Mystery Mini Mix is a shiny new feature dredged up from somewhere within the collective imagination of the WTD crew. Basically, we’ve made a huge list of song prompts (eg. Song with a colour in the title) and are getting our favourite writers and music people to curate a list of songs according to the randomly-assigned prompts they receive. It’s then up to them to craft their very own ‘EP’, and if they want to write a little bit about their choices then that’s cool too.
We’ve covered the music of Mark Timmins several time here at WTD, most recently ‘Vulnerable‘, a song from a new project based around old maps which we called
“as sincere as it is self-aware, trying to live a better, simpler life of candour while bemoaning the current habits of pride and shame”.
Mark was kind/brave enough to take on our Mystery Mini Mix challenge, so scroll on down to hear the songs our prompts kicked up.
Song from who you consider the most overrated band of all-time
Bob Dylan – Girl from the North Country
Perhaps this is an odd choice for this category, as Bob Dylan is not a band, and technically speaking he is not overrated, in that the praise and accolades lavished upon him are indeed justified. He is a brilliant songwriter who has had a lasting influence on countless musicians. But the quality of his music has often been obscured for me by the excessive amount of bullshit spoken about him. I’ve had too many infuriating conversations with misty-eyed romantics who say they want to talk about music, but actually just want to spit out meaningless, hyperbolic, sound-bite style cliches about “Dylan, man, Dylan.” But behind all the poorly expressed adoration of the blind devotees, the music is still there, speaking inexorably, and with such captivating poignance, about all the things that make the human experience seem worthwhile. This song is one of my favourites.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeMa7cQyJPc
Song that sounds like the bottom of the ocean
Emma Ruth Rundle – Oslo, Part 1
I’m a huge fan of Emma Ruth Rundle’s solo work. It’s dark and brooding, heavy and earthy in a comforting way, like curling up and covering yourself from head to foot with a thick woollen blanket. I’m not totally sure why I thought of this song when thinking of the bottom of the ocean. Maybe it’s something about the hypnotic, repetitive guitar riffs that constantly fold back in on themselves that speak to me of deep ocean currents. Or maybe it’s the fact that the song is absolutely drenched in reverb and delay, like all of Rundle’s solo work, that gives it that watery feeling. It could also be the power of association that draws a connection for me between the sea and Rundle’s music (her debut solo LP was titled “Some heavy ocean” after all). Whatever the case this is a beautiful song, and the perfect soundtrack for any deep sea expeditions you may be taking in the near future.
Song that brings out your inner cowboy
Corb Lund – Hair in My Eyes Like a Highland Steer
I really enjoy a lot of country music, often a lot of the more melancholic style, where the songwriting focuses on the minutiae of everyday life in a way that tends to reveal bigger mysteries than the content might at first suggest. But when it comes to leg-slapping, yee-haw screaming cowboy fantasies it’s got to be Corb Lund every time. I’ve seen him live once, and it was one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. His band, The Hurtin’ Albertans, are incredibly tight and the music came across with blistering energy. When they played this song I danced with such ferocity that my cowboy thigh-slapping move resulted in bruises the next day.
Song without words
Carlo Domeniconi – Koyunbaba Op.19
Before I really got into singing and writing my own music I studied and played classical guitar pretty intensely for a number of years. This is a piece that I always wanted to learn but just never got around to. This is a very beautiful interpretation of it.
Song from your hometown
#1 Dads – Camberwell
I come from a very small town in rural Australia … it’s not known for producing a whole lot of music. I know a couple of people from my town doing some interesting musical things, but as far as I know none of it has resulted in a finished product made openly available to the world yet. So for this category I’m going to cheat a little bit and provide a song from my home country (hometown, home country … close enough right?) that really reminds me of home. My Dad discovered this song and recommended it to me, and from the very first listen I was totally captivated. The song has this lovely, languid resignation to it, like being driven around half-hungover in the back seat of an old car on a brutally hot Australian summer day. The triumphant saxophone solo at the end is so unexpected and joyous, it leaves a big smile on my face every time I listen to it.
Song you’d play upon reaching the summit of Everest
John Cage – 4’33”
Music is a wonderful companion, capable of enriching the experience of being alive in infinite ways. But I also believe there are times when there is nothing more appropriate to do than simply be and experience the moment in which we find ourselves in its unadulterated entirety. If I should ever find myself on the summit of Mount Everest, I want to know what it sounds like to be on the summit of Mount Everest. Thus, for this category I have chosen John Cage’s 4’33”. The piece calls for respect for silence and the rich world of sound that constantly exists around us if we take the time to stop and listen to it. From what I’ve seen though of the dangerous overcrowding of inexperienced expeditions on Everest, I would be very surprised if anybody managed to get a full four minutes and thirty three seconds to truly enjoy the sounds of the mountain, sky and wind.
And for those of you who are too lazy to click individual links, here’s a Playmoss mix that requires a single tap:
Check out the Mark Timmins Bandcamp and Soundcloud pages to explore his music, and be sure to give him a follow on Facebook to keep up-to-date with future releases/thigh bruises (maybe).