UK USA

The making of a great compilation tape, like breaking up, is hard to do and takes ages longer than it might seem. You gotta kick off with a killer, to grab attention. Then you got to take it up a notch, but you don't wanna blow your wad, so then you got to cool it off a notch. There are a lot of rules. - High Fidelity

The Summer Burn 2005 caught my eye a few weeks ago. With fond memories of receiving a postcard from Australia ("The other side of the WORLD!" my animated eight-year-old self proclaimed) as a link in a chain letter attempt (yes, Virginia, before the Internet, people actually used postal mail), I decided to sign up.

The short synopsis: You burn two copies of what you would describe as The Ultimate Summer Mix. You ship mixes to whatever addresses you are given. You likewise receive two mixes. There are over 1100 people signed up from all over the world.

So, having explained that backstory, I can say that I received my addresses today. Manchester, UK. Florida, USA.

Amusingly enough, my fellow mix-happy flatmate received her addresses. One UK, one Fl. Heh.

The task turns now to finalizing the track listing I've played around with. Add a couple, take out the one that's not feeling quite right. Burn. Print cleverly-designed cover art. Label. Ship.

Watch the mail.

Hope for Australia.