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| Check again, iTunes | |
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6.23.2007
2:46 PM | Link |
 iTunes has a feature called Sound Check that would be so much better if it actually worked! The idea is that iTunes will analyze all of your songs to determine the general volume of each one, and then when it plays back it's supposed to equalize the volume so you don't have to keep turning it up and down when it plays quiet songs or blasts the loud ones. This is supposed to carry over to the iPod, which I listen to almost every day for eight hours straight at work, but I can tell you from experience, it doesn't do much at all. I still have to keep fiddling with the volume, which is kind of a pain. I'm sure my listening habits aren't quite normal (Bach's Coffee Cantata followed by Morning Musume's Kanashimi Twilight, for example), but I still wish Sound Check could help me out more.
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| Ten Cool Tunes 10.2006 | |
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10.14.2006
5:22 PM | Link |
 Well, I've been getting progressively later in putting out a monthly mix, and usually the reason is that I was limiting the amount of Jpop, since I've been creating iMixes of these on the iTunes Store. This month I'm tossing that idea! This month's mix is full of relaxing, mellow stuff - definitely not all ballads, but everything has a laid-back feel. The first track is the best song from an amazing album by Keane (which I heard for the first time at church, believe it or not) - Hopes and Fears is full of fantastic songs like this one. After that, it's all Jpop! Yes, even Heartsdales and Morning Musume can contribute a song to this peaceful mix (actually, there are several down-tempo MoMusu songs I love, but Stay is the only Heartsdales song that I know that fits here). Several of these songs are of the "begins with a solo piano" variety, but I mixed them up with some Koda Kumi jangly guitar and an Anna Tsuchiya power ballad. The last track doesn't even have a name, but it's hidden on Sasuke's single of Eien no Natsu (another great song). It's a nice sentimental love song with easy to understand Japanese, so I listen to it all the time. I've been listening to this mix a lot today, and I really like it!10.2006 Mix (Song / Album / Artist)
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| Ten Cool Tunes 09.2006 | |
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9.01.2006
10:51 PM | Link |
 It's fun coming up with a ten track mix every month, but it's getting difficult to decide how I should put them together. I like to have a flow or a theme, but I also like most of the songs to be available on iTunes (even though there are only four of those this month). This mix is a little moody, but it contains some stuff I've listened to over and over. Great Expectations is a movie I really like (even though some other folks I know think it's terrible), and the soundtrack is cool, so after a quick classical intro, Pulp starts the mood. Sakura Mankai strays a little, but I had to include it since I've only recently become addicted to this song! The next four songs are all old, but all emotional in different ways (I've always thought All Her Favorite Fruit sounded like a stalker ballad). You'll have to forgive the Hilary Duff track, but it really fits here (definitely not her usual mindless pop). She Said is a truly amazing song from Kamikaze Girls (Shimotsuma Monogatari), and this re-mix of Life in Mono is one of the few cases where I think a re-mix is way better than the original.09.2006 iMix (Song / Album / Artist)
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| Ten Cool Tunes 08.2006 | |
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8.01.2006
7:55 PM | Link |
 Hello August! Here's my iMix for this month, and it's a little bizarre. Several songs are here just because I happened to think about them recently and made impulse buys from the iTunes Music Store, and others I just picked from among the "hits" in my library. I used to be a huge Queen fan, and I heard Don't Stop Me Now playing at A-Kon (of all places), which made want to buy it right away. I had to include the latest Morning Musume single out of loyalty, and just when you thought you could forget it forever, here comes Rock Me Amadeus. My tutor and pal Kazki just released his original EP on iTunes - it's a lot different from his current style, but Your Love is Strange is a cool track! Counting Blue Cars is kind of ancient, but I used to really like that song, and it marks the point where this mix mellows out. The Step Into Liquid soundtrack is simply amazing, and Windshield Wipers is a thoughtful, relaxing tune. After a brief trip to the 80s with Duran Duran, Daft Punk ends the mix with my favorite song of theirs. I'm not sure why Something About Us is so great - there's just something about it.08.2006 iMix (Song / Album / Artist)
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| Ten Cool Tunes 07.2006 | |
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7.09.2006
11:13 PM | Link |
 July is already a third over and I completely forgot to make a mix this month! So, here's my overdue Ten Cool Tunes for July. Just like last month, my listening habits have been almost 100% Jpop, so I went through my iTunes library to find some older favorites to put together (I had to leave Morning Musume's single in there, since I've probably listened to it about 150 times recently!). Actually, I was pretty surprised that the iTunes Music Store has so few of these tracks available, but I'm sure you can find them from other sources if you want. Kids in America (probably my favorite 80s pop song) kicks things off, and then the feel lightens up a little to settle into the 6/8 goodness of Gordon's Gardenparty, and then things steadily stay up-beat, making room for Spin Around (Josie & the Pussycats is the best soundtrack for the worst movie combination that I know of!) and one of Shone Knife's best covers.07.2006 iMix (Song / Album / Artist)
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| Ten Cool Tunes 06.2006 | |
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6.01.2006
11:46 PM | Link |
 Welcome to this month's Ten Cool Tunes! Truthfully, I've been listening to almost nothing but Morning Musume all month, but since none of their music is available on iTunes, I'm only including one of their songs in the mix (which I love to sing!). As it is, only six of these tunes are in the iTunes Music Store, but at least you can see more of WEBmikey's favorite stuff. This month I have instrumental bookends (closing with the awesome 5/4 spy music of The Incredibles), with plenty of groovy and moody tracks in the middle. Out Here All Night was a free track from iTunes (I may have to buy the whole album!), All for Leyna is my favorite non-hit Billy Joel song, and Toxic is an undeniably great tune even if you hate Britney. I think the flow of this month's mix is much better than last month!06.2006 iMix (Song / Album / Artist)
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| Ten Cool Tunes 05.2006 | |
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5.01.2006
12:48 PM | Link |
 Continuing my new Ten Cool Tunes idea, here's my mix for May. There's not too much here I would call "recent", except for the We Are Scientists cut (I can't stop listening to that band!). As far as a mix goes, this one doesn't really flow well, but it's a good sampling of tunes that I've been craving recently. The only theme I can find is that most of these songs have a cool guitar sound, but other than that, the mood swings between light-hearted songs and angry songs is pretty weird. Almost all of these are on the iTunes Music Store, so take a look!05.2006 iMix (Song / Album / Artist)
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| Ten Cool Tunes 04.2006 | |
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4.01.2006
5:58 PM | Link |
 I listen to a ton of music each day - in my car, at work, and nearly every waking hour at home! I don't always get a chance to review each CD I get (though hopefully I eventually get to most of them), but I still would like to capture what I enjoy here on WEBmikey. So, I've decided to start a new project (hopefully it will last) of creating a quick playlist of Ten Cool Tunes each month. Most of these should be from CDs that are new to my collection, since they're fresh in my mind, but I'm also going to throw in other "hits" (based on my iTunes ratings) no matter how old they are. I'll be making each list into an iMix on the iTunes Music Store, so you can sample if you're curious and buy if you like it! Unfortunately, only some of each list will be available in iTunes, since my list is always going to include some J-Pop that they don't have (maybe someday!).04.2006 iMix (Song / Album / Artist)
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| iTunes synchronicity | |
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5.21.2002
8:55 PM | Link | It's amazing how synchronicity works sometimes. I listen to my CD collection via iTunes nearly every day, randomly shuffling through over 4,000 songs. This weekend I'm traveling to Tulsa for my pal Nick's wedding, and out of the blue today my iBook started playing Tear Stained Eye by Son Volt. I haven't heard this song in years - the amazing coincidence is that one of my bands in Tulsa, Empty Pockets, used to play this song! I used to play congas with brushes and sing harmonies, too - it was such a nice, relaxing band. I remember playing several times in the park by the river, watching roller bladers and feeling cool. Most of my Tulsa pals have moved away, but I'm planning on having a fantastic time with my great friends Dave and Jill - my official Tulsa family! |
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