New music this week from Franciscan Monks of Acies Mundi, Love is Noise, Jethro Tull, Sub-Radio, Mourn, Franz Ferdinand, Shed Seven, Bob Mould, Gardens, Sunsick Daisy and more! Enjoy!
No cheap shots or any of that other stuff today. I am doing a re-think of what I blog and when I blog it.
That said, the second single from Franciscan Monks of Acies Mundi will drop on Friday. It's called "Seven Mountains" and is described by the Monks as follows:
"Time and time again we see examples in scripture of God using
the lowest of people, people without station or influence, to do his great
works. Never, not once in all scripture, is it commanded to be at the top of
mountains – it is shown time and again that the Lord may do his work any way
that he sees fit.
"So in seeking to control the seven mountains as commanded by
Televangelists and others are you following the path or are you worshipping
idols? Did you know that the man who coined the term “Seven Mountains” is the
only leader who calls himself a Christian who has refused to condemn the
violence of January 6, 2021?
"Have you prostituted yourself to the worship and friendship
of power? Are you, like those espousing the philosophy of Seven Mountains,
ensconced in a cult of your own making?"
The song itself has only two lines, but they're powerful lines. We wanted to have a song that lays bare the conciet of the people in the US who call themselves Christian but clearly hold very little in terms of Christian Values. I had a kind of dancing dervish of a tune sketched out and once we had agreed on the concept of the song we scoured for words to use.
It was Brother Anthony who suggested we use Deuteronomy 23:17. He played the main synth riff and synth bass on the track, but it was Brother James who sung lead. We all summarily resisted the idea to submit the song for the next Eurovision competition.
Although I had specific ideas of what to use and the concepts I wanted to get across, I relied heavily on the Brothers to find the most appropriate text and its translation.
Anyway, it will be available wherever you get your streaming music on January 17th.
And becuase I love you, here is the video for the new single from Band-Maid, "Zen" - which is also the opening theme to the anime "Zenshuu"
New Year, New Music! This week features Opinion, Matt-Felix, Young Jesus Slow Coast, Witch Post, Paul Weller, Spells and Curses, Kong, Manse, Drew Sycamore, The Liminanas with Bobby Gillespie and much more. Enjoy!
No cheap shots or any of that other stuff today. I am doing a re-think of what I blog and when I blog it.
But I do have news for you. At long last, the first single from Franciscan Monks of Acies Mundi has finally dropped. I've put the video below, which isn't as simple as it looks on first viewing.
This is a band that I wrote all the music for and produced the album. I play on a couple of tracks, and My drummer does the same. You should check the project out at their website. I had a lot of fun working on this one, and keeping it under my hat for the past few months has been a struggle for me I must admit. The full story is at the website. It's a crazy project for a man like me.
The album version will play at my radio station, but what dropped today is the single version. It's a bit shorter.
Here is the video for the first single. The next single drops in another 10 days.
One last week in the year, so one more playlist! New music this week from Ryan Adams, Lenox Hills, The Antinomy Insurrection, Hairpin, Cloakroom, Chloe Slater, Charlie Hickey, St. Lucia and much more. Enjoy!
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
There is no Album show this week. No one releases an album in the last week of the year.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time.
RFC 2453
For those of you who stay away from Spotify we set aside Wednesdays for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 25 songs (including the monster 33 minute track by The Antinomy Insurgency) which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Thursday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 2001 and this week we're going to pick one of the few years we haven't gone to yet. Specifically, 2024. We're going to go extra long.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
No Cheap Shots this week. There will be plenty of time for that.
And because I love you, here is one of my best discoveries of 2024 Lola Young, singing her latest hit on the road, some of it in my adopted home town:
New music this week from Darkcave, Jesse Welles, Vulfmon, Elettrodomestico, Guided By Voices, Soul Asylum, The Ceys, Girl Scout, The Lathams, Housewife and much more. Enjoy!
In theory, there could be an episode next week. I will see what comes out, but usually the last week of the year tends to be very slow - no sign artist wants to release new material while every radio station on the planet is playing a "best of the previous year" show. Tune in to this blog for updates. Meanwhile...
RADIO FREE CHRISTMAS
We have special programming this week. I have made no secret of the fact that I HATE most Christmas music. It dominates every aspect of life outside the home from radio to TV to shopping to even my fucking Chiropractor's office. It' makes me see red. That said, I'm not a Grinch or a pre-reform Scrooge. I actually enjoy the holiday and believe in the gift-giving and spending time with family - I will be doing all of those things. But good lord how many times do you need to hear Burl Ives singing "Frost The Snowman"?
But I will relent on December 24th and 25th. There are songs I like and I will be playing them for 48 hours, starting one minute past midnight Pacific Standard Time on December 24th through just before midnight on December 25th. Some of the songs are traditional. Some are quite profane (one of them is called "Fuck Christmas"). Yes, Christmas Wrappings and Christmas Rappings will be played, as well as that Pogues song, an incredibly nasty and swear-filled duet between The Hives and Cyndi Lauper, and I've even added some new music to the list this year from artists like Skafish, Jacob Collier and Toad the Wet Sprocket. There is a Spotify Playlist here, but the radio station will play them in random order for two days. As a result, our usual Wednesday programming will be shifted by a day. See below.
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
Darkcave is an artist that I've been following for a few years now, and I'm just about the only one. He has no social media presence, no following on any of the various streaming services and I'll be honest I no longer remember who I discovered him. What he has been is consistently solid in his songwriting and performing and he's one of the few artists to put out an album this week. When you have onyh 20 followers on Spotify you can afford to not worry about radio. His new album is called "Hansen, Saul & Fuller. Welcome"
Other new releases worth your time include "Ed" by Ellettrodomestico, which is technically an EP and has some interesting guests such as The B-52's Kate Pierson, "Slowly but Shirley" from Soul Asylum which is kind of a throwback to before they were a signed act, and "New Old Horse" from Twine.
All albums are available in all the usual places.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time.
RFC 2452
For those of you who stay away from Spotify the current week's additions are usually played on Wednesdays, but this week we will be playing them all on Thursday the 26th because of the special programming we are doing the previous two days. The playlist will be inturrupted by The Album show and 10 at 10, but will otherwise play the entire day. Every other day will be the usual rotation, but we set aside Wednesdays Thursday for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 29 songs which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday Thursday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Thursday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 2010 and this week we're going to pick one of the few years we haven't gone to yet.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
No cheap shots this week. Face it, we all need a break. rest up folks, the Resistance starts shortly. For now, how about we try to be nice to one another?
And because I love you, if you haven't been checking out the US version of "Have I Got News For You" that started this year, hosted by Roy Wood and featuring Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black and broadcast on CNN of all things, let's give you a taste:
New music this week from Envy of None, The Darkness, Juice Webster, Molly Payton, Sofie Royer, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Rival Sons, The Ceys, Snoop Dogg (with a little help) and much more. Enjoy!
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
Molly Payton is a New Zealand transplant living in London who up until now has been releasing EPs. She has an extensive resume thanks to this, including opening for such acts as Beabadoobee and Arlo Parks, as well as playing the festival circuit in Europe. She now has a full album out called YOYOTTA and it's a good one. Kind of alt, kind of folky, and solid songwriting throughout. I don't see it doing anything other than increasing her appeal and moving her career forward, and we're going to play the album in full and un-inturrupted on this week's show.
Other new releases worth your time include Sofie Royer's "Young-Girl Forever" - especially if you like your music a little funkier, Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre's "Missionary" which is a rap album that sshows you just how it's done, aand on the more acoustic side is Andrew Bird and Madison Cunningham's debut collaboration "Cunningham Bird".
All albums are available in all the usual places.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time.
RFC 2451
For those of you who stay away from Spotify the current week's additions will be played on Wednesdays. This is a change from prior programming: what we're going to do going forward is just play the music added this week only. Every other day will be the usual rotation, but we set aside Wednesdays for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 33 songs which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Thursday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 1980 (a good year, really), and this week we're going to pick another year we haven't gone to yet.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
And because I love you, here's a little Chuck Mangione you might not know, from one of his later releases:
And why not have an extra? This is The Darkness and Ed Sheeran rehearsing a surprise appearance at one of The Darkness' shows in 2023. The actual performance can be found easily enough, but the rehearsal is kinda special:
New music this week from Sub-Radio, The Aerovons, Charles Connoly, Hinds, Manic Street Preachers, Nada Surf, Phil Makes, Kim Wilde (yes, THAT Kim Wilde), Dream Theater and much more. Enjoy!
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
Charles Connolly has been releasing single after single for several months now, and I've added almost all of them to the radio station. At long last there is a full album containing those singles and more. He doesn't have a big following, but I like his work and I think you will to. From his Spotify Bio: "Charles Connolly is a critically acclaimed songwriter and producer from London, with pop songs spanning multiple genres. Originality, versatility and melody being the key attributes to his sound, Charles writes, sings, plays, sequences, produces and mixes his material entirely solo. His catchy melodies are bound to get stuck in your head with a fond familiarity yet a fresh vibrancy." It's actually a good description, and we will be playing the new album "Hands Up!" on the Album Show this week.
Other new releases worth your time include "Vicious Creature"by Lauren Mayberry, "Continental" from Phil Makes, "Moon Mirror" from Nada Surf, "Come And See" from Gurriers, and the Madrid, Spain-based Hinds gives us a bonus track edition of "Viva Hinds!" The album is mostly in English.
All albums are available in all the usual places.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time.
RFC 2450
For those of you who stay away from Spotify the current week's additions will be played on Wednesdays. This is a change from prior programming: what we're going to do going forward is just play the music added this week only. Every other day will be the usual rotation, but we set aside Wednesdays for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 32 songs which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Thursday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 1965, and this week we're going to pick another year we haven't gone to yet - another one I've never covered before and the deepest dive into the vault EVER.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
Cheap Shots:
I know I'm going to be saying this a lot over the next 4 years, but Incorrect, shithead.
Slightly shorter week for new music (happens this time of year) but still great stuff from total tommy, Hamish Hawk, Homecomings, Hot Chip with Sleaford Mods, CAKE, Lola Young, 37AM, Peach Fuzz and much more. Enjoy!
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
Once upon a time there was an electro-pop band from Melbourne, Australia called Essie Holt. It was mostly one person, Jess Holt, and it was pretty good but nothing groundbreaking. Even Ms. Holt recognized it and decided to take a couple of years off and redirect her sound. She has a new project, called Total Tommy, and it's some distance away from where she started. Dream-like guitars, solid riffs and great vocals.No electronica/keyboards. Not really. I first dicovered her when she released her first single, "microdose". As more singles have come out I've added them all to the radio station. Well there's now a full album called "bruises" and it's well worth your time, and we're going to feature it on The Album Show.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time.
RFC 2449
For those of you who stay away from Spotify the current week's additions will be played on Wednesdays. This is a change from prior programming: what we're going to do going forward is just play the music added this week only. Every other day will be the usual rotation, but we set aside Wednesdays for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 34 songs which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Thursday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 1996, and this week we're going to pick another year we haven't gone to yet - another one I've never covered before and the deepest dive into the vault EVER.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
No cheap shots this week either. I mean good fucking lord every pick is either grossly unqualified or firmly against what they've been put in charge of. This is the most corrupt America has ever been.
And because I love you, would you believe I had never heard this song until yesterday? Video is pretty terrible, but the song slaps.
New Music this week from Lambrni Girls, The Virginmarys, Franz Ferdinand, Teenage Wrist, Blaudzum, She Drew the Gun, Kid Tigrrr, Chasing Zeniths, Spiral Drive, Opeth, illuminati hotties, Joan Armatrading, Body Count, Motorpsycho and much more. Enjoy!
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
What are we playing this week? Really torn up about it. I have finally settled on the new album by The Virginmarys, called The House Beyond The Fires. This is a great riff-heavy rock and roll album - the kind that doesn't get much radio play anymore and I think that's why I chose it over the competition, which I will get to in a moment. Their biography on Spoitify is full of industry buzzwords and self-hype and quite frankly is a bit of a turn-off. But the music is fantastic, well-written and well executed. Give it a listen.
The organization Playing for Change has been around for a while now, going around the world and eliciting some great performances of classic songs from artists of every stripe. You should really check out their videos on YouTube, which includes a band led by Robbie Robertson (in what I believe was his final live performance) and Ringo Star doing "The Weight", Peter Gabriel and Meshell Ndegeocello performing "Biko", Bob Marley's son Stephen performing "No Woman No Cry". These three songs and a few more have been collected on the album Song For Humanity, which was my other choice for this week.
Both albums are available in all the usual places.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time.
RFC 2448
For those of you who stay away from Spotify the current week's additions will be played on Wednesdays. This is a change from prior programming: what we're going to do going forward is just play the music added this week only. Every other day will be the usual rotation, but we set aside Wednesdays for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 50 songs which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Thursday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 2009, and this week we're going to pick another year we haven't gone to yet - another one I've never covered before.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
Those of you who frequent this blog know that I started taking a deep dive into Project 2025. I only made it half way throough because I found it all to fucking depressing, and for a bit there I had hope for the nation.
When Kamala Harris eventually runs for Governor of California I will vote for her. Then we can teach the rest of the nation how it's done. What I have to decide is whether or not I'm going to be voting remotely, through an embassy.
But until then, lat's take a look at my predictions about Project 2025 that are already underway:
Government jobs will be Patronage Jobs: Hell, just look at his cabinet picks. This is already the most corrupt government in history and not a single person has yet to be sworn in.
Changes at the Department of Defense: The nominee for the job has already said he plans to fire any General who supported all attempted to diversify the ranks, from trans, to gays to even people of color and their religion. He even believes that women shouldn't serve in combat - which they've been doing since the days of Bush II. A Republican, you might recall. Also, all Trans personnel are to be kicked out with a dishonorable discharge. This will include a 4-star ADMIRAL .
No Background Checks: You night not remember this, but early in the section about the Department of State comes a section to have New appointees start their jobs before they are sworn in.and to skip the vetting process altogether.
Intelligence Community: All operations are at the direction/discretion of the President. not the head of the CIA. In appointing a known lapdog this will be easy to implement.
Education: If you look at the State of Florida, you will find that of the roughly 500 college courses about diversity and sensitivity towards other cultures about 95% of them have been cancelled. The letters have already gone out to colleges across the country telling them to get in step with this.
Remember, this has already happened. They're not in office yet.
Good luck out there.
And because I love you, let me put Ice-T and Body Count in your face:
New music this week from Linkin Park, Greet Death, The Youniverse, Semantica, Blackberry Smoke, Silverlites, Negative, Hana Lili, The Sixsters, Painted Vein, King Stingray, Du Blonde and much more. Enjoy!
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
What are we playing this week? Why the new Linkin Park album, From Zero, of course. Now I was never really a fan of Linkin Park back when Chester Bennington was their lead vocalist. I found the inoffensive and occasionally okay to listen to, but I wasn't really a fan. Yeah, I'm the guy who name-called him in one of my own songs, but I was never really a fan. His death was an unexpected gut punch though.
I like their new singer, Emily Armstrong. She can scream like Chester did but her singing voice is bloody amazing. Her addition to the band has elevated it to a place I really respect. Nothing against Chester - a friend of mine who knew him says he was a wonderful person and I trust their judgement, but Ms. Armstrong is a much better singer. It makes all the difference, and so I'm going to play the new album on this week's show.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time.
RFC 2447
For those of you who stay away from Spotify the current week's additions will be played on Wednesdays. This is a change from prior programming: what we're going to do going forward is just play the music added this week only. Every other day will be the usual rotation, but we set aside Wednesdays for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 43 songs which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Thursday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 1993, and this week we're going to pick another year we haven't gone to yet - another one I've never covered before.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
I'm not going to do cheap shots for a while. I see no reason to treat any of this seriously if they don't.
But because I love you, here's the video for the most recent Linkin Park single:
New this week from RHEA, Nerina Pallot, Greta Stanley, The Pineapple Thief, Peter Murthy and Boy George, Hayley Mary, Yannis & the Yaw, Our Girl, Mixed Signals and much more.
Remember, as of January 20th, 2025, having brown skin will be a crime.
We have new music this week from The Cure, Pixies, Amyl and the Sniffers, Halsey, Danny Elfman, Wishy, Lola Young, Dirty Loops, Bongloard, Lenny Kravitz, Sleater-Kinney, Envy of None, Julia Loagan, SWMRS, Illiterate Light and much more. Enjoy!
ALBUM SHOW NOTES
What are we playing this week? Nothing, I'm afraid. We had to cancel the show this week because of technical issues.
Other new releases worth your time are of course the new album from The Cure, but you should hunt down the Deluxe version, which includes a 2nd disc with instrumental versions of all of the songs. This is their best album since the 1990s. Julia Logan, Halsey and SWMRS also have good new albums. Dirty Loops released a new EP which is quite solid and includes a remake of Stevie Wonder's "Living for the City" that is really pretty fly for a bunch of Scandanavian White guys. You should also check out the band Bongloard.
All albums are available in all the usual places.
The Album Show plays on Thursdays at 9am and 9pm Pacific Standard Time. Just not this week.
RFC 2445
For those of you who stay away from Spotify the current week's additions will be played on Wednesdays. This is a change from prior programming: what we're going to do going forward is just play the music added this week only. Every other day will be the usual rotation, but we set aside Wednesdays for just the new additions for the week. This week that's 51 songs which we will play in the same order that they're in on the Spotify playlist of the same name up at the top of this post. So if you tune in at just about any time on Wednesday you will hear the whole playlist.
10 at 10
One last programming note: Every Saturday at 10pm and again on Sunday at 10am and 10pm we will feature our show "10 at 10", where we play 10 (and sometimes 11 or even 12!) songs from a year we pick at random. Again, all times are PST. Last week I played a group of songs from 2006, and this week we're going to pick another year we haven't gone to yet - one of the best years in classic rock history.
As always, you can go to https://global.citrus3.com:2020/public/radiofreecalifornia to listen to the station, and there is an imbed below. And did you know the station is available as an app? It's only for Google Play (sorry iphone users - Apples terms and conditions were too restrictive for me) but you can listen on your phone at your convenience too.
Now get the fuck out there and vote.
Here's something I posted in the spring of 2016. Young people, doing better than we did is pretty easy. The bar is pretty fucking low.
