It's more essential than sunscreen, more personalized than that monogramed beach towel you got for high school graduation and a hell of a lot funkier than your '64 Impala. It is the perfect summer mix tape (or burned CD), and you know you need to make one.
You'll quickly find, however, that although it's pretty hard to mess up a mix tape, it's also pretty hard to get it exactly right. Enter the Recess music department. By following our simple rules, even you can make a mix tape that will not only get you through the highs and lows of summer in style, but will also impress your friends, and maybe even get you laid. Trust us.
RULE #1: No repeats. Phish-heads take note: If you use more than one song by the same band, you defeat the whole purpose of the mix tape. And yes, Trey's side projects count.
RULE #2: Nothing too new. You want to be able to listen to this tape all summer long. Imagine if you had made a tape last year and included "Who Let the Dogs Out." Exactly.
RULE #3: Keep it accessible. Unless you plan on listening to this tape alone all summer, don't include that obnoxious song by that random band nobody but you likes.
RULE #4: Old Skool Jamz. It ain't a mix tape if it doesn't include something that can be described as "straight up seventh grade." The trick to this rule is picking something you actually want to hear again. Use sparingly: Sublime, Cake, old Ben Folds Five, anything off Doggystyle.
RULE #5: Make yourself happy. Too many great mix tapes have been ruined when they tried to cater to too many divergent tastes. If you're going to the trouble to make it, you should want to listen to it.
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