Okay, so for starters it turns out that I had the song order right to begin with, meaning the mix just happens to begin with songs from the beginning of their respective albums and gradually moving backward throughout the tracklist. Does this mean my partner didn’t bother to reorganize at all, or is it just a coincidence? Either way, it runs fairly smoothly.
1. Oh my, this is already too much. Sustained, rythmic piano chords, an (enya feel with the cello) leads into a pretty saccharine keane/one republic vibe radio ballad. I already see swooning teenage girls, and it hasn’t hit the chorus yet. Ahh, there it goes. Well produced, car-ride singalong fare. But in all honestly, it does nothing for me. Pretty much a song I’ve heard everyday for years through different singers on my soft-pop/alternative radio station at home. I find that I take exception to virtually any song in which the singer glorifies himself. “You’re gonna have all of me, cause you’re worth every falling tear, you’re worth facing any fear…let me wrecklessly love you...you’re gonna know all my love… etc etc”
2. Glistening, chiming fading in…oh god. Sorry, but every part of me wants to skip this track. I was really hoping there were numerous songs with the title ‘all the angels’. Absurdly overplayed and kitschy imho. Sorry if I’m being mean, but just being honest. It’s kind of like putting ‘closing time’ by semi-sonic, or wonderwall on a playlist.
3. Haha, okay. Dance tonight by Paul Mccartney. Even after the ipod ad, I took a bizarre liking to this song, even listened through the album a few times some years ago. I’m genuinely nodding and enjoying it, actually. Nice pick.
4. Similar beginning to the first track. Smoltsy chiming piano, and a bland keane-esque voice. Wait a minute…is this keane? Yes? No? maybe not. Probably not. Has a hopes and fears vibe at times. The chorus melody is nice, but also many of the same things I disliked about the first song. Hate the lyrics…they’re like Chris Martin at his worst (haha, as I type this he sings about Christmas lights). If I don’t get hung up on the details, it’s well produced and would sound lovely on a piano.
5. Voices saying ‘Santa maria, Santa Teresa…’ sounds a bit like Eno’s Apollo in the background. Pops of classical guitar and a light rythm. Strings now. Interesting. Female voice enters. Sort of Disney-ish or new-agey, but I’m enjoying the atmosphere. Calling all angels. Interesting title given the train song of before. Interest dwindles toward the end with the chorus repeating, but still enjoyable enough.
6. Arpeggiated clean guitar. Maybe it’s my experience at a Christian college, but the whole close to the mic, radio singer-songwriter, male taylor-swift vibe is just something I don’t care for. I have a feeling this doesn’t bode well for the rest of the tape. Just by the sound of it, I’m guessing its Christian rock (yeah, caught a glimpse of the artist). Not your fault that I’ve been at war with the stuff for four years.
7. Soft guitar and singing in the yusef islam style. Voice is a bit over-stressed and dramatic, but not bad so far. Ah, and here comes the big emotional weepy chorus with rising violins. At the same time I recognize a point in time when I would’ve submitted to the pull of these types of songs with head bowed. There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with this song, just too cloying for me now.
8. Rushes straight into some type of chorus. Feels like a pretty decent recent-era ‘the killers’ imitation. Brandon Flowers would love this. Okay so far, curious where this could possibly go, seeing how the high point seems to have passed. Entertaining fade out. Cool beans.
9. TINGLY PIANO :D
And some 80s crunchy guitar. Whiny male voice per usual. “If I had two hands doing the same thing. Lifting high, lifting high…” :shrug: As usual, I take exception to such predictable songs. This one keeps the same formula as pretty much everything before it. There are other ways to write songs. I know nothing in this song will impress or surprise me as I keep listening.
10. Back to clean, reverberated arpeggiated 4-chord guitar riffs. Similar voice to
several others on this mix. A female voice somewhere there as well. Ooh, synthy chorus. I like this melody. ‘You will never walk alone’ (no, a different one). Could do without some frills. The high-pitched echoing male voice is particularly irking. One of the better songs on the mix, though. I would probably enjoy this more if I didn’t have contemporary Christian kicked out of my system. Nice song though, a comfortable listen.
11. Harpish capoed guitar, or maybe a mandolin or ukulele or something. Leads into a high-pitched voice, and a warm arpeggiated riff. Don’t mind it so far, good singer. And here comes the big radio chorus again. I quite like the instrumentals. Very nicely produced, the verse percussion and strings are great.
12. Acoustic guitar, another 4-chord progression, but a bit more relaxed. Decent voice. Some curious atmospherics. “Amie, come sit on my wall…” Chords get a bit more complicated, a little more interesting as it goes along. Many of these songs are bit overdone, with all the strings arrangements in the choruses. But this one is used effectively. The fade out is beautiful.
13. Another acoustic guitar, and another close-up douche-bag (excuse the term, you’ll understand in college) guitarist musing on love. Yeah, can’t take this seriously on any level. Sorry.
14. Cool synths fade-in. Oh yes, MLK by U2. Kudos. I love this album to death.
15. Violins. Chiming piano. Enter softly strummed high-capo guitar and emotional whiny male singer, but he has a decent voice, and fits in nicely with the elaborate arrangement and tinkly frills. For chorus description, see above. Enjoyable though.
16. Warm reverb guitar and synths. I like the intro. Pulsing beat, some glockenspiel and background noise. I would hate for a whiny male singer to ent…oh shit. Voice is actually pretty good, he can handle high notes. Song far from ruined. On a certain level I’m really really enjoying this. Less ostentatious than some other tracks. Nicely done.
17. Ooh, Harold Budd style piano chords. Shimmering violins and light percussion. Really nice instrumental so far. Easily one of my favorites on the mix. Ending on a pretty positive stretch.
18. Whoops, there’s more. Piano again, a slow waltz rythm and some backwards loops. High, nice female voice. Blending in with the plink of celeste and piano. Smooth major chord progressions. No complaints here. Nice closer.
After the final listen, I’m guessing the order was deliberate, as it flows quite nicely. Obviously some trouble dealing with particular brands of songs. These mixes often force me into a retroactive mindset, to where I’m forced to tap into an older teenage me, to appreciate what are by no means bad songs. That is to say, I don’t mean to be a snob, and if anything this tape reminded me of a musical perspective I had quite forgotten since early college. In that regard, this was definitely a successful tape, and I seriously enjoyed several songs. Altogether, I’m grateful for the work you put into it. Thanks again!