A lot of pairs in nature come instinctively, and one of the most impactful is music and travel. Everyone knows the graphic universe you’re transported to the moment you plug your ears with music while on the road. And like cheese and wine, some combinations turn out to be ecstatically life changing. Apart from just amplifying an experience, songs tend to bind themselves to these experiences making them immensely more cherishable. So what we’ve done here is compiled a bunch of artists from varied genres to give you a wholesome understanding of the places they go so well with. Since these playlists are based on opinions of people, they’re subjective, but would definitely make for a memorable trip the next time you visit these places.

Himachal and the far North

If you’re in for the trekking, village hopping and minus temperature vibes, you’ve got to have some out-of-the-box yet digestible tracks to accompany you. This playlist blends songs that are heavy on the feels and those that are basically fun-loving genius jams since a couple of math rock bands can’t do complete justice to this region. The hippie, nomadic and chill sounds are exemplified by Motopony, Tame Impala, Daughter and Benjamin Francis Leftwich. The cold weather and atmosphere in general is pleasingly countered with a rush by the heavily melodic and voluminous compositions by Plini, Devin Townsend and Scale The Summit.

To cover the central range of sonic spectrum, math rock bands like Totorro, Elephant Gym and alt rock geniuses like Birds of Tokyo help boast a playlist worthy of your adventures.

Tracks to sum up:

• Enjoy The Ride by Morcheeba
• Electric Sunrise by Plini
• Mayflies by Benjamin Francis Leftwich
• Youth by Daughter
• Greek Tragedy by The Wombats
• Heartbeats by Jose Gonzalez
• Chevalier Bultoe by Totorro
• Let Me In by Grouplove

Shillong and the North East

Considering this region to have one of the best music scenes in India, we’ve got artists that have relatively more complex vibes and intricate musicality. Hiatus Kaiyote’s jazz funk and blended technicalities take you beyond just easy listening, into the depths of the land and the sounds that go with it. Weather Report for the old school listeners, and probably dabble in Animals As Leaders, August Burns Red and Bring Me The Horizon for the more energetic youngsters. Your quintessential post rock staples of God Is An Astronaut, Explosions In The Sky, Mogwai and Tycho just sum up the vibes in this region.

Must haves on your playlist:

• Hoppipola by Sigur Ros
• The Brain Dance by Animals As Leaders
• Fragile by God Is An Astronaut
• Nakamarra by Haitus Kaiyote
• Drown by Bring Me The Horizon

The Western Coastline

Beaches and rocky coasts have always had a correlation with lazy afternoons and bright, fuzzy mornings. Whether it’s wasting away hours in a hammock or taking long walks under a merciful Sun, the warm colours of the west coast speak a language of their own. Angus and Julia Stone match this warmth almost absolutely, and so do a handful of indie folk bands. The Lumineers and Hey Marseilles make for a heavy influence, and The Decemberists ironically create the most summer-like vibe of any band ever. Phillip Phillips, Switchfoot and Avalanche City are the best pick-me-ups, and probably the most influential coastline playlist would be dominated by pretty much every single one of Kodaline’s songs.

Fundamentals in your playlist:

• All I Want, Talk and Love Like This by Kodaline
• A Beginning Song by The Decemberists
• Saltwater Heart, Love Alone Is Worth The Fight by Switchfoot
• Gone, Gone, Gone by Phillip Phillips
• Ho Hey by The Lumineers
• Yellow Brick Road by Angus and Julia Stone
• Swells by Wylder

Ooty, Hampi and the southern retreats

People looking for a blend between lush nature and the calm of solace always seek the sites of the south. The songs to accompany you in these lands must reflect that musical quiet, and the happiness that it invokes. Oh Wonder and Of Monsters and Men are perfect fits, with their mellow yet happy and calm yet dynamic compositions. Cool colours reflected by bands like Snow Patrol are essential and if you think you’ve had enough of calm and need some energy, there’s always Intervals, Tesseract and Mutemath. A host of single artists or random tracks made their way into our playlists, so we thought we’d share those as well.

Here’s the aggregate:

• Slow and Steady, Mountain Song and Dirty Paws by Of Monsters and Men
• Follow The Sun by Caroline Pennell
• Halcyon by Paper Kites
• Technicolour Beat, Heart Hope and Drive by Oh Wonder
• Breathe by Anna Nalick
• Lazarus by Porcupine Tree
• Plans by Birds of Tokyo
• All About Us by He Is We
• Solitary Shell by Dream Theater
• Libra by Intervals
• April by Tesseract
• If There’s A Rocket Tie Me To It, by Snow Patrol

Rajasthan, Rann of Kutch and royal palaces

Bringing history alive in the land of kings and royalty, the desert is more than just a pretty tourist attraction. Keeping up with the centuries of stories and themes of the land, your playlist has got to have some exotic and hopeful tracks that colour your visits just as vividly as the region’s inherent fantasies. Probably the perfect correlation with Rajasthan would be the Gypsy Revolution and the styles of music that go with it, since all of these movements originated right there. If you’re looking for a more flavorful touch or feel wildly adventurous, you could couple Godsmack’s Sully Erna and the dark yet sublime Opeth with traditional sounds that bring you home like Shakti and Parikrama. If these dimensions aren’t enough, you could experiment with combinations of Enigma, Kings of Leon, Muse and of course, U2.

A not-so-comprehensive list would be:

• Finding The Way by Shakti
• Atonement by Opeth
• Avalon, Sinner’s Prayer by Sully Erna
• Return To Innocence by Enigma
• Where The Streets Have No Name by U2
• United States of Eurasia by Muse
• I Believe by Agnee, Parikrama and Shilpa Rao
• The Sound of Muzak by Porcupine Tree