11/2: At the Cut

For the next several weeks Laughter will be featuring some of its favorite records from 2009, leading up to a year-end finale where we’ll play all the stuff we’ve liked most this year. Selections could possibly include reissues, but for the most part we’ll be considering only new recordings.

Our first album of the week is Vic Chesnutt’s At the Cut, just released at the end of September on Constellation. I had decided that Nudge’s As Good As Gone was going to be the first selection, but because both intern Jackie and I had been listening to At the Cut a lot, we went ahead with Vic’s record instead.

And it’s a hard record not to like. Chesnutt’s vocals on the opening “Coward” at first sound like a whispered confessional or an embarrassing admission, but when his backing band strikes up their violins, his confession transforms into a cathartic roar. In just seconds Vic Chesnutt and his band convert the quietude typical of many singer-songwriters into an epic sprawl of shrieking, heavily distorted guitar, hammered drums, and shouted vocals. It’s a shocking and unexpected move that is not again repeated anywhere on the album. The influence of Godspeed You! Black Emperor and A Silver Mt. Zion can be felt, but their dramatic frills and exaggerated qualities are held in check by the shape and precision of Vic’s writing.

Which isn’t to say that the album doesn’t ever rock again. It does, but in sweet and succinct moments. Both “Chinaberry Tree” and “Philip Guston” put the electric guitar at center stage. The former finds its voice in an extended solo that beams across Chesnutt’s vocals like a lightning strike, and the latter chugs and screams like an Einstürzende Neubauten song, except the band never quite pitches itself into the absolute chaos of noise or the flamboyance of theater. Ornate orchestrations and tight arrangements populate nearly every song, both pulling against each other and generating waves of tension. But, Chesnutt cuts loose sometimes, too, and manages to pull a couple of straight rock tunes out of his hat. “Concord Country Jubilee” sounds like it might’ve fit in on a Bob Dylan record and “Flirted With You All My Life” finds its strength in its lyrics and simple melody.

And the lyrics are probably what most people will think of when talking about this record. After all, Chesnutt opens himself up a lot on this record, referencing personal tragedies and simple moments with his family in the process. Elsewhere he references an American painter and apparently fits Victor Hugo, William Shakespeare, Franz Kafka, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Henry Darger, and W.H. Auden all into one song (“It Is What It Is”). I’m neither well-read enough nor interested in pursuing all those lyrical avenues, but without them At the Cut is impressive. In fact, the closing song, “Granny,” features one of the album’s most stunning lyrical moments and there’s not a bit of Kafka or Shakespeare to it: “She said, ‘You are the light of my life / and the beat of my heart.’” Half of that song’s appeal is its directness and the warmth of the scene it describes, the other half is the fact that Vic can deliver that line honestly and without a hint of banality. But, lyrics are only half the story, and that Vic and his band blend so many styles so well is an accomplishment worth noting, too. The result is one of my favorite records so far this year.

—

There’s plenty of great music featured this week, including more than a few cuts selected by interns Jackie and Anthony. Jackie ran the boards for the first hour of the show and did an incredible job. The second hour of the show features some abstract drone things, samples pulled from shows about aliens and UFOs, and the phenomenal talents of ‘O’ Rang and Cex. The former features Lee Harris and Paul Webb, both formerly of Talk Talk. Fans of Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock will definitely want to check them out.

If any of you have an album from 2009 that you think is particularly good and worth featuring, leave a comment or send an email our way. We’d definitely love to know what you’ve been listening to.

We’ll have more great music for you next week. Thanks for stopping by!

DOWNLOAD: 11/2 HOUR ONE

DOWNLOAD: 11/2 HOUR TWO

01. Vic Chesnutt “Coward” from At the Cut (2009) on Constellation

02. Caspian “Of Foam and Wave” from Tertia (2009) on The Myclene Sheath

03. Califone “1928” from all my friends are funeral singers (2009) on Dead Oceans

04. Vic Chesnutt “Chinaberry Tree” from At the Cut (2009) on Constellation

05. Hallelujah the Hills “The Might Come Back Club” from Colonial Drones (2009) on Misra

06. Wooden Birds “Bad” from Magnolia (2009) on Barsuk

07. A Place to Bury Strangers “In Your Heart” from Exploding Head (2009) on Mute

08. Beat Circus “Coney Island Creepshow” from Dreamland (2008) on Cuneiform

09. Karl Blau “Nothing New” from Zebra (2009) on K

10. Glenn Jones “Dead Reckoning” from Barbecue Bob in Fishtown (2009) on Strange Attractors Audio House

11. Nudge “Two Hands” from As Good As Gone (2009) on Kranky

12. Vic Chesnutt “Flirted With You All My Life” from At the Cut (2009) on Constellation

13. Haptic “Two” from The Medium (2009) on Flingco Sound

14. Nmperign “Fault” from Ommatidia (2009) on Intransitive

15. Jonathan Coleclough and Andrew Liles “Torch Song 1” from Torch Songs (2007) on Die Stadt

16. Human Bell “A Change in Fortunes” from Human Bell (2008) on Thrill Jockey

17. Bonnie “Prince” Billy and Matt Sweeney “Blood Embrace” from Superwolf (2005) on Drag City

18. ‘O’ Rang “Loaded Values” from Herd of Instinct (1994) on Echo

19. Cex “Roland Park Acid” from Bataille Royale (2009) on Must Finish

10/19 and 10/26: Et in Arcadia Ego

Take the time to read Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy if you haven’t already done so. The Road was a quick and fun read (as much as the apocalypse can be fun) and it received a ton of attention thanks to Oprah, but Blood Meridian shows off why McCarthy is held in such high esteem. The myth of the wild west fascinates me, and this book does everything it can to reveal it in all its gritty (un)glory.

Anyways, to the music. The time of year has arrived at WZBC where interns begin populating the station, insuring that another generation of student DJs will realize they know so very little about music. As a result, you’ll be hearing from my interns over the next few shows. They’ll also be selecting music for the show each week and, in general, contributing their knowledge and love of music to Laughter for at least the next month, if not longer.

The last two shows, posted below, contain mostly new music from records I’ve either enjoyed a ton over the last 10 months or that I’ve ignored for no good reason. I’m starting to think about the records I’ve liked the most this year, but each time I do so something amazing comes out and reminds me that I need to be patient. The new Fuck Buttons, for instance. It completely caught me off guard considering I wasn’t much of a fan of their last album. New releases from Kurt Vile, The Dutchess and the Duke, Pink Mountaintops, No Age, and The Twilight Sad have me equally excited. Throughout November I’m going to be thinking more about all the great music 2009 has given us. This seems like a year with an unusually high number of quality releases…

I think over the next couple of weeks I’m going to devote some of the show to one record or another. I’ll play multiple songs from that record and try to give each of my favorites a little more air time. First up will likely be Nudge, but perhaps I’ll have come up with a more coherent plan by the time Monday rolls around and thus have chosen a different band.

In any case, you’ll find a ton of new music below. Write me or leave a comment if you think there’s a record I absolutely need to hear or give my attention t0, especially if you notice it missing from either of the below broadcasts.

Until next time:

DOWNLOAD 10/26 SHOW, HOUR 1

DOWNLOAD 10/26 SHOW, HOUR 2

01. The Dutchess and The Duke “Hands” from Sunset/ Sunrise (2009) on Hardly Art

02. Magnolia Electric Co “Hope Dies Last” from Josephine (2009) on Secretly Canadian

03. Pink Mountaintops “Vampire” from Outside Love (2009) on Jagjaguwar

04. Kurt Vile “Hunchback” from Childish Prodigy (2009) on Matador

05. No Age “You’re A Target” from Losing Feeling EP (2009) on Sub Pop

06. Bear in Heaven “Fake Out” from Beast Rest Forth Mouth (2009) on hometapes

07. Digital Dance “Cleaned Mind/I’m So Shy” from Treatment (2009) on LTM

08. Mohamed Abdel Wahab “Sahara City” from Eastern Standard Time (2009) on Weltraum Disk

09. Ad Frank “Last Night Mark Eitzel Saved My Life” from Mr. Fancypants (2001) on Stop, Pop, and Roll

END OF HOUR 1

10. The Octopus Project “Crying at the Aquarium” from Identification Parade (2002) on Peek-a-boo

11. Caspian “Ghosts of the Garden City” from Tertia (2009) on The Myclene Sheath

12. Six Organs of Admittance “Jade Like Wine” from Shelter from the Ash (2007) on Drag City

13. Fuck Buttons “Surf Solar” from Tarot Sport (2009) on Atp

14. Animal Hospital “Paralarva” from S/T (2005) on Mr. Records

15. Language of Light “Double Helixes Up To Heaven” from Cortez / Language of Light (2009) on Anti-Clock

16. Zomby “Expert Tuition” from One Foot Ahead Of The Other (2009) on Ramp

17. Telefon Tel Aviv “Stay Away from Being Maybe” from Immolate Yourself (2009) on BPitch Control

18. Songs : Ohia “How To Be Perfect Men” from Axxess & Ace (1999) on Secretly Canadian

19. Calexico “Letter To Bowie Knife” from Garden Ruin (2006) on Quarterstick

20. Alec K. Redfearn and the Seizures “Isle of Swine” from Exterminating Angel (2009) on Corleone

21. The Twilight Sad “I Became a Prostitute” from Forget the Night Ahead (2009) on Fat Cat

———

DOWNLOAD 10/19 SHOW, HOUR 1

DOWNLOAD 10/19 SHOW, HOUR 2

01. Michael Hurley & Pals “The Werewolf” from Armchair Boogie (1971) on Warner Brothers

02. Six Organs of Admittance “Strangled Road” from Shelter from the Ash (2007) on Drag City

03. Michael Flower “Lake of Fire” from Open Strings (2009) on Honest Jons Records

04. Oneida “10:30 at the Oasis” from Rated O (2009) on Jagjaguwar / Brah

05. Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe “Tercirkauitaamaso” from Fazo IV: La Kvalito de Speguloj (2009) on Rainbow Body Records

06. Castanets “Dance, Dance” from Texas Rose, the Thaw & the Beasts (2009) on Asthamatic Kitty Records

07. Califone “Salt” from All My Friends are Funeral Singers (2009) on Dead Oceans

08. Foetus “Sjogren’s Syndrome” from Limb (2009) on Ectopic Ents

09. Tim Friese-Greene “Untitled 3” from 10 Sketches for Piano Trio (2009) on LTM Recordings

10. Nightmares “We Were Melded Together” from Floating Above the Tracks / We Were Melded Together (2009) on Bloodlust! / Fatal Beliefs / Malsonus

END OF HOUR 1

11. Dinosaur Jr. “I Don’t Wanna Go There” from Farm (2009) on Jagjaguwar

12. Sunn O))) “Alice” from Monoliths & Dimensions (2009) on Southern Lord

13. The Black Angels “Science Killer” from Directions to See a Ghost (2008) on Light in the Attic

14. Health “Eat Flesh” from Get Color (2009) on Lovepump United

15. Dead Letters Spell Out Dead Words “This Room Seems Empty Without You” from Lost in Reflection (2009) on Killer Pimp

16. Six Organs of Admittance “Saint Cloud” from School of the Flower (2005) on Drag City

17. Lichens “Tempered Restorations (Re-edit Of HOSS007)” from Tanith (2009) on Self Released CDr

8/5 and 8/12: Relax, or Practice Meditation unto Death

Making a mix tape of good music from the 1980s is not particularly difficult. The real challenge is creating a mix that will fit on one CD and catching a significant chunk of the diversity to which those 10 years were witness. I’ve yet to put together any kind of comprehensive mix, but what you’ll find below is a sample of what I enjoy.

Someone from WZBC was caught re-handed claiming that the years 1980 to 1989 contained virtually zero good music, popular or otherwise. She admitted it was an exaggeration: there were at least a couple of good bands around back then. But I took it as a challenge. It was a good chance to see what records I had laying around from that time and what was missing from my collection that obviously needed to be in it. I was born in the 1980s. Many of my strongest memories begin right around 1986, but I wasn’t even a teenager when many of the records featured last week were first released. Still, many of my favorite records came out sometime in those ten years. Coil, Joy Division, New Order, Husker Du, Talking Heads, Tom Waits, and Talk Talk were all waiting for me, there to prove that the 1980s were so much better than the crappy new wave imitators and MTV cock rockers would have you believe. As I went through my list of essential 80s recordings, I came across a lot of music to which I’d never given much time, including records by Dinosaur Jr. and The Gun Club. I knew their names and maybe a song or two, but I had never heard Fire of Love or You’re Living All Over Me, nor had I gone back to The Perfect Prescription and heard the likes of “Come Down Easy” or “Things’ll Never Be the Same.” And while Loveless remains their undisputed masterpiece, going back to My Bloody Valentine’s Isn’t Anything reminded me that they rocked just as much as the droned, hypnotized, and gazed. I learned just as much as I thought I knew and realized that there’s still so much more about which I know exactly nothing.

So you get the idea; last week’s show was all about exploring the 80s, but from my perspective. I didn’t intend this to be a complete survey or anything ridiculous like that. It’d take more than just a few shows to cover everything worth covering. I won’t editorialize much longer, but I do want to point out all the stuff I missed or couldn’t include. It should be obvious, but maybe you were born in the 90s like my defeated challenger and really don’t know that much about the 80s. Heavy metal, punk, and especially rap are completely absent from the 5th’s show, mostly because I am unfamiliar with the music or because I wanted to avoid playing music that’d violate FCC regulations. Had I taken more time to organize it, you most certainly would’ve heard some N.W.A., Public Enemy, early Metallica, Sepultura, Life Sentence, Mekons, 45 Grave, and many others. Maybe some more mixes will show up, maybe I’ll just try and filter what went missing through various shows until the end of the year… maybe I’ll drop it in a few weeks. Who knows, but it was fun. I hope you enjoy listening to the show, posted below. It contains one new song from Dinosaur Jr. – I had intended on playing a song from You’re Living All Over Me, but forgot to bring it with me to the station. Thus the modern substitute.

I was also going to post some links to music videos this week, too, but my schedule has become busier than anticipated. Writing about Kant’s theories of space and time are currently more important. You know where to look to find them. I’ll only suggest one for you, both because it’s a great song and because the photography is beautiful. Check it out here… I’d post it right in the body of this article, but embedding has been DENIED.

In addition to the 80s extravaganza I’m posting the second hour of this week’s show. WZBC’s streams had some technical hiccups again and the first hour went missing once more. I may resort to recording my shows again for awhile until I know this issue has been resolved.

However that may resolve, this week’s show featured a lot of new music, including songs from Six Organs of Admittance, Om, Califone, Arbouretum, Micah Blue Smaldone, and Steven R. Smith, as well as more (new) music from Causa Sui and lengthy cut from Lichens, which appeared in various places throughout 2008. You can read a review of Smith’s new record below and you can count on hearing new music from Lichens next week.

I had the good fortune of seeing Om, Six Organs, and Lichens play at the ICA in Boston last night, too. I’ll post a little summary of that show in the near future, hopefully with some photographs.

Cheers!

DOWNLOAD 80s BLOW OUT HOUR 1

DOWNLOAD 80s BLOW OUT HOUR 2

01. The Stone Roses “I Wanna Be Adored” from The Stone Roses (1989) on Silvertone

02. Dinosaur Jr. “Friends” from Farm (2009) on Jagjaguwar

03. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds “The Mercy Seat” from Tender Prey (1988) on Mute

04. 23 Skidoo “Coup” from Coup (1983) on Illuminated

05. A Certain Ratio “Do the Du (Casse)” from Do the Du (1981) on Factory

06. Joy Division “Isolation” from Closer (1980) on Factory

07. Kraftwerk “Computer Love” from Computer World (1981) on Elektra

08. Orchestral Manoeuvres in The Dark “Radio Waves” from Dazzle Ships (1983) on Virgin

09. New Order “Love Vigilantes” from Lowlife (1984) on Qwest

10. The Cramps “Garbageman” from Songs the Lord Taught Us (1980) on IRS

11. Bruce Springsteen “Johnny 99” from Nebraska (1982) on Columbia

12. Pixies “River Euphrates” from Surfer Rosa (1988) on 4AD

END OF HOUR 1 / START OF HOUR 2

13. Big Black “Jordan, Minnesota” from A Rich Man’s Eight Track Tape (1987) on Touch and Go

14. The Gun Club “Ghost on the Highway” from Fire Of Love (1980) on Ruby

15. Husker Du “Books About UFOs” from New Day Rising (1984) on SST

16. Talking Heads “Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)” from Remain in Light (1980) on Sire

17. The Fall “L.A.” from This Nation’s Saving Grace (1985) on Beggars Banquet

18. Scraping Foetus off The Wheel “The Throne of Agony” from Nail (1985) on Self Immolation/Some Bizzare

19. Coil “Penetrailia” from Horse Rotorvator (1986) on Thershold House

20. This Heat “Cenotaph” from Deceit (1981) on Rough Trade

21. Mission of Burma “Trem Two” from Vs. (1982) on Ace Of Hearts

22. My Bloody Valentine “Feed Me With Your Kiss” from Isn’t Anything (1988) on Sire

23. Sonic Youth “Silver Rocket” from Daydream Nation (1988) on Blast First

24. Talk Talk “Desire” from Spirit of Eden (1988) on EMI

8/12 SHOW

DOWNLOAD HOUR 2 (THE ONLY HOUR…. again)

01. Lichens “Time and Light (Version)” from Brainwaves 2008 (2008) on Brainwashed Recordings

02. Om “Meditation is the Practice of Death” from God is Good (2009) on Drag City

03. Six Organs of Admittance “The Ballad of Charley Harper” from Luminous Night (2009) on Drag City

04. Dinosaur Jr. “Pieces” from Farm (2009) on Jagjaguwar

05. Califone “1928” from all my friends are funeral singers (2009) on Dead Oceans

06. Amadou & Mariam “Je Te Kiffe” from Welcome to Mali (2008) on Nonesuch

07. The Church “Cortez the Killer” from A Box of Birds (1999) on Thirsty Ear

END OF HOUR 1 / START OF HOUR 2

08. Causa Sui “The Open Road” from Summer Sessions Vol. 2 (2009) on Elektrohasch Schallplatten

09. The Durutti Column “Messidor” from LC (1981) on Factory

10. Steven R. Smith “The Road” from Cities (2009) on Immune Recordings

11. Palace Music “The Brute Choir” from Viva Last Blues (1995) on Palace/Drag City

12. Micah Blue Smaldone “Mortissa” from Open Strings (2009) on Honest Jons Records

13. Spacemen 3 “Come Down Easy” from The Perfect Perscription (1987) on Glass Records

14. Arbouretum “Tomorrow is a Long Time” from Song of the Pearl (2009) on Thrill Jockey — original by Bob Dylan, from Greatest Hits Volume II (1971)

15, Spiritualized “Take Your Time / Shine a Light” from Lazer Guided Melodies (1991) on Dedicated

9/28: (Could’ve Been) Acoustic Heaven

This week there were no issues with the transmitter, but for some reason the ZBC Archives failed to record the first half of my show. Hopefully you had the chance to listen live, though. Naturally, the one show that wasn’t recorded in its entirety was one of my better shows this year. The second half has a ton of great stuff, however, so all is not lost. This week’s show features new music from Magnolia Electric Co. with Centro-Matic member Will Johnson as well as new stuff from Ganglians, Burial & Four Tet, Six Organs of Admittance, and Boston’s own Glenn Jones (pictured left, at Brainwaves 2008).

Glenn might be one of Boston’s best kept secrets. He is one of the founding members of Cul de Sac and a masterful guitarist with a talent rivaled only by greats like Robbie Basho or John Fahey. He plays in a style that will be familiar to fans of either of those greats, but Glenn doesn’t exactly follow either of them. His latest, Barbecue Bob in Fishtown, was released by Strange Attractors Audio House at the beginning of September and features nine new cuts, including his first piece for 5-string banjo and an almost hallucinatory piece that’s every bit as cosmic as anything Basho produced. Anyone in love with folk, country, or modern American music will be impressed by Glenn and happy to have his work in their collection. His compositions are varied and incredibly imaginative, the artwork on all of his albums are superb, and his liner notes are always entertaining and informative.

Thankfully, Glenn has been willing to talk about his work in the past. A couple years ago Jon Whitney from Brainwashed.com recorded Glenn performing in the studio and answering questions about his 2007 album Against Which the Sea Continually Beats. Huddled up in the small WZBC studio, Glenn talked about how he writes his music, working with guys like Jack Rose, and the art of the guitar in general. It’s a great three part video interview and I highly recommend watching it. You can find that interview right here.

Also included the second hour was some stellar psych-rock from Danish band Causa Sui. Over the course of this year (and part of 2008) the band has released a series of LPs under the name Summer Sessions. Unfortunately, German label Elektrohasch sold through each of the three volumes very quickly and currently has nothing for sale. Hopefully a CD re-issue isn’t far off, but for now you can check out the rest of their catalog or try to find their music by other means. I’ll be playing more from them next week.

Sorry the second broken broadcast in a row. Hopefully this will be the last of them. Thanks for the emails you’ve been sending and for the requests.

Cheers!

DOWNLOAD HOUR 2 (the only hour….) HERE!

01. A Place to Bury Strangers “In Your Heart” from In Your Heart (2009) on Mute

02. Psychic TV “Roman P” from Hex Sex: The Singles, Pt. 1 (1994) on Cleopatra

03. Ulrich Schnauss “Clear Day” from a strangely isolated place (2003) on Domino

04. Magnolia Electric Co. “Rider. Shadow. Wolf.” from Rider. Shadow. Wolf / Josephine 7″ (2009) on Secretly Canadian

05. Man Or Astro-Man? “Principles Unknown” from Experiment Zero (1996) on Touch and Go

06. Centro-Matic “Fountains of Fire” from Distance and Clime (2001) on idol

07. Glenn Jones “Barbecue Bob in Fishtown” from Barbecue Bob in Fishtown (2009) on Strange Attractors Audio House

08. Jack Rose and The Black Twig Pickers “Soft Steel Piston” from Jack Rose and The Black Twig Pickers (2009) on VHF Records

09. Fred Gerlach “Devil’s Brew” from Imagitional Anthem Volume Two (2006) on Tompkins Square

10. Angels of Light “On the Mountain” from …Sing “Other People” (2005) on Young God

11. Susanna and Bonnie “Prince” Billy “(I’ll Love You) Forever and Ever” from For Ever and Ever / In Spite of Ourselves 7″ (2009) on Tour Only

12. Mark Lanegan “Waiting on a Train” from Scraps at Midnight (1998) on Subpop

END OF HOUR 1

13. Six Organs of Admittance “Ursa Minor” from Luminous Night (2009) on Drag City

14. Causa Sui “Red Sun in June” from Summer Sessions Vol. 1 (2008) on Elektrohasch Schallplatten

15. Richard Bishop “Canned Goods & Firearms” from Polytheistic Fragments (2007) on Drag City

16. Ganglians “Hair” from Ganglians (2009) on Woodsist

17. Miles Davis “One and One” from On the Corner (1972) on Columbia?Legacy

18. Burial & Four Tet “Moth” from Moth / Wolf Club (2009) on Text Records

19. Sam Prekop “Something” from Who’s Your New Professor (2005) on Thrill Jockey

20. Magnolia Electric Co. “Josephine (Demo Version w/ Will Johnson)” from Rider. Shadow. Wolf / Josephine 7″ (2009) on Secretly Canadian

21. Glenn Jones “Keep It A Hundred Years” from Barbecue Bob in Fishtown (2009) on Strange Attractors Audio House

22. Songs: Ohia “Darling…” from Hecla and Griper (1998) on Secretly Canadian

9/21: Well Begun is Just Half Done

Apologies for the late update. Edmund Husserl is currently taking up too much of my time and inducing fits of grammar-related rage.

I’ve posted a review below for To Kill A Petty Bourgeoisie’s latest album, Marlone, which is winning a lot of praise from a lot of different places, and rightfully so. Two songs from their new album are included in last week’s show. I’ll likely feature a third tomorrow.

I also had the chance to interview Mark McGee via email. The interview is available over at Brainwashed.com and features some discussion about musical influences, film, writing music, learning from the road, and touring with Boduf Songs, among other things. It’s a short article, but provides a window into the band’s world and what we can expect from them in the near future. Their video for “The Needle” just hit Brainwashed’s Video Podcast last week. It’s a fairly spooky montage that captures the band’s pseudo-gothic aesthetic pretty well. You can check it out by following this link and then clicking on the video podcast link. It’ll open in iTunes automatically.

A little over half way through the show WZBC’s transmitter died unexpectedly. The nature of this malfunction was finally apprehended and fixed, but it cost about 5 or so minutes worth of dead or mostly dead air. Hopefully that won’t happen again, but there’s nothing I can do about the missing music. My apologies.

Last show was almost entirely about rock ‘n’ roll, with just a few exceptions. This week’s will be a little more diverse. You can bet your mother’s fine china that Glenn Jones’ new album will be featured throughout the show as well as new music from Magnolia Electric Co., Causa Sui, and Burial with Four Tet. The possibility of some more country and folk-inspired music turning up on the show is pretty good.

Thanks for visiting. Talk to you tomorrow.

LISTEN TO HOUR 1 BY CLICKING ON THIS LINK

LISTEN TO HOUR 2 BY CLICKING ON THIS ONE

01. The Hylozoists “Bras D’or Lakes” from L’Île de Sept Villes (2009) on Outside Records

02. Charalambides “The Good Life” from Likeness (2007) on Kranky

03. Nancy Sinatra “Friday’s Child” from Boots: Nancy Sinatra’s All-Time Hits (1986) on Rhino — originally released on 7″ in 1966; written by Lee Hazlewood

04. Lungfish “Mother Made Me” from Rainbows from Atoms (1993) on Dischord

05. Husker Du “Never Talking to You Again” from Zen Arcade (1987) on SST

06. Polvo “Lucia” from In Prism (2009) on Merge Records

07. Sunny Day Real Estate “Spade and Parade” from S/t (2009) on Sub Pop — remastered: originally released in 1995 as the b-side on the “Friday” 7″

08. Einstürzende Neubauten “Was Ist Ist” from Ende Neu (2009) on Potomak — reissued; originally released in 1996 on Mute Records

09. Blackout Beach “Biloxi, In A Grove, Cleans Out His Eyes” from Skin of Evil (2009) on Soft Abuse

10. To Kill a Petty Bourgeoisie “The Needle” from Marlone (2009) on Kranky

11. Ride “Dreams Burn Down” from Nowhere (1990) on Creation

END OF HOUR 1

12. Mountains “Melodica” from Choral (2009) on Thrill Jockey

13. Jacaszek “Lament” from Treny (2008) on Gusstaff

14. Red House Painters “Medicine Bottle” from Down Colorful Hill (1992) on 4AD

15. The Oscillation “Comatone (Part One)” from Out of Phase (2007) on D.C. Recordings

16. Can “One More Night” from Ege Bamyasi (1972) on United Artists Records

17. To Kill a Petty Bourgeoisie “I Will Hang My Cape In Your Closet” from Marlone (2009) on Kranky

9/14: As Good As Great

You can probably tell from my review (posted below) that I’m very impressed with Nudge’s latest record on Kranky, As Good As Gone. It’s still running through my CD player and MP3 player and, all in all, I can now say that it is an easy contender for album of the year (Kranky has two albums on that list so far; the other is Tim Hecker’s album). An interview with Brian Foote (who you can see to the left, photographed by Greg Cristman) has popped up over at Textura. It discusses some of Nudge’s history and the imagery that has popped up on the last two albums, among other things. I’m hoping to get an interview with Mr. Foote myself, but that won’t be happening until the To Kill a Petty Bourgeoisie interview is finished and published over at Brainwashed. After many months and some delays caused by my laziness, that’ll finally be hitting the web in the next week or so.

Interviews with Jon Whitney of Killer Pimp, Brainwashed, and Blood Money, Keith Fullerton Whitman of Hrvatski and Mimaroglu Music Sales, and Howard Stelzer from Intransitive Records and numerous noise collaborations are also a possibility, though I can’t promise anything yet. I hope to conduct those as part of a Boston-related interview series for Onafriday.com; I’ll post more about that here as soon as I can.

Hopefully everyone enjoyed the show this week. Included this week is new music from Om, Cluster, and A Place To Bury Strangers. Their new album, Exploding Head, is an excellent and aggressive rock record and sounded pretty great on air, but it sounds even better coming from the CD. The difference between the original copy and MP3 copies is astounding; make sure to grab a physical release of it if when it hits the shelves. This is the rare record where the proper medium is a total difference maker.

Monday’s show is posted below for your listening enjoyment. It’ll be available for two weeks and then, like most of the other shows, disappear forever. Sorry, but there’s no good reason to upload it permanently unless people particularly like one show or another and want it uploaded again. Requests are always welcome, but so far I’ve only agreed to upload one show. And there have been numerous requests.

I will be on the air at WZBC every Monday from 10AM until noon until at least the end of this semester. Hope you tune in next week.

Cheers!

DOWNLOAD: HOUR 1

DOWNLOAD: HOUR 2

01. Nina Simone “Be My Husband” from Pastel Blues (2006) on Verve Records — originally released in 1965 on Philips Records

02. Nudge “Two Hands” from As Good As Gone (2009) on Kranky

03. Spacemen 3 “I Love You” from Recurring (1990) on Fire Records

04. The Evpatoria Report “Dar Now” from Maar (2008) on Get A Life Records

05. Dirty Three “Great Waves” from Cinder (2005) on Touch and Go

06. Brian Eno “In Dark Trees” from Another Green World (2004) on Virgin — originally released in 1975

07. Venetian Snares “Miss Balaton” from Detrimentalist (2008) on Planet Mu

08. Cluster “Isodea” from Grosses Wasser (2009) on Bureau B — originally released in 1979 on Sky Records

09. Morton Feldman “Rothko Chapel 3” from Rothko Chapel/Why Patterns? (1991) on New Albion — Rothko Chapel composed in 1971

10. Out Hud “One Life To Leave” from Let Us Never Speak of It Again (2005) on Kranky

CONCERT REPORT, END OF HOUR 1

11. Om “Thebes” from God is Good (2009) on Drag City

12. Oneida “Tennessee” from Steel Rod (2000) on Jagjaguwar

13. Olivia Tremor Control “Suite One: Memories of Jacqueline 1906, The Giant Day, Outer Themes, Green Typewriters” from John Peel Session (2000) on Self Released

14. Melvins “Bar-X-The Rocking M” from Stag (1996) on Atlantic

15. Loop “Straight To Your Heart” from Heaven’s End (1991) on Reaktor — originally released in 1987 on Head Records

16. A Place to Bury Strangers “Keep Slipping Away” from Exploding Head (2009) on Mute

17. Nudge “Burns Blue” from As Good As Gone (2009) on Kranky

9/6: Fall Preview

My final year as a student at Boston College is now underway. That means a couple of things. First, updates here are going to become far less frequent, though I know they weren’t overwhelming in the first place. I’ll talk a little bit more about that here in just a few sentences. Second, Laughter will be moving to a new day and time yet again. With the change in my school schedule comes a change in my work schedule as well as an onslaught of new students and DJs at WZBC. I’m hoping for a Tuesday morning slot, but I won’t know more until the station’s general meeting is held. Until then, assume that I will be on the air next Sunday.

School won’t be the only thing keeping me from this weblog. Former Laughter intern, Boston College student, web designer, and photographer extraordinaire Julian Furtak has asked me to work with him on a project he’s been developing over the last couple months. Onafriday.com is currently live and features Boston-specific content regarding movies, music, live shows, special events, radio, photographs and more. I’ll be writing for that website when time permits, editing its content, and generally trying to help out because I think it’s a great idea that’s good for Boston.  A lot of talented individuals are involved and I have very high expectations for the project all around. I hope I can contribute meaningful material as the site continues to grow. Please visit us there and leave a comment or email. Boston desperately needs precisely what this site plans to provide and the only way it can grow is if you spread the word.

I will still post my shows and reviews here along with interviews (still coming) and the odd comment or two, but much of my time will be devoted to On a Friday.

This week’s show should give you a good idea of what to expect from me throughout the Fall and Winter seasons. My first attempt at incorporating modern classical music into the programming was a nearly total failure, but I’m working to rectify that because I like the music so much and because so very few people play any of it on the radio. I’ll try again next show, hopefully with better results. More psychedelic and heavy rock will be featured and in general I hope to make the show more varied than it already is. That means including plenty of music not normally featured on the show, just as long as it all holds together in an enjoyable way. I don’t know enough about rap, dubstep, and a few other genres of music to include them in my show regularly, but that doesn’t mean they won’t pop up more frequently. I started Laughter because I wanted to put on the best variety show possible and I wanted to merge so-called “experimental” music with rock music in all its various forms. I hope to make that more obvious as the semester progresses.

You can download this show for the next two weeks or so, at which time it will disappear forever from the ZBC archives. The majority of the bands featured this week are so well-known that my saying any more about them would border on the pornographic. But, David Bowie’s been in my blood for the last month or so and I can’t resist putting in a couple of cents. After listening to Station to Station 10 or so times in the last few weeks I’m convinced that I simply don’t know enough about the man’s music and that my prejudices about various genres need to be eliminated. Low and Ziggy Stardust were always my go-to albums and I ignored much of his career mainly because I dismissed “glam” of any sort as pretentious, unnecessary, and largely empty ornamentation. Without thinking, I simply ignored what I hadn’t heard and assumed that his singles told me as much as I needed to know about him. It is relieving to know I’ve been more wrong about other things. Now is as good a time as ever to go back and explore his music. Lots of videos exist on Youtube and plenty of them are worth a look. The fashion still looks ridiculous to me, but the music couldn’t sound better. His blend of krautrock, R&B, rock ‘n’ roll, and pop music still sounds amazing to me and his best work is essentially unmatched by anyone also making a claim to genre-bending talents.

Hope you enjoy the show.

Cheers,
Me

DOWNLOAD: HOUR 1

DOWNLOAD: HOUR 2

01. David Bowie “Station to Station” from Station to Station (1976) on RCA

02. Neu! “Negativland” from Neu! (1972) on Brain Records/Polygram

03. Brian Eno “Baby’s on Fire” from Here Come the Warm Jets (1973) on Virgin

04. The Residents “Boots” from Meet the Residents (1974) on ralph records

05. Jandek “The Places You Left Me Part Two” from Hasselt Saturday (2009) on Corwood Industries

06. Talk Talk “Eden” from Spirit of Eden (1988) on EMI

07. Tim Hecker “Currents of Electrostasy” from An Imaginary Country (2009) on Kranky

08. Legendary Pink Dots “Dissonance” from Nemesis Online (1998) on Soleilmoon

09. Phew “Doze” from S/T (1986) on Pass Records-japan

10. The Stooges “Fun House” from Funhouse (1970) on Elektra/Asylum

11. Rävjunk “Sherry, Vermouth, Vin & Ol” from Uppsala Stadhotell Brinner (2007) on Transubstans Records — originally released in 1977

12. Comets on Fire “Pussy Foot the Duke” from Blue Cathedral (2004) on Sub Pop

13. Sun Araw “The Message” from Heavy Deeds (2009) on Not Not Fun

14. Windy & Carl “Venice” from Drawing of Sound (1996) on Icon Records

15. Low “Canada” from Trust (2004) on Kranky

16. Sonic Youth “Disconnection Notice” from Murray Street (2002) on Geffen

17. Bardo Pond “Lost Word” from Ticket Crystals (2006) on ATP

18. Wovenhand “Whistling Girl” from Mosaic (2006) on Sounds Familyre

19, David Bowie “Wild is the Wind” from Station to Station (1976) on RCA

8/9: Presque Rien

Luc Ferrari’s electronic work as part of Le Groupe de Recherches Musicales has recently been collected in a 10-CD box set released by INA called L’Œuvre Électronique. John Kealy has written an excellent review of this compilation for Brainwashed.com, which includes sound samples. I encourage you to read all of it, but this excerpt both frames Ferrari’s place in the history of music and sums up Kealy’s impressions nicely:

While this set ignores Ferrari’s compositions for traditional instruments, it is possible to get a very clear picture of his work and ideology from this one (albeit very important) aspect of his work. I do not need to stress how much of an innovator Ferrari was, even now pieces like Danses Organiques and Dialogue Ordinaire avec la Machine sound mysterious and deeply complex; to my ears most electronic musicians are still playing catch up with him. Newer pieces such as Archives Génétiquement Modifées and the poignant Les Arhythmiques (composed in 2003 following Ferrari’s hospitalization for cardiac arrhythmia, the condition that would later lead to his death) show that his creativity burned bright even into his 70s. Even posthumously, his ideas live on as Brunhild Ferrari created the anything but derivative Dérivatif following his specifications.

L’Œuvre Électronique is the most fitting monument to Ferrari’s. Bearing in mind that there are 10 CDs worth of impeccable compositions as well as a detailed book (in French and English) that features a short biography, notes by Ferrari and an interview with Brunhild; this is also an exceptionally good value too with INA/GRM keeping the price as low as possible. Hopefully, there will be a sister release of his works for traditional instruments to accompany his electronic works but for the moment there is more than enough material here to keep anyone going for a long, long time.

Anyone interested in the history of modern music will likely be served well by obtaining a copy of this set. Lots has been written about Luc Ferrari’s work, so instead of adding more words to the pile, I’ll refer you to a couple of fine resources. The Wikipedia article is okay, but written in a fairly haphazard style. It’s worth reading for an explanation of his various techniques and concepts. An interview with Ferrari conducted by Dan Warburton is available at the Paris Transatlantic website. Warburton asks him about everything from his falsified autobiographies to his impression of other modern composers, his recording techniques, and the difference between “sound art” and music. It’s an excellent read and I recommend you take the time to peruse it at some point.

Loads of Youtube videos exist, most of them lo-fi recordings of his work set to still images. Some of his acoustic music is also available on Youtube, but again the recording qualities leave a lot to be desired.

Speaking of modern music, lately I’ve been totally captivated by The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century by Alex Ross. Ross is a writer for the New Yorker and a damn good one. His book covers the history of modern music from Gustav Mahler to John Cage and beyond by weaving together the various political, social, religious, theoretical, and personal details that informed the music. His treatment of early twentieth century composers like Arnold Schoenberg, Anton Webern, and Alban Berg is excellent and insightful as it manages to both reduce these titanic intellectuals to their human foundation and acknowledge their (sometimes insane) genius. Picking up a copy will inevitably increase both your understanding of and appreciation for modern music. I’m going to go ahead and call it essential for anyone that loves music, weird sounds, noise, and abstract art in general.

Ross’ book has me considering a change in Laughter’s format, too. Now that Modern Music for Modern Men and Nouvelles Aventures are no longer aired on WZBC, there’s a serious lack of modern classical music being played at the station. If I find that I can talk reasonably about the music and play an interesting and entertaining mix of various composers, then Laughter might begin playing a feature I’m tentatively calling “Think the Note.” It will cover music from approximately 1900 until the present, but with an eye to composers who have thought seriously about what they’re writing and why. In other words, I want to cut the punk-DIY aesthetic out of the picture and focus on musicians more closely tied to classical traditions. If all goes well, I’ll be broadcasting a short sample of this feature next week.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy my little Sunday afternoon mix. The show started a little early last week, so the first fifteen minutes or so of the show are available at the END of the first link.

Cheers and happy listening.

LISTEN: HOUR .25

LISTEN: HOUR 1

LISTEN: HOUR 2

01. Silver Jews “Punks in the Beerlight” from Tanglewood Numbers (2005) on Drag City

02. Scout Niblett “Dinosaur Egg” from This Fool Can Die Now (2007) on Too Pure

03. Songs: Ohia “Peoria Lunchbox Blues” from Magnolia Electric Co. (2003) on Secretly Canadian

04. Oneida “Brownout in Lagos” from Rated O (2009) on Jagjaguwar / Brah

05. Pan Sonic “Gravity” from Kesto (234.48:4) (2004) on Mute

06. Radian “Jet” from Rec.Extern (2002) on Thrill Jockey

07. Popul Vuh “Selig Sin Die, Die Da Hungern” from Seligpreisung (2004) on SPV — originally released in 1973 on Kosmische Kuriere

08. Current 93 “Idumea (w/ Marc Almond)” from Black Ships Ate the Sky (2006) on Durtro/Jnana

09. Rome “The Secret Sons of Europe” from Flowers from Exile (2009) on Trisol

10. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds “The Hammer Song” from The Good Son (1990) on Mute

11. Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band “Pachuco Cadaver” from Trout Mask Replica (1969) on straight

12. Volcano the Bear “All the Paint I Can Breathe” from Guess the Birds (2001) on Beta-lactam Ring

13. A Place to Bury Strangers “Missing You” from A Place to Bury Strangers (2007) on Killer Pimp

14. Loop “Be Here Now” from A Gilded Eternity (1990) on Bmg

15. Nurse With Wound “The Golden Age of Telekinesis” from The Surveillance Lounge (2009) on United Dirter

16. Eyvind Kang “Mary of Magdalen” from Theater of Mineral NADEs (1998) on Tzadik

17. Luc Ferrari “Dialogue Ordinaire avec la Machine…(excerpt)” from L’Œuvre Électronique (2009) on Ina

18. Luc Ferrari “Presque Rien Avec Filles” from L’Œuvre Électronique (2009) on Ina

19. Luc Ferrari “Les Arythmiques (excerpt)” from L’Œuvre Électronique (2009) on Ina

7/26: O! Josephine

I am completely and totally addicted to Josephine. Any doubt that Jason Molina is one of the finest songwriters we have should now be completely dispelled. That title was all but bestowed upon Will Oldham by the New Yorker back in January, but the Company’s latest record is, in every way, a much finer effort than Beware and a far more adventurous record to boot. I’ve read a lot of reviews about the new album, but what I find most interesting (and annoying) are the constant references to Neil Young, Crazy Horse, and country music. Nevermind the stylistic differences between nearly every Young album and the whole of Molina’s back catalog, but Magnolia Electric Co. sound almost nothing like Crazy Horse. They’re nowhere near as heavy, tend to be far less extravagant, and in general exhibit a restraint that makes their albums feel tighter and more controlled. In addition, Molina only flirts with country music. He employs slide guitars, Dobro, and some techniques employed by country and folk singers, but his lyrical style and tendency to play with looser arrangements separates him almost completely from the country canon. I don’t pretend to be the world’s best writer, but a little more effort from writers might help keep them honest. Listen to “Knoxville Girl” and then find me a country song that sounds even a little like it. And please don’t reference a Bonnie “Prince” Billy tune because he isn’t a country singer, either. If you want to read more about Josephine, you can check out the review I posted below or check out some of the interviews that have been published in the last few weeks. This eMusic article is particularly good, as is the Drowned in Sound interview. Do yourself a favor and ignore what Pitchfork had to say about the record. In fact, a negative review from that publication is often a good sign that the record’s excellent. Just look at their track record with Kranky and you’ll see what I mean.

So, you heard more than one Magnolia Electric Co. song this week. You’ll probably hear more next time, too. In addition, I played a couple of new songs from the forthcoming Six Organs of Admittance record. I still have no idea what to say about it, but Chasny’s vocal delivery on this album has yet to settle in. Something about it simply doesn’t gel with me; it’s like the vocals and the music are incongruent with one another. The contrast isn’t exactly pleasing, at least not upon the first few listens. I don’t know; I’ll be reviewing the record as soon as I can make my mind up about it.

The heaviest, most pounding-est song I’ve heard in awhile came from Oneida this week. Their song “Ghost in the Room,” which can be found on their new triple CD release, Rated O, had me air-drumming like a maniac in the studio. Between its electronic buzzing, hallucinatory edits, and the This Heat-like locked groove that ended it, “Ghosts in the Room” was easily the most ear-catching selection of the day. I’m still trying to tackle this record: three discs worth of new music is difficult to sort through, especially when it’s being made by one of the most schizophrenic bands in existence. Reviews of the album have already made it to the internet, but short of stealing the album months ago or having the privilege of receiving an advanced copy, I have no idea how anyone could’ve wrestled with its many avenues by now. Even then, knowing how many promos writers receive on a regular basis, I highly doubt it was given enough attention. Grab the album and decide for yourself, it’s at least audacious enough to warrant your own investigation.

I’ll be back in two weeks time. I’ll keep posting reviews and will finally have an interview or two posted in the coming month. To Kill a Petty Bourgeoisie have a new record coming out, soon, and I’m lucky enough to be interviewing them. I played a cut from their new record towards the end of this show, so click on the link below if you want to hear it. I’m also working on getting an interview with Jason Molina. Both will be posted on Brainwashed and here as soon as they come together.

Thanks for listening.
Cheers!

DOWNLOAD: HOUR 1

DOWNLOAD: HOUR 2

01. Magnolia Electric Co. “The Handing Down” from Josephine (2009) on Secretly Canadian

02. Six Organs of Admittance “Anesthesia” from Luminous Night (2009) on Drag City

03. Talk Talk “The Rainbow” from Spirit of Eden (1988) on EMI

04. Steven R. Smith “Tableland” from Tableland (2001) on Emperor Jones

05. Wovenhand “Elktooth” from Mosaic (2006) on Sounds Familyre

06. Dead C “Alien to Be” from Eusa Kills (2008) on Jagjaguwar / Ba Da Bing — originally released in 1989 on Flying Nun Records

07. Oneida “Ghost in the Room” from Rated O (2009) on Jagjaguwar / Brah

08. Kid 606 “If I Had a Happy Place This Would Be It” from Kill Sound Before Sound Kills You (2003) on Ipecac

09. Subway “Simplex” from Subway II (2009) on Soul Jazz Records

10. Mountains “Map Table” from Choral (2009) on Thrill Jockey

11. To Kill a Petty Bourgeoisie “You’ve Gone Too Far” from Marlone (2009) on Kranky

12. Low “Silver Rider” from Murderer (2003) on Vinyl Films

13. Jesu “Transfigure” from Conqueror (2007) on Hydra Head

14. Michael Chapman “Leaving the Apple” from Imaginational Anthem Vol. 2 (2006) on Tompkins Square

15. Master Musicians of Bukkake “Schism Prism / Adamantios” from Totem One (2009) on Conspiracy Records

16. Magnolia Electric Co. “Map of the Falling Sky” from Josephine (2009) on Secretly Canadian

17. Six Organs of Admittance “Bar-Nasha” from Luminous Night (2009) on Drag City

18. Glenn Jones “Freedom Raga” from Against Which the Sea Continually Beats (2006) on Strange Attractors Audio House

19. Jack Rose & The Black Twig Pickers “Little Sadie” from Jack Rose & The Black Twig Pickers (2009) on Vhf Records

7/12: The Ballad of Ben Chasny

Six Organs of Admittance is the primary project of guitarist Ben Chasny. Over the course of 11 full-length records, innumerable singles, and the odd EP or two, he has created a mass of psychedelic sound that flirts with mysticism, marries acoustic drone music to hallucinatory folk balladry, and utilizes rock ‘n’ roll’s immediacy like an electric hammer. His new album, Luminous Night, is set to drop on August 17th, 2009 on Drag City. Eyvind Kang is one of a number of contributors appearing on Chasny’s latest, which has a radically different sound that I can’t fully explain yet and certainly did not expect. If you’re unfamiliar with Chasny’s work, click on some of the following videos and get familiar with his twisting, sometimes rambling recordings. He draws from American and Eastern musical sources in almost equal measure and infuses his vaguely folk-ish stylings with everything from noise and collage techniques to jazz, new age, and ambient tropes. Up until his latest, Chasny dealt almost solely in transcendent American music touched by the often psychedelic sounds of East Indian music (you can definitely hear guys like John Fahey, Sandy Bull, and Ravi Shankar in his work), but his latest is another story. Where associations with Jodorowsky and the mythical American West made sense in the past, Six Organs most recent work flirts with European classical styles and a (perhaps imagined) imperial stateliness. I’ll be playing a song or two from Luminous Night on my next show…

It’s worth mentioning that Chasny has a string of east coast tour dates listed on his website right now. He’ll hit New York on October the 11th and the end up in Boston on the 12th before heading back down the coast into North Carolina and Georgia. Adding joy to excitement is the fact that Chasny is touring with both Om and Lichens. I’m sure many of you know who Om is, but Lichens deserves more of your attention. AKA Robert Lowe, Lichens was one of my top 3 favorite performers at the Brainwaves festival last year (and that festival had more astonishing performances than you could shake a stick at). I posted a video of him performing in Paris some time ago that received a lot of positive response, so I’ll post it again for all of you to enjoy. Make sure you sit through the whole thing; at some point it appears as though Lowe is possessed and attempting to exorcise a demon for the enjoyment of the audience. Needless to say, if you attend any of these shows there is a slight chance that your soul will float out through the top of your head and ascend into various spiritual realms, the existence of which you have likely doubted in the past.

If you’re looking for a good place to start with Six Organs, check out the 3xLP/2xCD comp released this year called RTZ. It collects a lot of hard-to-find material and comes with some superb artwork by collage artist Steve Quenell (featured in this post).

Six Organs videos:

“Sum of All Heaven / Black Needle Rhymes” (live) from Six Organs of Admittance (1998) and Dust & Chimes (1999)
“Redefinition Of Being (Featuring Creation Aspects Fire, Air, Water)” (live) from Nightly Trembling (2000)
“Elk River” (live) from For Octavio Paz (2004)
“Eighth Cognition / All You’ve Left” from School of the Flower (2005)
“Words for Two” (live) from School of the Flower (2005)
“The Desert Is a Circle” from The Sun Awakens (2006)
“Alone with the Alone” from Shelter from the Ash (2007)
“Shelter from the Ash” from Shelter from the Ash (2007)
and… a random jam with Richard Bishop of Sun City Girls and many other things. Not sure what this is…

Lichens live at Miroiterie, Paris (wait until night and turn out the lights for this one).

Thanks for listening. I’ll be back on the air on the 26th. Hope you’ll tune in.

LISTEN: Laughter, 6/12, HOUR ONE

LISTEN: Laughter, 6/12, HOUR TWO

01. Sonic Youth “Anti-Orgasm” from The Eternal (2009) on Matador

02. Iggy and The Stooges “Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell” from Raw Power (1973) on Columbia

03. Wavves “California Goths” from Wavves (2009) on Fat Possum

04. Orchestral Manoeuvres in The Dark “Bunker Soldiers” from Peel Sessions 79-83 (2000) on Virgin

05. Black Moth Super Rainbow “Iron Lemonade” from Eating Us (2009) on Graveface

06. Moloko “Mother” from Things to Make and Do (2000) on Echo

07. Big Black “Passing Complexion” from A Rich Man’s Eight Track Tape (1987) on Touch and Go

08. Angels of Light “New City in the Future” from How I Loved You (2001) on Young God

09. Six Organs of Admittance “A Thousand Birds” from Dark Noontide (2004) on Holy Mountain

10. Luna “Bonnie and Clyde” from Live (2001) on Arena Rock

11. Polvo “Snake Fist Fighter” from S/T (1995) on Jesus Christ

12. Robert Hampson “Ahead – Only the Stars” from Vectors (2009) on Touch

13. Dead Letters Spell out Dead Words “Lost & Losing” from Lost in Reflection (2009) on Killer Pimp

14. The Residents “Silver, Sharp And Could Not Care” from God in Three Persons (1988) on Rykodisc

15. I Heart Lung “Interoceans III (Undercurrent)” from Interoceans (2008) on Asthmatic Kitty Records

16. Tim Friese-Greene “01” from 10 Sketches for Piano Trio (2009) on LTM

17. Rafael Anton Irisarri “Watching as She Reels” from Hopes and Past Desires (2009) on Immune

18. Jim Haynes “:::” from Sever (2009) on Intransitive

19. Xela “Gilted Rose” from The Illuminated (2009) on Dekorder