In one corner of my basement archives, there is a large stack of tapes I bought two or three years ago, which have proven especially fascinating, to the point that I'm deliberately parceling them out to myself, as sort of periodic "gifts" of really special listening. These are media tapes, many of them raw audio from television or film, and most of those having something to do with the CBS networks. I previously shared a tape of Howard K. Smith and Sen. Albert Gore, Sr. , from this same collection (which contains a lot of Howard K. [...]
"Now, let's check your breathing..." Today I have a lovely little bit of self-help that should be useful to one and all; step one of learning ' Psycholaxation ', which is all the rage these days. You didn't know that you could learn something about it for free from WFMU, did you? Well, worry no more. Relaxation can be yours. Some time ago, rummaging through some dusty old cassette tapes that my mother owned but hadn't played in years and years I came across one entitled "Dr. MacNitt - Psycholaxation", [...]
Showcase the creative possibilities of open digital archives! WFMU and the Free Music Archive proudly introduces a video remix contest called " Sound for the Moving Image: The Past Re-imagined As The Future ." The contest invites artists everywhere to mix video from the incredible Prelinger Archives Collection with audio from the Free Music Archive to create new masterpieces for the commons. The point of this contest is to showcase the creative possibilities of open digital archives like these. VIDEO: HOW TO GET [...]
The following collection of videos recorded in December of 1990 at an Elektra Records showcase is absolutely indispensable for any fan of classic hip-hop. The lineup is impeccable: Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, Brand Nubian, KMD, and Leaders Of The New School. To say that all of these acts were in their prime is understatement; of the four groups, three (Rock & C.L., KMD, and L.O.N.S.) had all yet to release their classic debuts. Thus, all these legends are young, hungry, and have all their creative energies intact, their spirits yet to be hardened by music industry politics and the [...]
Earcandy for your eyes French Kraut/Proggers Aluk Todolo playing live at Saint Vitus in Brooklyn on September 19, 2012. After the break: Merchandise at 538 Johnson and Krallice at The Acheron Krallice playing live at The Acheron in Brooklyn on September 19, 2012. Merchandise playing live at 538 Johnson in Brooklyn on September 13, 2012.
Give the Drummer Some's Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere Reports of the demise of the music-sharing blogosphere have been greatly exaggerated. To be sure, the abrupt disappearance of beloved sites is upsetting, but the reality is that far more blogs that reach the end of the line, do so voluntarily. And the good news, if the current climate is indicative of a trend, is that a number of excellent blogs in recent days have come back to life! Last week I mentioned the return of Aduna Blog . Now I'm [...]
Thanks to my pal Jonathan Herweg for this great video compendium, some of which is completely new to me: Occult Chemistry -- Fire (UK, 1980) Vidéo réalisée par le London College of Printing The Dykes -- 2 Fingers Wide (USA, 1980) Scène extraite du documentaire 'Debt Begins at 20' de Stephanie Beroes Mother's Ruin - Dreamy Teeny (Suisse, 1981) Barchen und die Milchbubis -- Muskeln (Allemagne, 1981) Morceau extrait de l'album 'Dann Macht Es Bumm' [...]
This record was released in 1959, the same year that Hawaii became the official fiftieth state. And as you can see, Frank Hunter and Sam Makia got the memo, rushing into the studio to record a "celebratory" stereophonic long-play. Now that I think of it, I don't remember ever stumbling upon another Exotica LP that even mentions Hawaii becoming a part of the U.S., much less one with the message emblazoned across the front cover. In a way, this surprises me -- you'd think it would come up more often. However, it also makes a little sense if you think [...]
Big thanks to Dominick Colucci for alerting me to this great video of master electronics expert and synth-builder Jessica Rylan explaining her abiding love for her craft of choice. For those unaware of Rylan and her numerous fantastic recordings (both solo and under the Can't alias), be sure to check out the following performance videos as well as WFMU blogger Nat Roe's post from last year on Rylan's deranged destruction of 80's soft-rock/pop earworms that make up her Can't Vs. The World CD. [...]
In high school I used to take the train to The Fireside Bowl after work, and if I had time, a friend and I would hang out outside of a liquor store and get someone to buy us beer, so that I could carry it into the bowling alley in my backpack and we could drink it at the show. The Fireside Bowl was only operating as a bowling alley maybe once a week, if that. Most times, it was a punk rock venue, with filthy walls and trashed tiles hanging from the ceiling from sometimes incredibly [...]
Give the Drummer Some's Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere This post is for those 47% of readers who are dependent on Mining the Audio Motherlode, who believe that they are victims, who believe Mining the Audio Motherlode has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to great free downloadable music. That that's an entitlement. And that Mining the Audio Motherlode should give it to them. And they will support the Miner no matter what and will never be convinced to [...]
Ivan Lee - The Cry Of My Lai (2:51) The My Lai Massacre was surely the ugliest incident of the entire Vietnam war, . The event took place in March 1968 and involved members of the U.S. Army murdering hundreds of unarmed civilians in the Vietnamese village of My Lai. Estimates place the number of victims at somewhere between approximately 350 and 500 people, many of them women, children and the elderly. The awful killings inspired a number of topical country songs about the event, almost all of which, in a position that [...]
As befits the future Savior of Humanity (or at least the Savior of Blonde Russian Gymnasts in the Duma), Vladimir Putin has been extremely busy this past summer. One of his major tasks has involved recruiting new members of the Putin Pals, his protective managerie of super-powered animal agents. Thunk Tank Cohost Jay and I often wondered why it was that the Putin Pals did not have any bird members, when their primary mission will be to defeat the insect forces of MANTIS . How is it that Putin would recruit a Were-Whale before he’d got even one bird? [...]
A dozen years ago, I had a couple of conversations with a young person I knew, during which I mentioned my pastime of collecting, er… passion to collect the recorded ephemera of many years ago. She was baffled by my interest in this, let alone the degree to which I sought this thing out, finding it odd, if not downright weird. At the time, I wrote this essay, as a way of explaining why someone (well, me) would have developed into the collector that I am. I share it here (with a few edits and addenda made [...]
frog general : 1. being amphibious, its meaning also is often ambivalent; 2. its natural enemy is the serpent: e.g. Dante (Inf. C. 9, 76f.); special meanings : 1. frogs are often found on sign-boards and on stone tablets of facades; most probably they symbolize fertility and evolution; 2. D. Thomas : embryo: swimming in the uterus, 'spinning' his body ("a grief ago"); folklore : A. curative: esp. against diseases for which witches may be responsible; B. magic: 1. [...]
by Jessie Brown - The Films Of Guy Bourdin Part of Network Awesome's Fashion Week, Sept 14-18th! Flick through any glossy fashion magazine today and more-than-likely, you’ll be faced with the legacy of Guy Bourdin. This maverick French photographer was no stranger to controversy both in his work and private life, and he singlehandedly changed the face of fashion advertising due to his uncompromising and highly innovative style. Working for French Vogue from 1955 to 1987 where he [...]
I was lucky enough to catch Bill Orcutt and Chris Corsano a few weeks back at Roulette in Brooklyn. Both started out the evening with inspired solo sets, with Corsano performing an incredibly moving and invigorating percussion set that ran the gamut from cathartic free jazz bombast to subtle manipultions of his various drum kit implements (for those skeptical about the concept of a solo percussion performance, Corsano is the person to sell you on the idea) and Orcutt exploring the off-kilter, four-string avant-blues his recent solo work has focused upon to great acclaim (he even bestowed us [...]
Earcandy for your eyes Sutekh Hexens playing live at Saint Vitus in Brooklyn on September 04, 2012. After the break: Pallbearer at the Knit, Descendents at Vitus and SUNNO))) at Power of the Riff Pallbearer playing "Foreigner" live at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn on September 11, 2012. Descendents playing a free last minute show at Saint Vitus in [...]
Give the Drummer Some's Favorite Downloads from the MP3 Blogosphere Who is Hervé Lemaire ( LinkedIN / Wikipedia / Twitter ) and why does he hate music? Though some Internet chatter speculates that there is no such person, someone with this name has been operating as an anti-piracy mercenary via LeakID , apparently since 2007. During the past several weeks, numerous blogs across the Internet have had their accounts suspended at file storage site Mediafire due to a mass mailing of copyright complaints filed [...]
WFMU's Beware of the Blog
New Diarrhea Planet – “Separations”
Sexy Track // “Devil Or Angel” // Lou Doillon
Daft Punk - Lose Yourself to Dance (Simøne Remix)
HAERTS: “All The Days”
