Day 2 - Diamond Head & Sunset

Today was a busy. We left the resort and ventured out into Honolulu. First stop was in China town. The food was amazing, though the picture taking opportunities were scarce. Unless, you want to take picture of fish markets -- which, while cool, don't make all that great of a subject for photos.

We did snap a couple interesting shots. Here they are:

This is the Kuan Yin temple, you can read more information about it here.

Here we are in front of the river walkway in China Town.

Next stop was Diamond Head. This was a climb; it took us nearly 45 minutes to hike to the top of the crater. Yes, hike. It is not a path, there are no cleanly cut walkways....you wander up to the top along an uneven path and some very steep stairs. From the top you have a great view of Waikiki beach -- hum the theme to Hawaii 5-0 as you look at these next pictures.

Waikiki from atop Diamond Head, if you click the picture it should enlarge.

This is the other side of the bay, near Hananuma.

Here we are, Waikiki in the background.

We got to Ko Olina just in time to see the sunset. This picture is taken between the lagoons for our resort. Just past our beaches is the open ocean, this is pretty much the reason you go to Hawaii. Amazing.

The sunset, just behind our resort.

OK, that is all for now. Tomorrow we are going to try surfing and then up to the North Shore to sight see. More pictures tomorrow night.

What I saw this Morning

We arrived in Oahu yesterday. Flight delays meant that it was too late to really take in our surroundings, but this morning we awoke to this:

Indeed. Jet lag has us up at 6:30 AM local time, but once I opened the curtains to the rooms I didn't care what time it was. Today's agenda includes food, beach, snorkeling and Mai Tai.

Yes, of course I know that this has nothing to do with the topic of the blog, but WHO CARES. I'll throw up some other pictures as we start to see the sights, and this blog will return to regular programming in a week or so when we return to the mainland.

For now, I'm off to grab Mahimahi and eggs then to the beach to get a heinous sunburn.

Playslists from CWR's Through the Years

The last few weeks CWR has been doing a countdown of some (there is so much I am not playing -- I could do the show again with all new music and bands) of the best music of period. This has turned out to be a tough task, but rewarding. I started with 1980, since I've done 77-79 shows in the past. I think when the semester starts back up I'll replay the '77, '78, '79, shows again, then continue with 1983, which next to '77, is one of the best years for music ever.

Since some people have asked for a complete list of what I've been playing I thought I'd include it here (you can also read past play lists here). Feel free to drop me a line if you want to know more about an album/artist. If you have comments, maybe I have left off your favorite band or album, let me know that too.

1980:

Imitation of Christ - Psychedelic Furs - s/t
The Friend Catcher - The Birthday party - s/t
Total War - Comsat Angels - Waiting for a Miracle
Rescue - Echo and the Bunny Men - Crocodiles
Get up and Use Me- The Fire Engines - Lubricate Your Living Room
It's Her Factory - Gang of Four - Yellow Single
The Human League - Being Boiled - Travelogue
Sorry for Laughing - Josef K - Sorry for Laughing [Unreleased]
Seen and Not Seen - Talking Heads - Remain in Light
Komakino - Joy Division - Atmosphere Single
Split - Liliput - Die Matrosen
A Raincoats Room - Swell Maps - Jane from Occupied Europe
53 Miles West of Venus - B-52's - Wild Planet
Paradise Place - Siouxsie and the Banshees - Kaleidoscope
High Fidelity - Elvis Costello - Get Happy!
The More I See You - OMD - Organisation
Tattooed Love Boys - The Pretenders - s/t
Health and Efficiency - This Heat - Health and Efficiency EP
Danger Becomes Apparent - Scott Wilks + The Walls - s/t
A Forest - The Cure - Seventeen Seconds
Cry Baby Killer - The Flesh Eaters - No questions Asked
Barbra - The Modernettes - Teen City EP
Because of You - Glaxo Babies - Put Me on the Guest List

1981:

Real Toys - Altered Images - Happy Birthday
Washed up and Left for Dead - The Selecter - Celebrate the Bullet
Repetition - The Au Pairs - Playing with a different Sex
Don't Choose the Wrong Song - The Embarassment - s/t EP
Only Loved at Night - The Raincoats - Odyshape
Dreams Never End - New Order - Movement
Bim, Bam, Boum -Lizzy Mercier Descloux - Mambo Nassau
Treason - The Teardrop Explodes - Wilder
Flowers of Romance - PIL - Flowers of Romance
Choir - A Certain Ratio - To Each...
Loads of Noise - The Zounds - Curse of the Zounds
Part Time Punks - Television Personalities - Mummy You're Not Watching Me
Love Action (I Believe in Love) - The Human League - Dare!
Kids in America - Kim Wilde - Kids in America
Walkaway - The English Beat - Wha'ppen?
Love Zombies - The Monochrome Set - Love Zombies
Swimming - Martha and the Muffins - Trance and Dance
S.P.Q.R. - This Heat - Deceit
Smiles and Laughter - Modern English - Mesh and Lace
Joan of Arc - OMD - Architecture and Morality
Capitalism - Oingo Boingo - Only a Lad
To Hell with Poverty - Gang of Four - Anthrax Marxist EP

1982:

Save it for Later - The English Beat - Special Beat Service
Accretions - Shrieckback - Tench EP
Car Trouble - Adam and the Ants - Antmusic
Several Sins - The Birthday Party - Junkyard
America - The Au Pairs - Sense and Sensuality
The Hollow Men - The Cocteau Twins - Garlands
The Force and Wisdom - Crispy Ambulance - The Plateau Phase
Low Profile - The Blue Orchids - Greatest Hit
Winter pt. 1 - The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour
Life During Wartime - Talking Heads - The Name of this Band is...
A Strange Day - The Cure - Pornography
I Don't Want to Push it - Sonic Youth - Sonic youth
Ill Wind Blows - Eyeless in Gaza - Drumming the Beating Heart
Talk Talk - Talk Talk - The Party's Over
Slowdive - Siouxsie and the Banshees - Kiss in the Dreamhouse
Never Say Never - Romeo Void - Warm in Your Coat
Beyond Belief - Elvis Costello - Imperial Bedroom
Know Your Rights - The Clash - Combat Rock
Space Age Love Song - A Flock of Seagulls - s/t
Visitation - Section 25 - The Key of Dreams
Underground - Men at Work - Business as Usual

Well, that will pretty much get you caught up for the summer. Soon, I'll be putting shows up in MP3 format. Hope you enjoyed the show this semester, much more to come.




Cold War Radio -- Last Show of the Semester

So today will be the last CWR of the semester. Of course, i'll be back on the air in the Fall. Until then you can enjoy the 4th installment CWR Through the Years. Today, I'm running through 1982 (surprisingly good year) from 2-4.

Check out the show on Radio UTD. If you are a fan of post-punk/new wave music, you are sure to enjoy Cold war Radio's stroll through the archive.


PS - I'll start posting my shows play lists here and soon to follow the podcast. Stay tuned.

Album Review - Why?

Why?

Alopecia

Anticon Collective

RIYL: Slint, Black Heart Procession, Trip-hop, Anticon Collective

Rating: 7.5

Whatever you are expecting, stop it. Unless you have heard any of the several previous releases, in that case you knew what to expect. I was a WHY? virgin and now that I know “Why?” I’m a convert. My point: Alopecia defies strict categorization. This is a good thing.

From Oakland, California Alopecia is the fourth, full length album released on the Anticon collective, a label known for hip-hop/post-rock indie act, a bill that Why? fits nicely. Yoni Wolf’s vocal contribution swings from a nasal melody to spoken, hip-hop like lyrics. What stands out though is the narrative Wolf weaves for the listeners. Themes range from urban sprawl, to stalking, to sex and desire. As you listen you get the sense that you are hearing a soundtrack to someone’s life, varied, complex, contradictory and occasionally scary. Wolf’s stories are layered over a range of sounds that gives each tale a unique setting and mood. Sometimes you recognize the synthesizers and beat of traditional hip-hop, other songs feature stripped down, post-rock guitar tracks.

My favorite track is ‘the Hollows.’ Deconstructed guitars and a great combination of Wolf’s rap/singing style creates a hummable, if slightly disturbing, refrain. Calliope like organ and sharp snares drift just under the surface of 'These Few Presidents.' 'Simeon’s Dilemma' is bittersweet and dark. Lyrics like “you are the only proper noun that I need” seem charming until you remember that the song is about a stalker with ominous plans. But, it is exactly this juxtaposition of themes, styles and images that make Alopecia wonderful/frightening.

Check out a "video" for The Hollows . This goes out to all my underdone and undertongued, monk-lunged frontmen...

Album Review - Working for a Nuclear Free City

Here are a couple of album reviews I did for Radio UTD over the last few months. I'll post more of these as I complete them. Of course, you can also read my reviews (and other great reviews) at Radio UTD.

Working for a Nuclear Free City
Businessmen and Ghost
RIYL: Spiritualized, Spacemen 3, Ride, My Bloody Valentine, Ride

I was not even remotely surprised to read that Working for A Nuclear Free City hailed from Manchester, England. Everything about their second full album Businessmen and Ghosts feels like these guys would fit nicely onto a bill at the Hacienda circa 1987. Listening made me want to cozy up to the Gay Traitor, sip a drink and nod off into a musical trance. OK, so it’s 2008 and the Hacienda is closed, but thankfully the spirit of the ‘Madchester’ scene is alive and well on this album. One can hear traces of Section 25 and the Happy Mondays, hints of New Order and Joy Division and even some of the funkier elements on A Certain Ratio. While there is a lot you could compare WFANFC to, they are entirely their own entity. A mix of deep, groove inspired bass lines, staccato drum beats and crashing guitar scapes, a la Spiritualized or Ride, combine post-punk and shoe gazer sounds with a danceable flair. One element that stands out across the entire album is its cohesion. Songs flow from one to the next, inviting you to get completely lost in the tracks, never sure when or where it began or ended. But who cares, the appeal of this album is how easy it is to be sucked into the crescendos and doldrums. Businessmen and Ghosts is a two disc set that mixes new tracks with others that appeared on their 2006 debut, self titled LP and their 2007 EP, Rocket. Asleep at the Wheel was one of my favorite tracks. A mellow number with a great guitar work that layers and mingles. Tapes’ baseline is Hookesque, simple, driving and perfectly suited to the songs mood. England part 2 is an ideal place to start if you are surfing for a song that sums up the experience of the album. All the previously mentioned elements are there, plus a great beat, topped off with a wood block pudding in the background. Yes, a wood block, like you used to play in music class in elementary school. Trust me it works. Maybe it is just my affection for the period this album references that keeps it playing in my car, but I don’t think so. More likely, the explanation is that WFANFC is an amazing band, that revisions the familiar and takes you to new places that you were itching to explore.

I meant every word of that review and then some. Check out the video for Rocket.

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