Ears Open.

In the spirit of my massive download of music today I'm going to talk about some awesome songs/bands that rarely get listened too! I know this might make me come off as a bit of a music snob but I know that my friends and I listen to some pretty great music so I want to share!

This first choice comes from my great friend Lisa, who reminded me of the awesome that is Of Monsters and Men. They only have one album out currently and I downloaded the whole thing today after getting fed up with listening to all the songs on youtube over and over. Here is my personal fave, I believe it is Lisa's as well.

Alright, next stop is definitely this new BoB and Taylor Swift song. I know a lot of people are against T Swift but I didn't even know it was her in this song. It's catchy and has some pretty decent lyrics. Let's hope that the radio doesn't overplay it now.

Next is an awesome song with a really cool cup beat. There are multiple covers of this song but I still think the original is the best. It's Lulu and The Lampshades, You're Gonna Miss Me.

Last but not least, Bon Iver. I absolutely love Bon Iver. My favorite song has to be Skinny Love though, and there are also some magnificent covers of this song. Just so, ahhhhh.

These are just some basics and they barely scrape the surface but I think I'm going to post a video at the beginning of all my posts now so you can have some background music to listen too. :)

Now, let's talk building a mix cd. I make mix cds like it's my job and my friends always love them. I'm going to share with you the tricks that I use.

1. You need to know the person you are making the cd for. If they are heavily into rap you might need to put a bunch of rap on it, if they are into just about everything you have a pretty free range, it all on depends on the person.
2. I always just pick my favorite songs from whatever genre. If I like the song, usually they will too. It just always seems to work that way. It will most likely work for you too.
3. I always try to make each mix about 19-21 songs, or an hour long.
4. Try to have a nice blend of music. Don't have two songs by the same artist play one after the other or two songs with relatively the same beat. The more variety, the better.
5. Always try putting new music on their to open their ears too! A lot of people are afraid to leave their music comfort zone and by putting new songs/bands on the cd they will be forced to listen to them. If you like the songs/bands they probably will too. I mean, you are friends right?
6. Have fun! I listen to the mixes that I make for others because I like them so much! It should also be fun to make them, don't make them if it stresses you out.
7. Always test the cd before making it. I like to listen to the mix at least once or twice just to check the flow and make sure all the songs sound okay.

I hope you try it!

I'm going to text Meranda again about going to see Brave tonight.