WARMER MIXTAPES #1637 | by Patrick Murphy and Luke Brickett Haycock of VIOLET
SIDE A | by Luke Brickett Haycock
1. The Beach Boys | Surf's Up
Massively into The Beach Boys at the moment and every time I hear the chord change and the rising melody halfway through this song I get shivers, beautifully crafted. Kind of sums up the genius of Brian Wilson in a song.
2. Elliott Smith | Coast To Coast
I got shown this about 2 years ago and I hated his voice, but a couple months later after it got played a few more times I listened in my own time and fell in Love with it and subsequently Elliott Smith and ever since he’s been one of my favourite artists ever (either/or is in my top 3 albums).
3. Oasis | Supersonic
I guess I’m Madferrit? I found a piece of paper from when I was about 8 with Suppersonic [sic] as my favourite song written on it and I have always loved it ever since, no idea why, can’t help it.
4. The Vines | Autumn Shade II
The Vines’ slow stuff is so underrated, Craig Nicholls can write a beautiful melody, every installation of Autumn Shade is great.
5. The Beatles | Sun King
When I was in sixth form I’d go into the Computer Room and listen to Abbey Road in its entirety like three times a day, I was obsessed. I remember when the harmonies came in during the song and I was just fascinated, really changed my whole perception of Music, had 0 interest in backing vocals until this song.
6. Verve | Star Sail
Nick McCabe is a certified genius. His guitar sounds are so amazing he makes the band, this is a proper wall of Sound and one of the most amazing vocalists singing a melody that compliments the Music perfectly. The first Verve album is Absolute Perfection.
7. The Smashing Pumpkins | Thru The Eyes Of Ruby
This is the song that really got me into Smashing Pumpkins, I love that it can go from a huge wall of Sound right down to Ambient Nothingness in a second, The Verve do a similar thing and I just think it’s so captivating.
8. Alice In Chains | No Excuses
I’d listen to AIC unplugged every day a few years back, after Nutshell and Brother came this and the chorus just hit me, the harmony is so perfect and the note change is so perfect, Sap is my favourite thing Alice In Chains did.
9. The Brian Jonestown Massacre | What You Isn’t
I saw BJM live about 3 years ago without ever listening to them and I heard this, it was this massive wall of Sound with great Melancholy melody in a way... I spent days waiting for the setlist to find out which track it was and ever since it’s always been one of my favourite songs ever.
10. Emma Ruth Rundle | Protection
Just something I’m really into at the moment, again, similar to The Verve and Smashing Pumpkins, this song goes from beautifully Ambient into one the most powerful Melancholy wall of Sounds I’ve ever heard. She’s amazing live too, it’s even bigger, she’s really genuine and the Music feels really honest and personal which is nice.
SIDE B | by Patrick Murphy
1. The Beatles | I Am The Walrus (Love Remastered Version, 2006)
Amazing song. With an unconventional structure, odd lyrics and quirky string melodies, all the parts just work together and it still doesn't fail to stay accessible to the masses. It's songs like these which pushed Music and inspired thousands. I chose the Love version because I believe it's generally a better mix. Nothing wrong with the original, I just think if Lennon had the option to make it sound like this he definitely would have taken it, some may say it's not real 60's, but I've never had an issue with remasters, which this pretty much is.
2. Radiohead | Staircase
It's not easy to pick a favourite Radiohead song. It's their attitude to Music and overall Experimental and Melodic Exploration which is admirable. One of the rare occasions where a band has taken risks and managed to land their feet and keep a massive audience for it. No matter how diverse what they write ends up being, it always has that familiar part of the Music you can grasp onto which feels like Home to me.
3. Air | Alone In Kyoto
Air are responsible for showing me that Electronic Music doesn't have to be boom cha boom boom cha. Instead, it can be a softly sampled dee, surrounded by a well thought out composition of synth sounds and airy vibes. When I get my hands on a synth I dream of the warm, expansive sounds Air make, which tend to be unconventional. Anything with soundwaves is a Sound, and that includes the Sound of Noise or any noise like Sound. Air know this and utilize what they can do with Modern Technology, whilst still making the overall great songs they do and not just making it crazy to be crazy.
4. Elliott Smith | Cupid's Trick
Elliott Smith heavily impacted me when it comes to what picture you can create with just a voice and a guitar. There's some secret trick to the way he strings things together which was so new and different to me. At first, I just saved the song and liked what I heard, then, after a few more listens, getting to know what I was hearing and understanding the structure more clearly I became addicted, and to this day he's one of my top artists and a melodic genius, heavily influencing me.
5. Cage The Elephant | Shake Me Down
I remember the very first time I heard this song, and I had to listen to it again and again. The guitar melody was something so simple yet captivated such a feeling and sound which I loved straight away. It's the feeling I get from certain notes strung together like this which is The Magic behind Music.
6. Jeff Buckley | Grace
Actually got to study this in GCSE Music, which was weird to get some of my own taste played to the class. The initial reaction from people was why is this guy shouting? or it sounds messy, then as we went on it was cool to see people's opinions change as they started to understand what they were hearing more coherently I suppose. It has a bit of everything in, parts feel dreamy and draw from some Folk inspirations like Nick Drake, whilst, after a while, you find yourself listening to a Grungier vibe drawn from darker places, all sewn together with Jeff Buckley's explorative vocal melodies.
7. Deftones | Minerva
Deftones were a massive stage for me, I would play them prominently when I was in my gaming phase to get me in the mood before I started my competitive matches, so I think you get the picture. At the time I may not have realized it, but it was the beginning stages of me discovering Shoegaze. Blackgaze to be exact, maintaining a dreamy, Psych tone without losing the heavy guitar riffs which explored notes that wouldn't classicly work together, yet they did. Learned a lot from this and the whole White Pony album, and still love the genre today.
8. Smashing Pumpkins | Cherub Rock
I discovered Cherub Rock on Rocksmith, yes, that Rhythm game where you use a real guitar. Usually, people will find Music through normal methods, but I will always remember Cherub Rock as the odd discovery through a video game dlc... A few other Smashing Pumpkins songs have made it to the favourite position in the past including Rhinoceros and Cupid De Locke.
9. Arctic Monkeys | Secret Door
I truly respect the Arctic Monkeys Humbug era. Produced by Josh Homme, you can hear the impact it made. A darker twist takes place and shows a real development in Songwriting skills and Experimentation from their previous albums. For a band that could have easily sold out and repeated what they had achieved with a safety net of an audience, I think it's great they did an album like this and hope they continue to think outside the box like this. Since I wrote this, their new album Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino has been released, and I thought I should put in a word that I think it's an amazing album and it's great that they once again diverted from what their audience were expecting.
10. Foals | Inhaler
This song is produced amazingly and the build-up into the chorus is phenomenal. The phased guitar picking which pans from ear to ear in the intro is like ear candy, then when all the instruments kick in you can't help but groove. A feel-good well-written Nostalgia-ridden song.
1. The Beach Boys | Surf's Up
Massively into The Beach Boys at the moment and every time I hear the chord change and the rising melody halfway through this song I get shivers, beautifully crafted. Kind of sums up the genius of Brian Wilson in a song.
2. Elliott Smith | Coast To Coast
I got shown this about 2 years ago and I hated his voice, but a couple months later after it got played a few more times I listened in my own time and fell in Love with it and subsequently Elliott Smith and ever since he’s been one of my favourite artists ever (either/or is in my top 3 albums).
3. Oasis | Supersonic
I guess I’m Madferrit? I found a piece of paper from when I was about 8 with Suppersonic [sic] as my favourite song written on it and I have always loved it ever since, no idea why, can’t help it.
4. The Vines | Autumn Shade II
The Vines’ slow stuff is so underrated, Craig Nicholls can write a beautiful melody, every installation of Autumn Shade is great.
5. The Beatles | Sun King
When I was in sixth form I’d go into the Computer Room and listen to Abbey Road in its entirety like three times a day, I was obsessed. I remember when the harmonies came in during the song and I was just fascinated, really changed my whole perception of Music, had 0 interest in backing vocals until this song.
6. Verve | Star Sail
Nick McCabe is a certified genius. His guitar sounds are so amazing he makes the band, this is a proper wall of Sound and one of the most amazing vocalists singing a melody that compliments the Music perfectly. The first Verve album is Absolute Perfection.
7. The Smashing Pumpkins | Thru The Eyes Of Ruby
This is the song that really got me into Smashing Pumpkins, I love that it can go from a huge wall of Sound right down to Ambient Nothingness in a second, The Verve do a similar thing and I just think it’s so captivating.
8. Alice In Chains | No Excuses
I’d listen to AIC unplugged every day a few years back, after Nutshell and Brother came this and the chorus just hit me, the harmony is so perfect and the note change is so perfect, Sap is my favourite thing Alice In Chains did.
9. The Brian Jonestown Massacre | What You Isn’t
I saw BJM live about 3 years ago without ever listening to them and I heard this, it was this massive wall of Sound with great Melancholy melody in a way... I spent days waiting for the setlist to find out which track it was and ever since it’s always been one of my favourite songs ever.
10. Emma Ruth Rundle | Protection
Just something I’m really into at the moment, again, similar to The Verve and Smashing Pumpkins, this song goes from beautifully Ambient into one the most powerful Melancholy wall of Sounds I’ve ever heard. She’s amazing live too, it’s even bigger, she’s really genuine and the Music feels really honest and personal which is nice.
1. The Beatles | I Am The Walrus (Love Remastered Version, 2006)
Amazing song. With an unconventional structure, odd lyrics and quirky string melodies, all the parts just work together and it still doesn't fail to stay accessible to the masses. It's songs like these which pushed Music and inspired thousands. I chose the Love version because I believe it's generally a better mix. Nothing wrong with the original, I just think if Lennon had the option to make it sound like this he definitely would have taken it, some may say it's not real 60's, but I've never had an issue with remasters, which this pretty much is.
2. Radiohead | Staircase
It's not easy to pick a favourite Radiohead song. It's their attitude to Music and overall Experimental and Melodic Exploration which is admirable. One of the rare occasions where a band has taken risks and managed to land their feet and keep a massive audience for it. No matter how diverse what they write ends up being, it always has that familiar part of the Music you can grasp onto which feels like Home to me.
3. Air | Alone In Kyoto
Air are responsible for showing me that Electronic Music doesn't have to be boom cha boom boom cha. Instead, it can be a softly sampled dee, surrounded by a well thought out composition of synth sounds and airy vibes. When I get my hands on a synth I dream of the warm, expansive sounds Air make, which tend to be unconventional. Anything with soundwaves is a Sound, and that includes the Sound of Noise or any noise like Sound. Air know this and utilize what they can do with Modern Technology, whilst still making the overall great songs they do and not just making it crazy to be crazy.
4. Elliott Smith | Cupid's Trick
Elliott Smith heavily impacted me when it comes to what picture you can create with just a voice and a guitar. There's some secret trick to the way he strings things together which was so new and different to me. At first, I just saved the song and liked what I heard, then, after a few more listens, getting to know what I was hearing and understanding the structure more clearly I became addicted, and to this day he's one of my top artists and a melodic genius, heavily influencing me.
5. Cage The Elephant | Shake Me Down
I remember the very first time I heard this song, and I had to listen to it again and again. The guitar melody was something so simple yet captivated such a feeling and sound which I loved straight away. It's the feeling I get from certain notes strung together like this which is The Magic behind Music.
6. Jeff Buckley | Grace
Actually got to study this in GCSE Music, which was weird to get some of my own taste played to the class. The initial reaction from people was why is this guy shouting? or it sounds messy, then as we went on it was cool to see people's opinions change as they started to understand what they were hearing more coherently I suppose. It has a bit of everything in, parts feel dreamy and draw from some Folk inspirations like Nick Drake, whilst, after a while, you find yourself listening to a Grungier vibe drawn from darker places, all sewn together with Jeff Buckley's explorative vocal melodies.
7. Deftones | Minerva
Deftones were a massive stage for me, I would play them prominently when I was in my gaming phase to get me in the mood before I started my competitive matches, so I think you get the picture. At the time I may not have realized it, but it was the beginning stages of me discovering Shoegaze. Blackgaze to be exact, maintaining a dreamy, Psych tone without losing the heavy guitar riffs which explored notes that wouldn't classicly work together, yet they did. Learned a lot from this and the whole White Pony album, and still love the genre today.
8. Smashing Pumpkins | Cherub Rock
I discovered Cherub Rock on Rocksmith, yes, that Rhythm game where you use a real guitar. Usually, people will find Music through normal methods, but I will always remember Cherub Rock as the odd discovery through a video game dlc... A few other Smashing Pumpkins songs have made it to the favourite position in the past including Rhinoceros and Cupid De Locke.
9. Arctic Monkeys | Secret Door
I truly respect the Arctic Monkeys Humbug era. Produced by Josh Homme, you can hear the impact it made. A darker twist takes place and shows a real development in Songwriting skills and Experimentation from their previous albums. For a band that could have easily sold out and repeated what they had achieved with a safety net of an audience, I think it's great they did an album like this and hope they continue to think outside the box like this. Since I wrote this, their new album Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino has been released, and I thought I should put in a word that I think it's an amazing album and it's great that they once again diverted from what their audience were expecting.
10. Foals | Inhaler
This song is produced amazingly and the build-up into the chorus is phenomenal. The phased guitar picking which pans from ear to ear in the intro is like ear candy, then when all the instruments kick in you can't help but groove. A feel-good well-written Nostalgia-ridden song.
