should i call you officer... (T&S Series #5)

My mood dictates what music I listen to. Right now I'm a little homesick, and a lot tired. So, I'm going to be horribly nostalgic with this mix.

I won't go into what each of these songs mean to me, (frankly thats just sappy), but I will say that each of these songs reminds me of the 'Sound and that is just one of the many reasons why I like them.

Some of the artists are "home grown" so to speak, or others pop up a lot in campfire sing-a-longs. Who knows what makes me associate one with the other, but just know, if the 'Sound was an 8 track mix, this would be it.

but through it all i left my eyes on you (T&S Series #4)

To me, the bass line in a song is the drama of the song. Forget flashy guitar solos, or charming little melodies on the keyboard. Bass is where its at.

This mix is a tad eclectic. Who would ever dream of putting Bay City Rollers and Vampire Weekend and Northern State together? Not me. Thats for sure.

Joy Division's "The Kill" is so unlike them I love it (not that I dont always love them). For this charming song they made it a upbeat. What a revolutionary idea. The bass line definitely helps that along.

I might be crazy, but I think that this Bay City Rollers song is a little over produced. Maybe even all of "Rollermania" was over produced. (Can horrible cultural periods in history be over produced?!). Notice though, that no matter how much extra stuff they try to throw into this song, you can still follow the bass!

Dappled Cities are a group I should be listening to more of. They are going places. And their bass line is helping to take us there.

The use of the bass line in War Pigs really is just for drama. Its urgent, and insistent in the beginning and then just carries you through the song.

No matter how many times I listen to "If you love someone, set them on fire" it always surprises me. Dead Milkmen do something very unusual in that the bass keeps the beat, and the guitar is on the off beat. Percussion is thrown in there for accent, and the lyrics are just crazy. Throws me for a loop, and then I remember that its awesome.

Bullion is just plain classy. Thats right, classy.

I love Northern State (and not just because Hesta Prynn requested to follow me on Twitter). Just when you think you've got them pegged, they remind you that they're square, and its a circular hole. I think the bass line on Signal Flow is funky. They're pretty discriminatory in how they only feature it in the refrain, but there you have the drama.

Vampire Weekend is a favourite of mine. They REALLY know how to make music. They also REALLY know how to use a bass line. Not just on "Campus" either, but throughout the whole self-titled album. Give it a listen. Your ears will thank you.

A good bass line is a good bass line. So crank your bass and give this whole thing a listen. Maybe even playing it loudly. Your ears should thank you for that too.

came up to the water

Thanks to twitter my musical world has expanded ten fold.

Tonight Said the Whale directed me towards Aidan Knight and his music video for his new song Jasper.

You have to watch it.

Looks like the kind of video some friends of mine would make, and some friends of mine would be in.

You can bet this track will be on a mix soon.

then making a wish he tossed in the sea (T&S Series #3)

I hemmed and hawed over this weeks theme, and then stereogum introduced me to Arrows of Eros by Golden Silvers.

It is amazing musical genius.

Listen to it on repeat.

Or just listen to the mix on repeat.

I don't know about you, but when I think hand claps, I think up beat and fun. This mix... could be more peppy. But its all good, because listen carefully to the Julie Doiron and Iron & Wine tracks. They might not be the most cheery, but the clapping is quality, and more involved than the others.

If you're really in to poppy hand claps listen to OK GO's earlier albums. They've got that in the bag. Hence their appearance in the mix.

The rest of the tracks are just there to beef it out. (But three claps for them anyway!).