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

Introduction

Yes, I'm finally starting a blog. Way behind the curve there. To all my old friends- welcome. To all my new friends, welcome.

A bit of introduction:

For over four decades I've been a fan of and collector of strange, unusual, rare, off the wall & forgotten music, comedy & spoken word weirdness. When my friends and I went to the record shop back in the sixties they'd head for the latest Zeppelin, Beatles or Stones releases. I'd head for the bins of cutout discs and search for gems like The Naked Carmen, Ark 2 by Flaming Youth, Beaver & Krause, Dracula's Greatest Hits or something equally bizarre.

For many years I hoped for a way to share my passion for off-kilter audio. Seven years ago I found the answer- Internet radio. Dr. Demento had been a long time inspiration for me and I wanted to create something like his show, only expanded. The result was NeverEndingWonder Radio- a freeform Internet radio station that focuses on rare, forgotten, off the wall & off beat music from the beginning of recording history to brand new releases.

It's been a constant joy running the station, aided by my able assistant Ozma the Elf. I've won awards, been featured in stories online & in print, been contacted by some of the musicians I've been a fan of over the years, and met a lot of people who share my taste for music that doesn't quite fit into the mainstream. NeverEndingWonder Radio is a constant work in progress. I add new music to the library almost daily. I have some specialty shows and I have plans for adding more in the future.

One of the greatest joys of running the station has been getting to know hundreds of independent artists and airing their music. Traditional radio is so locked into the parasitic relationship they have with the major labels that artists who don't fit the mainstream have no chance of getting airplay. There are creative, talented artists across the world hungry to get their music HEARD. Internet radio is a godsend to them. I am constantly amazed at the depth of talent the artists who send me music have. It's an honor to provide them with a venue.

I am always behind on keeping up with my work on the station. I have enough music in my collection to keep me busy for YEARS, as well as keeping the website updated. I've been working on a new format for links to the independent artists I play for a year now. My apologies artists! It will be ready soon, I promise!

It's my goal to keep this site fresh with notes on new music added to the station, reviews of new CDs, news items and such. And no- I won't provide mp3 downloads of music you hear on NeverEndingWonder Radio. If you enjoy the music, support the artists and buy their music. Please feel free to leave comments in the comments section. If you don't have a blogger account and leave an "anonymous" comment please put a name in the comment so I know who you are! Looking forward to hearing from you.