Driving all night

You're driving,

and it's dark and it's raining,

and you're on the edge of the city

and you've been driving all night.

And you took a turn back there

but you're not sure it was the right turn.

But you took the turn anyway,

just kept going in that direction.

And somehow it looks sort of familiar,

so you just keep driving.

Hello. Excuse me.

Can you tell me where I am?

You've been on this road before.

You can read the signs.

You can feel your way.

You can do this in your sleep.

This is a mix I did for the good folks at Intergalactic.FM.  Head over there for this and a ton of other mixes and radio shows.

Like most of my mixes there is a starting point or inspiration that gets the ball rolling.  In this case it was the Laurie Anderson track "Lighting Out For The Territories" from her United States Live album.  The cut is so atmospheric and moody.  It immediately conjures up images of lonely highways, lonely songs and tires thumping on the pavement.

I had a hard time deciding between cuts that have a lonely country, twangy feel and songs that are more pulsating, driving electronic in nature.  In the end I ended up with a little bit of everything.  The two tracks with vocals definitely have a lonely, plaintive quality.  That same feel is also present in the Daniel Lanois tunes and the instrumental from The Antlers(whose new album is fantastic by the way).

The tracks from Prins Thomas and Brian Reitzell are of the more electronic driving type.  Both have an old kraut rock feel to them that I love.  A totally different feel is found in pieces by Terminal Sound System and Talvihorros, sort of weird Twins Peaks vibe.  Which makes sense because the Talvihorros track is actually the Twin Peaks theme.  Most of the rest of the tunes just sort of felt right for a theme of night driving.

Laurie Anderson makes 4 or 5 appearances in the mix.  All are variations of the opening track. Usually with other rhythms or road sounds added in.

Enjoy.

[ s t r e a m ]  [ d o w n l o a d ]   [ i t u n e s ]

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Laurie Anderson - Lighting Out for the Territories
• 02:20    Sparklehorse - Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain
• 07:00    London Grammar - Wicked Game(cover)
• 10:30    Laurie Anderson - New Jersey Turnpike
• 11:53    Brian Reitzell - Auto Music 2
• 18:20    Calexico - Hair Like Spanish Moss
• 22:05    Cowboy Junkies - 200 More Miles
• 27:25    Bexar Bexar - n.r.o.t.
• 30:30    Watter - Rustic Fog
• 35:25    Daniel Lanois - New Smoke
• 37:30    The Antlers - Jupiter
• 42:00    Terminal Sound System - Duchamp Falls
• 46:10    Hidden Orchestra - Strange
• 52:30    Prins Thomas - Kavaler
• 57:45    Cliff Martinez - Driving to the Bonaparte
• 58:40    Daniel Lanois - Bell Toll
• 59:55    Talvihorros - Twin Peaks Theme
• 1:03:20    end

Driving all night by Low Light Mixes on Mixcloud