Night Flight To Venus.

R.I.P. Bobby Farrell of Boney M.

See you next year.

With New Years right around the corner I have got a ton of work to do and a tiny amount of time to do it in. If you live in southern California please come and say hello to us at the Whistle Stop. Dimitri and I will be on the decks all night and it should be a ton of fun. It's also only five bucks because we don't believe in gouging people just because it's New Years. Will be back on Sunday at the latest. Will have the best of list up then. Stay safe, have fun, and hope to see those of you that can make it out.

Bath House Disco #2

Man this is another uber gay disco anthem. Has that perfect mix of rock and italo disco for fist pumping on the dance floor. This is the Dimitri from Paris edit.
http://www.mediafire.com/?vi2c5rk5djylr

Bath House Disco.

Instead of a full album I have one simple jam for you today. The light, fun, and somewhat dubby "Party Boys" by Foxy. This song just does it for me. A perfect dance floor party jam. This is the better Disconet remix version.http://www.mediafire.com/?ckgdwf47fjllf

Pagan Day.

Originally released on December 23rd of 1984 on the dreaded format of picture disc. Then released in 1986 on not dreaded black vinyl due to demand. The Cleopatra cd re-release wrongly states that this was issued on Christmas day of 1986 but either way the message is clear. This is by far one of my favorite Psychic TV records of all time. Thin four track psychedelia spun through the dark web of Genisis and Alex Fergusson. Merry Pagan Day.http://www.mediafire.com/?co3azfue457ei

Sinner.

Man. Fucking Christmas. I know I know, it's reaaaallllly fucking easy to hate on it and everything but my circuits are now definitely on the fritz. After running around like my asshole was on fire all day today, I came home and popped this on. Within two minutes of opening track "Song of a Sinner" I knew I would make it another eight hours until I have a hefty scotch night cap. Just listen to this and try and mellow out. http://www.mediafire.com/?g7t5d99x4icd7

Peel Slit.

Probably the greatest female punk band ever. Founding member Ari Up died in October. Her remarkable impact on music can be felt worldwide. Long live the legacy of the Slits!http://www.mediafire.com/?dwwl99s7066fs

Flying.

Here's a request post from our good friend Gomez and a damn good one too. UFO's "2 Flying" is a galactic meteor on fire heading straight for your planet. That is of course only if you are willing to receive messages from the stars and if your not good luck with your Earthly pleasures. You know those great sci-fi movies from the sixties where all "alien" woman wear gogo boots and silver mini-dresses? That's what I'm looking for. A future that is essentially 1967.http://www.mediafire.com/?egqbla39weezw

Have love...

The Headcoatees where a backing band for Billy Childish that soon became their own band and it's a good thing because they are fucking amazing. Girls singing about stupid guys, doing stupid shit, and all around debauchery. Sort of like being stuck in the middle of a pillow fight with a bunch of very beautiful woman only to find out that they are REALLY thirsty for blood and your the dumb ass that agreed to the pillow fight in the first place so man up and take the ass beating. I'm drunk. Goodnight!http://www.mediafire.com/?u5gfl4rn5wipb

"I love you big dummy."

The legendary artist, musician, composer, and all around hi jinx master Don Van Vliet has died at the age of 69. His work with Captain Beefheart is something that hit me like a ton of bricks when I finally sat down to give it a chance. Don't let the beardy record store types lead you astray either. While "Trout Mask Replica" is a great album, it is far from my favorite. I have posted "Mirror Man" as it was the first I bought and I specifically remember playing "Candy Corn" for at least a solid year every couple weeks when I would dj. Fantastic and hypnotic in every which way. Long live Beefheart!http://www.mediafire.com/?6h34x6pozs110

Scars.

Really great jangly pop from Scars. This was the only full length they ever released and is by far their greatest effort. Sort of reminds me of a head on collision of Echo and the Bunnymen and The Go-Betweens which is really nice. http://www.mediafire.com/?8k6p68qrpy4xv

Mr. Destroyer.

Yet another Ohio rocker here. Poobah's 1972 album "Let Me In", deserves a much higher number in the pantheon of great rock records. The album perfectly balances the blistering acid-fuzz with a nice mixture of tempos and moods. Some slightly flying off the rails and others maintaining there working class roots. Either way it's a fucking doozy. This has recently gotten the reissue treatment and now has twelve bonus tracks too and unlike many other reissues they are in fact bonus tracks and not just "What can we add to this to make it seem cooler and longer than it really needs to be". Put this on after you get back from that holiday party that you don't want to go to but have to. http://www.mediafire.com/?ean029n00c83d

Colourless Dream.

Second single from great post punk band Sad Lovers & Giants. Every time I throw this on it just sounds perfect. Familiar but you still can't place your thumb completely over it either. Two stellar tracks of the highest quality.http://www.mediafire.com/?wuz5jsta9zran

Radiation Masterbation.

Maybe because I'm starting to realize I'm getting older that I constantly feel the need to put on a Killed By Death comp. Having grown up proper, that is to say I was punk, I still identify with these sounds and simplistic youthful idealism put to wax. Most of all the Killed By Death comps are fucking stellar too. If your like me and don't have the cash to shell out three to five hundred dollars for a very illusive 45 then just get these. You can still have some left over scratch to go and get model glue and paper bags too.http://www.mediafire.com/?7y7gy03ytsv32

Arrrrrrrrd Stuffffffffffffff.

Get in the fucking saddle and hold on to those fucking reigns chief. You are in for a hard ride man. Driving the steel horse is Hard Stuff, a criminally under-rated power trio of monster crunch rock. Two of the members where in Atomic Rooster so this is a no brainer which is good cause it's about to get even more refried. Avoid their second album "Bolex Dementia" at all costs. Keep yourself "Bulletproof" and all will be chicken soup.http://www.mediafire.com/?c9quuug78g17o

Against perfection.

Here it is! The last shoegaze post and I have to say I'm kind of happy about it ending. Have been getting a little anxious to do something else. So to end it off I have chosen an album that came at the tail end of the shoegaze heyday. Adorable's "Against Perfection" was released in 93 around the time everything was changing and Britpop was on the verge of becoming a house hold name worldwide. Super ego superstars Oasis came along and... well, this fell by the wayside rather quickly. It's also interesting to hear a shoegaze album that is on the verge of a giant change as well. The vocals are noticeably more up front and the guitars are sounding a bit more ready for the fields of Glastonbury. Still an excellent album that was of course released by Creation.http://www.mediafire.com/?w2h4hb3z114zk

White Punks Spin Dope!

New Years Eve Damage!

Lazy day.

This one managed to go unheard by me for a long time. Never gave this band a listen and when I finally did hear this album was kind of shocked by it. A good solid shoegaze album. Guess it makes total sense that this album came out on Creation Records in 1992. Alan Mcgee seemed to have cornered the marketplace on the shoegaze sound. While Creation is celebrated for acts like My Bloody Valentine, an early Oasis, and Slowdive, I often find really great albums on the label that seem unnoticed State side. This is just one such album. This would also be why I have adopted the rule that if I happen to come across a strange record on Creation that I have never heard of it will undoubtedly go in the "yes" pile.http://www.mediafire.com/?k99ejd6332fco

Taste.

The Telescopes debut release "Taste" has a more razor sharp violent edge to it than most other shoegaze albums of the era. Using the template that "Psycho Candy" laid out is not a bad thing either. Spot on perfection. Not all shoegaze is sad and slow and this is just what is needed on a Friday night.http://www.mediafire.com/?unx32at51v207

Home taping is reinventing music.

While this album does have it's cult status amongst many people, I'm not sure if the beardy shoegaze squad fully accepted this into their ranks. The reason that it's here today should seem obvious. They need not only accept it but realize that this may very well be the greatest shoegaze act since My Bloody Valentine. True experimental sounds and a die hard lo-fi mentality make Flying Saucer Attacks debut self titled album one of the crown jewels of the genre. Most of these songs where recorded on a home stereo system by core members David Pearce and Rachel Brook. The layers of feedback only help to push the melodic drive of the songs. A cover of Suede's "The Drowners" is top notch too. Not an easy band to cover and they seem to easily create a lasting version that is entirely their own. Easily the best bedroom psych-shoegaze album of the 90's. Get abducted.http://www.mediafire.com/?spd71yvfmxci8

Black Car.

Here's another band that was completely overlooked during their brief existence. Maryland's Black Tambourine where around for about three years before throwing the towel in. They released two singles the first being "By Tomorrow" and the second "Throw Aggi Off The Bridge". A couple of comp tracks and then poof! Gone. It's a good thing Mike Schulman (who was also a member of the band) started Slumberland Records and has released the complete recordings. Makes things a whole lot easier instead of tracking down these ultra rare and now highly coveted pieces black plastic.http://www.mediafire.com/?dkluwl86236wo

Wild youthful days.

So noticed the All Natural Lemon Lime flavor link was not working properly and fixed it. Sorry for the trouble there. Onto today's offering which sits nicely against A.N.L.L.F. The Swirlies second album from 1995 shows a great band creating shoegaze songs that are heavy on the sonic level but also playful to the listeners ear. A nice cohesive album that is by far their best. http://www.mediafire.com/?vvu89tn3k3v88

Ah flavor.

We are aware that the last post is missing a song. Hard at work to try and fix this asap. The missing song is "Sweetart". Anyone that can provide any help with that particular song wins something. I have had zero luck finding it thus far. To continue the shoegaze theme though here is All Natural Lemon Lime Flavor's second full length "Turning Into Small". This was a major secret weapon record for me as I knew tons of people obsessed with My Bloody Valentine. I would casually pop this on and watch their brain slowly explode with excitement. Sort has a nice balance of the shoegaze with a little hint of 50 Foot Hose type experiment drone psych. Either way a great record that has definitely been way overlooked.http://www.mediafire.com/?zjk01jjczszsd

Hard Candy.

Going to run with a theme for a bit here. The theme is underrated shoegaze records. First up is Astrobrite's stunning ep "Candy" from 2001. As the title implies the songs have a candy theme running. Astrobrite's sound is akin to finding an old Icee Machine in your friends basement. It still works too. But as you put your head under the slightly rusted silver spout and crank the lever to the left it dispenses volcanic lava directly to your head. Thank god it was cherry flavored lava.http://www.mediafire.com/?yajzy12vhbb62

Assorted news.

Wanted to post some assorted news that concerns the blog and future activities. 2010 is not yet over but we already have our hungry eyes on 2011. First off I have just gotten the confirmation for New Years Eve here in San Diego at the Whistle Stop. I have joined forces once again with Dimitri to provide an excellent and cheap party for the people down here. We are still putting the details together but you can expect an epic high energy party for New Years. This is also the first New Years event I have played in four years so I'm excited. All the specifics and a flyer should be appearing here by the end of next week. We have also started to compile our best of 2010 list. Have to say to that I am amazed at the number of stunning releases that are still coming out this late in December. If there is something you think we would like or may have missed please leave a comment and tells us about it. In January I am finally going to be doing my little studio overhaul as well and should be able to start the podcasts. Really hoping to turn this into a pretty regular thing and have a good variety of guests contribute to it. This should also mean that some of my mixes will start to appear here. Most have been on cassettes and don't sound that swell uploaded on a computer. Radiant Darkness is also hoping to launch a boutique-esque webstore for releases that we love and are hard to get. Again this is all pending on certain things but hoping to have a variety of things available around Spring. Finally our monthly party should be launching in January at the Whistle Stop and will be going full steam from then there on. Working on booking very special guests and bands to keep it interesting too. So yeah, quite a bit going on and much to get busy with. Duty now for the future.

Stone Roller.

Dust off those moon boots and get your helmet on cause it's time for another space adventure. This time we are floating in our tin can with Arpadys. Arpadys where a team of French studio musicians turned producers who where involved in too many good projects to list here. Kind of like a French version of Toto. Only way cooler. And more spacey. Yeah I guess not so much like Toto. I love Georgie Porgie.
http://www.mediafire.com/?k1gjhfr1u7ta6

Enter the mirror.

Besides having the best band name ever which apparently is a combination of Japanese and French that sums up to mean "Fucked up and Naked", Les Rallizes Denudes live album from 1977 is ear shredding beauty at it's finest. Building the songs around simple bass and drum repetitions allow the guitars to open up a full scale attack. The focus is on building the songs and not just simple abstraction. Recently a few albums got the vinyl reissue treatment. I can only hope this gets the same attention that those studio albums got although I would be scared to see the retail price of it. This is a double cd which means the vinyl may have to be a triple if not a box of four lps. Sometimes though you just have to jump in head first. Even if it does carry the risk of ending up fucked up and naked.
http://www.mediafire.com/?4aqy2944karn1

Garden of Elks.

Ah December. The month where everyone starts to loose utter shit over a pagan holiday turned material shopping extravaganza. I choose to deal with it by immersing myself in a mire of sounds that are cavernous and easy to get lost in. The A-number One record for this is from Swedish psych outfit Algarnas Tradgard. Roughly translating to "Garden of the Elks", Algarnas Tradgard sculpt a druggie sound that never seems to pussyfoot away from the listener. Instead of wandering into self absorbed heady territory, the album floats in a colorful wave of semi-consciousness and blinding white day dreams. Kind of funny too how this album seems more kraut rock than even the Germans could produce. This is a desert island record for me. Always reminds me of December. A private opium den for me to get lost for a month in.
http://www.mediafire.com/?fe8crerh3k8qr