My Mixtape Story
If anyone knows anything about me, it’s that I love a great mixtape.
Ever since I first discovered music, I always adored the concept of music being collated in a considered manner, whether it be on a compilation, a mixtape, or – in the modern age – a playlist.
I adored every aspect of the mixtape concept. I devoured compilation CDs, I pored over old mixed cassette tapes (handmade, with the tabs popped to ensure history couldn’t be erased), and as the iPod became the method de jour of consuming music, I became an obsessive playlister
In early 2010, as I started a short-lived and ill-advised university degree, I’d discovered the book Cassettes From My Ex. The concept of the volume was simple: a collection of “hilarious, nostalgic and heartbreaking stories stories all about crushes and mixtapes.”
I also happened to discover the book had an associated website which had a surprisingly-active comment section in which readers could share their own stories about mixtapes and how they related to their love lives.
I was absolutely obsessed with these stories and how they captured this snapshot of often-failed relationships through the filter of a musical backing. These mixtapes (often they were CD, of course) were so meticulously curated and given with love, and then – as the relationship ended – they’d be forgotten, with all the accompanying sentiment stripped and left to languish in a bottom drawer.
It made me feel so happy to not only take this voyeuristic approach to music’s role in love, but to see these mixtapes not being relegated to history.
I was so taken by them that I began to reproduce many of the mixtapes that were mentioned, appreciating their creation with greater interest and also discovering countless new songs and artists I’d have never heard otherwise.
Many of the tracks from these mixtapes made their way into my own playlists, and as my own history of relationships grew, would make their way into playlists and CDs I’d curate for my now-ex girlfriends.
In 2014, I started dating my now-wife, having met her years earlier as penpals. Launching a long-distance relationship is never easy, and to quell the stresses placed on us by external forces and anxieties of being apart, we took to sharing music with each other on a regular basis.
For my part, I took it upon myself to share a batch of Australian music with my American partner, exposing her to the music I grew up with and adored, while effectively educating her about the musical culture of the country she desired to move to.
The initial manner in which I shared this music was via myriad compilation CDs, which I just referred to as our mixtapes. Sure, they were on CD instead of the traditional cassette tape, but who really cares? I gave her all of these ‘mixtapes’ near the start of our relationship, and while I would give her a few more in the coming months, they definitely slowed down as the distance between us closed and I was able to simply share new music on a first-hand, in-person basis.
At some point, someone jokingly took issue with me calling them ‘mixtapes’, so I decided instead to spite that humour by actually re-dubbing all of these mixtapes onto physical cassettes. The goal was to give them to my wife as a birthday gift, but to do so by simply dubbing the music from a CD onto a tape would be… well, too simple – and I’m a perfectionist.
After dabbling with the idea of simply making some handmade covers where I wrote out the tracklisting and drew a loving (albeit untalented) picture on each, I decided to switch my focus entirely.
Soon, I was creating individual sleeves for each and every mixtape. Armed with a rudimentary knowledge of Photoshop, I decided to craft something unique and individual for each one – all in secret. I took inspiration from found art, album covers, and famous artworks, and even made a few of my own. In the end, each and every tape featured its own professionally-printed artwork, tracklist, and – in the case of those where I had drawn inspiration from another’s artwork – a gallery-style information card about where I got the inspiration from.
The gift was given to my wife for her birthday around six months later, and it was a gift met with the most shock and appreciation I’ve ever seen.
Later, I decided to go one better by reproducing said artworks for CD versions as well, and while that was similarly met with massive enthusiasm, I haven’t made too many mixtapes since.
Following plenty of requests by my wife and others who have admired these mixtapes, I’ve decided to begin uploading them here so that others can see the vast amount of care I placed into turning a romantic love of music into something of an art project back in 2018.