it's like I wrote every note with my own fingers.

[enamoured]

Because I discovered Muxtape the other day.

1. Did you ever make mixtapes when you were a kid?
2. How did you go about doing it? (did you record songs off the radio, compulsively record songs from your own music collection)
3. Did you ever give tapes to your friends or did you keep them for yourselves?
4. When did you make your first CD mix? Do you remember what was on it?
5. Do you have a system when it comes to making mixes? (do you list artist name then song title in the liner notes, do you not use the same singer/band on the mix more than once)

I think I made my first mixtape when I was about ten and first started to regularly listen to the radio. I didn't really have any music of my own then, only tapes my cousins and my mom had recorded for me (usually copies of their albums; I remember spending a summer frustrated because the cheapo Walkman I had at the time couldn't rewind). The mixtapes I made were pretty crude--I used to always record the DJs talking over the end of the song and sometimes I would run out of room on the tape, you know, the usual unavoidable things that happened. I wrote the A-side tracks in one color on the little flip-out insert in the tapes, and the B-sides were in another color. I remember scrambling to the radio whenever they played "I Want it That Way" for the first time.

The first CD mix I ever owned was made at a friends house. It was in 2001, when Napster reigned supreme and the idea of having music on your computer still seemed kind of crazy, but really cool at the same time. It was heavy on *NSYNC remixes and had something like three or four Madonna songs. The first one I made myself was done in... 2003 or so, whenever we got a desktop with burning capabilities. I don't remember much of what was on it besides "If I Ever Fall in Love" by Shai and some Stevie Wonder songs.

My mix making system has pretty much been the same since 2004 or so. I use CDs that have removable track liners, because I hate having CDs and having no clue as to what's on it. I write the song title first, then artist, and then how long it is. I usually date the CD for some weird reason, both on the liner and on the actual disk. When it comes to the content... I'm not much a themed mix maker, unless I'm doing a fanmix (in which case, I tend to try to make the songs as relevant to the characters/plot as possible, or at least add songs that remind me of characters and/or situations). Usually, the mixes I make are just songs I like, and I try to put them together in a way that is kind of cohesive. Sometimes it works perfectly, and sometimes it just kind of falls flat.

I like variety on a mix. I sometimes try to make a silly cheesy pop song mix, or a "this is srus music" mix, but it never works out completely. I'm just too... prone to cheese or prone to seriousness at times. So that's why if I ever make a mix CD for anyone, you'd be just as likely to get something that's considered "good" music next to, say, "Truly Madly Deeply".

Honestly, I like having hard copies of music. There's nothing more satisfying than to open a new CD and to be able to leaf through the booklet and see the pictures yourself, to have it be tangible. MP3s are nice and convenient (hello, being able to cram 1000+ songs into one little handy gadget?!), but I like the tangibleness of CDs.

Comments

[escap1974.livejournal.com]

I've never really been a mix-tape person. Maybe because when that stuff was popular, I was too busy getting high with my friends. We were our own entertainment. ;^)

[goneplatinum.livejournal.com]

I used to make mix tapes all the time--would tape off of CD's or other tapes as back in the day I had a dual tape recorder.

Now I make mix CD's off itunes :)

[waderapspoorly.livejournal.com]

I love mix tapes. I used to make mix tapes in middle school off of the big sound system in the living room, because it was the only one that had two cassette players! Then I moved to burned cds. I must have about 40 in my car. Now I've taken that mix cd making mentality and applied it to my iTunes. I have a playlist for every mood, every thought, every moment. And they're all named. I even do mixes at the end of the month for how I'm feeling and then write it down in my journal.