WARMER MIXTAPES #50 | by James Scott Tamborello [Dntel/James Figurine] of Figurine, Strictly Ballroom, Headset, Antihouse, Sana Shenai and The Postal Service
1. Berntholer | My Suitor
When people ask me what my favorite song ever is I usually say this. The ratio between how much stuff is going on in a song vs. how much it affects me emotionally has a lot to do with my appreciation for music. I love when a song is really minimal but each detail is really important and moving.
2. Jack Nitzsche | Starman Leaves/End Title (Starman Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
I’ve used variations on this melody in almost every project I’ve ever worked on. I was probably around 19 years old and my roommate and I turned on the TV and Starman was just ending, the credits rolled and this song came on. We were both mesmerized. I didn’t even actually see the whole movie until a couple years later (it’s good).
3. Brian Eno | (An Ending) Ascent
A friend put this song on a mixtape. I was listening to it while driving to work and as I drove through an intersection I imagined another car crashing into me and me dying in the wreck as this song played. It was the start of my obsession with good songs to die to.
4. Aphex Twin | Xtal
When I got interested in making electronic music I was always intimidated by the glossy production on most rave tracks I was listening to. Then I heard this song, it was so good but so lo-fi, it sounded like it was recorded on a bad cassette (it probably was). It encouraged me to keep making music and changed my idea of what was acceptable to release to the public.
5. My Bloody Valentine | To Here Knows When
In high school I was listening to Loveless and I fell asleep and the music worked its way into my dreams. I’ve always remembered that as one of my favorite musical experiences, the way the already dreamy music warped in my sleep.
6. Big Star | Holocaust
I love sad music and this is one of the saddest songs…
7. Ennio Morricone | The Good, The Bad And The Ugly (Main Title) (The Good, The Bad And The Ugly Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
My brother and I had this record when we were little and we used to dance to it with our friends and act it out. I rebought it a few years ago and was surprised by how weird the production is.
8. This Mortal Coil | Song To The Siren
I love the Cocteau Twins and Elizabeth Fraser’s voice, and this song is so sparse, it’s almost accapella. It’s nice to hear her voice come out from all that Cocteau swirling.
9. Popol Vuh | Brüder Des Schattens - Söhne Des Lichts
I discovered Popol Vuh through watching Werner Herzog’s movies so all of their music conjures really great visual memories. But I feel like if I had heard their music before I saw the movies they would still have brought similar visions into my head.
10. Eyeless In Gaza | Invisibility
I love Martyn Bates’ voice, especially on this song. He walks a line between pretty and scary. This is another example of my stuff vs. emotional impact ratio…
