Tape Tuesday
Tape Tuesday: Lost in the Funhouse
I respect people who try to stay true to themselves, even when everything in the world is trying to get them to do the opposite. Completely original people, too, like Andy Kaufman who heavily inspired this tape. They say, “You are who you surround yourself with,” but sometimes you get lost. I think recently I was lost–trapped in the dark corners of my own mind. This mixtape is about how I lost myself and how I continue to fight the surrounding negative energy. It’s less sad and serious than it sounds. These 17 songs are essential summer music. Burn them on a CD, go for a drive, and get lost in the funhouse.
- Josh Record – Wonder
- Bipolar Sunshine – Rivers
- The Hard Knocks – Pocket Full of Change
- Wet – Bad Idea
- SomeKindaWonderful – Reverse
- Cave Painting – Rio
- Swim Deep – She Changes The Weather (Whitely Remix)
- Mychal Cohen – Sentimental Guy
- Cowboy Indian Bear – Let It Down
- Noname Gypsy – Sunday Morning
- SPEAK – Peaks
- Kid Astray – Hey Sister
- The Casual Tuesday – Seatbelt
- Majical Cloudz – Bugs Don’t Buzz
- Planetarian – Zoned
- PHOX – Slow Motion
- The Dear Hunter – Whisper
If it were up to me,
I would’ve remained in that dream a little later
DOWNLOAD ‘LOST IN THE FUNHOUSE’ HERE
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Tape Tuesday: Fool’s Paradise
You and me’s just a fool’s paradise.
I used to watch a lot of movies. Early in high school my dad even joked that I had watched the most movies in the world for my age. For some reason or another in the past year, I just have not made time for one of my favorite mediums of entertainment. Over spring break I decided to change this. I just sat down, disconnected myself from online society, and engaged in the lost art of watching movies–but not just any movies. I wanted to watch films that would change my life: big movies with weighty concepts and twisted ideas. Movies that could warp my perception of things in a two hour runtime and make me re-evaluate how I would approach daily scenarios. I (re)visited the works of Charlie Kaufman, Woody Allen, and briefly, the Coen Brothers. Fool’s Paradise is an amalgamation of the inspiration garnered from watching Raising Arizona, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and Manhattan. Also, as I explained to my friends, the first third is a great “turn up” playlist, and the rest is the opposite of that.
- Cold War Kids – Miracle Mile (Houses Remix)
- BenZel – Fallin’ Love (Alex Young Remix)
- KYLE – Fruit Snacks
- Phoenix – Entertainment (Blood Orange Remix)
- Andy Bull – Keep On Running
- Skizzy Mars – What Up Girl?
- CP – Spend The Night
- IYES – Glow (Demo)
- Float Fall – Someday
- Delta Spirit – California
- Mainland – Wasted
- Way Yes – Important
- Story Books – Simple Kids
- Hotel Cinema – Rabbit Hole
- Different Sleep – Get Ahead
- BenZel – Semi Detached (ft. Cass Lowe & Chance The Rapper)
- I Will, I Swear – Sleep
- Phosphorescent – Song for Zula
- The Colourist – Wishing Wells
Yeah then I saw love disfigure me / Into something I am not recognizing
DOWNLOAD ‘FOOL’S PARADISE’ HERE
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Tape Tuesday: girlshapedlovedrug
In the modern digital era we inhabit today, there are so many things going on all the time. It’s frustrating, and it’s something that affects everyone and everything–the clutter, the screens, the unanswered messages, the tweets. I think if you told God about Twitter he’d be kinda pissed, like “What the fuck is a tweet? I made you people, so you can talk to other people with your mouths!” I just think life will be difficult no matter what; why should we make it more difficult? Think about the years that could be added to your life if you stopped worrying about a girl not texting you back (after you saw the “…” of her typing) or not getting a satisfactory amount of retweets on some shit you probably should not have put on the Internet forever (hypothetical situations, of course). But really, this mixtape probably has nothing to do with what I’m saying, but it’s something I felt like I had to say.
The cover was created using a lot of pictures and edited to form a simple heart. The title is inspired by a Gomez song from back in the day.
- Darwin Deez – Chelsea’s Hotel
- The Spinto Band – Shake It Off
- Bangladesh – Lean
- Lowrider – Golden Sun
- Eden Mulholland – I Will Echo
- French Horn Rebellion – Girls (ft. JD Samson and Fat Tony)
- Darwin Deez – Redshift
- Fyfe – St. Tropez
- Dan Croll – Compliment Your Soul
- Born Ruffians – Needle
- Slow Dakota – June 4
- Homeboy Sandman – Hold Your Head
- Stroik – One More Time
- Magic Man – Paris
- MISTERWIVES – Vagabond
- Good Oak – Fill My Cup
- Whisky Winter – Heavy
‘Cause I’m not leaving, this is just the place, I’ve been homeless since the dimples on her simple face , and I’ve spent my fortune, torn this town apart to build a hotel on her heart
DOWNLOAD #GSLD HERE
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Tape Tuesday: Lay Me Down
I always find it funny when people say, “Time goes fast when you’re having fun.” Well, no, time always goes the same speed–even when Destiny’s Child has a reunion during halftime of a Super Bowl (learned that the hard way). Time is one of the few constants in our lives. That’s probably why we despise it so much, and while it is always pushing forward, people don’t necessarily have to. I think it’s healthy to occasionally remove yourself from the equation and take a look back at the past. That’s what I think ‘Lay Me Down’ means (aside from being the title of Sam Smith’s legendary debut single). It’s directed at everything that’s constantly moving around us, saying let me go for one hour to listen to this mix and then another hour to listen to it again. Now, if that didn’t make sense to you, you can go suck a dick but download this mix first and hey maybe it’ll be a good soundtrack for your dick sucking.
Every night I ask myself, ‘Am I giving enough?’
- KOTA – Masters of the Sun
- Tel Aviv – Thriller
- Theme Park – Tonight
- American Authors – Believer
- Go Beach – Lord Knows We Tried (I Know)
- Heyrocco – Elsewhere
- Beatenberg – In B Flat
- Sam Smith – Lay Me Down
- Fyfe – Solace
- Local Natives – Colombia
- Polytype – Devils Out
- Radial – Holdin’ On Together (Phoenix Cover)*
- CYMBALS – The Natural World
- Eliza and the Bear – Upon the North
- The Lawlands – Youth
- Coasts – Oceans
- Jim James – A New Life
DOWNLOAD ‘LAY ME DOWN’ HERE
[ALTERNATE LINK]
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Tape Tuesday: All The Songs That You Hate
I have always been fascinated with music that sounds happy but contains sad lyrics, so I wanted that to be a theme of this mixtape. I also wanted this to be a good hangover tape after NYE, so enjoy.
P.S. Andrew Joslyn from track 14 is Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’s violin player.
P.P.S. “Stay Close” by Flume is the official Tape Tuesday theme song.
I made a mixtape with all the songs that you hate
- San Cisco – Beach
- Urban Cone – Kings & Queens
- The Airplanes – A Summer Daydream, Part I
- Boy Kid Cloud – I Would Die for You (Prince Cover)
- Ray Bradbury – The Last Night of the World Interlude (Read by RM)
- Jack Magma – Cat Gotcha Tongue?!?
- Loon Lake – Cherry Lips
- Set Sail – Kids
- Kwes. – Rollerblades
- Leapling – Seventeen
- Carousel – Stay Awake
- Thief Urban – Closer
- Sebastian Lind – Never Let Go
- Kris Orlowski & Andrew Joslyn – All My People
- Khushi – Seven Years Old
- Freelance Whales – Aeolus
- Brolin – Another Year
- Conner Youngblood – I Gotta Feeling
- Flume – Stay Close
- Bondax – Gold
‘Cause gold is not enough, she’s a diamond, I’m the rough
DOWNLOAD ‘ALL THE SONGS THAT YOU HATE’ HERE
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Tape Tuesday: Ghosting
There are many definitions for “ghosting.” That’s why I chose it as the title for this mixtape. Ghosting is kind of everything right now. Tomorrow on election day (crazy) people will attempt to cast “ghost votes.” As the temperature gets colder and colder, we’re starting to see the water vapor we breath (also this). That’s ghosting. Most importantly, however, in college, it can be incredibly difficult not to feel like a ghost. Dragging your tired feet from class to class in silence and getting lost in a mob of your talented peers. That is ghosting, and over the past few weeks I’ve been doing a lot of that–just going through the motions without truly experiencing them. It’s a problem, and this tape really isn’t the solution. Instead, it is a peek into a day in the life of a ghost.
Oh baby, are you free now? Still living for the weekend?
- T0W3RS – Scout
- Lincoln Jesser – Silver Haze (ft. Kyle)
- The Zolas – Knot in My Heart
- Pear Shape – The Coca Cola Kid
- Alice Jemima – By Your Side
- Tim Myers & El May – Me & My Friends
- The Lighthouse and the Whaler – Chromatic
- Lukas Graham – Drunk in the Morning
- Junica – The Dream
- Theme Park – Ready for the Floor (Hot Chip Cover)
- Mikky Ekko – Pull Me Down (Prod. Clams Casino)
- From The Airport – Colors
- Ofei – London
- Benjamin Francis Leftwich – In the Open
- Neighbors – Diamonds
- Yellow Ostrich – Ghost
- Texture Like Sun – One Great Prize
DOWNLOAD ‘GHOSTING’ HERE
It’s hard and weird not to know how your day begins, so I’m lying next to someone new
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Tape Tuesday: Secret Beach
Don’t just dream in your sleep, it’s just lazy.
Secret Beach is a real place. But this mixtape isn’t about the actual place where I’ve had some of the best nights of my life. Instead, this mixtape is about the idea of a fictional Secret Beach where you can relive your greatest memories in all their glory. The main conflict of the tape is finding a balance between relishing old memories and creating new ones. The conclusion is definitely left open to interpretation about whether the protagonist moves on or chooses to stay at Secret Beach.
But hey, you might listen to these 20 songs and get a completely different story out of it. Part of what makes music so powerful is that it affects people in different ways. Secret Beach is where you can remake your own story.
In dissolution, I found beauty. How the hell have you been?
- YesYou – Half of It
- Elite Gymnastics – Andreja 4-Ever
- Lightning Love – Bobby Thompson
- Benjamin Gibbard – Teardrop Windows
- Rubblebucket – (Focus) Oversaturated
- Fantasy Rainbow – Condominium
- Another – Looking Away
- The Sweet Serenades – Moving On
- The xx – Try
- Passion Pit – On My Way
- Two Door Cinema Club – Next Year
- COIN – It’s Okay
- The Sweet Serenades – Help Me!
- Swim Deep – Honey
- Praything – Soon Soon
- Bear Mountain – Survive (Germany Germany)
- Novi Split – Hollow Notes
- Years and Years – I Wish I Knew
- Slam Donahue – Good Morning World
- ABADABAD – All The Bros Say
DOWNLOAD SECRET BEACH HERE
You’re so attractive when you’re stretched out cat-like yawning.
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Tape Tuesday: Summer’s Gone (A Flashback)
The summer between middle school and high school was a time of change (#cliché). Yet despite all of the changes, a few things remained constant. One of these constants was my friendship with Josh. We started hanging out in 7th grade, and by the summer after 8th grade, we were ready to make a movie together. The concept was simple. Summer’s Gone would be a coming-of-age story about two young filmmakers who created and submitted a film to a big festival. In the end they would get rejected because “being accepted would be too obvious,” and because they would end up “learning a valuable life lesson from the whole experience anyway.” We had this vision, and we went for it. Kind of. We made a kick-ass trailer for the movie and then moved on to another project.
When people think about the “Wonder Years” they either think about the TV show or their childhood. But for me and Josh, that summer before high school epitomized our wonder years–when we could be carefree and creative and have the time to do whatever we wanted to do. I’m sitting here in my dorm room typing this, which might be sad. But the purpose of me typing all of these words is to say that the wonder years aren’t over until you forget about them. The songs on this mix are from around the time Josh and I started making Summer’s Gone (some of them were even on the official movie soundtrack). I made this “flashback” mixtape as a way of eternalizing that summer before I forget about it, and hopefully these tracks will remind you of something important that you hope to never forget.
It feels so unnatural, Peter Gabriel too.
- Jack’s Mannequin – Holiday from Real
- Nada Surf – I Like What You Say
- Bowling for Soup – Almost
- Eve 6 - Inside Out
- Something Corporate – Drunk Girl
- Ben Kweller – Sundress
- Augustana – Boston
- Jimmy Eat World – Hear You Me
- The Killers – Read My Mind
- Keane – Spiralling
- Aqualung – Brighter Than Sunshine
- Griffin House - The Guy That Says Goodbye To You Is Out Of His Mind
- Neutral Milk Hotel - In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
- Vampire Weekend – Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (Teenagers Remix)
- Arctic Monkeys – Fluorescent Adolescent
- Spoon – You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb
- Nada Surf – If You Leave (OMD Cover)
- City and Colour – The Girl
- Matthew Perryman Jones – Save You
DOWNLOAD ‘SUMMER’S GONE’ HERE
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Tape Tuesday: Best Kind
The title “Best Kind” actually came from a really obscure line at the end of this summer’s The Amazing Spider-Man. It was when Peter Parker’s teacher told him not to make promises he can’t keep, and he said, “But those are the best kind,” with an arrogant smirk. This exchange became an inside joke between a friend and me, but over the last month, “best kind” has taken on a greater meaning. This tape was supposed to be a gushy, old-fashioned 20-song love story. I mean, the cover looks like it’s straight out of an grown-up version of Moonrise Kingdom. However, as I was compiling these tracks, the mix became something different. It was angry, rushed, hateful, depressing, and incredibly happy. It is a love story. But it could also be not that at all, depending on how you listen to it. Whatever it is, it’s a story open to interpretation that is filled with real and powerful emotions, and at the end of the day aren’t those the best kind?
When you took me by the hand and said that you would never break my heart again, I think I told you that I’d never leave, I guess that was a lie.
- Ben Howard – Old Pine (Ianborg Remix)
- Aiden Grimshaw – Curtain Call
- Air Traffic Controller – If You Build It
- Youngblood Hawke – We Come Running
- Sun City – The Follower
- Stars – Hold On When You Get Love and Let Go When You Give It
- Frank + Derol – Barely Love You Too
- Kisses – Funny Heartbeat
- Carl Barat – Run with the Boys
- NAMELESS – 7 Days in the Sun
- The Crookes – Where Did Our Love Go?
- Gypsy & The Cat – Sorry
- Chance The Rapper – Missing You
- The Eastern Sea – The Match
- The Enemy – Like A Dancer
- Air Traffic Controller – Hurry Hurry
- Milo Greene – Take A Step
- The Eastern Sea – A Lie
DOWNLOAD ‘BEST KIND’ HERE
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Tape Tuesday: Summit Sanctuary
It’s amazing just how much can happen in one month. I graduated. I spent a week in a cabin with 10 of my best friends. I went to college orientation. June was a lot of new people, places, and things mixed in with the old and familiar. I think I’m at a stage in my life where growing up is a balancing act between the new and the old, sticking with fond memories versus moving onto new experiences. “Summit Sanctuary” was the name of the cabin in which my friends and I stayed. I wanted to use this mix as a documentation of the week we spent there, a moment in time captured in a soundtrack.
There’s a question I’ve been meaning to ask you… how do you feel about Europe?
- The Lighthouse and the Whaler – Venice
- The Royal Concept – Goldrushed
- The Griswolds – Heart of a Lion
- The Royal Concept – Gimme Twice
- The Jungle Giants – She’s a Riot
- The Gunpoets – Make You Happy (ft. Maddy Walsh)
- Fresh Expresso – Bedroom
- Lee – With You
- Get Well Soon – Hold On (ft. Loui The Zu)
- Dr Dr – Get Free (Major Lazer Cover)
- Allo Darlin’ – Europe
- Slowdance – Boyfriend
- Avec Sans – Heartbreak Hi
- The Lighthouse and the Whaler – Pioneers
- The Novel Ideas – Promise
- Asaf Avidan & the Mojos – Reckoning Song
- The Milk – Everytime We Fight
DOWNLOAD ‘SUMMIT SANCTUARY’ HERE
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Tape Tuesday: Teenagers
I’m graduating on Saturday. I think graduation is a time when people want you to be both selfish and selfless. They expect you to want stuff–whether it be a whole graduation party or a freaking overly emotional parting gift. They say that this is your time, and it is. But also half of graduation is for other people. It’s a time when you let your mom fix your graduation cap for one last time. It’s a time when you endure a really boring ceremony just so your parents can have a picture of you accepting your diploma framed and sitting proudly on the mantelpiece in the family room.
My point is that I made this mix for you as much as I did for myself. I’m really kind of scared of graduation, so I stuck a lot of (new) songs that for one reason or another remind me of a specific memory from the last four years–I guess so I don’t forget. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.
You got a young heart and you’re afraid to break it off to a slow start but don’t worry I can take it, you are worth the wait and I’ve got the time
- Mouth’s Cradle – Sparks
- iFFY The Bad Man – Triumph
- Russ – Serenity
- N.A. – Sheep & Wolf
- A.Dd+ – Shit Got Crazy
- Jon Hope – Cashews
- Unouomedude – Buildings
- Carousel – Let’s Go Home
- Jesse James – Opposite
- Left Boy – Your Song (Daft Punk Rejected Mix)
- Slow Magic & Beat Culture – Once
- Trails and Ways – Nunca
- Fast Years – Young Heart
- Ninja Turtle Ninja Tiger – Spinning on Fire
- Fletcher C. Johnson – Messin’ Up My Mind
- Torches – I Want Something
- Dante – Next to You
- Tough Guys of America – SALE
- Saint Motel – 1997
DOWNLOAD ‘TEENAGERS’ HERE
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Tape Tuesday: Hot Ass Summer Day
The weather is a lot warmer now. I like that. Just the other day I almost went to the beach, which really is a promising sign. But gosh darn it, I digress. This mix isn’t about summer the season. It’s about the people you spend time with during the summertime. It’s about friends. It’s about family. It’s even about those random strangers that you meet at the beach (not the rapey kind!). This is the mix that can soundtrack your entire summer vacation and hopefully stay relevant throughout.
Let me also say that HOT ASS SUMMER DAY is dedicated to Lydia, whose birthday is today. I love Lydia. I don’t know how many times I have to say it (I think that’s the first time). She’s taught me so much in such a short amount of time and has given me such an awesome opportunity to write for Sunset in the Rearview and do things that I never thought would be possible a year ago. I literally love every second of it, so swag on that.
Please take this time now to wish Lydia happy birthday softly in your mind or on Twitter.
While I was feeling such a mess, I thought you’d leave me behind,
While I was feeling so upset, I thought the sun never shine,
Then I found forever. Hey! Hey! Love!
We’ve been best friends forever darling,
That’s what’s up!
- Maverick Sabre – Let Me Go (Welcome to HASD)
- Dieter Schaaf – Biochemistry
- Oberhofer – Away Frm U
- Vacationer – Everyone Knows
- Of Monsters and Men – Mountain Sound
- Manicanparty – Rebels in the Light
- Swim Deep – King City
- Mouth’s Cradle – The Fever
- Dana Buoy – Call to Be
- The Preachers – Take a Card
- Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros – That’s What’s Up
- Teen Mom – You and me
- The Parlotones – Honey
- The Cast of Cheers – Animals
- Last Dinosaurs – Weekend
- Chance The Rapper – Prom Night
- Sunni Colón – Shrines
DOWNLOAD ‘HOT ASS SUMMER DAY’ HERE
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