Malcom Cecil of Tonto's Expanding Headband with an epic Moog setup

This episode pays homage to those artists who created electronic music outside of the standard computer and software program. From analog synthesizers to vocoders, there exists a legacy of [...]]]> Something New, Something Old, Something Borrowed, Never Blue (right click and “save as” to download)

Malcom Cecil of Tonto's Expanding Headband with an epic Moog setup

This episode pays homage to those artists who created electronic music outside of the standard computer and software program. From analog synthesizers to vocoders, there exists a legacy of resourceful musicians that leveraged the technology of their time to bring their musical inspirations to life. On top of that, we welcome Aeion Solar (aka the Marquis DuQue) from Burning Man Information Radio to join us in shepherding today’s theme and helping us raise money for Pirate Cat Radio and BMIR-FM. The man is a true musical mind, bringing an eclectic and rare mix of funky electronic music.

If you are listening and would like to donate to Pirate Cat Radio for some much needed equipment, it’s not too late! You can send it via PayPal to BMIR@pobox.com or simply stop by the Pirate Cat Cafe at 2781 21st @ Florida in San Francisco. Any donation is appreciated. Keep independent radio stations alive!

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Time flies, and we’ve already hit episode 49, meaning that this website now boasts 98 hours of recorded Sanguine Soul slammers! Jyeah, that’s at least 6 hours of Honey Knuckles saying “what up”, 8 hours of Z Note losing his breadth, 3 hours of [...]]]> Iron & Fire (right click and “save as” to download)

Time flies, and we’ve already hit episode 49, meaning that this website now boasts 98 hours of recorded Sanguine Soul slammers! Jyeah, that’s at least 6 hours of Honey Knuckles saying “what up”, 8 hours of Z Note losing his breadth, 3 hours of Aisha making cat noises, and 90 minutes of Shelmatic’s marbled mouth mushroom flow. Did I really just write all that?

So, in case you were wondering if “Iron & Fire” means that we got our blacksmithing on this show, let me break it down. We finally got a chance to grace the decks for a full 45 minutes each this time around. Whereas Honey Knuckles blessed the decks with 45 minute of the fire-side of the soul spectrum, I (Z Knoooowt) laid down the icy iron backwoods. It makes for a dynamic range of music, from the propulsive madness of Afro-House to the cold drum machines and synth keys of minimal wave. Anyone know of some good minimal Afro-synth-wave? Oh wow, I just blew my mind.

Enjoy, this one’s music heavy, lots of jams!

Z Note

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For this week’s episode we tried out something new. Shelmatic jumbled some marbles in her mouth through the whole show, and I (Z Note waxing digital right here) tried to conjure strange words in a fruitless effort to describe the music of Bay Area experimental [...]]]> Verdant Volts (right click and “save as” to download)

For this week’s episode we tried out something new. Shelmatic jumbled some marbles in her mouth through the whole show, and I (Z Note waxing digital right here) tried to conjure strange words in a fruitless effort to describe the music of Bay Area experimental indie band Birds & Batteries. Who wants to be boxed into the silly expressive powers of language anyway? Band frontman and vocalist, Michael Sempert, dropped in to select some Eritrean drum machine tunes and tell us a bit about B&B’s latest EP, Up To No Good, a minimal funk synth effort that instills magnetizing images of an enchanted forest where the flora and fauna are actually robotic manifestations projected from the mind of a twisted hillside gnome–a psychotic little creature with dark intentions and yet, the pathos of a P Funk, cosmic liberator. It’s really a very satisfying combination of sounds. Imagine if John Carpenter produced the soundtrack to Lord of the Rings in the early 80s. Or consider a prismatic focus into one corner of David Bowie’s labyrinthian monsters.

In the spirit of layering the organic with the electric, we happily conceptualize this episode Verdant Volts, a certain tongue twister for our mush mouthed Shelmatictron. And, yet she still carries the torch, saying much wiser things than I. In the second half of the show I suspend my cationic words in favor of spinning some tunes, intertwining psychedelic jazz, post-punk electronica, abstract beats, and a bit of funkified disco for ya’ll. Enjoy!

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The fortuitous gift of sensation astounds me. Our eyes pierce the window of the world from close to far. Our ears capture the smallest vibrations in the air. With tongue and nose we indulge in the flavors of this earth. And our bodies lunge into textures fine and grainy, substances liquid and solid. But the [...]]]> Synesthesia

The fortuitous gift of sensation astounds me. Our eyes pierce the window of the world from close to far. Our ears capture the smallest vibrations in the air. With tongue and nose we indulge in the flavors of this earth. And our bodies lunge into textures fine and grainy, substances liquid and solid. But the senses do not always divide so cleanly. Sounds, colors, substance, and audible vibration blend in the most fascinating ways within the neural pathways. We might feel the wretched smell of the Civic Center metro station, hear the ringing heat of a tumultuous sun, or like Nabakov, visually associate letters with colors. And music too often evokes impressions beyond the strictly audible, from raw feelings to colors and smells to tastes. In fact, music lies deep within the realms of synesthesia, where the expression of the world and human body meet in an ever dynamic, nebulous intertwining.

For this week’s episode in dedication to the phenomenon of synesthesia, we decide to select some synth based tunes and variations thereof that might just impress your skull with bubbling colors. I (Z Nooooooote) hold down the Sang crew solo for this one. Honey Knucks and Aisha are busy melting their brains in the desert, and Shelmatic has peaced to Lala land. So enjoy my shit! Expect some jazz-funk masterpieces, sultry boogie nastiness, and dub-step erotica. But I’m much more excited to mention that Luis Vasquez joins me in the studio to guest select a synth-wave radiality and introduce one of his many projects, The Soft Moon, to all listeners here and far. We discuss the immediacy of creative expression and the hindsight of categories and genres. And we chop it up about some of Luis’ most imaginative sonic muses. The Soft Moon debut full length will come out some time in the winter with a tentative November date, so stay tuned!

I apologize for the louder than necessary background volume over some of our vocals, you’ll have to fill in he gaps of the conversations. It’s an experiment in audience participation really. Tell us what you see. For me it’s a lot of burgundy stained indigo with a sludge water consistency.

- Z Note beaming out

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