Friday, November 26th, 2008 ... 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. ... KZSU, 90.1 FM

Sub for DJ Sonnika's Sonic Bubble show, which features upbeat music of all styles -- lots of modern pop and some electronica-laced songs, but she also dips the ladle into the World library and old '70s "classic" bubblegum (Styx got a spin once, for instance). I don't think I kept to the same upbeat vibe that Sonnika usually maintains, which was disappointing, but it was fun using her old playlists to piece together a sort of second-rate Sonic Bubble.

Format:
ARTIST -- "TRACK TITLE" -- ALBUM TITLE (LABEL, YEAR)
Horizontal lines denote microphone breaks.

* Mon Cousin Belge -- "Washed Up" -- Quelle Horreur (World Famous in San Francisco, 2008)

Client -- "Rock and Roll Machine" -- Client (Toast Hawaii, 2003)

Electropop with a calm hand and detatched, no-wave-like vocals. I love that the song is called "Rock and Roll Machine" and does actually use that phrase.

* The Junior Panthers -- "Derelicts and Sirens" -- Sirens (self-released, 2008)

Indie pop with driven guitars and sensitive-guy rock vocals. It almost sounds like a British group, but they're local. It's aggressive stuff but includes some jangly interludes and touches of jazzy chords done up in choppy strumming, showing a little post-rock influence. It's a nice mix.

Kaki King -- "Sad American" -- Dreaming of Revenge (Velour, 2008)

* Wounded Lion -- "Carol Cloud" -- [7" single] (S-S, 2008)

* Khaled -- "Wahrane, Wahrane" -- V/A: Desert Blues 3 (Network Medien, 2008)

From a compilation of artists doing blues-related music, sometimes with guitars, sometimes with exotic (i.e. non-American) "world-music" instruments like kora or oud. Flamenco guitar, flute, and the Kronos Quartet all make appearances.

* Bitcrush -- "No Bridge No Water" -- Shimmer and Fade (N5, 2008; orig. released 2005)

* Erich Von Kneip -- "Lovely Secrets" -- (Bitemark, 2007)

Previously noted here.

Super Collider -- "Darn (Cold Way o' Lovin') -- Head On (Loaded, 1999)

A dose of funky fun.

*! Andres Subercaseaux -- "Here" -- Aqui (Triple Down, 2008)

Previously noted here.

Kids on TV -- "Break Dance Hunx" (Market Value Mix) -- Girlmonster (Chicks on Speed Records, 2006)

Tippy Canoe and the Paddlemen -- "Mass Transmissions" -- Parasols and Pekingese (Late Bloomers, 2008)

Previously noted here.

-- 3:00 p.m. --

The Kirby Grips -- "Split Corner" -- The Cherry Stem Concertos (Sympathy for the Record Industry, 2000)

Previously noted here, alongside Tippy Canoe.

* The Asylum Street Spankers -- "Monkey Rag" -- What? And Give Up Show Biz? (Yellow Dog, 2008)

If ever a band deserved a live two-CD set, it's these guys. Big fun with old-timey jazz, indie rock attitude, and lots of swearing.

Queen -- "Dead on Time" -- Jazz (Elektra, 1978)

Fast-patter, glam-rocking Brian May composition, one of the few Queen songs I still honestly like (as opposed to enjoying them out of nostalgia). One of the first decisions I made when signing up for this sub slot was to play this followed by ...

Weasel Walter -- "Bohemian Rhapsody" -- V/A: Dynamite with a Laser Beam (Three One G, 2001)

A compilation of Queen covers done mostly by metal bands or just plain loud bands. Weasel Walter, head of the Flying Luttenbachers, would count there, but his take on B.R. focuses less on loud guitar assaults and more on the vocals, overdubbed by Walter himself, for a pretty cool DIY effect. You get some chuckles out of it at first, just contrasting Walter's voice and his use of (gasp) low notes versus Queen's power-chorus approach. As the track winds on, you realize he's going to perform the entire song and took it pretty darn seriously. It's impressive and fun.

* Andy Tisdall -- "You Are Inside Out" -- I Want Your Brain (self-released, 2008)

Quirky pop/rock. Tisdall's got an unusual voice, kind of snide, and I like it.

Electric Light Orchestra -- "Caught in a Trap" -- Calling America (CBS, 1986)

B-side to "Calling America," ELO's last-gasp single in the mid-'80s. I stumbled onto the single while looking for something else in our 7" collection and figured -- heck, I'm playing Queen, I'll at least give this a try. This song is a disco relic, and it wouldn't surprise me if it were a leftover from some previous album. (Also wouldn't surprise me if it were from the Calling America album, I suppose.) In any event, it was decent enough to toss into the mix, not good enough to play again, and not half as annoying as "Calling America."

Graham Parker -- "Total Eclipse of the Moon" -- Don't Tell Columbus (Bloodshot, 2007)

From the '90s onward, Parker has eschewed his new wave image, although those tones do creep up on albums here and there. (As noted here.) Mostly, though, he favors country and folk musics, often with rockabilly backing. The results of that latter camp have been a mix, to my ears. Struck by Lightning is a classic, easily my favorite Parker album. 12 Haunted Episodes, for all its heartfelt country melancholy, bored me.

Don't Tell Columbus is a return to form. Sharp songs, wordy lyrics (although with touches of the forced rhymes that always relegated Parker to the shelf below Elvis Costello). "Total Eclipse" is a breezy rocker; "Ambiguous" is a near-parody trailer-park twanger. Some of the old Parker comes out on "England's Latest Clown," a charmingly snide little tune that could have fit on The Mona Lisa's Sister. The single, "I Discovered America," is an irresistable folk-rocker with a strong beat. I'm still partial to Struck by Lightning, but in the long run, I think it's going to get a serious challenge from this one.

* I Heart Hiroshima -- "Teef" -- Tuff Teef (Valve, 2007)

* The Hykkers -- "I Want a Break Thru'" -- Nigeria Special: Modern Highlife, Afro-Sounds, and Nigerian Blues, 1970-6 (Soundway, 2007; orig released 1972)

Sonnika has been playing this disk quite a bit, so I figured I'd check it out. Very nice stuff, bluesy and soulful, with an early Afropop touch of course.

* Religious Knives -- "Downstairs" -- The Door (Ecstatic Peace!, 2008)

David Byrne -- "Tree (Today Is an Important Occasion)" -- The Knee Plays (Nonesuch, 2007; orig. released 1985)

Previously noted here.

Three Piece Combo -- "Paperwork" -- Three Piece Combo (Feast or Famine, 2005)

Previously noted here.

Dealership -- "TV Heart" -- TV Highway to the Stars (Keiki, 2001)

Fantastic local pop trio that puts out an album every few years. High-energy bouncing stuff, driven by guitars, some synth, and manic drums. The Web site hints of another album to come someday. Let's hope!

-- 4:00 p.m. --

Shimmer Kids Underpop Association -- "Mythology" -- The Book of Mirrors (Underpop, 2003)

From Georgia, irresistable and bouncy pop music.

Brakesbrakesbrakes -- "On Your Side" -- The Beatific Visions (Rough Trade, 2007)

Previously noted here.

Guided by Voices -- "Chasing Heather Crazy" -- Isolation Drills (TVT, 2001)

Part of GbV's short attempt at working with a bigger label and more polished production, Isolation Drills was a pretty good album, not as disdained by the GbV cognoscenti as Do the Collapse was, and it included three or four singles that, musically, should have been big airplay magnest for mainstream radio. I wonder, though, if Pollard's left-field lyrics make some would-be fans shy away from tracks like "Glad Girls" and "Skills Like This." I've also got one friend who was turned off by the shortness of the songs; most pop audiences are accustomed to the repeated verses and other padding that stretches a verse-chorus pair into a full four minutes. It's the world's loss; GbV rules.

* Silian Rail -- "Quaking Grass" -- And I To You, To Pieces (Thread, 2008)

* Chumbawamba -- "Refugee" -- The Boy Bands Have Won (PM/Trade Root, 2008)

Previously noted here.

Freezepop -- "Tennis Boyfriend" -- V/A: Know Your Enemy (Archenemy, 2000)

Splatter 3 + N -- "Butter Churner (3/4/5)" -- Clear the Club (Rastascan, 2007)

Previously noted here.

* Holly Golightly and the Brokeoffs -- "Burn Your Fun" -- Dirt Don't Hurt (Transdreamer, 2008)

* Alice Cohen -- "Rings of Saturn" -- Sky Flowers (Crinoline, 2008)

Danceable pop with '80s synths but also tasteful indie rock guitars and real drums. Cohen puts forth a BIG sound, creating catchy and highly marketable melodies with a strong, soaring feel -- you can just visualize the crane-shot video to go with tracks like "Galaxy" or "Sandstorm." It's heavyhanded but quite likeable. This album probably would have annoyed me in 1986, when the world was oversaturated in synths, but it's sounding surprisingly fresh in 2008. (I should stress that it's not a rerelease.)

* Forro in the Dark -- "Nonsensical" -- V/A: Nublu Sound (Nublu, 2008)

St. Vincent -- "Now Now" -- Marry Me (Beggars Banquet, 2007)

Previously noted here.

The Old Haunts -- "Death on the Sickbed" -- Fuel on Fire (Kill Rock Stars, 2006)

* Artifact Shore -- "Stupid Coma" -- Fun Is Near (Interference Shift, 2008)

Hour of the Shipwreck -- "The Chandelier Suite" -- The Hour Is Upon Us (self-released, 2008)

Noted

here.

* = Item in KZSU rotation
? = Item not in KZSU library

-- Go back to Memory Select playlists.
-- Bay Area free/improv music calendar: http://www.bayimproviser.com.