Thursday, February 02, 2006

Galaxies, Dancefloors, Etcetera

According to the snazzy Team Manila calendar on my wall, it's February -- and therefore, time for another mix CD made up of what I've been listening to for the past few weeks. Some of you have already been given copies; will burn more for other friends soon. :)

cabs, girls and galaxies
february 2006 mix

01. Send Help > The Modern Temper
02. Dinner Lady Arms > The Darkness
03. Carly (Goddess of Death) > The Capes
04. Roscoe > Midlake
05. Galaxies > Laura Veirs
06. I Wanna Know Girls > Portastatic
07. Black Cab > Jens Lekman
08. This Piece of Poetry is Meant to Do Harm > The Ark
09. Trains to Brazil > Guillemots
10. Por Que Te Vas? > Los Super Elegantes
11. Sheffield Shanty > Monkey Swallows the Universe
12. Recovery > New Buffalo
13. Concrete Jungle > Mig
14. Miles > The Southland
15. Hold Hands and Fight > The Rosebuds

I like all these songs a lot, naturally, but the best for me are the ones by The Modern Temper, Guillemots, Monkey Swallows the Universe, New Buffalo, The Southland, and The Rosebuds. "Send Help" is this great spiky-poppy concoction that starts off sounding slightly difficult, sails into an immensely appealing chorus, and then ends with what sounds like a duel between an electric guitar and a toy raygun. "Trains to Brazil" swings and grins and hits you upside the head with a brass section. The Southland sounds like a less wide-eyedly innocent Postal Service, and The Rosebuds are sad and inspiring all at once.

This was last December's edition:

beer, editors and dancefloors
december 2005 mix

01. Bullets > Editors
02. I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor > Arctic Monkeys
03. Cash Machine > Hard-Fi
04. Love’s on the Inside > Surefire
05. Is It Alright? > The Lovemakers
06. Are You On My Side > Rogue Wave
07. You Are the Girl > The Cars
08. You Only Live Once > The Strokes
09. When the Sunset Turns Red > Tsuneo Imahori
10. Beer > Itchyworms
11. Chicken Payback > The Bees
12. Deceptacon > Le Tigre
13. Rise Up with Fists! > Jenny Lewis
14. Winter in the Hamptons > Josh Rouse
15. Higher > Soft
16. Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts > Sufjan Stevens

I've been compiling mix CDs for friends for some time, of course, but last year it started to become a more or less regular thing (if three bimonthly installments is enough to constitute regularity). The December and October mixes were more of a clash of new and old than the current one, as you can see.

plans, headaches and sunshine
october 2005 mix

01. Plan to Stay Awake > The Deathray Davies
02. Here Comes the Headache > Spouse
03. You Make Me Wanna Die > Soft
04. Dilaudid (Marrtronix Version) > The Mountain Goats
05. Love's a Game > The Magic Numbers
06. Life in the D > Brendan Benson
07. Shut Your Eyes > Shout Out Louds
08. I Love a Man in a Uniform (Yeah Yeah Yeahs Remix) > Gang of Four
09. Love and Neon Lights > Niccokick
10. Straight Outta Compton > Nina Gordon
11. Dedication > The Numbs
12. Weightlifting > Trashcan Sinatras
13. We Can Have It > The Dears
14. Worry About the Wind > Hal
15. Sun > The Toms

4 comments:

starshuffler said...

May I avail of a subscription of your mixed cds? ;)

Hehe.

I miss your mixed tapes which I can't play anymore because I don't have a working cassette player. Sux.

Luis K. said...

Done! :) Yeah, I remember the semi-informed guesswork involved in trying to figure out how to fill up a 30- or 45-minute cassette side without too much space left over AND without cutting the song off... ;p

fran said...

Luis, I have been playing the two mixed cd's you gave me over and over and over, without reprieve. It's time I slipped in a new disc but none of the ones I have seem anywhere near as fun as yours. So yes, I too would like to subscribe to your mixed cd service. I was particularly interested in the song, 'I bet you look great on the dancefloor' by arctic monkeys. Is it as fun as the title suggests? :D

Luis K. said...

Glad you're enjoying them, Fran! And yes, the Arctic Monkeys are fun, tho I do prefer Hard-Fi's (not dissimilar) stuff. Hi Lala! Thanks. Hee hee. :) Perhaps that will be my epitaph: nutty but cool. Like certain varieties of ice cream. Will burn stuff for both of youse.