Ho Chi Mix City: October 2013

Note: I promise - this mix is not heavy on classics!

As Fall sets in - or what passes for Fall here - I've been getting a little moody regarding the lack of seasons. Not having the changing weather is a strange thing - I've only ever lived where you can track the passage of time through the cycle of the seasons. Fortunately, I've been able to keep my mind busy by spending a LOT of time getting to know my roommates.

Friends in other houses keep telling us how lucky we are, and that we have the best roommates... and I have to agree! Everyone we've had so far has been great - we actually enjoy spending time together, whether it's a meal or a beer or just a break on the terrace between projects. Perhaps it's the fact that our actual house is rather shitty and so we're forced into small common areas more frequently, or maybe we just did honestly get lucky with each other - no matter the reason, these songs are the ones that fit the bill this month. Pop, dance, indie rock, and just a touch of disco make a mix I can listen to over and over again.

Hit the jump for 77 minutes of realtalk about new friends...




I must admit that my last two mixes were a bit on the "classic" side of rock and roll - and older. I dug deep into my collection to piece together mixes that reflected how I was feeling about my new life and my new job, and, while I'm very happy with them (and they're pretty accurate assessments of how I was feeling), I'm tired now of blowing dust off my mp3s, so to speak. I needed something newer this month.

This mix is coming from my heart - these are largely pop and indie rock songs (and, good lord, I think they were all recorded after 2000!!), designed to make you feel feelings, dance, and smile, just when you think you can't deal with another word of made-up Vietnamese nonsense. These songs are for laughing, living, and, finally, reflecting on the good that friends (and new friends in particular) can bring into our lives every day.

These new friends are largely younger than me, and have a level of stamina for fun that, if I had it in the first place, it's been long abandoned. But for the nights that we're on the terrace until 6:30am, or bringing Chinese lanterns halfway across town on my bike at 3am, or rescuing a party from certain death when we're the only ones sober enough to find beer, or rocking out Canadian Thanksgiving (NO RICE!)... we make a pretty great team.

...Yona, Marie, Marie-Astrid, Christian, Mickael, Wes: this one's for you.