WARMER MIXTAPES #717 | by Gary Barber, Simon Milner and Dominic Apa of IS TROPICAL

SIDE A | by Gary Barber

1. Love | Alone Again Or
Arthur Lee was 19 when he wrote the Forever Changes album and it Blows Me Away Every Time I Listen  To It. I don't have many CD's at all as I Hate The Format, but I've always hung onto the Love CD as it Feels Really Precious. I bought it when I was about 18, and often listen to the album from Start to Finish Without Ever Skipping a Track (even the 37 outtakes at the end of the Extended Version). Alone Again Or is the first track and I know as soon as I hear it I'm going to be spending the next hour or so Listening to Amazing Songs.

2. Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons | The Night
It's One of his Lesser Known Songs, but Incredible. The Vocal Harmonies are So Good. It's a song that Always Ends Up Being Played at House Parties at 5am to Keep People Going.

3. Roy Orbison | You Got It
Roy's Vocal Melodies are Insane. He Very Rarely Repeats Sections in his songs, the Chords Change Throughout and Just Build and Build, every section usually better than the last. You Got It has such a Bitter Sweet Feeling to it. It's Half Uplifting and Heart-Wrenching at the Same Time. Elvis Presley refused to ever share a stage with Roy Orbison because he though that Roy was Just Too Good, and it's True.

4. The Strokes | I'll Try Anything Once (You Only Live Once Demo Version)
This is the Demo to You Only Live Once and it captures a side of the Strokes that their albums don't. It's almost like an Insight Into the Song Writing Process of The Strokes and this is Really Interesting to Listen to as a Musician. All the words in the Demo are Different but Equally as Good as the Full Studio Version. The Instruments are Stripped Back and the Key is Completely Different. You Can Almost Feel Where the Song Can Go Listening to It, and then, when you hear the Album Version, you finally hear the Pay Off.

5. Genius/GZA | Shadowboxin' (feat. Method Man)
The First Album I Ever Bought was Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) when I was about 11, and was Totally Sold on the whole Wu-Tang Style of Sampling and even the Imagery. The GZA's Liquid Swords album was the second album I got of theirs and Shadowboxin' was the Standout Track. Method Man's Flow on that track is Unbelievable. The Lyrical Content in it is Less big yourself up Hip Hop and More take the piss out of yourself Hip Hop... You shoulda learnt about the flow and peasy afro, Ticallion stallion, chinky-eye and snot-nosed, From my naps to the bunion on my big toe.



6. Mystery Jets | Veiled In Grey
Such an Energetic and Beautiful Song. Blaine's Vocal is Really Strong in this song. We've played with them a lot Live and this was Always the Track that I Lost My Voice To.

7. The Make-Up | Born On The Floor
It was Only Recently that I got played The Make-Up by my friend. I Initially Thought they were from the 70's, but later found out they were 90's. I Love the Energy of this Track and the Twisted Lyrics. The Bass Loop is Amazing and Locks In with Drums Just Perfectly. The Television style Lead Guitar is the Icing on the Cake. Such a Great Song.

8. Ratatat | Bare Feast
To me this is an Example of Electronic Music at Its Best. It Combines Organic Instruments and Sounds with Straight Up Clever Musicianship. Ratatat are often known as Bass Heavy Electronic Music, but their Instrumentation is Absolutely Insane. Using Thumb Pianos, alongside Ambient Dog Barks can only ever be a Good Thing when Ratatat are doing it.

9. Fleetwood Mac | Go Your Own Way
The Emotion captured in this song is So Explicit. Truly Touching Songs are Quite Rare, but this does it Perfectly. It was written When Relationships in the Band Had Been Broken and you can hear it in Nearly Every Line. It's Not Soppy at All, just Honest and, at the Same Time, it's an Absolute Banger with Amazing Melodies.

10. Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers | American Girl
This song is Just Too Nostalgic to Even Explain. I Don't Think It's Every Been Below 30C When I've Listened To It. Just Pure Summer Anthem.


SIDE B | by Simon Milner

1. Ike & Tina Turner | River Deep – Mountain High
This was Produced by Phil Spector When He Was Losing His Shit and the Same Era as Ike Beating the Crap Out of Tina. Phil thought the record was gonna be a Number 1, but it wasn't, so he locked his wife in a closet and watched Citizen Kane on repeat for days. So the song is Deep!!!

2. The Velvet Underground | Pale Blue Eyes
This song has So Much Emotion. It's the First Velvet song I Got Into. It's my Go To Song When I Feel Sorry For Myself.

3. The Modern Lovers | Hospital
Jonathan Richman is an Amazing Wordsmith, and in this song he's at His Fruitiness! There's lyrics on our new album inspired by Richman, mainly the subject matter in Sun Sun.

4. Vic Godard & Subway Sect | Make Me Sad
When I first moved to London I Didn't Own Much in My Squat, but a Vic Godard album. From It I Realised I Wanted To Be A Musician and, even though my voice wasn't great, that it didn't matter...

5. Tom Waits | Green Grass
This is the Song I Want To Be Played At My Funeral. 100% Perfect, Tom Waits Normally Is.

6. The Strokes | Killing Lies
Always have time for The Strokes. One time in Asia I Was Tripping So Hard on Drugs and Just Got Robbed, all I had left was This Is It and some headphones, so thought the Best Way Out was just to Lay Down and Wait For the Drug Fear to Leave with Julian's voice.

7. Poolside | Harvest Moon (Neil Young Cover)
This is a Great Cover. I love these guys' new genre, Day Disco, Makes Me Happy.

8. Benoit & Sergio | What I've Lost
When I DJ I play a lot of Benoit & Sergio, I Can Relate to the Lyrics on This Track. I Wanna Show a Little French Girl What I've Lost.

9. Kindness | Swinging Party
I got into Kindness Pretty LateNobody Else Should Make This Mistake!

10. Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs | Waulking Song
We've played with Orlando a few times in England and America and He Always Brings a Party Vibe. The show in New York Went Crazy.

+11. Happy Trendy | January 6
Heard this guy Was 18 When He Started Making This Beautiful Electronic Music, then I heard he quit… I really hope he starts again, he has a Lot More Melodies to Give.

SIDE C | by Dominic Apa

1. Beak> | Mono
Didn't know about these guys the other day, turns out it's a Megaband Made Up of Legends like the guy who founded Portishead and Team Brick guy. Amazing Song, reminds me of Kraut Stuff I like too.

2. SISU | Two Thousand Hands
Some good mates from South Cali making Noised-Out Pop Music. I Really Like Production Where Guitars and Percussion Melts Together, these guys are Awesome Using Synths and Vocals to Make Something Unique Where You Might Think It's All Been Done.

3. NĂ¼ Sensae | I'm A Body
A Great Punk Band From America. Reminds me of the Old Days of Listening to Hardcore When I Was Really Young. Anything from Crass to Integrity can be Heard In Here.

4. Unknown Mortal Orchestra | So Good At Being In Trouble
Wonder/Mayfield would Cream Over These White Guys. Song Sounds like a Classic Already, Nothing Else to Say About It Really. The Video is Pretty Good too.

5. Tame Impala | Mind Mischief
If the Lonerism album starts with a couple of songs that sounds like John Lennon Smoking a Joint in the Bath, this is the Point When He Gets Out of the Tub in Slow Motion and Maybe Starts Boiling an Egg Thinking About His Life.


6. The Rolling Stones | What A Shame
This is a song from The Rolling Stones, Now!, which is my Favorite Stones Album. They still have the Blues Tinge, haven't let go of that yet. If White Boy Music was a Poster, this would be a bit of the Blue-Tac holding it up.

7. Charley Patton | Green River Blues
Have been in Love with Delta Blues Since the First Time My Granddad played me a Son House record. Patton's Weird Vocal Delivery and Relatively Sedate Guitar Style makes this song Unbelievably Sad-Sounding. Used to Blast this Album Over the Back Porch of my House in Florida, and Try Catch Frogs and Turtles in a Lake in my Back Garden.

8. Macabre | Lazy Lady
First release by Pentagram was with this name. I'm putting this down instead of an obvious choice like Metallica or Black Sabbath. Always liked the Classic Metal thing, When There's a Bit of Blues Still Left In It Especially - the documentary about Bobby from Pentagram is Really Depressing/Inspiring. These guys Essentially Got Me Into Everything from Doom Metal to CCR.

9. Minor Threat | In My Eyes
The Fugazi-style Intro is Awesome. Then They Get Going. Another one from Childhood. This would be my Skate Video Section, If I Was Any Good at Skateboarding. (Subject to Change).

10. Steve Reich | Music For 18 Musicians
This one Might Be Cheating, but this Whole Score is Something I Always Liked, Without Having A Good Reason Why. Very Evocative, and Awesome To Listen To When You're Just Waking Up Sometimes. If You Listened To It Enough, you'd probably Get Better at Playing Music by Just Absorption Power Alone.