I have been working on a new mix cd.  It’ll be “Desert Island Mix II”.

Its a tougher undertaking than I thought.  I may have to rename it.  It’s more a playlist to send to my pen pal, but I am kinda of a playlist snob. I wouldn’t say I’m Rob from High Fidelity, but playlists are complex.  A playlist isn’t just a collection of songs.  It has to flow.  It has to represent what I’m listening to.

I haven’t created one in a long while.  I start by just going through my collection and throwing about 200 songs at my playlist.  I then narrow it down to about twenty that represent what I’m listening to then, or at least have been on my listening cycle for a long while.

From there is rearranging the songs.  What sounds best as an opener.  Is it going to flow from one song to the next.  Do they clash too much to be put near each other.  Have I already used the song on a similar collection.

If its a playlist for someone else, I think about whether it exposes them to something new.  Doesn’t necessarily have to be current new music, just something I think will be new to them.

And of course… would I listen to this playlist.

Its important.

I was pretty proud of my last Desert Island mix.  21 songs that made a near perfect mix.

• Plainsong – the Cure
• Mañana – Desaparecidos
• Beat Your Heart Out – the Distillers
• the Brews – NOFX
• Nervous in the Alley – Less Than Jake
• Fall Back Down – Rancid
• I’m a Believer – the Sheila Divine
• the Bends – Radiohead
• Stars – Hum
• Car Song – Madder Rose
• Us – Regina Spektor
• I Want to be the Boy – the White Stripes
• Cherub Rock – Smashing Pumpkins
• Maglite – Wussy
• Bone Machine – Pixies
• Train in Vain – the Clash
• My Name Is Jonas – Weezer
• King of the Road – Piebald
• Dishes – Pulp
• Delicious – Catherine Wheel
• Dream a Little Dream – Louis Armstrong

And of course I made some pretty awesome cover art for it.

 

So the bar, in my mind, was set high by me.  And I’ve got my work cut out for me.