Edge Of Space - a mix to take you on a stratospheric journey

Happy New Year!  Here's a mix that I made to listen to on short hop flights but thanks to Covid -  I haven't yet had a chance to fly and to listen to this at altitude....  This is a bit different to a lot of my other mixes and I found it quite challenging to sequence.  However, having listened to it again yesterday, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. 

It opens with an ethereal track from Clinton Shorter that I used to segue into "Zeit Maschine" from A Silent Noise.  I've combined a few instrumentals in this mix as the effect I was trying to create was a flow of music that would accompany the turbulence bumps and movement of the aircraft and to drown out the cabin sounds. I tend not to listen to lyrics but rather focus in on the music and so there is nothing lyrically connected with flying or space in any of the tracks with vocals in case you were wondering......

Hope you like it.

Track List:

01 - The Expanse - Clinton Shorter

02 - Zeit Maschine (Voyage Version) - A Silent Noise

03 - The Trip - Still Corners 

04 - Amerimacka - Thievery Corporation

05 - Red Rain (2012 Remaster) - Peter Gabriel

06 - Flight 420 - Astronaut Ape

07 - Nightcall (feat. Lovefoxx) - Kavinsky

08 - High Hopes (Radio Edit) - Pink Floyd

09 - Stratosphere - Starset

10 - Superdub - Supermax

11 - Ballrooms Of Mars - T-Rex

12 - Cries Of A Dead World - Miracle Of Sound

Edge Of Space

Radar Heart - a blend of pop and rock tracks to listen to over the weekend

Things have been a little busy in my world of late, hence the reason I haven't been posting much.  Hopefully that'll change soon and I'll get a chance to spend some more time at my computer and work on some new compilations.  Radar Heart is a mix I did a few months ago, which is a nice blend of pop and rock music that's an easy listen.  Hope you like it.....

Tracklist:

01 - War / Rain - Johnossi

02 - Breakfast At Sweethearts - Cold Chisel

03 - Waste A Moment - Kings Of Leon

04 - Switchblade Heart - Goodbye June

05 - Long Line Of Cars - Cake

06 - What Else Is There? - Royksopp

07 - Hearsay - Phyllotaxis

08 - Face Full Of Lines - The Radar Station

09 - So Pretty - Noises Of The Wicked

10 - Read About It - Midnight Oil

11 - Over My Shoulder - I Am Kloot

12 - No One's Home - Switchblade Glory

Radar Heart

Storm Chaser - a blend of pop & rock with a little Kiwi & Oz thrown in for good measure

My Storm Chaser compilation starts off a little tongue-in-cheek with 80's track Precious Little Diamond from Fox The Fox followed by the immediately recognizable voice of Marc Bolan from T-Rex with Ballrooms Of Mars. The mix includes songs from a couple of Kiwi artists - Evermore and Pluto as well as tracks from a couple of favourite Oz neighbors Jimmy Barnes and James Reyne. I also threw in a mash-up called Holes In My Disposition with Mercury Rev & The Temper Trap, which I feel puts in place a reflective interlude after Trouble Andrew's song New Kid before heading into the last 4 tracks.  Enjoy.

Tracklist:

01 - Precious Little Diamond (12" Mix) - Fox The Fox

02 - Ballrooms Of Mars - T-Rex

03 - Hey Boys & Girls - Evermore

04 - You From Me - Jimmy Barnes

05 - Everytime We Fall - Anna Ternheim

06 - Reckless - James Reyne

07 - New Kid - Trouble Andrew

08 - Holes In My Disposition - Mercury Rev vs The Temper Trap

09 - Virgin Of The World - Cory Becker

10 - Jane Says - Janes Addiction

11 - The Balance - Torul

12 - Long White Cross - Pluto

Storm Chaser

    

Mind The Gap - a mix of rock, pop, alt-rock, synth pop and melodic rock

Here's a blended mix from multiple genres for your listening pleasure.   There's a reasonable spread of different music from tracks 1 through 12 and so there are definitely multiple ways this mix could be sequenced but in the immortal words of Frank Sinatra - "I did it my way". Have a great weekend.

Tracklist:

01 - Just Let Go - From The Ash

02 - Dawn - Echo Black

03 - Fall Down - Toad The Wet Sprocket

04 - When You Run Away - Guild Of Ages

05 - Holding On To You - Garrett Kato

06 - Mind The Gap - The Soundtrack Of Our Lives

07 - Napalm Girls - Creeper

08 - All Of You - Cold Chisel

09 - Ghosts - Big Wreck

10 - New Sensations - Sunsleep

11 - Dodged A Bullet - Greg Laswell

12 - Nights Of Future Past - Julien-K

Mind The Gap

Ghost Town - mix of rock, blues-rock, country rock with a little bit of New Zealand rock thrown in for good measure

It's Good Friday afternoon on a dreary autumn day and I'm having a few beers and listening to my music.  I've just finished playing my Ghost Town mix and thought I'd take a few minutes between beers to share it with ya.....

This is what I call a bitza mix - bits of everything.  Well, not really everything but I've taken tracks from genres such as country rock, blues-rock, rock and probably some borderline pop.  Every now and then I also like to showcase some music from my homeland - New Zealand.  In this mix I've included some tracks from Graham Brazier (RIP), who was the front man for Kiwi favourites Hello Sailor, the legend Mark Williams who now fronts Dragon, a dark number from the great music-man himself Greg Johnson and an acoustic version of their song 'Bullet For Your Gun' from 2000's rock band Black River Drive.

Tracklist:

01 - Turning Away - Dougie MacLean

02 - Ghost Town - Bo Bruce

03 - Closing Time - Semisonic

04 - Gravity - Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band

05 - Back To Zero - Third Eye Blind

06 - Autumn - Graham Brazier

07 - Around The Sun - 8mm Overload

08 - Feel For The Night - Mark Williams

09 - Other Side Of You - American Bang

10 - Winter Song - Greg Johnson

11 - Bullet For You Gun - Black River Drive

12 - Everything Is Going Great - Tiny Stills

Ghost Town

Crimson Clouds - a pop mix with a bit of electronica thrown in

This mix is mostly pop music but I've included some electronica and a few that are broadly pop that I just can't put my finger on - but I feel that they compliment each other. An interesting one for me was the track 'Tehran 1979' by Brian Reitzell featuring Debbie Harry that had a bit of a Miami Vice 80's feel to it, which I put in as the opening track and then kept the tempo going with the 2nd track from Russian indie band Biting Elbows with 'Control' before putting rest of the tracks together in a sequence that kept it interesting.  See what you think....

Tracklist:

01 - Tehran 1979 - Brian Reitzell (feat. Debbie Harry)

02 - Control - Biting Elbows

03 - Drown - Melanie C

04 - Trouble - Robots Don't Sleep

05 - Crimson Clouds - Volkor X

06 - Walls Fall Down - Bedouin Soundclash

07 - Spotlight Smile - Open Sound

08 - Milestone - Diana Drive

09 - Milan - Thomas Giles

10 - My Beautiful Friend - The Charlatans

11 - Staying Out For Summer - Dodgy

12 - Bloodlust Tonight - Giant Eagles

Crimson Clouds

After The Rain - A music mix including some Kiwi & Aussie artists

After The Rain is a mix I put together some time back that brings together music from pop, folk rock & alt country genres with the inclusion of some Kiwi and Aussie artists.  The mix opens with well known New Zealand artist Anika Moa and is followed by the big sound of British artist Rag 'n Bone Man with his song 'Skin'. Aussie artists Ed Kuepper, Paul Kelly, The Black Sorrows and Missy Higgins compliment the rest of the lineup in this mix.

Tracklist:

01 - My Old Man - Anika Moa

02 - Skin - Ragnbone Man

03 - Stamina - Anastasia

04 - I Used To Cry - Imany

05 - Far From Any Road - The Handsome Family

06 - If I Had A Ticket - Ed Kuepper

07 - Darken Your Eyes - Jack Marks

08 - The Stable Song - Gregory Alan Isakov

09 - This Old Dark Machine - James Vincent McMorrow

10 - Randwick Bells - Paul Kelly & The Coloured Girls

11 - Roaring Town - The Black Sorrows

12 - 49 Candles - Missy Higgins

After The Rain

Days End - Rock / Pop compilation

I was playing this compilation last weekend while I was outside doing some well overdue gardening and thought it would be a good one to share.  Days End is a mix of mostly rock & pop tracks with an alt rock/hip-hop number from Blacklite District thrown in for good measure and a very cruisy electronic number by Canadian duo Bob Moses.  I've also included a couple of covers that are particularly well done - Lou Reed's 'Sweet Jane' by Mott The Hoople and the Split Enz track 'I Got You' by New Zealand band Shihad. 

 Tracklist:

01 - Human - Aquilo

02 - New Sensations - Sunsleep

03 - Monster - The Automatic Automatic

04 - Emeralds - Bear's Den

05 - The Roller - Beady Eye

06 - The Lost Gospel - Madrugada

07 - Tearing Me Up - Bob Moses

08 - I Got You - Shihad

09 - Sweet Jane - Mott The Hoople

10 - Cold As Ice (The Remake) - Blacklite District

11 - Beauty Is Truth - Sad Lovers And Giants

12 - Medicine Man - Charlotte OC

Days End

Brilliant Mistake - an interesting mix of songs spanning 35 years

This 12-song compilation was one of the more difficult ones that I've put together.  I'd been listening to Elvis Costello's album King Of America and was quite impressed with his vocals on "Brilliant Mistake", so I set myself the challenge of blending together some tunes from the 80's with those from more recent decades. 

So, using 'Brilliant Mistake' as the anchor tune - I selected music from the 80's through to current to see what I could come up with.  I quite liked Fever Ray's rendition of Peter Gabriel's 'Mercy Street' and chose that as the opening track followed closely by Robbie Robertson's 'Unbound' and then the remaining arrangement of tracks through to the final song 'Your Own Sweet Way' by the The Notting Hillbillies (Mark Knopfler).  It's a pretty laid back mix that introduces a layer of complexity that makes for an interesting listen - probably best after at least 1-2 drinks :-)

Tracklist:

01 - Mercy Street - Fever Ray

02 - Unbound - Robbie Robertson

03 - Is It Like Today - Eliza Gilkyson

04 - Don't Forget Me - Red Hot Chili Peppers

05 - Dear Life - Beck

06 - Last Train Out - Gooding

07 - Brilliant Mistake - Elvis Costello

08 - Vide Noir - Lord Huron

09 - Twist In My Sobriety - Tanita Tikaram

10 - December - Collective Soul

11 - Heartbeat - Zola Blood

12 - Your Own Sweet Way - Notting Hillbillies

Brilliant Mistake

The Simple Image - Spinning, Spinning, Spinning (1968) - New Zealand pop/rock & psychedelic rock band from the 60's

Here's another album from my New Zealand music collection.  The Simple Image was a New Zealand band that was popular here in the 1960's.  In their short career they achieved 4 top ten chart hits including the extremely popular Spinning, Spinning Spinning. This album was released in July 1968.

Tracklist:

01 - Spinning, Spinning, Spinning

02 - Love Of The Common People

03 - Hold Me Tight

04 - I Don't Want To Love You

05 - Walk On

06 - The Little Bell That Cried

07 - Bring It On Home

08 - Something Happened To Me

09 - Take Me To Tomorrow

10 - Treat Her Like A Lady

11 - Brand New Woman

12 - Tomorrow Is Another Day

13 - Hawaii

The Simple Image - Spinning, Spinning, Spinning

Phantasmic - my final mix post for 2020

I was playing this mix last night while sitting around a fire pit with friends.  I had the volume cranked up fairly loud and so it was sounding rather good on a warm summers night (I live in New Zealand) amidst the glow from the flames, the clear skies, the native bush backdrop and the steady flow of alcohol.  A friend remarked that he wished he could buy cd's like this, which I took as quite the compliment. This mix brings together quite a diverse selection of rock & pop music that I've tried to sequence in a way that makes it flow nicely through the 12-songs.  I love the song that I've opened the mix with by Still Corners and particularly like the reggae/pop feel of 'Stay Alive' by Hollie Cook, the cruisy "An Ocean Between The Waves' by the fantastic War On Drugs (and yes it does finish rather abruptly) as well as the semi-cluby sound of "No Reason' by Bonobo.

Wherever you are - I wish you all the very best for 2021.  I do hope it's better than 2020 but regardless of what happens - music is the tonic that gets us through.  Take care and stay safe and if you like what I've posted so far - stop by again in the new year.....

All the best,
Skylord99

Tracklist:

01 - The Trip - Still Corners

02 - Stay Alive - Hollie Cook

03 - Bottle Rockets - Lowest Of The Low

04 - The Funeral - Band Of  Horses

05 - Shine - Younger Brother

06 - To Lose My Life - White Lies

07 - Cath - Death Cab For Cutie

08 - Islands - Zola Blood

09 - An Ocean Between The Waves - The War On Drugs

10 - Goddess On A Cadillac - Just Like Honey

11 - No Reason - Bonobo (feat. Nick Murphy)

12 - Don't You Evah - Spoon

Phantasmic

Hang On - a pop music mix

This mix is a blend of pop songs that provides a lighter and easy listening experience.  I included the cheeky Toploader version of  King Harvest's 'Dancing In The Moonlight' for a bit of fun but it I feel it works works well in the mix by following after 'Desire' by Champ and into the next few songs.  I've closed the mix out with some great vocals from Danish band Go Go Berlin and ended with a rather haunting song from Soleil Fisher, which is sung in French.

Tracklist:

01 - Keep It Healthy - Warpaint

02 - Brace The Storm - Grendel

03 - Desire - Champs

04 - Dancin' In The Moonlight - Toploader

05 - Secret Of Life - Lord Huron

06 - Nothing Breaks Like A Heart - Mark Ronson/Miley Cyrus

07 - Hang On - Plumb

08 - Stockholm - The New Division

09 - Holding On For Life (Solomun Radio Remix) - Broken Bells

10 - Last Goodbye - The Birthday Massacre

11 - Here Comes The Darkness - Go Go Berlin

12 - Au Clair De La Lune (Vocal Mix) - Soleil Fisher

Hang On

Absolutely Kiwi

This is a compilation of  New Zealand (Kiwi) artists and bands - mostly from the 80's.  Some like Tim Finn and Shona Laing have had international success but most are better known in NZ and Australia.  Tim of course a member of Split Enz and Shona Laing did a stint with Manfred Mann Earth Band.  Also, Charlie Tumahai from Herbs was the bass player in the UK band Be-Bop Deluxe.

Tracklist:

01 - Why Does Love Do This To Me - The Exponents

02 - Isabelle - Greg Johnson

03 - Sweet Lovers - Holidaymakers

04 - Youthful - Anika Moa

05 - (Glad I'm) Not A Kennedy - Shona Laing

06 - Break In The Weather - Jenny Morris

07 - Persuasion - Tim Finn

08 - Language - Dave Dobbyn

09 - For Today - Netherworld Dancing Toys

10 - Magic What She Do - DD Smash

11 - What's The Time Mr Wolf? - Southside Of Bombay

12 - Sensitive To A Smile - Herbs

Absolutely Kiwi

Satellite Spies

Today's compilation leaves behind the Prog Rock theme from the previous posts and brings together a few well known artists with some lessor known ones.  I've assembled tracks from rock, indie rock, electronic and pop genres for this 12-song mix of cool music.

Tracklist:

01 - Soon - Yes

02 - Pleasure & Pain - Divinyls

03 - Satellite - Guster

04 - Hypnotized - Fleetwood Mac

05 - Hold My End Up - Delta Spirit

06 - The High Road - Broken Bells

07 - Daniel - Bat For Lashes

08 - I'll Figure It Out - Lisa Marie Presley (Elvis' daughter)

09 - House Of Cards - Scorpions

10 - Coming Home - Mike Tramp

11 - Energy - Schiller

12 - High Hopes - Pink Floyd

Satellite Spies

Room With A View

This compilation is quite easy listening and is a mix of instrumental, pop, soft rock and rock.  It opens with a catchy instrumental from Blonker followed by a pop number from Kiwi artist Brooke Fraser and finishing up with a classic Cold Chisel track.  In-between are some well known artists as well as a classic from UFO.

Tracklist:

01 - Sidewalk Cafe - Blonker

02 - Kings & Queens - Brooke Fraser

03 - What I See - Planet P Project

04 - Belladona - UFO

05 - Upside of Down - Little Hurricane

06 - Room With A View - Tony Cary

07 - In A Broken Dream - Rod Stewart

08 - Cuts You Up - Peter Murphy

09 - Hazard - Richard Marx

10 - I Can't Understand - Los Lobos

11 - '74-'75 - The Connels

12 - Breakfast At Sweethearts - Cold Chisel

Room With A View

Diversity Vol.1

This compilation dates back to 2005 in my collection and contains a 15-track selection from multiple genres.  I didn't make that many back then and these days I only make 12-track album length compilations, which is my favored listening preference.  I occasionally use playlists or select random play from the music server but over the last 2-3 years, I've gone back to my music listening roots and mostly play albums end-to-end, which was always the artists intention.  Anyway, back to the compilation - a diversified blend of pop, rock, folk-rock, oldies and alt-rock music.

Tracklist:

01 - You Get What You Give - New Radicals

02 - Somewhere Over The Rainbow - Israel Kamakawaiwole

03 - Mama I'm Coming Home - Ozzy Osbourne

04 - Ain't Love The Strangest Thing - The Black Sorrows

05 - By My Side - INXS

06 - Just A Little Lovin' - Dusty Springfield

07 - Dreamer - Ozzy Osbourne

08 - In A Lifetime - Clannad (feat. Bono)

09 - Come Undone - Duran Duran

10 - Murder - David Gilmour

11 - Before Too Long - Paul Kelly

12 - In The End - Linkin Park

13 - Sky - Sonique

14 - Otherside - Red Hot Chilli Peppers

15 - You'll Never Walk Alone - Gerry & The Pacemakers

Diversity Vol.1

   

Deeper In

Today's compilation features a mix of music from genres like Melodic Rock, Rock, Gothic Rock and Pop and includes a few of my favorite bands such as Pink Cream 69, Guild of Ages and The Poodles.  I've also included a track from a Kiwi/Aussie band called The Johnny's, who were a great live band and very popular on both sides of the Tasman during the 80's.

Tracklist:

01 - Followed By The Moon - Pink Cream 69

02 - Around The Sun - Guild Of Ages

03 - Mexican Hardcore - Mando Diao

04 - In Cythera - Killing Joke

05 - Lunatic - The Slow Readers Club

06 - Fall Of Rome - James Reyne

07 - Injun' Joe - The Johnny's

08 - Lips Like Morphine - Kill Hannah

09 - Deeper In - The Kordz

10 - Hunting Humans (Insatiable) - Rainbow

11 - Irresistible Force - Jane's Addiction

12 - Cuts Like A Knife - The Poodles

Deeper In

Melancholy Day

This week a work colleague and friend unexpectedly died and so it's been a bit of a sad week for me and those that I work with.  This compilation is one I put together some time back to play on those sad or 'meh' type days. Because I listen more to musical compositions rather than lyrics, the tracks I have chosen for this compilation are more about the feeling and emotion the music evokes.

Just a note to explain that I took the liberty to edit track 6 "The Park" by Uriah Heep. The original is fantastic but towards the end it goes off into a bit of a psychedelic digression, which is absolutely fine but for this compilation I felt that it changed the mood of the song and the overall feeling that I was trying to create with this collection of songs. So, I removed the psychedelic piece and closed the song out with a repeat of the first verse.  Apologies Ken Hensley for changing the composition of your beautiful song but I hope I have done it justice in the context that I've used it.

I will post something a bit brighter sometime over the weekend.

Tracklist:

01 - Hold The Light - Dierks Bentley (feat. S Carey)

02 - Old And Wise - Alan Parsons Project

03 - No Rest For The Wicked - Lykke Li

04 - Suddenly Cold - Greg Johnson

05 - Faded - Alan Walker

06 - The Park (Skylord99 edit) - Uriah Heep

07 - RIP (Millie) - Noiseworks

08 - By My Side - INXS

09 - All Good Things (Come To An End) - Nelly Furtado

10 - Days Of Rain - Blowsight

11 - Strange Kind Of Love - Peter Murphy

12 - Wrong Side - Chris Cornell

Melancholy Day

Blood Moon

This compilation is a collection of mostly pop / soft rock tracks that makes for easy listening. 

Tracklist:

01 - The Joker - The Savage Rose

02 - Algiers - Afghan Whigs

03 - Help You Fly - Ivan

04 - Iron Sky - Paolo Nutini

05 - Remember - Sunset Sons

06 - My Body - Too Slim & The Taildraggers

07 - Gulf Coast Gypsies - Uncle Lucius

08 - Only A Matter Of Time - Headwater

09 - Dive - Fightstar

10 - Forget The Blame - Trans-Siberian Orchestra

11 - Big TV - White Lies

12 - Fear - Sunset Sons

Blood Moon

Kiwi As Vol.1

This compilation is a dozen songs from some hugely talented Kiwi (New Zealand) artists and bands from the 70's, 80's  and 90's. There's a few Kiwi classics in here that never grow old and you'd still likely hear some of these songs being played at parties and events.  I've been lucky enough to have seen most of these artists performing in pubs or concerts over the years. Unfortunately, some of the musicians performing in this compilation are no longer with us.....

Tracklist

01 - Gutter Black - Hello Sailor

02 - Rain - Dragon

03 - Dance All Around The World - Blerta

04 - Be Mine Tonight - Th' Dudes

05 - Nature - The Mutton Birds

06 - (Glad I'm) Not A Kennedy - Shona Laing

07 - Burning Rain - Midge Marsden

08 - The Otherside - Breaks Co-op

09 - Maxine - Sharon O'Neill

10 - I Need Your Love - Golden Harvest

11 - What's The Time Mr Wolf - Southside Of Bombay

12 - Song 27 - Push Push

Kiwi As Vol.1