Considering the country’s Smart Nation holy grail and all, here’s something the powers that be can take note of: Black metal is actually really great in boosting productivity and focus while coding.

A recent blog post by software company Atlassian managed to uncover the benefits of having black and death metal playing in the background while in the midst of programming. A survey conducted by a data scientist found that 3.2 percent of software developers — out of an estimated 26 million worldwide — listed that their go-to tunes are on the heavy side; from folk metal to symphonic metal. 

Take it from an actual metalhead: Those genres do exist, and are as awesome as what you’d assume they sound like. Shoutout to Heilung. 

Anyway, the post’s author Sarah Goff-Dupont consulted with Pandora developer (and metalhead coder) Rob Whitlock and found out why the harsh dissonance of death metal and black metal are such conducive mediums for concentrating. It all lies in creating an atmospheric wall of sound that doesn’t cause as much distraction as other genres of music like pop, rock, hip hop, or jazz, where the clean instrumentations and vocal singing can be a distraction. 

Death metal music like the ones put out by Napalm Death and Cannibal Corpse are epitomised by something called “blast beats”, which are percussive explosions of kick drums, snares and cymbals in a relentlessly fast tempo. Add on guttural roars (in lieu of singing), crushing bass and guitar riffs, and it’s a recipe for something to get into while powering through a coding task, Goff-Dupont wrote. 

Black metal (like the music put out by Watain, Emperor, Burzum) is commonly associated with death metal, but it's different. The latter sounds sounds low-pitched, animalistic while the former maintains a higher-pitched rasp, like the wind howling through wintry forests. (There’re thematic contrasts too, but let’s not get too deep into it). 

According to Whitlock, the rhythmic, repetitive style of black metal offers something that can let him code for longer periods of time. It’s “emotionally evocative” too, and the music gives him the emotional awareness needed to program code that other programmers can understand and get into easily. 

And what of doom metal acts like Candlemass and Electric Wizard? Though the riffs are sludgy and thick with that sweet metal heaviness, the bluesy melodies and clean vocals can get distracting while coding, Whitlock offered. High On Fire is fine though — at least for him, personally. 

While the heavy genres may not be everyone’s cup of tea, it’s good to know that blasting out loud Bathory in the office does have some pragmatic use, and is totally justifiable when HR comes complaining. 

ilyas@asiaone
 

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