Author: Nik Havert

I've been a music fan since my parents gave me a record player for Christmas when I was still in grade school. The first record I remember owning was "Sesame Street Disco." I've been a professional writer since 2004, but writing long before that. My first published work was in a middle school literary magazine and was a story about a zoo in which the animals could talk.

DJ set list for June 15, 2017

Thanks to all who tuned in for my latest show on WSND, and to Aaron for helping out with the music selection and finding out that Chicken Dinner candy bars really existed.  Congratulations to Joe Fuentes, who won First and Foremost, and to Chuck who also guessed the right answer (That “Summertimes Blues” was originally performed by Eddie Cochran).  Here’s our set list from the night of June 15, 2017.

  1. The Cure – Opening (live)
  2. The Crystal Method – After Hours
  3. Com Truie – Ephemeron
  4. Eaten Alive radio spot
  5. Mission of Burma – Spider’s Web (request)
  6. Primus – Tommy the Cat
  7. Broken Bells – After the Disco
  8. Reverend Horton Heat – Big Dwarf Rodeo
  9. MC 900 Foot Jesus – Adventures in Failure (live)
  10. Golden Dawn Arkestra – Afropacalypse
  11. Rock and Roll High School radio spot
  12. Betty Davis – Come with Me
  13. Janelle Monae – Faster
  14. Alex Lopez – Dangerous
  15. Blue Cheer – Summertime Blues
  16. Repellents – AFC!
  17. The Black Keys – Just Got to Be
  18. L7 – Fast and Frightening (live)
  19. Buzzcocks – Last to Know? (live)
  20. Ron Gallo – Kill the Medicine Man
  21. Beastie Boys – Time for Living
  22. The Suitcase Junket – The Next Act
  23. Clutch – Big News 1
  24. Bonde Do Role – Marina Gasolina
  25. Rory Gallagher – Bull Frog Blues (live)
  26. Frank Zappa – Dirty Love
  27. Schlock radio spot
  28. The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – Comeback
  29. Zeke – Black Witch
  30. Deap Vally – Royal Jelly
  31. The Kills – Goodnight Bad Morning

I’m back on air at midnight June 22nd and will have a big Mamby on the Beach preview show featuring a lot of house and electronica.

Keep your mind open.

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Mamby on the Beach artist spotlight: DJ Heather

Hailing from Chicago by way of Brooklyn, DJ Heather is a legend in the Chicago house music scene.  She began in hip hop, but soon discovered her true voice in house music.  She’s been filling dance floors from Chicago to the UK ever since.  She’ll be spinning in the MixMag tent at Mamby on the Beach June 25th.

Keep your mind open.

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Slowdive announces more U.S. tour dates into the fall.

SLOWDIVE ANNOUNCE MORE US TOUR DATES;
WATCH NPR MUSIC’S FIELD RECORDING

SLOWDIVE IS ONE OF THE BEST REVIEWED ALBUMS OF THE YEAR

Slowdive‘s self-titled album, released last month via Dead Oceans, is one of the best-reviewed albums of the year so far.  Following a sold out North American tour in advance of its release, the band are announcing a return to the continent in the fall, to perform in cities both new and old. Prior to that, they’ll be appearing at FYF Fest in Los Angeles on July 21st.

Also, today saw the release of an incredible stripped back NPR Music Field Recording that the band filmed while in New York in May. Watch below.

WATCH SLOWDIVE’S NPR MUSIC FIELD RECORDING
http://n.pr/2s3U0tC

STREAM SLOWDIVE
https://slowdive.lnk.to/slowdive

SLOWDIVE TOUR DATES (new dates in bold)
Fri. June 16 – Sun. June 18 – Mannheim, DE @ Maifeld Derby
Sat. July 1 – Roskilde, Denmark @ Roskilde Festival
Thurs. July 6 – Trencin, Slovakia @ Pohoda Festival
Fri. July 7 – Madrid, ES @ Mad Cool Festival
Sun. July 9 – Six Four Les Plages, France@ Pointu Festival
Fri. July 21 – Los Angeles, CA @ FYF Fest
Fri. July 28– South Korea @ Valley Rock Festival
Sun. July 30 – Tahar Shi, Japan @ Fuji Rock Festival
Sat. Aug. 19 – Trondheim, Norway  @ Pstereo Festival
Fri. 25 Aug. – Switzerland @ Nox Orae Festival
Sat. Aug. 27 – Paris, France @ Rock En Seine Festival
Thu. Aug. 31 – Salisbury, UK @ End of the Road Festival
Sat. Sept. 2 – Milano, Italy @ Un Altro Festival
Thu. Sept. 7 – Tel Aviv, Israel @ Barby Club
Fri. Sept. 15 – Sat. 16 Sept. – Angers, France @ Levitation Fest
Sun. Sept. 17 – Birmingham, UK @ Beyond the Tracks Festival
Fri. Sept. 29 – Dortmund, Germany @Way Back When Festival
Sat. Sept. 30 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ DR Koncerthuset
Mon. Oct. 2 – Warsaw, Poland – @ Palladium
Tues. Oct. 3 – Berlin, Germany @ Huxley’s
Weds. Oct. 4 – Hamburg, Germany @Uebel & Gefaehrlich
Fri. Oct. 6 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
Sat. Oct. 7 – Brussels, Belgium @ Botanique
Mon. Oct. 9 – Glasgow, UK @ ABC
Tues. Oct. 10 – Manchester, UK @Albert Hall
Weds. Oct. 11 – Leeds, UK @ Town Hall
Fri. Oct. 13 – London, UK @ Roundhouse
Mon. Oct. 23 – Vancouver, BC @ The Commodore
Wed. Oct. 25 – Seattle, WA @ The Neptune
Thu. Oct. 26 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
Sat. Oct. 28 – Oakland, CA @ Fox Theater   
Wed. Nov. 1 – Denver, CO @ The Ogden
Sat. Nov. 4 – Madison, WI @ Barrymore Theatre
Sun. Nov. 5 – Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
Tue. Nov. 7 – Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
Wed. Nov. 8 – Detroit, MI @ Majestic Theatre
Thu. Nov. 9 – Buffalo, NY @ Town Hall
Fri. Nov. 10 – Toronto, ON @ CANADA @ Massey Hall
Sat. Nov. 11 – New Haven, CT @ College St Music Hall
Sun. Nov. 12 – New York City, NY @ Terminal 5  
Tue. Nov. 14 – Boston,MA @ Paradise
Wed. Nov. 15 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
Thu. Nov. 16 – Baltimore, MD @ Ram’s Head
Fri. Nov. 17 – Asheville, NC @ The Orange Peel

Tickets available from www.slowdiveofficial.com

PRAISE FOR SLOWDIVE

“A precise and altogether gorgeous showcase of their peerless ability at production, mood, and songcraft.” – Pitchfork [Best New Music]

“Listening to Slowdive is like watching the sunrise and sunset at once — an awe-inspiring chorus of the galaxy.” – NPR Music

“Slowdive carries all the right baggage from the band’s past, but the album leaves no question about the direction they’re traveling in. They’re carrying this sound towards the future.” – Stereogum

“Throughout Slowdive, the band use foggy images and slippery transitions as a soothing sort of déjà vu—you feel like you’ve been here before, even though you obviously haven’t.” – SPIN [SPIN Essential]

“With this self-titled record, their first in 22 years, Slowdive definitively prove that some bands have enough creative juice to get back together and make some incredible music.” – Vulture

“The result is as beautiful and stilling as ever.” – AV Club

“Dreamy vocals, thick melancholia, heavy guitar treatments. And ‘Slomo,’ the opening track, is a goddamn minor miracle. Welcome back, shoegaze friends.” – Newsweek

Makeness releases new single from EP due out June 16th.

Makeness Shares New Track, “Micro Boss”:
https://soundcloud.com/makeness/makeness-micro-boss
https://youtu.be/rbl7TyY2NsA

Taken From Temple Works EP Out June 16th
On Makeness’ Temple Works Label

Makeness, aka Kyle Molleson, is sharing another single from his forthcoming Temple Works EP ahead of its release this Friday, June 16th. Premiered via XLR8R, the hard-hitting “Micro Boss” picks up where previous single “Carved” left off. Makeness pushes into deeper and darker territory here. His production is a lesson in restraint. Something he’s practiced DJing alongside the likes of Midland, Leon Vynehall and Factory Floor.

The roots of Temple Works date back to the producer’s time in Leeds, which played an important part in both this release and his wider love for dance music. While there, Molleson recorded a friend’s percussion project, G-Bop Orchestra, at an old textile mill in Holbeck, known as Temple Works. The vast openness of the space made for the best natural reverb and is weaved throughout the title track. It was also in Leeds where the producer discovered Cosmic Slop, an all welcoming party with a sound system built by founder and resident DJ, Tom Smith, with donations going towards raising money for local charity MAP (Music and Arts Production). Slop’s intimate and flawless sounding room played a huge part in cementing Makeness’ love for club spaces.

Temple Works is out June 16th on Makeness’ Temple Works Label.

Mamby on the Beach artist spotlight: MGMT

Psychedelic freaks MGMT (Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser) will be closing the Beach Stage at Mamby on the Beach on June 24th. MGMT are known for loud, reverb-laced, synth-driven psychedelia and their show is sure to be a mind trip.  They’ve been nominated for multiple Grammy Awards and sound not unlike a younger Flaming Lips.  Don’t miss out on the freak-out.

Keep your mind open.

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Mamby on the Beach artist spotlight: Miike Snow

Swedish electro-pop duo Miike Snow (Christian Karlsson, Pontus Winnberg, and American singer Andrew Wyatt) make bright, shimmering songs that are rooted in vintage synthesizers and other electro gear.  Part of their stage piece is a massive device known as “the Blob” that is a hodgepodge of synths, drum machines, and other cool stuff to avoid using laptops to make their music.

They’ll be playing the Beach Stage at Mamby on the Beach June 24th, and I’m sure their set will be a crowd favorite.

Keep your mind open.

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Wrecka Stow: PDQ Records – Tucson, AZ

Tucson’s PDQ Records (2342 North Dodge) bills itself as a “rock and roll museum,” and that description is accurate.  The place is a treasure trove of rare vinyl, tapes, CD’s, 8 tracks, and probably more stuff that I missed.  Seriously, look at the size of this place.

I walked in and immediately spotted racks of newly arrived prime vinyl records to my right.
Among them was this gem that I almost snagged, but I had to fly home after all and didn’t want to risk breaking any records in my luggage.

The place was full of cool, obscure records like this.  You’ll spend an entire day here if you’re an obsessed collector of vinyl.  I mean, look at some of this stuff.

I had no idea Elke Sommer had a singing career.
I want to hear this.
Subtle.

As I mentioned earlier, they have more than vinyl LP’s.  They have a large collection of 78’s and 45’s, cassettes, and even stereo gear.

Just a small portion of their 45’s.

They even repair equipment.

Yes, those are VHS tapes and 8-tracks covering that wall.

I walked out of there with CD’s by INXS, Bill Withers, Big Audio Dynamite, and Blue Cheer.  I could’ve walked out much poorer, but thankfully I don’t have a vinyl obsession (yet).  You owe it to yourself to swing by here if you’re ever in Tucson.  It really is a museum of music.

Keep your mind open.

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Mamby on the Beach artist spotlight: Marian Hill

Philadelphia’s Marian Hill (Jeremy Lloyd and Samantha Gongol) got their name from combining the names of two characters from The Music Man.  Lloyd’s slick production combines trip-hop with a bit of trance while Gongol’s vocals are torch singer meets soul diva.  They’ll play the Beach Stage at Mamby on the Beach June 24th.

Keep your mind open.

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Mamby on the Beach artist spotlight: Rayvn Lenae

Chicago’s Rayvn Lenae is a teenaged R&B artist who is talented beyond her young years.  Her blend of soul and electro is so smooth that you could practically ice skate on it.  She’ll be playing the Beach Stage at Mamby on the Beach June 24th.  I have a feeling her show will be one many will be talking about over the weekend and for years when she explodes into the mainstream.

Keep your mind open.

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Mamby on the Beach artist spotlight: Will Clarke

Will Clarke is a DJ from Bristol, England who puts down floor-shaking club beats with titles like “Booty Percolatin’.”  I love how a lot of his stuff sounds like mid-1990’s rave material.  He’ll be playing the Mixmag tent at Mamby on the Beach on June 24th in a midday set that I’m sure will be killer.

Keep your  mind open.

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