At Least They're Shared

Okay, so here's mix #2. There's no attempt at being clever with the tracklisting here, just some songs that I love. Here you go:

"At Least They're Shared"

01. Califone - The Orchids (Psychic TV cover)

I think this is one of the best cover songs of all time. Not only is it far superior to the original, but Califone truly adapted it to be their own. Back when I still did the radio thing, this one got a shitload of spins.

02. Mark Kozelek - If You Want Blood (AC/DC cover)

Mark Kozelek has released a crap-ton of covers under his own name and Sun Kil Moon. Even though Modest Mouse is one of my favorite bands, I think Kozelek's AC/DC covers record "What's Next to the Moon" is his best one.

03. Harvey Danger - Save It For Later (English Beat cover)

Another one of my favorite bands that got resigned to one-hit-wonder status in the 90s. I always loved the original version of this song and this one makes me just as happy, if not more.

04. Coalesce - Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin cover)

The best hardcore/metal/metalcore/whatever band in the world takes on one of the most popular bands of all time with great success.

05. Faith No More - I Started A Joke (Bee Gees cover)

Another one of the best covers of all time. My friend Spencer gave me specific instructions to play this at his funeral if he beats me out of here. I also recommend the music video for this song.

06. Antony and the Johnsons - Crazy in Love (live) (Beyoncé cover)

Antony and Beyoncé are both beautiful, shimmering goddesses. Match made in heaven.

07. Lightspeed Champion - I Never Meant To Hurt You (Good Shoes cover)

I've listened to this track more than any other Lightspeed Champion track, which isn't really fair to the dude as he's a great songwriter. This song has great lyrics, is super catchy, and perfect for dudes like me who don't really give a fuck and lie about being in love but still feel shitty when they hurt someone's feelings because they're not as tough as they pretend.

08. Adem - Loro (Pinback cover)

Adem's cover album "Takes" is seriously incredible. His versions of Aphex Twin's "To Cure a Weakling Child and Boy/Girl Song" is one of the most brilliant digital to analog renditions I've ever heard. He also does great version of Björk, PJ Harvey, and Yo La Tengo, among others.

09. Rohner Segnitz - Nebraska (Bruce Springsteen cover)

Rohner is the lead singer of Divison Day and this track can be found on a solo release he put out about five years ago. I've always loved his voice, but particularly the unconventional and captivating vocal melodies he writes.

10. Bonnie "Prince" Billy - The World's Greatest (R. Kelly cover)

I might lose some hipster points (if they're still being measured by Pitchfork's tastes) by saying I don't really like Will Oldham. I think he tends to be uninspired and rambling both in original and extra-"Prince"y recipes. But, if you read the above title as "the world's greatest R. Kelly cover" you'll understand how I feel about this song. I love how this version is totally devoid of irony and really showcases how great the song is.

11. The Mountain Goats - The Boys Are Back In Town/Ignition Remix (Thin Lizzy/R. Kelly cover)

John Darnielle comes in a very close second in the R. Kelly cover contest, but his "Ignition" tag at the end of a solid Thin Lizzy cover is clearly tongue-in-cheek. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

12. Dirty Projectors - Depression (Black Flag cover)

Best band of the last decade? Maybe. Best live band of the last decade? Definitely. Dave Longstreth is a true innovator and hopefully he continues his near-flawless track record well into the next decade.

13. Eels - Get Ur Freak On (Missy Elliott cover)

I remember catching Eels live back in 2001 or 2002 and being totally caught off-guard when they launched into this cover. It totally brought the house down and was a perfect edition to an already fantastic live show. While I haven't really been in love with E's post-"Daises" output, I'd still recommend catching them live if they ever roll through town.

14. Casiotone For The Painfully Alone - Graceland (Paul Simon cover)

There are a ton of cover versions of this song and my favorite is probably a version my friend Andy did a couple months ago during a backyard performance. I love this version simply for its unwavering rhythm line. I'm not sure why, but it gets stuck in my head and I never want it to end.

15. Taken By Trees - My Boys (Animal Collective cover)

If I didn't lose hipster points for that comment made above, I certainly will for this: Animal Collective has gone downhill following their best record, "Sung Tongs." "Merriweather Post Pavilion" wasn't even near my top 20 for 2009 and if you've seen them live recently, you've no doubt been disappointed (or you do a lot of drugs). This reworking of "My Girls" illustrates exactly what Animal Collective has been missing for the last five years: organic beauty. Taken By Trees should just cover all of "MPP" and I'd probably listen to it all the time.

16. The Decemberists - Bridges and Balloons (Joanna Newsom cover)

I also love Final Fantasy's Joanna Newsom cover, but I went with the Decemberists simply because I've been listening to Owen's new and amazing "Heartland" non-stop for the past week and figured I'd give another band a chance. Colin Meloy does a great Lisa Simpson impression though.

17. The Chairs - Flume (Bon Iver cover)

This cover can be found on a free covers EP put out by the Chairs that also features versions of Neutal Milk Hotel and Radiohead songs.

18. The Books - Cello Song (ft. José González) (Nick Drake cover)

I went with this track because I figured someone would post José's excellent version of "Heartbeats" only to find that not only was that true but someone posted this song as well. Nevertheless, the Books are one of my all-time favorites and this song is amazing.

19. Mobius Band - Digital Love (Daft Punk cover)

As I mentioned on my post for the other mix, I'm fascinated by covers of electronic music. This is a great redux of a Daft Punk classic, despite Mobius Band changing one chord that takes a second to get used to.

20. Schneider TM and KPT.michi.gan - The Light 3000 (The Smiths cover)

Best cover ever? Quite possibly.

21. Kaki King - Lovestoned (Justin Timberlake cover)

One of the best moments on Justin Timberlake's "Futuresex/Lovesounds" was the "I Think She Knows" bit at the end of "Lovestoned." Kaki King clearly recognized that too, because she ditched the whole first part of the song and only covered the end.

Again, all songs are tagged to appear as a single compilation in iTunes. The songs, art, and tracklists for both mixes I'm posting today can be downloaded by following this link:

http://www.minusnumbers.com/mixtape

That's all for this month! Hope you like the mixes.

-jp