It's ok we have a replacement mix loaded and ready to go. Here's a mix from
@Aron
Here you go. I'm super wordy, but, I think hearing why people picked songs is an interesting part of this deal. I hope others do too. My picks seem to be a little more mainstream, but I think it works pretty well overall.
When it comes to music, I’m a compiler. Always have been. Mix tapes, Mix CDs, playlists…those have always been my calling cards. When I got my first CD burner back in the day, I started making artist best-ofs and anthologies, as well as mix comps that incorporated the phrase Digital Wax into various witty and/or pop culturally relevant titles. Just seemed like a fun thing to do at the time, and then it sorta stuck.
Anyway, here is what I came up with for my first Digital Wax entry for Mixtape Madness. I wanted to highlight songs from different eras, and try to patch them together into a cohesive thing. Many of these artists (and some of these songs) are probably familiar to a lot of you, but hopefully I’ve put these tunes together in a way that they can be heard in a different light than you might be used to.
1) ‘You’re Really Something Sadie’ – The Impressions
I thought the horns that kick off this track would be a great way to start this playlist. I shared this tune before in one of the threads on the old forum. A lesser known Impressions tune off of their last album with Curtis Mayfield. This shares the sonic vibe he would pick up with on his first solo record. I first heard this on the Saturday night radio show they run every weekend on KUTX, and it immediately became a favorite.
2) ‘Stoned Love – Single Version’ – The Supremes
Staying in the year 1970 here with the first post-Diana Ross Supremes offering, and keeping with the soul pop vibe. Honestly, when I first heard this song, I didn’t know that it wasn’t Diana Ross singing lead. This song has a pretty positive message that is still very relevant today, and you still hear that familiar Motown sound coming through pretty clear. I actually prefer this single version to the one on the album. The intro on this one just sounds cooler to me.
3) ‘La ritournelle (Mr. Dan’s Magic Wand Mix)’ – Sébastien Tellier
Shifting away from the straight up soul of the early 70’s, into a more modern electronic pop arena with this one. I first heard this song while streaming Lauren Laverne’s xfm radio show from London while at work years ago. It was a drive time broadcast in the UK that I treated as my morning show. I loved that show because Lauren has really good taste in music. They played pretty much the same songs every day the same way commercial radio stations here do, but she was able to sneak in some of her favorites through the bits she did. I thought this was a really cool song when she was playing it regularly, and I still do. This “Magic Wand Mix” is the one she played, and it remains my favorite version. A more modern tune, but still kind of has a 70’s soul vibe running through it, which makes it a good bridge tune.
4) ‘Wow And Flutter’ – Stereolab
Keeping the French pop thing going here with Stereolab. There are a couple of different versions of this tune out there, but I opted to go with the album version off of “Mars Audiac Quintet”. Just a really cool song overall, and one that caught my ear right away when I first heard it on their best of comp years back. I’ve only recently gone back and listened to their individual releases to prepare myself for seeing them live later this year, and now I’m kicking myself for not having done that sooner. They have some really great albums that are perfect to listen to while at work.
5) ‘Shangri La’ – Martina Topley-Bird
Most people know Martina Topley-Bird from her work on Tricky’s best albums, or from her terrific debut record “Quixotic”. I also really like her second album, the Danger Mouse produced “The Blue God”, and this track is a major reason why. Topley-Bird’s lazy, jazzy drawl is a good fit with Danger Mouse’s retro production style. The whole record is worth a listen.
6) ‘The Adjustor’ – The Octopus Project
Going back a few years for this one to one of The Octopus Project’s earliest records. This is back when almost all of their tunes were strictly instrumentals. This song is a real treat to see performed live. It’s also a really good driving song. It has been fun to watch this band grow. Pretty much everything they do is DIY, and they have made a pretty natural move to working on film soundtracks. Watching Yvonne Lambert play the Theremin live is highly recommended if you ever get the chance. Another thing about this track that I always liked is that the bassline reminds me of something Peter Hook would lay down.
7) ‘Unlimited Capacity For Love’ – Grace Jones
I knew I wanted to include this song, but it was the hardest one to find the right place for. I finally decided this was the best spot, drafting off of the electronic sounds from The Octopus Project. Admittedly, I was rather late to the Grace Jones party, but I’m really glad that I decided to join in. As a kid, frankly, she scared the crap out of me, mostly because of her film roles. I didn’t even take the fact that she played music seriously. It wasn’t until 5 years or so ago that I decided to pick up her “Island Life” comp after reading a glowing review of a deluxe reissue of “Nightclubbing”. I was blown away by how cool her mix of sounds was, and how great her voice actually sounded. This is from her “Living My Life” album. I really like her vocal performance here. Sure the production is straight up 80’s, but I feel like the song holds up well. Even has a rather Kraftwerk synth solo in it.
