Painting by Tetsuya Ishida

LWE’s podcast series is a favorite feature of the site for readers, artists and staff alike, one of the few throwbacks to the halcyon days of our mp3 blogging youth. But it also means we rarely post mixes unless they’re part of the series, generally leaving it to blogs to showcase the rest. As part of our year end round up, we would like to bridge the gap between the two schools of blogging and ask you, our readers, to contribute a mix for our podcast series. Whether you’re touring Europe every weekend or bedroom mixing for yourself, we want to hear your mixes — and the best one will be our last podcast of the year. The winners will also receive a prize package from !K7. Interested? Good, we thought you might be. Full rules and deadline after the jump.

So what exactly are we looking for? All mixes should be between 45-50 minutes long, exclusive to LWE, include a comprehensive tracklist, and sent as a 320kbps mp3 through filesharing utilities such as YouSendIt or Sendspace to editor@littlewhiteearbuds[dot]com. They are due no later than 12 p.m. CST on December 12th. Late entries will not be scored.

We will score your mixes based on six criteria:

Depth: Is your mix ripped from the charts, a slate of stale house classics, or obscure yet middling? Mix it up.

Relevance: If you’re been reading LWE for a minute you probably have a sense of the sound we’re looking for. Hip-hop, blog-house, prog., trance, juke and drum n’ bass are fine enough for their own purposes, but will not score well in this competition.

Transitions: We want to hear compelling blends/combinations executed such that we’re clamoring for the next one. Slapping the fader across, dull mechanical perfection and painful juxtapositions are all turn offs.

Technique: Does your use of EQ/levels/effects leave us cringing or awe-struck? Show off and make sure it sounds good.

Following the Rules: This should be an area where entries score the most points easily. Points will be taken off for each minute longer than 50 and for mp3s sent at bitrates lower than 320kbps. Nail this!

Entertainment Value: Your selections should make us want to move and keep our interest throughout the mix’s length. Last year’s winner, Thomas Andersen, turned in an exemplary mix that provides a good guide for what we’re looking for.

The mix with the highest score will be featured in our podcast series and its creator will win copies of three !K7 releases from 2010. Second place wins two !K7 CDs and third wins one copy. We highly encourage you to suggest this contest to any DJ trying to get a little more exposure or just interested in competing. Feel free to ask questions about the contest in the comments section. Again, mixes due no later than 12 p.m. CST on December 12th. Late entries will not be scored. Good luck and get mixing!