Saturday, November 05, 2005

Fall MefiSwap [mix four]

November 2005
1. M. Ward - Duet For Guitars #2
2. Josh Ritter - Tonight You Belong To Me
3. Matt Sweeny & Bonny 'Prince' Billy - Lift Us Up
4. Nick & The Jaguars - Ich-I-Bon #1
5. Arizona Amp & Alternator - AAAA(4)
6. Wolf Parade - I'll Believe In Anything
7. Carl Henry Brueggen - Teen Jackpot
8. Sam Prekop - C + F
9. The Minders - Jealous Baby
10. Black Dice - ABA
11. The Go! Team - Hold Yr Terror Close
12. Erlend Oye - Every Party
13. Lil' Pocketknife - Disco Dancer
14. DangerDoom - Benzie Box (feat. Cee-Lo)
15. Mastodon - Blood & Thunder
16. One Be Lo - Axis
17. Yesterday's New Quintet - The Funky Side Of Life
18. Kid Koala - Roboshuffle
19. Prefuse 73 - Pagina Dos (feat. The Books)
20. The Bees - Chicken Payback
21. Boom Bip - Newlyweds

This is one of the longer mixes I've ever assembled, both in terms of # of tracks and actual playing time (1.4 hours). I broke a few of my rules putting it together--mainly because I have a specific audience in mind that wouldn't have heard/seen previous mixes. For instance, I usually try to keep my mixes distinct from one another, and this one shares a couple of tracks with some of the previous mixes I've posted here. Also, I believe I double up one of the producers (Prefuse 73), which is usually a no-no.

I am proud of the coherent structure, but sad to say that it encompasses no real storyline. I like the flow of the mix; It begins with a nice instrumental introduction followed by an incantation of sorts from Josh Ritter, Matt Sweeny, and Bonny 'Prince' Billy. The set really kicks off with a sweet (electric) guitar instrumental from Nick & the Jaguars. Local flavor from Howe Gelb off of his latest incarnation builds a great head of country/rock steam into the insanely catchy "indie rock" of Wolf Parade.

Another break follows; a nice bossa/samba track from Carl Henry Brueggen--who knew that Mount Shasta could actually make nice-sounding music? Sam Prekop picks up the pieces that Howe & the Wolves shattered, and hands them over to The Minders to slowly put back together. Black dice interlude once again, segueing nicely into the centerpiece, The Go! Team's surprising little ditty.

From there, the reformulated mix takes a bit of a harder edge. Try to not dance to Erlend Oye's collab with Scott Herren (there's the production repeat) or Lil' Pocketknife's profane insistence or Danger Mouse's fuzzy rhythm. The gears shift one higher in a surprising move from hip hop to metal. Mastodon's take on Ahab and the White Whale is excellent, a nice high-energy twist right in the middle of the mix's second wind.

One Be Lo raps about stuff that makes sense but that I have no right putting on my mix, being white, suburban, and not hard in the least. Still, he's got sick flow and something to say. Madlib takes the reins from there, jazzing up the set before Kid Koala scratches it all up.

From Roboshuffle on it's a jaunty kick in the pants to end the mix. Scott Herren makes another appearance under the Prefuse 73 guise, and The Bees (known in the states as A Band of Bees) come out of left field to get you moving one last time. Chicken Payback is that post-orgasmic spasm before you fall asleep, to Boom Bip's funky fade-out.

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