Tell Me, What's It All Mean?: What You Should Have Heard #50

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

What You Should Have Heard #50

My Mix CDs

I’ve got a lot of music but limited space to hold it in, especially in my car. So I’ve gone the old tried-and-true way of making mix CDs to have access to as many bands as possible while driving. I’m going slightly old-school since I’m a bit backwards and have no iPod.

Most of the songs will be more upbeat, with probably only the occasional ballad or slower song included. I like to sing in the car, and the more upbeat songs are more fun to sing.

I’ll be going in alpha-numeric order with these, so if you’re wanting to argue with me about what Weezer songs should be included, you’re going to be waiting for a while.

My only limitations are that I use 80 min. discs, and I’m only going to use one disc per band/artist. I will make exceptions for only my most favorite bands with huge playlists (Foo Fighters and Self, off the top of my head), but I’d really like to boil everything down to just one disc.

Here’s the list guide:

Track # - Song Name - Album Name [Artist if album is by a different artist]

Linkin Park Mix CD

It’s Goin’ Down – Built from Scratch [X-Ecutioners]
Papercut – Hybrid Theory
One Step Closer – Hybrid Theory
Points of Authority – Hybrid Theory
Crawling – Hybrid Theory
In the End – Hybrid Theory
Place for My Head – Hybrid Theory
Forgotten – Hybrid Theory
High Voltage – Hybrid Theory
Don’t Stay – Meteora
Lying from You – Meteora
Faint – Meteora
Figure.09 – Meteora
Breaking the Habit – Meteora
Nobody is Listening – Meteora
Given Up – Minutes to Midnight
Bleed It Out – Minutes to Midnight
Standing in the Middle – Underground v4.0
Dirt Off Your Shoulder/Lying from You – Collision Course
Big Pimpin’/Papercut – Collision Course
Jigga What/Faint – Collision Course
Numb/Encore – Collision Course
Izzo/In the End – Collision Course
Points of Authority/99 Problems/One Step Closer – Collision Course

A few notes on Linkin Park:

Thirty-two tracks and 107 minutes at the first cut. This one is going to be trickier than I thought it would. I’ve got the entirety of Collision Course, the mash-up album with Jay-Z, on here, and I’d like to keep it, but remixes are usually what I get rid of first. Hmm.
I ended up getting rid of a few songs that I liked musically, but not lyrically or vocally (“Numb,” “What I’ve Done,” “No Roads Left” for example).
I think LP works best when they’re pushing the tempo, pushing the beats, and really pumping the listener up. “Bleed It Out” from Minutes to Midnight really illustrates this, I think. I love the way that song is put together.
When I first started listening to LP in college, I always had it in my mind that they were like a next-generation 311. They’re kind of like the younger, more hyper brother to the laid back and easy-going 311.
Vocally, I prefer Mike Shinoda over Chester Bennington. I guess that’s why I put “It’s Goin’ Down” by the X-Ecutioners on here. It features Shinoda, and it’s awesome.
I’m a huge fan of mash-ups, especially when they’re well done. And really, you can’t get a more well-done track than one (or an entire EP) produced by the people who are actually being mashed up. DJ Dangermouse did something great with The Grey Album, his mash-up of Jay-Z’s black album and The Beatles’ white album, but Collision Course is better.