Wednesday, July 21, 2010

RIP Andyman

I was driving through Ohio and turning on my fave alternative station CD101 Monday when I heard that their program director Andyman had drowned while on vacation. From everything I heard, he was a great guy and the musical heart and soul of CD101. Condolences to his friends and family.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

KXRK Top 50 Songs of 2009

KXRK is an independently owned alternative station out of Salt Lake City Utah. Not a groundbreaking one but listenable, and is quite sucessful in its market. The list below really doesn't do the station justice, however. A top 100 would reflect some of the more interesting stuff they play.

1. Uprising -- Muse
2. Help, I'm Alive -- Metric
3. Feel Good Drag -- Anberlin
4. No, You Girls -- Franz Ferdinand
5. Kids -- MGMT
6. Audience of One -- Rise Against
7. Panic Switch -- Silversun Pickups
8. (If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To -- Weezer
9. Sometime Around Midnight -- Airborne Toxic Event
10. Ain't No Rest for the Wicked -- Cage the Elephant
11. Ignorance -- Paramore
12. Use Somebody -- Kings of Leon
13. Medicate -- AFI
14. New Divide -- Linkin Park
15. Half Truism -- The Offspring
16. Fireflies -- Owl City
17. 21 Guns -- Green Day
18. The Fixer -- Pearl Jam
19. Blood On My Hands -- The Used
20. Wrong -- Depeche Mode
21. She's A Genius -- Jet
22. Kings and Queens -- 30 Seconds to Mars
23. Know Your Enemy -- Green Day
24. Kristy Are You Doing OK? -- The Offspring
25. Dirt Room -- Blue October
26. Zero -- The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
27. Black Heart Inertia -- Incubus
28. Wheels -- Foo Fighters
29. Hey You -- 311
30. Lifeline -- Papa Roach
31. I Will Not Bow -- Breaking Benjamin
32. Meet Me On the Equinox -- Death Cab for Cutie
33. Chcek My Brain -- Alice In Chains
34. Savior -- Rise Against
35. Pen and Paper -- Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
36. Brother -- Pearl Jam
37. Jars -- Chevelle
38. Maginificent -- U2
39. On My Way -- Billy Boy on Poison
40. Young -- Hollywood Undead
41. Wishing Well -- Airborne Toxic Event
42. Heartless -- The Fray
43. Girlfriends -- Single File
44. Sink Into Me -- Taking Back Sunday
45. Let's Go Crazy -- Incubus
46. 1901 -- Phoenix
47. Notion -- Kings of Leon
48. I've Got Friends -- Manchester Orchestra
49. Careless Whisper -- Seether
50. Get On Your Boots -- U2

Monday, July 12, 2010

Esssential 11 for July

Funny. Everytime it's time to come up with 11 songs worth seeking out on the radio, I think I'll never be able to do it. Every month the list comes together rather easily. This list is a rather loud one so crank it up.

Bushwick Blues -- Delta Spirit Nothing fancy here. Just a tuneful hard rocking totally in love song like you thought nobody made anymore

Stop for a Minute -- Keane feat. K'nan Keane is always goof for a mopey English pop rock song and the ubiqutious Somali-Canadian singer-rapper adds some subtle spice.

The Sound (John M.Perkins Blues) -- Switchfoot John M. Perkins is a Christian civil rights activist in case you're wondering. Switchfoot is one butt kicking Christian rock band in case your're wondering. The message is "love is the final fight" in case you're wondering.

Ready to Start -- Arcade Fire This is the song that CFNY si playing instead of "The Suburbs" or "MOnth of May", probably because this is the closest they come to a rocker. It's all good. I mean it. With this band, ITS ALL GOOD.

Anchor -- Alejandro Escevedo A really catchy tune from his hardest rocking album yet, backed up by the Sensitive Boys, his incredibly talented backup band. If they come to your town -- GO SEE THEM.

Fixed -- Stars A la Metric, a Canadian band with a female singer with a heavy 80's influence. The lyrics as far as I can make them out -- are about staying steadfast in a relationship while eveyrhing's falling apart. This one grows on you.

You Got Me -- Crash Kings After "Mountain Man" you thought they couldn't pound the piano any harder. Well they can, and they did, and wrote some gloriously sleazy lyrics amd played some gloriously loud guitar to accompnay it.

Fresh -- Devo Having focus groups decide EVERYTHING that went into Devo's album and tour was a genius extension of the Devo concept. And God help us, it works. This is the tockinest and smartest stuff Deov has done since its debut.

Tripping Down the Freeway -- Weezer I know. It's not cool to like Weezer anyomore. I don't care. Anyone who dug "Buddy Holly" or "Surf Wax America" off the first album has no call to put this down as shallow. It's just Weezer being Weezer and this is irrestible. Disposable maybe, but irrestible.

Rules Don't Stop -- We Are Scientists Another cool 80's inspired Band, sorta like the Cure without the gloom and tesaed hair. No that's not quite it. Interpol without all the gloom and baritone. Nope that's not quite it,either. Very propulsive and tuneful. The kind of song you's wish the Killers would write more of.

The Boxer -- Gaslight Anthem The second single form their excellent new album. Just check out the guitar work doing a counter melody throughout the song rather than the usual solo wanking.