Art for Spastics

AFS v. 345 ~ feat. the "Wool(l)en Bros"

2012-01-31T09:37:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 344 ~ Better Late Than Never!

2012-01-30T20:44:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 343 ~ It's So Obvious!

2012-01-17T22:56:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 342 ~ Best of 2011

2012-01-09T21:49:00.000-08:00

This week in AFS...

* My top 25 LPs of 2011

Download this week's program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

TUMOR WARLORD | End of Time | Bio-Machine 7" | Jeth-Row *new
SPRAY PAINT | Psychic Doug | Pro Knife 7" | SS Records *new
MORDECAI | Horse | self-titled | Killertree 2011
UV RACE | Homo | Homo | In The Red 2011
ROYAL HEADACHE | Psychotic Episode | self-titled | R.I.P. Society 2011
DEAF WISH | Make It Hurt | self-titled | Radio Records Melbourne 2011
PER PURPOSE | Pregnant Again | Implicating More Than One | Bedroom Suck 2011 (orig 2007)
BURNING SENSATION | Terminal Decay | self-titled | Vertex 2011
TOTAL CONTROL | Carpet Rash | Henge Beat | Iron Lung 2011
WOUNDED LION | Raincheck Vibrations | IVXLCDM | In The Red 2011
DAN MELCHIOR | Atomizer | Assemblage Blues | Siltbreeze 2011
LOS LLAMARADA | Death Will Die | Gone Gone Cold | SS Records 2011
BBJr | Radio Detective (Detective) | Tearjerker | Captcha 2011
SEX CHURCH | Colour Out of Space/Treading Water | Growing Over | Load 2011
HUMAN EYE | Impregnate the Martian Queen Pt. 2 | They Came from the Sky | Sacred Bones 2011
NOTHING PEOPLE | Cathode Ray Tube/Gut Wind | Smells Like Metal | Captcha 2011
PSANDWICH | Like a Metaphor | Northren Psych | Columbus Discount 2011
PYGMY SHREWS | No Supplies | You People Can All Go Straight to Hell | Jack Shack 2011
VIDEO | Any Worse? | Leather Leather | Play Pinball 2011
B-LINES | Psychedelic High School | self-titled | Deranged/Nominal 2011
JOHNNY ILL BAND | Good Posture | Ask All the Doctors | Urinal Cake 2011
CHEVEU | Charlie Sheen | 1000 | Kill Shaman 2011
SOFT KILL | Surrender | An Open Door | Fast Weapons 2011
MILLIGRAM RETREAT | Wife/Petticoat Affair | Falun Gong | Enfant Terrible 2011
COLOUR BÜK | I'm Approaching You With Romantic Intent | Licht Dinger | Wir Wollen Wulle 2011
WEYES BLOOD & THE DARK JUICES | His Song | The Outside Room | Not Not Fun 2011
DAN MELCHIOR UND DAS MENACE | Gnomes on the Runway | Catbirds & Cardinals | Northern Spy 2011

Sorry...It took awhile to get around to making my "best of" list of 2011 albums. Even on the downside of the last few halcyon years of music, some excellent albums missed the cut, so it was hard to whittle down. Also, I was still waiting to hearing those albums by Condominium and True Sounds of Thunder. Those came out when I was in a bit of a cash bind, so I missed my chance to get 'em while they were fresh. Then again, the last several years, I make my list in mid-December, and then January rolls around and there's 2-3 December releases that I wanna add to the list.

Please have a listen to my top 25 playlist above, and if you feel like it, tell me what you liked in 2011. It's in no particular order except to make for sensible radio segueways...and, well...I did segregate the Aussies from the rest. Oz's roll keeps going, as it remains the center of the rock & roll world.

But here they are in order of awesomeness, in my opinion...

1. TOTAL CONTROL Henge Beat (Iron Lung)
2. WOUNDED LION IVXLCDM (In The Red)
3. UV RACE Homo (In The Red)
4. DAN MELCHIOR Assemblage Blues (Siltbreeze)
5. LOS LLAMARADA Gone Gone Cold (SS Records)
6. HUMAN EYE They Came from the Sky (Sacred Bones)
7. DEAF WISH self-titled (Radio Records Melbourne)
8. PSANDWICH Northren Psych (Columbus Discount)
9. SEX CHURCH Growing Over (Load)
10. CHEVEU 1000 (Kill Shaman)
11. SOFT KILL An Open Door (Fast Weapons)
12. BBJr Tearjerker (Captcha)
13. VIDEO Leather Leather (Play Pinball)
14. ROYAL HEADACHE self-titled (R.I.P. Society)
15. MILLIGRAM RETREAT Falun Gong (Enfant Terrible)
16. JOHNNY ILL BAND Ask All the Doctors (Urinal Cake)
17. PYGMY SHREWS You People Can All Go Straight to Hell (Jack Shack)
18. BURNING SENSATION self-titled (Vertex)
19. NOTHING PEOPLE Smells Like Metal (Captcha)
20. DAN MELCHIOR UND DAS MENACE Catbirds & Cardinals (Northern Spy)
21. B-LINES self-titled (Deranged/Nominal)
22. PER PURPOSE Implicating More Than One (Bedroom Suck)
23. WEYES BLOOD & THE DARK JUICES The Outside Room (Not Not Fun)
24. MORDECAI self-titled (Killertree)
25. COLOUR BÜK Licht Dinger (Wir Wollen Wulle)

AFS v. 341 ~ Tempe, AZ, Scene Report

2012-01-03T10:18:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 340 ~ Free-Form Rock & Roll

2011-12-20T13:35:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 339 ~ 9000 Robots/See You're a One of 'Em!

2011-12-13T00:24:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 338 ~ Curiosity is My Specialty

2011-12-06T21:37:00.000-08:00

This week in AFS, we tie together...

* How I kick ass at Scrabble
* The lyrics of Colin Newman
* The sport of cricket
* The British sense of humo(u)r (or lack thereof)

Download this week's program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

WOUNDED LION | Relaxation is my Specialty | IVXLCDM | In the Red *new
WAX IDOLS | Hitman | No Future | HoZac *new
BAD INDIANS | The Path Home | The Path Home 7" | Ginkgo *new
TOTAL CONTROL | Nervous Harvest/For Lease | split 12" w/ Thee Oh Sees | Castle Face *new
RANK/XEROX | Drips | self-titled | Make a Mess *new
COLIN NEWMAN | Don't Bring Reminders | Not to | 4AD 1982
COLIN NEWMAN | Don't Bring Reminders | A-Z (CD bonus track) | Restless Retro 1988 (orig 1981)
YU | The Big Picture | We Are Yu 7" | A Home Production *new (orig 1982)
THE EX | Kachun-k Pschûh | Joggers & Smoggers | Ex Records 1989
THE FALL | God-Box | The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall | Beggars Banquet 1984
CIRCLE X | Underworld | self-titled EP | no label 1979
NOTHING PEOPLE | Gut Wind | Smells Like Metal | Captcha *new
MONOSHOCK | Cryptozoological Disaster | Walk to the Fire | Blackjack 1995
CCR HEADCLEANER | Diamonds Arn't Forever [sic]/Ups vs Downs | self-titled CS | Gnar Tapes *new
FAR-OUT FANGTOOTH | Red Hawk Desert | Pure & Disinterested | Siltbreeze *new
DEAF WISH | Freeze the Sound | self-titled | Radio Records Melbourne *new (orig 2007)
THE WIPERS | No One Wants an Alien | Over the Edge | Rabid Cat 1983
BUICK | The Moon is Not a Yellow Sow | Sweatertongue | Lather 1992
POLVO | In the Hand in the Sieve | split 7" w/ Erectus Monotone | Merge 1992
ROBERT WYATT | Little Red Robin Hood Hit the Road | Rock Bottom | Virgin 1974
PETER HAMMILL | Modern | Vision | Charisma 1978
THE DEAD C. | Angel | The Sun Stabbed 7" EP | Xpressway 1988
DIADAL | Tundra Snake Song | v/a: Color in Absence Sound | Hell's Half Halo 1999
MONOSTAT 3 | You're a Nice Computer Fuck | v/a: Color in Absence Sound
TEMPORAL PAIN | Waves Hit | More to Come 8" flexi | Eva-Tone 1983
PEDESTRIAN DEPOSIT | Strife/Meridian | East Fork/North Fork | Monorail Trespassing *new
SCORN | Far in Out | Gyral | Scorn 1995
TECHNO ANIMAL | Atomic Buddha | Demonoid 12" EP | Grand Royal 1997

I recently was playing Scrabble (well, Lexulous) with some British bloke, and I scored a double-triple-word-score after he placed a 7-letter bingo word--"QUARREL"--down the right side of the board, leaving me the opportunity to place "WICKETS" across the bottom row and into the corner so that the "S" pluralized his singular word on the triple-word-score. This move scored 114 points, so halfway through the game, I had his score doubled. In the chat box, he accused me of cheating: "How would an American like you know that word?" I thought I'd humo(u)r him and say "We yanks are a quarrelsome nation, don'tcha know!?!", but he wasn't having it, so he specifically asked how I know about wickets. I told him that I knew it was a cricketing term, and he replied "Surely you just Googled that". It was then that I had to explain this true story.

I first learned of this word at age 14 when I bought my very first CD...a copy of Provisionally Entitled the Singing Fisk/Not to on Restless Retro. It struck me as sounding very English, so I looked it up in the unabridged Oxford Dictionary at the Travis Air Force Base community library. I tried my home reference first, but it wasn't in there! Another thing I remember from that day at the library....I cracked open the World Book Encyclopedia to try 'n figure out what the sport of cricket was all about.

He must not have believed my story because he quit the game.

Isn't it funny where music leads you sometimes?

"Don't Bring Reminders"

Everything they say seems so insubstantial
A word of caution
Take care of what you got
It didn't come cheap
I mean look at the choices
Afoot of life (???)

Don't bring reminders, let them all rock and roll
It's very insubstantial
I got you a first class booking
Take the ticket, hit the wicket

We've come to see what's left of you
What's left of you, what's left of you
We want to see what's left of you
What's left of you, what's left of you

You've been had
If you think that it had
Any relevance to you
Anyway

--Colin Newman

AFS v. 337 ~ Mood Music

2011-11-29T11:02:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 336 ~ Things Are About to Get 81% Worse

2011-11-22T14:38:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 335 ~ G. Green Reloaded!

2011-11-08T02:26:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 334 ~ Halloween Radio Special

2011-11-01T02:09:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 333 ~ Charles Albright & Friends Live on KDVS!

2011-10-25T13:24:00.000-07:00

AFS vols 330-332 ~ Catching Up w/ AFS!

2011-10-21T14:01:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 329 ~ I'm in Orbit!

2011-09-20T01:07:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 328 ~ It's Gonna Surprise Ya!

2011-09-13T03:27:00.001-07:00

AFS v. 327 ~ Jams for Your Inner Jock

2011-09-07T02:54:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 326 ~ Vaz & Pygmy Shrews live on KDVS!

2011-08-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 325 ~ Know Your Quotient!

2011-08-24T03:09:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 324 ~ I've Never Heard This Nostalgia Before!

2011-08-16T00:47:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 323 ~ Feel the Vibrations!

2011-08-10T01:58:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 322 ~ Most Likely to Exceed (Your Expectations!)

2011-08-03T00:39:00.001-07:00

This week in AFS...

* Deeper than normal vinyl archive excavation!
* Dead Moon relevance peaking again w/ reissue series!
* Well wishes to G. Green on their Does It Slap? tour!
* Lemme try to be objective about my friends' band G. Green!
* They rule!

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

UZI RASH | B1 | Palmwine Rumpus vol. 2 | 24/7 Industries *new
B.P.A. | Dining Room | Moving and Storage | Hospital 1985
B.P.A. | Forensic Dentist | By-Products of America 12" EP | Hospital 1983
DEMENTIA PRECOX | Mines | Dead on 2 Legs Luncheonette 7" | Hospital 1981
FACTUMS | Standing in the Corner/Walking Void | Gilding the Lilies | Assophon *new
YEK KOO | Oh Woman | Alone Together #3 7" | Emerald Cocoon *new
BLIND DESCENT | Can't Touch Me | Stone Cold & You | Probe Plus 1989
KILLING JOKE | Slipstream | Extemities, Dirt & Various Repressed Emotions | Noise Int'l 1990
THE BUTCHER SHOP | Wasteland | Hard for You 12" EP | Black Eye 1988
TOWEL | Nunu/Shun Shun Action | self-titled 7" | Vermiform 1996
THINKING FELLERS UNION LOCAL 282 | 2x4s | Lovelyville | Matador 1991 *request
NOD | Nutmeg | Chicago 7" | Baby Music 1993
NOD | Summer Sausage | I'm Around | Baby Music 1995
SAN FRANCISCO WATER COOLER | Bankshot | Kool Shoes 7" | Sun Sneeze *new
HENRY'S DRESS | Hey Allison | Bust 'em Green | Slumberland 1996
G. GREEN | Gay 90's | right offa their Facebook
KING TUFF | Just Strut | Was Dead | Colonel 2007
MICKEY | Bright Lights | Rock 'n Roll Dreamer | HoZac *new
USELESS EATERS | Neon Light | Daily Commute | Tic Tac Totally *new
DRUGS DRAGONS | Burning Hell [Brainbombs] | The Milorganight 12" EP | Dusty Medical *new
THE TRASHIES | Penultimate Betrayal Blazer | Space Jam | Minor Bird / 24/7 Industries *new
KNIFEY SPOONY | Retro Poser Enema | 3-song 7" | Orifice Dorm *new
THE BLACK CLOUDS | Trouble's Visit | Pathetic 7" | Ride the Snake *new
BEASTS OF BOURBON | Good Times | The Axeman's Jazz | Hybrid 1985
DEAD MOON | Walking on My Grave | Defiance | Mississippi *new (orig 1990)
DEAD MOON | Parchment Farm [Mose Allison] | In the Graveyard | Mississippi *new (orig 1988)
DEAD MOON | Dead Moon Night | Unknown Passage | Mississippi *new (orig 1989)
FORMICA MAN | Lobster Tail for Sick Guy | right off their Bandcamp

If you live on the Does It Slap? tour route, you should go see G. Green. Yes, they are my good friends and favorite partymates here in Sacramento, but ruminating on them as objectively as possible, I still recommend them highly because they pretty much spearhead the current "Sound of Young Sacramento", and they are one of the best bands going in Sacto or anywhere if you crave janglepunk poptunes, crazy energy, bold and original singing style, and rad girlpower rhythms. They mix up the sweet garagey noisepop charmers with some surprising and effective swipes at kick-in-the-teeth punk which covers a lotta bases. The band started as Andrew Henderson's solo bedroom recording project as a teenager in Provo, Utah, and although the songs are more linear and songlike and plenty pop-sensible now, his unique personality as a frontman, songwriter, and vocalist still keep this band from sounding too much like any other. Liz is consistently electrifying on drums and maintains the power and intensity level of even the most shambolic G. Green songs. Brutal bashing power like the first time I saw Mika Miko with Kate Hall on drums...but Liz has developed an excellent sense of when and how to roll and fill with purposeful pizzazz, and I've still not seen another drummer who appears to have so much fun while playing. Dyl-Dog's back in the band to complete the cutest couple on guitar and bass with Brittney. This lineup played on the best shows I saw all of 2010 in a basement of a small house in Twin Falls, Idaho, and if more fans of fun and frenzy had seen that magic, I do believe that you'd all be seeing and hearing a lot more from them. 'Til then, they've got a great
attitude...still serious about playing real songs and making friends with strangers. A new 7" will not out in time, but an album's worth of songs is in the can and sounds great.

Follow 'em here:
https://www.facebook.com/ggreenband
or
http://www.myspace.com/ggreenz

Thu 8/4 in Oakland @ Sugar Mountain
w/ Uzi Rash, Grass Widow, Broken Water

Fri 8/5 in San Francisco @ Hemlock Tavern
w/ La Corde, Waldo Astoria

Sat 8/6 in L.A. (daytime BBQ show) @ DDR Kompound
w/ Shark Toys, Double Negatives (ex-Red Kross)

Sat 8/6 in Pomona (later show) @ DBA 256 Wine Bar Lounge
w/ Orca Team, Shark Toys

Sun 8/7 in Phoenix, AZ @ Yellow Canary Dance Hall
w/ Orca Team

Mon 8/8 in Las Cruces, NM @ the Trainyard
w/ Far Corners, Orca Team

Tue 8/9 drive

Wed 8/10 Austin, TX @ Beerland
w/ Air Traffic Controllers, The Stuffies, The Restrooms

Thu 8/11 Denton, TX @ House Show
w/ TBA

Fri 8/12 Lawrence, KS @ Replay Lounge
w/ Irkutsk, The Dactyls

Sat 8/13 Omaha, NE @ OH-K Print Shop
w/ Public Access

Sun 8/14 Boulder, CO @ Astroland
w/ Sauna, Knife Fight

Mon 8/15 Provo, UT @ The Compound
w/ Glowing Heads, 90's Television

Tue 8/16 Reno, NV @ Holland Project House
w/ the Dawner Party, Missed Connections

I know I've shared this one before, but it's time again...

AFS v. 321 ~ feat. Hysterics live on KDVS!

2011-07-26T02:36:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* meet Hysterics, rip-roarin' ladyragers from Oly, WA!
* Hysterics play live in Studio A (& totally kill it)!
* ...then spin records in Studio B!

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

THE FALL-OUTS | Sleep | Sleep 7" | Super Electro 1994
UNNATURAL HELPERS | Heavy Sugar | Earwax EP 7" | Dirty Knobby 2007
UNNATURAL HELPERS | Tell Me That You Wanna | Cracked Love & Other Drugs | Hardly Art 2010
UNNATURAL HELPERS | This is a Gift | split 7" w/ The Intelligence | Dirty Knobby 2009
JOYCE MCKINNEY EXPERIENCE | Profit Motif | v/a: Gruesome Stains | Upright 1988
DAN | Into the Fields | Can You Dig It? 7" | Mass Media 1989
DIRT | Deaf in Reality | Never Mind Dirt - Here's The Bollocks | Crass 1982
========================== live in Studio A ==========================
HYSTERICS | Arm Candy
HYSTERICS | Dow Jones
HYSTERICS | Correct Me
HYSTERICS | Sunk
HYSTERICS | Deformative Years
HYSTERICS | Hanging Out at the 512
====================================================================
WRONG KIND OF STONE AGE | Run Amok | v/a: Bloodstains Across Australia | Bloodstains 1998 (orig 1984)
BOYCOTT | Barbie Doll Death | Barbie Doll Death 7" | Trench 1994
TEN DAYS LATE | Getaway | Go With the Flow 7" | Klark 1994
#B'LAST | Only Time Will Tell | It's in My Blood | SST 1987
#CRUMBSUCKERS | Trapped | Life of Dreams | Combat Core 1986
#SCHOOL OF VIOLENCE | Lab Rats | We the People...? | Death 1988
#NEGATIVE APPROACH | Whatever I Do | self-titled 7" | Touch & Go 1982
#NEGATIVE FX | I Know Better | self-titled | Taang! 1982
#SONSKULL | Housing | Birth Scene/Rewind EP 12" | Perennial 2010
@THE NECROS | No One | Conquest for Death | Touch & Go 1981
@BORN AGAINST | The Good Father | The Rebel Sound of Shit & Failure | Vermiform 1995
@RITES OF SPRING | Persistent Vision | self-titled | Dischord 1985
@HÜSKER DÜ | Divide and Conquer | Flip Your Wig | SST 1985
@MEAT PUPPETS | We're Here | II | SST 1984
@NAZZ | Open My Eyes | self-titled | Atlantic 1968
@THE IMPRESSIONS | So Proud | 16 Greatest Hits | ABC/Dunhill 1971
~THE WIPERS | Romeo | Over the Edge | Rabid Cat 1983
~NOTHING PEOPLE | It's Not Your Speakers | Late Night | SS Records 2009
~ROYAL TRUX | Air | self-titled | Drag City 1992
~NERVE CITY | Concentrate | Recordings 2007-2008 | Sweet Rot 2010
%JESUS LIZARD | Waxeater | Goat | Touch & Go 1990
%AGNOSTIC FRONT | Power | Victim in Plain | Combat Core 1986
%SUPERCHUNK | Brand New Love | The Freed Steed 7" | Merge 1991
%CHRISTIAN DEATH | Spiritual Cramp | Only Theatre of Pain | Frontier 1982
KOMMUNITY FK | Incompatible Disposition | The Vision & the Voice | Independent Project 1983

Tonight's guests--Hysterics--are yet another tally in the win column for Olympia, and much like H.P.P. and Sonskull, they honestly harken back to the early 80s hardcore heyday in such a rivetingly authentic way. Look for their 7" debut to drop anytime now on M'Lady's Records. And certainly don't miss 'em live if they come to your town. This is primo rip-roarin' ladyrager fun with rhythms fast n' loose but tight enough where they need to be, killer guitar shred alternating big dumb chunky barre chords with cool semi-metallic scaling, and a great vocalist who brings the right level of earnestness that's enough for you to know she means it and enough for her to make you feel it, but stopping well short of zealotry. The power in the music of Hysterics throttles through hulking amps, bashing drums, Stephie's vocal delivery, but also Stephie's eyes. She is seriously a great front-person for a HC band.

I had a great time with these ladies, too. We only had about three hours to hang out, but I'm quite sure they would be great to party with, and just great to talk music with. You can probably tell from the last 75 minutes of the show when they picked all the music. You can glean a keen sense of what each member brings to the band by their selections.

# guitarist Adriana's choice
@ singer Stephie's choice
~ drummer Shannen's choice
% bassist Jessica's choice

They just visited MRR Radio, too...
http://maximumrocknroll.com/2011/07/24/mrrradio-1254/

Follow the band this way...
http://hystericsoly.blogspot.com/

I submit further evidence of the rulingness of Hysterics through these video exhibits...

lights on!

lights off!

earlier drummer here, but this fun flies in the face of Evergreen campus busybody fun-ruiners!

And now...if you care...I'm playing in a trio with the sax/drums duo formerly known as Klondike & York on Thursday, July 28 at the DAM Haus (503 E Street, Davis CA 95616). We're called Crack the Case, and it's kind of a funny story how we came to fruition. I was recounting a funny moment in an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent starring Jeff Goldblum as Detective Zach Nichols where Det. Nichols, after interviewing a bartender about a victim who visited that bar, began playing the piano at the bar, and it sounded very avant-garde. You could tell it was actually Goldblum playing the piano, and he was arpeggiating these weird chords. It was like Conlon Nancarrow meets Ted Falconi's guitar style in Flipper. I was sitting at a piano, applying what little bit I know of some intervals that I gleaned from watching the Sun Ra documentary Make a Joyful Noise at Dewey from Eternal Tapestry's house. He said that everytime he watches that vid, he feels like he's capable of achieving a level of musical accomplishment he's never reached before. And sure, I could feel it....but I guess I just hung onto it for a couple years, and then I let it out doing my Det. Zach Nichols impression. In the L&O:CI episode, Nichols puts crucial pieces of the case together while playing these strange arpeggiated chords. His facial expressions were the kookiest Eureka! moment ever, just like how you would imagine Goldblum portraying it...or living it in real life! It just so happens that during an impression, I was being secretly filmed on someone's flip-phone video camera, and Chad--the Klondike in Klondike & York--asked me about where I was playing piano. I explained the whole thing about Jeff Goldblum to him, and he was like, "Cool...we should play in a trio together!" Seriously? This guy's one of my ultimate Sacto musical idols, so it's like fantasy bandcamp. And it totally works for my busy life 'cos I don't even hafta practice. We convene at shows and just go to town.

This week, we start right at 7:30 in support of Pacific City Nightlife Vision Band (including Spencer Clarke of Skaters and Scott Simmons of Exiled Records and formerly Eat Skull) and Orphan Fairytale from Belgium. The masters of cosmiche muziek aus Davis known as Mucky the Ducky also play, and they've been especially nailing it lately. So, maybe I'll see you there, eh?!?!

AFS v. 320 ~ feat. Woolen Men live on KDVS!

2011-07-19T05:38:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* The Woolen Men from Portland play live in Studio A!
* The Woolen Men pick the last 45 minutes of music in Studio B!
* A killer year for reissues & retrospectives keeps rolling!
* We sample each song on the BBJr a/k/a Bob Bunko, Jr. LP!

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

CHEATER SLICKS | Please Give Me Something | Our Food is Chaos LP+7" | Almost Ready *new (orig 1989)
CHEATER SLICKS | Night of the Sadist | Our Food is Chaos
LA SECT ROUGE | Rivers Edge | Frank | Trans Urban 1990
BLOODLOSS | My Friend the Moon | Lost My Head for a Drink | Dirty Knobby *new (orig 1997)
LORELLE MEETS THE OBSOLETE | That Suit is Dope | On Welfare | Captcha *new
BBJR | Neon is the New Black | Tearjerker | Captcha *new
========================== live in Studio A ==========================
WOOLEN MEN | Spoiled
WOOLEN MEN | Love Song
WOOLEN MEN | Royal Wedding
WOOLEN MEN | My Sunglasses [Pylon]
WOOLEN MEN | Magick Trycks
WOOLEN MEN | Ambivalence [Pin Group]
WOOLEN MEN | Hold it Up
WOOLEN MEN | Index
WOOLEN MEN | In the Corner
WOOLEN MEN | Ode to an Hour
======================================================================
BBJR | Terminal Sac | Tearjerker
THE REBEL | Prove It | The Five Year Plan E.P. 12" | Monofonus Press *new
MONOGAMY | Sandstorm 2 | Posture Smiles Upon You CDR | self-released *new
WOOLEN MEN | West Coast | Live at the Banana Stand | Banana Stand Media *forthcoming
THE MOLES | Bury Me Happy | Untune the Sky | Kill Shaman 2010 (orig 1990)
GUIDED BY VOICES | Dodging Invisible Rays | Tigerbomb 7" | Matador 1995
ALISTAIR GALBRAITH | As in a Blender | Gaudylight 7" | Siltbreeze/Xpressway 1991
THE CHILLS | Pink Frost | Kaleidoscope World | Homestead 1990
WIRE | Blessed State | 154 | EMI/Harvest 1979
THE STOOGES | T.V. Eye | Funhouse | Elektra 1970
R.E.M. | Catapult | Murmur | I.R.S. 1982
THEE HEADCOATS | Every Bit of Me | Conundrum | Hangman's Daughter 1994
INDEX | Fire Eyes | self-titled | D.C. Records 1967

From the antipodean slant of their musical selections at the end of tonights program, you can probably predict that our live-in-studio guests this week--The Woolen Men--would reveal strains of the shambolic minimalist pop that we've heard reverberating from down under. While some elements are more Australian, such as the throttling relentless rhythm, and other traits such as the starry-eyed yet dark romance, are more associated with New Zealand. But I suppose we seppos love all your music for how it's different from the all-too-familiar U.S. and U.K., and thus it might be natural for us yanks to meld together those traits to some extent. And that's what I think these Woolen Men are doing, and quite well!

Due to recent equipment failure on their first tour, tonight's live-in-Studio-A set from Woolen Men lacks any of their keyboard-driven songs, but I've included their rousing and prideful "West Coast" song which should make a lot of friends come together harmoniously to honor our heroes with lyrics as irrepressible as "This is Greg Sage/This is Greg Ginn/From Californ-eye-ay to Washington/Alright!"

Find out more about the Woolen Men here...
Woolen Men on Facebook
http://soundcloud.com/the-woolen-men/
http://eggyrecords.blogspot.com/

Another Portland lesser-known comes to light this week with Captcha's release of the enigmatic experimentalist--Bob Bucko, Jr. better known by the official shorthand BBJr.--who's all over the free-music map from jazz to drone to noise, and ruling in each area and every adjacent territory he crosses. More than any full LP that has successfully thwarted recognizable songform in its entirety, Tearjerker has captivated me from start to finish more than anything since Olde English Spelling Bee issued Zephyrus by Squim four years ago, if not since 2009 when Weird Forest dropped Maurizio Bianchi's Das Platinzeitalter. This has got more of an old-school ESP-Disk vibe to it that's totally timeless. You can pick it up here...
http://hbsp-2x.com/artwork/833827_BBJr_TEARJERKER.html

All the YouTube searches for Bob Bucko reveals him approaching some sorta songform with collaborators, but it's got some killer moments, too. Start here...

AFS v. 319 ~ Screature Feature

2011-07-12T10:53:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* meet Sacto's best new band, Screature!
* Screature plays live in Studio A
* ...then picks music and chats in Studio B

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

PSYCHIC FELINE | Vampires | debut 7" | High Fives & Handshakes *new
THE WHINES | Straybird | Shootinhead 7" | Mt. St. Mtn *new
TROPHY WIFE | In the Water | self-titled 7" | Private Leisure Industries 2011
U.S. GIRLS | If These Walls Could Talk | split 12" w/ Slim Twig | Palmist *new
-----------------------------live in Studio A-----------------------------
SCREATURE | It's Obvious [Asolute Body Control]
SCREATURE | EVP
SCREATURE | Buried
SCREATURE | Last Day
SCREATURE | Black Light
SCREATURE | All and All
SCREATURE | Siren
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
MONOGAMY | Champion of the Rights of Monogamists | Posture Smiles Upon You CDR | no label *new
LAKES | Secret Rites | Winters Blade | Inverted Crux *new
PAIN TEENS | Desu Evol Yaw | Born in Blood | Trance Syndicate 1990
SOCRATES THAT PRACTIÇES MUSIC | Ruthless Rake | Further Conclusions Against an Italian Version (BAT) | Junior Aspirin *new
FAD GADGET | Lady Shave | Make Room 7" | Mute 1981
CHROME | In a Dream | Inworlds 12" EP | Don't Fall Off the Mountain 1981
MAGAZINE | Shot by Both Sides | Real Life | Virgin 1978
WIRE | Reuters | Pink Flag | EMI/Harvest 1977
OPÉRATION S | (Demain Viendra) le Futur | Anteenagers MC/Happy Family split LP | Action 2004
BEAST OF BEAST | Destructive Heroes | Sex, Drugs...and Noise 12" EP | My Ass 1983?
COÏTUS INT. | Dry Up Soon | Dead Excitement EP 7" | Bunkerpop *new (orig 1980)
LILLETTES | Air Conditioning | v/a: Messthetics # 108 South Coast D.I.Y. '77-81 | Hyped2Death *new
TOYS WENT BERSERK | Skull | Pieces | Aberrant 1987
THE MEN | Bataille | Leave Home | Sacred Bones *new
CHEVEU | Impossible is not French | 1000 | Kill Shaman 2011
SUICIDE | Girl | self-titled | Red Star 1977
SPECTOR PROTECTOR | Sugar | demo CDR | no label 2004

Screature have been a band jamming and rehearsing right under my nose in Sacramento for the last two years, but they finally played their debut live show last month at a packed house-show in Davis in support of Death Grips. To my surprise, my friend Liz Donner, who I've known since the days when her art gallery
known as Fools Foundation was scene-HQ and the main Sacto venue partner for KDVS Presents, sings for the band. And sings very effectively and has a full repertoire of killer mic stand moves.

There are many bands--even many excellent bands--celebrating the dark art and heyday of the original postpunk, and Screature enter that field with a unique slant that creates their own space there with deep-pocketed kinetic drum-&-organ-bass rhythms, dramatic vocals, and a distinctive psych-punk guitar style that smacks of Chrome's Helios Creed now and then.

Now that they are outta-the-practice-space and further into the public eye, I expect a lotta you are gonna dig them immensely. You can follow them on Facebook here...
https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Screature/183347385056187

For such a rad-looking band, they seem kinda camera-shy so far.
Has anyone got any pictures to send me to post here? (THANKS!)

AFS v. 318 ~ I've Got the Spirit!

2011-06-28T03:22:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* "spirit punk" from Stockton!
* extreme area code pride!
* primo guitar riff burglary!
* Aussie invasion '11 begins this week!

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

NOD | I Got a Home | Disguise 7" | Baby Music 1992
ANGST | Pig | self-titled | Happy Squid 1983
CHILLY DOGS | Hot Dog | Funeral Party | Too Faced 1987
PURLING HISS | Walking Down the Street | split 12" w/ Puffy Areolas | Permanent *new
CHILDREN'S TELEVISION WORKSHOP | The P.L.C. Anthem | The Polyamorous Love Cult | Drunken Fish 1997
THE AXEMEN | The Yeasty Mayor | Three Virgins | Siltbreeze *new (orig 1986)
HAWKWIND | Silver Machine | Silver Machine 7" | United Artists 1972
CHARLES ALBRIGHT | I Am the Counter Culture (Drop Out) | Weight 7" | Permanent *new
DIVORCED | I Wanna Die | Separation Anxiety | Untapped Resources *new
DEFNICS | Suicide Trip | v/a: Cleveland Confidential | Terminal 1982
PYGMY SHREWS | No Supplies | You People Can All Go Straight to Hell | Jack Shack *new
SUPER SONIC PISS | Go Home Dad You're Drunk pt. 1 | self-titled | Rotted Tooth *new
GODSPEED 209 | Government is Pretty Cool | Glob of Spit | ??? forthcoming?
GODSPEED 209 | Grandma Wheelchair Horse Ride
SOCKEYE | We Are Circumcised | Barf on a Globe | Mortville/Happy Puppy 1999 (orig 1994)
PREHENSILE MONKEYTAILED SKINK | Anarchy is Stupid | I Am a Gorilla 7" | Blackjack 1994
LIL BUNNIES | Bunnie Hole | Bunnie Hole 7" | Wrench 1998
THE REATARDS | Carrot Belly Bunny Blues [Lil Bunnies] | Teenage Hate | Goner *new (orig 1998?)
THE HUSSY | Sexi Ladi | Cement Tomb Mind Control | Slow Fizz *new
HATEFUCK | When Time Takes Over | I Only Do Survivors 7" | Negative Guest List *new
V-3 | Inside Outpost | Psychic Dance Hall | Ropeburn 1991
SCRATCH ACID | Greatest Gift | self-titled | Rabid Cat 1984 *request
THE BLACK CLOUDS | Bigger Than Life | Pathetic 7" | Ride the Snake *new
CUFFS | Archer | Privilege b/w Archer 7" | Ride the Snake *new
ANITA FIX & BAM BAM | Run for Joy | Run for Joy 7" | Ride the Snake *new
ANIMALS & MEN | We Are Machines | Terraplane Fixation | Hyped2Death 2003 (orig 1979)
MOOD OF DEFIANCE | Empty Me | v/a: Life Is Ugly So Why Not Kill Yourself? | New Underground 1982
MOOD OF DEFIANCE | Sticky Lips | Now | New Underground 1982
TUXEDOMOON | Nervous Guy | Scream with a View 12" EP | PRE 1979
KAA ANTILOPE | Break of Day | v/a: Coal Heart For Ever | Sub Rosa 1988 (orig 1981)
ALPS | Life is Taking | Alps of New South Wails | Past Futures *new
BE-BOP DELUXE | Blazing Apostles | Sunburst Finish | EMI/Harvest 1976
BE-BOP DELUXE | Between the Worlds | Futurama | EMI/Harvest 1975

You must not be paying attention if you have any doubt that Australia is having a musical halcyon age lately. Last year's heavies came and conquered fans by the venue-full in the form of Eddy Current Suppression Ring, UV Race, Total Control, Fabulous Diamonds, Blank Realm, etc.

Although I missed Circle Pit's tour-stop in Stockton due to their car troubles, the 2011 Aussie tide's just about to come in, with Alps reaching our shores first. Their...er, his style is melodramatic and minimal, transcending the trappings of singer/songwriter much like the way his touring mate Michael Beach (of Electric Jellyfish) does, and bears hints of influence of NZ 80's/90's 4-track bedroom-self-recordists and early Tuxedomoon and affiliated bands (such as Kaa Antilope which provided a killer segueway if I do say so myself). If "Keyboard Cat" can become a meme to millions, why not this magical musical ferret playing the Alps' hit song, "Life is Taking"?

For every organ based song, Alps delivers on guitar, too!

Catch more Alps info here...
http://alps.bandcamp.com/

Coming later this summer and early fall from Australia...
Kitchen's Floor
Deaf Wish
Royal Headache
Bed Wettin' Bad Boys
& hopefully more!

And finally...just in time for the 4th of July, "spirit punk" erupts from its Stockton, CA, epicenter in the supremely fuckophonic braincell devastation of Godspeed 209.
You can keep up with their song-a-day-so-far pace here...
http://fuckgodspeed.tumblr.com/

Fans of the Wheelchair Full of Old Men label should be majorly stoked!

AFS v. 317 ~ feat. Babs Johnson Gang live on KDVS!

2011-06-21T02:30:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* World, meet Babs Johnson Gang!
* Babs Johnson Gang, World!
* These guys bring Sacto's most thrilling dance party

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

PRISONERS GO GO BAND | Multinational Co. | Live! at the Butchery with Special Guests On Fire! | SS Records *new (orig 1981)
LA LIGNE CLAIRE | Cheri | Cheri | Bruit Direct Disques *new
ATELIER MÉDITERRANÉE | Artena | Méditerranée 7" | Bruit Direct Disques *new
FEELING OF LOVE | 666 Blank Girls | Dissolve Me | Kill Shaman *new
JACK OF HEART | Oscar Wilde | Eureka 7" | Slovenly *new
BABS JOHNSON GANG ... live in Studio A

Battle Plan/Smart Girl

China Pig/Sandy Nelson

Baby Blue/Mimi/Boogie

Blowin Up Your Head/Johnny/Drunk

Don't Shake Your Baby, Baby!

Block of Ice [Oh Sees]

Hipster/Driller Killer

Don't Wanna Be With You

Rich Kid Blues/Hipster/Yikes!

Know Right From Wrong!

Gimme Back My Wig

Outlaw Blues

The Waddle

KARATE PARTY | Pressure | Black Helicopter | SS Records 2005
NEGATIVE TREND | How Ya Feelin'? | We Don't Play We Riot 12-inch EP | Subterranean 1983 (orig 1978)
SPLATCATS | Sin 73 | Sin 73 | Celluloid 1986
CHEATER SLICKS | Why | On Your Knees | Gadawful 1989
THE REATARDS | I Can Live Without You | Teenage Hate | Goner *new (orig 1998)
SICK THINGS | Committed to Suicide | The Sounds of Silence | Shock 1989 (orig 1980-81)
SUPER SONIC PISS | Less of Me [Teenage Jesus & the Jerks] | self-titled | Rotted Tooth *new
OLNEYVILLE SOUND SYSTEM | Immigrant Radio | What is True, What is False | Load 1999
UNHOLY SWILL | White Trash Shouldn't Rap (Colors) [Ice-T] | v/a: From Twisted Minds Come (Twisted Products) | Noiseville 1990
THE HUSSY | Brown Eyes | Cement Tomb Mind Control | Slow Fizz *new
STRIP KINGS | Slow Panic | Lightning Breed 7-inch | In the Red 1996
TIGHT FITS | Bulldozer | Full Frontal Attack 7-inch | Pure Filth 1995
B-LINES | World War Four | self-titled | Deranged/Nominal *new
CREAMERS | Modern Day | Modern Day 7" | Jolly Dream *new
GENBAKU ONANIES | Nanni No Mai | Forward Command Post 7-inch | Public Bath 1991
BABS JOHNSON GANG | I Made a Bomb [Coachwhips] | Alive at the Press Club | no label *new
SPLOTCH | Turn on the Appliances/Anal/Bill Jordan | Have Another Tantrum | Menlo Park 1994

Babs Johnson Gang are hands-down one of the best--and quite possibly thee most rockin'--bands in Sacto today. They're a totally ragerriffic two-man destruction unit with burning soul and rump-shakeability which compares in live performance really quite well with The Coachwhips (even when they're not totally nailing their cover of "I Made a Bomb"), or like the most raw, wylde rockin' moments of Thee Oh Sees and Ty Segall. But they also have their own personality and sound which makes them unlike the dozens of bands that draw those comparisons. That uniqueness is most evident in the ultra-melodic, frenetic
locomotive-style drumming and the occasional Ginn-like damage on guitar, as well as the confidence they have when they dare to raise the blues lude to a down-home, traditional level. If you saw them play on the KDVS float at this year's Picnic Day parade or a few weeks ago at DAM Haus, then you know this is true.

I've had them open for several bands at KDVS Presents shows, and the bands they play with have told me more than once, "Don't make us play after those guys again!" And we're talking about bands that should never hafta worry about who they must follow. I said it before to the last crowd, and now I'll say it to you....People who like garagepunk fun and frenzied with real soul and palpable mayhem need to catch onto this Babs Johnson Gang so touring bands don't hafta play after them. This will only happen if they become local headliners, and they've surely got the right stuff for it. And now they even have a debut LP recorded live at the Press Club in Sacramento.

As yet, they only have 55 followers on Facebook(!?!?!).
You can get with 'em here...
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Babs-Johnson-Gang/150022585043556
...and if you name the date and place, tell 'em you want 'em to bring the party spirit.
You should bring a change of shirt if you see them play. I sweat down to my belly button last time.

AFS v. 316 ~ Never Overestimate the Heart of a Loser!

2011-06-14T02:12:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 315 ~ Inconceivable Discharge

2011-06-07T02:05:00.000-07:00

AFS v. 314 ~ Juices Loose

2011-05-31T00:49:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* 1995 prices on 7" records!
* a 2-week build-up of new acquisitions!
* reissues of down-under rock history ratchet up!
* the battle of Euro teen punk bands is not so one-sided!
(i.e., The Pupils are contenders!)

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

FUNGUS BRAINS | Car Accident | Ron Pistos Real World | Load *new (orig 1983)
HUMAN EYE | Junkyard Heart | They Came from the Sky | Sacred Bones *new
RED MASS | Suicide | Suicide 7" | Certified PR *new
HEAVY CHAINS | Stoned Stripper | A Very Real Hell | The Broadway to Boundary *new
THE PUPILS | Destroy | self-titled | Les Disques Steak *new
THE FEELING OF LOVE | Empty Trash Bag | Dissolve Me | Kill Shaman *new
JERUSALEM & THE STARBASKETS | Similar Cog | DOST | De Stijl *new
NACHO BUSINESS | Spend the Night | Spend the Night 7" | Sacramento *new
NODZZZ | (Low) ENERGY | Innings | Woodsist *new
THE AXEMEN | Creaky Back Stairs | Three Virgins 2xLP | Siltbreeze *new (orig 1985)
VACUUM | Kicks | Kicks 7" | Siltbreeze *new (orig 1978)
THE PETTICOATS | I'm Free [The Who] | untitled 7" | Bla-Bla-Bla 1980
THE PHEROMOANS | News Agent Hop | My Mind is on the Anti-Climb | OneC *new
BAD DRUMLIN GRASS | All Night Long | All Night Long 7" | Milvia Son *new
JAKI JAKIZAWA | Period Fart | Can You Feel the Juices? | Milvia Son *new
BLACK PUS | The Wicked West | Primordial Pus | Load *new
FRANCIS HAROLD & THE HOLOGRAMS | Hang the Goat | Hang the Goat 7" | Going Underground *new
RUBBLE | Tom of Midland | The Farewell Drugs | Latino Bugger Veil *new
PINK REASON | Here On In | Shit in the Garden | Siltbreeze *new
WEYES BLOOD & THE DARKER JUICES | Candyboy | The Outside Room | Not Not Fun *new
NÜ SENSAE | Tea Swamp Park/Gumbo | Tea Swamp Park 7" | Fast Weapons *new
WHITE LUNG | Aristocrat | Clown Life split tour 7" w/ Nü Sensae | Deranged/Nominal *new
ICE AGE | Total Drench | New Brigade | Dais 2011
KILLING JOKE | Complications | self-titled | E'G Records 1980
COÏTUS INT. | I Shouldn't Go | Dead Excitement EP 7" | Bunkerpop *new (orig 1980)
WASP WOMEN | Kill Me | v/a: BART: Bay Area Retrograde Vol. 1 | Dark Entries *new (orig 1980)
DISTANT THUNDER | Tin Soldiers | v/a: BART: Bay Area Retrograde Vol. 1 (orig 1988)
YOU. | Club Vogue and Her Midnight Fantasies | Demonstration | Blind Prophet 2010
VOID VISION | In 20 Years | In 20 Years 7" | Blind Prophet 2010
IN-D | Bastion In-D Stress | Bastion In-D Stress 12" EP | Subway 1988

Hello, fans of traditional punk rock. Tonight's truest 1977 timewarp moment is brought to you by a new band of French teenagers called The Pupils (pictured above). If this hadn't come with a one-sheet, I woulda figured that the emergence of this band was an explanation for the last year-plus of silence from the Anteenagers M.C. family of bands. Nobody plays like this unless they were born in the 60s, right? But incredibly, these boys were born in the 90s! So, while bands like Ice Age make the future of futurepunk look plenty promising (even if tonight's selected cut rips off The Cure's "Boys Don't Cry"), The Pupils have shown they've paid attention to the teachers--The Saints, The Kids, P.V.C.--so they are fit to preserve traditional punk rock with a shrewd less-is-more approach. If you're a fan of those teachers, get this Pupils LP stat(!) 'cos they aced the test!

In the news of the whacked & wild weirdo sounds....

Milvia Son's latest package to arrive at KDVS has everyone here talking. At first, 19-year-old college boys were gushing about the very natural boobs on the cover of the Bad Drumlin Grass 7". But to record nerds twice their age, the truly incredible thing about this record--even while it is a great fun plucky jam and crucial how-to lesson for those about to party and/or get freaky "All Night Long" (those 19-year-olds should really pay close attention to this!)--is that it's FREE(!) with any purchase of any other Milvia Son title(s), or $3ppd (i.e. "free" + $3 shipping) in the U.S.A. (Remember when 7" records used to cost $3ppd?)

If you wanna take advantage of the throw-in offer, I strongly recommend tonight's other Milvia Son selection...Can You Feel the Juices? by Jaki Jakizawa, one of the most noteworthy, unique, and über-fun Krauty jam records since the heyday of Jaki Liebezeit. Relentlessly kinetic and brilliantly paced, the A-side's analog synth acrobatics flip and flutter like a killer bop jazz solo and set moods conducive for so many situations..."baking", "frying" (at least a straight-edged "youth" such as myself might think so), headbanging, fire-dancing, something to drop unsuspectedly on the middle masses who assemble for "Dubstep Night" at college-town pizza parlors, breaking through writer's block...Hell, even sensual seduction, "cleaning the gutters", etc., etc., or yadda yadda yadda. Just have a listen at varying levels of volume and see what it inspires. Play it again and listen in headphones. Jakizawa's relevance totally fits Milvia Son's mission-oriented motto: "Dedicated to Releasing the Finest Vinyl Products for Meditation, Relaxation, and Ego Destruction".

For more details about the free 7" deal plus more info about Jaki Jakizawa, Bad Drumlin Grass, and natural boobs, go here...
http://milviasun.blogspot.com/2011/03/latest-batch-jaki-jakizawa-lp-and-free.html

AFS v. 313 ~ Tried to Write a Blog About it...But There Was Already a Blog About it!

2011-05-17T02:12:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* rawk advisory!
* no sleep 'til feedtime, live in SF!
* Swiss family industrial-strength scuzzpunk!
* the best spawn of the Godflesh generation of bands!
* get pumped for Milk Music's Cruise Your Illusion tour!

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

SWIMSUIT | Heart Love [Albert Ayler] | Dolphins 7" | Lifelike *new
CITY CENTER | Modern Love | Redeemer | K Records *new
14 ICED BEARS | Train Song | self-titled | Thunderball 1988
SLAUGHTER JOE | Fall Apart | I'll Follow You Down 12" EP | Creation 1985
SWERVEDRIVER | For Seeking Heat | Mezcal Head | A&M 1993
MILK MUSIC | Fertile Ground | Beyond Living 12" EP | no label 2010
PARTY TIME | Matmos is the Weapon | self-titled | self-released? 2004
LAST OF THE JUANITAS | Smashed by Nothing | In The Dirt | Wäntage USA 2005
LECHEROUS GAZE | Get You Some | Danava/Earthless/Lecherous Gaze 12" | Kemado 2011
HANK IV | Down in the Dumps | III | Siltbreeze 2010
CRAPPY DRACULA | Free Wi-Fi | Fantastic Dracula | Eeefin'/Wrong Foot *new
WHITE LUNG | Wild Failure | It's the Evil | Deranged 2010
NÜ SENSAE | Skull Mecca | TV. Death and the Devil | Nominal 2010
STEEPLES | Enter the Contest/Takeover | singles club 7" | Lemon Session *new
BIG BLACK CLOUD | Killing Time | Dark Age | Stankhouse 2010
ZIG ZAGS | Human Mind | 2nd demo | no label *new
OUTDOORSMEN | Tell Your Folks I'm a Goner | Tell Your Folks I'm a Goner 7" | Psychic Handshake *new
ACID BABY JESUS | Hospitals | Hospitals 7" | Slovenly *new
JACK OF HEART | Eureka | Eureka 7" | Slovenly *new
THE B-LINES | Psychedelic High School | self-titled | Deranged/Nominal *new
THE SHRAPNELLES | Desert Furs | Asscalibur 7" | HoZac *new
THE SAILORS | Let's Go Chromin' | Guilty Pleasure Blues 7" | Aarght! *new
KNIFE FIGHT | Give Up | Hobbies 7" | Aarght! *new
FEEDTIME | Buffalo Bob [King Snake Roost] | split 7" w/ King Snake Roost | Aberrant 1987
HYGIENE | Done Before | Public Sector | La Vida es un Mus *new
SHATTER | Little Man | Each Moment 7" | Fuck Far Out Political 1990
MERCURY 4°F | Tinnitus/Roaring Dub | Phased | Suggestion 1997
MERCURY 4°F | Little Red Book [Bacharach]
DEEP | Anyway | Drinkdeepdreams 7" | Suggestion 1995
SPLINTERED | Exercise in Denial | Smokescreen 7 " | Suggestion 1996
HEADBUTT | Fuelled Up and Ready to Burn | split 7" w/ Headbutt Noise System | Suggestion 1996
HEADBUTT | Saint Eileen | Danger Ice 10" | Petty Bourgeois Broadcasts 1996
MATTRESS | Lost and Found | Low Blows | Malt Duck 2010

This awesome/funny video of Red Fang--the much-hyped quantity of heavy rawk riffage with ex-members of Portland's Last of the Juanitas and Party Time--has been getting passed around a lot lately. These bands never set out to reinvent rock 'n' roll, but they were tremendous and fun every time I saw 'em play live. Now that there's a fast-growing brigade of neck-tattooed bro-dawgs singing Red Fang's praises, I'm afraid I'm gonna hafta enjoy them from a comfortable distance. Or is there an antidote I can take? At least Red Fang are making the best shotgunningest beer-soaked videos. This one's been going around for a while...

...but there's another one, and you can only see it at the Monster Energy website(!?!?!)...
http://www.monsterenergy.com/us/en/bands/red-fang:videos/
(You can get over the shame!)

But y'know who's the best maker of pump-up-jams today???

MILK MUSIC!

Rising from Seattle/Olympia and the ashes of Catatonic Youth, they are exceedingly likable, totally 90s yet timeless, and achieve a very high quotient of melodic and rockin'. You can hear obvious strains of anthemic indie-rock a'la Guided By Voices with a guitar style that's raised a few ludes to Dino Jr. level, AND it seems like the guitarist cultivated a serious Hendrix appreciation via Greg Sage of The Wipers (check the nifty chord voicings that enhance the expressiveness of these riffs!).

They played the best show that no one saw in Sacto last year. It was just me and members of the other bands, punching each other as hard as possible in their guts in time to the riffs. Yes, that's how much this band gets you pumped. It's almost as if somebody commissioned Bob Pollard to revamp his own songs to provide bumper music for sports broadcasts or X Games montages, and pulled it off in the best way possible. I wish I could listen to it at the gym.

Here are some links for Milk Music listening...

Let these guys get you pumped when they come to your city!

Milk Music - Cruise Your Illusion tour

May 23 - Olympia, WA
May 24 - Portland, OR
w/ Arctic Flowers
May 25 - Davis, CA @ Davis Bike Collective, 1221½ 4th Street
w/ Squidz & Burgers $5
May 26 - San Francisco @ The Hemlock
w/ Nodzzz and Doors US
May 27 - Oakland @ The Swamp
w/ Face the Rail $5
May 28 - Fullerton @ Burger records - early show
May 29 - Phoenix, AZ @ Inner City Youth Center
w/ Nü Sensae, White Lung, Nihilism
May 30 - Phoenix @ Revolver Records - early show
May 31 - El Paso @ Lips
w/ Nü Sensae, White Lung 18+ $5
June 1-6 - Austin TX (Chaos in Tejas)
June 7 - Houston, TX @ TBA
w/ Black Congress, Chest Pain
June 8 - New Orleans, LA @ Hey Cafe
June 9 - Gainsville, FL @ Common Grounds (on the floor)
w/ Nü Sensae, White Lung, Diet Cokeheads, Plastic Plastic
June 10 - Atlanta, GA @ 529 Flat Shoals
w/ White Lung/Nü Sensae/Wymyns Prysyn/Bukkake Boys
June 11 - Charlotte, NC
June 12 - Richmond, VA - TBA
June 13 - Baltimore, MD w/Sewn Leather
June 14 - Philly, PA - @ Kungfu Necktie, 1248 N Front Street
w/ Birds of Maya, Home Blitz $8
June 15 - Brooklyn, NY @ Don Pedro's
w/The Men, Nude Beach, Marsh Hens
June 16 - NYC - Day Off
June 17 - Brooklyn, NY @ Bruar Falls w/TBA
June 18 - Pittsburg, PA @ Gooski's
w/ Puffy Areolas, Slices
June 19 - Columbus, OH @ Carabar, 115 Parsons Ave
w/ Puffy Areolas, Vile Gash, Brainkiller
June 20 - Cleveland, OH @ Now That's Class
w/ Puffy Areolas
June 21 - Michigan TBA
June 22 - Chicago, IL - Day: @ Permanent Records, Night: Waterworks w/TBA
June 23 - St. Louis, MO - TBA
June 24 - Lawrence, KS @ Replay Lounge
w/ US Beefheart, Mouthbreaker 21+
June 25 - Denver, CO @ Rhinoceropolis
w/ Cardiac Arrest
June 26 - Provo, UT @ The Compound, 166 South 100 West
w/ Big Trub
June 27 - Idaho - Help?

Check here for updates.

AFS v. 312 ~ SS! You're the New Promotion

2011-05-10T01:24:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* starring Scott Soriano as special guest
* commemorating 10 years of SS Records history
* the SS vault of demos & unreleased material is unlocked
* summer festival season begins with Operation: Restore Maximum Freedom XI, Sat 5/14
* ...and continues with SS Ten in San Francisco from Fri 5/20 to Sun 5/22

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

R. STEVIE MOORE | I Just Want to Feel You | Everything... | New Rose 1985
R. STEVIE MOORE | Don't Blame the Niggers | Delicate Tension | HP Music 1979
NOBUNNY | (Do the) Fuck Yourself | First Blood | Goner 2010
NOTHING PEOPLE | Twinkie Defense | live on KDVS 04/13/2006
BLUTT | Non, Pas Encore | demo
THE CIGARETTES | 1979 | unreleased
LENZ | Leaving | forthcoming 7-inch
HIS ELECTRO BLUE VOICE | Fog | Fog b/w Das 7" | SS Records 2007
KANIA TIEFFER | Treat Me Like a Dog | v/a: Tête De Bébé | SS Records 2006
LOW RED CENTER | Panic Roll | self-titled CDR | Instincto 2008
THE INTELLIGENCE | The Give Up | demos
THE LAMPS | An Irrational Fear of Sailors | live on KXLU, unreleased
SIGHTINGS | I Feel Like a Porsche | Michigan Haters | SS Records *new (orig 2002)
KARATE PARTY | title unknown | unreleased
DRAGIBUS | O Dragao Magico | demo
UNNATURAL HELPERS | Black Mark | demo
HUE BLANC'S JOYLESS ONES | Obliging Macon Middle | Arriere Garde 1st test press (left off final record)
THE GEEKS | Parade | demo
PRISONERS GOGO BAND | Multinational Company | forthcoming LP
FRUSTRATION | Wait | very rough demo
A FRAMES | DDDgenerate | unreleased
THE ELECTRIC GUITARS | Le Monde Blanc | demo
CRASH NORMAL | So Sure | demo
DAN MELCHIOR UND DAS MENACE | In Your Works | demo
DUCHESS OF SAIGON | Skip Simmons | unreleased
OZZIE | So Stupid | live version
FEEDTIME | Curtains | Shovel | Aberrant 1986

The summer festival season begins in a big way during these next two weeks in Northern California...

KDVS Presents reminds you that our eleventh Operation: Restore Maximum Freedom all-day festival restores freedom-rock to Plainfield Station--in the boonies between Davis and Woodland--this Saturday, May 14, with performances by the living legend R. Stevie Moore, plus the irrepressible NoBunny and the greatest lineup of local Sacto/Davis-area talent we've ever assembled (including Zach Hill, Charles Albright, Alak, Appetite, and Ellie Fortune, plus a special performance at the 2pm kickoff by the UC Davis Samba School (and much more!)). $10 advance tickets are on-sale now at the Delta of Venus in Davis, Phono Select Records in Sacramento, and HERE via PayPal. This is the most ambitious we've ever been, flying out the godfather of home-taping just for this one event.

And the following weekend in San Francisco, tonight's special guest on AFS, KDVS DJ emeritus and SS Records honcho Scott Soriano celebrates 10 years of his impeccable record label with the SS Ten showcase. To buy tickets or for more info, check out...
http://www.ssten.com/
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=103599069728761

Friday, May 20
@ Bottom of the Hill
A Frames**
Liquorball
Hank IV
Charles Albright
w/ dj Mitch Cardwell

Saturday, May 21
@ Bottom of the Hill
feedtime*
Lamps
Nothing People
Wounded Lion
w/ dj Ryan Wells

Sunday, May 22
@ Hemlock Tavern
The Mantles
Nar
3 Toed Sloth
LENZ
+ record swap at 4pm
(showtime is 6pm)

** reunion of original lineup of Erin, Min, and Lars/last show ever
* flying from Australia for just one show only!

You are a very lucky Northern Californian music fan in 2011.

Tailor-made for NoBunny or The Spits to cover?

2/3 of the original A Frames lineup

feedtime live

later vintage

from the 1st album

AFS v. 311 ~ Hey, Man...Is That Freedom Rock?

2011-05-03T01:51:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* KDVS presents Operation: Restore Maximum Freedom XI fest in 2 weeks!
* R. Stevie Moore + NoBunny + the best local lineup = slamdunk!
* And the nominees for band that sounds most like The Fall are...
* Goodbye to The Hub :(

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

R. STEVIE MOORE | He's Nuts | Glad Music | New Rose 1986
R. STEVIE MOORE | Jesus Rocks | (1952-19??) | Cordelia 1987 (orig 1978)
THE PEOPLE'S TEMPLE | Axeman | Sons of Stone | HoZac *new
THE COSMONAUTS | Dorothy | self-titled | Permanent *new
14 ICED BEARS | Spangle | self-titled | Thunderball 1988
ENGLISH SINGLES | Daydream | Splashing Past the Action CDR | self-released *new
BITCH PREFECTS | Holiday in America | Marilyn Monroe 7" | R.I.P. Society *new
DANA JEWELL | Wants | Wants 7" | Underwater Peoples *new
THE MANTLES | Raspberry Thighs | Raspberry Thighs 7" | SDZ *new
DALAI LAMAS | I Lost You | Hookup Klub 7" | HoZac *new
TIMMY'S ORGANISM | Scum Revolution | Hookup Klub 7" | HoZac *new
RED MASS | Drink My Blood | Hookup Klub 7" | HoZac *new
THE ONIONS | Gimme Smut | self-titled CDR+DVD | Certified PR *new
ALUMINUM KNOT EYE | Still Cleaning That Same Grease Trap | Singles Club 7" | Lemon Session *new
PREDATOR | Archetype | self-titled | Douche Master *new
LE FACE | Nothing Cult | split 7" w/ DVA Damas | Psychic Handshake *new
USELESS EATERS | Hear See | Cheap Talk | Tic Tac Totally *new
B-LINES | In the Red | self-titled | Deranged/Nominal *new
BURNING SENSATION | Brainfucker/Bloodstains/Terminal Decay | self-titled | Vertex *new
ALPS | Calling God on the Telephone | Alps of New South Wails | Past Futures *new
COLOUR BÜK | I'm Approaching You With Romantic Intent | Licht Dinger | Wir Wollen Wulle *new
THE PHEROMOANS | Conviction Street 1 & 2 | My Mind is on the Anti-Climb | Onec *new
SHIT & SHINE | Romantic and Macho at the Same Time | split 7" w/ Expensive Shit | Monofonus Press *new
GIRLS OF PORN | Achieving Nancy Reagan | split 7" w/ Dadfag | no label *new
PLAIN | Cross Eyed Beauty Queen | Cross Face Chicken Wing CDR | no label *new
PER PURPOSE | Right to Green | Heil Progress 7" | Bedroom Suck *new
PALACE OF SWORDS | The White Goddess (Part 1) | self-titled EP | Reverb Worship *new
PUFFY AREOLAS | My Hell | split 12-inch w/ Purling Hiss | Permanent *new
ICON GALLERY | Bored/Lullaby | self-titled | Dear Skull *new
TSUNAMI | Teaser | self-titled | Enigma 1983
NEO CONS | High Anxiety | 6-song 7" | Deranged *new

The legendary R. Stevie Moore rarely plays live anywhere, and he's never played out west before. But in less than two weeks, R. Stevie's coming to play KDVS presents Operation: Restore Maximum Freedom XI, and NoBunny's coming, too! Plus, a killer lineup of local Sacramento-area bands and artists that's surely the
best local lineup of any O:RMF yet, including Zach Hill and AFS fave Charles Albright.

This is happening on Saturday, May 14, in the park-like backyard of Plainfield Station, 23944 County Road 98 in Woodland, just a couple miles north of Davis city limits surrounded by millions of acres of farmland. The show starts at 2:00pm with the incredible UC Davis Samba School and ends at 10pm.

Advance tickets are only $10 and available via PayPal AT THIS LINK HERE, or at Phono Select Records at 2312 K Street in Sacramento. Tickets are $15 at the door the day of the show.

Okay, R. Stevie fans....Don't wait for him to come to your town. You gotta come to ours if you wanna see him this time. This is a special fly-in event...not a tour!

What to bring to O:RMF XI fest...

a car-load of friends
blanket to spread out on the lawn
extra cash for food and beer
extra cash for band merchandise
a major appetite for the 1.0 lb + bacon & cheese Plainfield burger!

Don't worry about sunscreen. We've got tons.

This is worth a drive from the Bay Area, especially.
Don'tcha know that May is one of the few times every year when this valley has better weather than the Bay Area? Dress for summer heat in the mid-80s, and bring one or two sensible layers for the last couple of bands after dusk falls.

Nevermind Googlemaps. Here's the directions from the Bay...

(1) Take I-80 east toward Sacto
(2) After passing Dixon, merge into rightmost lane
(3) Take Hwy 113 North cut-off toward Woodland
(4) Exit at Road 29; turn right at end of exit onto Road 29
(5) Turn right at 2nd stop sign onto Road 98....and park!
We'll be right by that corner.

From Sacto...

(1) Take I-80 west toward San Francisco
(2) As you pass downtown Davis, merge into the rightmost lane
(3) Take Hwy 113 North cut-off toward Woodland
(4) Exit at Road 29; turn right at end of exit onto Road 29
(5) Turn right at 2nd stop sign onto Road 98....and park!
We'll be right by that corner.

From the north...

(1) Take I-5 south toward Sacto
(2) In Woodland, take the Hwy 113 South cut-off toward Davis
(3) Exit at Road 29; turn right at end of exit onto Road 29
(4) Turn right at 2nd stop sign onto Road 98....and park!
We'll be right by that corner.

Full ORMF XI fest lineup and other details are here...
http://www.kdvs.org/2011/03/30/operation-restore-maximum-freedom-festival-xi-line-announced

AFS v. 310 ~ Let's Go! Big Bucks! No Whammies!

2011-04-15T23:55:00.000-07:00

KDVS Fundraiser 2011 begins Sunday night at midnight. So when you hear AFS v. 310 live Monday night or on the archive, I will be asking for your donation to help keep one of the world's best radio stations on the air for a 49th year.

This is my 17th fundraiser show, and I'm very proud to give back to anyone pledging $15 or more the best edition yet of Live on Art for Spastics, compiling carefully selected moments from the best live performances by bands I've been honored to bring down to record live in the KDVS studios. Once again, the sound quality is by and large stellar and vinyl-worthy. Here's an annotated track list...

(See details of how to donate below...)

(1) and (2) UZI RASH "...Succubus Staring at Me..."/"Song #3": Certainly not the true titles of the songs. Some of them were too new for titles at the time. Uzi Rash from Oakland has had a revolving cast of musicians of varying talent levels surrounding the constant member, Max, formerly of The Trashies. This particular lineup introduced a new bassist, Stevo, who leads his own band called Knifey Spoony who are a must-see live unit of fun and devastation. These songs show Uzi Rash at the tightest I've ever heard them, and fractured flow of Max's guitar leads were at the sharpest, yet most exquisite. Fans of early Fall and Pere Ubu must appreciate.

(3) and (4) HOODED "2 Hunters"/"Boyfriend": When you think of Olympia, Washington, and music, most fans of the punk/indie/DIY persuasion recall the city's celebrated preeminence in twee-pop, indie-folk, and riot grrl. All of that music had its time and place, and when you hear so many bands from Olympia, you realize that music still has its place...but it's frozen in time! A recent crop of bands like White Boss, Sonskull, and Broken Water really shatter your preconceptions of the predictable Oly-bred genre-studies. Pointing the way to the future of rock music from the intersection of punk and noise, and bearing the threat of hardcore from the early 80s heyday, this milieu makes music that is smart, immediately impactful, but also unfolds in layers revealing something new on repeated listens. Hooded is one of the lesser knowns from this scene. The singer recalls Doc Dart of The Crucifucks for his adenoids, mania, and metaphors, while the band indulges the philosophical meanderings brilliantly with an improv-influenced, yet composed attack of heavy jazzpunk. And when it's time to rage, it's a helluva maelstrom, bringing to mind "Crushed by the Wheels of Industry" by Cheetah Chrome Motherfuckers from their Into the Void LP.

(5) HARI KARI "Heady Cops": I booked Hari Kari sound-unheard when I knew that they were from that same Olympia milieu and shared a drummer with the mighty HPP, and Hooded were their tour-mates. By my estimation, HPP is the perfect hardcore punk band. Truly raging and rebellious, convincingly dangerous and scuzzy, guitar ablaze, and rhythms quick but never blurring...and actually quite rockin'! I've gushed about that voice that sounds so much like Sammy Towne of Fang, and that incredible Ginn-like guitar tone and chops, but the rhythm section of HPP really keeps this juggernaut on the rails. So solid, but with some cool divergences that add the right measure of musicality. Creative, but not showy or proggy. Every extra rhythmic accent is just a cause for another pump of
your fist. But enough about our next band...Hari Kari is the band where drummer Will is free to show more craft, and slow down down the deliberative heavy parts. This band nicely bisects the line between Hüsker Dü and early Melvins.

(6), (7), and (8) HPP "Wrong Age"/"Firecracker"/"Sexual Tension": Like I said, thee perfect HC band. When you look up hardcore in the dictionary, there should be a picture of HPP. And never miss this band if they play live in a city near you!

(9) PIGEON RELIGION "There Are No Boundaries": The scrawlin'est and brawlin'est knuckledragging scuzzpunk devastators of the west! No place in the USA understands oppression better than Arizona (118°F summer temps, medieval tent prison, "Let's see your green card", etc.), so maybe it's only natural that these desert-baked Tempe pummellers strive toward thee infinite riff a'la Brainbombs, but in a style all their own. I wish I could have used a longer track, but most of those had uneven feedback issues on our side. This was the loudest band to visit Studio A. Their wall-like melange of amps barely fit under the rafters. Here's another band you should never miss if you have a chance to catch 'em!

(10) PUFFY AREOLAS "Lutzko Lives": Speaking of knuckledragging scuzzpunk devastation, the Puffies achieved perfection with their hit song from their first 7" celebrating Columbus' preeminent rager from Unholy Two. I loved this riff the first time I heard it. Then I met Lutzko at Gonerfest in Memphis last year, and the ebullient partyhardy yoking and roughhousing that ensued gave me an even higher appreciation of this song. I had to try and match that triumphant party spirit or else I was gonna be knocked prostrate. I was either gonna have all the fun, or none, shriveling away cowardly or indignantly. If Lutzko grabs you by the neck while The Oblivians upped the ante for reunion shows, you just take the ride and enjoy no matter how many people you dislodge. And after you're done, you know that you've had the 2nd most fun of anybody in the room, and you can hardly care if you offended anyone who was dislodged. I felt like we'd just rode through the Hi-Tone on a motorcycle, with Lutzko opening the throttle with abandon, parting the crowd like a knife. When Puffy Areolas extended "Lutzko Lives" to epic length live at KDVS--with dual saxophones accompaniment from Sacto's best skronkers (Davy formerly of Antennas Erupt and Chad formerly of Klondike & York) mostly swirling below the mix--it was like taking that triumphant ride for 12 full minutes. Looking for the ultimate pump-up jam coctail? Play this right after "Cryptozoological Disaster" by Monoshock. You better know your own strength, though. Could be lethal!

(11) BLANK REALM "Acting Strange": Tough break to hafta follow that Puffys jam, huh? Well, the rhythm of this song is just relentless and sinister enough. This family affair of two brothers, a sister, and a friend have made a couple LPs so far of killer dark jams that are perfect for after-hours loner listening. From the sound of their records, I was seriously concerned that I'd hafta babysit a moody buncha lunatics when they visited KDVS from Australia, but they were some of the sweetest folks I've met. Slipping between spontaneous jams and focused songform, their live show splits the difference between the darker postpunk style of Naked on the Vague and the free-and-easy rockin' of UV Race.

(12) SEX CHURCH "Mistaken": The streak of relentless repetition done oh-so-right continues here with Vancouver, Canada's most fantastic psych-punk band. A string broke right in the middle of my favorite one-two punch from their live routine, so we had to scuttle that, but this selection ain't no slouch. If anything, it really shows off the nifty and underrated bass guitar work.

(13) and (14) DEFEKTORS "The Hostage"/"Black September": The Wipers comparisons are plenty justified, but the insistent bouncy rhythm makes the Defektors instantly recognizable. It's hard for me to pick favorites, but for any so-called punk of today which is rooted in some sense of
tradition, I think these guys might be my favorite. If you see me at a show, just be warned that I will sweat completely through my shirt. It's too bad that complimenting a band's "energy" is code-words for "not my cup of tea, but I can't tell you 'Your band sucks' to your face", 'cos their energy is so catching. And saying a band are "nice guys" is even worse, right? But again, could this not be truer? If being likened to The Wipers doesn't make you the definitive band of the Great Northwest, then covering Dead Moon moves you further up the totem pole for sure!

(15) and (16) THE WHINES "title unknown"/"Vacation": Since the 70s, Portland has always had at least one band that makes real rock 'n' roll with primal power and inspiring beauty, often encompassed within the same brilliant riff or heart-wrenching lead or evocative lyrical passage. From the Wipers to Dead Moon to The Hunches to...??? Eat Skull flew south, but I really thought The Whines would be the next to bear that torch, but alas, after giving us one of thee very best LPs of 2010--Hell to Play will be remembered forever, I think--they broke up. I feel very lucky that their final public performance happened right here in Studio A at KDVS, and this unreleased song and their uptempo crowd favorite are from that final night.

(17) THE SHRAPNELLES "Parasite"/"S & M": On their first North American tour with fellow Calgary, Albertans Topless Mongos (who share one member), this all-female band unexpectedly stole some Sacto boys' hearts before local HC heavies Rat Damage set the table for The Homostupids at The Hub. It was just a buncha HC dudes there for a HC show, but the opening act showed up an hour late, so it was quite convenient that these bands from Canada showed up unannounced at the venue, just hoping to see The Homostupids play. I needed somebody to bat leadoff, and these ladies knocked it outta the park on all accounts. Garagey, melodic, and never unladylike, you might think the HC yokels would be disappointed, but they totally slayed...and with enough alacrity to whet the appetite for a night of HC punk that followed. Here I almost felt concerned that I was throwin' these ladies to the wolves, but they achieved a total fan conversion from the front row to the back.

(18) VAPID "1983": Their LP last year was a killer lady-rager of bouncy melodic punk with outstanding singalongs, and a house-show in Davis the night before this was recorded made a sauna out of the living room of Fort Douglass from all the dancing bodies sweating and exhaling. This one really reveals the truth in the VKTMS comparisons they've drawn...especially that voice!

(19) and (20) WHITE LUNG "Loose Heels"/"Magazines": Yet another Vancouver band of awesome ladypower, White Lung nailed it harder than almost any other in their Studio A session. Their It's the Evil LP and a string of 7"es hint at the potency of this band's live show, and I think Fenris quite perfectly captured it here. As the melodic guitar dances around, weaving in and outta the rhythm, it's all about that rhythm section who sound so propulsive and positively militaristic, like feedtime, Venom P. Stinger, or early Killing Joke or The Ex. And that singer is pushing at a maximum maxillofacial blood pressure level.

(21) TOPLESS MONGOS "Bohemian Grave"/"Uptight"/"Roweena": The Shrapnelles' Calgary running mates remind me of one of our favorite garagepunk hero bands, The Drags. Kinda almost exactly with that jagged, frenetic guitar style. I know some people love to smirk and sneer about today's bands that sounds like a band from the past because it helps them get over their own lack of originality (they probably heard someone else say it first). Is that you? Well, we're not talking about the umpteen-millionth Ramones clone or Joy Division mimicry. We're talking about The Drags. I coulda used a lot more songs by The Drags. So, I welcome the Topless Mongos heartily. And they do have other tricks up their sleeves, so make this a band to watch!

(22), (23), and (24) WOUNDED LION "Relaxation is My Specialty"/"Pony People"/"I'm Sad": I actually read a review of Wounded Lion which said they were "post-garage". Really? I read somewhere else that when you see "post-" in front of any genre of music, it's like saying that genre "with all the fun taken out of it". Now that rings pretty true, doesn't it? Wounded Lion is a lovable party-stokin' rockin' goodtimes band with super-clever songs, contagious chorus singalongability, and oodles of personality. As a quantity of fun, they are in the same stratosphere as Tyvek or Coconut Coolouts...which is to say that only hopeless fuddy-duddies can't feel the energy blast through their grinch hearts like an angioplasty of cheer. This has been one of my favorite bands since the first time I saw 'em (after "Pony People" had already been reverberating in my mind daily), so it was an incredible honor to sit in for Monty Buckles (who was away on Lamps duty in Kansas for the weekend) on drums during what is possibly the greatest pop song of this millenium. It was like fantasy bandcamp for me! And Andrew of G. Green filled in Monty's guitar parts on the totally appropos finalé.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Help me raise $1000 toward the overall station goal of $60,000. Thanks for listening, and thank for your support.

If you can't call in to the donation line (530-754-KDVS or toll-free in the US at 877-399-KDVS) while the show's airing live Monday night from 10pm to 12mid Pacific, you can pledge anytime (NOW?!?) online with the form at this link...
http://fundraiser.kdvs.org/

You can pledge any amount, but $15 is the minimum to get my handmade Live on Art for Spastics 2010-2011 CD comp. If you pledge at certain levels, you receive certain gifts...

Starter Pack..................$15
DJ comp. of your choice
KDVS official bottle opener
2 Buttons
Sticker

Economy Pack................$20
Start Pack +
Big Bumper Sticker
Optional Website Shout Out

Basic Pack......................$40
Economy Pack +
KDVS Shirt of your choosing

DJ services.....$100
Host an hour of KDVS programming! You pick the music, we handle the technical part.
-or-
DJ compilation package! CDs compiled by your favorite DJs with rare and eclectic music.
-or-
Throw your own dance party! Pick a KDVS DJ to play some tunes with our Mobile DJ Unit for your next event!

There are also packs of CDs and records which you can receive at pledge levels that vary. Basically, we intend to repay you for your pledge with more great radio and as close to dollar-for-dollar value swag as possible. There are records from SS Records, Malt Duck, Weird Forest, Almost Ready, Hardly Art, and more to choose from. You can browse it online. Be sure you get my comp in addition to that. Any pledge of $15 gets it.

Another payment option for convenience is to paypal me your pledge at rickele (AT) gmail (DOT) com, and then indicate on your pledge that you are paying by cash/check. I promise to deliver your pledge in full ASAP, and at the end of the week, I'll indicate all of your pledges as "paid" so that your gifts will be sent out among the earliest to go out. Additionally, I'll be personally involved in the delivery of your swag to the post office even if it means I carry it there myself and pay the postage. For any international pledges, I'll most certainly be personally sending those gifts out because the UC Davis mail system might just sit and wait indefinitely otherwise.

Why donate?

You like what I do here. I appreciate hearing from music fans from all over the world every week, but I wouldn't be doing it if KDVS weren't on the air serving the people of Sacramento, Davis, and the surrounding communities primarily. If you only catch this podcast, you oughta know that there's 100 more DJs here who you can catch on our stream or archive, and nearly all of them are doing great radio here at one of the handful of great radio stations anywhere dedicated to freeform radio.

If you live in Sacramento or Davis, gee...uh...did you see any of these bands in the last year?
X
NoBunny
A Frames
Sightings
Soft Kill
King Tuff
Ty Segall
No Statik
Wild Flag
Davila 666
Bill Orcutt
The Mantles
White Fence
Grass Widow
Captain Ahab
Wounded Lion
Shearing Pinx
Paul Collins' Beat

Are you planning to see any of these shows in the next few months?
Cheveu
Mattress
Wet Hair
Rene Hell
Zach Hill
Martyrdod
Dreamdate
Nu Sensae
White Lung
Horrid Red
Milk Music
14 Iced Bears
Crystal Stilts
Big Black Cloud
R. Stevie Moore
Hunx & His Punx
Shannon & the Clams
Quintron & Miss Pussycat

I gotta buncha others lining up, pending confirmation.

You can never say that nothing fun ever happens here in Davis or Sacto. KDVS makes sure of it. It's one thing for a radio station to sponsor events. "Sure...we'll put our name on that!" Too easy. Even easier when you're in a big city that's known as some kinda major cultural hub. We actually make the fun happen here. We flag down the bands. We go and find a space to make the show happen. We don't use being in a "not a world-class city" as an excuse for letting things go over our head, slip through our hands, and just move through in a blur between San Francisco and Portland. We save you two bridge tolls, half a tank of gas, and a pain in your neck from craning it up to watch your favorite band play on a stage in the big city. We make it happen here!

I'm inspired by all the bands I like, and I hope they have a chance to inspire more of you, and I see it working in the way the excitement rubs off on the musical minds of Sacramento. We're still bummed there's no more Mayyors, but have you guys heard G. Green, Art Lessing, Pistol Pete, Babs Johnson Gang, Buk Buk Bigups, Charles Albright, Matt K. Shrugg, Ellie Fortune, Appetite, Squidz, Sacred Appalachian Hands, Nacho Business, Repressive Proteins, Sex Killers, Produce Produce, Gaarth, Burglars, Waxy Tomb, Mama Buries, etc.? People are getting stoked on music and making friends with strangers.

Sacramento and Davis are a better place to live because KDVS is here. Hell...Fuzzbox Flynn and I are putting down roots. Gotta piece of the rock here...in a neighborhood in transition, no less. We're here to see it grow. It almost makes me believe in fate 'cos I woulda blown this joint for Portland (home of no freeform radio) 10 or 12 years ago. But, no...KDVS is a big factor in why I stayed. It's what I can do to stay involved in music that I have flowing in my blood, but lack the talent to make myself. So, for 17 years, I have pored over about 5 hours of new music per week to find the good stuff and share it with any of you who are interested in new discovery.

We only ask for listener support one week per year, and we raise over 2/3 of KDVS' budget during this fundraiser. We continue to achieve incredible world-class radio as a team of 200 people with varying interests and agendas and other responsibilities such as careers and univerity courseloads, families, etc., and it's all managed by undergraduate students. Sounds like a recipe for infighting and futility, right? Yet, we continue to honor a great legacy and be ambitious about doing more and more. This place is something great.

Again...Thanks for listening, and thanks for your support!

AFS v. 309 ~ Ecce homo quī conferit musicam

2011-04-12T00:29:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* mysterious homo contextualization
* a gang o' giddy-fun garagepunkers
* a severe sequence of serious squelchin'
* priming the pump for next week's KDVS Fundraiser
* sneak-peeks of the 2011 edition of Live on Art for Spastics

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

THEE OOPS | Drive Carefully | Taste of Zimbabwe | Slovenly *new
THE VICTIMS | High School Girls | No Thanks to the Human Turd | 1977 Records 2010 (orig 1978)
THE MANTS | Bow to Your Masters | The Mant from U.N.C.L.E. 2x7" | Lance Rock 1997
TOPLESS MONGOS | Hey My My/Theme from Human Centipede | Hey My My 7" | Mammoth Cave *new
THE SHAVEN | Poison Wax | Poison Wax 7" | Empty 1994
APACHE DROPOUT | White Out Man | self-titled | Family Vineyard *new
ULTRATHIN | Glass City | Glass City 7" | Badmaster *new
HOMOSTUPIDS | Noseman | Strawberry Orange Peach Banana | Fashionable Idiots *new
PREDATOR | Choke/March of the Confederate | self-titled | Douche Master *new
GUN OUTFIT | White Light | High Places 12" EP | Make a Mess *new
BRILLIANT COLORS | English Cities | Introducing | Slumberland 2009
WALDO ASTORIA | Come on, Now Slowly | mp3 *new
CRYSTAL SWELLS | Swamp People | Goethe Head Soup CS | no label *new
UV RACE | Homo | Homo | In The Red *new
DUCHESS OF SAIGON | Shake/Taste | self-titled | SS Records *new (orig 2002)
HYGIENE | O-Level Girl | Public Sector | La Vida es un Mus *new
SILVER SHAMPOO | Glitter Glut/Shark Week | Higher and Higher | What's Yr Rupture? *new
JEFFREY NOVAK | Looking Down at You | Back at the Bottom 7" | Trouble in Mind *new
THE PUDDLE | English Speaking World | Playboys in the Bush | Fishrider *new
PETER HAMMILL | Nobody's Business | Nadir's Big Chance | Charisma 1975
THE WEEPING GOLDSMITH | Shep & Me | v/a: Different Paths CS | Greentape *new
BUTCHER COVER | Hate Rock/Domesticated Punk | split CS w/ Slicing Grandpa | Military Radio *new
SIGHTINGS | The Easy Answer | Michigan Haters | SS Records *new (orig 2002)
WHITE SUNS | Harvest | Walking in the Reservoir | ugExplode *new
BURMESE | title in Cantonese | Lun Yurn | ugExplode *new
THE NEW FLESH | Scapegoat | Parasite | Maelstrom 2005
PUFFY AREOLAS | title unknown | live on KDVS, 08/12/2010
SHATTER | Little Man | Each Moment 7" | Fuck Far Out Political 1990
HOODED | 2 Hunters | live on KDVS, 09/06/2010
HARI KARI | Pesterizer | live on KDVS, 09/06/2010
FESTERING RINYANYONS | Hopeless | split 7" w/ Mercury Players | Big Yucky 1992

The 2011 Fundraiser for Freeform KDVS 90.3 FM in Davis, California--the terrestrial home-base of this here radio program--begins at the stroke of 12 midnight this Sunday. This is the one week per year we ask our listeners to support us with their donations. Any pledge of $15 or more gets my Live on Art for Spastics (2010-2011) compilation CD, plus other KDVS-related merchandise. An extra $5 gets you more musical gifts, $40 gets you all of the above plus a KDVS t-shirt, and $100 gets you each and every DJ-created compilation CD of this outstanding radio station, or you can host your own show or handpick one of our DJs to take your party to the next level. This is how KDVS raises over 2/3 of our annual budget.

And it's validation for all the hours of sifting through boxes of music, combing through shelves of music, staying on top of limited-edition releases, and picking the corn kernels among demos...all to provide you two hours per week of the best stuff that I was really stoked about and wanted you to hear. PLUS...begging and pleading with bands from all across the globe to NOT skip Sacramento or Davis on their west coast tour, and encouraging more and better music from our musical youth of Sacramento, and making friends outta strangers for the sake of having fun and rocking the fuck out in one of the rarest of D-I-Y music spaces which Sacto is lucky to have. KDVS does a lot to help make this area a place worth living in. I swear....I woulda moved about 10 years ago or more if KDVS folded in the early 90s when the chips were falling fast. Or if they closed the doors to the community/non-student volunteers. I'm sure I would probably be in Portland if that were the case.

Watch for a new AFS post in the next couple days when I announce the track-list of Live on Art for Spastics (2010-2011), plus more specific info about how to make your pledge.

Thanks!
DJ Rick

AFS v. 308 ~ Sound Out the Din!

2011-04-05T00:43:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* Shearing Pinx re-expands to trio/embark upon West Coast!
* Is 2011 on its way to becoming the "Year of the Reissue"?
* Handglops at their pop/rock-accessible best!
* Lotsa kitchen-sink percussion in hour two

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

HANDGLOPS | Throwing a Party | Ronk ng Rool Pt 2 (demo) | no label *new
WRONG WORDS | Tonight, Tomorrow | self-titled | Trouble in Mind *new
MATT K. SHRUGG | She's Lost Control [Joy Division] | Art Comp CDR | no label *new
THE SEX KILLERS | Die Like a Junkie | self-titled CS | no label *new
H.P.P. | Youth Gone Astray | 6-song 7-inch | Perennial *new
THE FAMILY STONED | A1 | self-titled CS | Wild Animal Kingdom *new
EDGAR BROUGHTON BAND | Evil | Wasa Wasa | EMI/Harvest 1969 *request
APACHE DROPOUT | God Bless You, Johan Kugelberg | self-titled | Family Vineyard *new
DOW JONES & THE INDUSTRIALS | Can't Stand the Midwest | 7" reissue | Family Vineyard * new (orig 1981)
SUBVERTS | State of the Union | v/a: Busted at Oz | Permanent *new (orig 1981)
ALUMINUM KNOT EYE | Even Dwarfs Started Small | Silo Monster 7" | Big Black Hole 2007
HYGIENE | Office Job | Public Sector | La Vida es un Mus *new
THE CORPSICLES | Police State | v/a: Killed By Death #9 | Redrum 1995 (orig 1982)
TYVEK | Inner City Walks | Euro Tour 7-inch | Les Disques Steak *new
X RAY EYEBALLS | Kamsing Nights | Crystal 7" | HoZac *new
UV RACE | Inner North/Nazicistic | Homo | In The Red *new
QUINTRON | All Night Right of Way | Sucre Du Sauvage | Goner *new
MILLIGRAM RETREAT | Orbaug | Falun Gong | Enfant Terrible *new
SIGHTINGS | Chili Dog | Michigan Haters | SS Records *new (orig 2002)
DAN MELCHIOR | Jan 1996 | Assemblage Blues | Siltbreeze *new
ROLLIN HUNT | Castle of Nothing | Criminal 7" | Moniker *new
KILLING JOKE | We Have Joy | Revelations | E'G Records 1982
COP SHOOT COP | Low. Com. Denom. | Consumer Revolt | Circuit 1990
LOZENGE | Saw a Man: Beaten | Plenum | Farrago 1995
BABYLAND | Cop Out | A Total Let-Down | Flipside 1994
COUGHS | Dark Powers | Secret Passage | Load 2006
SPERM WAILS | Lady Chatterley | Lady Chatterley 7" | SS Records *new (orig 1986)
SHEARING PINX | Golden Spruce | v/a: Bloodstains Across British Columbia 7" | Mammoth Cave *new
SHEARING PINX | Scanner | Ultra Snake | Isolated Now Waves 2007
MERCURY 4°F | Crawl | Crawl 7" | Saftlos 1994
MERCURY 4°F | The Slow Process of Self Decay | Tinnitus 7-inch | Death By Blowjob 1995
SHATTER | Each Moment | Each Moment 7" | Fuck Far Out Political 1990

If you're not within short driving distance of Sacramento or Davis, nevermind, but if you are...ACHTUNG!!!

Freeform KDVS 90.3 FM presents:
The return of the startling spastic
neo-no-wave wizards from Vancouver, B.C., Canada...

SHEARING PINX

plus, three rulin' bands of Davis...

GAARTH
WRECK & REFERENCE
&
WORLD-LOSERS

Friday, April 8
@ THE HUB
1819 23rd Street
Sacramento, CA 95816

all ages
8:30 doors
9:00 showtime
$5 for Hub members
+$1 if it's your 1st Hub show
BYO-whatever

SHEARING PINX are embarking on their first tour since re-expanding to a three-piece band after last year's loss of Erin to Eastern Canada, and subsequent stripped-down, less improvisational duo exchanges of founding members Nic and Jeremy. They've drafted Jesse from Twin Crystals (formerly Nic's bandmate in Channels 3 + 4) to bolster Nic's guitar and vocal efforts. This band has never failed to blow the roof off the joint anytime and anyplace they've played between Sacramento and Davis (which has averaged almost twice per year over the last half decade), and with Jesse involved, surely this will be a major rager that should not be missed by fans of early Sonic Youth, Killing Joke, and the music of the original heyday of "no wave" in New York in the late 70s.
http://www.myspace.com/shearingpinx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shearing_Pinx

GAARTH invoke a reign of vegetarian terror with their black metal onslaught, and because they're super-sweet dudes that you know well from Produce Produce, you can have fun raging to their fury.
http://www.myspace.com/vegetarianblackmetal

WRECK & REFERENCE bring the intersection of math and hardcore forward from the Touch & Go sound of the late 80s/early 90s forward to today to include all the last two decades of metallic impressions. If you're a fan of "Spiderland" by Slint and recent offerings from Hydra Head or Ipecac, imagine all of that coming together in the best way.
http://www.myspace.com/wreckandreference
http://wreckandreference.bandcamp.com/

WORLD-LOSERS are back after a long hiatus and much urging on my part to play their first duo exchange between drummer Lien and guitarist Victor. They're specialty is shredding psych-punk a'la early work of Japanese psych-rock legends High Rise with killer, face-melting guitar snarl-outs and powerfully grooving drumwork with some nifty jazzy moments, too.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/World-Losers/401320941564

New Hub rules shall be enforced to make sure everyone's having fun and not complaining about rules. Save your gas money and bridge-tolls, people! The best bands in the world are coming to play this room behind this mysterious door on 23rd Street. Please tell your friends about The Hub if they wanna enjoy a different kinda nightlife where the music rules, and there's no ESPN on every flat screen TV or douchebags galore or $5 beers. Help us get the word out to fans of this music, too, please!

Bands are telling me after shows that The Hub is exactly the kinda place they need in their hometowns. And these bands are talking about cities like New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, Vancouver, and Seattle. So it strikes me as odd that many of you are still looking primarily to the Bay Area to find your weekend fun. Catch on, people!

Thanks,
DJ Rick

AFS v. 307 ~ Where My Blog's At

2011-03-29T01:12:00.000-07:00

CAPTAIN AHAB "The End Of Irony" from Deathbomb Arc on Vimeo.

(Really? Yes, actually!)

If you haven't copped the Different Thinking People LP featuring songs recorded by the Psyclones from 1980 to 1985, hit up Permanent Records for your copy of this killer retrospective release from the first punk/new-wave scene stalwarts of Humboldt County. It's the best possible introduction to the band for newcomers, and the rabbit hole goes deeper when you check out the output of their enduring experimental/electronic/industrial tape and record label, Ladd-Frith.

Don't miss this upcoming rager also!

AFS v. 306 ~ Catching Up w/ My Record Collection (Again)

2011-03-22T01:21:00.000-07:00

This week in AFS...

* Marvelous metal wizardry
* Scorchin' psych-punk sorcery
* Wire side projects of Gilbert/Lewis
* Davila 666 declared best live band on the planet today

Download this program within 365 days at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

KRANG | Speed of Tent | Speed of Tent 7" | Mammoth Cave Recording Co. *new
ZIG ZAGS | Wastin' My Time | 2nd demo CDR | no label *new
SOLID ATTITUDE | Constant Garbage/Totally Droll | Prison Water 7" | Rotted Tooth *new
SHAVED WOMEN | Circles | self-titled | Rotted Tooth *new
STRANGULATED BEATOFFS | Lick My Butthole | Lick My Butthole 7" | Glitterhouse 1990
WANTON LOVEBOY | Wiggle | Monger 7" | Cubist Productions 1992
WINGTIP SLOAT | Blessed Nimbus, Churning | Add this to Rhetoric | VHF 2007 (orig 1994)
UNREST | The Gas Chair | Malcolm X Park | Caroline 1988
THE PHEROMOANS | Trusthouse Blues | It Still Rankles | Convulsive *new
DAVILA 666 | Robacuna | Tan Bajo | In The Red *new
HEAVY TIMES | Poison Ivy | Dead | Rotted Tooth *new
BROKEN WATER | Memory | Whet | Perennial *new
BROKEN WATER | Heartstrings | Peripheral Star 12" EP | Perennial *new
DAVILA 666 | Los Cruces | Tan Bajo
MEERCAZ | Moving Up at the Speed of Sound | Space Hate 12" EP | Tic Tac Totally 2011
SOFT ENCOUNTERS | Professional Seamen | One-Sider 10" | Monofonus *new
B.C. GILBERT - G. LEWIS | Ends With the Sea | Ends With the Sea 7" | 4AD 1981
CUPOL | Like This For Ages | Like This For Ages 12" EP | 4AD 1980
JOHN BENDER | 27B4 | I Don't Remember Now | Record Sluts 1980
ÉL-G | Vrouwen Min Mannen | Tout Ploie | SS Records 2009
GRAVITAR & NICODEMUS | It's an Idiot's Life | It's an Idiot's Life | Insignificant 1997
MICHAEL YONKERS & PLASTIC CRIMEWAVE SOUND | (I am) Lonely Fog | Bleed Out | Spiral Staircase 2009
TAILGUNNER | Spice is Nice | self-titled | Rapid 1983
OVERTHRUSTER | Next Horizon | 2010 demo | no label 2010
ICON GALLERY | Babes in the Wood | self-titled | Dear Skull *new
BOULDER | Fall from Graves | Ravage & Savage | Tee Pee 2000
SIR LORD BALTIMORE | Helium Head | Kingdom Come | Mercury/Universal 2010 (orig 1970)
GUN OUTFIT | Ring a Bell? | High Places 12" EP | Make a Mess *new
WEIRD TV | Sufrir | Sufrir 7" | Perennial *new

If you are in Sacto or Davis, don't miss this...

AFS v. 305 ~ feat. Blank Realm live on KDVS

2011-03-15T01:51:00.001-07:00

AFS v. 303 ~ feat. Topless Mongos & Shrapnelles

2011-03-09T01:29:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 302 ~ The Dream of the 90s is Alive in Milwaukie!

2011-02-22T01:26:00.000-08:00

This week in AFS...

* A triple-low-brow scuzz block of Rancid Vat
* Remembering a time when Portland was no hipper than Sacto
* Further investigating the solo career of Peter Hammill
* The K-Holes can kill...coming soon from HoZac

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

MAN THE HUNTER | Dance With Me | Less for You 7" | Ginkgo *new
CHARLIE & THE SKUNKS | Pay No Attention to Time | Take an Ice Cream Scoop Out of My Brain 7" | Eradicator *new
SWIMSUIT | Dolphins | Dolphins 7" | Lifelike *new
PETER HAMMILL | My Experience | Sitting Targets | PVC 1981
PETER HAMMILL | Pushing Thirty | The Future Now | Charisma 1978
WIRELESS | Sign Right Here | Positively Human Relatively Sane | Mercury 1979
SAMUEL LOCKE WARD & THE BOOHOOS | Tell it to the Man of Diminishing Clout | split 7" w/ Mumfords | no label *new
RANCID VAT | Joy to the World [Three Dog Night] | v/a: Flies Like Holidays | Pigface 1982
RANCID VAT | Hot Cages in Vietnam Rattle | Stampeding Cattle | Pigface 1982
RANCID VAT | Destroy Nature | Justice (This is What We Do to Traitors) | Horton/Reflex 1989
TRUE SONS OF THUNDER | Butt Bong | split 7" w/ Wizzard Sleeve | Jeth-Row *new
I.V. LEAGUE | Caucasian Fear | Songs of the North American Anglo | Mind Drum 1989/90(?)
CULTURCIDE | The Heart of Rn'R (Is the Profit) | Tacky Souvenirs of Pre-Revolutionary America | no label 1986
WHITE SAVAGE | Orphans [Teenage Jesus & the Jerks] | Destroy Your Style 7" | HoZac 2007
K-HOLES | Short Zippers/Werewold with a Tan | self-titled | HoZac *new
FIFTY FOUR FORTY | Long Goodbye | v/a: Things Are Still Coming Ashore | Mo=Da=Mu 1982
HALF CHURCH | Attention Span | In Turmoil 12" EP | WiN 1981
BILLY & THE BUTTONS | Want Want | Whole Fam Damily 7" | Button 1983
PASTICHE (THE MINI-BAND) | Running in Place | v/a: A Wicked Good Time, vol. 2 | Modern Method 1981
SWINGERS RESORT | Hit List | v/a: A Wicked Good Time! | Modern Method 1981
ENGLISH SINGLES | Grey Skies USA | Splashing Past the Action CDR | English Singles *new
SHARK TOYS | I Don't Fit In | v/a: Under the Covers vol. 2 | Volar/I Hate Rock n Roll *new
BELREVE | Nothing | Nothing 7" | Anyway 1993
MOVIOLA | Color Copy | Frantic 10" | Anyway 1995
FLIPPER | Way of the World | Album Generic Flipper | Subterranean 1981
DEAD C | Maggot | Eusa Kills | Flying Nun 1989
LAST FEW DAYS | Megaphobia | Pure Spirit and Saliva Live | Dead Man's Curve 1986
SANDRA BELL | Gilt | Angel 7" | Zabriskie Point 1995
AMATEUR CHILDBIRTH | Venus in Flames | Brighter Futures Dialysis | self-released *new
DEAF WISH | Freeze the Sound | self-titled | self-released *new (orig 2007)

Five episodes into Fred Armisen and Carrie Brownstein's Portlandia (airing weekly on the IFC network), I've enjoyed some great laughs. As buffoonish as the many characters of Portlandia are--the hardcore vegan fixed-gear bike-punk, the overly cautious locavore, feminist bookstore owners, etc.--they really do ring true to the generally-true generalizations of Portland people and their subcultures.

If you haven't seen the show 'cos your cable company sucks, I bet you've probably seen their music video for "The Dream of the 90s" [in case you did miss it]...which they proclaim is so alive in Portland. But that's the only thing I don't totally agree with about Portlandia, 'cos I remember Portland in the 90s...when a sandwich was really just a sandwich, and Miracle Whip was exotic. There was no slathering aioli with capers and fresh herbs from the chef's own backyard garden on brioche. An omelet at Cobblestone Cafe was just an omelet...a really big lumberjack-gut-bustin' omelet, and nobody thought to ask about how far these eggs had traveled to get to the table, or how many acres the chickens were free to roam. Whereas today there are carts, trucks, and trailers in every quadrant of the city serving food from every culture you didn't even expect to encounter in Portland, the 90s was a time when there was not even one decent Mexican or Chinese restaurant, and people were slow to accede to the few fledgling Thai places. Nobody knew of pho or bahn mi or pupusas. The clothes at thrift stores wound up being worn by poor people instead of on the racks of pricey vintage boutiques where they're washed, repaired, or cut, re-sewn, and re-contextualized.

The other thing that seems incredible about Portland--especially in the early to mid 90s--was that good bands were nearly as scarce as a good taco. It had been years since The Wipers had made a great album, and they were already taking a long lead toward Arizona. Poison Idea had just released Pajama Party with a cover of The Gogos's "Vacation". They still ruled when I saw 'em play, but I was also kinda depressed by watching Pig Champion's severe joint pain as he took over a minute to walk up four steps to the stage with the help of two spotters. Smegma was sorta in a flat spot with their recordings, and they bored me to death the couple times I saw 'em then. (Smegma's next heyday was a great reinvigorated run in the 2000s, and I think it still continues!) Rancid Vat were also leading off to Philly, where they went on to make predictable records for fans of the Confederacy of Scum. Dead Moon was the only great band in the midst of their prime at the time, and I was too young to go to a bar to see 'em play. Aside from a burgeoning crust/HC scene centered around Resist, I didn't see a lotta stuff happening when I was there in 1992-1993. Other kids in my college dormitory were way into the deplorable Crazy 8s, a band that local papers compared to The Clash and The Specials, but if they were punk, they were the least-threatening punks ever, and if they were ska, they stripped all Afro-Carribean elements to create a distillate of the kinda party music preferred by Docker-pants-wearing middle-aged middle-class white tourists. They thought they were funky, too. The Crazy 8s were cut from much the same cloth as those despicable Cherry Poppin' Daddies, who were the one regional musical export to maintain a national image.

Cruising everyday Portland then, it seemed really blue-collar. Steak and potatoes. Flannel for function, not image. If the "Dream of the 90s is alive in Portland" today, then it came a decade late, because the Portland of the 90s was living the dream of the 70s. It was arguably less hip than Sacramento...where I had no shortage of rad all-ages shows to attend as a young person and so many rad bands centering around the Midtown Sac gathering place, The Loft (Yah Mos, Tiger Trap, Los Huevos, Nar, Lizards, Bananas, Four Eyes, Salmonella, Lab Rats, etc.). And in Davis, we had the scene revolving around KDVS with the Curbfeelers, Buick, Shove, Harvester, Chance the Gardener, Duct Tape, Beef With Society, Girls Soccer, etc. (and compared to Portland's token rappers U-Krew, our area boasted DJ Shadow, Blackalicious, Lyrics Born, Brother Lynch Hung, and more). For as much as I thought it was gonna rule up there when I went off to college in 1992, I couldn't wait to get back to the music scene I'd left in the Central Valley. Portland seemed light years behind. Elmer was probably in my top-five Portland bands list then, and that was in part due to their Sacto pre-history!

But one thing Portland did have in spades was that legendary weirdness! And Smegma epitomized that during their heyday in the 80s. This video of primetime news footage of Portland's Mayor's ball in 1988 brilliantly shows Smegma's integral place in what was mostly a musical wasteland. Enjoy...

If the dream of the 90s is alive in Portland, I reckon it's because the 20- and 30-somethings of Portland that give the city its mecca-of-hip image imported the dream from wherever they lived before moving there.

Don't take any of this to mean "DJ Rick thinks Portland was cooler before it was cool", 'cos I love Portland for the way it's become as a place to visit and eat and see music. I liked it the way I remember it, too. The dream of the Portland of the 90s is still alive in Milwaukie. Also...RIP, Henry Ford's, Cobblestone Cafe, the original Hung Far Low.

That K-Holes LP is coming on March 1, says this one-sheet I got from HoZac. It's quite tasty and delivers well on the promise of their killer live show they gave Sacramento last fall. Haunted swamp rock that's psycho and psych-y with a dash of nü-gothy-ness...very tasty! Tonight I give you a couple faster-burning songs. Songs, indeed...they do actually write 'em in this band! Next week a different flavor.

AFS v. 301 ~ They Saved Hosni's Gallbladder

2011-02-15T01:33:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 300 ~ Ride into the Danger Zone!

2011-02-08T01:44:00.001-08:00

This week in AFS...

* the latest, greatest Teeny mystery record
* our trilogy of Deaf Wish albums is complete
* the dystopic dialect of Damon Edge of Chrome

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

JOHN JARRETT'S TRIBE | The Racer | unreleased? 198?
DEDRINGER | We Don't Mind | Sunday Drivers 7" | Dindisc 1980
THE TOURS | Language School | Language School 7" | Tours 1979
RITCHIE STARS | Highschool | split 7" w/ Mars Mario | Teeny 1992
THE BOYS | We're Too Young | v/a: Just Another Pop Album | Titan 1981
NOBUNNY | Monster Kiss | Raw Romance | Burger 2010
NOBUNNY | I WaS On (The Bozo Show) | First Blood | Goner 2010
PREFAB MESSIAHS | Franz Kafka | Franz Kafka 7" | Almost Ready *new
THE EMBARRASSMENT | Sex Drive | Sex Drive 7" | Big Time 1980
KARATE PARTY | Ball Game | v/a: Sacramento - City of a Beer 7" | Moo-La-La 1998
HENRY FIAT'S OPEN SORE | Local Imbecile | split 7" w/ Spider Babies | Proud to Be Idiot 1999
HENRY FIAT'S OPEN SORE | Gimme the Loot
ELECTRIC CRUSH | Twisted Inside Out | Dropouts in a Drug Haze 12" EP | Black Gladiator/Slovenly *new (orig 2001)
TROPHY WIFE | In the Water | self-titled 7" | Private Leisure Industries *new
MICHAEL BEACH | A Horse | A Horse 7" | Spectacular Commodity *new
LOWER PLENTY | She'll Stick Around | Mean CS | Radio Records Melbourne 2010
LOWER PLENTY | Got Your Advice
DEAF WISH | Mean to Me/Deaf News | Reality & Visions | Idget Child 2009
DEAF WISH | Mercy | Mercy | Radio Records Melbourne *new
DEAF WISH | I Traded You | self-titled CDR | self-released 2007
3 TOED SLOTH | The Odds | ...Against the Odds 2x7" | Unwucht *new (orig 1993)
THE GORDONS | Future Shock | Future Shock 12" EP | Flying Nun 1988 (orig 1980) *request
YI | Golden Pouch/Brains | At Home + 5 CS | Reeducation *new
THIN LIZZY | Sitamoia | Whisky in the Jar | Decca 1981 (orig 197?)
A reading of DAMON EDGE's fantastic visions from the Inworlds 12" EP insert over...
CHROME | Nova Feedback | Alien Soundtrack | Siren 1977
CHROME | Mondo Anthem | Half Machine Lip Moves | Siren 1979
CHROME | Danger Zone | Red Exposure reissue | Lilith *new (orig 1981)
CHEVEU | Sensual Drug Abuse | 1000 | Kill Shaman *new
THOROFON | Stunde Null | Maximum Punishment Solutions | Stateart 1997
WARSER GATE | Torched Scrawl | Torched Scrawl 7" | Rafter 1997
WARSER GATE | Going Nowhere | All My Hates, All My Hang Ups | Rafter 1996
PINK REASON | Your Girlfriend [V3] | Desperate Living 7" | Almost Ready *new

I'm afraid that my reading from the insert of Chrome's Inworlds 12" EP didn't do it justice (it is kinda hard to read Damon Edge's handwriting), so I shall type it out for you...

THE CITY WAS FALLING APART, THERE WAS FIGHTING IN THE CENTER OF TOWN, THE PEOPLE HAD CHROMOSOME DAMAGE AND THERE WAS NOTHING TO DO, I MEAN ABOUT THE MUTATIONS THAT KEPT OCCURING. THEY WERE ALL OVER THE PLACE, EVER SINCE THE 1ST WAVES OF FEEDBACK FROM THE NOVA. I DIDN'T HERE 'BOUT IT 'TIL IT HAD ALREADY HIT GRUX, I REMEMBER THE NEWS AT FIVE THT DAY, SOMEONE SAID SECTION D OF THE DROID SUPPLIERS HAD INSTIGATED THEIR OWN PATENTS INTO ASSEMBLY. SORT OF OFFENSIVE I THOUGHT, I MEAN WHO IN THE HELL WANTS TO LOOK AT THAT SHIT? A KING OF MAGNETIC REPTILE COMBINATION. THE COUNCIL SAID THAT SECTION D WAS SUFFERING FROM BIOLOGICAL CHANGES DUE TO THE 2ND WAVE. THAT'S WHEN I HEARD OUR DIVERSION FLEET HAD ENCOUNTERED SIMILAR MUTATIONS WITH SOME ROCK THEY FOUND IN THE MILKY WAY GALAXY, GOOD ASSORTMENT OF SPECIMENS THOUGH, AT LEAST FROM THE RAVINGS THE PRESS WAS MAKING. BUT WHO THE FUCK CARES ABOUT SOME ROCK IN THE MILKY WAY GALAXY? EXCEPT FOR ITS AUDIO CONTENT THAT IS. SO I TIMED FOR PURPOSE AND CALCULATED THE OBJECTIVES, HAD MY MONITORS ON IT CONSTANTLY, DIGGING THROUGH CHIPS UNTIL I FINALLY PUT THE OVERVIEW IN COMPLETE PERSPECTIVE. THEN I COULDN'T GET THE SPECIFICATIONS, I MEAN WHO KNOWS, THEY WERE MISSING. I GOT THE MESSAGE WHEN THEY WERE PASSING CYGNI THAT THIS WAS IT, IF I DIDN'T STOP FUCKING ABOUT THE MONITORS WERE GOING TO PUT ME AWAY. I JUST NEEDED THOSE CHIPS FOR MY RESEARCH, THAT CONTINENT ON THE ROCK SOUNDED PERFECT. THE ONE THE DIVERSION FLEET CALLED THE PARK. THEY COULDN'T MAKE THE TRANSMISSIONS THOUGH CAUSE THE ALIENS HAD SOME PRIMITIVE GADGETRY THAT KEPT SCREWING EVERYTHING UP, SO THEY HAD TO LEAVE THE ATMOSPHERE JUST TO GET THE GOD DAMN SOUNDS BACK HERE AND THEY WERE STILL FUCKED UP. SO I REQUESTED A SPECIMEN WHICH WAS AGAINST THE ETHICAL CODE, ND THAT WAS WHAT THE MONITORS WERE GETTING PISSED ABOUT YOU SEE. I MEAN WITH THE CHAOS IN THE CITIES AND ALL - THEY WOULD JUST SAY TO ME "WHAT IF EVERYONE WAS GOING ON LIKE YOU? CAN YOU IMAGINE THE INEFFIENTCY?" WELL THERE'S NOT MUCH I COULD SAY TO THAT. THEY LOOKED AT MY PRIVATE STUDIES AS SOME SORE OF INDIRECT SABOTAGE. SO I SAY FUCK 'EM, FUCK IT, I DECIDED TO GET BOMBED. IT HAD BEEN A LONG EXTENDED CONCENTRATION. SO WHY NOT TAKE A FLIGHT TO ALTAIR AND GET INTO SOME 37? AND THIS IS WHERE I MEET CHROMIUM YOU SEE, I GET ON BOARD AND THERE HE IS WITH THE MOST BEAUTIFULLY SCULPTURED DROIDS I'VE EVER SEEN LAYING ON A DECK FEELING 'EM UP AND PISSING ALL OVER LIKE IT'S A RUBBER ROOM OR SOMETHING. THEN I'M ROLLED DOWN THE AISLE AND HE RECOGNIZES ME FROM THE MUSICOLOGY AWARDS LAST YEAR. HE INVITES ME OVER, AND WE DO UP THE DROIDS AND HIT BASE. HE'S BEING REAL CHUMMY AND ALL AN I'M JUST RIPPED AND I FORGET MY DEFENSES FOR A MOMENT AND HAPPEN TO MENTION THIS BUSINESS WITH THE DIVERSION FLEET - AN HE COMES ON REAL THICK ABOUT IT LIKE SOME FRIGGING PATRIOT - BLASTING AWAY 'BOUT THE MONITORS AND HOW THEY SHOULD HAVE PUT ME IN STOP. AND THE NEXT THING I KNOW, I WAKE UP IN THIS BOX MADE OUT OF THE PLANET'S CRUST, AND I'M STILL A BIT DIZZY. THEN COMES THIS MONITOR WITH HIS DIGITALS ON THE BLINK, AND I CAN SEE HE HASN'T BEEN SERVICED IN AT LEAST 3 EVOLUTIONS, SO I BASH HIS HEAD IN WITH THE ACCOMMODATIONS AND MAKE FOR THE LIGHT FIELDS - AND ON THE WAY I RUN INTO THIS OLD PHILOSOPHICAL TYPE WITH ONE GOOD EYE LEFT AND GIVING ME THE EVERYTHING IS COOL, EVERYTHING IS ONE LOOK, AND JUST BEFORE HE STARTS TO SAY SOMETHING I TELL HIM HE'D BETTER WATCH OUT FOR HIS DESTINY JUST TO THROW HIM OFF, AND YOU KNOW IT WAS FUNNY CAUSE IT WORKED AND HE SHUT RIGHT UP.[sic]

Y'know what would be a fun game? You could search and find titles of Chrome songs in there!

RIP, Gary Moore of Thin Lizzy, and RIP to Deaf Wish if you really have broken up. Thanks for a fantastic body of work which I only learned about too late (about four months ago). Their never-really-released 1st album was sent to KDVS this week, and it's a masterpiece, too.

AFS v. 299 ~ City Spirit

2011-02-01T02:53:00.000-08:00

This week in AFS...

* Cheveu's 1000 hits the USA!
* maybe that was T.M.I. at the end...sorry!
* a remarkable, accidental "City Rock" discovery!

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

ED NASTY & THE DOPEDS | I'm Gonna Be Everything | I'm Gonna Be Everything 7" | Last Laugh *new (orig 1978)
CIRCLE PIT | Roll With the Punches | Sewercide 7" | Sweet Rot/R.I.P. Society *new
22-PISTEPIRKKO | Bone Bone Baby | Bare Bone Nest | Spirit 1989
HORRID RED | Foehn Winds | Pink Flowers 7" | Soft Abuse *new
PSYCHE | Wrench 11 | Tales from the Darkside | Animalized 1990 (orig 1982)
BUK BUK BIGUPS | Hot Mess (live on KFJC) | Big Big Fuckups CS | Zeff Group *new
CHROME | In a Dream | Red Exposure | Lilith 2010 (orig 1980)
TUXEDOMOON | Nervous Guy | Scream with a View 12" EP | PRE 1979
CHEVEU | No Birds/Impossible is not French | 1000 | Kill Shaman *new
THE ORTHOTONICS | Whack-a-Mole | Luminous Bipeds | Rift 1986
IMPRACTICAL COCKPIT | Lowell "Bud" Paxson | Pretty Totally | Unwucht *new (orig 2001)
PROOF OF UTAH | August Days | Out of Order | Smiley Turtle 1989
MOTOR TOTEMIST GUILD | Diamonds for Fishhooks | Shapuno Zoo | No Man's Land 1988
PORNOSECT | Pure | ...of Vibrations, Resonances and Divine Things | The Product Korps 1988
SCORN | Automata | Evanescence | Earache 1994
ALVIN LUCIEN | I Am Sitting in a Room Pt. I (excerpt) | I Am Sitting in a Room | Lovely Music 1981
COIL | Ubu Noir | Scatology | Force & Form 1984
THUG | 2 Important Mistakes | Proud Idiots Parade | Black Eye 1987
THUG | Fuck Your Dad | v/a: Waste Sausage | Black Eye 1987
THE POOFTERS | Wipe Out Your Whole Family | v/a: Waste Sausage
SMERSH | Under Your Hoop | Emmanuelle Goes to Bangkok | KK Records 1990
SLEETMUTE NIGHTMUTE | Look Back in Anger | Night of Long Knives | Fast Weapons *new (orig 2004)
SLUMS | Waiting Rooms/Chained to the Wall | demo CDR | no label 2004
TRIAL | Lobotomized Visions | Moments of Collapse | Communications Syndicate 1986
JOHN JARRETT'S TRIBE | Something Always Brings Me Back | self-titled | Capitol/EMI 1984
BROWNSVILLE STATION | Rockers 'n' Rollers | self-titled | Private Stock 1977
THE ROCKETS | Desire | No Ballads | RSO 1980
TIGHT FITS | Bulldozer | Full Frontal Attack 7" | Pure Filth 1995
MY BROTH'R HANS | Set My Bowels Free | The Money Makers of Punk Rock CS | Scud Prod. 1992
THE A.G.'s | Taking a Shit | Bryan's Car 7" | Mystic/Super Seven 1987

Every now and then, I go to pull a record outta the cavernous catacombs of the KDVS record collection and I get blindsided by a record that I never dreamed existed, and it's like a Highlander "quickening" moment. Such was the case tonight when I went back to grab Moments of Collapse by Trial and found the very next record in our alphabetized archive labeled as Tribe. The LP cover piqued my interest. With the "I" represented by a jagged diseased palm tree topped by a sabertoothed ear-pierced (in an era when the right ear was the wrong ear to pierce in rock 'n' roll!) lion-sphynx, the bold red Tribe logo screamed speed-metal, but certain members of the band looked curiously un-metal, even as they posed in an urban ruin. Apparently, the LP had been in our record collection since it was new in September of 1984. The back cover shows a color picture of the band perched atop a crumbling arcade on the 2nd floor of the brick building, posing with much more personality. The band members were John Jarrett, Jon "The Bull" Riveiro, Phil Grande, and Greg "Bonz" Baze. Is Phil Grande a rock 'n' roll name or what? Add the Bull and Bonz to the brigade, and Jarrett's band can only be formidable. Considering themes evoked by the song titles, I knew I'd found the trail of "City Rock"...

Side A
------
1. I Wanna Be With You
2. I'm Always In Trouble
3. Call Of The Wild
4. Movin'
5. Something Always Brings Me Back

Side B
------
1. Don't Say No
2. Every Man For Himself
3. Nature Of The Beast
4. Love Is Like A Wheel
5. You Can't Do That

Flipping back to the front cover, I noticed that the band was actually called John Jarrett's Tribe, so this record had been mislabeled and misfiled since 1984! It was some kinda miracle that I'd found this record. Then I noticed that the radio station label had but one DJ notation: "Grower!" I knew right then that I must hear this album!

Like everyone else, I knew nothing of this "City Rock" phenomenon until I had noticed that the "City Rock" message board thread at Terminal Boredom had burgeoned so quickly to about 20 pages. I tried to catch up, but was still confused about whether this so-called musical genre was real and whether its proponents weren't pulling a fast one on other TermBo readers. But soon I came to realize what was actually special about it....at its best, this music was as much about truth, as genuine, devotional, and honest as punk rock at its best, and like punk rock or hip hop, it was as at once a style of music and an immersible lifestyle with its own belief system. And, again like punk rock or hip hop, the lifestyle city rocker was viewed by others as having made the wrong choice. Some chased their dreams to stardom and successful careers, like Eddie Money or even Huey Lewis (whose News are claimed by nearly every little city in the East and North SF Bay Area as a hometown band, and local legend when I was a 4th-grader was that their first practice was in a basement in the huddled little downtown of Suisun City...which was a neighborhood on the skids when I was a 4th-grader at Suisun Elementary). But others kept chasing and never achieved the dream. They gave the best years of their life to rock 'n' roll, partying, party-girls, living every day like it was the weekend, and if they were still rockin' toward or into their middle ages, they'd be more qualified to write songs about epic loss and despair than any post-folkrock plunderer of world-beat music, or any ex-school-teacher post-new-wave Zen-master, or any Juno-award-winning supposedly-edgy ingenue.

Having found John Jarrett's MySpace (which includes a song not from this album--"The Racer"--that totally smokes anything on the first Def Leppard album as a palpably-punk-tangential glitter-pop-metal nugget!), I see evidence that he rocked it as recently as five years ago! And a recent photo of Mr. Jarrett with Hilly Michaels (right), who's credited in several ways in the liner notes of the album. Other notable names in the liners include Ellen Foley and Dan Hartman on background vocals. If you search Discogs.com, nothing comes up for this album, but you do find John credited as a vocalist on "Mano a Mano" from Hall & Oates' Private Eyes. More Google-sleuthing reveals that bassist Bonz was also in disco outfit Touch, and Phil Grande played guitar with Joe Cocker, and re-joined John (with Hilly on drums) in a band called Life Dot Com.

Surely, there's several songs on the Tribe's album which exhibit the cringeworthy cheese of 1984's prevalent professional studio production values, but there are several winners on the album that are bursting with that irrepressible city spirit. Check these lyrics from tonight's selection...

"Something Always Brings Me Back"

So pretty, those neon lights are calling me
This city, my city means so much to me
The many faces that she has
Places that she has to hide away
When you don't feel like being seen.

But don't be foolish
Don't let it hold you down
It's not so easy
I know, 'cause I've been around

Something always brings me back
No matter how I try to spread my wings and fly
Something always brings me back

This Friday, they're having a party in the street
I'm going, I know there'll be lots of girls to meet
There'll be dancing all day long
And dancing until dawn
A real good time for all
In the city that never sleeps

But don't be foolish
Don't let it hold you down
It's not so easy
I know, 'cause I've been around

Something always brings me back
No matter how I try to spread my wings and fly
Something always brings me back

Here's another track from the album (incorrectly titled by the person who posted the video)...

You can smirk and say it's 80s cheese...but that's too easy! Many examples of City Rock sounds like a soundtrack to any of the hundreds of mostly-forgotten one-star-rated 80s movies you enjoy on an ironic level. But if you consider the lyrics of "I'm Always in Trouble" and hear the conviction in the vocal effort, you've gotta figure that this is a pretty honest biographical song. The intimacy totally betrays the larger-than-life production value.

If this doesn't help you catch the City Rock bug, then keep reading as the TermBo thread grows, and please forgive me if I occasionally dig up another nugget and stick it near the end of a future podcast. I make no promises on their behalf, but I'm gonna keep bugging Sacto's chief arbiters of City Rock crucialness to come guest-host an AFS where we can get it all outta our system.

AFS v. 298 ~ Freeform Fellowship

2011-01-25T01:34:00.000-08:00

This week in AFS...

* the state of the freeform family is optimistic
* on-air interview w/ KUSF's Carolyn Keddy
* the state of Pink Reason...strong!
* Electric Crush: USA glue-wave's desert-baked missing link

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

LUMERIANS | Deathray Bradbury | Dethray Bradbury 7" | Rococo 2010
THE HOLYDRUG COUPLE | Now | Ancient Land EP 12" | Sacred Bones *new
FIFTY FOOT HOSE | Red the Sign Post | Cauldron | Weasel Disc 1994 (orig 1967)
BONGWATER | Great Radio | The Power of Pussy | Shimmy Disc 1991
BUNNY BRAINS | RU Ready Carolyn Keddy? | Bunny Magick | Blackjack 1994
BUNNY BRAINS | Erin Go Boom! (The Pinty Song)
SPROTON LAYER | Up | With Magnetic Fields Disrupted | New Alliance 1991 (orig 1970)
PREFAB MESSIAHS | Prefab Sun | Franz Kafka 7" | Almost Ready *new (orig 1981)
THE ZOLTARS | Party at the Batcave | self-titled 7" | Sundae *new
THE LOFTONS | Stockton Mental Hospital Theme | early demo | no label *new
GREEN SCREEN DOOR | Psychic Rape Machine | self-titled CS | no label *new
SALEM 66 | Lemon Rind | self-titled | Homestead 1984
GRASS WIDOW | Walking Out on Love [Paul Collins' Beat] | v/a: Under the Covers vol. 2 CS | Volar *new
VEGETABLE | Sol | C.F./Sol 7" | Gilgongo *new
J. MARINELLI | Your Ethos is Like a Drug to Me | Pre-Emptive Skankery Sessions | Commodity Fetish Analogue *new
JAMES ARTHUR'S MANHUNT | My God #4 | self-titled | Aarght! 2010
HANGING COFFINS | Ladies Upstairs | Bombers and Blues 7" | Malt Duck *new
ART LESSING | When it Ends | Lectures | KDVS Recordings *new
ART LESSING | Cantina
ELECTRIC CRUSH | Speed Demon | Dropouts in a Drug Haze | Black Gladiator/Slovenly *new
CRASH NORMAL | That's My Favorite Shit | Normal 7" | Royal 1997
CRASH NORMAL | Let's Cook Some Meat
SUBTLE TURNHIPS | Bob | Terd Album | HoZac *new
BUTCHER COVER | Census Man/Forced Friend | self-titled | Rotted Tooth *new
PINK REASON | Empty Stomach | Desperate Living EP 7" | Almost Ready *new
PINK REASON | The Song with No Name
BLACK SNAKES | Ride | Crawl | Radium 226.05 1988
INDUCED LABOUR | Red Deer Travelodge | Untitled 7" | Pleasence *new
JEBERREKENELLE | And My Hands Move Around | split LP w/ Rugburn | Reality Control? 1995

Many other bloggers and social-networkers have spread the word about the abrupt banishment of KUSF from the San Francisco airwaves, but if you haven't heard 'til now, this is truly a travesty. On Tuesday, January 18, the University of San Francisco ordered KUSF's transmitter to be turned off, removed staff from the station, and changed the locks. A deal had been brokered to sell KUSF's 90.3 FM frequency to a classical music network from Southern California. No warning was given, and now one of the greatest cities in the world is without its only full-power freeform community radio station. Over the years, KUSF has been one of the handful of very best radio stations, with tons of great underground music of all flavors, and an incredible array of cultural offerings in many languages. It was only last summer that Rice University in Houston made a move to sell the license and transmitter of Freeform KTRU, causing immediate mobilization of KTRU staff and supporters to block the sale and keep a student and community resource from becoming another dentist's office classical music radio station. The same kind of effort is quickly under way by KUSF's staff and supporters. Longtime KUSF DJ Carolyn Keddy joined me on the air this week to talk about what's happening...and a little about what got her involved with KUSF 20 years ago and what kept her motivated to stay so long.

I'll never forget the day that I first heard The Consumers...it was winter holiday break from UC Davis, and fellow KDVS DJ Todd Urick (of the "Hometown Atrocities" show) and I were driving around the Bay Area blowing mad money on as much rad garagepunk and Japanese hardcore records I could afford, plus Killed by Death and Bloodstains compilations. We'd shopped and spent 'til we could no more...or so we thought! The moment that Carolyn played The Consumers on KUSF, we got off I-80 in El Cerrito--yes, we were on our way home--and turned back around to double back to Amoeba in Berkeley, where we found our copies of All My Friends Are Dead. We bought one each for ourselves, plus a copy for KDVS which we still treasure and play often to this day. Is that a record-nerd story or what? Thank you, Carolyn, for this disease you've given me.

If you want to keep track of what's happening, please check out http://www.savekusf.org/ and http://www.facebook.com/SaveKUSF.

In other news, a crucial piece of American glue-wave history has dropped...Black Gladiator and Slovenly present the dawn of Electric Crush, perfectly preserved in the hot dry Las Vegas air since 2000 when Dropouts in a Drug Haze originally debuted as a cassette. Now on 12" 45 RPM vinyl, this screeching, blazing menace of hot guitar riffs, punched-up drums, unhinged howl-at-the-moon psycho vokills, and odd bits of budget electro booyar is sure to melt all your earwax and get your fist pumping and ass shaking. It makes perfect sense that this retrospective release would follow the revelatory future-primitive 7"es by Vex Ruffin & the Lo-Fi Jerkheads.

Also, Pink Reason is back, and stronger than ever. Bolstered by the walloping rhythm section of Pygmy Shrews, Kevin shows that marriage has not softened Pink Reason. This is the most aggressively rockin' Reason yet, and the best EP since the very first. If you sorta just forgot 'cos so much other music has happened since Kevin slowed down releasing music, then you need to hear this...a loud and clear bulletin that Pink Reason is still one of the best bands on the planet. Can't wait to hear more!

You can't spell P-A-R-T-Y without this guy!

2011-01-21T00:40:00.001-08:00

One of the most thorough rockings The Hub has ever seen!

AFS v. 297 ~ "If a man hasn't discovered something he will die for,...

2011-01-18T01:16:00.000-08:00

...he isn't fit to live."
--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Sorry to wax Bono on you, but shit is real right now!

This week in AFS...

* the latest batch from S.S. Records!
* plucking nuggets of late-80s greatness!

And on a serious note...

* a plea for Dan and Letha Rodman Melchior

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

TY SEGALL | Annette's Got the Hits [Red Kross] | v/a: Gonerfest 7 Golden Ticket Record | Goner 2010
DUCHESS OF SAIGON | Four Soft | self-titled | SS Records *new
SPERM WAILS | Lady Chatterley | Lady Chatterley 7" | SS Records *new (orig 1986)
LOS LLAMARADA | The Restless Light (Was Made Flesh in Me) | The Restless Light 7" | SS Records *new
BLACK SNAKES | Rear View Mirror | Crawl | Radium 226.05 1988
PSYCHOPLASMA | Yellow House | Radio Flies | Schemer 1989
RADIOPUHELIMET | Hetki | Rokkiräjähdys | Euros 1988
VENOM P. STINGER | And Suddenly | Meet My Friend Venom | No Masters Voice 1986
FEEDTIME | I Wanna Ride | self-titled | Aberrant 1985
HONEYMOON KILLERS | Kansas City Milkman | Hung Far Low | Fistpuppet 1991
LUBRICATED GOAT | Nervequake/Anal Injury | ...Plays the Devil's Music | Black Eye 1987
THE RESIDENTS | Satisfaction | Satisfaction 7" | Ralph 1978
DAN MELCHIOR UND DAS MENACE | Love Thug | Visionary Pangs | SS Records 2010
DAN MELCHIOR UND DAS MENACE | Winter/Rip It to Pieces | self-titled CS | Night People *new
DAN MELCHIOR UND DAS MENACE | Modoc | The Pink Scream EP 12" | Shake Appeal 2007
DAN MELCHIOR'S BROKE REVUE | O, Clouds Unfold | O, Clouds Unfold | Hook or Crook 2009 (orig 2004)
TRETETAM | Highway House of Prayer | split CS w/ Color Rabbit | Ikuisuus 2010
PROMINENT DISTURBANCE | Creatures of the Night pts. 1 & 2 | self-titled | Down & Out 1984
NEITHER/NEITHER WORLD | Night of Hell | Sociopathic Pleasures | Majestic Chaos 1992
COLLECTION OF THE LATE HOWELL BEND | Haha | Beasts for While 11" | Ownness *new
DEATH BY DOLL | Green Fields | Ratio Atque Usus CDR | no label 2004
DANGEROUS BOYS CLUB | Scary Mercenary | VRIL | Fast Weapons *new
BILTING/KARKOWSKI | Trad Wam | Bad Bye Engine | Radium 226.05 1988
SKULLFLOWER | Birthdeath | Birthdeath 12" EP | Broken Flag 1988
SKULLFLOWER | Woodland Death March | Ruins | Shock 1990
ZENI GEVA | Sweetheart | Honowoh 7" | Baby Huey 1991

One of my longtime favorite artists, songwriters, and guitarists and his wife need help. Dan Melchior has been a friend of the show for a while, which is quite an honor for me because I've hung on every riff and lyric he's played since the dawn of Das Menace and always wanted to know more during the Broke Revue days. His wife Letha has been battling cancer since fall, and that's put their lives on hold and put their finances in peril. Scott of SS Records created a Blogspot account--http://melchiorfund.blogspot.com/--with a link to donate to Dan and Letha via Paypal and wrote these words about the situation...

As you probably know, the life of a musician playing independent music is not a lucrative one. So when one hits a snag in life that taps the resources and makes working an outside job impossible, times get really hard. This is where Dan and Letha Melchior find themselves right now. You know Dan as one of the best underground rock & roll songwriters around. He's released records on labels such as In the Red, Hangman, S.S., Siltbreeze, Daggerman and others, and played with his bands the Broke Review and Das Menace, as well as Billy Childish and Holly Golightly. Letha is a member of Tretetam and Das Menace, a former member of Ruby Falls, and contributes to a lot of Dan's record jacket art/design, not to mention Dan's partner.

A few months ago Letha was diagnosed with cancer and since then she's been in a pretty hard fight, requiring some operations and much treatment. She's been unable to work. Dan's role as her caretaker has taken him out of the work force. Letha has basic medical insurance but that really doesn't mean a whole lot in the USA. Debt is piling up. And the state that they live in, North Carolina, doesn't offer much in the way of aid. Dan and Letha need our help.

Independent of Dan and Letha, we are asking people to help them out. The Melchior name has given us a whole lot of great music; now it is time to give a little back. We know times are hard for a lot of people, so we are asking that you give what you can afford. Please know that the money donated to Dan and Letha goes directly to them via their paypal account.

One of the things that's struck over the past few years is how Dan has printed his name on inner sleeves and back covers of records as Dan Rodman Melchior...as if he's taken his wife's last name much as she has taken his. It's hardly a concern to men that women must go through all this trouble to take our last names in marriage. We mostly just go on like life's hardly changed. Very few cultures have done it differently. Some indigenous tribes of the Americas did. Jack White did it...or did he? He's really mucked that one up. No telling what his motive was, but considering Dan's case, I think it speaks pretty profoundly about how much he loves Letha and honors her.

Please, if you're a fan of Dan, go to http://melchiorfund.blogspot.com/ and send what you can afford.

Or, buy his records, tapes, and t-shirts directly from Dan here...
http://danmelchior.net/Records.html
Or, his paintings...
http://danmelchior.net/artwork.html

I still find myself having to explain to people born after 1985 why Dan Melchior is awesome. But then again, these are people who still enjoy eating at Taco Bell, and I also hafta explain to them why taquerias and supermercado lunch counters are so great. Consider that MLK quote in light of this travesty.

The latest and greatest SS Records wares include this astounding retrospective release by England's Sperm Wails, first heard by many of us when people started sharing this awesome YouTube video...

Pre-dating the American neo-no-wave and noise-rock zeitgeists by a decade to a decade-and-a-half, this came as quite a shock. And it sounds even fresher full-blast on vinyl grooves with room to breathe. Surely, it woulda been sad if this song remained unattainable on enduring vinyl. It was only ever available on a rare flexi back in the day.

The new Duchess of Saigon is an essential Sacto history lesson...the best of three Woodhouse recording sessions before a debut LP project was aborted. Fans of Reading Rainbow, I like 'em alright, too, but...this blows that outta the water! Fans of the Velvets, Beat Happening, and Half Japanese simply MUST! And Soriano bowls a turkey with a new Los Llamarada 7". Dark, deranged, brilliant!

This week's late-80s content was inspired by SS's choice to issue that Sperm Wails. He always says this a wrongly maligned time for raw, real rock 'n' roll. I was guilty of writing off that half-decade as the era that marred a would-be-great Steel Pole Bathtub LP with prevailing studio production values. But, indeed, I was overlooking a lotta great stuff. The Aussies and Scandinavians were especially fruitful during this time, it seems. More of this to come in the next AFS episodes.

AFS v. 296 ~ In Your Internet Speakers

2011-01-11T00:38:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 295 ~ Universal Order of 2011

2011-01-04T01:21:00.000-08:00

Buk Buk Bigups - Endless Itch (Official Video) from Kenneth Vaughn on Vimeo.

Every year, during the first week of January, I hear an LP for the first time and regret not hearing it soon enough to include it in my best-of-YYYY list. For 2010, that record is Mercy by Deaf Wish.

But now that it's 2011, we are finally gonna see what Sexy Prison foresaged almost four years ago when their tour theme was 2011 in 2007. What can we glean from their opus from their 2nd LP, "Universal Order of 2011"? Is it a hopeful promise or a warning? I think it depends on whether you know how to party, and what is your tolerance level for unusual levels of radness. A great first test is coming to Davis and Sacto on Saturday, January 8 when an epic double-dip happens. First, at the DAM Haus (503 E Street in Davis) it's Gestapo Khazi, Warm Streams, and the debut of the new lineup of G. Green now featuring lead guitar by Rod Meyer, formerly of The Hospitals and Eat Skull. Food will be provided by Warm Streams vokillist and traveling gourmet chef Joshua Ploeg. This show runs from 7pm to 10pm. Pick up the first half of a raffle ticket when you donate a whole integer amount of U.S. dollars to the DAM Haus donation jar. Then take it to The Hub in Sacramento (1819 23rd Street) where NYC's The Babies (side-project of Cassie Ramone of Vivian Girls and members of Woods (and it's better live than either main vehicle)), The Mantles, and White Fence will play at 11pm sharp on shared equipment. Pick up the 2nd half of your raffle ticket. If you attend both shows, you are entered into a raffle to win free admission to every KDVS Presents @ The Hub show through summer 2011 (a programme including Ty Segall, NoBunny, Quintron, and too many other rad bands to list).

Advance tickets for that Hub show are available at a discount here (see Paypal buttons)...
http://undietacos.org/undietacos/board/index.php?action=view&id=14016

I know you're excited for Cheveu's 1000 LP to drop, so here's one more taste...with some tasty string music!

...and that's not the only song on 1000 to feature real strings! Whereas the first LP copped a riff from Tuxedomoon--"Hello, Friends" coulda been based on "No Tears"--1000's resemblance to Winston Tong & co. is in these brilliant strings. And the drum machine from Cabaret Voltaire's "Walls of Jericho" hasn't sounded better in almost 30 years. Yet, for all the touches of legendary bands (and raps swiped from Vanilla Ice on the "Ice Ice Baby" re-write), 1000 is unmistakably Cheveu and takes the band to a whole new level of greatness. Look for Cheveu in the U.S.A. in late spring/early summer.

2011's rollin' already, see!

AFS v. 294 ~ 2010 Scene Rewind

2010-12-28T01:13:00.000-08:00

This week in AFS...

* My favorite LPs of 2010
* My favorite EPs of 2010
* See full best-of-2011 lists below playlist
* No bullshitting
* No filler

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.
or STREAM IT HERE by next Monday night.

EDDY CURRENT SUPPRESSION RING | Tuning Out | Rush To Relax | Goner
GUINEA WORMS | Drunk In Your Uggs | Sorcererers of Madness (4rd Year in a Row!) | Columbus Discount
A FRAMES | Ice Cave | 3 3 3 | SS Records
RANK/XEROX | Masking/Confessions | self-titled 7" | Mongo Bongo
GRAND TRINE | Radio Frequency Identification | split 7" w/ Black Feelings | Blue Skies Turn Black
THE DEFEKTORS | Never Really Tried | The Bottom of the City | Grotesque Modern/Nominal
PUFFY AREOLAS | Fuck Your Pretzel | In the Army 1981 | Siltbreeze
DRUNKDRIVER | Bad Year | self-titled | WTD
THE LAMPS | I've Been on a Lot of Camels | Niels Bohr... 7" | Dull Knife
ROT SHIT | Dead I | You're Welcome 7" | Columbus Discount
BIG BLACK CLOUD | Allergic to Love | Dark Age | Stank House
VEX RUFFIN & THE LO-FI JERKHEADS | New Wipeout | self-titled 7" | Black Gladiator/Slovenly
HOME BLITZ | Nighttime Feel | Out of Phase | Richie
TYVEK | Nothing Fits | Nothing Fits | In the Red
DEAD WIFE | Txt Me | D.W.S.Y.H.F. 7" | Psychic Handshake
MUJERES | No Quiero Verte Mas | 3 Canciones de Muerte y Sudor 7" | Discos Humeantes
THE CHINESE RESTAURANTS | Summer Romance | Summer Romance 7" | SS Records
SAMUEL LOCKE WARD + DARREN BROWN | Freeze | From the Privilege of the Grave | Grotto
DRUID PERFUME | Other Worlds | Other Worlds 7" | M'Lady's/Italy
SIGHTINGS | Sky Above Mud Below | City of Straw | Brah
THE INTELLIGENCE | Tuned to Puke | Males | In The Red
MEERCAZ | Moving Up at the Speed of Sound | Space Hate 12" EP | Tic Tac Totally
WASTE RIG | Follow Yr Dreams | Ritual Cleansing: Phase 2010 CS | Pollen Season
NOTHING PEOPLE | Is This What You Want? | Soft Crash | SS Records
SAN FRANCISCO WATER COOLER | Reverie | II | Sun Sneeze
EAT SKULL | What's So Magnetic? | Crawl for Freedom CS | Palto Flats
G. GREEN | I Will Not Withdraw This Statement | I Will Not Withdraw This Statement 7" | Malt Duck
THE WHINES | Straybird | Hell to Play | Meds
EL JESUS DE MAGICO | Dave Song | Ragtime Hors CS | Goaty Tapes
MILK MUSIC | No Life | Beyond Living | self-released

20 best LPs

Tyvek Nothing Fits
Sightings City of Straw
Drunkdriver self-titled
The Intelligence Males
The Whines Hell to Play
Home Blitz Out of Phase
Big Black Cloud Dark Age
Nothing People Soft Crash
N.213/Reflektionss split LP
So Cow Meaningless Friendly
Banque Allemande Eins, Zwei
San Francisco Water Cooler II
Sun City Girls Funeral Mariachi
Puffy Areolas In the Army 1981
The Defektors The Bottom of the City
Timmy's Organism Rise of the Green Gorilla
Eddy Current Suppression Ring Rush to Relax
Dan Melchior und das Menace Visionary Pangs
Guinea Worms Sorcererers of Madness (4rd Year in a Row)
Samuel Locke Ward + Darren Brown From the Privilege of the Grave

20 Best shorter-than-LPs

Pluton self-titled 12"
Meercaz Space Hate 12"
Rank/Xerox self-titled 7"
Rot Shit You're Welcome 7"
The Lamps Neils Bohr... 7"
Dead Wife D.W.S.Y.H.F. 7"
Whatever Brains Nesting 7"
Home Blitz Perpetual Night 7"
Wet Illustrated Born Stoked 7"
Druid Perfume Other Worlds 7"
Total Control Paranoid Video 7"
Sonskull Birth Scene/Rewind EP 12"
Red Mass Split Brain Experiment 10"
Grand Trine/Black Feelings split 7"
Sonny & the Sunsets The Hypnotist 7"
Vomit Squad Amon Ra Bless America 12"
Mujeres 3 Canciones de Muerte y Sudor 7"
G. Green I Will Not Withdraw This Statement 7"
Vex Ruffin & the Lo-Fi Jerkheads self-titled 7"
The Chinese Restaurants Summer Romance 7"

10 Best reissues/retrospectives

X Aspirations
A Frames 333
Circle X untitled 12" EP
The Moles Untune the Sky
v/a FM-BX Society Tape vol 1
Ozzie Parabolic Rock: 1975-1982
Ron House Blind Boy in the Backseat
Mike Rep & the Quotas Stupor Hiatus
Sleetmute Nightmute Night of the Long Knives
Nudge Squidfish Twenty Thousand Leagues Under Nashville

12 cassettes that should be on vinyl

The Baths self-titled
Cruddy Negative World
Grave Babies Deathface
Banana Head In the Tubs
CCR Headcleaner tour CS
Eat Skull Crawl for Freedom
El Jesus de Magico Ragtime Hors
Russian Tsarlag Unleash the Chain
J Guy Laughlin Solo Percussion vol. 1
Patriotic Window Klings Guitargument
Waste Rig Ritual Cleansing: Phase 2010
Warm Climate Camouflage on the River Wretched

25 best live performances I saw in 2010

Tyvek @ The Hub, Sacramento
H.P.P. @ The Hub, Sacramento
Eat Skull @ The Hub, Sacramento
Thee Oh Sees @ DAM Haus, Davis
Mayyors @ SMMR BMMR, Portland
Ty Segall @ Gonerfest 7, Memphis
Uzi Rash @ Harm Church, Oakland
Pussygutt @ The Hub, Sacramento
Bill Orcutt @ The Hub, Sacramento
White Boss @ The Hub, Sacramento
Bad Sports @ Harm Church, Oakland
Puffy Areolas @ The Hub, Sacramento
The UV Race @ Gonerfest 7, Memphis
Wrong Words @ The Hub, Sacramento
Big Black Cloud @ ORMF IX, Woodland
The Oblivians @ Gonerfest 7, Memphis
G. Green @ Meth House, Twin Falls, ID
English Singles @ The Hub, Sacramento
Guinea Worms @ Gonerfest 7, Memphis
Pigeon Religion @ The Hub, Sacramento
White Lung @ Axewave Manor, Sacramento
Shannon & the Clams @ Harm Church, Oakland
Unnatural Helpers @ Ghosttown Galleries, Oakland
Wounded Lion @ 27th & V Street basement in Sacramento
Malaikat dan Singa feat. Arrington De Dionyso @ The Hub, Sacramento

AFS v. 293 ~ Red Moon Night!

2010-12-21T01:41:00.000-08:00

R for off my rocker
E for eerie
D for dearly departed (Don Van Vliet)
M for Mona
O oh, good!
O oh, good!
N for the night...Red Moon Night!
(You did see it up in the sky tonight, right?)

This week in AFS...

* simultaneous sounds
* an xmas surprise from The Pheromoans
* delving deeper into the mind of Jaz Coleman
* would you believe...someone requested "In the Air Tonight" by Genesis
* your next essential Sacto history lesson by Prof. SS, Duchess of Saigon

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.

(Email me with any downloading problem questions...)
(no streaming archive link this time...only download)
(HTML links later if I can get to 'em...I'm still much too busy...sorry!)

TRACTOR SEX FATALITY | Mouth on the Wall | Bloodeagle | Big Neck *new
PHANTOM 309 | Buffy's Mitt | split LP w/ The Sun Also Rises | Tupelo 1990?
ZULUS | Variations | debut 7" | Wizard Mountain *new
HANK IV | The Noise of Carpet [Stereolab] | III | Siltbreeze *new
READING RAINBOW | Prism Eyes | Prism Eyes | HoZac *new
READING RAINBOW | Tough Love | Hookup Klub 7" | HoZac 2010
DUCHESS OF SAIGON | B.D. Wong | Hootenanny 7" | Plastic Idol 2004
DUCHESS OF SAIGON | Holiday Rumble | Easter Queen 7" | SS Records 2002
G. GREEN | The Garden | I Will Not Withdraw This Statement 7" | Malt Duck 2010
CONSIGNMENT | Do You Know? | Gone 7" | Sweet Rot *new
BRAZILIAN MONEY | Bones | Doing What I Want 7" | Totally Disconnected 2010
THE PHEROMOANS | Shark Fucks [Tronics] | lathe 7" | Scotch Tapes *forthcoming
HYGIENE | 29 Bus | Recruitment 7" | Going Underground *new
TYVEK | Outer Limits | Nothing Fits | In The Red *new (by request!)
VEX RUFFIN & THE LO-FI JERKHEADS | It's Hard to Be a Motor | 1st 7" | Black Gladiator/Slovenly 2010
TORTURED TONGUES | Let Me Down | Let Me Down 7" | HoZac *new
THE STALINS OF SOUND | Baton of Discipline | self-titled 7" | Volar *new
DANGEROUS BOYS CLUB | Ferrari | VRIL | Fast Weapons *new
SILENTIST | Seaside | Chariot Swing EP | Celestial Gang 2005
FALL OF BECAUSE | Grind | v/a: Mortar | Permis De Construire Deutschland 1992
KILLING JOKE** | side one | The Courtald Talks | Invisible 1989
SEVERED HEADS | Guests | City Slab Horror | Ink 1985
SHADOW RING | Knock Between Doors | Lighthouse | Swill Radio 1999
ANTI-GROUP | Chozzar Over Abyss/Pre-Eval | Digitaria | Sweatbox 1986
P.F.S. | Illustrative Problems | Illustrative Problems | Cuneiform 1987
ART BEARS | Rats & Monkeys | Winter Songs | Ralph 1979
THE WITCH TRIALS | Trapped in the Playground | self-titled 12" EP | Subterranean 1981
SKINNY PUPPY | The Choke [Re-Grip] | Dig It 12" EP | Nettwerk 1986
NOISE UNIT | Alle Gegen Alles | Strategy of Violence | Dossier 1992
FRONTLINE ASSEMBLY | Iceolate | Caustic Grip | Wax Trax 1990

** denotes not really Killing Joke, but spoken-word by Jaz Coleman--increasingly troubled by world politics at the time--w/ minimal accompaniment by KJ guitarist Geordie. The 2xLP of The Courtald Talks is filed and labeled as a Killing Joke album, which is certainly fitting enough since the theme of Coleman's 66-minute lecture to the Courtald Institute was to explain the inspiration for Killing Joke's most painful (if not to listen to, at least it was the most painfully-birthed) album Outside the Gate, the least band-oriented effort among their studio releases. Thanks to Acapulco Rodriguez for daring me to play this.

Side one of The Courtald Talks was spun simultaneously over an excerpt of the Fall of Because (a project of Justin Broadrick of Godflesh) and a melange of Severed Heads, Shadow Ring, and Anti-Group. It's been a long time since I last time I took advantage of this time-honored method of stretching a freeform or college-radio playlist with the layering of voice and experimental background musics....a quite efficient way to burn many minutes when you don't have a lotta preparation time. If this kinda half-assery appalls you, I'm sorry. But I've been much too busy at work and with my own C.F.U.D.L. (There...how about a Japanese HC enthusiast's joke?). Tune in next week for as much of my best-of-2010 lists that I can pack into two weeks.

And yes...I do suppose I've been indulging in more goth-tangential and industrial-ish areas of music the last couple weeks. But hey...It's winter solstice and there's a crazy red moon out tonight, and this is really rather appropos when you consider that fact, don'tcha think?

By the way, the rising surge of gothy-ness has a new front-runner in the Dangerous Boys Club. If you need your nü-goth to be direct and have a perfect-pop center, stick with Grave Babies who totally rule that field. But if you are adventurous enough to enjoy delightfully overwrought theatricality--cunningly rendered in dichotomous splendor with odd moments of android detachment (Aaron Montaigne is as masterful at this as anyone this side of Blixa Bargeld, I reckon)--and wondrous, seductive spacey synth, check out this Portland supergroup (ex-Get Hustle/Antioch Arrow/Heroin(/not to mention the seriously underrated Silentist)) who are featured in the first eight minutes of this cable-access show...

Experimental 1/2 Hour - Episode VI: Dangerous Boys Club, White Rainbow, NO AGE from Experimental 1/2 Hour on Vimeo.

Their debut LP--VRIL--is available here...
http://www.fastweapons.com/
...and while you're there, you should pick up that Sleetmute Nightmute LP, too, 'cos there never was a better neo-no-wave band than them.

AFS v. 292 ~ Pain and Joy and Sorrows Mingle

2010-12-14T00:31:00.000-08:00

--the lyrical mastery of my brother in unibrowdom Jaz Coleman

This week on AFS...

* mastery of mispronunciation
* the supergroups of Saturday @ Hub
* your essential Sacto history lesson
* caveat emptor: 2nd hour incl ~45 minutes of drum machines

Download this program within two months at this link...
CLICK HERE for 192kbps rate.
or
CLICK HERE for 320kbps rate.

(Email me with any downloading problem questions...)
(no streaming archive link this time...only download)
(HTML links later if I can get to 'em...I'm still much too busy...sorry!)

SHARP ENDS | Hybernation | self-titled | Kill Shaman *new
MYELIN SHEATHS | Wake Ups | Get on Your Nerves | Southpaw *new
THE TOPPLERS | Flack Town | v/a: FM-BX Society Tape vol 1 | SS Records *new (orig 1981)
WIRE | The Commercial/Straight Line | Pink Flag | Harvest 1977
BOHEMIA | Unconventional Boy | Limited Edition 10" | VU Records 1980
THE NORMALS | Almost Ready | Almost Ready 7" | Laust Laugh *new (orig 1978)
FM KNIVES | Estrogen | Estrogen 7" | SmartGuy 2002
PRETTY GIRLS | The Kids Are All Fucked | The Kids Are All Fucked 7" | Moo-La-La 1999
NAR | Holiday Routine | Holiday Routine 7" | Moo-La-La 1994
WRONG WORDS | Tickin' | What Went Wrong? 7" | Trouble in Mind *new
TRASHWOMEN | Dragula/Surf Creature | Lust 7" | Hillsdale 1992
MIDNITE SNAXXX | Like Lightning | Like Lightning 7" | Raw Deluxe *new
BOBBYTEENS | Gonna Get Down | Fast Livin & Rock n Roll | Lipstick 1998
ENGLISH SINGLES | Winter | English Cassingles | Palace of the Golden Cassingle 2009
LITERATURE | It's Cruel | Cincinnati 7" | Square of Opposition/Voice Academy *new
VOMIT SQUAD | Burning With Beelzebub | Amon Ra Bless America | Psychic Handshake *new
MEERCAZ | Space Hate | Space Hate 12" | Tic Tac Totally *new
HAWKWIND | Silver Machine | Silver Machine 7" | United Artists 1972
ARTHUR BROWN'S KINGDOM COME | Time Captives | Journey | Passport 1973
KILLING JOKE | Adorations (Supernatural Mix) | Brighter Than a Thousand Suns | Let Them Eat Vinyl 2008 (orig 1986)
KIM KI O | Bu Şarkiyi Çok Seversin Sen | Dans | Enfant Terrible *new
STEPHEN MALLINDER | Temperature Drop | Pow-Wow Plus | Doublevision 1985
SCORN | Out of | Logghi Barogghi | Scorn/Earache 1996
NITZER EBB | T.W.A. | Belief | Geffen 1989
M AX NOI MACH | Creeper | In the Shadows | White Denim *new
DIVE | Bloodmoney | v/a: There Is No Time 4xCD | RAS DVA 1995
ICH BIN | Danger | Obeis | Poutré Apparent 2006
ANIAETLEPROGRAMMEUR | OHHH | Ich Bin Mude 7" | Plastic Spoons 2010
BIG BLACK | Kerosene | Atomizer | Homestead 1986 *request
AMOR FATI | Economics 101 | Rock n' Roll 7" | Flesh/Yuck 1986
UNSANE | Jungle Music | Jungle Music 7" | PCP Entertainment 1992
DEAD MEAT | Electric Head | The King 7" | Flingco Sound System *new
MOVIE STAR JUNKIES | Loneliness Like Clouds Above | In a Night Like This 10" | Kill Shaman/Ghost *new

Saturday, December 18
Freeform KDVS 90.3 FM Presents
@ The Hub
1819 23rd Street
Sacramento CA 95816

The overdue (yet triumphant) return of English Singles!
plus....
2010's three best new finger-snap'n, foot-tap'n partyhardy bands of the SF Bay Area!
...
Midnite Snaxxx
Wrong Words
Angora Debs

all ages
8:30 doors
9:00 showtime
$5 for Hub members
+$1 one-time fee if it's your first Hub show
(BYO-crypto-B...we don't wanna see the cans and bottles they were born in...(pour it into something else (or just enjoy my proprietary "faux loko" blend)))

These bands speak to fans of rock 'n' roll, killer hooks, chirping melodies, and brimming energy. You can believe me now and mark your calendar, or if you're waiting to be impressed, check out these ex-members-of affiliations...

Angora Debs is fronted by Jason Patrone, singer of THEE BEST band in Sacramento in the early 2000s...the FM Knives. Also played in Los Huevos and Pretty Girls here in Sacto, and more recently Photobooth. Angora Debs is a Laverne & Shirley reference!

Midnite Snaxxx features Tina "Boom Boom" Lucchesi, chiefly of The Trashwomen and Bobbyteens fame, but was also in a ton of other rad bands. Most recently, she was in Top Ten and C'mon Everybody (you might remember them from their pulse-pounding, fun-packed set at the Delta of Venus in Davis during KDVS "Treehouse" host DJ Emily's birthday party); and she's the proprietor of Down at Lulu's, an East Bay epicenter of fabulous hairstyles, clothes, and records (many fans of Hunx know something about this). The Snaxxx also feature Dulcinea, who totally slayed in The Loudmouths back in the 90s, of whom I was quite the fanboy. Their merger with a reformed The Lewd was The Lewdmouths, and their show at Club Cocodrie in SF was one of the very best blasts from the original punk heyday I've ever seen.

English Singles descend from Sacto rulers of years past, too: Bananas, Nar, FM Knives, Yahmos, Pretty Girls.

I don't know if the Wrong Words dudes 'n lady were in other bands before, but when you hear them, the only thing that will matter will be the Wrong Words. Their 7" on Trouble in Mind is a cracker, and charming, too. Some people around here have whispered to me that the Bare Wires sound really good, but seem kinda like a big put-on. Okay, trashtalkers...maybe you's just bummin' 'cos you don't like to hitch up to bandwagons when too many others are already on. Well, go ahead and get in the front of the bus for Wrong Words 'cos you're gonna love this band. I defy you to resist this, huh...

Wrong Words "What Went Wrong" music video from Chris Anderson on Vimeo.

Do you still look at band pages at MySpace???
http://myspace.com/englishsingles
http://myspace.com/midnitesnaxxx
http://myspace.com/wrongwordsmakeyoulisten

Won't four bands take too long? NO! Lotsa gear-sharing. Quick sets leave you wanting more. This class on "how to party" will be dismissed plenty early enough for you to go pick fights at Flame Club.

First 25 guests get a free headstart on the party....Can you sip what DJ Rick is ladling???

This is the last KDVS Presents joint at The Hub of 2010, so make it worth it!

AFS v. 291 ~ Smash Futuro

2010-12-07T01:18:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 290 ~ Now We Are Having Fun!

2010-11-30T17:34:00.000-08:00

AFS v. 289 ~ the New Pipeline

2010-11-23T02:03:00.000-08:00

AFS v 288 ~ Roundball Rock 'n Roll

2010-11-16T02:13:00.000-08:00