BLASST 83 - SPACE II - TRACKLIST + NOTES

BLASST 83 TRACKLIST
1. Infinite Bisous - "Importance"
2. Moondog - "Bird's Lament"
3. The Cleaners From Venus - "This Rainy Decade"
4. Boris - "A Bao a Qu"
5. Karlheinz Stockhausen - "Kontakte"
6. Houssam Gania - "Moulay Lhacham"
7. Alice Coltrane - "Galaxy In Turiya"
8. Pharaoh Sanders - "Astral Traveling"
9. Yusef Lateef - "Sunset"
10. Pauline Oliveros - "Bye Bye Butterfly"
11. Suzanne Ciani - "The First Wave: Birth of Venus"
12. Meredith Monk - "Unison"

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NOTES: 
Ok, I decided I'm not going to continue spelling out the episode numbers because that's some cornball-ass shit. I don't care what Apple decides to do to my episodes, it's just not worth it. Anyway, we go back into space on this broadcast, and I get to play all the stuff I wanted to play last week, but couldn't. 

As you should know if you've been paying attention, I've been really interested in playing music that prioritizes space in all it's forms on this and last week's broadcasts, be it physical space, metaphorical space, conceptual space, space as a science-fictional concept, and as an overall theme of expansion and exploration. I associate those terms with this theme in particular: "expansion" and "exploration". When I think of space, I wonder more about what I can't comprehend than what I can. I've been a fan of science-fiction since I was a kid, films, books, games—you name it. They expanded my mind and introduced me to worlds unknown, bringing me an uneasy sense of comfort in the role of spectator to the terrific chaos of the cosmos. I grew up with science-fiction films that were largely scored by synthesizers, visualized with more prosthetics and models than CGI, and heavily influenced by the growing pains of it's point in time; a veritable "wild west" of technological experimentation and innovation that told me "anything is possible." So when I approach music with these ideas, I find the same comfort in exploring the way they are interpreted by different artists. Whether through a crooked pattern of noises and impulses like Stockhausen and his "raummusik" ("space music" in German), or by an expansive swell of strings and percussion bringing to mind visualizations of open fields of clouds, stars as far as the eye can see such as on Alice Coltrane's World Galaxy LP (of which we feature a track "Galaxy in Turiya" today), today's broadcast seeks a distortion of the senses, a supplemental experience of time and space, or at best, a meditation on the interconnection of things as defined by their distance from each other. I think this meditation can find parallels in our present day in ways I'm sure you, the reader, will be more than able to determine on your own. I hope you enjoy this broadcast, I had a lot of fun putting it together. Might bring back a Space III in the near future, but not before Soundtracks III, which is coming soon. Thanks for listening, and be sure to subscribe wherever you listen to us, so you can catch our new episodes every week! Follow us at the links below, and feel free to reach out with an e-mail!

Bon Voyage,

A

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BLASST 82 - SPACE I - TRACKLIST + NOTES

BLASST 82 TRACKLIST
1. Quiet Kids - "On Your Mind"
2. Grouper - "Driving"
3. Sun Ra - "Space Is The Place"
4. Kaoru Abe - "Winter No. 2"
5. Fushitsusha - "Hazama"
6. Joanna Brouk - "The Space Between"
7. Black Spirituals - "Container"

LISTEN TO THE SHOW

"I don't know if sound waves take up mass, but you know what I mean."

That's a quote from this most recent broadcast of BLASST, which focused on the theme of Space, in all it's forms. I had a lot planned, and due to time constraints (and possibly the malaise of spring break), I didn't get to go through most of it. I think this may have been due to excessive rambling on my part, as well as the fact that most of the show was occupied by the piece I centered the entire program around, Joanna Brouk's "The Space Between" off of her debut album, Hearing Music. The 22-minute piano composition is a meditation of time and space, and a perfect example of the fact that the space between what we play (or do, if you're not a musician) is just as important as the what we play (or do). 

I think there is a mistaken assessment of the absence of something as negative, especially in music. Moreso today than ever, songwriters are pressured to fill every single second of their songs with sound, resulting more and more often in congested, bloated works of music that are more exhausting than they are enjoyable the closer this practice becomes to the pop music atmosphere. Sure, there is a time and place for a constant barrage of sound, but I believe that there also exists a need to value the silence between sounds, as it is always unique. Think about it, silence is never the same, it's always different, and unique to your surroundings. It is with this idea in mind that I devoted last night's broadcast (as well as next week's) to music that prioritizes space as both a literal, figurative, and conceptual theme. Personally, I've been paying more attention to music that applies these themes in my personal life, notably Solange's recent two albums, A Seat At The Table, and When I Get Home, two albums that masterfully wield space as a creative tool. I'll have more notes next week, but for now, enjoy this broadcast of the program, and enjoy the space between this and it's follow-up to the best of your ability.

A closing note, Kaoru Abe's album Winter came out in 1973-74, not '78 as I say on the show. It was released on Sound Works label out of Osaka, Japan. Here is the film clip I referenced in the show. The person speaking with sunglasses on is Keiji Haino, whom we see perform alongside Kaoru Abe and his group, Fushitsusha.

A

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BLASST 81 - TRACKLIST + NOTES

BLASST 81 TRACKLIST
1. The Prodigy - "Out of Space"
2. The Prodigy - "Their Law (ft. Pop Will Eat Itself)"
4. Lizzy Mercier Descloux - "Hard-Boiled Babe"
5. The Prodigy - "Firestarter"
6. Atmosphere - "Wild Wild Horses"
7. Solange - "S McGregor (interlude)"
8. Solange - "Down With the Clique"
9. Fishmans - "Long Season Pt. 1"
10. Pecas - "Tuesdays"
11. Dezorah - "To Be"
12. Katzù Oso - "Coqueta"
13. Yruama - "Mars"
14. Stef Chura - "Spotted Gold"
15. Gustaf - "A Dream (demo)"
16. TV Flesh - "Bad Acid"
17. Stereolab - "Orgiastic"

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NOTES:
This was one of the more fun episodes I've done lately, on a personal level. I elevated my computer and workstation, which resulted in my standing for the entirety of the show, and subsequently dancing during a lot of these tracks (even the slower ones). I feel really good about it, the flow, the variety of artists we played in this show (a lot of the bands that will be playing DREAMS this weekend take up the latter half of the program!!!) and my banter was particularly on point as well (code for: I didn't ramble that much last night). 

Yesterday also marks the death of Keith Flint, dancer and vocalist from the groundbreaking EDM group, The Prodigy. Like I said last week and the week before (for some reason), I'm still not that versed in dance musics, but last night had me delving a little deeper to learn more about Keith and the band, and their place in the world. All I can say following this brief, brief bout of research is that learning about EDM genres is even more intimidating than I could ever imagine. I found a YouTube video that gave examples of SIXTY (60) different genres and styles of EDM. I found that absolutely mind-blowing. Not because they all can easily be mistaken for each other, but for how much time and energy the world has put into entire genres that are based off of their slight variation of another form. It's a slightly more intimidating version of navigating the smorgasbord of white christian faiths (baptists, latter-say saints, former-day saints, jehovah's witnesses, etc), they're all based on the same core principles, but differ greatly if you start to dive deeper into them and make them a bigger part of your life. 

Anyway, yesterday was an educational day, though of course, through unfortunate circumstances. It was, after all, reported that Keith Flint took his own life. His reasons for doing so are not known, but the world is shaken, and rightfully so. No one knows what was going through his mind at the time, what he was experiencing in his life, etc. It's a reminder that you should check in on your friends, no matter how well you think they're doing. Even if they don't get back to you or if the conversation only lasts a few messages or words, all that matters is that you try. I don't have the best days sometimes, and on those days, reaching out to friends is the best thing I can do for myself. I wish I saw people more often, but as happens when you and your friends grow up, your lives sometimes move in different directions, and your schedules differ. Sometimes your friends don't live around you anymore, and the only way you keep in contact is by making that effort to keep up with them. This is normal, and in my opinion necessary. It's strange to think about worlds in which people you admire no longer exist. It sort of makes you wonder how much you've personally put into sustaining this world you have been influenced to believe in.

More words next week along with more music. Thanks for tuning in this week. Please go to the DREAMS festival. The lineup is absolutely solid (as usual with Tigersblood.org events) and it also may be one of the last times I play music in a live setting with SUPER for some time. We still have a lot of merch, so if you feel like picking some of it up, I'll have it on hand. 

Thanks for reading. Send us an e-mail: uupunk at gmail dot com

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BLASST 80 TRACKLIST + NOTES

BLASST 80 TRACKLIST
1. Talk Talk - "It's My Life"
2. Talk Talk - "The Rainbow"
3. Talk Talk - "Ascension Day"
4. Mark Hollis - "A Life (1895 - 1915)"
5. Nisennenmondai - "Disco"
6. Miharu Koshi & Haruomi Hosono - "Swing Slow"
7. J Dilla - "I Told Y'all"
8. Jim O'Rourke - "Eureka"

LISTEN TO THE SHOW

NOTES:
Still encountering a few production hiccups with the new setup, I think I may be in search of a more sophisticated mixer to get this show done, given what I'm capable of producing now. My little 4-track Alesis mixer is not entirely up for the task, I think. Or I should say, it's not equipped for this kind of production. Namely, the kind of problems one can come across when trying to send stereo audio sources through mono channels and getting things to sound good. I'm probably speaking gibberish to all of you technically uninterested types reading this right now. My sincerest apologies.

This was a good show, hiccups aside. For example, I mistakenly claim Laughing Stock, the final Talk Talk album, is not the album that follows Spirit of Eden, when it does in actuality. C'est la vie. I'm glad to have played a little tribute to Mark Hollis of Talk Talk for the first half of the show just the same. I never delved beyond Spirit of Eden until hearing of his passing, so today's news really sent me down a rabbit hole of his music, to see the narrative of the band and himself as an artist over time. I like doing that, seeing the full picture, from beginning to end. This can be harder to do when you don't know what the end is yet. Life can be that way sometimes.

Anyway, a good half of the show is dedicated to Mark Hollis and the other half to stuff I've been into lately. I've been diving back into the record that started my Haruomi Hosono/YMO obsession of the past few years, Swing Slow, HH's collaboration with Miharu Koshi, another juggernaut of the Japanese pop world. It's such a beautifully nuanced record, complete with strange mechanical interludes between varying stylistic vignettes. Just beautiful. I also play another japanese group I've taken a liking to called Nisennenmondai. I don't know much about them but I came across their music and found it's best listened to while I'm working. 

And lastly, we closed with the title track off of Jim O'Rourke's now-20-years-old masterpiece, Eureka, "Eureka". It's hard to believe these sounds are 20 years old. It's a thought that is humbling, comforting, and depressing all at once. Humbling and comforting because it means there's a world of innovation that precedes our present day and acts as a guide for the future as it progresses forward into the unknown. It's depressing, however, because it makes whatever is being regarded in our present day as 'innovative' and 'creative' seem violently regressive.

At the same time, if we think about something like musique concréte, which utterly stupefied people nearly 100 years ago and made anything that followed it seem pedestrian by comparison, life may seem to have periods of progression and regression. A pattern of sorts. Maybe a dance. Or perhaps it's a ball with many dances occurring within it at the same time. Which will you choose? It is, after all your choice, and this song won't last forever. Perhaps it's best that you choose the one you will find to be the most appropriate for you. If this means you dance alone, take solace in the fact that are now the first of which others will inevitably follow, because life just happens to work that way. There will always be worse dances that more people are doing, because most people have either have poor taste, or absolutely must dance with others, with little concern for the quality of dance to begin with for that matter, so why waste your time with that? Anyway, enough rambling for this week. See y'all in the next one. Get your tickets for Dreams III if you haven't yet! You can do so here.
 
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BLASST 79 - TRACKLIST + NOTES

BLASST 79 TRACKLIST
1. Cosey Fanni Tutti - “TUTTI”
2. Devo - “Mechanical Man”
3. Chris & Cosey - “Oktober (Love Song) [‘86 Version]”
4. Death In Vegas - “Consequences of Love (Chris & Cosey Remix)"
5. S’Express - “Lollipop (Chris & Cosey Remix)”
6. Throbbing Gristle - “Discipline (Berlin)”
7. John Tejeda - “Penumbra”
8. Haruomi Hosono - “Bara to Yajū”
9. Material - “O.A.O”
10. Klaus Nomi - “Cre Spoda”
11. Shit & Shine - “South Padre Low Life”

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NOTES
Today's episode is an experimental one, in that I have a new ~podcasting~ setup...set up. I used to lay out the show's music in a sequence in my DAW (look it up) and automated the lowpass filters and volume adjustments for the music bed to sit just beneath my speaking volume with enough warmth to still add some texture to the space around my voice. This way I had more control over track order, flow, and made it very much a playlist "press play" kind of situation by the time the red "ON AIR" light comes on. I would speak live on the air within designated spaces of time (usually the length of the track being used as a bed) and pop off to make a sandwich during the following block of music or write down show notes to correct me if I've made mistakes, which would then be featured on this blog. The problem with this setup is, I would often get cut off by music while talking. I would find myself on a roll, yapping about who knows what, and all of a sudden-WHAM, the next track is already playing, and I haven't even introduced it properly. That's not very professional, and ultimately leaves me feeling pretty embarassed most shows in which it happens. I know I can deliver a better show. So, that brings me to the new setup. 

Now, instead of laying the tracks out, I'm sending my BLASST MASTER LIST (that's what I've named my song library) audio into my mixer on it's own channel with volume and gain controls, I'm also feeding in the music bed from a secondary source that is in a constant loop (also to it's own channel with volume and gain controls, along with a low pass filter for trimming off 15db of those pesky highs that compete with my voice). The beauty of this setup is, not only can I talk over the music bed as long as I want, I get to pick out the tracks in whatever order I please, and can change my mind at any moment. I didn't have that kind of freedom with the previous setup. Enough tech talk! 

The new Cosey Fanni Tutti album, TUTTI, is really quite incredible. I listened to it over the weekend and let it seep into every pore of my soul, devouring all of my senses, and found myself entranced for a few hours (I left it on repeat and hadn't noticed until I was halfway through the second pass). It's such a dark album, filled with energy and space, and spiraling ethereal architecture. I shouldn't be this surprised knowing the little I do about CFT's background that this album is so confrontational, so confident, and at times, even sexy. It's a powerful record to say the least, and I encourage everyone reading this to go out and listen to it. It's out on all streaming platforms (to my knowledge) as well as CD & vinyl. I'll be picking up my copy next month when more money appears in my bank account. We open the show with the titular track, and dive deeper into Cosey's other work in music, with her partner Chris Carter as Chris & Cosey, and her old band and group of societal calamities, Throbbing Gristle. I'm going to be reading CFT's autobiography, Art Sex Music, soon, and hope to be more informed and knowledgeable about her life the next time I get to feature her work on the show. 

We also feature some songs by men, but you can google those.  

For now, enjoy the show.

Ferrerito Rocherito over and out.

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BLASST 78 - TRACKLIST + NOTES

BLASST 78 TRACKLIST
1. Chalk & Friends - "Sarah Beames (Reading)"
2. Chalk & Friends - "It's Not You We're After"
3. Peter Brötzmann & Bill Laswell - "Death Rattle"
4. Группа Хмурый (Gruppa Chmury) - "Я Иду / I Walk"
5. Powerplant - "True Love"
6. Murderer - "Juicy Fruit Dream"
7. SB The Moor - "PAIN (SUN GOD)"
8. Breakout - "Say Hello"
9. Merle Hazard - "(Gimme Some Of That) Ol' Atonal Music"
10. Koji Kondo - "Dire Dire Docks"
11. Chronophage - "Racing"
12. Damak - "Through Terraces"
13. SUPER BUFF - "CORONDALLA"
14. Prostitutes - "Glaube Nichts"
15. Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah - "Ancestral Recall (feat. Saul Williams)"
16. Jan Bukes de Grey - "Mice and Rats in the Loft"
17. Link Wray & The Ray Men - "Kiki"
 
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NOTES:

First of all, I would like to apologize for the shoddy scheduling of the past few weeks. Last week's absence throws my calculations of the show's centennial episode off once again. I've been trying to be more proactive by preparing broadcast material for holidays and otherwise important dates, and every missed week pushes that date further into the future. If you look on the bright side of that, however, it just means I have more time to prepare! Joy.

On today's show, I finally get around to playing stuff I've been excited about and listening to for some time. Save for a couple of tracks, of course. There's always room for surprises! The show opens with two tracks from a live recording of the Houston group Chalk performing on Galveston Island with friends and collaborators. 

The performance consists of free-form improvisation, tape loops, and a host of other illuminating instrumentation, and was recorded, as the album states, using multiple tape recorders which were placed in the sand, surrounding the group. It's a beautiful recording with arresting creative energy. You can pick up a cassette copy here. 

The Peter Brötzmann/Bill Laswell track that follows it comes from a tape called Low Life, which I found while rumming through a box of old cassettes which contained hunting noises. Or rather, the noises of animals hunters were trying to hunt. I assume the idea was you would bring a tape recorder with you out into the wilderness and play the tape to attract prey? I shudder to think how loud the average portable tape player was in those days. (picturing some bumbly hunter holding up a pair of old sony on-ears into the wilderness and hoping the real animals hiding in the distance can't tell the difference between a recording and the real thing, let alone whether the tape is high bias or not).

Other excellent selections on the show today come from a stunning album by SB The Moor, SPIRIT REALM.FINAL, a chilling noise-crusted hip-hop track called "PAIN (SUN GOD)" and a track from an album I've just recently heard on YouTube via the Harakiri Diat channel (I fumble the name on the air). The band is called Powerplant, they're from the UK (London to be exact) and their album, People In The Sun, is a hectic effort that barely lets one breathe, it's such an unrelenting stream of beautiful sounds and "damn I wish I wrote that" songwriting.

I'm really excited for the Chronophage/Damak show this weekend, both of those bands mean a great deal to me on a personal level, and I am beyond excited to see Chronophage play a show in the RGV for the first time. There was a time where I wasn't sure if I would ever be able to go see them play because they never left Austin, but now I get to play a show with them! It feels surreal sometimes. I'm also very excited to play with SUPER again. We will be playing with Trey Puga on drums this weekend. You may know Trey from his masterful work behind the kit in the mighty RGV post-prog outfit Dezorah. If not, check out their music below:

Anyway, SUPER sounds like a machine that has just been oiled up and cleaned. It's honestly amazing to witness, and humbling to be a part of. With Dezorah moving away, and Trey specifically leaving the day after we play, I suspect that this will be one of the last shows SUPER will play this year. Both because this is the best we've ever sounded, and it will be near impossible to find another drummer who will be able to match or surpass Trey's input to the group's music. It feels appropriate to put something to rest when it feels this good. I don't plan to stop making music, I just think I'm ready for something else. Something new and different.

Here comes that broken record again. Speaking of which, I broke a record today while cleaning it, I have no idea why it was so brittle, but yeah. A chunk broke off in my hand. Really disappointing. This episode is not disappointing, however. It's got a great mix of rock n roll, punk, and ambiance. I'm talking Super Mario 64 Dire Dire Docks shit. Check it out.

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BLASST Throwback: Episode 1

BLASST #1 TRACKLIST
1. Miles Davis - “Great Expectations”
2. Laurie Anderson - “O Superman”
3. Tollund Men - “Fire”
4. Chris Cohen - “Torrey Pine”
5. Xetas - “The Soil”
6. Baseborn - “Serpent’s Path”
7. The Breeders - “No Aloha”
8. Administrator - “Bad People”
9. Blitz - “New Age”
10. G.L.O.S.S. - “Trans Day of Revenge”
11. High-Functioning Flesh - “Human Remains”
12. Krimewatch - “Peach Generations”
13. Lié - “Seams”
14. Lumpy & The Dumpers - “Blue Lives”
15. Suburban Lawns - “Janitor”
16. Stereolab - “The Stars Our Destination”
17. Sparks - “Thank God It’s Not Christmas”
18. Antonio Pinto & Ed Cortez - "Vida de Otário"

LISTEN TO THE EPISODE

NOTES
Apologies for the lack of a new episode today, I had to take the night off to do an interview for an article I've been working on for one of the last issues of MAXIMUMROCKNROLL about the RGV hardcore punk scene. Since the clock is ticking, and the band could only meet last night, I figured it wouldn't hurt to put the show aside for a night. This piece is really important to me, as it provides the world (since MRR is an internationally-read publication) with an update on what hardcore punk looks like and sounds like in the Rio Grande Valley, a place that has been put on the cover of every magazine, every news story, and every presidential press conference over the past few years, defined by people who haven't the slightest fucking clue what this place is like. I'm tired of letting these people weaponize my home to further their selfish campaigns of destruction. This isn't to say that MRR readers believe any of this hype and need to be convinced otherwise, but if someone's going to talk about this place, it's going to be someone who's FROM HERE. As much as I'd love to snap my fingers and snap the neck of every person who speaks ill of this place for their personal or political gain, I also recognize the power of portrayal. The only reason these fallacious narratives are allowed to flourish is because they're put on our airwaves, on our television sets, and in our laws. These lies have (and need) a platform in order to survive, so I figure the best way to combat these lies is by giving truth a platform. The truth that is louder than all of these lies, if only given the chance to resonate. 

Anyway, that's what I hope to achieve with the piece. Only parts of the interviews will make it into the entire article, so I'll be posting the full interviews here for you to read later this year. ON TO TODAY'S FLASHBACK. 

Since I couldn't work on a new episode, I decided to look back on the first episode I ever did of BLASST. October 10th, 2016 was when it was released, and I had very little idea of how the show would evolve, let alone how it should be structured. You'll notice I have a lot more to say and lose my train of thought less. This is because I recorded my spoken parts in pieces, following research on the artists I was about to talk about. I miss doing this because it makes me sound more informed and less like I don't know what I'm talking about, but I also love the excitement and "sink or swim" approach that speaking live provides me with the way I do the show today. As usual, the episode provides a wide platform of sounds and represents many different voices. That was, and remains the goal of the program. There's also an outro I had my partner at the time record for me, which I had completely forgotten about. I think I wanted to include that to match the format used by the podcasts I listened to. I might bring that back, for brevity's sake. We'll see. Anyway, enjoy the jump back in time, and stay tuned for next week's episode! As always, it's going to be very special.

Also, I'm very excited to hear that Stereolab is returning to live performances. I hope they tour the US. I will fly wherever they play, and watch them as much as I can. I know Laetitia Sadier was all about Jordan Peterson recently, but I don't think she's the type of person to advocate for harm, and when she realizes that that's what JP does, she'll come around.

A_

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