- See more at: http://blogtimenow.com/blogging/automatically-redirect-blogger-blog-another-blog-website/#sthash.ZOSg03mN.dpuf Katie Nugent Photography: mixed tapes

5/11/09

mixed tapes


Have you seen "The Wackness"? It's a movie set in the summer of '94 about a stoner/pot dealer kid from Brooklyn who just graduates from high school. I loved the story line and this cute little confused pot head boy who struggles with all the things a 17-year old struggles with, but what I really liked about it was how he made mixed-tapes for all the people he cared about and it brought me back to the days of creating the perfect mixed-tape.

Forgive me if I am not speaking your language, but one can only ever know the true art of mixing a tape if they have logged the tortured hours of deciding, rejecting, creating and finally recording every single song in perfect playing order, dedicated to the ultimate listening pleasure of the lucky recipient. Everyone who has ever created a mixed-tape for their biggest crush knows,behind every song recorded there is a deeper subliminal message. Therefore the recorded songs must speak for the mix-maker, whispering the secrets of her tortured heart in hopes of quietly revealing the truth to the mix-receiver.

Please don't confuse the making of a mix with the making of a CD or playlist, as these are not comparable at all. To start with, a tape-maker must first decide and hunt down each individual song from various sources in order to begin recording. Once at the recording stage, each song must be individually recorded onto the tape, listening to each and every song all the way through in order to pause the recording at the PRECISE end of the song, to avoid any clumsy sound blips between songs. When making a CD/playlist the maker need only drag and click the songs, press a button and burn. They can download as many songs as is needed to have a plethora to choose from. There is no craft, no passion, no thought. No, the art of the mixed-tape has long been forgotten so I felt it necessary to remind you of all the hours you may have spent recording for friends and crushes.


I even know the final recipient of a KT mixed-tape. He was an english boy I desperately loved. The tape was a birthday gift I spent hours recording and editing, creating a list of songs I hoped spelled out exactly how I felt. I have long forgotten what was on that tape, except for one song I hear occasionally by one of his then-favourite bands. When I hear it I can't help laugh at how quickly my mind goes back to the making of the tape I was certain would seal our fate. A fate which was intervened by another boy I met a few months later who eventually placed a ring on my finger, and never needed a mixed-tape to decipher the love buzzing around my heart. If I were to make Hubby a mixed tape here's the top 10 songs I would choose:
Wild Horses-- Rolling Stones, I'm a sucker for this one
Juicy-- Notorious BIG, he's a sucker for this one
Golddigger-- Kanye West, this song played everywhere we went in California on our honeymoon
I hope-- Dixie Chicks, I play this song when I need a pick-me-up & it makes him laugh
Bobcaygeon-- Tragically Hip, we saw them live last summer
Can I kick it?-- Tribe called Quest, classic mixed-tape song
Welcome Home-- Metallica, because he likes metal
Ruby Soho-- Rancid, another classic
My doorbell-- White Stripes, I don't know why
Quality Control-- Jurassic Five, come on what's a mixed-tape without this one!

What's on your tape?




3 comments:

Anonymous said...

God Katie, you have a gift! After the bad afternoon I had today (which you know all to well about as you had to put up with me) your writing really lifted my spirits. Your stories force your readers to be honest with themselves and they not only allow us to empathise with the emotions that you were feeling through your experience but to also relate these experiences back to similar experiences that we own, many of which brought the tears that i needed to shed and the smiles that i needed all the more :)
So thanks for sharing your amazing gift, keep it coming!

Anonymous said...

Hey sis, here is my list- a mix tape for me, with a song for every year since high school:
"One"- U2. I think this song has followed me everywhere.
"Red"- Treble charger. love/angst, on all of my teen mixes.
"Stephanie Says"- Velvet Underground. It's all in my mind.
"Under Pressure"- Queen. Classic, classic rock.
"Orange Crush"- REM. Dedicated to the dinosaur doctor.
"Untouchable Face" -Ani Difranco, for healing a broken heart.
"Nautical Disaster"- the Hip. A little throw back to the Ontario years.
"Like A Prayer"- Madonna. Need I say more?
"Pies Descalzos"- Shakira. Because in my car, I know I sound just like her.
"Dream On" - Aerosmith, because how can you not love this song?
"Let Me Be"- Xavier Rudd. So nice.

Anonymous said...

Here is my mix tape top 10 - i think they have to be split into 5 'cool' ones and 5 'blatantly honest/no shame' ones

Jon Butler - Spring
Ben Harper - Diamonds on the Inside
Ani Difranco - Gravel
Pearl Jam - Better Man
3am - MB20 (ok, its debatable if that one is cool, but it was 7 years ago)

And the blatantly honest with no pride shame Pop junk -

Beyonce - Crazy in Love
Britney - any Britney
Avril Lavigne - Complicated
R-Kelly - Ignition
Jewel - Intuition

There you go, quite the eclectic mix.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...