WARMER MIXTAPES #73 | by Caspar Bock of Northern Portrait and Champagne Riot

1. Mojave 3 | Big Star Baby
This was my favourite song for probably half of 2007! (The whole album is amazing). The songs for Champagne Riot’s Paris And I EP were all written around this time and although the sounds are quite different I was actually very inspired by this. It’s like the ultimate resignation from popular culture and modern music - a kind of calm give fuck all to rock ‘n’ roll -anthem. Yet at the same time I sense a strong longing in the song for the very same thing that the narrator is trying to escape. It’s rather complex in that sense. This album really inspired me to start making music again after having been disillusioned about it for a long while.

2. Boat Club | All The Time
The first tonal changes in the keyboard remind me of the Laura Palmer theme. And there is a slight melodic resemblance to Leonard Cohen’s True Love Leaves No Traces all the way through. Mix that with a lot of sunshine, a tropical vibe, a lazy groove, a beautifully shy vocal performance – and add a bit of heavily reverbed guitar. It sounds like your favourite song of summer 2009 doesn’t it? That’s right. It IS your favourite song of summer 2009!

3. Ash | Goldfinger
The most mindblowing musical experience I ever had was when, as a 16-year old, I went to see Ash play live during a summer school stay in Dublin. I was kind of into Britpop and all that - but this was more than just britpop. This was the essence of what life was all about. Three drunk teenagers making songs about girls, endless summer nights and the Star Wars movies. From that moment I knew I wanted to make music! Goldfinger was one of my favourite songs for years. Still is.

4. Jeans Team | Das Zelt
If a UK band of four cool and good looking 21-year old rock kids made an English language version of this 2-chord raid against modern life I am sure it would become the anthem of a whole generation. Absolutely 100% sure.

5. Rick Astley | Never Gonna Give You Up
As far as 80’s hit factory produced songs go this is the winner for me. I don’t wanna get started on this subject or I could go on for several pages that no one would ever read. But what happened around British pop in the 80s was pretty mindblowing and their producer driven hit factories deserve a medal for sparking some energy and provocation into an otherwise stagnated culture.

6. New Order | True Faith
I think this was the song that first got me into making dance music when I was 19 or something. I practised for hours with my newly bought groovebox, trying to imitate the drum sound. I still do that. I still haven’t succeeded!

7. The Depreciation Guild | Dream About Me
I hung out a few times with Kurt from DG this spring and summer because he is also the drummer of The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart who we’ve played with. It was a great time and I was stunned to hear his own project where he’s the singer/guitarist. It’s really, really good. Dream About Me is one of my top-3 favourite songs from this year.

8. Air France | GBG Belongs To Us (with ROOS)
Another top-3 song from this year. This was not just a song but a whole project. There was a webpage, a guide to Gothenburg and so on. I envy Air France for feeling what they do for their home city, it’s a feeling that (sadly) I’ve never had in the different places I’ve lived. But they’re definitely on to something here. There IS something special about Gothenburg - just listen to this song as the perfect evidence. Amazing vocals by ROOS as well. If all female vocals sounded like this I am sure that the world would be a much nicer place.

9. Cocteau Twins | I Wear Your Ring
Heaven Or Las Vegas by CT is one of my favourite albums. I was very unsure which song to pick but this one is well worth a mention. I have no clue what words she’s supposed to be singing and I don’t think I want to know either. It would take away some of the magic!

10. Simon & Garfunkel | The Dangling Conversation
I’ve liked Simon & Garfunkel for almost as long as I can remember. This song paints a beautiful picture of sophisticated everyday melancholy in a Manhattan apartment. The colour palette is autumnal.