Christmas Show 2014 - 12/12/14

It's Christmastime, and there's no need to be afraid. At Christmastime, we let in light and we banish shade. Those lyrics sang by Band Aid some 30 years ago and then by some new version of it now have never been more true nor ridiculous. Thus, I didn't play that song during tonight's episode but I did include other festive tracks by some punk, post punk, new wave, ska, oi, indie, and alternative bands who did seem to know it was Christmas.

Just in case you didn't know, click on the link below and consider yourself Merry Christmas wished by me:

Christmas Show 2014

And now consider yourself playlist'd too:

1. Merry Something to You - Devo
2. Things Fall Apart - Cristina
3. Santa Claus is Coming to Town - The Revillos
4. We Wish You A Merry Christmas - Husker Du
5. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing - Bad Religion
6. White Christmas - Iggy Pop
7. Il Est Ne, Le Divin Enfant - Siouxsie and the Banshees
8. Stop the Cavalry - Jona Lewie
9. Christmas Was Better in the 80s - The Futureheads
10. Got Something For You - Best Coast and Wavves
11. Merry Christmas, Baby (Please Don't Die) - Dum Dum Girls and Crocodiles
12. Christmas Treat - Julian Casablancas
13. Silent Night - The Only Ones
14. Just To Be With You (This Christmas) - Nick Lowe
15. We Three Kings - Book of Love
16. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Erasure
17. It's Christmas Time Again - Bad Manners
18. Skank 'Til Christmas - The Selector
19. Santa Claus is Ska-Ing To Town - Granville Williams
20. Merry Christmas Everybody - The 4 Skins
21. Bollocks to Christmas - The Business
22. I'm Getting Pissed For Christmas - Peter and the Test Tube Babies
23. Stuff the Turkey - Alien Sex Fiend
24. Sleigh Ride - Helena Noguerra
25. Frosty the Snowman - Cocteau Twins
26. December Will Be Magic Again - Kate Bush
27. Santa Claus is Coming to Town - X
28. Blue Christmas - The Pretenders
29. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - The Smithereens
30. Deck the Halls - REM
31. Hot Club of Christ - Aztec Camera
32. 'Twas the Night Before Christmas - Rollins Band
33. Step Into Christmas - The Wedding Present

The Lost Bands of Post Punk: Volume 3 - 11/28/14

Happy day after Thanksgiving, otherwise known as Black Friday, otherwise known as the day of my third episodic installment dedicated completely to some of the lesser known or lost bands of punk, post punk, new wave, blah blah blah. Bands who didn't quite make it, even in our niche genre, but were sometimes pretty good and certainly worth remembering.

You can choose to remember them quietly to yourself right now or download the podcast episode below. You can also buy a big screen TV really cheap right now.

Lost Bands of Post Punk - Volume 3

The Screamers - 122 Hours of Fear
The Units - Warm, Moving Bodies
Nervous Gender - Cardinal Newman
The Modernettes - Barbra
Dirty Looks - 12 O'Clock High
Fingerprintz - Houdini Love
The Krinkles - So Many Girls
The Wipers - Can This Be?
Red Guitars - Marimba Jive
Fabulous Poodles - B Movies
Airkraft - Move in Rhythm
Nine Below Zero - 11 Plus 11
Rip, Rig, and Panic - You're My Kind of Climate
Amazulu - Midnight Romance
Talk Back - Rudy
The Rave-Ups - Rave Up/Shut Up
Intaferon - Baby Pain
Mi-Sex - Where Do They Go
SSQ - Playback
Dramatis - Pomp and Stompandstomp
Futurisk - Army Now
Urban Verbs - Subways
Subway Sect - Parallel Lines

Thanksgiving Show - Thankful For Compilation Albums - 11/14/14

This Thanksgiving, I have decided to be officially be musically thankful for compilation albums. Ones featuring tracks from various artists in the fabulous genres of punk, post punk, new wave, ska, goth and anything-in-between. Played all songs from these such albums that not only do I love but really changed my life.

Maybe they will change your life too? Hopefully for the better? Or maybe they already have. Or maybe, just maybe, the link to download and listen to the show is below:

Thankful For Compilations Show


I won't say that maybe the playlist is below but I will say that "perhaps" such a list of songs and the albums they came from that I played on the show is downward from this text:

Underpass - John Foxx - Street Level: 20 New Wave Hits
Sweetheart Contract - Magazine - Street Level: 20 New Wave Hits
Ain't This the Life - Oingo Boingo - Urgh! A Music War
Back in Flesh - Wall of Voodoo - Urgh! A Music War
A.N.T.S. - Adam and the Ants - Flexipop
Metro MRX - Soft Cell - Flexipop
Baby, Sign Here With Me - Henry Badowski - IRS Greatest Hits, Volumes 2 & 3
Sodium Pentothol Negative - Fashion - IRS Greatest Hits, Volumes 2 & 3
My Face - Henry Badowski - IRS Greatest Hits, Volume 1
Almost - OMD - Martin
Repo Man - Iggy Pop - Repo Man Soundtrack
Inner London Violence - Bad Manners - Dance Craze Soundtrack
Love My Way - Psychedelic Furs - Valley Girl "Soundtrack"
Angst In My Pants - Sparks - Valley Girl "Soundtrack"
Sex Beat - Sex Beat - Young Limbs and Numb Hymns
Lude Boy - Social Distortion - Hell Comes to Your House
Moles - B-Movie - The Some Bizarre Album
Social Fools - Devo - Troublemakers
Julia's Song - The Id - Street to Street: A Liverpool Album
You're Without Sound - Clock DVA - Hicks From the Sticks
Being Boiled - Human League - Fast Product: Mutant Pop 78/79
Kill the Poor - Dead Kennedys - Punk and Disorderly
Pay to Cum - Bad Brains - Let Them Eat Jellybeans
We're Desperate - X - The Decline of Western Civilization
Therese - The Bodines - NME C-86

Dia de los Muertos Show 2014 - Ramones R.I.P. - 11/1/14

In a year where the last of the original 4 Ramones, Tommy, passed away, I thought it would be nice to celebrate the accomplishments of one of the great bands of all time - punk, post punk, rock and roll, or otherwise. And it was nice. Like I say in the podcast, it can be easy to take someone like the Ramones for granted. Their image, their music, their whole overall zeitgeist is so embedded into our culture that some of us, me at least, often almost forget just how great and influential they really were. So playing and talking about the songs that span their entire, impressive career kind of gave me a slightly new perspective on things and I hope it does for you too. Provided you listen to the show by clicking on the link below, of course. Otherwise, to hell with your perspective!

Ramones R.I.P.

Spooooky Show 2014 - The History of Spooky Music - 10/22/14

This year I decided to take a trip back to the past (as opposed to the future) in an effort to chronicle some of the history of spooooky music and its effect on post punk. Then I went forward in time (but still in the past) to the post punk era, followed by the subgenres it spawned like goth and horror punk, leading into dark electro for a minute, then leading into the more modern retro (ironic?) sound, which sometimes brings back some of post punk's spooookier qualities. Then I don't know what happens.

There were plenty of things I wasn't able to get to but if you're looking for a crash course in the evolution of darker, spookier music, this could be your Hindenburg. Click on the link below to listen and/or download:

SPOOOOKY SHOW 2014 - THE HISTORY OF SPOOKY MUSIC AND POST PUNK

Weird Songs of Post Punk - 10/9/14

Did you know it's also National Weird Song Day? Well, it actually isn't but I believe it is Independence Day for the nation of Uganda and that's pretty much the same thing. Therefore, I have decided to celebrate by playing what I consider to be some of the weirder tracks of post punk.

But not necessarily weird as in weird-in-general, more like weird as it relates to each band. Things like the Police suddenly breaking from song to read a poem about a blow-up sex doll, Gary Numan performing a jingle for 7-Up, Morrissey sounding downright happy, the Thompson Twins sounding downright punky, and Xymox hopelessly adrift a sea of early 90s ecstasy.

If you're feel like getting weird or are just really fired up about Ugandan independence, click on the link below to hear what I'm talking about:

Weird Songs of Post Punk

One Hit Wonders of Post Punk - 9/25/14

Did you know it's National One Hit Wonder Day? Of course not, what kind of crazy person just walks around with information like that? But technically, it really is such a day and I thought I would celebrate by doing a show dedicated to the one hit wonders of post punk.

While maybe to the uninitiated, groups like Soft Cell, Big Country, Wall of Voodoo, Gary Numan, and even Devo could be considered one-hit wonders but of course, if you listen to the podcast or just any of those bands, you probably know otherwise. This episode focused on the true one-hit wonders within our genre. People who really only gave us one signature track by which to remember them by. Whether it be a technical hit or just well-known classic amongst us fans. Of course this all certainly falls into subjective territory too but hopefully, you can trust my judgment here. If not though, you’ll probably still like the music.

To find out for certain, simply click on this link and either download the podcast or just play it right off the website:

One Hit Wonders of Post Punk

Martin Rushent - Legendary Post Punk Producer - 9/12/14

He's best known as the producer who helped resurrect the Human League for the landmark Dare album but Martin Rushent is also the man behind The Stranglers, Buzzcocks, Altered Images, and other post punk groups looking for a big, more accessible record, all without compromising their artistic integrity.

Martin is easily one of the Top 3 most important producers in our genre and tonight my show was dedicated entirely to his work. Click on the link below to dedicate your ears entirely to my show dedicated entirely to his work:


Martin Rushent Show

Scotland in the 1980s (and I suppose, the late 70s as well) - 8/29/14

I said it before on this show in general, several times during this particular episode, on blogs, in conversations, under my breath, internal monologues, etc. and I'm going to say it again right now - Scotland is a relatively small country which has produced a relatively large amount of important post punk and alternative music, especially during the decade that we like to call the 1980s.

There were heavyweights (Simple Minds, Big Country, Cocteau Twins, Jesus and Mary Chain), up-and-comers who would go onto making their biggest splash in the next decade (Primal Scream, Soup Dragons, Del Amitri), cultish bands who were highly influential (Orange Juice, Josef K, Vaselines, Aztec Camera), and even plenty of other great groups who never quite made it but maybe should have (The Headboys, Zones, The Jolt) and more!

I could have gone on and on but for brevity's sake, I kept the episode just under 2 hours. I also recorded all my commentary in stopped traffic so please excuse the open air sound. To try and cover this up, I added some accompanying background bagpipe music to these segments. There's another great musical contributions we can thank Scotland for:  Bagpipes. Does anyone else play bagpipes? Who cares? Because no one else plays bagpipes like the Scots and very few nations play post punk like they do either.

Click on the link below to hear the show. Had to put this one in AIF format (don't ask) but it should play online or in iTunes if you download it:


SCOTLAND IN THE 1980s

Post Punk Goes Surfing - 8/15/14

After a long winter's nap, this podcast has re-emerged, just in time for summer to be over. And what better way to say goodbye to summer than with an episode dedicated entirely to the effect of surf music on punk, post punk, new wave, etc.? According to all my books on saying goodbye to summer, nothing.

It should come as no surprise that Blondie, the Ramones, and the Cramps - bands with such a heavy early 60s influence already - might incorporate some of the classic surf sound into their music but what about people like the Love & Rockets, Sisters of Mercy, and 45 Grave? Only one way to find out, just click on the link below and listen to my show. Well, there are actually plenty of ways to find out but I still recommend listening to the show:

Surf Influence on Post Punk