There’s Something Here From Somewhere Else.

The CDP Decade In Review starts on Monday, November 2, running straight through to the end of 2009. This is easily the largest and most ambitious project in CDP history, and this is coming from a guy that has compiled hundreds upon hundreds of lists, reviews, recaps and essays over the last six years.

This will be the culmination of work I began in June. The comprehensive result of listening and re-listening to over 300 albums. Thousands upon thousands of songs. Watching and re-watching 35 films. Researching and viewing hundreds of hours of television (both amazing and reprehensible). The reading and re-reading of over 20 books. Using YouTube to watch an entire decade’s worth of groundbreaking music videos (while avoiding the usual viral videos and Internet Phenomenons that will probably represent the decade more than anything else). Becoming a savant in the realms of Neilsen Ratings, RIAA album sales, Box Office hits and literary best-sellers.

Categorizing. Deciphering. Five full months of nothing but becoming so ingrained with every facet of Pop Culture this decade that I could recite it forward and backward in my sleep. The best of times. The worst of times. Everything.

And I absolutely cannot wait to present it, so you judgmental bastards can immediately insult my tastes, hang me out to dry and create a better list of your own.

Of course, I’m kidding. Then again, maybe I’m clairvoyant; time will tell.

Enjoy your Halloween; I’ll see you then.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Finale).

Meet Fiona. As the randomly-selected winner of the CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape #5, she received a CDP t-shirt, which we see her sporting proudly at Disneyland. It’s stuff like this that absolutely makes my day; you’re a sweetheart.

After today’s final Mix review, I will be selecting another winner of this, our 6th Mix-Tape Trade, who will win a CDP Coffee Mug of their choice. You probably can’t take it into Disneyland with you, but you can fill it with coffee and whiskey forever, should you so choose. Here we go.

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Fiona.

The Skinny – Oh man, this Mix is fantastic. Covering every theme (I think) over the course of 29 tracks and two CDs, Fiona gives me hot Opening Tracks, hilarious Guilty Pleasures, filthy Parental Advisory tunes, Cranked-To-11 bombast and epic Closing Tracks. She likes what I like, listens to what I listen to, has a great sense of humor (what CDP fan wouldn’t?) and can’t possibly take herself too seriously. In a word, Awesome.

The Presentation – Old school. Handwritten. Oh, and she sent me the photo, too.

The Breakdown – Here are some selected tracks:

Side One:
Break Like The Wind – Spinal Tap
Livin’ On A Prayer – Bon Jovi
Heartbeats – The Knife
Be My Dark Angel – Electric Six
Theme From Flood – They Might Be Giants
This Could Be Love – Alkaline Trio
This Is Not A Love Song – The Juliana Theory
Straight Up – Paula Abdul
In Your Eyes – Peter Gabriel

Side Two:
Sippin 40oz – Gravy Train
You Can Be As Loud As The Hell You Want – Avenue Q
Turn Off The Lights – Hollywood Undead
Too Drunk To F**k – Nouvelle Vague
J*zz In My Pants – The Lonely Island
Goodbye Sky Harbor – Jimmy Eat World
Best Imitation Of Myself – Ben Folds (this was on my Mix, as well)
Business Time – Flight Of The Conchords
Rainy Night In Soho – The Pouges
All I Ever Wanted – Colin Hay
The Last Song – All-American Rejects

Loved it. Thank you Fiona, you’re an inspiration to our entire organization, and a worthy ending to what was an intensely successful CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6. So, there you have it, but one last order of business before I wrap everything up today; we have a CDP Coffee Mug to give away.

The winner is…..Wallrock! Congrats, man. Take a look at the CDP Merch Page and send me an e-mail letting me know what mug you want. And hey, everyone else should check out the merch page too, because there’s some really killer stuff on there.

Sound off in the comments section and enjoy your day. One last announcement tomorrow before I take a week off and prepare for the CDP Decade In Review. You may want to prepare, too.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 13).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Smedley.

The Skinny – There ain’t nothing skinny about 141 tracks crammed into 8 discs. From the uber-famous to the ludicrously obscure, and spanning over pretty much every decade of recorded music, it’s vintage Smedley.

The Presentation – I’ve said this before, but I’ll say it again. Some people send me liner notes. Smedley sends me a detailed Excel spreadsheet. This man is all business. Considering he does the bulk of his compiling from red-eye flights, lonely hotel rooms and all-night drives, I’d say that it makes perfect sense.

The Breakdown – Did he miss anybody? I’ve alphabetized it for your pleasure:

.38 Special
AC/DC
Adam & The Ants
Beat Farmers
Black Flag
Bob Seger
Boston
Bread
Buck Owens
Buzzcocks
Captain Beefheart
Cheap Trick
Chicago
Cream
Dave Dudley
David Bowie
Deep Purple
Devo
Dire Straits
Eddie Money
Electric Light Orchestra
Electric Six
Elvis Costello
Fastway
Fear
Flash
Frankie Smith
Funkadelic
Gary Glitter
Genesis
Graham Parker
Grand Funk Railroad
Hole
Iron Butterfly
Iron Maiden
James Gang
Jeff Beck
Jennifer Trynin
Jimi Hendrix
Joe Jackson
John Coltrane
Joy Division
Judas Priest
Kenny Loggins
King Crimson
Led Zeppelin
Loretta Lynn
Los Lobos
Lucifer’s Friend
Lynyrd Skynyrd
Meat Puppets
Merle Haggard
Minutemen
Morphine
Myracle Brah
Nazareth
Night Ranger
Old 97’s
Olivia Newton-John
Pink Floyd
PJ Harvey
Porter Wagoner
Portishead
Primus
Public Image, Ltd.
Queen
Rage Against The Machine
Ram Jam
Rapeman
REM
Richard Marx
Richard Thompson
Rick Nelson
Robert Bradley’s Blackwood Surprise
Robert Randolph & The Family Band
Robyn Hitchcock
Rush
Saga
Sammy Hagar
Santana
Smashing Pumpkins
Sonic Youth
Soundgarden
Spin Doctors
Squeeze
Steel Breeze
Steppenwolf
Steve Miller Band
Stone The Crows
Superchunk
Supersuckers
Sweet
Talking Heads
Ted Nugent
The 77’s
The B-52’s
The Cult
The English Beat
The Fleshtones
The Jam
The Kings
The Knack
The Long Ryders
The Oblivians
The Police
The Posies
The Pursuit Of Happiness
The Rolling Stones
The Sugar Bears
The Who
Thin Lizzy
Toto
Uriah Heep
Whale
Winger
Wings
XTC
Yardbirds
Yes
Yoko Ono
ZZ Top

A Smedley Mix is like an alternative-dimension Time/Life compilation, hosted by Rob Halford and Henry Rollins. “How much would you expect to pay for something like this?” For a peek into his madness and for a better description of his tastes than I could ever conjure, I implore you to check out his personal corner of the web for further instruction.

Thanks much for another amazing collection of tunes, Smed. Sound off in the comments section and enjoy your day. The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party ends tomorrow, with one final review and the drawing to see who’s the lucky winner of a FREE CDP COFFEE MUG. Later.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 12).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Fleur Tatious.

The Skinny – A concept within a concept, Fleur manages to throw all six Mix themes into a male (‘Adam’) and female (‘Eve’) separated album. Hitting many decades and taking many avenues to get her point (and the mood) across, its striking eclecticism and emotion is stunningly beautiful and refreshingly fun. Just like Fleur!

The Presentation – Fleur doesn’t dick around. Neither did her presentation. I respected this, as she has already demonstrated on several occasions that she is stronger than me.

The Breakdown – Leaving out any track would not do it justice. Check it:

‘Eve:’

Last Leaf – Lisa Hannigan
Sweet Jane – Cowboy Junkies
Where Does The Good Go – Tegan And Sara
Can’t Be Sure – The Sundays
Best Ck On The Block – Bit** And Animal
Birthday – The Sugarcubes
Flower – Liz Phair
Honeybear – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
God’s Country – Ani Difranco
Daydreams – Adele
You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go – Madeline Peyroux
Walking Back – The Cranberries
I Do And It’s All Because Of You – Eddie Brickell & New Boehmians
The Other Woman – Nina Simone

‘Adam:’

Glass Concrete And Stone – David Byrne
Fiery Crash – Andrew Bird
Romeo And Juliet – Dire Straits
Upon Encountering The Crippled Elephant – Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Rememo – Kings Of Leon
Rosa – Fleshies
Mary Lou – Lightnin’ Hopkins
Musicology – Prince
I’ve Been Loving You Too Long (To Stop Now) – Otis Redding
Train In Vain – The Clash
Black Mask – The International Noise Conspiracy
Free And Easy – Bad Wizard
The Incomparable Mr. Flannery – Clutch
Instant Death – Beastie Boys

It’s amazing what you can learn about someone just by listening to their Mix-Tape. For example, I’ve probably spoken to Fleur every day for the last year, and I had no idea that she was a fan of The Sundays, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Otis Redding, Andrew Bird or The Sugarcubes. What on Earth have we been jabbering about all this time, when we could have been talking about this? Roller Derby?

Thanks so much for taking the time to make a Mix, Fleur. You’re an inspiration to our entire operation, and I owe you a latte. Sound off in the comments section, enjoy your day and let us know what your Roller Derby name would be.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 11).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Benjamin.

The Skinny – Benjamin tears the house down with a 3-CD set covering 4 of the 6 Mix themes, blistering with nothing but solid punk rock and masterful track flow. Easily his best Mix yet.

The Presentation – Beautiful. Black card stock with gorgeous, full-color, high-quality artwork, personalized photographs and even a barcode for extra authenticity. The artwork actually makes you want to listen to the album more, which has to be exactly why artwork exists in the first place, right?

The Breakdown – Because Ben’s my homie, my O.G., my Best Man and my partner in eternal Bromance, I sometimes take the liberty to bust on his musical tastes from time to time. Truth is, though, he’s an admirer of the basics. The tried-and-true winners. The stuff you never get sick of. And quite frankly, it wasn’t until I listened to these Mixes that I fully understood that. Perhaps it was the sullen and angry mood I’ve been in for the last few weeks, but I really needed some fist-pumping, screw-the-system, songs-about-girls punk rock that I’ve been sorely lacking this year. Selected tracks are as follows:

This Amp Goes To 11 – The Fairlanes
Steve’s Boy – The Lemonheads
Resolve – Lagwagon
Don’t Turn Away – Face To Face
Hey Suburbia – Screeching Weasel
A Pillar Of Salt – The Thermals
All I Want – The Offspring
Friend Of Mine – Big Drill Car
Swingset Assassin – Two Cow Garage
Natalie Portman – Ozma
First Song Side One – The Ergs!
Your Boyfriend Sucks – The Ataris
May 16 – Joey Cape
Silver – Descendents
Only Of You – Green Day
Can’t Hardly Wait – The Replacements
Shindo – Less Than Jake
Carnage – ALL
I Know You Love Me – Smoking Popes
Coolidge – Descendents
Freak Scene – Dinosaur Jr.
Am I On My Own – Common Rider
Shut The Door – Fugazi
Valentine – Old 97’s
Al’s War – Less Than Jake

You know, because I really have to crank out these reviews shortly after I receive the Mix-Tapes, I sometimes don’t get to spend as much time with a Mix as I would like. However, as soon as my work is done, this will be the first Mix I get back to. Great job, man.

Sound off in the comments section, enjoy your day and tell us what your favorite Green Day song is. Just curious.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 10).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Caitlin.

The Skinny – Deep, happy, emotional, sultry, bouncy, moody, perfect for Autumn and overall beautiful, Caitlin classes up the joint and brings me a batch of songs and artists I’ve more or less never heard before, and I love it.

The Presentation – Tiny little liner notes, a sleek design and a pretty little logo. Minimalist and cute.

The Breakdown – Every time I do a Mix-Tape Trade, there’s always that one Mix that takes me completely by surprise and thoroughly takes me for a ride. Caitlin’s Mix did just that, as I was largely unfamiliar with the bulk of the artists showcased here. Her tastes are wonderful, and featured bands like 1997, Mika and Madcon are now on my ‘must find out more about’ list. Furthermore, thanks for giving me the title song for True Blood, because that track is just badass. And any woman who finds Flight Of The Conchords funny will get along with me just fine.

We Are Golden – Mika
The Winner Is – DeVotchKa
I Want That – Psapp
Rockferry – Duffy
We Used To Vacation – Cold War Kids
Born To Be Wild – Fanfare Ciocarlia
The Wind – Cat Stevens
Be OK – Ingrid Michaelson
Tennessee Song Pt. 2 – 1997
Chelsea Dagger – The Fratellis
Beggin’ – Madcon
Blue Eyes – Mika
Bad Things – Jace Everett
Just Wanna Be With You – High School Musical
Disturbia – Rihanna
Don’t Stop Believin’ – Cast Of Glee
Robots – Flight Of The Conchords
Call It Off – Tegan & Sara
Break The Sky – The Hush Sound
You Are The Rake – Sufjan Stevens

Thanks for the Mix, Caitlin; it’s discs like this that remind me why the Trade was started in the first place. Sound off in the comments section, enjoy your weekend and tell us about the band or artist you discovered because of a Mix-Tape.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 9).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Sherry.

The Skinny – Punk, ska, acoustic, emo, alt-country and singer-songwriters combine for a solid Mix that shines a light on some popular bands’ less-than-popular tracks. And I like that.

The Presentation – Purty! Black card stock with the artwork slapped over the top. Worthy of presentation, conversation or setting an Old Fashioned on.

The Breakdown – Sherry’s taste in music has been described as many things. ‘Eclectic.’ ‘ Specific.’ ‘Terrible (usually by me).’ One thing’s for sure, though; she definitely knows what she likes. Either that, or she couldn’t care less what she buys and listens to. Jury’s still out to me. I always have a hard time figuring out if she’s really into mediocre music, or just likes to have something playing in the background when she drives to work. Of course, I’m only kidding Sherry, as our tastes overlap in a lot of regards, and she’s currently shaping the minds of hundreds of Wisconsin youngsters as a music teacher in Oconomowoc.

Demon Rock – Letters To Cleo
Now We Can See – The Thermals
Wasted – L.P.
I’m Confused – The Muffs
The Corner – Smoking Popes
February Stars – Foo Fighters
Life Is Shit – The Dead Milkmen
Bigger Than My Body – John Mayer
Good Day – The Dilletantes
The Light And The Sound – Rocky Votolato
Your Summer Baby – Kay Hanley
Enough – Dance Hall Crashers
Hard As F**k – Against All Authority
Go F**k Yourself – Goodbye Harry
Old Man – Drag The River
I’m No Angel – Dido
A Lack Of Color – Death Cab For Cutie
The Humpty Dumpty Love Song – Travis

90% of this Mix is awesome. It’s the singer-songwriter’y, acoustic, masturbatory noodling and catterwalling I could do without. Just because you want to sleep with someone, doesn’t necessarily mean that they write good music, you know what I mean? If that were the case, I’d be listening to a lot more Regina Spektor and Shakira.

Thanks for the Mix, Sherry. I love you and your convictions. Sound off in the comments section, enjoy your day, and let us know the artist you’re attracted to the most, but whos’ music you absolutely cannot stand.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 8).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Celia.

The Skinny – Possibly her best Mix yet, and a true peek into her honest listening habits, Celia’s Mix is the be-all-to-end-all of ‘What CD should we listen to in the car?’ arguments.

The Presentation – She did the ‘iTunes template’ thing, which I have to admit, looks better and better with each new version they release. Also, her liner notes (or what little I eavesdropped on before she mailed them out) were solid and heartfelt as always.

The Breakdown – Celia listens to two types of music. One, the bands from her teen years that she clings to, and the bands from her adult years that she clings to. Nowhere close to a ‘passive listener,’ she’s passionate about everything she takes the time to seek and welcome into her earholes. With this Mix, we see a who’s who of some of her favorite bands and tracks from the last 15 years.

Armatage Shanks – Green Day
Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels) – The Arcade Fire
Demon Rock – Letters To Cleo
What’s Another Day – Maria Mena
Claire – Matt Pond PA
Radio Radio – Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Princess And The Pony – Sean Na Na
My Heart Is Breaking Down – The Caesars
Great Divide – Hanson
The Love You Save – The Jackson 5
Strange Disease – Prozzäk
Washin’ + Wonderin’ – Stroke 9
Awake – Kay Hanley
Kung Fu – Ash
I’ll Make It Clear – Teenage Fanclub
Sixty Years On (Live) – Brandi Carlile
Imaginary Friends – Nada Surf
Don’t Tell Your Mother – The Sundays
Gyzmkid – The Velvet Teen
Lullaby – All Star United

True story. The Missus went to see Hanson and Hellogoodbye play in Milwaukee last week (I did not attend). When the show was over, she told me that we had to pay her friend back, as she was the one that had ordered the tickets. The cost for one Hanson ticket? $47. In 2009. Goddamn.

Thanks for playing along, hun; you always make the best Mixes. Sound off in the comments section, enjoy your day, and let us know what was the most money you paid to see the least-deserving band.

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 7).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Brian.

The Skinny – In just a little over a dozen mainstream, hard-rocking tracks, Brian manages to confuse and entertain the hell out of me.

The Presentation – The CD had ‘Celia’s Mix’ written on it (it was made for my wife), with a subtext reading ‘Best Title Ever,’ leading to an arrow pointing back up to ‘Celia’s Mix.’ And you know something? It was.

The Breakdown – I don’t know Brian personally, but I’m beginning to surmise that he has a wickedly bizarre sense of humor. After all, this is the same guy that created such an awesome ’90’s Flashback’ Mix-Tape the last time around, despite being incredibly young for the better part of said decade. Surely, that Mix was done with at least a certain amount of guilty pleasure-fueled irony, right? Well, tongue-in-cheek or otherwise, it became the Mix I listened to the most from Trade #5.

Dead Star – Muse
Welcome To The Jungle – Guns ‘N Roses
Around The World – Red Hot Chili Peppers
Zero – Smashing Pumpkins
Alive And Amplified – The Mooney Suzuki
I’m A Loner, Dottie, A Rebel – The Get Up Kids
Shake That – Eminem
Something In Your Mouth – Nickelback
Siva – The Smashing Pumpkins
Total Eclipse Of The Heart – Love Me Electric
Hella Nervous – Gravy Train!!!
Everlong (Live) – Foo Fighters

(Note: The last two songs were unable to be burned onto iTunes due to a disc error.)

I also love the inability to predict the direction of this Mix. After mainstream favorites Muse, Guns & Roses and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, you’re sent 180 degrees with The Get Up Kids, The Mooney Suzuki and Love Me Electric. After I gave it a chance, I dug it.

Thanks so much for your Mix, Brian. Sound off in the comments section and enjoy your day; more reviews tomorrow. What is your current favorite ‘mainstream’ song as of right now?

The CDP Worldwide Mix-Tape Trade #6 Wrap Party (Part 6).

Today’s Mix-Tape Review – Wallrock.

The Skinny – A late 90’s explosion of punk, ska, emo and badassery that is as close to a CDP-created Mix than anything I’ve ever seen before. The perfect soundtrack for a nostalgic evening of wreckless drinking with friends and future loved ones.

The Presentation – Wallrock included a novel of liner notes, penning a personal anecdote for every track on the album. This was amazing, and made me sort of wish that everyone did something like this. It gave each track a personal touch; Wallrock should consider getting into the business of humor-themed nostalgic essays.

The Breakdown – No breakdown here; it’s full-blown awesome from start-to-finish:

Doublewhiskeycokenoice – Dillinger Four
Are You There Margaret? It’s Me, God – The Lawrence Arms
Where The Devil Don’t Stay – The Drive-By Truckers
Me And Mia – Ted Leo & The Pharmacists
My Music At Work – The Tragically Hip
Constructive Summer – The Hold Steady
Barbie Girl – Aqua
Total Eclipse Of The Heart – Nicki French
Free – DJ Quicksilver
20jake – The Gusto
Jen Doesn’t Like Me Anymore – Less Than Jake
F**ked Again – The Drunk Drivers
(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais – The Clash
Barstool Boys – Marah
Custom Van – The Junkers
Take Me Home (Piss Off) – Snuff
Lawyers, Guns and Money – Warren Zevon
One Last Cigarette – Less Than Jake

I almost didn’t need to upload this album to iTunes, as I already have (and adore) nearly everything on this Mix. Sometimes this is a bad thing; in this case it was great. Even more so was reading along with Wallrock’s liner notes, parallelling his experiences with Less Than Jake, The Hold Steady and D4 with my own. Thanks much, man; great job.

Sound off in the comments section and enjoy your day. Autumn is already in full swing. What is the first album you throw on when the leaves start to change?