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Great music selection without overthinking

There are times (now more than ever) where picking music seems to be a proper task. Having to figure out I'm in the mood for can be so tiring that I just hit shuffle and settle with the next best thing. Does anyone else get this? What's your recent experience?
( 13 comments | 3 points | on HN )
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by theMezz on Saturday August 15, 2026 @09:37AM (#49310448)
I have been testing Spotify's DJ .. I tell it to play new songs based upon my 20 playlists and exclude AI, rap and hiphop. Often the DJ does a good job with mixing my playlists with new music. Sometimes it is way off. To be fair it is in Beta.
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by cr34t1ve on Saturday August 15, 2026 @10:30AM (#49310892)
When its right, its alright. When its wrong, its very wrong lol. It is in Beta and has been for a while. I sometimes wonder if its placed there so we aren't harsh with the critique
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by earworms on Saturday August 15, 2026 @09:32AM (#49310412)
I have three moods; listening to music i haven't heard before, listening to music i haven't listened to in a long time (like over 6 months), or listening to some music that i have been recommended to by friends or the rare times of letting an algorithm decide for me.

I usually utilize P2P as a library kind of thing; listen to an album or so from an artist or band or composer... then delete it; while i keep the ones i really enjoy and would do with the second mood.

I rarely ever stream; it's the bane of musical diversity.

Re:Great music selection without overthinking by cr34t1ve on Saturday August 15, 2026 @10:20AM (#49310816)
When you lay it out like that, I think those three moods apply to me as well. There are times I get stuck on a particular album that I listen to till it's completely worn out, then I revisit it a long time in the future.

What would you say is so 'broken' with music selection with algorithms? I can't put my finger on it (pun intended)

What's your library like? All physical?

Re:Great music selection without overthinking by earworms on Saturday August 15, 2026 @02:20PM (#49312917)
Most algorithms stick to one genre until you seek another, then it sticks to that other genre. While this is fine for a lot of people; it's not acceptable to me as my favourite music tends to range from a lot of genres.

My library is about half and half. though if you don't include my own music; it would be primarily physical. There are some recordings that are only accessable digital.

Re:Great music selection without overthinking by bix6 on Saturday August 15, 2026 @09:26AM (#49310367)
Pick an album or ask an LLM for an album. Or radio on a song I like.
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by cr34t1ve on Saturday August 15, 2026 @09:34AM (#49310428)
How does the LLM get context on what you like? How often do you radio on songs?
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by Wpnx330 on Saturday August 15, 2026 @02:11PM (#49312835)
When I am in G.S.D. mode, I always go for wordless music that lets me lock in. Like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gopYmb38DgM or https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrkrdYm3HPQ

When I am in hitting the gym, Spotify, pick rock song from the 2ks and hit radio mode.

Re:Great music selection without overthinking by cr34t1ve on Wednesday August 19, 2026 @07:01AM (#49359843)
Nice! Thanks for sharing the YouTube links. When in G.S.D. mode I either listen to Aphex Twin ambient music, Boards of Canada or this super long Arabian playlist (I'm not Arabian and I don't understand the music. The melody just hits nicely, like I'm in the desert. Sorta like a pilgrimage. [https://music.apple.com/gh/playlist/saharan-desert-blues/pl....])
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by newsomix9xl on Sunday August 16, 2026 @04:43PM (#49323486)
I looked up random genres of music on wikipedia and then looked for major artists in that genre and then listened to them on online music sites.

I found this exposed me to a wide range of good music.

That said, I prefer Japanese jazz these days picked through other methods.

I'm always in the mood for jazz music from great Japanese artists , esp from the Three blind Mice label.

Re:Great music selection without overthinking by lebrackyt on Wednesday August 19, 2026 @03:53AM (#49358372)
I made Playlistable just for this in 2023
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by cr34t1ve on Wednesday August 19, 2026 @06:53AM (#49359774)
Beautiful work! I checked it out. Wasn't able to listen because of the paywall though. I definitely will during the week
Re:Great music selection without overthinking by cr34t1ve on Wednesday August 19, 2026 @09:08AM (#49361135)
I later noticed it created a playlist in my Apple Music. The playlist is great. Thank you! How do you generate the playlists? Does it factor what I already listen to?