c/crank-up-the-volume

Tried cranking 'Fast Car' by Tracy Chapman and got emotional at a red light

Normally I’m all about heavy guitar riffs when I’m driving, but last Tuesday I was stuck in afternoon traffic on Interstate 95 near Richmond and decided to switch it up. I put on 'Fast Car' from a random 80s playlist, and I swear I cranked it to max volume without thinking. Something about that opening guitar riff and her voice just hit me different. I was sitting there at a red light with my windows down, tears actually streaming down my face, and this guy in a pickup next to me gave me a nod like he understood. I learned that the song you blast doesn't have to be loud to be powerful, it just has to connect. Has anyone else found that a quieter song hits harder when you turn it up?

Blasting 'Bohemian Rhapsody' at a stoplight and forgetting my windows were down

I was sitting at a light on Main Street in Dayton, windows down, and cranked it up to 35 on the volume dial. A guy in the car next to me just stared as I belted out the opera part... took me a solid 10 seconds to realize everyone could hear me.

Wasted 40 bucks on a 'car bass test' playlist that was all static and distortion

I bought this premium download that claimed to have the perfect songs for testing subwoofers in your car, but it was just 12 tracks of annoying beeps and blown-out noises. My neighbor even knocked on my window at a red light thinking something was broken. Has anybody actually found a decent free playlist that sounds good cranked up?

Pro tip: skip the first 45 seconds of any song and you'll hit the best part right as traffic turns green

I tried this after getting sick of the slow intro on my go-to driving track and now I time my playlist starts with the backup camera so the chorus kicks in exactly when I'm merging onto the highway, anyone else do weird timing tricks like this?

Had a chat with a dude at a red light about blasting heavy metal

I was sitting at a stoplight on Broad Street last Tuesday with Slayer cranked to 11, and this guy in the next car rolled down his window to tell me he used to do the same but his wife made him turn it down. Made me wonder how many people out there have surrendered their go-to car anthem to someone else's taste. What's the one song you refuse to lower the volume on even with passengers?

My buddy told me to stop singing along to Landslide and just listen... finally get it now

Honestly, I always cranked Stevie Nicks during my commute and belted every word until my buddy Dave told me to shut up and just hear the guitar for a change. He said the pedal steel carries the whole emotion. Tried it last Friday on the 405 and yeah, I actually felt the song hit different without my voice in the way. Anyone else had a friend call them out on their car singing habits?

My uncle's car karaoke advice finally clicked after a year

Took me 45 minutes to figure out why my car speakers were buzzing... it was a loose penny in the cup holder

Switched my go-to car jam from heavy metal to an old soul track after one terrible Monday

Last Monday was brutal. I got cut off on I-95 near Stamford, spilled coffee on my shirt, and my boss chewed me out for something that wasn't even my fault. On the drive home, I usually blast Metallica to vent, but I hit shuffle and Aretha Franklin's 'Respect' came on instead. I turned it up to 20 on the dial and felt my whole mood flip by the second chorus. Has anyone else unexpectedly changed their car volume anthem after a crap day?

TIL that blasting "Free Bird" at 7am in a quiet neighborhood gets mixed results

I finally get why people crank up Johnny Cash in the truck

I was dropping off a load of lumber at a job site in Denton last week and this old carpenter in the lot had Folsom Prison Blues maxed out on his radio. He said that song reminds him to keep his head down and just work through the noise, and that hit me different after a rough day with a bad saw. Anybody else have a song that changed on them after hearing why someone else plays it?

Used to blast metal up to highway ramps, now I'm all about quiet jazz on the same stretch

For years my go-to max volume car song was some thrash metal like Slayer's Raining Blood, perfect for getting pumped before merging. But after a close call last August where I almost clipped a barrier on I-5 because I was headbanging too hard, I switched to John Coltrane's A Love Supreme. Now I crank that sax solo up to 11 and it actually keeps me calmer and more focused through the tricky parts. Anyone else have a song that changed your driving mood for safety reasons?

Blasted a song so loud my alternator belt snapped on the highway

I was driving down I-95 near Richmond last month with "Enter Sandman" maxed out and suddenly my dashboard lights flickered and died. Had to coast to a rest stop and call a tow truck because the belt wrapped around the pulley and shredded everything.

That one time I blew a speaker on the interstate going 75

Last Tuesday I was heading down I-35 in Austin and blasted "Enter Sandman" so loud the right rear door speaker literally popped and went silent around the second chorus. Has anyone else actually broken car speakers doing this or am I just the one dumb enough to admit it?