Back to Regularly Irregular Programming

My goodness! It's taken me this long to get around to posting a thank you to everyone. It's been insane at work. Anyway- October 2009 was the BEST YEAR EVER for the Annual Halloween Extravaganza! Thanks to everyone who tuned in! We had very high numbers all day October 30, and Halloween we were sold out most of the time. The website got so much traffic it used up all its bandwidth! A great time was had by all in the NeverEnding Halloween chat room and it was just generally a great time! Next year is the 10th Anniversary of the Halloween Extravaganza, so something really special is sure to happen!

We're back to the regular crazy mix on NeverEndingWonder Radio, with some fabulous new music. Welcome to Weirdsville remains on the air! you can tune in at:

Welcome to Weirdsville

What's new on NeverEndingWonder Radio?

THIS JUST IN:


Mags, from The Mad Maggies sent me a surprising package- the 2010 West Coast Accordion Babes Calendar with companion CD. A deluxe 12" X 12" calendar with wild, weird & winsome photos of female accordion players, all from the West Coast. For fans of the outre' this is the perfect gift. You can order the calendar & cd at:

SqueezeboxGoddess.com

And you can hear the CD on NeverEndingWonder Radio!

Harp46 - Entanglement

I was a big fan of Harp46's 2005 debut, Passage. Jazz fusion harp, who'd have thunk it? This new release finds them moving into the World Beat arena, with just as much assurance and finesse. It's beautiful!

Mike Longo Trio - Sting Like a Bee

Mike Longo studied piano with Oscar Peterson and played with Dizzy Gillespie. He's a journeyman jazzman, and this CD shows him in fine form, accompanied by Bob Cranshaw on bass and Lewis Nash on drums.

David MacKenzie and Josh Johnston - Notes Home

Take swing jazz, add some blues and Latin influences and you have this warm and colorful album.

John Steiner - Into the Green

Minimalist solo piano that reveals a deft sensitivity to sound and silence.

That's all for now! Come join us at:

NeverEndingWonder Radio
Or- in iTunes, find us in the radio section under Eclectic.

Live Halloween Radio Marathon!

Announcing the 2009 NeverEndingWonder Halloween Radio Live Broadcast Marathon!

The INSANE Uncle Ozma will be LIVE, taking your requests and DEADications beginning Friday morning, October 30 (whenever the deadbeat wakes up) until he passes out from exhaustion, and then doing the whole thing again Saturday, Oct 31- HALLOWEEN!

You can make your requests via email (tune in for the addy) or in the spooky Halloween chat room! That's right- chat LIVE with the UNDEAD Uncle Ozma and other Halloween radio fans!

To tune in, and to chat, go to:

NeverEndingWonder.com

This will be the most entertaining Halloween live broadcast on the net! Don't miss it!

The Freakishly Frazzled Uncle Ozma will also be giving away autographed photos of scream queen Brooke Lewis! Tune in so you can win!

Come join us!

NeverEndingWonder.com

Halloween Contest for 2009!

NeverEndingWonder Halloween Radio is giving away two personally autographed photographs of scream queen Brooke Lewis!

Brooke Lewis, star of Slime City Massacre, The Sinatra Club, Dahmer vs. Gacy, the webseries Ms. Vampy and the new thriller iMurders, has donated two photographs which she will personally autograph to the winners. Here are the photos we'll be giving away:


Picture 1


Picture 2


To win, send an email to: "halloweencontest@neverendingwonder.com" explaining why YOU should win the photo! (Specify which photo you want to win. Separate entry for each photo) All the entries will be read on the air during the annual marathon live broadcasts Oct. 30 & 31. Listeners will vote for who they think should win.

Ms. Brooke's latest project, iMurders, just played, to great acclaim, at the Chicago Horror Fest. It stars Gabrielle Anwar, William Forsythe, Frank Grillo, Tony Todd, Charles Durning, Billy Dee Williams and features an original score by the great Harry Manfredini (Friday the 13th, Wishmaster & countless others).

You can tune in to NeverEndingWonder Halloween Radio at:

NeverEndingWonder.com
Or in iTunes, go to the radio section and find our station listing in category "Eclectic."

NeverEndingWonder Halloween Radio Empire Online for 2009

The NeverEndingWonder Halloween Radio Empire has hit the cyber-airwaves for the 2009 Halloween season.

Every year for the past nine years I have broadcast three stations of Halloween themed music for fans of Halloween the world over. They're all back this year for another five weeks of shivers, shenanigans, silliness and sinister, shadowy delights.

NeverEndingWonder Radio broadcasts a freeform mix of music ranging from some of the earliest music ever recorded, to brand new releases, including big band, blues, jazz, popular, classical, folk, rock, punk, Goth, electronic, psychobilly, punkabilly, gothabilly, horrorpop, metal, avante-gard, experimental and other styles, as well as horror and sci-fi soundtracks classic and contemporary. Also, twice a day (starting October 1st) we'll be presenting an hour of spooky and scary old time radio shows.

New this year, we've added a plague of Zombie music, including more Zombina & The Skeletones, Zombie Girl, Zombie Ghost Train, Zombie Night in Canada, The Great Erotic Zombie Shakedown and more! Halloween garage classics, some devilish Halloween music from the 20s & 30s, Rocky Horror Norwegian cast, spooky Halloween soundscapes from In a World, the brand new release from horror rock band The Horrorgans and more!

New soundtracks this year include House of 1000 Corpses, Friday the 13th, Nightmare on Elm Street, The Crow Soundtrack & Unreleased Score & many more!

The Voices of Halloween series is back this year, expanded to include the voices of Halloween fans from around the world- NeverEndingWonder Halloween Radio is ONLINE NOW!

Welcome to Weirdsville presents our unique mix of Halloween themed novelty hits and comedy, everything from the familiar Monster Mash & Purple People Eater, to a plethora of obscure music you'll have a hard time finding anywhere else! Dickie Goodman, Spike Jones, Weird Al, Allan Sherman, Killer Tomatoes- it's all here! Welcome to Weirdsville is ONLINE NOW!

Halloween on Broadway will be back with strange & unusual musical theatre- Rocky Horror, Phantom of the Opera, Little Shop of Horrors, Sweeney Todd- those are only the beginning! Dance of the Vampires, Silence of the Lambs The Musical, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Jane Eyre and much more! New this year: Norwegian version of Rocky Horror and a new version of Hunchback of Notre Dame by former Styx keyboardist Denis DeYoung. Halloween on Broadway will return October 1st!

Come join the fun with the most unique, most interesting Halloween radio station on the Internet!

NeverEndingWonder.com

The Insane Uncle Ozma will be back for his popular live broadcast marathon October 30 & 31! We'll be giving away personally autographed photographs of Vampire hottie Brooke Lewis! See NeverEndingWonder.com for details.

I Want YOU To Be On Halloween Radio!

Every year for the last nine years I have, during the month of October, broadcast three Halloween Radio Stations on the Internet.

Last year I added a new feature titled "Voices of Halloween," which featured specially recorded Halloween greetings and memories by some horror industry greats (the legendary Forrest Ackerman in what was one of his last communications with fans, RIP dear Forry- and the great David Hedison from the original The Fly and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea), some up and coming industry pros as well as musicians, composers, directors, actors, horror hosts, effects and makeup artists, and more.

This year I would like to open up the Voices of Halloween series for all fans of Halloween and Horror. If you would like to record a Halloween greeting or memory for broadcast, I'll include it on the station this year! There are two ways to submit pieces-

1) I have a toll-free number you can call in and record your messages on. This option is limited to people in the USA and Canada. (Sorry folks- I can't afford international rates!)

2) If you know how to make mp3s, record your message on your computer and email it to me! This option is open to everybody everywhere!

If you're interested, send me a leave a comment here and I'll give you complete instructions. I'm getting a late start this year, so don't procrastinate! Do it now!

Looking forward to HEARING from you all.

Voices of Halloween 2008 participants:


Voices of Halloween 2008

Indie Music Explosion!

The Summer Music Mix is over!

Long live the Indie Music Explosion! Well- until October 1 anyway.

Today over 20 new Independent artists went into rotation on NeverEndingWonder Radio! I'll update this post with more details as soon as I get the time.

Here are some of the new artists/releases you can hear on NeverEndingWonder Radio this month. I'll add pictures, descriptions & links when I can!

Adam Rafferty - Chameleon

F & M - Every Light Must Fade

Michael Samson - A Still Motion

The Guy - Only Human

The Radiant - The Radiant I & The Radiant II

Pars Keeling - End of Ride Revisited

Vanja James Music

Paul Avgerinos - Love

Atwater, Donnelly - The Weaver's Bonny

Random Touch - A Way From the Heard

The John Moran Corperation - Train Ride

Gail Rodgers - Winterhymn

Eric Roberts - In a Silent Place

Richard Bliwas - Yarrow Stalk Bridge

Strangefire - Shazbot Munkie

Cory Mervin Coons

Jessie Murphy In the Woods - Eight Belles

Polka Floyd Show - Live at the Ohio Theatre

Richard Bliwas - Walk the Bike

James Nihan - Rays of Light

Dominic - The Eye of God

Tret Fure - My Shoes

Acoustic Ocean - Light Returning

Mammut - Karkari

Sky - The Twins: Mesa Times & Silent Ears

Sky - Love in Grace

Monika Jalili - Elan

Zydecosis - Zydeco All Night

Alejadra O'Leary - Nothing Out Loud

John MacLean - Letters Home

Gregg Rollie Band - Rain Dance Live

Irene and Her Latin Jazz Band - A Song of You

Paul Lawler & Paul Speer - Wonders

Astro Al - Naughty Kitty

Music From the Film - World War Tree

Ed Palermo Big Band - Eddy Loves Frank

Ongoing Technical Issues

EDIT: Problems fixed some time ago. Everything working fine. Feel free to tune in!

Apparently the modem was not the cause of my connectivity issues. I continue to have problems keeping NeverEndingWonder Radio on the air. Two nights last week I had seven hour windows where I was unable to send data fast enough to keep the stream going.

This morning the data poblem started at 8:30 AM and it's still going on at 5 PM. This is the longest this problem has gone on, on a single day.

To be honest I don't know how much longer I'll keep NeverEndingWonder Radio on the air. Why bother paying to broadcast a station nobody can listen to? It never got more than a few listeners anyway. Lots of "admirers" but not many actual listeners.

So, anyway- if you have problems listening, my apologies. There's nothing I can do about it.

EDIT: Things seem to have stabalized again, for the last several days, so please- TUNE IN!

What If Musicals Were Real?

People who hate musicals always have the same argument: "People just don't spontaneously burst into song and dance." This attitude has always struck me as the basic definition of someone with a stick up their ass. I'll make no secret of it- I love musicals. When I was twelve years old my mother took me to see a local production of "Man of La Mancha" and it changed my life. Literally. I spent the next 25 - 30 years of my life involved in every aspect of theatre imaginable.

Musical theatre to me is the highest form of performance- it combines the sacred ritual of theatrical performance with music- an art form that bypasses your thinking mind and reaches directly into your heart and soul.

Well, what if people did actually spontaneously burst into song and dance? What would the world be like? How would people react? On March 23rd of this year the people in the train station in Antwerp, Belgium got to ponder these questions. Okay- it was a publicity stunt for a television show, but it's really an amazing event. After only two rehearsals 200 dancers filled the station and as the song "Do Re Mi" poured forth from the loudspeakers they performed their own version of the song. Check it out:




Now really- after watching that, don't you feel like bursting into song and dance yourself? Look how happy all those bystanders look! I'll confess that my co-workers and I sometimes DO sing to each other on the job. We've even been known to break into dance a few times. It helps us deal with the craziness of the environment around us. So- all you musical haters out there- remove your sticks and have a little fun. Share some joy with the people around you! Next time things are getting you down - SING! DANCE! Make the world a little happier.


P.S. - I can't stop watching this video. I must have watched it at least 20 times in the last 24 hours. It brings me to tears. Why can't the world be more like this?

Here's another little clip. An impromptu musical in a mall food court. This could be happening right where I work. It's not as cool as the Antwerp Sound of Music, but it's pretty cool.

TECH MAINTENANCE DOWN TIME

On Tuesday, June 30, I will be taking the station off the air for a few hours to go get a new cable modem. Hopefully this will solve the problems I've been having with connectivity for the past several weeks.

New modem has been online for about 8 hours. Hopefully this will be the fix!

Technical problems

If you've tried tuning in late at night lately you've probably had some problems staying connected. For the past five nights in a row my internet has turned to crap for a couple hours at a time. I've tried everything and nothing seems to help. Just as in the past, there's nothing to do but hope it clears up soon.

My sincere apologies.

UPDATE: Last few days I've only had a few minor drops so maybe this problem is fixed. Everyone please come back! I miss you!

Summer Music Mix!

That's right- NeverEndingWonder Radio is now featuring its SUMMER MUSIC MIX- the most unique assemblage of Summer related music you'll find on the Internet! We're featuring Summer hits like Summertime Blues, Summer Breeze, Summer Wind, Summer of 69, In the Good Old Summertime, Summer Rain and on and on- including over 40 versions of one of the greatest songs ever written- the Gershwin's Summertime.

But of course we don't stop there. You'll hear songs about bbqing, hot dogs, ice cream, watermelon, vacation, the ocean, islands, gardens, flowers, fishing, fish, dolphins, heat, the Sun, swimming, the circus, calliope music, marching bands, and that's just the beginning

You'll also hear steel drum bands, marimba bands, Soca music, Hawaiian music (including historic ukulele recordings, Keola Beamer and Don Ho!), the Beach Boys, surf music, Calypso music, Exotica, and mixed in with it all are vintage drive-in theatre intermission and snack bar announcements.

New to the Summer Mix this year:


Jesus Christ Surferstar.
How could we top last year's anthology of Frank Zappa songs done surf style? How about an entire two disc collection of the songs from Jesus Christ, Superstar, done surf style?





Hawaiian Mud Bombers - Mondo Primo
The Surf Zombies
Urban Surf Kings - Surf Vs. the Flying Saucers
A trio of modern surf bands showing that the surf idiom is far from dead!


Guitar Sounds of Hawaii - Moon Over Maui
I have no idea who is behind "Guitar Sounds of Hawaii" but they play some dynamite slack key guitar!


Waitiki - Charred Mammal Flesh - Exotic Music for BBQ
A kind of neo-surf/garage/exotica hybrid, Waitiki make some great music!


Rick Wakeman - Sea Airs
That's right- the progressive keyboard genius from Yes plays contemplative piano tunes based on the sea!

That's not all- I'll be adding plenty of other Summer themed music as the weeks go by. All scheduled shows are still playing, as are sets of great indies, electronic, blasts from the past, comedy music and experimental weirdness, but the Summer Mix is predominant.

Tune in, sit back and enjoy the Summer!
NeverEndingWonder Radio
Or with iTunes, go to the radio section>Eclectic and find NeverEndingWonder Radio!

Lots of Obscure Psychedelia, Some Classic Rock & Some New Indies

I've recently added four volumes of the "Love, Peace & Poetry" series- a very cool series of anthologies collecting psychedelic music from various countries. I've added the volumes collecting Brazilian, Mexican, Latin American and Japanese music from the 1960s and 1970s. Really cool stuff that shows United States and Europe were not the only places to feel the psychedelic influence.



Also added three volumes of the Girls in the Garage series showcasing early rock n roll by women.

Stone the Crows - Teenage Licks
Great bluesy/hard rocking band from the 60s with vocals by Maggie Bell.

Frank Zappa - Cruising With Ruben and The Jets
When this album was originally released there was no indication it was a Frank Zappa album.It was simply released as "Cruising" by some band named Ruben and The Jets. If you were a Zappa fan, however, there was no mistaking his twisted take on doo wop music.

Casey Redmond - Real Life Adventures of a One Man Band
Cool five song EP from crazy man Casey Redmond who pens songs like Ian King of Beers and Rockin' the PTA. Reminds me a bit of an acoustic Link Wray. He promises a full album of monster songs for Halloween! I'm waiting!


Jennings - Storybook EP & Femtastic
Powerful singer/songwriter Mary Jennings has a strong voice and a varied musical palate to enthrall us. Her Femtastic release includes two discs- one fully produced and one "stripped down." It's an interesting and revealing technique. We get to evaluate the songs on several levels. The more recent Storybook Ep reveals songwriting just as strong, but with a somewhat more polished production. Both worth a listen.

Korla Pandit - Exotica 2000
Korla Pandit, who, like Yma Sumac had created an elaborate alternate identity for himself, was one of the founding father of Exotica music. Unlike other Exotica practitioners like Martin Denny or Richard Lyman, Pandit didn't pepper his music with musical tricks and sound effects- it was just him and his Hammond B3. He came to fame in a daily 15 minute TV show in which he simply played his unusual arrangements of songs on his organ while he stared intently at the camera. He was a sensation.

I've also been beefing up my selection of Summer music. We switch to our Summer music lineup on June 1st and we've got some great surprises for you!

You can hear all this music on NeverEndingWonder Radio
Or tune in via iTunes by going to the radio section and finding us in the Eclectic section.

Richard Bliwas - Uncovered

I was listening to Richard Bliwas' new release, "Uncovered" and wondering what was going on. This latest CD from jazz pianist/keyboardist Bliwas contains 17 tracks and ten of them are covers. But the name of the CD is UNcovered. And there are pictures of baskets everywhere- front, back, inside- even the disc itself is printed with a woven basket graphic.

Bliwas reveals a wealth of influences here- show tunes like "I could Write a Book," a venerable standard (That Old Black Magic), several Lennon/McCartney compositions, even a folk song and a country tune - all surrounded by Bliwas originals. Then I realised what he was doing. Bliwas is showing us his musical influences, his heritage- he's uncovered them for us, and like a great basket weaver, these influences are woven together with Bliwas' own unique style, the strands and twines of this basket revealed to us in its complex pattern.

Here is Malvina Reynolds' "Little Boxes" as you never thought you'd hear it- bubbling and bleeping with Richard's intricate rhythms and time structures. Same with Lennon & McCartney's "Julia." Bliwas turns it into a haunting evocation of memories as his voice weaves in and out of the melody along with piano runs and organ fills. "That Old Black Magic" seems like a magical spell of its own- the various elements swirling and mixing together to create a unique yet familiar potion.

Listening to the album creates a tapestry of forces and emotions. It's a bit like an experimental jazz version of The Residents Third Reich and Roll. Richard Bliwas is a brave musician- - he has uncovered his musical past for us and woven it into a brand new creation, a unique vision. It's a lovely, startling, rewarding basket. Pick it up, feel it, listen to it, explore it. It's a wonderful treasure.

Check out Richard's website:
Richard Bliwas

And tune in to hear Uncovered on NeverEndingWonder Radio:
NeverEndingWonder Radio
(Or in iTunes, go to the radio section and find NeverEndingWonder Radio in the Eclectic category)

Come fight my brute!

This post is a bit off topic.

There is a new online flash game that is taking the internet by storm. It's only a few weeks old but it's already so popular its servers have a hard time keeping up with the traffic. Some things that have helped to make it so popular:
You don't have to give out ANY information to join.
It's FREE.
It's a simple little time waster that takes no skill to play.

It's called MyBrute and the gameplay is simple. You create a little warrior or "brute" who has a set amount of fights per day. You have no control over the fights- you just watch them. Every time you intitiate a fight you get points. Get enough points and you level up. Every time you level up you either get more life points, special abilities or weapons.

Another way to get points is to have pupils who gain levels. So, I need pupils. Please join and become my pupil! Just click on this link:

MyBrute

Create your Brute by choosing a body type and colors, type in a name and click on VALIDATE. You will then fight my brute. I will beat you. Don't worry- that's part of your master initiating you. You will then go to your cell where you can go to the Arena and fight 6 more fights on your first day. The fights take around 30 seconds, so it's no great committment. Make sure to click on the link to add a password to your brute so that nobody else can play your turns. After the first day you get 3 fights per day. The servers are often overloaded and you will often get a screen that says "BRUTAL ERROR" - just refresh the page and you'll be fine.

Silly and pointless, but also fun & addictive. So please- go join MyBrute, be my pupil and play your turns every day! Or at least often. Enjoy!

The Mad Maggies

Certainly one of the greatest joys I have running NeverEndingWonder Radio is discovering new music by new artists that simply delights and amazes me to the point it becomes part of my life - music that I consider all time favorites, that I can visit any time when I want to feel that sense of belonging, that sense of being at home, of being centered. These new musical masters join the world of musical icons that I grew up enjoying- Donovan, Melanie, Spike Jones, Perrey & Kingsley, Philip Glass, Frank Zappa and so many more. New delights I've discovered via submissions to NeverEndingWonder Radio include The Mod-Est Lads, Shari Elf, Troy Lukkarila, Lucid Dementia, the prime time sublime Community Orchestra, Coyote Poets of the Universe, Veronique Chevalier and many others. They speak to me on a personal level. Their music reaches inside me and opens a smile in my heart.

I've recently made another such discovery- The Mad Maggies. Their music could best be described, I guess, as "alt cabaret" though, really, they defy categorization. The Mad Maggies utilize instrumentation that by any means should be considered out of fashion, or at the very least "quaint" - trombone, cornet, tuba, clarinet, and of course accordion. What they manage to do instead is fashion a sound that is timeless. You might find them at a dockside bar in some elder time singing a lonely sea shanty, or you might find them at some Oktoberfest accompanying drunken revelers. You might find them in a coffee house in the 60s singing a beautiful folk tune. You might find them in your town next week setting the crowd on fire with a instrumental that is nothing short of thoroughly contemporary.



A track from their first release, "Crazed and Enthused" (a title which pretty damn well describes the band itself), "Luna Marie," does an excellent job of outlining their musical territory. With the tuba oomphing away in the background, songwriter, accordionist & vocalist Maggie Martin sings the lyric that sends you on a journey into a timeless era, in some far away star-crossed land:

"With moons in her finger and moons in her toes
A faraway look in her starry eyes
Luna Marie was the belle of the ball
In a town with a lonesome past
Her nights were spent in the old dance hall
Stepping to tunes from a bygone time
Her heart was heavy yet it skipped a beat
When she saw the stranger come in...
Oh Luuuna, Luuuuna we're spinning around in a cold dark sky
And loving makes that seem okay"

Such deftly crafted lyrics evoke images, time, place and emotional context like a great poet, and Martin knows just how to deliver those lyrics with her voice that tugs at our hearts. It's a beautiful thing.

And then, a few minutes later she's singing a song about love with short people that features a sax riff by J.X. Jones that's right out of some 1950s roadhouse. The Mad Maggies refuse to be type cast. They seem to delight in turning musical styles on their end. "Heaven on Earth" presents a syncopated, almost Calypso beat. "Furey's Polka (The Furious)" puts you back there at that Oktoberfest and dares you to remain stationary. "Hearts Ride a Big Wheel," with its driving electric guitar from Gary Wium and wailing sax show us that The Mad Maggies can hold their own and rock out when they want to. "Sleepy Maggie" even puts drummer Billy Dee Boom up front. There are no slackers in this band! Every member is accomplished and passionate.



Their second album, 2007's "Magdalena's Revenge" opens with an instrumental that reminds you just who you're listening to. There are a number of these somewhat somber instrumentals that reveal to us various influences- Balkan, Celtic, Klezmer, Cajun. Even within a particular style The Mad Maggies can't help but being eclectic. In fact, of the eight tunes offered on this album, only three have lyrics. Of the three, "Are Ye Sleepin' Maggie?" is the standout. It's a terrifying tale of magic and mayhem told in the mode of a sea shanty:

"Fearfu' soughs the boontree bank
The rifted wood roars wild and dreary
Loud the iron yett does clank
The cry of hoolits makes me eerie
Oh are ye sleepin; Maggie?
Oh are ye sleepin' Maggie?
Let me in for loud the linn
Is howling o'er the Warlock Craggie"

Based on an old song from the 1700s, The Mad Maggies know exactly how to deliver it.



Their third album, "Skull and Magpie," released this year is their most accomplished and eclectic. One song in particular, "Fair Winds," has grabbed my attention. A wistful love ballad penned by bandleader Maggie Martin, and sung with such sweetness and longing it brings me to tears:

"As the hours pass on a shadowy night
her thoughts drift towards the ocean
where moonlight draws a silvery sword
across her lonely heart
He sailed away one wintery morn
to work along the southern coast
They’d sworn their love with a fiery kiss
And the promises all lovers make
I will return
I will come back to you
I will return to hold you
in my arms
May a fair wind blow
to speed your way
and bring you back, back to me
safely, back to me"

Sung to the simple accompaniment of guitar, accordion and drums, with perfectly timed accents from the rest of the band, the song is a masterpiece, touching, effective, hopeful. It almost brings hope back to my heart. But Mags doesn't rest with one magnum opus, she gives us more. "High Seas Lament," sung in the same hopeful, wistful voice, and accompanied by the same simple instrumentation, catches my imagination just as strongly:

"If I could live my life at sea
I'd spend my days in mutiny
Rising up when'ere I please
No land or Lord could hinder me
As I made my way across the sea
Free from tyranny and toil"

Who could not be touched by such sentiments? It cries to our inner pirate. And Mags' impeccable phrasing betrays a talent of the highest degree. "Navigate," another wonderful song from this release carries a more contemporary sound, and a jazzier style, yet features the same hopeful message of the joy to be found in the journey of life. "The Folly of Fame," with its wordless vocals conjures the image of a mad cabaret band on the road, searching for the next gypsy camp.

I would be doing a great disservice to the band if I didn't mention every member. Everyone contributes equally to this magic sound- Michael Ashby on bass, Johny Blood on Tuba, Lawrence Jarach on trombone, Rhian Robinson on whistle and clarinet, Adrian Gormley on sax, Billy Dee Boom on drums, Gary Wium on guitars, and leading the whole ragtag crew into musical adventures unknown, Mad Mags Martin singer, songwriter and accordion player. Together since 2004, there have been some changes to the personnel, but the band remains the same entity. The eclecticism of the music helps here. The vision and spirit of adventure get stronger with each release. If this band ever heads north from their Bay Area home base I'll quit my job to go see them.

Do yourselves a favor and go check them out:
The Mad Maggies



And tune into NeverEndingWonder Radio to hear them.

NeverEndingWonder Radio
Or- on iTunes, in the radio section, look for NeverEndingWonder Radio in the Eclectic category.

Independent Artist Links

For YEARS I've been working on updating the links to Independent Artists I play on NeverEndingWonder Radio. Well, for a long time I worked really hard on it, then for a long time I just kinda pushed the project aside because it's so massive an undertaking. I finally just decided to put the pages up a they were- something is better than nothing. It's very out of date- there are hundreds of artists not listed yet. Some of the links are probably outdated by now. The interface sucks- it's minimal and disorganized. Very little info is included. Meh. As I said- it's better than nothing. I'll continue to work on adding all the artists not yet included and then I'll work on making it more user friendly. Finally I'll work on adding more meat to the bones.

To all you amazing artists who have donated CDs to NeverEndingWonder Radio over the years- my apologies on my sloth. Anyway- here's the new link to independent artists we play on NeverEndingWonder Radio:

Independent Artists

Krautrock and King Cole

There's so much that has been added to NeverEndingWonder Radio in the past few weeks I hardly know where to begin. I'll try and touch on some of the highlights.

I've added two great box sets by the two greatest Krautrock bands- Can & Faust.


Can - Anthology
This 25 track anthology includes selections from their entire discography and is a great representation of the different phases and permutations of the proto-movement that became known as Krautrock- an experimental, progressive approach to rock music practiced by several groups of individuals in Germany, starting in the late 60s. The movement featured a high degree of improvisation as well as experimental techniques.


Faust - The Wumme Years 1970 - 1973
Faust are probably the crowning example of the Krautrock approach. Some musicians who had been informally jamming together were contacted by journalist Uwe Nettelbeck, who had secured a contract from Polydor Records to produce some kind of rock album. The musicians - Werner "Zappi" Diermaier, Hans Joachim Irmler, Arnulf Meifert, Jean-Hervé Péron, Rudolf Sosna and Gunter Wüsthoff- sensing a great adventure, demanded a recording studio and an unlimited amount of time to produce whatever they wanted. Amazingly, the label agreed. The band was given an old school building which was turned into a recording studio/living space. They moved in, started doing drugs, hanging out, and occasionally playing music. Fortuitously, they were also provided an engineer, Kurt Graupner, who managed to get the insanity onto tape. Graupner was one of the best recording engineers in Germany at the time, and created many new recording techniques and devices in an attempt to capture what the musicians were doing. The three years Faust spent recording at Wumme netted two albums and a wealth of material, some of which was used for later albums. The Wumme Years contains 59 tracks ranging in length from 25 seconds to 22 minutes. It includes the entirety of the first two albums and much unreleased material, many pieces being experiments. The experiments themselves are quite intriguing- they might not really go anywhere, but they show a creative band of musicians searching for unique material.



Nat King Cole
Another incredible box set- this gives us 100 tracks by one of the greatest vocalists of all times. Ranging from his earliest jazz recordings in the 40s (including his often overlooked piano virtuosity) to his popular work in the 50s and 60s. There's even an unreleased gem- a seven minute opus titled Mr. Cole Don't Rock N Roll. Cole is one of the most popular vocalists of all time, second in hit records only to Frank Sinatra. His smooth delivery is distinctive. During his career he conquered every medium- live performance, recordings, radio, television and films. His recording of Mel Torme's "The Christmas Song" is arguably THE quintessential Christmas recording. He wrote many of his songs, including the familiar "Straighten Up and Fly Right."

That's all for now. I'll write more as soon as I get a chance.

You can hear all this music, and much more on:

NeverEndingWonder Radio
Tune in via the above link or in iTunes, look in the radio section under "Eclectic."

Non-Stop St. Patrick's Day Party!

Since March 17 is Saint Patrick's Day, NeverEndingWonder Radio will be having a 24 hour Celtic music party! Tune in for 24 hours of Celtic/Irish music from traditional to contemporary!

As always you can tune into NeverEndingWonder Radio here:

NeverEndingWonder

Or use iTunes- go to the radio section under "Eclectic."

Eclectic Offerings!

Lots of new music added to NeverEndingWonder Radio in the past few weeks. Here we go:

The Barbarians
Fine band who had a short career from 1964 - 1968. The novelty tune "Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?" mirrored the sentiments of the nation perfectly. I distinctly remember my mother disparagingly asking if a passing hippie was a boy or a girl one day. How disappointed she must have been when I started growing my hair long. Anyway, The Barbarians are remembered today for their drummer- Victor "Moulty" Moulton- who had one arm!


The Bantams - Beware The Bantams
How cute. Three brothers- Jeff, Mike, & Fritz Bantam, and they're kids, see? And they sing and play and have their own band. Yes, it's the Broadway Kids of rock. Covering such tunes as Ticket To Ride, Please Mr. Postman and Susie Q it's as off-kilter and disturbing as it sounds.


Things To Come - I Want Out
Great psychedelic outfit from LA. Their only album was supposedly only released as a tax dodge- only 50 copies were pressed. It's a shame they never got a break, as their material is really nice. Mostly remembered today for their drummer- Russ Kunkel- a top session man of the 60s-70s and member of The Section. He continues to work to this day. His pedigree reads like a who's who of the music scene. Artist's albums he has appeared on include Crosby Stills & Nash, Warren Zevon, James Taylor, Carly Simon, Bob Seger, Joni Mitchell, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Carol King, BB King, Bob Dylan, Jackson Brown and dozens of others. That's not the only reason to listen to Things To Come, though. They're a great band all around.


Who's Afraid of The Art of Noise?
The first full album released by electronic sample artists The Art of Noise. Formed by producer Trevor Horn in 1983 to showcase the then revolutionary instrument Fairlight CMI sampler, which could take audio samples and play them back via a keyboard. While other groups were using samples as embellishment, Art of Noise was the first high-profile band to base their compositions solely on samples. This album is a great example of experimentalism finding its way into the mainstream.


Cream - Wheels of Fire
What can be said of Cream? The first power trio. They were so innovative and accomplished they became superstars. Though Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce never had the amazing career that Eric Clapton did after Cream broke up, they both continued to produce fine work. This double album contained one studio disc and one live disc. Included herein are the classics White Room, Toad, Crossroads and much more amazing music.


Wheat - Per Second, Per Second, Per Second... Every Second
Major label debut of indie band Wheat went through many hardships and delays before it was released. I don't know why but I just love this band's sound.


Wreckless Eric - Donovan of Trash
Eric Goulden, who records and performs as Wreckless Eric, has been a cult figure for decades. Part of the original Stiff lineup of artists, he left the label due to artistic differences. Donovan of Trash is one of Eric's best albums- presenting him in an unadulterated, spare form. Don't miss his tribute to Joe Meek.


Steve Reich - Early Works
Just like it says- early works from experimental electronic pioneer Steve Reich, several of which feature experiments in phase shifting.


Conlon Nancarrow - Studies for Player Piano
It doesn't get any more creative than this. Experimental compositions for the player piano, recorded in 1948. Nancarrow built his own device for punching the piano rolls and composed his pieces directly onto the rolls.


The Bevis Frond - Vavona Burr
Exemplary collection by lo-fi pioneer Bevis Frond.


Only in America Volume 2
Another collection of audio oddities released by bold label Arf Arf. Stunning original tunes such as Stinky Poodle and Cheese Eating Flea Market Cowboy as well as a truly inept cover of Purple Haze and many other lost and forgotten recordings from the annals of music. Beautiful.


Trevor Wishart - Red Bird/Anticredos
What is it about bird songs that compels people to compose music for bird songs they've recorded? This is like an entire sub-genre of experimental music. It's fascinating work. Anticredos is an experimental work for human voice.


Also entering the library this week are more comedy bits from Otis 12, former member of Ogden Edsl and a selection of New Age, Blues and Jazz tunes by a variety of indie artists. Enjoy!

It can all be heard here:



NeverEndingWonder Radio

Back From the Dead!

It's been quite a while since a proper post. I got ill this Winter and it just seemed to linger, sapping my energy for a month or so. Seems to happen to me every Winter now. After that I was having some connectivity issues and after that our city manager went on vacation, and as assistant city manager I had to work very long hours. On top of that, I've discovered and become obsessed with an online role playing game called Popmundo, where you try and become a rock star. It's a long term game and I'm sucked into the whole world. You can check it out here:

Popmundo

That doesn't mean I've been completely inactive as far as NeverEndingWonder Radio goes. Here's a rundown of some cool stuff recently added:

Tom Dissevelt & Kid Baltan - Song of the Second Moon
Classic electronic weirdness from 1968. Has that 1960s primitive electronic sound I love so much.

Graffiti - Graffiti
Proto-psychedelic grooviness from 1968. Some really nice touched and a really off-kilter vocal arrangement make this band quite interesting.

Widespread Panic - Uber Cobra
Live album from one of my favorite modern bands.

Beatrice Kay
A selection of fun tunes by burlesque dancer, actress and singer Beatrice Kay, who had a lengthy career on the stage, in movies & TV and recordings.

Red Racan
Really cool eclectic experimental band. Love their stuff! Check out their Myspace page:
Red Racan

Savage Resurrection
Another great psychedelic gem from the 60s.

Tingstad & Rumbel - Leap of Faith
Another flawless release from New Age tunesmiths Tingstad & Rumbel.

Martha Reich - Evidence of Life
Beautiful heartfelt songs by singer/songwriter Reich.
Martha Reich

Goodluck Boys - A Gift of Time
Lo-fi, electronic noise ritualistic freakout experimental tribal psychedelic greatness from Japan!
Goodluck Boys

Spencer Hoveskeland Trio - Harbinger
Guitar, violin, bass. Jazz. Perfection.

Bernie Journey - The World in the Eye of the Beholder
Pop electronic tunes with soulful vocals and just a touch of weirdness.
Bernie Journey

And those are just highlights! Tune in please- I miss you all!

NeverEndingWonder Radio
Also available on iTunes in the radio section under "eclectic."