WORDS FOR KEVIN JUNIOR

KEVIN JUNIOR

December 26, 1969 - January 15, 2016

It is like I just do not have any more tears to shed over the loss of artistic public figures that I have loved and admired, especially as the loss of David Bowie was, and remains, so tremendously crushing. But here I am, ready to shed a few more...

In the Winter of 2007, as I returned to Chicago to visit my parents, I performed the same rituals I tend to do when re-entering their home (as it it the house that I did not grow up within, but one where I spent a few Summers during my college years). I walk into the family room, set down my travel bag, walk around the kitchen allowing myself to take in the "lay of the land," re-aquainitng myself with the photos, items and iconography that has made up the images of my life. Finally, I sit at the kitchen table and grab the Chicago newspapers, instinctively heading straight for the Arts sections. On this particular trip home, I stumbled upon a Chicago Tribune article entitled, "A CHAMBER STRINGS SECOND CHANCE: From homelessness to a heartening comeback."

I immediately began to read and became instantly fascinated by the story of the Akron, Ohio born and Chicago based Kevin Gerber, known professionally as Kevin Junior, the singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist and creative visionary behind the band The Chamber Strings, a figure who delivered two gorgeous albums by the early '00s, and despite modest sales, both albums were adored by listeners and critics, proving that Junior's artistic vision possessed a certain resonance. The Chamber Strings once held a three night sold out event in Los Angeles and even The White Stripes opened for the band at one point.

But with the unfortunate mixture of record label shake-ups, meager sales plus the disillusion of Junior's marriage, his mounting depression and drug addiction and also reeling from the death of his close friend and musical co-conspirator, the oddly named Epic Soundtracks in 1997, Kevin Junior found that the musical world he had built piece by piece was falling apart and he ended up as a homeless drug addict on the streets of Los Angeles. It was also during his decline where Junior was diagnosed with a heart valve infection, complicating the matters of his health even further. Yet, over time, Kevin Junior cleaned himself up, returned to songwriting, his bandmates and Chicago to slowly try to revive the majesty of The Chamber Strings one more time, and by the time of this particular article, the band was set to perform at Chicago's famed Double Door.

I am certain that to some of you, this odyssey may sound like just one more episode of "Behind The Music" with the same cliched rise-fall-rise trajectory that we have seen time and again. But that perception would be wholly unfair to the man, his demons and the intense struggle he did indeed undertake to pull himself back from the brink. But his story and how it informed his artistry is what really spoke to me within the article, as were Junior's own words when he stated plainly:

"It always felt like music takes you because you're not in control of the decision. I'm a songwriter whether I like it or not. But the ultimate reward is I always wanted to touch people and basically take them to church. Songs can heal people. When I would get myself through these hard times, I would just start singing songs in my head. That was the difference between me wanting to commit suicide and wanting to stay alive." 

Compelling and powerful, the article propelled me to my parent's basement computer where I performed some quick internet searches and began to go on the hunt for the two albums by The Chamber Strings, which I did indeed discover, quickly purchase and was thrilled to see them awaiting my arrival upon my return to Madison several days later.

 

Dear readers and listeners, do trust me and believe me for I would never steer you in the wrong direction. The Chamber Strings' "Gospel Morning" (released June 13, 2000) and the stunning, glowing follow-up "Month Of Sundays" (released March 27, 2001) are albums that demand and fully deserve the search they have inspired, plus the adoration they have richly received from seemingly everyone who has had the chance to hear them.

Within both of those albums, you will hear the distinct musical voice of Kevin Junior who has seemingly been cut from the same cloth that produced the likes of The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson and Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen, for his songs contain that achingly bittersweet, melancholic soundscape and soulful core punctuated by a true rock and roll swagger and spirit. Upon first listen to both albums, I was instantly swept away by the melodies, harmonies and that certain inexplicable fragility that was housed at the center of Junior's voice, most specifically on tracks like "Telegram," "It's No Wonder,"  "The Fool Sings Without A Song," "I Can't Lose," and easily my favorite Chamber Strings track, "Last Lovers," which to my ears sounds like a late Summer's haze haunted longingly by an unrequited love. In the simplest terms, for me, the songs just STUCK and I was an instant fan, kicking myself for not having known a thing about this music anytime sooner!

But, as I always have expressed, music chooses you, and it is never wrong when it does.

Where the ghosts of Badfinger, Big Star, Chris Bell, The Raspberries, The Faces, Burt Bacharach and early Todd Rundgren floated through the proceedings, the music that Kevin Junior created with The Chamber Strings was no throwback affair nor an ode to nostalgia. The emotions were straight at the nerve endings, keeping all of the music up to the minute no matter how vintage it seemed. That is the mark of creating music that is timeless and believe me, Kevin Junior created timeless music!

If only the world would hear it.

Since becoming a fan of Kevin Junior's music, I have taken on the mission of what I think most of his fans have also performed: ensuring the world hears the music of Kevin Junior even if it means converting one listener at a time for his music is indeed that worthy of your attention. I have often "played" tracks upon my Facebook page and in my scant returns to radio airwaves over the years before my current Savage Radio program. In all instances, I just wanted to be yet another person to wave this music around, imploring you to give it all a chance for I am just certain that you will love it as much as myself.

On a whim, I searched for Kevin Junior on Facebook and to my surprise, I found him and after sending him a Friend Request, I received the even greater surprise that he accepted it. Over the years, I began a small correspondence with Junior as I didn't wish to bother him, but every single time I ever wrote to him, he responded with good cheer and enthusiasm. He would sometimes respond to songs I posted from other artists, signalling to me his musical passions (he was an avid fan of Bobby Womack for instance), and his own frequent postings also displayed the subjects that drew his ire (he had a vehement dislike for Dave Grohl--something of which I never asked him about for I didn't want to poke the dragon). He left me birthday messages each year as well and just last month, I heard from him again. I wanted to tell him that I had played his beautiful song "Everyday Is Christmas" upon my radio show, to which he was most appreciative and then, he informed me that new music was hopefully going to arrive over the next few months after a lengthy period of silence. All of this correspondence was more than I could have ever wished for because all I ever did wish for was to have the chance to tell him how much his music meant and means to me, that his artistry was being cherished, that his voice was being heard and to that, I can only hope that he felt my authenticity.

I am writing to all of you at this time about Kevin Junior because I found out, on my birthday no less, that Junior had passed away on Friday, January 15th due to unspecified causes. Yes, he had been ailing for quite some time and several years ago, he was in desperate need of a surgical procedure, to which I am not sure if he ever received. Yet, no matter the cause, another musical figure has departed this world and I am sent reeling ever still. I wish that he were just able to read these words and I am sad that it had to take this moment for me to finally sit down and write them. Yet also, in his passing, I am also now able to see the wide reach he had among fans and musician friends, who have all been writing and posting very emotional, lengthy, heartfelt tributes to this figure who is unknown to so many...and undeservedly so.

At this time, I passionately invite you to hunt down those two aforementioned albums by The Chamber Strings. Or if you really wish for a great search, just try and hunt down the compilation release under Junior's own name entitled "Ruins," which features live selections, demo tracks, rarities and selections from Junior's other musical projects with bands like The Mystery Girls and The Rosehips. Or even better, go straight to You Tube, where kind souls have posted not only the music but there also sits an excellent four part documentary about Kevin Junior and The Chamber Strings. Please. I implore you as best as I am able to not let this man's musical life vanish into the air with his passing. It is all hear for us to embrace and frankly, that is what his music sounded like to me the most: so warm, so inviting, so tender and sad, so heart-on-sleeve, so pure and poetic.

Shortly after David Bowie's passing, Kevin Junior posted on his Facebook page a photo of the "Gospel Morning" album with a link to his own song entitled "Flashing Star" and stated this song was originally inspired and written after he had been listening to Bowie's music for eight hours straight. It will never cease to amaze me what happens when one artist inspires another, when one life touches another's. Kevin Junior's music touched my life very deeply and if you give it a chance, I sincerely believe that it will touch yours as well.

Rest in peace, Kevin.

LOVING THE ALIEN: WORDS FOR DAVID

DAVID BOWIE

JANUARY 8, 1947-JANUARY 10, 2016

I am in shock. While it somehow all makes sense, I am in shock nonetheless and am not sure how to process a loss as tremendous as this one.

Very early this morning on Monday, January 11th, while the stars still filled the skies and the temperatures had plunged into the bitter coldness of Winter, my wife woke me with the news that legendary musical icon David Robert Jones, known forever to all of us as David Bowie, had passed away after a lengthy 18 month battle with cancer on Sunday, January 10th, just two days after reaching his 69th birthday, as well as seeing the release of his magnificent and what is now his final album "Blackstar." 

At this time, I was in the process of just beginning to write about the new album. Additionally, I was also planning my next radio venture on WVMO-FM this coming Wednesday evening to serve as a birthday/"Blackstar" tribute to Bowie but for a moment, I need some time to re-evaluate as again, I feel the need to process this astonishing loss. As I stated, Bowie's passing, especially after hearing the new album, all makes sense as it is a work of serious agitation, restless creativity and sublime urgency as the music moves from what sounds like aggravated trauma to a sense of flowing departure. Yes, I did indeed arrive at those feelings from my first listen a few days ago, and certainly having not even one clue as to the severity of his declining health. Any and all subsequent listens are now fully informed by his passing and yet, we cannot even begin to understand all of the symbolism, intended or imagined, because, as Bowie to the end was ever the artistic enigma, and like the final song on the new album emphatically states, "I Can't Give Everything Away."

For me, David Bowie was an artist who simultaneously transfixed while he often beautifully terrified me. As a child growing up in the 1970's, and not ever really hearing his music, I was more than aware of who David Bowie was as a media figure and his photos and television appearances frightened me to no end as he truly did appear to be an individual not of this Earth. By my teenage years in the 1980's, especially around the release of his smash album "Let's Dance" (released April 14, 1983), I had clearly warmed to him as I was more aware of his legend but it was not until the mid to late 1990's when everything clicked into place and I began listening to and collecting the bulk of his discography, pouring over every album, becoming entranced by every musical transformation as if he were a creature shedding old skin to give birth to the new.

Just think about the musical odyssey this man embarked upon and invited us to take with him for nearly 50 years. From the folk/acoustic music of his beginnings to the heights of the glam rock era, to the synthetic landscapes of his "Berlin trilogy," to the so-called plastic soul era, to the stadium pop star years and all in between, to the extended years of silence with the public only to surprise us again with the release of "The Next Day" (released March 8, 2013) and now, to the inscrutable final years where he declined all interactions with the press, only allowing the music itself to speak for him, we were witness to it all.

I think of all of the personas he embodied over time from Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, Halloween Jack, The Thin White Duke and more and all culminating with the disturbing blind prophet figure as seen in his final two short films for "Blackstar" and "Lazarus." Never would we ever know how much or how little these figures were pure inventions or extensions of himself, and frankly, I guess none of that matters now because of what all of his artistic changes taught all of us while we were all so entertained, entranced and enraptured.

Like the late Michael Jackson, I feel that David Bowie was and will forever remain a figure who inspired more people than we could ever possible realize. From musicians and songwriters, most certainly. But also producers, costume designers, actors, playwrights, artists, authors, painters, set designers, filmmakers and to each and every single person who ever felt as if they were also some sort of alien who happened to live upon Earth. Someone...anyone who ever felt out of step, out of place, out of time. Someone...anyone who ever felt they they existed against the grain but had no way to even begin to articulate their existence until David Bowie arrived and gave us an avenue that we could all travel. For those who wished to dream and explore and defiantly, for those who wished to explore the nature of individuality and sexuality, David Bowie gave us all the keys to universes we never knew existed, making him an artist that while no one could ever pin down, he remained beloved and so personal to us all, meaning different things to different people and even different generations. David Bowie while seeming so remote and so unknowable and was somehow here for all of us and we embraced him and his fearless vision emphatically.

For me, David Bowie represented that anything and everything is possible, that nothing is off limits, that you could never stray too far and that change, while sometimes frightening, can be embraced. As he sang to us so long ago, "turn and face the strange," and in doing so, we can find ourselves...over and over and over again. For what is life but the process of constant transformation and re-invention?

There are truly a world of words that I could spill for the life and legacy of David Bowie, but again, I feel the need to begin to process this loss, part of which is entirely contained in this posting, which is also as much for you as it is for myself. Even so, I feel so terribly sad. I'm tearing up as I write actually, it's all just so difficult to grasp. With the new album, like nearly everything he ever recorded and shared with the world, Bowie offered us signposts towards the future of limitless possibilities. As I listened, I was already wondering just where could he go next and now, he has taken the step we will all face one day, a journey into whatever is next, something unknowable, something indescribable, something that just may be like the artistry of David Bowie himself...something completely without categorization.  

As I scrolled through the internet, I found a tweet received and re-posted by former Supergrass member, the singer/songwriter Gaz Coombes, which stated:

"If you're ever sad just remember the world is 4.543 billion years old and you somehow managed to exist at the same time as David Bowie."

Amen.

To David Bowie, the gratitude I give to you is as endless as the inspiration you have given to me and the world. My God, how I will miss you. Rest in peace, my friend. Rest in peace.

WSPC'S SESSION NOTES FOR JANUARY 2016: HAPPY NEW YEAR!

FROM THE DJ'S STUDIO DESK:

HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you musicians and music lovers out there!!! I am sincerely hoping that this new year of activity on Synesthesia will be most fruitful to you as well as myself.

I'll try to keep it short and sweet right now but I promise and pledge that 2016 on Synesthesia will contain all of the material that has shaped this blogsite, from new music reviews and explorations and and reports from any live music events I happen to attend. I also hope to keep you abreast of any new activities that surface with the local Madison musicians that make up the bands Post Social, Dash Hounds and the soon to disband Modern Mod, plus any wider adventures I may have within the Madison music community.

And of course, I will continue my fantasy radio station adventures with WSPC concurrently with my real world radio adventures with my weekly one hour Savage Radio show on WVMO-FM (on your radio dial at 98.7 FM or LIVE STREAMING) and the annual WLHA Resurrection/Reunion weekend in July on the wondrous WSUM-FM (91.7 FM or LIVE STREAMING). 

So, with that, please allow me to let you (and myself) to ease into this new year, which I hope will be musically bountiful.

And as always, remember to...PLAY LOUD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WSPC PLAYLIST DECEMBER 2015

December 1, 2015
"Give Love On Christmas Day" performed by The Jackson 5
"Hello It's Me" performed by Nazz
"Hello It's Me" performed by The Isley Brothers

"Is There Something I Should Know?" performed by Duran Duran
"How Beautiful You Are" performed by The Cure
"Dynamo" (live) performed by Johnny Marr-WSPC PREMIERE
"Decline And Fall" performed by  Flesh For Lulu
"Save A Prayer" performed by Eagles Of Death Metal-WSPC PREMIERE

December 2, 2015
"Let The Mystery Be" performed by Iris DeMent
"Dear God 2.0" performed by The Roots with Monsters Of Folk
"I Want You" (live at MSR Studios) performed by Elvis Costello and The Roots
"P.D.A. (We Just Don't Care)" performed by John Legend
"Knock Yourself Out" performed by Jon Brion

December 3, 2015
"Her Hair Is Growing Long" performed by Jonathan Wilson
"Knights In Shining Karma" performed by XTC
"Wild Is The Wind" performed by David Bowie
"State Of The Art" performed by Jim James
"I Am Secure" performed by Pete Townshend

December 4, 2015

TRIBUTE TO SCOTT WEILAND OCTOBER 27, 1967-DECEMBER 3, 2015
All songs performed by Stone Temple Pilots except where indicated
"Wonderful"
"Between The Lines"
"Big Bang Baby"
"Mockingbird Girl" performed by Scott Weiland
"Blind Confusion" performed by Scott Weiland
"Barbarella" performed by Scott Weiland
"And So I Know"
"Sour Girl"

December 8, 2015

TRIBUTE TO JOHN LENNON-35TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIS ASSASSINATION
"Watching The Wheels"
"Mind Games"
"Instant Karma"
"Working Class Hero"
"Give Peace A Chance"
"Intuition"
"Oh Yoko!"
"Dear Yoko"
"Love"

December 10, 2015
"Homeward Bound" performed by Simon and Garfunkel
"Woodstock" performed by Joni Mitchell
"Losing It" performed by Rush
"The Roof Is Leaking" performed by Phil Collins
"Winter Wonderland" performed by Dean Martin

"White Christmas" performed by Otis Redding
"This Christmas" performed by Donny Hathaway
"Please Come Home For Christmas" performed by Charles Brown
"This Time Of Year" performed by Brook Benton
"Spirit Of Christmas" performed by Ray Charles

December 11, 2015
"Rich Man's War" performed by John Truedell
"The Other Side Of The Mountain" performed by Planet P. Project
"Hey Frederick" performed by Jefferson Airplane
"People Are People" (live) performed by A Perfect Circle
"War No More" performed by Wyclef Jean

December 13, 2015
"Suffer" performed by The Smashing Pumpkins
"Good Shepherd" performed by Jefferson Airplane
"End Of The Night" performed by The Doors
"Heroin" performed by The Velvet Underground
"Not Ready Yet" performed by Jon Brion
"Creep" (live at Coachella 2008) performed by Prince

December 14, 2015
"Jimmy Jazz" performed by The Clash
"Between Something And Nothing" performed by The Ocean Blue
"Tender" performed by Blur
"Promised Land" performed by Julian Cope
"Ring Ring Ring" performed by De La Soul

December 18, 2015
"Lazarus" performed by David Bowie-WSPC PREMIERE
"I Will" performed by The Fixx
"Wouldn't It Be Good" performed by Nik Kershaw
"Same Old Scene" performed by Roxy Music
"City Of Dreams" performed by Talking Heads

December 19, 2015
"Bop Gun (Endangered Species)" performed by Parliament
"So Good At Being In Trouble" performed by Unknown Mortal Orchestra
"Ingenue" performed by Atoms For Peace
"Breaker" performed by Deerhunter-WSPC PREMIERE
"Jingle Bells" performed by Moe Berg and the Berg Family-WSPC PREMIERE

December 20, 2015
"Let It Happen" (live) performed by Tame Impala
"Nucleus/Day After Day" performed by The Alan Parsons Project
"In Any Tongue" performed by David Gilmour-WSPC PREMIERE
"Three Dollar Hat" performed by The Dead Weather-WSPC PREMIERE
"Allas Sak" performed by Dungen-WSPC PREMIERE

December 21, 2015
"Deck The Halls" performed by Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea
"What Will Santa Claus Say?" performed by Louis Prima
"Zat You, Santa Claus?" performed by Lois Armstrong
"Santa Baby" performed by Eartha Kitt
"God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" performed by The Ramsey Lewis Trio

"Six To Eight Black Men" performed by David Sedaris

"Cosmik Debris" (live) performed by Frank Zappa

December 22, 2015
"Winter" performed by The Rolling Stones
"If You Want My Love" performed by Cheap Trick
"I'm Losing You" performed by John Lennon with Rick Neilsen, Bun E. Carlos and Tony Levin
"Cold Turkey" (live) performed by Lenny Kravitz
"Winter" performed by James Iha

"January" performed by Modern Mod
"To Love Somebody" performed by The Bee Gees
"Redemption Song" performed by Joe Strummer
"99 Floors" performed by The Smashing Pumpkins

"Christmas Is Coming" performed by The Vince Guaraldi Trio
"The Man With All The Toys" performed by The Beach Boys
"Christmas In The City" performed by Marvin Gaye
"Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" performed by The Jackson 5
"Countdown To Christmas Party Time" performed by XTC as The Three Wise Men

December 23, 2015
"Postcard From London" performed by Ray Davies with Chrissie Hynde
"Fairytale Of New York" performed by The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl
"Wombling Merry Christmaa" performed by The Wombles
"Merry Christmas Everybody" performed by Slade
"I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" performed by Wizzard
"Wonderful Christmastime" performed by Paul McCartney and Wings

"It's A Wonderful Life (Gonna Have A Good Time)" performed by Fishbone

"Thunder And Lightning" performed by Phil Collins
"Kim" (live at Carnegie Hall) performed by Ryan Adams
"Take The Hand" performed by Nazz

December 24, 2015
"The Little Drummer Boy" performed by Lou Rawls
"Blue Xmas (To Whom It May Concern)" performed by Bob Dorough with The Miles Davis Sextet
"Christmas" performed by The Who
"12 Days Of Christmas" performed by Bob and Doug McKenzie
"Christmastime" performed by Aimee Mann
"The Little Drummer Boy/Peace On Earth" performed by Bing Crosby and David Bowie

"Xmas Time Of The Year" performed by Green Day-WSPC PREMIERE

December 25, 2015
"Spectre" performed by Radiohead-WSPC PREMIERE

THE KINKS CHRISTMAS CONCERT 1977

December 26, 2015
"Holidays" performed by The Roches
"Kaze Wo Atsumte" performed by Happy End
"Sova" performed by Dungen
"O.B.E." performed by Dam-Funk-WSPC PREMIERE
"Country And Eastern Music" performed by Jerry Goodman and Jan Hammer

December 28, 2015
"Hold Me" performed by Fleetwood Mac
"Too Young" performed by Phoenix
"Perth" performed by Beirut-WSPC PREMIERE
"Child Of Vision" performed by Supertramp
"Secret Love" performed by Steve Nicks

"De Doo Doo Doo, De Daa Daa Daa" performed by The Police
"Dark Ages" performed by Jethro Tull
"Life Is White" performed by Big Star

"Save A Prayer" performed by Duran Duran and Eagles Of Death Metal-WSPC PREMIERE

December 29, 2015
"Gangsters" performed by The Specials
"Till The End" performed by Motorhead-WSPC PREMIERE
"Dust N' Bones" performed by Guns N' Roses
"For Your Life" performed by Led Zeppelin
"Too Nice To Talk To" performed by The English Beat

December 30, 2015
"Tapioca Tundra" performed by The Monkees
"In The Meantime/Some Other Time" performed by Badfinger
"I Reach For The Light" performed by The Raspberries
"Oh Dear Diary" performed by Sloan
"Someday Man" performed by The Monkees

"Back Seat Of My Car" performed by Paul and Linda McCartney
"Harmony" performed by Elton John
"Mystic Rhythms" performed by Rush
"Heaven Somewhere" performed by Common
"Mystery Title" performed by Robert Plant

December 31, 2015
"Someday We'll Know" performed by New Radicals
"Days Like This" performed by Van Morrison
"Days" performed by Kirsty MacColl
"Fading Lights" performed by Genesis
"Life Goes On" performed by The Kinks

SAVAGE RADIO PLAYLISTS DECEMBER 2015: WVMO-THE VOICE OF MONONA 98.7FM

SAVAGE RADIO: JOHN LENNON AND GEORGE HARRISON TRIBUTE
DECEMBER 2, 2015
1. "Cheer Down" performed by George Harrison
2. "(Just Like) Starting Over" performed by John Lennon
3. "Not Guilty" performed by The Beatles
4. "Hey Bulldog" performed by The Beatles
5. "Wah Wah" performed by George Harrison
6. "Crippled Inside" performed by John Lennon
7. "I Need You" performed by The Beatles
8. "I'm Happy Just To Dance With You" performed by The Beatles
9. "Every Man Has A Woman Who Loves Him" performed by John Lennon
10."Remember" performed by John Lennon
11."If I Needed Someone" performed by The Beatles
12. "All Things Must Pass" (demo version) performed by George Harrison

SAVAGE RADIO: FAVORITES OF 2015-DECEMBER 9, 2015
1. "When I Was A Boy" 
performed by Jeff Lynne's Electric Light Orchestra
2. "I Love You All The Time" performed by Eagles Of Death Metal
3. "Vega (stripes on)" performed by Van Hunt
4. "Global Nation" performed by Todd Rundgren
5. "Ohio" performed by Post Social
6. "Franks Kaktus" performed by Dungen
7. "In Its Infancy (The Waterfall)"
performed by My Morning Jacket
8. "People On The High Line" performed by New Order
9. "Phoenix" performed by Paul Weller
10."Reality In Motion" performed by Tame Impala

SAVAGE RADIO: DECEMBER 16, 2015
1. "Let The Records Play" performed by Pearl Jam
2. "Sluts" performed by Modern Mod
3. "Why" performed by Wednesday Week
4. "This Year's Girl" performed by Elvis Costello and the Attractions
5. "Andy" performed by Frank Zappa
6. "You Destroyed Classic Rock" performed by The Know-It-All-Boyfriends-A WVMO-FM EXCLUSIVE!!!!
7. "The Worst Band In The World" performed by 10cc
8. "Magnets" performed by Disclosure featuring Lorde
9. "Cry Like A Baby" performed by Bourgeois Tagg
10."She's Not Me" performed by Jenny Lewis
11. "Come" performed by Fleetwood Mac

SAVAGE RADIO: CHRISTMAS JAMS-DECEMBER 23, 2015
1. "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" performed by The Jackson 5
2. "Christmas Day" performed by Detroit Junior
3. "Little St. Nick" performed by The Beach Boys
4. "Jingle Bells" performed by Duke Ellington and his Orchestra
5. "Mary and the Holy Ghost' performed by Todd Rundgren
6. "Alone On Christmas Day"performed by Phoenix with Bill Murray
7. "Thanks For Christmas" performed by XTC a.k.a. The Three Wise Men
8. "Rui Chiu" performed by The Monkees
9. "Everyday Is Christmas" performed by The Chamber Strings
10."I Want To Spend Christmas With Elvis (Heartbreak Noel)" performed by Debbie Dabney
11."I'll Be Your Santa Baby" performed by Rufus Thomas
12."Christmas Wrapping" performed by The Waitresses
13."Let's Make Christmas Mean Something This Year" performed by JAMES BROWN

SAVAGE RADIO: HAPPY NEW YEAR-DECEMBER 30, 2015
1. "Rudy, A Message To You" performed by The Specials
2. "Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)" performed by Taking Heads
3. "777-9311" performed by The Time
4. "Long Breakdown" performed by Oingo Boingo
5. "Get Innocuous!" performed by LCD Soundsystem
6. "Wrong" performed by Everything But The Girl
7. "Discipline" performed by Nine Inch Nails
8. "Every Little Word" performed by Flesh For Lulu
9. "I Must Go" performed by Lindsey Buckingham

NOW PLAYING IN THE SAVAGE JUKEBOX DECEMBER 2014

"ZIPPER DOWN"
EAGLES OF DEATH METAL
Released October 2, 2015
NEW 2015 MUSIC: It is a shame that it often takes a tragedy to become  greater acquainted with a musical artist or band but that is indeed what has happened between myself and Eagles Of Death Metal.

Due to the terrorist attacks in Paris, and most specifically, the shootings that occurred during the band's performance inside Le Bataclan, I found myself  heading to B-Side perhaps a week afterwards to purchase the band's current album, their first in seven years. Now, certainly being a fan of Joshua Homme and his work within Queens Of The Stone Age and Them Crooked Vultures, I had heard of EODM but for no reasons whatsoever had I not really listened to his two man project alongside lead vocalist/guitarist Jesse Hughes. After finally hearing the musical speedball that is "Zipper Down," I am deeply inclined to check out the remainder of their catalog.

Quick and to the point, "Zipper Down" is good ol' high octane, sleazy rock and roll that showcases a surprising studio sheen and even some glam rock sensitivity alongside its bad boy garage rock attitude. Of special note is the band audaciously faithful cover of Duran Duran's "Save A Prayer" without narry a nudge or a wink.  

"VOLUNTEERS"
JEFFERSON AIRPLANE
Released November 1969

"L"
STEVE HILLAGE
Released 1976

"AMOK"
ATOMS FOR PEACE
Released February 26, 2013

"PRESENCE"
LED ZEPPELIN
Released March 31, 1976

"LOST IN TRANSLATION"
ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK
Released September 9, 2003

"NO, NO, NO"
BEIRUT
Released September 11, 2015
NEW 2015 MUSIC: I actually just picked this up near the very end of the year based upon some kind words I had heard from friends and songs that were played upon the WSUM radio show "The Mixtape" hosted by the illustrious DJ Nightway.  While I have now only heard the album in full perhaps twice, I am immediately struck with bandleader/songwriter/singer/multi-instrumentalist Zach Condon's blending of musical genres certainly, but I am a sucker for the overall warmth that is found in live drums, gentle brass and electric pianos and analog synths, So far, so good...

"ADRENALIN BABY:  JOHNNY MARR LIVE"
JOHNNY MARR
Released December 4, 2015
NEW 2015 MUSIC: The six string dreams of Johnny Marr as he and his crack band perform his solo selections alongside the music he created with both The Smiths and Electronic in a live setting. What else could I want?

...and from the SAVAGE LIBRARY...

UNFAITHFUL MUSIC & DISAPPEARING INK

ELVIS COSTELLO

Publisher: Blue Rider Press

1st Edition October 13, 2015

688 pages

"There is music that seems to belong to you the moment that you hear it, and music about which you must be patient, awaiting the hour when it may reveal itself to you."

Within the nearly 700 page tome that is the luxuriously written memoir by Elvis Costello, those above words provided me not only with such uplift, but also with a certain connection to a musical figure whom I always have felt to be so defiantly inscrutable. Yet, after these past two and a half months of reading, while not remotely a "tell all," Costello has provided demonstrably more than I ever could have asked from him regarding his life story and his continuing adventures within music and songwriting.

Elvis Costello's Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink eschews the standard biographical memoir trajectory for a more non-linear approach that almost serves he way actual memories tend to work: in waves, from anecdote to anecdote, how one memory triggers another and therefore, how they all link together into a cohesive whole. In many ways, every chapter feels like a movement within the symphony of his life story.

Costello's impeccable and brilliantly detailed memory plus meticulous research ensures that this memoir not only delivers the goods regarding Costello's musical life, and of that, there is a tremendous amount of material. He presents to us his first hand accounts of his initial brushes with fame and fortune, the dalliances and self-destructive behavior that inflicted wounds within his personal life and relationships. 

We are given copious glances into his past alcoholic periods and he also delivers what should be the final word concerning his infamous comments regarding Ray Charles over 30 years ago. We are given new avenues to witness the likes of Bob Dylan, Burt Bacharach, the late Allen Toussaint and Paul McCartney behind the scenes. And mostly, we view Costello as being a figure just like any of us reading his book: a fan learning, enjoying, loving and forever becoming transfixed with music. Costello's dense prose is filled with self deprecating wit and the sharp witticisms that have populated his lyrics from the beginning of his career. And while I remained awed by his skillful songwriting, of which the book provides many examples peppered throughout the narrative, he often strikes a bemused pose, honestly stunned at his good fortune with having maintained a career in music and having brushed shoulders with so many heroes and contemporary legends for nearly 40 years.   

Augmenting the music, the book also works as an exploration of Irish and English history, a journey through Costello's family tree, and most touchingly, at its core, the book serves as a tribute to the relationship he shared between himself and his Father, also a musician.

While not a quick read by any means, Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink is an exquisitely written remembrance that should not only satisfy Costello's generations of fans handsomely. It should satisfy any lovers of fine literature. 

WSPC'S FAVORITE ALBUMS OF 2015

WSPC'S FAVORITE ALBUMS OF 2015

For all of the music that I purchased and listened to in 2015, I think a common theme was one of sonic adventurousness. It seemed that the albums I responded to the very most were the ones that truly captured my attention by arriving from a landscape that was either more left of center or more unexpected. Studio wizadry was not the only factor in thinking about compiling this list. When I think back to all that I have listened to this year, my mind just travels to the music where just the composing, performing and presenting the music in a fashion that made my ears tingle ecstatically mattered the very most.

As with past years, this list is not presented in any discernible order other than the top two albums..and with that, let's get to the list!

"HITNRUN: Phase Two"-PRINCE

Surprise...and just under the wire at that. "HITNRUN: Phase Two," Prince's second album of the year (following September's "HITNRUN: Phase One"), the fourth album released since 2014 and his 39th overall, was released on December 12, 2015 without warning, hints or preparation and frankly, I could not have asked for a better musical Christmas present this year.

Unlike the previous "HITNRUN" installment where Prince was found taking a backseat on his own album to the likes of  guest stars and Producer Joshua Welton who orchestrated and engineered the bulk of that album's more electronic dance soundscapes, "HITNRUN: Phase Two" showcases Prince fully in the driver's seat with a release that is defiantly more organic, analog recorded and gloriously featuring a 16 piece horn section (made up of The NPG Hornz and Minneapolis' celebrated The Hornheads) that often creates sonic flourishes that sound like 21st century updates of Duke Ellington.

Over the course of just under one hour, Prince unleashes the orchestrated protest song "Baltimore," the previously digitally released selections "Rock And Roll Love Affair," "Screwdriver," "Xtralovable," and the rapturously outstanding "Groovy Potential," plus the new, fully infectious jams of "Stare" (which incorporates references to both "Kiss" and "Sexy Dancer"), the spiritual psychedelia of "Revelation" and even the extended, almost mini-suite jazz/funk fusion of "Black Muse," which does recall the landscape of "The Rainbow Children" (released November 20, 2001) or his instrumental albums "Xpectation" (released January 1, 2003) or "N.E.W.S." (released July 29, 2003). 

Throughout the entire album, and especially as expected from an artist this towering, Prince continues to deliver his nimble, peerless guitar work, proficiently propulsive bass playing and I especially loved the clean, full, dry sound of his drums and those warm electric piano keys, all suggesting a trip into the intimate setting of a late night jazz club that somehow decided to throw itself into the DEEP funk!

As with the two albums he released last year, "ART OFFICIAL AGE" and "PLECTRUM ELECTRUM" (released September 30, 2014), "HITNRUN: Phase Two" finds Prince fully engaged, rejuvenated, inspired, committed and connected, therefore making a cohesive work that stands firmly with his '14 releases, each of them the best works he has delivered in decades.

"THE EPIC"-KAMASI WASHINGTON

It would be extreme hard pressed to find another album of 2015, that referenced the full purpose of its intent and execution within its own title as correctly and as brilliantly as Composer/Producer/Arranger/Saxophonist Kamasi Washington's 3 disc/3 hour jazz fusion excursion. 

"The Epic" is indeed a fully demanding work yet it is not unaccessible. Actually, I believe that you will find much warmth and invitation throughout the course of the album even though the songs are defiantly unafraid of length (the album longest track is Latin tinged "Re Run Home," which rolls onwards for 14 plus minutes). The work is enormously melodic, rhythmically propulsive and overall staggering in its fierce and flowing musicianship that often recalls Charlie Mingus, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders and Ornette Coleman while also firmly staking his own powerful claim. 

"YOUNG RANDOLPHS"-POST SOCIAL

One of 2015's most addictive albums arrived from Madison's very own Post Social as they debuted their second full length release this Autumn and which you are still able to download for FREE from their Bandcamp page. The young collective of Mitch Deitz, Shannon Connor, Sam Galligan and Brendan Manley have again created a work that transfixes due to their hypnotically interlocked guitar rhythms but this time, the band takes a post-punk rock approach and emerges with a more aggressive set of music than their dreamy debut release, and the overall effect is thrilling due to their endlessly inventive songwriting and superior musicianship.

(Full album profile can be found in the October 2015 section)  

"COVERED"-ROBERT GLASPER

After the successful "Black Radio" series, which included two album plus a remix EP, Pianist/Composer Robert Glasper reunited with his trio bandmates Vicente Archer (acoustic bass) and Damion Red (drums) and recorded a set of unorthodox cover songs (from the likes of Joni Mitchell, Musiq Soulchild, John Legend as well as reinterpretations of his own selections) live at Capitol Studios for his latest release. It is a dreamlike release, where Glasper's free flowing musicianship is transportive while also containing a certain edginess, as displayed in the group cover version of Radiohead's "Reckoner," the more dissonant 13 minute "In Case You  Forgot," and the mournful political protest statement "I'm Dying Of Thirst." 

"YOURS, DREAMILY"-THE ARCS

If you are looking for a terrific headphone album, the debut release by The Arcs is a perfect find, as this latest project from The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach is a wildly diverse collection that mines deeper, wider territory than his primary band...and also gives Jack White yet another reason to be angry as I feel that Auerbach has been creatively trumping White in recent years.

Trust me, The Arcs have got it all over most alternative rock albums including the latest release from White's The Dead Weather (which--I'm sorry--is filled with decidedly underwhelming, overly recycled material and moves) as "Yours, Dreamily" casts a wide musical net to include not just the staples of rock and the blues, but also booming psychedelia ("Outta My Mind"), nods to hip-hop ("Put A Flower In Your Pocket"), Ennio Morricone influenced acid country ("Everything You Do"), grindhouse porn movie soundtracks ("Come & Go") and even more, making for an album that is exciting and unpredictable. 

Note to Jack White: If you just focused more on just making the music rather than twisting yourself inside and out proclaiming that you are the bearer of some prefabricated sense of authenticity, you could also be making albums as strong as The Arcs. 

"THE FUN RISES, THE FUN SETS"-VAN HUNT

As with The Arcs, singer/songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist Van Hunt has also released a striking headphone album this year. While I do feel that he could share the same musical space as idiosyncratic R&B/funk artists like Bilal, D'Angelo and maybe morseo someone like Cody ChesnuTT, Van Hunt has not remotely received the level of attention those figures have and he most certainly deserves to.

Using a bit of a nod to Ernest Hemingway, "The  Fun Rises, The Fun Sets" showcases two sides of a musical coin: moody funk during the first half and even moodier soul ballads during the second half, and all of the songs filtered through a simultaneously state of the art and lo-fi production style that always catches your ears of balance, therefore making a listening experience that keeps you guessing as to what exactly you heard while your hips are swiveling and your head is nodding. Van Hunt, who handles the lion's share of the album's instrumentation single-handedly, is unafraid to turn melodies inside out, throw out oodles of lyrical conundrums and utilize the instruments and the studio itself in ways that may initially sound completely "wrong" but are indeed infectious.

It is as if, he took Prince's most obscure, most arcane songs and utilized them as a base to leap from, and the effect is intoxicating.

"ALLAS SAK"-DUNGEN

The second most left-of-center album on this list (the top tiered title is forthcoming) and one of the most enjoyable albums I've heard this year. Hailing from Stockholm, Sweden is Dungen, which loosely translates as "The Groove," highly apt as this band provides a 1970's influenced blend of psychedelic rock, jazz, folk and fusion that made for more addictive listening for me this year. Aside from the general descriptions that I have provided, the music of Dungen is nearly indescribable, therefore urging you to take a chance and listen to them for yourselves via their website or You Tube or some avenue that you can utilize as a tester.  But, trust me. I'd never steer you wrong. This is a warm album. An inviting one. A work filled with confidence, exploration, experimentation, and a certain adventurousness that will send you through the wormhole and back again.

"SATURNS PATTERN"-PAUL WELLER

The legendary Paul Weller, former leader of both The Jam and The Style Council, has emerged with what may be one of his finest solo releases to date, and this is already counting the wonderful "Wild Wood" (released September 6, 1993) and "22 Dreams" (released June 2, 2008). 

With "Saturns Pattern," his 12th release, Paul Weller also releases a wildly diverse collection that opens with the roaring "White Sky," continues with the psychedelic soul of "Pick It Up," the McCartney-esque confection of "Going My Way," the poignantly introspective "I'm Where I Should Be," all the way to album spectacular triptych that features the glorious "Phoenix," the 21st century travelling blues of "In The Car..." and the high flying slow jam of "These City Streets." 

Throughout all of the inspired performances and production, Paul Weller's supremely soulful vocals function as the sonic glue and carries every song to its highest peaks, demanding the entire album be experienced allover again immediately. A terrific work without question.

"MUSIC COMPLETE"-NEW ORDER

For their first album without co-founder/bassist Peter Hook, New Order must have felt as if they had something to prove and they met the challenge head on and delivered their finest album in over 20 years.

"Music Complete," deeply enveloping and absolutely sensational from start to finish, finds New Order utilizing their signature blend of propulsive dance rhythms with melancholic angst that takes the listener on an odyssey from existential unease to personal resolution over the course of 11 tracks and a hair over 64 minutes. From the nightclub heights of the extraordinary "Tutti Frutti," "People On The High Line," "Singularity" and "Plastic" to the more turbulent "Academic," "Restless" and "Nothing But A Fool" to the growling intensity of the Iggy Pop spoken word "Stray Dog" and more, the album serves as a spectacular high point for an outfit that honestly has nothing left to prove.
(Full album profile can be found in the October 2015 section)

"RUNDDANS"-TODD RUNDGREN, EMIL NIKOLAISEN & HANS-PETER LINDSTROM

The year's most left-of-center album from one of the most idiosyncratic artists we have ever been blessed to have. "Runddans" is one of two albums released this year from Todd Rundgren, (the other being "Global"). In collaborating with Norwegian musicians Emil Nikolaisen and Hans-Peter Lindstrom, Rundgren has released a work that is so far ahead of the curve that the only musical reference that I could use to compare it with would be work Rundgren released 40 years ago. This time, he has finally caught up to himself and extended even further!

While almost impossible to truly describe, here goes..."Runddans" is essentially the mostly instrumental journey through the life cycle as depicted through a repetitive eight musical chord sequence that shifts, divides, mutates, elongates, shrinks, explodes and restructures itself over and again. As the album lasts a mere 39 minutes, it feels like a complete universe, making for an album that is personal yet universal, intimate yet epic, singular yet designed for the masses, and fully inviting while seeming impenetrable. If you could somehow take Writer/Director Terrence Malick's "The Tree Of Life" (2011) and turn it into a synthetic rock album, then Todd Rundgren has achieved it.

(Full album profile can be found in the May 2015 section)

"I LOVE YOU, HONEYBEAR"-FATHER JOHN MISTY

This album floored me.

The second album by singer/songwriter/former Fleet Foxes drummer Father John Misty is a literary infused and darkly romantic song cycle that spins the non-linear tale of his romance with his wife Emma through a sonic palate that suggests the music of Pasty Cline as produced and arranged by Brian Wilson. Emotionally exhausting and completely filled with firecracker lyrics and cinematic widescreen harmonics, Father John Misty where every song serves as a short story in the novel of Misty and Emma's relationship as well as a turbulent ride into Misty's tormented psyche.

Throughout, I was consistently upended as every time I thought that I had found my bearing from song to song, Misty would then deliver a body slam of a phrase, an unrepentant vulgarity, an ever increasingly disturbing deep dive into self-loathing as if daring the listener to remain beside him during this arduous inner journey, no matter how lushly romantic the music sounded.

"I Love You, Honeybear" is a labyrinthine expression and exploration of love as it truly exists as well as a walk through the corridors of Misty's personal heartbreak hotel. And by album's end, the wind is not only knocked clean out of you, you do indeed realize what a miracle love actually is.

(Full album profile can be found in the August 2015 section)

2015 M.V.P.-RYAN ADAMS

For my personal tastes, if 2015 were to have some sort of an M.V.P., that artist would have to be none other than Ryan Adams, who this year returned to releasing music at his legendary prolific nature and then some, all the while retaining the high quality of his art. For me, this is all the more remarkable as he rarely voyages into any sense of studio wizadry, sticking solidly to the basic combination of vocals, guitars, bass. drums, piano and augmented with minimal keyboards or orchestral fourishes.

"TEN SONGS FROM LIVE AT CARNEGIE HALL"

 

In April, Adams released "Ten Songs From Live From Carnegie Hall," select performances culled from the 6 LP complete set, and what that album delivered to me was a sense of what a solo acoustic performance from Adams just may be like--especially, as I have seen him perform with his now defunct backing band The Cardinals on two occasions. In contrast to his hysterical and profanity laced stage banter, this set presents Adams in a pin-drop quiet setting weaving a magical spell with minimal instrumentation, and the wonder of his beautiful vocals, which give the lyrics a grander and even more focused and fragile context in such stripped down arrangements. Simply beautiful.

There is no reason whatsoever for me to be listening to Taylor Swift. That being said, when Adams revealed that he was indeed recording his version of Swift's mega popular "1989," my ears perked upwards. It is no secret that Adams is quite the studio obsessive and he has been known to re-record albums that he has enjoyed in the past. This time around, and as he was recovering from his recent divorce from Mandy Moore, Adams took to the studio to re-craft the entire album from top to bottom, and completely without irony, somehow making the album sound as if it was always his to begin with, almost serving as a sequel or companion album to his own "Gold" (released September 25, 2001), "Love Is Hell" (released May 4, 2004) or even "29" (released December 19, 2005). Imagine a mellow Bruce Springsteen fronting The Smiths and you'll have a sense of the melancholic glory Adams has achieved with this set.

THE PAX-AM SINGLE SERIES

 

 

 

And then, there's what Ryan Adams has recorded and released in a bit before and in between his two official new albums, a collection of 7 in vinyl/digital singles, each containing three or four selections that run the gamut from his acoustic ballads, punk rock excursions, power pop bangers, Euro-pop dreamscapes and even comical studio odds and ends. All of them, readily available upon I-Tunes (all of the vinyl versions are long SOLD OUT), will give you a front row seat into Adams' restless creativity and also help you understand that he is an artist miles ahead of many. 

ALBUM OF THE YEAR: RUNNER UP  "CURRENTS"-TAME IMPALA

As I first stated back in July, my own specialized brand of synesthesia has continuously received the grandest workout due to this album, the third release from Tame Impala, without any competitor is my second highest favorite album of 2015.

Tame Impala mastermind Kevin Parker, who wrote, sang, produced and performed every single, solitary sound on the album all by himself, created a gorgeous, resplendent sounding masterpiece that provocatively extends from his previous palate of psychedelic guitar workouts to a more keyboard based soul/R&B psychedelia, therefore challenging himself as well as his audience and the results were nothing less than spectacular. 

Leading with what I feel to be the song of the year, the nearly 8 minute wonderland of "Let It Happen," Tame Impala's "Currents" utilizes its oceans of analog synths and interstellar slow jams complete with deep, hip-swaying bass guitars and finger snaps to take the listener (as well as Parker himself) upon a dazzling emotional journey that closely touches the immediacy and melancholic greatness of The Beach Boys' "Pet Sounds" (released May 16, 1966).

How easy it would have been for Parker to have taken Tame Impala into a repetitive musical headspace, which would have easily been successful. But Parker's restructured his own musical approach while growing his overall sense of artistic intent and vision into a stunningly composed and sequenced album that exists as a swirling, dynamic euphoria. LP4 cannot arrive soon enough!!!

(Full album profile can be found in the July 2015 section) 

ALBUM OF THE YEAR: "TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY"-KENDRICK LAMAR

And here we arrive at the tip-top, the finest album I have heard this year...and maybe it is the best album of the last five years at that. 

Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp A Butterfly" is a pulverizing work. Dense, demanding, staggering in its audaciousness, creativity, inventiveness and power, Lamar has unrepentantly created an album that harks back to the past not just by incorporating the worlds of live instrumentation and free jazz and poetry into the world of hip-hop, he has created a work that forces the listener to focus solely upon the music for the duration of its massive, complex, 78 minute length. For us, Kendrick Lamar has created a work where the listening IS the experience itself and believe me, there is no way to be distracted from its strength and vision for even one second.

Functioning simultaneously as an introspective drama, political protest statement, spiritual allegory and cultural commentary about what it means to be Black in 21st century America, Lamar, through his astonishing almost Shakespearean lyricism and the master class delivery of his entire vocal performances, creates a narrative containing psychological meltdowns and spiritual ascension so thorough, so deeply mined that we are hearing the evolution of a young man completely from the inside out. It is a journey that contains as much self-laceration as enlightenment and Lamar presents everything through a veritable hurricane of words, characters and voices that makes so much of the current state of music sound completely trite. This is political music that confronts racism, self-loathing and self-love without blinking. It is demonstrably in-your-face and defiantly multi-layered. The only thing this album is missing is a complete libretto!

Thankfully, Lamar, working in lockstep with figures like Kamasi Washington, George Clinton, Robert Glasper, Thundercat and Flying Lotus among others, has ensured that the songs live and breathe musically, through melodies as well as rhythms, therefore making the words sing and soar as their most vibrant.  

Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp A Butterfly" is a masterpiece without question. It is not remotely passive, it is definitely not an easy listen and it is also decidedly vulgar--therefore reflecting precisely the world we are all co-existing within. It will indeed give listeners much to debate, discuss and discern while telling a story that is individual and cultural, local and global and all leading to a hopeful plane of spiritual deliverance. 

Filled from beginning to end with feverish determination and ambition, Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp A Butterfly" is the finest album of 2015. 

(Full album profile can be found in the April 2015 section)

And with that, the musical year of 2015 comes to a close. 2016, I'm READY FOR YOU!!!!!!!!!!!