Just wanted to do an appreciation post because I think I'd lose my mind without them. Silence grates on me but playing songs can be chaotic because the drum beats, bass or lyrics clash with my thoughts so that I can't focus and get increasingly frustrated. Indie music (like Novo Amor's) hits the spot because it's gentle, but can feel too melancholy if I'm in the mood for something light. I'm a highly sensitive person so I constantly need to switch playlists often to avoid absorbing emotions that will cause me to spiral.

Soundtracks and instrumental music are ideal because they offer the soft sensory landscape, are literally made to be in the background all the time and cover a range of emotions because they tell someone's story.

Shoutout to Hans Zimmer for the Interstellar soundtrack in particular because it's the only thing I've been able to listen to during my essay and exam crises for the past year, for hours on repeat. It weaves together the emotional rollercoaster of anxiety, trepidation and hope that I go through into something inspiring when those feelings would otherwise be discordant and make me want to give up.

Into the spiderverse by Daniel Pemberton: for making the tube commute during rush hour feel like an adventure instead of a tin can of overstimulation.