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by morgan henley
freefunk322@aol.com
The sixth O.C. Mix Covering Our Tracks is somewhat similar to the fourth season the O.C. has been having. They’re both nothing new or exciting, but just a strange and sort of boring attempt to recreate the magic that once made the O.C. pure primetime television gold. The album is a compilation of covers of songs that were previously featured on the O.C. mixes or on the show. It’s in an indie rock style that most of the O.C. mix listeners from before can relate to, and other indie rock fans could appreciate.
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It’s got an eclectic mix of artists that give a new life to many of the songs. Although most of the music is never heard on the actual show, it’s got the style of the music that is typically featured on the O.C. Many of the artists on Covering Our Tracks are also played on the show.
Unfortunately, many of the songs come out a little awkward and have gone in the wrong direction. The most disappointing of the tracks would definitely be the cover of the show’s classic song, “California,” performed by the Mates of States. It’s got a sad, depressing feel to the already mellow, slow song. Indie favorites, such as Modest Mouse’s “Float On”, the Pixie’s “Debaser”, and the Killer’s “Smile Like You Mean It”, are given a new feel and a whole new direction. The popular songs being covered have a familiar appeal; some of the lesser known songs make the album dull.
Lady Sovereign pretty much makes the Sex Pistol’s “Pretty Vacant” her own, with some Joan Jett-punk-rock style to it. And Syd Matter takes Super Furry Animal’s “Hello Sunshine,” featured on the O.C. mix volume two, into a haunting wispy version. The M’s are almost exactly replicating the Clinic’s “Come Into Our Room”.
Previous O.C. mixes have done their own covers, but among a mix of other new releases. The old direction of the mixes gave the albums a little more variety than Covering Our Tracks does. The previous volumes also kept the variety of song tempos, creating a perfect blend of songs to be featured on a compilation. Covering Our Tracks does this, but without too many really strong songs that stick out to the listener.
The O.C. mixes have somewhat evolved with time. The first and second were simliar and were a nice collection of all the hot new indie artists to hit mainstream culture. The holiday-themed third volume was almost all covers of favorite holiday classics, making it the most similar to Covering Our Tracks. The forth and fifth volumes stayed true to the big name indie music artists such as Sufjan Stevens, Rogue Wave, and Modest Mouse.
The O.C. season this year is dull in the highest sense, sort of similar to this soundtrack. It’s trying to use the old and familiar formula for success, and falls somewhat short. If you like the O.C., it’s still the O.C., but without Marissa something was ultimately lost. I mean it definitely keeps the “O.C. Mix” feel, but as an album on its own, it stands somewhat weak. Some of the more successful tracks, such as Rogue Wave’s “Debaser” and Tally Hall’s “Smile Like You Mean It” make the album worth checking out.
For all die-hard O.C. mix fans or show fans, the album will do you well. For musically curious, compilation seekers, give Covering Our Tracks a shot, but it might not be the best volume of the O.C. mixes to try first. Maybe if we’re faithful to our O.C. mixes as we try to be with this fourth season, we’ll see some of the O.C. greatness we used to love.
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