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Oct 30, 2015 By Laura Studarus Photography by Petra Kleis Iceland Airwaves 2015

Next week all our dreams come true. At least all our dreams attached to Iceland Airwaves. Joining the list of festival artists to participate in our on-going mixtape project is Danish four-piece Blaue Blume. Check out their mix, featuring Nils Frahm, Caribou and more below. (You can also check out our interview with the band here.) Once you’ve done that, be sure to revisit mixes from Sóley, French For Rabbits, M-Band, Vök, Tonik Ensemble, Bo Ningen, Anna B. Savage, LA Priest, Sea Change and Sin Fang.

Hitting up Airwaves? Grab all the festival info you could ever want here.

Blaue Blume - The Mixtape by Jonassmith on Mixcloud

Tracklist:

1. Your Painted Smile: Bryan ferry is among the biggest crooners of the 20th century. He’s one of those artists I’ve done everything to ignore in my eager to distance myself from my dad’s 80’s embossed record collection. Many of these artists have been growing on me lately though. I guess they’ve always subconsciously influenced my musical work, but it’s only lately I’ve started to dig into that sexy suggestive magic that seems so utterly appealing to give in to. “Your Painted Smile” has Ferry’s very peculiar poetic tone in the lyrics and is an otherworldly sounding production… Wonder how they pulled that off without Brian Eno, who is on most of the songs of “Momouna” but not on this one. One of my dad’s all-time favorites - mine too.

2. I believe in you: Spirit of Eden is in my opinion on of the best records ever made if not the best. It feels like one long heaven-sent jam session. It is endlessly rich in textures but manage not to drown in complexity because of the undisturbed and immediate musical playfulness that infuses the songs and makes every unconventional chord progression or extreme change dynamics feel nothing but natural. It just slowly floats and then stops - you look at your clock and time hasn’t moved an inch. It is a pop record free of form and free of time and yet still human – therefore it is angelic.

3. Desire as: One of my newest 80’s infatuations is Prefab Sprout and in particular their “Steve Mcqueen” album. “Desire As” keeps evolving without ever reaching a dynamic peak, that’s what makes it evolve in your head long after you’ve stopped it. It’s a very good and very brave pop-song.

4. Together again: I never thought I’d publicly admit how much I like this song and the record it’s a part of. My girlfriend played it to me and started dancing and singing along. I was just completely blown away by the total femininity I was witnessing.

5. Black is the color of my true love;s hair: Just before I walk on stage I listen to her voice.

6. They Don’t care about us: It’s probably a sought transition from Janet Jackson and maybe even an almost too easy song of choice but I simply need to have this one on. “They don’t Care About us” is the most amazing pop construction. As with many of Michael Jackson and Quincy Jones’ productions this song is also carried by very few layers. Basically it’s a beat, vocal and this tiny synth that works as the harmonic fundament… Well everyone knows it, no need to pin out what’s happening. When recording music, we find that the hardest thing is to delete layers that make the production sound sonically thick, but in my opinion if you have a good song it should be able to stand as naked as this. Not that we ever dared to pursue it like this. Radiohead does it on Idioteque and Jai Paul on Jasmine.

7. Says: Nils Frahm is, besides being perfect in general, also ideal for this darker season ahead. I’ve almost only been listening to his records this past October month.

8. Snowed in at wheeler street: Speaking of “winter records” Kate bush’ 50 words for snow is a masterpiece that perfectly communicates the feeling of that time of the year. I heard it the first time sitting in my sleeping bag in a car in Chicago, while watching the world outside go colder. It takes me back every time I listen to it.

9. Back home: I saw Caribou live for the first time in Berlin a little under a year ago and I’ve totally understood it ever since. This song is huge and the perfect way to end this very strange mixtape.

(www.soundcloud.com/blaueblumedk)

(www.facebook.com/blaueblumemusic)

(www.icelandairwaves.is)

(www.facebook.com/icelandairwavesfestival)