WARMER MIXTAPES #180 | by Jonathan Snipes (Clipping.) and Jim Merson of Captain Ahab

SIDE A | by Jim Merson

1. Kevin Blechdom | I Thought I Knew You
This song is at once cheery and depressing. A really catchy great song off of a more reserved album compared to her previous one, Eat My Heart Out. If Patsy Klein and Groucho Marx were to have a baby it would be this song.

2. Gowns | Marked
The usual density of their music in a straight ahead rock format. With a band with such an incredible amount of talent and passion it’s hard to go wrong with any of their songs. This one has been sticking with me recently.

3. Nero’s Day At Disneyland | In Aisles
I first remember seeing this performed live at a show almost four years back. So good live and incredible to take home and enjoy. Saw him perform it live recently with a live drummer. Tight as hell.

4. David Bowie | As The World Falls Down
Beautiful sad fluff. Totally dreamy.

5. Jermih | Imma Star
Better than the song Birthday Sex. Not better than the act of Birthday Sex.

6. Nobokazu Takemura | Ice Fall
The whole album is completely mesmerizing, but there’s something about this song that really grabs me. Upon a casual listen the pattern is elusive enough that it feels like some grand gesture of mother nature.

7. Matmos | Y.T.T.E.
So many different layers of beauty in this song: the amazing bass line, the soft crackle of fireworks in the first moments, the lilting guitar at the end. A wonderful lifetime in a song.

8. Juelz Santana | Mic Check
I was going to put I Am Crack on here but changed it to Mic Check. Though I Am Crack is maybe a more monstrous and audacious claim than even Laibach’s WAT, it somehow isn’t as audacious as a song about how good you are- the same song- appearing on two consecutive albums.

9. Dev/Null | Rage Template
Listing to this song you become the coolest level of the raddest Windows '95 game you never played.

10. DJ Donna Summer | Chicken Noodle Rave
I found this song on an XLR8R comp, but it looks like it’s been on a number of comps. FOOD PARTY IS MY FAVORITE PARTY!!!!


SIDE B | by Jonathan Snipes

1. Barnwave | Demo Um Musical
This is an excerpt from the opera that Barnwave wrote & performed in Portugal last year. I believe the whole score is coming out on a record soon, but for now we can listen to a sort of Best of song that they've been playing live on the various Barnwave tours. I really can't wait until both this opera, and a proper Barnwave album get released.

2. Ceephax Acid Crew | Topaz
Ceephax's music just gets better and better. This track makes me imagine the music Giorgio Moroder would be making if he were young & hip again. In a genre so much about repetition & simplicity (Acid), Ceephax is managing to insert a shocking amount of narrative and depth. This whole album is brilliant, but this track shines above for me.

3. Deceptikon & Vincent Parker | Broken Synthesizers
Super funky & distorted. Contains all/the only good elements of dubstep without actually being dubstep (thank God). Plus, is that a Lil Mama sample? I love that song.

4. Harold Faltermeyer | Cop Out
While this movie was remarkably disappointing, the music sticks out like a surprisingly pleasant sore thumb. This theme sounds like it was written in 1988 - it's catchy, goofy, and its synthesizer timbres are unashamedly unfiltered.

5. Foot Village | Lovers With Iraqis
This cheating somewhat since this track hasn't been released yet, and I'm the one recording & mixing it. But this is becoming one of my favorite Foot Village songs, and has been a staple of their live shows for a while now. It's really fast, has all the usual manic aggression, and features a staged fight after which the band members switch instruments.

6. Ke$ha | Stephen
This song blows me away. The production & performance both feel pretty lazy, but the content is a bit of a mindfuck. I can't believe someone let this song happen, and that it's on a major label.

7. Lindstrøm & Christabelle | Lovesick
I honestly don't much care for the rest of this record. I find Christabelle's vocal delivery pretty boring & I feel like it usually ends up fighting Lindstrøm's production rather than helping it. Lovesick, however, really shines - her laconic vocals & his staggeringly tight production seem like they go hand in hand here. This track is catchy as hell.

8. Bear McCreary | Theme from Human Target
This show is pretty good, but the music is phenomenal - a sweeping return to the huge orchestral scores of yesterday. Feels hugely inspired by Jerry Goldsmith and Elmer Bernstein, who I both love. It's really unusual to hear music of this scale in television, and requires a dedication to quality on the part of the composer that's rare in film music in general.

9. Sickboy | Tweencore 5
I'm such a sucker for breakcore. Sickboy's Tweencore record perfectly sums up the 00s. This track is the most fun, but not by too much - the whole record is great. I play the cello. AWESOME!!!.

10. Valgeir Sigurðsson | Past Tundra
This is just gorgeous. I'm pretty excited by the Bedroom Community group of composers in general - the Daniel Bjarnason record is quite good as well - but this track shines out for me. The pacing is excellent, the energy is powerful and commanding without falling into any of the goofy traps that film music often does. I love this generation of young classically trained composers who have no prejudice against contemporary electronics and recording techniques.