By The Epigram Music Team
Deadline season is here: but fear not, Epigram Music is here to help. Whether its dissertations, assignments, projects and exams (or all four and more), the team have picked our favourite tunes to listen to when crunch time is upon us. So sit back: pick out a seat in your favourite library, put on your headphones and start up your focus sessions to get ready to lock in with some serious study bangers.
Nils Frahm - Screws
By Jake Paterson, Music Editor
I fell into this gorgeously fragile record during A-level revision. A perfect fit for focussing deep into the early hours, Frahm’s early piano project set the tone for his later experimentation. He plays the Bristol Beacon this summer too!
Peshay - Peshay Studio Set (1996)
By Benji Chapman, Music Co-Deputy Editor
Complete with its iconic spacy 3D renders, this elusive classic ambient jungle set from Peshay fuses the visceral excitement of rapid breakbeats and mellows its intensity with gentler aspects. Ambient soundscapes are held down by soft 808 basslines as each track blends into one another for an entrancing hour and a half. Though it's easy to get distracted by the thousands of messages on the video's comment section, the feeling of racing through the atmosphere is sure to propel you towards academic esteem. Bring the rave to the library in a warmup for the approaching festival season, or simply tune in and drift away from impending deadline stresses for a total focus on the task at hand.
Foo Fighters - The Colour and the Shape
By Susie Long, Music Subeditor
I won’t lie, it’s very rare for me to listen to albums the whole way through. When I’m studying, I tend to flit between random forms of musical procrastination, but this is my “time to lock in” album. Foo Fighters simply never miss. It may not be the ambient, lo-fi study session vibe, but I find nothing motivates me to crank out essays like Hawkins’ pounding drums and Grohl’s screaming guitar. Let’s face it, doing nothing to this music would be oxymoronic. Featuring iconic Foo Fighters tracks like ‘Monkey Wrench’ and ‘Everlong’ alongside some other greats including ‘Hey, Johnny Park!’ and my personal favourite ‘New Way Home’, this album gets me in the zone every time.
Men I Trust - Untourable Album
By Cara Hene, Music Digital Editor
I stumbled upon Men I Trust while revising for my A-Levels and ever since they’ve remained a firm studying classic, ready to be pulled from the depths of my Spotify when deadlines are fast approaching. Their signature sound is ethereal, punctuated by beautifully hypnotic melodies, and this album is no different. Its dreamy, therapeutic feel is perfect if you’re anything like me and are easily distracted while working, but still want to make revising in the ASSL feel a little less soul destroying. Honourable mentions have got to be 'Sugar', 'Oh Dove' and 'Tree Among Shrubs'.
Matthew Halsall - An Ever Changing View
By Benji Chapman, Music Co-Deputy Editor
There are tens of amazing jazz records I could have picked for this spot, but what sneaks 2023's An Ever Changing View into first is its naturalistic tendencies which broaden the horizons of a contemporary jazz record. Featuring a huge spread of world instruments the album, as its name suggests, looks far and away to a place of meditative bliss. A stress-buster and revision classic this record borrows from pastoral aesthethics and sounds to bring the listener closer to a place of natural oneness. You are no longer sat in the ASSL at 2am in a caffienated frenzy, but now overlooking a beautiful shoreline, contemplating with academic mastery in a blissful state of musical euphoria.
Chappell Roan - The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess
By Susie Long, Music Subeditor
This could not be further from my first pick if I tried. Chappell Roan has created the quintessential pop album with this record and I love every second of it. Sometimes the best study tactic for me is to put myself in an Elle Woods-esque mindset, romanticising the fact that you have 3,000 words due in two days, and this album is perfect for that. Queer-coded, chaotic and carefree, listening to this album feels like you’re doing your work with a glitter gel pen - with a few heartbreaking tracks thrown in for good measure of course. More than anything, the energy of this album reminds me that, soon, there will be life outside of the library, and nothing is better study motivation than the light at the end of the tunnel. Suffice to say, don’t be surprised if you see me doing the ‘HOT TO GO!’ dance to myself in the library at 2am!
Radiohead - In Rainbows
By Cara Hene, Music Digital Editor
While this album certainly has more to say for itself than simply being good study music, it just hits the spot when the deafening silence of Wills is getting to you. The instruments throughout In Rainbows are incredibly well separated, making its songs feel spacious, with every sound carefully slotting into place. Perhaps aside from the guitar-filled powerhouse that is 'Bodysnatchers', this beautifully transcendental album is a perfect one to study to.
Skinshape - Umoja
By Jake Paterson, Music Editor
In comparison to the quiet deep focus of that Nils Frahm record, Skinshape’s album is full of life and delivers motivation when you’re otherwise lacking it. Blending elements of jazz, psychedelia and desert rock, it’s a colourful listen whilst still giving you the headspace to get closer to the wordcount.
Featured Image: Benji ChapmanWhat are you listening to during exam season?
