Lady Bizniz- Songs for Fancy Ladies and Others Too

Since everyone mostly seems to be waiting in the wings like a shy boy hugging the wall at a junior high dance, and it being ladies' night and all, I guess I'll go ahead and take your collective hands and ask, "I know it's a bit late, but may I have this mix?"

Full mix available Here

1. Missy Elliott-Work It: "Ain't no shame ladies do your thing/just make sure you ahead of the game." Word.

2. The Runaways- Cherry Bomb: I wish I was cool enough to run with these broads, but I have a feeling they'll straight up cut a bitch.

3. Janis Joplin-Piece of my Heart: Go look up just about any youtube vid of Janis on 1960s television. Now that's an iconoclast. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to hop in my car,visit a corporate coffee monolith and blog about how we're all pawns in the system, man, because i'm a total anarchist that way. Also, insert obligatory "Jackie Jormp-Jomp" reference here.

4. M.I.A.-Bamboo Banga: Not going to lie, when this song comes up on shuffle, I can't help myself from rapping along in highly accented mimcry: "Strike match/light fire/who's that girl called Maya?" Lines like "Barbarella look like she my dead ringer" display the sort of irreverant confidence and self-aggrandizing bravado that I wish more female artists would embrace.

5. Rupa and the April Fishes- une américaine à paris: I don't remember who turned me on to this artist, but bottom line, she's brown and she sings in French. Win.

6. Pretenders- Brass in Pocket: While the patronizing label of "girl power anthems" abound, this is one of those songs that seems to really embody a sort of empowering self-determination without being lame, (or female specific, really). Perhaps the flip-side companion to Janis Ian's At Seventeen? Together those two songs make for one mighty fine-soundin' bipolar disorder.

7. The Pipettes- Judy: Upon further inspection, this mix should really be called "being a chick often leads to less than desirable situations."

8. Metric- Glass Ceiling: Men- it's all gender apartheid-this, glass ceiling-that. Amirite, ladies?

9. Julie Brown- The Homecoming Queen's Got a Gun: Bitches be shootin'.

10. Gillian Welch- My First Lover: Bitches be lovin'.

11. Blue States- Your Girl: Bitches be leavin.'

12. The Blow- True Affection

13. Bat for Lashes- What's a Girl to Do: Too expected?

Bonus:

Midnight Radio-I know I had Hedwig on my last mix, but I really couldn't resist putting this song on a ladies' night mix, what with it's name-dropping sassy brassy ladies like Yoko Ono and Tina Turner.

Ladies' Night

Download the mix here

I tried to make a mix that avoided the female-fronted acoustic-type singer-songwriter thing. So I put punk and pop and noise and such. I hope you enjoy it, my dears.

And follow along:

1. X-Ray Spex - Oh Bondage! Up Yours!

Girl power!

2. Karen O & The Million Dollar Bashers - Highway 61 Revisited

Bob Dylan cover!

3. The Phenomenal Handclap Band - 15 to 20

Disco party!

4. Xiu Xiu - Hello From Eau Claire (Gold Chains Remix)

Least gay song Xiu Xiu's ever done?

5. The Soft Pink Truth - Do They Owe Us a Living

Crass cover!

6. Lovage - Strangers On a Train

Hitchcock = Fucking

7. Salt-n-Pepa - Push It

This song makes my mix worthwhile

8. Lullatone - Pajama Party Pop

Bad segue!

9. Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - White Corolla

Another comment!

10. OOIOO - Mountain Book

Japanese weirdos!

11. Ponytail - Die Allman Brüder

Baltimore weirdos!

12. Blood on the Wall - I'd Like to Take You Out Tonight

This song is ~*romantic*~

13. Dear Nora - Second Hand

I listened to this band a ton in 2009

14. Heavenly - Cool Guitar Boy

Classic girl-pop!

15. Le Tigre - Hot Topic

Most cliche song of the whole mix

16. Tiger Trap - Puzzle Pieces

Another "tiger" girl-band to balance the scales

17. Best Friends Forever - Handpocket

Thanks, Debra, for introducing me to this band with your Halloween mix :)

18. Françoise Hardy - Comment Te Dire Aideu?

Bring me back something French!

19. Dub Narcotic Sound System - Sabley Goodness

Bring me back something Olympian!

20. Kimya Dawson - Viva La Persistence

Another bad segue, but I had to get Kimya on here

21. The Velvet Underground - After Hours

And a satisfactory conclusion

An XX December

OK, OK, OK....Let's shake that last one off and start again.

How's about December's theme being....




However you interpret "LADIES NIGHT," create a mix with that theme.

Reminder/request

So, I'm guessing either a) people didn't dig this month's theme, or b) you only had the motivation for one mix. Ha. You still have like, ten days to make a family-type mix, if you want. Otherwise, you can just wait and there'll be a new theme for December.

I have an idea for December's theme, but you're definitely welcome to make theme suggestions. That way, people will actually do them? :)

Family Jamz

(made with MS Paint. Shitty, but heartfelt)

Thanksgiving at my family's house means dad's putting on opera or Gypsy Kings in the background. I don't have a problem with either, but I prefer to have something a little more dance-able while I'm carving up a turkey. Without further ado, here is a family-friendly mix for you and yours.

Download here.

1) Belle and Sebastian- I'm a Cuckoo
Belle and Sebastian are the epitome of warm and fuzzy(but not innocuous!) music. Mom and dad can get down with that.

2) They Might Be Giants- Birdhouse in Your Soul
I suspect the Giants will make it onto a lot of these lists.

3) Weezer- Surf Wax America

4) Sufjan Stevens- The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts
Sing along choruses for everyone!

5) Sam Cooke- Twistin' the Night Away
When in doubt, always go with an oldie(but an awesome one)

6) Dusty Springfield- I Only Want To Be With You

7) The Flaming Lips- Buggin'

8) Stevie Wonder- Sir Duke
I think everyone in my family can agree on Stevie Wonder

9) Jackie Wilson- I Get The Sweetest Feeling
My father practically weaned me on old-school soul.

10) The Pogues- London Girl
The only Pogues song that isn't about death, or has the word "cunt" in it. Post-Thanksgiving dinner-jig!

11) Los Campesinos!- Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats
Fun Welsh-pop

12) Ozma- Rocks

13) Bjork- It's Oh So Quiet
A little more abrasive than other songs on this mix, but this is my attempt to get my dad into Bjork. Plus, it sounds like a big band song, and he likes those.

14) Cat Stevens- Tea For The Tillerman

15) The Doors- Land Ho!
Another parental favorite. Both my mom and dad were really into the Doors. Plus, it's a sea-shanty song.

16) Peggy Lee- It's A Good Day

17) Prince- Play in the Sunshine
Bet you never thought Prince would make it onto this list. One of his songs that ISN'T about sex. Don't worry, you can play it around grandma too!

18) The Ramones- California Sun

19) Electric Light Orchestra- Mr. Blue Sky

20) The Go! Team- Huddle Formation

21) Santogold- Lights Out

A Mix for People

>>Techno Fail Part Deux: I'm still suffering from an alarmingly slow internet connection, so I've had to do the old single- song at a time deal once more. Apologies. << Full mix available here, with requisite individual links below.

Children ruin everything. With that said, here's a mix that won't traumatize the young 'uns but still keep everyone else's toes tapping, (though I suspect some eye rolls from the surly-faced alterna-teen in all of us. GEE, THANKS FOR THE GREAT MIX, JERK.)

Warning: My idea of "Music for Everyone" often veers dangerously close to what might be approximated as "hippy bullshit." But, you know what? Everyone just needs to relax, man and stop harshing each other's vibes.

1.) Preeti Sagar- My Heart is Beating: Inspired by Vivian, I too have decided to skew a bit ethnic. I have a real soft spot for songs sung in English by those for whom English is a second language. Thusly I include the following wholesome Vintage Bollywood jam from the 1975 film Julie. Despite the lovey-dovey lyrics, it's definitely something you can crank up in the car with your Nana.

2.)Queen- Bicycle Race: Nothing wrong here, (save for one easily-missed reference to cocaine). But you know, everyone's gotta learn about the old nose candy sometime. Since this is Queen's second appearance for this theme, as an extra here's a bit about Freddie's old band from his school days.

3.)Harry McClintock- Big Rock Candy Mountain: An old-timey American classic that envisions a hobo's version of heaven. Not a drinky/stabby hobo, but like a loveable 1930s style hobo with patches on his knees, toting a little rucksack.

4.) The B-52s- Rock Lobster: Everyone's favorite beach party throw-back. This is the longer album version where the last minute or so just devolves into band members making wacky aquatic animal noises.

5.) Talking Heads- Road to Nowhere: An innocuous road trip song that has a choir of people reminding us that "it's alright" even if we might not know where we're going exactly. A comfort whether you're growing up, or just growing old. Also features random shrieks around the 4:03 mark.

6.) John Cameron Mitchell- Wig in a Box: An all-around infectious feel-good toe-tapper. I maintain that even previously mentioned Satan Spawn Rush Limbaugh wouldn't be able to resist putting on a little lipstick and miming to this song. My life will be complete once Hedwig songs are available as Rock Band DLC.

7.) Bob Dylan- The Times They are a-Changin': While some may believe that mentions of revolution and change are frightening spectres of an uncertain future, I've always found them to inspire a sort of do-gooder aspirational hope. Older folks can listen and reminisce at how far their generation's come, whilst the young can hum along and see the work that still must be done.

Family fun for all!

8.) The Beatles- Across the Universe: Lyrical & psychedelic, this song always sounds like some sort of ephemeral soft pop lullaby. Guaranteed to have everyone singing along in mellow unison.

9.) Don McLean- The Day the Music Died: Sort of a sad subject matter, but delivered in a such a jaunty way that one can't help but sing along. Besides, sometimes you just need a melancholy sort of song that can be played in mixed company too, right?

10.) They Might be Giants- Particle Man: Can always count on these chaps for a case of the sillies. This song also contributed to a pretty memorable animated sequence on Tiny Toon Adventures.

11.)Traveling Wilburys- It's All Right: Because, you know what? It is all right.

12.) John Lennon- Imagine: Is this too expected? I mean, it's all right in the lyrics- this song is for everyone under the sun to sit under a tree, hold hands and be at peace with themselves and each other until we're all a happy, smiley pan-racial, post-gender, class defying coalition- like one giant Benneton ad. Also: it's the best testament to communism in the history of popular music. Never too early (or too late) to indoctrinate your loved ones.

13.)Neil Diamond- America: How can you miss with the D-man? Fist pumps mandatory each time chorus is heard, and at every use of "today" starting at around the 3:15 mark.

14.) Depeche Mode- Just Can't Get Enough: Something sweet for all.

15.)Journey- Don't Stop Believin': Perhaps too bro-y, but come on, it'll bring a smile to any old face. Once again fist pumps mandatory at each

16.) Stereolab-Lo Boob Oscillator: Everything sounds nice when you can't understand the language.

Can We Just Listen to the Radio Now?

I will be heading out with my family on our annual "we have no family nearby, so let's just go to some shitty NV town where Mom and Laura can gamble while Dad golfs and we'll all eat Thanksgiving dinner at some hotel buffet" trip. So, in celebration of this tradition, I've made a mix that will hopefully appease my family, and I can spend 80 minutes in the car not having to listen to Rush Limbaugh or local traffic news radio. Just a mix of stuff that will sit well with each family members' taste with a few good songs that don't have weird voices or noise or any of those things that immediately make my family turn on me.

Download here.

1. The Beatles - Here Comes the Sun
Beatles are guaranteed everyone-pleasers
2. Van Morrison - Come Running
3. Johnny Cash - Kneeling Drunkard's Plea
4. Willie Nelson - Bloody Mary Morning
two songs to appease my dad. Country/drinking/Jesus. The Robert Olson trifecta. And the Willie Nelson song is a great highway tune
5. Queen - Another One Bites The Dust
my mom will lose her shit at this point, because she thinks Queen's greatest hits is the "best CD ever"
6. The Jackson 5 - I Want You Back
another everyone-pleaser
7. James Brown - I Got You (I Feel Good)
I've found that my family is most attentive to music when it's a song they already know
8. Dusty Springfield - Son Of A Preacher Man
9. Feist - 1234
my sister didn't like this song when I put it on a mix for her. She loved it after it got played on KROQ
10. Jens Lekman - Your Arms Around Me
11. The Beach Boys - God Only Knows
12. The Lucksmiths - The Chapter In Your Life Entitled San Francisco
13. Pixies - Here Comes Your Man
14. Donovan - Sunshine Superman
15. Camera Obscura - Let's Get Out Of This Country
16. The Polyphonic Spree - Section 12 (Hold Me Now)
17. Akron/Family - River
18. Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - Bag Of Hammers
19. Harry Belafonte - Jump In Line (Shake, Shake Señora)
my sister and I used to watch Beetlejuice all the time. Family memories!
20. Creedence Clearwater Revival - Lookin' Out My Back Door
my mom's favorite band before I gave her that Queen CD. And it's twangy for my dad
21. Yo La Tengo - Mr. Tough
22. Belle and Sebastian - Funny Little Frog
my mom always liked "that frog song" I played on my radio show
23. Elton John - Rocket Man (I Think It's Going To Be A Long, Long Time)
and this is just the best song ever written, so everyone will like it

It's Cool to Love Your Family.

I'm leaving in a week to visit extended family, so I thought I'd be the first to post a mix before I leave.

I seriously re-worked this mix a few times just to get it to where it is now (I'm making it sound like a masterpiece or something. haha). But the mix you have now is a bunch of stuff my parents used to listen to in addition to some (more entry-level) music I listen to that have the same feel. What can I say, I'm a people pleaser.

Anyway, enjoy!

Download here.
1. Andrew Bird: Heretics
2. Jens Lekman: You Are the Light
3. The Clash: Rudie Can't Fail
It's catchy, you have some old school street cred, and it's kind of a nice sing-a-long.
4. Polaris: Hey Sandy
One of the best theme songs to one of the best shows (about family or otherwise) ever.
5. Camera Obscura: Lloyd I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken
6. The Kinks: Picture Book
It's about family, right?
7. Belle and Sebastian: For the Price of a Cup of Tea
8. Acid House Kings: This Heart is a Stone
9. Creedance Clearwater Revival: Proud Mary
Two facts: 1. When my dad was in college, he was a DJ at parties and he'd always throw on a CCR song. 2. When I was a kid, I asked what "CCR" meant and he got really huffy and couldn't believe that I didn't know. I'm sorry pa! I ain't cool like you! Best dad ever?
10. M. Ward: Chinese Translation
It's not because my family is Chinese that I chose this song. I just really like it.
11. Feist: Inside and Out
Everyone likes Feist, my parents love The Bee Gees, we all win.
12. 王菲: 夢中人 (or, Faye Wong: Dream Lover)
Wong Kar-Wai is a HK director that I really love. I actually watched a lot of his films before I knew it was hipster fodder/cool to watch his films. I don't know, I just knew him as this dude who made movies with actors/actresses I liked. Anyway, this song is in his film Chungking Express (along with Faye Wong). If Zhubin isn't sick of this song by now, this is for you.
13. The Smiths: This Charming Man
This song always gets people dancing/happy.
14. Battles: Tonto
My dad really likes Battles, which is kind of awesome.
15. Tom Tom Club: Genius of Love
This song bridges gaps. If you're a Mariah fan, you'd like it. If you're an 80's fan, you'd like it. If you're a ~cool~ Talking Heads fan, you'd like it.
16. YACHT: Psychic City
It's a silly sing-a-long. By sing-a-long, I mean, my mom sings along to it.
17. St. Vincent: Dig a Pony
I didn't want to put a straight-up Beatles song, so I thought I'd put one of my favorite lady singers covering the Beatles.
18. Bob Dylan: Like a Rolling Stone
19. The Choir Practice: Pretty
My mom also likes choir music. This is a compromise.
20. Peter, Paul & Mary: If I Had a Hammer
One of my mom's favorite bands. It's also pretty catchy.

Thanks for reading this all the way through. Gaga for your time:

Razor glasses!

Congrats to Tom and Glenn/Theme for Nov

First, I wanted to congratulate Tom Waits and the Misfits for showing up on the most Halloween mixes. Actually, Misfits may have won since they were on the same number as Mr. Waits and ALSO had a cover version. Anyway.

+ = Halloween-4-eva

Anyway, the theme for next month. You've all been eagerly awaiting it. And it is:

Music for everyone!!

With all the family togetherness stuff coming up, it'd probably be good to have a couple of mixes on-hand that can be enjoyed by everyone. Your mission is to make a really good mix that is as inclusive of all tastes as possible. Get to it!

Here is what it will look like when everyone is together enjoying your mix:

Fucking creepy, right?

Let's Get Uncomfortable

Happy Halloween, everyone. For this mix I tried to go for the unsettling tracks--songs that sound and/or make you feel a bit seasick and uneasy.

We start off with two neofolk tracks to set the mood as I'm sure I'm not the only one who finds neofolk pretty damn creepy. The Savage Republic track is great (that drumming you hear? Dude is playing an oil drum), The Wake track is the poppiest this mix gets, and the Chokebore song is the best example of the queasy sound/tone this mix was going for. Then we have an ultra-heavy Nadja cover of Elliott Smith's "Needle In The Hay," Pain Teens' "Brown Jenkin" (what a nightmare would sound like--those are baby screams), some soul-crushing instrumental pieces, and we end with a GORGEOUS track centered on a conversation about skullfucking. Yes. Please enjoy.

01. Current 93 - All The Pretty Little Horsies
02. Death In June - My Little Black Angel
03. Savage Republic - Next To Nothing
04. Bloody Mannequin Orchestra - The Blender
05. The Del-Byzanteens - My Hands Are Yellow (From The Job That I Do)
06. Igor Wakhevitch - Rituel de Guerre des Esprits de la Terre
07. The Wake - Judas
08. Chokebore - Days Of Nothing
09. TwinSisterMoon - The Vampire Of Suburbia
10. Nadja - Needle In The Hay (Elliott Smith cover)
11. Pain Teens - Brown Jenkin
12. Swans - We'll Hang For That
13. Natural Snow Buildings - If I Can Find My Way Through The Darkness
14. Hungry Ghosts - Nothing Has To Happen
15. Rudi Arapahoe - Conversation Piece

DOWNLOAD HERE

Image is from Makahisa Fukase's The Solitude of Ravens. Read about him if you get a chance.

Music for Zombies, Ghosts, and Monsters

Alright, here's my mix. I was so very tempted to add the Indian Thriller, but I spared you all. It starts off softish then gets punkish, then just goes to all hell at the end (with a really creepy song).

01. Tori Amos - 97 Bonnie & Clyde
02. Devics - Nothing Hurts
03. Three Mile Pilot - City Of Bones
04. cat power - Cross Bones Style
05. Hello Saferide - The best night of your life
06. The Door-Keys - Ole Hallerd's Eve
07. Lemuria - Keep Quiet
08. Tegan And Sara - Walking With A Ghost
09. The Max Levine Ensemble - Ghost Song
10. Etiquette - Bellevue
11. Ghost Mice - Cemetaries
12. Antsy Pants - Vampire
13. The Besties - Zombie Song
14. Operation: Cliff Clavin - Astro Zombie
15. Zombina & the Skeletones - Nobody Likes You
16. Violent Scene From A Film - My Favorite Slasher Movie
17. Please inform the captain this is a hijack - Transnational Vampire Killers
18. The Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tower - casket salesman
19. Spare Change - Liafure
20. Los Gatos Negros - Kill this monster
21. Punkin Pie - I know Monsters well
22. Circle Takes the Square - Interview At The Ruins

Link: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=9PXV12BK

Two DAMN Good Mixes! And Hot Extras!

It took me a while to get on the trolley.

On top of homework and sheer laziness, I had roughly 150 songs to choose from. For someone who's frightened of absolutely everything, I've collected a surprising amount of scary/spooky songs.

So, I made two mixes...


"DAMN good Halloween songs" -- Dale Cooper approved!
(I've been watching a lot of Twin Peaks lately.)

Tracklist:

1. Planet Claire - The B-52s
Slowly creeps up on you, then blasts off with a sci-fi dance party.
2. Treeless Island Peopled by Birds - Bird Names
3. Wicked Annabella - The Kinks
4. I Ain't Superstitious - Howlin' Wolf
I was going to include a spooky Doors songs or two (and they have a handful, let me tell you) -- but why not just include the guy that they cribbed from? Good dirty blues, with a smack of Robert Johnson.
5. Gouge Away - The Pixies
6. Teenage Witch - Eels
7. Third Uncle - Brian Eno
8. 4 Better or 4 Worse - The Pharcyde
Fatlip gets really freaky in the bridge. Watch out for it.
9. I Only Have Eyes For You - The Flamingos
My friend Donovan and I were recently discussing how eerie 50s songs can be. This one is particularly ghostlike, even menacing; from the echoey "shoo bop shoo wop" to the creepy harmonies in the chorus.
10. E. Knievel Interlude (The Perils of Keeping it Real) - Grandaddy
The ticking clock reminds us that the scariest thing is our finite mortality...!
11. The Ghost and the Eyes - Thanksgiving
12. Appel Direct - Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli
Django's charging strumming/plucking here is meant to sound like a train. To me, it sounds like a ghost train.
13. Superstition - Blanche
Lilting Louisiana voodoo country.
14. Graveyard Orbit - Crystal Stilts
15. I Hear You Knocking - Dave Edwards
Ooooh...who's knocking at the door? Don't let them in...oooOOOooOOoo.
16. The Oogum Boogum Song - Brenton Wood
Sweet spooky soul.
17. You'll Pay For Your Day at Pleasure Island - Michael Leviton
A little ukelele song; half-sorrow, half-menace. Always reminds me of that disturbing scene in Pinocchio, when all those little boys started turning into donkeys.
18. The Sinking Ship Song - Matt Elliot
Appropriately, sounds like a ship full of sinking souls.
19. The Ballad of No-Face - Final Fantasy
As creepy as the title sounds.
20. Full Moon - Eden Ahbez
Quiet, calm, almost spoken word from the 60s, with a nighttime backdrop.
21. The Ghost Sonata - Tuxedomoon
And the album almost ends with a hush. Until:
22. Laisse Tombeur Les Filles - France Gall
This once-cheery song now always reminds me of the credits to "Deathproof." Oh, Quentin Tarantino.

Link: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=UJJWQ6YC

-------------------------

AND:


Halloween Surf 'n' Turf! Featuring a lot of surf songs, and a few songs that were too cute for the other mix, and yet, too cute to leave out altogether. When I say "cute," I mean like, 60s camp, and pop-punk satirical songs.

Tracklist:
1. Phantasma Del Mar - The Aquabats
2. Take Off Or Die! - The Tormentos
3. Out of Limits - The Ventures
4. The Cruel Sea - The Beat Tornados
5. Nite Prowler - The Deuce Coupes
6. Night Scene - The Rumblers
7. Flesh Hammer - Hillbilly Frankenstein
8. Shadow Land - The Falcons
9. Jack the Ripper (Parts 1 & 2) - Southern Culture on the Skids
10. Horror Beach - Horrorpops
11. Surfin' Bird - The Cramps
12. Cat With Two Heads - The Aquabats
13. Spider Cider - Man Man
14. Slaughter on 10th Ave - The Ventures
15. Letter From Jeepers - Mr. Guy
16. Fashion Zombies - The Aquabats
17. Boo! - Supernova
18. Straight to Hell - Chum
19. The Gonk (Theme from Dawn of the Dead)
20. Coolest Little Monster - Zacherley

Link: http://www.megaupload.com/?d=GIMXX23O


AND, as far as actual albums go, there are two supremely underappreciated albums which you should purchase if you're looking for overall spooky bands:


"A-Haunting We Will Go-Go" The Ghastly Ones
Supreme 60s-style camp. Like the Haunted Mansion music...but way cooler.


"Wreckin' Crew" The Meteors
The kings of psychobilly. This album includes such Halloween treats as "Zombie Noise," "Mutant Rock" and "Fear of the Dark."



PS: Honorable mention goes to this 10 minute string quintet, because I feel like it could be played at a ghost ball, and it would be the best ghost ball ever.

Astor Piazzola - Concierto Para Quinteto

Music To Spook By

I tried to make a mix full of equal parts goofy fun and appropriate creepiness. Some of these were chosen based on the names (having the word "ghost" in the title helps), some just sounded dark and rather menacing, eg. Swans' "I Am The Sun". Hope you enjoy 'em!

1) Transylvanian Concubine - Rasputina

2) Dear Sons and Daughters of Hungry Ghosts - Wolf Parade

3) I Am The Sun - Swans (every Halloween mix should include this band)

4) Cemetary Polks - Tom Waits (obligatory Tom Waits song...but an appropriate one)

5) Zombie - The Death Set

6) Tori Amos - Raining Blood (creepier than the original, I dare say)

7) Dracula's Wedding - Outkast ( I wanted to put in a hip-hop track. This was as close as I got. Vampires are popular, right?)

8) Dead Souls - Joy Division (obvious choice, but whatever!)

9) Meet Ze Monsta - PJ Harvey

10) Lullaby - The Cure (Robert Smith gets eaten by a SPIDER!)

11) Phantom - Justice

12) Zombie Boy - The Magnetic Fields

13) Strange Days - the Doors

14) Werewolf - Cat Power

15) Slide - The Dresden Dolls (I chose this one for the creepiness factor. Who IS the orange man? I don't know!)

16) Help Me I Am In Hell - Nine Inch Nails

17) Burn The Witch - Queens of the Stone Age

Last call for scary mixes!

Dudes. This is the last week to post your Halloween mixes. Egads!

But fear not, there will be other chances to make mixes. I'll post the next theme on Saturday so you have a full month to get 'em done. And, you're always welcome to suggest mix themes. I got a bunch thought up, but your idea may be better than all of them, so...

SCARY BONES

13 TERRORFUL (terrible?) tracks to FRIGHT and DELIGHT. Fully expect to love one song, but hate the next. And if you happen to enjoy the entire mix, then congrats.. our tastes in music are equally bipolar!! (... although I did try to make this flow as cohesively as possible.)

01. BONDE DO ROLE - Danca do Zombi
02. ANDREW JACKSON JIHAD - Bad, Bad Things
03. PINBACK - Boo (samples from the orig. radio broadcast of 'the war of the worlds')
04. ISLANDS - Creeper
05. SSION - Fear Us (if you think this song is weird, check out a pic of the singer - creepy!)
06. SIFL & OLLY - Fake Blood
07. ADAM FREELAND - We Want Your Soul
08. THE MISFITS - Last Caress (what would a halloween mix be without a misfits classic?)
09. BEST FRIENDS FOREVER - Ghost Song (3 Words: Ghost Baby's Daddy !!!!!)
10. BLITZEN TRAPPER - Black River Killer
11. CLOUD CULT - Car Crash
12. RIS PAUL RIC - Daft Young Cannibals
13. THE BLACK HEART PROCESSION - Blue Water, Black Heart

**BONUS TRACK**

14. CKE - Burger Slayer (ohh, this is just silly.)

DOWNLOAD: SCARY BONES HALLOWEEN MIX

Nightmare Noise

Well, this took me a while. Mostly because I don't have a lot of free time, but also because I had so much to choose from it took a while to whittle it down. I also did something a little different. In addition to creating this playlist I made an actual mix. More info on the mix as well as a link to the mp3 at the bottom of the post.

Now, if you can't tell from the title, this playlist is fairly noise oriented. About half of the tracks are noise. So I know it's not really going to be for everyone. Plus it does run rather long, about 1:30 (though 2 of the tracks do take up about half an hour). Next time I probably won't use as much noise and I'll try and cut the time down a bit. But for now this is what you get. It's long, it's noisy and it's scary. Enjoy!

Tracks:

1. Tamion 12 Inch - The Devil Was Right Pt. 1 - Let*S Suffer
      (the perfect intro)
2. Factums - Unearthed - Spells & Charms
      (short but fitting)
3. Hair Police - The Haunting - Constantly Terrified
      (noisy and terrifying)
4. Bubonic Plague - Dracula - No Bosses, No Bullshit
      (no wave)
5. The Goslings - Little Horn - Occasion
      (short noise track)
6. The Gothic Archies - Dreary, Dreary - The Tragic Treasury
      (i believe this is now the 3rd playlist with a Gothic Archies track)
7. Wolf Eyes - Dead Hills - Dead Hills
      (rather long track, slow beginning, weird middle, harsh end)
8. Nero's Day At Disneyland - Religious Ecstacy Via - Colonists
      (this one has some good sound effects that make me think of Halloween)
9. Torture Zone - Horror Beats - TORTURE ZONE Sounds To Terrorize
      (a cheesy sort of electronic track from one of my many Halloween SFX CD's)
10. 16 Bitch Pile-Up - Something Poked Up - Bury Me Deep
      (a sort of weird track made from different samples, fairly creepy)
11. Hive Mind - Charcoal Wraiths - Free Beasts
      (haunted noise)
12. Brain Sucking Peanunanners - Little Woman of the Sun - The Meta Mega
      (probably the creepiest track on here)
13. Blood Money - Black Nature - Blood Brotherhood
      (demonic noise)
14. Cinema Strange - Mediterranean Widow - Cinema Strange
      (gotta have some good ole goth music on your Halloween playlist)
15. Sixes - Slow Burial - Cursed Beast
      (noise, but not really loud, mostly just sounds)
16. Pump Kinn - Colbetta/Yoko - Aunte Donne
      (haunting vocal track)
17. Phantom Airwaves - 217 - Unsure/217
      (this track features an actual EVP)
18. Doubled Yellow Swans - Untitled - Global Clone
      (what else, more noise)
19. Robedoor & Haunted Castle - Nameless Race - Nameless Race
      (this is the longest track, about 18 min, but perfect for Halloween)
20. Tamion 12 Inch - Somebody Else*S Mine - Let*S Suffer
      (the perfect outro)

You can download the zip HERE (or HERE if you don't like rapidshare)
I included the playlist file so you can import that along with the songs and make things a lot easier.

If you're interested in hearing my Halloween Mix (and I really hope you are) then you should go HERE.
I have more info on the tracks included as well as the mp3 available on that page. It's only about half an hour with just as many songs!

running scared...

hey guys,
the mixes have been awesome so far.
i hope you all enjoy this one.
-n

let's try this again... running scared...
or...
http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?zadnv4zzymn

OKAY. so i guess some of the tracks aren't uploading right... so i uploaded individual files to a folder so it should be easier to download... individual files



that photo is a bit blurry, so here's the track listing...

01 get down goblin - jan terri (best halloween song ever. EVER.)
02 dead bodies - air
03 it's a curse - wolf parade
04 skeleton - the decks
05 werewolf heart - dead man's bones
06 ghost mouth - girls
07 this place is haunted - devotchka
08 scary monsters (and super creeps) - david bowie
09 ghost house - teenage bad girl
10 they live! - evil nine
11 zombie city shake - black hat brigade
12 special death - mirah
13 bad man coming - crooked fingers

Seven mixes in...

And there's something I'm surprised we haven't seen yet.

(But I'm still enjoying them!)

I <3 Candy Corn!!!

So I can't stress how entirely fitting making a mix of horror-themed songs was during fall semester midterms. It was hard to resist making this an entire mix of horror punk and Bauhaus singles, but I'm pretty satisfied with my results.

Enjoyment of this playlist is best complemented with a bowl of candy corn (or, let's be honest, popcorn balls are awesome too).

01. Daniel Johnston - I'll Never Marry
02. A Raincoat - It Came In The Night [ The very cool and quirky soundtrack from the short film Rabbit's Moon ]
03. Pavement - The Killing Moon [ Throwing the original in here would've been too easy ]
04. Public Image Ltd. - Death Disco
05. Le Tigre - Phanta
06. Funboy Five - Life After Death
07. Evil Dead: The Musical - Death Is A Bitch [ Sort of a silly intermission.. ]
08. Mazzy Star - Ghost Highway
09. Eels - Fresh Blood
10. Sonovac - Human Fly [ A cover originally done by the Cramps - I told you I'd get my horror punk in here! ]
11. Bush Tetras - Too Many Creeps
12. The Misfits - Monster Mash [ Campy as f*ck, but a ubiquitous track for a Halloween mix nonetheless ]
13. David Bowie - Please Mr. Gravedigger
14. CSS - Pretend We're Dead [ Something candy corn-level of sugary sweet they did for BBC Radio 1 back in '07 ]

Download the mix here (until I figure out how to embed links): http://www.megaupload.com/?d=XY709108 .

Ditties For The Dearly Departed

... so "spooky" I'm not so good at, but "kooky" and "altogether ooky" I can do. These are some of my favorite Halloween songs, gathered together to chill and to thrill in the classic tradition:

1. Los Straitjackets -- The Munsters Theme
2. Jonathan Coulton -- Re: Your Brains
3. Minibosses -- Theme to Castlevania III
4. Ray Parker, Jr. -- Ghostbusters
5. White Zombie -- I'm Your Boogie Man
6. Alice Cooper -- Feed My Frankenstein
7. Oingo Boingo -- Dead Man's Party
8. Bobby Pickett -- The Monster Mash
9. Cliff Richard -- Devil Woman
10. AC/DC -- Evil Walks
11. The Blues Brothers with Dr. John -- Season of the Witch
12. CAKE -- Pentagram
13. Hummie Mann -- Main Title from "The Addams Family"
14. Ozzy Osbourne -- Bark At The Moon
15. Warren Zevon -- Werewolves of London
16. Boston Pops -- In The Hall of The Mountain King

I hope it's not too cheezy... but I'm sure to do better next time! This is my first mix and I'm still getting used to my programming... hey...!

Download "Ditties For The Dearly Departed"

Halloweenie: Dead Alive Disco

Technology Fail: Due to an alarmingly slow internet connection, I too had to resort to the one-song-at-a-time upload strategy, despite having my folder RAR-ing to go, (get it? YOU'RE WELCOME).

Anyhow, full tracklist available here, with requisite individual links below.

While I can't surpass the genuine macabre of Midnight Mary or the high lol-factor of Werewolf Bar Mitzvah, here's my very own rag-tag collection of Malevolent Melodies, (DJ Jazzy Jeff counts as one of those, right?) Warning: I steer very heavily towards novelty, and things you might hear on some Hell-bound country hayride.

1.) Bauhaus- Bela Lugosi's Dead

Pardon the (sort of) repeat; but this song is definitely Halloween incarnate. Also, if I were ever the Final Girl in a slasher movie, I'd like to think this song would score the last climactic fight scene.

2.)Alice Cooper- Welcome to my Nightmare

Yea, this is on the playlist. Deal with it.

3.)Dead Kennedys- Halloween

4.)The Zombies- A Rose for Emily

A song based on one of the creepiest classic American short stories ever.

5.)Gillian Welch- Wind and Rain

Halloween is the perfect time for a good old fashioned murder ballad. This is one of my favorites- jealousy, murder, and a haunted fiddle made of a dead girl's bones. Also, there's totally a Twilight Zone episode based on the same legend; awesome factor +100 points.

6.) DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince- Nightmare on My Street

I know two fellows who have some serious problems on their street- a decomposing dream stalker and some potential copyright infringement issues among them.

7.) Chemical Bomb- Aquabats

Eyes melting and rivers of blood washing mankind from earth. Apocalyptic scenarios for the win.

8.)The Animals- We Gotta Get Out of this Place

Look out! It's Jon and Kate OF THE DEAD.

9.)Violent Femmes- Country Death Song

10.) The White Stripes- Little Ghost

11.) Blue Oyster Cult- Joan Crawford

She has risen from the grave!

12.) Ramones- Pet Sematary

13.) The Misfits- Halloween

As you can tell, I'm pretty good at themes.

14.)Iron Maiden- The Number of the Beast

I'd like to dedicate this one to Vivian.

15.)Jefferson Airplane- White Rabbit

I feel this song is creepy enough to warrant inclusion.

16.)The Blue Sky Boys- Down the Banks of the Ohio

Capping out with one last murder ballad. A rejected marriage proposal leads to another death by a river bank. We'd all do well to avoid Southern river banks.

BONUS TRACK:

17.)Charlie Daniels Band- The Devil Went Down to Georgia

Pardon the Repeat Part 2: Sorry High School Kyle, But I demand some genuine fiddle-faddlin'.

All Hallows' Eve

So I felt as though if anyone was more equipped to deliver the scary, spooky, disturbing, or generally unsettling halloween mix, it was me. Therefore even though this mix is a bit long, and I had enough material to make 3 more of these, I think I delivered a pretty creeptastic mix to listen to in the dark and encourage nightmares.

The monster mashy moments aren't plentiful here, but here is some scattered commentary that I think will add some extra dimensions to your listening experience:

I suggest reading up about the The Conet Project and number stations in general, adds a whole spooky level to the recordings.

In addition anything by Scott Walker owns, and the fact that he faded into obscurity after his pop period and resurfaced to record some of the most unsettling music ever recorded is just more proof of how talented he is.

If you recognize The Fall song, it was playing in Buffalo Bill's house during Silence of the Lambs when Clarice is sneaking about his house in the dark.

Also keep this in mind: "The story of The Curse of Midnight Mary, the album, thus goes like this: musician Loren Connors visited the grave of Midnight Mary after midnight on a night in March of 1981. With a tape recorder nearby to document the event, an acoustic guitar in his hand, Connors knelt by her tombstone and played his own strange blues, quietly howling along."

The Psychic TV track is the sound you hear when you make wind instruments out of actual human thighbones.

Finally the Robert Ashley track is potentially one of the most uncomfortable things ever recorded.

Artist - Track - Album

1. David Newman & Van Dyke Parks - B-Movie Show - The Brave Little Toaster Soundtrack
2. Zola Jesus - Soeur Sewer - Soeur Sewer 7"
3. The Conet Project - The Swedish Rhapsody - The Conet Project
4. The Residents - Fine Fat Flies - God In Three Persons
5. Islaja - Rohkaisulaulu - Palaa Aurinkoon
6. Scott Walker - Jesse - The Drift
7. White Noise - Here Come The Fleas - An Electric Storm
8. Catherine Ribeiro + Alpes - Silen Von Kathy - Nº2
9. Oneohtrix Point Never - Eyeballs - Betrayed in the Octagon
10. The Dead C - Hell Is Now Love - Trapdoor Fucking Exit
11. 23 Skidoo - The Gospel Comes to New Guinea - Seven Songs
12. The Locust - Scavenger, Invader - New Erections
13. Aranos - No, Ha! Spring Was Her Need - Magnificent! Magnificent! No One Knows The Final Word
14. Night Recordigns From Bali - Cremation Ceremony - Night Recordings From Bali
15. Jandek - Frosted Field - This Narrow Road
16. The Fall - Hip Priest - In A Hole
17. U.S. Girls - R.I.P. KISN - Introducing...
18. Loren Connors - Chant 6 - The Curse of Midnight Mary
19. Greenpot Bluepot - Warraw 4 - Warraw
20. Psychic TV - Part 2, 23 Tibetan Human Thighbones - Themes
21. Robert Ashley - Purposeful Lady Slow Afternoon - Automatic Writing

In the Morning Light

Nothing is TOO scary in the morning light (unless you encounter zombies. Then it's always scary).

I'm pretty much the biggest pansy you will ever meet, so I tried to include some lighthearted Halloween songs for the wusses in all of us.

Each song links to a download link, but you can also click here for all the songs in one window (sort by "date"). I seriously tried for an hour learning how to compress things into a zip, but the "tutorial" was pretty unhelpful and I'm too tired to keep reading.
Anyway look on the bright side, you only need to download songs you don't already have! Yay!

I made it into a RAR file, FOR ALL OF ETERNITY.
Download album HERE.

1. Harry and the Potters: Song for the Death Eaters

2. The Unicorns: Tuff Ghost

3. Xiu Xiu: Bog People

4. Giraffes? Giraffes!: The Ghost of EPPEEPEE’s Ghost

5. The Velvet Underground: The Black Angel's Death Song

6. North American Hallowe'en Prevention, Inc.: Do They Know it's Hallowe'en

7. Patrick Wolf: Bloodbeat

8. Cut Copy: So Haunted

9. Whalesound: Bones Become a Ghost

10. Múm: Ghosts You Draw on My Back

11. Nouvelle Vague: Bella Lugosi's Dead

12. The Smiths: Death Of A Disco Dancer

13. Sufjan Stevens: They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From The Dead!! Ahhhh! (Pretty obvious choice, but whatever!)

14. Tullycraft: Fangs on Bats

15. The Deadly Syndrome: I Hope I Become A Ghost

16. Girls: Ghost Mouth

17. No Kids: For Halloween

18. Tracy Jordan: Werewolf Bar Mitzvah (If you only download one song, let it be this one)

All God's Children, They All Have to Die...

"All God's Children, They All Have to Die..." - A Halloween Mix

Tracks:

1. RJD2 - The Horror
2. Talking Heads - Psycho Killer
3. Screamin' Jay Hawkins - I Put a Spell On You [Cliché, but totally classic]
4. Chain and the Gang - Cemetery Map
5. Beat Happening - Hangman
6. Old Time Relijun - Vampire Victim [Three K Records songs in a row. Winner.]
7. Primus - The Devil Went Down to Georgia [Sorry, I let "high school Kyle" pick a song]
8. Tom Waits - Murder in the Red Barn [Anyone with Tom Waits in their library is going to put him on this mix]
9. Liars - We Fenced Other Gardens with the Bones of Our Own [Theme album about witches!]
10. New Order - Murder
11. Goblin - Suspiria [Theme of the film of the same name]
12. Fantômas - Spider Baby
13. Photosynthesis - Halloween Jam [Yes. That IS one of those battery-operated ghosts from RiteAid]
14. The Specials - Ghost Town
15. The Gothic Archies - Crows
16. Final Fantasy - The CN Tower Belongs to the Dead
17. Say Hi to Your Mom - Blah Blah Blah [Theme album about vampires!]
18. Modest Mouse - Satin in a Coffin
19. Jeffrey Lewis - If You Shoot the Head You Kill the Ghoul [I'd write that advice down]
20. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - The Curse of Millhaven

Download the mix here


(Cover image used with no permission from Joshua Hoffline Photography)

Brand New Skinny Ghost

Hi everyone! Here is my submission for October/Halloween. "Scary" music isn't really something I'm conscious of, so I went more for dark, moody, and noisy in this mix. Also, I'm pretty sure that using Type O Negative is cheating (or a cop out), so my bad for that. Here's the tracklisting:

"Brand New Skinny Ghost"

01. Atlas Sound - A Ghost Story
02. Fever Ray - If I Had a Heart
03. Björk - Storm
04. Optiganally Yours - Oar
05. Bat for Lashes - The Big Sleep
06. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Stagger Lee
07. Tom Waits - What's He Building?
08. Hovercraft - Phantom Limb
09. Type O Negative - Christian Woman
10. Patrick Wolf - Childcatcher
11. Fuck Buttons - Ribs Out
12. Wolf Eyes - Stabbed in the Face
13. Hymie's Basement - Ghost Dream
14. Boards of Canada - The Devil is in the Details
15. M83 - Car Chase Terror
16. Godspeed You Black Emperor! - The Dead Flag Blues

All files should be properly tagged to add as one complete compilation into your iTunes, but I included the image art and tracklisting in the .zip file, just in case. You can download at this link:

http://www.minusnumbers.com/mixtape

Can't wait to hear everyone else's mixes! Happy October!

-jp

Mix for October 2009

Mix for October 2009: We'll start with an easy one. Halloween!! Throw down a mix that represents Halloween to you. Could be goofy and fun. Could be scary as hell. You have until Halloween to post them!

Remember: bonus points for awesome cover art!

What is the deal-ee-yo?

Every month, we'll select a monthly theme through the practice of haruspicy (or some other form of divination). Then, everyone will create a mix based on that theme (however they interpret it). The mix tracklists will then be posted by the members to this blog sometime before the end of the month with an uploaded zip file of the songs as well as album art (if possible). It will be very similar to fun. Just make sure to add us to your Google Reader or bookmarks or whatever you use to keep track of IMPORTANT THINGS so that you're up to date on all sweet informations.

The first theme will be announced shortly...

<3,
Kyle