On Lounge Morning Nanoni and making mix tapes

While surfing JPOPSUKI last night (I usually go there for the weekly ORICON compilations), I discovered an album labeled "lounge morning nanoni."

lounge morning nanoni: Mix Tape 12 (site link in the picture)
The album consisted of a nonstop mix of original version and remixed J-Pop, including anime themes. I downloaded the first 3 albums to give it a listen, and I was impressed. He claims he's an amateur, but that's no reason to avoid these mixes at all. I'm in the process of downloading the rest of his released albums now (13 total as of this post).

Interesting thing is, I was planning on doing something for my blog, along the same idea, but in more toward "compilation" type. (More after the break.)

Since I've been psyched up by these mixes, I'll explain what I was trying to do, beginning with my primary inspiration:

Quote:

Now, the making of a good compilation tape is a very subtle art. Many do's and don'ts. First of all, you're using someone else's poetry to express how you feel. This is a delicate thing. - Rob (John Cussak), High Fidelity

As any DJ will tell you, it's all about controlling energy: having a feel for when to turn it up, and when to back off. Having a good sense of this is a major factor in making a good mix, whether separate tracks or non-stop.

The last time I attempted this was about 4-5 years ago, when I made a non-stop mix version of E.L.T.-Trance (ELT = Every Little Thing), which was originally in separate tracks. I mixed it in Acid 4.0 over the period of a week, then posted the final result to Hongfire. Response was favorable, but it wasn't incredibly popular. Not as many J-Pop fans as Anime fans, I suppose.

Anyway, back to the present, my album/single/OST collection has grown substantially in the past year, and I felt it would be a good time to give mixing another try, except in a different format. I'll be creating "themed" playlists, according to the following rules:

A genre/artist restriction will be determined ahead of time. This is to keep the album focused.
Try to use the "original" version of a song.
Order is important! This is related to the control of energy in a mix.
It must fit onto a single CD (combined time of 60-74 min). If multiple CDs are used, each disc must be "full".

I'll make a short mp3/YouTube version of the album, featuring 15-30 second clips of each song, along with a printed playlist. Depending on the logistics, I'll try to release a copy of the compilation over BitTorrent.

Since I've been into Chiaki Ishikawa recently, I'm considering doing a Yuki Kajiura mix for my first album. I'll post it up once its finished.

Again, a big thumbs up to lounge morning for making these mixes and boosting my interest in J-Pop again.