Before I start bloggin’ like crazy and coming at you with exciting Method Actors press links, new Viva-Radio playlists, thoughts on awesome new reissues from Kevin Dunn and Kimberly Rew and whatever else, I figured I’d mention this party I’m DJ’ing Wednesday night. I’ve pulled back on promoting my DJ activities, such as my third appearance at the legendary Rubulad party last week or the re-birth of my legendary record listening party Dazzle Ships. It’s probably best to just find me on facebook to find out about such things and get more updates such as all the things I “like”  and what my “status” is and where I’m DJing.

I’m trying to keep the Acute Blog more on-subject, and what can be more appropriate then a Post-Punk Prom? I often drop a few classics in my sets, but as adventurous as I’d like to be, I usually stick to what I think works. Not this time. I’m digging deep in the crates, as DJs and music nerds would say, and pulling out some serious heat, and if people aren’t feeling it, well I’ll probably play slightly more accessible and obvious selections, because I’m just not that much of a DJ iconoclast.  I don’t really know what I’m going to play, I’m pulling the Rough Trade singles, the Athens GA punk-funk, the 23 Skidoo, Factory and Crepuscule, those 99 and Y Records jams, those Ze mutant discos, the odd Hyped2Death collectible, Fast/Pop:Aural, some gutless 80s valley girl new wave techno rock, ze neue deutsche welle, The Associates, etc etc.

Check out the facebook event page to see this following info, but with pictures of the people who have confirmed they’re coming, even if they’re not. I’m doing 2 sets or so, 9-10 (real early!) and 12-1.

Kiss & Tell: Postpunk Anti-Prom
(you are not invited)
Wednesday May 12, 2010 8pm – 2am FREE
with Guest DJs:
Grant aka Insideout [Clink, thesongsays]
Dan Selzer [Acute Records]
Bethany Benzur [Kiss & Tell Resident DJ]
No Prom Pics by Seze

Kiss & Tell, a monthly party at Rose Live Music in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, has been producing unique theme based events for over four years. Each month Kiss & Tell invites well known electronic music DJs eager to play a different kind of set, filled with music outside of the genres they are known for. Our DJs play italo, disco (classics and edits), party jams, electro, house, girl groups, gothypants, new wave, and post punk.

This month the ladies at Kiss & Tell are hosting their own party and skipping the prom. We invited two of our all time favorite Kiss & Tell DJs to play postpunk and other gems. Too bad you are not invited to our anti-prom. But if you were, you would…

+ Listen to: Postpunk, New Wave, No Wave, Punk Funk, Mutant Disco, Art Rock, Ska, Synthpop

+ Wear: Something old, torn, and stolen. Black leather and safety pins. Neon, neon, neon. A nice Jonathan Richman suit. Big Gothy Robert Smith Hair. Thin ties. Cut up band T-shirts.

+ Look Like: Siouxsie Sioux, Johnny Rotten, Marc Almond, Adam Ant, Jonathan Richman, David Byrne, Lydia Lunch, Gary Numan, Iggy Pop, David Bowie, Vivienne Westwood, Donna Summer.

+ Read: “Rip it up and Start Again” by the brilliant Simon Reynolds

Wine & Dine
Rose Happy Hour 8-9pm: 2 for 1 beer and wine
All night long: $5 rum & coke
$5 vegetarian pasta dinners
and extensive bar menu available all night

Time Out this week: “Seze Devres, resident DJ Bethany Benzur and their pals are back at the intimate Rose Live Music to spill the secrets of disco, exotica, synth material, new wave and plenty more. This edition features guest deck sets (of the postpunky, art-rocky and synth-poppy varieties) from Acute Records recluse Dan Selzer and the Clink label’s Grant “Insideout” Aaron. Dress as your favorite postpunk artist! (We’re opting for Creatures-era Budgie.)”

Acute’s 12th CD (in just 10 years!)–This Is Still It, by The Method Actors–is out today! The Method Actors were among the earliest bands to emerge from the same fertile Athens punk/new wave scene that gave the world The B-52s, R.E.M. and Pylon. Acute Record’s new CD This Is Still It–which R.E.M.’s Peter Buck describes in his liner notes as “a kind of secret history of the Athens scene”– revisits the essential early years of the trailblazing duo. Free downloads, pictures and more information here.

Been meaning to post about some recent (to somewhat recent) reissues and share some music before posting about our own upcoming reissue, This is Still It by The Method Actors. These are all releases that I would’ve loved to have done on Acute, but a better, more appropriate label got to do it!

First up is Flaming Tunes, whom I feel so strongly about I had to make a little collage from the original tape insert…

FLAMING TUNES
Flaming Tunes was a cassette only release from 1985 or so recorded by longtime friends Gareth Williams and Mary Currie. It first came to my attention in the pre-file-sharing days when people would make tapes or even burn CDs for each other when I traded some CD-rs with a guy in Germany named Eric Wilhelm. I sent him CD-rs of the Homosexuals, Desperate Bicycles, Scritti Politti, Prefects etc and he sent me a ton of This Heat-related stuff. Since getting turned on at the Oberlin Co-Op, This Heat had been a favorite band of mine. Among the live recordings and other rarities was a release with a photocopied sleeve called “After the Heat (unreleased Demo-Recordings)”. I was totally blown away. I was expecting to hear some kind of lo-fi proggy, punky noisy racket  and instead found an eclectic selection of beautiful and delicate songs, ranging from minimal and ambient atmospheres to circular and repetitive yet melodic and enchanting songs.

Except for the fidelity, it didn’t sound like a demo to me, it sounded like a completely new and different direction for This Heat, though with a few similarities. It wasn’t until a few years later that I learned it wasn’t a This Heat recording at all! I can’t remember exactly where, but somewhere on the internet, discussion about these recordings came out and Mary Currie appeared to right all wrongs. After Gareth Williams left This Heat to spend some time in India, he came back and started collaborating with Mary. In 1985 they released these recordings as Flaming Tunes through Contagious Unit, which described itself as “a cooperative of musicians producing and distrubting low cost, high quality cassettes because we want to.” Unfortunately, following it’s release, it was relatively forgotten until copies started circulating with the “This Heat” title.

Since straightening the internet out, things began to fall into place and Flaming Tunes finally saw release last year on the new label Life and Living Records. They have kindly given me permission to share one of the songs, and I had a hard time choosing. It’s really a perfect record. Tape experiments, lo-fi keyboards, whimsical percussion, strange drop-outs…moments of silence. 80s drum machines and Casios co-exist with fiddles, whistles and clarinets. Echoes of Indian percussion, dub reggae, acoustic folk, musique concrete, a bit of the ReR/Rock In Opposition prog/art/songcraft you’d expect. In Raindrops from Heaven, over 2 minutes of outdoor nature noises exist before a simple percussion part (loop?) and beautiful out of tune piano and bass emerge for 2 minutes before giving way back to nature. Another Flaming Tune presents a minimalist piano arpeggio while buzzy, reedy electronics and clarinet hum and drone underneath and tapes and percussion stutter and start . Elsewhere Gareth and Mary sing harmonies and wonderful pop melodies particularly in the enchanting Beguiling the Hours, the song I’ve chosen to share.

Flaming Tunes-Beguiling the Hours
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/FlamingTunes-BeguilingTheHours.mp3]
control-click to download

This song has long been one of my favorites. When I first got the bootleg CD, I’d listen to it over and over again. Probably second only to Pink Frost by the Chills in my list of “songs left on repeat”. The piano, the clapping, the clarinet and keyboards, the melodies, the lyrics, “think of the wealth…” part. I don’t know, it just kills me every time.

It’s really amazing that a release so obscure that even fans of the artist didn’t know it existed, or if they did, where it came from, has taken such a vibrant life in the last year. Gareth passed away in 2001 and it’s hard to separate the growing tributes to him from the growing interest, awareness, and passion about Flaming Tunes. First, there is the Flaming Tunes website, where you can find additional downloads, videos, old letters and input from various Flaming Tunes associates and friends. More information and ordering info can be found at Life and Living Records. It’s also on iTunes of course. There’s a great and informative interview with Mary as well as Andrew Jacques of These/Life and Living and Mick Hobbs, who was involved in the reissue and plays on the original tape, by The Wire. And as testament to it’s power, check out Diamond Age, a musician out of texas who recorded a complete cover version of the entire tape. It’s really wonderful, and can be ordered from Life and Living. Meanwhile, more material keeps turning up on the Flaming Tunes website, such as later recordings of Gareth’s and even videos, some shot then, some shot now, some shot then and finished now. This song, Nothing On, and it’s video, can be downloaded from the site, but it’s also on youtube, so I can more easily share it here…

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5VmnqUTbeI[/youtube]

next up…

TAPE #1
There’s always been a great deal of mystery and debate regarding No Wave. How do you define No Wave? Which bands were No Wave? Is it limited to a specific location and time period or is it a timeless attitude and aesthetic? Do you hyphenate No-Wave? Do you capitalize it? For a long time everyone was sure of one thing, the four bands that appeared on No New York–Mars, DNA, The Contortions and Teenage Jesus and the Jerks–were No Wave. But what about the so-called Soho bands? Theoretical Girls, The Gynecologists, Daily Life, The Static, A Band. And all that 99 records funk stuff…Liquid Liquid, ESG? Lesser known but more appropriate to be defined as such, was a group of bands who came up just after the initial years and continued to blaze raw and noisy paths in downtown New York through the early 80s. I’d first hear some of them on Elliott Sharp’s Peripheral Vision comp, a fantastic and ubiquitous record store staple in NY for much of the 90s. While many of these bands started out opening up for and playing shows with Mars and Lydia Lunch, their sound was less dark…more lo-fi and often political. Mofungo bassist Robert Sietsema said they were “the stepchildren of the first generation of no wave bands.” I’d come across the occasional Mofungo, The Scene is Now or V-Effect record but only heard whispers of TAPE #1, the self-released compilation cassette that came out in 1980 featuring songs by Blinding Headache, Information and Mofungo.

Blinding Headache was apparently first, forming as early as 1978 in the basement of an NYU dorm by Jim Posner, Willie Klein, Kym Bond and Rick Brown. Rick Brown would leave Blinding Headache and join Information, which featured Chris Nelson, Gary Larson and Phil Dray. The remains of Blinding Headache would be joined by others including Sietsema to form Mofungo. By 1980 they decided to put this tape together, and it’s a fascinating slice of a certain time, with some crossover and influence from the current no wave scenes and some amount of pointing at various sounds of New York City (and Hoboken) for the next decade or so. Information would eventually mutate into The Scene is Now, Rick Brown would play with the incredible V-Effect, followed by Timber, Fish & Roses, Run On, collaborations with Charles Hayward (see above), etc etc. Sietsema would find more fame as the Village Voice’s resident foodie, inspiring many a visit to Flushing,Queens while leaving me eager to find out if Sonali in Sunnyside is as good as he says, because they may deliver to me.

Tape #1 was still a holy grail to me when word first arrived that it would be getting a reissue as a digital only release on Anthology Recordings, a fantastic label with an eclectic selection of downloads to purchase. Currently, their website is down as they reconfigure some stuff, but I’m sure it’ll be back shortly. And if that wasn’t enough, the craziest thing happened. Teenage Jesus and the Jerks decided to do a reunion concert at the Knitting Factory and somebody had the brilliant idea of inviting Information to reform and open up. A band so obscure that their only release was on a 1980 tape compilation. I was there and as I’ve said elsewhere, Teenage Jesus was a blast, but Information blew them out of the water. I’ve suggested that they should get back together and in the least, record the set they played that night. I’ve decided to share 3 songs from the release…normally I wouldn’t share so much but the tape had 43 songs! So one from each band, including the most punk song from Information, which has already been released into the internets when Brian Turner of WFMU found Tape #1 and blogged about it. Check out his write-up, as it’s more interesting and informative than mine!

Information-Let’s Compromise
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/Information-LetsCompromise.mp3]
control-click to download

Blinding Headache-Total Media Blackout
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/BlindingHeadache-TotalMediaBlackout.mp3]
control-click to download

Mofungo-Out Of Line
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/Mofungo-OutOfLine.mp3]
control-click to download

INTERFERENCE
In an almost logical follow-up to discussion of Tape #1, we have another stepchild of No Wave in the band Interference. David Linton moved to New York City around the same time as his college friend and bandmate in The Flucts (Fluks?), Lee Ranaldo(still waiting to hear those tapes), and they both quickly fell in with the No Wave scene of the times. Lee would famously end up with Glenn Branca in his Ascension band, play in some of the early symphonies and end up in Sonic Youth. Linton on the other hand would play with that other proponent of guitar orchestras, Rhys Chatham. After leaving Chatham, Linton and Michael Brown would form Interference with Anne DeMarinis who had just left Sonic Youth, which Lee would then join. Music was recorded and was intended for release on Branca’s Neutral label, but it never happened. Finally a few years ago The Social Registry, one of New York’s finest record labels, announced they were going to release it, and after a gestation period almost as long as the typical Acute release, it’s finally coming out. It’s so cool, so NY, that when Rich from The Social Registry first played me the tape I said “you gotta let me release that, it’s such an Acute release!” But he turned me down, got to work, and now we’re finally hearing the whole thing.

Interference often sound exactly like what you’d expect them to sound like. The repetition and clanging guitars of the guitar orchestras and the punk rock energy and aggression of no wave. At times they sound more like Sonic Youth than Sonic Youth do on their first EP. Think about that! Oddly tuned guitars, gamelan sounding percussion, even a bit of Liquid Liquid funk at their noisiest. There’s a bit of vocals but even less conventional song structure then the typical Sonic Youth song of the period and at times they reach a tribal intensity of guitar skronk, no wave funk, minimalist repetition and sonic assault that I’ll be surprised if this release doesn’t see them added to that great canon of No Wave step-children already occupied by Mofungo, by Sonic Youth and the Swans. And Ut. For an interview with Linton, check out Too Cool To Die, check out Linton’s website, and for more information and to purchase this release, which will be a double LP featuring an LP of the original material and a fresh record of remixes, visit our friends at The Social Registry.

Interference-Excerpt #1(Version 2)
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/Interference-Excerpt1V2.mp3]
control-click to download

and finally….

Raymilland
Here’s an obscure one that was totally new to me until a few weeks ago. I was checking out one of my favorite music blogs, Last Days of Man on Earth, excited to see the great review of the forthcoming Acute release, This Is Still It by The Method Actors when I noticed their following post. Last Day’s author Joe was excited to be reviewing a reissue/compilation from a post-punk/new wave band from his hometown St. Louis. I had no idea what to expect from that particular region from that particular time, but let me say I definitely didn’t expect a totally rocking, totally spacey, totally glam and totally sci-fi punk sound like this. For peers, I’d say 70s punk oddities like the Twinkeyz, the Fans and Chrome, american punk rock bands with a healthy fascination in all things cosmic and/or modern with a degree of a glam/euro/Eno/Roxy/Bowie going on. Relatively early Ultravox! would probably be a good reference as well, the sci-fi lyrics of John Foxx and synthesizers creating a futuristic atmosphere, underpinned by killer Stooges/Mick Ronson rock and roll. I was excited enough by the samples on the blog that I promptly ordered the album from BDR Records. The LP comes with a CD featuring even more tracks then are on the record, and it has an awesome cover that is right up my alley. Speaking of covers, they do a few, including the early Bowie song She’s Got Medals and Syd Barrett’s No Good Trying. The best cover since Cabaret Voltaire covered The Seeds? This release is one of those really obscure oddities that comes out of nowhere and makes you wonder how you lived so long without it.

Raymilland-Climate
[audio:http://acuterecords.com/blog/audio/Raymilland-Climate.mp3]
control-click to download

That’s it for now. (that’s all??) Coming soon: catching up with Viva Radio and another Acute release, This Is Still It, by The Method Actors.

No, not USA Up All Night…DJing friday night at Market Hotel, one of Brooklyn’s finest underground venues. Known primarily as a DIY spot for toddp style shows, recently they’ve been doing more dance parties…from good low-key affairs to packed all-night craziness. I’ll be joining my old Alldisco/Dazzle Ships partner, Tropical Jeremy and celebrating a return visit from one of our favorite old Alldisco guests, Jonny Sender. Jonny was a member of the classic no wave funk band, Konk in the early/mid 80s. After that he spent many years as a DJ at some of New York’s hottest spots, playing disco, hip-hop, latin etc. He moved to Europe a year or so ago but he’s back in town for a bit so this is a rare chance to hear him. Last I heard him DJ, he played all kinds of classic disco. I’ll play disco, new wave, house, italo etc. Who knows what on earth Jeremy will play.

Body Actualized Control presents
Friday Night Flight
Market Hotel
1142 Myrtle Ave, Brooklyn
11pm
EDIT: $6!

Here’s a crazy short clip of a small version of Konk playing on Andy Warhol’s 15 Minutes TV show on MTV.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Msb6MZ-fBfA#[/youtube]

And why not check out this promo for an old-school episode of Night Flight when they first showed the Devo movie and clips from New Wave Theater…
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itCvIkJmjbY[/youtube]

Good thing there’s enough exciting news to support my new One Post Per Day in 2010 policy. Sorry I got off to a late start. Just kidding, I won’t be blogging daily, but I created an Acute Records fan page on facebook so you should join that for perhaps more regular if frivolous updates.

Not at all frivolous, news has just come down that the Lines are going to be playing again! Secretly, most of the band from the classic line-up which gave us the material presented on the Memory Span and Flood Bank compilations (still available!) have been meeting in London and rehearsing. There may have even been a secret show under the radar. With this upcoming show they’ve made the mistake of letting me know about it before-hand, so I’m going to do what I can to spread the word around the world! Now considering I’m generally capable of getting an average of 3-8 people to come to my own DJ events in New York City, there’s no telling what promotional power I have across the Atlantic. Will I be able to incite hordes of UK post-punk-era music enthusiasts to check it out?

They are playing at a place called Bull and Gate, once home of Stump. Also playing are Valerie and Her Week of Wonders and Jowe Head and ye Demi-Monde. Jowe Head of course was an original member of the Swell Maps and later joined the Television Personalities. Among other projects, he had a great band called the Palookas whose records were often produced by Rico of the Lines.

Hard to contain my excitement abount this. I’ve had the pleasure of hearing not just their unreleased material from various parts of the 80s, some of which will be coming from Acute soon enough, but material written as recently as the last few months, and all I can say is…it’s the same but different, it’s clearly the Lines and is totally fantastic. So I have no idea what you’d get with The Lines live in 2010…whether a hit parade of Lines classics on Acute or Faust Tapes style experiments or something in between. Can’t wait to hear more and maybe even get them over the states sometime.

Some details:

The Lines
Jowe Head and ye Demi-Monde
Valerie and Her Week of Wonders

Bull & Gate, 389, Kentish Town Rd, London, NW5 2TJ
Sunday, February 7, 2010
8-11pm
£5

Facebook event page.

Listing information from Bull & Gate:

The Lines
Post-punk legends The Lines performed and recorded in the late 70s and early 80s, but never truly broke-up. Sessions continued through the 80s, which will see the light of day soon, and now, many years after their last show, they are playing together again.

Jowe Head & The Demi-Monde
Head was a founder member of the legendary Swell Maps and went on to join the Television Personalities. He is backed by a new band called The Demi-Monde for an ambitious new album called “Diabolical Liberties”. The sound is psychedelic, using electronic and acoustic instruments, with a european folk influence plus indian and moorish elements.

Valerie & Her Week of Wonders
“Three years ago I started writing little lullabies for my animals… and then the diabolical Jowe Head arrived, and a band of merry corruptors joined with him to twist and torture and turn them into the dulcet pop soundtrack of my child’s heart breaking.”

Just a quick Viva-Radio Pyjamarama show catch-up before I start getting serious with some actual Acute Records-related post. That’s right, we have NEWS. But I have to catch up with Viva. I’ve started a series of shows where all the songs have a certain word in the title. Brilliant framing device or lazy novelty? You be the judge. But before I talk about those, I had two more shows since the last one. These will sometimes appear in the Pyjamarama archives…or go out and buy all these records and re-create the playlists at home. What are you lazy?

STRANGE AFFAIR
1. Marc Riley and the Creepers – Favourite Sister
2. Art Yard – The Law
3. Bobby Henry – Next Move
4. Gambit of Shame – She Lawn
5. S Squad – Scene of the Crime
6. The Go-Betweens – Slow Slow Music
7. Artery – Pretends
8. The Decorators – Pendulum & Swinge
9. Cleaners From Venus – Time In Vain
10. 48 Chairs – Psycle Sluts
11. Digital Dance – Human Zoo
12. Clock DVA – Piano Pain
13. The Passions – Strange Affair
14. Ludus – My Cherry is in Sherry
15. Jacket Weather – A Busy Morning
16. The Neats – Red and Grey
17. The Plugz – El Calvo Y La Cruz
18. The Student Teachers – Channel 13
19. The Method Actors – Halloween   <–is that a hint?

BREAK OUT THE WINE
1.  The Millennium – Prelude
2. The Millenium – To Claudia on Thursday
3. Jan & Lorraine – Break Out the Wine
4. The Buckinhams – I Love All The Girls
5. The Left Banke – Ivy Ivy
6. David Bowie – Love You Till Tuesday
7. Herman’s Hermits – No Milk Today
8. Harry Nilsson – There Will Never Be
9. Colin Blunstone – I Can’t Live Without You
10. Colin Blunstone – Mary Won’t You Warm My Bed
11. Jackie Wilson – I Get the Sweetest Feeling
12. Scott Walker – Get Behind Me
13. Gene Clark – From a Silver Phial
14. Jackson C. Frank – Prima Donna of Swans
15. Phil Ochs – My Life
16. Del Shannon – Runaway
17. Del Shannon – Cut and Come Again
18. Tim Buckley – Carnival Song
19. Herb Albert – This Guy’s in Love With You

What, you want descriptions of each song with a picture of the record sleeve? Do I have to do everything? Too busy for that tonight. Coming up on this here Acute blog: a new CD, a bunch of records, a live show from one of a band who appeared on this very label, a facebook fan page and more news…

Two parties, but not like I’m overdoing it, as they are very different parties. Some of you may be interested in one, some in the other. Some may be interested in both! Most will be interested in neither! But pleasing the picky elite is a preferred activity to mass appeal this holiday season.

Described thusly…

Raging against the dancing wasteland, OFF THE GRID is a once-a-month event which focuses on dance music that you won’t hear on a typical Friday or Saturday night. It will focus on a collage of Mutant Disco, Punk Funk, No Wave, Early Electro, New Romantics and rare B-Sides.

Special guest DJs who have contributed, or continue to contribute to expanding the musical spectrum in NY will share the decks each month with the Resident NY DJs Chris Alker and Monica Sharp.

It’s a new party, the first one was last month with guest DJ Sal P. from Liquid Liquid. It’s been a while since I’ve dj’d in Manhattan, on a thursday night, is NYU in session? If I was in college and it was thursday night before the holidays, I’d want to go out in the village and listen to some new wave disco. That’s all I’m saying. Some punk funk. Some minimal disco wave. Some post-punk italo.

You know, I’ve been writing up party descriptions for a good 10+ years now and I have yet to be bored with mashing together trendy genre descriptions. They’re goofy, but they’re also perfectly accurate.

Off the Grid
Thursday, December 10th

Resident DJs Chris Alker & Monica Sharp, hosted by Amos Massey III & Rachel

Le Posson Rouge Gallery
158 Bleecker Street. Money-Makin’ Manhattan
10pm-Late
21+, No Cover

And now for something completely different…

Remember when there was a screening of Whit Stillman’s awesome movie Last Days of Disco and Jeremy and I DJ’d a disco after-party? You can read about it here. It was fun. There was some dancing. There was also some complaining from old people that we weren’t playing disco. Which was weird, because that’s all I brought. And before you go on about how it was because we were playing weird obscure underground disco, you’re wrong. We played Dianna Ross. We played Chic. Fact is, you can please some of the people some of the time, but you mostly can’t please most people most of the time.

And despite this, I’ve been invited to take part in another Whit Stillman “happening”. This time it’s a screening of his first film, Metropolitan, taking place Saturday, December 12th at the 92Y in Tribecca. (An uptown venue comes downtown to present a portait of uptown?). The movie is a polarizing one, filled with lots of talking, lots of wit. A lot of people hate it. I love it. That’s about as ringing an endorsement as a movie can get in my book. The screening will be followed by a chat with Stillman and maybe some key cast-members, followed by a holiday mixer party with music by Chris Wells and myself. Listen as I shred my hip punk-disco persona and explore the classic oldies geek inside. I spent the better part of college listening to Magic Oldies radio in Cleveland and CBS oldies in NY, from before they included the “80s” in their definition of “oldie”, and this past summer while DJing weddings I discovered a newfound love of classic soul and motown, not to mention a nascent interest in northern oldies classics. Chris, host Miriam and myself will be playing a fun mix of holiday music, both festive and melancholic, and lots of Tommy Roe.

Metropolitan
20th Anniverary Screening
Saturday, December 12th
7:30 to 1am
92Y Tribecca
200 Hudson Street
Classy Manhattan
More info and tix here.

And some video clips to get you in the mood(s).

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0nfjguTclg[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_juH0AHvwk[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SlWPQGMCfQ[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS-ZOTVYu6U&feature=related[/youtube]

New Viva-Radio Pyjamarama show Victory Garden goes up tuesday at 1pm, and should cycle in and out of the archives thereafter. I’ve been listening to a lot of Broadcast lately and had just discovered the Broadcast Origins youtube series and was thinking of doing a show of Broadcast influences. Then I decided not to and just followed my whims and picked a bunch of typical favorites and less typical favorites and maybe they work together, maybe they don’t…YOU be the judge! I’ll get back to Broadcast and their influences soon though. I’ve decided that Stereolab are my favorite band of the 90s and Broadcast my favorite band of the 00s and they are very similar in many ways but very different in others and I will write another blog post in the (near) future about both bands. For now, VICTORY GARDEN!

1. The United States of America-The American Metaphysical Circus
Another discovery care of the fine-folk at the Oberlin Co-Op Bookstore Record dept, from when the CD was initially released by CBS or Sony. This record is pretty mind-blowing to anybody who had a standard classic-rock upbringing. A band with no guitar, fretless bass, ring-modulated vocals, synthesizers droning and everything heavily processed. Produced by Joe Byrd and released in 1968, the songwriting runs the gamut from fuzzy rockers to ethereal hymns, songs rooted in classic americana, some Beatles rips and moody and dark experiments like this song, who’s closest relative may be The Velvet Underground and Nico. The breadth and ambition of the record could be likened to what Van Dyke Parks might have done if he had studied with Morton Subotnik. The songs aren’t all great, but enough of them are to make this a total classic. This song especially is such a blueprint for certain key aspects of Broadcast that when I first heard the latter I completely wrote them off as a shallow imitation. The first couple of songs on their first LP, The Noise Made By People, for starters. It took me a few years to get over that, and I’ll talk about that more in my forthcoming epic blog post about Broadcast and Stereolab, due out sometime in the next year or two.

2. The Red Krayola-Victory Garden
No clear relationship to the prior song, accept maybe as a nice counterpoint. One similarity of course is that the Red Krayola, originaly the Red Crayola, pre-lawsuit, are among the few other truly revolutionary and avant-garde bands of the period. I’d say that in comparison with the Red Krayola, The United States of America are a conventional rock band plugged into a voltage processor. I suppose I don’t see any reason to go into the history of these bands, you’ve got wikipedia. But if I can say anything personal about The Red Krayola and it’s mainstay Mayo Thompson, well there’s just nothing like The Red Krayola. The first two albums stand alone as such a unique experience. Among the two weirdest, most experimental albums that could even remotely be called “rock” that emerged from the 60s, and completely different from each other, while still having amazing, shining moments of accessibility. Victory Garden is one of the few straight up songs on their second LP God Bless the Red Krayola and all Who Sail With It, and it’s a charming ditty. The few songs on this record pretty much prefigure a very specific but very primal aspect of what could be called “indie-rock”. There were very few bands at the time who were willing to be this loose, this raw, this direct. I’d also like to mention that while I’m cool enough to have been a fan of The United States of America prior to hearing Broadcast, my first exposure to the Red Krayola was because Galaxie 500 covered this song on the Blue Thunder CD EP, which I bought in Portland Maine at a record store called Bad Habits while on a trip during summer camp. Their version is awesome and they also cover New Order’s Ceremony.

3. Flying Saucer Attack-Come and Close My Eyes
This is NOT the kind of indie-rock I was thinking of when I was discussing Victory Garden. But I like this band and this song. I like things that are both noisy and pretty. At the same time. Or taking turns. Some of the new hipster stuff that’s coming out now seems like post-modern versions of this aesthetic. Similar but done with samplers instead of distortion pedals or something.

4. Main-There is Only Light
Couldn’t find a picture of this and sold the actual CD some time ago. (no judgement there, I sold ALL my CDs, except the ones YOU gave me). This is tangentially sonically related to Flying Saucer Attack. I’d say FSA have a relationship to the Spacemen 3 and My Bloody Valentine axises in their merger of a modern british psyche folk with krautrock and shoegaze inspired noise. Main is a more direct descendant, growing out of Loop, who I just now decided are the grunge Spacemen 3. (Sorry if this is getting questionable, I’m really tired.) They put out this really cool record of fuzzy drones and krauty repetition and Wire-esque loops and songs, then got into the whole “ambient isolationism” thing and threw out their guitars and bought field recorders and I stopped listening. I’m sure it’s all good, but I like to sing along.

5. The Trypes-A Plan Revised
Couldn’t find a good enough pic, couldn’t be bothered to scan my copy. Another Feelies side-project. Glenn and Bill from the Feelies joined keyboardist John Baumgartner band The Trypes while the Feelies were on one of their many breaks and recorded The Explorers Hold EP in 1984. When the Feelies would return with The Good Earth, they’d have Trypes members Brenda Sauter and Stanley Demeski. The Trypes have a definite Feelies sound and feel, but a more psychedelic vibe and Baumgartner’s keyboards make it something else all together. The Trypes EP is one of my favorite things ever and I hope it gets reissued in one form or another.

6. Joe Byrd and the Field Hippies-Patriot’s Lullaby
After the United States of America LP, leader Joe Byrd released this LP, which isn’t quite as good, but has a few gems on it.

7. Broadcast and the Focus Group-The Be Colony
The centerpiece of this internet playlist, or any internet playlist. Broadcast’s latest release is a collaboration with the Focus Group. The Focus Group is Julian House, who has been Broadcast’s graphic designer and occasional tour DJ for some time. He also runs the Ghost Box label, which is relatively new to me. An entire label filled with british acts obsessed with old british library records. The label has a great consistent aesthetic and brand, and a somewhat consistent sound. And it’s a really cool sound but a lot of it is more experimental/sampled collages. This song is one of the few moments on the CD where you get a proper Broadcast “song”. For those following Broadcast’s career, on their last album Tender Buttons, they had shed most of the musicians in the band leaving the percussion to be mostly electronic. This collaboration with The Focus Group seems to move them more towards using samples, of actual old library and soundtrack type releases or of their own creations, I’m not sure. No matter, this is awesome.

8. Elephant’s Memory-Old Man Willow
Speaking of Broadcast and soundtracks…Elephant’s Memory were a psychedelic band from New York best known for playing with John and Yoko in the early 70s. This earlier song appeared in the movie Midnight Cowboy, and is often mentioned along with the United States of America as a key Broadcast influence.

9. The Fates-Sheila-She Beats In My Heart
I first heard about this record when it was posted on the blog Bimble’s Windy Weather. The band is comprised of original Fall and later Blue Orchids member Una Baines with her sometimes partner Martin Branah and several other women, with many songs deriving from pre-Christian and feminist themes. It’s a really cool album. I had met Bimble, who’s real name was Mark, on the I Love Music forum where we often talked “post-punk” among other things. I met him at the first Part-Time Punks festival and traded some music with him, I think I sent him a CD of italo-disco, which I don’t think was quite post-punk/new-wavey enough for him. A few months ago I found out he took his own life. I just started writing some thoughts about him but decided I didn’t have the space to make it all make sense and this wasn’t the time or place. I know he didn’t even like this record that much, and he wasn’t that into the Italo I sent him, but we bonded heavily over enough music that his memory and enthusiasm is permanently stamped on countless favorites of mine and other likeminded fans.

10. Mayo Thompson-Horses
My favorite song from one of my favorite records. After the Red K(c)rayola got increasingly experimental and alienated pretty much everyone, I can’t imagine anyone would think that a few years later Mayo would round up some session musicians and whip up this goddamn record, which was reissued on Dexter’s Cigar, the David Grubbs and Jim O’Rourke curated reissue imprint of Drag City. There’s nothing exceptionally sonically avant-garde about this record. It’s an album of adult songs. Songs about relationships and sex and god knows what. Some people may think his voice is less then radio-ready, but I’d rank him with Bob Dylan or Neil Young. He’d emerge again a few years later with a few other versions of the Red Krayola…collaborating with art collective Art & Language, fronting a super-groups of post-punk hipsters, exploring marxism, producing The Fall, Cabaret Voltaire, The Raincoats etc and eventually joining Pere Ubu for when they got really weird, including a much stranger version of this song.

11. Galaxie 500-Another Day
Galaxie 500 introduced me to the Red Krayola so I figured they deserved a spot here. This is the one song from On Fire, my favorite album of theirs, that’s sung by Naomi, and it’s beautiful.

12. Movietone-Sun Drawing
Flying Saucer Attack-related british psychedelic post-shoegaze indie rock. Kind of reminds me of Opal.

13. The Oscillation-Head Hang Low
Don’t know much about them. On DC records, which I primarily know for the krautrock-esque nu-disco act The Emperor Machine. I think this was their “rock” signing? A bit of the Spacemen 3/Spiritualized/Main thing going on, but updated for the post-electroclash era. Sorry, I’m really running out of steam here.

14. Labradford-Soft Return
This sounded really great on headphones during sophmore year of college. I just spelled that “softmore”. Time for bed.

Two years ago I posted a Viva-Radio playlist called Strange Kicks featuring a new Chinese band called Car-Sick Cars. I wrote:

2. Car-sick Cars-Rock & Roll Hero
One of the great benefits of myspace.com, other then the free Macy’s gift card and the photos I can’t believe she would post them online, is the random friend requests from bands. I know you got 10 yesterday and they all sucked. Well I run a record label, which means I got 100 yesterday and they all sucked. Believe it or not, this particular post-punk reissue label is not interested in your heavy-metal emo trip-hop band from Moscow. But I try to take the time to check out the bands because for every clueless act that wants to get signed, there’s actually bands who are familiar with the music Acute has released, maybe they’re even fans.

One day I received three friend requests from bands/acts in Beijing, China. A bit of research led me to realize the common thread was an artist named Shou Wang, who seems to be a central figure in what is being called the “No Beijing” scene. The three pages were for himself, a project called White and the Car-sick Cars. The range of influences listed on the White page and his own page are wide-ranging and faultlessly hip, not to mention very much in line with my own. Einsturzende Neubauten, TG, Glenn Branca, Steve Reich, La Monte Young, etc. The music on those two pages are an eclectic selection of noise and minimalist inspired pieces.

I was more excited, however, by Car-sick Cars, his rock band. This particular list of influences pretty much sums up a large selection of my record collection. Branca, The Clean, The Fall, Joy Division, Neu!, Sonic Youth, Suicide, Swell Maps, Theoretical Girls etc. The music they make is noisy indie-rock with the minimal, chiming riffing of the early 80s post-punk and NZ bands and big accessible hooks like Daydream-era Sonic Youth. According to his myspace page, Shou Wang has played with Glenn Branca, Elliot Sharp, Neubauten and Car-sick Cars even appropriately opened for Sonic Youth. Hopefully they’ll get a full-length out soon, maybe they’ll even come play in NY. Check out all their songs on the myspace page, they’re great.

Now they are finally playing in New York City, along with another Chinese band, P.K.14, who I first heard rep’d by Mike Watt online. They are playing three shows in NYC, Thursday in dumbo at Powerhouse Arena to celebrate the release of a book, Sound Kapital, about Bejing’s music underground, Friday night at Glasslands with the awesome Soft Circle and These are Powers, and Saturday night at Santos Party House “with special guests”. The Glasslands “vibe” is probably preferred, and Glasslands supposedly has a new sound-system, however Santos also has Dinowalrus and the Fixed 5 yr party w/ Basement Jaxx, though those may be 2 other parties that you’d have to pay separately for. These shows are presented by Maybe Mars in collaboration with the Arts Initiative at Columbia University.

Saturday, October 31st
80s Prom…of Horror
Fifth annual disco halloween party & Nicole’s birthday
Loft above Public Assembly, 70 N. 6th st.
Williamsburg, Brooklyn

First there was Alldisco’s Dancing in Space Halloween party…then Wild Kingdom, then the Haunted Disco and last year’s frightening Night of the Living Disco Dead. Now we present 80s Prom…of Horror! Maybe if you’re lucky, a bucket of pig’s blood will land on YOUR head! Vote for dead prom king and queen! Dance till you drop…DEAD!

DJs:
Rich Juzwiak (Four Four Blog)
Jeremy Campbell (Tropical Computer)
Dan Selzer
5$