I hear it all the time at Track Meets.  Some of it is good.  Some of it sucks.  You all probably now know that I'm talking about psych-up music people listen to before their races.  You can't go to a track meet without coming upon the classic sight of an athlete warming up with headphones over their ears.  I can't help what wonder what special song they listen to that gets them mentally ready for a big race.  Usually I hope it's not any of those horrible modern hip-hop songs you'd hear on Jammin 95.5 (In Portland now Jammin 107.5).  It usually is though.  To me, music from artists like Soulja Boy, Dem Franchize Boys, Lil' Wayne, Kanye West etc. sounds like baby talk set to an annoying repetative melody.  But (To quote John Lennon) whatever gets you through the night is allright.  I guess that type of hip-hop music just works for some people.  Another popular psych-up type of music comes from the band AC/DC.  I like them a lot better but I'm REALLY getting tired of hearing Thunderstruck at every goddamn sporting event.  I bet they even play that song at chess matches!   Other classic rock artists also seem popular with pre-race athletes.  And me?  Well I'm into anything but the five J's: John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Jammin 107.5, Jesus anthems and Just plain awful country music!:-)  Below are what I consider to be some of the greatest psych-up songs of all time and I strongly reccomend these for pre-competition listening

Singer/Band                 Song

Prodigy                     Firestarter

Franz Ferdinand        Take Me Out

Filter&Crystal Method  Trip Like I Do

Lo Fi All-stars            Battle Flag

Fischerspooner            Emerge

The Explosion           No Revolution Anymore

The Chemical Brothers   Galvanize

Foo Fighters                I'll Stick Around

Nine Inch Nails            The Perfect Drug

Blur                                Song 2

Schtum                           Skydiver

Buckcherry                        Lit up

Rob Dougan               Clubbed to Death

Soundgarden                 Pretty Noose

Franz Ferdinand              This Fire

The Breeders                 Cannonball

Veruca Sault                  Volcano Girls

Muse                          Knights of Cydonia

Muse                          Time is Runing Out

Fat Boy Slim                Rockafella Skank

KLF                              3 AM Eternal

311                                Down

Franz Ferdiand               The Fallen

All of these songe pretty much came out in the last 25 years so I wonder how athlets from the 70's got in the right mental state?  I consider these all to be PERFECT pre-race tunes for anybody.  And (You probably saw this coming) I wonder what other athletes love to blast ther poor eardrums with before competition.  Do you like rap, or rock or something unique like Riverdance music?  You're okay as long as it's not new-age hip hop  or country because listening to those two types of music recetly surpassed heart disease as the leading cause of death for US males age 65-80.:-)