I like making mix-tapes for people.
Well, in this day and age, I make mix-CD’s, but “mix-CD” doesn’t roll off the tongue quite as well as “mix-tape”. But in spite of the format-shift, its form and purpose is generally the same.
Why? Well, like any good librarian, I like to share. It’s like compiling a good reading list (which I also like to do), or an anthology of short stories, except that it’s much easier. And much more personal.
A mix-tape will almost always tell a story. Or a number of stories. Every track evokes a certain combination of feelings, and putting them in a particular order takes the listener down a certain emotional path. However, it’s also a gift from me to another person. It could say a number of things, such as “I’m thinking of you”, “I’m sorry”, “I think you’re awesome”, “I miss you”, “I know what you’re going through”, or “I’ve got a big old nerdy crush on you”.
Of course, there’s also the need to impress the recipient of said mix-tape with one’s knowledge and taste in music. It’s important to have a good number of well-known-but-not-too-popular tracks, which the listener can instantly relate to, as well as a number of awesome-but-obscure tracks with which you can “educate” and expand the listener’s range of tastes. I also occasionally like to put in a really sappy power-ballad in there, if it’s appropriate.
And, of course, along with the actual tape / CD, there is the sleeve. I like to hand-make mine, using a combination of amateur scrapbooking techniques, and / or hand-drawn images, from love-hearts to zombies-fighting-unicorns, depending on the sentiment of said mix-tape.
Of course, there are circumstances in which a mix-tape will always fail. I have to confess that I once compiled a mix-tape that was designed to win back an ex-girlfriend, hoping that if I played it in the background whilst we were catching up, it would send subliminal messages, compelling her to come back to me. It didn’t work.
Anyway, here’s a track-listing for a mix-tape that I recently made for a friend. You may be able to detect an underlying theme / narrative. Any guesses as to what it might be? :)
1. First breath after a coma – Explosions in the sky
2. I know it’s over – The Smiths
3. I’m not that girl – Idina Menzel
4. Fake plastic trees – Radiohead
5. Sleeping – Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova
6. Samson – Regina Spektor
7. Poor little middle-class me – Eddie Perfect
8. Ampersand – Amanda Palmer
9. Disintegration – The Cure
10. Numb – Portishead
11. Perfect – Smashing Pumpkins
12. Jeep song – The Dresden Dolls
13. Cynical – Eddie Perfect
14. Ducks don’t need satellites – Kate Miller-Heidke
15. Hope and jump – The Bluetones
16. The light of day – The Divine Comedy
What about you? Do you like making mix tapes? Or even just constructing playlists to suit your mood?
