thanks to my followers i compiled this in like, an hour. HORRAY FOR FLASH-FANMIX-MAKING. im sorry in advance. over half of these songs were suggestions from tumblr people. THANK YOU. LETS ALL SHARE IN THIS AWFUL PAIRING TOGETHER.
tracklist and notes behind the cut
Hi there! I do actually have advice for fanmixes so I decided I would make this into it’s own post.
HERE ARE MY STEPS TO MAKING A GOOD FANMIX.
1) Generally, it all starts with one song that I think would be perfect for a character or pairing. I’m going to use my Dave/Rose mix as my example here because it’s the most recent one I did. I’ve had Speaking in Tongues by Arcade Fire pegged as Rose and Dave song since it came out last summer, so that song was kind of the springboard for that entire mix.
2. The most important step: pick a FOCUS for your mix! If you just compile a bunch of songs with fitting lyrics for a character or pairing in general, your mix will not be very pleasing to listen to as a whole. For my Rose/Dave mix I decided to focus on them on Derse, which definitely gave the whole mix the same kind of tone, lyrics-wise.
3. TONE IS IMPORTANT!!! Try to stick to artists within the same sort of sound or genre. Some variety is good if you can get the songs to transition into each other (such as opening that mix with Lazarus Phenomenon, to balance that out I added some Ratatat in there too, which I am glad for since it added more of a Dave tone that the mix was lacking.) ANYWAYS MY POINT HERE is that you have to think of your mix as an actual album for it all to come together as a whole.
4. SONG ORDER! I generally try to get my mixes in order based on character progression and tone. For example, my Vriska mix starts off self assured and then gets insecure! In both lyrics and tone. Since my Rose/Dave mix was all focused around the same time period I just tried to make the order something that would work for song transitions.
5. Try not to include more than two songs by the same artist. THIS IS HARD WHEN ARCADE FIRE EXISTS FOR ME, BUT YOU MUST HOLD FAST.
6. After I’ve scoured your own personal music library for all I can find, I generally ask my friends if they have any suggestions! If they happen to suggest stuff that fits the mix, there it goes! The best way to find new music is by word of mouth.
UM, I HOPE THIS HELPED! There are my disjointed thoughts on the grand art of creating a fanmix.
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reblogging for the ~evening crowd~
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Guys I have never made an FST before and I am nervous as balls. Anyone wanna hit me up with their favorite FSTs so I can see how to do it right?
I think Shelby’s reallllly good at them — her new serious Terezi one is boss as hell, for instance. I also think Wand Pile Tones for The Painfully Alone is hilarious, apropos, and a little heart-breaking; it’s so indie! boys! crying! about their feelings! and yet all the music is really on-point so you do get that hit of empathy.
My favorite FST is, terribly, one I can’t find at all. It’s about Chel from Portal and the track list includes Shut Up And Take Me Out, Do Me A Poker Face, The Bomb, and The Outsider, if anyone knows what I’m talking about; it’s got a brilliant presentation, too. IF I COULD ONLY FIND IT.
Hmm, I really liked the FST that came with Unidentified (which is … a John Sheppard/Rodney McKay fic, because I’m kind of old). It’s here; spoilers for the story.
Ooh! Gold Tithings Barren — road trip fic across the American South, and the music is perfect for it.
I don’t think this is very helpful BUT HERE HAVE MY LINKS
WEH THANK YOU FOR THE COMPLIMENT
my favorite fsts that i have made are actually my Jade one, as well as the Vriska one I just made!
I think the most important thing for me is keeping the tone consistent throughout the entire mix— having the actual SOUND match the character/story for me comes first, and then finding those BAM! lyrics is what really sells it.
i usually have at least one song that is like, all encompassing for the mix. for my vriska one, it was “baptism by fire” by spinerrette. i based the entire mix around the sound of that song, and it really helps that the lyrics for that are like, literally perfect for her, haha.
it also really helps me to have the mix follow a narrative! using the vriska mix as an example again, i started it off with “Cheap and Evil Girl” by Bree Sharp, since the first thing we even know about Vriska is, well, she is a huge bitch. the mix slowly goes more and more into her actual character until it ends on a pretty sad john/vriska note. for me it’s super important that all the songs transition into each other well and that the mix holds up as a story as well as just a fun thing to listen to.
i guess my biggest advice when making FSTS is this: DON’T JUST THROW IN SONGS BECAUSE THE LYRICS FIT THE CHARACTER! make sure they fit in with the rest of the SOUND of the mix, and that will make your mix a lot easier and more enjoyable to listen to! i used to make this mistake all the time and so my early fanmixes are a dirge. also, try not to include more than two songs by the same artist. (i’m working on this…)
I HOPE THIS WAS HELPFUL??? uh i might make a real post about this later but i am glad people enjoy my fanmixes i really… put… too much thought into them
Tracklist behind cut!
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reblogging these for those who missed them earlier!
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if we must die9 songs for the sufferer & the disciple
oooooh
What is this? A Homestuck fanmix from me that is not incredibly silly? SHOCK AND AWE. Anyways, I figured I owed this pairing a nice fanmix to make up for the ones that had Total Eclipse of the Heart and Ke$ha on them.
This probably makes sense to only me, but @urbananchorite made me post it. She is terrible and should be hated.
IT LOOKS SO GOOD :’D
yesss
