Erinnert ihr euch noch an Kassetten? Dieses hoffnungslos romantische analoge Format, das es einem im Handumdrehen ermöglichte der Liebsten, Freunden oder auch Verwandten nicht nur eine Freude zu machen, sondern gleichzeitig auch noch eine musikalische Lehrstunde zu geben, inklusive Coolness-Statement! Was war das schön! Wir huldigen nach wie vor dieser Leidenschaft und stellen euch mit unserer Mixtaping by Strangers-Reihe nicht nur tolle neue Künstler vor, die über ihre Mixtape-Vergangenheit und -Vorlieben berichten, nein, wir lassen sie auch extra für euch eine kleine Liste zusammen stellen, auf dass ihr schwelgt in für euch neuer Musik, musikalische Einflüsse entdeckt und die Leidenschaft zur Mixtape machen, weiter geht! Repeat & Rewind inklusive! Für Tape 7 haben wir das Duo Alpines inmitten der Aufregung um die Veröffentlichung ihres Debütalbums am letzten Freitag an Spotify gesetzt – Push play!

Mixtaping by Strangers – Vol 7 – Alpines

Have you ever done a mixtape before? If yes – when was the first time and for which person? If not – why not and for which person would you do one?
Bob: Yes I’ve always made mix-tapes. I think the first ones I made were for myself! I think the very first ones I made were on cassette, taping songs off the radio. I think it was in 1998 around the world cup – I remember the football songs being on it! I made much more into my teens, in the days of CDs it was hard to skip from one artist to the next like we do today, so I would make complications of my favourite songs, for different moods.

Catherine: I have made and been given mix tapes for what seems like forever. Like Bob, the first mix tapes I made were also on cassette when I was really young, it was sometimes the only way to listen back to songs you loved on the radio if you didn’t want to wait for them to come out in the record stores! One of the first mix tapes made for me was by my school friend Lucy, we were doing lots of dancing together at the time, just in classrooms pretending we were in girl bands so she made me a CD so I could practice at home.

Which format would you prefer for your mixtape: Cassette, CD, digital playlist?
Bob: In my teens it was CDs. It is certainly easier today with playlists, but there is something nice about a physical item with a hand-written track listing. Cassettes are much cooler than CDs though, and even more time consuming because you had to record in real time.

Catherine: There is something so great and nostalgic about cassettes. They have that quality that makes you feel like they are going to last forever. Looking back at some old cassettes from when I was younger they hold some many amazing memories. So I would choose cassette for old times sake!

Insider tips that the listener won’t know or mainstream hits?
Bob: If you’re making one for someone else I always like to include some songs they won’t have heard.

Catherine: I agree. There is something so special about giving someone a mixtape of songs which they might discover for the first time. And that is the theme of this playlist we have made for you guys! We have chosen songs from huge artists that are not their most obvious singles, but songs that we really love, perhaps even more than their big hits.

Sad/emotional or dance/party songs?
Bob: I have made both in my time! I had one called ‘Maximum Chill’ when I was 15, which was acoustic indie/rock songs, and I remember a pair of CDs called ‘Party 1 & 2’ that did the rounds for a few years.

Catherine: You need lots of different mix tapes in life, as you are often in so many different situations. I have mix tapes for my car which help to keep me awake when I do long drives, we have DJ mix tapes for when we DJ parties and we have ambient playlists for when we want to chill out.

Listing songs one after the other or planning a tonal climax?
Bob: One of the biggest arts of a mix-tape is the sequencing. You need to think about how the songs feel from one to the next, it’s not just a list.
Catherine: Yep definitely! It is all about the flow of a mixtape. You want to take the listener on a journey. It is the same when you are writing an album.

About the cover: self painted, a picture stolen from the internet or a simple set-list?
Bob: Just a hand-written set list is good enough for me! Let the music do the talking.

Catherine: A handwritten set list is nice with maybe an image underneath to set the tone. Or a polaroid photo.

If you could choose an artist/band, who should do a mixtape for you – which one would it be and why?
Bob: I would love a mixtape from Brian Eno! That would be interesting.

Catherine: I would love a mixtape from Erykah Badu. I think it would be weird, wonderful and soulful.