WSND DJ set list: Manic Monday – July 14, 2025

Thanks to all who listened and called in to my latest all-80s music show on WSND. Here’s the set list:

  1. Art of Noise – Eye of a Needle (1986)
  2. ABBA – The Winner Takes It All (1980)
  3. Fancy – Slice Me Nice (12″ maxi single) (1984)
  4. Devo – That’s Pep! (1980)
  5. Peter Cetera – Glory of Love (1986) (requested)
  6. Depeche Mode – Lie to Me (1984)
  7. The Clash – Rock the Casbah (1982)
  8. Big Audio Dynamite – E=MC2 (1985)
  9. Duran Duran – New Religion (1982)
  10. Junior Wells & Buddy Guy – You’ve Gotta Love Her with a Feeling (live) (1982) (requested)
  11. Junior Wells & Buddy Guy – Messin’ with the Kid (live) (1984) (requested)
  12. ABC – Poison Arrow (1982)
  13. Alisha – Into My Secret (1987)
  14. The Fixx – Are We Ourselves? (1984)
  15. The Human League – Don’t You Want Me? (original extended dance mix) (1981)
  16. Chicago – Niagara Falls (1986)
  17. 4 By Four – I Want You for My Girlfriend (1987)
  18. Gino Vannelli – Wild Horses (1987)
  19. Ana – Shy Boys (1987)
  20. Lou Gramm – Ready or Not (1987)
  21. Company B – Fascinated (1987)
  22. Nona Hendryx – Why Should I Cry? (1987)
  23. U2 – With or Without You (1987)
  24. The Breakfast Club – Right on Track (1987)
  25. Julian Cope – Search Party (1984)
  26. Haircut 100 – Love Plus One (original 12″ mix) (1982)
  27. Joy Division – In a Lonely Place (live) (1981)
  28. Love & Rockets – If There’s a Heaven Above (1985)
  29. Billy Ocean – Get Outta My Dreams, Get into My Car (1988)
  30. The Communards – Don’t Leave Me This Way (1986)
  31. The Go-Gos – Our Lips Are Sealed (1981)
  32. The Smithereens – One After 909 (1987)
  33. The Stranglers – Golden Brown (1982)
  34. The Cars – Shake It Up (1981)
  35. Spinal Tap – Gimme Some Money (1984) (requested)
  36. Hurricane – I’m on to You (1988) (requested)
  37. Eddy Grant – Electric Avenue (1982)

Be sure to tune in on July 21st for the next Manic Monday show!

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Dusty Rose Gang – A-One from Day One

I don’t know how Dusty Rose Gang (Josh Budiognan – guitar, Brett Donlan – bass, Blake Hill – drums, Dusty Rose – guitar and vocals) has done it, but apparently they have crafted a time machine and appeared in modern day Detroit straight from a late 1970s tour with MC5 with their album A-One from Day One.

Opening track “Love Bug” shreds on so many levels that it’s difficult to list them all. It kicks out the jams and kicks the walls down around you. It sounds like cosmic rock, Detroit metal, and garage grooves all at the same time. The slight echo effect on Rose’s vocals is great touch. Rose and Budiognan’s guitars on “Sticker” practically lift your speakers (and you) off the floor.

“Person of Light,” the longest track on the album (six minutes-plus) reminds me of some of Frankie and The Witch Fingers‘ wild tunes. The more I think about it, they and Dusty Rose Gang would be a great double-bill. Donlan’s bass runs all over this track, locking in a sweaty, heavy groove that you can’t ignore once you hear it. The weird filter effect on “Party Back Jack” is mind-warping, as is Hill’s drumming. Then the guitars kick in and it’s like you’re taking off on a rural Michigan drag strip.

“Leave It Alone” is full of fun AC/DC-like swagger rock. “Feel Me” somehow cranks that swagger up more and throws in psych-rock grooves for good measure.

This is one of the most fun rock albums I’ve heard all year. Don’t skip it. These guys are A1 from day one.

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[Thanks to Daniel at RidingEasy Records!]

WSND DJ set list: Deep Dive of Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys

Thanks to all who listened to my Deep Dive of the music of Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys. Here’s the set list!

  1. The Beach Boys – Good Vibrations
  2. The Four Freshmen – It’s a Blue World
  3. Dion and The Belmonts – I Wonder Why
  4. The Pendletones – Surfin’ Safari
  5. The Beach Boys – 409
  6. The Teddy Bears – To Know Him Is to Love Him
  7. Rachel and The Revolvers – The Revo-Lution
  8. Bob & Sheri – The Surfer Moon
  9. The Gamblers – Moon Dawg!
  10. The Beach Boys – Shut Down (live)
  11. Jan & Dean – Surf City
  12. The Honeys – He’s a Doll
  13. The Beach Boys – In My Room
  14. The Beach Boys – All Summer Long
  15. The Beach Boys – Little Honda
  16. Red Hot Chili Peppers – I Get Around (live)
  17. The Beach Boys – Don’t Worry Baby
  18. Glen Campbell – Guess I’m Dumb
  19. The Beach Boys – Please Let Me Wonder
  20. The Smithereens – Girl Don’t Tell Me
  21. The Beach Boys – California Girls (mono version)
  22. The Beach Boys – Caroline, No
  23. Boogarins – Let’s Go Away for a While
  24. The Beach Boys – I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times
  25. The Beach Boys – Heroes and Villains
  26. The Beach Boys – Wild Honey
  27. Redwood – Time to Get Alone
  28. The Beach Boys – Busy Doin’ Nuthin’
  29. Wall of Voodoo – Do It Again
  30. The Beach Boys – All I Wanna Do
  31. The Beach Boys – ‘Til I Die
  32. American Spring – Slip on Through
  33. Randy Newman – Sail Away
  34. KGB – Sail on Sailor (requested)
  35. California Music – Why Do Fools Fall in Love
  36. The Beach Boys – It’s O.K.
  37. Brian Wilson and Paul McCartney – God Only Knows (live)
  38. Brian Wilson – Love and Mercy (live)

Tune in next week for a Deep Dive of Carlos Santana!

Keep your mind open.

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WSND DJ set list: Manic Monday – July 07, 2025

Thanks to all who listened to and gave requests for my latest all-80s music show on WSND. Here’s the set list:

  1. Five Letters – Tha Kee Tha Tha (1980)
  2. Nu Shooz – I Can’t Wait (1985)
  3. Oingo Boingo – Weird Science (extended dance mix) (1985)
  4. Jane’s Addiction – Ocean Size (demo) (1988)
  5. Pixies – Vamos (1987)
  6. David Bowie – Modern Love (1983)
  7. Tin Machine – Tin Machine (1988)
  8. Adam and The Ants – Christian D’or (1981)
  9. Hüsker Dü – The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill (1985)
  10. Spandau Ballet – True (1983)
  11. Madonna – Like A Prayer (1989)
  12. The Pretenders – Back on the Chain Gang (1982) (requested)
  13. Geddy Lee and the McKenzie Brothers – Take Off (1981) (requested)
  14. The Cramps – Save It (1984)
  15. Talk Talk – It’s My Life (12″ dance version) (1984)
  16. Icehouse – No Promises (1986)
  17. Krokus – School’s Out (1986)
  18. Yarbrough & Peoples – I Wouldn’t Lie (1985)
  19. Honeymoon Suite – What Does It Take (1986)
  20. Barry Manilow – I’m Your Man (1985)
  21. Dennis DeYoung – This Is the Time (1986)
  22. Pet Shop Boys – West End Girls (1986)
  23. The Outfield – Your Love (1985)
  24. Janet Jackson – What Have You Done for Me Lately (1986)
  25. John Mellencamp – Rain on the Scarecrow (1985)
  26. The Rolling Stones – Undercover of the Night (1983) (requested)
  27. The Rolling Stones – Waiting on a Friend (1981) (requested)
  28. Eurythmics – Would I Lie to You? (extended mix) (1985)
  29. Aldo Nova – Fantasy (1982)
  30. Divinyls – Pleasure and Pain (1985) (requested)
  31. Doug E. Fresh and The Get Fresh Crew – Nuthin’ (1986)
  32. Eric B. & Rakim – I Ain’t No Joke (1987)
  33. Beastie Boys – Johnny Ryall (1989)
  34. De La Soul – Ghetto Thang (1989)
  35. Hall & Oates – How Does It Feel to Be Back (1980)
  36. Kids in the Kitchen – Change in Mood (1985)
  37. Charanjit Singh – Raga Kalvati (1982)

Manic Monday returns July 14, 2025!

Keep your mind open.

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Nuclear Daisies’ new single brings you “Infinite Joy.”

Photo by Azeta

There’s an obscured beauty and a slithering cool that oozes throughout First Taste of Heaven– It’s raw and driving, powerful and playful, all with direct songwriting that is as revelatory as it is mysterious and compelling. Nuclear Daisies is made up of Austin players Rob Glynn (ex Temple of Angels), Alex Gehring (Ringo Deathstarr) and Robby Williams. Together the three created a record that is literally and figuratively– an eye-opening, DMT-soaked view at a world in chaos– not to mention a new vision for 90’s alternative and big beat for the next generation. 

First Taste of Heaven is about life in all its glory and shroud– a post-apocalyptic journey through celebration, love, heartache, pain, acceptance and finally transcendence– physical, spiritual and even supernatural. And though the creation of the record was based on personal trials and tribulations, it also offered escapism from that same harsh reality in the form of catharsis and healing. 

“Infinite Joy”, available today announces itself with the snap and the thump of a breakbeat and a snarling bassline, starkly contrasting from Gehring’s breathy, seductive vocals which drive the track. The juxtaposition adds drama to pensive lyrics that mine the dredges of mental health and the road to recovery. “The lyrics perfectly express the depths of depression and the hopelessness that someone can feel to claw their way out of it,” admits Gehring. 

Listen / Share / Playlist “Infinite Joy”

Nuclear Daisies tracked First Taste of Heaven at Hungry Dog Sound & Studio in Austin, Texas with Williams at the helm over the course of a year. Their inspiration was less obvious – “I’d say it wasn’t specific productions but more specific vibes that we wanted to emulate,” specifies Williams. “We had clear visions of how we wanted certain songs to not only sound, but feel too– very sci-fi and dystopian. One song we wanted to feel like attending the vampire rave from ‘Blade’– tense, pulsing, but also a little bit dangerous. We wanted a different track to feel like the underground rave at the end of the world from ‘The Matrix’ – just sort of this lawless party of no rules at the end of days. There were also times when Alex would be in the booth and we’d say ‘sing it like you’re crying’ or ‘try it like a dead choir member.’ There are a lot of wild influences in there that come from disparate places and not just conventional ideas.”

First Taste of Heaven is droney, cacophonous, and antagonistic yet serene and with melodic pop sensibilities that hook into you and don’t let go. It’s the follow up to their 2022 S/T debut which featured hit single “Heaven In Your Head”. Nuclear Daisies will soon see its reissue via Portrayal of Guilt Records in addition to the release of First Taste of Heaven on August 1.

Pre-Order / Pre-Save First Taste of Heaven

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[I’d feel infinite joy if you subscribed.]

[Thanks to Bailey at Another Side!]

WSND DJ set list: Deep Dive of Sly and The Family Stone

Thanks to all who listened to my Deep Dive of Sly and The Family Stone on WSND. Here’s the set list in case you missed it!

  1. Sly and The Family Stone – Everyday People
  2. The Stewart Four – On the Battlefield
  3. The Viscaynes – Yellow Moon
  4. Danny (Sly) Stewart – A Long Time Alone
  5. James Brown – Love Don’t Love Nobody
  6. Booker T and The MG’s – Green Onions
  7. Otis Redding – I’ve Been Loving You Too Long
  8. The Impressions – People Get Ready
  9. Bobby Womack – Woman’s Gotta Have It
  10. The Beau Brummels – Laugh Laugh
  11. The Mojo Men – Dance with Me
  12. Bobby Freeman – C’mon and Swim
  13. The Great Society – Somebody to Love
  14. Dionne Warwick – Don’t Make Me Over
  15. Sly and The Family Stone – Let Me Hear It from You
  16. The Dirtbombs – Underdog
  17. Sly and The Family Stone – Dance to the Music
  18. The Four Tops – Reflections
  19. The Undisputed Truth – California Soul
  20. Sly and The Family Stone – M’Lady
  21. Sly and The Family Stone – Into My Own Thing
  22. Fatboy Slim – Weapon of Choice
  23. The Jackson 5 – Stand!
  24. Sly and The Family Stone – Sing a Simple Song (live)
  25. Little Sister – Somebody’s Watching You
  26. Sly and The Family Stone – Thank You (Falletinme Be Mice Elf Agin) (Todd CD mix)
  27. Daryl Hall & Sharon Jones – Hot Fun in the Summertime (live)
  28. Sly and The Family Stone – Higher / Music Lover (live)
  29. Bob Marley & The Wailers – Put It On
  30. Marvin Gaye – What’s Going On
  31. Sly and The Family Stone – Luv ‘n’ Haight
  32. Iggy Pop – Family Affair
  33. Sly and The Family Stone – In Time
  34. Red Hot Chili Peppers – If You Want Me to Stay
  35. Sly and The Family Stone – Time for Livin’ (alternate version)
  36. Rose Banks – Darling Baby
  37. Graham Central Station – Your Love
  38. Sly Stone – The Same Thing (Makes You Laugh, Makes You Cry)
  39. Earth, Wind & Fire – Good Time
  40. Sly Stone – His Eye Is on the Sparrow

I’m back July 13th with a Deep Dive of The Beach Boys!

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Rival Consoles – Landscape from Memory

Ryan Lee West, known to many as the man behind Rival Consoles, has put together his ninth album, Landscape from Memory, “from a scrapbook of discarded audio snippets” (according to a press release sent me) and synths and sounds made in hotel rooms and other spaces after taking a year off from music and, for a little while, losing his creative spark.

Thankfully, Rival Consoles found the energy and drive again and has released a fine record of ambient music, dance grooves, and atmospheric sonics. “In Reverse” starts the album with Radiohead-like synth bumps and bubbles and acoustic guitar that drifts in and out of those synths like happy birds coasting between trees. The beautiful “Catherine” is a song for West’s love, who helped him rediscover his love for composition and creating soundscapes.

“Drum Song” is well-named for its thumping, bumping beats. “Soft Gradient Beckons” is the sound of a happy, robotic bird waking up with the sun. It perfectly floats into “Gaivotas,” and that nicely drifts into the almost-industrial dance track “Coda.” “Known Shape” is an almost weightless dance track that feels like something you’d hear in a spaceport lounge. The fade out of “Nocturne” will make you feel like you’re calmly walking into or out of a fog.

“Jupiter” pulls you in like its namesake’s gravity and gets your toes tapping as you slide into orbit and feel your molecules vibrating. “In a Trance” (made in a New York hotel room) might put you there, and the ethereal “If Not Now” will help you stay in that meditative state for a while longer. The synths on “2 Forms” sound like they’re half-awake but still helping you dance at 3am.

“Tape Loop” has a twinge of suspense to it, and the title track closes the album with an uplifting energy – the kind that West found while making the track and the rest of the album while dealing with…well, everything everyone is dealing with right now.

Memory is often fuzzy, and creating or describing a landscape from it is often wrought with inaccuracies. This landscape created by Rival Consoles, however, feels lush and familiar…even in the darker parts. It feels like the right place at the right moment – which is right now.

Keep your mind open.

[Why rely on memory to come back to the site for more reviews? Subscribe and let us remember for you.]

[Thanks to George at Terrorbird Media.]

Cass McCombs calls for “Peace” on his new single from his new album due August 15, 2025.

Photo Credit – Silvia Grav

Cass McCombs announces his new album, Interior Live Oak, out August 15th via Domino, and releases a new single/video, “Peace.” Interior Live Oak is Cass’s most personal album to date, and, more than any previous record, shows Cass’ vast range as a lyricist and musician. It draws from everything Cass has created over two decades of experimentation to cut through with a direct and clarifying light. Throughout, his attitude is hopeful, which may sound odd for someone who often sings about the more extreme aspects of modern life. Interior Live Oak, however, is the resolve of someone who has lived those extremes. 

In creating Interior Live Oak, McCombs was inspired by the return to Domino and the revisitation of his early material in last year’s reissue campaign and the archival release, Seed Cake on Leap Year. This led him to work with some of his earliest collaborators in the Bay Area, including Jason Quever (Papercuts) and Chris Cohen, among others. Additional recording in New York City brought contributions from other perennial collaborators, including Matt Sweeney and Mike Bones, whose guitar work has always been a favorable complement to Cass’ own distinctive style. Interior Live Oak simultaneously expands upon his vision and is a return to a more economical form.
 
Following Interior Live Oak’s “Priestess,” released earlier this year alongside a Tiny Desk Concert, today’s single, “Peace,” is a straightforward rocker with serpentine riffs. “Peace is what we say when we say goodbye,” Cass sings, bidding a melancholy farewell. 

Watch the Video for “Peace”

In a time of temporal anxieties, Cass’ music seeks an alternate route to break through the noise and discover a moment of presence— of beauty. As NPR Music puts it, his songs “are slow, languid and beautiful, which feels like the right counterbalance to our fast-paced times.” 

Coinciding with the release of Interior Live Oak, Cass will tour Europe with a mix of headline, festival, and support dates with Father John Misty. He’ll then return to the US for two headline dates in California and a show with MJ Lenderman. All dates are below, and tickets for the UK and California headline shows will be available on Wednesday, June 18th here. 

Pre-order Interior Live Oak

Watch the Lyrics Video for “Priestess”

Watch Cass McCombs’ Tiny Desk Concert

Cass McCombs Tour Dates
(New Dates in Bold)
Wed. Aug. 13 – Porto, PT @ Paredes de Coura ^
Sat. Aug. 17 – Crickhowell, UK @ Green Man Festival ^
Tue. Aug. 19 – Bristol, UK @Lantern Hall ^
Wed. Aug. 20 – London, UK @Bush Hall ^
Thu. Aug. 21 – Manchester, UK @ YES ^
Sat. Aug. 23 – Galway, IE @ Leisureland * % 
Sun. Aug. 24 – Dublin, IE @ Wider Than Pictures Festival * % 
Mon. Aug. 25 – Belfast, IE @ Ulster Hall * % 
Tue. Aug. 26 – Cork, IE @ City Hall * % 
Thu. Aug. 28 – Glasgow, SCT @ Barrowland * % 
Fri. Aug. 29 – Glasgow, SCT @ Barrowland * % 
Wed. Sept. 10 – San Diego, CA @The Casbah ^
Thu. Sept. 11 – Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Expo Hall & ^
Fri. Sept. 12 – Riverside, CA @Farmhouse ^

* with Father John Misty
& with MJ Lenderman, Nap Eyes
% Solo
^ Full Band Performance

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[Thanks to Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: Durand Jones and The Indications – Flowers

For their newest album, Flowers, Durand Jones and The Indications went back to the days of recording to simple equipment while they were all college students at Indiana University, only this time it was just the three of them (Aaron Frazer – drums and vocals, Durand Jones – vocals, and Blake Rhein – guitar) recording in their guitarist’s Chicago studio crafted after multiple successful albums and world tours. The result is an album that lets them get their flowers, as the kids say, and enjoy and build upon their successes both as a band and with their own solo projects.

The lush, brief, titular intro track lets you know this is going to be a lovely time, and sure enough, the beats and bass (courtesy of Michael Montgomery) prove this on “Paradise” — in which Frazer sings about how he must be mad to keep pursuing an unresponsive lover, but he can’t help it. Jones has convinced his lover, at least, because “Lover’s Paradise” has them doing everything from traveling to Paris to catching a matinee.

Frazer and Jones both claim “I Need the Answer” to strife, war, and divisions on the next track. “Why’s it so hard to find the humanity when every man is more than just what you see?” Frazer asks, and Jones as “What will we leave for futures to see who we are?” We all want these answers. We need them. “Flower Moon” is so groovy that it practically warms up the bed for you.

We’re back to some heartbreak on “Really Wanna Be with You,” in which Jones sings about wishing he could be with someone who might’ve been the one, but the ship has sailed. “Been So Long” is about going back to your old stomping grounds and getting the scoop on everyone still there. “Everything” is about how a lover’s attention is all one needs. It’ll be on all of your bedroom mixes this year.

On “Rust and Steel,” Jones compares a crumbling relationship to a car that’s slowly breaking down, and then Frazer claims “A fancy car won’t get you far when you’re on your own” at the beginning of “If Not For Love,” which features a sharp saxophone solo from Mae Sun. The final track, “Without You,” is a plea for a lover to return after Jones realizes, too late, that he’s lost her thanks to his bad behavior.

Flowers is another solid album from DJI. They’ve yet to miss. Give them and this album all the flowers.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Just Mustard release new single, “Pollyanna,” and new tour dates.

Photo credit – Kate Lawlor

Ireland’s Just Mustard return with a new single/video, “POLLYANNA,” via Partisan, and announce an intimate New York show on Tuesday, September 9th at National Sawdust. Following the release of their “thrillingly untraditional” (NME) 2022 breakout, Heart Under, “POLLYANNA” is a luminous and lurching first tease of their highly anticipated third album due later this year. Anchored by the group’s signature sonic disorientation but newly embracing directness and melody, “POLLYANNA” sets the tone for a new era of Just Mustard, one that finds beauty in contradiction, pairing the raw power of noise-rock with a conflicted optimism that’s as disarming as it is cathartic. With warped guitars, submerged beats, and front woman Katie Ball’s dreamlike vocals pushed higher in the mix than ever before, it captures the band at a turning point: reaching for euphoria while wrestling with its emotional cost.

Ball, who directed the video herself, comments: “We shot the video using different CCTV and VHS cameras around our hometown Dundalk trying to have as much fun as possible, the kind of fun that makes you feel sick almost instantly, which suits the themes of the song.”

Watch the Video for “POLLYANNA”

Just Mustard is Katie Ball, David Noonan, Mete Kalyon, Rob Clarke, and Shane Maguire. Heart Under earned Just Mustard widespread acclaim, with the band racking up rave reviews from NME, The Telegraph, Pitchfork, DIY, The Independent, and plenty more. Their music has been championed by BBC 6 Music, BBC Radio 1, KEXP, as well as The Cure, Depeche Mode and Fontaines D.C., all of whom they’ve supported on tour.

Following a string of festival dates, including Seisiún Festival in Boston, the band will return to New York City and then head to the UK/EU for select underplays in London, Paris and Berlin. A full list of dates is below.

Just Mustard Tour Dates
(New Dates in Bold)
Sat. Aug. 16 – Brecon Beacons, UK @ Green Man Festival
Sat. Aug. 30 – Stradbally, IE @ Electric Picnic
Sat. Sept. 6 – Sun. Sept. 7 – Boston, MA @ Seisiún Festival
Tue. Sept. 9 – Brooklyn, NY @ National Sawdust
Fri. Sept. 19 – Hamburg, DE @ Reeperbahn Festival
Mon. Sept. 22 – Berlin, DE @ Privatclub
Wed. Sept. 24 – Paris, FR @ Point Empemere
Thu. Sept. 25 – London, UK @ Hoxton Hall

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Jaycee and Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR!]