Nobody is steering this playlist
A tool for building playlists with friends. You get the track before yours, fifteen seconds of it, and you answer with one of your own. Nobody sees the rest until it is finished, so it ends up somewhere none of you planned.
The whole loop
Read the full explanationStart one
Make a playlist, pick what it is about, text the invite. Joining is a tap and a Spotify sign-in.
Hear one track
Fifteen seconds of whatever landed before you. That one track is the whole briefing. The rest of the playlist stays shut.
Answer it
Add the track it dragged out of you. Then the detour is somebody else's problem.
What you cannot see
Everything underneath
Already added, already sealed. None of your business until it is finished.
Who put what where
Saved up for the reveal, which is where the accusations start.
Where it ends up
Nobody knows. The detour is the part you will still be quoting in a month.
What yours does to them
You hand one track over and lose control of it immediately.
161 of these
Read how a turn worksSeven sections, or ignore the list and write your own. The tighter the theme, the more the next player has to answer.
Songs with one-word titles
Songs with one-word titles
Constraint
A rule to push against, and the biggest section, because a rule hands the next player something to answer.
55 themes in this section.
Quietly furious
Quietly furious
Mood
One feeling, held for forty minutes. The argument is over what counts as that feeling, and it never quite gets settled.
20 themes in this section.
The drive home at 2am
The drive home at 2am
Occasion
A time and a place. The playlist has somewhere to be and something to do when it gets there.
25 themes in this section.
No song in English
No song in English
Constraint
A rule to push against, and the biggest section, because a rule hands the next player something to answer.
55 themes in this section.
Disco for the boat
Disco for the boat
Scene
A small invented world rather than a real evening. Nobody has to have been there.
12 themes in this section.
Wake up the room
Wake up the room
Role
The playlist has a job. Whether it manages to do it is the interesting part.
20 themes in this section.
Songs your dad would defend
Songs your dad would defend
Point of view
Whose ears you are picking for. Rarely your own, which is the whole exercise.
16 themes in this section.
Covers only, never the original
Covers only, never the original
Constraint
A rule to push against, and the biggest section, because a rule hands the next player something to answer.
55 themes in this section.
Unreasonably optimistic
Unreasonably optimistic
Mood
One feeling, held for forty minutes. The argument is over what counts as that feeling, and it never quite gets settled.
20 themes in this section.
Tracks that barely change for six minutes
Tracks that barely change for six minutes
The booth
Tucked away at the end on purpose. You already know whether this one is for you.
13 themes in this section.
Songs under two minutes
Songs under two minutes
Constraint
A rule to push against, and the biggest section, because a rule hands the next player something to answer.
55 themes in this section.
Cooking for people you like
Cooking for people you like
Occasion
A time and a place. The playlist has somewhere to be and something to do when it gets there.
25 themes in this section.
Make dinner take longer
Make dinner take longer
Role
The playlist has a job. Whether it manages to do it is the interesting part.
20 themes in this section.
No guitars
No guitars
Constraint
A rule to push against, and the biggest section, because a rule hands the next player something to answer.
55 themes in this section.
90s grunge for the homies
90s grunge for the homies
Scene
A small invented world rather than a real evening. Nobody has to have been there.
12 themes in this section.
A little bit doomed
A little bit doomed
Mood
One feeling, held for forty minutes. The argument is over what counts as that feeling, and it never quite gets settled.
20 themes in this section.
Songs the bartender knows by heart
Songs the bartender knows by heart
Point of view
Whose ears you are picking for. Rarely your own, which is the whole exercise.
16 themes in this section.
B-sides only
B-sides only
Constraint
A rule to push against, and the biggest section, because a rule hands the next player something to answer.
55 themes in this section.
The last hour of a long flight
The last hour of a long flight
Occasion
A time and a place. The playlist has somewhere to be and something to do when it gets there.
25 themes in this section.
Get people out of the kitchen
Get people out of the kitchen
Role
The playlist has a job. Whether it manages to do it is the interesting part.
20 themes in this section.
Instrumentals only
Instrumentals only
Constraint
A rule to push against, and the biggest section, because a rule hands the next player something to answer.
55 themes in this section.
Going canoeing on a lake
Going canoeing on a lake
Scene
A small invented world rather than a real evening. Nobody has to have been there.
12 themes in this section.
Trance for people who swear they hate trance
Trance for people who swear they hate trance
The booth
Tucked away at the end on purpose. You already know whether this one is for you.
13 themes in this section.
What you get
It lands on Spotify
When the playlist finishes it writes to your own account, in the order it was built.
Stash from anywhere
Share a Spotify link to Track Oh Oh from any app. It waits for your turn.
A widget that nags
Your turn shows on the home screen. The others only see how far along it is.
161 themes
Seven sections, loose to punishing, plus whatever you write yourself.
Siri takes your turn
Take my turn works from Shortcuts. It still will not pick the track for you.
The reveal
At the end you find out who added what. Some of it will not survive contact.
Not out yet
Track Oh Oh is still being built. Leave an address and you get the first invite. Not a newsletter.