Put the pedal to the metal with this fantastic road trip playlist

By Parker Hall July 9, 2016

It’s hot, gas is still relatively cheap, and you’ve got some time off of work saved up. Grab your car keys, stock up on snacks, and pick a destination: It’s time for a road trip.

And why not take some new tunes with you?

We’ve assembled forty or so of our favorite road-worthy songs to fuel your exploratory fires, mixing beat-heavy tunes to keep you trucking with introspective songs that will occupy your mind during a long, four-wheeled cruise. Though the playlist lasts just a few hours, its aim is to be a jumping off point to introduce you to some new sounds that might entice you to look deeper. After all, road trips are as much about the journey as the destination.

We’ve tried to run the gamut when it comes to the mood of these songs, because if there’s anything we have learned in our constant travels to conferences and festivals around the world, it’s that traveling, like everything in life, is about head space. Too much introverted country and you’re going to fall asleep. Too much heavy rock and roll and your ears will tire out. We hope to have struck a good balance here.

This list should be a perfect jumping off point for your next adventure. If we’ve done our job, maybe one of these songs will introduce you to your next favorite band, remind you of home, or go on repeat for the rest of the year.

Also, if you’re planning to spend the night outdoors on your journey, be sure to check out our guide listing the best cars for camping. And we’ve also got you covered with a few different playlists of work tunes for when you finally make it back to the real world again.

Be sure to check out all the DT Playlists on our official Digital Trends Spotify page.

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Parker Hall is a writer and musician from Portland, OR. He is a graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory of Music in Oberlin…

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