Just added to our growing roster of podcasts: The Ed Shepp Radio Experiment! Have the podcast version of Ed's weekly thematic misadventures, glitched-out interviews, and A.D.D.-ridden pop euphoria automatically zapped to your MP3 player by visiting our recently revamped podcast page.
Special thanks to Volunteer Ed Word for p-castifizing the show!
Since my edit of Dubya's "Night Before Christmas" got included in this month's Download Dinner Bell, I thought I'd point out a site where listeners can download plenty more political edit pieces: the "Truthful Translations" section of DIYmedia.net, which has collected more than 400 audio collages of not just the current occupant of the White House, but of plenty of other politicians. You'll find corrections of the speeches of Bill Clinton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Richard Nixon, Tony Blair, and of course Ronald Reagan, who is the subject of two of the best cut-up pieces you can find on the site: Doug Kahn's "Reagan Speaks For Himself" and Cliff Roth's "The Reagans Speak Out on Drugs" (an excerpt of the video is available for downloading). Kenny G linked to the Reagan MP3s back in February, but there's so many more politicians to explore.
Don't neglect the other areas of the DIYmedia site, though. They've been keeping tabs on the FCC's crackdowns on unlicensed radio broadcasters and the struggles of low-powered FM stations. Check out the site's homepage for their news archives, as well as links to the other collage-laden sections of the site.
My personal favorite political cut-up of the moment, not currently on the DIYmedia site, would be Jonathan Coulton's "W's Duty", which I first heard on Irwin's program. An MP3 of the song is downloadable from Jonathan's site. Also of note for Reaganologists: Ken's Reagan memorial broadcast from last year, which featured more Reagan-themed songs than you can shake a can of poisoned meat at.
Here's a dial scan of New York City's FM band from 25 years ago (MP3). It was recorded shortly after the news of John Lennon's murder broke. The recording was made by an unknown listener, and it was included on our CD compilation, Radio Archival Oddities, Vol. 2.
Here's an audio letter from Benjamin, Wild Man of Hypnosis to his friend Don, trying to convince Don to book his X-Rated Hypnosis act into his Las Vegas club (MP3). It appears that Benjamin never got that gig, as he subsequently followed the career path of all failed Vegas hypnotists, growing a goatee, and reinventing himself as Kevin Stone, Hypnotist to the Stars. All that remains online of Benjamin's failed career as a Vegas entertainer is this website, and memories of a magical evening at the Vegas Ho-Jos, with Benjamin and his trusty sidekick Trixie, spewing confetti from her nether regions. Ah, the memories. At least we can all have our collective asses back now. Thanks, Irwin!
This is the first post in a series inspired by my personal radio listening habits. However, you can relax. I won’t be offering up a “connoisseur’s” list of my favorite radio stations or bragging about my personal taste in music. At least, not exactly. Often I listen to radio as an explorer of sorts. and occasionally I record some of these aural ventures. In this post (and others that may follow) I’ll offer a taste of where I go and what I hear on these radio hikes, such as they are.
Other than the Internet and my occasional purchases of the New York
Times, my main source of information & entertainment comes from radio.
However, what makes my media intake more esoteric than most is that I exclusively listen to AM radio and shortwave broadcasts. I don’t
watch television and almost never listen to the FM band. Generally, the TV content I do take in, I now gather from the Internet.
And to be honest, I occasionally do hear WFMU in the car, but at home
I pick up WFMU on the computer. With 128K MP3 stereo streaming, it’s
far better than the reception I muster with my radios here in north
Brooklyn.
I suppose if I didn’t have all these albums, CD’s and cassettes laying
around I might listen to FM more often, or even subscribe to (god forbid) satellite radio. For now, when I want music I listen to my own. When I turn on a radio I want something else. I want novelty, mystery, and
most importantly something human. Every commercial music station on FM feels like it’s
programmed by a committee of consultants. And even NPR sounds safe
and tested these days. On AM and shortwave you're more likely to hear ad libs, idiosyncrasies,
mistakes and raw conspiracy & rumor that isn’t always processed for
pure potential profit. Oh sure, there ARE agendas and ulterior motives
everywhere, probably just like where you work. Bottom line, most of U.S. FM radio is
all about mindless listening and shameless profiteering, (Oh, and there's usually a few
interesting non-profit stations at the end of the dial.) But AM and
shortwave is about power, language, and cultural & ethnic identity.
The “word,” whatever that’s worth these days still holds power on the traditional static-ridden bands that carry signals far distances. I like that.
Continue reading "Adventures In Amplitude Modulation - Part 1" »
With Howard Stern moving to Sirius Satellite Radio in less than a month, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is stepping up its scare tactics to keep people away from alternatives to broadcast radio. Here is another spot the NAB recently released to commercial stations all over the country (MP3), including the NAB introduction. It doesn't mention Sirius or XM by name, but you know who they're talking about. (Here's a previous post about the NAB's last scare-spot.)
In this spot, the NAB paints an absolute nightmare scenario for its core constituency of male radio listeners: during a baseball broadcast, it's two out, bottom of the ninth inning with the bases loaded, when a hit is headed out of the park - it's going, going, when suddenly the broadcast is interrupted by an a long distance operator requesting 25 cents for the remainder of the broadcast. The horror! What more proof do you need that the good Lord ordained that radio should be free?
The spot is remniscent of the famous Heidi incident in 1968, when NBC cut off a New York Jets game during the critical game-deciding moment so they could cut start the TV version of the movie Heidi on time. The ensuing outcry changed the nature of sports television in the US forever.
Clearly, the NAB sees Sirius as a huge threat. My colleagues in non-commercial radio see podcasting as a bigger threat than Sirius or XM. People who work in radio are running scared, which makes sense, if you see new technologies as a threat instead of the opportunities they could be.
Ahh, the internet. It sucks company bandwidth, blows your productivity at home and in the school library, and there are naked people. LOTS of them. There are also crazy MP3s, weirdo animations, stupid movies, arty things to impress your intellectual pals with, old timey robots, and European football hooligans armed with video cameras. Ladies and gentlemen, I hereby present half an hour of your life that you will never get back.
Mile and miles of vintage arcade sounds
And not just recordings of the games themselves, but the geek-chic ambience of the arcades themselves, which I spent countless hours in as a kid, as I imagine many of you did as well. Left! Left! Bodyblow! Bodyblow! Quickly followed by the buzzsaw gun from some shoot 'em up, and the lame victory music from Tron. Ladies, have I lost you yet?
Cup stacking championship?
Next up, a salad-tossing derby.
Best Rejected Advertising
TV, Radio, Print, you name it -- All of 'em share the common theme of having been complained about by consumers. Says a lot about the national standards of "taste and decency" in the various countries of origin, especially in places like Italy, where you can't sell granola bars, carburetors, or airline tickets without a multitude of nude bodies.
Spray it, Don't Say it
The incredible beatbox stylings of San Francisco's Kid Beyond.
Google News in Map Form
Did your family Thanksgiving dinner feature one of those fist-through-the-wall styled arguments with your Dad about that kooky old liberal media? Did you, at any point summon the crusty specters of NPR vs. Fox News or New Yorker vs. The Drudge Report? This newsmap application (seems to launch best in Internet Explorer) will dazzle you regardless of your good witch/bad witch/cowboy/indian/liberal/conservative leanings.
I was watching the Brian Turner / WFMU-curated episode of NY Noise the other night, and up comes this Public Service Announcement from the Bad Council (who've actually done some cool things - remember The Crying Indian (RM video link)? One of theirs). Two little kids are having diner dinner with Dad, who's clearly got a scar on his ear where once hung an earring. The announcer says something to the effect of "your dad had an earring back in the day when only bikers and hippies had earrings" (the dude's only like 30, but whatever). "And you know what bikers and hippies had in common? The Drugs." The remainder of the hour was filled with similarly snarky anti-drug messages from the same source, like the dad who rolls himself up in the rug and tells his daughter he's a joint. Relating, you know. A bunch of grownups desperately trying to convince their kids they're hip to the now scene, while maintaining a just-say-no message.
One of my duties here at the so-called Magic Factory is serving as Public Service Announcement Director, so if some organization's got an anti-drug campaign, they're sending their material to me. Mostly it's dreadful. Mostly it's the former mayor of Hillsborough or some such place politely suggesting the kids find something else to do: "Hey kids, my anti-drug is politics!" - in astoundingly low fidelity. But not the Bad Council! They're F-U-N! Sometimes. No, mostly not. Here's all the fun ones, enjoy.
(mp3s) A-B-C-D-PCP... | Baa Baa Black Sheep | Humpty Dumpty
These here all cleverly update some of your favorite nursery rhymes, while the ones that follow get a little more "very special episode" on you:
(mp3s) You Wanna... y'know? | You Don't Know What You Took?!
Now let's go back to 1973, when Bill Cosby actually did this kind of thing pretty well (RM link to Kenny G's show). "The Dopepusher" (alright, the chorus blows -- but those shouted verses are great!)
And finally, don't forget: Daddy drinks because you cry. (mp3)
That picture on Bryce's recent post reminded me of the Silophone, an audio art experiment that answers the question, "Just what does audio sound like if you pump it through an abandoned 10-story-tall grain storage building in Montreal?"
The building, originally known as Silo #5, was turned into the Silophone by the Montreal artists collectively known as [The User], and has been accessible to interested parties in Montreal's Old Town neighborhood through a cool-looking installation nearby the building. You can also upload audio through the Silophone Website, or phone it in live by calling (514) 844-5555. The Website provides a live audio stream so you can hear other people's contributions or, more often than not, the quiet white noise of a completely silent abandoned building.
More Silophone info available in this NPR story from 2001 about the installation. [The User] played the Silophone on their 2003 CD Abandon (RealAudio sample from the WFMU archives). As far as I know, no WFMU DJ has used the Silophone to augment their on-air talking, but really, it's only a matter of time.
While it wouldn’t be accurate to call Bob Lassiter the best talk radio
host of all time, it would be fair to say that he’s probably the least
famous great one. In the metro areas where he took calls on the radio
(Miami, Tampa and Chicago) he’s still loved and loathed by those who
remember his work, but everywhere else he’s mostly known by those who collect and trade
tapes of arcane and unusual radio. That is, except for some lucky WFMU listeners
who have heard us rebroadcast some of Bob’s radio shenanigans (and yes,
there are archives).
So, why am I writing about a local Florida talk host who hasn’t been on the air for six years? And what would make recordings of a talk show collectable in the first place? And more significantly, why in the world would we play portions of his show on WFMU? Simple. When Lassiter was good, he was REALLY good. He could make your jaw drop, make you curse the radio, or maybe just pee your pants.
Unlike other talk hosts who hope to change the world (assert an agenda) or want to be liked, Lassiter's was always driven to simply grab and hold the listener's attention. And he would do whatever he could get away with (or whatever amused HIM at the time) to shock or awe listeners into becoming addicted to his program.
A key element to what made Lassiter’s radio work mind-blowing was how he consistently generated confrontational calls and turned them into compelling radio theater. Every other talk host I’ve ever heard usually gets off on like-minded callers, but not Bob. In fact, he was often quite impatient with callers who agreed with him. As a master contrarian, phone-in fans and callers on his side merely bored him. They were just getting in the way of the pissed off listeners who were steaming on hold, waiting for their chance to take on “The Mad Dog.”
Radiohead, Queen, Survivor, Led Zeppelin, R.E.M., Slayer, and more, rocked out in NES 8-bit glory.
Download the whole NESCover collection here (68mb, at SomethingAwful.com, and requires a RAR extractor).
If you can't manage that, here's Survivor - Eye of the Tiger (MP3), as arranged by kalocin.
Here's an MP3 of the sounds made by Iceberg B-09A in Antarctica. It was recorded by scientists from Germany's Alfred Wegener institute for polar and marine research, as they recorded seismic signals to measure earthquakes and tectonic movements on the Ekstroem ice shelf on Antarctica's South Atlantic coast.
From the Wegener Institute press release:
Tracking the signal, the scientists found a 50 by 20 kilometer iceberg that had collided with an underwater peninsula and was slowly scraping around it.
"Once the iceberg stuck fast on the seabed it was like a rock in a river," said scientist Vera Schlindwein. "The water pushes through its crevasses and tunnels at high pressure and the iceberg starts singing.
The iceberg sounds were originally recorded at 0.5 hertz, far below the range of human hearing. The MP3 here is speeded up many times to bring the sounds into the audible range. The full Wegener Institute press release is here. Thanks Monica!
If you enjoyed hearing an iceberg sing, here's Pseu's post on the sounds of Saturn, complete with MP3s.
I'm sure I'm not the only WFMU DJ who'll be including the Numero Group's Yellow Pills: Prefill compilation on my 2005 top ten list. The two-disc set, put together by Yellow Pills fanzine scribe Jordan Oakes, is chock full of incredible and ultra-rare power pop singles from the late 70s and early 80s. This week, I was thrilled to discover that a friend of mine had accidentally tracked down the original Yellow Pills compilations--also curated by Mr. Oakes--which were released throughout the 90s by the now defunct Big Deal label.
Click the links below to listen to a sort of "Best Of Yellow Pills" collection, comprised of my 10 favorite tracks from the original four volumes in the series.
Devin Hill "Stars"
The Spongetones "Skinny"
Brian Stevens And The Flip "A Little Bird Told Me So"
The Nicoteens "You're Gonna Save Me"
Martin Luther Lennon "Nobody I Know"
Finns "Sky Vue"
Blow Pops "Pt. 1"
Wonderboy "Skidmarks"
David Grahame "I Love You Better"
The Nines "I Would Never"
With no end in sight to the war in Iraq, and the death toll rising with each passing day--over 2,000 American service members killed as of October 26th, not to mention at least 26,982 Iraqi civilians reported dead as of this posting--this Kate Bush video from 1980 seems especially timely. I wonder if Barbara and Jenna would look as good in uniform as Kate does?
Watch: Kate Bush "Army Dreamers" music video (mpg video, thanks to listener Matt).
While you're at it, check out a similar song by Joanna Newsom, a young harpist and singer-songwriter whose 2004 debut album might have been more indebted to Kate Bush than many of us were clever enough to notice. Don't let all the talk of whale bones throw you off, the song is really about the war in Iraq.
Listen: Joanna Newsom's "What We Have Known" from an archive of Irwin's show.
For your listening and sampling pleasure, here's a 44-minute-long MP3 of the legendary Criswell predicting what he predicts best - the future, which is where you and I will spend the rest of our lives. I know that some of you will write off Criswell as another Ed Wood boy toy, but listen to the predictions he makes here, and you will be astounded by his accuracy. Among Criswell's 1970 predictions that have come to pass:
And that's just in the first few minutes of this MP3! Eventually, the great Criswell predicts the end of the world for August 18, 1999, which, unless I'm seriously mistaken, also came to pass.
As a way of thanking everybody who came to the WFMU record fair this weekend, and also in an effor to engender cross-format peace and understanding, here are a few record-related MP3s:
John Lennon - Tower Records Ad
John does a great job as a guest DJ on Los Angeles station KHJ as he hawks Tower Records.
Althea and the Memories - Worst Record Ever Made
Kim Fowley pulled some pre-pubescent fans into the studio for the backing squeals.
Akaten - Suite USA Record Company
Atsushi Tsuyama (Acid Mothers Temple) and Tatsuya Yoshida (Ruins) provide a muscial recitation of the major record labels.
Vernon Oxford - Turn The Record Over
Tom Tall - Stack of Records
Playmates - While The Record Goes Around
Moose Jackson - Big Ten Inch Record
Dinah Washington - Record Ban Blues
Bob and Ray - Columbia Phonograph Spot
It looks like Air America is about to lose one of their best on-air personalities, Marc Maron. There's been no official announcement, but on his show, Morning Sedition, Maron has repeatedly said he's probably on his way out. And yesterday he said it's unlikely he'll be part of the Morning Sedition air team (with radio veteran Mark Riley) after this month. And they're promoting their live remote at O'Neal's in the Upper West Side this Thursday as their "last live appearance."
Why would Maron leave? Or why would Air America let go of the funniest guy on their talent roster? Best guess-- deadlocked contract negotiations.
When Air America went on the air over a year and a half ago, a lot of us in radio were dismayed that a new talk network would go on the air with so many air personalities and writers who made their mark in television instead of radio. Not that media cross-pollination in general is such a bad idea, but just that when a start-up radio network was trying to do something SO new (a national liberal talk network) AND they were also attempting to reinvent the medium at the same time by leaning so heavily on TV talent instead of loading up the schedule with radio veterans.
The big exceptions were South Florida's leftist talk bulldog Randi Rhodes who's held down the late afternoon slot since the beginning, and then a few months later acerbic career talker Mike Malloy who was tacked onto the late night end of the schedule. Those programs were the only ones done in the traditional talk radio manner-- one host on the air brings up issues, vents, and takes calls. All the other shows were more experimental-- with multiple hosts, many guests, and only a few (if any) calls. And all these programs featured one or more hosts best known for their work in TV or film.
For those of you heading out tonight to Trick and/or Treat, Listener Al presents this audio remix of an old classroom training film on Halloween safety. Don't forget, Keep Your Jokes Funny and Safe. Unsafe Jokes Are Not Funny. via artofbleeding
Really portable music is a wonderful thing. It's both empowering and comforting to have a shiny music machine in your pocket that plays a variety of your favorite tunes at the whim of your finger on a little wheel. It's futuristic technology that has made listening an intimate experience... for over FIFTY years.
Back in the early 50's a company called Texas Instruments was making good money churning out piles of newfangled little transistors for military applications, but they envisioned a wider public marketplace for the little buggers. And in 1954 the TI engineers created a prototype transistor radio. It was small, it worked, and it seemed like a great idea. However, Texas Instruments wasn't in the business of manufacturing consumer products back then, so they shopped their concept around to several big radio makers of the day. Surprisingly, RCA, Sylvania, and Philco all said "no thanks" before a small outfit in Indiana (the Regency Division of Industrial Development Engineering Associates) took the bait.
Within a matter of months the first commercial transistor radio was a reality. Besides being cute and colorful, the TR-1 was the very first mass-marketed transistorized gadget. It was made here in the U.S.A., and in that spirit the it was prominently on display in stores across America just in time for Christmas 1954. The price? A whopping $49.95. Adjust the cost for inflation and you're lookin at almost $350 in today's dollars, not far from the $399 price tag on that first iPod.
Before the TR-1, any portable radio
you might buy had a "luggage" quality, with big top handles and a bit
of heft. They just weren't all that portable thanks to the warm glowing
vacuum tubes they contained. These days, audiophiles and technical stick-in-the-muds properly laud the aural beauty of the "tube" sound,
but the glass casings and inner workings of vacuum tubes are rather
fragile and they need a protective case, as well as some large batteries
to power up. And of course, the tubes themselves aren't all that tiny
either.
MP3s: 18 spoken word tracks of sideshow pitchmen and pitchwomen below the jump.
Last August, I headed over to the New Jersey State Fair, minidisk in hand, ready to record the sideshow pitchmen and barkers I'd heard there the year before. The sideshow had a great fire-eating midget, but the pitchman mumbled a spiritless 30 second spiel, and then actually turned on a tape loop of another carnival barker. I had clearly waited a little too long to get recordings of a bonafide American pitchman.
Fortunately, the WFMU cassette library has a tape called American Talkers: The Art of the Pitchman, and I've posted all 18 tracks from it. This tape came out in the early Nineties, and even that was too late - half of these tracks are of career sideshow "talkers" who recreated their classic pitches (aka "ballys") as part of a festival at The Smithsonian Institution's American Talker's Project in 1980. But a few date from earlier than that, and all of the pitches from the early 80's are authentic, from the some of the greatest living pitchmen of the pre-war era like, Ward Hall and Fred Bloodgood.
Continue reading "Step Right Up! The Art of the Sideshow Pitchman (MP3s)" »
Maybe we FMU folk just don't want to be alone in our own heads. We constantly placate ourselves with sounds. Soothing and dreamy, digitally produced hums and blips, orchestrated and melodic, indigenous chanting, or as is often in my case mostly cacophonous, repetitive and sense-crippling . Whichever our pleasure, constant sound appeases us like a back rub after a breast feeding (including the regurge on the shoulder part).
So it came as a bit of a shock to discover via a couple of hours of slack research that there are those who might enjoy a some quiet time. Like the freaks at Noise Pollution Clearinghouse, or their weirdo crunchy S.F. brethren Sound Pollution dot org who would accuse members of our little community of being "Sound Abusers" with the following modus operandi:
The Psychological profile of a sound abuser:
From our studies, people that use noise in situations that are not qualified as an emergency, expose these forms of behavior:
1. Lack of awareness
2. Lack of responsibility
3. Intentionality
4.Selfishness
5. Lack of respect for others
6. Lack of respect for one self
7. Defiance, abusive behavior
Hey, what about number 8: Animal Masturbator? I can't understand people who feel the compulsion to make lists anyhow. Speaking of which, schizophrenics manufacture their own internal racket, as dramatized in this compelling audio slide show provided by your mental health care pals at National Public Radio. Sounds pretty hellish, huh? Almost like drilling a hole nine miles down into the Earth's crust to hear the Cries of The Damned.
Hello, Everybody--Nice Seeing You Again.
Sorry I'm late posting this week--I seem to have lost track of everything, including whether or not I've already told you about the great Japanese CD Gramophone. 
See? You take all those nice free promotional CDs you've been using as coasters and pocket mirrors and put them on the gramophone and sing or talk, and then the needle cuts the grooves and you've made a wee, tinny recording of yourself. How fine is that? It costs about $30, depending on the exchange rate, from Hobby Link Japan.
But just in case someone else has already told you about the gramophone, here's the newest old technology, sure to be a hit with fans of Mac's Antique Phonograph Hour show--the Edison Cylinder Plastic Cup Recording Device!
Unfortunately, I think you have to speak Japanese to order this--the only place I've found it is on a non-English web site. But Yuletide is coming, so put it on your list and maybe Hoteiosha will bring you one!
Me, I'm still hoping for the complete DVD collection of "The Immortal Yi Soon Shin" with English subtitles.
Thanks for reading my blog entry this week, and may God bless.
-Bronwyn C.
As we continue to approach the outer fringes of the Nurse With Wound List, information on releases becomes either scarce, or steeped in speculation and hearsay. Since I know that I am, to a degree, facing an audience of fellow experts and enthusiasts, any further illumination (or correction) on these artists and their releases is always welcome. I have acquired several of these titles as CD-Rs or as downloads, so in a few cases I don't even have the original LP sleeve in front of me to scour for what little information may have been available there.
For background information on the list, many other artists and links, please see this index of my previous posts.
Horrific Child - L'étrange Monsieur Whinster - The Horrific Child album is, to me at least, the jewel embedded in the forehead of the golden idol that is the NWW List. Part rock album, part experimental album, part imaginary horror soundtrack, L'étrange Monsieur Whinster is a psychedelic pop audio show, flowing naturally from one surprising sequence to the next. Horrific Child was the creation of one Jean-Pierre Massiera, also the composer behind the Les Maledictus Sound project from 1968. Les Maledictus Sound were an inventive, high-brow concoction of Easy Tempo-style instrumental mod big band music, with heavy brass, plucky bass and fuzzbeat guitar. Horrific Child is certainly the logical stylistic next step from that record, evidence of the composer's having survived several years beyond the psychedelic era. A section from side 2 of L'étrange Monsieur Whinster was released in 1999 as a bonus track on the CD reissue of the Les Maledictus Sound album. Originally released on the Eurodisc label in 1976. [L'étrange Monsieur Whinster - side 1 excerpt mp3]
Roberto Colombo - Sfogatevi Bestie (Ultima Spiaggia 1976) - Milanese composer, arranger and producer who worked with some of the giants of Italian rock and pop, like PFM and Patty Pravo. Colombo recorded two solo albums in the latter 70s of this intense, tightly arranged Zappa-flavored progressive jazz rock. Here is a short biography in Italiano. [Caccia Alla Volpe mp3]
David Cunningham - Grey Scale (1976) - Irish-born composer and producer David Cunningham is perhaps most well known for being in The Flying Lizards, and for their string of new wave hit singles ("Money," etc). Cunningham is also a popular music producer in the UK, working with artists like This Heat and producing Peter Greenaway film scores with Michael Nyman. He's also worked on countless projects with his long-time collaborators David Toop and Steve Beresford. Grey Scale was Cunningham's first solo LP (released on Piano in 1977, predating the Flying Lizards by a few years), and remains a coveted collector's item. It's an album of homespun minimalist themes for small ensembles, and quite cleverly conceived (make sure to read the sleeve notes at the following link.) Detailed information on the album can be found here. [Error System BAGFGAB mp3] [Error System C pulse solo recording mp3]
Radio legend Jean Shepherd needs no introduction (but that link should work fine). Instead proceed directly to the Shep Archives for a 1550 track library containing nearly 1000 hours of Shep MP3 goodness. We're talking over 1000 recordings from the WOR days alone. I think you'll find it's an enjoyable as well as an unconquerable companion to WFMU's Aircheck.
People Like Us, WFMU's sound collagier and host of the avant-audio montage program, Do or DIY, is taking a breather during our new schedule (which runs through June 12, 2006) to make time for extracurriculars.
As a consolation to her many fans, PLU is offering up a special hour-long Do or DIY super-mix MP3 download (80 MB), complete with cover art and track listing.
If that doesn't satisfy your cravings, check out WFMU's vast library of archives for Do or DIY.
First lets get these nuns off my chest. A Nun Puppet and The Pink Nun (Keeping your who-ha in check)
Now good stuff in the WFMU archives that you can be hearing (with your ears) right now!
Chris T - Aerial View : August 20th 1993 Everything you always wanted to know about Men but were afraid to ask. With special guest Ken Freedman.
Kenny G - Anal Magic : 09.17.03 (Playlist) Listen (RealAudio) Live with R. Stevie Moore, Krys O, Irwin Chusid, Vicki Bennett
Ed Shepp- The Ed Shepp Radio Experiment: July 22, 2005(Playlist)Drugs(RealAudio) This show is great! It may be his best yet.
Mark Allen - From his August 4th show (Playlist) Listen (RealAudio) - some tedious radio, in a good way!
And lastly,
Scott Williams - August 22, 2005 (RealAudio) - Listen (RealAudio) to my dream come true! Then me being a bad caller (RealAudio)
I really should have posted these the day that Maynard G Krebs passed away, but I was asleep at the bongoes that day. So here are a batch of spoken word tracks recorded at Greenwich Village's Cafe Bizarre, long before "Beat" became a parody of itself.
And while we're at it, have a look at a documentary on the Greenwich Village scene, narrated by Jean Shepherd. (via the Internet Archive)
The MP3s from Greenwich Village's Cafe Bizarre Presents Assorted Madness start after the jump:
Continue reading "Vintage Beatnik Poetry MP3s from Cafe Bizarre" »
For background information on the NWW List and related links, see my previous posts.
The Sperm - Shh! (1970) - The 60s counterculture hit Finland with explosive results. Even prior to the late 60s, Finland was considered an important center for contemporary electronic music and avant-garde art and performance. If you then consider psychedelic and progressive rock on into the 70s, the Finnish scene was so rich that once you start listening you'll never run out of new discoveries; certainly, a wealth of curious releases remain unissued on CD. Several key titles have been made available on CD by Love Records. For a detailed account of what went on, and the artists that propagated the mayhem, see the Finnscene site. Also look for the indispensable compilation CD Arktinen Hysteria - Suomi-Avantgarden Esipuutarhureita (Love Recs), featuring several artists from the NWW List and other notable Finnish maniacs.
The Sperm were formed in 1967 by Pekka Airaksinen (who also features independently on the NWW List), J.O. Mallander and other giants of the Helsinki art/music scene, making them sort of an underground "supergroup." They organized happenings, and made outrageous music using electric guitar, tape manipulation and other noises, spiritual grandaddys to the likes of Throbbing Gristle, Merzbow, Matthew Bower and The Dead C. Yes, this album really is that good. [Heinäsirkat mp3]
Also quite worthwhile is the recently released Pekka Airaksinen/Sperm 2-disc collection including unreleased goodies, Madam I'm Adam (features 2 other tracks from the Shh! album.)
Patrick Vian - Bruits Et Temps Analogues - Excellent moog-based rock album released in 1976 on the legendary Egg label. It's a wonder this hasn't been reissued, what with the intense interest in all things analog, to say nothing of the dozens of "sampleable" grooves herein. Similar to early Heldon, or mid-period Tangerine Dream, but really its own thing and a very enjoyable recording. Patrick Vian had previously led the group Red Noise (1970), also featured on the list. [Grosse Nacht Musik mp3] [Tunnel 4 Red Noise mp3]
They came from Baltimore to grace the WFMU airwaves; TRIAC, featuring one member of Hatebeak, were musical guests last night on Andrew Listfield's fill-in program for Pat Duncan. Listen here (about 22 minutes in) for the MP3 version of 
their set; here to check it out in RealAudio. Triac treated the listening audience to an onslaught of 10 songs of their trademark sludgy, furious grind. The new cd, Dead House Dreaming, that features cover artwork from artist extraordinaire Stephen Kasner, is just recently out on
the Reptilian label. The Cosmic Cowboy got a good aerial shot of them while clutching onto a ceiling fan for dear life, fearful of dropping into the whirling madness of the room below. Before they left, we chatted off-mic about things near & dear; Route 17 and the Paramus Mall, a website where you can listen to the entire HAWK album and other classic 80s metal finds, cutlery and good posture. Check out the archive, buy their album, see them live, Triac commands you!
Presenting the FEMA disaster rap for kids, which obviously prepared our nation's youth for the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina... brought to you by the same agency that, via the EAS (Emergency Alert System), accidentally evacuated the entire state of Connecticut for one hour, warned residents of a forthcoming flood by announcing that "a civil authority has issued a civil emergency," and didn't bother to relay any disaster-related messages on 9/11/01 because they didn't want to alarm anyone.
Thanks to Station Manager Ken for passing this one along
For the background and explanation of the Nurse With Wound list, see last week's post. Also, last week I neglected to link to this great NWW List site, chock full of useful information.
Now on to this week's list of exceptional recordings.
Urban Sax - I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I avoided listening to Urban Sax for years. You see, I have a thing about names, and the name Urban Sax conjured up visions of the stereotypical street alto player, clad in a loose-fitting geometric print blouse and a leather Stetson, bopping David Sanborn riffs to the aether somewhere near 72nd and Broadway. How wrong was I? Very wrong indeed. Upon cautious investigation, I found that the "urban" in Urban Sax refers to the original project concept of creating sound environments in cityscapes via a large group of selectively positioned brass players. Urban Sax is the creation of progressive music icon Gilbert Artman, founder of Lard Free and member of the experimental trio Catalogue with Jac Berrocal. The band's discography up to and including the Spiral album in 1991 is varied and stellar, and perhaps most importantly, not what you might imagine. Their sound is low on skronk, high on drone and performer interplay, such that the expected saxophone sounds are often submerged in harmoniously unrecognizable waves of tone, color and percussion. 
For more information (and if you can at least somewhat read Francais) see their homepage; also see their brief but informative Wikipedia entry. Though I believe that most of the Urban Sax catalog has appeared on CD at one time or another, nowadays the discs are reasonably hard to find. Their self-titled 1977 album is a masterpiece, comprising four sidelong pieces of organic waft and shimmer. [Urban Sax Part 3 mp3]
Osamu Kitajima - Benzaiten - Debut rock/ethno/psych album released on Antilles in 1974, incorporating traditional Japanese instruments (koto, biwa, wood flute) into the standard rock mix. Largely instrumental and proto-new age, but definitely a rock record first and foremost, with heavy electric guitar passages. Kitajima has an extensive discography, though my guess is that Benzaiten will appeal most to fans of the list. Today he is "Dr. Kitajima," and runs new age label East Quest records. [Benzaiten (repris) mp3]
You don't have to beat yourself up (they might, though); you can listen to the archive in Real Audio or MP3 formats (fast forward in about an hour). Check Andrew Listfield's playlist to be sure (great job filling in for Pat Duncan last night), but they treated the WFMU audience to 10 
ear damaging numbers of Detroit's harshest guitar rock. And here's more reasons why you should listen... They drove straight from Detroit to play WFMU after seeing the Rolling Stones perform on Wednesday night.. Their new record called Friends of Rock & Roll on Reptilian Records kicks ass... That aforementioned record was produced by 
Detroit veteran Jim Diamond... Their vocalist, John Brannon, is responsible for being the center point of the band that put out the most ferocious hardcore record ever released: Negative Approach's debut 10 track 7" in 1982. His voice is still a force to be reckoned with & Easy Action definitely deserves the attention. Just off a 7-week tour, they picked up a couple of East Coast dates just to play WFMU & will be back in this area again later in the month; check their date listings to be sure. And they LOVED the decor at WFMU; they requested to have their photo taken in front of the DJ Lockers, what's not to like?
In 1979, the members of Nurse With Wound, Steven Stapleton, John Fothergill and Heman Pathak, compiled a roll call of their favorite "outsider" musical artists to include with their first album, Chance Meeting on a Dissecting Table of a Sewing Machine and an Umbrella. No other details were provided, just 300 or so names in block type. The second version of the list included several newly added names, and came with the To the Quiet Men From a Tiny Girl LP in 1980. Stapleton and co. knew not what they hath wrought; the so-called Nurse With Wound List has since become a scavenger hunt of holy grails for fanatical collectors of Krautrock, progressive rock, psychedelic, post-punk, jazz, free improvised and experimental music.
Most of the artists on the list stem from the period 1969-1980, that gloriously creative, fertile era when most of my favorite records got made, boundaries were broken and excesses were indulged. To date, many of these artists and their recordings remain unissued on CD, though a substantial number have been made available by stalwart reissue labels like Alga Marghen, Captain Trip, Fractal, Spalax, Paradigm and MIO. In fact, the list is at least partly responsible (along with the Freeman brothers, Julian Cope and others) for the resurgence of interest in the Krautrock genre and the reissues that followed.
I have attempted to include here only selections that cannot be easily found elsewhere. By and large, the labels that have endeavored to put these titles out are very small labels that deserve your patronage. I have no desire to undercut their business, or the business of specialty stores and distributors around the world. Most of what you'll see and hear here (and in future posts) are rips from my personal vinyl collection, or else they've been acquired as downloads via online file-sharing communities.
Orchid Spangiafora - Flee Past's Ape Elf - According to information found here, "Orchid Spangiafora is Rob Carey sometimes aided by Byron Coley & Chris Osgood (of the Suicide Commandos)." This album came out in 1979, and has got to be the weirdest record ever released on Twin/Tone. Brilliant, obsessive, hilarious spoken word-tape-cut-up-hell of the highest order. For audio samples, or to purchase a "custom CD-R" from Twin/Tone, click here. [Sheer Madness mp3]
Sally Smmit and Her Musicians (1980) - Hangahar - This is The Mekons' Sally Timms like you've never heard her, long before she became the belle of skewed new wave-country music fans everywhere. Released on the ridiculously short-lived Groovy label (Pete Shelley's label, which also released his now ultra-rare Sky Yen album), the album is two sidelong pieces of shambling post-Yoko Ono, post-Can jamitude. Undoubtedly an influence on Kraut-pranksters Damenbart. [A - Part One (edit) mp3]
Verto - Krig/Volubilis - Dark, hovering, French progressive psych released in 1976 on the Tapioca label. Tapioca was associated with the obscure Pôle label, responsible for the original release of this and several other monumental French prog classics featured on the list, including the Besombes-Rizet double LP. Guitars, keyboards and ominous vocals. [Et Terre mp3] [TK 240 S 52 mp3]
To beef up a previous post on found items, I discovered a wealth of links for sites offering an array of cultural detritus and other people's crap:
Found photos: Big Happy Fun House
Sound collage artist listing: Detritus.net
An alarmingly expansive collection of found items, retro-heavy: Swapatorium (be sure to click on the video link for Laffun Head)
The Grocery List Collection: yep, 800 of 'em
Snapshots: Square America
Photos and pop ephemera: Happy Palace
Halloween-related crapola: Old Haunts
X-mas-related junk: Santa and me!
More found photos, organized by year: Time Tales
Whoa people, get a life. I mean, c'mon, don't you have something better to do than live vicariously through other people's garbage? Yeah, me neither.
A few years ago, WFMU's dynamic duo (Irwin Chusid and Ken Freedman) played a crucial role in digging scat legend Shooby Taylor (aka The Human Horn) out of obscurity and placing him in the spotlight (click for real audio of an interview with Shooby on Ken's show in 2002) for some well-deserved, albeit belated, recognition.
Unfortunately, Shooby passed away in 2003, while plans for cleaning up and releasing the music from his legendary tapes were still in the initial planning phase. News of progress on the project has just hit Irwin's Key of Z site, indicating that a CD of Shooby's songs may soon come to fruition.
Read the whole story surrounding the rediscovery of The Human Horn in Key of Z's Shooby Taylor Journal, or check out this site for some Shooby MP3s.
I haven't done a weekly show on WFMU since 1999, so please indulge me. Much like that kid at the party who takes over the stereo, this is the only opportunity I get to communicate my tastes to the world at large.
When the need arose for a portable music listening device, I bought this nifty little thing called a Creative Zen Micro; it holds 5GB of music or data, is about two-thirds the size of an iPod, and best of all, you don't need iTunes in order to export/import files (easy-to-use Windows-based software is provided.) No freezing or battery charging issues, either.
So what's on an ex-FMU DJ's portable, you ask? Note the absence of Morton Feldman, Stockhausen, La Monte Young, the "Lake" album, Conrad Schnitzler, Stars of the Lid, H.N.A.S., Merzbow, DDAA and other oft-played artists of this nature from my years on the air. That stuff still gets played at home all the time; remember this is music for being on the move.
Alrune Rod - 2 albums by Danish heavy psych band, ca. '69-'70 (and way above average for things fitting that description.) Got the tip from the unsung section of Julian Cope's Head Heritage website. [mp3]
Amon Düül II - Yes, I am still a Krautrock fanatic. 2 albums: the highly acclaimed Yeti from 1970, and the less-acclaimed (but still dear to me) Vive La Trance (1974). [mp3]
Bad Brains - Their 2 great SST albums, I Against I and Quickness, plus the phenomenally good dub disc I & I Survived. [mp3]
Basement 5 - Unofficial complete discography of this UK post-dub-punk outfit, ca. 1981; produced by Martin Hannett, and compiled lovingly by R. Stevie Moore. [mp3]
Culture - mp3 assortment - Classic 70s reggae; including their hit "Two Sevens Clash." [mp3]
Don Bradshaw-Leather - A rare item from the infamous Nurse With Wound list. See Brian Turner's post here. Super-dark psych weirdness, heavy with mellotron and piano. Not recommended for listening on the bus.
Fugazi - Repeater + 3 Songs - For those times when I need a righteous instant pick-up. Slinky, uplifting punk music from 3 of the nicest guys I ever ate mediocre Chinese food with (Mr. MacKaye wasn't there, but I'm sure he's nice too.)
When he was 14, Robert A. Moog built his first theremin from a kit in the basement of his house in Flushing, Queens. He described himself as "an electronics nerd," and said he liked building stuff in his basement because "there wasn't too much I could do with the guys at school, other than getting beat up." When he was in college he started a little business selling his homemade theremins and other electronic instruments, eventually including his own Moog synthesizer. Moog-playing musicians helped revolutionize music in the 1960s, and made Robert's last name a household word that pretty much nobody ever pronounced correctly. Last Sunday Robert Moog died of an inoperable brain tumor at his home in Asheville, North Carolina. He was 71 years old.
MP3 download | Fast Matt "sns"
All children of the late 70’s/early 80’s (along with E.T. fans) reserve a special place in their hearts for the Speak & Spell learning appliance (even have-not kids like me). If you're now feeling a burning nostalgic sensation, visit this Speak & Spell simulator site to relive the halcyon days of your youth (minus the skinned knees), or download this poor-quality vintage commercial for Speak & Spell (wmv), starring then-ubiquitous super-dad Bill Cosby.
Inevitably, someone somewhere on the gravy train thought it would be clever to mix up the circuity guts of the S&S, rendering arty noise from the innocent spelling robot's voice; thenceforth the music world was forever changed. Listener Steve alerted me to Fast Matt, a prolific bender (geek name for circuit-shuffler), who sells his glitched-out S&S devices and offers some amazingly scatalogical MP3 audio from his creations.
You can visit this site for more souped-up S&Ss, or go here for some instruction on S&S deconstruction.
And, of course, WFMU has played many a song featuring the sounds of a manipulated Speak & Spell, so take a listen:
Kraftwerk “Numbers” from an archive of Nickel and Dime Radio
Experimental Audio Research “Track 2” as heard on Andrew Listfield's show
Komputergurl “I Love My Speak and Spell” swiped from Pseu Braun's show
Christina Kubisch “Speak and Spell (excerpt)” from an archive of Strength Through Failure with Fabio
45 (MP3) Ballad (MP3) Ballad2 (MP3) SRC (MP3)
"WHY"
It Seems that wherever in this world I go,
No matter who nor what I know,
People will look; some of them stare,
I wonder if they really care?
They see this cane with its golden crown,
some of them smile, but most of them frown.
I hear them laugh, and I see them cry,
No matter what,
They all ask why?
Well, I'm just like you, and you,
and you and your wife,
We all have a special purpose in life.
This way of life I'm glad that I found,
For like you, I too, make the world go 'round.
We're all alike,
Oh yes, we are
We all have a dream on some faraway star.
For me when it is over and done at the end of a day,
Some can relax, but I go to pray
For I know that tomorrow in some other place,
I'll have that fear again to face.
Could it be the quest for money and fame,
Oh no,
To play with my life is not much of a game.
It's a want - a want that's so dear
It's given me faith,
I can face that fear.
Oh, yes, I do think about a day
in life when fate came along and struck my way.
Each time it's happened they've all said,
This guy is lucky he's not dead.
They were right.
But I wanted to get up to try it again.
I kept telling myself that I knew I could win,
so I'd close my eyes and to the Lord I'd pray,
Oh, help me God, let me walk some day.
He did.
And every stitch on every scar
has just brought me closer to my dream afar.
To be a man,
To do my best,
To stand alone is my only quest.
Success is a term that has broad use,
For having none in life there is no excuse.
For you, what I do is not right---
But, for me, it is not wrong.
What I have been trying to tell you all along
is that it's got to be,
You ask why?
Well, just like you, I gotta be me.
Evel Knievel
Hit up Found Magazine's Find of the Week page for oodles of found object zen.
(Thanks to Karrie for the hint)
For your found audio needs, look no further than WFMU's own Audio Kitchen archives, where dusty unlabeled casettes unearthed from thrift stores open a portal to the sordid lives of strangers. The Audio Kitchen is also available as a podcast, which you can pick up by visiting WFMU's Podcast Centralia page.
MP3s: Collins on Collins, David Bowie Idents (1 | 2 | 3), King Coleman ID, Homer Simpson ID, Weezer ID, Weezer and Peaches Remix
Back in the days before Clear Channel owned every other station in the country, record labels were forced to do a little bit of legwork in order to promote their releases. Throughtout the 70's and 80's, one technique in their arsenal was to mail an "interview records" to every station in the country. Interview records were essentially spoken word karaoke interviews with rock stars, so that a local station could pretend that its own jocks had landed the big one. Stations received a record with the rock star giving answers to interview questions, which were supplied to the station on a script.
An hour or so in the production room with reel to reel tape and a razor blade, and voila! even the lowliest station in the country could air that exclusive interview with Jimmy Page! We still have one such interview record in the mighty FMU record library, "Collins on Collins," in which Phil Collins knowingly chuckles to your insighttful questions, and waxes philosophical on "Philmania" and the difference between "pop fans" and "music fans." Here is an MP3 of the Collins on Collins record which came out in 1985. If you really want to play along at home and ask Phil the questions so he can knowingly chuckle and reply to you, here is a pdf document of the script that accompanied the record. Another variation on this theme were rock star "indents," in which a celebrity introduced his or her new single. Here are a few David Bowie idents we still had laying around: Bowie Ident 1 | Bowie Ident 2 | Bowie Ident 3 (Station Manager Ken)
Continue reading ""Phil Collins Minus One" And Other Promo Scams" »
OK, not really, but he's there. America's favorite ex-rapper, Mr. Will Smith is traveling on this year's Ozzfest. Why? His wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith is the lead singer of a "metal" band called Wicked Wisdom who is playing the second stage daily. Sigh. You know where this is going & it's gonna be ugly. So first, let's briefly talk about Ozzfest. 3/4ths of the performers on the 2nd (smaller) stage have to pay Sharon/Ozzy/Ozzfest Inc. the sum of $100,000 for the privilege of playing. Sound like a good deal? On the surface it seems like perhaps it could be worth it for the exposure (it doesn't to me, but someone's gotta play Devil's Advocate), but your money could be better spent on a publicist for a couple of years for that dough. The "second" stage starts at 9:30am, so whoever plays first (The Haunted the day I went) gets no new audience. Aside from whether or not it's a good idea to pay the money to play, Ozzfest has spots that are coveted by metal bands, new and old.
Victor the Budgie is dead, but chronicles of his complex grasp of the English language lives here, thanks to his owner Ryan, who recorded his detailed conversations, and now works with Victor's parrot mate Betty (who's learned quite a bit from Victor). There's a page of audio excerpts of Victor's assorted stories, including some addressing his impending passing to the afterlife. If you can't quite make out the words amidst the squawking, the Quicktime player scrolls subtitles so you can follow along. The author has also links to assorted Nostradamus quotes that predict parrots talking = arriving doom for mankind, and apparently owners of the birds in this guy's internet group were squawking about the December tsunami in the month before it happened.
Victor explaining his feelings for new cage mate Betty:
"Ryan yes. Victor complains, don't busy. Want to play because you poo in your cage. Tell a me Ryan. Where her bin? Who's like Betty? What is she use to doing? What is the part in computer that's deflect her heat? Your boy Anthony. That's a mic. Ryan. Betty likes to try and play pick up a penny. Ryan OK she try and talk...nice. Betty's a buddy, Victor. I should marry her maybe. Gimme some."
Saturn Electrostatic Discharges is neither an STD nor the name of one of WFMU's 2-6 a.m. overnight radio programs. It is, from what I have crudely gathered a bunch of radio racket that occurs when lightning is in Saturn's atmosphere. Then there's those hot gases which seem to really stir shit up, allowing scientists from the Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn to study just what the hell those 3 rings (conveniently called A, B and C) are doing there. Fascinating as that may be, we just like the creepy noise. Here's a source for your space audio fix, and here's a recent recording (mp3) from our most blingingest neighbor in the solar system.
Abandoned amusement and theme parks left for nature to reclaim.
This site contains a stunning series of photos of an abandoned Japanese amusement park. The first few pictures of a rotted roller coaster are especially creepy as they were taken in the morning fog. page 1 - page 2 - page 3
Suzy Poling, an Oakland photographer, has a great photo series of an abandoned theme parks called Hidden Village. She also features a spread of old delapidated theatres: Palace of Mold
Defunctparks.com features many snapshots of parks in their heyday alongside the current state of rot: Rocky Glenn Park in Lackawanna County, PA - Mountain Park in Holyoke, MA - Idora Park in Youngstown, OH - Chippewa Lake Park in Chippewa Lake, OH .
IllicitOhio.com made a trek to the PTL's Heritage USA.
Pacific Ocean Park decimated through time.
Here is a promotional film for Santa's Village (mov. file) from Extinct Attractions, a site that preserves Disneyland's and Disney World's past through interactive DVD documentaries. They also archive information, pictures and sounds of theme park rides, attractions and brochures. Browse around a bit, they have a few more video clips.
Take a listen to Goosy Goosy Gander (mp3) and The Happy Dragon's Tongue (mp3) - they are part of a collection of field recordings from theme park rides and attractions recorded and compiled by Melinda Simon and Mark Fay and released as "Songs for Little Ones" on Dish Recordings in 1997.
I dropped by the Nihilist Spasm Band's Monday racket yesterday and have returned with presents. Formed in 1965, NSB is apparently really big in Japan but can still be seen every week in London Ontario at the great Dissent night club (check out dissent's Spasm Band gallery here). This Monday's line up featured Art Pratten on violin, Bill Exley doing the voice thing, Pat Gregory on bass, John Clement on drums and Connell Smiley on sax.
Using the latest in entry level digital camera technology I recorded set one and most of set two for your viewing displeasure. The picture is virtually indecipherable and the same could be said for the sound, but does it really mater?
Set One (quicktime)
Set Two (quicktime)
Related: I'm A Meat Eater (MP3 On The Download) & another post with lots of NSB MP3s.
Ed Shepp, a frequent guest on Pseu's Shows, lover of Nutella (Real Audio from the Food show ) and now one of WFMU's new DJs, has an amazing show, The Ed Shepp Radio Experiment. I love this show and hope we'll see it on many future Program Schedules.
If you are in fact missing out, let me fill you in. The show is a mixture of talk with friends (Real Audio from the America show ), musical interludes (Real Audio from the Celebrity show ) and other forms of audio madness. All twiddled with by Ed and pertaining to a topic which changes each week. I would argue that it is needed when faced with a blank stare and the question "Freeform?" Just play some and your confused friends will be even more confused and isn't that what Freeform is all about?
Check him out for yourself! The Ed Shepp Blog Experience, CDs he is to blame for and The Ed Shepp Radio Experiment.
Set you cell phone to presidential zinger! What better incentive to answer your phone as quickly as humanly possible than by installing one of these eleven ringtones, each comprised of the vocal stylings of our Commander in Chief, as remixed by WFMU's public domain audio elves.
To get these ringtone on your phone, you need a cell phone with online web access. Point your cell phones browser to this address. All Dubya ringtones are available for free in three ringtone formats, the most common one of which is 3GP. Only certain phones support MP3 and WAV ringtones.
Catapult The Propaganda
(musical version): Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
(shortwave version): Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
(spoken version): Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
"Third time I've said that. I'll probably say it three more times, see, in my line of work, you gotta keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in. To kinda catapult the propaganda." (Audio Unedited)
Fish Peace
(musical version): Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
(spoken version): Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
"I know the human being and fish can coexist peacefully." (Audio Unedited)
Headpop
(musical version): Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
(spoken version): Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
"You know, I, I hope, I, I dont wanna sound like I've made no mistakes, I'm confident I have. I'm sure something will pop into my head here." (Audio Unedited)
Totally Fresh: Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
"My answer to that question is, is that, again, I repeat what I said earlier, heh, the, the, uhm, heh, y'know, we were shooting cruise missiles, and, heh, they dont protect us from killers. Uh, y'know, as I say, you're, you're catching me totally fresh, hah, uh gosh, I, y'know, I, I would, I, heh, the, the, uhm, heh. (Audio Edited)
Dictatorship Is Easier: Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
"If this were a dictatorship, it's be a heckuva lot easier. Just so long as I'm the dictator." (Audio Unedited)
Gagging On The Donkey: Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
"Y'know (much stammering), Blacks are gagging on the donkey, but not yet ready to swallow the elephant" (Audio Edited, except for the last 14 words, which are 100% unedited.)
And Neither Do We: Download (3GP | MP3 | WAV)
"Our enemies are innovative and resourceful. And so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people. And neither do we." (Audio Unedited)
Mucho thanks to Mark Smith for the idea and the help, and to The Professor for his help. Look for more ringtones here soon.
Check out One Free Minute (some audio not safe for work), an audio experiment that gives anyone who calls in one minute to anonymously vent, rant, proselytize, sing, or grunt. Each caller's minute is recorded, and played back during One Free Minute "performances." Some dude used his minute to cluck the theme to Beverly Hills Cop like a chicken (streaming MP3). Want to top that? Call (800) 931-5056 to participate.
Click here to read a short article about the project in Wired.
Thanks to listener Marisa for the heads-up!
With all today's brouhaha about the Governator's five million dollar muscle magazine shilling contract, how come nobody is praising Ahnuld's fine work on this amazing Japanese commercial? (quicktime .mov file for download) via Cynical-C Blog and imockery
Chris Cunnigham's most disturbing Aphex Twin video yet, the not-for-the-squeamish and not safe for work Rubber Johnny (shockwave video). See, I told you that chihuahuas were not of this world! Thanks Brian!
Following up on Dave the Spazz's coverage of The Beach Boys own Mount Rushmore, Rich submits this Leni Riefenstahl-esque tribute to Freddie Mercury. And for all you Queen fans, here is All Your Base set to Bohemian Rhapsody (flash page).
Cool gallery interface from a Spanish artist.
Bawdy Songs, erotic toasts and lascivious recitations.
Billboard Post Play Blog reports that the MP3 turns ten today. The tiny terror was hatched ten years ago today when researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits in Germany ("Vee have vays of making you stream!") decided to use ".mp3" as the file name extension for their new audio coding technology. Since then, the MP3 has brought the music industry to its wobbly knees as the first modern music configuration not introduced, controlled, and marketed by the industry itself (which hasn't put a halt to the gluttonous and obsolete practice of CD packaging deductions levied on artists and other royalty recipients). Consumers have rejoiced in a drunken downloading frenzy, ditching their broken-hinged jewel cases and clunkola CD Walkmans for iPod mugging bait. And for that, young man - the stripper, the Veuve, and the cake are on us. Just don't tell your mom as she'd probably kick our aged analog ass. Hit, it Marilyn!
For Diane's accompanying audio archives on Fury Fest 2005, click here: Realaudio | MP3. For the playlist, click here and for the bigass Fury Fest Foto Gallery, click here.
After the bloodbath in Paris, see this blog entry, was I really ready to go to LeMans for Fury Fest, the best metal/punk/heavy lineup of the summer for three days of camping and partying with my horns up? Hell yeah!
June 24th, Friday, my friend Rob & I were off, leaving from Paris for an uneventful but safe drive to LeMans once we found the Peripherique (the highway that encircles Paris, and basically the "way out"). Fury Fest was right next to the LeMans raceway at Le Parc Expo du Mans, but although the two sites were next to each other, both were huge and I could not get a decent photo of the racetrack from the site, it was still too distant.
We met friends near the festival entrance & proceeded to set up camp; putting up the tents was the
easy part - finding an area where we'd be able to find our tents at night while in any condition, that was a bit trickier. A spot by a light pole was perfect, and the labor was done in minutes, voila!
The festival was set up with three stages, all inside; total band count for the festival is a whopping 96, and as far as I know, the only band who did not make it was Murphy's Law. Most of the bands on earlier in the day are given half hour sets, then 45 minutes to about 25% of the performers, then the headliners get anywhere between one & 1.5 hours to play. The Velvet Stage would be the first one I hit today; Belgium's Leng Tche, featuring the vocalist from Aborted on drums was on at 12:55. The Velvet Stage is the smallest
Continue reading "Fury Fest: France's Answer to Heavy Metal Parking Lot" »
A robot invasion is scheduled to take over Dublin this weekend. Find out more about the Robot Talent Show, download the ArtBot Theme Song (MP3), and cruise through the links for each participant, as some are quite impressive.
There are a few video clips embedded deep within, perhaps most entertaining are the Altoid robots and the stuffed animal robots arguing in German (wmv file).
And we've got plenty more robot videos available from previous posts.
Make a glorious racket that obeys the laws of an intricate visual entanglement with Le Ciel Est Bleu's La Pâte à Son:
" The Pâte à Son (Sound Dough) is a sound toy and compositional tool conceived to encourage musical experimentation. Drag instruments, switches, and transporter pipes from the conveyor belt to the checkerboard above to make music. Rotate the pieces. Choose a melody. Change pitch, tempo and volume to fine-tune your composition. "
MP3s: Fungal remix excerpts of New Order, Soft Cell, The Eagles, The Beastie Boys and Gordon Taylor.
Mold and Music go way back. Remember Moldy Oldies, before they disappeared from the airwaves thanks to Jack FM? Or how about Moldy Figs, the sarcastic term applied to swing and big-band fans who snubbed post-war Jazz innovations like Be-Bop (think: the record collecting crowd from the film Ghost World). And then there was that one armed drummer for The Barbarians, Mouldy. (Listen to Mouldy's theme song from Charlie's 1/10/05 show in streaming realaudio).
I grew up with a Commodore 64 as my best friend. The C64 offered a new world to escape to from the banality of 5th grade. This is a story I always tell and people respond with a blank stare eventually uttering, "What was the point? That's pretty stupid." So you just shouldn't bother reading this.
When I was ten I acquired a 300 baud modem. Services like Quantum Link (later to become AOL), which were primitive chatroom networks, soon lost appeal after I was repeatedly kicked off for excessive cursing. I started logging on to local BBSs (bulletin board systems) where a SysOp (one lonely guy) set up his computer to receive other users one at a time. The BBS’s featured message boards and download/upload areas. I was still involved in the real world of life, not totally ensconced in the world of computers, but I was looking for a way out, something new that would let me escape the constant ridicule of being fat and weird. Unfortunately these local BBSs were not the answer because they were usually run by old geezer hobbyists and most of the BBS members were from his close circle of friends. On the message boards they usually talked about RUSH.
As if being humiliated in an interview as sell-outs on video by Extreme Elvis wasn't enough, this prank phone call (MP3) to Gabe from costumed hardcore mutants the Locust comes courtesy of a Buddyhead compilation CD (the same disc with the Iggy Pop song where he inexplicably focuses on beating up Moby). Slipknot's "manager" offers a more-than-willing Gabe an opening slot on his client's upcoming South American stadium tour, prattling on about "mask rock" taking over.
Taken from the Mad Deadly Worldwide Communist Gangster Computer God label comp Industry Wannabes and Radio Anomalies a few years back (but heard for many many years on WFMU and elsewhere), there is little in the way of words to describe the J & H Productions guy. Except that many of you who work in the "recording industry" are familiar with messages "pertaining to" this kind of biz (MP3).
Jobriath was Elektra's big attempt to replicate Ziggy Stardust, and was a financial disaster for everyone involved. Relegated to being a footnote in rock history, only recently has attention turned to this strange and charismatic artist who fell between the cracks; Morrissey even produced a retrospective compilation for Sanctuary in the UK last year. Here's a rare live excerpt of Jobraith in front of an audience of mostly industry cronies toasting their hopeful Future of Rock, his song "Good Time" live at the Bottom Line in NYC, 1974 (MP3).
We've been enjoying a whole lot of recent South African female vocalists lately in the library, in particular Dorothy Masuka, with a great disc called Hamba Notsokolo donated by our own Doug Schulkind. Here's an MP3 of the track "My Parents", taken from another appearance of Masuka on a 1950's collection on the BB label of Hot Jazz and Dance from South Africa.
Another soul-stirring voice from another land is Gurmeet Bawa, a Punjabi vocalist with total power, emotion, and as you can here on this MP3 of "Bolia" from her 1988 album Love and Life in the Punjab, one hell of an ability to hold a note. I often think of Bawa everytime American Idol is on, wondering what it would be like to watch Simon, Randy and Paula dive under the table and render the whole contest nil, but perhaps she is somewhat of the Indian equivalent to Kelly Clarkson after all? Or so you might ascertain by reading this recent quote from a review of one of her homeland concerts: Rajni and Sandeep, third year engineering students said, “She is too good. She expressed deep feelings. Her songs were as soulful as those of Celine Dion in Titanic. She has bound us to our culture.”
Chubby Checker may have told us to do the Twist, but while we were doing that, he went to Holland, smoked a lot of pot, and recorded a single called "Stoned In the Bathroom". The flip, "My Mind" (MP3) is found on the new Toytown compilation of obscuro psych, called Nightmares At Toby's Shop, findable via Forced Exposure.
The Japanese artist known as Yann Tomita records under a lot of different names, including Pardon Kimura. Here's a track by Yann, aka Pardon, called La Strada, (MP3) not to be confused with the Fellini movie of the same name.
Another artist who makes up recording pseudonyms faster than we can keep track of them is Lassigue Bendthaus, aka LB, aka Senor Coconut, aka 386 DX. As 386 DX, he records cover versions of western and russian pop songs. Fans of Ken's new automated co-host Julio may enjoy this version of Erik Clapton's Layla.
On a recent show, our own Mike Lupica did a nice collage of Glenn Miller's In The Mood along with a hilarious segment from an unidentified Joe Frank episode. So overwhelmed was Mike with inquiries over this fine radio moment that he has excerpted it in MP3 form for your downloading pleasure: In The Mood For A Prayer (MP3).
In honor of Nike ripping off Minor Threat and then apologizing over the incident, here is a cover version of Fugazi's Waiting Room by Germany's Mambo Kurt (MP3).
Finally, in our new download offerings for the month of July, here is Go Home Productions' mashup of the Velvet Underground and Christna Agui!era: Girl Just Want to Say Goodbye to Rock and Roll (MP3). It's not new, but it sure is great.
MP3 download: Super Mario Brothers Theme performed by a symphony
Imagine a mega-fest where video game music is performed by an orchestra to a synchronized laser show, stunt performers act out moves that would put out even the most dextrous of index fingers, and concertgoers are invited onstage to compare joysticks. Just when you thought gamers couldn't get any geekier, along comes Video Games Live.
Who wants to guess the male to female ratio at this event?
Other video game related items: Commodore 64 music and Super Mario Brothers in acapella (video).
Fans of early American recordings get a chance to revisit
the tunes of a bygone era every week on WFMU, courtesy of both the Antique
Phonograph Music Program and Thomas Edison’s Attic, alternating with each other
Tuesday nights from 7-8pm EST. The sounds of ragtime, Tin Pan Alley,
vaudeville, 78 cylinders, and flapper music from the late 1800’s through the
1920’s are featured on both programs.
WFMU’s Studio B experienced a negative-106-year time/space
glitch on June 14, when Rick Benjamin’s Paragon Ragtime Orchestra and
acoustical recording expert Peter Dilg visited Jerry Fabris and the Thomas
Edison’s Attic radio program. As the 11-piece orchestra played Scott
Joplin tunes into Dilg’s 1899 wax cylinder phonograph, radio listeners heard an
Edison-era recording session in progress. Click to listen to the archive of this program in Real Audio or MP3 stream, and check out the playlist for more info.
Before audio’s electronic age of recording with microphones and amplifiers, musicians played into acoustical horns, which funneled the air vibrations onto a small diaphragm pointed with a tiny sapphire knife. Sound pressure pushed the vibrating knife into the surface of a rotating wax recording blank, cutting a record groove.
If you’ve ever wondered about the distinctive
sound of antique phonograph records, be sure to check out archives of Thomas
Edison’s Attic and the Antique Phonograph Music Program. WFMU is now podcasting
both of these programs, with XML feeds available here.
MP3s: 30 of 'em, below the fold.
Back when WFMU's Professor was still producing The Audio Kitchen - the greatest found sound radio program of all time - he threw together a compilation for WFMU's record library called Sing Along With The Music. It featured 21 tracks of people singing along with music, usually in the privacy of their own homes. Those are the first 21 tracks I've included below, and I've added nine more that seem to fit in with the theme.
While it's easiest to refer to most of these recordings as karaoke, it's not that simple. Karaoke usually takes place in bars, with an audience. What sets most of these recordings apart is that they were, for the most part, recorded at home, usually without the intention of an audience ever hearing them. This gives most of the recordings a refreshing lack of self consciousness. Of course there are exceptions. Moritz' version of Bohemian Rhapsody (mp3) definitely sounds like a karaoke performance, and Biz Markie's version of Benny and The Jets (mp3) was intended to have an audience. Those singalong tapes were how Biz built his early career.
Continue reading "Treasure Trove of Found Sound Vocal Workouts" »
"Blowguns, Beach Whistles and the True Definition of Powerlessness" is the name of a video project 
by Scott Harrison, illustrator and tattoo artist extraordinaire. And you thought I was writing a summer account of some kind of altercation with a life guard... No really, you need to check out his website,
but beware; cartoon genitalia abounds...as he warns. The project is available for your viewing pleasure on his site - it's a collection of stories told by tattooers all over the globe (I think they are all tattooers..?) From the mundane to the "too much information- I don't feel like eating anymore" category, the yarns are worth a viewing. His site "links" page has a link to this fine radio station front and center - reason enough to check out his pristine yet disturbing artwork - TONS of it, and the artwork of many others. You'll need a day to browse - the man is obsessed with eggs methinks, but you will come back again and again. Scott is also a part of a 6 person show (the website says 6 tattoo artists but it's actually 5 plus a NJ photographer) that is traveling the United States; this gallery gives you the lowdown on that... coming to a town near you!
Time to move this stuff from my inbox to yours...
One of the true wonders of New Jersey.
Japan-bashing artwork by Korean schoolkids.
Finally, a roadmap to the wide world of sexual deviancy. Human Furniture? Turkey Men?
Amazing German karaoke version of Bohemian Rhapsody (MP3). I've got a ton more stuff like this to put up in the next few days, watch for it!
Cool trippy movie called Ministry Messiah by Dutch filmmaker Gints Apsits (Quicktime).
The Museum of Retro Technology, including rocket powered bicycles and alcohol-fueled record players.
Van Gogh's letters, indexed by keywords like "venereal" and "hallucinations."
A Russian painter's incredible online gallery and even more incredible gallery interface.
All hail The Toilet Union.
Catalog of various end-of-the-world scenarios.
Wonderful art by Alex Gross.
The Fifty Greatest Song Parts. It would be fun to do a FMU version of this.
Copyright-free spoken word samples of famous literary works via Penguin Books.
Beautiful gallery of early photographic technique of cyanotypes by photographer Edwardo Aites.
Good new mashup of Led Zeppelin and Snoop Doggy Dogg (mp3).
Thanks del.icio.us, boingboing, peremeny, Sarah, Music for Maniacs, fazed, beatmixed, J-Walk
What does Christina Aguilera have in common with Barney The Purple Dinosaur, The Bobby Fuller Four, Matchbox Twenty and The Pretty Things? They're all included in that rarified playlist of recording artists approved for use in torture. The Drudge Report printed excerpts from a forthcoming article in Time Magazine which alleges that "interrogation" techniques at Guantanamo Bay include "Detainee #063" being forced to listen to the music of Christina Aguilera.
Continue reading "Detainees at Gitmo Being Forced to Listen to Christina Aguilera" »
A recent study by the NPD Group asserts that while radio is still the most popular means for delivering audio to consumers, its use in The United States dropped 4% in 2004, while listening to music on computers rose 22% in the same year. For what it's worth, I've noticed similar trends right here at WFMU - based on our fundraising marathon, the number of FM listeners has been declining steadily and the number of online listeners has been increasing. Fortunately for us, the number of new online listeners is more than compensating for the loss in FM listeners. Article from Billboard.
One of the most inspired phone pranks I've ever heard was when WFMU's Frank Balesteri (aka The Vanilla Bean) called a phone sex outlet in Memphis, Tennessee and pretended to be a guy with an Elvis fetish. But Frank's real stroke of genius was turning the tables on the actress/operator and getting her to fantasize about Elvis - his guitar-shaped swimming pool, Elvis getting laid in heaven, the jism on his blue suede shoes. Frank even gets her singing "It's Alright, Mama," or at least all the lyrics she could remember. Too bad this was never aired. Or so I was told. Download the MP3. (Not safe for work. Taken from WFMU's 2-CD set, Radio Archival Oddities, Vol. 2)
Here's an end-of-the-work-week audio contest for you. Below are links to ten mp3s of ten famous people speaking, with all of the actual language removed from their speech. All that remains are the interjections, gutteral noises, yawns, screams, background sounds, denture-clacking, tongue flapping and other sonic ephemera that accompanies normal speech. It's not as hard as you might think - various tracks contain all sorts of audio hints as to the speaker's identity. The first person to identify all ten speakers correctly wins a WFMU T-shirt and double CD of live music from WFMU. Put your guesses into the comments section.
The mystery speakers are: Maya Angelou, Phillip Glass, Elton John, Thelonius Monk, Marilyn Monroe, Henry Rollins, Susan Sontag, Sylvester Stallone, Gloria Steinem, and Malcolm X.
And here are their MP3s to download: One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight | Nine | Ten.
MP3s courtesy Language Removal Services.
In honor of Donna's return to WFMU weekly schedule (Wednesday's 3 - 6pm, beginning June 15th), here are the MP3s of her 2001 marathon premium, Babble. She described it this way:
All manner of vocal stylings, ranging from Ethiopian herdsmen serenading their cow's udders to avant garde types with microphones lodged in their esophaguses.
Continue reading "23 MP3s of Wild and Wooly Vocal Stylings" »
Girl Talk: Date Line was a late 80's board game. The objective was to get some dates. It came with a cassette and a baby pink cassette player contraption. How the cassette factors into the game...I don't know...but it's full of irritating kids with Canadian accents calling each other for dates. For your self-loathing pleasure, I have edited it down to the losers.
Forget the news. Aren’t you sick of all the reports of U.S. torture of foreign nationals, and how our country has been caught red-handed launching an illegitimate war? And who hasn’t had enough of the all the news cycle sucking sideshows– the runaway bride, the Motown Pedophile and the recent revelation of the real “Deep Throat”? It’s all so depressing and messy.
If you’re as distraught about what's going on in the world today as I am, then I may have some good news for you. The saucers may finally be on the way.
That’s right. All the painful political bickering and mind-numbing non-news may soon be reduced to forgotten trivia. The mother of all current events may be on the horizon– first contact.
A man who goes by the name of “The Prophet Yahweh” (a.k.a. “The UFO Summoner,” or just “Ramon Watkins”) claims that over the next few weeks he’s going to call down a bunch of spaceships over Las Vegas, and America, for the news media to film and fawn over. And while it all sounds kinda fantastic, the prophet did offer a taste of his powers to an ABC affiliate in Vegas the other day. And well, whatever happened it’s a pretty wild bit of news video. Download the windows video file here. And to really find out what this holy guy is up to, you can read his press release right here.
Getcher clicking finger warmed up... Below you'll find more MP3s than you can shake a stick at. First, some newbies:
Ridiculous Trio - No Fun (MP3) Mike Hagedon on trombone, Rob Plesher on Tuba and Shannon Morrow on drums play the Stooges! More info and mp3s here.
Inflatable Boy Clams - Five songs from this proto art-punk female quartet from San Francisco, originally pressed onto two seven inch singles by Subterranean Records in 1981: Skeletons | Snoteleks | Marin | I'm Sorry | Boystown (MP3s)
Wayne Butane - MP3 excerpt from his new "Imbalanced" CD. Thankfully, people like Wayne Butane exist and have a lot of time to take millions of audio snippets and assemble them into brain-altering rivers of sound gush, that will often leave you chuckling in a most Beavis-and-Butthead-like manner before it all ends. Pure genius for the short-attention span potty-humor loving gnomes in the audience. Discs available at Flaming Canine's site
Chuck Jones - Loveline Questions (MP3) From Jones' Four Isolation Studies collection, a sea of strung together questions. No answers.
But there's more! Follow the link below for more new MP3s, plus a recap of all the MP3s from Beware of the Blog for the past month.
Brian Wharton AKA Thigamahjigee AKA Thig AKA Sharkula is Chicago character you can usually find in the Wicker Park neighborhood or on an El platform selling his homemade hip hop tapes and CD-Rs. His odd MC persona has been compared to Kool Kieth and Busta Rhymes.
He recently put out a vinyl-only release under the name Sharkula compiled from years' worth of tracks recorded in studios, on friends' computers, and on his rusty cassette recorder. His most recent CD is called “Martin Luther King Jr. Whopper With Cheese”…if that isn’t a brilliant play on words, I don’t what is.
But my favorite Sharkula/Thigahmahjigee material comes from the cassettes he records of himself walking around freestyling and approaching strangers to ask them what they think of hip-hop music. He often asks for the person’s phone number…”to receive information on hip-hop music.” I’m not sure if the interviewees realize the conversation is being recorded and the tape will be sold for $5, but most give their phone numbers without blinking
(I edited out the phone numbers)
Thigahmahjigee - street tape excerpt #1 (mp3) (NSFW)
Thigahmahjigee - street tape excerpt #2 (mp3)
The TV show Deadwood has taken the art of cussin' to new heights. Fans of the show are even known as fucknuts. But despite what you may have heard, Deadwood is not all blowjobs, cocksuckers and titlickers. Specifically, in a sample 60 minute episode, 53 minutes of it were 100% curse-free! I painstakingly edited out all the clean phrases and passages from one episode of Deadwood, distilling the show down to its brilliant essence. I now present to you Seven Minutes In Deadwood (mp3, not safe for shit - wall to wall cursing and ethnic slurs). (For fans of the show, this is episode ten of season one, the episode known as Mister Wu.)
The problem with backmasking is that there are so many demonic dialects, who can possibly keep up? You can never be sure exactly which evil deeds the Rock Demons are trying to implant in your subconscious. Well, fret no more. Jeff Milner's handy-dandy backmasking site lets you play songs forwards or backwards, and it even displays the secret satanic messages for you while you listen. Who knew that Robert Plant was really singing about an evil "little toolshed where Satan made us suffer" in Stairway to Heaven? So the next time the talking dogs show up at your house wanting proof of purchase stamps for all your evil deeds, you'll no longer be able to feign ignorance. via del.icio.us
From Chicago art collective Temporary Services comes a traveling portable pirate radio station:
The Audio Relay is an autonomous radio station plus a music and sound archive. It travels from city to city gathering and presenting the work of musicians, sound artists, documentarians, and people whose work can be listened to. The Audio Relay houses a 4 watt FM transmitter, a folding antenna, a 30 watt amplifier, two speakers, two drawers that hold up to 200 cds, a cd player, two solar panels on a detachable cover, one chair and has storage space for posters and other informative material.
The Audio Relay is compact and easy to move around. Its dimensions are 22 1/2 in. x 22 1/2 in. x 9 in. The Audio Relay can be set up anywhere. The solar panels provide some of the power. The Audio Relay can run off any international AC power source or, for remote locations, a 12volt car battery. The battery can be re-charged by the solar panels or by plugging the unit in to a wall outlet.
The Audio Relay can play music for an intimate audience as well as broadcast material in a radius of up to a mile away.
Audio Relay designer, Brennan McGaffey, also constructs other environmental altering projects such as the Utility-intertied Signal Generation & Transfer which transmits an Extremely Low Frequency signal by using and altering the electromagnetic field surrounding the powerline network in localized areas of the city.
And speaking of sound effects, the greatest chant on earth is The Haka (mp3), the hundred-year old Maori rugby chant of the New Zealand All Blacks team. Hakas also refer to the stance that players take while doing The Haka, and recently, mystery Hakas have been popping up around New Zealand. And oh yeah, The Haka is patented, so don't get any ideas, you rugby teams. Or DJs.
Life without karate sound effects is not worth living. (MP3 of "Stick Fight" from Bruce Lee's Game of Death.)
Click here for an interactive Dr. Who theme song generator.
(Dr. Who was the longest running sci-fi series in the history of TV (1963-89), and the BBC just started airing new episodes this year)
via Metafilter
The Genius Kids (mpg) - an astounding video of a North Korean girl playing xylophone backed by a band of violins and melodicas. via Rob Pongi, who also does a zany dance party meets Uncle Floyd show in Tokyo. Browse around his site, there are many other wonders.
Mini-Pops - Disco Medley (mp3) - an odd and severely grating children's record from the 80's. This is the "Disco Medley" which includes "YMCA" and "In the Navy". A creepy leering adult voice backs up the children on "Celebration".
Raooul - Possessed (mp3) - Raooul was an East Bay Lookout band from the early 90's comprised of 14-15 year old girls. Their music, which they called "Jail-bait Core" is a limping screech that always make me laugh. This is from a Very Small Records comp...their split LP on Lookout might still be in-print.
Babies with Respiratory Problems Choking (mp3) - Someone gave me this tape years ago. The only information on the tape is a hand scrawled "Child".
Fatty Jubbo, Age 11 (mp3) - A recording of me, age 11. I was obsessed with Malcolm Jamal Warner, dildos and heavy metal. I pronounce "Fetish" FEEETISH.
University of Michigan Inpatiant Therapy Program - Oh Come All Ye Faithful (mp3) - From a record of a Children's Psychiatric Hospital Christmas Concert (oh...it's never too early). This was taken from the wonderful Pastor McPurvis Vinyl Orphanage mp3 Talent Show website. Pastor McPurvis posts a new album every week of amateur and vanity press records.
Here's a great collection of electronic musical toys from 1954 to the late 80's, including the Shaun Cassidy Electronic Organ, the Bee Gees Rhythm Machine and Mattel's Magical Musical Thing. For a more grownup version of the same thing, visit the Synthmuseum, where you can find the old WFMU favorite, the Optigan.
Taking toys like this and hacking away at their innards is now known as circuit bending, and there's no circuit bender quite like the Norweigan musical outsider Tore Honoré Bøe, who is also the king of aliases. His homemade musical laptops are things of beauty, and also earned him a place on tour with Einsturzende Neubauten. Thanks, listener Bas!
On Tuesday, British MP George Galloway came before the U.S. Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations to deny his alleged involvement in the Iraqi oil-for-food scandal. Instead of meekly defending his honor to the big bad senators, in his opening statement Galloway delivered perhaps the most powerful, eloquent and concise condemnation of the Iraq War that any group of war lovin’ American politicians has ever had to sit through. (Excluding the floor speeches of Robert Byrd, who may be eloquent and powerful but is rarely concise)
Yes, it knows the F word. Thank you Radio Sweden.
MP3: Simpsons episode with "DVS" audio captioning for blind people.
The other night, I turned on The Simpsons, only to find that the program's audio had a weird narrator describing almost everything that was happening. At first I thought that The Simpsons were parodying the voice-over approach from another Fox show, Arrested Development. It turns out that my broken VCR was picking up an additional audio channel instead of the main one, and in the case of The Simpsons, I was hearing the DVS, or blind captioned version of the show. DVS stands for Descriptive Video Services, and it's the audio equivalent of closed captioning for the deaf. Here's a large MP3 of the DVS version of The Simpsons "Rapture" episode from May 8th (right click to download).
Francis E. Dec, Esq. MP3s:
Rant 1
Rant 2
Rant 3
Rant 4
Rant 5
Rant 6
Francis E. Dec, Esquire, of 29 Maple Ave, Hempstead, New York, is one of the most mysterious characters in all kookdom. He plastered cars with paranoid posters and mass-mailed thousands of his rants to unwitting victims, mostly in media outlets. One of these packets fell into the hands of L.A. newscaster/talk show host "Doc on the ROQ" of KROQ-FM. In 1985, when Doc was employed at WZUU in Milwaukee, the station received a bundle of Dec flyers, which had been mass mailed to the media. He sez: "One chilly Sunday in '86, at Y-108 in Denver, I recorded the 41-minute tape now in circulation, using odd music tracks (Goldfinger, 'Pieces of Ice' by Diana Ross, Tomita, Capitol Library Series) mixed in quite at random, though it turned out nicely. I also used echo-processing for the faint 'mental' effects on the longest track, which I call 'LONG Island Lunacy.'" These are those sessions. It's amazing stuff. You can read some of the transcripts of the pieces here.
The Livestock Marketing Association in Kansas City sells great CDs and videos of champion livestock auctioneers. The LMA's 42nd annual World Livestock Auctioneer Championship will be held June 18 at the Tulsa Stockyards. Listen to streaming audio of auctioneer champions from 1963-2004 or round up MP3s of a few of my faves:
Stenson Clontz - 1985
Cecil Ward - 1964
Steve Liptay - 1976
Also from the LMA site...
Continue reading "Recordings Of Champion Livestock Auctioneers" »
It's long been known that various governments have sonic weapons in their arsenals, sound cannons that can be aimed at enemy troops (or in some cases, their own citizens). But now this video proves that European gameshow hosts have been experimenting with the same technology (windows video file, right click to download), often to devastating effect. via alldumb.com
WARNING: Not safe for work. Not safe for home. Not safe for your car. Not safe for anything.
MP3s:
Hippys Are Living Proof, 1971 (3:31)
Every Man, Woman, And Child, 1972 (7:53)
Fight It Out, 1972 (11:46)
Bubble Blower, 1972 (5:08)
Straight Razor, 1972 (9:14)
Mama Bear, 1972 (8:50)
Power Poles, 1973 (3:31)
Swoops Down Outta The Sky, 1975 (12:33)
Cadillac, 1973 (5:52)
Store Up Your Treasures in Heaven, 1974 (7:29)
Whatcha Doing Down There Boy, 1975 (7:32)
Whatsda Matter Wid Jew, 1977 (5:33)
Lucky T's Texaco, 1975 (6:17)
In the 1970s, Jim Roche, a performance artist from the deep South, made his way into the New York artworld and began doing pieces in galleries where he'd go into a trance-like state and channel redneck characters from his home turf. The result was this 2 LP set, "Learning to Count," released in 1982 by a museum in Kansas. These are the most intense audio works ever put to vinyl: insane rants, heavily racist, sexist. Many, many people will be offended by Jim Roche: the refrain of "Hippys Are Living Proof" is "Hippys are living proof that a nigger will fuck a dog." And it gets worse. Much worse. No one is spared: Jews, Asians, Hispanics, etc. are all targets of Roche's rage. Needless to say, we don't endorse Mr. Roche's fantasies, but for intensity's sake and for true horrifying outsider madness, nothing -- we repeat -- nothing outdoes this.
Laughter may be universal, but the the sound that dogs or pigs make is not. According to this site, oink oink turns into buubuu in Japanese. But bzzzpeek explores this concept one better, inviting kids from all over the world to actually record and submit their best animal impersonations. (requires flash)
