Mixtape II: NYC MIX.....

As promised, i've put together a mixtape from my trip to New York. Across the blogosphere, you'll find many such compilations (great example here). My NYC MIX is a bona fide 2-sider that will fit on one disc for your easy burning pleasure.

Side A consists of the best from a playlist i've had running for a while. Easy but essential selections that mention the city directly span from Harlem to Chelsea and capture that classic New York inspiration.

Conor Oberst's tune (also posted here) leads off with a driving ferocity too perfect to leave out. The beautiful Joe Purdy song that follows hits upon many familiar notions, and a bluesy groove from The Black Keys adds gritty texture. Three songs pay tribute to certain New York women, of whom there are plenty. Just try not to groove to Chelsea Dagger. Most songs are fairly recent examples save for a rare Whiskeytown track and one from Simon & Garfunkel. i first heard The Only Living Boy In New York on the Garden State Soundtrack - one that i've been meaning to do a complete feature on.

Finishing off Side A is a 9 min+ jam version of Ryan's ever evolving New York, New York. i listened to several live versions in preparation for this post and found that the song has expertly changed form throughout its relatively short tenure. The Gold-type version, simple and effective, still gets played live on occasion, but in 2005 The Cardinals displayed the jam version in The Loft Sessions. The edition on NYC MIX is from The Tennessee Theatre in May of '05 and is nothing short of epic. Make sure to listen to minutes 4-7 intently. The song deserves more attention in an Evolution post.

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The mix changes direction at the turn. Side B is filled with tunes that i heard while in the city - some on in-store radios, some from pub jukeboxes, and a few from my own iPod.

It's fitting that Spoon should lead the charge as Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga had just been released on my last trip to the city, and promotional posters were plastered on every inch of free ad space. The song i heard in Mr. Dennehys's, I Turn My Camera On, is from the band's 2005 release, but is equally apropos since most of what i did while in New York was turn my camera on. Check out some photos.

One of a couple new songs heard, Sea Wolf's You're A Wolf was the first to be added to this half of the mix. As soon as our arrival flight touched down, the song came across the plane's speakers. Thanks to the magic of Google, jotting down a few specific lines turned up the song and The Hype Machine provided the file. Sea Wolf will be getting some much deserved research in the coming weeks.

Me & Jiggs and Such Great Heights both played through the Starbucks in-store player and were quickly added to the playlist. Cat Empire provides some horn-blowing levity with Hello. Indie-rock dominates the second side with some great songs from Maximo Park, The Killers, and The Kooks. The title track from The Raconteurs' latest album pretty-well sums up my excursion as well as some resulting sentiments from another successful trip to New York.

Enjoy.

Side A:
1. NYC - Gone, Gone ~ Conor Oberst
2. The City ~ Joe Purdy
3. Brooklyn Bound - The Black Keys
4. NYCG ~ Cross Canadian Ragweed
5. Chelsea Dagger ~ The Fratellis
6. New York Angel ~ Whiskeytown
7. Broadway ~ Old 97's
8. Back Home To Harlem ~ The Rosewood Thieves
9. O City! ~ Jayber Crow
10. The Only Living Boy In New York ~ Simon & Garfunkel
11. New York, New York (Jam Version) ~ Ryan Adams & The Cardinals

Side B:
1. I Turn My Camera On ~ Spoon
2. You're A Wolf ~ Sea Wolf
3. Me & Jiggs ~ Josh Ritter
4. Such Great Heights ~ The Postal Service
5. Hello ~ Cat Empire
6. Apply Some Pressure ~ Maximo Park
7. All These Things That I've Done ~ The Killers
8. Always Where I Need To Be ~ The Kooks
9. Consoler of the Lonely ~ The Raconteurs

Download NYC MIX (zip)