SONG: “Tracing Circles”

ARTIST: Daniel and the Lion

ALBUM: Secret Stuff

WHY: A hidden track on the Wisconsinite folk duo’s first EP, “Tracing Circles” drives a busy piano over a quick country snare beat. All while Jimmie Linville (the lion to Daniel Pingrey’s Daniel) sings scratchy, laconic vignettes like Jeff Tweedy’s younger, more intelligible brother: “I lay a blanket on the sand. You’re tracing circles with that sparkler in your hand.” It’s genuine. And it’s got heart. Isn’t that what mixtapes are all about?