Compiling the perfect mixtape for a road trip is one of life’s simple pleasures, and therefore will be inevitably supplanted by technology. That day is not here yet, however.
Roadtrip Mixtape–a free web app that matches Google Maps data with musicians (and their hometowns) using data from Spotify–thankfully doesn’t erase the joy of mixtape creation, but does use modern data collection to add some inventive wrinkles to the process. The app, developed by music technologist Paul Lamere in conjunction with The Echo Nest, compiles Spotify playlists for each leg of your journey based on an assemblage of hometown heroes.
The results are playlists that often contain amusing juxtapositions of genres and artists (Pop country followed by death metal? Why not?) while also providing the occasional unintended commentary on the cities and towns along your way (a route starting in Poughkeepsie, NY, for instance, brought up the classic “Rain On Roof Over Head,” by Thunder Lightning Rain Sound FX to get the adventure started). Create your own Roadtrip Mixtape here.