WARMER MIXTAPES #21 | by Daniel Gustafson of The Weather

So here's my mixtape. It's called Ten Songs That Broke My Heart.

1. The Appleseed Cast | Hello Dearest Love
I have this powerful memory of me lying down in a bed, midnight on DeHaro Street in San Francisco (my home away from home), listening to the record from which this track is taken. I'd bought the album a couple of days earlier, listened to it and didn't really think that much about it. Then, with the sirens wailing from the street outside setting the scene, lying on my own with thoughts that at the time seemed big and relevant flying around in my head I just got blown away by this song. I love the powerful drums that opens the song and the guitars are all over the place. I love these guys.

2. Broken Social Scene | Anthems For A Seventeen Year-Old Girl
I remember having this monstrous crush on a girl a couple of years back. It was, with hindsight, fucking stupid. At the time I just spent a lot of time lying down on floors with my headphones on, listening to one of the very few songs by Broken Social Scene that (let's be honest now people) aren't just six minutes of pretentious crap backed by a billion instruments. Six years later I'm happy that I chose this song as the soundtrack to this era of confusion because by doing so it was time well spent after all. This shit grows on you. You've been warned.

3. Buck | Killing Tamara In A Sound World
This is probably the best band to come out of Sweden ever and still no one seems to know about them. Which just makes me sad. Anyway, this is just moody feelings and happiness thrown together in a blender and let loose as milkshake minutes later. I love it. The drummer bangs away like his life depends on it, the guitars are just a wall of lo-fiesque beauty and the melody towards the end is just so god damn beautiful that I've lost track of how many times I've been walking home midnight, listening to this track on repeat and feeling that I really don't give a fuck about love since music like this is a perfectly viable option.

4. Mogwai | Kids Will Be Skeleton
No band manages to mix loudness and tenderness like Mogwai. That's just the way it is and it makes you forget them for their horrible good song versus bad song ratio. I love the way the guitars keep things simple and slowly moves towards the crescendo – that really isn't a crescendo per se but more like a storm trapped in a confined area. It's mellow and so moody you know you want to have this on your iPod the day that she decides to break up with you. Because she will. Eventually.

5. Nada Surf | Fools
This song and missing someone who I'd just thrown away kept me in a state of insomnia for two weeks while being in Beijing a year ago. Night after night I stayed up, listening to this song, over and over. It's simple, yet powerful and I'm amazed that Nada Surf never put this
on their The Weight Is A Gift album and instead opted to add it as a b-side thing. Yeah, that's right, N-a-d-a S-u-r-f. For those of you who thought that they were little more than their MTV-hit Popular, think again. These guys keep on putting out mighty fine records. And you'd be a fool not keeping track of them. Anyway, this one's for you Louise. I'm more sorry than you'd ever imagine.

6. The Promise Ring | Red & Blue Jeans
This song might actually be off topic since it's about love of the good kind. But since the kings of emotional indie rock have crafted it, it still works out great as a I-miss-you-like-hell-give-me-one-more-chance-song when you really do need it the most. Although I have a weak spot for smart and witty lyrics I do think that sometimes less indeed is more. This is a great example of a song just like that as you could fit the lyrics on your fingernail (not really) and somehow the words still feel relevant and honest. Even though it's about underwear. Sort of. Go figure.

7. South | Here On In
I have no clue who these guys are. I just know that their label tried to put this album out three times without it catching on. Which is fair since it sucks – with one absolutely brilliant exception. If you're looking for a song to put on a mixtape for someone you secretly adore, this is it. Even if they don't pick up on the message hidden, they're bound to at least enjoy the song anyway. And if they don't...Well don't bother. Plus, the drumming is great on this one.

8. The Weakerthans | Left & Leaving
I remember checking these guys at when they first visited Stockholm sometime back in the late 90's. I knew that it was that guy from Propagandhi and his new outfit, but not a whole lot more than that. It turned out to be one of the best shows that I've experienced so far. This song have since that very evening been a classic to find comfort in when people, life and other irrational factors give you lemons. Buy the album. Now.

9. Wilco | I Am Trying To Break Your Heart
Not only is this one of the best songtitles in the history of music it is also one of those songs that you want to have stuck in the back of your head while drinking overpriced whiskey in an overpriced bar at an overpriced hotel in an overpriced country somewhere. I've done this a couple of times and it was, uhm, depressing. But in a good, Lost-In-Translationish kind of way. Oh, one last thing – the live version of this song, taken from the album Kicking Television is just a tad bit better than the studio cut. So choose accordingly.

10. Jimmy Eat World | Goodbye Sky Harbor
I hate Christmas Eve. For years I used to spend that night just driving around, listening to music to pass the time. I've lost count on how many times this very song got looped in that very car on that very evening, every year. What's great about it is that the moody feeling comes wrapped in a sugar coated cover that adds hope to the mix. I like that. It's also very apparent that they just threw in the first two minutes of music and then focused on the next wicked fourteen minutes where layer after layer builds something that's just so much better, brighter and bigger than anything else recorded at that time. Ten years have passed and it still sounds fresh, modern och powerful. Which is ironic since their label back then wasn't very pleased with the result and the band threatened to break up unless they didn't gain the additonal funds needed to finish the record.