the Decemberists, post-rock is a goldmine for creating a mood that's good for writing. Bands like Explosions in the Sky, Sigur Ros, Do Make Say Think, Godspeed You! Black Emperor (who are especially good because of their lengthy songs) and Mogwai have that background music effect that really just let your ideas flow. There are no lyrics, except for Sigur Ros who sing in Icelandic (or a made-up language called Hopelandic), so you aren't having words put into your head, just music that will bring out your own words.

Dream Theater are also good. Listen to Stream of Consciousness and tell me otherwise - I dare you.

Firestarter, I love everything on your playlist!! Especially The Decemberists, The Shins, The Smiths, Regina Spektor, and a few others I've already mentioned. I love it

Jack wins at life...

D is for Diphtheria: Belle and Sebastian, Page France, Final Fantasy, Patrick Wolf, Andrew Bird, The Shins, Sufjan Stevens, Elliot Smith, Imperial Teen, The Thrills

Lazy Bones: Beirut, Cold Mountain soundtrack, Everything is Illuminated soundtrack, The White Stripes, Sufjan Stevens, The Decemberists

Hourglass: The Decemberists, Neutral Milk Hotel, Death Cab for Cutie, Patrick Wolf, Beirut, Sea Wolf, Franz Ferdinand, The Shins

It depends largely upon whether or not the piece is depressing, or convoluted, or simply insane. XD

I guess I'm kind of old school when it comes music, but I have a hard time finding newer bands that I like. What I listen to depends on what I'm writing; it usually doesn't work so well to listen to Pink Floyd when writing action and so on.
Things that are likely to be heard if you unplugged my headphones:
Pink Floyd
Led Zeppelin
Black Sabbath/Ozzy
Cream/Eric Clapton
CCR
The Doors
maybe some Fleetwood Mac or Stevie Nicks solo stuff
ACDC on occasion (it's not really writing music, despite its inherent awesomeness)
Tom Petty stuff
some other stuff in lesser quantities

I listen to a lot of the same music that Inertia and Firestarter described. Here are a few different examples:

Andrew Bird
The Beatles
Cold War Kids
The Decemberists
Iron and Wine
The Mountain Goats
Neutral Milk Hotel
Pedro the Lion
Tilly and the Wall
Wolf Parade

Most of the above is classified as either indie or folk. Sometimes I listen to the soundtracks of broadway plays because their melodies are catching. It adds for a bit of variety.

I mainly listen to soundtrack music, with the occasional song by Kelly Clarkson and Chris Daughtry and some other songs I've liked by certain bands, like Rascal Flats. My soundtracks mainly consist of:

-Star Wars
-Moulin Rouge
-Phantom of the Opera
-Wicked
-Some Lord of the Rings songs
-Some Harry Potter songs
-Disney- Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Tarzan...Mulan...a bunch of others.
-The soundtrack that was made for my Archer's Legend story by Caligula's Launderette (which I want to see if she'll make another one for me for my latest story >.>).

Creed
Lifehouse
Disciple
Skillet
Thousand Foot Krutch
P.O.D.
Linkin Park
Nickelback
Evanescence


Yeah...that's pretty much it. "Firebrand" is kind of an angsty, emotional book, as you can probably tell.

Hmm... It depends. When I really just want to get into the writing mode, I usually listen to a CD by Amethystium, and they're kind of new-age sounding, like Enya without the voice. But otherwise, this is what I listen to:

Anberlin
Snow Patrol
Switchfoot
The Format
Mayday Parade (only one song by them, though)
Acceptance
Something Corporate
Motion City Soundtrack
Paramore
Relient K
Saosin
The Cranberries
We The Kings

EDIT: Oh, and I LOVELOVELOVE the soundtrack to 300. And Enya.

ooh, Anberlin and Paramore and Relient K are good. I don't listen to any of the others.

Paramore and Anberlin and Relient K are AMAZING. I usually listen to them when I'm writing happy scenes (unless it's Anberlin, because they are kind of depressing) but I don't descriminate against any songs while writing. As long as i'm not just listening to the TV drone in my ear while writing, I'm good.

My list is the exact opposite from what I've seen thus far. Lookie at my pretty list:

Black Sabbath
Metallica
Disturbed
Aerosmith
Led Zep
Billy Joel
...etc.

Typically, it's some genre of metal all the way.

woohoo! classic rock, well done. I've acquired a taste for classic rock since I met my boyfriend. his iPod is full of Aerosmith and Def Lepperd and AC/DC.