Muxtape
Hey all-
Long time, no type, eh? Well, I’m hoping to get back into the swing of things with this here blog. What better way to do so than by sharing a mix of music I made, yes? If you want more info on how Muxtape works, you can check out Schleep’s blog post (and mix); though get in soon, because as this article indicates, there may not be a substantial legal footing for sites like Muxtape and Mixwit to stick around…. (which kind of doesn’t surprise me, even if you’re not able to download songs from either of these sites…) Seems like Mixwit may be the winner of the two, as that news article explains, since it doesn’t require users to upload songs from their hard disks to their servers, but instead takes advantage of an mp3 search engine to find songs that are already out there on the internet to pull from to create your mix; though, of course, this means that the ultra-rare Wicked Sceptre b-side that you need to make your mix perfect may not be so readily available with such a set-up. (CAUTION- Wicked Sceptre link is NSFW).
All this talk of mixtapes brings two things to mind: the book Mix Tape that was compiled by Thurston Moore a few years ago (more info on it here and here), and the short-lived Gentleman’s Dining Club of Southwestern Pennsylvania (a mixtape & supper club some folks put together), which I managed to wrangle my way into, and made some pretty outlandish tape “cases” for- including some weird box for Q and a crucifix for Rick Gribenas; a creative streak that led me to make an epic 4-tape, 8-sided, travel photograph-hot glue-gunned, hinged wooden triangle contraption for someone I had feelings for at the time.
While Muxtape, et al, is a pretty amazing idea/design, infinitely fascinating in the possibilities of sharing and discovering, you still miss that human element that goes into writing out the setlist, choosing a photo or making a collage (or carved, painted wooden triangles) to accompany the music; just that lack of personalization that the giver goes into great detail for the receiver. But, if you’re sharing the music with the whole internet anyway, how personal can you really get? Hm?
Anywho, more posts soon, I promise 