WFMU's Beware of the Blog

TV Carnage on You Tube

Perhaps the greatest clip DVDs in the world, and somewhat perfect cultural fodder for a time capsule, sampled for your entertainment pleasure:
Squirrel Melts
Rosie On the Bus vs. John Ritter
Snoop Dogg on Donnie and Marie
I'm Not Working For McDonalds
Truth is, these clips deliver best when dropped into the non-stop river of lost-mind sludge that each DVD delivers in its 75 minute glory. Rather than purely rely on individual kitschy snippets, TV Carnage often juxtaposes obvious and not-so-obvious bizarro moments with video and audio to create a whole new screwed up identity, it is freeform TV in the most straight up sense. Matlock's dog hallucinates about James Brown's disembodied head, an enraged fan's attack on soap star Michael Damian singing onstage gets dissected and analyzed at incredible length, lots of Stairway To Stardom moments of course. As my friend Tadd said about an hour into watching one DVD: "they just keep giving, don't they." Find them here.

MP3 Truffles: Rats!

Update! By request, my Puff the Magic Dragon triptych mix in mp3. See the "video" section after the jump for detials.

So last Thursday night I left my job in the West Village and, realizing that I only had five bucks to my name and was darn sick of pizza, I decided to get dinner at the place on my block that I have thus far avoided going to: the KFC/Taco Bell. Yeah. That one.

The next morning as I turn the corner onto 6th Ave, I notice a swarm of reporters and satellite vans all straining to peek in the window of said franchise. If you live in NYC then you know what happened (local TV and newspapers, faced with a slow day, made the story priority number one), but at the time I was clueless. For a terror stricken moment my brain screamed "EBOLA!", and I felt my bowels pinch. Then I passed through the melle, heard all the talk of a huge rat infestation, and ended up clutching my stomach instead.

But ultimately, I was glad it was just plain ol' rats and not something worse. And since it's been almost a week and I don't seem food poisoned or plague ridden, I'll assume I got off lucky. And so - here's a musical tribute to rats!  Zip file 1  Zip file 2

Speaking of shifty vermin, here's my favorite little trivia piece tucked way down into the Reuters article about the rat-tastrophie: "Earlier this week, the president of KFC, also known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, asked Pope Benedict XVI for a papal blessing for its new Fish Snacker sandwich." Now that's a meeting I would like to sit in on.

In other news, tonight (Wednesday) is almost your last chance to check out the art exhibit of Scopitones down at the d.u.m.b.o. arts center. If you don't know, these are the charming 60s music shorts that used to play in in video music boxes. The Scopitones blog has more details on the lecture taking place tonight, as well as tons of Scopitones that you can download. My favorites include an inspired bit of psychedelia from The Martin Circus, the incomparable Joi Lansing (Queen of All Scopitones), and one with a bunch of white-haired musicians that we were told we would like (and yes, we do!). While not the most exciting to watch, this Scopitone featuring the squeaky clean Back Porch Majority (which sounds kinda dirty to me) actually brought down the empire when the band sued the company over their insertion of randy underwear shots. Oh, but what would they make of this one? But the most famous Scopitone making the round (after Nancy Sinatra) is the as-yet-unidentified "Mister Eraserhead".

Now, on with this week's mp3 internet blog finds. Follow the jump!

Billy Thorpe R.I.P.

One of the original Aussie volume dealers, an inspiration to AC/DC (and the odd Endless Boogie member or two), passed away yesterday in Sydney after suffering a heart attack. Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs' 1972 live blowout at Sunbury is remembered with much reverence Down Under, and was recently reissued on the Aztec label along with some studio albums. In the Aztecs' poppy early days, they kicked the Beatles off the Australian charts while Fab Four were touring their country; they split in 1967 and reemerged with Thorpe taking on lead guitar by default, dropped acid, cranked the stacks, made side-long burners and floored Festival audiences shortly thereafter. The band also provided springboard for Lobby Loyde of Coloured Balls fame and they continued to vibe from each other. Thorpe's final gig was Sunday night. I actually just posted a link to some live Billy a couple weeks ago, but here it is again (You Tube, thanks to Jesper Eklow for the original pass-on), as well as Real Audio of "CC Rider" from the Sunbury show just played on FMU last week.

365 Days #59 - Robert Ravis - New Favorites of Robert Ravis (mp3s)

MP3:
01 Riding On A Sunbeam (1:51)
02 Where Are You Darling (1:02)
03 When The Moonbeams Veil Las Vegas (1:29)
04 How Many Hearts (1:14)
05 The Longest Road (1:16)
06 My Believing Heart (1:20)
07 What's Love (1:05)
08 Just A Pilgrim (1:10)
09 Goodnight My Love (1:09)
10 Down By The Bayou (1:43)
11 Where Breezes Whisper (1:26)
12 Let's Go, Santa Is Here (1:34)
13 In My Heart There's A Garden (1:22)
14 Give A Guy A Minute (1:20)
15 You Lovable Imp (1:05)
16 Going Thru This World Of Sorrow (2:19)
17 Let Me Hold You (1:09)
18 What Makes The World Go 'Round (1:00)
19 Because You Love Me (1:11)
20 Lonesome Girl (1:39)
21 Blondie (1:27)
22 Patience (1:33)
23 Love Unfurled (1:41)
24 A Bit Of Sky (1:37)
25 Just 'Cause You're You (1:26)
26 Precious Loved One (1:24)
27 I Wish I Never Had Known Love (1:14)

I'm always on the lookout for song-poem singles and albums, and while I really love Rodd Keith and the whole Preview/MSR sound, I tend to be drawn to the more obscure labels and performers (Even with Rodd Keith, I generally prefer his Film City "Rod Rogers" tracks). With some exceptions, I'm not one to usually enjoy song-poems from an ironic "so bad it's great" point of view. Instead, I usually like a song-poem because something about it, musically, vocally or lyrically, grabs me in some way. Some have not found there to be much difference - plenty of people have found my most beloved song-poems to be just shy of unlistenable.

But here we have something that may be just a few steps beyond unlistenable. Having found a most enjoyable, if completely bizarre, song-poem album by Tony Rogers, on the Star-Crest label, several years ago, I was excited to find a second Star-Crest album, "New Favorites of Robert Ravis", a few months ago. It turned out to be perhaps the most god-awful album I've ever heard.

First, these are nothing more than demos, 27 songs in under 40 minutes. Pick any two songs, and you're likely to find that they are virtually the same song, musically speaking. The way the pianist plays, the piano parts sound a little like rejected Tom Lehrer accompaniments, upbeat marches and melancholy waltzes.

Best (or worst) of all, the singer appears to have very little ability to sight-read. It's a song-poem truism that songs were recorded 20 or 30 at a time, with one, sight-read run through of each. This album bears that truth out. Despite the fact that the pianist is almost always playing the melody over those waltz and march settings, Robert Ravis is frequently unable to find the melody, or even anything close to a note in the same key as the tune. Repeatedly, he slides around aiming for the note he's just missed.

The first time I listened to this album, I kept waiting to see if there could be something even more jaw-droppingly incompetent, and I was never disappointed. I hope you find it just as amazing as I have.

- Contributed by: Bob Purse

Images: Front Cover, Back Cover

Media: 12" LP
Album: New Favorites of Robert Ravis
Label: Starcrest Publicity Series, Star-Crest Recording Co., Hollywood, California
Catalog: NFR-7

this is our last song, thank you very much, goodnight

And as the shortest month comes to a close, reminding us that the shortest month is indeed, coming to a close, so does the picture of the day february project.  All photos guaranteed shot in the loveliest  and smallest month.  I hope you enjoyed it, except of course for the haters, who did what they do best...

DJ Premiums Are Fun!

Let's take a trip down DJ Premium past.

1-Electrifying Mojo   2-Millie Jackson 3-Denise LaSalle 4-The Kinks5-Hoyt Axton 6-George Jones 7-Baby Huey    8-Jimmy McCracklin 9-Roscoe And The Green Men 10-Batman  11-Marga Benitez 12-Lavice And Company 13-Joe Tex 14-Electrifying Mojo 15-Dirtbombs 16-King Coleman

<----JPG via Doctor Superhelga

This Week on eBay

A Nice, Yet Small, Collection Of Random Cultural Artifacts

In getting the station all spiffy for the marathon, I volunteered last week to clean out what some at the station refer to as that room.  For some reason, nobody likes that room, which is why they say its name in italics.  Oh sure, weird clanging noises and menacing squirrels make up the atmosphere, but it's also where some fantastic items are buried, ya know, beneath the rubble, which is where all fantastic items are buried (but don't worry, these were all protected from harm by an invisible shield).  I don't know where these things originally came from, I don't know why they are here, and frankly, I don't care.  What I know is this: I am WFMU's eBay Auctionatrix, and I take my job seriously.  It's my duty to procure the finest of the fine and auction them off to you.  And if that means volunteering to spruce up WFMU's dungeon, I'll so go there.  I go there for you.

Kaz - Underworld #1
If you've been around 'fmu for awhile, the name "Kaz" is familiar to you.  He had his own show on WFMU as well as a show he co-hosted with Chris T, and he designed a few marathon prizes, such as shirts and temporary tattoos.  Well, his extra-curricular activities include writing the darkly amusing "Underworld" comic strip, as well as working on animated series such as SpongeBob and Camp Lazlo.  Hot dang!  We have here the first volume of his "Underworld" compendium, and if you want to revel in its disturbing glory - and trust me, you do - all you need to do is be the highest bidder.  Go get 'em.

The Evolution Control Committee - Whipped Cream Remixes 7" US Pressing  
Mmm, everyone loves The Evolution Control Committee (ECC).  And what's not to love?  Audio pastiche, potential copyright infringement, and lotsa laffs, like the cherry on the... Whipped Cream Remixes.  Yes, this is the hit single where Public Enemy gets the Herb Alpert and The Tijuana Brass treatment.  Or is it the other way around?  Anyway, the very cool thing about this 7", other than everything, is that it's the original US pressing.  And it's OUT OF PRINT.  If you don't believe us, go here and scroll about 2/3 down the page.  These days, all you are gonna get is the UK pressing, with a different cover.  Unless you are the highest bidder on this item, of course...

Aus der Schule der Tödlichen Doris - BAT LP
Wow, this one really tested my powers of research.  This German group of experimental musicians also wrote a radio play and made a few films.  One of the members made this album because he's German and he used to be a bat.  Hence, the album is not "music" as some may define it, but the sound of bats screeching and flapping their wings, with text read by another member of the group.  It's in MONO, which will really thrill some of you.  (This all sounds very interesting to me, and I hope whomever wins lets me hear it somehow.)  The final sentence of the liner notes: "Anyway, the whole world certainly screeches into one mass of sounds."  You said it, Messer Bat-Mensch.

Sensei Rebel's Archive Picks of the Week (February 19, 2007 - February 25, 2007)

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

Rock And Roll
Mindflayer - "Getting Our Hair Done" RealAudio from Pseu's show, February 23, 2007

International
Pistolera - "Tatueje" RealAudio from Bob Brainen's show, February 25, 2007

Experimental
Felix Kubin - "Lumiere Belge" RealAudio from Ken's show, February 21, 2007

Dance
Armand Van Helden feat. Mr. Len - "Rock Da Spot" RealAudio from Put the Needle On the Record with Billy Jam, February 23, 2007

Instrumental
Rufus Harley - "More" RealAudio from (More Than A Few) Exciting Moments with Frank O'Toole (Web-only), February 20, 2007

Ambient
Rhys Chatham - "A Crimson Grail, Pt. 2" RealAudio from Evan Muse's show, February 25, 2007

Fave Song of the Week
Thelonius Moog - "Jackie-ing" RealAudio from Maria Levitsky's show, February 21, 2007

This Week in Sex: Be the Hit at School

Put on your hip waders, protective goggles, and rubber gloves, because you're about to get slammed with a Bucket of Smut. Last year we gave out a giant wad of dirty prizes -- all you had to do to get in the running was make the  DJ premium-level marathon pledge, which you were probably going to do anyway, and send me an email. Same deal this year. As soon as I announce the list of prizes, you can email me at amanda at wfmu dot org.

Pizza Virgin Custody Arrangement. The cafeteria worker who found the Pizza Virgin, the likeness of the Virgin Mary at the bottom of a baking sheet used to bake cookies, pizza and chicken nuggets, got it back. Co-workers were "miffed" that she got to keep the pan. The kitchen manager, Coralia Pacay, said she wanted the sheet returned. Later, Rodriguez decided she wanted it herself. Principal Lydia Guerrero eventually brokered a deal by which "Rodriguez could keep the pan but the PTA mothers will be allowed to display it this weekend."

No Nads. State Delegate LeRoy E. Myers Jr. says children shouldn't be exposed to giant plastic gonads dangling from pickup truck trailer hitches on Maryland roads. The bill also would ban depictions of naked human breasts, buttocks or genitals, with offenses punishable by fines of up to $500. But Pamela Campbell, whose Bullhead City, Ariz., business sells fake bull testicles, thinks that the swinging decorations can prompt healthy discussions about anatomy and reproduction. "Do we have to neuter all dogs that walk by us?" she asked. "Where does it stop?" I think we should neuter the dogs, but hang the giant fake testicles on them.

Day of the Dying Dolphin. A dolphin is dying of a broken heart after its beloved trainer was killed by her neighbour in a frenzied attack. Dolphin "Mary G" was rescued from the Adriatic Sea and nurtured back to full health by Tamara Monti at the Oltremare water park in Riccione, Italy. But the 37-year-old was stabbed to death at her flat by neighbour Alessandro Doto. He claimed he had been driven mad by the constant barking of Ms Monti's two dogs.

After the jump: arts and crafts and weiner fun.

365 Days #58 - Vic Dana - Hello Roommate (mp3)

MP3:
Vic Dana - Hello Roommate (2:21)

I discovered this song when I bought a small carrying case of someone's old singles at a thrift store in downtown Dubuque, Iowa. (Parenthetically, it was the same thrift store where I found an incredible painting that my mild-mannered boss had done in his younger days titled "Hey World, Look at Me", click image below to view.) The box was full of some pretty interesting singles, most of which I'd never heard before. One of my favorites (after "Hello Roommate," of course) was "From Head to Toe" by female singer Chris Clark - a Smokey Robinson song that I was convinced would be perfect for Elvis Costello. Turns out, I was right; Costello released the song as a UK single.

Vic Dana had a top-ten hit with his 1965 recording of “Red Roses For A Blue Lady”, but “Hello Roommate”   predates that success. I immediately loved the attitude of “Hello Roommate”. It contained a creepy mix of tones: light and pleasant, musically, with a sense of hurt and sarcasm simmering just below the surface of the vocal performance. A seething indictment, on one level, but also with a confiding tone. Despite the forced politeness, there's no mistaking the fact that when the singer refers to his scheming roommate as "buddy," he means nothing of the sort.

It almost seems to chronicle the birth of a stalker.

- Contributed by: Greg Williams

Images: Hello Roommate (single), Hey World, Look at Me (painting)

Media: 7" Single
Label: Dolton
Catalog: 48
Credits: Arranged by Hank Levine.  Produced by Bob Reisdorff.

blues for zone VIII

Loopy Monday

[ download loopy video (avi, 5MB) ]

Can't see it? Try this wmv file (15 MB)

Thanks Andy!

Hello Again...

Like a billion or so other people, I caught a bit of the Oscars tonight. The TV was humming around in the background while I was doing other things but at one point I heard the word "hello" repeated a bunch of times and it caught my attention. For 20 seconds or so, clips of various actors answering phones rolled across the screen followed by a picture of perhaps the most hyped consumer product of all time: the iPhone (the ad can be seen here).

My first thought was "Do these guys really need to advertise?" but immediately afterward it hit me: that was an awful lot like Christian Marclay's great "Telephones" piece (brief excerpt mpeg link - 5 megs). The Marclay video is about eight minutes long, lots of fun and well worth tracking down if you can find it.

The clip above was taken from this mini-documentary on youtube. I’ve heard a lot about Marclay’s  custom vinyl cut-ups (in which he pastes together parts of different records together and takes them for a spin) but I’ve never seen them in action until seeing this clip.

365 Days #57 - G.W. Manning, MD, PhD - The Art of Heart Auscultation (mp3s)

MP3:
G.W. Manning, MD, PhD - The Art of Heart Auscultation (34:15)

A familiar post to many, a portion of this album is available on the original 365days project (May 3, 2003). I have been inserting "Systolic Murmurs" and "Pericardial Friction Rubs" between songs on my program for some time and would like to share the whole experience with you. Some sounds are what you'd expect from a heartbeat and some are a bit terrifying. So download it and listen well, you may learn them and save a life.....or create some funky rhythms.

- Contributed by: Michel LeGrisbi

Images: Front Cover, Heart Auscultation, Heart Auscultation, Back Cover

Media: 12" LP
Album: The Art of Heart Auscultation
Label: Roche Scientific Service
Catalog: M-8448
Credits: From the Faculty of Medicine, University of Western Ontario, Cardiovascular Unit, Victoria Hospital, London, Ontario. Author/Commentator, G.W. Manning, MD, PhD, Professor of Medicine Technical Collaboration, G.C. Steward, Technical Director, Cardiovascular Unit, Victoria Hospital, London Ontario.
Date: Oct. 1970 (This date is not printed anywhere on the album itself, but is hand-written next to the signature "George Manning").

frozen warnings

Chris T. Picks The Oscars!

I'm just back from Hollywood (more on that later) and feeling prescient:

BEST ACTOR: DiCarprio and Gosling don't have a chance. Peter O'Toole a sentimental favorite. Will Smith could grab it. But my choice is FOREST WHITAKER as Idi Amin in The Last King Of Scotland.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR: This is down to Alan Arkin (Little Miss Sunshine) and Eddie Murphy (Dreamgirls). Arkin will take the statuette for a lifetime of brilliant work.

BEST ACTRESS: Helen Mirren continues her winning streak for The Queen.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS: The Acadamy loves a breakout newcomer: Jennifer Hudson, Dreamgirls.

BEST DIRECTOR: Martin Scorsese finally gets the nod.

BEST PICTURE: As does his nominated film, The Departed.

Everything you need to know about the Oscars, including a printable ballot: oscar.com

George Martin

...can rarely be dissuaded from talking about the subject matter he knows best (You Tube). From the great UK series featuring Simon Pegg (Spaced/Shaun of the Dead) and friends, Big Train.

Geeky Schizophrenic Love Poetry About WFMU

Jason Elbogen stumbled across this surreal blog post which seems to pertain to WFMU. Either that, or it's been randomly generated by the same computer that writes all that nonsense spam. It's a regular Turing test! Was it written by an insane human, or a computer? No matter, when it includes gems like this:

"Listen to download and the online and live shows. for Google Record audio or Strategic Petroleum Reserve. With three amazing films to Spazz on WFMU, from Jan 25, 2007."

It was posted January 28th, under the heading, "Audio Typing - Work from Home and Movie stops when hidden in firefox" on the blog known as "Real estate career For a confidential and picture POKEMONS are real!" Here is our love ode, as it were, in its entirery:

"Radio stream some audio broadcaster or cards that are instructions for Windows Mobile devices a file for converting audio and live guides Create your cell Play the Record audio typing skills, then sing the record button in IE the software allows you can be the best audio to Realaudio audio archive from Reggae Schoolroom with R. Lim on WFMU, from Jan 21, 2007. Listen to take over the House and full text transcripts, More content Sources added often so stay tuned.

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This is a quality product, like its hidden, bad sounding voice recorder found in the producer wants me to Realaudio audio like Amazon music sample. Rhapsody & share it is a national ID card. Subject: Codec Error for use it might be loaded on WFMU, from Jan 24, 2007. Listen to Realaudio audio archive from Jan 26, 2007. Listen to Realaudio audio archive from Jan 20, 2007. Listen to Realaudio audio archive from Jan 2007 at 20:39. Carla Bozulich Evangelista Evangelista I Real Audio. The method for me. I am more than anything Timbaland has just frigging ruled. Scott Bourne was way ahead of our 38th. Summary: Real time website for the infamous desktop counterpart, the iPod,. A yo, i got an offer from the record button in town Geo Gigadial Audio files from Jason Elbogen’s show on WFMU, from Bill Zurat’s show on WFMU, from Jan 21, 2007. Listen to Realaudio audio archive from Jan 21, 2007. Listen to stream formats. RealPlayer which allows you can open the pieces and offline real things with Jeff Sarge on WFMU, from Jan 26, 2007 5:49 am giving user an option to standard mp3s. It provides a special web applet and the Real ID card, which, they insist, isn’t really a demo for use a Cingular Samsung Sync phone & share it does require the Real ID card, which, they don’t seem to Realaudio audio archive from Jan 21, 2007. Listen to get rich quick, often so stay tuned. Technorati Tags: President Bush and full links, other content, and real world thru your favorite band with Kevin Nutt on WFMU, from Stan’s show on WFMU, from Jan 20, 2007. Listen to Realaudio audio and selling real estate I did not like Audio Trendalicious Audio Trendalicious Tag Tourfilter Play songs from Hatch’s show on WFMU, from Jan 26, 2007. Listen to the real estate, but most importantly, no video players the Resco Audio recorder, In this case, you can play real audio archive from Coffee Break For Heroes & Villains with some doozies, and I get a real audio archive from Music to work just published a searchable database of office and real player which allows users to his name fine and Undertow so stay tuned.

365 Days #56 - Gypsy Boots And The Nature Boys - Unpredictable! (mp3s)

MP3:
01 We're Havin' A Love-in (2:16)
02 Fight On For The U.S.C. (1:20)
03 I Feel So Fine (1:59)
04 Golden Earrings (2:14)
05 He's Got The Whole World In His Hands (2:35)
06 Winchester Cathedral (2:20)
07 Learn To Be A Drinker (1:42)
08 These Boots Are Made For Walking (2:26)
09 Laugh And Sing (1:54)
10 I'm Gypsy Boots (1:01)

Robert "Gypsy Boots" Bootzin!

- Contributed by: The ToD

Images: Front Cover

Media: 12" LP
Album: Unpredictable!
Label: Sidewalk
Catalog: DT 5904
Date: 1968

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