If you know anything about Southern California, you know that we Angelenos spend a good deal of our time on the road. Just last week I spent three hours in traffic to get somewhere that is normally only 45 minutes away (yeah…). One of the best ways to pass the time is to have a good mix for the road. Some people like to listen to music to sooth them so they don’t find themselves feeling too road-ragie. I prefer to listen to a high energy mix that will have me rockin’ out so hard that makes other drivers either want what I have or wonder what the heck is wrong with me.

The songs I’ve chosen for the following playlist are songs that I absolutely love and when I hear them while driving, I turn the sound up to an ear damaging decibel, sing along, and totally get into the zone. Nothing bothers me, not even the stupid drivers around me; I’m completely in sync with the music and the road.

1. Arctic Monkeys - A View From the Afternoon
   Opening the drive mix on a strong note, I chose this song because it has a way of whipping you into a frenzy with the its pace. You know its all building to something; a magnificent crescendo that drops of quite abruptly. I love the video with the drummer playing in the middle of a court with steely concentration…
2. Incubus - Megalomaniac
3. White Stripes - Blue Orchid
   Generally, I hate Meg White’s drumming style. All I can hear is her clanging on the symbols. But Jack White’s is an awesome song writer and I love the contrast of the guitar against the noise Meg makes. Somehow dispite Meg’s crappy drumming, their songs still work and this particular song is great for the road.
4. Peaches (feat. Iggy Pop) - Kick It
5. Foo Fighters - All My Life
6. Nirvana - Lithium
   Sure it’s a sharp transition but if you know this song you know that it’s only mellow in the beginning. Josh Groll’s drumming amps you up during the chorus and by the end you are yelling “yea-aa-yeah!” right along with Kirt Cobain.
7. Sublime - Date Rape
   Yes its disturbing but there’s a moral. There is an awesome juxtaposition between the bouncing ska beat, the horns and the story line of this song.
8. Nico Vega - Cocain Cooked the Brain (Guns & Bombs Mix)
   There is no denying that this song will move you from beginning to end with its synthesized dance rhythm. Watch the video and watch Aja work herself into a sweat dancing around with crazed energy.
9. No Doubt - Hella Good
10. Nine Inch Nails - The Hand that Feeds
11. Prince - Let’s Go Crazy
12. Rage Against the Machine - Wake Up
    Talk about a song to really get you amped. The guitar elicits the felling of being on an epic journey in the beginning and then there’s the alarm. By the end of the song front man Zack de la Rocha is exasperated and yelling for you to “Wake up!” There is no way you could sleep through this song; if you can you’re dead.
13. Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Maps
14. The Beatles - Happiness is a Warm Gun

Check out Stolte-Sawa’s Mix/re:Mix!
© Kimberlee Morrison for Listen In. All rights reserved.

• Share This:
  
  • Subscribe
  • Blinklist
  • Bloglines
  • Blogmarks
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • Furl
  • Ma.gnolia
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Technorati