A study recently found that Techno is possibly the genre of music that’s the most ineffective at reducing anxiety.

The study was conducted by Turkish-based hair transplant company Vera Clinic, as presumably, they wanted to find the most relaxing form of music for use in their clinics.

It surveyed a total of 1540 volunteers aged between 18 and 65. Each participant was played a variety of music genres, and the findings showed that techno, dubstep, and 70’s rock anthems were the top three types of music that appeared to induce an increase in the participant’s blood pressure.

Its finding also showed the music types most likely to decrease the volunteers’ blood pressure included pop music from the 80s and 00s. More interesting was that heavy metal classics is one of the top three genres indicated to decrease blood pressure.

Each of the volunteers was fitted with heart rate and blood pressure monitors, then given a Spotify playlist to listen to which contained the different music genres.

Vera Clinic, also had the results viewed by Doctor Ömer Avlanmış who said “Medically they make a lot of sense,” then went on to say “80’s pop hits could have positive nostalgia attached to them for many people, and their upbeat, party-like sounds can induce the release of endorphins and serotonin in the brain, both increasing feelings of happiness and calm. In terms of heavy metal, I’d observe that angry music can help listeners process their feelings and as a result lead to greater well-being.”

Electronic music such as techno has a tendency to raise heart rates, which is why anyone who has spent a night on a dancefloor listing to it, would most likely describe feeling a sense of excitement. So, although this study suggests it’s not the most relaxing music… perhaps that’s not a bad thing.

As Mixmag put it: “Anyone who’s spent the weekend at Movement festival or Berghain can probably attest to enjoying a greater sense of well-being too, despite what the survey may want us to believe.”

H/T: Mixmag