WARMER MIXTAPES #195 | by Erik De Vahl

1. Lambchop | Caterpillar
I once tried to write a novel with this song as a soundtrack. I deleted everything from my computer by mistake and perhaps that was for the best. This song and the record Is A Woman meant a lot to me a couple of months when I was unemployed and miserable in Oslo. A couple of years later I started to understand what it was really about.

2. The Triffids | Save What You Can
I've been listening a lot to the Triffids lately but this song have been following me for many years. I like the sad contrast to the early singles. It's a beautiful song about leaving and I don't think I understand it.

3. My Favorite | 17 Berlin
This song makes me both sad and pleased that I'm not 17 anymore. Real good music is always better than literature and this song feels like a a sharp knife to me.

4. Soft Machine | A Certain Kind
This song is for Lisa and takes the sting out of all the madness in the world.

5. John Phillips | Topanya Conyon
This is my idea of vacation. Vacation is always best achieved through a lazy song in your mp3-player at work. It never gets as laid back and cool as John Phillips when it comes down to the real thing.

6. Elvis Costello | Human Hands
Costello's early records are usually my Friday joy at work. I love the mix of desperation and kockyness. This might be one of my favourite songs ever and I like read a lot into the lyrics.

7. Paddy McAloon And Jimmy Webb | The Highwayman
This is too good for music. The epic claims of the song almost kills it, but I just can't stop listening. Music has a lot to learn from this, I think.

8. Michelle Phillips | Aching Kind
There's nothing more sad than sadness wrapped in the easy joy of staying alive and doing it quite well. When I discovered this song early this winter it felt like a summer rain. If I'm ever gonna try to figure out why sad music makes me happy I will probably start with this song.

9. Lone Pigeon | Unkonown Yesterday
I realized that I had forgotten why I do like music when I got this song from a friend a couple of weeks ago. It's easy, important and hard to get a grip of.

10. Phil Ochs | No More Songs
A magnificent farewell song. If I were just a little bit more pretentious and actually care about it, this would be the song I wanted to be played at my funeral.