BLASST 105: Quarantunes

TRACKLIST
1. Arrington de Dionyso - "Improvisation on Bass Clarinet"
2. Charmel Lucas - "Voicemail to Democracy Now"
3. Nicolas Jaar - "Cenizas"
4. Manu Dibango - "The Panther"
5. Manu Dibango - "African Boogie"
6. Shabazz Palaces - "Chocolate Soufflé"
7. Takako Minekawa - "Fantastic Cat"
8. Lorelle Meets The Obsolete - "Lux, Lumina"
9. Dan Deacon - "Become A Mountain"
10. R. Stevie Moore - "I Like To Stay Home"
11. Fehler Kuti - "Mayday Mayday"
12. Chasms - "Until It Happens To You"
13. Dusty Rhodes - "Hard Times Promo"
14. Weyes Blood - "Andromeda"
15. Protomartyr - "Jumbo's"
16. Chino Amobi - "White Mætel"
17. Delroy Edwards - "I Love Sloane"
18. Ann Annie - "Claire de Lune (modular synth ver.)"
19. John Prine - "Please Don't Bury Me"




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NOTES
We're living in the future, we're living in the present, we're living in a world that is moving faster than we can comprehend. I've been spending a lot of my time in isolation cooking, doing yoga, helping my body recalibrate to its normal impulses - away from everything inspired by social media and things I see on the internet. Being in this position for a few weeks has led me to begin thinking about what the future will look like after the COVID-19 pandemic period passes. Will Donald Trump still be president? How many people will die? How many people will survive? How many people will use this moment to change themselves into something better? How many people have the PRIVILEGE to do so?

These questions swim about my mind like an alphabet soup today. Much like soup, today's mix consists of a diverse set of sounds. We pay tribute to the great afro funk master, Manu Dibango, as he's now left this mortal plane, surely to be missed by many. We here at BLAST send our best wishes and condolences to Manu's loved ones in this time. I featured more interludes and samples on this show, because I like the break up in the momentum of the show. I'm trying to treat these are more audio-narratives than playlists. You should be able to press play on this and not need to skip a single track ( to me anyway ). I'm not actively trying to beat the algorithm or streaming services but I can guarantee you that this is not something that the algorithm can do for you. Sure, the algorithm can tell you your story, but it only tells you what you've been. BLASST can tell you what you can become, what will be, and what may still be to come. I think of it as a cautionary tale, a guide, a momentary lapse in the noise of today. Also, where else are you going to hear Dusty Rhodes lead you into Weyes Blood? Come on, now.

Anyway, I want to extend my best wishes to John Prine and his wife Liona, both of who have been diagosed with COVID-19, and both of whom also seem to be in recovery. Wishing y'all the best and hoping you pull through on this one John. I don't want to have to make an entire episode about you so soon into the year, ok?

Thanks for listening y'all. I had no idea there was a new Dan Deacon album until I remembered "Wham City" and decided to feature something he's worked on recently instead of playing THAT thing again. Though I must admit the temptation was intense. If you haven't heard that little ditty, here it is below.

COVID-19 Resources:

Center for Disease Control
World Health Organization

See y'all next week.

AS

BLASST 104: Pillowsnake

TRACKLIST:
1. Pillowsnake - "LOVE GAVE ME THE LUXURY OF TIME"
2. Serge Gainsbourg - "Theme from Cannabis" (Cannabis the film)
3. Freddie Gibbs & Madlib - "Crime Pays"
4. Solange - "Almeda"
5. Pillowsnake - "GABRIELA IS THE NEW SKIN" 

Content Warning: this conversation covers sexual assault at points, and contains strong language.

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NOTES:
Welcome back to Blistering Listens and Strange Sounds, thank you for tuning in - again! Today's broadcast features our first guest of 2020, Jacob LaFollette, also known as the RGV's own avant-pop wizard, Pillowsnake! 

As you will hear in the episode, I first came to know of Jacob's work the same way most people hear about things these days: social media. Soon after becoming Facebook friends a few years ago, Jacob began regularly sharing links with me to listen to his music, welcoming me into the sonic space his mind occupies. Unlike anything I had ever heard from an artist in my neck of the woods, Pillowsnake's music lives in a multi-verse of inspiration: hip-hop, vaporwave, industrial experimentalism, and everything sexy about rock n' roll. 

The first time I saw him play was in Brownsville at the Carlotta Petrina Cultural Arts Center in 2019 for The Objects album release party, and he absolutely ripped. Switching between crystal clear rapping, singing, and shredding out guitar solos at a moment's notice, he was a one man band that was clearly larger than life. 

Since then, I've booked him for my own shows, recommended him for others, and as of a few months ago, been jamming his latest release, hmminBYRD, a five-track burst of glittery, glitchy, madness. We talked about that, his production style (he makes all of his music on his smartphone) and influences, and about his hometown(s) of San Benito/Harlingen, and life growing up in the Rio Grande Valley. 

You can check out hmminBYRD here.

Check out Jacob's new single below:

If you can guess the background music in today's episode, you can select all of the music I play in a future episode. Drop me an e-mail (uupunk [at] gmail [dot] com) if you do.

HINT: it is from a video game.

Thanks again for tuning in, hope everyone's been staying safe and staying home (if you have the privilege to do so). I'm working on some ideas for streaming shows via social media (IGTV, Twitch) etc. Inspired by Angel Corsi's recent Quaranstream, Tubby's (a friend's bar in Kingston) streaming sets all this week from their Instagram, and Don Giovanni's streaming music festival (also via IG Live). 

More on that in coming episodes. See y'all next week.

AS

BLASST #103: RIP GENESIS BREYER P-ORRIDGE

TRACKLIST:
1. BLASST Theme - "BLASSTHEME"
2. Tony Jr. and the Magic Valley - "Case of Corona"
3. Genesis Breyer P-Orridge Interview
4. Psychic TV - "Infinite Beat"
5. Throbbing Gristle - "United"
6. The Serfs - "Perverted Disco"
7. The Electronic Circus - "Direct Lines"
8. Smashing Pumpkins - "Isolation" (Joy Division cover)
9. Girlpool - "Like I'm Winning It"
10. Navy Blue - "In Good Hands ft. Ka"
11. Virna Lindt - "Avant-Garde Pt. 1"
12. Virna Lindt - "Avant-Garde Pt. 2"
13. Gong Gong Gong 工工工 - "Notes Underground 地下日記"
14. C.W. Stoneking - "On A Desert Isle"
15. Les Rallizes Denudes - "People Can Choose"

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Notes: A quick note about the show: I neglected to mention that "Case of Corona" by Tony Jr. and the Magic Valley also features Rene Gonzales Jr. on piano. For those who don't know (admittedly, I didn't), Rene is the grandson of Country Roland, a Valley legend who helped bridge the gap between Country and Tejano (genres that both mean a great deal to certain generations in our humble community) in the 70s and 80s by making country music in Spanish. Check him out below.

This is the first broadcast I've produced while in self-quarantine! That's probably not something to celebrate, but it has definitely changed the way I work on shows. Normally I'm freaking out about time and producing these at the 11th hour, leaving me with little sleep before my work shift the next day. This time around I was able to produce this episode in decent time and was even able to produce a theme song for it! I've been wanting a proper theme song since the start of the show, and thanks to Moog's decision to make the Minimoog D app free to the public, I was able to make one! Of course, the motivation behind Moog's decision is still a gloomy one: the spread of Coronavirus AKA Covid-19 to the United States has made it so that the new norm for people is to stay home and not interact with others. The practice, dubbed "social distancing" or "self-quarantine", is intended to help curb the spread of the virus in its early stages of being in the country among unsuspecting and otherwise healthy carriers (such as people my age), or "flatten the curve" as it's been described by experts. The outcome of this practice will be a less-overwhelmed medical system that can adequately provide care for patients as the flow of patients who have contracted the virus becomes steady instead of appearing all at once! I've linked to more information about why this practice is important HERE, and hope you read it and share it with those you care about! (graphic below)

Seriously, if you're reading this and you're still going out to crowded places, take a long, hard look at yourself. Think of your actions, think of the people close to you who might not fare as well as you in this time...they're the ones who will be hurt by your foolishness in the end. I've seen so many people I respect and care about put themselves in these scenarios time and again over the past week, and it's been profoundly disappointing. Clearly they're not taking this matter seriously. I refuse to accept that they simply are not informed, the coronavirus is trending on every social media platform, it's been memed to shit already, there is really no excuse for why people haven't taken action to isolate themselves. 

I'm done ranting about this, I do enough of that on the show already. Thanks for listening again, the world will miss Genesis Breyer P-Orridge for ever and ever. I incorrectly stated that h/er first group was Throbbing Gristle, when in fact the first group (term used loosely) that s/he was a part of was COUM Transmissions, a performance art collective active in the UK in the late 60s and early 70s. Look em up. Or watch below.

Stay healthy, stay home, stay safe, and I'll see y'all next week. We will have our first guest of 2020!

A

BLASST 102: WASH YR DAMN HANDS

TRACKLIST
1. Mccoy Tyner Interview on The Weekend Starts Now
2. Mccoy Tyner - "Departure"
3. Señor Coconut y su Conjunto - "The Robots (Cha Cha Cha)"
4. Chiiild - "Back to Life"
5. Molchat Doma - "Prognoz"
6. Arlo Parks - "Eugene"
7. Nation of Language - "Rush & Fever"
8. Deeper - "Trust"
9. Crack Cloud - "The Next Fix"
10. Loraine James - "Sensual"
11. DJ Nigga Fox - "Faz a Minha"
12. Kikagaku Moyo - "Kogarashi"
13. Moon Duo - "The World and the Sun"
14. Pere Ubu - "Breath"
15: Gang of Four - "At Home He's A Tourist"

COVER: Arlo Parks by Pamela Boland.

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NOTES: I like today's show. I had initially planned for it to be very different, but as I mention on the program, my laptop shut off while I was putting the episode together and I lost everything at about 1AM. I love this show and I love y'all but I was too tired to rebuild it at that hour, so I waited til the next day. If you ask me, I think it turned out for the better. Today's selections are more eclectic in their style, jumping from pop to post punk with some funky tempo play for transitions. Where else can you find a show that begins with jazz great McCoy Tyner and closes with the mighty Gang of Four? Now that I think about it, that bookends the show with losses. McCoy passed this past Friday, and GoF's Andy Gill passed early last month. Death shouldn't come as a surprise when you live a life, but it doesn't make it any less bitter to swallow. Some highlights from today's program: I'm really into this Chiiild LP, Synthetic Soul. I straight up cried to "Back To Life" when I first heard it. The chorus goes "if there's a god, I hope she's black and - when I die - she brings me back to life" and that just shattered me. It's a great track to boot. Other notes, I finally got a track from the new Moon Duo in there, I must have jammed that LP 30 times over the holiday break (perks of working for a college). It's been an interesting week. I take off on tour with Shanghai Beach (as a photographer) this Thursday, and I'm both excited and a bit on edge about it. All this COVID-19 panic has gotten to my head a bit. It took a few conversations with friends more level-headed than I am and some googling about how to best protect oneself from contracting and spreading viruses to finally calm my nerves. Now, my only concern is picking it up and bringing it home with me. Technically I wouldn't know until it's too late. Worst case scenario, I take two weeks off work. Worse things could happen, honestly.

Stay safe out there. See y'all next week.

AS

BLASST #101 - We're back!

TRACKLIST
1. Cindy Lee - "One Second To Toe The Line"
2. Heavy Metal - "6 Bergadler and a Microphone"
3. Eris Drew - "Trans Love Vibration (Eris Goes To Church)"
4. Ariel Zetina - "Vanity 7"
5. Against All Logic - "If You Can't Do It Good, Do It Hard"
6. Algebra Suicide - "True Romance at the World's Fair"
7. Mira Mann - "Schau mir in die Augen"
8. Los Walters - "Calma"
9. Junior Sanchez - "Superincumbent"
10. Salt Cathedral - "Paris"
11. King Krule - "Stoned Again"
12. Little Jesus - "La Magia"
13. Kneeling In Piss - "USA Will Start Another War"
14. HTRK - "Ha"

15. Lee Ranaldo & Raul Refree - "The Art of Losing"



COVER: Ariel Zetina by Ryan Edmund.

NOTES: Yeah yeah, we're back. This week we were a bit unprepared for the return (as usual, but HEY at least we're consistent) but will have more flash-boom-bang next week. A lot of fun tracks in this one - having to play catch up while also sticking to sharing stuff I've been into recently as opposed to over the last seven months. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter. Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts, etc. 

Also, GO VOTE YOU HAVE UNTIL TOMORROW (SUPER TUESDAY).

- A

LISTEN
POLLING PLACE LOCATOR

DJ JUAN PEEL #2: Live at Grain to Glass

This past weekend, I (aka DJ Juan Peel) had the pleasure of spinning some of my favorite records for a few hours (4 to be exact) at Grain to Glass. It was my second time doing so, and while I wasn't able to make it happen the first time around, this time I was able to stream my set out to the world...as well as my computer! 

 

The final 3.5 hours of my set were successfully recorded and are now up for your enjoyment at BLASST's Mixcloud page, flubs n' all (and there are plenty, I'm still new at this). Tracklist below. Seeya soon, and enjoy!  

 

-A

LISTEN TO THE SHOW

 

1. Kaputt - "Hi! I Am The Wasp!"

2. Andy Pickett - "Paid"

3. Heaven 17 - "Temptation"

4. The Young - "Bird in the Bush"

5. Essential Logic - "Music Is A Better Noise"

6. Uranium Club - "Who Made The Man?"

7. Deep Purple - "Highway Star"

8. Crystal Stilts - "Sycamore Tree"

9. Total Control - "Flesh War"

10. Talking Heads - "Crosseyed and Painless"

11. The Stranglers - "Tank"

12. The Fall - "Printhead"

13. Kleenex - "Hitch-Hike"

14. ISS - "Endless Drip"

15. Kate Bush - "Running Up That Hill"

16. Peter Gabriel - "I Have The Touch"

17. TOBACCO - "Street Trash"

18. Big Brother & The Holding Company - "Ball & Chain"

19. Talking Heads - "This Must Be The Place"

20. Mr Twin Sister - "Rude Boy"

21. LCD Soundsystem - "Losing My Edge"

22. Delinquent Habits - "Trés Delinquentes"

23. Moor Mother x Mental Jewelry - "Hardware"

24. Juma - 化石になる日"

25. The Velvet Underground - "What Goes On"

26. Murderer - "Perfect"

27. Murderer - "I Did It Just For You"

28. Sasami - "Not The Time"

29. Stereolab - "Strobo Acceleration"

30. Belle & Sebastian - "Like Dylan In The Movies"

31. Lou Reed - "Hangin' Round"

32. Prince - "Kiss"

33. Gary Wilson - "You Think You Really Know Me"

34. Daft Punk - "Voyager"

35. Yellow Magic Orchestra - "Rydeen"

36. Yishak Banjaw - "Segno Sra Allebign"

37. Mr Twin Sister - "Milk & Honey"

38. Kate Bush - Wuthering "Heights"

39. Los Hijos Del Sol - "Cariñito"

40. Psychic TV - "Godstar"

41. Pinocchio - "My Time Vol. 1"

42. Pinocchio - "Light Speed Vol. 1"

43. Pinocchio - "Light Speed Vol. 2"

44 .Broadcast - "The Book Lovers"

45 .Kraftwerk - "Neon Lights"

46. Sylvester - "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)"

47. Delta 5 - "Mind Your Own Business"

48. James Brown - "Superbad Pt. 1, 2, and 3"

49. Heatwave - "Put The Word Out"

50. David Bowie - "Stay"

51. Mdou Moctar - "Kamane Tarhanin"

52. Mdou Moctar - "Asshet Akal"

53. Hot Chocolate - "Every 1's A Winner"

54. The Temptations - "Ain't Too Proud To Beg"

BLASST 100: The LASST BLASST

TRACKLIST
1. Miles Davis - “Great Expectations”
2. The Jesus Lizard - “Then Comes Dudley”
3. Sfinx - “Blaña De Urs”
4. The KVB - “Above Us”
5. Gusto Gusto - “Picket Fence”
6. Shame - “Concrete”
7. The Ex - “Ip Man”
8. black midi - “Speedway”
9. Idles - “Mercedes Marxist”
10. Sinead O' Brien - “Taking On Time”
11. Jane Weaver - “Did You See The Butterflies?”
12. Shirō Sagisu - “The Flow of Emptiness” (End of Evangelion OST)
13. Shirō Sagisu - “F-3 (Take 1)” (NGE OST)
14. Ana Roxanne - “It's A Rainy Day On The Cosmic Shore”
15. Stomu Yamashita - “Wind Words” (The Man Who Fell To Earth OST)
16. Dick Tracy - “Tokyo-Ga” (Tokyo-Ga OST)
17. Ben LaMar Gay - “Music For 18 Hairdressers: Braids & Fractals”
18. slowthai, Mura Masa - “Doorman”
19. Erika De Casier - “Space”
20. Eartheater - “Concealer”
21. Rakky Ripper - “Puertas del Hell”
22. Big Joanie - “Cut Your Hair”
23. HVAD, Pan Daijing - “Zhao Hua”
24. Chino Amobi - “Paradiso”
25. Los Beta 5 - “Sobre El Arco Iris”
26. Murderer - “Perfect II”
27: The Pains of Being Pure At Heart - “Ramona”

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NOTES
First things first, if you tell me that this week's BLASST image reminds you of McDonald's, you might be right. No, it was not intentional. I picked golden yellow for the number because it represents a goal I've reached with the show, and I'm proud of that. The red of the text is not hyper red and instead vaguely deep crimson because it reminds me of high-end red ink. I wanted to give off regal vibes for this design. I omitted the date because while this is the image for a single episode, it also represents every single other episode of the show. That being said, if you decide to stuff your face with Big Macs after listening to this episode, please tell me. That would be really interesting to learn. Anyway.

October 10, 2016 to July 16, 2019.
 
Almost three years. 

Sleep? Free time? These are simply currency, and I've exchanged them every week for the past year and a half to put BLASST together on a consistent basis. It's honestly been pretty difficult at times, and I've put out episodes I haven't been entirely happy with, but looking back over the past 100 episodes, I wouldn't trade the experiences I've had for anything. I believed in an idea, and worked toward that idea regardless of whether it was building momentum or making an impact. To everyone who believed in me and the program, to all the guests, all the bands, and all the listeners—most importantly, the listeners—thank you. You always deserve better than what you have, and you deserve the courage to make things happen for yourselves if no one else is doing it already. If I had more time, and perhaps made a living through doing this kind of work, I would probably not have pulled the plug so soon. I mean, 100 episodes is nothing! Imagine 1000 episodes! That's at least three years of commitment to the cause. Anyway, I didn't make this decision lightly. I started BLASST at a time in my life when I felt very lost and without purpose. I hadn't been making music, which is something I'd previously been quite active in and had been desperately trying to hold onto for fear of losing something that meant so much to me, so I followed the path I'd walked once before in my younger years. If I couldn't play, I'd contribute to the local scene somehow. I didn't want to monetize it, I didn't want to partner it with local businesses, I didn't want it to be listened to all over the world...I just wanted it to be listened to here. I wanted it to belong to this place and these people. Many of the younger people growing up in the Rio Grande Valley are raised on the concept of scarcity, and value their lives by what they lack. I wanted to change that by giving something back, something I would have deeply appreciated at a young age, something that would help expand my mind and show me things, and I came to truly bond with the show through that deep appreciation. BLASST means the world to me. I've put it before so many things in my life before, and suffered for it. I decided this year that if the moment struck where I felt that the time was right to change course and focus my energy elsewhere, I would follow that impulse. I have other pursuits now, work that I truly find fulfilling, and which could really use my full, well-rested attention. I don't plan to be away forever; BLASST may reappear in different ways that have not occurred to me yet, but for the time being I will be gleefully unconcerned. I put together this episode with love in mind, love of all the different kinds of music in the world, all the different kinds of music we've played on the show, and all the possibilities that lay ahead. I hope you enjoy it. If you'd like to personally express your condolences, you can do so at the following show:

Until we meet again,

-A