slipjig3: (shaggs)
[personal profile] slipjig3
We got a package from [livejournal.com profile] daev yesterday, containing (count 'em) four CDs: Avenue Q, a set of obscure Meic Stevens EPs (in Welsh, thank you very much), and two mixes, one for [livejournal.com profile] rafaela and one for me.

We squee'd. Hard.

Y'see, as I know I've mentioned before, Dave is an absolute God of mix-crafting. He's the one who taught me nearly everything I know about mix-making, and the ones he puts together are true works of art, filled with (as he puts it) Stuff You've Never Heard, But Will Probably Like. So, yes, we squee'd. The discs in the recent mailing haven't a bum track to speak of. Between the two, he has graced us with a couple of choice Mountain Goats tracks (yes, [livejournal.com profile] mgrasso, I'm now horribly addicted), two Runrig remixes, and stuff from everyone from Eliza Gilkyson to Guided By Voices. For the curiosity-seekers in the audience, he also included something by someone named Lucie Idlout that makes simultaneously want to say, "What the hell..." and "Omigod, I must now put this song on every mix I make for the rest of my life," Petra Haden's McFerrinesque a capella overdub version of the Who's "Heinz Baked Beans," "Connecticut Is for Fucking" by Jesus H. Christ and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Richard Thompson and his drunken buddies singing in Okinawan, and some old guy with a concertina who inexplicably enjoys singing Al Stewart covers. At least half the songs are by bands I'd never even heard of, but by God I now must own them all.

Naturally, within hours of receiving these mixes, [livejournal.com profile] rafaela and I turned right around and started assembling a pair of discs to send back in gratitude. This turned out to be one of the most challenging mix projects I've ever undertaken, seeing as how the selected tracks had to be:
a) good (no problem);
b) songs we haven't sent him yet (this could be trouble);
c) songs he didn't send us in the first place (uh-oh); and
d) stuff that survived the Hard Drive Armageddon of 2006 (ibuprofen, please).
We each succeeded (Anna had an easier time of it, I think, because she did hers first and USED A FEW SONGS THAT I WANTED, not that I'm bitter or anything. It was only one or two, though, and her mix is awesome. I think mine's quite good, too, although I'm pretty sure that this is the weirdest mix I've ever made, which is seriosuly saying something. Track listing may follow, but not until after Dave gets 'em.

So, yeah. If you'll excuse me, I have some more rockin' out to do....

(no subject)

Date: 2007-03-16 05:07 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] daev.livejournal.com
*bow*

*blush*

I love it when a mix comes together!

There's one or three bands on there that you will not be able to track down ... but you are welcome to anything more of what you like -- just ask. I'm looking forward to anything you want to send me!!!

(no subject)

Date: 2007-03-16 07:39 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] daev.livejournal.com
Pocket Narratives from The Mountain Goats: this is an excellent short interview on NPR's Weekend Edition, with in-studio performances and explanations of the songs. "Highly recommended" (as they say in music reviews) if you want to find out more about the band.

The Petra Haden song comes from the most high-concept covers-album ever, Petra Haden Sings "The Who Sell Out". Mike Watt gave the lead singer of that dog. a copy of the Who's classic record and an eight-track recorder, and she recreated the whole shebang -- every note, every beat, every sound effect -- by overdubbing her voice. If you know the original disc, the remake is eerily fascinating, and in places very funny; if you secretly sing along to your favorite instrumental music then this disc is the quintessence of geek.

"E5-770: My Mother's Name" ... oh my God, this sounds like nothing I have ever heard before in my life. It's a difficult song to put onto a mix disc, because it tends to sear a hole through the CD, leave a blast radius, and make every other band sound like posers. The title refers to the Canadian Eskimo welfare policy of the 1940s which tried to replace Inuktikut names with numbers engraved on mandatory ID discs. Lucie Idlout's mother really was officially named E5-770.
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