The Art of the Mixtape

[meruizh]

Although now a days this tradition is being left behind it's still a pretty meaningful gift. There's nothing more personal than a mixtape. It can get communicate feelings or words that you may be incapable of saying or showing.

I've made a few over my life, two specifically to girls. And it's funny how something as simple as a mixtape can have a huge meaning. The first ever mixtape a made to a girl, was actually indirectly the reason she broke up with me later, because she wasn't sure how I deep were my feelings for her. When I gave her the mixtape, she asked if she had to listen to an specific song, I said no (I just made a mixtape, didnt know there could something greater than just music). Time went by she recall this event, as the moment she gave up on me.
I made no more mixtapes for fucking no one after that haha. Until...

The second one, was made a week ago. She doesnt care much for music, but still enjoys quality music. As I was making it, I recalled my last experience with a mixtape, so I wanted to be bullet proof. These are the things I thought were essential for the mixtape.

Know your target: A mixtape is a very personal thing. You must know at least the bare essentials of their music taste (e.g. whether or not they like rap, or hate The White Stripes)

Select a theme: Mixtapes should always be themed. You want there to be fluidity and cohesion - not just a random collection of songs.

Draft track listings: John Cusack's character in High Fidelity said, "To me, making a tape is like writing a letter - there's a lot of erasing and rethinking and starting again."

Mix it up: It is no good making a mixtape of completely similar tracks. There needs to be some variety.

Ask for feedback: It is good to know what the person thought of their mixtape. It's important to find out which songs they loved, and which songs they hated. This will mean next time you make them a mixtape it will be even better tailored to fit their musical taste

Never underestimate the power of a mixtape: Remember you are using someone else's poetry to express how you feel. This is a delicate thing. If you are making a mixtape for the opposite sex but have no intention of a relationship, do not use songs like "You're Beautiful", "Sexual Healing" or "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" - it will probably send the wrong message.


Hope everyone gives their thoughts, experiences or anything at all in this subject.
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[NowhereMan]

Interesting, never really thought of mixtapes as a tool for such endeavours, I tend to use them for working out, commuting, working, etc etc.
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[meccalecca]

Mixtapes aren't what they used to be. It was an art form a couple decades ago but has lost a bit of something in the digital age.

When I was a young lad my older brothers made mix tapes for me pretty regularly and those tapes opened up my world to many of my favorite artists. I very fondly look back to a tape from my brother Jason that included tracks from Mr Bungle's debut and Faith No More's Angel Dust. And a cd from my brother Chris was my introduction to Elliot Smith, Cocteau Twins, American Music Club, Mercury Rev, and a bunch of others.

In turn, I was the kid in middle school and high school known for hooking up friends with mixtapes, and introducing my pals to stuff far beyond the scope of MTV and the radio.

I still make my wife the occasional mix, generally themed around a sentimental thought or time period.

I still find myself obsessively making mixes that never come to fruition.
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[benpaco]

I exist due largely to a masterful mixtape made by my dad for my mom. He apparently made TONS of them, but one in particular he was proud of and sent her, it was a tape that he'd made mashups on by recording two songs at once, or recording the sound of a carousel over Devo's cover of "I Can't Get No Satisfaction". Sent that to my mom and that's part of why they got back together.

In my own life, mixtapes have been huge. I can tell you the exact track listing of the one my first gf gave me by heart, and played that at least 50 times according to iTunes. I can tell you the exact date I received one from my best friend. I pass them on to others each christmas. Just a big thing for me.

Glad they've had a big impact on you, too, meruizh, sorry your first experience was great but if the problem was something that small over a guy as cool as you, she was clearly crazy anyways.
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[junodog4]

My older brother's friends starting calling me K-Tel because of all the tapes I was making.

I miss the art.
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[Mercury]

Mixtapes were the shit got me maybe 15 or 12 years ago. CDs mixes just never had the same magic as making a little cassette full of goodies.
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[meccalecca]

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[Skinny]

I missed the whole cassette age, really. My dad used to make mixtapes for the car (and I assume for people, in his younger days), but I was brought up pretty much exclusively on CDs. That said, I would often be making mix CDs for people, and for myself. Friends still ask me to put together folders or playlists for them, and I'm virtually never without a new mix CD whenever I visit a particular friend who still relies on his shitty all-in-one player to listen to music, and I still put together a year-end mix CD (or several) for less musically-inclined friends and family, but there is less romance to it these days. That said, I'd still never put a mix CD together without listening through it all first, often several times, to make sure it's as well sequenced as possible. As to whether or not there's an art to it, I just don't know. I don't specifically think of a theme, I just trust my instincts and go with songs that I think will flow well into one another, and then check to see if I was right. Sometimes I'll have to take something out, because it just doesn't fit. But I certainly don't overthink it. You run the risk of ruining it that way.
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[Kiki]

I've made lots of Cassettes and CDs in past I just put songs I liked on them.