12.10.09 Playlist and Podcast.

Hour 1
* Holger Czukay, "Hiss 'N' Listen," On the Way to the Peak of Normal, EMI
* Faust, "Just a Second (Starts Like That)," Faust IV, Virgin
* Electroputas, "Profundo Rosso," 3, The Social Registry
* Loop, "Circle Grave," Black Sun 12", Chapter 22
* James Pants, "Wash to Sea," Seven Seals, Stones Throw
* Xeno & Oaklander, "Another," Sentinelle, Weird
* Stereolab, "French Disco," Oscillations from the Anti-Sun, Too Pure
* Proroky, "Back to the Burner," IVG Vol. 1 (Comp.), Born Bad

download MP3

Hour 2
* Oneohtrix Point Never, "Russian Mind," Russian Mind, No Fun
* The Polyps, untitled side B selection, The Gong Is the Moon (C26), Night People
* Silver Apples, "Velvet Cave," Silver Apples, Universal
* Praxis, "Electro/Shock," 1984 12", Celluloid
* Gang of Four, "If I Could Keep It for Myself," Solid Gold, EMI
* Don King, "The Don Goes On," One-Two Punch 12", Doublevision
* Les Georges Leningrad, "Missing Gary," Sur Les Traces de le Black Eskimo, Alien8
* Mark McGuire, "Hemisphere," Guitar Meditations (C90), Wagon
* Robert Fripp, "Under Heavy Manners (feat. David Byrne)," God Save the Queen/Under Heavy Manners, Polydor
* Bibio, "Sugarette," Ambivalence Avenue, Warp
download MP3

12.03.09 Playlist and Podcast.

Hour 1
* Eric Copeland, "Alien In A Garbage Dump," Alien in a Garbage Dump, Paw Tracks
* Mouse on Mars, "Papa, Antoine," Iahora Tahiti, Too Pure
* Color Rabbit, "Sound Taste Good Today," Awarenessness, Ikuisuus
* Pan-American, "There Can Be No Thought Of Finishing," White Bird Release, Kranky
* Elliott Sharp, "Bee And See," ARC 3: Cyberpunk & The Virtual Stance, Atavistic
* Brian Eno, "Dunwich Beach, Autumn, 1960," Ambient 4: On Land, EG
* David Mooney, "Olbum's Furniture," Facts About Air, self-released
* Evan Miller, "Untitled," Split 2XC20, Young Tapes

download MP3

Hour 2
* Thinking Plague, "Organism," ReR Records Quarterly Vol. 2 No. 4 (Comp.), ReR Records
* Vladislav Delay, "Mustelmia," Tummaa, Leaf
* Infinity Window, "Skull Theft," Artificial Midnight, Arbor
* Bibio, "Dwarcan," Ambivalence Avenue, Warp
* Kid Montana, "Passionara," Statistics Mean Nothing When You Get On The Wrong Plane, Sabam
* Michael Hoenig, "Scatter Part III," Xcept One, Capitol
* Double Fantasy, "Lost Control," Universal Ave., Innovative Communications
* Exile, "Super Robot," Beat Dimensions, Vol. 2 (Comp.), Rush Hour

download MP3

Ambitious Lovers.

Beat Dimensions, Vol. 2

Copped this comp a few weeks back and it's been on steady rotation in my car ever since. It may be winter and miserable outside but it's never too cold for your stereo to do its thang. This is seriously great, an example of how helpful a solid compilation can be in introducing you to truly dope stuff. 75% of the artists here are new to me and they're 100% amazing.



The CD's a collection of tunes from a series of 12"s put together by Jay Scarlett and Cinnaman, repping Munich and Amsterdam, respectively. And the artists on the disc range from everywhere (well, if the throughout the USA and Europe counts as "everywhere"), a decent number hailing from the beat haven Los Angeles has become.

LA's Nosaj Thing kills it early on. "Fwd" descends into a sinister, lilting rhythm. Feels like the beat's falling right out from under you. I just want to loop those first 5 seconds over and over.

Tiago, part of Scottish collective LuckyMe, is on some Star Wars shit with "Babel Fish." You know the wonderful bass of a Death Star explosion, that huge sound that just obliterates the "pow pow pow" of laser canons and X-Wing jets and repair droids? (Yeah yeah, no sound in space, whatever.) These huge swells of sound go down on this track and they just dim out everything else for a few seconds. Brilliant.

Back to Los Angeles for Exile's "Super Robot." Dude samples the best track ever to hit #2 on the UK Singles Chart. I was so psyched when I heard that first "ah" come in.

Nosaj Thing, "Fwd"

download MP3

Tiago, "Babel Fish"

download MP3

Exile, "Super Robot"

download MP3

Beat Dimensions, Vol. 2 is out on Rush Hour. Here in the states, grab it from Turntable Lab.

11.26.09 Playlist and Podcast.

Hour 1
* Etienne Jaumet "For Falling Asleep," Night Music, Domino
* William Basinski, "92982.1," 92982, 2062
* Heldon, "Doctor Bloodmoney," Third, Disjuncta
* Supersilent, "9.2," 9, Rune Grammofon

download MP3

Hour 2
* Emeralds, "10/27/07 Cleveland, OH," Live CDR, Gneiss Things
* Quintana Roo, "Beheaded Dynasty," Split (with Emeralds), Arbor
* J D Emmanuel, "Changeling," Solid Dawn: Electronic Works '79-'82, Kvist
* Mudboy, untitled side A selection, Mudboy Beats Vol. III: Metal USA (C40), Breaking World

download MP3

11.19.2009 Playlist and Podcast.

Lots of cool stuff on the show the other night. Inadvertently focused on some of music's elder statesmem. Who knew Cluster had a new album out and that it's fantastic? Somehow it flew under my radar. Be sure to check the opener, a far-out jaw harp-centric track from Robert Wyatt recorded back in 1981 for Italian radio. Then later we've got a track from the Real Estate LP they recorded in 2009 for Western Massachusetts radio. Hey! I think it's a pretty solid 2 hours, especially if you're looking for more longformish pieces.

Hour 1
* Robert Wyatt, "Opium War," Radio Experiment Rome, February 1981, Cargo
* Andrew Paine and Richard Youngs, "Namaste," Mauve Dawn, Fusetron
* Morton Subotnick, "The Wild Bull (Part 2)," The Wild Bull, Nonesuch
* Modern Office, "Deep Pizza Zone," Modern Office (c30), Young Tapes
* Six Organs of Admittance, "Enemies Before the Light," Luminous Night, Drag City

download MP3

Hour 2
* Kraftwerk, "Hall of Mirrors," Trans-Europe Express, Capitol
* Ducktails, "House of Mirrors," Landscapes, Olde English Spelling Bee
* Real Estate, "Younger Than Yesterday," Live on the Radio, Underwater Peoples
* Cluster, "Gissander," Qua, Nepenthe
* Klaus Schulze, "Stardancer II," Bodylove OST, Antilles
* Ryan Garbes, untitled Side A selection, Born Under the Sun (c20), Night People
* Ergo, "Rana Sylvatica," Multitude, Solitude, Cuneiform
* Luc Ferrari, "Dialogue ordinaire avec la machine ou trois fables pour bande doucement philosophiques (Part 5)," L'Œuvre électronique, Ina Grm

download MP3

Photos: Ed Schrader/DJ Dog Dick, Carsick Cars.

Lots of music over at Hampshire College this past Friday night.



First: Baltimore howled and I answered the call. Ed Schrader is the best talk show host I know, and he's also a captivating performer of unique drum 'n voice showtunes. Also, he does radio drama. Also, look at those abs.



DJ Dog Dick was super great, mixing improvisational suitcase noise with original pop choruses zapped straight from 1996. Gregg Gillis applied to Mudboy or something.

Adventure also played but it was too dark for pictures. I was expecting the video game dance moves from his self-titled album, but the dude went straight for tripped-out synth space travel. Nice.







After BMore slayed, Beijing's Carsick Cars zeroed in on the dining hall. You just don't hear chugging, kraut-inspired Chinese rock 'n roll very often. The band was excellent, the crowd was even better - I don't make it to many shows where there are hoards of girls shrieking like it's the British Invasion all over again.

Really fun times.

11.12.09 Playlist and Podcast.

Hour 1
* Hudson Mohawke, "Overnight," Polyfolk Dance (EP), Warp
* Demdike Stare, "Ghostly Hardware," Symbiosis, Modern Love
* Smycken, untitled Side B excerpt, Video Haze (c28), Night People
* The Moritz Von Oswald Trio, "Pattern 4," Vertical Ascent, Honest Jon's
* Glass Candy and the Shattered Theatre, "Dream Lover," The Nite Nurses, (self-released)
* Margie Joseph, "Knockout (Special Mix Part II)," Knockout 12", Houston Connection
* Mr. Oizo, "Nurse Bob," Moustache (Half a Scissor), Mute
* Snakefinger, "Don't Lie," Greener Pastures, East Side Digital
* The Residents, "Jambalaya," Stars and Hank Forever, The Cryptic Corporation
* The Durutti Column, "Sketch for Summer," The Return Of The Durutti Column, Factory
* Aesop Rock, "Rickety Rackety (ft. CamuTao & El-P)," Fast Cars, Danger, Fire & Knives (EP), Def Jux

download MP3

Hour 2
* Tom Waits, "Green Grass (live)," Glitter and Doom Live, Anti-
* Tyshawn Sorey, "Template 1," That/Not, Firehouse 12
* Flying Lotus, "Infinitum (Dimlite's Re-finitum)," LA EP 3x3, Warp
* Dj/rupture and Matt Shadetek, "4th Story Waterline," Solar Life Raft, The Agriculture
* Broadcast, "Before We Begin," Haha Sound, Warp
* Sejayno, "Opening Prayer / International Harvester 1," Quantus, Ehse
* Robedoor, "People of the Book," Raiders, Not Not Fun
* Saudade, "Abandoned Campground," Lookouts' Journal, Arena Rock Recording Company
* DJ Dog Dick, untitled live recording, 5/25/08 at Floristree in Baltimore, MD, http://baltimore-taper.blogspot.com/
* Harmonia & Eno '76, "Vamos Campeneros," Tracks and Traces (Reissue), Gronland
* Psyco on da Bus, "Never Satisfied," Psyco on da Bus, Comet
* Tyondai Braxton, "Opening Bell," Central Market, Warp
download MP3

The Natural Yogurt Band.

It's kind of tough to keep up with the avalanche of amazing releases/announcements coming out of the Stones Throw/Now-Again camp these days. This little gem was put out about a month back, an expanded rerelease of the Natural Yogurt Band's Away With Melancholy.



The album was originally available last year on the Jazzman label, but that issue is now way out-of-print. The band seems to fit perfectly beside the other "strikingly revivalist yet decades into the future" camp of the Now-Again roster, namely the Heliocentrics and Karl Hector and the Malcouns. Natural Yogurt Band dudes Miles Newbold and Wayne Fullwood look to the airy lounge jazz of fifties and sixties hi-fis, Lionel Hampton and Quincy Jones and such, while also hinting at the damaged studio psychedelia of Silver Apples and White Noise.

The Now-Again issue comes with three bonus tracks (one of which you can find below) and and absolutely beautiful packaging. You'll do best to grab it on wax. Double 10" discs in a mirror-like foil gatefold sleeve. This is why physical forms of music aren't going anywhere.

The Natural Yogurt Band, "Invisible Ink"

downloard MP3

Buy the record from Stones Throw, or for a couple bucks less over at Turntable Lab.

And keep an eye out - LP #2 in 2010.

Real Estate, "Live on the Radio."

Just grabbed my copy of the new Real Estate record from Ian over at Friendship Bracelet. Quality. Side A's got cuts from the session the dudes laid down a couple months back down in the WMUA studios, recorded by Gabe (of MYNDBLYNDRZ fame) and yours truly (but mostly Gabe). Side B's got jams from a WVKR in-studio. 10 tracks all in all, nary a repeated song.

Shit sounds really great and I'm happy this record exists. It's a combination of all sorts of things I love, namely college radio, jangly pop gems, and DIY packaging (piece of paper pasted on white record sleeve, beautiful).



The record's only available through the current Real Estate tour and I'm guessing it's gonna go quick. The band's making its way across the US of A over the next couple of months... tour dates are here.

Consolation prize if you can't pick up a copy of the record: the WMUA session is up right here. It's in lowly 128 kbps MP3 format, so grab that record if you can and enjoy the hi-fidelity. But you also get treated to a couple Ducktails songs, namely "Backyard," "House of Mirrors" and a totally wonky and wonderful run-through of "Pizza Time."

11.05.09 Playlist and Podcast.

Guess who forgot to record hour 1 of this week's show? The answer is me. Me forgot. So hour 2 is below, available for streaming or downloading. If I'm feeling up for it, I might throw together the music from the first half or something, since I played some pretty sweet jams. We'll see.

Hour 1
* Idea Fire Company, "The Sinking Ship," Lasting (c90, Comp.), Pineapple Tapes
* Hudson Mohawke, "ZOo00OOm," Butter, Warp
* Oneohtrix Point Never, Live on Rare Frequency, http://rarefrequency.com
* Ras G, "Stealth Mode," Dublab Presents: Echo Expansion (Comp.), Porter
* Derek Jarman, "There Is a Photo in the Newspaper," Blue, Mute
* Susumu Yokota, "Plateau on Plateau," The Boy and the Tree, Leaf
* Hexlove, "Sonrise," Your Love of Music Will Be an Important Part of Your Life, Porter

Hour 2
* Edan, excerpt from Echo Party, Five Day Weekend
* Chromatics, Witness, Healer 12", Troubleman Unlimited
* Amr Dieb, "Eh Yaani," Yalla! Hitlist Egypt (Comp.), Mango / Egyptair
* Hecker, "Piste 09," Acid in the Style of David Tudor, Editions Mego
* Alva Notto, "Xerrox Sora," Xerrox Vol. 2, Raster-Noton
* Franck Vigroux, "New York," Récolte, D'autres cordes
* Growing, "Innit," All the Way, Social Registry
* Etienne Jaumet, "Through the Strata," Night Music, Domino
* Jon Hopkins, "Colour Eye," Insides, Domino

downloard MP3

Lightning Bolt.

Cover your ears.

Lightning Bolt, "Nation Of Boar"

downloard MP3

Earthly Delights is out now on Load.

Saudade.

It's summer on the cover of Saudade's Lookouts' Journal, all sun and green trees, but it's a cold New England winter here and now. No matter. The Portland duo's second release is perfectly suited for layers of brittle leaves, 5 AM snowfalls, and breath visible under florescent parking lot lights.

Here, a series of microsounds tap out a beat, emerging from vacant wasteland noise. There, a piano's caught in some peaceful aural limbo. Powerful, soothing waves of guitar tone that forgot their way home. Wordless, phantasmagoric vocalisations. All is shrouded in an air of fuzz, a fog that binds the disparate musics together in its resolute sonic obscurity, a thick snowfall. I'm reminded of William Basinski's loop-based melancholia, applied to today's post-everything California underground.

Seasonal bullshit aside, Lookouts' Journal is a joy.

Yesterday, this song came on in the car. I took the scenic route home.
Saudade, "Interstate Bridge Song"

downloard MP3

Lookouts' Journal is out next week via Arena Rock Recording Company. Find it at Insound, Amazon, etc.

Photos: Neon Indian/Vega, No Kids/Mount Eerie, Growing/Fuck Buttons.

Been hitting up a lot of shows recently, leaving little time for blogging. Here are some visual documents of the past week of music.







On Sunday the 25th we struck out for Hartford where Alan Palomo's two projects were playing at the Wadsworth Atheneum. It's the first time I've seen crowdsurfing in a room lined with Picasso, Dali, Munch and Ernst originals, and probably the last. The sound was pretty wretched and Neon Indian had a rough start. By the time the band switched over to Vega for three encore jams, though, shit was tight and the catchy-as-all-get-out electro pop sounded great.

* * *







Tuesday the 27th found yours truly in Palmer, Massachusetts, at the Diamond Junction Bowling Lanes. The bill was No Kids, Tara Jane O'Neil, and Mount Eerie, and the show seriously ruled. Maybe not as mind-shattering as Phil Elverum's appearance at the Shed back in '05, but a six-piece Mount Eerie really brought to life the gargantuan "black wooden" sound of new-ish LP Wind's Poem. Apparently it's the largest band Elverum's ever toured with. He should do it more often. So good.

* * *





A little closer to home was Growing and Fuck Buttons at the Iron Horse, just last night. I've been digging Growing for years but always seem to miss them live. Last night's performance was loud, proud and fucking solid. They played for nearly an hour, no breaks. More beat-driven/dance-like than their records, apocalyptic post-disco was the general atmosphere, with dual guitars and tables upon tables of samplers and pedals directing everything. Reminded me of the Black Dice set I caught over the summer, in a very good way. The threesome just put the final touches on a new album, slated for release in the spring on Vice. Excited.

Fuck Buttons was equally loud if not louder, yet about as boring as Growing were enthralling. We ditched the joint fifteen minutes into their set. Sorry dudes.

* * *

Most of these bands are still on tour... catch 'em if you can.

10.29.09 Playlist and Podcast.

Hour 1
* Broadcast and the Focus Group, "Ritual / Looking In," Broadcast & The Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age, Warp
* Arrington de Dionyso, "Mencerminkan Mahkota Kotor," Malaikat Dan Singa, K
* Oliver Lake, "Zaki," Wildflowers 4: The New York Loft Jazz Sessions (Comp), Douglas
* Sun Ra "Crystal Spears," Crystal Spears, Evidence
* Ecstatic Sunshine, "Anagram," Living (EP), Wildfire Wildfire
* Forest Swords, "Sisters," Friendship Bracelet Club Vol. 2 (Comp.), http://www.friendshipbracelet.us
* Elliott Sharp and the Soldier String Quartet, "Digital," Tessalation Row, SST
* David Rosenboom, "Section VII (Impression)," How Much Better If Plymouth Rock Had Landed On The Pilgrims, New World Music

downloard MP3

Hour 2
* Saudade, "Accumulation," Lookouts' Master Journal, Arena Rock Recording Company
* Ash Ra Tempel, "Darkness: Flowers Must Die," Schwingungen, Ohr
* Sunroof!, "Little Ornamental Lake of Death," Split Series #19, Fat Cat
* Hair Police, "Out Of The Empty Quarter," The Empty Quarter, Troubleman Unlimited
* Alex Gordon, "Ether," Small Craft Warnings, Tone Casualties
* Tangerine Dream, "Mysterious Semblance At The Strand Of Nightmares," Phaedra, Virgin
* Birdy Nam Nam, "New Birth," Birdy Nam Nam, UWe

downloard MP3

Color Rabbit, "A Live Once and Reincarnations."

A little while back I asked Northampton resident Patrick Clifford, a.k.a. Color Rabbit, to come down to the WMUA dungeon. Dude brought his guitar, an amp, a pedal or two, a small gong, and a few other pieces and did his electro-acoustic improvisation thing for forty minutes.

Now a shorter, edited version of that set is available as a very nicely-packaged mini CDR from Iowa City killers Darbolistic Rex. It's yours for the aesthetically pleasing price of $2.22.



And, if you want all forty minutes of the set, check it:

Color Rabbit, "Buildings & Echo"

downloard MP3
Color Rabbit, "Winged Out"

downloard MP3

* * *

Also: Ikuisuus just put out the Awarenessness CDR, another forty minutes of music - this time, some wild (home) studio recordings.



Some MP3s, courtesy of Ikuisuus:

Color Rabbit, "Drift to Magnetic Pole Shift"

downloard MP3
Color Rabbit, "Sound Taste Good Today"

downloard MP3

Grab it here.

I Hear A New World, Day 1.

Awesome times at the Elevens the other night. George of Breaking World was kind enough to put together a two-day mini-festival of noisy musics. Totally different sounds from all sorts of totally rad people.



Keith Fullerton Whitman, Boston's chameleon of improvised electronic music, built some alternatingly soothing and terrifying arpeggiated tones.



SQRM yelled and screamed and moshed around. Highbrow punx. Forward-thinking hardcore.





Okkyung Lee and Bill Nace played off each other beautifully. Noise cello, believe it. Killed my ears, enthralled my brain.









Parts and Labor, back to trio status, brought some new material to the stage. First time performances, I think? The anthemic noise pop sounds better than ever. New album on the horizon, they say.

I missed last night's half of the event, meaning no Ducktails, Fat Worm of Error, Noise Nomads/Id M Theftable collaboration, and more. Bummer, but I instead caught Neon Indian at an art museum in Hartford. Photos of that soon.

Broadcast. San Serac.

I caught Broadcast with Atlas Sound the other night in Boston, where crowds continue to be fickle and passive. Openers The Selmanaires (who later doubled as Bradford Cox's backing band) played some very respectable psych pop. Music to dance to. Nary a shoulder twitched nor foot tapped. People were equally unresponsive to the first half of Broadcast's set, a glorious mess of noisy experimentation that wouldn't seem out of place in a Western Mass basement. More applause for the group's poppier material. Check this run-through of "Corporeal."



Fantastic. Atlas Sound, though, was disappointing. The dudes indie rock-ified the weirder A.S. songs and turning even "Walkabout" dull and dirge-like. Nothing against Cox et al., but we wound up leaving midway through the set.





While I'm at it: hats off to Eric Hnatow and San Serac for energizing the small crowd last Saturday at UMass. Dudes brought some serious enthusiasm to Earth Foods and, while not too many showed up to see it, those who did really enjoyed it.





Photos of the elusive DJ Double Dad remain unavailable.

10.22.09 Playlist

Hour 1
* Six Organs of Admittance, "Enemies Before the Light," Luminous Night, Drag City
* Bill Callahan, "All Thoughts Are Prey To Some Beast," Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle, Drag City
* MV&EE, "Snapperhead," Barn Nova, Ecstatic Peace
* Karl Blau, "Goodbye Little Song," Zebra, K
* Catherine Jauniaux & Tim Hodgkinson, "Origine Des Femmes," Fluvial, Woof
* Dreamcolour, "Sun Ritual," Spiritual Celebration (c40), Not Not Fun
* Harmonia & Eno '76, "Almost," Tracks and Traces (Reissue), Gronland
* Color Rabbit, "Telepathic Conversations with China," Awarenessness, Ikuisuus
* Lutz Glandien, "CUT," RēR Records Quarterly Vol.2 No.4 (Comp.), Recommended Records
* Maggi Payne, "Lab Faucet," The Lab 20-Year Anniversary (Comp.), The Lab
Hour 2
* eLan, "I Can't Breathe," Magnificent Mistakes, myspace.com/elansbeats
* Drake, "Say What's Real," The Official Drake Mixtape, www.myspace.com/thisisdrake
* Missy Dee & the Melody Crew, "Missy Missy Dee," Don't Stop: Recording Tap, Group Numero
* Baron Zen, "Night in Jail (M-80 Remix)," At The Mall - The Remixes, Stones Throw
* Subway, "Xam," II, Soul Jazz
* Explorers, untitled Side B excerpt, Bermuda Telepaths, Outer Limits/Not Not Fun
* Tomorrowland, "Saturn," Sequence of the Negative Space Changes, Kranky
* Khate, "Love," Pareidolia, SMTG
* Delia Gonzalez and Gavin Russom, "Relevee," Relevee 12", DFA
* The Rapture, "I Need Your Love," Live From The Bowery Ballroom, DFA/Universal

Strange Light is dead. Long live Strange Light.

So the other day I'm looking at my sad little website.

"Well. This looks awful on mobile browsers. How do I enable RSS? I'd like my millions (and millions) of readers to be able to 'follow' me."

Etc., etc., etc.

And I decided that programming things myself is just kind of a big pain.

Enter Blogspot.