Many before have tried and failed to strike the balance between upbeat and distracting, to offer high-energy songs that engage without inciting the overwhelming urge to jam out, to walk the fine line between soulful and overtly “pop-y”. But after years in the school system, it has been done: the perfect homework playlist to maximize productivity without inducing sleep has been carefully crafted, and provided by The Arcade.

This playlist provides the perfect background noise for the calculus homework finally getting done the night before the test, that six-page paper that has been put off night after night, a reading from the dullest textbook known to man and much, much more. Some of the more subdued tracks, like “Inside Out” by Spoon, “Summer” by Helvetia and “Up Against the Wall” by Peter Bjorn and John provide just enough background noise to keep you engaged, but will not distract from dense readings. Sure, the unnecessarily long-winded theories being described aren’t going to make sense anyway, but it certainly won’t be the fault of the playlist.

“Exterior Street Day” by the Generationals, “Is There Anyone Here?” by Eulogies and “Texico Bitches” by Broken Social Scene help break up the gentler jams with their upbeat rhythms. These tracks are optimal for re-energizing at the third-hour-in-a-row-at-the-library, civilization-and-socialization-are-a-distant-memory point of the night.

It would be remiss to not mention that six of the 21 songs featured on the playlist are by Generationals, a New Orleans-based indie rock band. The band’s lively rhythms and electronic beats lend perfectly to productivity.

Altogether, the playlist alternates from upbeat to soft tracks to prevent monotony while studying, which lends well to last-minute cramming at the library, or impressing your study group.