WFMU's Beware of the Blog

Dylan Plays Cantrell

On the radio that is. Well, on his XM Satellite show to be exact. Someone put an MP3 together of Dylan's intro/outro spiel talking up Laura's rendition of "When the Roses Bloom Again." Download here (MP3). Who does one have to talk to about getting these guys in rotation on Bob's show as well?

Creepy Songs

"'Well, the last thing I remember, Doc, I started to swerve
And then I saw the Jag slide into the curve
I know I'll never forget that horrible sight,
I guess I found out for myself that everyone was right'
Won't come back from Dead Man's Curve..."
Dead Man's Curve - Jan & Dean, 1964 (mp3).  In 1966, Jan Berry suffers a near-fatal car crash.

"You made it, so the choice is made
Now we gotta slay you"
I Ain' Mad At Cha - Tupac Shakur, 1996 (youtube video).  Later the same year, Shakur is shot 4 times while driving to a Las Vegas nightclub.  He passes away after six days.

"Hey, I'm the one with no soul,
One above and one below"
Violet  - Hole, 1996 (realaudio stream from Stefan's  2/13/2003 show).  One week prior to the release of this track's album, the husband of Hole's frontwoman dies after an apparent suicide.

"I'm taking the cure so I can be quiet"
Needle in the Hay - Elliot Smith (youtube video). In the 2001 film The Royal Tenenbaums, this song is played during an attempted suicide scene.  Smith suicides himself in 2003.

"I want to love you (P.Y.T.)
Pretty Young Thing
You need some lovin' (T.L.C.)
Tender lovin' care
And I'll take you there"
PYT (Pretty Young Thing)  - Michael Jackson, 1982 (realaudio stream from Monica's 4/28/06 show).  In 1993, Jackson is accused of child molestation.  He settles with his accuser in early 1994, for a reported sum of $20 million.

Xhol Caravan and Floh de Cologne Clips

More from the WDR TV special: two minutes of "Acapulco Gold" (16.5MB wmv file) from a 1968 practice room jam by Xhol Caravan and three minutes of Floh de Cologne (21MB wmv file), both bands rarely seen. Xhol were on the forefront of the underground psychedelic movement in Germany, and while the fusiony elements they exhuded might scare off some Kraftwerk/Neu worshippers, they were a total ball of primitive energy that just happened to have more organ/sax leanings than your electronic knobtwiddlers and communal freakout peers. They were without doubt one of the best bands to come out of the whole 1960's/early 70's German scene, and you can still nab a bunch of their releases that are in print. In 2002, our own Tony Coulter did a special on the band and was joined by drummer Skip Van Wyck, you can hear the whole archive here.

Floh de Cologne started out in 1966 as a kind of socio-political cabaret band of students, actors, and other wayward musicians. They released a few records into the early 70's on Ohr and got some Zappa comparisons, but this video clip also puts a bit of the Fugs into focus. They were probably the least "cosmic" of the Ohr stable, but an important German group nonetheless, and I am completely in awe of the guitarist at the end of this clip, somehow I could see him I dunno, in the Bunnybrains today perhaps. Anyway, sorry for the brevity of these clips, but Krautfans should dig; more to come soon.

Dear Sir or Maedamm:

For years now the scambaiters have been providing the cubicle class with tons of hilarity, who doesn't chuckle at the humiliation of a Nigerian 419er? But, as the bodies continue to pile up and the money continues to flow from Western banks (its an estimated 2 Billion dollar a year con now), perhaps it is the Nigerians who get the last laugh?

                                                            

Does it comfort you to know that Johnny Law is on the case? My friend John sent me this link to a new BBC series on Inter-continental Cops and episode one is sort of a CSI Nigeria. It's fascinating to hear just how pervasive the problem is. (mp3-LINK)

extra: if you have never have seen Nkem Owoh's comedic "419 and proud" video I go chop your dollar it can be found on YouTube.

Moondog Suite

MP3s: Side A - Moondog Suite | Side B - Suncat Suite

Made in 1959 by British jazz musician Kenny Graham, this super-rare disc perfectly channels the spirit of Moondog. The title cut is lots of little Moondog riffs all strung together using semi-exotic instruments, but staying well within the coin of jazz. "Moondog Suite" is right on the mark; "Suncat Suite" misses a bit, falling too far into convention for my tastes. Either way, incredible stuff, more so in the face of seeming dozens upon dozens of Moondog reissues recently. Here's the full track listing and liner notes.

Three Piece Band

I'm always a bit wary of mashups but the following video clip by Kel McKeown which splices and dices three music instructional videos is very nicely done. It turns out Kel also puts out records on DC Recordings, the UK label run by J. Saul Kane (aka Octagon Man).

You can grab the clip here (10 Meg Quicktime) or stream a larger/sketchier-quality copy over at youtube.

                  

Also very enjoyable is the following collections of 70s Abba-esque bands from Sweden (aka Svenska dansband!). Link via 30gms

                        

Last but not least, there's Yes.com on which you simply enter in your radio station of choice and they will tell you every song that has been played on it for the last 24 hours. It doesnt look like Big Brother registers too many hits for WFMU but on occasion it will find something. Among other things, I've learned that Hot 97's rotation does in fact contain more than 5 songs. I'm still not sure how they beat out Jon Anderson & Co. to the domain name.

More Amon Duul 2 Video

If you dug the recent Guru Guru clip posted last month, here's yet more culled from the fabulous six-hour Krautrock documentary from WDR TV German listener Marcus sent me. Behold about two minutes of Amon Duul 2 kicking out the jams on "Soap Shop Rock" to a festival crowd in 1970 (16.4MB wmv file), while on this six minute clip (49MB wmv file) our hairy heroes also perform "Between the Eyes" in the same year (seemingly from the same TV show they did "Eye Shaking King" on, posted a ways back), followed by an interview with members today (in German) and a 1969 practice-room take on "Kanaan". Man, someone needs to put this doc out pronto, as it also includes eye-popping jams from Achim Reichel, Organisation, a guitar-and-drums blasting incarnation of Tangerine Dream, plus Neu, Faust, Floh de Cologne, Xhol Caravan, and a very hairy early Scorpions. Bug out and stay tuned for more.

The Comeback

At first, the idea of a Friends veteran (Lisa Kudrow) slogging into the faux-mockumentary realm made me a bit suspect, but HBO's new-to-DVD series the Comeback won me over despite its cringe factor being a bit too much in competition with the comedy factor for my tastes. The show revolves around Kudrow as Valerie Cherish, a recognized-though-not-incredibly-famous sitcom actress of the past, so hungry for a rekindled career that she allows a reality TV show (The Comeback) to follow her around as she works on the set of a horrific Three's Company-style fledgeling show called Room and Bored. In real reality, the HBO presentation is done up with smarts and style: what you see is the supposed raw footage of the Cherish's reality crew following her around as she re-enters the TV world and lives her generally nervous life (complete with continual demands from Valerie to the producer to "cut"). There are great moments where her crew rumbles with other active reality crews around LA, bumping into washed-up stars like Marilu Henner and Kim Fields trying to get their reality shows rolling, but Cherish's uneasiness and sense of panic about everything makes a bit queasier of a viewing experience in comparison the ordeals of the Office's David Brent, for example. But it still slays.

WFMU eBay Goodies: up for grabs!

Volunteer Wendy (aka Cheese Snob Wendy, aka eBay Auctionatrix) has just alerted me to the fact that we are offering some primo, A-1, Humboldt County-caliber items during this week's WFMU eBay auction extravaganza.

Here's some info straight from the Cheese Snob's mouth:

For the next 2 hours, Nick Drake's Bryter Layter LP is available.  If it doesn't go this week, I'll repost it next week. It's in great condition and needs a good home. British psych-folk!

Electronic pop music fans need to know about The Amazing New Electronic Pop Sound of Jean Jacques Perrey.  That's the name of the CD.  Brand new!  Still sealed!

The Martin Scorsese film "Bob Dylan : No Direction Home" has been getting lots of attention lately, and apparently there's an "official bootleg" CD out there.  Well, we have one better: the RARE RADIO SPECIAL CD, with lots of stuff you won't get on the regular release.  It's 2 CDs and 1 hour and 58 minutes of archival stuff, interviews, music, etc.

Who likes cow punk?  EVERYONE likes cow punk.  SO, we're hawking the Meat Puppets SST 7" EP, with such favorites as In A Car and Out In The Gardener. Yup, it's in the original picture sleeve, and it's in awesome condition.

While we're on the subject of classic punk, let's go to Australia.  Or let's let Australia come to us, as that's what happened last year when The Saints paid a visit to Terre T's Cherry Blossom Clinic show.  Chris Bailey was nice enough to sign a 7", and he even drew a cute little pic on it.  Know Your Product b/w Run Down.  YES IT'S AUTOGRAPHED!  Pretty cool, huh?

The starting bids on these items are very reasonable, so go check 'em out.

Click here for more details and to bid away

Candy Pants

"Believe it or not! Girl, I'm willing to go to any length to get what you have got!"

From the album I Got The Mack In The Sack, here's Lionel Davis' classic soulful ballad "Candy Pants" (YouTube link) in all its lo-fi public access glory. Included at no extra charge at the end of the clip: Lionel calling himself "a minister of soberiety".

This Week in Sex: You Can Quote Me

"You ate the food, you drank the wine, do the right thing." Let's say you're on a date. The check comes. You offer to split it, but the guy picks it up. You like him and you think you want to go out with him again, but you go out of town, and before you can make plans, he hits you up for your half of the bill. The guy is Darren, the girl is Joanne, and they are this year's Internet It couple. Read the email trail, or listen to Darren ask Joanne to pay, threaten to issue a summons and call her employer, confirm that he is not letting this go (duh), and tell her that he is asking China Grill to follow up with her (all .wav files, also on site with emails). Think it can't be true? Oh, I think it be. The JDateyness of it is giving Mel Gibson a woody.

"This is the epitome of community service." Or as CNN.com put it, "Boy George gets hot, stinky karma" for falsely reporting a burglary. When the cops came, they found cocaine. George's community service will be cleaning city streets for the sanitation department, not performing a charity concert as he had hoped. Which goes to show that criminals only learn how to be better criminals after they get through the system--he's just going to know how to clean up better before the cops come.

"Inappropriate clothing worn so close to a river 'could provoke dangerous temptations and behaviour.'" There's a new 38 euro penalty for going nude, topless, or in a thong on Paris Plage, the summertime beach along the Seine. I can't figure out if it's pro-rated per naked body part, but the order forbidding the exposure of flesh says "Behaviour must conform to good morals, tranquillity, safety and public order," so it seems easy to enforce, like obscenity laws.

"We know from talking to patients and clinics that there is only one active sperm donor covering the whole of Scotland." Sperm donors are in short supply since the British government decided to let children find out the identity of the donors. The good news is that it will be really easy to track down your dad, since there's just the one guy.

"Said John Wank Miller, supervisor of Baltimore's marriage license department: 'The annotated code of Maryland gives you a definition of marriage that has nothing to do with animals.'" I just wanted to quote a guy whose middle name is Wank. If something is your middle name, you can leave it out, right? But if it's Wank, why would you? The article is supposedly about some hipsters who had a mock wedding to their Chihuahuas and tarantulas to make some unclear political point and drink Yuengling, but to me it's all about John Wank Miller, supervisor of Baltimore's marriage license department.

TV Party!

Download Torrent - DivX AVI- 659.6 MB
Thanks Greylodge!

Party Out Of Bounds: A new documentary digs up a forgotten post-punk TV classic and a lost cultural moment

Village Voice
by Joy Press
April 26th, 2005 12:46 PM

"I really sincerely believe cable TV in New York City can become a viable force that will compete with The Village Voice, really mean something," Blondie's Chris Stein declared during an episode of TV Party, the post-punk public access television series he hosted with writer Glenn O'Brien from 1978 to 1982. The show's life span just happened to coincide with the golden age of Manhattan Cable, a halcyon period when public access TV seemed like the vanguard of a new democratic art form. It was an open pulpit that beckoned to neighborhood freaks, visionaries, show-offs, paranoiacs—pretty much anyone who had the gumption to ask for airtime. And back in the days before MTV and the zillion other networks we have now, New York couch potatoes like me watched it voraciously, lapping up everything from Telepsychic and The Robin Byrd Show to Ugly George and TV Party, never quite sure what unscripted nuttiness would erupt from the screen.

A millipede in the bath and a snail by my bed: what i ate on my summer vacation

I have seen the headlines, and they are to be believed.  Fish Tacos are the new wave of culinary fabulousness.  This fits in handily with surfing becoming the new skateboarding, at least for us 'coasters'.  I am not purposely leaving out the landlocked types, it's just that born and raised in New England, I have never understood how humans could live without a huge body of water crashing at their doorstep.  (Hurricanes not included)
Surfin Tacos, 344 Main Street, Wakefield, RI was the fish taco that made me a rabid fan.  Fresh flounder from the Narragansett Bay, deep fried in a tortilla, with cheese and chipotle red coleslaw dolloped on top is a great taste combination.  I ordered fish tacos everywhere I went after that, but without the chipotle coleslaw it was just average. Epicurious.com has a fish taco recipe with a coleslaw that I have altered to fit my taste buds. (see below)

A few hot summers ago I desperately needed an air conditioned movie theater in the middle of a July day. Uncharacteristically, I wandered into the surfumentary Step into Liquid.  Having never even touched a surf board, I was almost considering buying one after sitting through the most gorgeous, heart stopping water pic ever. Recommended rental.  Other hot water pics :  The Life Aqautic of Steve Zissou.  watch it for the villa, the music, Bill Murray, the submarine!  Contempt by Jean Luc Goddard.  Briggitte Bardot, a mid century mod Rome apartment, and a villa in Capri that is staggering.  (again with the 'villas'....hmmm). The grandfather of surf movies: Endless Summer.  The Fishing with John Lurie series, where he tortures his famous friends into insane adventures with lots of exotic locals, and plenty of food and drink. Terrifically funny.

Summertime at the Magic Factory

Two tell-all shots from around the office today that perfectly illustrate life at the Magic Factory in the midst of 110 degree heat, coupled with an air conditioner that's on the fritz.

Program Note

From the Daily News: "Sirius Satellite Radio starts an eight-day commemoration of the late Jerry Garcia on Ch. 17."
--Guess they're going to play one of his guitar solos.

If you'd like to hear some actual music, this Saturday night, August 5, there's a free concert of Arabic music and dance at Untermyer Park in Yonkers, NY. At 6:00 there's a dance and percussion workshop with Yasser Darwish, and at 7:30 there's dance and music, with people playing the 'oud and the quanun and the ney and the duff and the riq, most of which I've never seen. And there's also an accordian--you can't go wrong with the accordian. Make yourself a little picnic, have a nice time.

Adventures In Amplitude Modulation - Part 23

In the last week, I went over the tapes from my upstate NY listening session and found another interesting scan to post here. This time it’s a night hike through the 41 meter band. Audio follows the jump.

This recording is from the beginning of June, which seems like years ago as far as world news goes. With the Mideast on fire and Castro in the hospital, now would be good time to sample international news and opinion on shortwave. I wish I had the time to take a listen. Maybe this weekend. Unlike most media, shortwave radio listening can take some time and patience. And for a city dweller like me it takes some effort and dedication to escape from all the RF interference. And weather as it is, it ain’t such a swell time to sit outside with a radio either.

Next week, a special treat. Finally, a reader has actually offered up a recently recorded shortwave dial scan, along with extensive notes and commentary. And it’s a good one. Thanks Ralph!

After asking listeners to contribute radio recordings for this blog series, Ralph was the first one to come through. I had talked about what I was interested in hearing in this post, and if you think you might have something to offer (or would be willing to record some radio from wherever you might be) please send me an email. And thank to Ken Kopp in Topeka for mentioning this series on his blog and in Glenn Hauser’s DX Listening Digest, and for asking readers there to consider submitting audio for this project. Appreciate it.

Meanwhile, back to the third of June, near Catskill in the Hudson Valley, where this recording occured. That weekend the reception was strong and steady on my new Degen 1103. In the last post I offered from that listening session offered very readable reception from Madagascar, and this one touches on Southern Africa as well. But almost more significantly, I came across WBCQ in Maine coming in loud and clear after midnight (something I haven’t heard here in a while), as well as a Christian shortwave broadcast from Utah. That might not sound like much of an accomplishment, compared to picking up signals from the Indian Ocean, but it’s not always easy for me on the east coast to receive shortwave stations in the Northern Hemisphere transmitting from the continental divide and beyond.

Sensei Rebel's Archive Picks of the Week (July 24, 2006 - July 30, 2006)

All MP3 and RealAudio links are streaming links from the WFMU Archives.

Rock And Roll
Hush Arbors - "Bones By the Sea" RealAudio from Scott Williams' show, July 28, 2006

International
Shanghai Sound Unit - "Auctioneers" RealAudio from Gateway To Joy with Donna, July 26, 2006

Experimental
Parasites of the Western World - "Flying" RealAudio from Scott Williams' show, July 28, 2006

Dance
Bruno Spoerri - "Lilith the Dancer" RealAudio from Maria Levitsky's show, July 26, 2006

Ambient
Toru Takemitsu - "Moetsukita Chizu" RealAudio from Evan Muse's show, July 26, 2006

Hip-Hop
L'Trimm - "Cars With the Boom" RealAudio from Brian Turner's show, July 25, 2006

Fave Song of the Week
Hanu Karjalainen - "Haaparesi" RealAudio from Maria Levitsky's show, July 26, 2006

I Found it on WFMU

Like a virtual Ouija board, WFMU's search page spells out answers to all of the tough questions you never knew you had. You won't even need candlelight or a sneaky slumber party attendee. Allow me to demonstrate.

Scenario #1
All of a sudden out of nowhere, you must know if WFMU has played Orleans and you must know now! Go here and type in Orleans to find out. You can also search for a particular song on this same page.

Scenario #2
You are short-term memory-challenged like myself, and you're trying to find info on a song you heard on WFMU, but the only details that your brain recalls are: 1) awesome, and 2) it went something like nah nah nah banana, something something... You need the Advanced Search Page, my friend.

Scenario #3
You keep hearing The Kids talking up this band called Cattle Decapitation. Everywhere you turn, you see someone with a Cattle Decapitation t-shirt, a Cattle Decapitation tattoo, Cattle Decapitation knee socks, then it's Cattle Decapitation baby bibs, Cattle Decapitation breakfast cereal... and suddenly you can't take it any more, what the hell is up with this Cattle Decapitation craze?! Surely WFMU is hip to their jive, I need to hear this Cattle Decapitation band once and for all! Hit up our Song Audio Search Page and get in the know.

Scenario #4
You're bumping FMU with the windows rolled down, and this suh-weeeet tune comes on. You turn it up to eleven, and all of a sudden your ride is surrounded by honeys. Overwhelmed with worship, you're too, um, occupied to hear the DJ announce what was playing. But since you scored the digits, you've got to seal the deal with a primo mixtape on your date. Now what would really win you some points? How about that rockin' song you were listening to around 8:30pm... Damn! What was it called? Try our Time Search Page, where the date and time shall yield the truth.

Scenario #5
You'd like to see what's on the WFMU tasting menu, in long, alphabetical list form. Feast your eyes on our Band Browser or our Genre Finder. Perhaps you'll discover that Power Violence really speaks to your inner child.

Scenario #6
You're just looking for a good ol' fashioned Sex Party. Search the whole damned WFMU website here.

Berlin Underground 1979-1983 (mp3)

(19 MP3 files below the jump.)

In 1991, the Berlin-based Zensor label released a compilation called Als die Partisanen kamen (When The Guerrillas Came). It contained a bunch of Berlin underground music which had appeared on the Zensor, Monogam, and Marat labels between 1979 and 1983. Apparently they thought it would be dangerous if it fell into the wrong hands, so they created some of the most annoying and illegible artwork in the history of mankind. Though the CD cover doesn't have disturbing imagery, fold-out velvet penises, or anything comparable, it still makes me shiver to this day whenever I look at it. Trying to read the track information makes me wish I was blind. I have provided scans of the front and back cover, but in order to protect the innocent, they are hidden beneath the jump. The music is there, too. Read on if you dare.