In the Background: Camp Lo

It is a matter of some lore that my first engineering project was getting the stereo system to record Rap City while it looked like I was watching Duck Tales. The rap has always been an influence on my style, but there are some gems that just stand out above the rest. Everything about this is and has been cool. I wore this album out twice, you should too.

Mixtape 2010: Thriving In Ambiguity

Every year (except last) I produce a mixtape of my favorite songs for the holidays. This is the fourth edition and by far the most laborious and exciting. All of the original artwork is from NASA or Illustrator, printed on high res paper with an ink jet. It is late but hopefully awesome. The tracklist follows:

1. 4/28/67 part 2 – Skipp Coon
2. You – Gold Panda
3. Not In Love – Crystal Castles (ft. R. Smith)
4. Helicopter – Deerhunter
5. Chinatown – Wild Nothing
6. Marathon – Tennis
7. Wilderness – Active Child
8. Lucidity – Tame Impala
9. 10 Miles – Beach House
10. 32 Leaves dipped – Shabazz Palaces
11. Carolina – Girls
12. Excuses (Yours Truly) – Morning Benders

My favorite song of the year is definitely Not In Love. The albums I listened to most (according to iTunes) were Active Child and Wild Nothing, but the Black Keys’ album was not far behind. Such a good year, for me, my growing family, and music. Cheers!

Streaming the Archives

Streaming records from Pates Tapes. Archiving the most interesting bits of our past like this is very exciting. I am not sure how else we will get to hear some of these classic recordings. Then again the mystique of hunting down a rare song, discovering it, and then listening to it at your leisure is an experience unto itself. I remember the first time I went to a concert being disappointed by how much access I now had to the reality of the band. They were just guys who were exceedingly talented, but the end just guys. But in my headphones they transcended the world I was listening to them on. For me perhaps all this obsession with transparency and access is perhaps detrimental to the actual experience of music, et. al. I am still listening to it though.