WARMER MIXTAPES #911 | by Sam Thomas of Saiga, Samandiam, iAm1, Cheesy Biscuit Productions, Harry Carry and Lansdowne Circus

1. Pink Floyd | Comfortably Numb 
I first heard this song as a teenager in Newquay, on Holiday with School friends. It just completely blew my mind, I’d never heard anything so epic before. When I watched the Live version of it it completely blew my mind all over again. It’s definitely a Life changing track for me.

2. Constant Lambert | The Rio Grande (Performed by English Northern Philharmonia with Sally Burgess & Jack Gibbons, Conductor: David Lloyd-Jones)
My Music Teacher at School played this in one of our A-Level lessons. It’s just fantastic. It inspired me a lot in the way that he had crammed so much Feeling into one piece. So many contrasting Moods and Emotions, yet the whole thing still sounded like one cohesive piece. It gave me the courage to chop and change Styles much more liberally in my own Music.

3. Guns N’ Roses | November Rain 
Before hearing this song, again as a teenager, I played Acoustic Guitar in a Covers Band. November Rain instantly made me want to change to Electric. People are generally pretty harsh on Guns N’ Roses, yes, I know a lot of the Videos are completely ridiculous and it’s all extremely over the top, but I like all that, I’ve always thought that a lot of it was taken seriously when it was really intended to be ironic. I may be wrong, but that’s the impression I get. Also when you listen to a band enough you start to really feel like you know the characters of the members, you hear all the little nuances and their flaws become endearing.

4. Led Zeppelin | The Rain Song (The Song Remains The Same Live Version)
I bought a copy of the Live DVD, The Song Remains The Same, again as a young and impressionable teenager and was mesmerised, I watched it over and over again. When I listen to Led Zeppelin albums or other Live Performances they just don’t do it for me in the same way, I’m so used to the versions on that DVD. Rain Song is probably my favourite on there, it really opened up my eyes to combining Orchestral Arranging with Rock, I loved how when the String Sound couldn’t build any more, the Guitars and Drums kicked in as part of the Orchestra, Orchestras never Sound as powerful as Guitars and Drums! I say Orchestra, but it was really John Paul Jones on a Keyboard, but he did a pretty amazing job as a one-man-Orchestra. The Guitar part in that song is amazing too, really lovely Harmonies.

5. Frank Zappa | The Torture Never Stops
My Auntie and Uncle bought me the Zoot Allures album, noticing my fondness for Trippy Rock. It’s a perfect album, but The Torture Never Stops is always the track I think of first. I just couldn’t get enough of the Atmosphere he creates in that song, it sounds so Dark, dank and sleazy. Great stuff!

6. Cloudkicker | Dysphoria
I heard this track more recently, in the last few years. It’s just so intensely and consistently epic from start to finish. Plus the Production is so huge, and apparently they aren’t even real Drums! Amazing.

7. This Will Destroy You | A Three-Legged Workhorse
I saw this on YouTube while I was at Uni studying Music. Someone had uploaded it with a video of people base-jumping of Mountains in those Wing Suits. That word again, epic! I am just a sucker for anything grand that takes me to another world and this track certainly did. It really opened up new doors for me in the way that it inspired me to delve deeper into using Guitars as Orchestration.

8. Edvard Grieg | Piano Concerto In A minor, Op. 16: 3. Allegro Moderato Molto E Marcato (Performed by Dresdner Philharmonie with Annerose Schmidt, Conductor: Kurt Masur)
There’s a part in the middle of this Movement where the Flute plays the tune to set the Mood and then the Piano takes over in a sort-of Chordal Solo. It’s just the prettiest thing you could ever wish to hear. I played Percussion when the School Orchestra did a version of it, luckily there’s nothing to play at this particular bit, so I could just sit back and enjoy it in rehearsals.

9. Jeff Buckley | Dream Brother
When I was doing exams at School and revising all the time, Grace was the album that got me through it. Dream Brother is one of Jeff Buckley’s best I think, particularly the Live version. I love the touches of Eastern Scales and I love how it builds, so Dramatic. If I could have anyone’s Voice it would be his, for me that’s about as good as Singing gets.

10. Pink Floyd | The Great Gig In The Sky
I started with Pink Floyd and I think it’s only fitting that I end with them. No word of a lie, I’ve never listened to this track without getting goose bumps, and believe me I’ve listened to it a lot! If I could only ever listen to one thing again it would be this. It’s just Pure, Unadulterated Emotion.