The Mo & Matts Show

I never met a Matt I didn't like, which is a good thing since today I had not one, but TWO Matts appearing as special guests on my show!

We had Matt Jennings, playing his Spanish guitar stylings (flamenco, but not)... Followed by Venice's - by way of Sydney, Australia - own rockin' troubador, Matt Ellis. Both groovy and delicious. Check 'em out.

And now, the playlist:

4.21.08

Piacere Sequence - Teo Usuelli
Frozen Signal - On
A New World - DeVotchka
Beware of Darkness - George Harrison
Shivers - Boys Next Door
Ego Tripping - Nikki Giovanni
If That's Your Boyfriend (He Wasn't Last Night) - Me'shell N'Degeocello
Since We Last Spoke - RJD2
The Rest of Us Sleep - Gram Rabbit
Electric Feel - MGMT
Been So Long - Vetiver
Wait For the Summer - Yeasayer
Remember When - Liam Finn
~Matt Jennings Interview
Nobody Cares - sarabeth Tucek
Subzero Fun - Autolux
~Matt Ellis Interview
Sugar - You Am I
Do It Right - The Three Tops & Phyllis Dillon
Warwick Avenue - Duffy
Go On Back To Him - Solomon Burke
But I Ain't No More - Vera Hamilton
Kisses For the Misses - Richard Swift
Distraction #74 - The Avett Brothers
Rebels in the Roses - Everest
Swamp Thing - Chameleons

That's it for this week... tune in again next week as I've dug up some fun new stuff. Yay!

Manic Monday

The Monday Morning Mo Show continues... and if you didn't tune in, you missed a chance to win a pair of 3 day passes to Coachella. Can you believe it? (Because the only way I would go this year is for free, for sure. Maybe for free, with VIP. Oh, how I hate festivals...)

Anyway, the playlist? Of course!

4.14.08

Groovin' With Mr. G - Richard "Groove" Holmes
I Dig You - Boss Hog
Summertime Cowboy - Husky Rescue
Seasons Change - Candie payne
Imogene Threw Me Over - Actionslacks
Mrs. Rosenthal - Brian Wright & The Waco Tragedies
Seven days - The Apollas
For the Price of a Cup of Tea - Belle & Sebastian
Am I Black Enough For Ya - Billy Paul
Stax - Belles Will Ring
Standing Bird - Love Psychedelico
Lights & Music - Cut Copy
Homosapien - Pete Shelley
Beat My Guest - Adam Ant
Alaska - The Voluptuous Horror of Karen Black
Welcome to Nowhere - The Mint Chicks
She's So Fine - The Easybeats
Check Me Out - Little Denice
Watch the Sun Rise - Big Star
Reloader - Everest
New England - Tanya Donnely
Do Me A Favour - Arctic Monkeys
Is It Nice - Barkmarket
Don't Sweat the Technique - Erik B. & Rakim
Deleted Scenes - Piano Magic
Some Place Else - Saint Etienne
Anti-Love Song - Betty Davis

The Monday Morning Mo Show... Mondays @ 10am PST, 1pm EST, 7pm in Berlin and 5am Sydney!

Goodbye, the Ides of March...

First April show on Little Radio, and that ain't no foolin'. And we're at 10am now! Oye, I do miss the sleeping in I used to do on Mondays, but I love that so many people are listening now. Thank you!!

Here's the playlist:

4.07.08

Near Dark - Burial
Happiness - Goldfrapp
Shadows - Honeycut
Testify - Johnny Taylor
Alphabet Aerobics - Blackalicious
The Gospel - Saturday Knights
Moonage Daydream - David Bowie
Tame - Pixies
Broken Heart Beats Sound Like Breakbeats - Los Campesinos
Hott Date - The Gossip
Git Back - Sugar Pie Desanto
Night of the Lotus Eaters - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
Undone - DeVotchka
Scenic - Beirut
Gypsy's Curse - Calexico
Let Her Dance - Bobby Fuller Four
A Song About Hope - Ulrich Schnauss
Hustler - Simian Mobile Disco
Touch Me - Spank Rock
Fat Mama - Tito Puente
Dollar Bill - Screaming Trees
This Thing Nowhere - Bettie Serveert
Company Dance - Sam Champion
Pretty Girl from Chile - The Avett Brothers
Here No More - The Breeders
Rockferry - Duffy
All the Umbrellas of London - Magnetic Fields
Spiral Stairs - Elf Power
Second Chance - Liam Finn
Jack U Off - Robyn
Black Cat - Ladytron

Tune in every Monday at 10am PST... I'm gonna have some cool stuff to give away from time to time. Yay!

Little Radio & SXSW

Hey y'all~

New time for the show - Mondays from 10am till Noon PST. If you caught it, here's what you heard! (A bit of a texas influence, I have to admit...)

Little Radio Playlist
3/31/08

The Wolves (Act I & II) - Bon Iver
Wolf Like Me - TV On The Radio
Sunrise - Yeasayer
Raising the Sparks - Akron/Family
Safari - The Breeders
That Kind of Man - The Heavy
Feelin' Alright - Lulu
Warwick Avenue - Duffy
Expressway To Your Heart - Amen Corner
Uptight - Stevie Wonder
Along The Way - DeVotchka
Georgia You Were Right - Sally Jaye
Music Moves My Feet - Liam Finn
You Burn Bright - Everest
Death Prayer In Heaven's Orchard - Howlin' Rain
Poor Girl - X
Because I Do - X
Bang On - The Breeders
Konichiwa Bitches - Robyn
We're In The City - Saint Etienne
Collapsing New People - Fad Gadget
Something In My Eye - Ed Harcourt
Hole In The Middle - Emily Jane White
Seems Like Home To Me - Two Gallants
Skinny Love - Bon Iver
Go Places - The New Pornographers
The Party's Over - The Baldwin Brothers feat. Mark Lanegan
Wait For Summer - Yeasayer

Remember, it's the Monday Morning Mo Show now... Yay!

They Come in 3's...

My grandfather, my mother, and now my grandmother..

Mi abuela - Manuela Tenorio. She passed away on Easter, although the news made its way to us faraway relatives a little later than that. She was the matriarch of the clan, a brood of energetic and rowdy (in the best way) Colombians whom she ruled with discipline and food, or so I've been told.

In 1990, when these relatives first relocated to the East Coast, I was sent to stay with them for about 6 weeks. Every day, my grandfather would come collect me and take me to their house, where my grandmother would be in her "office" making massive quantities of food. We'd have a huge lunch (usually about 6 courses) and then she'd pack the rest up into containers. My grandfather would then walk to every relative's home, put their food in the fridge, and drop me off knowing that the family had dinner for the night.

I knew that after my grandfather passed, my grandmother wouldn't be far behind. Even in the depth's of his advanced Alzheimer's, he would still pass by my grandmother in her wheelchair, and say, "Bonita, bonita..." They held hands till the last minute, so I'm glad they can be together again.

Dona Manuela Ines Tenorio - que dios los bediga a todos.

Adventures in Austin

SXSW 2008... in Pictures! With some notes, of course.

Two Gallants - aka Two Furious Boys who make Furious Noise.

Bon Iver - He overcame the chaos of the street with his melancholy tunes... asking the crowd to sing loudly the "what might have been lost" part of the track "Wolves (Act I & II)," drowning out the drunken revelry down below.
Yeasayer by night - an incredible (and far too short!) set of hippie indie goodness.
Los Campesinos - The sun and heat forced these pasty Brits to reveal some skin, and at one point, the singer claimed he was going to take everyone's cameras and erase the pics of themselves so the rest of the world couldn't see their pastiness. They missed mine, obviously.
Howlin' Rain - The grooviest, possibly hairiest set of all.
Liam Finn - Cute & Little & Hot & Sweaty & Melodically Noisy.
Devotchka - Nick Urrata calmed an impatient Billy Bragg audience and swoons ensued.

Everest - LA boys done good! Completely rockin' in the free world. With abandon.Sally Jaye - backed by Brian Wright & the Waco Tragedies, a beautiful country voice in our world.
Moving Picture Show - Matt showing his guitar chops.
X - More fun in the new World. (No picture of Billy Zoom as he freaks me out a bit these days.)
Duffy - absolutely charming in a Dusty-meets-Lulu way, and a fantastic performer too.
The Heavy - out of Noid, UK... The singer jumped off the stage and freaky danced with me, probably because I'd just taken this pic and the security guy got mad at me.
Slim Cessna's Auto Club - Zombie tent revival rock and roll.
The Mint Chicks - howling their way out of New Zealand.

Yeasayer by day - Yes, I saw them twice, because they were THAT AMAZING.The Night Marchers - John Reis (RFTC) gets skinny and rock wildly with his new band.
The Breeders - Bang on, ladies.
See you next year, Austin!

Beware the Ides of...

It's March - and Little Radio is remade/remodeled... That's a Roxy music joke for those not as dorky as myself.

So the show is back, and here's what we heard:

Little Radio Playlist
3/03/08

Save It For Later - The English Beat
You've Got to Hide Your Love Away - The Beatles
Shing-A-Ling - Tito Puente
Wouldn't It Be Nice - The Beach Boys
A Natural Man - Lou Rawls
Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Diana Ross
Pretty Girl From San Diego - The Avett Brothers
Out of My Head & Back In My Bed - Loretta Lynn
He'll Have to Go - Solomon Burke
I Don't Love Anyone - Belle & Sebastian
Stupid Now - Bob Mould
Konichiwa Bitches - Robyn
Mini Skirt - Esquivel
Collapsing New People - Fad Gadget
The Talk - Erland Oye
American Hookers - Gram Rabbit
Hole In The Middle - Emily Jane White
The World I Used to Be Afraid of - Blanche
We're Going to Be Friends - White Stripes
Deanna - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
Does This Mean You're Moving On? - The Airbourne Toxic Event
Winter '94 - Henry's Dress
She Shot A Hole in My Soul - Clifford Curry
Too Many People - Cold Blood
Look At Me - Terry Callier
Caledonia Rain - The High Society
Should've Been In Love - Wilco
The Party's Over - The Baldwin Bros. feat. Mark Lanegan
Words - Doves

Thanks for listening!

A Toast... to my mom.

On January 30th, 1944 (although the date – not the year – was often debated), Mary Luz Tenorio Nunez entered this world. We like to think that she probably made a lot of noise when she arrived, because being on stage was a place she liked to be.

She was born in Cartago, Colombia, where she lived for a few years with her many brothers and sisters, along with her Egyptian mother and Spanish father. Her love of rivers, mountains, and plants developed here, and also her love of animals, with a soft spot for chickens. (She had a favorite named “Timbre” - that’s “Doorbell” for you non-Spanish speakers – whom she talked about all her life. Timbre was even spared the fate of most chickens so the kids could keep her as a proper pet.)

The family later relocated to Cali, where Mary attended Catholic school and constantly challenged the priests and nuns, much to the dismay of her mother. She channeled that energy into dance, and became a professional ballet dancer for 5 years. She was a member of the “Ballet Grandcolombiano,” which performed folkloric dances from 5 different Latin-American countries. She did some singing too, performing solos in mass at the family church.

In 1966, Mary met a shy American named Henry. He was in Cali doing work with the Peace Corps, and she thought he was okay. He was really skinny and had a crooked smile. He was introduced to her by another volunteer who knew her sister. He used to follow Mary around a lot, so eventually she decided to go out with him. It turned out he was an extremely good guy, and she fell in love. They married in 1968, on a day considered bad luck, in a rainstorm, after her taxi was stranded in floodwaters and she arrived 2 hours late to the church. Apparently, the priest figured Mary’s wedding would be interesting…

And then she was whisked off to California.

Now Mary Herms (although back home she was Mary Luz Tenorio Nunez de Herms), had to forge a new life, learn a new language, and deal with new (and sometimes prejudicial) people in her new home of Encinitas, California. She did so with conviction, and never let anyone tell her she couldn’t succeed. Then she had to learn a new role entirely – mother. In July of 1969, Monica came along and forced Henry and Mary to be parents (but really, they wanted to do it anyway… well, maybe not the cooking part).

Sandra arrived in 1971, and Gooby in 1975. Mary was now a mother of 3, but that didn’t slow her down. In 1974, she was a founding member of the House of Colombia, an organization that brought an awareness of the people, culture and food of Colombia to the residents of San Diego. She was the choreographer for groups performing traditional South American dances at the House of Pacific Relations from 1975 until about 1981… when she became immersed in what we like to call her “Jazzercise Period.”

Mary became a fitness instructor, teaching for about 10 years and even opening her own exercise studio. She went to college to study physical fitness and worked in the tutoring center helping college students with their Spanish. She was encouraged to teach Spanish at the college level, so she finally got her degree in Spanish (with a minor in Italian for good measure) from SDSU. She studied Pablo Neruda, Manuel Puig, Isabel Allende, Jorge Luis Borges, Juan Carlos Onetti, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. So why not get her Masters degree as well? Mary then became an adjunct professor of Spanish at SDSU, Cal State San Marcos, Palomar, Mesa, and Mira Costa colleges.

She continued to travel as well. She was fortunate enough to attend the University of Florence in Italy for a summer, and while there, she had gelato for breakfast every day just because she could. Henry and Mary went camping, visited their kids in the Bay Area while exploring the California coast, and took trips to the east coast to visit Mary’s relocated family. They wandered Mexico City and saw the pyramids, and crawled over old lava foundations in Hawaii. They traveled all throughout Spain, visiting the birthplace of Mary’s father and the Catedral-Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar, a special place for her.

Spain was always a magnet for her, having first visited during the Barcelona Summer Olympics in 1992. She felt very at home there, and with her friends in the House of Spain. She was a member of the organization for about 11 years, serving on the board of directors and being a part of the construction of their new building. She participated in many events with them: the Cabrillo Festival (role playing Spanish sailors and yummy food!), December Nights (pounds of delicious paella!), and the Food Fair being highlights.

Mary was diagnosed with advanced multiple myeloma in January of 2007. She spent a lot of time in the hospital battling this cancer, which gave her at least another year to watch fish jump out of the water at San Elijo Lagoon, see more great movies, party with her friends and play with the newest members of our extended family. Henry, Monica, Sandra & Gooby spent a lot of time watching telenovelas with her, as well as the occasional Fellini film.

On the morning of Thursday, February 21st, 2008, Mary decided to finally relax and join her late father and brother. She passed away at home, surrounded by her loving husband, daughters and son, as well as the family cats. We will remember her by staying strong, staying silly, staying curious, and using our intellect for the good of others as well as ourselves, with a big beautiful smile – just as she did.




If suddenly you do not exist,

if suddenly you are not living,

I shall go on living.



I do not dare,

I do not dare to write it,

if you die.



I shall go on living.



Because where a man has no voice,

there, my voice.



Where blacks are beaten,

I can not be dead.

When my brothers go to jail

I shall go with them.



When victory,

not my victory,

but the great victory

arrives,

even though I am mute I must speak:

I shall see it come even though I am blind.



No, forgive me.

If you are not living,

if you, beloved, my love,

if you

have died,



all the leaves will fall on my breast,

it will rain upon my soul night and day,

the snow will burn my heart,

I shall walk with cold and fire and death and snow,

my feet will want to march toward where you sleep,

but

I shall go on living,

because you wanted me to be, above all things

untamable,

and, love, because you know that I am not just one man,

but all men.



~Pablo Neruda

Music in February...

Only one show in February, and here's what we heard!

Little Radio Playlist
February 11th, 2008

(Happy Birthday Gooby!)

Love Makes A Woman - Barbara Acklin
Itchycoo Park - Small Faces
Good Times - The Easybeats
I'm Not Invisible - Rocket from the Crypt
Ethyl My Love - The Muffs
I.O.U. - The Replacements
Dizzy Miss Lizzy - The Beatles
Feelin' Alright - Lulu
You're the Dog - Irma Thomas
I'm A Man - Spencer Davis Group
Sometimes I Feel So Lonely - Primal Scream
Catch the Wind - Donovan
The Oldest Story In The World - The Plimsouls
Make Me Yours - Phyllis Dillon
Swing & Dine - The Melodians
1970 - The Stooges
Black Tears - Miss Derringer
We Were Lovers (When the Party Began) - Sandra Barry
Will You Love Me Tomorrow - The Shirelles
In the City - The Who
Never Marry A Railroad Man - Shocking Blue
Where Did My Baby Go - Howard Tate
Liberation Conversation - Marlena Shaw
Bold Soul Sister - Ike & Tina Turner
Night Train - James Brown
Oh You Pretty Thing - David Bowie
One Hundred Punks - Generation X
Downer - Nirvana
Party Line - The Kinks
Stop! Stop! Stop! - Graham Gouldman
Carry Go Bring Come - Justin Hinds
Heartbeat - Gloria Jones
I'm Afraid They're All Talking About Me - Dawn
Right On - Clarence Wheeler & the Enforcers

Thanks for tuning in!

Why I Love Cats

Kitty rocks the house!



Seriously.

And tune in to Little Radio tonight, cuz I'll be on from 6-8pm PST (9pm EST, 3am Tuesday in Berlin, and 1pm Tuesday in Sydney!)...

Enjoy!

You Just Never Know...

...what you're gonna get on Little Radio!

Little Radio Playlist
1/28/08

Breathless - Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds
Heading Home - Midlake
2080 - Yeasayer
The Ballad of Love & Hate - The Avett Brothers
My Spine is the Bassline - Shriekback
Coast Is Clear - Curve
Wanderlust - The Delays
Fluffy Tufts - Cocteau Twins
Skin To Wear - Straightjacket Fits
Shangri-La - The Kinks
Scorpion - The Budos Band
Don't Want You No More - Spencer Davis Group
Nitty gritty - Primal Scream
Things Got To Get Better - Lyn Collins
People In Love - Art Brut
Waiting Room - Fugazi
Your Own Secret Way / Sly - Coco
Glorious - The Breeders
Beautiful Things- The 3ds
Ride It On - Mazzy Star
My God Insane - Edith Frost
Fallin' - Wanda Jackson
Glad All Over - The Rums & Cokes
Every Word Means No - Let's Active
Every Night I'm Mentally Crucified (7000 Times) - Prolapse
Sex Dwarf - Soft Cell
Please Stop Dancing - Magnetic Fields
Laisses Tomber Les Filles - France Gall
Pull Shapes - The Pipettes
Safety In Numbers - The Rondelles
See Ya Home Tonight - The Pictures
Outlaws & Lovers - Belles Will Ring

Download it here! And enjoy!

Mucho Mas Radio

Want more? Got it!

Little Radio Playlist
1/21/08

My Boy Lollipop - Millie Small
Boogie In My Bones - Laurel Aitken
On My Radio - The Selecter
Doing It Right - The Go! Team
Careless Whisper - The Gossip
Give Me Back My Man - The B-52's
I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend - The Rubinoos
B.O.O.T.A.Y. - Bangers & Cash
Bass On The Bottom - The Lady Tigra
Ready For the Floor - Hot Chip
Born Into the World - Supersystem
You Think But You Don't Think / Tamara Dobson - Coco
Cleo Cleopatra - Kari Lynn
Dap Walk - Ernie & the Top Notes, Inc.
If This Ain't Love (Don't Know What Is) - Nicole Willis & the Soul Investigators
Uptight - Stevie Wonder
Tell Me - Sharon Jones
Don't Let Me Down - ELO
Cocaine Blues - Hank Thompson
Urban Struggle - The Vandals
Knowledge - Operation Ivy
Fat Bottom Girls - Queen
Kiss Me Deadly - Generation X
Lonely Just Like Me - Athur Alexander
Pictures of Matchstick Men - Status Quo
Lake Michigan - Rogue Wave
Star Sign - Teenage Fanclub
Cherry Cherry - Unrest
Tally Ho - The Clean
California Girls - Magnetic Fields
A Mess Of Blues - Elvis Presley

Groovy good times - hope you had them too! Re-live it by downloading here. Thanks!

Live Fast, Die Young

It's true! The Washington Post says so!

Study Affirms Rocks Stars Do Die Younger

By TARIQ PANJA

The Associated Press
Tuesday, September 4, 2007; 3:18 PM

LONDON -- Living fast and dying young has long been part of rock 'n' roll lore.

And now there are statistics that affirm the image, according to a study released Tuesday.

Researchers at Liverpool John Moores University, whose report appeared in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, studied a sample of North American and British rock and pop stars and concluded they are more than twice as likely to die a premature death as ordinary citizens of the same age.

The team studied 1,064 stars from the rock, punk, rap, R&B, electronic and new age genres in the "All Time Top 1,000" albums published in 2000. They compared each artist's age at death with that of European and U.S. citizens of similar backgrounds, sex and ethnicity.

Mark Bellis, leader of the study, said his research showed the stereotype of rock stars was true _ recreational drugs and alcohol-fueled parties take a toll.

The report found that, between two and 25 years after the onset of fame, the risk of death was two to three times higher for music stars than for members of the general population matched for age, sex, nationality and ethnic background.

In all, 100 of the stars studied had died _ 7.3 percent of women and 9.6 percent of men. They included Elvis Presley, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix.

The average age of death was 42 for North American stars and 35 for European stars.

Long-term drug or alcohol problems accounted for more than one in four of the deaths, the study found. The first years of success are the most dangerous, with both British and American musicians three times more likely to die than the average person during that time.

While the music world is not only filled but also fueled these days by aging music stars _ Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, the Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan among them _ industry observers were not surprised by the findings.

"Being a pop star is a crash-and-burn sort of lifestyle," said rock journalist and broadcaster John Aizlewood. "If you go into it, you want adulation. You want to respond to the crowd. You can't be a pop star in isolation. If you need that adulation, you obviously have other needs.

"It was ever thus. If you look back to Victorian times _ Byron, Shelley those kind of people _ being creative requires living on the edge in a way that being in insurance doesn't."

Dr. Tim Williams, a psychiatrist specializing in addiction at the University of Bristol, also said the increased mortality might be a byproduct of the artistic personality.

"You could argue that rock stars and pop stars have a sensation-seeking personality, that they have this desire to put themselves in these terrifying situations _ performing in front of a large group of people _ that also makes them vulnerable to dependence on substances, which markedly increases mortality," he said.

In good news for aging rockers, the study found that after 25 years of fame, stars' death rates began to return to normal _ at least in Europe. A European star still living 25 years after achieving fame faces a similar mortality rate to the European public. U.S. artists, however, continue to die in greater numbers.

The study said this difference "might be explained by differences in longer-term experience of fame, with more performing in later years ... continued media interest and associated stress and substance use in North American pop stars."

Additionally, said Bellis, "Many (U.S. musicians) die in poverty and there is not the same type of public-health provision there" as in Europe.

"The music business would do well to take the health risks of substance abuse and risk-taking behaviors more seriously," wrote Bellis, the lead author of the study.

"This is not only because of the long-term effects on the stars themselves, but also because of the influence these stars exert on others."

Dr. Francis Keaney, an expert in addiction treatment at the Institute of Psychiatry at King's College London, said the death rates are likely to fall in the future.

"People are better educated about drug and alcohol abuse than they were in the past," Keaney said. "Thirty years ago, you could name dozens of people living hedonistic lifestyles in the music industry. Today there are far fewer."

Ker-SMASH!

About a year and a half ago, this happened to my beloved CRX by a hit and run driver... The frame was bent (hell, the car bounced onto the sidewalk with the force of it) and it was totaled.

So after about 6 months of using my dad's truck, I settled on a new car. It' s an okay car, another Honda, black, pretty new, pretty zippy. But it's been jinxed. Things just sort of happen to it. Since I've had it, it's been broken into twice, had the suspension replaced, and the engine nearly caught on fire due to the lameness of the EZ Lube guys (Of course, my insurance company couldn't definitely prove those guys didn't re-connect stuff properly, because maybe things just SHOOK loose, but really...)

So I got a new car. And what should happen to it?

Yea, this.

On a dark, moonlit night on Hyperion in Silverlake, a young man driving a white Honda decided to play bumper cars with 5 parked vehicles.

Mine was # 4.

Once the driver was done, he jumped out of his car and ran away. His Honda stayed, playing Spanish pop to keep us company while we waited for cops and towtrucks. Two of the cars were totaled, mine was almost totaled. However, his white Hinda Accord didn't do so badly. Funny ha ha, huh?

Radio Goes On...

At Little Radio, of course!

This week, I was lucky enough to have special guests, Redcar!

Little Radio Playlist
1/14/08

What I Don't Know About You - You Am I
Circles - Les Fleur De Lys
Get Down From The Tree - The Matadors
Spooky - Dusty Springfield
Merry Happy - Kate Nash
Something I've Got To Tell You - The Honeycombs
Our Secrets - Jim, Son of James
Detlef Schrempf - Band of Horses
Blowing Kisses - Sarabeth Tucek
Blues From Down Here - TV On The Radio
Freeway - Magnetic Fields
I Can Only Give You Everything - MC5
Long & Lonesome Road - Shocking Blue
Hippy Dippy Do - Rocket From the Crypt

REDCAR INTERVIEW! And groovy live performance.

Pin Drop - Redcar
Can't Feel My Soul - Teenage Fanclub
Wait - Lanky
If You Were Alien - The Brunettes
California (All The Way) - Luna
September Gurls - Big Star
You Burn Bright - Everest
It Wasn't Said To Ask - Foreign Born
Fraternity U.S.A. - The Ladybugs
Don't Drop Out - Dolly Parton

Download it here, if you like.

And thank you for listening!

Scott's so CRAY-ZEE!

Really, tune in. He's hilarious. Good tunes, too.

My Favorite Things...

The "Best Of" show!

Little Radio Playlist
1/7/08

we started with favorite songs...

The Golden State - John Doe
Get It On - Grinderman
The Heinrich Maneuver - Interpol
Devastation - The Besnard Lakes
Paper Planes - M.I.A.
Brunettes Against Bubblegum Youth - The Brunettes
Twinkle Twinkle - Uni & Her Ukelele
Georgia, You Were Right - Sally Jaye
Exodus Honey - Honeycut
Telling Lies - Great Northern
Someone Great - LCD Soundsystem
Go Places - he New Pornographers
Nights Are Long - Intramural

then on to things not form 2007 that I just got clued in to...

Why Don't We Do It In the Road - Lowell Fusion
That's Life - Snatch & the Poontangs
Ice Cream Song - The Dynamics

to songs from my favorite 2007 albums...

(10) Kingdom of Doom - The Good, The Bad & he Queen
(9) Tell Me - Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings
(8) Nantes - Beirut
(7) This Is A Landslide - Intramural
(6) Depth Charge Ethyl - Grinderman
(5) Back To Black - Amy Winehouse
(4) Flightless Bird, American Mouth - Iron & Wine
(3) XR2 - M.I.A.
(2) A Year From Now - Blanche
(1) Low Is A Height - Great Northern

to something to look forward to!

Too Drunk to Dream - Magnetic Fields

And that's all folks! Download the show here if you like.

That Year End Music Thing

Okay, people want to know.

I can't tell you what the best releases of the last year were - I'm not qualified to do that. I really don't think anybody is. People are too darned eclectic! If you want to know the top selling albums of last year, look up Billboard charts. I think we can probably agree that "top seller" doesn't necessarily mean "best."

Think about the albums you're going to pull off the shelf years from now and still enjoy. I didn't have as many of those during 2007, but there were a few. So here are my favorite records from the last year.

One time, a friend of mine said that all music reviews could basically be summarized as thus: "Like the bastard lovechild of (so & so) and (so & so) in (name of place) on (altering substance)." So let's do it.


10. The Good, The Bad & The Queen - s/t
"Like the bastard lovechild of Blur and King Tubby in London on downers."

9. Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings - 100 Days, 100 Nights
"Like the bastard lovechild of a young Stevie Wonder and Aretha Franklin at the Apollo high on the Holy Spirit."

8. Beirut - The Flying Cup Club
"Like the bastard lovechild of Stephin Merrit and Jacques Brel in Paris on cigarettes and coffee."

7. Intramural - This Is A Landslide
"Like the bastard lovechild of the Postal Service and a helluva lot of good singers in outer space on ecstasy."

6. Grinderman - s/t
"Like the bastard lovechild of Jesus Lizard and Johnny Otis in the middle of desert on PCP."


5. Amy Winehouse - Back To Black
"Like the bastard lovechild of Billie Holiday and Mary J. Blige in London on whatever she can get her hands on."

4. Iron & Wine - The Shepherd's Dog
"Like the bastard lovechild of America and Fleetwood Mac in the Caribbean on mary-jane."

3. M.I.A. - Kala
"Like the bastard lovechild of Missy Elliott and Sister Carol in a bangin' 3rd world club on coke."

2. Blanche - Little Amber Bottles
"Like the bastard lovechild of Lee & Nancy and John & Exene in a swamp on moonshine and Jesus."

1. Great Northern - Trading Twilight For Daylight
"Like the bastard lovechild of Frou Frou and Grandaddy in Heaven on absinthe."


And there you go! I'll play all of it when I get back on the air at Little Radio, Monday January 7th from 6-8pm PST. Okay? :)

Better Late Than Never

Sometimes you just can't listen to everything when it comes out. Sometimes you don't know about it, don't have the money to get it, haven't gotten around to checking out what your friend may have burned for you, or just flat out missed it the first time around. Hell, maybe you missed it the second or third time around. Anyway, these are some things I was late to the game on, and my life is better for having finally heard them.

Amy Millan - Honey from the Tombs
This record came out mid 2006 by the frontwoman for Stars. A beautiful set of folky, whiskey drenched tunes, on the acoustic side (but the album is done with help from Stars, BSS and other Canadian pals). It's lovely and sad, not too complicated and endearing.

The Mint Chicks - Crazy? Yes! Dumb? No!
This was something I found on my trip to Australia last year - frantic Kiwis with melody and spunk to burn. This is what Redd Kross would have evolved into, had they continued evolving. Bubblegum punk tempered by metal riffs in a crazy early 80's Devo-lutionized way that only the kids in Auckland can get so wrong that it's right.

Beirut - everything
Luckily for me, they (or rather, "he") put out a new album this year so I wasn't too far behind the pack... but I don't know how I missed this one. Orchestral cafe pop with melodramatic vocals? I love that stuff! I heard it for the first time at a friend's in Austin while out for SXSW last year - and was capitivated, along with a million other morose popsters.

Honeycut - The Day I Turned To Glass
This is one of those records that sat on my back burner all through 2006. I'd heard a song here or there on KALX, Berkeley when I would listen in from afar, but this past March, when I ran into my friend Bart Bavenport at SXSW, I had to go check out Honeycut. And I was immediately ashamed for not having listened to them sooner. Not only are they a blast live (I've vowed never to miss them again if I can help it) but the record is a tapestry of deeply dark and moody yet intensely groovy funk. Bart's daydream/nightmare lyrics and silky smooth vocals just add to the scary electro soul this album throws out. Amazing stuff.

Snatch and the Poontangs
My girlfriend Heather-Marie (aka Uni & Her Ukelele) used to sing backup for Johnny Otis, but she never told me about this naughty, naughty gem he put out on (you guessed it) 1969 under the name befitting the music most. It's all filthy, dirty r&b, with lotsa trash-talkin' and sex-havin' and murderin' all over the place. Fiddy ain't got nothing on Grampa Otis, that's for damn sure!

I'm sure there's more, but I was definitely obsessed over those things over the last year. More countdown goodness to come...

Song, Song Blue

The ever popular "Best Of" lists... I can't do one. Who am I to judge that sort of thing? But since some of you have asked nicely what I've liked over the course of 2007 , I'll tell you. But not all at once.

Here are a bunch of songs that I really liked this year, and they pretty much all came off releases from 2007 (or kind of towards the end of last year, maybe).


20. Thuggery - You Am I
Drunk Aussies rock out, cleverly, again.

19. Flightless Bird, American Mouth - Iron & Wine
Maybe it's just because he calls himself a "fat house cat" on this one, but I find the song beautiful.

18. Irreplaceable - Beyonce
From now on, whenever I'm done with a guy, it will be expressed by the phrase: "to the left."

17. Detlef Schrempf - Band of Horses
So pretty and sad. I'm a sucker for pretty and sad.

16. Georgia, You Were Right - Sally Jaye
From this local (by way of Georgia) singer's debut, Amarillo, her voice was my favorite to sing along to in the shower, especially when this song came on. Earthy and melodic.

15. Eddie's Raga - Spoon
I like it when Spoon gets groovy, and I dig the line "I'm a slut for the New York Times." Smarty pants!

14. Wild Vanilla - Kristin Hersh
"You messing with my head makes a terrible noise." That clinched it for me.

13. Revival - Soulsavers
Close your eyes and listen... perhaps it's salvation?

12. Apartment Story - The National
His voice is immensely swoonable, and this song is sexy as opposed to too slick (like I find about half of that album).

11. Stronger - Kanye West
Oh please, you danced your ass off too. And this line? "Since Prince was on Apollonia, since OJ had isotoners..." Rad.

10. The Golden State - John Doe
Obviously, swoon factor goes far with me, and there are few voices more swoonable than John Doe's. It's a sad yet rockin' tribute to the aches and pains of love. Sigh...

9. Get It On - Grinderman
Dirty, dirty boys!

8. The Heinrich Maneuver - Interpol
Okay, I liked the record, but I LOVED this single. It just kicks off to a classic Interpol jam and is tight as fuck.

7. Devastation - The Besnard Lakes
A noisily beautiful track that made me remember why I loved that whole shoegazer thing when it was done right.

6. Paper Planes - M.I.A.
How does she do it? It's fun to sing along to, and you can pretend to shoot guns and open cash registers WHILE dancing. Good going, girl!

5. Exodus Honey - Honeycut
This soulful trippy number is all about melodies and "do do dos." It makes me think about lazing on a lounge chair, smoking pot, and ignoring the whole entire world. Nice, huh?

4. Telling Lies - Great Northern
Again, if I enjoy singing along, it makes the list. This one is more intense than other tracks on the record, but I love the motion of the music here. And her voice - gorgeous.

3. Someone Great - LCD Soundsystem
This song just builds so perfectly, is so endearing and bittersweet, all while remaining groovy. Like a good New Order moment. Of which I approve.

2. Go Places - The New Pornographers
I pretty much only like New Pornographer tracks with Neko Case on them. And this is a really good one to (you guessed it!) sing along with.

1. Nights Are Long - Intramural
A gorgeous voice, beautiful music, heartbreaking lyrics - "Here's the part where I drink all the time, here's the part where I tell you I'm fine..." Open a bottle of wine and hit repeat. I did that for about a month.

There you go! Some of my favorite songs of the last year. I'll get around to tossing out more opinions later.