SCD Mixtape 3 (March 17)

[Guybrush]

Alright, sent in 🙂👍

[Trollheart]

SCD MIXTAPE 3 (March 31 2025)

Theme: Outer Space

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3w39UncPejk&list=PLkFFNTflRaur6yXjEX8O7i5pe47N_DpUy

1. "Alien" (Ricky Byrd) Submitted by Buckeye Randy (Welcome to the mixtape!)
2. "Rosetta Stoned" (Tool) Submitted by DJ Chameleon
3. "Space Walk" (Lemon Jelly) Submitted by Lisnaholic
4. "Clouds Across the Moon" (Rah Band) Submitted by Saulaac
5. "Hello Earth" (Kate Bush) Submitted by Guybrush (no relation)
6. "Stardancer" (The Martian) Submitted by Lexi Darling
7. "Intergalactic Radio Station" (Vangelis) Submitted by Member Not Found

As per usual, have a listen and try to get your thoughts down by next week, so we can move on to the next one before the new month is out. Remember, it's a short one.

[Lexi of the Dawn]

@Trollheart minor correction but the artist and track title for my contribution are the wrong way around; "Stardancer" is the track title and The Martian is the artist.

I'll get to work on my reviews as soon as I can.

[Trollheart]

Oops! I wasn't certain, but it looked more likely the way I had it. Oh well, as that famous song by Fix You says, I'll "Coldplay" right away!

[Lisnaholic]

Alien by Ricky Byrd:
I loved the way this came full-throttle off the starting grid! It's fun, lively and has some clever-than-expected words, but for me, retro/spoof songs don't have much replay value. (Something which I've learned from the way I usually skip past various Zappa tracks.)
3.25 stars

Rossetta Stoned by Tool:
Not being v familiar with Tool's songs, I'm pretty ambivalent about this song: one time I played it and just stopped it after a minute for being an audio overload. Another time I was carried along by its intensity/complexity. So it's something you need to be in the mood for, I think, but there's a lot of interesting things going on (especially @ 6 mins and beyond). I'll definitely be replaying this.
4 stars

Space Walk by Lemon Jelly:
What a contrast after Tool ! Yes, it's light and a little uneventful in its second half, but Space Walk is sweet enough to put me in a good mood every time I listen to it.
 
Clouds Across The Moon by RAH Band
More soothing than exciting, I would've liked this romantic ballad more if they had focused less on using the idea of the moon literally. I found that "space announcer" voice to be kind of irritating.
3.25 stars
 
Hello Earth by Kate Bush
The direction the song took was kind of unpredictable, with lots of twists and turns, so that made it interesting. I didn't like the perfectly-held ethereal choir sounds much. ("Achingly beautiful" we might say, with the emphasis on  "ache" imo.) But the livelier first half of the song was great, and I will be listening again, paying more attention to the words next time, if only to work out why KB is singing "peek-a-boo" one minute and "Just look at it go!" another.
3.5 stars

Stardancer by The Martian
This is techno music, I think, and like a lot of that genre, I find the beat a bit too persistent and unvaried. Still, this has some nice Edgar-Froese-type sounds going on as well. This was my favourite of the mixtape  until I listened to TH's contribution.
3.75 stars

Intergalactic Radio Station by Vangelis
Mildly interesting to begin with, but then it's like Vangelis read my comments about Stardancer and tried to fix them all. The change to a harp section at about 3mins in was not my favourite part: I guess we've all heard plenty of music in that style (esp. those of us who have some Andreus Vollenweider cds in our collections.)
I enjoyed most the part from 5 mins on, where Vangelis adds a slight jazz/soul swing to the track. Go, Vangelis ! Let your hair down for once!
4.5 stars


Afterword:
What's going on with our perception of space?!
For many of the artists in our mixtape (incl. my own choice of Lemon Jelly), space seems to be an excuse to put in a few retro-sounding voice-overs, (complete with those old-style bleeps of course), and then to get on with business as usual: some not very spacey music.
Maybe it was the drugs of choice at the time, or the novelty of space exploration/discovery, but back in the 60s some bands took a different approach to space: they used music to try and convey its grandeur and mystery, but we have nothing like that here in the mixtape. It makes me wish I'd chosen some Hawkwind, or the live Ummagumma version of Set The Controls For The Heart of The Sun: now that's what I call outer space music !!

[Trollheart]

Song: "Alien"
Artist:  Ricky Byrd
Nationality:  American
Source:  3rd album NYC Made
Year:  2025
Genre:  Rock
Submitted by:  Buckeye Randy
Familiarity:  Zero
Comments: First impressions are of a fifties song mixed with a very Queen-style, so much so that I might have mistaken it for one of Mercury's songs. It's very catchy, almost an updated "Starman" in ways. Pretty good. Also some tinges of mid-seventies ELO here. I like the idea in the lyric of how an alien would judge our behaviour. Probably think "Nah lads, you know what? That red planet over to the right, let's try there instead. I got a bad feeling about these monkeys!"
Rating:


Song: "Rosetta Stoned"
Artist:  Tool
Nationality: American
Source: 4th album 10,000 Days
Year: 2006
Genre:  Progressive Metal
Submitted by:  DJ Chameleon
Familiarity: Zero
Comments: Tool are not a band I have really ever got into, or frankly felt the need to. Should I? Well, the vocal is very hard to make out here, though I see the song runs for just about 11 minutes so it will probably, um, change. Yeah, it's got very post-hardcore? Very screamy alternating with a sort of muttered guttural one. Are Tool another Dream Theater? That would not be good. And neither is this. For the length of the track I find very little to hang my hat on. Now I have to go buy a hat. Yeah, not impressed, sorry. Seems quite self-indulgent. And far too long for no discernible reason. Bloody progheads, huh?
Rating:


Song: "Space Walk"
Artist:  Lemon Jelly
Nationality:  English
Source: Debut album Lost Horizons
Year:  2002
Genre: Downtempo/Folktronica/Neo-psychedelia (genres courtesy RYM)
Submitted by: Lisnaholic
Familiarity:  Zero
Comments: Like Lisna says, in common with a lot of so-called space songs, Lemon Jelly seem to think putting fake NASA audio helps the track sound futuristic. It doesn't. They should have left it off. It's spoiling that lovely bright rippling piano that drives the melody. Not at all sure I'd call this downtempo, my Music Rating friends. More uptempo really, very catchy and very simple, but as I say I wish yer man would just shut the fuck up or maybe someone would cut his safety line and he could go drifting off through space and leave me to enjoy the track. Which I do. Enjoy it, that is. Oh look, he stopped now. Thank the space god - ah fuck! He's back again. Will you SHUT THE BLUE JUMPING FUCK UP! We understand: it's beautiful. How many fucking times can you tell us that? Where's a wandering Xenomorph when you need one?
Rating: (would have been 5 but for that fucking mouthy fucker)


Song: "Clouds Across the Moon"
Artist:  The Rah Band
Nationality:  English
Source:  4th album Mystery
Year: 1985
Genre: Synth-funk/Sophisti-pop (again, thanks RYM)
Submitted by:  Saulaac
Familiarity: Hey! I know this one!
Comments: Yeah I remember listening to this on the old Top of the Pops when I wore a younger man's skin. Sadly, there was a knock on the door and this creature of muscles, tendons, blood and organs, looking very annoyed, demanded it back! Damn! Oh well, back into my coffin I had to go, and now I'm back and stronger than eve - AAAH! Sunlight! Where did that come from? Oh no, it's just moonlight. Phew. Another stupid audio bit, but the funk can't be ignored. Takes me right back, it does. Love yer wan's voice, and the many little synth blasts and slap basses and all the other funkaphernalia we got used to in the seventies and eighties. Bass solo at the end is funk-y brother! Brass is great too. Love this.
Rating:


Song: "Hello Earth"
Artist:  Kate Bush
Nationality: English
Source: 5th album The Hounds of Love
Year: 1985
Genre: Art pop/Progressive Pop (says RYM)
Submitted by: Guybrush
Familiarity: Oh yeah I know this one too.
Comments: I reviewed The Hounds of Love on MB and I remember it's a sort of song cycle, something to do with someone dying at sea or something? And this then is the morning after the night they've spent trying to survive and be rescued? Maybe; it was a while ago. I like Kate (who doesn't?) but some of her work is very, shall we say, esoteric, not to say hard to understand. More bleeding radio chatter, but then Kate's angelic voice comes through against soft piano and mournful synth, and all is well. You know that song, "I Just Died in Your Arms Tonight"? I could die happily in hers. Some lovely orchestral and choir work too. Cool uilleann pipes. Beautiful.
Rating:


Song: "Stardancer"
Artist:  The Martian
Nationality: I am Scoobyless
Source: I could only find it on DJ Rolando's Aztec Mystic Mix and something called A Red Planet Compilation
Year:  1999
Genre: Detroit Techno/electro House (Hello RYM!)
Submitted by: Lexi Darling
Familiarity: Zero
Comments: Talk about enigmatic! Might as well have been searching ON Mars for all the good it did me looking for this. As I say above, no real clue: I found the track on two albums which appear to be compilations, but can find no evidence of where the original song came from. And I'm sorry, but wherever it came from, it can go back there by whatever route it deems the most expeditious. I don't like this sort of techno dance music; it seems to be just something for clubs, not much in the way of a melody I can follow, and consists almost entirely of a drumbeat, from where I sit. And I do sit: you ain't gettin' me up on that dancefloor! I don't have life insurance.
Rating: (sorry Lexi)


Song: "Intergalactic Radio Station"
Artist: Vangelis
Nationality: Greek
Source: 26th album Direct
Year:  1988
Genre: New Age/Progressive Electronic
Submitted by: SCD's Least Wanted
Familiarity: I don't know this album as well as some of his others
Comments: A theme like space just screams Vangelis all day, but I didn't want to take the easy way out and choose something from Heaven and Hell (which was used as the accompanying music for the TV series Cosmos) nor even "Pulstar" from Spiral, so I settled on this. What can I tell you? It's Vangelis: you either love it or you hate it. Direct is not one of my top albums from him, but I do like it. At least the title is cool, unlike me.
Rating: N/A

[Buckeye Randy]

1. "Alien" (Ricky Byrd) - I like the nostalgic feel plus the fun topic matter. Instant familiarity, a new old friend.
2. "Rosetta Stoned" (Tool) - This should be in a soundtrack of a creeper movie, very menacing.
3. "Space Walk" (Lemon Jelly) - Skip a long vibe for smiling.  I like this.
4. "Clouds Across the Moon" (Rah Band) - Hmmm...a little gimmicky but nothing to hate.
5. "Hello Earth" (Kate Bush) - Another mood piece.  Does it set the mood or do you have to be in the right mood to enjoy?
6. "Stardancer" (The Martian) - I'm not normally a techno guy but as with all the songs I let it play in it's entirety.  It did not hurt me.
7. "Intergalactic Radio Station" (Vangelis) - A wonderful piece, very spacious!

[Trollheart]

Okay, who's left? You can run but you can't - hey! Where did you go?? Anyone see them? I swear, they were here only moments ago!

We're trying to make Monday the deadline for reviews/comments, so can we all try to make sure we meet that deadline? Then we can move on.
Remember, we're


And in the meantime, don't forget to send in your submissions for mixtape 4, theme is animals.

[Saulaac]

1. "Alien" (Ricky Byrd) Submitted by Buckeye Randy (Welcome to the mixtape!)
This was a pleasant and fun take on what might be going on in outer space, asking more advanced species to go easy on us. I didn't know of Ricky Byrd, but he sounds like a very laid-back musician. Some real country rock going on; for a minute I thought he might start veering off into The Fall Guy theme tune starring Lee Majors.
The chorus is asking some serious questions, whether there is still time to correct environmental issues before the fat lady sings...or the skinny guy plays.

3.75 stars


2. "Rosetta Stoned" (Tool) Submitted by DJ Chameleon
The guitar and bass start almost immediately with a strong D minor riff. I guess they are playing most of the notes in a downwards motion with the plectrum (dum dum dum dum..) rather than down-up-down-up.., which adds to the gloomy and grungy mood.
After a few minutes, the track starts to get itchy feet (fingers?) and moves into other key centres, culminating in a bridge/chorus type bit from 6:00 to 9:30 which was easily my favourite part. But it was necessary for the track to slowly build up to that climactic section and show it, otherwise I probably wouldn't have appreciated that section as much.
I couldn't really make out the lyrics, and to be honest I was concentrating 99% on the instruments.
Overall an enjoyable track. I should listen to more Tool.

4 stars


3. "Space Walk" (Lemon Jelly) Submitted by Lisnaholic
A bright and airy song with a strong beat and plenty of piano and harp-like ostinato (although I couldn't tell if there was actually a harp in the mix or not). Reminded me of the kind of track I I may have heard whilst playing a Golf game on the PS in my youth. Choosing the course, the clubs, clear/windy/rainy day etc.
The section from 3:24 to 4:00 was easily my fave, whereby the guy (it could have been Lee Majors too) says "Lookin' great, here it goes" then the song launches into a few beautiful funky minor-leaning bars. Interestingly, the bass part remains absolutely unchanged (I think), but it's the subtle additions of minor 3rd and minor 6th notes in the keyboards which got me. A bit of Air and Stereolab vibes. Gawd I love those minor bridges.

4 stars


4. "Clouds Across the Moon" (Rah Band) Submitted by me
As TH mentioned, this was a blast from the past for me too. The outer space theme encouraged me to research this song which I heard a few times many moons ago (probably on a late night Radio 2 show hosted by Tony Blackburn or something). So I typed into google the only lyrics I remembered: "...the kids say they love you..." and up popped Rah Band.


5. "Hello Earth" (Kate Bush) Submitted by Guybrush (no relation)
There's a lot going on in this track, with its brilliant orchestrations and harmonies. I'm sure the lyrics are interesting, but as a typical bloke I find it hard to concentrate on two things at once, right? So I decided to listen where the music was going. The first half was in a strong C sharp major attitude, and the second half went into the F minor key, with a mysterious stormy Gregorian-type feel. And then the weird thing is at 5:30 where the mysterious Gregorians move back down to the C sharp played at the start (but in a moody minor way, so it is probably more correct to refer to it as D flat minor). So this was musically exciting and confusing at the same time.

4.25 stars


6. "Stardancer" (The Martian) Submitted by Lexi Darling
A fast pulsating beat and bass (which sounds like it's pushing slightly sharp?), hand claps and ethereal movements on the keys meant that I was going on a bit of a journey. It's not a journey that I do much nowadays but this would have been an ideal piece at 2am in Manc at Hacienda or Paradise Factory in the '90s. Classic techno, and great workout music imo!

4 stars


7. "Intergalactic Radio Station" (Vangelis) Submitted by Member Not Found
I know very little about Vangelis, and I really should make more of an effort to get to know his works. This track opened up okay. On E minor, but quite a strong and optimistic E minor. Not like a moody or sad E minor.

The first shot to the heart was at 3:21 with the harp starting to doodle around in the high registers whilst the bass parts continued to pump out the lower tones. That was a jazzy funky moment. And then it consolidated that initial spark and at the same time opened up into the next section, with more organ pumping statements.

Then another nice part sets in around 4:30 where the the track starts to conclude. Some lyrics start to appear towards the end, in line with other tracks on this mixtape. Ending with "...It's been a beautiful morning!".

That track was quite a journey, as were all the other tracks on Mixtape 3.

4.25 stars

[Lexi of the Dawn]

I apologize TH, my life has been such chaos as of late that I have no time to listen to much music at all let alone devote time to reviewing it, so unfortunately I will have to officially bow out from this project until further notice. Thanks for understanding. <3

[Saulaac]

^No worries, Lexi. Keep trying to find a bit of time to pump out a few elongated chords on your in-house synths. Augment and diminish them at your pleasure, in your own time...

[Trollheart]

Completely understandable, Lexi. This is unimportant nonsense compared to what you're going through. If you feel like joining in, you're welcome to, if not, that's fine too. If you'd like to submit a song but don't feel up to listening to those of the others in the mixtape, that's perfectly okay too. If not, we'll keep your place for when you feel able to contribute. Try not to let the bastards grind you down. Remember I'm here if you need to talk.

[DJChameleon]

I'm gonna listen to the playlist either tonight or early tomorrow morning and give my reviews sorry for the delay y'all.

[Guybrush]

I'm at a cabin with fam, but as soon as I can 😬

[Trollheart]

Don't murder them! Resist the voices in your head! What do you mean, what voices? Don't we all get those voices in our head urging us to murder....