lacking.org’s Blog

Mixtape 348 • Forgive Or Forget

Thu, 12 Mar 2026 14:00:00 GMT

After a dozen years of keeping us waiting, Mariachi El Bronx returns horns a-blazin’.

Mixtape 347 • Look Who's Back

Thu, 05 Mar 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Strip it all down to nothing and join The Nude Party in their loosely grooved lifestyle.

Mixtape 346 • Washing Machine

Fri, 27 Feb 2026 15:00:00 GMT

Urlaub In Polen is available to assist with your laundry needs.

Mixtape 345 • Waking Up

Thu, 26 Feb 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Start your day right with the righteous alarm clock that is Annabelle Chairlegs.

Mixtape 344 • Cruise Ship Designer

Thu, 19 Feb 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Dry Cleaning will make everything bright and spotless, without the use of volatile toxic chemicals.

Mixtape 343 • Good Vibrations

Thu, 12 Feb 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Set up your tuning forks, cover up your singing bowls, and dim the lights for today we are presenting Good Vibrations, featuring xylophones, marimbas, glockenspiels, and other bar-and-mallet-driven instruments of sonic production.

Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 21:00:00 GMT

This cover of “Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometime” (from Beck) takes me back to the Datsun’s backseat, waiting for my mom to finish some errands while the Korgis’ original version gently pipes out from the AM radio. Turns out I did forget my hat at the station, and it’s sitting in Katie’s desk, but I forgot to make arrangements to pick it up tonight.

Mixtape 342 • Eyeball

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 14:00:00 GMT

They Might Be Giants have been fulfilling their titular potential for over 40 years now.

Mixtape 341 • WRSW

Fri, 30 Jan 2026 15:00:00 GMT

Brimming hot, dark, and strong with the elixir of repetition, pôt-pot help you eat the miles.

Mixtape 340 • all i've got

Thu, 29 Jan 2026 14:00:00 GMT

The implacable Juliana Hatfield gives it her complete attention.

Hit My Head All Day

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 21:00:00 GMT

Another cold night, but things are kept warm by Dry Cleaning’s icy indifference. I had a good before-show chat with Dr. Feelgood, where we discussed the many roles taken by esteemed character actor Stephen Root. What do you know, the next day he was gracing our screen in some made-for-streaming dud. I think I forgot my hat at the station.

Mixtape 339 • Thought You Were Waving

Thu, 22 Jan 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Banging on in the loudest fashion possible, it’s Militarie Gun.

Mixtape 338 • Doom Pays

Thu, 15 Jan 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Let us discuss the financial opportunities behind pessimism with The Dears.

Mixtape 337 • american food

Thu, 08 Jan 2026 14:00:00 GMT

They Are Gutting a Body of Water is taking the liquid and putting it through their plasma forge.

Appointments

Tue, 06 Jan 2026 21:00:00 GMT

Someone called asking who was on the following morning, and I replied I had no idea. They told me to look in the clipboard to my right and what do you know, there it was. I had no idea this thing existed, probably from being so focused on bringing you the highest quality music, like Militarie Gun.

Mixtape 336 • Space Walk

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 14:00:00 GMT

Join us for SPACE WALK, a musical rally through our solar-system’s most significant waypoints.

The Year In Music: 2025

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 21:00:00 GMT

It’s a look back at The Year In Music, which I should do every year but in practice only every seven years or so. There is never a shortage of good music to fill an hour or two or three, and I can safely claim that if your head’s on straight and you’re listening to the right sources, every year is the best year in music so far.

Mixtape 335 • Heartbreak

Fri, 26 Dec 2025 15:00:00 GMT

Tis sweet Prins Thomas, here to salve your romantic woes with impeccable grooves.

Mixtape 334 • Mush

Thu, 25 Dec 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Try your hand at deciphering the crypto-pop produced by Portugal, the Man.

Space Walk

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 21:00:00 GMT

It’s a special presentation with Space Walk, a one-hour musical tour of our very own solar system, followed by another hour of the usual new, old, obscure, and weird stuff, and capping things off with a spectacular Final Hour. I think next show will be a 2025 retrospective, inspired by my friend Trevor’s suggestion.

Mixtape 333 • Copy Cat

Thu, 11 Dec 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Get your chandeliers a-swinging with Los Straitjackets and their groovy rumbles.

Mixtape 332 • Money Is King

Thu, 04 Dec 2025 14:00:00 GMT

The Slackers are happy to bring you this timeless message using a timeless sound.

Polaris

Tue, 02 Dec 2025 21:00:00 GMT

In fitting tribute to tonight’s finale, in which I exited the station onto a pallid moonlit snowscape, I am highlighting Soulwax for their fitting track, “Polaris.” Elsewhere tonight, a special San Francisco set that came out pretty transcendent.

Mixtape 331 • Trust Device

Fri, 28 Nov 2025 15:00:00 GMT

When Jonny Greenwood needs absolute confidence in something, he turns to technology and repetition.

Mixtape 330 • Believer

Thu, 20 Nov 2025 14:00:00 GMT

All that Peel Dream Magazine asks is that you have a little bit of faith.

Mixtape 329 • Opt Out

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Snooper is coming, get yourself together or get out of the way.

No Fun

Tue, 11 Nov 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Tonight, the universe set off a billion trillion nuclear bombs in order to paint the sky with northern lights. It’s an appropriate light show for Peel Dream Magazine, whose shimmering tones seem to float out of the speakers like undulating curtains of sound.

Mixtape 328 • Version Control 6

Thu, 06 Nov 2025 14:00:00 GMT

We are overdue for another collection of covers familiar and obscure, and we deliver with Version Control 6!

Peaches

Tue, 04 Nov 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Things get off to a rough start, but quickly smooth out. I have a special spot in my hear for the sui generis musicians that create and produce their music entirely within their bedroom, Jay Som being a perfect example.

Mixtape 327 • Dust Of A Thousand Stars

Fri, 31 Oct 2025 15:00:00 GMT

Deep within his cavernous lair, Dope Lemon grooves to a beat of his own making.

Mixtape 326 • Napoleon

Thu, 30 Oct 2025 14:00:00 GMT

It’s in your face and back to the grind with the Bobby Lees.

Mixtape 325 • Life's a Zoo

Thu, 23 Oct 2025 14:00:00 GMT

If you are looking for a loud and unsupervised good time with electropunk overtones, Guerrilla Toss fits the bill.

House Music

Tue, 21 Oct 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Another special presentation tonight with House Music, a collection of songs about dwellings both physical and emotional. For tonight’s Final Hour, I came up with three themed sets, see if you can guess what they are. It’s like that Connections game!

Mixtape 324 • Boys These Days

Thu, 16 Oct 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Put on the appropriate colors and get ready to cheer on Sports Team!

Mixtape 323 • Where U Been?

Thu, 09 Oct 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Bursting out of the gate microseconds after the light turns green, Hotline TNT is red hot and ready to go.

Mixtape 322 • Roll Out The Red Carpet

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Can't say it better than the band: The Hives forever, forever the Hives.

Good Vibrations

Tue, 30 Sep 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Get ready to pulse and thrum with tonight’s special presentation of Good Vibrations, a collection of music featuring xylophones, marimbas, glockenspiels, and other such timbral delights. It gets jazzy, and loungey, but there are also some curveballs in there and some very specific favorites.

Mixtape 321 • While My Machines Gently Weep

Fri, 26 Sep 2025 15:00:00 GMT

Death In Vegas means many things to many people, but in this case it means a form of audio pummeling.

Mixtape 320 • Wild and Rotten

Thu, 25 Sep 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Guiding you to uncharted peaks of happiness, here is Mt. Joy.

Have You Ever Seen The Rain

Tue, 23 Sep 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Tonight we open with Margaret Glaspy and her delightfully umami voice tackling Creedence Clearwater Revival’s classic, dedicated to all the changing weather, a favorite topic of these introductions. Elsewhere tonight, the set that started with Los Straitjackets and ended with the Skatalites was 🔥, as they say. Look for it in an upcoming Mixtape.

Mixtape 319 • The Beat

Thu, 18 Sep 2025 14:00:00 GMT

A collection of songs referencing their own internal rhythmic structure, or perhaps providing commentary about tempo and meter in general.

Mixtape 318 • So Much Better

Thu, 11 Sep 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Nothing can prepare you for the way Dean Johnson peers deep inside you.

Channel Rot

Tue, 09 Sep 2025 21:00:00 GMT

The tang of fall is in the air, though the days are dressed for summer. I missed Frankie and the Witch Fingers when they were in town a couple of months ago due to work travel, and I was supremely bummed, as their particular take on electropunk is right in my wheelhouse. Tonight’s selection is a weird little experimental number from their latest release, which I highly recommend.

Mixtape 317 • Playing Classics

Thu, 04 Sep 2025 14:00:00 GMT

You’re not crying, it’s just Water From Your Eyes.

Mixtape 316 • The Girl And The Robot

Fri, 29 Aug 2025 15:00:00 GMT

It's a story as old as robots themselves, and Röyskopp is here to tell the tale.

Mixtape 315 • Springboard

Thu, 28 Aug 2025 14:00:00 GMT

They said it was difficult terrain to traverse, but that never stopped Forth Wanderers from blazing a path.

Nothing At All

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 21:00:00 GMT

The aleatory nature of playlist selection for The Lacking Organization means all-instrumental sets are rare, so having two in one show definitely merits a mention in the show notes. Tonight’s highlight is Mac DeMarco, whose new album provides the perfect soundtrack for this particularly floaty stage of summer.

Mixtape 314 • CPR

Thu, 21 Aug 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Stand well clear of Wet Leg as they bring the high voltage to their brand of CPR.

Mixtape 313 • Deadstick

Thu, 14 Aug 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Here comes King Gizzard and the Lizzard Wizard, confounding headline writers and making themselves at home in your psyche.

The Beat

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Peach season is hot and heavy here in the Grand Valley, but I have yet to reach peach oversaturation. Give them to me in anything and everything, sure, I’ll try it. A special selection tonight in the form of The Beat, a one-hour set of music self-referentially dedicated to its own rhythmic components, after which things took their usual turn for the weird.

Mixtape 312 • SLOWDIVE

Thu, 07 Aug 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Turnstile are here to maintain disorder, whether you have the fare or not.

Here's My Number

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Normally an off night, but I had work travel. Many thanks to Honey Lady for switching nights so I can keep these hits coming! I am truly digging Audio Book Club and their demented Oklahoma skronk, hugging you warm and tight while they stab you in the back. Here’s hoping the Grand Valley is a stop should they venture westwards.

Mixtape 311 • GOD SAVE THE PONY.

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 14:00:00 GMT

No matter what you paid, you can consider BIG SPECIAL a true bargain.

Mixtape 310 • Où va la chance

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 15:00:00 GMT

Be ready to dust yourself off after traveling through The Limiñanas’ French Wild West.

Mixtape 309 • Stoop Kid

Thu, 24 Jul 2025 14:00:00 GMT

You will relish listening to every plot twist revealed by Audio Book Club.

Mixtape 308 • Deadhead

Thu, 17 Jul 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Things are nice and cozy inside the Foxwarren, but it’s hard to deny the underlying feral scent.

Incubator

Tue, 15 Jul 2025 21:00:00 GMT

The daylight arrivals are now fading into twilight but the season of amnesia continues, this time with forgetting to bring a copy of the playlist with me. The station’s auto-playlister came to the rescue, identifying almost every track. Tonight! We have something particularly aggressive off the Psychedelic Porn Crumpets’ latest release.

Mixtape 307 • Sweet Danger

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Sit in the shade and listen to Obongjayar to make a hot summer feel cool.

Mixtape 306 • World Full of Cops

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Please identify yourself and present all suitable papers for World Full Of Cops, a musical exploration of authority and lack thereof.

Dancing Barefoot

Tue, 01 Jul 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Looks like July will be another three-show month, so I’m preparing lots of audio fireworks. We are delighted to discover Foxwarren and their sweetly trilling “Deadhead,” which features a most incongruous but enjoyable video. Also, Broncho was amazing, read my review on Ink 19.

Mixtape 305 • Consulate Case

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 15:00:00 GMT

Mind your fingers when Surprise Chef is in the kitchen, because the knives are sharp and the burners are hot.

Mixtape 304 • Pursuit

Thu, 26 Jun 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Here comes Mhaol and you best behave, they have sharp elbows.

Mixtape 303 • Anhedonia

Thu, 19 Jun 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Stop accepting all this nonsense and get aboard the Mamalarky.

The Air That I Breathe

Tue, 17 Jun 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Another daylight arrival! I brought the wrong headphones! We started out with an AM anthem from Albert Hammond (Sr) in the quite capable hands of White Hassle. This song is also the reason Hammond gets a writer’s credit on Radiohead’s “Creep” which is a story for a separate time. Broncho in Salt Lake City tomorrow night!

Mclusky • the world is still here and so are we

Sun, 15 Jun 2025 14:36:00 GMT

A return, and the word to use is "unabated." Their pummeling approach may seem to lack nuance, but it's not about how the punches are landing, it's about the pauses in between that make this measured approach to aggression particularly satisfying.

Pale Blue Eyes • New Place

Sat, 14 Jun 2025 20:14:00 GMT

The guitar and bass strings are vibrating cosmically, the drums eat up the miles, an ethereal chorus swirls about. It's not a new formula, but it's done very well, and if you need to drive for sixty miles without noticing the time go by, here you go.

“Daddy’s Trip To Brazil” • Marc Ribot

Fri, 13 Jun 2025 11:55:00 GMT

A bit NSFW but oh-so-tasteful

Mixtape 302 • Aerial Troubles

Thu, 12 Jun 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Imagine Stereolab emerging from their pastel spaceship, eyes a-glitter with wonders witnessed in far-off galaxies.

The 2025 Milky Way Photographer of the Year

Thu, 12 Jun 2025 07:47:00 GMT

Unlike say, an eagle, the Milky Way will generally be the same for everyone across the planet. This gallery of images proves without a doubt that context is everything, as it portrays the incredible depth and beauty of the visible part of our galaxy with a dazzling variety of locations.

OK GO • And the Adjacent Possible

Wed, 11 Jun 2025 07:34:00 GMT

There is a spectacular video for one of the songs on here, and there will be more, and by now the band's reputation rests on these videos, but I suggest you give this a listen to hear exactly how OK GO have mastered the art of symphonic power pop.

Mhaol • Something Soft

Tue, 10 Jun 2025 10:15:00 GMT

The first thing to know is that it's pronounced "male." The important thing to know is that the Irish trio make the sort of rickety racket with metronomic drums, aggressive bass, spiky guitar, and disaffected vocals that immediately gets my attention

Flying Lotus • Spirit Box

Mon, 09 Jun 2025 06:15:00 GMT

It's not dub in the traditional sense, but it does have many of the same trance-inducing elements, making it well-suited for a long workday or a powerful wind-down. Bonus: Instrumental versions and a remix.

“Suddenly” • Beatie Wolfe + Brian Eno

Sat, 07 Jun 2025 14:37:00 GMT

We love the hand-drawn animation

Mixtape 301 • Es ansiedad

Thu, 05 Jun 2025 14:00:00 GMT

With a name that’s quite topical, Ilegales are here to make fresh trouble.

1-800-Call-Me-Back

Tue, 03 Jun 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Every early June, I’ll hit the first day of the year where it’s still light when I get to the radio station. It’s a few weeks before summer officially begins, but it always feel like the starting gun for the season. Tonight! We start out with Mhaol, who would just as easily cut you as they would kiss you, and proceed from there.

Mixtape 300 • Despectiva caridad

Fri, 30 May 2025 15:00:00 GMT

If you enjoy your cumbia abstracted and your merengue chopped to pieces, Los Pirañas have a dish for you.

Mixtape 299 • Funny

Thu, 29 May 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Did you know BRONCHO rehearses in a special zero-gravity room filled with disco lights and exotic decorations? They don’t, but they sure sound that way.

Mixtape 298 • One Way Train

Thu, 22 May 2025 14:00:00 GMT

Find a seat around the campfire, Sunny War is about to start.

Split In The Sky

Tue, 20 May 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Enjoy a small slice of tragic beauty in the form of Nell Smith, whose musical instincts reach well beyond her perpetually young voice. Tonight I had to park down the block, as The Sauce Boss was visiting the Radio Room all the way from my old Florida stomping grounds.

Mixtape 297 • Pinstack

Thu, 15 May 2025 14:00:24 GMT

Tunde Adebimpe gets all three darts inside the bullseye.

Mixtape 296 • Lost At The Sea

Thu, 08 May 2025 15:30:00 GMT

An unknown proportion of occult studies and ambient light make up the core of L.A. Witch.

Imagination

Tue, 06 May 2025 21:00:00 GMT

Nothing like the feeling of having a new Broncho album to obsess over, I invite you to join me to, as they say in my native country, “sumérgete en cheddar.” Elsewhere tonight, panic at the discotheque — if you were listening, you know exactly what I’m talking about.

The Most Iconic Electronic Music Sample of Every Year (1990-2024)

Sat, 03 May 2025 13:46:00 GMT

The title is long and descriptive, but it's not enough: this video breaks down the individual samples that constitute a popular track from each year, showing you step by step how the layers add up, and it's a master class in musical transformation.

Spin Doctors • Face Full Of Cake

Fri, 02 May 2025 16:41:00 GMT

No denying this band exists in a dual space of Gen X ridicule and genuine nostalgia. The new album is filled with the same sunny indie-rock wink-and-grin disposition that rightfully earned them the title, broadcasting into/from the airwaves of 1994.

“Ace of Spades” • Lisa LeBlanc

Fri, 02 May 2025 14:26:14 GMT

This is how you do it

Mixtape 295 • Stealth Rollback

Thu, 01 May 2025 21:30:00 GMT

Unusual tactics and disruptive strategies make for some fine sounds from Courting.

BRONCHO • Natural Pleasure

Mon, 28 Apr 2025 20:22:00 GMT

One final challenge awaits: swim through the Reservoir of Bliss, filled with honey, liquid moonlight, and endorphins, then dance in slow motion across the infra-disco, as BRONCHO's underwater guitar syrup and whispered falsetto choruses are playing.

Mixtape 294 • American References

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 18:30:00 GMT

It's not too late to dance your way into the Darkside.

Mixtape 293 • Blow My Mind

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 15:30:00 GMT

I don’t know how Dynamite Shakers manage to cram so much sound into my little tiny earbuds.

“ADHD” • Igorrr

Wed, 23 Apr 2025 10:05:00 GMT

Content warning: exploding brains

Nothing Can Live Here

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 21:00:00 GMT

It’s inevitable — I hate it, but it happens every few years. I’ll forget my headphones at home and have to use the station’s pair. The show must continue. And here is The Sonic Dawn to kick it off in style with some of that hard-hitting punchy punch rolling mayhem thing they do.

Dynamite Shakers • Don't Be Boring

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 11:17:00 GMT

Unbridled rock and roll from the west of France, where the vehicles may be smaller but where the spirit of le garage lives on, giving us good opportunity to apply the term "howling" and generally act as American as a keg party in the woods.

Los Pirañas • Una Oportunidad más de triunfar en la vida

Fri, 18 Apr 2025 16:25:00 GMT

The instrumental aesthetic that is surf guitar is on a rebound, and producing all manner of interesting interpretations. This Colombian band blends off-beats, endearingly dissonant riffs, and unexpected tropical psychedelia into a hot-and-heady mix.

Mixtape 292 • I Got Cracked

Thu, 17 Apr 2025 15:30:00 GMT

Don't you be giving Vundabar the hairy eyeball, because they will mess you up.

AM Gold • AM Gold

Tue, 15 Apr 2025 12:12:00 GMT

An unusual release blending all manner of genres from the last 50 years, which ends up sounding like a very approachable prog rock. Creative arrangements and surprising turns of style keep this an engaging listen.

“Football” • Youth Lagoon

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 17:20:00 GMT

Cozy music for a grand parade

Towa Tei • AH!!

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 14:10:00 GMT

Hard to believe how affordable advanced lighting for your basement disco warren has become — you can transform the small room into a raging den of chill and/or libido, simply by purchasing a couple hundred dollars worth of lights and playing this.

The Story of Coffee

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 08:42:00 GMT

This beautifully-assembled exhibition pairs together photographs, posters, audio, and more to present the rich and complex history of the most important liquid on the planet.

Mixtape 291 • Version Control 5

Thu, 10 Apr 2025 15:30:00 GMT

It's an all-new rehash, with the fifth edition of Version Control!

The Cat Empire • Bird in Paradise

Thu, 10 Apr 2025 08:44:00 GMT

Like many Australian things, this band is somewhat recognizable yet clearly evolved in a different context. There are many different influences interleaved, from the Caribbean to the Highlands to Eastern Europe and of course, a tinge of that Oz punk.

Black Country, New Road • Forever Howlong

Wed, 09 Apr 2025 15:12:00 GMT

Nothing can foil the pigeonholing into a genre like a clarinet. The band uses this and other analog sounds to weave minimalism and maximalism, presenting recognizable indie or songwriter tropes before smashing them in their musical supercollider.

Version Control

Tue, 08 Apr 2025 21:00:00 GMT

It’s Spring Fund Drive time at KAFM, and to celebrate and motivate, we are presenting Version Control, an assemblage of facsimiles and verisimilitudes which promise to delight and entertain. In other words — covers! Thanks to everyone who donated!

Dean Wareham • That’s the Price of Loving Me

Tue, 08 Apr 2025 11:14:00 GMT

Using Lou Reed at his happiest as a baseline is a risky gamble, but one that has paid off for Wareham in various projects. In a solo setting it comes across as slightly overmedicated, pleasant indie rock that is never tedious yet also never grating.

How Silica Gel Took Over the World

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 16:13:00 GMT

I make no secret for my love of the mundane and ubiquitous, so you know that an in-depth look at the deep and complex landscape of silica gel fascinates me.

WHEN LIGHT • Holographic Topographies

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 11:10:00 GMT

Cycles, repetitions, patterns within patterns, beats drifting out of focus and slowly emerging as the same beat, but different. The aural moods on this album are on the ambient side, but reward attention with slow progress and contemplative amnesia.

Babe Rainbow • Slipper imp and shakaerator

Fri, 04 Apr 2025 13:48:38 GMT

Swimming out from the multicolor wave of Australian psychedelia that's been lapping our shores for the past decade, this band has revealed itself to be a quality addition to any activity that might involve sunshine and the words "relax" or "enjoy."

“apple green ufo” • Andy Bell

Thu, 03 Apr 2025 18:10:14 GMT

Along for the full ride

Mixtape 290 • Parking Lot

Thu, 03 Apr 2025 15:30:00 GMT

Join Youth Lagoon for an intimate and melodic exhibition of their family home movies.

“Live On KEXP” • Descartes a Kant

Thu, 03 Apr 2025 11:47:00 GMT

Climb aboard their virtual spaceship

The Sure Fire Soul Ensemble • Gemini

Wed, 02 Apr 2025 06:23:00 GMT

Hot and honky, the latest from this nine-piece shows off immaculate arrangements and complex interplay as they range in tempo and intensity from police car chase to sunny afternoon by the pool. Especially recommended if you like a flute wandering in.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra • IC-02 Bogotá

Tue, 01 Apr 2025 16:18:00 GMT

Different from other UMO offerings, this is an instrumental effort. It features some of that signature swirling sound, but also incorporates droning and Afrobeat elements. Hypnotic and easy to get lost in, which is inevitable and recommended.

Two-Man Giant Squid • Two-Man Giant Squid

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 20:23:00 GMT

Angry punk disco sure is exciting, and this incongruously-named band is a master of the craft, with sizzling disco grooves and a pumping bass anchoring guitar shards and a vocal delivery that can border on the distraught. Put it on and cut a rug.

Rotating Sandwiches

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 08:12:00 GMT

Hat tip to Widgett Walls (look up his eclectic bedlam on Mixcloud), who provided the insight on this completely unnecessary yet absolutely important reference on various handheld foodstuffs, visualized and animated in an assortment of angles.

Snapped Ankles • Hard Times Furious Dancing

Sun, 30 Mar 2025 20:28:22 GMT

Electropunk seems to be a fitting soundtrack as the timeline veers towards A Clockwork Orange. As the riot rages on, the line between repetition and riff is trodden on until it's no longer visible, and the crowd surge begins to resemble a dance.

Youth Lagoon • Rarely Do I Dream

Fri, 28 Mar 2025 19:41:00 GMT

It's somehow light and airy, yet moody and brooding, and though it should be easy to find the half-whispered croon of the vocals creepy, it's just the sound of someone taking you in confidence as they lead you into the deep, dark forest.

Mixtape 289 • apple green ufo

Fri, 28 Mar 2025 18:30:00 GMT

Andy Bell invites you to join him on an interstellar-slash-transcranial groove expedition.

Mixtape 288 • Obsession

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 21:21:20 GMT

Des Demonas and their angry political organ grind are my new obsession.

Andy Bell • pinball wanderer

Thu, 27 Mar 2025 03:00:12 GMT

Absorbing the dubbiest elements of the classic Manchester grooves of the late '80s, this Welsh musician makes the timespan contained within feel like the blink of an eye, even with an 8+ minute banger in 7/4 in the middle of it all.

Blitzkrieg Bop

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 21:00:00 GMT

The weather is rushing up on us, and this mercurial ambiance fits tonight’s opening cover from Yo La Tengo, as they take a blistering Ramones classic and turn it into a bit of beach blanket bingo. Respect was paid later in the show with the original “Rockaway Beach,” which sure sounds like a fun place.

Drop Nineteens • 1991

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 00:23:32 GMT

The year 1991 was when we heard the echoes of Loveless as the recorded work of the many bands it inspired hit the shelves in a shimmering gauzy implacable tsunami of guitar wails, only to be crushed by the mud-encrusted tank treads of grunge.

“Fever Pitch” • Divorce

Sun, 23 Mar 2025 14:26:14 GMT

Top-notch dramatics

Fat Freddy's Drop • SLO MO

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 10:14:00 GMT

Does this Fat Freddy have anything to do with Shelton's Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers? Intentional or not, these compositions mixing reggae, funk, soul, dub, and other cannabis-friendly genres are a good way to spend an unproductive afternoon.

Onomatopoeia Odyssey

Fri, 21 Mar 2025 08:08:00 GMT

Languages are so different and alike from each other, and nowhere is this more evident than on this website which explores how each language standardizes the sound an animal makes, from the fairly agreed-upon "meow" to the hotly-disputed "oink."

Mixtape 287 • Sweet Lettuce

Thu, 20 Mar 2025 15:30:00 GMT

Don’t let the name fool you, Lord Nap is awake 27 hours a day and making music on 25 of those.

Divorce • Drive to Goldenhammer

Tue, 18 Mar 2025 11:44:00 GMT

The name implies something ponderous, onerous, heavy, and while you can find some flashes of that in here, it's more of a showcase for the kind of indie rock that shines brightly with male-female harmonies and sentiments that will twist your guts.

“Chap-Hop History” • Mr. B The Gentleman Rhymer

Sun, 16 Mar 2025 08:25:00 GMT

Get old-schooled

Lord Nap • A Royal Disaster

Fri, 14 Mar 2025 09:18:00 GMT

By spinning the dial on '70s AM radio and sticking with the conceit to the very end, this is an exciting, terrifying, but ultimately refreshing carnival ride. Careful with falling down the rabbit hole with this immensely productive artist.

Mixtape 286 • The Traveller

Thu, 13 Mar 2025 15:30:00 GMT

We can’t say which alternate timeline Art D’Ecco came from, but we are grateful and hope they don’t miss them too dearly.

Des Demonas • Apocalyptic Boom! Boom!

Wed, 12 Mar 2025 16:33:00 GMT

You can capture my attention immediately by kicking off your album with an overdriven organ riff and a disaffected voice. Blending danceable R+B aspects with a punk attitude, this DC band is retro and fast-forward and what we need in these times,

“Dry The Rain” • Peel Dream Magazine

Wed, 12 Mar 2025 15:17:00 GMT

A tantalizing intersection

What Do I Know

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Deep Sea Diver crashes into the scene with ballasted boots on their latest release, and I have to give Trevor a tip of the hat for sharing their video on social media. Elsewhere! My attempts at self promotion are growing only slightly less awkward, but I hope the listeners are getting the message.

Vundabar • Surgery and Pleasure

Mon, 10 Mar 2025 12:11:00 GMT

These Boston kids with a New York attitude don't have time for your little dance on the street, you better keep your eyes on where you're going. It's all an act, because under the gritty glitter and trash talk is a heart that beats warm and true.

The Mommyheads • One Eyed Band

Sat, 08 Mar 2025 17:14:00 GMT

With incisive lyrics intertwined with unexpected arrangements, the band is in fine form, serving as a bittersweet soundtrack for changing weather, complementing both the sunshine and the rain but especially the part where one changes into the other.

Ambient Chaos

Sat, 08 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

A soundboard that lets you generate background noise by mixing together a variety of looping sources, from the mundane and useful ("I'm calling you from the coffee shop") to the purely hypothetical ("marching band vs zombie apocalypse").

Art d'Ecco • Serene Demon

Thu, 06 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Sure, bring your slick neon-tinged indie rock in here. I don't care that you sprinkled keyboards and saxophones all over in addition to the stabbing guitars, distressed vocals, and plucky bass. It just needs a beat we can dance to.

Mixtape 285 • Feeling Pretty Good

Thu, 06 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The name is a deft linguistic double-take, but if you like your music on the catchy side, I can assure you that Brad Sucks does not actually suck.

Ale Hop & Titi Bakorta • Mapambazuko

Wed, 05 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Opening track "Una Cumbia En Kinshasa" easily sets the stage for this transcontinental sound melange, a collaboration between Peruvian-born, Berlin-based Hop and Congolese soukous guitar player Bakorta. It's full of joy and weird production touches

“What Do I Know” • Deep Sea Diver

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

I want an assistant

Mixtape 284 • Una Cumbia en Kinshasa

Sat, 01 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Ale Bop and Titi Bakorta cook up a pan-global feast for the ears.

Mixtape 283 • The Ballad Of The Natural Lines

Thu, 27 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Call it what you will, Matt Pond PA makes music outside the natural lines.

Summer Lovin'

Tue, 25 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

No doubt about it, The Vandals are the masters of the punk rock rug pull. In this particular instance, what starts out as a merely updated take on the Grease classic suddenly devolves into hyperkinetic chaos. No matter. The show proceeds! New releases are starting again, and the year is off to a strong start.

Lambrini Girls • Who Let The Dogs Out

Mon, 24 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

This duo from Brighton wander through a variety of topics over the course of eleven tracks, and as they pound their way through a high-octane set of rage-inducing hardcore punk, they would like you to keep your fat mouth shut and listen for once.

Mixtape 282 • One Eyed Man

Thu, 20 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

The Mommyheads brighten the place with their craft and erudition.

The hardest working font in Manhattan

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

I'm a big fan of cultural true crime — it rarely actually involves a crime, but it does feature the sort of obsessive fact-finding that feels like outright wizardry, weaving together a historical cloth from the thinnest of threads.

Glicol

Sat, 15 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Maybe you know someone who is into modular synthesizers and have feelings about all the patch cables and apparently random knob-fiddling. If that's the case, proceed with caution as this browser-based programming language levels up the abstraction.

Mixtape 281 • Madman

Thu, 13 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

When you need a sunny groove to light up your grey morning, Hippo Campus is ready.

“New Beastly” • Vulfpeck

Thu, 13 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Less cowbell!

Feelgood By Numbers

Tue, 11 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

For whatever reason, listening to The Go! Team makes me think of the kindergarten rave scene, something which doesn’t actually exist but that would heavily feature this music if it did. Elsewhere tonight, we trial a new more organized format for conveying the Lacking Information, such as this website and the Mixtapes produced by the org, into the radio play-by-play.

Mixtape 280 • Canada Dry

Thu, 06 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Matt Berry has a little surprise for you, but first you have to slip into something groovy.

“Raoul” • Snapped Ankles

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Meet me in the cul-de-sac

Matt Berry • Heard Noises

Sun, 02 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Matt Berry returns, this time emerging from his velvet time machine with a suitcase full of pop psychedelia worthy of a light show and some very stiff drinks, and you are but a wide-eyed innocent allowed to hang out at his groovy pad.

Mixtape 279 • Cleopatras

Fri, 31 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Like a refreshing blast of tepid water, Warmduscher is sure to hit the spot.

Flash Bare Ass

Tue, 28 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

White Denim, part of the eminently surfable wave of psychedelia we’ve enjoyed this past decade, finds it easy to freely pummel you with some of the most massive riffs you’ll encounter on this side of the water’s surface. Shout out to our caller who could possibly be Murrdawg on alternate Sundays here on KAFM. Check out their show!

“Do Nothing” • The Specials

Sat, 25 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Look at these class jumpers.

Mixtape 278 • Are You Mine?

Thu, 23 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

It's another go around for Kim Deal, who remains as rawly melodic as ever.

Mixtape 277 • Tarkovski

Thu, 16 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

BODEGA is just around the corner and they have everything you need.

Mixtape 276 • My Favorite Lies

Thu, 09 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Let's have a skeptical listen to My Favorite Lies, a collection of songs about falsehoods, fabrications, and outright deception.

Mixtape 275 • Undercurrent

Thu, 02 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT

Listening to Toro y Moi is like sinking into a heavily-perfumed fluffy bed.

The Ice Of Boston

Tue, 31 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A very special New Year’s Eve edition, distinguished by the fact it makes absolutely no attempt to be any different from most other alternate Tuesday nights! Other than wrapping up the show with The Dismemberment Plan and “The Ice Of Boston” as the clock nears midnight. Pop open that third bottle of bubbly, indeed.

White Denim • 12

Sat, 28 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Thick and syrupy, this is an American counterbalance to the heady psych-funk acts coming out of Australia recently, The interplay between jazzy elements and dense pop textures makes for a distinctive sound, drawing you into its warm fuzzy embrace.

Mixtape 274 • Ciao Paris!

Fri, 27 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Fail to properly assess the infectious potential of La Femme at your own peril.

Mixtape 273 • Does It Really Matter

Thu, 26 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Be grateful for Attic Ted, lurking above your bedroom and keeping the miscellaneous critters in line.

Twisted Xmas 2024

Tue, 24 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Every ten years or so, this late-Tuesday gig lands on Christmas Eve, and it’s about the right frequency to dust off and update the Organization’s Twisted Xmas playlist, two hours of familiar yet unexpected holiday-season music. The Final Hour, for all intents and purposes, remained its usual cheer-free self, you’ll be glad to hear.

Mixtape 272 • Version Control 4

Thu, 19 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The fourth aggregation of musical replicas and facsimiles!

Mixtape 271 • Bad Guys Win

Thu, 12 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Do not be intimidated by their size, or their nudity — Naked Giants are just here to have a rocking good time.

Mixtape 270 • Zombie

Mon, 09 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Headstrong and filled with boundless energy, Goat bring you a world full of hypnorhythms.

Mixtape 269 • Tiny Bikini

Thu, 05 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you're unsure of where you are and need to be put in your place quick, consult Amyl and the Sniffers.

Formed a Band

Tue, 03 Dec 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It’s fitting to receive instruction from Art Brut on how the whole band thing works. Rumor has it there’s new music on the way, and I could not be more excited. Notice to the faithful listeners: the show will be off on the expected December 17, but will return for a special off-schedule holiday showcase on the 24th.

Mixtape 268 • I Don’t Want It

Thu, 21 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Gather your sins and bring them to Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers.

Corona

Tue, 19 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The end of the year slide has commenced, and things feel somewhat lackadaisical, but there’s still a huge backlog of new music to get through. Among the highlights is a new album from Amyl and the Sniffers, which contains lots of great stuff the FCC would frown on, but I was able to find one track that required minimal editing for compatibility.

Mixtape 267 • Nobody Shouts

Thu, 14 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

AK/DK wield their throbbing oscillators in the greater service of Electropunk.

Mixtape 266 • Blue on Blue

Fri, 08 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Don’t let the luxuriant snowy cap of decidedly English hair fool you, Nick Lowe remains sharp and smooth as ever.

“Goatbrain” • Goat

Fri, 08 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Friday is a good day for goatbrain

AK/DK • Strange Loops

Tue, 05 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you dig a big fat sawtooth wave riff standing in the front and nearly hitting you in the face with the mic stand, then Brighton's AK/DK has your number. Turn it up and ready yourself to spasm uncontrollably.

Yesterday

Tue, 05 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It’s election night in the US, but the whole point of today’s show is to pretend it isn’t. To that end, we are kicking off with my new favorites AK/DK — they sound ready to take the system apart using only the crudest electromechanical components. Big shout out to the crew near Rocket Park who enjoyed the show to the point of calling in. Long live the Gizzle!

Mixtape 265 • Pop Single

Thu, 31 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you need the musical equivalent of a quality pint with a good friend, The Bug Club is here to serve.

Geordie Greep • The New Sound

Mon, 28 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Geordie makes good use of a voice that's as smooth as silk and a delivery that promises the utmost reliability, but it's not making a discernible effort to distract from the wonderful glitchiness and complication that hides in the background.

“Alone” • The Cure

Sun, 27 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Fragile and oppressive

Mixtape 264 • Holy, Holy

Fri, 25 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

You will swoon as Geordie Greep croons sweetly to his army of scissor-limbed killbots.

Mixtape 263 • Lie In the Gutter

Thu, 24 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Peel Dream Magazine extend a cordial invitation to visit their hallucinogenic analog planet.

FIDLAR • SURVIVING THE DREAM

Tue, 22 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Another band with a well-earned penchant for ALL-CAPS, overbrimming with adolescent incorrigible behavior sung about from the perspective of adults proving it is indeed corrigible. The music is hyper-pop-punk and the irony levels are high.

What If?

Tue, 22 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Once upon a time, the Jesus Lizard was about as subtle as a candy-coated cinderblock. These days, well, they’re about the same. Tonight, they introduce things with a speculative reminiscence that is measured, philosophical, and yet somewhat menacing.

Mestizo Beat • Jaraguá

Sun, 20 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

As the name successfully implies, this outfit is a heady blend of Chicano funk and other sources. Pumping bass lines that could drain the Baltic Sea in minutes and horn stabs that could be entered as evidence in a court of law fill out the package.

“Oodles of O’s” • De La Soul

Sun, 20 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Revisiting the classics... bonus: donuts

Nick Lowe • Indoor Safari

Sat, 19 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The matchup of pub-rock king Nick Lowe and masked instrumental raiders Los Straitjackets might seem like a weird one-off joyride, but Lowe's wise croon has intersected with their sparkling backing many times, and this may be their best effort yet.

“Hypnic Jerks” • Spirit of the Beehive

Fri, 18 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re going to wipe out, do it in style.

Imperial Wax • Tranquilliser

Thu, 17 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

These lads supported Mark E. Smith for a while, and that speaks loads about their ability to hit his notoriously high and fickle bar, and (unrelated) their ability to put up with random nonstop antics. Straightahead driving music for eating up miles.

Mixtape 262 • Spacegirl (Shirley’s)

Thu, 17 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Raw as a blister and smooth as obsidian, Okay Kaya is a spinner of tales and shifter of moods.

YACHT • New Release

Wed, 16 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

YACHT dropped out of sight right before the whole "yacht rock" revival thing happened, but this release reinforces the band's penchant for commenting on current themes with the musical equivalent of wearing sunglasses inside the nightclub.

BALTHVS • Harvest

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

What this band brings to the mainly-instrumental surf guitar disco potluck is exactly what you'd expect a band invited to the MISGDP to bring, but let's be honest for a minute: we don't ever want to run out.

Dookie Demastered

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It’s been thirty years since Green Day’s Dookie changed music forever, and this project, which crams each and every song on the release into a different lo-fi representation, is truly giving it its proper due. The sample videos are quite worth watching.

Peel Dream Magazine • Rose Main Reading Room

Sun, 13 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Is it the analog synthesizer flourishes, or the gentle delivery with an aggressive intent, or the seamless shuttling between disparate elements that shouldn't work together? The band sounds perfectly familiar, yet completely its own thing.

“Starburster” • Fontaines D.C.

Sun, 13 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Breathe in, breathe out

Mixtape 261 • The Famous Polka I

Thu, 10 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Welcome to a near-biographical experience as we focus on songs named after (and occasionally about) real people you may have heard of.

Mixtape 260 • Champion

Thu, 03 Oct 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Like kids at the yoke of an army tank, Pom Poko mix childlike glee with unstoppable energy.

“Goodnight” • Being Dead

Sat, 28 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Sweet dance moves!

Mixtape 259 • Found A Body

Fri, 27 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Spirit Of The Beehive is buzzing cataclysmically in your head, but that’s the price you pay for the honey.

Mixtape 258 • Finger In Your Eye

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Looks like YACHT is back and gesticulating wildly about.

Lonsdale Slipons

Tue, 24 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

There’s a lot of great new music out there right now, and near the top of the heap is The Bug Club, whose most recent release is filled to the brim with joyful nuggets of everyday life. The school year has started and the coffers are overflowing with a lot of great new music.

Mixtape 257 • Can’t Be Still

Thu, 19 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Get your fix of tremendous pop electricity out of the illuminati hotties outlet.

Version Control

Tue, 17 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It’s time for the return of Version Control, the occasional gathering of music as interpreted by someone other than the artists that wrote the song or made it famous. You know, covers. After the notorious Cover Drought of 2023, we have a full episode of covers ranging from the obscure to the revolutionary.

“Falling Down” • The Jesus Lizard

Fri, 13 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Includes a tour of branding

Mixtape 256 • Version Control 3

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A third installment of Version Control, our semi-regular exploration of tribute and imitation.

Let Me Cook You

Tue, 10 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Magic is in the air, so we are starting most appropriately with Boom Pam and their take on Steve Miller’s “Abracadabra,” herein entitled “Alakazam.” It only got more magical from there with new music from Nick Cave, Fake Fruit, and Los Bitchos, all of whom are presently on desktop rotation. Next week: a special Fund Drive show.

“One Raga to a Disco Beat” • Glass Beams

Sat, 07 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Cardamom and mirrorballs

Mixtape 255 • New York, Let’s Do Nothing

Thu, 05 Sep 2024 00:00:00 GMT

All hail new royalty King Hannah and their studious and efficient delivery.

Mixtape 254 • Please Don’t Call On Me

Fri, 30 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Barry Adamson delivers soundtracks to cinematic masterpieces that don’t exist.

Mixtape 253 • Lotsapoppa

Thu, 29 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Mestizo Beat is cooking with lots of spices and high heat.

Rhinestone Cowboy

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Some of us are lucky. Some of us get to sit in a comfortable broadcasting studio and play Orville Peck, while others are hacking their way through a couple of gloomstalkers with nothing but the barely-magical weaponry a fifth-level figher can afford.

“Moving Without Touching” • Rubblebucket

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Rubblebucket welcomes you to their tiny world

Mixtape 252 • I Can’t Keep Up With You

Thu, 22 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Crowded House brings us some of that uniquely shaped New Zealand sonic architecture.

Mixtape 251 • Black Country Gothic

Thu, 15 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Only a few bands sound large enough to warrant their use of all-caps, and BIG SPECIAL is one of them.

Venus In Furs

Tue, 13 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It doesn’t get more mid-century Goth than The Raveonettes picking up on the Velvet Underground’s “Venus In Furs”. Besides that, the tenor of the night tended to lean towards the acoustic, with a handful of sets exploring the pluckier side of things.

Mixtape 250 • Poppies

Thu, 08 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Like light glinting off a distant wave, La Luz bring you a realm of possibilities.

Mixtape 249 • Firefighters

Thu, 01 Aug 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you don’t like what Being Dead is playing at the moment, just wait five seconds.

The Lunatics

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

We’re starting out with new music from Beatsteaks, who are taking on the Fun Boy Three’s “The Lunatics (Have Taken Over The Asylum)” for our opener. Tonight’s show featured both Molecular Steve and Delicate Steve, both of whom have new albums out, so I expect another couple of Steve-heavy shows in the future.

Mixtape 248 • Ah Yeh

Fri, 26 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Beak> welcome you into their world of strangely organic robots.

Mixtape 247 • Scaled to Survive

Thu, 25 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Leyla McCalla’s music opens up a portal into a universe of previously impossible musical geometries.

Mixtape 246 • Hide + Seek

Thu, 18 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Jesus Lizard are back, like a delicious headache you thought was gone but is now raging.

Itchycoo Park

Tue, 16 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

I’ve been noticing a dry spell on covers making it onto the show, but that was busted tonight with an inordinate (and quite varied) set of songs, starting with Robyn Hitchcock’s take on the Small Faces’ “Itchycoo Park.” He’s got an album of mostly covers, specifically from the year 1967, on the way, and this single is blazing the way. Also covered tonight: David Bowie, Dire Straits, Duke Ellington, Daniel Johnston, and the Bar-Kays.

Mixtape 245 • Sociometer Blues

Wed, 10 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Arab Strap return with their particularly caustic sense of delicacy.

Mixtape 244 • American Cowboy

Thu, 04 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Guppy will make you feel like a million bucks, wreck your car, and make you lose your security deposit.

Okay

Tue, 02 Jul 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It was a night for mazzy music, starting with a startlingly woozy track from Maya Hawke and following up with entries from many other exemplary female vocalists with a unique sense of melody and delivery. Also, it’s now light when I leave for the radio station, and midnight when I return, which adds a sense of interdimensional time travel to the broadcasting ritual, I’m going to enjoy that for a few more shows before it’s back to operating under the cover of darkness.

Mixtape 243 • CAPITAL D

Fri, 28 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Disappearer sit right on the edge of scratching that itch too little and too much.

Mixtape 242 • NSFW 1

Thu, 27 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Cover the ears of the delicate and tender-hearted, for this collection is full of adult language and topics.

Mixtape 241 • The Hourglass

Thu, 20 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Shannon and the Clams are far more new-fangled than their name might lead you to think.

Oi! Division

Tue, 18 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Back to the tried and true formula of new, old, obscure, and occasionally weird with tonight’s set, which features the return of Les Savy Fav and their always welcome abrasive electropunk. It’s now that time of year when I enter the studio in daylight and exit in pitch black darkness, which I always appreciate. In between, there were lots of exciting discoveries. Expect more heavily-censored Guppy in coming weeks!

Mixtape 240 • Under The Waves

Thu, 13 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A special collection of songs about humans and their interactions with water.

Mixtape 239 • Double Negative

Thu, 06 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Omni unites their sound with the thinnest of guitar strings and rhythms of utmost precision.

The Famous Polka + Balkan Fever

Tue, 04 Jun 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It was a day of jet-setting, starting in the dark hours of morning, and it wasn’t going to be over until the studio light went off. To keep up the energy levels, we presented a double-header of a special, first an hour of The Famous Polka, featuring songs titled after real (mostly) people, and following that two hours of Balkan Fever, with music that was far from exclusively Balkan but all fed into that manic two-step non-stop feeling.

Mixtape 238 • Maragato

Fri, 31 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Club Makumba is hot, the drinks are strong, and you’re not ready to leave just yet.

Mixtape 237 • The Way You Say It

Thu, 30 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The sound of Chicano Batman is a half-dozen ice-cubes liquidly clinking in a tall glass.

Mixtape 236 • Version Control 2

Thu, 23 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Another batch of duplicates and substitutes!

Mixtape 235 • The Dominoes

Thu, 16 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Mustard Service is a variety of spicy and stinging that will bring a tear to your eye.

Mixtape 234 • Three From Two

Thu, 09 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Khruangbin promises exotic destinations and luxurious accommodations in the distant hum of a prop engine.

Run Run Run

Tue, 07 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It was a globe-spanning show, with listeners checking in from the Grand Valley, the Florida swamps, and as far as Japan, where it was already Wednesday lunchtime. Meanwhile, The Libertines are up to their old antics again, at least the ones where they sound like a recently unfrozen cadre of British Invasion troglodytes. Also fun: playing a track called “We Will Not Apologize” and following that up with “Stop Apologizing”. Sounds about right.

Mixtape 233 • Big Congratulations

Thu, 02 May 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Holiday Ghosts bring you that refreshing fizzy jangle in a tall frosted glass.

Mixtape 232 • Move

Fri, 26 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Sometimes, you’re in the mood for something unrelenting and obsessive, and Meatbodies has what you need.

Mixtape 231 • Danzig With Myself

Thu, 25 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Dandy Warhols are singing about a band, but it’s not the Misfits

Euro Trash Girl

Tue, 23 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

When you set out to record a song that’s been famous, or popular, or claimed in some other way by some other artist, you are taking a shortcut with great risks and great rewards. Rarely can you pull it off the way Chicks On Speed do with their rendition of Cracker’s “Euro Trash Girl,” with a radical approach to deconstructing and reassembling the indie country hit. You’ll just have to hear for yourself.

Mixtape 230 • Chemical Animal

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Jesus and Mary Chain continue to produce their signature hydrochloric treacle.

Mixtape 229 • Velvet

Thu, 11 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Royel Otis would like to work you over with chocolate-covered brass knuckles.

Big Congratulations

Tue, 09 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Tonight, we start with a special presentation of My Favorite Lies, a one-hour collection of songs about untruths, deception, fakery, and more. Moving on, we filled the rest of the evening with the usual variety of genres, mostly from the last few months. Of particular note are new releases from Holiday Ghosts, Adrienne Lenker, and Alejandro Escovedo.

Mixtape 228 • I’m A Man

Thu, 04 Apr 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Welcome to Kim Gordon’s angular world, equal parts plush down and sharp razor.

Mixtape 227 • Where To?

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Ghost Funk Orchestra provides the soundtrack for all your paranormal festivities.

Mixtape 226 • Buffalo

Thu, 28 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

On this, Hurray for The Riff Raff and I agree: don’t mess with bison.

Sixty-Two Thousand Dollars in Debt

Tue, 26 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

“Is this the music, is this the music you like?” yell The Bug Club above a robotic repetitive riff. Yes, this is the music I like. Tonight’s special seems to be bands with names too sensitive to read over the air in Rural Colorado, like Pissed Jeans, Mannequin Pussy, and STRFKR. No matter, we’ll turn it into a game for the listeners.

Mixtape 225 • I Got Heaven

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re looking for subtlety and innuendo, keep looking because Mannequin Pussy is out of stock.

Mixtape 224 • Inzane

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Mall Girl is not what you would typically encounter at the mall around these parts.

Muriel’s Big Day Off

Tue, 12 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A flamboyant tip of the hat to Charley, who shared Being Dead with me only recently. I am smitten and kicking myself for missing their debut album’s release last summer, but I am fiercely making up for lost time. This evening’s Velvet Potty Mouth award goes to STRFKR, whose distinctive FUCK sat like a rock in a river of glitter and was carefully edited out for the Grand Valley’s sensitive ears.

Mixtape 223 • Paige Machine

Thu, 07 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Packs’ uniquely unbalanced delivery gives me the woozies.

Mixtape 222 • Machine Shop

Thu, 29 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It’s time to take perspective on our hyper-technologized society, through the audio lens of song.

Monolith

Tue, 27 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

A very quiet night, perhaps everyone is hunkering down for the leap day. Featured is IDLES, who all look like they could recommend a good IPA, and also would be willing to kick my ass for thinking so. Tonight featured more than our usual ration of covers, starting with a not-unlikely take on Beck’s “Loser” and following up with takes on tracks originally made famous by Muppets and Devo.

Mixtape 221 • Top Brass

Fri, 23 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Is there anything Matt Berry can’t do and do well?

Mixtape 220 • Big Air

Thu, 22 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Everyone loves the Office Dog, and is giving it snacks in secret.

Mixtape 219 • Zaddy Mountain

Thu, 15 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Thick Paint has a sound you just want to slather and spread on.

Inzane

Tue, 13 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

It’s the evening before Valentine’s Day, which means absolutely nothing here at lacking org. Instead, we’re opening up with the Sex Clark Five taking on the Byrds, and something from Norwegian up-and-comers Mall Girl, who manage to hold up a broken mirror to American indie rock without cutting themselves to shreds. Also, their bassist name-checks Laddio Bollocko. Also tonight, more splendiferous instrumental musings from the incomparable Matt Berry to kick off the Final Hour.

Mixtape 218 • Dance With Me

Thu, 08 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Joanna Sternberg is an open book, and you can’t keep from turning the pages.

Mixtape 217 • Have you tried meditation?

Thu, 01 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Pacing keeps it steady with a forward approach and some decent advice.

Dial Painters

Tue, 30 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

There’s a whole new album from Wreckless Eric, a whole album, but tonight’s selection resonates for the simple fact that this is the third reference to the radium girls I’ve heard this week, all from very different sources. As we say around these parts, it’s a real plate ‘o shrimp. Also worth noting tonight is n-th track from the Bug Club’s Rare Birds album, which has so many good songs on it you’ll be hearing from them for months to come, and that’s even with not playing the ones with bad words.

Mixtape 216 • Hey! Music!

Fri, 26 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Trademarking the most elemental of particles is a bold move, but a fitting one for Atom™.

Mixtape 215 • Kick The Can

Thu, 25 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Streets are not your typical old-fashioned new-fangled crew.

Mixtape 214 • Version Control 1

Thu, 18 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Presenting a collection of musical flatteries and facsimiles!

Right Back To It

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Things started out normally, with a cover and an excellent new single from Waxahatchee, but took a turn for the unexpected when the highly-anticipated Cat Empire set went missing. Was it skipped over on the player accidentally? Had I forgotten to make a copy to bring to the station? Could I download it from the backup at home? After a couple of sets of troubleshooting, it turned out I had named the file incorrectly. These are the hazards you encounter as a live-in-the-studio DJ, kids.

Mixtape 213 • Dilemma Us From Evil

Thu, 11 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Psychedelic Porn Crumpets would like to welcome you aboard and advise you to buckle in tight.

Mixtape 212 • Why Aren't You Smiling

Thu, 04 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

The Mommyheads would like to know if you are OK, like really OK and not just saying that.

Version Control 10

Tue, 02 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT

Tonight’s show kicks off with a long overdue hour of Version Control 10 — our special blend of songs that you might call “covers”. About a year ago, I filled three hours with covers, which leads me to believe something is messing with the covers ecosystem, and I have my theories. The middle hour was a regular Mixtape (if such a thing can be allowed), and the Final Hour was its usual rocketride mindtrip, a big thank you to all that came aboard.

Mixtape 211 • Deep Blue Shade

Fri, 29 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

From the benthic depths, Ozric Tentacles rules their empire of resinous drone.

Mixtape 210 • Free For All

Thu, 28 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

DJ Shadow, master of spin and finesse of fader, hits hard and in the nick of time.

Mixtape 209 • Out For Milk

Thu, 21 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Lewsberg wear their love for certain protopunk prototypes quite well.

Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I was not properly prepared to discuss Cat Power’s tribute to Bob Dylan’s 1966 Royal Albert Hall concert, and specifically where it was recorded, but now I can reveal the facts: the Cat Power recording was made at RAH. However, Dylan’s original recording was NOT made at RAH, despite the famous bootleg’s common name, instead having taken place in Manchester, a good ways away.

Mixtape 208 • I Just Died

Thu, 14 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

What FIZZ does is bombastic, is unexpected, and is just a lot of fun.

Mixtape 207 • Marriage

Thu, 07 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Listen to The Bug Club sing about marriage, and you will instantly know marriage.

Short And Round

Tue, 05 Dec 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Let’s face it, we’re going to be hearing tracks from The Bug Club for a couple months, since I keep finding gems strewn loosely about their most recent album. Lots of listeners checked in for this show, my apologies to those that checked out during the elevator hellride at the beginning of the show. Technical issues, we’re working on them.

Mixtape 206 • Life Admin

Thu, 30 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I have no doubt Jeff Rosenstock knows where to get the best pizza in town.

Mixtape 205 • Holding The Ocean

Fri, 24 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Enter Tommy Guerrero’s world of light breeze and perfect t-shirt weather.

Mixtape 204 • Food In The House

Thu, 23 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

It's American Thanksgiving time, and there is nothing quite like food in the house.

Hot! Heat! Wow! Hot!

Tue, 21 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I believe this is the first time we’ve hit four exclamation marks for a playlist’s name, courtesy of Australia’s Psychedelic Porn Crumpets and their very doge-titled track. Elsewhere tonight, a special themed segment that attests to the powers of random selection!

Mixtape 203 • Largest Muscle

Thu, 16 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Cheekface takes nothing seriously, not even my undying love for their questionable attitude.

Mixtape 202 • Fitness

Thu, 09 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I don’t care how many times I have to cut and paste Snõõper’s name to preserve those weird accents, they’re worth it.

Rigor Mortis Radio

Tue, 07 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Firing things up near the top of tonight’s Mixtape are The Hives and the precision attack of “Rigor Mortis Radio,” from their recent return to affairs of sound. Also, what do you know… another fine Fugazi cover to open tonight’s mixtape, this one the chromatic riffing of “Merchandise” as interpreted by Sounds Of Swami. Elsewhere tonight, a shout-out to Chuck Dinkins for introducing me to Tupelo Chain Sex.

Mixtape 201 • The Stuff

Thu, 02 Nov 2023 00:00:00 GMT

For whatever reason, not that I’m complaining, listening to the Allah-Las always makes me want to light incense.

Mixtape 200 • Undergrowth

Fri, 27 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

All hail the mighty kraken — it’s about time some brave band took up the Squid name for themselves.

Mixtape 199 • Kenneth

Thu, 26 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Little Dragon guards a treasure hoard of beats and drama, but they are quite willing to share.

Jimmy Mack

Tue, 24 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Out of all the songs to receive Animal Collective’s swirling dayglo treatment, “Jimmy Mack” might be the most unexpected yet the most deserving. Elsewhere tonight, loyal listener Underdog, usually located in the wilds of Georgia, was able to tune in around lunchtime while traveling in Japan, making the second show in a row with a listener based in Asia. Get me marketing!

Mixtape 198 • Everybody’s Gone to Sleep

Thu, 19 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

“New music from Sparklehorse” sounds like something from a fever dream, and it sounds like something from a fever dream.

Mixtape 197 • Derek Spears

Thu, 12 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The voice of your conscience is a very close match to the one you hear coming from Grandaddy.

Waiting Room

Tue, 10 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Always a special treat to be back on the air after missing a show. This is the third show in a year that I’ve started with a Fugazi cover, in this case Failure taking on “Waiting Room” with their trademark grinding, implacable approach. The power of these songs, its distinctive musicality and lyrical content, is undiminished in the hands of any band bold enough to take on the material. Tonight also featured the confluence of several loyal listeners, including James in California, Underdog in Georgia, and Charley who is on South Korea time and got to take benefit from the time zone.

Mixtape 196 • Bite My Tongue

Thu, 05 Oct 2023 00:00:00 GMT

When I hear the sounds of Islands, I am reminded of sparkling diamonds and shattered glass.

Mixtape 195 • Epilogue

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Andrew Bird always manages to fulfill that craving for pizzicato minimalism.

Mixtape 194 • You’re the Baby

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Music all about your special someone and / or a newborn human.

Mixtape 193 • Mood Ring

Thu, 21 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT

This Buck Meek character is difficult to pin down, simultaneously rural and urbane.

Mixtape 192 • Female Brain

Thu, 14 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Something about Margaret Glaspy’s voice makes me want to hang out and listen to her laugh.

Listening to the Higsons

Tue, 12 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I meant to write the notes for this show sooner than a month after the fact, but travel plans got in the way and here I am struggling for an intro. I can tell you that hearing Sparklehorse take on Robyn Hitchcock and the Egyptians’ “Listening to the Higsons” for the first time, mere weeks ago, felt like someone became obsessed with the same cassette as I did thirty years ago, but actually got around to letting the hen out.

Mixtape 191 • Avalanche Of Love

Thu, 07 Sep 2023 00:00:00 GMT

There are many bands that go by W.I.T.C.H. but this is the only one where it stands for “we intend to cause havoc.”

Mixtape 190 • Autumn Term

Thu, 31 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The lasting appeal of PJ Harvey’s staredown is undeniable.

The Do That

Tue, 29 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

In the last few years, John Lydon, once known to the world as Johnny Rotten, has been in the news for a variety of reasons, none of them related to his music, most of them leading to unfortunate public judgements. His band’s new album makes their name Public Image Ltd a handy reminder, as it serves up a take on society more in tune with their past work than the expected yelling-at-clouds. Elsewhere! To the listeners voicing strong opinions about the adorably shrill kids’ story that ran at the top of The Final Hour — your comments were passed on to Management and that short chunk of audio root canal is gone. Well done!

Mixtape 189 • Town Crank

Fri, 25 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The music Clark makes is suitable for rage cleaning and nighttime neon drives.

Mixtape 188 • New Kerrang

Thu, 24 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

All the kids are into it, and M. Ward is just itching to tell us about it.

Mixtape 187 • Seg Fault

Thu, 17 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

They appear to be American, not so much Trappists, but they sound like a clattering of drums and hooks.

She’s Fine, She’s Mine

Tue, 15 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Bo Diddley may have written tonight’s opening cover, and Spoon may be the one actually performing it, but the spirit of Billy Childish, whose version earworms its way through my head every year or so, is quite strong on the shambling, end-of-the-rehearsal vibe heard here. To the listeners voicing strong opinions about the adorably shrill kids’ story that runs at the top of The Final Hour — your notes have been passed on to Management.

Mixtape 186 • Panam

Thu, 10 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

With a name like The Giant Robots and an origin country like Switzerland, it would be easy to make a play on their precision, but the truth is that completely misses the point of their particular type of rave-up.

Mixtape 185 • City Of Angels

Thu, 03 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The name implies feminized mechanization, but Ladytron can accomplish so much more.

Blue Velvet

Tue, 01 Aug 2023 00:00:00 GMT

If you want suave, it’s hard to get more suave than “Blue Velvet,” and horror-surf combo Messer Chups delivers a version that’s not only suave but also quite kinetic. From the accelerated temp to the lyrical guitar line to the luscious spring reverb, it’s a welcome spin on the old croony standard. Tonight’s show was accompanied by tremedous wind and lightning, with occasional rain.

Mixtape 184 • Western Town

Fri, 28 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

It’s been a while since something has made me sit down and listen like the North Americans’ steel-string ambient flow.

Mixtape 183 • Libertude

Thu, 27 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Albert Hammond Jr. strikes out on his own, and it sounds like he has everything he needs.

Mixtape 182 • Affairs Of State

Thu, 20 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Behold, a special collection of songs about individual states in the United States of America!

I'm The President

Tue, 18 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I am proud to bring you KNOWER, despite the fact that I constantly stumble over how to announce the name of the band, trying to tease out the magical diphtong that distinguishes it from “nowhere” to the listener. I love them so much I will even respect their penchant to spell their name in all-caps. Led by Louis Cole and Genevieve Artadi and often spiced with cameos, their take on modern jazz funk / funk jazz is always on tap to fix a day going wrong.

Mixtape 181 • $20

Thu, 13 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

If you thought the days of the supergroup were over, Boygenius would like to have a word or three.

Mixtape 180 • How Was I to Know

Thu, 06 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The Boo Radleys are eager to share their sweet shocking intensity and it will instantly lift your day.

Rhode Island Is Famous For You

Tue, 04 Jul 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I can’t say if this is the first time I’ve had a radio show on Independence Day, but it is the first time I’ve prepared something special for the occasion. Presenting Affairs of State, a one-hour set of music dedicated to the States part of “United States of America.” As it turns out, there is a wide representation among the 50 states (51 if you count New Model Army) in the Lacking Library, but I have selected the best 16 examples for this evening.

Mixtape 179 • Waiting

Fri, 30 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Orange Drink can be sweet, it can be tart, and sometimes it will even remind you of citrus.

Mixtape 178 • All I Do

Thu, 29 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I haven’t decided if Bully is a great name or a terrible name, but it certainly fits their melodic bludgeoning.

Mixtape 177 • Buy My Product

Thu, 22 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I know that Water From Your Eyes is a reference I can look up in a second these days, but I am going to refuse to do so to leave the magic untainted.

Orinoco Flow

Tue, 20 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT

No pan flute, no washes of synthesizer textures, just Olivia Jean doing her best impression of a land-bound siren and kicking up the octane in the Enya original to unsafe levels. It’s a hot summer so far, with lots of great releases crowding the older stuff out of the playlist, and it shows no sign of letting up. There’s a new album from the Boo Radleys (it’s been a while!), and I am obsessing over motorik sounds from Orange Drink and Motor!k. It’s far more than will fit on a single cassette, unless you get one of those ultra-long ones that your car deck will eventually eat up.

Five Years

Mon, 05 Jun 2023 00:00:00 GMT

“You missed the white crocodile,” the chipa vendor told them. The mycologist and the munitions expert gave the expected sounds of disappointment, the same as any tourist drawn to Paraguay’s Ojo de Mar would. One of them spread a blanket by the lake side while the other one got busy with entering the passcodes and unlatching the efficient-looking metal case they had extracted from the moped. Opening it once the blanket was ready, they began taking out the 3D-printed pieces from the foam molding with quick, efficient movements as the Easy Star All-Stars blared out a David Bowie song from the vendor’s portable radio.

The Final Hour III

Tue, 23 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Every so often, I’ll gather up some of my favorite tracks from the last sixty minutes of my three-hour radio show and create an entire episode of The Final Hour, this one being the third such installment. This is the music that is played between 11pm and midnight, and it’s generally darker, more instrumental, sometimes even experimental, and this is an opportunity for the chronologically challenged to experience some of that closer to their regular waking hours.

Grand Junction

Tue, 09 May 2023 00:00:00 GMT

I always admired The Hold Steady’s narrative approach to songwriting, but I didn’t imagine it could be applied to this particular Western Colorado town, and tonight’s opening track clearly shows my lack of imagination. Elsewhere tonight, I’m happy to bring you new music from The No Ones, featuring the unmistakable holler of one Scott McCaughey of the Young Fresh Fellows, R.E.M., The Baseball Project, and so much more.

Version Control III

Tue, 11 Apr 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The carefully curated collection of artists performing tracks made famous by other artists continues, in the third annual Version Control. Some of these could be so obscure as to ask “is it a cover if I never heard the original” but we can leave the answering of that to the armchair philosophers. I’ll go on the record saying a good song is a good song no matter who performs it. Also, to the listener and fellow cassette afficionado that complained about Maxell and Memorex being mentioned in the same breath: my point is that neither one of them is TDK.

Mana Takatāpui

Tue, 28 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

The new album from Jen Cloher is magnificent, and when her Twitter account favorited the playlist entry for the lead track tonight, I near swooned. I recommend you listen to I Am The River, The River Is Me from start to finish, and enjoy something you’ll be doing for years to come for the first time. In other news, our recently adopted cat Princess Otoboke Beaver (aka Pris) gave birth to four healthy kittens on St. Patrick’s day — Ziggy, Stardust, Spider, and Mars.

Ride On

Tue, 14 Mar 2023 00:00:00 GMT

As it happens, if yours truly has a Valentine’s gig, it’ll be followed by one on Pi Day. Except on leap years. But the point here is that I thought about doing a show themed on circles, spheres, and other such expressions of the number and decided against it, but keep your ears peeled for some future incarnation of a “Round and Round” playlist. Instead, tonight we kick things off with the sort-of eponymous track from The Nude Party’s latest release, and wrap things up with about 30 seconds of Railroad Jerk, because technical difficulties.

Portrait of God

Tue, 28 Feb 2023 00:00:00 GMT

It’s a bitterly cold night, though the thermometer is not the lowest it’s been this winter. Warming things up is King Tuff, whose twisted bedroom psychedelia is heating up my house in the manner of an unexpected early spring. It’s a strong start for an extended set of sounds simultaneously catchy and powerful. Technical note: The Mixtape sounds best when recorded on TDK SA90 cassettes. Do not attempt to do this on Maxell XLIIs.

Fight Night

Tue, 14 Feb 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Every six years or so, Valentine’s Day lands on a Tuesday, and it’s a grand excuse to update and refine the Fight Night playlist, featuring two hours of music about verbal, physical, and emotional aggression. Why go the opposite way? I’m sure those with dates have better things to do than listen to the radio, and those without might appreciate the theme. Tonight’s Final Hour is a replay of tracks from another Final Hour from about a year ago, with all-new live commentary from yours truly.

Yakitori

Tue, 31 Jan 2023 00:00:00 GMT

It’s a formula as old as time — take four Japanese ladies, dress them up in color-coordinated dresses and makeup, and have them play aggressive earworms featuring kawaii harmonies and the lethal precision of a veteran death metal band. And yet somehow Otoboke Beaver rise above the rest of the entrants in this crowded field. Who am I kidding, they are one of a kind, and if you’re not listening to their latest album on repeat, you are missing out on a lot of endorphins.

Hospital

Tue, 17 Jan 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Maybe it’s the lackadaisical groove she can effortlessly establish, or her warm confident voice, but listening to Madison Cunningham is like sinking into the sofa for a new episode of your favorite show, a general feeling of ease, comfort, and complete enjoyment. Also, maybe you thought you heard a dirty word during “Tounge-Clucking Grammarian”, but you didn’t — let’s face, there’s a lot of rhymes for “clucking” that could register a false positive.

Los Angeles

Tue, 03 Jan 2023 00:00:00 GMT

Tonight’s opening theme is clearly tribute to the Imaginary City — the opening cover is from the town’s The Streetwalkin’ Cheetahs, who are named after an Iggy and the Stooges lyric and have been pumping out a corresponding racket for about 30 years now. The song itself, originally by X, is about a friend of the band that left for England to hook up with the Damned’s Captain Sensible. The lore is unclear on whether the Captain was expecting that or not.

Immigrant Song

Tue, 20 Dec 2022 00:00:00 GMT

I used to get a couple of dozen packages containing CDs each day, but these days receiving even one is something that happens once in a blue moon, a rare treat. It’s even more special when it contains a couple of releases from Sex Clark Five, one of my personal favorites. They sound like blurting out that thing you told yourself you weren’t going to say but felt good to say.

Relax Baby Be Cool

Tue, 06 Dec 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Dating back to a time before the whole phrase was unceremoniously truncated to “chillax”, Serge Gainsbourg’s imploration to enhance your mood is given a frantic workout by Stereo Total and in this case, their toy electronic noisemakers are a welcome homage. Elsewhere this show, we have Carl King’s prog-rock-and-glockenspiel interpretation of Rebecca Black’s infamous “Friday” … and it’s quite the improvement.

I Started a Joke

Tue, 22 Nov 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Mimi Parker, vocalist and drummer and half of the Minnesota band Low, passed away a couple of weeks ago while I was traveling. It’s a shocking loss and an abrupt end to a musical career that was still unfolding; the band’s last two albums, coming at the tail end of a discography that spans decades, showed a blossoming new direction for an act that was famed for their quiet and glacial approach. We open the show with Low’s rendition of a Bee Gees classic in tribute.

Love Your Money

Tue, 25 Oct 2022 00:00:00 GMT

It’s time for another Fun Drive, and what better way to represent tonight’s manic energy than Daisy Chainsaw and their epic “Love Your Money”? Also tonight, we have received a matching grant of one hundred dollars of America, via Telex: THIS IS THE HRVST TROGGOLD TO TELEX THE PLEDGE COMMITMENT THE ONE HUNDRED COMMA DOLLARS STOP OF MATCHING AMPLITUDE OTHER PLEDGES OF DONATION COMMA MATCH EXCLAMATION STOP HAVING REPORTING OF ARTICLE COMMA THE TURKISH ALMOND FARMING COMMA COMMA COMMA BEST THE LUCK STOP COMMA

Without U.

Tue, 27 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Boston’s Sleepyhead have been successfully dodging full wakefulness for a couple decades now, putting out an intriguing type of bedroom pop filled with subtle complexities, and their new album is filled to the brim with such. In other news we kick off with a Fugazi cover from quintessential NYC band BODEGA, whose lineage clearly traces back to legions of posterized grit punks.

Beatopia Cultsong

Tue, 13 Sep 2022 00:00:00 GMT

The world that deliberately-lowercased beabadoobee presents in her new album Beatopia is pastel neon colors, soothing howls, bright shadows, and all manner of psychedelic oxymorons. Tonight’s show features its introduction of sorts, and closes with the unexpected krautrock drone of my current favorite discovery, Japan’s deliberately-uppercased MASS OF THE FERMENTING DREGS, whose all-over-the-placeness manages to live up to its intriguing name.

World Full of Cops

Tue, 30 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Paleface didn’t say it first, but he probably said it best: it’s a World Full of Cops. Musicians and the authorities have been at each other’s throats for a while now, and there is no shortage of songs showing cops in a bad light, so what I like about “World Full of Cops” is its simple observational mantra: they are everywhere, we put them there, and they are us. Enjoy a full evening of police-themed music — it’s the law!

The Final Hour II

Tue, 16 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

It’s been about six months since the previous compliation of music that was played on the 11pm-midnight section of the Mixtape — the late-night temporal space that receives music that is strange, harsh, and/or repetitive that is known as The Final Hour. This is the second anthology from this pool of music, presented through the entirety of tonight’s Mixtape to allow those whose schedule leans towards the earlier hours a chance to experience. Hark!

Alec Eiffel

Tue, 02 Aug 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Sure, we’ve all heard of the Eiffel Tower, but what do we know about the architect whose name it bears? April March breaks it all down on this version of the Pixies’ song. Also in this show, a special-delivery track from Planets in the Ocean, a new project from one of my favorite vocalists, Robb Benson.

Wash My Hands Shorty

Tue, 19 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Why had I not heard of this Zach Hill (Death Grips, Hella) side project before? The I.L.Y.s hit a lot of my targets — noisy, harshly pop, and completely willing to blur the line between the analog and the digital. The video for tonight’s feature track is also something to behold, though I’d avoid it if you have a thing about bugs. Lots of bugs.

Hollywood Junkyard

Tue, 05 Jul 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Exploding out of upstate New York, The Bobby Lees have returned with a their third outing, titled Bellevue, and it delivers more of that biting, can’t-you-see-I’m-in-the-middle-of-an-episode post-rock blues energy. Tonight’s Mixtape closes out with Escape Mechanism’s “Being,” sampling William S. Burrough’s unmistakable reedy voice into an existential mantra.

Jackie down the line

Tue, 21 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Coming straight outta Dublin, Fontaines DC have an insistent and incisive sound that carves anthems out of marble using only guitar strings and a chiseling voice. No particular theme seems to emerge tonight, although we will be closing with Angel Olsen’s “Go Home.” Go home, it’s midnight.

Fever

Tue, 07 Jun 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Nothing to do with Peggy Lee’s sultry standard, this particular “Fever” comes from Aldous Harding, whose unique marshmallows-and-razor-blades sensibility makes for songs that leave you bleeding but which you crave again and again. Also tonight and also from New Zealand, a track from Garageland, one of my favorite underrated Kiwi bands of the ‘90s, which isn’t saying much because they were all underrated and they are all my favorites.

Flyin (like a fast train)

Tue, 24 May 2022 00:00:00 GMT

I always thought Kurt Vile was a play on the name of the German composer that gave us “Mack The Knife,” but that seems to be his given name (bonus: middle name is Samuel). Sonically, he’s more in line with Lou Reed than Weill, topping his awkward nouveau folk with a voice that may not be the most musical but is actually the perfect medium to express this particular malarkey.

21st Century Schizoid Man

Tue, 10 May 2022 00:00:00 GMT

It takes a certain mindset to take on a King Crimson song, and clearly black midi is of that mindset. Is it a bugle call for all prog rockers everywhere to take up their Moogs and sparkly jumpsuits and join the New Prog Revolution? I can support that.

Version Control 1.0

Tue, 12 Apr 2022 00:00:00 GMT

I’ve done a couple dozen all-covers shows already, usually during fundraising, but for some reason have never come up with a name for them. It must have been because the painfully obvious Version Control hadn’t occurred to me yet, a real embarrassing confession given my day job in the realm of code. At any rate, it is here, and we are going to be versioning them semantically starting now.

No Pares Hasta Tener Lo Suficiente

Tue, 29 Mar 2022 00:00:00 GMT

I just recently noticed the Morbysphere, the term I had to come up with just now for all the interesting music swirling about Kevin Morby, his solo work and that with Woods and Babies, and now the work of his frequent musical collaborator Justin Sullivan as Night Shop, which vibrates in roughly the same product-of-two-primes harmonic frequency. Also tonight, I will be breaking my personal record for longest track played on the air with the full length of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard’s “The Dripping Tap”.

Listen, The Snow Is Falling

Tue, 15 Mar 2022 00:00:00 GMT

When I was younger, still developing my musical tastes, in an era where the Beatles were closer to those days than Nirvana are to these, I hated on Yoko. It's what we all did. The older me, like Stephin Merritt and the many other luminaries on Ocean Child: Songs of Yoko Ono, appreciates the inexpressible beauty and uncompromising nature of her art.

A Pair Of Brown Eyes

Tue, 01 Mar 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Shane McGowan was a true Irish poet, and although Cat Power delivers the classic track from the Pogues in a voice very different from the original whiskey-and-gravel, the song's deep inner character is unchanged.

The Joker

Tue, 15 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT

Sometimes it takes a while for an album to be recognized as a classic, sometimes the shock of recognition is instant and universal. This is the case for Spoon and their latest release, Lucifer on the Sofa, which showcases much of what has made the band a constant source of solid material, but in a concentrated way that will make you start all over as soon as you hit the end.

Because

Tue, 01 Feb 2022 00:00:00 GMT

After a dormancy of a few years, The Dodos have re-emerged and proven to be anything but extinct. This duo makes a sound that is easy to recognize but hard to describe, a sort of acoustic progressive metal filled with droning rhythms and cascading guitars that you can clearly hear on the appropriately-titled “Unicorn”.

The Final Hour

Tue, 18 Jan 2022 00:00:00 GMT

The three-hour live shows have settled into their own rhythm, with the stranger and more electronic offerings drifting into the territory of The Final Hour, between 11pm and midnight. This show is for the early risers who might be familiar with the upbeat indie pop that gets played at the top of the show but are missing out on the darker moods that are featured near the end.

Pump It Up

Tue, 04 Jan 2022 00:00:00 GMT

You might think Juanes is some sort of reference to a collective of people named Juan, but it is actually a single Juan, more accurately a Colombian named Juan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez. Here he is singing along to Elvis Costello and the Attractions as part of the fascinating Spanish Model project.

Mixtape 176 • In Jest

Tue, 28 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Sure, they claim to be joking, but the chops you hear from Lizard Music are as serious as a car accident, their indie guitar pop leaving no hook unsharpened or ear unwormed.

Picture Book

Tue, 21 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Tonight’s show started off with Picture Book, a one-hour mixtape of songs dedicated to the captured image, whether it be a personal snapshot or an exotic postcard. The rest of the night was the usual Mixtape territory, closing out with my latest inexplicable favorite, International Sangman.

Mixtape 175 • Rhythm Is Our Business

Tue, 14 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The mysterious Snapped Ankles are descended from the forest people, though it seems they took a detour through some harsh industrial spaces to bring their stuttering electro-strangulation to our ears.

Mixtape 174 • You and Me

Tue, 07 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

When you are bored with every sound you hear, the Universe will send you an entire collection of songs to make you break out in an involuntary smile, like Goodbye Honolulu's latest.

Red Right Hand

Tue, 07 Dec 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The story of Nell Smith & The Flaming Lips is as improbable and unexpected as their album full of Nick Cave covers. Existing in a triangular universe of mutual admiration, Where the Viaduct Looms gave us the opening track tonight, the menacing “Red Right Hand”.

Mixtape 173 • Detroit Basketball

Tue, 30 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The three-piece punchy pop formula should be familiar to everyone by now, but the sounds of Bad Bad Hats are an elegant proof of their own.

Mixtape 172 • My Old Bassist

Tue, 23 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Like pre-teens throwing every liquid into the kitchen blender and daring each other to drink the results, Woody and Jeremy fuse all manner of sounds legitimate and profane into some murky concoction that tastes surprisingly good.

She’s My Best Friend

Tue, 23 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If The Wedding Present were the traditional sort, they would be bringing coral to the festivities. This one is from earlier in their career, closer to the wood years, but the Velvet Underground never goes out of style. This is from another good VU tribute album, Heaven and Hell from 1991 or so.

Foxx Bodies • Vixen

Fri, 19 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Get ready for some uncomfortable oversharing, set to the tune of early grunge, with an occasional jazz or doo-wop idiom thrown in… it’s a bit of uneasy listening but it gets its hooks into you.

“I’m Afraid Of Americans” • David Bowie

Fri, 19 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

In unbelievably crisp 4K

Clinic • Fantasy Island

Thu, 18 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

In this sterile brushed steel and gleaming plastic environment, underneath the tangles of tubing and wires and chirping electronic devices operating at their own rhythms, below the readouts and blinking lights, beats a mighty analog heart.

Darrin Bradbury • Artvertisement

Wed, 17 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

On background listening, it’s a charming bedroom pop masterpiece filled with enticing musical details and catchy melodies. If you pay attention though, you’ll notice the lyrics transcend sarcasm and irony and go straight to sardonic, a rare treat.

Goodbye Honolulu • Goodbye Honolulu

Tue, 16 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

I am convinced that today’s Canada is much better at this jangly indie pop thing than the US ever was at the height of alternative music. This Toronto outfit will pull you out of your deep American misery faster than any prescription medication.

Mixtape 171 • Scarcity Is Manufactured

Tue, 16 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

For a quarter century, Deerhoof have been a benchmark for the contrasting dynamics of sweet and sour, spiked and pillowy, and all manner of sounds that should not get along but quite obviously do.

Mungo’s Hi Fi • Antidote

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The best dub music happens when the flow and repetition, the interlocking arrangements, and the roots-heavy vocals all work together to make the time dimension an immeasurable elastic abstraction.

I Can't Stand The Rain

Tue, 09 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The rich wood floorboards were squeaking under the strain of the game. They had removed their shoes, sketched out the board using a special beeswax that would not damage the finish, and were hopping as lightly as they could, for they respected the solemnity of their location. Nonetheless, the portraits lining the Hall of Admirals in the Museo Maritimo Nacional felt they finally had something to frown about, their serious Chilean brows furrowed in naval concern as they observed the farrier and the anthropologist enjoying their tournament.

Mixtape 170 • I Must Go

Tue, 02 Nov 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Hailing from the southwest of France, The Llamps build on a sound that's equal parts New York City grit, San Francisco psychedelia, and spaghetti Western twang, which makes for a pan-global main dish.

Sir Simon • Repeat Until Funny

Fri, 29 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Information on this outfit is scant, but not required to enjoy their lilting melodies and careful close harmonies. These songs are like a cat that has become expert at sneaking onto your lap. Before you know it, they are nestled in and thrumming.

Liily • TV or Not TV

Thu, 28 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Jagged thunder aplenty, as this band tears through a set of impressively constructed symphonies of hostility. If you like the sort of music that makes you headbang, give this a listen but make a chiropractor appointment first.

Ministry • Moral Hygiene

Wed, 27 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Thirty years ago, I witnessed Al Jorgensen chug a bottle of vodka while getting a tattoo and waiting for the acid to kick in. Unrelated, it doesn’t sound like a lot has changed, and fans of this aggressive industrial music outfit should be pleased.

Pokey Lafarge • In the Blossom of their Shade

Tue, 26 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If the name didn’t give it away, this is suitable for slow-dancing cowboys, at least as they exist in our imagination. The crooning voice floats lithely over western swing and doo-wop influences to make you either start or stop howling at the moon.

Mixtape 169 • TV Dinner

Tue, 26 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

For quite some time, Mommyheads have delivered the sort of complex pop and lyrical insight that fills in the cracks and gaps in your musical thinking with new ideas and sounds.

I'll Be Your Mirror

Tue, 26 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The first time you hear Courtney Barnett taking on the Velvet Underground's "I'll Be Your Mirror," what you get is an electrifying shock of recognition: you know that distinctive voice, you know that timeless melody, but what you're hearing is completely new. I must add that there's a VU tribute album every few years, and even the worst of them can be decent, supported by the strength of the songs, but this one (also titled I'll Be Your Mirror) is exceptionally good.

The Record Company • Play Loud

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Deep-fried riffs, some well-placed cowbell, and guitars up front in the spotlight make for a heaping slab of that delicious Southern Boogie. There’s not a whole lot of new going on here, but it sure is ready to party.

I’ll Be Your Mirror • A Tribute to the Velvet Underground

Fri, 22 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

There’s good reason the Velvet Underground is one of the most popular topics for tribute recordings, their songs being very open to interpretation. This selection does not shy away from the more uncomfortable VU topics, which makes it a standout.

Deerhoof • Actually You Can

Thu, 21 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Featuring a thunderous rhythm section unafraid to venture into lockstepped odd grooves, a guitar team willing to weave in and out of those sonic pylons in tandem, and a beguiling childlike voice floating above it all, this is your standard Deerhoof.

illuminati hotties • Let Me Do One More

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

While pop punk takes the energy and intensity of hardcore music and strips away all the negativity and rough edges, this is punk pop, like pouring maple syrup over a big coil of barbed wire.

Lindsey Buckingham • Lindsey Buckingham

Tue, 19 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Over forty years ago, Fleetwood Mac was giving the Eagles a run for their money as Most Ubiquitous Band in America, and a big part of that was Buckingham’s uniquely sophisticated songwriting and unrecognized guitar prowess, both on display here.

Mixtape 168 • Shame Reactions

Tue, 19 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Pom Pom Squad began as songwriter Mia Berrin's solo operation but now employs four full-time experts in musical munitions and lethal lyrical techniques

Lizard Music • Arizone!

Mon, 18 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It has been a while since we have heard from this band, with its brutally catchy hooks and ultra-refined pop sensibility, delivering velvet hammer blows with the gentlest vocal harmonies and delicate guitar plucks.

Star Feminine Band • Star Feminine Band

Fri, 15 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Pure unbridled joy bursts forth from the moment these young Beninese women begin doing their thing. Even if liquid song structures and single-voiced group singing aren’t normally your thing, you should give it a taste.

The Lemon Twigs • Songs for the General Public

Thu, 14 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Bombastic pop filled with lush arrangements, bizarre chord extensions, and unexpected harmonies aren’t everyone’s cup of kombucha, but those of us that have acquired the taste will drink this stuff by the gallon.

Sleigh Bells • Texis

Wed, 13 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Glittery pop vocals fronting a relentless barrage of digital soundbites, shy loops emerging from behind percussive blasts as guitars interrupt with fuzzed yelps or delicate strums… it’s a little bit of everything, and sometimes just enough.

The Stranglers • Dark Matters

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

When you’re closing out your fifth decade as a band, you might be expected to rehash all your tired tropes and package them as brand new nostalgia. Instead, this sounds like a lost album from the band’s golden era.

Mixtape 167 • Hideaway

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If the name didn't give it away, there is a very distinct beach slash surf feeling to San Diego's Wavves and their sun-glittered sounds.

D.R.I.N.K.

Tue, 12 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It's a celebration of Pat Fish, also known as The Jazz Butcher, who passed away unexpectedly last week, on October 5. We kick things off with another one of my favorites, the Asylum Street Spankers, taking on his "D.R.I.N.K." to glorious heights, followed by a couple of sets drawing from his 20th century material.

Bad Bad Hats • Walkman

Mon, 11 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A strong, sometimes raspy female voice in front of a very clever power indie band can be the equivalent of beige wallpaper after all these years, but this outfit rises above that with a generous dose of unique hooks and singalong rhymes.

Audiobooks • Astro Tough

Fri, 08 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

“Charmingly abrasive” sounds like an oxymoron, but it is certainly something that describes music like this, angular sounds and a distraught female voice rambling on about blue tits, and I don’t think she means birds.

Burkini Beach • Best Western

Thu, 07 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

With close harmonies, tapped rhythms, and a wistful tone, this is music for a sunset porch, or a long drive, or a morning walk, or any situation where a soundtrack gently reminding you that everything is all right with the world is appropriate.

Low • HEY WHAT

Wed, 06 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A series of alien transmissions, ready for your fascinated decoding. A layering of sounds that are salty, sweet, savory. An incomprehensible message competing with a carnival across town and your roommate blasting Led Zeppelin through muffling walls.

The Mommyheads • Age of Isolation

Tue, 05 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The lush instrumentation and arrangements carry the incisive lyrics like a deep blue velvet cushion holding a surgical scalpel. The songs on this concept album seem to be coming out in real time, making more sense tomorrow than they did yesterday.

Mixtape 166 • Alpine

Tue, 05 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

There are several sounds that are most definitely British, and with their clear soaring female vocals and intimate indie pop sensibility, The Catenary Wires are a textbook example of one of them.

Snapped Ankles • Forest Of Your Problems

Mon, 04 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This aggregation of aggressive sounds does not differentiate between rock and electro, juicing thick synth leads with military drumming and a lyrical delivery that wavers delicately between completely disaffected and about to punch your lights out.

Ty Segall • Harmonizer

Fri, 01 Oct 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Ty’s arsenal of instrumentation continues to grow, as he fills out his domain of prog-rock, stoner drones, glam trash, and other Seventies detritus with keyboards, more keyboards, and an evolving sense of studio wizardry.

Erin McKeown • Kiss Off Kiss

Thu, 30 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

She once wrote a song over text message with Rachel Maddow, a micro-story that actually provides deep insight into this adventurous Canadian with an effortlessly capable voice and a finely honed instinct for finding the beating heart of a song.

Femi Kuti • Stop the Hate

Wed, 29 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Afrobeat continues to be a family business for the Kutis, and business is booming. Now representing the middle generation in this dynasty, Femi expertly delivers the expected stuttering beats and political dissent we have come to expect from the brand.

Les Cowboys Fringants • Les nuits de Repentigny

Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The surprising part is not that this Quebec outfit mixing country music, folk, surf, and a dash of Elvis exists, but that they have been doing this for three decades plus and yours truly is just finding out.

Mixtape 165 • Sauce Piquante

Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

At a time when we need the positive carefree sound of French yeh-yeh the most, April March comes through with a spicy new number.

Doctor My Eyes

Tue, 28 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Tonight started out with an hour of the sickest music around, which is to say songs about illness, medication, and other health-related issues. The following two hours were the usual incomprehensible mixture of genres and bad attitudes.

The Shivas • Feels So Good / Feels So Bad

Mon, 27 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Exquisite rock and roll, filled with bombastic drenches of reverb and enough monster riffs to fill a stadium, powering through sounds psychedelic, surf-like, and power-chording, but with enough dynamics to keep it from becoming exhausting.

Atom™ • This is Electrolatino, Vol. 1

Fri, 24 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A near-dozen electrolatinized hits, not all of them latinamerican in origin but all of them served as tremendously smart interpretation, from a mostly-marimba “Maniac” (from Flashdance) to the sparse cumbia of Prince’s “Beso”.

Wavves • Hideaway

Thu, 23 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It’s dense and it feels implacable, yet at the same time it’s sweet and comforting, like a punked-out beach blanket bingo, with cascading fuzz pedals and the feeling that the next wave is going to crest even higher.

The Llamps • The Llamps

Wed, 22 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Really, this review only needs five words: Francophone spaghetti western rock songs.

Woody + Jeremy • Gravy In My Coffee

Tue, 21 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It’s like a solo bedroom funk-pop project, with all its trappings (spur-of-the-moment compositions, absurdist themes, flashes of intense brilliance), except it comes from two people. These songs will quickly settle into your head and raid the fridge.

Mixtape 164 • Radio Man '56

Tue, 21 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The Fogerty Brothers are putting their upbringing to good use in the genuinely psychedelic outfit Hearty Har, parsing the electric sitars and paisleys of long ago into a legitimate translation.

Elvis Costello + The Attractions • Spanish Model

Mon, 20 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This takes backing tracks from “This Year’s Model” and adds new Spanish-language lyrics and vocals on top. It’s a bewildering mix of the extremely familiar and the completely new, and if you speak the language, the lyrical translations are top notch.

Drug Store Romeos • The World Within Our Bedrooms

Fri, 17 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The female vocals have a child-like quality, and the bass-forward music hulks behind it, sometimes like a princess’ bodyguard, sometimes like a delicate clockwork contraption.

Hearty Har • Radio Astro

Thu, 16 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Rock and roll is absent from the charts, and you’d hardly know there is a serious revival going on, this slab of shimmering paisley from the Fogerty kids being a prime example. Get your riffs, hooks, choruses, and more right here.

Palberta • Palberta5000

Wed, 15 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It’s hard to pin down this Brooklyn trio, with their angular guitar dissonance and harmonies that range from drone to treacle. This live album showcases the band’s strange energy with a barrage of short songs and very little audience reaction.

Tom Tom Club • The Good The Bad and the Funky

Tue, 14 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This is a reissue of a 20-year-old album, yet the pan-global disco stew that comes from this band could live anywhere in their decades-long career continuum, past, present, or future. This is dance music for getting subtly amped up.

Mixtape 163 • Magic Pants

Tue, 14 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The Scientists have been conducting their Australian experiments in proto-punk for over four decades now, and it's surprising that they've yet to publish in a peer-reviewed journal.

Maniac

Tue, 14 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Some bands are obscure, others are sporadic, but The Mabuses are downright enigmatic. Their music is hard to describe, and while the word "psychedelic" has become a commonplace and devalued label to put on something these days, in this case it would apply as a feeling of existing in a disjointed but entirely fascinating musical reality rather than a genre.

Los Lobos • Native Sons

Mon, 13 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The cover album is trite and cliché by now, but when the kings of Los Angeles release a tribute to the music scene that made them who they are, it’s definitely worth a listen, as both a rock show and a history lesson on what made LA sound that way.

black midi • Covercade

Fri, 10 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Out of many odd cover-filled releases bands have ejected over the last year-plus, this is one of the most disparate and interesting, partly from the selections and the interstitial music, but mostly because it’s not what you expect from black midi.

The Catenary Wires • Birling Gap

Thu, 09 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It is difficult to make lush pastoral pop like this without going completely overboard into schmalz territory, but this band manages quite well, carefully draping their orchestral tendencies over a solid base of interesting songs.

Death Valley Girls • Street Venom

Wed, 08 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The reissue of the band’s 2014 cassette debut shows a clear trajectory for this garage-delic outfit that constantly wanders through the dirtiest of musical territories and comes out the other end looking perfectly disheveled.

Olivia Jean / April March • Palladium EP

Tue, 07 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This is basically one song, rendered in three different ways by each artist, for a total of six complete blasts of enjoyment. Olivian Jean delivers the mermaid vibes, and April March is full of her usual yeh yeh, so you really can’t go wrong.

Mixtape 162 • The Shame of Love

Tue, 07 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Juliana Hatfield is once again in the middle of an unstoppable creative streak, now mixing her needle-sharp pop sensibilities with some truly out-there production.

Scientists • Negativity

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If there is one word to describe this latest outing from Kim Salmon, with its droning rumbles, hazy distortion, and proto-punk vibe, it is “menacing”. This is an album you apologize to, maybe buy it a drink to be safe.

Mixtape 161 • Sand Angel

Tue, 31 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

As individuals, Jay Som and Palehound each have their musical quirks and unique style. Together as Bachelor they plot a strange new course through the realm of dream pop.

Beso

Tue, 31 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Uwe Schmidt has had an extensive career, recording under many names as electronic musicians do, but it's his work as Señor Coconut (and now as Atom™), where he deconstructs familiar songs into something Kraftwerk would play if hired to play a quinceañera, that brings me this very particular weird glee.

The Beatles • Let It Be (Super Deluxe)

Thu, 26 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The new mixes are nice and clean, but the real treasure here is the extra material, alternate takes and mixes and even some jams, that provides an intimate snapshot into the creative maelstrom that was this explosively inventive foursome.

Mixtape 160 • Petey Jones' Locker

Tue, 24 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The Ghoulies from Perth, Australia look like regular blokes caught out grocery shopping, but the sound they make is an urgent, insistent punk rock howl with a frenetic keyboard bubbling through.

Crimson and Clover

Tue, 17 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The original “Crimson and Clover” was Tommy James and the Shondells' biggest hit, but it was also one of the first songs to be recorded on 16 track equipment, and is a textbook example on the use (or overuse) of rhythmic tremolo. Pom Pom Squad does a good job of channeling the song's sweet yet feral vibe.

Mixtape 159 • Call Me When You Get There

Fri, 06 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

I will let you in on a secret weakness: a band like The Rare Occasions can seize control of my playlist just by showing up with a surplus of pop hooks and grade AAA harmonies.

Divine Hammer

Tue, 03 Aug 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Australian Ben Lee broke through as the singer for the teen outfit Noise Addict, but has since made quite a solo career for himself. He kicks off this edition of Version Control — all covers, all night long.

Negativland • The World Will Decide

Fri, 16 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The Weatherman returns and takes prominence on this latest sound art foray, taking on the intersection of the surveillance apparatus and our insatiable need to have machines listening for our latest whim.

Scott The Hoople • NEIL Vol. 1

Thu, 15 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If you love Neil Young as much as Scott McCaughey does, you’ll be able to grin at yourself on recognizing each and every one of these deep, deep cuts, delivered in McCaughey’s enthusiastic yelp rather than Young’s grizzled whine.

Pascal Comelade • Le cut-up populaire

Wed, 14 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This collection of instrumentals is bewildering in its variety and intent, miniature symphonies with the tinkling plunk of a toy orchestra and a sharp whiff of sulfur from a struck match.

Django Django • Glowing In The Dark

Tue, 13 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A heady brew of oscillations, arpeggios, and other pulsing throbbing sounds set against layered vocal harmonies that bring to mind multiple participants in a spacewalk aggregating to form a conga line.

Atom™ • This Is Jazz

Mon, 12 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Creating minimalist compositions out of broken loops, glitched samples, and clearly electronic sounds is a dangerous path to tread, balanced between chaos and monotony, and one Atom™ walks quite easily.

El Michels Affair • Yeti Season

Fri, 09 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

They couldn’t figure out why they kept returning. At first, the hookah lounge was a noxious hangout, bearable only for the crushed-on bartender. Then, suspicion of nicotine addiction. Finally, the realization that it was the music on the jukebox.

Mixtape 158 • Dub Night I

Fri, 09 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Here is something different — a brief collection of music I consider "dub", though some may want to argue that point. Nonetheless, the intent is clear: tune in and zone out.

You Didn’t Think We Could Take It Vol. 2 • A Tribute to the Subsonics

Thu, 08 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Atlanta’s long-reigning kings of greasy garage fuzz get yet another tribute, and given the source material and the participants, it’s easy to see why this hits all the green lights for a multicolored psychedelic ramble.

Juliana Hatfield • Blood

Wed, 07 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Hatfield’s relentless output is given some inventive production, and I have to pause to carefully listen. There’s a lot to unpack, sonically and lyrically, and it refuses to fade into the background.

Matt Sweeney + Bonnie “Prince” Billy • Superwolves

Tue, 06 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Sweeney’s carefully considered guitar lines are entwined with Will Oldham’s intimate quaver and lyrical prowess, and it’s uncanny how this occasional intersection of two very prolific artists sounds like it’s decades into its trajectory.

Mexican Radio

Tue, 06 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If you are of a certain age and exposure to the MTV, you would think that people in Tijuana eat barbecued iguana, but that was just Stan Ridgway and Wall of Voodoo reaching for a cheap rhyme. Polvo takes the song's nervous energy and turns it up a few notches.

Tony Allen • There Is No End

Mon, 05 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This is an ominous title for a posthumous release, but Allen’s stuttering drum work will no doubt stand the test of time, and this melding of his work with more modern non-Afrobeat collaborators is a glimpse of a fascinating future.

Genghis Tron • Dream Weapon

Fri, 02 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Lush synthetic bitscapes, layered with drones, sweeps, short loops, and the ecstasy of robots make for a propulsive immersion into a world of flow.

Mixtape 157 • The Shadow

Fri, 02 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

You will hear their thunderous approach before you see them, and you will be surprised, for despite their name and the glorious stadium-sized riffing, Naked Giants are the size of mere mortals and usually appear dressed in public.

Paul McCartney + Friends • McCartney III Imagined

Thu, 01 Jul 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This takes McCartney’s third “fine, I’ll do it all myself” effort and delivers it into some surprising and very capable hands, a diverse roster of artists who take these McCartney songs and fumble nary a one.

The Routes • Mesmerised

Wed, 30 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Rowdy and thunderous guitar rock is what’s on call for the months ahead, and it’s easy to fill that order with this set of ten fuzzy symphonies meticulously assembled for all your bombastic musical needs.

Bachelor • Doomin’ Sun

Tue, 29 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Bachelor are in no rush to get to the end of the song, which makes it the perfect soundtrack for getting things done around the house, or alternately sinking into a deep bliss of angel volces, tapped drums, and faraway guitar solos.

Wolf Alice • Blue Weekend

Mon, 28 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Sneer at the formula all you like, but putting a strong, dynamic female voice, one which ranges from a husky whisper to an anguished scream, in front of a well-produced guitar-centric combo can sometimes yield unexpectedly unique results.

Pom Pom Squad • Death of a Cheerleader

Fri, 25 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

A solid debut album, with a wide range of energies and emotions, filled with swirling guitars, moments of unabashed vulnerability, and sheer screeching unhinged psychopathy.

Kid Congo + the Pink Monkey Birds • Swing From The Sean Dealer

Fri, 25 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Looking for some wildman rockandroll? You need look no further than this four-song effort (one of which takes up more than half the album), featuring out-of-control guitar stunts, an implacable rhythm section, and a wonderfully unhinged vibe.

Mixtape 156 • Dimes Make Dollars

Fri, 25 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Taking a vibrantly psychedelic sound and drenching it in cavernous production has made sure Lilys have always floated through time with a sound that is clearly from the past but also obviously from the future.

Tele Novella • Merlyn Belle

Thu, 24 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This beguiling set of intricate songs could have come out of a Tin Pan Alley songbook, so calling them old-fashioned is somewhat incomplete. And like all the best fluffy shiny pop led by a heavenly female voice, it hides many razor-sharp barbs.

Dry Cleaning • New Long Leg

Wed, 23 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Trebled-out bass lines, disaffected vocals that could very well be reading from a dream journal, and a penchant for occasional dissonance are taking the forefront in this outing, refining their savage punk structures with a more stylized approach.

Tommy Guerrero • Sunshine Radio

Tue, 22 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Get your headphones on and listen to this master of mood make his way across the undulating sands, the wet guitar reverb, warbling organs, crystal-clear claves, and snaking melodies sounding like surf music for a desert holiday.

Lilys • The 3 Way

Mon, 21 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If you are in for a partial reenactment of the British Invasion, complete with skirling organs and fuzz guitar stabs all dancing about feverishly, all in the space of about a half-hour, this vinyl reissue of a lost gem from the turn of the century is your ticket.

Jimbo Mathus & Andrew Bird • These 13

Fri, 18 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

These two have always made for a dynamic pairing, a yin and yang of raw backwoods holler and big-city sophistication that together make for some of the most genuine American folk music to come out of your newfangled contraption.

Schneider TM • The 8 Of Space

Thu, 17 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

For a quarter century, Dirk Dresselhaus has been putting out sparse, intelligent electronic compositions that even at their calmest crackle with some subtle form of nervous energy.

Datblygu • Wyau / Pyst

Wed, 16 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Wales has always had an abnormally high number of interesting bands per capita, and listening to these early ‘80s reissues it’s obvious that Datblygu, whose unique style can range all over the musical map while remaining recognizable, is why.

Ghoulies • Reprogram

Tue, 15 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

There are many bands named Ghoulies, or something like it, but let it be known that we’re talking about the Australian outfit that can deliver an hour’s worth of mosh-pit worthy punk sprinkled with spastic organ warbles in just about ten minutes.

The Rare Occasions • Big Whoop

Mon, 14 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

There is a lot of smart indie guitar pop out there these days, and this effort showcases this band’s ability to easily traverse that range, from anthemic hook-laden singalongs to richly harmonized earworms, with many unexpected stops in between.

Mixtape 155 • Sinking Ships

Sun, 13 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Canadian indie guitar geniuses Born Ruffians have released two great albums in less than a year, and easily earned the distinction of being the first artist to twice be featured on a Mixtape.

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra • SKA=ALMIGHTY

Fri, 11 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The ska orchestra is a rare beast, astounding to behold. Absorbing and expressing a manic energy worthy of ska, big bands, and thrash metal, the TSPO enters its fourth decade still on the redline and with no signs of slowing down.

Jeff Rosenstock • SKA DREAM

Thu, 10 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

You can love something so completely and sincerely that it becomes hard to tell whether you are mocking it. This is what Rosenstock does with third wave ska, with no detail, trope, or subgenre too small to escape notice and inclusion.

Josh Caterer • The Hideout Sessions

Wed, 09 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Caterer was the unmistakable voice behind the Smoking Popes, and his post-Popes career has taken many interesting turns, something reflected in this collection of croony standards and revisited songs from his previous band.

Round Eye • Culture Shock Treatment

Tue, 08 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Imagine a heavy punk-core assault, one with a bad attitude, weird experimental asides, an unhinged vocalist, and a rhythm section suitable for pulverizing concrete. How do you take it to the next level? Add a saxophone.

Delirious

Tue, 08 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

You know I have a weakness for pitch-perfect harmonies and razor-sharp hooks, and The Rare Occasions deliver both in voluminous quantities. Also noteworthy tonight is back to back tracks from The Who Sell Out, only one of which is performed by The Who!

Spirit of the Beehive • ENTERTAINMENT, DEATH

Mon, 07 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

I DON’T REALLY UNDERSTAND WHY BANDS MAKE ALLCAPS PART OF THEIR BRANDING AND MOSTLY FIND IT ANNOYING, BUT I CAN MAKE AN EXCEPTION FOR THIS PHILADELPHIA OUTFIT AND THIS ALBUM THAT SOUNDS LIKE A DREAM RADIO WITH A FAULTY FREQUENCY LOCK.

The Deathray Davies • Time Well Wasted

Fri, 04 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The band is back after an extended hiatus, picking up where they left off, with low-key catchy tunes making up an album that slowly develops into an outstanding collection of propulsive melodies and infectious hooks.

Mexican Institute of Sound • Distrito Federal

Thu, 03 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

An all-too-short collaborative effort between Camilo Lara, the mind behind MIS, and a witches’ brew of guest appearances making for a selection of space-age cumbias and other sounds as brazenly colorful and exuberant as the city it’s named for.

“Paper Crown” • Tele Novella

Thu, 03 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Live tarot action

Knoxville Girls • In A Ripped Dress

Wed, 02 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Kid Congo Powers has a musical resume you wouldn’t believe, and this particular outing for his talents is garage psychobilly supreme, a wonderfully uncouth expression of much-needed sophisticated boom boom.

Ratboys • Happy Birthday, Ratboy

Tue, 01 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Revisiting songs from their debut 2011 EP and various favorites from a ten-year career, this sunny folk-pop ensemble is buoyed by brightly colored harmony balloons dangling deathly sharp unexpected hooks. Listen with care and often.

Mixtape 154 • Alphabet

Tue, 01 Jun 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Scruffy and rough around the edges, South London’s shame will not back down or pull a punch, but will put their arm on your shoulder and make you sing along

Peter Stampfel • Peter Stampfel’s 20th Century

Mon, 31 May 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This extensive 100-song collection highlights a song from each year of the last century and delivers it with a bluegrass tinge and Stampfel’s distinctive yawping … it’s not pleasing to everyone, but it’s hard to argue with the encyclopedic choices.

No One Knows

Tue, 25 May 2021 00:00:00 GMT

There are voices so distinctive that their timbre is an instrument onto itself. This is the case with Josh Caterer, who was first heard singing for a band called The Smoking Popes. He has a wildly diverse solo career now, but tonight we play his reworked version of a Popes song.

Banana Splits

Tue, 11 May 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Tonight, we have Fruit Salsa! A fresh variety of fruits, from the ordinary to the exotic, is selected and cut up into an hour's worth of delectable desert. Somewhere in there, The Soft Boys give us a live version of a Tin Pan Alley classic.

Dub Night I

Tue, 20 Apr 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It's Member Drive time, and nothing says "support your community radio station" louder than three hours of Dub Night. Not a whole lot of funding was raised, but no matter! Three hours of heavy bass rhythms were played.

Under The Waves

Tue, 13 Apr 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This show kicks off with a one hour special entitled "Under The Waves" — songs about swimming, sinking, and other water-related activities. Somewhere in there we hear from The Elected, who are desperately missed.

Mendocino

Tue, 30 Mar 2021 00:00:00 GMT

What is in that Canadian water? Kiwi Jr. are burning up my speakers with their latest release, a rich concoction of perfectly crafted indie guitar pop that seems designed to be played loud, and if I’m supposed to stop doing that, then I guess I’ll be buying new speakers soon.

Mixtape 153 • Peba

Tue, 02 Mar 2021 00:00:00 GMT

The sound of Star Feminine Band is born of Benin, brightly colored patterns, and wild abandon, young carefree voices skipping over liquid guitar and intense percussion.

Accepting Applications at University

Tue, 02 Mar 2021 00:00:00 GMT

It’s the triumphant return of Pom Poko and their shattered-and-reassembled attacks of aggression and affection, like the sonic equivalent of staying inside the sauna for as long as you can, then running out to roll around in the snow.

Mixtape 152 • The Power of the One

Tue, 23 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

You can say that bedrock funk bassist Bootsy Collins is The One, and you would be right on so many levels.

Mixtape 151 • Lovesick

Sat, 13 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Sometimes rock and roll seems to get stuck in a rut, but The New Madness bring fresh life to a sound that was old before they were born.

Ascendants • Quarantine

Wed, 03 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

This producer-songwriter duo invests electronic beats and heavily-textured arrangements with soaring vocals, sometimes wordless but always emotive.

Mixtape 150 • Secret Canine Agent

Tue, 02 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Viagra Boys don’t care what you think… there’s plenty of room for a saxophone and John Prine covers in the backseat of a 21st century punk band.

Grandaddy • The Sophtware Slump ..... on a wooden piano

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Twenty years ago, Grandaddy’s banged-up future was wrapped up in heavy production… now that has been stripped out, leaving only Jason Lytle, his songs, his piano, and his characteristic keening on inevitable observations.

North Americans • Roped In

Sat, 30 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Subtle expressions of singing strings from a guitar and pedal steel, mixed with ambient sounds and other sources to make the soundtrack for the most intense relaxation you’ve had in a while.

Mad Professor • 40 Years of Dub

Thu, 28 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

One of the kingpins of dub easily proves his worth on this retrospective covering the first four decades of UK producer Mad Professor and his deep undulating grooves, universal sounds that are neither fresh nor dated, but eternal.

Queen Bee

Tue, 26 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

“Batu means ‘rock’ in Malay” said the photographer, for the third time in a week. The sous-chef ignored the comment, also for the third time, and tried squinting in the darkness at the cribbage board. They had been wise enough to purchase a glow-in-the-dark deck after all these midnight assignments, but had yet to extend their ingenuity to the board. Tapping a foot in irritation, they knocked over the thermos full of hot cocoa set on the steps, and it would have rolled down several long flights of guano-covered stairs had it not been stopped by the tandem bike’s wheel leaning against the statue’s pedestal. Above them, Lord Murugan stared stonily into the dark.

Mixtape 149 • Strawberry Sunset

Sun, 24 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

When your arrangements are razor-sharp, your moods mercurial and psychedelic, and your melodies constantly off-kilter, you’re probably a Dutch band like Certain Animals.

Bananagun • The True Story of Bananagun

Fri, 15 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

Something’s in the water Down Under; there’s a veritable rainbow of guitar-forward fuzziness emanating from the land, and Bananagun is the kind that has a loose-limbed ability to pivot from genuine ‘60s jingleisms into full-out afrobeat.

Mixtape 148 • Strange To Explain

Tue, 12 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

If I could use synesthesia to describe Woods’ music, I would say it sounds like sparkling pastel day-go colors.

Mixtape 147 • Anything For Boo

Tue, 05 Jan 2021 00:00:00 GMT

There’s no detail too small or scar too deep for Eels to pick up and examine in a wry musical light.

Certain Animals • Songs To Make You Move

Thu, 31 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Dutch indie rock psychedelic bands often stand out from their UK or US counterparts because they are just too good at the tropes. It’s like they took the test and got 110%, and there wasn’t even extra credit.

Bootsy Collins • The Power of the One

Wed, 30 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Bootsy lays out the not-so-secret ingredient in funk right there in the title, and then gives you a giant plate and puts you at the head of the line of this 70-minute buffet of lose-you-inhibitions-and-dig-in variations on the recipe.

Free Radicals • White Power Outage vol. 1

Tue, 29 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I haven’t seen the word skronk bandied about lately, it feels good to bring it out again. The Free Radicals are rhythmic, abrasive, definitely political, but most of all extra funky and pure of heart.

Noodle Soup

Tue, 29 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The journey to the island had been placid, cutting through the postcard-blue waters on the kite hydrofoil like an experienced tailor shearing fine cloth for a new suit. Things were a bit more complicated now that they were at the Heraklion Archaeological Museum. The horologist consulted the mission notes, which simply stated “remove all anachronistic displays.” The historian, fearing seasickness, had taken a pill and was now having a comically adverse reaction that rendered them useless for these judgements. A security guard eyed them warily, but perhaps they could turn the situation to their advantage by playing up the effects as excessive inebriation.

Woods • Strange To Explain

Mon, 28 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If this band were actual woods, they would be filled with fog swirling in sunlight, sparkling yet tenebrous, a distant falsetto clearly audible inside your ear as the leaves are chiming in the light.

Lunchbox • After School Special

Sun, 27 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

They hit hard and they hit fast, with half of the songs here clocking in at two minutes or less, but they also hit sweet, with layers of boy-girl harmonies and drizzles of horn section.

A Tale of Golden Keys • The Only Thing That’s Real

Sat, 26 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

When I hear indie pop as carefully crafted as this, with luminous chord changes and impeccable diction, I immediately suspect a Dutch or German origin… these cats are from Nuremberg.

Mixtape 146 • Gear Summer

Sat, 26 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It’s hard to to live up to a name like Young Fresh Fellows when you’ve been at it for almost 40 years, but good time rock and roll never goes out of style.

Young Fresh Fellows • Toxic Youth

Thu, 24 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The boys are back, fresh as ever and resplendent in stereo as they churn more of their distinctive hot-rod music, guitar-bass-drum sounds suitable for the open road and a full throttle.

Vulfpeck • The Joy of Music, The Job of Real Estate

Wed, 23 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Part holiday album, part jazz funk excursion, all Vulfpeck, this collection can be a bit haphazard but in the end has something for everyone and can be used to put your home in a festive mood year-round.

Eels • Earth To Dora

Tue, 22 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Pain, desperation, a desperate will to hang in there, and an obsession with noticing the small things in life are common themes in Eels’ musical career, and they remain present here to comfort those in need of a song to help them through.

Andrew Bird • Panthology Songs II

Mon, 21 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Years from now, the early 2020s will timestamp short albums recorded and released during isolation the way protest songs on the pop charts mark the late ‘60s. This one would be near the top of the heap, intimate yet meticulous.

Paul McCartney • McCartney III

Fri, 18 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Of course, when it’s Sir Paul doing the pandemic recording, it’s old hat to play all the instruments, this being his third such truly solo album. Like the others, it exists in the McCartney continuum of eternal rock and roll.

Mixtape 145 • Gin Tonic State of Mind

Fri, 18 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The effervescent jangle of German trio A Tale of Golden Keys is intricately engineered to make your ears ask “what was that?”

Tobacco • Hot Wet + Sassy

Sat, 12 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Electronic music seems to trend towards extremes of ambience, rhythm, or noise, but there is a place of balance where textures and beats combine aggressively into what can only be called a rock barrage.

Mixtape 144 • Model Village

Fri, 11 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I am generally skeptical and disrespectful of band names with special capitalization, but IDLES look and sound like they mean business.

IDLES • Ultra Mono

Thu, 10 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It’s difficult to explain why this sort of aggressive guitar-forward post-punk sound feels so much more anthemic when it comes from the UK, but the effect is certainly there.

Blitzen Trapper • Holy Smokes Future Jokes

Tue, 08 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I don’t know why I want to call this sound “California country”, when it’s not from California nor is it truly country, but its twangy aroma and psychedelic coloring are probably a big reason why.

Oh Sees • Protean Threat

Sun, 06 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The name of this band may change every few years, but the implacable drone is unmistakable, like a heavy, doomed Ramones with a penchant for occasional celestial excursions.

Rob Crow • Everybody’s Got Damage

Fri, 04 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

When Rob Crow gets to anthologize the songs he wants to cover into an album, the results are disparate, insightful, and educational, ranging from King Crimson to the Melvins to the Beach Boys.

Mixtape 143 • Lonely Heather

Fri, 04 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If you got The Nude Party to perform at your next get-together, it would be the kind of shindig that produces two marriages, three break-ups, and gossip for years to come.

Sneaks • Happy Birthday

Wed, 02 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

There is something familiar yet quite subversive in the way Sneaks assembles their synthetic layers and stream-of-consciousness vocalizations into a collage of desperate modern living.

Nashville Record Co.

Tue, 01 Dec 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Shilin Night Market had seemed to grow even more chaotic in the intervening years, yet the vendors and customers still retained their preternatural calm, as if the events happening all around them were due to forces completely out of their control. As the skeptic checked the status lights on the Stinky Tofu Containment Device for the seventh time that mission, the inspector pinged the jetpacks they had secured under a table of bejeweled phone cases to make sure they were primed for a quick getaway. Their progress came to a sudden halt as they considered the sign before them: “Small Sausage In Large Sausage - $120”

Yo La Tengo • Sleepless Night

Mon, 30 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A new collection of covers from Yo La Tengo is not unusual, but their frequency does allow for some measurement of the band’s current mood, and the songs are always trailheads for musical exploration.

The Paranoyds • Pet Cemetery

Fri, 27 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Spooky and unhinged, this single plods along with the menacing tone you might expect from the title. The flip side is more interesting, with call-and-response vocals, a bad attitude, and a woozy organ.

Mixtape 142 • Holy Smokes Future Jokes

Fri, 27 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

There are many two-genre combos that will fit on Blitzen Trapper like a tailored suit, but my current favorite is “country psychedelia”.

Kurt Vile • Speed, Sound, Lonely KV EP

Tue, 24 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Kurt Vile’s surgical lyrics and out-there guitar playing overshadow the fact that he is a bona-fide troubadour, a distinctive voice and presence that hangs out in your head and strums out their weird tunes from an armchair in the corner.

Sharon Jones + The Dap-Kings • Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Rendition Was In)

Sun, 22 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Posthumous releases are always a tricky proposition, but Sharon Jones was a talent literally larger than life, and the combination of her of deep rich voice slathered over the funky Dap Kings has yet to fail.

The Last • Look Again

Sat, 21 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

With its Byrds-inpired jangle, harmonized “whoah-oh”s, and overflowing nervous energy, this could very well be an unearthed recording from the liminal era between “new wave” and “alternative”.

Elvis Perkins • Creation Myths

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It’s been a while, but Elvis Perkins’ songwriting chops remain as lush as ever, an unexpected oasis of skewed harmonies and surprising arrangements in a dry sandy desert of plinky singer-songwriters.

Mixtape 141 • Faith

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Sneaks uses electronic layers and a disaffected delivery to create something that lives in the past and in the future and only circumstantially in the present.

Bad Bad Meow • Rick Rubin and Steve Albini Had Nothing To Do With This Record

Thu, 19 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Weird manic indie funk-verging-on-pop with a weird manic sense of humor and they’re not afraid to throw in a horn section here and there to bolster their hooks and riffs.

Drive-By Truckers • The New OK

Wed, 18 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Yes, it’s the Drive-By Truckers, and they remain consistent to their deep Southern roots, but I had to keep checking the player to see who was sounding exactly like Dinosaur Jr. or riffing off Hall and Oates.

The Budos Band • Long in the Tooth

Mon, 16 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Budos Band have a distinctive sound that blends afrobeat, funk, and a herd of thundering elephants that could also be one of the most aggressive brass sections around.

Kruder + Dorfmeister • 1995

Sun, 15 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

I can’t tell if having a name that sounds like something SNL cooked up for a sketch about a pair of Austrian DJs is good or bad for this pair of Austrian DJs. These soulful electronic compositions unearthed from the last century are no joke, though.

Ghost Funk Orchestra • An Ode To Escapism

Sat, 14 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Visiting exotic destinations has become an armchair pastime lately, and if you need a soundtrack for your virtual excursions to places far and strange, this futuristic mix of global beats and funk grooves is surely your ticket.

Wagon Christ • Recepticon

Sat, 14 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Some people will slice and dice their way to a hostile disjointed soundscape filled with vague unease, but Wagon Christ’s approach yields something sunnier and wholesome, like fruit salad.

Crocodiles • Shitty Times Volume 3

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

This is the third release in a series of benefit cassette (and digital) releases, all featuring covers of music that is sometimes brazenly obscure, and this one is my favorite of the lot.

Mixtape 140 • Coin

Fri, 13 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Raw, stinging, and pungent like a freshly-cut onion, The Bobby Lees quickly peel away their layers to share their tender, pearl-white hearts.

The Nude Party • Midnight Manor

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The word “party” is right there in the name, as is the word “nude”, and it might be a coincidence, but this is rowdy, horny, let-it-all-hang-out rock and roll music.

Jah Wobble • Nocturne in the City (Ambient Jazz Grooves)

Fri, 06 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Among the lockdown detritus of 2020 is this gem showing the introspective jazzy musings of one of the most important dub and post-punk bassists of the last 40 years.

Mixtape 139 • Moving On

Fri, 06 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Gaslamp Killer earned his nickname by ruining the vibe of clubs in San Diego’s Gaslamp district with his incongruous DJ sets, so we must conclude those clubs were lame.

Tricky • Fall To Pieces

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Tricky’s approach to music, with subdued tempos and striking contrasts (like pitting his industrial grit voice against Marta’s honeyed vocals) has not dulled over the years, glinting in the streetlight like an out of place scalpel.

Riddle Daddy

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The best place to hide seemed to be, ironically, right behind the ballot box. The numerologist and the baker had been underway on a wholly distinct mission, having already secured the deflated knifeboats inside a conveniently placed culvert. They now seemed to be caught in the crossfire of two opposing factions, each intent on some inscrutable and erratically violent purpose that seemed to be nothing but foiling the other side’s efforts. The roving skirmishes had drawn away participants and created a fairly event-free circle of balance where the pair could hunker down and plan their next move. It was going to be a long night.

The Cambodian Space Project • Electric Blue Boogaloo

Mon, 02 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The name would lead you to expect old-school riff-heavy fuzzed-out psychedelia with a strong southeast Asian accent, and it would lead you true.

Bill Callahan • Gold Record

Sun, 01 Nov 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Callahan’s deep gruff voice meanders through acoustic non-linear arrangements like a limo driver telling a story, completely oblivious to their own cowboy poetry.

The Bobby Lees • Skin Suit

Sat, 31 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The insurance inspector shook her head. She’d never seen a fire consume a structure so quickly and completely; this must be some new form of accelerant. Most curiously, the inferno seemed to have started at the stereo speakers.

Mixtape 138 • Political Song

Fri, 30 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Supremely independent for going on three decades, Superchunk’s incisive nervous energy is still one of the purest indie highs you can find.

Cory Wong • The Striped Album

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The celebrated funk guitarist releases this collection of R&B and/or big-band inflected compositions, featuring some notable guest stars, but it’s all just wrapping paper on a big cinderblock of groove.

Mixtape 137 • melatonezone

Fri, 23 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

To make illuminati hotties for your gathering, splash melody and harsh noise into a tumbler, drop in some production trickery, and shake until you hear a dizzying howl emerge

Pomplamoose • Invisible People

Thu, 22 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The bewitching chanteuse and the mute production wizard is a pairing that has yielded consistently intriguing results through the ages, and these VideoSong pioneers are still leading today’s pack.

Yello • Point

Wed, 21 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The recipe for Yello’s bass-heavy, rhythmic, mid-tempo groovecake has not changed in forever, and it still makes the ideal soundtrack for putting on your sunglasses and slouching down in your seat.

Mixtape 136 • No Glory in the West

Fri, 16 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The mysterious Orville Peck is a modern cowboy marvel, a rare and legendary masked man with a dusty guitar and a lonesome coyote howl.

Old 97's • Twelfth

Thu, 15 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Someone threw a key party for a bunch of musical genres, and Americana, Rock, and Punk left together. On the dashboard radio on the way to the motel, the Old 97’s were playing.

illuminati hotties • FREE I.H: This Is Not The One You've Been Waiting For

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Swerving wildly between sweetly melodic and audibly unhinged, this carousel of buzzsaw-inflected ditties definitely whirls too fast, and you’ll enjoy every minute of its glitchy post-hardcore pop magic.

Cut Worms • Nobody Lives Here Anymore

Fri, 09 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

This is a heady mix of Tin Pan Alley melodies, lonesome cowboy delivery, and ornate arrangements fit for the most dramatic of the theater kids.

Mixtape 135 • Bottle Rocket Baby

Fri, 09 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Hissing steam and spitting fire, the Old 97s chew up the rails and cross-ties by playing country music with a punk attitude.

Billy Martin • G U I L T Y

Tue, 06 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Billy Martin’s drumming makes me think of oxymorons like “precisely sloppy” and “intensely casual” and “red hot chill out”. This album lives within a zone that’s hazily bounded by funk, jazz, and electronic dance music.

Upbeat Ritual

Tue, 06 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The haberdasher heard a light thump and roll, then felt something tap against a shoe. It was a peach pit. Looking up from the stack of brochures, they saw the orthodontist grinning and wiping their mouth with a sleeve, glancing at the gap on the blanket where the fruit was drying in the sun, clearly suggesting that perhaps another one was in order. The tandem moped leaned against the back of the Gate of Hercules, shielded by its bulk from the bright Croatian summer sun. The peaches had hours to go, and they had forgotten to bring a game., having only whatever reading material they had managed to scrape up in the Hotel Pula lobby.

NOFX + Frank Turner • West Coast vs. Wessex

Mon, 05 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Two very political acts, performing each other’s songs. NOFX is archetypically SoCal snot-nose punk, while Frank Turner is from a proud tradition of left-leaning UK strummers, but the songs fare well in any protester’s hands.

Born Ruffians • SQUEEZE

Fri, 02 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The second release in less than a year from this outfit continues along the same path, which is to say meticulously crafted indie guitar mini-symphonies.

Mixtape 134 • Identity Theft

Fri, 02 Oct 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Taking their name from Australian slang for something not good, The Chats are here to strike fear in the hearts of parents and guidance counselors across the globe.

Deerhoof • Love-Lore

Tue, 29 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

You never know what to expect from Deerhoof, even if your list contains “sound art medleys improvised out of musical themes recognizable and unrecognizable”

Ghost of Vroom • Ghost of Vroom 2 EP

Fri, 25 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

That loose groove on the drums, the casually menacing bass, and Mike Doughty’s stream-and-consciousness narration… there’s also no shortage of political commentary on these three songs, putting a bold face on topics most others approach obliquely.

Mixtape 133 • Waba Duba

Fri, 25 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Not unlike fine Swiss clockwork, the duo that calls themselves Yello have been ticking for four decades without missing a beat.

Mixtape 132 • Holiday

Tue, 22 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Just Joans keep it in the family, and they keep it fairly civil, covering their lethally caustic Scottish wit in a layer of pleasant pop.

Asian Dub Foundation • Access Denied

Fri, 18 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Bands mashing together sounds from different musical traditions, usually throwing in some modern electronic affectation, can be hit or miss. Asian Dub Foundation has a long history of hitting it out of the park, and this is no exception.

Mixtape 131 • Chocolate Samurai

Fri, 18 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Listening to Fantastic Negrito is like lifting the lid on a simmering pot to a wonderfully exotic yet very familiar blend of spices.

Joe Jack Talcum • Joe Jack Talcum sings Railroad Bill and Other Songs

Fri, 11 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A sparse yet not simple outing for this member of the Dead Milkmen, including some truly folksy stuff like the title track and “Cool Water”, and surprisingly sophisticated original tracks delivered in the same man-and-his-acoustic guitar aesthetic.

Mixtape 130 • Cowboy

Fri, 11 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Bill Callahan has been wandering the halls of music for quite some time now, his deep voice and aimless arrangements a constant hypnotic presence.

Mixtape 129 • Heroes and Villains

Tue, 08 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

In order to locate the psychedelic rainbow treasure trove that is Joey Joesph, you will have to navigate and defeat countless auto-corrects.

Star Chambered

Tue, 08 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The paper bag sounded unusually loud as the pair passed it back and forth, sharing the dried apricots as they waited in line for the exhibit to open. Once again, their contact was to be intercepted in the gift shop, according to the dossier that they had found taped under the back seat of the Combi. The ornithologist scanned the sky for any migratory species, though they really should have known better. The magistrate felt at ease with the assignment; this was their first visit to Ankara, but the premise behind the Ulucanlar Prison Museum was quite familiar.

Mixtape 128 • What Happened to Delilah?

Fri, 04 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The first wave of UK punk crested and shrank back, but the Mekons are still thrashing and foaming.

Mixtape 127 • Roll Me Mama, Roll Me

Tue, 01 Sep 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It’s easy to suspect Ray LaMontagne came from a recently unearthed time capsule documenting the folkie scene of half a century ago.

Mixtape 126 • Mini Skirt

Fri, 28 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The extremely productive Messer Chups hails from St. Petersburg, Russia, and is currently going through some very heavy surf.

Naked Giants • The Shadow

Fri, 21 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Sometimes you just need a pounding beat and a shout-along chorus, and this is something Naked Giants truly excel at, throwing in plenty of inventive twists and turns to keep the whole thing from collapsing into a steaming pile of riffs.

Mixtape 125 • The Buzz

Fri, 21 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It’s been 45 years since Chrissie Hynde initially hit her stride with the Pretenders, and she hasn’t slowed down for anybody since.

Mixtape 124 • Forgotten Astronaut

Tue, 18 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Matt Sharp and The Rentals have always attracted a stellar cast of musicians to help them assemble their popsong symphonies.

Fantastic Negrito • Have You Lost Your Mind Yet?

Fri, 14 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The essence of R&B, with a soulful vocals that range from besotted to anguished and lush harmonic arrangements covering slow jams, hot funk and everything in between.

Mixtape 123 • Thieves

Fri, 14 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Billy Martin’s drumming makes me think of oxymorons like “precisely sloppy” and “intensely casual” and “red hot chill out”.

Joey Joesph • Smile

Tue, 11 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Covering the Beach Boys’ mythical album Smile from start to finish is not an original idea, but Joesph’s take on the matter is filled to the brim with inventive perspectives on a lost classic.

Mixtape 122 • Warm Brass

Tue, 11 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Soul jazz ensemble The Greyboy Allstars have been around so long they have grown into their name.

Land Man

Tue, 11 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

They had wandered through the town, having left the aquabus in one of the drainage ponds at the I-70 interchange. It had been a dusty drive, and the vehicle certainly could use the soaking. As they wandered through the town’s enormous collection of objects, they felt lilliputian. The dentist rattled the bag of tiles suggestively as they walked past the sign for the World’s Largest Rocking Chair. The typesetter did not hesitate to point out that at 678 inches, it was the tallest chair of any kind in the United States. It was a habit that was both tiresome and instructive. And it never got in the way of a quick game of mahjong.

Robyn Hitchcock • The Man Downstairs: Demos & Rarities

Fri, 07 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A variety of acoustic guitar performances from Hitchcock, of songs both original and by others, which results in a very contemplative sort of musical journey.

Mixtape 121 • So We Won't Forget

Fri, 07 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The world of Khruangbin is made up of velvet sunsets, shimmering dunes, and cool river rocks. There’s also a guitar, some drums, and a bass. And lately, vocals.

Mixtape 120 • She Now

Tue, 04 Aug 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Part of what will be known as the Great Australian Psychedelic Expansion, Bananagun is more incense and lava lamps than strobes and smoke machines.

Mixtape 119 • J Terrapin

Fri, 31 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Jade Hairpins don’t care about your repetitive song structures, man. That’s not how you cram five albums’ worth of material into less than forty minutes.

Mixtape 118 • Look Alive

Tue, 28 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Following a proud tradition of weird Australian pop, The Stroppies give us the sort of incisive harmonic jangle the world needs right now.

Mixtape 117 • All Or Nothing

Fri, 24 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

There is no shortage of consuming urgency to the sound of this UK trio called simply Shopping.

Mixtape 116 • Hard To Explain

Tue, 21 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Coriky is three musicians crumpling up their resumes, throwing them to the floor, and showing you exactly what they can do.

Pretenders • Hate For Sale

Fri, 17 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If you wanted some watered-down drinks type of songs because Hynde now qualifies for an AARP membership, you should probably look elsewhere, because this is true-to-form confessional gritty rock

Mixtape 115 • Born Too Late

Fri, 17 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Habibi is what happens when you spill solvent on the psychedelic garage / surf music / girl groups section of your record collection.

Mixtape 114 • Can't Do Much

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Katie Crutchfield, performing as Waxahatchee, has been slowly and steadily building her repertoire and now her talent is overflowing her banks.

Bang Go The Bongos

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The pediatrician scrambled on hands and knees after the rubber ball. It deflected off the base of the Monument to Fuel Tanker, his imperturbable brass cheer completely unaffected by the collision. The interlocutor looked around surreptitiously. Their aim was to provide some normalcy to the fact that two people were hanging out near one of the lowest-ranked attractions in Grodno while the sophisticated electronics built into their footwear communicated with the satellite and sorted out the problem with the statue. But maybe this game of jacks had not been the best idea for cover.

Paint • Spiritual Vegas

Fri, 10 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

When you make pop psychedelia with an exotic yet indeterminate element, you end up with the musical soundtrack to a children’s television show from an alternate reality.

Mixtape 113 • Trou Noir

Fri, 10 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Double Date With Death are loud and Canadian, and they don’t care if you don’t understand their French howling. They have a double date to get to.

Mixtape 112 • The Juice

Tue, 07 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Well into their third decade, G. Love and Special Sauce still sound like they are in no particular hurry to get there.

The Greyboy Allstars • Como De Allstars

Fri, 03 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Sunny, loose-limbed, and grinning from ear to ear, this collection of infectious and sometimes intricate funk sounds like the songs that play in your head as your foot touches the sidewalk on the first day of spring.

Mixtape 111 • Carnaval

Fri, 03 Jul 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It took Cheo a couple of years to get back into his usual Latin-flavored slinky tinkles after leaving his previous band, but we’re all glad to hear he’s returned.

Mikal Cronin • Switched-On Seeker

Tue, 30 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A fully synthesized version of Cronin’s previous album, this retake offers the same moody melodies as “Seeker”, this time filled to the brim with the warble and saw of old-tyme synthes.

Mixtape 110 • Walk Don't Run

Tue, 30 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re wondering if Acid Tongue is about having a particularly caustic wit, or about some sort of psychedelic dosage, the answer is yes.

Khruangbin • Mordechai

Fri, 26 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Texas trio returns with their very specific blend of surf, psychedelia, and exotic spice, but this time around they’ve dropped the “instrumental” part by adding gloriously subdued vocalizations to some of the tracks.

Mixtape 109 • Digger

Fri, 26 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Go ahead and call your band Great Grandpa. You better have something pretty weird up your sleeve.

Mixtape 108 • Jaan Pehechaan Ho

Tue, 23 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If a mermaid learned to play surf guitar, she could give Olivia Jean some exciting competition, at least for a little while.

Mixtape 107 • Dedication

Fri, 19 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Born Ruffians hail from the Great White North, and they have an innate ability to craft razor-sharp hooks out of the simplest of riffs.

Nano Banton • Inna De Bedroom

Wed, 17 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The name should be enough to tune you in, but a more descriptive review would be to say this is deconstructed chiptune jungle dub, all your favorite riddims as DJ’d by the Mario Brothers.

Mixtape 106 • Odelia

Tue, 16 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

They call it Hotlanta for a good reason, but I’m sure The Black Lips have enough bad attitude to have way more colorful names for their hometown.

Cash Money

Tue, 16 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

They had been shot at. They had avoided countless booby traps. They had been served tiny delicate cups of the most aromatic and poisonous espresso. All of these events were framed as interrupted cribbage games. Maybe they played too much. The phlebotomist ruminated on this as they locked up their two-wheel drive all-terrain motorbikes across the street from Kirov Park. The Transnistrian passports had been excruciatingly expensive, but the ergonomist insisted it was justified, for complicated political reasons. The pieces rattled against the cribbage board and the very dangerous little notebook in the messenger bag as they strolled through the trail, looking for a man holding two empty water bottles.

Mixtape 105 • Along the Santa Fe Trail

Fri, 12 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

M. Ward could get by on his smoky velvet voice alone, but he also happens to be a supreme connoisseur of what alert musicians call songcraft.

Mixtape 104 • Manatee

Tue, 09 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It’s edgy and manic and insistent, and it’ll surely drive your lunatic friends to ask you who is making that racket. Make sure you tell them Clifffs is spelled with three Fs.

Mixtape 103 • Old Engine Oil

Fri, 05 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Straight outta Staten Island, the Budos Band has enough energy to power a nuclear submarine for seven months, allowing it to circumnavigate the globe three and a half times.

Ghost Town

Tue, 02 Jun 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The composer stood over the gunwale, pressed the small button, and blew into the instrument, discharging the contents into the dark green waters below. If they had known it was going to be this type of floating market, they would have picked a different watercraft. This explained the unprecedented difficulties when trying to secure their transportation with the Colombo office. The ichthyologist indicated one of the floating structures, and began maneuvering their craft towards it. The composer took a breath and the signal, a brief segment of “Message To You Rudy”, went out from the melodica.

Mixtape 102 • Drama King

Fri, 29 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

As you may suspect, Peter Bjorn and John hail from Sweden, and as you may expect, they do Anglophonic indie pop better than the Anglophones.

Mixtape 101 • Goin' Out West

Tue, 26 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Woolly Bushmen may look young, but they sound like a rusted IROC Camaro with a busted manifold roaring out of the 7-11 parking lot.

Initiative

Tue, 19 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The topologist carefully unfolded the graph depicting prime number frequencies. Across the scrub, the baker was returning from the Unimog, having concluded the search, and from the looks of their empty hands, unsuccessfully. They must have left it in the cab back in Calabar. Wonderful. Together, they considered the placement of the carved stone monoliths before them, their geometric arrangement random to the average visitor, but a clear reflection of order to the ancient people of Alok Ikom, and apparently, also related to the graph before them, with cataclysmic mathematical consequences.

The Fearless Flyers • Tailwinds

Fri, 15 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

“Fearless” is a good word to use for this fully-formed funk outfit, as are “fierce,” “fiery,” “finessed,” “futuristic,” and so many effing others. A blend of precision and groove that does well on repeat.

Chicano Batman • Freedom Is Free

Tue, 05 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

A fluid mixture of influences and identity, with tropical flavors and delicate pop sensibilities layering up with street-tough attitude for some songs, like a leather-jacketed hoodlum holding a bouquet of roses.

Breathe

Tue, 05 May 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The strategist made to pick up a card, then withdrew their hand. A cool breeze, laden with yesterday’s afternoon dust, stirred through the empty square near the Musée Ahmed Zabana, knocking discarded paper cups against the stone table’s legs. The tandem scooter, not something you usually see in these parts of Northern Africa, come to think of it the world, leaned against the bench the investigator slouched on. “Make your move” their eyes implored in exasperation, as the pair waited for the gift shop to open.

The Mountain Goats • Songs for Pierre Chuvin

Fri, 17 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT

No topic is too esoteric for John Darnielle to base an entire Mountain Goats album on, not even the persecution of pagans as a wave of Christianity moved through Europe in the middle ages.

Born Ruffians • JUICE

Fri, 03 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Nailing the indie guitar sound is one thing, but Born Ruffians have become so adept at it that it’s more like lathering it in epoxy, then bolting it down, and adding some rivets for good measure.

Melkbelly • PITH

Fri, 03 Apr 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Sultry, measured vocals are set off against an array of spiky arrangements and instrumental bursts, song parts constantly evolving and mutating, so that little finishes the way it started.

Ty Segall • Segall Smeagol

Tue, 31 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Jealousy is an intense driving artistic force, and nowhere is this more evident than with the recent tradition of releasing a covers album. These selections from Nilsson Schmilsson show a good variety of styles and approaches.

Margaret Glaspy • Devotion

Fri, 27 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Glaspy’s voice is a broad crooked smile, unique in its shape and well-suited for this particular set of laconic jangle.

Undone

Tue, 17 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Musée National stood like a squat block, facing the highway at an angle and mirrored to the left by the library. The hu hu sat inside, waiting in the wing housing the musical instrument collection. The surgeon nervously handled the endoscope case, dusty from the helicopter ride that had brought them to N’Djamena. The calligrapher was clearly nervous but their services would only be required for brief minutes while they inspected the inscription on the inside of the ancient calabash.

Peter, Bjorn + John • Endless Dream

Fri, 13 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Not exactly dance music, but very danceable music, filled with intricate pop arrangements, sly lyrics, and impeccable production.

Disq • Collector

Fri, 06 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Finely crafted pop songs dressed up in rock outfits, shifting moods and approaches with every track.

Cornershop • England is a Garden

Fri, 06 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Tjinder Singh’s easygoing voice and melodies, and penchant for carefree sunny grooves sits well at the center of this multicultural stew, where flute accents weave in and out of the loops.

Social Man

Tue, 03 Mar 2020 00:00:00 GMT

It was a peaceful suburban street, and they had taken great care to select a vehicle that would not stand out when parked along its sidewalks, a gold Taurus wagon. The very familiar nature of the setting — the shading trees, the mottled but well-kept asphalt, the toys scattered on lawns — made it feel like one of the most exotic places they’d been to in a while. The cartographer checked the coordinates on the fancy device strapped to their wrist, but any web search could have found them Brewster, New York. The ethnomusicologist leaned against the mailbox, labeled “Marie”, and scanned the canopy of the tremendous spreading oak planted square in the middle of the lawn, eyes peeled for that squirrel.

Angola Rodeo

Tue, 18 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The pair powered down the sand-skis as they approached the slight concavity in the beach that had been described by the vendor in the spice market. The cliffs of Levera National Park did not seem to be an ideal place for smugglers to congregate, but the actuary would be the first to admit they did not know the first thing about smugglers and their habits of congregation. The blacksmith was better versed in these things, and they didn’t seem to be bothered by where the assignment was taking them. As the morning fog absorbed the last echoes of the recently-killed engines, they marveled at the conical shape of Sugar Loaf rising above the azure Caribbean water.

Tennis • Swimmer

Sat, 15 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Intricate blue-eyed soul arrangements and a heavenly female pop singer intersect into something decidedly sturdy and magnetic.

Clifffs • Panic Attack

Fri, 14 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Edgy and propulsive in a way that fills songs with multitudes of hooks and excitements, alive with nervy energy and unafraid to fit it all in under two minutes.

La Cumbia De La Muerte

Tue, 04 Feb 2020 00:00:00 GMT

“Did you say you wanted FIVE?” asked the turkey-leg vendor, his incredulity betraying the slightest bit of Norwegian accent. The crowds at the Trondenes Middle Ages Visitor Park thronged past as the young man counted the hands available to the pair before him, performed a simple matching algorithm to the five turkey-legs being requested, and came up with a non-computing value. “We’re hungry,” offered the machinist helpfully. The gymnast kept an eye out for Sverre the allodialist. They needed to have a few words with him about the land titles, preferably in the privacy of the sleek three-man catamaran that had discretely brought them here. The half-darkening of the sky that passed for night at these latitudes meant the usual tactics were out and they would have to convince him to come willingly.

Dan Deacon • Mystic Familiar

Fri, 31 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

If you grew up on videogames, the frenetic multilayered synths will sound like the final moments of a big boss battle. If not, it sounds like a bunch of live Casio keyboards being sent down the garbage disposal. In a good way.

Black Lips • Sing In A World That’s Falling Apart

Fri, 24 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Black Lips are like looking outside the bar window and seeing country and punk having an argument then a fistfight.

Il Clan Dei Siciliani

Tue, 21 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Getting into Darra Adam Khel had not been easy. Getting into Pakistan was relatively straightforward, with the right-colored passports and decoy suitcases full of Western tourist necessities. The ride towards the Khyber Pass had been less so, and the necessary disguises and bribes to get past the checkpoints that turned away foreigners were more of an ordeal than ordinary. The dusty vehicle, neither truck nor passenger car nor jeep but somehow all three, had been recalcitrant for most of the trip, providing constant frequent minor breakdowns, keeping the mechanic perpetually busy. Now they were on a shooting range on the roof of a well-stocked arms shop, surrounded by dozens of identical shops and shooting ranges. As the linguist lifted the replica Berthier carbine to their shoulder, they darkly thought it would be just their luck, after all of this, to be caught in some rooftop crossfire from other purchasers testing their new toys.

The Just Joans • The Private Memoirs And Confessions Of The Just Joans

Sun, 12 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The Just Joans are the sonic equivalent of tartan… between the girl group influences, the pitch-perfect pastoral pop, and a sense of humor as black and bitter as truck stop coffee, they could not be more Scottish.

Double Date with Death • L’Au-Delà

Fri, 10 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

Excellent garage psychedelia from Quebec that transcends any language barrier with its insistent guitars, lush textures, and thundering drums.

Leap Year

Tue, 07 Jan 2020 00:00:00 GMT

The cryptographer tried to once again estimate the circumference of the lighthouse, asking the question aloud and then naming best guesses. The compulsion to know these geometric factors was strong. The agronomist successfully prevented their eyes from rolling. The history of this place was more interesting, having provided a high point from which to shine a light for centuries, currently for Estonia but briefly for the Kingdom of Torgu. That last bit of trivia was relevant because they were here to meet with the self-appointed Official Court Jester, who had requested they journey to this location on a rented tandem bicycle. They had also requested ice cream, “any color except white.” It waited in a cooler strapped to the bicycle’s ample frame.

Juliana Hatfield • Sings The Police

Fri, 15 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The source material is brilliant, but the interpretations are so uneven that it’s more like “Juliana Hatfield’s Wax Museum of Songs by The Police”.

Sean Henry • A Jump from the High Dive

Sun, 03 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Another solo pop genius wunderkind, blasting it out of the water with a summery mix of rock and psychedelia.

Omni • Networker

Fri, 01 Nov 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A strange confluence of influences, with a lot of dynamic arrangements and plenty of weird hooks that shouldn’t work but are lethally effective.

The Schizophonics • People In The Sky

Thu, 31 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Hot and bothered garage psychedelia, squeezing every last erg out of frantic guitars, galloping bass, pounding drums, and desperate vocals… not exactly ground-breaking, but certainly ass-shaking.

The Shivas • Dark Thoughts

Wed, 30 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Psychedelic surf music from Portland, impossibly catchy and off-the-cuff, built on riffs that bludgeon you like a deliciously dense spongecake.

The Growlers • Natural Affair

Tue, 29 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

You might expect rowdy blues, or thrash-worthy hardcore from the name, but this is some very creative indie rock, using your standard ingredients yet somehow wringing out a distinctive texture and taste.

Into the Water

Tue, 29 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The screen door banged against the frame of the small building that was once Cisco, Utah’s non-bustling post office. It’s like a ghost town abandoned by the ghosts, mused the cinematographer. Whatever once haunted this place left out of boredom. Meanwhile, the blacksmith methodically tapped the foundation along the perimeter of the building. They had brought the infractometer over from the side-by-side they had arrived in, but sometimes the old ways worked best. The rhythm etched out a Namibian bossanova that had been popular in the ‘70s. The entrance to the silo complex had to be near.

Lakou Mizik • HaitiaNola

Mon, 28 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A simmering stew of cross-cultural influences, as the African and Creole sounds of Haiti blend with New Orleans’ own unique funk. The results are as energetic and danceable as you’d expect

Fly My Pretties • The Studio Recordings

Sat, 26 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A disparate assemblage of New Zealand musicians yielding a disparate assemblage of styles, from dusty ballads to reggae whimsy to downright funk.

Black Marble • Bigger Than Life

Fri, 25 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Analog synthesizers still sound like the shiny plastic future, even if they’re likely older than the young man fiddling with them in the California sunshine.

Carnage Bargain

Tue, 22 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Would the tour of palaces never end? Having visited several monarchical residences, the cobbler had become habitually underwhelmed with the perpetual ostentation. Taking a seat at a padded bench to admire the mosaics of Dar al-Makhzen, the topologist hummed a Balkan square-dancing melody. The ancient Land Cruiser that had brought them here, well-cared for and highly-modified, sat in a modern parking lot that clashed with the surrounding Moroccan geometry. They pretended to take some selfies while monitoring the 360° camera feed coming from the vehicle.

Walrus • Cool To Who

Sat, 19 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Sounding a lot like the heyday of 1990s indie dream pop, Walrus keeps it a little spicy if not very distinctive.

Corridor • Junior

Fri, 18 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Francophonic guitar attaque, brimming with chiming arpeggios, complicated stringular interplay, and words beyond comprehension but not understanding.

Greezy Wheels • Ain’t Quite Like That

Tue, 15 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A mix of country, western swing, rockabilly, and various other semi-compatible genres, paired with seductive vocals and plenty of musical swagger.

I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend

Tue, 15 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Out of all the ways there were to get into Zugdidi — they could have taken the ekranoplan, for example — the agency had chosen the bus. This exasperated the developer to no end. Their gear sat somewhere in the guts of the green behemoth, guarded by six different hardware and software protocols, but it still felt queasy to be so far removed from it. The meteorologist peered across the botanical garden to the Dadiani palaces. Somewhere in there, a nondescript yogurt stand would have a small radio playing Konnakkol techno. They were to purchase two cones and overpay. Instructions would follow.

Mixtape :: Fall 2019 Member Drive

Tue, 15 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It’s all about the Benjamins, or more like the Hamiltons and Jacksons as we play music to encourage our listeners to become funding members of KAFM. We make no attempt to be subtle here.

Big Thief • Two Hands

Fri, 11 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A distinctive female voice fronting a standard indie combo is not the most exciting formula, but Big Thief has a penchant for weird flourishes and unexpected changes that keeps things interesting

Morning Song

Tue, 08 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The carpenter took a leisurely walk around the perimeter. In the weird light cone projected by the light they had installed at the top of the can, the ropes they had used to rappel down looked like the undulating tentacles of a mysterious jellyfish. Outside the cylindrical building that very deliberately resembled an oversized Coca Cola can, the security guard’s radio played Chicago sambas into the crisp Manitoba evening as he idly played his flashlight over the bushes outside. The choreographer stifled a giggle. On one of the ornithopters parked atop the domed top, next to an opening that looked like someone forgot to bring a canopener, a single LED began to blink. The mission was running out of time.

Levitation Room • Headspace

Sat, 05 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Verring wildly from soft-funk to outright garage fuzz, this wouldn’t be out of place coming out the AM radio and windows of a 1974 Maverick.

HalfNoise • Natural Disguise

Fri, 04 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Forward-looking dance funk, the kind of music that immediately makes you grab the closest person by the wrist and drag them to the dance floor.

Temples • Hot Motion

Thu, 03 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Modern electronic soul, richly layered and intricately produced, with decidedly old-fashioned influences from ‘60s girl groups, ‘70s AM radio, ‘80s club hits, and so on.

Sturgill Simpson • Sound + Fury

Tue, 01 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Simpson made a name for himself with introspective Americana, but this injects a confusing high-energy EDM element, with mixed results. I imagine die-hard ZZ Top fans felt the same way about “Eliminator”.

Supersonics

Tue, 01 Oct 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The Sasha river was running dry, and the aerialist maneuvered his craft to take advantage of the fact. As they moved swiftly along the crumbling banks, exoskeletal legs easily scrabbling over the terrain in an unearthly three-limbed gait, they encountered sun-baked sections where a trickle fed a series of pools on the cracking river bottom, animals congregated around them in a temporary truce. They hadn’t seen a human since Saturday, a fact that concerned the actuary more than the dry river, and the attempted distraction of some Guatemalan gamelan techno was not working. In its steel box, the package of Peanut Butter Crunch patiently rustled and awaited its delivery.

Das Clamps • Shit Music For Shit People

Mon, 30 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A rowdy, loving tribute to The Cramps, even rawer and more intransigent than the original, from two women furiously channeling Lux Interior and Poison Ivy.

Negativland • True False

Sun, 29 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Layers of samples, voices, music, found audio, sound effects, and other bizarre elements make up these haunting compositions from the masters of audio collage.

Peach Pyramid • Bright Blue

Sat, 28 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Delightfully twee songs, filled with shimmering melodies, sparkling production, and heavenly choruses.

Bombadil • Beautiful Country

Fri, 27 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Very agreeable folk pop, with clever harmonies and sharp hooks making it the sort of music to bring on a road trip.

Y La Bamba • Entre Los Dos

Thu, 26 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

An exuberant mix of weird rock, Latin influences, and mysterious elements, resulting in some sort of white hot fusion.

Vivian Girls • Memory

Wed, 25 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The girl group aesthetic survives, drenched in spring reverb and distant crooning, and it’s not just unscathed, it’s very agitated and ready to rip throats.

M83 • DSVII

Tue, 24 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Very low-key instrumentals, dependent more on subtle dynamics than on any sort of recognizable or repeatable melodic content. Quite intellectual and meditative.

The Party Underground

Tue, 24 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The accordionist’s boot was tangled in a mangrove root. The deepening dusk of Meads Bay Pond brought with it a soft breeze and an ugly threat of bug swarms. Their chances of getting to the beach and capturing enough glowing sugar crabs were dwindling. The roots, more like underwater dreadlocks, heaved as the booted foot attempted to twist out, the accordion case held high as counterbalance. The technician glared at the spectacle briefly before shining a light on the clipboard. In the distance, a barbershop quartet with a Tuvan throat-singing baritone made it incongruous presence known. The keys to the long-range waterbikes had a floaty thing on them, but they were permanently attached to the metal clipboard, which would sink like a stone. The Governor’s Office back in The Valley would certainly hear about this.

The High Dials • Primitive Feelings

Mon, 23 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A bit of a throwback to the sound of late ‘80s Manchester and subsequent British psychedelic pop, presented with a pulsating dance beat and dreamy multilayered vocals.

Cones • Pictures of Pictures

Sun, 22 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Solid guitar and keyboard pop, on the gentle dreamy side, with whispery singing and sharp arrangements.

David Kilgour + the Heavy Eights • Bobbie’s A Girl

Sat, 21 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Gentle music for a pastoral New Zealand scene, with tappity drums and soft jangles playfully jostling understated vocals.

Babe Rainbow • Today

Fri, 20 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

An extremely diverse outing, with songs cutting across many genres but sharing a generally sunny and engaging disposition, delivered with casual ease and filled with memorable hooks.

Pixies • Beneath The Eyrie

Sun, 15 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Reminiscent of Bossanova-era songwriting, the band continues to make use of twisted lyrics and unexpected melodic flourishes to further iterate on their iconic sound.

Devendra Banhart • Ma

Sat, 14 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Orchestral and very intelligent singer-songwriter music that yields some very intricate arrangements without being overwhelming and overwrought.

Twin Peaks • Lookout Low

Fri, 13 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Indie rock is evergreen, especially when mixed with elements of psychedelia and southern boogie.

Le Big Zero • Ollie Oxen Free

Wed, 11 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Pop jigsaw symphonies, incongruous bits and pieces of songs interlocking together into a hypnotic cascade of rhythms, melodies, and harmonies.

Guaxe • Paraty, Brazil

Tue, 10 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Intensely layered psychedelic outing from Brazil, with a collection of instrumentals and softly-sibilant Portuguese designed to transport you on a multicolored rainbow of spices.

Jamie's Cryin'

Tue, 10 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

There was no official name for this giant hole, this cavern that truly made you realize the proper utilization of the word “cavernous”. Those who knew of its existence referred to it as the “Sarlacc Pit”, while the geologists debated what to call this previously unseen feature in the farthest reaches of British Columbia. The ophthalmologist could not help but recount these facts as they descended into its depths; they were the chatty sort and had barely endured a few hours of self-reflection in the noisy Chinook that had brought the expedition here. The conductor whistled a short melody and listened for the glorious reverberation. The nearest person who could recognize its Peruvian punk origins was 2,524 miles away.

Iggy Pop • Free

Mon, 09 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Still burning bright, this is an interesting collection of material that has Pop veering from spoken word jazz to menacing indie rock. It’s not fast and loud, but it sure is sneering and in your face.

The Bobby Tenderloin Universe • The Bobby Tenderloin Universe

Sun, 08 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The cowboy bandwagon is in full effect as Bobby Tenderloin takes us into a rough-and-tumble universe filled with tragic and entertaining Western tropes.

Frankie Cosmos • Close It Quietly

Fri, 06 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Sweetness and sunshine without overstepping into cloying and saccharine, with chiming guitars and subtle keyboard hooks providing a bed for clear female croonings.

Velvet Negroni • Neon Brown

Wed, 04 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Awkward jams that nonetheless stick in your head on repeat, with highly-detailed production and a decidedly noir feel.

Sometimes II

Tue, 03 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The economist wondered where they’d be if the herpetologist had been available. Probably not prone under a cover of leaves, covered in protective armor, tapping two small bamboo sticks as a ruse to attract a golden lancehead. The rhythm was from the single Nordic folk d’n’b that had played on repeat 142 times on their trip out of the Port of Santos. It had been difficult to find a captain willing to land them on Ilha de Quemaida, so it was not wise to criticize their choice of music for the journey. The epidemiologist was nearby, peering into the carefully held vial and running the numbers on when it would be filled at the current rate of collection, and how quickly they could get off the island once that moment arrived.

Ezra Furman • Twelve Nudes

Sun, 01 Sep 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Furman sounds like he’s barely keeping it together as he blasts through a set of classic rockers, loaded with riffs and swagger.

Caravan Palace • Chronologic

Fri, 30 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Caravan Palace uses old-fashioned swing music for its digital building blocks and emerges with something like audio caffeine

Olivia Jean • Night Owl

Fri, 30 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Heavily influenced by surf music and pre-psychedelic jangle, this collection of songs show a lot of energy and musicality, with Jean’s nicely hyper-reverberated guitar sharing the spotlight with her hypnotic vocals.

Jay Som • Anak Ko

Thu, 29 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Understated but solid set of songs with a strong female vocal presence. There’s a loving interlocking of guitar, bass, and keyboard lines that gives the music a rich and interesting texture.

Redd Kross • Beyond The Door

Tue, 27 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The clown kings of LA punk are back with their (so-far) commercially-unviable yet overwhelmingly fulfilling mix of bad attitude and party rock.

Instant Pace

Tue, 27 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The courier unrolled the blueprints onto the brightly-lit drafting table. The basement of the Gomel Regional Museum of Military Glory was not only roomy enough to house several specimens of large weaponry, but also extremely well illuminated. The historian had mused, repeatedly, on how some of the bigger pieces must have been disassembled in the field then reassembled in here for storage, hence the need for the lights. Upstairs, the gala which had served as their cover for entry continued into the night, the band now striking up some sort of Caspian samba. Quite an elaborate operation, but they needed to machine a new aileron for the ekranoplan, and this was the only place they would find the designs.

The Rubinoos • From Home

Sun, 25 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Straight and true from the source of power pop, the Rubinoos deliver carefully crafted AM radio gems filled with detailed arrangements, sharp turns of melody, and glorious harmonious infectious hooks.

Waax • Big Grief

Sat, 24 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Girl-forward pop-punk with a harder edge, the type where dissonant guitar stabs merge into gloriously harmonized chorus hooks.

Seratones • Power

Fri, 23 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The nostalgic approach strikes gold, as this goes back to the heyday of ‘60s girl groups, with heavenly vocals, shimmering production, and deep hooks that you will have a hard time shaking off.

Ride • This Is Not A Safe Place

Fri, 16 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

With so many new bands discovering and repurposing the swirling sounds of shoegaze, it’s no wonder original trailblazer is back with another collection of guitar-heavy near-instrumentals.

We Do What We Do Best

Tue, 06 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The mason laid a bare hand on the stone block. It was nearly three hours since the sun had set, yet the western-facing brick, part of the multitudinous grid that made up Port Blair’s Cellular Jail, still retained a significant amount of heat. The cryptographer glanced back at the yelp of surprise, but continued scraping a sample into a container with a microchip at its bottom using a dental tool, humming along with Caribbean tango audible in the distance. They were supposed to meet the man with the elephant down at the beach in only forty-seven minutes. It was still unclear why the plan called for such a journey as part of their extraction to Viper Island.

The Devil Makes Three • Chains Are Broken

Thu, 01 Aug 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Americana with a punk-ass louche attitude always makes for a good bawdy time.

I Need You To Be Sweet Like Sugar

Tue, 30 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Shrugging through the rose thorns, protected by a heavy leather apron, the blacksmith adjusted the thick gloves, proof against stray hammers and cinders but well-worn enough to allow the gentlest of movements. A stem was carefully pincered and brought in view of the entomologist’s face, who scanned it for aphids. Across Sarmiento Park, a teen herd’s boombox gave voice to an excited Córdoban DJ, announcing the latest from the latin bhangra scene. A traffic cop was nosing around their parked Alfa Romeo, assuming it was just another family sedan that forgot to feed the meter.

Dude York • Falling

Sun, 28 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It’s an old recipe but it never fails: Mix some high-energy guitar rock, the kind with chuggy riffs, and put a female voice strong enough to withstand the maelstrom on top.

Violent Femmes • Hotel Last Resort

Sat, 27 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

This is kept stripped-down and acerbic, completely aligned with the band’s original punk-folk ethic.

B Boys • Dudu

Fri, 26 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

WIth their minimalist riffing, straight ahead drumming, and disaffected vocals, this band sounds so much like Parquet Courts I had to check that it wasn’t a side project

Sick Server

Tue, 23 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The parade stretched through the downtown area, its colorful participants a completely normal distribution of small-town denizens. The statistician knew otherwise. They stood waving from the platform of the float, their flysuits carefully integrated with the diorama to give the appearance of animated mechanical humans. All they needed to do was get within twenty feet of The Mayor, and the technology built into the platform would do the rest. The imagineer adjusted the EQ on the float’s sound system, giving the Estonian techno which poured from the speakers more high-end sparkle. The crowd reacted favorably, some of them breaking out into dance.

Mutagénicos • 3

Sat, 20 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Straight up garage-billy from Spain, filled with surf rock, psychedelic, and British Invasion references. The vocals are in Spanish, but the bad bad attitude is unmistakable.

Generationals • Reader As Detective

Fri, 19 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Electronic drums, layers and filigrees of keyboards, and falsetto choruses make for some glossy synthesizer soul music that wouldn’t be out of place on a late Eighties dance floor.

Okey Dokey • Tell All Your Friend

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It’s indie pop, but it’s also heavily inflected with soul, country, R&B, western swing, and a bad attitude.

Real Or Not

Tue, 16 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The baker took one last look at the cake, sitting on its gold-rimmed stand on the veranda, the carefully cultivated gardens surrounding the Palacio Rioja visible in the background. If it weren’t for the two backpack stealthcopters leaning against the railing, it would be Instagrammable, hashtag noneofyourbusiness. The architect finished the final touches, and gave a silent nod. In a smooth motion, the two of them had their packs on and had plummeted over the edge, carefully angling away to not disturb the icing.

Melvins + Shitkid • Bangers

Mon, 15 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A collaboration of bad attitudes. The Melvins are the more disciplined of the two here but everyone’s affinity for big surly rock is running at 150%

Kyle Craft • Showboat Honey

Sun, 14 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

This is salty, and tangy, and spicy, and sweet, like the musical equivalent of a Mexican tamarind candy. It sounds so Sixties and Seventies that it must be from Today.

Gauche • A People’s History of Gauche

Sat, 13 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Spiky little numbers filled with quicksilver guitar lines, the occasional horn section, punky drums and bass, and sing-song female vocals that sound like someone making fun of their bullies.

METZ • Automat

Fri, 12 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

This is heavy pounding music that is pounding and heavy, also distorted, and pounding and heavy. Somewhat repetitive, but some of us like it like that, and pounding, and heavy.

Imperial Teen • Now We Are Timeless

Fri, 12 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Incredibly smart power pop overflowing with fat analog synth lines and enough earworms and hooks to launch a sonic fishing expedition.

Keen For Kick Ons?

Tue, 09 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A soft Texas breeze ruffled the grass along the banks of Belton Lake. Why not Lake Belton? wondered the hydrologist. Behind the trees, the aviator finished securing the paragliders. They had arrived with two, but would be leaving with three, which added a true twist to the logistics. Across the water, the sounds of Jamaican country music could clearly be heard coming from a raucous campsite. They were about 300 feet away, and had not been part of the plan. But if there were to be witnesses, then let them be the inebriated type.

Groove Them Move Them

Tue, 02 Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The chauffeur peered at the rear-view mirror. The scattered reflection from the rain-slicked A7 revealed only headlights, no politely alarming Luxembourg police flashers. The Corniche bulleted down the roadway, the flutter of its diplomatic flags the only sign that it wasn’t standing dead still. Some miles away, in Ettelbruck, the authorities were coming to the conclusion that the altercation at Chez Fred had been a distraction. In the back seat, the jeweler closed the briefcase, satisfied with its contents.

Lala Lala • Sleepyhead

Fri, 28 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Crafty pop punk, brimming over with chunky guitars, layered female vocals, and lots of sneering.

Hot Chip • A Bathfull of Ecstasy

Tue, 25 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

At one time, electronic soul felt like the future of music, but here is Hot Chip doing just the same thing in 2019 and it feels nostalgic.

Dumb Myself Down

Tue, 25 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The luthier adjusted the direction control of the four-legged arachnoform lumbering above the forest of Oro Bay. The spherical contraption had been difficult at first, but proved to be intuitive in guiding the transport’s spindly hissing legs across the varied terrain. Behind the padded seat, the cartographer consulted screens and printouts. The purple spruce should be visible soon. A single trunk would yield over a hundred cello bows, worth millions in the underground market. They were there to make sure it remained just another tree.

black midi • Schlagenheim

Fri, 21 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Insistent angular weirdfunk, songs that sound like tape loops that have fallen out of order and yet maintain a diligent desire to be songs.

Palehound • Black Friday

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Nice indie guitar sounds, with whispery vocals and a meandering melodic spirit.

The Mattson 2 • Paradise

Wed, 12 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A set of guitar-centered mid-tempo numbers that live somewhere in the region staked out by jazz, funk, and soul.

Cattails

Tue, 11 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The catamarine knifed silently upstream, its passage discernible only as a faint twin wake on the surface of the river. Up ahead, the sonar array was already picking up the turbulence from the Mbocaruzú falls, the staccato warning pings slicing neatly between the Mozambique big-band swing being piped into the earpieces. In their individual pods, the cartographer and the miner reviewed their maps, surveys, and orders. Up ahead, behind the rushing down-flow of the water and completely out of sight, a set of steel doors silently opened and awaited the pair’s arrival.

Prince • Originals

Mon, 10 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Songs that the Purple One wrote for others, as performed by the person who wrote them. A good set of well-produced demos, but nothing that should have been released a long time ago and mostly of historical interest.

French Vanilla • How Am I Not Myself?

Fri, 07 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Hot-as-fire punk disco party with a raging saxophone and urgent female vocals.

Dead Of Night

Tue, 04 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Once above the canopy, it was impossible to see the green-winged hang-gliders that the archeologist and the mercenary had used to enter the Antananarivo bird sanctuary. Going through Customs had been dicey, the parts for the flying machines had been dispersed with various kinds of unassembled patio furniture, but the quality of the materials still stood out. Fortunately, the mercenary had brought up the Madagascar goth metal scene and distracted the functionaries into stamping passports and waving them through. They hadn’t even asked about the Geiger counter.

Psychedelic Porn Crumpets • And Now for the Watchamacallit

Sat, 01 Jun 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The name promises so much, and the band overdelivers. The continent of Australia is awash in lysergic excursions lately, and this is one of the finest.

Jr. Jr. • Invocation / Conversations

Fri, 31 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Delicious pop conconctions, loaded with clever production flourishes and infectious melodies wrapped around a soulful core.

Running Like A River

Tue, 28 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

There wasn’t enough room on the narrow boat for the botanist to take out a handkerchief and wipe their brow. The square head vessel, slicing through the water on its way to the Phong Dien Floating Market, looked to be laden with mangos, but that was a ruse. The pyramids that piled the boat only a had a skin a single mango deep. Underneath were piles of something with about the same density as mangos, but much much more valuable. The captain twisted the knob on the cabin radio on hearing some narcopolka, the device’s limited capacity making the sound increase not in volume, only in distortion. The sun sparkled off the water, a thousand heat lasers evading the shade thrown by the wide straw hats they wore.

The Aggrolites • Reggae Now!

Mon, 27 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It’s not ska, and it’s not rocksteady, but it’s definitely Jamaican and powerfully dancy — you can call it “69 Reggae” after the year of its initial popularity.

Cate Le Bon • Reward

Fri, 24 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Supremely introspective and carefully arranged, this collection of songs that range from lushly orchestrated to uncomfortably angular makes for a great moody journey

Big

Tue, 21 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The archivist’s breath misted in the freezing vault as gloved hands lifted the metal canister off the shelf. Getting to Greenland had not been trivial, driving the snowcats to Nuuk undetected had been a challenge, and breaking into the Katuaq Cultural Centre’s secret collection room, dug out of the permafrost, could be described as difficult. Now, locating the footage was close to impossible, given the hundreds of linear meters of shelving that were visible. The producer unspooled the first few feet off the reel, peering up through the film to the overhead light. The muffled sound of Persian hip-hop could be heard from the theater above. Maybe it was not so impossible.

Com Truise • Persuasion System

Mon, 20 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

One time, this robot arm at the plant started going haywire, flailing around, it was going to kill someone. We played it some Com Truise and it calmed right down.

Imperial Wax • Gastwerk Saboteurs

Fri, 17 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

After serving 11 years backing Mark E. Smith, this bands breaks out into a dark rock sound, thrilling with its edgy energy and monster riffing.

Nots • 3

Thu, 16 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Mosh pit melodies for Daleks. Aggressive hardcore beats, with theremin, snarky bass, and chanting vocals instead of distorted guitar.

CJ Ramone • The Holy Spell…

Tue, 14 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Once a Ramone always a Ramone, one supposes, but this is closer to Southern California chug-core than gritty Queens punk. Nonetheless, a fun time.

Crazy Energy Night

Tue, 14 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The earth rumbled into an appropriate angle of repose as the bucket wheel ground to a halt. On the ground, the sapper raised an arm to signal to the operator, sitting high above in an air-conditioned cab as disproportionately tiny as a brontosaurus brain. The sounds of Taiwanese ragtime could be heard on the earpiece now that the excavator had stopped digging into the hard Upper Peninsula soil. This machine was capable of extracting tons of copper ore in a single hour, but now it was digging for something far more valuable.

The Woolly Bushmen • In Shambles

Sun, 12 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

This Florida garage-rock combo provides complete party in audio format, featuring regrettable debauchery, frenzied dancing, and a desire to not have the fun ever end.

Daddy Long Legs • Lowdown Ways

Fri, 10 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Having the word “daddy” in your band’s name is a tough bar to clear, and these guys have just the type of delta blues sleaze to make it over easy.

Tacocat • This Mess Is A Place

Wed, 08 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It’s catchy pop punk, and it’s clearly female-powered, but there’s more here than rainbow stickers, glorious hooks and riffs, and big puffy girl handwriting.

Little Bit Of Life

Tue, 07 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The pilot felt the glider’s control surfaces bite into the updraft. The craft smoothly pitched up and right as the surreal Eastern Washington terrain unfolded beneath them. The plucky strains of a Bolivian polka filled the small cockpit, the whistling of the wind no true competition. Facing backward, the specialist peered at the techmapper. Somewhere below, there was something messing with the surveillance satellite and downing any powered aircraft that dared approach. Up ahead, the clouds were bunched up in a way any seasoned traveler of the skies could tell was just. not. right.

Versing • 10,000

Sun, 05 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Focused on the guitar but not so much in keeping things in normal scale systems, this band punches through some heavy dissonance to make for memorable riffs.

Big Thief • U.F.O.F.

Fri, 03 May 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Mysteriously complicated folk music, with the sort of lush guitar arrangements and ethereal vocals that brought 4AD to prominence 30+ years ago.

Work

Tue, 30 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The mechanical harvestman towered over the fig grove, its spindly arms tucked underneath as it towered over the fruit trees. The cryptobotanist aimed the infrared reader at the edge of the cultivated land, where the real Bhutan took over, hoping for even a quick glimpse. The landscape gave nothing in return. The operator’s headphones leaked the sound of some Turkish reggae, bounced from a satellite to overcome the foreboding mountains that ringed the valley. They both had patience to spare. The beast they were seeking had only one food source, located right here, and everyone’s gotta eat.

Chevrolet Van

Tue, 23 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The landtrain rumbled over something bumpy. Probably a hill, thought the conductor, as they made their way down the gently swaying aisle, digital holepuncher out, ready to process the ticket. The passenger, sole occupant of the car, sat oblivious, staring out the window at the landscape rushing twenty feet below, the faint sounds of some Slovakian cumbia leaking out of the expensive earbuds. “Ticket please?” The passenger startled, and reached for the sleek titanium briefcase, its embedded digital timer declaring to everyone that it held no ordinary cargo.

Cayucas • Real Life

Fri, 19 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Clever pop songs, filled with good hooks and ready for mixtapes

Warranty

Tue, 16 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The first mate adjusted the sails, letting out some wind to keep both skids on the sand. The sun shone down like a hole punched in a blast furnace someone painted blue, the radio broadcasting its gypsy salsa above the hiss of the sandmaran's travel. Leaning on the tiller, the captain let out a yell of warning as they crested a dune, gaining air for a brief moment. They still didn’t have a plan for replacing the statue, but they had a thousand miles of desert to work something out.

The Budos Band • The Budos Band V

Mon, 15 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A completely international approach to music, with influences ranging from funk to afrobeat to Balkan brass, blurring genres and locations in a glorious celebration of groove.

Fontaines D.C. • Dogrel

Fri, 12 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Razor-sharp post-punk delivered with a disaffected Irish brogue. Very smart on many levels, recalling The Fall when they were at their most musical

Pais Nublado

Tue, 09 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The mechanic reached deep into the tool bag, knowing the required spanner would be at the very bottom. The clanking briefly drowned out the strains from the radio, its signal relayed every 500 meters by the commpods they had dropped on the way. Carefully fitting the business end of the tool between the rear set of treads on the boring machine, they found themselves exclaiming out loud “actually, I think it’s pretty interesting.” The surveyor, measuring the long tunnel behind them with an x-ray transit, looked back briefly, by now used to such outbursts. The cavern should be another two miles down.

Øzwald • Sweet Delirium

Sun, 07 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Sparkling gems, with great ‘70s AM radio hooks and harmonies and incredibly detailed production.

Drunken Prayer • Cordelia Elsewhere

Sat, 06 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

There’s a handful of acts that can stand out in the vast prairie that makes up modern rural American music, transcending strummy acoustic guitars and introspective lyrics to make something deeper.

John Vanderslice • The Cedars

Fri, 05 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

A meticulously crafted release, with extreme attention to detail and a great sense of cohesion despite a wide variety of sounds… destined to be a classic.

Big Boss Man

Tue, 02 Apr 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The engineer looked through the diminishing dawn murk and spotted the specialist’s orange scarf. The sound of the balloon-tired swamp bikes spread through the Estonian bog like hot molasses, obscuring their location but not their presence. Unnoticed in the bike’s twin V mud-wakes, a nearly-vertical black snorkel tube trailed the pair.

Orville Peck • Pony

Fri, 22 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Old fashioned haunted country music… Orville Peck howls, croons, and yodels in a way that is extremely dramatic, yet never quite goes over the top.

Buoys

Tue, 19 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I have never been so uncomfortable, thought the hacker as they strained to match the wires in the fusebox, their head inches from one of the combine’s many potentially lethal harvesting blades. The lookout’s shadow was barely visible against the hangar door. Straining to clip the blue wire into the scanner, they heard a soft call and nearly lost an ear before remembering their uncomfortable position.

Cheye Calvo

Tue, 12 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The Cadillac engine roared with naked abandon behind the driver. It was the familiar rumble of the seven-liter-plus workhorse, but its power was unleashed on a propellor instead of a bulky automatic transmission. At the airboat’s prow, the tracker kept an eye on the reeds that protruded in clumps from the murky water. Barely audible on the comm link were the strains of some forgotten psychedelic blues. A promising glint along the mangroves gave hope they had found the downed satellite. It turned out to be the stare of a brooding twelve-foot alligator, unwilling to leave the scene. The search continued.

Mixtape :: What's My Number?

Tue, 12 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

They are everywhere, and some of them are downright weird. My downstairs neighbor once told me only prime numbers could be trusted, but he held a reserve of disdain for 2, which he claimed was too prime for its own good. A big appreciative shout out to Bam Bam, Lily and Generoso, and Redlands Ron for their on-air contributions, and anyone who may have pledged online before or after the show.

Delicate Steve • Till I Burn Up

Sun, 10 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Quite the military parade, a non-stop set of marching songs for liquid guitar and drum machine.

Futurism

Tue, 05 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The keypad beeped softly as the astronomer keyed in the coordinates. It was deepest darkest night on the altiplano, the stars above an unfamiliar configuration for those born to northern skies. The physicist tapped their pencil against their favorite clipboard (the metal one), the coffee-stained papers clipped to it showing the revised calculations for the Hole In The Sky. Over the tinny intercom, hacked because both had forgotten to bring a speaker, a particularly ironic song choice began to play, making them instinctively share a knowing glance.

Frankie and the Witchfingers • Zam

Fri, 01 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Original psychedelic riff rock is an oxymoron … what matters is the ability to get you off your seat, which this band has aplenty

Telekinesis • Effluxion

Wed, 27 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

An unusually sharp pop sensibility keeps this outfit from blending into the background, with rough-and-tumble rocking.

Pom Poko • Birthday

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Norwegian death pop worthy of Dave Brubeck with its catchy off-meter hooks takes you through a rainbow-colored tunnel of sharp candy shards.

Around Part 1

Tue, 26 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The specialist carefully manipulated the waldoes linked to the robotic arms in the front of the submersible. The pilot peered out of the top dome, the glare of the spotlights illuminating the complex structure of the oil rig but the visibility of this part of the Gulf of Mexico not allowing much to be seen past the first couple tangles of girders. A single wire tethered the craft to the surface, its sole purpose safely delivering the radio signal carrying its obscure music and coded instructions past fathoms of seawater. The robot arms clasped the watertight bale of Oaxacan tamales tightly. The mission was only half over.

Martin Frawley • Undone At 31

Fri, 22 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Martin is baring his soul, exposing his darkest secrets in a whispered croon, here inside this closet.

Mixtape :: Picturebook

Tue, 19 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

I’m not going to deny the synesthetic appeal of songs with words about pictures, but there is something additionally poignant about the mood created that seems to stand out. The images called forth serve a variety of purposes, from the reminiscent to the hedonistic, but just like your family album, the whole thing works out because it has to.

Power Chords

Tue, 19 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The driver felt the leads tremble under their hands. The navigator clung resolutely to the sled, keeping an eye on the white horizon of the Wexford hills as they put some miles between themselves and the Monongahela. The only sound besides the rushing skids on the snow and the panting of the dogs was a faint crackle of song leaking from the driver’s earpiece. The heist had been a success; behind them, a net filled with silver Mylar balloons trailed and bobbed in the generated midnight wind.

Shook Twins • Some Good Lives

Sun, 17 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Solid songs that mix a generous dollop of traditional country elements with a big scoop of indie pop.

Anemone • Beat My Distance

Fri, 15 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Heavenly melodies, luscious harmonies, over-chorused guitar jangles, and a sunny sparkling delivery make this suitable for ‘90s 4AD fans.

Darwin Derby

Tue, 12 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The thin Nebraska ice crackled ominously as one of the occupants of the well-appointed tent leaned back on their recliner. They peered at their line, descending into the near-freezing water and vibrating sympathetically to the sounds of the radio. The other ice-fisher threw a log on the fire, pausing in recognition at the song before smiling and turning it up.

Panda Bear • Buoys

Fri, 08 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Multilayered excursions into the analog and digital realms, blurring everything into a psychoactive tapestry.

Headin West

Tue, 05 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The vessel floated silently across the Mississippi, as silently as a hovercraft possibly could, which was not very silently at all. The two occupants of the walnut-paneled bridge listened intently to the sounds of the radio above the drone of the fans, one of them spinning the wheel with wild abandon, the other plotting an imaginary course over river and land using a nubby pencil and printed map. The sextant lay unused, for it was, after all, night.

Ladytron • Ladytron

Fri, 01 Feb 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Eminently danceable and frequently dark, this is what robots put on to seduce each other

I Know What It's Like

Tue, 29 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It was a jam-packed evening, and we even got to fit in a request for Mission of Burma for Generoso and Lily, listening over the satcom from their armored zeppelin thrumming over the Iowa cornfields. Also: the world needs more Franklin Bruno.

Mike Krol • Power Chords

Sun, 27 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Punchy and punch drunk laments wrapped in glorious blankets of fuzz and overgained vocals.

Wolf + Moon • Before It Gets Dark

Sat, 26 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Well-produced synth / indie pop, with clear female vocals and a variety of styles, from dance-floor anthems to wispy desert ballads.

Swervedriver • Future Ruins

Fri, 25 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Hailing from the original wave of shoegaze, the band delivers the expected dosage of swooping guitar amidst dream-state vocals and rock rhythms

Sandman

Tue, 22 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The usual random process of Lacking Selection has yielded a playlist that will trigger recognition in Nick Lowe fans, without actually playing any Nick Lowe. It also yielded a set in the second hour that went from “Fantastic” to “Impossible”.

Toro Y Moi • Outer Peace

Fri, 18 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

The beat rules supreme, the instrumentation is slinky, the vocals are coaxing you to the dance floor, and the whole thing says you’re going to be up all night.

Are We Ready

Tue, 15 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Snow was expected, but never showed up. Suits me fine. Surprisingly, this is the third episode of 2019, and I’m warming up to the hectic weekly pace. Thanks to Mark, Generoso, Lily, and Robin for tuning in and triumphing over the depths of midwinter midnight.

Mixtape :: Some Like It Hot

Tue, 08 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

This is SOME LIKE IT HOT, a Mixtape of music about all things that are Not Cold, an hour of songs about heat and warm places, and bands that celebrate this elusive phenomenon. Although sometimes it resorts to extremes, it is hoped that this sonic concoction delivers some measure of imaginary heat to the listener.

On The Sunshine

Tue, 08 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It's a slack time for new releases, but The Lacking Organization still has a tremendous backlog of excellent music from 2018 to work through. Gratitude to tonight's participants, ranging from Charley attending CES in Las Vegas to Sean fiddling with the dial and wondering if he got the right station.

American High • UN Article 14

Fri, 04 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

These lush harmonies with a sharp pop sensibility are hiding a set of biting and insightful lyrics.

Cut Stranger

Tue, 01 Jan 2019 00:00:00 GMT

With the temperatures plunging into the single digits, we did our best to stay warm with piping hot new releases and explosive blasts from the past. This marks not only the first show of the year, but also the first weekly appearance of The Lacking Organization on KAFM. It’s on EVERY Tuesday night from here on out… tune in and freak out!

Local Boy

Tue, 25 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A listener suggested I slip in Wham!’s “Last Christmas” but as someone filled with old-fashioned Lacking Integrity, I politely declined. That said, your host survived the season unscathed. In this episode, we dedicate the Middle Hour to some fine covers. Shout out to Robin in Atlanta for hanging out in the late-night post-holiday gulch.

The Transgressors • They Made Her A Criminal

Fri, 14 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

High octane fuel for your sonic funnycar, this is a set of guitar driven fuzzy twang, straddling the line between country and rock but doing it sideways and lots of attitude.

Fishbelly 86 Onions

Tue, 11 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

It was a relatively quiet night, with a heavy dose of Brazilian music to keep things moving. For some reason, honesty and lies was another theme that surfaced through the night.

Old Time Relijun • See Now and How

Sat, 08 Dec 2018 00:00:00 GMT

What kind of raving madman discotheque is this? I don’t care that the singer yells like a man stuck in a tarpit, I’m staying for the groove.

Metric • Art of Doubt

Thu, 29 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

With Emily Haines’ expressive vocals standing proud and up front, this is a collection of catchy singalong dance rock anthems.

Dead Can Dance • Dionysus

Tue, 27 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

An epic tale set to music, and a whirlwind tour of world musics.

Mar-a-Lago

Tue, 27 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Crisp and clear, and kinda weird towards the end… tonight’s episode had many interesting twists and musical turns, and a certain inability to properly pronounce things.

The Skiffle Players • Skiff

Sun, 25 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Words like “rollicking”, “thumping”, and “boisterous” apply to this fun mix of blues, boogie, and mystery meats.

The Bad Man • Laughing With Bad Teeth

Sat, 24 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The macabre sounds of The Bad Man will appeal to those who like dark carnivals and shadowy ringmasters rasping out bits of polka, sea shanty, ska, and more.

King Brothers • Wasteland

Fri, 23 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Another all-out rock-and-roll assault from Japan … they never get bored and neither do I.

The Brother Brothers • Some People I Know

Thu, 22 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

If you like bands with Brothers in the name, the kind that pluck guitars, plunk banjos, and sing in close harmonies, here’s some more great stuff.

Fucked Up • Dose Your Dreams

Wed, 21 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

You can call them EFFED UP if you like. A solid and expansive set of music that draws from psychedelia, hardcore, punk, rough-cut ska, and many more.

Wyves • R U OK?

Tue, 20 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Strutting around in Seventies duds, these songs get to the heart of the matter in 9 mile-per-gallon, leaded-gas-only style.

mewithoutYou • [untitled]

Mon, 19 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Somewhat screamy post-punk filled with jagged stabs of guitar and a thundering rhythm section that casually locks in weirdly-metered fills.

Mudhoney • Digital Garbage

Sun, 18 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The Neanderthals of the Seattle “grunge” sound remain in top form with eleven angry, buzzing indictments of modern living.

Low • Double Negative

Sat, 17 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This is the old Low turned up to 15. All hail the new Low! Note: This is very noisy and distorted. The machinery is not acting up.

Le Shok • We Are Electrocution

Fri, 16 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Short blasts of raw fury, seething with rage, dirty keyboards, and quite a lot of fun.

Jon Spencer • Spencer Sings The Hits

Thu, 15 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Spencer delivers another trash-talkin’, leg-humpin’, hip-grindin’ album in his particular inimitable style.

Shannen Moser • I’ll Sing

Wed, 14 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A distinctive voice and a careful meandering through the forests between Americana and indie rock make this a memorable set of songs.

Not Getting Your Way

Tue, 13 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

It was a cold night, but things were kept warm by a steady influx of Latin-tinged music and of course, Millie Small’s delightful warble.

Jesse and the Dandelions • Give Up The Gold

Mon, 12 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Thoughtful and delicate, this collection of songs features a variety of near-pastoral pop tunes.

Charles Bradley • Black Velvet

Sun, 11 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Posthumous release for this powerhouse soul singer. Perfect for a ‘70s cop drama.

Iron + Wine • Weed Garden EP

Sat, 10 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A brief taste of Iron and Wine’s evolving style, filling out the expected introspective strumming with updated production and a fuller “band” feel.

J Mascis • Elastic Days

Fri, 09 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A next-generation Neil Young, J Mascis blends massive guitar riffs, introspective lyrics, and a whiny delivery to great effect.

Blood Orange • Negro Swan

Thu, 08 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This is a smooth collection of beats and grooves filled with intricate chord work and surprising vocals.

Interpol • Marauder

Tue, 06 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Overthinking garage rock never goes out of style, and Interpol continues to put out albums that sound just like Interpol.

Brick + Mortar • Meta Meta Etc.

Sun, 04 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Diverse mix of influences, from synth pop to hip hop to plain old indie rock.

Bird Streets • Bird Streets

Fri, 02 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Smart guitar pop never goes out of style, and sharp lyrics make it all the better.

The Holy Knives • Year of the Black Dog

Fri, 02 Nov 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Dark and bombastic, this is full of dragged-out ballads and dramatic pauses for moody rainy evenings

Mixtape :: Halloween 2018

Tue, 30 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This is the HALLOWEEN 2018 mixtape, seventeen carefully curated bits and pieces of spine-tingling scary and thematic. Yes, there was some Ministry. And some Throbbing Gristle, and others

Orlando

Tue, 30 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A good show, with plenty of lively commentary from the listeners over the internets. Hat tip to Generoso and Lily, listening somewhere on the East Coast, for reminding me of the rare provenance of the Fishbone track, and for Robin for sticking it out into the wee hours in Atlanta.

Laura Gibson • Goners

Sat, 27 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Sparse and haunting, this minimal acoustic approach works well with Gibson’s unique fairy vocals.

Carbonas • Your Moral Superior

Fri, 26 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Fast and furious punk blasts that are over by the time you catch up with the hook, keeping true to the Ramones’ quarter-mile aesthetic

Cloud Nothings • Last Building Burning

Fri, 19 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Great set of non-stop rocking from this one-man-band which turned into a full-blown outfit.

Mass Gothic • I’ve Tortured You Long Enough

Thu, 18 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Very carefully constructed selection of cavernous compositions studded with a grandiose feel, fine detail, and moody lyrics.

White Denim • Performance

Tue, 16 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A modern amalgam of fuzz, psychedelia, baroque pop, and over-the-top production, filled with hooks baited with earworms.

Bang! Blues

Tue, 16 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

It was a quiet night. Somehow, three songs with states in the title ended up in the second hour, so I bumped them all to the top for a mini-tour.

Sick Thoughts • Sick Thoughts

Sun, 14 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Short blasts of punk fury. Many unsafe tracks, but the rest are a lot good quick fun.

Calvin Johnson • A Wonderful Beast

Sat, 13 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

It’s a fun party with Johnson, with his deep deep voice, laconic tone, and a boogie-down attitude from the Black Keys’ Patrick Carney

Yowler • Black Dog In My Path

Fri, 12 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Despite the name, this is understated and minimalistic, with sparse instruments and a haunting voice floating on top.

Cullen Omori • The Diet

Fri, 12 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A solid effort filled with gently sparkling guitar lines and subtle hooks, this manages to sound completely retro and current at the same time.

Rubblebucket • Sun Machine

Thu, 11 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Like chocolate-covered potato chips, this mixture of disparate ingredients sounds unlikely but sounds delicious.

Rollercoasterwater • Degauss

Wed, 10 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Angular and glitchy while remaining melodic, this is a labyrinthine set of electronic compositions inviting attention to detail or outright zoning out.

The Love Language • Baby Grand

Mon, 08 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Swirling with electronic highlights, these emotional songs provide multiple layers, angelic choruses, and expressive lyrics.

Tokyo Police Club • TPC

Fri, 05 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Solid collection of guitar-forward indie rock.

Annihilation Song

Tue, 02 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

It’s back to a regular schedule, at least for the foreseeable future, and it’s good to be back with the usual cast of characters. A rare and rainy night in the Grand Valley, perfect for this random gallop through some haphazard old stuff and sparkly new stuff.

Mixtape :: House Music

Tue, 02 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This is HOUSE MUSIC, a special one-hour mixtape from yours truly featuring songs about homes, residences, possibly apartments, and other locations of abode. I ran out of time and didn’t get to play “Stranger In The House” with Elvis Costello and George Jones, but surely it will fit into a future show.

Kero Kero Bonito • Time n’ Place

Mon, 01 Oct 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The off-kilter combination of glossy vaguely Japanese pop and glitching vaguely Japanese noise treatments make for an interesting mix.

All Them Witches • ATW

Fri, 28 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A rollicking ride through rock and roll’s back roads, with fuzzed-out riffing coming on way too loud for the stereo. Good times.

Hippo Campus • Bambi

Fri, 28 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Nicely done collection of funky pop, or poppy funk.

Spider Bags • Someday Everything Will Be Fine

Sun, 16 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Fast-forward punk, with the sort of edge that comes from the current DIY movement, and an unknown spice that makes the songs stand out from your standard barrage of fuzzed out chords and beats.

The Rubens • Lo La Ru

Fri, 14 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Fantastic Aussie rock-pop with a lot of variety, each song having its own strange melodic structure and personality.

Shy Boys • Bell House

Thu, 13 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Very understated, yet completely engaging. Shy Boys live up to their name with this collection of softly-strummed, gently-tapped, whisper-harmonized indie basement gems.

Wild Pink • Yolk In The Fur

Tue, 11 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Alternative rock with a tinge of Americana, the perfect thing to eat up miles and miles of road trip.

All By Yourself

Tue, 11 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The evenings grow brisk as the music gets wilder. Tonight zipped by, thanks to Generoso and Lily, and Robin in Atlanta, for staying up late. Also, a reminder that I'll be out the following two Tuesdays, returning to the air on October 2.

The Purrs • Destroy The Sun

Sun, 09 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Driving indie guitar rock with extra-strength riffs and detailed dynamics, great harmonies, and memorable hooks.

Thin Lips • Chosen Family

Sat, 08 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Rock anthems filled with quirky bits of beat and string, layered with some honey-toned vocals and surging guitars.

Gang Gang Dance • Kazuashita

Thu, 06 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

An intense mix of international flavors and electronic treatments, this album is an exotic transcendental journey across imaginary foreign lands.

Black Cat 13

Tue, 04 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

If you’re having issues with Target not getting the Halloween decorations out quickly enough, “Black Cat 13” is some dark sunshine from Peach Kelli Pop. Shout out to Generoso and Lily for sticking it out to the end, when things got weird just to our liking.

Mixtape :: Machine Shop

Tue, 04 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This is MACHINE SHOP, a special one-hour mixtape from yours truly featuring songs about all the weird devices we humans have imagined and constructed out of musical parts. I’m closing it out with the Smugglers’ “She’s A Machine,” which inspired me to put this together when a search for it revealed all sorts of inexplicable gadgetry lurking in my library.

The Creation Factory • The Creation Factory

Mon, 03 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A pitch perfect replica of what made the British Invasion so formidable. Face-melting fuzz, underwater cathedral organs, warbling vocal harmonies, and so much more.

Jamie Younkin • Did It Anyway

Sat, 01 Sep 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Trumpeter Jamie Younkin mixes standards and her own compositions in this smoky set of songs that feature languid vocals and finessed horn playing.

Bênní • The Return

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Cinematic expressions of synthesis collide and swirl for an introspective instrumental journey. Analog reigns supreme to bring an auditory vision of a future from the past.

Zugzwang

Tue, 21 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

It was a quiet night... I believe an unearthly materializing of liquid water from thin air had people on edge. Elsewhere, the phenomenon is so common it has its own word -- "rain" -- but here in the Grand Valley, it's so rare as to trigger suspicions of alien interference, chemtrails, or bitcoin market manipulation. Sometimes all three.

While The City Sleeps

Fri, 10 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This is my first time seeing the sun rise from the studio. There's been plenty of sunsets, and plenty of times when I was on the air at the time but in a windowless studio.

Since I was guest host The Orbit Lounge and this was not The Lacking Organization, there was more selection and sequencing going on than usual, with the end result being a good hill climb from warm sleepiness to aerobic panic. Thanks to Lisa from Florida and Geoffrey from France for checking in!

Crippling Self Doubt

Tue, 07 Aug 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Well, that was an interesting show. Not much listener activity tonight, though that's OK since I had my hands full with SSL certificate madness in order to finish the Secret Project that is this site itself. Perseverance at the command line won the day (and the small green lock on your browser bar), even if it was interrupted every minute or few with ongoing radio show requirements.

Side note: It is impossible to purchase or renew a certificate without at least two password resets. I'm not sure which of the thermodynamics laws governs this, but it seems to be fairly immutable.

Turn And Smile

Tue, 24 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

After a long absence, the RockaTeens return with their trademark sonic assault, but with the reverb turned down a bit. They kick off this week's show with "Turn and Smile".

Red Baraat • Sound The People

Sun, 22 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A beat-heavy collection of international sounds, this band is literally all over the place in a boundary-pushing mix of afrobeat, bhangra, hip-hop, jazz and other genres.

San San Rock

Fri, 20 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The Thievery Corporation has institutionalized the plagiarism of genres, and this week's dub-influenced opener is no exception.

Buck Meek • Buck Meek

Thu, 19 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

If you think a song about car repairs can’t touch your heart, you’ve never heard Buck Meek. A unique voice and an easy country rock feel.

The Mystery of the Bulgarian Voices • BooCheeMish

Mon, 16 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A sound you could classify as ethereal, alien, or both. Ancient gregorian harmonies collide with Middle Eastern time signatures for something truly unique. Features DCD’s Lisa Gerrard

Grimskunk • Unreason In the Age of Madness

Sat, 14 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Aggressive metal-reggae-funk, which is not something I generally like, but this one has some sort of undermined charm to it.

Johnny Marr • Call The Comet

Thu, 12 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Johnny Marr, who provided his distinctive liquid guitar sound to the Smiths and many others, returns with a solo album that shows not much has changed.

The RockATeens • Sixth House

Tue, 10 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This southern gothic staple returns, with a bit less reverb but just as much agony and attitude.

Maybe

Tue, 10 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The guitarist for Big Thief has a solo outing, and it's truly stellar. "Maybe" is a nice groove to kick things off.

The Essex Green • Hardly Electronic

Sun, 08 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Hooks as sharp as diamonds, girl/boy vocal harmonies, jangling guitars… what else do you need to play this summer?

Snail Mail • Lush

Fri, 06 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Bold effort from this young musician, this set of introspective songs shows great skill and promise.

Calpurnia • Scout EP

Wed, 04 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Some very young Canadians show plenty of promos with this pleasantly bratty set of indie guitar rock.

The Cleveland Steamers • Best Record Ever

Mon, 02 Jul 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Hard-rocking, beer-chugging, smoke-breaking anthems from this Cleveland couple. They can also veer into weird and spooky.

Red Pill

Tue, 26 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

In times fraught with misinformation, Ty Richards implores you to seek the truth.

Jo Passed • Their Prime

Mon, 25 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Somewhere beyond easy genres is this woozy mix of indie soul and post-rock complication.

Ty Richards • Welcome to Flat Earth

Wed, 20 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Another one-man rock act that wears its influences on its sleeve, but it’s well done so don’t take that as a complaint. Highly political.

Ruler • Winning Star Champion

Tue, 19 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A brilliant collection of indie pop gems, featuring the sounds and hooks that made “alternative music” so great in the first place.

La Luz • Floating Features

Fri, 15 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

La Luz takes everything that’s great about surf rock and dreamy girl vocals, gives it a new coat of paint, fills it with high-octane, and dares you to keep up.

King Tuff • The Other

Tue, 12 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

King Tuff clearly has a rock and roll heart, with the sort of grandiose expression that has a southern blues charm.

Cómo Me Quieres

Tue, 12 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I really love Khruangbin, despite the pronounciation quandary they plunge me into whenever I play one of their songs.

Forth Wanderers • Forth Wanderers

Sat, 09 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Wildly dynamic swings of mood from this rock-format combo, filled with sweet chiming vocal harmonies set against dissonance and rhythm.

Beechwood • Inside The Flesh Hotel

Fri, 08 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Good collection of indie rock music, with influences stretching over several decades and a good variety of sounds.

Black Moth Super Rainbow • Panic Blooms

Thu, 07 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Is it experimental psychedelia or is it the soundtrack to a fragmented dream? It is not necessary to decide.

Beach House • 7

Wed, 06 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Washes of sound surround you as half-heard vocals intertwine with half-remembered melodies.

Speedy Ortiz • Twerp Verse

Tue, 05 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A powerful set of guitar pop songs, fronted by sometimes disaffected indie female vocals.

Post Animal • When I Think Of You In A Castle

Sun, 03 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Seriously kinetic, full of unexpected musical twists and turns, and at the same time prone to laying down an excellent drone beat.

Dr. Octagon • Moosebumps

Fri, 01 Jun 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Twenty years later, Dr. Octagon still sounds like the future of intelligent-slash-weird hip-hop

Dr. Dog • Critical Equation

Wed, 30 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The band returns with more of their particular brand of folksy psychedelia. Lots of great hooks and harmonies, as usual.

Drunk In LA

Tue, 29 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Beach House's music always rings as the soundtrack to some brain-warped too-much-party film montage. WIth "Drunk In LA", their song titles are catching up with the vibe.

Rainbow Kitten Surprise • How To: Friend, Love, Freefal

Mon, 28 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Heady mix of folk, electronic and hip hop elements swirling together into something unique and accessible.

Goat Girl • Goat Girl

Sat, 26 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Guitar-centered rock with moody female vocals, with a harder edge and good dynamics.

La Dame Blanche • Bajo el Mismo Cielo

Fri, 25 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A Cuban transplant in Paris, this artist mixes Afro-Cuban elements with modern trap and reggaeton, spicing it up with many other influences to make for a very danceable time.

Hawk • Bomb Pop

Thu, 24 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Solid power-pop outing with an all-star cast… a must for fans of the Yellow Pills series.

Le Rug • Bleenex

Sun, 20 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Bewildering and enchanting solo project that can swing dramatically between lo-fi and supremely nuanced

Makeness • Loud Patterns

Fri, 18 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

An engaging hybrid of analog and electronic sounds, with occasional soulful vocals intertwined in the mix.

Naked Giants • Sluff

Tue, 15 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This goes all over the place, but mostly rocks hard with inventive arrangements and infectious hooks.

Dirtpicker

Tue, 15 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

They're all over the place, but that's what I like about Post Animal. "Dirtpicker" owes much to the Jesus Lizard, especially in its title.

Telamor • Crush

Fri, 11 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

One-man band Tom Hauck is Telamor, with a variety of songs that sounds like they were lifted straight out of ‘80s college radio

Screaming Females • All At Once

Sat, 05 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Fronted by Marissa Paternoster’s dramatic and dynamic vocals, this power trio hearkens back to the DIY indie scene

TV

Tue, 01 May 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Naked Giants remind us that kicking things off with some herky-jerky funk punk beat is never a losing proposition.

Ride • Tomorrow’s Shore EP

Mon, 30 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Washes of fuzzed-out bliss at your choice of tempos

Ed Schrader's Music Beat • Riddles

Thu, 26 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Heady mix of post-punk and electronic sounds, heavy on the bass riffing. Features Dan Deacon on beeps and such.

Car Seat Headrest • Twin Fantasy

Sat, 21 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Dense arrangements make for some slowly emerging indie orchestral music. Disc 2 is the demo versions of the songs on Disc 1.

Chamber For Sleep (Part One)

Tue, 17 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

"Screaming Females" is a misnomer. There's only one, and not a whole lot of screaming in "Chamber For Sleep (Part One)".

Born Ruffians • Uncle, Duke + the Chief

Mon, 16 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Some of that weird pop, this time with a definite tinge of Americana, or perhaps Canadiana, since the band is from Toronto

Tune-Yards • I can feel you creep into my private life

Tue, 10 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Angular compositions and Merrill Garbus’ distinctive vocals, glued together in strange uncomfortable ways, but it all works.

Starcrawler • Starcrawler

Thu, 05 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Straightahead rock, no apologies.

Show Me The Sun

Tue, 03 Apr 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Time has not dulled the edge of this band. "Show Me The Sun" highlights their psychedelic side.

Palm • Rock Island

Thu, 29 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Imagine your Beach Boys CD started skipping but you liked it better that way.

Nightmares On Wax • Shape The Future

Sun, 25 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

If you gotta have some beats, you gotta have some Nightmares on Wax. Moody interludes for slick rainy asphalt.

Loma • Loma

Wed, 21 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Dark and light, sparse and lush, this is an album of dynamics and contrast, fronted by an angelic female voice.

Stardust

Tue, 20 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Funky urban hip hop and soul is not something you expect to come from North of the Border, but here we have Grand Analog, who does it all and does it well.

Kyle Craft • Full Circle Nightmare

Sat, 17 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

A master songwriter effortlessly putting out majestic compositions that will stick in your head for weeks.

Jeff Rosenstock • POST-

Tue, 13 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Great singalong spirit, hot flaming hooks, and actual things to say.

Holy • All These Worlds Are Yours

Fri, 09 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Dense arrangements make for a hallucinatory experience as each song feels like a symphony passing you by at light speed.

Hollie Cook • Vessel of Love

Mon, 05 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Pitch perfect UK reggae from the Slits vocalist, full of heavenly harmonies and thumping bass.

Grand Analog • Survival EP

Thu, 01 Mar 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Soulful beats in the style of old-school acid jazz, mostly instrumental.

Any Kind Of Crowd

Tue, 27 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Even obscurists get to form supergroups, and Filthy Friends is one of the top entries in that category, with membership from Sleater-Kinney, the Young Fresh Fellows, the Fastbacks, and more.

Julian Lage • Modern Lore

Thu, 22 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

High-order guitar instrumentals more concerned with melody and expression than pyrotechnics. Truly ear-opening.

Zsazsur's Real Estate Song

Tue, 20 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Like getting picked up by the scruff of your neck and smashed into a wall of orange Jello, Swarming Branch gets your attention with the warping and weaving of "Zsazsur's Real Estate Song".

Various Artists • Dr. Demento Covered In Punk

Wed, 14 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Take the most memorable weirdness to come out of Dr. Demento’s near-50-year reign and let a bunch of punks cover them.

Spice Boys • Glade

Fri, 09 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

More from this wave of reverb-drenched noisy Swedish psychedelia that we’re enjoying lately.

Beating My Head Against A Wall

Tue, 06 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Did Jeff Rosenstock manage to find an unrecorded Ramones song? "Beating My Head Against A Wall" sure sounds like it, and that is 1,000% a compliment.

Shame • Songs of Praise

Sun, 04 Feb 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Aggressive debut from this UK band features some highly dynamic songs loaded with twisty hooks.

Chris Thile • Thanks for Listening

Wed, 31 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Thile (THEE-lee) is a world-class mandolinist who also happens to have replaced Garrison Keillor as the host of that Wobegon show. Subtle and introspective.

Walt Wagner • Reworks

Fri, 26 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

An interesting set of covers for solo piano, performed live

Sharon Jones + The Dap-Kings • Soul of a Woman

Tue, 23 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Posthumous release from one of the strongest voices in modern soul.

Sail On!

Tue, 23 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

I'm really going to miss Sharon's voice and her uncompromising work ethic.

Mr. Lif + Brass Menazeri • Resilient

Sat, 20 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Cross-cultural collaboration mixes up a Balkan frenzy with dope beats and MC’ing

Liima • 1982

Thu, 18 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

The title and a first listen make you think this is a retro thing, but it is more of a weird synthesis from a group of Scandinavian musicians.

The Pack AD • Dollhouse

Tue, 16 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

Another stunning set of songs from these Vancouverites, full of fuzz and dynamics.

The Decline of Nations

Tue, 09 Jan 2018 00:00:00 GMT

This song by La Louma sure is a catchy anthem for us skeptics and cynics.

Escape-ism • Introduction to Escape-Ism

Sat, 30 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

This is Ian Svenonius’ latest foray, a beatbox-backed recitation of lackadaisical poetry swimming in over-the-top soul delivery.

Ace Of Spades

Tue, 26 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

I think Lemmy would have appreciated Canadian superbanjoplayer Lisa LeBlanc's fierce take on "Ace Of Spades".

La Louma • Let The World Be Flooded Out

Mon, 25 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Intriguing set of well-crafted songs from this solo artist.

Fever Ray • Plunge

Wed, 20 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Sparse and electronic, sometimes abrasive, this project from Swedish vocalist Karin Elisabeth Dreijer can be difficult and/or rewarding.

Diamante Eléctrico • Diamante Eléctrico

Fri, 15 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Rock latino, full-on-boogie, or as they say in their native Colombia, “bugi.”

Cat's Not a Cake

Tue, 12 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Cleary, this is something that needs a song to explain, and Mo Kenney is up to the task.

Makthaverskan • III

Sun, 10 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Swirling and pounding sounds with reverb-drenched vocals from this Swedish “post-punk” outfit

Destroyer • ken

Tue, 05 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Dan Bejar’s own project features his distinctive voice and musical mannerisms, carried over from the ‘80s.

Bully • Losing

Sun, 03 Dec 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Wildly dynamic outfit with in-your-face female vocals. Sounds twenty years old and completely new at the same time.

Courtney Barnett + Kurt Vile • Lotta Sea Lice

Thu, 30 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Such grand disaffection from this US/AUS pairing … my new favorite Kurt and Courtney, providing the weirdest yet most natural male/female vocal duets.

Mo Kenney • The Details

Sat, 25 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A great collection of intense flavors, from easy rockers to bedroom recordings to full-on blasts

Fink • Resurgam

Mon, 20 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Fink meanders through a variety of moody sounds, mostly brooding with flashing patches of sunshine.

Dappled Cities • IIIII

Wed, 15 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Australia’s Dappled Cities straddles the line between new wave and indie, with solid hooks and crystal-clear pop production.

Black Gardenia • Lucky Star

Fri, 10 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Although you can no longer smoke in most live music venues, this will always be smokey jazz, slow-burning or quickly flaring with a lush velvety voice on top.

The Domestics • Little Darkness

Wed, 08 Nov 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Highly melodic and full of dramatic sweeps in dynamics, this is a collection of songs that slowly grows on you.

CFM • Dichotomy

Fri, 20 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Fuzzy solo project from LA fixture Charles Moothart, with a DIY ethic clearly in place.

St. Vincent • Masseduction

Tue, 17 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Annie Clarke’s strong voice floats effortlessly above a dense cascade of synthetic and organic sounds

Various Artists • Like A Version

Sun, 15 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A wildly careening set of covers from Australias Triple J radio megalith. Loads of fun.

The Front Bottoms • Going Grey

Fri, 13 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The masters of punk Americana return with a highly-polished and well-produced effort.

Liars • TFCF

Mon, 09 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Down to one original member, who recorded most of this in the Australian bush, this album sounds desperate and hopeful at the same time with its strange mix of acoustic, electronic, and environmental sounds.

Wolf Parade • Cry Cry Cry

Sun, 08 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Dense arrangements of fragile parts, a wide palette of textures and tempos, and a pervading sense of drama make this a collection of pensive songs

Mister Heavenly • Boxing The Moonlight

Sat, 07 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

If the aliens thought we communicated in oldies, and were trying to send us a message, this would be it.

Reptaliens • FM-2030

Fri, 06 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

An eccentric selection of songs, teetering on the edges of what is considered decent girl-fronted pop.

Phono Pony • Death by Blowfish EP

Tue, 03 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Four chuggy songs showing great promise. From Canada.

Free Radicals • Outside the Comfort Zone

Sun, 01 Oct 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A dynamic collection of mostly-short funky jazz instrumentals, with a full horn section and a driving beat.

Wolf Alice • Visions of a Life

Fri, 29 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Guitars, synths, great production, and pop hooks a-plenty.

Chicago Afrobeat Project • What Goes Up

Fri, 29 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

More modern Afrobeat, connected to the source via drummer Tony Allen. A wild collection of Chicago talents united for a smoothly entrancing session of shorter (for Afrobeat) songs.

Cherry • Dumbness

Thu, 28 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

An honest tribute to stupidity, full of hooks, snappy lyrics, and gorgeous choruses

METZ • Strange Peace

Mon, 25 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The line between a riff and a throbbing structures of pitched rhythm is pretty thin, as these Canadians show. METZ is punishing without being abusive. A Steve Albini recording.

Ephrata • Ephrata

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Dreamgaze shoepop from this Seattle foursome that takes harmonies and production very seriously.

The Flamin' Groovies • Fantastic Plastic

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Cyril Jordan and Chris Wilson reunite to bring back the sound that made the Flamin’ Groovies famous 40 years ago with “Shake Some Action”. A solid return to form.

Holiday Ghosts • Holiday Ghosts

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Garage rock like it’s meant to be, full of barely-controlled fuzz, raging vocals, warbling organs, and four-on-the-floor drums.

The Bronx • (V)

Fri, 22 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Classic LA hardcore served up in a blaze. An aggressive release from an aggressive band.

Rostam • Half-Light

Wed, 20 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The person behind Vampire Weekend’s production and half of Islands’ distinctive sound shows more of his unique sonic signature on a full album of gentle songs awash in analog and digital abstractions and heavenly choruses

Lee Ranaldo • Electric Trim

Sun, 17 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The Sonic Youth guitarist’s solo effort is not as discordant as you might expect, and features collaborations with Sharon Van Etten, Nels Cline, and Jonathan Lethem (on some lyrics)

Ariel Pink • Dedicated to Bobby Jameson

Fri, 15 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Off-kilter washes of synth and gothic vocals amidst psychedelic folk, rushes of prog rock, and incredibly delicate moments.

Antibalas • Where The Gods Are In Peace

Fri, 15 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Great modern take on the Afrobeat genre, with a healthy dash of psychedelic punk.

Tony Allen • The Source

Wed, 13 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Always adaptable and never boring, Allen’s highlife drumming is unmistakable, here set against a backdrop of a big jazz ensemble.

Hazelrigg Brothers • Songs We Like

Tue, 12 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Jazz trio renditions of a curiously selected set of songs. Jimi Hendrix, Bartok, the Police, Led Zeppelin (twice), Steely Dan, and more all get a turn.

L.A. Witch • L.A. Witch

Mon, 11 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Reverb-drenched heavy rock, aptly living up to its name with a blend of rockabilly, surf, and disaffected retro-cool.

Lee "Scratch" Perry • Super Ape Returns To Conquer

Mon, 11 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Returning to the seminal “Super Ape” album after four decades, Perry proves he’s adept at new technologies as well as old techniques.

Esoebo • IV

Sun, 10 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

It stands for “Eclecting Selections Of Everything But Opera”, but mostly smokey bluesy jazzy country stuff with some interesting additional instruments. Pronounced “Ee-so-bo”.

Faith Healer • Try ;-)

Sun, 10 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A variety of sounds and moods from this duo. Yes, that is a winky emoticon in the album title.

The Safes • Tasty Waves

Sat, 09 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

This trio of brothers make a racket that’s a lot of fun, and catchy as hack.

Chad Van Gaalen • Light Information

Fri, 08 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Strange songs, played by one man with a strange voice. Science fiction alienation and lush arrangements make for an unexpected series of sonic twists and turns.

Death From Above • Outrage! is Now

Fri, 08 Sep 2017 00:00:00 GMT

There’s a very straight line between classic rock and this stuff — riff heavy, loaded with hooks and dynamics, and a sense of epic scale beyond the noise that some dudes with instruments could make.

Ted Leo • The Hanged Man

Thu, 31 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Solo effort from longtime pop gem Ted Leo, filled with wicked hooks and his distinctive singing voice.

A Giant Dog • Toy

Wed, 30 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Good collection of power pop, with male / female / duet vocals.

Oh Sees • Orc

Tue, 29 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Relentless, pounding, and subtle beyond comprehension, these songs buzz by like a runaway saw, missing you by an eyelash.

The Fresh & Onlys • Wolf Lie Down

Mon, 28 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Wildly varied compositions, ranging from driving fuzz with vocal harmonies to sparse tributes that sound like they came from "My Aim Is True” outtakes, to outright cowboy dirges

Widowspeak • Expect The Best

Sun, 27 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Moody, semi-whispered low vocals and reverb-drenched guitar twang make for some very cinematic material.

Filthy Friends • Invitation

Sat, 26 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Supergroup featuring members from the Young Fresh Fellows, R.E.M., Sleater-Kinney and Baseball Project, driven by Peter Buck and Corin Tucker’s songwriting. Sounds like what you’d expect it to sound like.

Baby In Vain • More Nothing

Fri, 25 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Danish female-fronted trio with punishing riffage and dramatic vocals

J. Roddy Walston & The Business • Destroyers Of The Soft Life

Mon, 21 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Good southern-tinged rock, anthemic and singalong. Nothing ground-breaking, but top-notch songwriting and production.

El Ten Eleven • Unusable Love EP

Sun, 20 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Synth-driven songs in a variety of moods, emboldened by a careful interplay of vocals and textures.

Whitney Rose • Rule 62

Fri, 18 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

There is nothing about Whitney Rose’s country music that sets it apart from the archetype of a traditional female country singer, but great vocals and top-notch performances by an all-star cast of studio musicians make this a fun listen.

The Districts • Popular Manipulations

Thu, 17 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Anthemic songs filled with dramatic dynamics and playing that ranges between thunderous and ethereal.

Downtown Boys • Cost of Living

Wed, 16 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Aggressive, guitar-inflected punk, led by females unafraid to yell out lyrics in Spanglish… either precisely your cup of tea or an aggravating experience,

Kelley Stoltz • Que Aura

Mon, 14 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

At the extreme end of DIY is DEY — do everything yourself. It’s a unique solipsistic sound, and Stoltz is very good at it, blending a variety of rock, psych, and synth influences into his own sound.

Jen Cloher • Jen Cloher

Sun, 13 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Tight set of songs from Australian native Cloher, a key figure in the Melbourne DIY scene that yielded Courtney Barnett. Brimming with character and fearlessness, this has the feeling of a brilliant debut to a stellar career.

Baby Jesus • Took Our Sons Away

Fri, 11 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Garage rock revivalists from Sweden, guaranteed to make your monkey dance.

Caroline Says • 50,000,000 Million Elvis Fans

Mon, 07 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A delicate and introspective set of self-recorded songs from an Alabama native that sound like they unspooled as Caroline Sallee sat by a Greyhound window, watching miles of Western US highways roll by. Because that's what it is.

Guantanamo Baywatch • Desert Center

Fri, 04 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

The name is jokey but the songs are seriously warped surf-style instrumentals with occasional vocals and other trickery.

Dearly Beloved • Admission

Wed, 02 Aug 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Aggressive sounds from Canadia. Driving rock anthems with well-defined melodies, chugging guitars, and galloping bass.

Sam Coffey + the Iron Lungs • Sam Coffey and the Iron Lungs

Mon, 31 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Dinosaur rock is alive and well here, and Coffey + Co deliver some great stuff that sounds like it came out of a 1970s time capsule.

Stanton Moore • With You In Mind

Fri, 21 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A tribute to Allen Touissant organized by Stanton Moore, who plays drums for Galactic and many other New Orleans institutions. Featuring an all-star cast of NO funk and R+B luminaries, this collection of slickly produced proto-funk has something for everyone.

Pearl Earl • Pearl Earl

Thu, 20 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Reverb- and keyboard-drenched psychedelia fronted by urgent female vocals. Out of Denton, TX, a town whose bands always deliver.

Nine Inch Nails • Add Violence

Wed, 19 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Trent Reznor delivers more biting digial/analog fusion, with dark synth pads abetted by darker guitar tones.

Waxahatchee • Out In The Storm

Tue, 18 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A bold performance from Katie Crutchfield, who bares her heart and rips her chords out in a cathartic explosion that eventually winds down into a somber mood.

Sun Seeker • Biddeford EP

Mon, 17 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Lush pop with strange turns of melody and complicated hooks.

Teenage Bottlerocket • Stealing The Covers

Sun, 16 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

It’s all in the name… fast and fuzzy blow-up-in-your-face pop punk. With an attitude. These songs are all covers, but they’re from unknown/unsigned bands, so point to you, Teenage Bottlerocket.

Magnetix • Live In San Francisco

Fri, 14 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Noisy blunt riff punk from Bordeaux, France, via Oh Sees label Castleface Records. Live, raw, and nearly unintelligible, this album showcases a rare moment in time for this two-piece.

Great Grandpa • Plastic Cough

Wed, 12 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Female-fronted alt-rock with sparkly pop sensibilities that sounds straight out of the ‘90s

Secret Colours • Dream Dream

Sun, 09 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Is it possible to overuse the word “swirly” when describing modern psychedelia? Not at all! This paisley-hued collection of dream and drama will transport you to a kaleidoscopic land of… where was I going with this?

This Is The Kit • Moonshine Freeze

Fri, 07 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Kate Stables is a one-woman tour-de-force, and this John Parrish production brings her talents to the front. Weird time signatures, off-kilter melodies, and quite inventive arrangements.

Lee Bains III + the Glory Fires • Youth Detention

Sun, 02 Jul 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Alabama native Lee Bains III and three other guys recorded these 17 anthems of southern-fried disillusion live to two-track, and the energy is pegging the needle. It’s not a new sound, but it’s very well done.

The Human Circuit • Electric City

Tue, 20 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Meticulously-crafted arrangements highlighted by male-female harmonies, occasional orchestral instruments, and a wide use of dynamics.

Fatso • On Tape

Sat, 10 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

A nice set of New Orleans-style blue funk from this Colombian band on a German label

Shitkid • Modern Music

Sun, 04 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Bratty bedroom fuzz from an out there Swedish woman, this rocks in a raw way, like someone who wanted to build on the sounds of the Flat Duo Jets, the White Stripes, and the Raveonettes, but didn’t actually need a second person to make it happen.

Waax • Wild and Weak EP

Fri, 02 Jun 2017 00:00:00 GMT

Whip-smart hooks, electronic frosting, and a sassy female vocalist make for a good combination.

John Coltrane • Trane: The Atlantic Collection

Fri, 26 May 2017 00:00:00 GMT

About the only thing I could argue about here is the song selection, and that would be pedantic. If you can fit a flurry of impossible notes into whatever other music you are playing, go for it, you can’t lose with any track.

Stop Your Sobbing

Tue, 30 Aug 2016 00:00:00 GMT

You can always tell a Kinks song.

I'll Go Down Swinging

Tue, 23 Aug 2016 00:00:00 GMT

Exene Cervenka fronting Los Straitjackets is a powerful combination.

A Spoonful Weighs A Ton

Tue, 02 Aug 2016 00:00:00 GMT

Now this song weighs a ton.

Sweet Librarian

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

It's a steamy Florida night, and it marks the debut of Julius C. Lacking on the airwaves of WFIT, a university radio station in Melbourne, Florida. The random nature of the playlist is born of a catastrophic home furnishing disaster that hopelessly jumbled the contents of the vaunted Lacking Selection, the music library which Julius has been aggregating for the last twenty years. The process of its re-cataloging and collation, which promises to last decades, will henceforth be known as The Lacking Organization. Let it begin.