LEAPFROG DAZE.

 
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Episode 111. mp3. cue. Released May 4, 2009.

Thought we missed it, but Spring is in the air. Chartreuse is gradually taking over the palette outside my window. So today the sounds are light (as in lumens) and wispy and/or buoyant. Some great glittering oldies, a few delicate shimmery numbers in the vein of folk, and then some positive, gleeful hip hop (not two words normally associated with the genre, huh). So do please grab a hammock, a pencil and a book of blank pages, and an earful of blooming… Radio Slipstream style.

The Free Design / Kites Are Fun / Kites Are Fun (1967)
The Kinks / The Village Green Preservation Society / The Village Green Preservation Society (1968)
Disco Inferno / The Last Dance / The Last Dance (1993)

Erik Enocksson / The Joy of D.H. Lawrence / Farväl Falkenberg (2006)
1900 / Den Minsta Av Segrar (1900 (2008)
Pram / Mother Of Pearl / The Museum of Imaginary Animals (2000)

Andrew Bird / Not A Robot, But A Ghost / Noble Beast (2009)
Patrick Watson / Big Bird In A Small Cage / Wooden Arms (2009)
Emiliana Torrini / Birds / Me And Armini (2008)

CunninLynguists / Thugged Out Since Cubscouts (feat. Jugga the Bully & Mr Raw) / Will Rap for Food (2001)
Brother Ali / The Believers (feat. Slug) / The Truth Is Here (2009)
P.O.S. / Goodbye / Never Better (2009)
Mr. Lif / The Sun / I Heard It Today (2009)

Röyksopp / True To Life (feat. Anneli Drecker) / Junior (2009)

THE OAK LEAF HUSTLE.

 
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Episode 110. mp3. cue. Released March 29, 2009.

On today’s show, we mainly look at another side of folk music; a side that is defined as such only for having minimal distortion on its guitars. That, of course, is indie-folk. Since genres mean little, there are a variety of tinges here; from country, to psych, to avant and… beyond?

Bat For Lashes / Glass / Two Suns (2009)
Yeasayer / Tightrope / Dark Was The Night (2009)

Silver Jews / Smith & Jones Forever / American Water (1998)
Walkabouts / Forever Gone / Nighttown (1997)
Willard Grant Conspiracy / The Trials Of Harrison Hayes / Regard The End (2003)
Bonnie “Prince” Billy / Beware Your Only Friend / Beware (2009)

Midlake / Young Bride / The Trials of Van Occupanther (2006)
Akron/Family / River / Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free (2009)
Mirah / Country Of The Future / (A)Spera (2008)
Plants and Animals / Good Friend / Parc Avenue (2008)

Bon Iver / Blood Bank / Blood Bank (2009)
Sam Phillips / Don’t Do Anything / Don’t Do Anything (2008)
Mount Eerie / I Hold Nothing / No Flashlight (2005)
Califone / Pink & Sour / Roots & Crowns (2006)

Here We Go Magic / Fangela / Here We Go Magic (2009)

My Favourite Albums of 2008

It has really gotten so far into the next year that it’s about time I either forgot about bothering to mention my favourite albums of last year, or just got it out of the way. I really enjoyed the countdown episode I did last year, but honestly, making it was kind of a pain in the ass because of the work involved. Especially because in lists like this things are always changing all over the place. I know some commentary on these albums would be nice, but I just don’t have the time to bother getting into that and I’d just second guess my selections again, and I want to be done living in last year. If you are shocked, apalled or curious please leave a comment and I’ll explain myself. So here, unadorned, are my 20 favourite albums of 2008:

20. Gang Gang Dance – Saint Dymphna
19. Plants and Animals – Park Avenue
18. Fucked Up – The Chemistry of Common Life
17. Quiet Village – Silent Movie
16. Bonnie Prince Billy – Lie Down in the Light
15. Lykke Li – Youth Novels
14. The Walkmen – You & Me
13. Erykah Badu - New Amerykah Part One (4th World War)
12. Shearwater – Rook
11. DJ/Rupture - Uproot
10. The Tallest Man on Earth – Shallow Graves
9. Lindstrom – Where You Go I Go Too
8. The Bug – London Zoo
7. The Rural Alberta Advantage - Hometowns
6. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds – Dig Lazarus Dig
5. Fleet Foxes
4. Portishead - Third
3. Esau Mwamwaya and Radioclit are the Very Best Mixtape
2. Cut Copy – In Ghost Colours
1. TV on the Radio – Dear Science

facebook page

I’ve created a facebook page to keep people updated on what’s happening with the show. If you like the show and haven’t already joined, please do!

FOLK IS NOT A DIRTY WORD.

 
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Episode 109. mp3. cue. Released March 6, 2009.

So maybe ‘world’ music would be more descriptive, but what comparably lame puns could be made with that? … I rest my case. And anyway, why would the traditional music of British and Americans be called folk and that of Nicaraguans be called worldbeat? That’s not exactly fair. That may all be beside the point, though, because while all the music this episode is infused with the musical traditions of cultures all around the world, it’s not necessarily the traditional sort of stuff. Some of it with the modern production and arrangement. Call it worldly folk. And give it a listen, because there are some real gems here.

A. R. Rahman / Mausam & Escape / Slumdog Millionaire OST (2008) / India
Les Negresses Vertes / Face à la mer (Massive Attack Remix) / 10 Remixes (1993) / France

Lô Borges / Não Se Apague Esta Noite / Lô Borges (1972) / Brazil
Jorge Ben / O Plebeu / África Brasil (1976) / Brazil
Femi Kuti / Tension Grip Africa / Day by Day (2008) / Nigeria
Umalali / Anaha Ya (Here I Am) / The Garifuna Womens Project (2008) / Belize

Tinariwen / Matadjem yinmixan / Aman Iman: Water Is Life (2006) / Mali
Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara / Yo Lay Lay / Soul Science (2007) / The Gambia
The Very Best (Esau Mwamwaya & Radioclit) / Get It Up (feat. M.I.A.) / ‘The Very Best’ Mixtape (2008) / Malawi

Taraf de Haidouks / Carolina / Band of Gypsies (2001) / Romania
Astor Piazzolla / Michelangelo / Tango: Zero Hour (1986) / Argentina
Crucible / Three Maidens / Love & Money (2008) / UK

Lúnasa / The Miller of Drohan / Otherworld (1999) / Ireland
Yat-Kha / Oy Adym (My Gray Horse) / Aldyn Dashka (2000) / Tuva (Russia)

Oumou Sangare / Saa Magni (Death Is Terrible) / Oumou (2004) / Mali
Mari Boine / Gula Gula / Gula Gula (1989) / Sámi (Norway)

a closet for the citrus drums (mix cd edit)

 
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The first 2 episodes of the year condensed to fit on one mix cd; presented in mp3 with a cue file to help you burn it. Yay! And apologies to the songs that didn’t make the cut. I may make this a tradition if I can actually get around to making at least 2 new episodes…

100 songs from 2008!

I started this tradition last year, though someone else started it first a couple years ago and continues it. It’s a neat way to sum up a year of music: 100 great songs by 100 different artists. If you’re a regular listener you’ve probably already heard almost all of them but this is a chance to own their souls as it is in torrent form. So go grab it grab it.

Read More »

THE CITRUS ADVANTAGE.

 
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Episode 108. mp3. cue. Released January 17, 2009.

Continuing right where we left off, 80s tinged synthpop gives way to strangely catchy psychedelic folkpop, and it all caps off with an opulent synthesizer soundtrack finish.

Cut Copy / Lights And Music / In Ghost Colours (2008)
The Source / You Got The Love (feat. Candi Staton) / You Got The Love (1996)

Luomo / Have You Ever (feat. Cassy) / Convivial (2008)
Thomas Brinkmann / It’s Just / When Horses Die (2008)
Knife / Heartbeats / Deep Cuts (2004)

Of Montreal / Rapture Rapes The Muses / Satanic Panic In The Attic (2004)
Shugo Tokumaru / Parachute / Exit (2008)
Fredrik / Alinas Place / Na Na Ni (2008)
Lykke Li / Breaking It Up / Youth Novels (2008)
Animal Collective / Bluish / Merriweather Post Pavillion (2009)

Vangelis / Blush Response / Blade Runner (1982)
Lindstrøm / Where You Go I Go Too (Part 2) (Edit by Prins Thomas) / Where You Go I Go Too (2008)

STICK IT OUT THE CLOSET FOR THE DRUMS.

 
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Episode 107. mp3. cue. Released January 01, 2009.

The first episode of 2009 and the first episode featuring brand new fractionized length! Content-wise wes is tying up some loose ends of 2008. And you know when the last episode is all dancing and electronics that you’re soon due for some REAL pounding drums and some scratchy guitars and bellowed vocals. So today it gets down pretty gritty at first but it does mellow out to the middle and eventually even betrays faint whiffs of synth-pop, chamber-pop and doo-wop.

Fuck Buttons / Sweet Love for Planet Earth / Street Horrrsing (2008)
Grails / Predestination Blues / Doomsdayer’s Holiday (2008)
Snowman / We Are The Plague / The Horse, The Rat And The Swan (2008)
Holy Fuck / Royal Gregory / LP (2007)

Fucked Up / Son the Father / The Chemistry of Common Life (2008)
Love Is All / New Beginnings / A Hundred Things Keep Me Up At Night (2008)
Thomas Function / Snake In The Grass / Thomas Function (2008)

The Gaslight Anthem / Great Expectations / The ‘59 Sound (2008)
The Rural Alberta Advantage / Don’t Haunt This Place / Hometowns (2008)

Okkervil River / Lost Coastlines / The Stand-Ins (2008)
The Week That Was / The Airport Line / The Week That Was (2008)
Department Of Eagles / No One Does It Like You / In Ear Park (2008)
Brian Eno & David Byrne / Strange Overtones / Everything That Happens Will Happen Today (2008)

a slight change of pace

As a gift for all of y’all my glorious listeners, this Christmas Eve I am officially announcing that I’m gonna cease with the 2 hour radio showpisodes, because i don’t think anyone really wants to spend that much time listening to the same thing. As of Jan 1st, or whenever the first new episode is released, it’s gonna be 1 hour episodes. The main benefit to this is that I’ll be able to release shows much more quickly (we all know that’s been an issue lately) and that you’ll be able to listen through them more easily (the average human attention span is down to what like 2 seconds these days is it?). The drawback (and probably I’m the only person who will notice or care) is that it’ll be a little harder to fit everything in and also to cover as much ground with as much epic flow.. but to counteract that I’ll probably try and have one show start up where the last left off.

Just, you know, so you know.

Questions? Comments? Snide remarks?