In what’s become an annual tradition the …By a Fire Mixtapes are an alternative—although not entirely disparate—Holiday Mixtape. An hour long, commercial-free Holiday Mixtape where only 1/3 of the tracks are actual Christmas songs. I’m happy to say I’m back with Volume 3 this year, a nice selection to throw on and forget about. No silence between tracks, no worrying about making a playlist.
Sleigh Ride by She & Him
Plateau Ramble by The Acorn
It Goes Deep by Debra-Jean & The Means
Christmas in the Room by Sufjan Stevens
The Gambler and His Bride by Daniel, Fred & Julie
Lover’s Spit by Chris Rubeo
Silver Screen by Beat Connection
Father Christmas by The Kinks
Bermuda by Kisses
The End of a Love Affair by Julie London
I Was There by The War on Drugs
Come on Santa by The Raveonettes
Bimini Bay by Tennis
Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree by Brenda Lee
Keep You by Class Actress
Santa Baby by Reverend Run & The Christmas All Stars
Pitter Patter Goes My Heart by Broken Social Scene
Now this has been a long time coming. The last few months for me have been a ride, to say the very least. January, usually a slow time in my life was quickly filled with personal projects I had been putting off for a long time. I followed up with a lot of people I’ve wanted to collaborate with, under the assumption about 30%-50% of them would have the time to commit to a collab… imagine my surprise when just about everyone was into working together.
Long story some-what short, I asked my friends in Sex with Strangers (@SWSmusic) to put together a Mixtape for me at a pretty busy time for them as well. When I sent them a message asking for the Mixtape they had just begun a Canada-wide tour, so it took them awhile to get back to me.
Unfortunately, when they finally did, I was juggling a ridiculous amount of other projects and work which had started to pick up, so this last weekend was literally the first moment I had to sit down and commit to producing a mix and cover. Honestly, it’s felt a little like Hatch (of SWS) is skulking in the corner, peering over my shoulder, wringing his hands gleefully as I’m listening to the final mix.
And this is a good thing.
Sex with Strangers invites you to see as their three concept albums come together to form a post-apocalyptic trilogy about robots. As an intro, they present to you The Top 10 Songs About Robots:
The Robots by Kraftwerk
Mr Roboto by Styx
I, Robot by Alan Parsons Project
Friday by Rebecca Black
Paranoid Android by Radiohead
(My 1st) Big Break by Cut Chemist
Robot Rock by Daft Punk
The Body Electric by Rush
I’ll Replace You With Machines by Guided By Voices
I tried something new last year when I gave you the …By a Fire Mixtape, an alternative—although not entirely disparate—Holiday Mixtape. An hour long, commercial-free Holiday Mixtape where only 1/3 of the tracks are actual Christmas songs. To this day, I’ve considered producing another Mixtape in a similar fashion. I know it’s nice to be able to put some music on and forget about it. I also hate the silence between tracks on regular Holiday albums so we kill two birds with one stone. Now, enjoy …By a Fire: Volume 2.
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! by Dean Martin
I Was Young When I Left Home by Antony & Bryce Dessner
Blue Beard by Band of Horses
Melt Your Heart by Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins
Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt
Summer Kids Go by The Moonbabies
Winter A-Go-Go by Yo La Tengo
Journey of the Featherless by Cloud Cult
The Christmas Waltz by She & Him
Christmas Ghosts by The Raveonettes
Oh, Magnolia Tree by Ducktails
Love Me Like You Used To by Class Actress
It Takes Time to Be a Man by The Rapture
Blue Christmas by Elvis Presley
A Thing for Me (Breakbot’s B-LIVE Miami Mix) by Metronomy
Well well, we’ve neared what is the warmest time of the year (typically) in the Western Hemisphere. It’s the end of July, it’s August long weekend and there are a number of reasons for you to be outside with your friends, or outside alone, basking in the wonderful rays from that orb in the sky we call the sun.
A Summer Sessions Mixtape will go perfectly with your outdoor adventures, whether you’re on that annual camping trip, looking to go for a hike through some beautiful woods, or even on the patio with a few besties for a BBQ. And always remember, the key difference between a Mixtape and a Mixcast is this Mixtape is 100% music with no vocal interruptions. Awesome.
Something Good Can Work (Ted & Francis Remix) by Two Door Cinema Club
June Evenings by Air France
Dreamin’ by Feldberg
We Are the People (Ted & Francis Remix) by Empire of the Sun
Mystery (What Kind Of Breeze Do You Blow? Extended Edit) by Lake Heartbeat
Disappear by Pacific!
Sleep on the Roof by Memory Cassette
The Heart of the Nightlife by Kisses
Tighten Up by The Black Keys
Across 110th Street by Bobby Womack
You Gotta’ Teller by Zeus
Ring the Bell by YACHT
Hoop Dreams by Teengirl Fantasy
In Heat (Javelin Rmx) by HEALTH
Chlorophyl by MillionYoung
Norkuy by Com Truise
Damnation by Baths
Puzzles by The Mary Onettes
Somebody to Love Me (feat. Boy George and Andrew Wyatt) by Mark Ronson & The Business Intl.
Happy Long Weekend and Thank God It’s Mixcast Friday! Today I am pleased to present another guest Mixtape, this time by Andrew Lee of The Ruffled Feathers. Andrew and I met during the 2010 year of the PEAK Performance Project (where he was playing with 41st and Home) and have kept in touch (of a fashion) since then, through random tweets and Facebook comments. Andrew was another one of the large amount of amazing folks I met, but didn’t have the time to really get to know as well as I’d like. It’s hard with so many people on such a whirlwind schedule, but the beautiful part of the internets are that you can maintain contact with people.
Music has always been very important to me and, to my understanding, many if not most people should and do feel the same way. I crave music. It temporarily feeds this insatiable, creative hunger in me. It, at time, expresses crucial feelings and emotions with and for me when I may not know how. It’s a release after a long day, or a way to foster positive vibes right from the start. Even musical tastes are somewhat individual and, in that sense, speak to us about who a person is.
Basically, music as a nice way to get to know people? I’m in. So I asked Andrew if he’d like to share with me a Mixtape, that I, in turn, would share with you. A way for all of us to pay-it-forward, and get to know each other a little more while listening to some new music. Maybe we’ll find new favorite bands or even make friends?
Andrew submitted to me his personal mix, a human touch to a digital age. Passed on in the same way we may have (or still ironically do) a well-timed and deftly planned and executed mixtape. Imagine my complete delight when the theme of this Mixtape sprung from past lovers, the way a good Mixtape should:
These are some of my very favourite songs, but the happy/sad thing is that each song is connected in my memory to ex boyfriends. So, I put them all in this playlist for you as some sort of therapy I guess. I hate when songs I used to love get a little tainted, so I’m repatriating these ones while teaching myself that past relationships can be thought of fondly, not just in spite! Most, if not all of them include a lot of the classical instruments that I love so much (as a trumpet player).
This spoke to me so clearly as I can still remember a time I didn’t listen to Death Cab for Cutie’s brilliant “Transatlanticism” after a break-up in ’05. But time passes and you realize you still really fucking love that song, so you take it back. Thank you, Andrew Lee (and Ben Gibbard).
Back with another Mixtape. I know it’s been a long time since a Mix of anything, believe me that I have the next three Mixcasts already sorted in their folders, I even have 5 other Mixes near completion, three of them are part of a Summer Sessions series I plan on doing, but maybe they’ll all end up in a beachy Mixtape… we’ll see. Anyway, this has been mixed since about 2 1/2 weeks ago, last night was the first chance I had to get to the ‘cover’ artwork. This Mixtape is totally psychedelic, listen to this one alone to ensure full trippyness. Take it on a dark walk with headphones, lie back in your bed smoking that “hand-rolled cigarette” and enjoy this psychotropic trip of music.
Threshold by Steve Miller Band
I Swim Around by Beyond the Wizards Sleeve
Your Hidden Dreams by The White Noise
Ritz 107 by Fischerspooner
Solitude Is Bliss (Mickey Moonlight Remix) by Tame Impala
Electric Feel (Rasta Wigs Remix) by MGMT
Ulysses (Beyond the Wizards Sleeve re-Animation) by Franz Ferdinand
Wonderful You by The Dandy Warhols
Star Eyes (I Can’t Catch It) (feat. David Lynch) by Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse
Set in Stone (M83 Remix) by Fires of Rome
Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun by Pink Floyd
Aidan Whiteley (@aidanwhiteley) has thrown together a Mixtape spanning some of the most influential Krautrock artists of the last few decades. Krautrock was an avante-grade, experimental trek into a sub-genre of progressive rock starting in the 60s. Bands like Amon Düül II and Can paved the way for the Radiohead’s of the world. This mix sounds about as cold as West Germany before the wall fell, but is a at really great pace for background music when you’re studying, or working diligently on some project, some where.
If you’re starting to feel exhausted from the Christmas rush, I’m betting its fair to say you’re getting tired of the Christmas music. Well, the good news is I’m not really your Christmas traditional, and while I do enjoy some classics, I’ve put together this alternative—although not entirely disparate—Holiday Mixtape called …By a Fire.
If the idea of an hour long, 100% commercial-free Holiday Mixtape where only 1/3 of the tracks are Holiday related gets you going, allow me to introduce this all-killer, no-filler, stress-free set of indie feel-good. Perfect to play when the company comes over, when you’re walking down the street in the snow, when you’re hosting a dinner party, and especially when you’re huddled up by a fire.
Baby, It’s Cold Outside by Dean Martin
Comme Des Enfants by Coeur de pirate
You Are Too Beautiful by Hawksley Workman
Eskimo by Damien Rice
Christmas (Baby Please Come Home) by Death Cab for Cutie
