CC Love: Innocent Bandits
The band Innocent Bandits is comprised of brother and sister duo Jeremy and Ashley Macachor. I would place them under experimental pop/lo-fi, but on their first studio album Ceremonies & Spells, released under the net label Headphonica, there are elements of electronica, and at times even folk. I found myself listening to the album from beginning to end upon discovering them, and after listening to other tracks out of order, I found that listening to the album from start to finish is best to really get Jeremy and Ashley’s style.
Don’t get me wrong: each track can be listened on it’s own, but I just loved listening to the album in the background. It was interesting, relaxing, and just a comfortable listen. While this is their first album attempt, I would say it has it’s moments of greatness. Some tracks could have been longer and one I found some of the added elements were a little too much, but overall it’s a nice find among a lot of attempts in the same genre.
Tagged: Creative Commons, Downloads, Duo, Electronica, Experimental Pop, Folk, Freebies, Indie, lo-fi, Netlabel, Pop
Raver’s Delight
I’ve been going through a lot of my old mix CD’s lately and I started reminiscing on the days when I used to be a raver. In the 90′s, I not only frequented raves, but I promoted them as well. I could be found wearing baggy pants and funny tees, with my pacifier and glow sticks in hand, dancing to the some of the best breakbeats, jungle, trance, and house that was around. When you were lost in the music – and possibly on drugs – you were literally in another world.
I decided to make a mixtape via 8tracks with some of the top songs I remember sweating my ass off to in clubs across South Florida and still enjoy today. Coming in at 20 tracks, this is a mix that not only delivers classic rave songs, but takes me back to a place where I have some of the best memories as well as some of the worst. With that being said, it’s a time in my life that I will never forget and these songs are just as memorable.
For all you reformed ravers, this mix will bring you back. If you never were a raver but enjoyed electronic music from the 90′s and early 2000′s, this mixtape will hopefully give you something to jam to.
Track listing:
Time’s Up (The Bomb Remix) – Trip Theory
Busy Child – Crystal Method
Rock The Funky Beat - Natural Born Chillers
Renegade Master (Fatboy Slim Old Skool Edit) – Wildchild
Sugar Is Sweeter – CJ Bolland
The Freaks – Überzone
City Of Groove - DJ Icey
Smack My Bitch Up (DJ Hype Remix) – The Prodigy
You’re Not Alone (Ganga Kru Remix) – Olive
O.B.E. – Rabbit In The Moon
Fever – George Acosta
Beachball (DJ Icey Remix) – Nalin & Kane
Miracle Whip (Breakbeat Mix) – Fragma
I’ll Hide You (Acapella Intro) – Kosheen
Stay In Love (12 Inch Hot House) – MON a Q
Rollin’ With The Chillers – Natural Born Chillers
Bad Ass – Micky Finn & Aphrodite
Pepper Spray – DJ Baby Anne
Feels So Good – Sonique
Fine Night - DJ R Fresh
If you like any of the songs listed above, support the artist by purchasing them.
Image courtesy of Astro Marus
CC Love: Micoland & Holly Bretton
The electronic/trip-hop/dubstep duo Micoland & Holly Bretton are siblings who have released their first album together titled Traverse. Currently signed with Dead Channel, this duo knows how to crank out the tunes and is worthy of being on any electronica playlist. If you like Massive Attack, Portishead, or Lamb, you will love Micoland & Holly.
Tagged: Creative Commons, Downloads, Downtempo, Dubstep, Electronic, Electronica, Freebies, Trip-Hop
Love Is A Battlefield
The title of this post is a song by Pat Benatar, but you won’t find her on this mixtape. Featuring an eclectic mix of female singers, my latest mixtape has a little bit of folk and a little bit of electronica, but it’s all about labia majora.
All the songs on this mixtape are by female singer-songwriters, but that is about all they have in common. Between Laura Marling and The Blow to Mirah and Julie Doiron, this mix is a great showcase of female singers who break the mold and stand out in their own genres. Kick back, relax, and get ready to think about falling in love or out; it all depends on where the song goes.
Track listing:
Swan Pond – Julie Doiron
Love Affair – Regina Spektor
Ghosts - Laura Marling
Fuck Was I – Jenny Owens Young
Gestation Of The Sacred Beetle – Mirah and The Spectratone International
Tore My Heart – Oona
The Garden – Mirah
True Affection – The Blow
Sunday – Sia
My Party Is Better Than Yours – Emmy The Great
If you like any 0f the songs listed above, support the artist by purchasing them.
Image courtesy of manganite via Flickr
Tagged: Electronica, Female, Folk, Indie, Mix, Pop, Rock, Singer-Songwriter
The Best Badass Music of 2009
The year of 2009 is almost over and it’s time for me to list some of my favorite songs that came out this year. I could never list all my favorites because there is just so much great stuff so I chose 25 songs from different genres that I think are just fantabulous. From Silversun Pickups to Metric and from Eels to Neko Case, this mixtape has some of the greatest songs of 2009.
In no particular order, here is a mix of a tiny taste of my favorite tracks of 2009. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. As always, the full track listing is below.
Track listing:
This Tornado Loves You – Neko Case
Heads Will Roll – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Bulletproof – La Roux
My Love – The Bird and The Bee
I Can Transform Ya – Chris Brown feat. Lil’ Wayne & Swizz Beatz
Shine Blockas – Big Boi feat. Gucci Mane
Deadbeat Summer – Neon Indian
Stillness Is The Move – Dirty Projectors
Fallin’ For You – Colbie Caillat
Little Bird – Eels
Game of Diamonds – Deerhunter
Uprising – Muse
Show Stopper – Peaches
My Girls – Animal Collective
Help I’m Alive (Acoustic) – Metric
Catch And Release - Silversun Pickups
Cheerleader – Grizzly Bear
Need You Now – Lady Antebellum
Heartbreak Warfare – John Mayer
Chasing Pirates – Norah Jones
Pretty Wings – Maxwell
Fireflies – Owl City
Haven’t Met You Yet – Michael Bublé
Cosmic Love – Florence And The Machine
Hyph Mngo – Joy Orbison
If you like any 0f the songs listed above, support the artist by purchasing them.
Photo courtesy of Flickr via Benoit.P
Tagged: Alternative, Electronica, Favorite, Folk, Hip-Hop, Indie, Mix, Pop, R&B, Rap, Rock, Singer-Songwriter
Blowin’ Your Cover
It’s finally here! By popular demand, another mixtape featuring cover songs that are just fucking awesome. Everything from reggae to acoustic and R&B to Jazz, these 24 tracks cover everything! A few of the artists featured are ortoPilot, Emmy The Great, and Alphabeat.
I hope you enjoy this mix. You can find the first cover mixtape here. Cheers!
Track listing:
Black & Gold – Katy Perry, Original by Sam Sparro
Where is my Mind? – Emmy The Great, Original by Pixies
No Woman, No Cry – Xavier Rudd, Original by Bob Marley
Ms. Jackson – The Vines, Original by Outkast
Don’t Speak – Leela James, Original by No Doubt
Hallelujah – ortoPilot, Original by Leonard Cohen
Every Breath You Take – UB40, Original by The Police
Total Eclipse of the Heart - Trash Pour 4, Original by Bonnie Tyler
What I Got – Shannon Campbell, Original by Sublime
Happy Together – Simple Plan, Original by The Turtles
Summertime – Stereophonics, Original by George Gershwin
Take On Me – Reel Big Fish, Original by a-ha
If You Leave – Nada Surf, Original by OMD
Fever – Meiko, Original by Little Willie John
Tyrone – My Morning Jacket, Original by Erykah Badu
Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now – MYMP, Original by Starship
Cello Song – The Books feat. Jose Gonzalez, Original by Nick Drake
Digital Love – Alphabeat, Original by Daft Punk
Mercy – The Fratellis, Original by Duffy
Tainted Love – Duffy, Original by Soft Cell
Sea of Love - Cat Power, Original by Phil Phillips and The Twilights
Imagine – Jack Johnson, Original by John Lennon
Mad World – Gary Jules, Original by Tears For Fears
Something – Radiohead, Original by The Beatles
If you like any 0f the songs listed above, support the artist by purchasing them. You can also leave a comment with your favorite song. If I’m feeling nice, you may get a surprise in your inbox.
Photo courtesy of ladybird_77.
Rockstar Geeks Who Wave & Tweet
Last week I asked some of the people I follow on Twitter to humor me and play a game. In Google Wave, I invited all of them to participate in a little game that was part “get to know you”, part “get to know Wave”, and all fun.
Tagged: Classical, Electronic, Electronica, Folk, Fun, Google Wave, Hair Band, Indie, Meme, Musicians, Pop, R&B, Rock, Social Media, Tweet, Twitter
Female Electronica
I decided to go with female electronica with my latest mixtape. There is something very sexy about women and downtempo/trip-hop music. This mix is great if you want to put something on and just chillout. A few artists featured are Halou, Crustation, & 8mm.
I hope you enjoy the mix!
Track Listing:
Honeythief – Halou
Purple – Crustation
Stunning – 8mm
No One Else – Natalie Walker
Drama 73 – Airlock
Broken Bridge – Daughter Darling
2 Wicky – Hooverphonic
Numb – Portishead
Love Again – Baxter
Hunter – Bjork
I Can’t Help Myself – Moloko
Memories – Soma Sonic
Telepathy – Emiliana Torrini
Fleur de Saison – Emilie Simon
If you like any of the songs, you can support the artist by purchasing them. 
Wanna make your own mixtape? Check out 8tracks.com. You can also follow me on 8tracks.
Truly, Madly, Bloody – Music from True Blood
I’m a huge fan of the HBO television series True Blood, based on the The Southern Vampire Mysteries book series by Charlaine Harris. While the show is awesome, the music they choose week after week is phenomenal. Between country to electronic, the show never fails to pick the perfect music to compliment each episode.
Which means what? Well, it means that I am far overdue on making a mixtape of some great songs featured on the series! I’ve included some of my personal favorites from season one and two. For someone who hasn’t seen this fantastic show, I highly recommend it. For those of you who are already fans, be prepared to feast on some bloody good tunes.
Track Listing:
Bad Things – Jace Everett
Sweet Jane – Cowboy Junkies
The Forgotten People – Thievery Corporation
Timebomb – Beck
Two – Ryan Adams
Death Trip – Bad Livers
Escape From Dragon House - Dengue Fever
Sex and Candy – Marcy Playground
Half Of You – Cat Power
Day Too Soon – Sia
Until I Wake Up – Dishwalla
Trouble – Ray LaMontagne
Bleeding Love – Leona Lewis
If you like any of the songs listed above, please support the artist by purchasing them.
Wanna make your own mixtape? Check out 8tracks.com. You can also follow me on 8tracks.
Tagged: Books, Country, Electronica, Folk, Pop, Rock, True Blood, TV, World
Acoustically Delicious
I personally love acoustic music. There is something special about hearing a song stripped bare and let’s you focus on the words and emotion of the singer. An acoustic version can make a song sound entirely new and refreshing. It also exposes the singers who use a lot of studio cleanup to make them sound better than they are.
I’ve included 16 tracks of acoustic songs, whether by the original artist or a cover by someone else. The common thread between all these songs is that they include the singer and the instrument, nothing more. A few artists included is Kim Carnes, Pete Du Pon, and Dido. Full track listing below.
If you are interested in some other great acoustic songs, check out my Cover Me Crazy mixtape.
Track listing:
Here With Me – Dido
Days Go By – Dirty Vegas
Bette Davis Eyes – Kim Carnes
Don’t Fear The Reaper – Blue Oyster Cult
Learn To Fly – Foo Fighters
Drive – Incubus
Ashes – KT Tunstall
Fly Away – Lenny Kravitz
Disease – Matchbox 20
She Will Be Loved – Maroon 5
Torn – Natalie Imbruglia
So Sick – Passion (original by Ne-Yo)
Basket Case - Pete Du Pon (original by Green Day)
Possession – Sarah McLachlan
No Woman, No Cry – Xavier Rudd (original by Bob Marley)
Hanging By A Moment – Lifehouse
If you like any of the songs listed above, support the artist by purchasing them.
Mash it up!
Since I did a mashup of my theme, why not do a mashup mixtape as my next mix? I’ve been long overdue anyways, so here we go!
15 tracks of mashup goodness rolled into one fabulous mixtape. DJ Earworm, A Plus D, Lobersterdust, and some other hot mashups I found laying around the internets. Hit play and crank that volume!
If you like any of the songs, leave a comment with a valid email address and I’ll send it over. Don’t feel guilty: all these songs are free to download.
Tagged: Bastard Pop, Bootleg, Electronica, Hip-Hop, Mashup, Pop, Rap, Remix, Retro, Rock
The Downtempo Chill
Hey! Hey! It’s been long time (a whole friggin’ month!) since I made a mixtape for you guys, so here it is. This mix is 11 tracks of downtempo/chillout goodness. Artists include Massive Attack, Zero 7, Moby, Global Communication, Goldfrapp, Thievery Corporation, Air, Björk, Lamb, Hooverphonic, & Portishead. Ch-ch-check it out!
Tracks featured:
Black Milk – Masssive Attack
Inhaler – Hooverphonic
Hyperballad – Björk
Crystalline Green – Goldfrapp
Beautiful Drug – Thievery Corporation
Photograph – Air
Alice – Moby
Glory Box – Portishead
In The Waiting Line – Zero 7
8:07 – Global Communication
Heaven – Lamb
If you like any of the songs listed above, support the artist by purchasing them.
Tagged: Chillout, Downtempo, Electronica, Trip-Hop
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