Happy newt, dear!
As promised, this mix contains a far crazier mix of songs — jazz from the good ol’ days to the modern times, soul from a similar stretch of time, chillwave from…ok, maybe not that one. But hopefully this scratches your itch for variety when the rest of the world is feeding you the same top records of 2011 (ok, that’s also not true…but you get the idea).
Not sure when the next mix will come — got some major projects I need to work on for Yours Truly, and that will be taking some time. I’ll keep my stockpile of mixable tracks building, though, and you may well hear from me sooner than I think :)
<3 | ∑>
PS - Buenos Aires ruled. Brazil didn’t happen. Mexico did. Music did. I wound up watching a friend from college (in NC) play in a hostel with his friends from Columbia (the country) and talking to a Brazilian who spoke no English and little Spanish.
PPS - For anyone new here, you can subscribe to the mixtape via email and get the mp3s in your inbox whenever a new mixtape is published.
1. Nick Waterhouse - “I Can Only Give You Everything”
Nick is one of my favorite artists to come out of SF in a while. He brings new life to soul music. Fingers crossed for lots more to come!
2. The Coasters - “Poison Ivy”
This, like many Costers tracks, is one of those songs I can barely believe got made, particularly in the era from whence it came. Perhaps most impressively, it’s a good song in its own right.
3. Audra Mae and The Almighty Sound - “Ne’er Do Wells”
I can’t tell you much about Audra (except that she has a distant family tie to Judy Garland), but I think her voice says enough for this Oklahoma City girl.
4. Summer Camp - “I Want You”
I’m hot and cold with blog darlings Summer Camp, but something about this track stuck.
5. Chairlift - “Amanaemonesia”
I was similarly hot and cold with Chairlift after their debut record, but their new tracks are blowing me away.
6. Keep Shelly In Athens - “DIY”
This is one of the more eclectic EPs to come out in a while, and it took me a minute to wrap my head around it, but in the end I think it’s highly promising and thoroughly enjoyable. Oh, and Athens is Greece, not Georgia ;)
7. Pyyramids - “That Ain’t Right”
An LA duo comprised of OK Go’s Tim Nordwind and singer Drea Smith, Pyyramids bring a sound they accurately describe as “underground pop” — there’s dirt in the keys and whiskey on the voice, but the songwriting is all there.
8. The Zombies - “She’s Not There”
I don’t think I need to write anything about The Zombies, but please enjoy this track if you haven’t heard it in a while. If you’ve never heard it, get your learn on.
9. Ernesto Djedje - “Lola”
This is the Ivory Coaster’s second appearance on a Sum The Greater mix. This isn’t his best song, by a long shot, but I was feeling in a Djedje mood and this was all Rdio and Spotify had to offer. C’mon guys! Get on those licenses!
10. Nina Simone - “Feeling Good”
I’ve been listening to a ton of Nina Simone lately. Just can’t get enough of that voice. Sadly, my mom’s reaction to this song was, “Ty, this is jazz…I HATE jazz.” She’s missing out.
11. Surfer Blood - “I’m Not Ready”
Surfer Blood’s latest EP, Tarot Classics, finds them growing up a bit from their plenty-good debut LP. They’ve lost the reverb on the vocals, they’ve gained some songwriting depth, and they’ve produced four songs that were very difficult to pick from for this mix. Can’t wait to see what’s up next for these guys, particularly now that they live in SF.
12. The Beach Boys - “Vega-Tables”
When you can do waaaaay too much acid, write a song about drugs that’s not-so-subtly veiled behind the metaphor of health and vegetables, and have it turn out this f*cking good, you’ve officially won at life. Congrats, Beach Boys. And thank you.
13. Beat Connection - “In The Water”
These dudes are from Seattle, but that’s about all I can tell ya. Sometimes they seem like a surf pop band, sometimes like electro pop. Naturally, it’s best when those two converge.
14. White Arrows - “Get Gone”
LA-based White Arrows have been getting significantly better with every release, and this is their climax thus far. I was sad to miss them playing with Races a few weeks back, but hope they’ll come around again soon.
15. High Highs - “Flowers Bloom”
These guys met in Sydney, but live in New York, and have a sound that seems to come from somewhere far away from city life.
16. Coeur de Pirate - “Someone to Watch Over Me”
I was introduced to Coeur de Pirate by this amazing Wood & Wires session video. She’s reasonably well known on the Montreal Jazz scene, but I’m a long way from that. Thank the internets.
17. Daughter - “Landfill”
I really want to post some of Daughter’s new stuff, but for whatever reason it’s not up for streaming on Rdio (though they have the artwork and track listing). Thankfully, any Daughter is good Daughter.
18. David Ruffin - “I’m So Glad I Fell For You”
I probably shouldn’t admit how much David Ruffin my friend Kramer and I listen to together. Oops.
