#top trax r

[appears]

20th Anniversary

Namie Amuro: Style (2003.12.10)

There are at least four distinct eras in Namie Amuro's career: 1) her initial debut with the idol-ish super eurobeat/dance group SUPER MONKEY'S (which spawned the group MAX) from 1992 to 1995, 2) her major debut as a solo artist with Avex Trax in 1995, kicked off by the single "Body Feels EXIT," through to the height of her popularity as a leading figure in the J-pop industry alongside producer Tetsuya Komuro until her abrupt hiatus in 1997, 3) the awkward, not-very-well-received comeback and transition to post-TK R&B, which saw the lowest sales numbers of her career, and lasted roughly until the release of Queen of Hip-Pop in 2005, and 4) her meteoric rebound, transition back to dance-pop, and the cementing of her status as a legend, until the abrupt announcement of her retirement in 2017. There are a lot of mini-moments within these eras, and many parts overlap so that it's not exactly seamless, but that's the gist of it.

While Namie's comeback was one of the rarest in music history, the factors that led to the initial nadir are just as interesting and numerous. For one, she had squandered the goodwill of the public by engaging in activity that was frowned upon in Japan at the time: she hooked up with a backup dancer, got pregnant, got married, got tattoos, and got divorced, all within the space of a couple of years. On top of it, Namie's success was tied to that of her producer, the mega-popular and prolific Tetsuya Komuro, who was basically running a personal empire in the 1990s. While Namie's popularity and success was never due solely to the music he was writing for her, it was an enormous contributing factor to her sales numbers. TK's brand of pop was the defining style of the 90s, with no one better able to pry open wallets in what was the CD format's most lucrative era. But just as quickly and completely as he ruled hearts and charts, his music fell out of style, also as a result of several factors (mostly the rise of singer-songwriters and R&B/hip-hop in the mainstream, and personal issues involving everything from tax evasion, to drug rumors and a wild romantic life). Namie teaming up with him again for her immediate comeback never stood a chance against so much drama. So major changes were made when Namie ditched the Komuro baggage, taking the plunge with new support -- Dallas Austin, m-flo, ZEEBRA, even Teddy Riley -- into the world of R&B and hip-hop.

This brave step didn't immediately produce amazing results: if anything, Namie's early forays proved lackluster and indecisive on albums like GENIUS 2000. It wasn't until 2003's STYLE that she finally and fully committed to the change. Gone were the days of chasing the chance and dreaming that she was dreaming, Namie was now putting up her dukes, wishing on the same star, and shining more. The songs on the album were all heavily influenced by contemporary Western trends of the time, especially Black hip-hop, fashion, and culture. The early 00s was still the era of P. Diddy, Jennifer Lopez, Nelly, Busta Rhymes and Missy Elliott, and in some ways, STYLE samples sounds from all of these artists in different ways, with the inclusion of a few softer songs, such as "Four Seasons," "As Good As," and "Come," which were deliberately added for variety. But for the most part, the album is built on beats, bars, and rhymes. This was still a fairly new thing to see in the Japanese mainstream, and certainly by an Avex Trax artist -- for comparison, Ayumi Hamasaki had just released her rock opus I am..., while RAINBOW merely dipped a toe into R&B on a song like "Real me," Ai Otsuka was less than a year out from releasing LOVE PUNCH, Hikaru Utada was actually going softer and more art-pop with Deep River, and both BoA and Kumi Koda had just debuted in Japan with LISTEN TO MY HEART and affection respectively, which stayed squarely on the softer R&B/pop side of the fence. Only Crystal Kay, HEARTSDALES, and maybe DOUBLE were a step ahead of Namie, but I would argue that STYLE and Namie's involvement in projects like SUITE CHIC really let the sound transition into the broader and bigger Oricon mainstream, prompting a rash of copycat records.

Even so, STYLE did poorly. It still hit #1 in its first week, but it stands as Namie's least popular record with the fewest sales numbers to this day. It does, however, have something of a cult following by fans who now look back at the early 00s with nostalgia. Personally, I didn't like this album when I first heard it -- its lack of pop and dance music, which I was used to hearing from Namie, coupled with what seemed like a desperate bid for relevancy in a genre that I wasn't particularly interested in at the time, turned me off from spending much time with it. Nowadays, I dislike this album less -- there are songs on here that I actually really like. My only real caveat is that the album is split too abruptly at the halfway point between the bangers and the non-hip-hop tracks. In hindsight, STYLE is clearly Namie still getting comfortable in this milieu, and it's especially obvious next to albums like Queen of Hip-Pop and PLAY that were more successful at capturing something both influenced by hip-hop and unique to what only Namie could bring.

This CD album comes in a standard jewel case with an OBI and a booklet that features additional photos and lyrics. First press editions featured two exclusive bonus tracks: a remix of "SO CRAZY," and an alternate version of "Wishing on the Same Star." For me, this album is more interesting for what lead to it, what it lead to, and what it said about the state of Namie Amuro and J-pop at the time. It's not great, but it's not nearly as bad as I remember it being. Avex Trax, of course, would politely disagree, largely ignoring it on the career-summarizing compilation album Finally (only "SO CRAZY" represents). After something as tentative and a bit try-hard as this, the world was not ready for what was coming down the pipe with Queen of Hip-Pop, making that era all the more wild and magical.

Catalog Number: AVCD-17372

[omegaremix]

25 Vinyl Records That Influenced My Vinyl Collecting Habits.

‘Top ten’ lists - they were so commonplace on social media before the pandemic that half of the people you knew participated in them. Your friends involuntarily posted lists of their top ten favorite albums, songs, movies, sports moments, video games, books, or whatever came to mind. Then they’d nominate you to do the same if you even cared. All of a sudden they stopped and for a few months everyone did tournament brackets. These days no one does either. Now, tag a band and see if they acknowledge you exist, solve a simple math problem where everyone with a Facebook diploma in mathematics are out to prove you wrong, or answer some useless questions to find out what your new gang initiation name is by removing your first and last letter and any surviving vowels.

But I don’t care about childish entry-level entertainment that everyone will forget about five minutes later. I’d watch Fox News for that. Longtime Ω+ followers know our ‘top tens’ are much more than that: they are playlists, mixtapes, end-of-year finds, and best-of decade results. That’s what I’m into. I’m into what’s important and that’s identifying with people. It’s not a contest or a be-all-end-all game of right-or-wrong. It’s all fully subjective. Without personal results, how special or unique would these lists be?

The last survey I was nominated to do was from WUSB’s Mister Edison, the station’s only cylinder aficionado in its’ 45-year history: top ten vinyl records that influenced your collecting habits. I did volunteer to do it and I was halfway there, then somehow along the way I deleted it. Now, here it is. But, instead of a top ten, we’ll do a top twenty-five because I’m compulsive and 10 is not a square number. All records shown here regardless of size, speed, color, or print run are those that have changed not only my record-collecting habits but also have shaped my musical tastes to an extent.

The record that started it all? KMFDM’s “Power” 12”. It was the very first vinyl record I bought with my own money, just mere months after purchasing most of its discography in one shot at my local record store. I ordered it from the TVT / Wax Trax mail order - my very first mail-order to be exact - numbered to 3,000 copies as a single-sided etched vinyl record in a clear plastic silk-screened jacket. That also came with Underworld’s “Rowla”. Shizuo’s High On Emotion e.p. was my third. Found at what was Port Jefferson’s Music Den, that’s a record I had to have at first sight because I knew it was extremely rare. Glad I made the right call because I never saw it again. Even though I didn’t have a turntable, I bought them anyway thinking I could hold on to them until I finally got my hands on one. Turned out my ma’ and dad had one: a wooden box smaller than the records it played. It literally had no sound and was deemed almost unplayable, so a close “friend” of mine gave me his father’s 1972 Panasonic and a copy of Autechre’s We Are R Y 12”. I was now in business.

From there, another one-time pressing of theirs, the “Keynell” e.p., introduced me to the panic of now-or-never buying. Booth & Brown collectors know how insanely rare their limited edition e.p.’s are and also how they and Warp divided up their Cichlisuite and Envane e.p.’s in two parts. And that was nothing to when Aphex Twin released not one, not two, but eleven e.p.’s as the Analord series through his Rephlex label. Ten regular platters and two versions of Analord 10: either you got the Aphex logo picture disc or, if you were really lucky (we mean that in a literal sense), one that came with the Analord binder which is fetching impossible prices right now. Some of them even came with the mythical Analogue Bubblebath 5. We’re just happy to have purchased all eleven editions for regular price when they first came out. Amazingly in that same year, I did my first-ever label run and purchased $300.00 worth of vinyl and disc releases from DHR.

The first hardcore record I got my hands on - Kill Your Idols’ This Is Just The Beginning - was also the very first music purchase I made at any show. Three years after one of my close friends introduced me to Sick Of It All and hardcore / punk in general, This Is Just The Beginning flung the doors wide open for crushing similar-styled tough-guy finds. Most Long Island record stores sold them when they came in, and places like Hicksville and Centereach’s Utopia (when they did sell them) offered many easy one / two / three-dollar bargain bin purchases of many 7” records, 45’s, and 12” LPS. The Howards & Checkerboard Charlie split is one example of that and one of many local acts I possess. Jemini The Gifted One’s “Funk Soul Sensation” is the only hip-hop record on the list. Ten years ago I re-discovered golden-era hip-hop and realized there was a treasure trove of white-label and 12” singles I never heard of from that time. Those hip-hop / rap singles can be found on the cheap in the same manner as those discount hardcore records. I’ll be on a life-time hunt for them as at this point I don’t have enough of them.

It’s no surprise to see that more than half of this list is made up of Seventies’ jazz / fusion records. If not for Lonnie Liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes Astral Traveling, I would not have the size of vinyl library I have now. One of our former hip-hop dee-jays at the station played “Expansions”, “Aspirations”, and “Colors Of The Rainbow” and those three cuts literally changed my life. It opened up an avenue for me to re-discover who I was and revisit a certain era of time I missed out on. From that point on, it was all about that era’s sounds, sampling, and personal favorites. John Tropea’s A Short Trip To Space, Les McCann’s Music Lets Me Be, and Roy Ayers’ A Tear To A Smile - those three records define my final years at Stony Brook. Phil Upchurch’s 1979 solo outing, Stuff’s self-titled debut, Emily Remler’s Firefly, Steve Khan’s The Blue Man, Ramsey Lewis’ Tequila Mockingbird, Eric Gale’s Multiplication, and Ronnie Laws’ Pressure Sensitive tie me in and keep me connected to those years.

Karla Bonoff’s Restless Nights and Urbie Green’s The Fox influenced my collection in an amusing way. I had no idea who both artists were until I pulled them out of the bins. What had me purchase them? I bought Restless Nights and The Fox solely based on the year of release (1979 and 1976 respectively). One listen of each and I knew I made two right calls.

Remember when we posted our entry about our close friend Syke who rescued a pile of old records from being thrown out to the curb? Of the 500+ he found, he gave us 50 and we still have most of them. We selected Pete Shelley’s “Telephone Operator” as a reminder of that free giveaway.

I could list both volumes of the original Dirty Dancing motion picture soundtrack which my ma’ had, her only surviving childhood vinyl record of Disney’s Cinderella, or The Pac-Man Album 12″ picture disc written by Patrick McBride and Dana Walden. But those three mentions aren’t influential; just early Atari-youth memories. My first-ever childhood memories I still remember (not photographed) are also vinyl-related: J. Geils Band’s “Centerfold” and The Cars’ “Shake It Up”; the latter which I have in my possession and are the markers of all classic rock records I own around that era. (Think Dire Straits and Donald Fagan’s The Nightfly to name a few.)

Another Atari-youth moment I remember is The Chambers Brothers’ A New Time, A New Day. My dad cut out the album sleeve and used it as a paper holder in our garage. That very record made me think of whatever few platters I remember him having before he sold his entire vinyl library and our library of Atari 2600 games…for a paltry $50.00. “He needed the money” he told me; which is always a pathetic man’s answer to everything. Had he’d seen how enthusiastic I was into music collecting, he would’ve handed his entire collection to me. Roberta Flack’s Quiet Fire, Kiss’ Rock & Roll Over, and The Rolling Stones Sticky Fingers and Their Satanic Majesties Request were the four in his collection he parted with and I have three of them, not including The Chambers Brothers release. He tried to make it up to me, however, by bringing home two separate piles of records he rescued from the curb. One heap was full of polka records which I donated to WUSB’s resident polka lady before she died the same year. The other heap? Since you didn’t ask: loads of classic hippie rock records, showtunes, and celebrity albums. Jim Nabors on wax? Stop before I deactivate this account.

Finally, Boulders’ Rock & Roll Will Never Die. Look it up and you’ll see it’s a near total obscurity only confined to hipster circles who know what’s up. A five-track Wharf Records release picked up for less than $3.00 is the one 12" that may as well get me into the Discogs purchasing game for all rare releases (not found in stores) I’ve been looking for in the past seven years. I’ve played many of them on Omega WUSBand soon after bought a substantial chunk of their discographies in one shot (three Happy Meals / Free Love LP’s and three Black Marble discs, for example). As a nice side effect, it’ll be the the same for cassettes as well such as Believer/Law’s Matters Of Life And Death and JS Aurelius’ Machines Water The Plants Now - if the seller’s price is right, that is.

Notice how we went from KMFDM to Boulders? You can’t get any more disparate in styles and worlds between the two. The first purchases, public library finds, donations, record fairs, mail orders, samples, jazz-fusion and soul, hardcore and hip-hop buy-outs, record-store victory tours, and many other moments I might have missed…that’s 25 years of buying vinyl records spanning many different collecting eras and genres for me. That’s only one format, and also not counting acquiring music by other means such as radio and downloads which also shaped my collection. The bingo board jumble you see is only a tiny pinch of my musical tastes and not the whole story of my listening habits that’s usually broadcast on Omega WUSB or always posted here on Ω+.

After making this list, I’m reminded that I’m the most diverse person I know. I’m proud that my low-lying threshold for accepting and liking sound and concept allowed me to make that diversity into a science and have that mind-blowing knowledge I have of it. I’m as consistent, thorough, and far-reaching as I possibly can while hitting as many targets as possible. Would there be more bingo boards like this? Only if I make sure of it.

Phil Upchurch: self-titled

Lonnie Liston Smith: Astral Traveling

Karla Bonoff: Restless Nights

Steve Khan: The Blue Man

Chambers Brothers: A New Time, A New Day

Emily Remler: Firefly

Boulders: Rock And Roll Will Never Die

KMFDM: “Power”

John Tropea: A Short Trip To Space

Les McCann: Music Let’s Me Be

Shizuo: High On Emotion

J. Geils Band: “Centerfold”

Aphex Twin: Analord 10 picture disc

Jemini The Gifted One: “Funk Soul Sensation”

Roy Ayers: A Tear To A Smile

Ramsey Lewis: Tequila Mockingbird

Pete Shelley: “Telephone Operator”

Autechre: “Keynell”

Kill Your Idols: This Is Just The Beginning

The Cars: Shake It Up

Ronnie Laws: Pressure Sensitive

Stuff: Stuff

Eric Gale: Multiplication

Urbie Green: The Fox

Checkerboard Charlie b/w The Howards split

[sisilafami]

2022

Rap:

Chicken P - BussaBrick Vol.2 : BussOne 101 / BussaBrick Vol.1 Deep In The Pot

Bandgang Lonnie Bands - Creatures In Paris / Scorpion Eyes / Hard 2 Kill Reloaded

Billy Woods - Aethiopes / Church

Rx Papi - Dope Deals And Record Sales Vol. 2 / First Week Out (Deluxe)

SME TaxFree - This One For My Brothers / Unexpected / Im Off The West / Cant Write This Shit vol. 2

Bear1boss - BEAR1BOSS

Cash Cobain & Chow Lee - 2 SLIZZY 2 SEXY (DELUXE)

DevStacks - Now They Know Us 3

MarijuanaXO - Da Under Dog / Growth & Development / Windshield Tinted

Quelle Chris - Deathfame

Big Ouee - Dreams Money Can Buy I & II

Tony Shhnow - Plug Motivation / Kill Streak 2 (deluxe) / Reflexions

Hook - From, Hook

CEO Trayle - Loosies Compilation / HH5 / The Collection / Vier

Joe Pablo - Blow the World

Wizz Havin - Mr. Too Sticky

YoungBoy Never Broke Again - 3800 Degrees

RRB Duck - Still Standing / Top Side

DaeMoney - Slayer's Coming

Papo2oo4 - Ballerific

Shaudy Kash - On The Yeah Side / Young CBFW (Deluxe)

Certified Trapper - I'm Certified

42 Dugg x EST Gee - Last Ones Left

NoCap - The Main Bird

MarijuanaXO & Joe Pablo - Window Service / Window Service 2

$ilkMoney - I Don't Give a Fuck About This Rap Shit, Imma Just Drop Until I Don't Feel Like It Anymore

Mike - Beware of the Monkey

Sexyy Red - Ghetto Superstar

454 - FAST TRAX 3

Top$ide - Lost Files

MHPG Sound - Sound or Drown

Goldenboy Countup - Coach Golden 2 / Golden Ticket / The Rawest / Chicken Man 3 / Chill Golden

Baby Smoove - Im Still Serious 2

Babytron - Megatron

Boldy James - Fair Exchange No Robbery / Be That as It May / Mr. Ten08

LUCKI - FLAWLESS LIKE ME

E L U C I D - I Told Bessie

Karma2zz - New St Louis / Rookie Of The Year

Fly Anakin - Frank

Ayoolii - Personal Compilation 2022

Tisakorean - 1st Round Pick

Los and Nutty - 25 Features, Vol. 2

WB Nutty - City of Addiction

Hm:

1100 Himself & Mitchell - 2 Headed Goat

AKAI SOLO - Spirit Roaming

Ame - At The Fore /  No Mans Land

Babyface Ray - FACE (Deluxe Edition)

Bandmanrill - The Singles

Cash Cobain - SLIZZY TIMING

Damedot - The Umbrella Again

Dopeboy Ra - Book of PSlums Chapter 36 (Deluxe)

Duwap Kaine - Underdog 3 / Family Guy / Kaine's Diary / A Doggs Influence / Faith Like Esther

Four50 - Glasshouse

Ghetto Baby Boom - Ghetto Mode

Izaya Tiji - WASP / Nevameant2b 

Jelly - Wolf of Peachtree 2

Ka - Woeful Studies / Languish Arts

KanKan - WAY2GEEKED

Kodak Black - Kutthroat Bill Vol. 1

Lil Baby - It's Only Me

Lil Uzi Vert - RED & WHITE

Mavi - Laughing so Hard, it Hurts

Moh Baretta - DOGMA II

Money Waters - The Porch II

Open Mike Eagle - Component System with the Auto Reverse

Princesa 28 - Princesa WorldWide V2

Reed - Reed

Roc Marciano - The Elephant Man's Bones

Rodneyy - #OGTG

RXK Nephew - BEEN BALLIN IN OUTER SPACE / My Wrist Need Rehabilitation / Universal Slither

Sickboyrari - City Of Crows

Shawny Binladen - Wick City (Deluxe)

Summrs - FALLEN RAVEN

Tae Rackzz & Javi Turnt - Our Year

WiFiGawd - Charge It To The Game

Wiki & Subjxct5 - Cold Cuts

WTM Milt - Dog$hit & Ammunition / RAFA

Young Bleed - Dare' Iza' God

Young Nudy - EA Monster

Yeat - 2 Alivë (Geëk Pack)

R&B:

Cruel Santino - Subaru Boys - FINAL HEAVEN

Jacquees - Sincerely For You

Brent Faiyaz - WASTELAND

Jazmine Sullivan - Heaux Tales, Mo’ Tales The Deluxe

Contemporary :

Olli Aarni - Suontee- 23112021

Clara de Asís & Ryoko Akama - sisbiosis

Malin Bång - Works for Orchestra

Natasha Barrett -  Heterotopia

Björk - Fossora

Joshua Bonnetta - Innse Gall

Brannten Schnüre - Das Glück vermeiden 

Björg Brjánsdóttir - VÍDDIR

Isaiah Ceccarelli - Toute clarté m’est obscure

Delphine Dora - a l'abri du monde

Jacob Dwyer - The Devil Museum

Jürg Frey - Borderland Melodies

goo age - Open Zone

Howard Stelzer - The Flemish Giants (Suburban Observances Vol. 5)

Atte Elias Kantonen - POP 6 SUSURRUS

Nile Koetting - Remain Calm

Lance Austin Olsen - Fukushima Rising

Michael Pisaro & Keith Rowe - Venerable Bede

Francis Plagne - The Refrain

RLW - Tunnel

Manja Ristic - Him, fast sleeping, soon he found In labyrinth of many a round, self-rolled

Vanessa Rossetto - The Actress

Wojciech Rusin - Syphon

Sombra ac​ú​stica - Sombra acústica

Stateside - Mouthfeelings Sessions

Stefano Scodanibbio - String Quartets

Havadine Stone - Old Young

Valerio Tricoli - Say Goodbye To The Wind

Simon Whetham - Invitation to Migrate to a New Planet

Digital Beats:

qua - Hasbulla ep

DJ Travella - Mr Mixondo

islurwhenitalk  - ☥skkkult r𖤐dio☥

Model Home - Model Home 20

Jana Rush - Dark Humor

BILLY G - billy.exe

HiTech - HiTech

Vivid The Producer - HEALING

Theo Parrish - Ooh Bass

Andy Loebs - Flexuous Vertex 

Jazz ?:

Andrew Cyrille / Wadada Leo Smith / Qasim Naqvi - Two Centuries

BI BA DOOM - graceful collision

LIFTED -  3

New Old:

Henning Christiansen - OP.163 PENTHESILEA

Luc Ferrari - Solitude Transit

Jigen - Blood's Finality 狂雲求敗

Miles Davis - That's What Happened 1982-1985 The Bootleg Series, Vol. 7

Nature - 98' Nate

Universal Liberation Orchestra - Communion

Iannis Xenakis - Electroacoustic Works

[mobilizemusic]

Moment Of Peace

Mobilize (Russia) returns to Particles for a 2nd EP, "Moment Of Peace". His first was a featured Beatport release that had support from Eelke Kleijn, Flash Brothers, Max Graham, Jaytech, Nick Warren, Jerome Isma-ae, and Matt Rowan to name a few. Interested to hear what he's been up to?

A more mature sound emerges with Mobilize's new tracks. He's a top 10 most listened to DJ this month on Proton Radio so we think he's on to something… enjoy! Cover design by Ben Mautner. A&R by Jason Wohlstadter.

DJ support: Hernan Cattaneo (Renaissance, Sudbeat) very good stuff really like first two tracks

Eelke Kleijn (Outside the Box / GU / Manual) great ep! First two tracks rock.

Jerome Isma-ae simply great!

Kasey Taylor (Vapour Recordings) Nice package… Deep and classy..

Cid Inc (Replug) deep and nice, love it.

Markus Schulz (Coldharbour Recordings) Nice sounds!

Kosmas Epsilon (Epsilon Trax) beautiful warmers, will play 🙂

Johan Vermeulen great deep ep, loving it

Andre Sobota (Audio Therapy, Proton Music) Loving the atmosphere on it, Moment Of Peace is my favourite!

released September 9, 2010 by Particles

[passionate-reply]

This week on Great Albums: Ministry’s 1983 debut, With Sympathy! It’s not a metal album, and it’s not even an industrial album--it’s just some damn good synth-pop, despite who made it! Whether you’re curious where Uncle Al got his start and why he hates his first LP, or you just want some excellent New Romantic music, you should check this one out. Full transcript of the video under the break, as always.

Welcome to Passionate Reply, and welcome to Great Albums! Today, I’ll be tackling the debut album of one of the best-loved industrial bands--though it actually isn’t all that “industrial.” This is With Sympathy by Ministry, first released in 1983. Ministry are one of those acts that have gone through many stylistic evolutions throughout their career, and if you’re familiar with some of their more acclaimed works, it may surprise you to learn where they started out. While With Sympathy was the first full LP released under the Ministry name, it’s not the very first thing in their discography--that honour goes to the 12” single “I’m Falling,” released in 1981.

Music: “I’m Falling”

With a springy post-punk bass line and a tinny mechanical rhythm, “I’m Falling” is a rough-edged piece of cold wave. It was released on the famous Wax Trax! Records, well-known as the home of many of the most illustrious industrial acts of the 80s and 90s, from Coil and Laibach to Meat Beat Manifesto. But for their follow-up LP, Ministry would work with a major label, Arista, and twist that bass-heavy sound into something with less hiss and more groove.

Music: “Effigy”

On the opening track, “Effigy,” a bright synth line artfully fences an electric guitar riff for dominance, showing the extent to which the sonic blueprint of British New Wave acts like A Flock of Seagulls prefigured With Sympathy. This is an album that could only have been conceived in 1983, in the full flush of synth-pop’s mainstream popularity, and it does feel like a cash-in on the success that imported European synth-pop achieved in the first few years of the 1980s--even in Ministry’s native America.

While I’ve covered some albums with somewhat controversial legacies before, With Sympathy probably sets the record for the work that’s most despised by its own creator: Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen has disowned this album even harder than Ralf Huetter did the Kraftwerk albums before Autobahn, even going so far as to claim its affable, fairly commercial sound was entirely the product of Arista’s executive meddling. As with all legends of how great art was made, I don’t particularly believe or disbelieve this legend, or think it’s possible to know if it’s “true”--I simply present it to you as a piece of context, a myth that informs the history of this work. It’s worth noting that the acerbic, aggressive track “Here We Go” is often held up as a form of evidence for this story.

Music: “Here We Go”

The lyrics of “Here We Go” seem to imply that the song is, itself, intended as some sort of offering to the pop charts, but the confrontational style of the vocals is hard to overlook. I suppose it’s somewhat catchy, but not exactly in the same way that a real hit song is--there’s a certain fetching incompetence behind it, that makes its energy that much more compelling. “Here We Go” was released as a single, but only as the fourth selection from the album to receive that honour. A similar quality of dissonance between words and music can be found on the closing track, “She’s Got a Cause.”

Music: “She’s Got a Cause”

Like so many pop-leaning albums by artists who belong more on the underground side of things, With Sympathy has this constant tension bubbling within, and that crass, subversive industrial mindset is straining within the soft prettiness of its synth textures. The darkly playful “She’s Got a Cause” presents us with a narrator who seems to enjoy an idealized abuse at the hands of their lover, in a manner that’s reminiscent of the common industrial preoccupation with sado-masochism. And yet, it sounds downright bubbly--surprisingly so for a closing track, too. The album’s third single, “Work For Love,” is another that plays with this dysfunctional relationship theme.

Music: “Work For Love”

With tight handclap percussion, a call-and-response hook, and even a rhythm break, “Work For Love” certainly delivers on a “work chant” feel. Like “She’s Got a Cause,” it’s a very fun track, on the surface, but the more you think about its gleeful commodification of love and intimacy, the more sour it seems. Given the expected hard R in “work,” this seems like as good a time as any to note frontman Al Jourgensen’s apparent decision to ape something of a working-class English accent, by far one of the most derided features of With Sympathy. Personally, though I’ve never found this all that offensive--there are many styles of music in which vocalists adopt something of a trade cant, and the conventional twang of country singers is as much of a stylistic convention of the music as country guitar. I tend to see a person’s art as a deliberately crafted creation, where the self might be re-imagined in creative ways, and I think the unrelenting demand for complete “authenticity” from artists is little more than rockist hogwash. But that’s just me.

The cover of With Sympathy is one that really puts the capital-R “Romantic” in “New Romantic.” An artfully splayed hand, with very vampish black nails, gestures ambiguously towards wilting, crumbling red roses, an iconic symbol of the impermanence of youth, love, and idealism. The out-of-focus backdrop for the image might be interpreted as veined marble, adding a classicizing touch, or perhaps a stormy sky filled with lightning, adding to the sense of melodrama. The title “With Sympathy” calls attention to the album’s gothic morbidity in a gleefully tongue-in-cheek fashion, and I wish it weren’t so easy to miss on the cover, placed as red-on-red text in the middle of the roses.

As I hinted at earlier, Ministry have never made anything else that sounds similar to With Sympathy. Their second LP, 1986’s Twitch, is a marked sonic departure, featuring harsh, mechanistic industrial assaults. An extremely different album, for sure, but one that I also like quite a lot, in its own way! By the 1990s, Ministry would adopt an increasingly guitar-driven sound, eventually blossoming from industrial into full-blown heavy metal--a transformation that makes With Sympathy look even more bizarre in the context of their catalogue.

Music: “Over the Shoulder”

While I’ve provided a lot of contextual information about With Sympathy, I do want to mention that when I first discovered this album as a teenager, I didn’t know much about industrial music at all, let alone Ministry. And I loved the album! At the end of the day, I think With Sympathy is a very enjoyable New Romantic album, in a vacuum, and I’d recommend it to anyone who’s interested in early 80s synth-pop. Don’t let those later metal albums scare you away from some damn good pop.

My favourite track on With Sympathy is “I Wanted To Tell Her,” the album’s second single. It gets off to a great start, playfully introducing us to an impressively groovy bass guitar, and features a duet between Jourgensen and one Shay Jones, who’s also credited as a co-writer on the song--the only writing credit on the album besides Jourgensen. While Jones would later release some house singles under her own name, she seems to have been a session musician at this point in her career, but does an astounding job for a hired gun. The instrumental of “I Wanted To Tell Her” is almost identical to a bonus track from the “I’m Falling” single called “Primental,” albeit with a bit more studio polish--but that extra bit of professionalism, and its superbly bitter and bitchy duet, push it over the top for me. That’s all for today--thanks for listening!

Music: “I Wanted To Tell Her”

[eeraygun]

Top 246 Sonic Releases of 2020

001. Perfume Genius - Set My Heart On Fire Immediately 002. Splash Pattern - Sentinel 003. Pontiac Streator - Triz 004. gayphextwin & Pépe - gayphextwin / Pépe EP 005. Various Artists - SLINK Volume 1 006. Echium - Disruptions of Form 007. Henry Greenleaf - Caught 008. Sega Bodega - Reestablishing Connection 009. Summer Walker - Life on Earth 010. Charli XCX - how i'm feeling now 011. Various Artists - Physically Sick 3 012. Autechre - Sign 013. Off The Meds - Off The Meds 014. Brent Faiyaz - Fuck The World 015. Luis Pestana - Rosa Pano 016. Reinartz - Ravecoil 017. pent - - 018. Mark Leckey - In This Lingering Twilight Sparkle 019. Various Artists - Sharpen, Moving 020. Vanessa Worm - Vanessa 77 021. Aho Ssan - Simulacrum 022. Lyra Pramuk - Fountain 023. PJ Harvey - Dry Demos 024. Felicia Atkinson - Echo 025. Arca - KiCK i 026. Space Afrika - hybtwibt 027. Ambien Baby - Mindkiss 028. The Gasman - Voyage 029. Inigo Kennedy - Arcadian Falls 030. Raft of Trash - Likeness on the Edge of Town 031. OL - Wildlife Processing 032. Fyu-Jon - Furrow 033. Desire Marea - Desire 034. Octo Octa - Love Hypnosis Vol. 1 035. Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher 036. Jesse Osborne-Lanthier - Left My Brain @ Can Paixano (La Xampanyeria) OST 037. Various Artists - She's More Wild 038. Various Artists - Days Of Future Past [White Material] 039. Foul Play - Origins 040. Late Night Approach - The Naus Investigation 041. Amazondotcom & Siete Catorce - Vague Currency 042. Davis Galvin - Ntih / Icia 043. Patiño - Actually Laughing Out Loud 044. Various Artists - 2nd Anniversary Compilation [All Centre] 045. St-Antoine, Feu - L'eau Par La Soif 046. Xozgk - skllpt 047. Various Artists - The Sun is Setting on the World 048. DJ Python - Mas Amable 049. Peter Van Hoesen - Chapter for the Agnostic 050. Tracing Xircles - Air Lock 051. Ben & Jerry - Formant Fry 052. still house plants - Fast Edit 053. D-Leria - Still Standing 054. Florian T M Zeisig - Coatcheck 055. Hanne Lippard - Work 056. Shedbug & Rudolf C - Honey Mushrooms II 057. Carl Stone - Stolen Car 058. Ruth Anderson - Here 059. Sid Quirk - Ginnel Talk 060. Various Artists - Fluo I [Kindergarten Records] 061. Pump Media Unlimited - Change 062. VC-118A - Crunch / Plonk 063. Beatriz Ferreyra - Echos+ 064. Bearer - Precincts 065. PARSA - PAƬCHƜȜRKZ 1 066. Holly Childs & Gediminas Žygus - Hydrangea 067. Cosmin TRG - Remote 068. Obsequies - Carcass 069. Jake Muir - the hum of your veiled voice 070. No Moon - Set Phasers to Stun 071. Olli Aarni - Mustikoita ja kissankelloja 072. E-Unity - Duo Road EP 073. Benedek - Mr. Goods 074. Extinction Room - Extinction Stories 075. Hodge - Shadows In Blue 076. Various Artists - Tiny Planet Vol. 2 077. Floco Floco - On m'a dit 078. Breather - Ceremonies Of Aporia 079. Unknown Mobile - Leafy Edits Vol. 2 080. Wetman & Sword of Thorns - Apt E Vol 2 081. Borderlandstate_ the Best Kisser in L.A. - Hello Mainframe 082. Kiera Mulhern - De ossibus 20 083. Mads Kjeldgaard - Hold Time 084. Тпсб - Whities 031 EP 085. Network Glass - Twitch 086. a2a - A2A¹ EP 087. Wata Igarashi - Traveling 088. Joey G II - Pub Talk 089. Atom™ - <3 090. Valentina Magaletti & Marlene Ribeiro - Due Matte 091. Ewan Jansen - Island Diary 092. HOOVER1 - HOOVER1-4 093. Nazar - Guerrilla 094. Paradise Cinema - Paradise Cinema 095. Daisies - Daisies in the Studio with DJ Rap Class 096. Alloy Sea - Petrichor 097. Flørist - Intermedia 1 EP 098. Nandele - FF 099. Pro.tone - Zero Day Attack 100. Michael J. Blood - Introducing Michael J Blood 101. Various Artists - RV Trax, Vol. 5 102. DJ Plead - Going for It EP 103. Strategy - The Babbling Brook 104. Various Artists - surf000 105. Deft - Burna 106. Various Artists - WorldWideWindow 107. Lucy Liyou - Welfare 108. O-Wells - Ebecs 109. Special Request - Spectral Frequency EP 110. Anunaku - Stargate 111. Scott Young - Ket City 112. Various Artists - Stir Crazy Vol.1 113. Syz - Bunzunkunzun 114. Oozy Zoo - Sabertooth 115. Vanessa Amara - Poses 116. Carl Finlow - Apparatus 117. Al Wootton - Snake Dance EP 118. Oi Les Ox - Crooner qui coule sous les clous 119. aircode - Effortless 120. Tristan Arp - Slip 121. Andrea - Ritorno 122. Russell Ellington Langston Butler - Emotional Bangers Only 123. The Lone Flanger - The Photon's Path 124. SHelley Parker & Peder Mannerfelt - Decouple ]( Series 125. Esplendor Geometrica - Cinética 126. Casey MQ - babycasey 127. Gacha Bakradze - Western Arrogance 128. Fatherhood - Big Boy 129. Blawan - Make A Goose 130. Roza Terenzi, Roza - Modern Bliss 131. AceMo - SYSTEM OVERRIDE 132. Meitei - Kofū 133. Penelope Trappes - Eel Drip 134. Adult Fantasies - Towers of Silence 135. Plush Managements Inc. - Magic Plush 136. Further Reductions - array 137. Ben Bondy & Exael - Aphelion Lash 138. Pugilist - Blue Planet EP 139. Dylan Henner - The Invention of the Human 140. Cindy - I'm Cindy 141. Ulla - Tumbling Towards a Wall 142. EMMA DJ - PZSÅRIASISZSZ TAPE 143. BufoBufo - Potholing 144. Model Home - Live 5-12-20 145. Low Budget Aliens - Junk DNA 146. Paranoid London - PLEDITS#2 147. Emra Grid - A System A Platform A Voiid 148. J. Albert - Pre Formal Audio 149. Dawl - Break It Down 150. Oall Hates - Tranceporter 151. Mystic Letter K - Cosmic Clearance [MLK4, 2020] 152. Coco Bryce - Lost City Archives Vol 2 153. Hagan - Waves 154. Various Artists - ON+ON+ON 155. INVT - EXTREMA 156. C Powers - Redirections Vol. 1 157. Significant Other - Club Aura 158. Client_03 - Thought disposal 159. Ghost Phone - LOCKDOWN BODY EDITS 160. Two Shell - N35 161. Rhyw - Loom High 162. EAMS - Demode 163. Various Artists - Woozy001 164. Society Of Silence – Réalisme Viscéral 165. HVL - Alignment 166. Alan Johnson - Material World 167. Matthew D Gantt - Diagnostics 168. DJ Detox - RM12009 169. Critical Amnesia - Critical Amnesia 170. Neinzer - Whities 025 EP 171. Despina & Ma Sha Ru - Polychronia 172. Divide - Computer Music 173. URA - Blue [NAFF008, 2020] 174. Forest Drive West - Terminus EP 175. Glacci - Alzarin _ Lavvender Rush 176. Fergus Sweetland - Fergus Sweetland 177. Various Artists - C12 - Social Distancing 1.1 178. A-Sim - The Puppet Master 179. Chlär - Power to the Soul 180. Will Hofbauer - Where Did All The Hay Go 181. Protect-U - In Harmony Of An Interior World 182. Instinct & 0113 - Instinct 11 183. Ribbon Stage - My Favorite Shrine 184. Zenker Brothers - Mad System 185. 2Lanes - Baby's Born To Fish... - Impish Desires 186. Nebulo - Parallaxes 187. Martyn Bootyspoon - Lickety Split 188. Erik Griswold - All's Grist That Comes To The Mill 189. Alex Falk - Movefast 190. DJ SWISHA & Kanyon - Club Simulator EP 191. Happa - Ls14 Battler _ 36Th Chamberlain (Remixes) 192. Svreca - FRUE 193. Anz - Loos In Twos (NRG) 194. James King - rinsed - installed 195. Catartsis & Ōtone - Mechanical Gesture 196. Daniel J. Gregory - Life Is A Bin 197. Desert Sound Colony - Pulled Through The Wormhole EP 198. Floral Resources - TS00000? 199. Alex R - Last Attempt 200. Notzing - The Abuse Of Hypnosis In Dance Environments 201. Brain Rays & Quiet - Butter [SR081A, 2020] 202. Benjamin Damage - Deep Space Transit 203. BROSHUDA - Contemplative Figuration 204. Various Artists - Radiant Love IWD Comp 205. Paradise 3001 - Low Sun Archives 206. 011668 & S280F - Os 207. Kubota, Kazuma - Mind 208. HATENA - HANDZ 209. Leonce - Seconds & Fifths EP 210. Furtive - Sympathies IV 211. French II - Time / Tracker 212. qwizzz - slag ep 213. Gag Reflex - The Fae 214. Luca Lozano & Mr. Ho - Homeboys 215. CONCEPTUAL - Introspective Research 216. Xyla - Ways 217. Minor Science - Second Language 218. Fana - Karantina 219. Current Obsession - XXX 220. K. Frimpong & Super Complex Sounds - Ahyewa 221. Ali Berger - The Stew 222. Sleep D - Smoke Haze 223. Nick León - MAZE 224. DJ Delish - Khadijah Vol. 6 225. Sputnik One - Kerosene 226. OOBE - SFTCR 2 227. Burrell Connection - Breaks That Strung the Camel Back 228. Wayne Phoenix - Soaring Wayne Phoenix Story The Earth 229. D.Dan - Mutant Future 230. Distance Dancer - Distance Dancer 231. Nikki Nair - Number One Slugger 232. Vinicius Honorio - Metamorphosis 233. Tracey - Microdancer EP 234. Ntu - Perfect Blue 235. Bliss Inc. - Hacking The Planet 236. JLTZ - Tools From Another Mother 237. Omnipony - GHOST1 238. WTCHCRFT - ACID EP vol. 2 239. Mike - Weight Of The World 240. Hypnaton - Hypnaton 241. Granary 12 - High 1987 242. Elisa Bee - Orbit EP 243. Stones Taro - Pump EP 244. Alexis - Refractions 245. Ntel - The Dilution Effect 246. X.WILSON - YUK

[bestreasonstowriterecordreviews]

✰ BEST OF THE BEST REASONS TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIEWS IN 2019 ✰        

It’s that time again: let’s feast from 2019′s Grapevine That Is Never Pruned with 21 (+ approximately 277 more) of the BEST OF THE BEST REASONS TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIEWS IN 2019!    ✰ 7th ANNIVERSARY ✰ 

<All long playing vinyl records unless otherwise noted...& many cassettes>

✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ TOP 21 ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰

✰ TAIWAN HOUSING PROJECT  Sub-Language Trustees  (ever/never) ✰

✰ SAMANTHA RIOTT  Bloodletting download (self-released)

✰ PAULA GARCIA STONE  Undercurrent  cd (Linear Obsessional, UK) 

✰ POSSIBLE HUMANS  Everybody Split (Trouble In Mind)

✰ WILLIAM HENRY MEUNG cassette FMerror (chemical imbalance., Australia)

✰ LEILA BORDREUIL  Headflush  (Catch Wave Ltd)

✰ LEIGHTON CRAIG Diamond Eye (Bruit Direct Disques, France) 

✰ KNITTED ABYSS   Bad Lassies (Paradise Daily, Australia)

✰ WEAK SIGNAL  LP1  (Mag Mag)

✰ TOM OF ENGLAND  Sex Monk Blues (L.I.E.S.)

✰ DRY CLEANING  Boundary Road Snacks And Drinks & Sweet Princess LP (It’s OK, UK)

✰ 75 DOLLAR BILL  I Was Real  double LP (Thin Wrist Recordings) 

✰ DARK BLUE Victory Is Rated (12XU)

✰ KALI MALONE  The Sacrificial Code 3 cd (iDEAL Recordings, Sweden)

✰ SHABAZZ MYSTIK Chant D’Lâme (Off, Belgium)

✰ LONG HOTS Give And Take 7” (Third Man)

✰ AMIRTHA KIDAMBI & LEA BERTUCCI  Phase Eclipse cassette (Astral Spirits)

✰ CHRIS BROKAW  End Of The Night (VDSQ)

✰ SPIRAL WAVE NOMADS Spiral Wave Nomads (Twin Lakes/Feeding Tube)

✰ HAMA Houmeissa (Sahel Sounds)

✰ YL HOOI  Untitled  cassette (Altered States Tapes, Australia)

JEANINES Jeanines (Slumberland)

ARTEFACTOS DE DOLOR  La Niña double LP (Pain Artifacts)

U-BAHN  U-Bahn  (Future Folklore, France)

MDOU MOCTAR Ilana: The Creator (Sahel Sounds)

STEFAN CHRISTENSEN The Upcoming Flame (bruit direct disques, France) 

TYSHAWN SOREY & MARILYN CRISPELL  The Adornment Of Time cd (Pi Recordings)

ALE HOP Apophenia (Buh Records, Peru)

TIM PANARETOS  Submergence cd-r (chemical imbalance., Australia) & Opposites End download (self-released, Australia)

KATE CARR City Of Bridges download (Longform Editions, Australia)

WRITHING SQUARES  Out Of The Ether (Trouble In Mind)

MY NORTH EYE  (My) North Eye (2011) cd-r  (Reverb Worship, France)

PINOCCHIO  Pinocchio ep (Toxic State)

BRIDGET HAYDEN Soil And Song cassette (Synchronise Witches, UK) [comes with Karen Dalton fanzine!]

The COWBOYS The Bottom Of A Rotten Flower  (Feel It Records)

OLUMPUS  Caucus & Surplus downloads (both stabbies, etc., New Zealand)

CHUCK CLEAVER  Send Aid (Shake It!)

JOSÉ DIAS  After Silence, Vol. 1. cd (Clean Feed, Portugal)

KNIFE WIFE  Family Party cassette (Sister Polygon)

TRAMPOLINE TEAM  Trampoline Team (HoZac)

KATE CARR  Heatwave cassette (self-released, UK)

SEBASTIEN STH BISET  Islæd cd (Mnóad, Belgium)

PHAROAH CHROMIUM  Eros + Massacre  (Scum Yr Earth, France)

JOSEPH ALLRED Aspirant cassette (Garden Portal Tapes) & O, Meadowlark (Feeding Tube)

ANDREA BORGHI Tistre cassette (Dinzu Artefacts)

MOPE GROOVES Desire (See My Friends Records)

JOSHUA ABRAMS & NATURAL INFORMATION SOCIETY  Mandatory Reality (Eremite)

SOFIE BIRCH  Island Alchemy cassette (Constellation Tatsu) 

VOYAGE DATA  Voyage Data cassette  (Econore, Germany)

JONNY COUCH  Mystery Man  (Damages Sofa)

FISCHERLE  Gmatwacz cassette (Czaszka, UK)

ROCKET 808  Rocket 808 (12XU)

LINDA TRIP  Sad Bangers cassette (Superdreamer) 

MATTHEW J. ROLIN  Matthew J. Rolin (Feeding Tube Records)

STEKKERDOOS  Kalendar cassette (No Rent)

IAN HAWGOOD  光 (Home Normal, Japan)

ÀLEX REVIRIEGO • DISCORDIAN STRING ENSEMBLE  Incerto For Doublebass And Strings download (Discordian, Spain)

JULIA KENT Temporal cd (The Leaf Label, UK)

NAPS  Better To Give cassette (Gertrude Tapes)

TERROR OF THE DEEP  The A-Team cassette (Melted Ice Cream, New Zealand)

CLAIRE ROUSAY Friends cassette (Never Anything)

ANNA SUBIRIANA • POL PADRÓS • JOAN ANTONI PICH Brull’s Bet download (Discordian, Spain)

HAKOBUNE  A Fan, Strings, and Two Guitars cassette (Patient Sounds)

LORI GOLDSTON Things Opening (Second Editions, Germany)

The RESONARS  No Exit (Trouble In Mind)

MARCIA BASSETT • MANUEL MOTA • MARGARIDA GARCIA  Here They Rest Immobile (Yew)

URANIUM CLUB The Cosmo Cleaners: The Higher Calling Of Business Provocateurs (Fashionable Idiots/Static Shock, UK)

THE COOL GREENHOUSE  “Crap Cardboard Pet” 7” (Hidden Bay Records, France)

ROB NOYES “You Are Tired”/“Nightmare Study”  7” (Market Square Recordings, UK)

TOM LÖNNQVIST  Häviävän Pieni Osa (Guggenhavn Archive, Sweden)

GOTOBEDS  Debt Begins At 30 (Sub Pop)

GREG KELLEY/ROB NOYES  Greg Kelley/Rob Noyes split cassette (self-released)

DEAD SEA APES  The Free Territory  double LP (Feeding Tube Records) 

DRAGGS  Draggs cassette (Slime Street, Australia) 

SPRAY PAINT Into The Country (12XU)

SPF Paul’s McCartney 

2 CHEVRONS No Rules In Outta Space cassette (Albert’s Basement, Australia)

DARK TEA Dark Tea (Fire Talk)

TERRINE  Live At Home cassette (Econore, Germany)

The SNAKES  The Snakes (Anti Fade, Australia)

LIVE SKULL  Saturday Night Massacre  (Bronson Recordings, Italy)

ELKHORN  Sun Cycle/Elk Jam 2 LP (Feeding Tube)

MESSRS  Messrs 12” (Heel Turn Records)

VIRGINIA PLAIN  Strange Game (All Hands Electric)

JEN KUTLER  Dismbodied (EyeVee)

MOR AIR  Life Behind Glass cassette (Genot Centre, Czech Republic)

CIA DEBUTANTE  The Landlord (Siltbreeze)

JOSÉ DIAS  After Silence, Volume 1 cd (Celan Feed, Portugal)

LAURA LUNA CASTILLO  Folksonomies cassette (Cudighi Records)

THE GIRL IN TIMES NEW VIKING  The Girl In Times New Viking (The Fah-Q Catalog)

43 ODES  43 Odes cassette (Eiderdown)

OOF Vanity Plate cassette & EGO cassette  (both Fuzzy Warbles cassettes)

ORGUE AGNÈS A Une Gorge (three:four, Switzerland; Standard In-Fi - 2018)

MICHAEL MORLEY Heavens Idleness Awaits 2 LP (Thin Wrist Recordings)

CHRISTINA KUBISCH  Schall Und Klang cd (Fragment Factory, Germany)

HUNTED CREATURES Sleep Weed cassette (White Reeves Productions)

UNITED WATERS  Coma To Coma (Drawing Room Records)

JULIUS MENARD  Hr  cassette (Econore, Germany)

GEE TEE Chromo-Zone download (self/released, Australia)

AARON RUSSELL  Coral Music cassette (Gertrude Tapes)

9TH HOUSE  Planetary EP 12” (Hot Haus, UK) 

SCAN  Scan 7” ep (Drugfront)

The HECKS  My Star  (Trouble In Mind)

ALINA PETROVA & KIRA WEINSTEIN  Sad Ko cassette (Never Anything)

HIEROPHANTS  Spitting Out Moonlight (Anti Fade, Australia) 

NOTS  3  (Goner)

P WITS The Desire and Pursuit of The Whole cassette (chemical imbalance., Australia)

GOLDEN PELICANS Grinding For Gruel (12XU)

TOPDOWN DIALECTIC  Vol. 2 (Peak Oil)

M. SAGE  Catch A Blessing (Geographic North)

ECHO OHS  Wild Weeds 12” (1:12 Records, New Zealand)

CIVIC  Selling, Sucking, Blackmail Bribes 7"  (Total Punk)

WENDY EISENBERG & SHANE PARRISH  Nervous Systems (Verses) 

KNEELING IN PISS  Tour De Force cassette (The Fah-Q Catalog)

s.soo Tyman download (New York Haunted, Netherlands)    

WSCHÓD  Wschód cd (Clean Feed, Portugal)

PREENING Gang Laughter (Digital Regress) 

CLARICE JENSEN  Drone Studies  cassette (Geographic North)

MARBLED EYE  Beat Sessions, Vol. 8 cassette (Shout Recordings)

STEVE MOORE  Steve Moore 12” (L.I.E.S)

The SELVA  Canícula Rosa cd (Clean Feed, Australia)

PROGRAM Show Me 12” (Anti Fade, Australia)

SLUMB PARTY Spending Money (Drunken Sailor, UK)

EUN-JUNG KIM & CHARLIE COLLINS  Shining Days cd (Linear Obsessional, UK)

NEON  Neon 12” (Square One Again)

CUCINA POVERA Zoom (Night School, Scotland)

PAULA SHOCRON & PABLO DÍAZ with GUILLERMO GREGORIO Díalogos cd (Fundacja Słuchaj, Poland)

MY NORTH EYE / LE GOÛT ACIDE DES CONSERVATOURS  MNE • L / G / A / D / C split cassette ([Equilibre Fragile], France)

The WOOLEN MEN Human To Human (Dog’s Table)

PIERCE WARNECKE & LOUIS LAURAIN  

Phonotypic Plasticity cassette (Astral Spirits)

BIG QUIET Interesting Times (Unblinking Ear)

SEAN ALI • LEILA BORDREUIL • JOANNA MATTREY I Used to Sing So Lyrical cassette (Astral Spirits)

POWDER  Powder In Space cd (Beats In Space)

MUKQS Jaki Crush cassette (No Rent)

DENNIS GONZALEZ & DEREK ROGERS Certain Aspects cd (Marginal Frequency) 

PONT-À-MOUSSON Bye Bye Mirello! cassette (ABrecords, France)

AKI  ONDA  A Method To Its Messiness (Thalamos, Greece)

ALEXANDER  Untitled cassette (Garden Portal)

BRANDY  “Clown Pain”/“Rent Quest” 7” (Total Punk)

MAJOR STARS  Roots Of Confusion, Seeds Of Joy  (Drag City)

LORI GOLDSTON & JUDITH HAMANN Alloys cd (Marginal Frequency) 

PAINT THINNER The Sea Of Pulp (ŌBLĒK)

JEANS BEAST  Unearthly Gardens Of The New Gods cd-r (Econore, Germany) & Attrition cassette (self-releases, Germany)

SKULL PRACTITIONERS  Skull Practitioners 12” (In The Red)

UROCHROMES  Trope House (Wharf Cat)

LIVINGDOG & MIKE JOHNSON CRO$$ cassette (Constellation Tatsu)

HEADROOM  New Heaven 12” (ever/never)

JEFF HENDERSON  The Charming Clarinet download (III Records, NewZealand)

GRAHAM DUNNING & EDWARD LUCAS End Of A Cable cassette (tsss tapes, Italy)

VILDE CHAYE Demos cassette (Brainplan)

Heavy Space Records - Anthology Volumes I & II cassettes (Ikuisuus, Finland)

KYLE EYRE CLYD Eggshell cd (Yew)

NEUTRALS  Kebab Disco (Emotional Response)

FREDDIE DOUGGIE Freddie Douggie: Live on Juneteenth cassette (International Anthem)

AGUSTÍ FERNÁNDEZ • WILLIAM PARKER • SUSIE IBARRA  One Night At The Joan Miró Foundation cd (Fundacja Słuchaj, Poland)

HUGO MASSIEN  Dance Trax Vol. 21 (Unknown To The Unknown) 

RRILL BELL Vagabond Laws cassette (Gertrude Tapes)

GAMARDAH FUNGUS  Natural Storm cd (Hidden Vibes, Ukraine)

WAYNE ROGERS  The Air Below (Twisted Village)

UNKNOWN SENDER Unknown Sender  (Colonel Records) 

BLUES LAWYER  Something Different (Mt.St.Mtn) 

DURA  Reverberation Hymns cassette (Garden Portal)

JODIE LOWTHER  The Cat Collects download (self-released)

WOLKOROTS Dan Manialogism cassette (Magma Tones, Finland)  

CEREAL KILLER  The Beginning And End Of Cereal Killer (Anti Fade, Australia)

COLIN WEBSTER/MARK HOLUB Nadir (Raw Tonk, UK)

The CAVEMEN  Lowlife 7” EP (Slovenly) 

FRANCISCA GRIFFIN  The Spaces Between cd (CocoMuse, New Zealand)

ANDY HUMAN & THE REPTOIDS  “Psychic Sidekick” 7” (Total Punk)

SEI A Mode Static 12” (Aus Music, U.K.)

JOHN SAINT PELVYN  Improvisation 7.7.18 download (Southern Jukebox Music) 

REBEL SCUM The Descent cassette (chemical imbalance., Australia - 2018) 

S. ARAW TRIO XIII Activated Clown cassette (NNA Tapes)

FERRAN FAGES & VASCO TRILLA  Gestell cd (Raw Tonk, UK)

HUA LUN  Wanderlænd + 2 cassette (Katuktu Collective)

VIRVON VARVON  Mind Cancer cassette (Girlsville)

PHILIPP OTTERBACH  The Rest Is Bliss (Knekelhuis, Netherlands)

EDITRIX Talk To Me download (self-released)

PAVLOV’S PUSS  Comfort Food  (Melted Ice Cream, New Zealand) 

NATHALIE STERN  Nerves And Skin cassette (Cruel Nature, UK)

AKI TAKASE  Hokusai  cd (Intakt, Switzerland)

MOORDDROOM  Deep VR Edits bandcamp DL (New York Haunted, Netherlands)

EXEK Some Beautiful Species Left (Digital Regress)

CLAIRE BIRCHALL  “Dead Air” bandcamp DL (it, Australia)

JUDY & The JERKS  Bone Spur cassette (Earth Girl) & Music For Donuts ep  (Thrilling Living) 

POWER STEERING  Power Steering cassette (chemical imbalance., Australia)  

RASMUS TIETCHENS  HOBOTPAHC cd-r (New York Haunted, Netherlands) 

UTINUTIN  Black Cat, Anyeurism, And Simian Politics download (no label)

GUY BIRKIN  Yemen Data Project cassette (New York Haunted, Netherlands)

LINUS VANDEWOLKEN  Het Vlier Een Hommel Op Aarde 10”x 2 (Okraïna, Belgium)

JOHN CHANTLER  Tomorrow Is Too Late  (Room40, Australia)

JENNIFER VANILLA  J.E.N.N.I.F.E.R. EP 12” (Beats In Space)

WOW  Come La Notte  (Maple Death, Italy)

KATE MOHANTY  Disappear Here  cassette (Friendship Tapes) 

ASTRO SOCIAL CLUB & GRUMBLING FUR  Plasma Splice Trifle (vhf)

SANR  Kesif cd (Flaming Pines, UK)

ANDREW TASSELMYER & PATRICK SPATZ  Interior Currents cassette (Constellation Tatsu)

AHMEDOU AHMED LOWLA Terrouzi cassette (Sahel Sounds)

SKRU  Count Zero cassette (Bedouin, UAE)

PUGILIST Blue 06 12” (Whities, UK)

ULAAN  KHOL  Collapsing Hymns cassette (Worstward) 

L.$.D. FUNDRAISER  No Peace Without Tranquility (no label, New Zealand)  

COCHONNE  Cochonne (self released)

LE POUFS À CORDES Le Poufs À Cordes cd (Pagans, France)

FRET!  A Vanity Spawned By Fear cassette (Cruel Nature, UK) 

UNWAR  Other People cd-r (Magma Tones, Finland)

WOJCIECH RUSIN  The Funnel (Akashic, Scotland)

SLEEPER AND SNAKE Junction And High (Aarght, Australia)

The OILIES Psychic Dog (Fruits & Flowers)

ELI KESZLER Empire 12” (Shelter Press, France)

HAIDER 10961 12” (Aus Music, UK)

FOSTER CARE El Abuso (Total Punk)

TORN HAWK Time Is A Scam 2x 12” (L.I.E.S.)

The LICE Nancy Spungen download (self-released)

DJ XNX  ATX  (Get Busy!, Russia)

SHITTY LIFE Vinyls Discography (Lo-Fo Lo-Life, Germany)

GONG GONG GONG  幽靈節奏 = Phantom Rhythm (Wharf Cat)

SARAH LOUISE  Nighttime Birds And. Opening Stars (Thrill Jockey)

MYRIAM BLEAU Lumens & Profits (Where To Now?, UK)

TV DUST  Forget (MyOwnPrivateRecords / Occult Gang, Italy)

PRIMORJE Reference Path  cassette (Thalamos, Greece)

JUNE CHIKUMA Ler Archives LP + 7” (Freedom To Spend)

dMyanche  Ergonomie cassette (Indian Redhead, France)

EQUIPMENT POINTED ANKH Live (Sophomore Lounge)

VIV CORRINGHAM  Until I Learn The Language Of Mineral Vegetable  cassette (Linear Obsessional, UK)

JACOB WICK feel (Thin Wrist)

AMATEUR HOUR Framtiden Tillhör Inte Oss (Happiest Place, Sweden)

The FICTIVE FIVE  Anything Is Possible cd (Clean Feed, Portugal) 

DANKETSU 9  Towards A Walk In The Sun cd (Patient Sounds (intl))

IVAN THE TOLERABLE  Rations 2LP (Stolen Body, UK)

DANA  Glowing Auras And Black Money (Heel Turn)

NATE YOUNG  Volume 3: Dance Of The Weeping Babe 12” (Lower Floor)

SHOLTO DOBIE & MARK HARWOOD  The Blue Horse  cd (Penultimate Press, UK)

HEAVY METAL 4  (Statik Age Music, Germany)

WET TUNA  Water Weird (Three Lobed Recordings)

CARRAGEENAN Invisible Design cassette (Czaszka, UK)

PRIVATE ANARCHY  Central Planning  (Round Bale Recordings)  

HIDEO NAKASAKO  Texture Of Days cassette (Muzan Editions, Japan)

PRANA CRAFTER  Bodhi Cheetah’s Choice (Beyond Beyond Is Beyond)

PATRICK SHIROISHI & NOEL MEEK  Break Your Eyes cassette (Sploosh)

ANDY HUMAN & The REPTOIDS  Psychic Sidekick (Total Punk)

SLAG QUEENS  You Can’t Go Out Like That (Rough Skies Records, Australia)

ALIAS G Natural Love 12” (Unknown To The Unknown, UK)

NIVHEK  After Its Own Death / Walking In A Spiral Towards The House cd (W.25th)

GARCIA PEOPLES Natural Facts (Beyond Beyond Is Beyond)

MARCO SERRATO/FRANCESCO COVARINO Bestemmia cd (Raw Tonk, UK)

HOUSEWIVES Twilight Splendour  (Blank Editions, UK)

CLOUDWATCHERS  Cloudwatchers cd (Unexplained Sounds Group, Italy)

CATHERINE LAMB Shade/Gradient  (Black Pollen Press -2018) 

UNITED BIBLE STUDIES  Porti Sepolti cassette (Sloow Tapes, Belgium)

ÚJ BÁLA Diacritical Marks And Angels cassette (Baba Vanga, Czech Republic)

STRENGTH N.I.A.  Do Televisions, Frankie Moore ritual cassette (Stength N.I.A., UK)

DAVID LIPTAK David Lipton: Dove Songs [Tony Arnold, soprano/Allison D’Amato, piano] cd

ANNĒE ZĒRO  La Coolitude (Indian Redhead, France)

MELENAS “Ya Me No Importa Si Tú Quieres”/“Si Tú Me Quieres” 7” (El Nebula Recordings, Spain)

WHIRLING HALL OF KNIVES  Knukke cassette (Cruel Nature, UK)

PROTRUDERS  Poison Future (Feel It)

MOTHER JUNO  Commit cassette (popnihil)

LEFT HAND CUTS OFF THE RIGHT Purge cassette (Fractal Meat Cuts, UK)

CLAIRE ROUSAY  t4t  cassette (No Rent)

IQ+1  Conversaphone Plus (mappa, Slovenia)

BENOÎT PIOULARD & SEAN CURTIS PATRICK Avocationals (Bacon Sound) 

DELPHINE DORA  Dunkles Zu Sagen (self-released)

SOOT  Pockmarked With...Soot!  cassette (Eternal Soundcheck, Australia) 

DAN MELCHIOR BAND Negative Freedom (In The Red)

TÔLE FROIDE  Tôle Froide (Le Turc Mecanique, France - 2018)

AHMED AG KAEDY  Alkaline Kidal  (Sahel Sounds)

DUNNING & UNDERWOOD The Blow Vol. 5 cassette (Front & Follow, UK)

TAKAHIRO MUKAI Super Annoying cassette (Fort Evil Fruit, Ireland)

ANTONIO  High Voltage! cassette (Altered States Tapes, Australia) 

CUBE Decoy (W.25th)

The PLAINS  The Plains cassette (chemical imbalance., Australia)

KA BAIRD  Respires (Rvng Intl.) 

GINO & The GOONS  Do The Get Around (Drunken Sailor, UK)

VIVIEN LE FAY  Ecolalia  (Boring Machines, Italy)

DUKE  Uingizaji Hewa  (Nyege Nyege Tapes, Uganda)

ARIAN SHAFIEE  Arabic Voice cassette (unifactor)

MOUNT TROUT  Shelter Belt  cassette (Rough Skies, Australia)

OCEAN FLOOR  Vernalis cassette (Eiderdown)

CURRENT AFFAIRS “Buckle Up”/“World In Crisis” 7” (dotx3, Germany)

AARON SNOW  Instrumentals  ‘15-‘19  cassette (Surf Shop)

MELKINGS  Movement Music cassette (Regional Bears, UK)

DECIMUS  DECIMUS 6 (self-released)

SYLVIE COURVOISIER and MARK FELDMAN  Time Gone Out cd (Intakt, Switzerland) 

DANIEL HOLT Daniel Holt 12” (L.I.E.S.)

BEAT DETECTIVES  NYPD Records Volume 3: Nefertiti Abstract Movie cassette (NYPD Records)

STEFAN CHRISTENSEN & FRIENDS Unknown Fortune (C/Site)

DIRE WOLVES  Grow Towards The Light (Beyond Beyond Is Beyond)

FAMOUS LOGS IN HISTORY  Memories Of the Space Age cassette (Fuzzy Warbles Cassettes)

HAND & LEG Lust In Peace (Black Gladiator)

DEE DEE & The FUZZ COFFINS Three Golden Hits cassette (Earth Girl Tapes)

RAZORLEGS  Skip Skool cassette (Fadensonnen)

BEST REASONS TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIEWS IN 2018

BEST REASONS TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIEWS IN 2017

BEST REASONS TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIEWS IN 2016

BEST REASONS TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIEWS IN 2015

BEST REASONS TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIWS IN 2014

BEST REASON TO WRITE FUCKIN’ RECORD REVIEWS IN 2013

Neil Morris, speaking to Alan Lomax in 1959:

“Well, when I was just a small boy, Old Uncle Milt Oldfield…Billy Oldfield, the Congressman from Arkansas for so long, it is his father. He and my father are awfully close friends. And they were discussing music. They were music teachers both of them.

“And uh, and they said, dad did and Uncle Milt sanctioned what he said, that MUSIC HAD NO END. That you could learn all the other guy [or girl] learned, and after you got that done they would then, something else would crop up. That uh, that you, that was the reason why that uh, music advanced. That’s why that you would get a better music in one generation maybe that is, uh, IT WOULD FIT THE TIMES IN WHICH THEY LIVED.”

[Lomax: “What about music on the grapevine?”]

“Welllll, they said that MUSIC GREW LIKE THE GRAPEVINE THAT IS NEVER PRUNED. That each year it’d…it’d put on a little bit more. That was what they said, now, about it. Any further questions?”’

[dailyexo]

[INTERVIEW] Baekhyun, Kai - 190927 Billboard: “Why SuperM Is Being Touted as K-Pop's Avengers”

"With SM Entertainment’s newly formed supergroup, SuperM, the company hopes to reclaim its dominance as the genre continues to push into the U.S. mainstream.

There have been hip-hop collectives and rock supergroups, but SM Entertainment’s SuperM is being touted by the company as a boy band full of leading men -- and K-pop’s most impressive lineup to date, with seven members from SM’s most successful and still-active groups.

“I see this as a new challenge,” says EXO vocalist Baekhyun, who at 27 is the oldest member of SuperM and has emerged as its leader. “There are a lot of expectations, because even though this is new, each of us comes from a different [popular] group. But there’s this awesome synergy between us.”

The group -- which will release its self-titled debut EP on Oct. 4 -- also consists of EXO’s Kai, 25, who recently became the global face of Gucci’s new eyewear campaign; WayV’s Lucas, the 20-year-old Hong Kong-born rapper, and Ten, the 23-year-old Thai artist; NCT 127’s Canadian songwriter-rapper Mark, 20, and 24-year-old leader Taeyong; and Taemin, 26, who has been in the industry the longest, joining SHINee at 14. “Our team is the aces of aces,” says Taemin.

EXO has scored four No. 1s on Billboard’s World Albums chart; in January, WayV debuted at No. 4 on Billboard’s Social 50 ranking; NCT 127 performed on Good Morning America in April; and SHINee has won the Seoul Music Awards’ popularity honor twice.

As for SuperM, its name is a nod to its roots at Korean company SM Entertainment, formed in 1995 by producer Lee Soo-man. Since then, SM has expanded K-pop’s reach, first in Asia and then in the United States. Earlier this year, SM partnered with Capitol Music Group to build a bigger following for NCT 127 in the States. And in August, the two companies, along with Capitol’s independent distribution and label services division Caroline, announced they would launch SuperM together.

Capitol CEO Steve Barnett says SuperM will “be part of our legacy to the future,” and calls Lee the “godfather” of K-pop. Lee’s résumé proves as much. In 1996, SM introduced H.O.T., largely considered the first K-pop idol group, and has continued to produce acts with stateside appeal.

Many South Korean entertainment companies have followed suit: Big Hit’s BTS has had three Billboard 200 No. 1 albums; this summer, YG’s Blackpink became the first female K-pop group to perform at Coachella; and Starship Entertainment’s Monsta X collaborated this year with French Montana on a Mainstream Top 40 hit. All three have redefined what U.S. success can look like for Korean pop groups in the second half of this decade. And while SuperM may seem like SM’s latest effort to rival its competitors, it’s equally an attempt to revive one of SM’s key sonic legacies: SMP, or SM Music Performance. The company-created term refers to dance performances set to a fusion of pop-rock, R&B and hip-hop production. SMP was best illustrated by early-2000s releases from record-breaking boy band TVXQ!, which in June 2018 became the best-selling foreign touring act in Japan, and Super Junior, which has had 21 top 20 hits on Billboard’s World Digital Song Sales chart.

SM has had U.S. crossover success before: In 2009, BoA became the first-ever K-pop star to enter the Billboard 200, and in 2012, Girls’ Generation performed on the Late Show With David Letterman. In June, NCT 127 debuted at No. 11 on the Billboard 200 with its We Are Superhuman EP. But SuperM, with its blockbuster lineup, is SM’s effort to lead the K-pop conversation in the U.S. market, as it once did in the early ’00s.

“I don’t want to compare SuperM to any of the other groups at SM, but if I had to describe [what] sets us apart, it’s the performance element,” says Taemin. “It’s not just dance, but includes vocals and rapping, where each member can showcase his ability and shine in a different way, that maybe they can’t in other groups.”

So far, SuperM has been tight-lipped about the sound and style of its album and doesn’t plan to share any tracks ahead of the set other than the already-released instrumental version of “I Can’t Stand the Rain.” One thing it has made clear, though, is its goal: “We’re doing something futuristic and more advanced than what the world has ever seen,” says Mark."

SuperM also arrives at a time when SM shareholders are demanding change. In July, SM rearranged its upper leadership at SM Entertainment Group and subsidiary SM Contents & Culture, and announced it would look to divest less-than-profitable business ventures -- mainly the SMTOWN Coex Artium complex in Seoul, a museum, café, theater and store that opened in 2015. If SuperM becomes a crossover success, the company could solidify its footing.

Despite the fact that SuperM already has debuted on Billboard’s Artist 100 chart without releasing a stitch of music, K-pop fans have expressed trepidation over its assembly. Immediately after Barnett and Lee announced SuperM at August’s Capitol Congress -- Capitol’s annual pep rally and presentation of upcoming releases — the hashtag #SuperMDisbandParty was created, as fans, concerned over how the supergroup would impact the futures of their favorite existing K-pop acts, demanded that SM and Capitol abandon the project.

SuperM isn’t fazed. Its members want to prove how strong they are as a whole -- especially when they’re together onstage. (The group is currently in rehearsals, but announced in a teaser Tuesday that it will be making its first-ever performance in Los Angeles at Capitol Records on Oct. 5 -- one day after the release of its debut EP.) “It’s always important to take the next step when people might not expect it,” says Mark. “We always try to make that challenge into something great for the fans -- and for us, as well.”

SM Entertainment’s Pre-SuperM Supergroups

S.M. the Ballad: SM vocalists from TRAX, Super Junior (and its sub-unit Super Junior-M), SHINee, TVXQ!, Girls’ Generation and EXO -- and two former SM members, one of whom is now in Cube Entertainment’s boy band Pentagon -- released two EPs under the name S.M. the Ballad. In 2010, one grouping recorded Miss You; in 2014, another recorded Breath, which hit No. 9 on Billboard’s World Albums chart.

Younique: In 2012, South Korean car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Company unveiled its new marketing campaign, “Premium Younique Lifestyle,” and worked with SM to debut a supergroup in promotion. Within two months, Younique -- members of EXO, Girls’ Generation, SHINee, Super Junior and Super Junior-M -- released PYL Younique Volume 1, featuring singer-songwriter BoA and rappers Dok2 and The Quiett.

SM The Performance: The choreography-heavy team has released only two singles since it formed in 2012, and they arrived five years apart. The group debuted with a Korean remix of Zedd’s “Spectrum” (off his 2012 debut album, Clarity) featuring members from TVXQ!, Super Junior, SHINee and EXO. And in 2017, it released “Dream in a Dream,” a solo single from WayV’s Ten that was branded a group track."

Photo links: 1, 2

Credit: Billboard.

[missilekidding]

Dude ive been listening to hesitant alien for. A solid 3 days its becoming a problem. Anyway what are ur top 3 trax mine are maya the psychic drugstore perfume and millions. Sorry this is Peak Brain Worms hours

Ah a mutual of excellent taste I see! Mine r How Its Going To Be, Millions and Zero Zero!

[circuit-music]

2019 Music Recommendations

2019. Another stellar year! There was so much excitement this year to be found musically. First off some surprises from some older acts who haven’t released material in decades. Both Heavy Water Factory and Numb had terrific returns to form with new full lengths this year and not surprisingly after the long slumbers - still showcased modern sounds and futuristic ideas. Some terrific re-issues this year from the likes of Dive, Force Dimension and Robotiko Rejekto all from the awesome Mecanica label. If you missed them the first go-around seek them out – those are all important artifacts in the industrial-ebm history. Oh yeah, they also re-issued Acid Horse and Pailhead records this year too!  Synth-pop and synth wave made a huge impact again this year with remarkable releases from Hatchie (favorite record of the year), Silent Em, Luminance, Iris, Body of Light, Minuit Machine, Wingtips, Replicant and others. Post-punk seemed to be the buzz phrase this year with a lot of attention on it. Many great records from the likes of Foreign Resort, Present Moment, Ritual Howls, Veil of Light and Years of Denial. Retro sounding EBM still caught my attention with outstanding releases from Klack, Randolph & Mortimer and Unconscious. Likewise, there was so much contemporary energy surging in the newer techno-ebm realm with punchy releases from Crystal Geometry, Maedon, Kontravoid, Raffaele Attanasio, Rhys Fulber, Ansome and so many others. This isn’t a top 10, top 25 or even a top 100. Instead, it’s an A-Z recommendation list encompassing many genres as those lines are getting more and more blurred.  The majority of what I listen to is electronic based and that runs a whole gamut of sub-genres from techno-ebm, to synth-pop to whatever. A good tune is a good tune, regardless of genre. For each release I’ve listed a format (the one I purchased the release in). If there’s not a format listed - it’s usually digital. My preferred format is vinyl, but if you can’t find it on vinyl it’s likely available digitally as well. RE stands for re-issue by the way.

There’s a ton of new pioneering music out there for sure waiting to be discovered and it’s the “what’s next” that keeps me a motivated music fan. There’s never a dull moment in speaking, writing, DJ'ing or promoting new music, so I’ll keep doing it and hopefully be a guide for you all ;).  

HIGHLY encourage you to get out there and seek out new music; Visit the record stores, go hear a new DJ, fire up Spotify or another streaming service, check out some new music via podcast, DJ mixes, label sites, online retailers, Facebook, BANDCAMP, BANDCAMP, BANDCAMP, etc. There’s a plethora of discoveries to be found out there. If you do the work, you’ll be rewarded ;)   Speaking of Spotify – I made a playlist this year featuring plenty of the bands on my list. There’s at least a track or more from the artist who have a presence on Spotify. Here’s the link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZxvyspTQAiizVe2WN43Fr?si=jsLN6-DiS5WQerWSRbb9Fg

As in years past I’m sure I missed a few things, ignored the hype on certain releases or just plain forgotten something. If it needs mention and I overlooked it - I may do an addendum in the next week or so. Anyways, got your notepaper and plenty of beverages ready? Don’t be a TL:DR (Too Long: Didn’t Read) fool. Read up. Enjoy the music of 2019!

Onwards with the list!!! :D  

-Marc

000 - We Became Reptiles EP (RND. Records) Adam-X - Midnight Sun 12” (BITE)

AEmit - Devourer 12” (Fleisch) Ansome - Hounds of the Harbour 2x12” (Perc Trax) 

Arkan - Stamina (RND Redcords)

Autumns - Shortly After Nothing LP (Death & Leisure) - Pissing Away My Youth CS (Opal Tapes) Autumns/Verset Zero - ST 12” (Soil Records) Axkan - Torment 12” (Omen Recordings) Blush Response - Fissures in the Megastructure (Schematic Music Company) - Selection for Societal Sanity 12” (Sacred Court)

Body Beat Ritual - Instinct Primitive/Crash report 12” (Haven)

Body of Light - Time to Kill LP (Dais)

Boy Harsher - Careful LP (Nude Club) - Tears 12” (Nude Club) - Come Closer 12” (Nude Club)

Cardinal & Nun - I Met the Devil 12” (L.I.E.S.)

Celldod - Under Isen 12”(Veleno Viola) - Myndighetsforakt 12”(Unstable Signal) - Kemisk CS (AMOK)

Cervello Elletronico - Top Ded Ctr. CD (HANDS)

Chromatics - Closer to Grey CD (Italians Do It Better) - The Sound of Silence (Italians Do It Better) - Time Rider (Italians Do It Better) - Petals (Italians Do It Better)

Codex Empire - Slow Erosion 2xLP (aufnahme+wiedergabe)

Cold Cave - Promised Land (Heartworm Press)

Comfort Cure - Night Sweat (Self-released) - Intimate Vocabulary (Self-released) Confines - Geography of Nowhere CS (Synthicide)

Crystal Geometry - The Cyber Heresy 12” (Sonic Groove) - State of Play 12” (HANDS) - XV Signs of Doomsday CS (Tripalium Records) - Hexa Hexes (RND. Records)

Dax J - Chaos Comes to Conquer 12” (Monnom Black) Distant - Fallen Emperor CS (Detriti Records)

Dive - True Lies 2xLP (Mecanica RE)

Downwell - I See Death in Your Eyes 12” (Oraculo Records) Fee Lion - Blood Sisters - Blood Sisters Remixes (BOUND)

Force Dimension - Dues Ex Machina 2xLP (Mecanica RE)

Foreign Resort - Outumbered LP (Artoffact Records)

Fractions - Scars of Love 12” (Fleisch) - Constellations 12” (Rotterdam Electronix Harsh Mentor - Salve 12” (aufnahme+wiedergabe)

Hatchie - Keepsake LP (Heavenly Records)

Headless Horseman - 008 12” (Headless Horseman)

Heavy Water Factory - Fluid and Meat Remastered (Self-released) - Spillage (Self-released) - Purity of Evil (Self-released) - Amandava (Self-released) - Reaktif (Self-released)

Horrorist - Separate Dimension 2xLP (aufnahme+wiedergabe)

I Hate Models - L'Âge Des Métamorphoses 3xLP (Perc Trax) - Intergalactic Emotional Breakdown 12” (Arts)

Illnurse - Unreleased (Self-released)

Image of Life - Attended by Silence LP (Kernkrach)

Imperial Black Unit - Murder Under Establishment 12” (aufnahme+wiedergabe)

Inhalt Der Nacht - Deine Aura 12” (Seelen)

Iris - Six LP (Dependent)

IV Horseman - Dies Irae 12” (aufnahme+wiedergabe) Keepsakes - Modern Anxious Vernacular 12” (HAVEN)

Klack - 2400bps 8-N-1 (klackprodukt) - Introducing the 1984 Renault LeCar, Layover

Kontravoid - Too Deep LP (Fleisch)

Korine - Uncrossed / To You 7” (Born Losers Records)

Kris Baha - My Master 12” (Pinkman) - Palais 2xLP (CockTail d’Amore Music) Lapse of Reason - Sorrows 12” (aufnahme+wiedergabe)

Leathers – Phantom Heart (Self-released)

Liebknecht - Produkt V1.2 LP (Ant-Zen) - Ice Over Erfurt (Digital) - Koln EP (Digital)

Linea Aspera - Preservation Bias LP (Dark Entries RE)

Luminance - Ahead 2xLP (Medical Records) Lust For Youth - Lust For Youth LP (Sacred Bones),

Maedon - Against His Will 12” (Sonic Groove)

Maenad Veyl -  Body Count 2xLP (Veyl) - Onto Duat 12” (Bedouin Records) Mind | Matter - Peste Nere CS (Detriti Records)

Minuit Machine - Infrarouge LP (Synth Religion)

Multiple Man -  High on the Hog 12” EP (Fleisch) New Frames - Schweres Wasser 12” (HANDS)

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Ghosteen 2xLP (Ghosteen Ltd.) Nordstaat - Ein Opfer Auf Dem Altar Der Technologie CS (Clan Destine Records)

Nostromo - Extreme Manifestations 12” (aufnahme+wiedergabe)

Numb - Mortal Geometry LP (Metropolis)

Parallx - RP4 (R-Label Group)

Physical Wash - Physical Death CS (Self-released)

Populists aka Yan Wagner - Belgian Trip 12” (Detriti Records)

Present Moment - Split LP (Oraculo Records)

Radical G/Horrorist - RR2 (R-Label Group)

Raffaele Attanasio - Lust It Fills the Space 12” (LFJ)

Randolph & Mortimer - Manifesto for a Modern World CD (Self-Released) - Exclude/Divide (mp3 self-released) - R&M Remixes (mp3 self-released) - Electronic Body Weapon (mp3 self-released) - Body (mp3 self-released)

Rendered - Adrenalin EP (Mindcut)

Rendered / Black Egg - No Compromise 12” (Tripalium)

Replicant - A Taste of Midnight LP (self-released) - Pale Blue (mp3 self-released) - Lifelike (mp3 self-released)

Rhys Fulber - Ostalgia 2x12” (Sonic Groove) - Baut Mit 12” (Sonic Groove)

Rhys Fulber + Blush Response - Corruption of Form 12” (Sonic Groove)

Ritual Howls - Rendered Armour LP (Felte) - A Safe Haven From the Sun Robotiko Rejekto  - Communication 87-92 2xLP (Mecanica RE)

S.I.T.D. - Stunde X LP (Infacted Recordings) - Sturmlicht CD Single (Infacted) - Requiem X CD Single (Infacted) Salem Unsigned - Cantica (RND Records)

SARIN - Moral Cleansing LP (BITE) SARIN / Imperial Black Unit - Will to Destroy 12” (BITE)

Schwefelgelb - Aus Dem Gesicht Remixed 12” (aufnahme+wiedergabe) Sharplines - Born of God and Void CS (Dead By Overdose)

Silent EM - The Absence LP (Disko Obscura) Sina XX - My Body, Your Rules EP (RND Records)

T_error 404 - Spacemorgue (Khemia Records) - Ritual of Time (Area Z)

Test Dept. - Disturbance LP (One Little Indian) - White Label 12” (One Little Indian)

Thomas P Heckman - Acid Seduction 5 12” (AFU Limited) - Bone Breaker 12” (Molekul) - EBM Manifest Part 3 the Remixes 12” (AFU Limited) - EBM Manifest Part 4 The Remixes II 12” (AFU Limited) Tommy 47 - Veer 2xLP (47) - Veer Remixed 2xLP (47)

TR/ST - The Destroyer Part 1 LP (Grouch), - The Destroyer Part 2 LP (Grouch), - Gone (Grouch) Unconscious - Your God Is Dead LP (Detriti Records)

Unhuman - Nylon Speech 12” (BITE) Various – Benzeen Part 1 (Green Fetish records)            with: New Frames, hel.IV, LAVEN and more

Various – Infidel Selection Vol. 2 CS (Infidel Bodies)            with: Rendered, Crystal Geometry, Thomas P Heckmann, Hypnoskull and more Various – RAW Compilation Second Breath Parts 1-4 (RAW)            with: I Hate Models, Keepsakes, 14anger, Crystal Geometry, IV Horseman and plenty more Various – Sardonic Tonality Vol. 1 12” (HAVEN)            with: New Frames, Keepsakes, Ansome and more Various – Self Aware IV CS (X-IMG)            with: Konkurs, Primary, Survival Paradox, Unconscious and more

Various – Synthicide II 12” (Synthicide)            with: Ortrotasce, Andi, Cervello Elettronico and more

Various – The World of Monnom Black II 3xLP (Monnom Black)            with: Fractions, Zanias, Dax J and more Veil of Light - Inflict LP (Avant!) Veldt - Ground Floor CD (Detroit Industrial)

Velvet May - Vast as Black Night 12” (Tears on Waves) - Unknown Bodies 12” (Tears on Waves) Verschwender  - Face of Silence 12” (Seelen)

Vittorio Di Mango - RND.R030 (RND Records) VTSS - Self Control 12” (HAVEN) Wingtips - Exposure Therapy CD (Artoffact Records)

Years of Denial - Suicide Disco 2xLP (VEYL) - Body Map 12” (Pinkman Broken Dreams)

Yello - Bostich (ancient methods remix) 12” (aufnahme+wiedergabe)

[a-lame-constellation]

Korean MVs that came out in 2018

~Since i’m not into most kpop groups i might forget to write a comeback so feel free to tell me some that i haven’t written yet or if i have done a mistake.~

*The songs are not in order

**I’ve already made 2016 and 2017 lists

January:

Drug Restaurant - Her

Trcng - Wolf Baby

N.Flying - Hot Potato

Momoland - BBoom BBoom

Oohyo - Honey Tea

Mamamoo - Paint Me

Block B - Don’t Leave

Infinite - Tell Me

JoWoochan, ParkHyunjin, Achillo - OGZ

Stray Kids - Grrr

Stray Kids - Young Wings

Kim Dong Ryul - Reply

Sunmi - Heroine

Chungha - Roller Coaster

JBJ - My Flower

Girlkind - Fanci

Cheetah - Stagger

Ohhyuk, Cifika - Momom

Jane Jang - Button

Ashmute - Ghost

Oh My Girl - Secret Garden

Jay Park - Run It (ft. Woo Wonjae & Jessi)

Kassy - I Want Love

Jimin - Hey

Holland - Neverland

Sik-K - YeLowS Gang (ft. Herr Nayne, Woodie Gochild)

Jonghyun - Shinin’

Jonghyun - Before Our Spring

Dean - Instagram

Red Velvet - Bad Boy

Standing Egg - From the Star

Ikon - Love Scenario

Penomeco -  L.I.E

Suzy - Holiday (ft. Dpr Live)

Suzy - I’m In Love With Someone Else

Golden Child - It’s U

Jeong Sewoon - Baby It’s U (ft. Kiggen, earattack)

Davichi - Days Without You

KCM - Dawnpark

Ravi - Nirvana (ft. Park Jimin) + Alcohol Remix

Vav - Spotlight

Rainz - Turn it Up

Jay Park x Yultron - Forget About Tomorrow

Na Haeun - So Special

BoA - Nega Dola

Jong Shin Yoon - Slow Starter

February:

gugudan - The Boots

Seventeen - Thanks

CoCoSoRi - Miamor

Jung Seung Hwan - The Snowman

Jung Seung Hwan - It’s Raining

Ailee - Rewrite…If Can

Eden - Good Night (ft. Jukjae)

Naeun, Jinsol - My Story

Hong Jinyoung - Good Bye

Yang Yoseob - Star

Yang Yoseob - Where I Am Gone

Vav - Gorgeous

Hyolyn - To Do List

Roy Kim - Only Then

Suzy - SOberR

Nct U - Boss

Min Kyung Hoon x Kim Heechul - Falling Blossoms

Kim YoungChul - Andenayon (ft. Wheesung(Realslow))

Kang Hodong x Hong Jinyoung - I Kicked My Luck Off

I.M - Fly With Me

CLC - Black Dress

Weki Meki - La La La

Vromance - Star

Cheeze - Just as a Lie

Hash Swan - Wang Like Alexander (ft. Gray)

SF9 - Mamma Mia

Red Velvet - I Just

Nct U - Baby Don’t Stop

WJSN - Dreams Come True

Cheetah - I’ll Be There

Jeon Soyeon - Idle Song

I.C.E - Shameless

Sha Sha - You & Me

Yoyomi - Who’s That Guy

Kisses - Blue Lagoon

J.yung - Can I

Trax x Lip2shot [STATION] - Notorious (ft. Sophiya)

Roydo - Crzy

Martin Smith -  Crazy (ft. Jung Sungha)

Kim Sung Kyu - True Love

Marvel.J - Really (ft. New Champ, Olltii)

Got7 - One And Only You (ft. Hyolyn)

Junhyeok - Stay

DongWoo - My Half

Joypark - Missing You

E Hyuk - Come Up To Me Like The Wind

Chris Kim - Miss U

BeautyHandsome - Where Are You

March:

j-hope - Daydream

Jooyoung - Dive

Sleepy - iD

Nct Dream - Go

Nct 127 - Touch

Got7 - Look

Heize - Didn’t Know Me

Heize - Jenga (ft. Gaeko)

Heize - Mianhae

Mamamoo - Starry Night

Mamamoo - Everyday

Suho x Jane Jang [STATION] - Dinner

Jane Jang, Suho - Do You Have a Moment

Noel - Our Last Day

Minseo - The Grand Dreams

Suzy - Midnight (ft. Yiruma)

April - The Blue Bird

Cheetah - Bumpkins (ft. Minos)

Golden Child - Lady

Most Badass Asian - Want

Most Badass Asian - 2018

Choi Ye Geun - To Say Sorry

Junoflo - Grapevine (ft. Jay Park)

Yong Junhyung - Sudden Shower (ft. 10cm)

Wanna One - Boomerang

Yeesang - Here (ft. Loco)

Filmisland - it’s Love (Vocal by OFA)

Monsta X - Jealousy

Stray Kids - District 9

Stray Kids - Grow Up

Jung Joon Young - Fiancée (ft. Microdot)

Samuel - One (ft. Jung Ilhoon)

Hoya - All Eyes On Me

Kisum - It’s Okay (ft. Heize)

San E, Mad Clown - Butterfly (ft. Bumkey)

TVXQ! - The Chance of Love

Super Junior [STATION] - Super Duper

Honey Popcorn - Bibidi Babidi Boo

Crazy Music - We’ll Always Love (ft. Yejoon.E)

Sunwoo Jung A - Fine (ft. Lim Heon Il)

Marmello - Wake Me Up

Kid Milli - Why Do Fuckbois Hang Out On The Net

Sweden Laundry - Scene

April:

Nct U - Yestoday

Oh My Girl Banhana - Banana Allergy Monkey

Pentagon - Shine

Winner - Everyday

Exid - Lady

The Boyz - Giddy Up

YDPP - Love It Live It

Flowsik x Jessi - Wet

LOONA / Olivia Hye - Egoist (ft. JinSoul)

Jeong Jinwoon - Erasing

TVXQ! - Love Line

D:amant - Sick

CLC - Distance

Bigone - Wavywavywavy

Primary, Anda - Moonlight (ft. Xin Seha)

Primary, Anda - Dressroom

Primary, Anda - Zeppelin

Primary, Anda - The Open Boat (ft. Colde)

Twice - What Is Love?

Eric Nam - Potion (ft. Woodie Gochild)

Eric Nam - Honestly

Noir - Gangsta

UNB - Feeling

GreatGuys - Ganda

Hyeongseop x Euiwoong - Love Tint

Badkidz - Just One Day

Exo-CBX - Blooming Day

Ten [STATION] - New Heroes

N.Tic - Once Again

Jo SoJeong - Stars

Gunmin x Heedo - Don’t Worry

Lee Hong Gi, Yoo Hwe Seung - Still Love You

Yoo Seonho - Maybe Spring

Mad Clown, Ailee - Thirst

Super Junior - Lo Siento (ft. Leslie Grace)

Drunken Tiger - Yet

The Rose - Baby

E Hyuk - I’ll Live

Vanilla Acoustic - Travel

Eddy Kim - Whoa Whoa

Jo SoJeong - Lost Sea

WeAreYoung - I Know

Carla - I Don’t Need You

Shin Yong Jae(4Men) - Today

Young Jun (Brown Eyed Soul) - Don’t Leave Me

Imfact - The Light

Soma - Spring

Vixx - Scentist

Whee In - Easy (ft. Sik-k)

JBJ - Call Your Name

Hyo - Sober (ft. Ummet Ozcan)

Hoons - I C U

Highteen - Timing

Jo Hyun Ah - After You

June - Sérénade

Sei - Nobody Knows

HA:TFELT - Pluhmm

H.U.B - When A Blossom Day Of Cherry Blossom

In2it - SnapShot

Apink - Miracle

Cando - Rain Drop

Yoonmirae - KawiBawiBo

Nano - Punishment

Solar - When The Wind Rises [original: Kim Kwang Seok]

Solar - Nada Sou Sou [original: ??? (jp)]

Solar - It’s Been a Long Time [original: Love & Peace?? (not sure)]

Lovelyz - That Day

Hyolyn - Dally (ft. Gray)

Yun Ddan Ddan - It Will Be Okay

Yun Ddan Ddan - In My Room

Yun Ddan Ddan - Let It Flow

Stray Kids - Mirror [Performance]

Hwang In Sun - Dead Clock

Jackson Wang - Dawn of Us

Snuper - Tulips

Hwang Chi Yeul - The Only Star

Luna - Night Reminiscin’ (ft. Yang Da Il)

TheEastLight - Are You Okay

Kim Bum Soo - I Love You

MeloMance - Just Friends

Monday Kiz - Every Moment

Bang Yongguk - Portrait

Zai. ro - When Are You Coming

BrotherSu - What’s Wrong With U (ft. Gaeko)

Sunwoo Jung A, The Barbarettes - Outside The Chart

Kyung Dasom - Fall In Love

Gfriend - Time For The Moon

JBJ - Just Be Stars

Iz - Granulate

Park Hyo Shin - The Other Day

Temperature of Saying ‘hi’ - If You Tell Me

Halo - O.M.G

Colde - Your Dog Loves You (ft. Crush)

May:

Jay Park, Simon Dominic, Loco, Gray - Upside Down

Iz - Angel

ii - I’m Already You

(G)I-Dle - Latata

Jung Up - Nothing Left

Loco - Party Band (ft. Punchnello, Thur)

So Soo Bin - Sweet Nothings

Gaho - Stay Here

Crush - Bittersweet

Teen Top - Seoul Night

Vinxen - Sinking Down With U

Yong Jun Hyung - Go Away

Dreamcatcher - You And I

Seo Eun Kwang, Changsub - My Day

K.Will - My Star

Cross Gene - Touch It

Woodz - Pool

Jay Moon - Fire

N.Flying - How R U Today

Kanto - Salty

Doko - Don’t

Paul Kim - Additional

Bts - Fake Love

GB9, Park Bo Ram - If You

Eyedi - Luv Highway

Uni.t - No More

Trei - Nike

Eluphant - Welcome

PLT - Hocus Pocus

V.O.S - Door

Jisook - Edelweiss

Gross Gene - Believe Me

Moonbyul (ft. Seulgi) - Selfish

Moonbyul - In my room

Victon - Time of Sorrow

Jinjin (Astro) - Like a King (ft. Superbee, MyunDo)

Khan - I’m Your Girl?

Bang Yongguk - Drunkenness

Shinee - Good Evening

AOA - Bingle Bangle

NTB - Dramatic

Boyfriend - Sunshower

The Rose - I.L.Y

TST - Love Story

Eyedi - A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Junoflo - Real Ones

Adoy - Young

Han Yo Han - Helicopter (ft. Kid Milli, No:el)

The Night of Seokyo - Falling in Moonlight (ft. Dawon)

Bol4 - Travel

Bol4 - Starlight

Bol4 - Wind

TheEastLight - Love Flutters

24K - Bonnie N Clyde

Risabae - E.N.C (ft. Kisum)

ii - I’m Already You

C.A.P - For

Sung Si Kyung - Eternally

Pristin V - Get It

Marmello - Moonlight

Crucial Star - Night Alone

Jane Jang - Seoul Noir

Samuel - Teenager (ft. Lee Rohan)

Thama - Like That (ft. Giriboy)

Elo - Osaka (ft. Zico)

Hyukoh - SkyWorld

Hyukoh - Love Ya!

South Club - Outcast

Pudditorium - Paradise

Stagger - DnA

Stagger - 4 Your Eyez Only

June:

Girlkind - S.O.R.R.Y

Shinee - I Want You

Shinee - Our Page

A.C.E - Take Me Higher

Yu Seungwoo - Slowly

Dpr Live - Playlist

Blackpink - Ddu-du Ddu-du

Rothy - Sullae

Kobel - Don’t Hit My Line

Longguo - Clover (ft. Yoonmirae)

Koh Na Young - Humming

Jay Park - Soju (ft. 2 Chainz)

Like A Movie - Twilight

Yubin - Lady

1sagain, Nuun - Fade Away

Minseo - Is Who

Red House - Endless Night

Taeyeon - Something New

Kim Dong Han - Sunset

Bloo - So Rude

Busters - Grapes

Katie - Remember

Melodyday - Restless

Day6 - Shoot Me

It’s - Sleep

Momoland - Baam

Tenny - 159cm

UNB - Black Heart

d.ear - Rain is Fallin’

Onf - Complete

BTOB - Only One For Me

Kang Gogh - Stay

Arkay - Because Of You (ft. Le.Ju’ce)

[HNB] Woo Jin Young, Kim Hyun Soo - Falling in Love

Park Kyung - Instant (ft. Sumin)

Nano - Maladgjustment (ft. Yezi)

NeonPunch - Moonlight

Lee Jin Ah - Run (ft. Gray)

July:

Apink - I’m So Sick

Gyeong Ree - Blue Moon

Yoonmirae - You & Me (ft. Junoflo)

Jay Park - FSU (ft. GAshi, Rich The Kid)

Holland - I’m Not Afraid

Holland - I’m So Afraid

Jessi - Down

Twice - Dance The Night Away

Oohyo - Papercut

Golden Child - Let Me

Hickee - Fragrance

Epik High x End of the World (Sekai No Owari) - Sleeping Beauty

MyTeen - She Bad

Aivan - Tell The World

Sugarbowl - Getting Better

Target - Is It True

gugudan Semina - Semina

Seenroot - Paradise

MeloMance - Tale

Jeonghan - Think About It

LambC - Beauty

Crush - Cereal (ft. Zico)

Jaejooboys - First Trip

No:el - Parrot (ft. Giriboy, Han Yo Han)

The Boyz - KeePer

Moti - Blue

Suran - A Pleasant Meal

Louie, Geeks - Penalty

Park BoRam - How About U

Jvcki Wai, Kid Milli, No:el, Young B, Swings - Work Out

Jvcki Wai - Enchanted Propaganda

John OFA Rhee - Brightest Star (ft. Kim Minseok)

Geupsik-Dan - Geupsik

Prep - Cold Fire (ft. Dean)

Mamamoo - Egotistic

Seventeen - Oh My!

Han Yeoyoo - Bang Bang Bang

Lee Seung Hwan - For Your Ears Only (ft. Stella Jang)

Ashley - Here We Are

Uniqnote - Like Gentle Rain (ft. Crucial Star, Park Jeonkoo)

Myteen - Martian

TaPi - Croquette

Triple H - Retro Future

Chung Ha - Love U

Varsity - Flower

Saturday - Mmook Jji Bba

Bassagong - HBD

GFriend - Sunny Summer

Hyolyn - See Sea

Mudskipper - Universe

Seungri - 1,2,3!

Seungri - Where R U From (ft. Mino)

Aoora - Harder (ft. $mili, B.E, Eili)

Woodz - Different

Rocoberry - Telephone (ft. Punch)

Minseo - Zero

Super Junior ~ D&E - Sunrise {Japanese}

Standing Egg - Oh, Wait

Jeong Sewoon - 20 Something

Choiza, Microdot - Hit!!!

FtIsland - Pretty Girl {Japanese}

FtIsland - Summer Night’s Dream

Astro - Always You

MaseWonder - Love Me (ft. Choilb)

In2it - Sorry For My English

Kard - Ride on the Wind

Laboum - Between Us

yeesang - Game

John Park - Understand

Boi B - Neymar (ft. Ted Park)

Ben x Kim Won Joon - The First Night

Band 88 - Windmill

Carla - Hate U

RPR - Dang Diggi Bang (ft. Beenie Man)

Leo - Touch & Sketch

Zico - Soulmate (ft. IU)

SixBomb - Hiccup Hiccup

SF9 - Now or Never

Joo Jin-Woo - Ever

Park Ki Young - Mercy

A-Yeon - You & I

Kevin Oh - Lover

Miryo - Yellow

Kisum - 100%

Hanscur - Toomuch (ft. Charles Shin)

Jo Gon - Old Notes

Heygirls - Nog-Yeojwo

August:

South Club - Grown Up

Ikon - Killing Me

Btob-Blue - When It Rains

Voisper - I Believe

Yerin Baek - La La La Love Song

Yeoone - Pat Pat

Glabingo - On My Body

Cho Kyu-chan - Deja Vu

gracie - 25/7

Villain - Manitto

Nature - Allegro Cantabile

Stray Kids - My Pace

Red Velvet - Power Up

Loona - favOriTe

D-Crunch - Palace

Giriboy, Kid Milli, No:el, Swings - Flex

Apollo, No.11,  Ekko, SungJoo - Honey

WooIn - That Night

Hollen - Shimmer

DailyNote - Where Are U

12Dal - A Second

Honk - Perphaps

Aivan - Curious

Somdef - One Plus One (ft. Loco, Bravo)

E Mel - Tomorrow

Cherry On Top - Hi Five

Yoo Hyung Kyun - Diamonds In Your Eyes

Sundae - How?

Imfact - NaNaNa

Super Junior-D&E - ‘Bout You

Hyolyn - Bae

Mc Sniper - Skyfall

BerryGood - Green Apple

(G)I-DLE - Hann

Penomeco - Coco Bottle

Coco - Sugar Cake (ft. Microdot)

Jannabi - Good Boy Twist

Hoons - Sweet & Salty, Sweet & Salty

Bigflo - Upside Down

We Higher - Like You Better (ft. Douner)

Yang Hee Eun, Sung Si Kyung - You

GrimGrim - Rooftop Bird

Loona - Hi High

Red Velvet - Power Up

Gaeko - Vacation (ft. Sole)

10cm - Mattress

BTS - Idol

Sha Sha - What The Heck

Norazo - Cider

Shinhwa - Kiss Me Like That

Leebada - Night Dream

Rothy - Burning

Stray Kids- My Pace

Stray Kids - Awkward Silence

NCT Dream - We Go Up

Jin Longguo - Friday n Night

Part Time Cooks - California Butterfly (ft. Jay Park)

Baekhyun X Loco [STATION X 0] - Young

June - Sérénade

Drug Restaurant - 403

Jooheon - Red Carpet

DyoN - #Life_Is_Pain

Ovan - Twenty (ft. Shaun)

EZ Kim - Straw

Young B - Polo

the Night of Seokyo - City Girl City Boy (ft. Dawon)

September:

Jeong Jinwoon - All I Need Is You

Nana Mellie - Falling

KwonMilk - Guitar Man

100% - Heart

Nam Woo Hyun - If Only You Are Fine

Nam Taehyun - Star

Blanc7 - Drama

Sumni - Siren

Jimin Park - April Fools

James - Up [not a korean mv but a lot of us know james]

WINee - May

The Boyz - Right Here

GWSN - Puzzle Moon

SoRi - Touch (ft. Basick)

Great Guys - Illusion

Elaine - Wake Me Up

Bravo - Sunny Day

Yook Sungjae - Confession

Thama - Nuuh

Jjangyou - Koki7

Blue Lamb - Universe

Chanyeol x Sehun [STATION x 0] - We Young

Got7 Jackson - Made It

Got7 BamBam - Party

Got7 Jinyoung - My Youth

Got7 Yugyeom - Fine

Got7 Youngjae - Nobody Knows

Got7 JB - Sunrise

Got7 Mark - OMW

Got7 - Lullaby

Haon - Noah (ft. Hoody)

12Dal - Day Off

Day6 - Beautiful Feeling

Pentagon - Naughty Boy

Oh My Girl - Remember Me

Jay Park - V

SHINee - Countless

seizetheday - Ocean View (ft. Sleepy)

ms. isohp romatem - Trauma

ms. isohp romatem Distance From You And The Stars

Hyomin - Mango

Giriboy - Used (ft. Kid Milli)

Hoya - Baby U (ft. Hanhae)

EB - Wanna Know

JooYoung - N/A

Gavy NJ - I’m Fine

S.I.S - Say Yes

Orange Fang Fang Boys - Ready To

Roy Kim - The Hardest Part

Uni.T - I Mean

Uni.T - Begin With The End

Lucente - Your Difference

DinDin - Insomnia (ft. Lee Hongki)

Mommy Son - Shonen Jump (ft. Bae Gisung)

PLT - Igoholic

Vinxen - Yoo Jae Suk

Modsdive - Buran

Lof.T -  밤이 피네

Dreamcatcher - What

WJSN - Save Me, Save You

Day6 - Breaking Down {Japanese}

Gwon Youngchan - Weak

GFriend - Memoria {Japanese}

Spectrum - Dear my

Girls’ Generation-Oh!GG - Lil’ Touch

Heo Seongjeong - Sound

VeriVery - Super Special

Onewe, Oneus - Last Song

Giriboy - acrnm (ft. Goretexx)

Boy Story - Enough

Amber - White Noise

Eyedi - Red

Vanmal - Unification Road March

Bambi - Violin (ft. Dunkin Downer)

Park Sanhee - Over The Blue

Soran - Zamianwa (Can’t Close My Eyes)

JooYoung - Inn

The Black Underground - Slow Life

Krr - The Night Time

Shirts Boy Frank - Foam

Jay Park - Sexy 4 Eva

Seulgi x SinB x Chung Ha x Soyeon [STATIONx0]  - Wow Thing

Tiffany Young - Teach You

Woodie Gochild, Haon, Sik-K, pH-1 - Kitkat

SOMDEF - Slip N Slide (ft. Crush)

Sik-K - XiBal

October:

Lee Hongki - I Am (ft. Cheetah)

Lee Hongki - Cookies (ft. Jung Ilhoon)

Park Won - Rudderless

Ikon - Goodbye Road

Nu’est W - I Don’t Care (ft. Spoonz)

S.O.U.L - Get Myself With You

Noir - Airplane Mode

Hangzoo - Drive Thru (ft. Gaeko)

Lay - Give My A Chance

Cheeze - Everything to

Yoo Hwe Seung (N.Flying) - Expectation

Soyou - All Night (ft. Sik-K)

Seven O’clock - Searchlight

Seven O’clock - Nothing Better

Epitone Project - First Love

Super Junior x REIK - One More Time (Otra Vez)

Ashmute - Summer’s Gone

UV - Who Am I (ft. Yoo Hee Yeol, Jung Jae Hyung)

Loco - It Takes Time (ft. Colde)

fromis_9 - Love Bomb

NCT 127 - Regular

San E - Wannabe Rapper

IU - BBIBBI

Wheesung (Realslow) - Breaking Down

Haebi - Wolfboy

Yoonhan - Saryuni Forest

Weki Meki - Crush

VAV - Senorita

NakJoon (Bernard Park)  - Still (ft. Luna)

NC.A - I’m Fine

Park Bo Gum - Let’s go see the stars

John Legend x Wendy [STATIONx0] - Written In The Stars

The Black Underground - Love Is Love, Life Is Life

Eddy Kim - Trace

Yu Seungwoo - Always

Deepshower - Summer (ft. Jeebanoff, George)

Yang Da Il - sorry

April - Oh! my mistake

Zion.T - Hello Tutorial (ft. Seulgi)

Crush - none

Kim Dong Han - Good Night Kiss

Jeong Eun Ji - Being There

The Rose - She’s In the Rain

Sohee - Hurry Up (ft. Bol4)

Stray Kids - I am YOU

Monsta X - Shoot Out

Charari Danchu - 노잼시기

Hoody - Sunshine (ft. Crush)

Sam Kim - Make Up (ft. Crush)

Sik-K - Fire

Hailey - Truly

the Night of Seokyo - Hug You (ft. Dawon)

RM - Forever Rain

RM - Seoul

son&johwa - Mokhwa

Lee Moon Sae - Between us

BOiTELLO - Stay

UV - Sorry

Golden Child - Genie

BoA - Woman

ATEEZ - Pirate KIng

ATEEZ - Treasure

Horim - Street

Lee Kichan - 지구인

gwon.u - Home Sweet Home

LYn - Run to you

Kiha & The Faces - Cho Shim

N.Flying - Like A FLower

Jin Ju - Petal

Flowsik - Bbung

Eian - Me in the A.M

Ha Hyun Woo - Home

Horan - Wanted

Marychou 2018 - Beacuse of Weather

IZ*ONE - La Vie en Rose

Paul Kim - Me After You

Black6ix - Swamp of Despair

Richard Parkers - Stay with me

Eric Nam - Miss You

JBJ95 - Home

Monday Kiz - The World That is of You

Samui - Today Of All Days

Peterpan Complex - Ghosting

November:

TST -

Fromm - Hold Me Like It’s Forever (ft. car, the garden)

B.A.P (Jongup) - Annoying (ft. Zelo)

South Club - I’m Crazy

Twice - Yes or Yes

Bloo - I’m the one

Hwang Chiyeul - Learn to Love

[i’ll do this month soon]

December:

Hong Jinyoung - Seoul (ft. Bray)

H M Moon - The Poet’s Winter

Got7 - Miracle

Sam Kim - When You Fall (ft. Chai)

Kream - You can take my youth away, but you can never take my dream away

Holmes Crew - Holmes Delivery

O.O.O - Seesaw

Avatar Darko - C U When I C U (ft Jay Park)

Ezen - Fly Away

Jung Key - Star With ME (ft. Yoo Sungjae)

Jung Key - Honest (ft. Minseo)

Onew - Blue

Soran - Happy

Up10tion - Blue Rose

Laboom - Turn It On

Minyong - I can’t do that thing

Junoflo - Autopilot (ft. BoA)

Starship Planet - Christmas Time

Bay P - Snow In Your Eyes

Coogie - Justin Bieber (ft. Jay Park)

Well - Settle (ft. Realslow)

Rira - Love Spoon

B1A4, Oh My Girl, Onf - Timing

Day6 - days gone by

anna - Let It Snow

Changsub - Gone

[walgreensblr-blog]

Walgreens Historical Highlights

1901

Charles R. Walgreen Sr. obtained the Chicago drugstore where he had filled in as a drug specialist - and that began the Walgreen chain. His vitality and excitement before long prompted new thoughts and yearning extension. For instance, he fabricated his own line of medication items to guarantee high caliber and low costs.

1901 verifiable picture

1909

The second Walgreen store opened.

1916

Nine stores fused as Walgreen Co.

1922

Walgreens imagined the malted milkshake. Clients stood three and four profound around the soft drink wellspring to purchase the "twofold rich chocolate malted milk."

1922 recorded picture

1926

The 100th store opened in Chicago.

1927

Walgreen Co. stock opened up to the world.

1933

Walgreens observed Chicago's World Fair. The organization opened four stores on the Century of Progress carnival. These stores explored different avenues regarding propelled apparatus plan, new lighting systems and hues - thoughts that modernized drugstore format and structure.

1939

Charles Walgreen Sr. kicked the bucket and Charles Walgreen Jr. turned into the organization's leader.

1939 chronicled picture

1943

The organization opened a not-for-profit 6,000-foot drugstore in the Pentagon. Every one of the benefits from the store went to the Pentagon Post Restaurant Council, which managed nourishment administration in the complex. The store worked into the 1980s.

1946

Walgreens gained its first outside property when the organization purchased the Mexican retailer Sanborn's. In 1984, the organization sold Sanborn's.

1950

Walgreens started to fabricate self-administration rather than representative administration stores in the Midwest. By 1953, Walgreens was simply the biggest administration retailer in the nation.

1950 verifiable picture

1960

Walgreens entered the Puerto Rico showcase.

Walgreens filled its 100 millionth remedy, undeniably more than any medication chain around then.

1968

Walgreens turned into the main real medication chain to put its solutions into tyke safe compartments, some time before it was legally necessary.

1969

Charles Walgreen III turned into the organization's leader.

1975

Walgreens came to $1 billion in deals.

1981

The primary Intercom PCs were introduced in five Walgreen drug stores in Des Moines, Iowa. This was the underlying advance toward making Walgreens the main drugstore chain to associate all its drug store divisions through satellite.

1982

Following day photofinishing ended up accessible chainwide.

1984

Walgreens opened its 1,000th store, at 1200 N. Dearborn in Chicago.

1984 recorded picture

1991

In November, the chain finished establishment of purpose of-offer filtering to speed checkouts.

Walgreens opened its first drugstore with a drive-through drug store.

1994

The 2,000th store opened in Cleveland.

1997

Radio Plus, Walgreens propelled PC framework, finished rollout to all stores. Radio Plus paces the medicine filling process, allows better patient guiding and is the main drug store framework in the business.

1999

Walgreens.com propelled a far reaching on the web drug store, offering clients a helpful and secure approach to deal with numerous pharmaceutical and human services needs on the web. Charles Walgreen III resigned as executive of the organization.

2000

Walgreens achieved the 3,000-store mark when its area at Halsted and Monroe in Chicago opened.

2001

Walgreens praised its centennial in June and rang the opening chime at the New York Stock Exchange.

2002

Walgreens turned into the primary drugstore chain to offer medicine names in numerous dialects chainwide. Today, marks can be imprinted in one of 14 dialects _ Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Vietnamese and English.

2003

Walgreens achieved the 4,000-store mark when its area at Coldwater Canyon Avenue and Magnolia Boulevard in Van Nuys, Calif., opened in March.

2005

Walgreens opened its 5,000th store in Richmond, Va., in October.

2006

In July, Walgreens procured Happy Harry's drugstore chain, including 76 stores, fundamentally in Delaware. In the fall, Walgreens started offering in-store wellbeing centers, today called Healthcare Clinic, with medical attendant experts treating stroll in patients for regular afflictions. During 2006, centers opened in St. Louis, Kansas City, Chicago and Atlanta.

2007

Walgreens gained Take Care Health Systems. In the mid year of 2007, Walgreens procured Option Care, a system of in excess of 100 drug stores (counting in excess of 60 organization claimed) in 34 states, giving a full range of forte drug store and home mixture administrations. In the fall of 2007, Walgreens opened its first store in Hawaii in Honolulu and praised the opening of its 6,000th store in New Orleans.

2008

Walgreens finished its acquisitions of worksite social insurance suppliers I-trax/CHD Meridian Healthcare and Whole Health Management.

2009

Walgreens opened its first store in Alaska, denoting its quality in each of the 50 states. The organization commended the opening of its 7,000th store across the country with a great opening in Brooklyn, N.Y. Walgreens offered H1N1 inoculations at all of its drug stores and facilities across the nation to battle influenza pandemic.

2010

Charles R. Walgreen III resigned from the organization's top managerial staff following 46 years of administration. Walgreens finished its securing of the Duane Reade drugstore chain in New York. Walgreens opened its first Well Experience configuration stores in Oak Park and Wheeling, IL.

2011

Walgreens finished its obtaining of online retailer drugstore.com. Walgreens presented Web Pickup administration in the Chicago territory, joining the accommodation of web based shopping with its neighborhood stores. Duane Reade opened its lead store at 40 Wall Street in Manhattan, NY. The organization denoted its proceeded with duty to manageability with its 100th housetop sun based power framework establishment at a store in Mason, Ohio.

2012

Walgreens appeared its Chicago leader store, coming back to the notorious shopping corner of State and Randolph in Chicago's Loop where it worked a store from 1926 to 2005. Walgreens finished its procurement of Bioscrip's people group claim to fame drug stores and unified strength and mail administration drug store organizations. Walgreens propelled another online "Discover Your Pharmacist" instrument that enables clients to choose a drug specialist by coordinating their social insurance needs with the specialized topics, claims to fame, dialects and clinical foundations of Walgreens drug specialists. Walgreens and Alliance Boots reported they have gone into a key exchange to make the main worldwide drug store drove, wellbeing and prosperity endeavor.

Additionally, Walgreens opened its 8,000th store in Los Angeles.

2013

On November 21, Walgreens opened what is accepted to be the country's first net zero vitality store, foreseen to deliver vitality equivalent to or more prominent than it expends, in Evanston, Illinois. The store sports two breeze turbines, almost 850 sun powered boards and a geothermal framework tunneled 550 feet into the ground.

2014

On December 31, Walgreens took its items and administrations to the four corners of the world with the fulfillment of its merger with Alliance Boots, a main universal drug store drove wellbeing and magnificence gathering. With the culmination of the merger comes the arrangement of another worldwide organization, Walgreens Boots Alliance, consolidating two driving organizations with famous brands, integral geographic impressions, shared qualities and a legacy of believed human services benefits through pharmaceutical wholesaling and network drug store care, going back over 100 years each.

[389]

top 5-10 favorite record labels?

R&S Records (Nicolaas Jaar, Aphex Twin, Djrum, Lone, Blawan, James Blake)

Livity Sound Recordings (Forest Drive West, Randomer, Mosca, Peverelist, Kowton, Bruce, Simo Cell, Asusu, Facta, Alex Coulton)

Hessle Audio (Pearson Sound, Blawan, Objekt, Ploy, Pangaea, Call Super, Untold, TRG, Joe, Ramadanman)

Dekmantel (Motor City Drum Ensemble, Tom Trago, Marcel Dettmann, Vukula, Palmbomen II, MATRiXXMAN, Juju & Jordash, Robert Hood)

Houndstooth (Throwing Snow, Special Request, Pye Corner Audio, Kangding Ray, Lanark Artefax, ASC, Roly Porter, Spatial, Hodge)

WARP (Aphex Twin, Flying Lotus, KAYTRANADA, Boards of Canada, Brian Eno, Yves Tumor, Jon Hopkins, Autechre, Oneohtrix Point Never, LFO, Drexciya)

E-Beamz (DJ Boring, Hugo Massien, DJ Seinfield, Tlim Shug, DJ Windows XP, Textasy, Ray Kadinski)

Lobster Theremin (1800HaightStreet, Ross From Friends, Hidden Spheres, Palms Trax, Supreems)

Toy Tonics (Black Loops, Mangabey, Coeo, Demuja, Kapote, Harry Wolfman, Art Alfie, Rhode & Brown, Felipe Gordon)

Cosmic Bridge Records (Om Unit, Kromestar, Moresounds, DJ Madd, Proc Fiskal, Danny Scrilla, Crypticz, TMSV)

Invisible Recordings (Noisia, Proxima, Signal, Current Value, Xtrah, Hybris, Abstract Elements)

1985 Music (Alix Perez, Eprom, Tsuruda, Halogenix, Ivy Lab, Skeptical, Monty, Deft)

DEEP MEDi MUSiK (Truth, Silkie, Gantz, Kaiju, Commodo, Egoless, Goth-Trad, Skream, Mala, Coki, Bukez Finezt)

Tectonic (Dark Sky, Joker, Loefah, Photek, Addison Groove, WEN, Kryptic Minds, Distance, Benga, Boofy, Pinch, Illum Sphere, Logos, Walton, 2562)

[endofgreenofficial]

The quick guide to the radio stations in A Captive State

Radio stations plays the big part of A Captive State. Most of the songs were actually from the 1960s through the 1990s (or an anachronism).

Juvenile 101.5 "Wicker Park Radio" is hosted by Steve Albini and Butch Vig, it mostly plays post-hardcore/alternative metal/grunge/indie rock songs. The most known songs in the radio were performed by Rollins Band (although Henry Rollins was the host of Chicago Hardcore, he gives the surprise phone conversation to Steve Albini and Butch Vig, after the end of many songs performed by Henry Rollins himself), also featuring Helmet, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Nirvana, Quicksand, Pavement, Prong’s “Rude Awakening”, Sonic Youth, Deftones, Korn, Kyuss, Jesus Lizard, and Tool. It is one of Jurgis McPhee’s radio stations, alongside Chicago Hardcore and Chicago Rock Radio. Members of the Disciples and the Phoenix (Rula McPhee, Jurgis McPhee, Danny Howells, and Cody Ellison) all like this radio station. Juvenile 101.5 is possibly the most hated radio station of Gabriel Conway and Rafe Conway, alongside Chicago Hardcore. It is also plays inside Zumiez, Vans, Forever 21, and Urban Outfitters stores around Chicago. Stabbing Westward, Orgy, and Filter also shared their songs from Adrenaline 90.4, which mostly plays industrial rock, EBM, big beat and electronica songs. Prong also shared its three songs ("Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck", "Broken Peace", and "Whose Fist Is This Anyway") on this radio, which was originally played on Chicago Hardcore. Their main headquarters was located in 2201 West Wabansia Avenue, which also served as the headquarters of Chicago Hardcore and Chicago Rock Radio.  "In The Meantime" by Helmet will play after Jurgis has escaped from the top of Sears Tower after defeating Colonel Levitt in the final storyline mission.

Chicago Hardcore is hosted by Henry Rollins and Ian MacKaye, it plays crossover thrash/groove metal/hardcore punk songs. Most known bands in the radio station were Annihilator, Prong, Testament, Suicidal Tendencies, Biohazard, Voivod, Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, Bad Religion, Corrosion of Conformity, Madball, D.R.I., Agnostic Front, and Cro-Mags. It is one of the favourite radio stations of Brian “Jurgis” McPhee, alongside Juvenile 101.5. It also the favourite radio station of the Disciples and the Phoenix. Chicago Hardcore also plays inside Vans and Zumiez stores. "I’m Broken" by Pantera will play while Jurgis, Ellison and Crystal Billy with their other members of the Phoenix preparing to attack the Scavengers, the Disciples, and the US Army in Chicago Loop. The song “Lost And Found” by Prong can be heard on the radio station’s ID and its commercial.

Adrenaline 90.4 is hosted by Fatboy Slim, it plays industrial rock/grebo/EBM/big beat/electronica songs. Most of them were Jesus Jones, Pop Will Eat Itself, Meat Beat Manifesto, 808 State, Nine Inch Nails, Filter, Stabbing Westward, and The Prodigy. Adrenaline 90.4 is the favourite radio station of Danny Howells, Nark Hernandez and Cody Ellison, and it is one of the favourite radio stations of Rula McPhee, alongside Willows 103.4 and Wax Trax! FM. It is the probably one of the favourite radio stations of the Phoenix. Adrenaline 90.4 also plays inside Forever 21 and Urban Outfitters stores around Chicago. Nine Inch Nails, Filter, and Stabbing Westward also shared their songs on Juvenile 101.5, which mostly plays some alternative metal, grunge and indie rock songs. "Blue Monday” by Orgy will play after Rula and Danny were saved by the Phoenix from the top of John Hancock Center after defeating the Scavenger horde in the final storyline mission. "Headhunter" by Front 242 plays after Rula assassinates the FBI agent Stuard Kermode in the final storyline mission. The song “Firestarter” by The Prodigy is used in the teaser trailer of A Captive State. 

Chicago Underground Radio is hosted by Autechre, it plays IDM/downtempo/ambient songs. Autechre and Aphex Twin plays the most of the songs on this radio. It is the favourite radio station of Danny Howells. It is also plays inside Forever 21 and Urban Outfitters stores around Chicago.

Chicago Rock Radio is hosted by Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins fame, it plays most of alternative rock/indie rock songs. Most of them were Social Distortion, R.E.M., Switchfoot and The Smashing Pumpkins. It is one of Jurgis McPhee's radio stations, alongside Juvenile 101.5 and Chicago Hardcore.

Willows 103.4 is hosted by Ian Astbury of The Cult fame, it plays the early 1980s new wave/new romantic/synthpop songs. Most of them were The Human League, Soft Cell, Ultravox, Simple Minds and Visage. It is Caroline “Rula” McPhee’s favourite radio station.

The Beatz 95.1 is hosted by Common (Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr.), it plays hip hop/gangsta rap songs. Most of them Cypress Hill, Naughty By Nature, Run DMC, 2Pac, Compton’s Most Wanted, and N.W.A. It is Gabe Conway’s favourite radio station.

East Coast FM is hosted by RZA and Chuck D, it plays east coast hip hop/old school hip hop. Most of them DMX, Wu Tang Clan and MC Hammer. It is Rafe Conway’s favourite radio station.

The Rhythm 92.5 is hosted by Chaka Khan, it plays soul/disco/funk/R&B/jazz songs. It is the favourite station of Gabe and Rafe Conway.

The Mix 99.9 is hosted by Harry Connick Jr., it plays pop/R&B songs of the 1980s and the 1990s. Most notably PJ Harvey, Duran Duran, Tears for Fears, and Rick Astley.

Wax Trax! FM is hosted by Al Jourgensen of the Ministry fame, it plays EBM/electro-industrial songs. Many of them were licensed to all Wax Trax! artists from the 1980s and the 1990s. It is one of the favourite radio stations of Brian “Jurgis” McPhee and Caroline “Rula” McPhee. It also the favourite radio station of the Disciples cult.

Some of the lesser known radio stations in A Captive State, were; El Dorado FM (latin jazz and mambo songs), Shangri-La FM (plays world music/tribal fusion songs), Radio Outlaw (plays country/rockabilly songs), Melody FM (classical music), and New Era 102.8 (classic rock/adult contemporary).

In The Tale of Jurgis DLC, there are 9 new radio stations added in A Captive State while the player visits the city of London. BBC Radio One (news and talk show), BBC Radio Four (comedy and humour), Croydon FM (hosted by Aphex Twin and plays electronica songs), Thames Rock Radio (hosted by Thom Yorke and plays some britpop songs), The Slate 87.6 (hosted by Damon Albarn and it plays same songs from Juvenile 101.5), Radio X (hosted by Bruce Dickinson and plays the same songs from Chicago Hardcore), Calcutta Sounds (hosted by Steve Chandra Savale and plays some worldbeat/bhangra/ragga songs), Radio Covenant (hosted by Gary Numan and plays the same songs from Wax Trax! FM) and Jamaica FM (hosted by Ziggy Marley and plays reggae/dancehall songs).

[noloveforned]

no love for ned on wlur – april 8th, 2022 from 8-10pm

artist // track // album // label buffalo tom // impossible // buffalo tom // sst romero // talk about it // turn it on! // feel it the yeasties // p-e-r-v-e-r-t // here for flesh cassette // (self-released) the cairo gang // ice fishing // goes missing // god? mick trouble // a well known drag // it's mick trouble's second lp // emotional response pony up // a crutch or a cradle // stay gold // laughing outlaw p.e. // contradiction of wants // the leather lemon // wharf cat front 242 // first in / first out // front by front // wax trax! destroyer // june // labyrinthitis // merge verity susman and matthew simms // take the toys from the boys // it's in our hands digital single // (self-released) citizen bravo and raymond macdonald feat. tracyanne campbell // women of the world // return to y'hup- the world of ivor cutler // chemikal underground aldous harding // ennui // warm chris // 4ad ibibio sound machine // afo ken doko mien // electricity // merge al riggs // lie about the ocean // oh good it's al riggs // husky pants alabaster deplume // don't forget you're precious // gold // international anthem rob clearfield and quin kirchner // orbit two // concentric orbits // astral spirits eddie russ // hill where the lord hides // fresh out // soul jazz mané fernandes // boom boom bap // enter the squigg // clean feed mourning [a] blkstar // hard (stars remix) // the cycle // don giovanni raw poetic and damu the fudgemunk // open roads // laminated skies // def pressé freestyle fellowship // cornbread // innercity griots // 4th and broadway b. cool-aid // teach // brwn // akashik kissing book // i don't know // i don't know digital single // hotdog's hotdogs bernice // big mato (kalbells remix) // bonjourno my friends // telephone explosion girl ray // another try // covers of covers- celebrating 20 years of under the radar magazine // american laundromat comet gain // ann don't you cry // the misfit jukebox, vol. 1- somewhere to belong // (self-released) linda smith // i so liked spring // i so liked spring cassette // shrimper heaven for real featuring dorothea paas // autumn of the fighter // sweet rose green winter desk top tell this side autumn of the fighter hot in a cool way ep // mint u.s. highball // double dare // a parkhead cross of the mind // lame-o