In the hustle and bustle of my daily life, I sometimes find it necessary to channel the angsty teenage version of myself. Back then, nothing used to make me happier than making a good mix CD. Whether it was to share with my friends or listen to while lying on my bedroom floor in the midst of an existential crisis as teenagers do, I found comfort in choosing songs that went together perfectly. Something about picking an array of music that spoke to whatever I was going through made the survival of those years easier. Unfortunately, the practice of making mix CDs and decorating them with Sharpie art has become completely blasé.

However, 8Tracks Internet Radio allows you to make your own playlists and share them with entire networks of people through tags (which brings the whole phenomenon full circle to the social media age.) You can also find or make cover photos and name the playlists whatever you want. Through the use of 8Tracks, I have discovered some amazing playlists for a number of different daily activities (I’m pretty sure you can even find one for lying on your bedroom floor.)

Without further ado, my current favorite 8Tracks Playlists:

1. Best spooky indie rock playlist: the creeps

2. When you're feeling the Southern Gothic: The First Annual Witches' Halloween Brunch

3. Chill beats for studying: Enchanted Forest Gathering 2015

4. Chill beats for late nights: Chill With It

5. Chill beats for drawing (with bourbon): Beats & Bourbon Vol. 7

6. Summoning your inner warrior: Beats & Instrumental for the Soul

7. Thought provoking hip-hop: Word

8. More thought provoking hip-hop: for the hip hop heads

9. Groovy hip-hop soul: Soul Hop

10. Nostalgia for the 90s: 90s Crack

11. Horror punk: October November Dismember

12. Blues rock the day away: Let Your World Turn Blue

13. Old souls: yellow daisies

14. The ultimate classic voices: Dreamy voices

15. Maybe experiencing an existential crisis, maybe just relaxing: THROUGH THE DOORS OF CONSCIOUSNESS

16. Space travel rock: Contact Light

17. Techno writing inspiration: solar sailor

18. Island vibes: Reggae Jams 2

19. Old-school ska/reggae: Rastaman Fever

20. Ska/Punk tension release: anarchy burger

21. Eerie grooves: the october country;

22. Psychadelic oldies: the truth, and other lies

23. Joyful indie jams: the hanging gardens

24. EDM workout: Just an ordinary day

25. Getting ready for the work week: Soothing Tunes for Sunday Afternoons

26. One for the hipsters: Little Known Alternative

27. Hip-hop that is just too real: Pensive Poets Navigate the Galaxy

28. Indie and world electronic: Beauty Beats

29. Witchy vibes: black magic woman

30. Sun salutations: Personal Yoga Mix

That concludes my recent favorite 8Tracks playlists, but I encourage you to make an account and explore a little. After all, we all need a release from reality every once in a while, and there is nothing that does that quite like music.