Next Show: Friday, June 6th

TV or Not TV….?
That is the question for the next hour on this week’s Randomonium.
One hour of cathode ray inspired mayhem and media criticism.
Listen with the TV on and the sound turned off, scanning the channels at random. That’s your simulcast, folks.

“The Television screen is the retina of the mind’s eye” ~ Brian O’Blivian

“Whoever controls your dreams pulls your puppet strings” ~ Man-Rich

Brought to you by the Kill Ugly Radio Foundation for Throwing TVs Out of Windows and The Dissident Children’s Puppet Workshop

Friday, 11PM - 12AM

KBOO 90.7 FM, in Portland OR
Or,
Listen live at:
http://kboo.fm/listen

Friday Drivetime Mix

I like playing my iPod on random, even though my music on it probably needs a changeover.

Often I keep hitting the next button and yet sometimes the little DJ inside the circuitry plays some really inspired and inspiring music.

Here’s the mix I got to listen to on my commute to work

Playlist:

1. Bar-B-Q Pope - Butthole Surfers
2. No Break - Jandek
3. No Class - Motorhead
4. Some Velvet Morning - Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazelwood
5. Nighthawk - Sly and Robbie
6. Tarmac - Sun City Girls
7. Lamnbasy Dub (Kora in Hell Mix) - Man Dingo
8. Invocation - S.P.K.
9. Do the Snake - Cabaret Voltaire
10. Kill the Klansman - Sun City Girls
11. Sprout and the Bean - Joanna Newsom
12. Welcome to the Videodrome - Howard Shore
13. Assisted Suicide - DJ Spooky
14. En Gallop - Joanna Newsom

Download:
5.30.08.mp3 (one hour, 192kbps, 60 megs.)

BTW: I’m still using my 2nd Gen iPod, despite pronouncing it dead nearly a year ago, with the original battery no less (around 4 hours between charges to boot!). Works fine, now.

Laibach vs Bach: LaibachKunstDerFuge

Konzert für das Kreuzschach und vier Schachspieler

1st June 2006 @ Werk II in Leipzig, GermanyOn June 1st 2006, was the world premiere of Laibach’s interpretation of Bach’s Kunst der Fuge was held in Leipzig at [Werk II].A 90 min surround sound performance, titled as Konzert fuer das Kreuzschach und vier Schachspieler, was dedicated to Bach, Schoenberg, Kraftwerk, Capt. George Hope Verney, Fisher and Spaski.

Members of Laibach performed on stage in front of laptops ala Kraftwerk, yet coiffed in 18th century wigs. Projected on the background were typical Laibachian images and at one point, the band performed a chess game on the cruciform, four-player board previously seen in their promotional videos, while their movements were projected on screen as seen from overhead. It was all part of a big Bach festival in Leipzig in 2006.

This is the CD of the music they composed for the performance-piece/show. It is, as far as I know, completely unavailable outside of their native Slovenia.
Musically speaking, the most striking similarity is to Wendy Carlos’ approach to classical music. It also bears some resemblance to Jean-Michel Jarre and even Isao Tomita. There’s scant evidence of this being a Laibach album though, save for some Retro-Future overtones and some of their twisted humor embedded herein. Stay well away if you are looking for the strident militarism of some of their past works; this is more along the lines of Baptism, Macbeth or the Laibach side projects of 300,000 V.K.

Tracklisting:
01 Contrapunctus
02 Contrapunctus 2
03 Contrapunctus 3
04 Contrapunctus 4
05 Contrapunctus 5
06 Contrapunctus 6, a 4 im Stile francese
07 Contrapunctus 7, a 4 per Augment et Diminut
08 Contrapunctus 8, a 3
09 Contrapunctus 9, a alla Duodecima
10 Contrapunctus 10, a 4 alla Decima
11 Contrapunctus 11, a 4
12 Contrapunctus 12, Canon alla Ottava
13 Contrapunctus 13, Canon alla Duodecima in Contrapunto alla Quinta
14 Contrapunctus 14, Canon per Augmentationem in Contrario Motur

Some notes about the packed files: I also included a curious bundled-up promotional website about the project that should open in your web browser (open the one titled INDEX.htm), including a short movie hidden therein that offers not only glimpses of the show, but also a behind the scenes look.

Download (Megaupload, 189.66 megs)

NUWABU Inner-Ear Audio Museum

You must go here to check out the amazing mix programs offered by NUWABU. They have several programs utilizing a dazzling array of sonic weirdness, all helpfully titled and indexed for your perusal.

I’ve been listening all morning. They are downloadable, as well.

One more reason not to delete your RubertSpace account. After a couple of years of skeptically hanging on to mine, I’ve been meeting some cool humans and mutants and finding some cool music (or having it find me, as the case may be).

Thanks to MySpace pal Band Geek for turning me on to it.

The Long Road Home

Recovering from the nearly 18 hour push home. Make that pull, as we had to haul about 2,000 pounds of equipment back with us that we didn’t bring down, mainly the 50 by 40 foot test tank. All that after collapsing two scaffolding towers and some secret electronic apparatus.

My body feels well-used. The only rest I got the whole time was either spent in work meetings at restaurants and sitting in the truck waiting for my turn to drive on the way back. The testing phase was somewhat sedate, compared to the frantic rush of the set-up and breakdown, in retrospect. I intended to be the handiest videographer ever, however, in hopes of garnering more projects such as this. Could end up in
Canada, Scotland and who knows where else, if our biologists have their say. So - to that end - I am running errands and climbing this and lowering that. Plus, I don’t like just sitting around when there’s activity afoot. Not too much, anyway.

Massive headache with nausea on the way back, somewhat attenuated by the intake of water. Probably dehydration. Much better on the last half of the journey.

Rolling hills I & II

Trip was long. Swung through Oakland after a vote on choice of scenery. No time to stop, however. We are wary of holiday travelers, who seem not to be in abundance. Either the price of gas has quashed people’s plans (not likely), or we just missed it all, as it was relatively swift moving despite the speedlimit imposed on people towing trailers.

Some Oakland scenery

The Big Chairs and city sighted through smog

Stopped in Redding for some patented Redding inhospitality. Had an Easy Rider-esque, hillbilly hostility scene there over twenty years ago on a trip with a pal, once. This time it was an indignant local woman who
threw a tizzy over my coworker’s interval of time in the lady’s room of a convenience store. She huffed and puffed and pissed and moaned over having to wait 30 seconds. Loudly and publicly. I have concluded that Redding is the California equivalent of Battle Ground Washington.

A typical NoCal agro-attraction

Stopped in Weed to gas up and pay the rent on our water and coffee, if you know what I mean. Considered buying the shirt that said Enjoy Weed and looked like a Coke can. Didn’t though.

Stopped in Eugene OR for Chinese buffet.

Tuned in KBOO at the outskirts of Portland, in time for the Miles Davis marathon on The Outside World.

Home to bed.

Now it’s me writing this.

More California Bloggin’

Day five

Colder than it looks, but the sun still manages to scorch any piece of uncovered flesh. Not used to this, being a Northwesterner. It was really sunny this morning, yet a high wind kept the temperature down and threatened to knock me off my perch. The view is beautiful, however.

View from my office III & IV

Sessions going well. We wrapped yesterday. Now it’s breaking it all down, which we’ll do today.

When I get back, I will have several hours of video to log and capture and edit into a coherent visual report.

One for David

I must sit in my tower relatively immobile during the entire experimental process; the sea lions are spooked by anything going on above them and already they associate me with the stimulus of the tests. So, despite the stinging, 40 mph winds, I must be like a tree. A tree with expensive camera equipment.

I never thought I would be sick of eating in restaurants, but I am, even though I just had some pretty good Thai food in Santa Cruz last night. The other night, we all ate at one of those pretentiously hoity toity Eye-talian restaurants - the kind where you pay nearly $30 for a main dish and it’s a little tiny spot in the middle of the your plate. It was funny to hear our company owner, founder and head scientist, who was the richest guy in the room bitch loudly about the prices and the pretentiousness of it all, yet he still tipped generously. He’s a big Obama supporter, too

On the way down, we stopped by Concord and parts of Contra Costa County, home of the first three Negativland albums. It was weird, but I can now understand the Weatherman’s 180G story a little better.

I’m probably coming back on Saturday evening, maybe later.

Blogging from California

View from my room and here’s where I’m writing this at.

Top secret stuff. Drove all the way down to Moss Landing, near Salinas from Southwest Washington state. It was nearly fifteen hours. We had a lot of expensive, irreplaceable equipment in tow.

Tired. Way too much driving for me- each one of us driving 5 hours or so.
Not too bad. I couldn’t have picked two better traveling companions, all in all.
Both are very mellow, have good manners and values and can make pleasant conversation. Don’t know if I can say the same for your humble travelogue writer.

My office and the view from my office

Work is weird and fun. Am videographing some sea lion behavior for a marine biologist study.

I get to stand for hours on a platform with nothing but a camera for company. Am doing other stuff, but it’s technical and boring. Got totally sunburned on the first day. I feel like a hotdog that’s been on the rotating rack too long. But today it was windy and chilly.

My cube mates

Yesterday, got lost in Salinas when my traveling companion thought our motorcade trek to buy supplies was a game of tag. No problems. Got to see a lot of cool terrain. Indeed, on the way down through central California, I felt like we were driving through America’s produce section. Very little agriculture going on where I live, by comparison.

Got stuck in Castroville’s Artichoke festival, yesterday, as well after an ill-timed wrong turn. Was tempted to try a deep fried artichoke. Wish I had time for more festivities, picture taking and writing. Hell! I haven’t even set foot on the beach, yet!

Calls from a friend inquiring if I could fill in DJ’ing on a Sunday night show. I don’t think so.

Bank has blundered my account. I minor glitch on their part and an easy fix, but why does this kind of thing happen when I’m nearly 600 miles away and quite literally tied up all day?

Spread about my room are all manner of electronic gadgetry plugged into every available outlet and sucking up juice into their batteries. SUCK! SUCK!

Big show tomorrow. Will determine how long my stay here is. I wouldn’t mind being away so long if I had time to rest and enjoy the locale.

More later.

Liveblogging Mother’s Night

A yearly event at KBOO’s Outside World: Mother’s Night, coinciding with the weekend of Mother’s Day. Six hours of nothing but Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention. This year was also the 40th anniversary of the release of the Mother’s classic album We’re Only In It For the Money. We’re playing it in it’s entirety right now. The CD was suspect, so capt. Daniel played both the vinyl and CD simultaneously. We’re mixing white port and lemon juice (”ooh what you do to me…”) and Peter is outside burning Hebrew Nationals outside the station with a blowtorch to supply wieners for the burnt weeny sandwiches, on Wonder Bread with mustard (dee-licious!).

People are driving by and paying scant notice, as the neighborhood is used to having a weirdo, hippie radio station on the block.

KIll Ugly Radio Presents: Godcast

Finally, a wholesome religious program on KBOO!
Randomonium and the Kill Ugly Radio Massive presents Godcast.
One hour of devout religious radio programming, television evangelists on the radio, born-again ventriloquism and singing fetuses.

God almighty, let’s eat!

My latest show from 5-02-08.
I hosted Randomonium and ended up going an hour over while pal Daniel ran across the street to spread the Word.

Download (Right click and “Save As..” or “Open in New Tab/Window” to listen):

Download Hour One (60 Mins. 57 megs. 192kbps)

Download Hour Two (72 Mins. 65.9 megs. 192kbps)

View Playlist

KBOO 90.7 FM, in Portland.
On the web at www.kboo.fm

In our Midst…

Some traditions also hold that a vampire cannot enter a house unless invited by the owner, although after the first invitation they can come and go as they please.
~ An Encyclopaedia of Occultism - Lewis Spence

Hanging out on or around the fringes of any music scene (music venues, record and/or instrument stores, radio stations, etc…) one can meet some really strange flakes. You meet people who recorded with so-and-so on an album you can never find info on, people who claim some past fame or connection to fame and so on and so on…

But this one takes the cake.

We had an incident down at the station that has sent ripples through our little community. Someone gained access through the front door, misrepresented their role there by namedropping the right names to some unsuspecting volunteers - myself being one of them - and apparently stole some expensive equipment.
I say apparently because no one can be 100% sure, even though it’s pretty clear what went down that night and the following day. Out of the 1 or 2 percent chance of us being wrong, I’m not going to divulge the who and where of this particular individual.
I actually witnessed what I am now convinced was a first attempt by this individual.

Let me rewind for a moment.