Twirl Radio

Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #888 – 9/7/2019: Interview with Christina Bulbenko and Rex Broome of Bir Stir Records!

The number “8” is the luckiest number in Chinese culture. And if you look above, today’s show was show #888–extra lucky! And it proved to be true. You might recognize today’s guests–Christina Bulbenko and Rex Broome of Big Stir Records, and The Armoires! They were just on my show a few weeks ago, when they were here in Northern California. Today, we did a Skype chat to them, all the way in Burbank (400 miles south).

Why were they back on the show so soon after the last visit? Well, that last visit was SO three weeks ago, and a lot has happened since then. So I needed to catch you up on all of it, and who better to let you know than Christina and Rex themselves?

In short, here’s what’s going on:

They’ll be hosting Swedish band In Deed on their California tour.
Big Stir Records has formed a collaboration with Futureman Records.
Big Stir Magazine #4 is out now.
They let me premiere–to the world–a new single from The Hangabouts–the first effort of the combined Big Stir and Futureman labels.

As always, we had fun, and the conversation went a dozen different directions–and still, landed near home. And we played a lot of great music on the show. Good times, good times!

bigstirrecords.com
futuremanrecords.bandcamp.com

September 7, 2019
Categories: Playlists . . Author: twirlradio . Comments: Leave a comment

Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #887 – 8/31/2019

On this week’s show, we took a break from the recent bounty of interviews, and simply brought you three hours of some of the finest recorded music available, both old and new, indie and not-so-indie. We’ll get back to interviewing today’s vital recording artists shortly.

September 4, 2019
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Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #886 – 8/24/2019: Interview doubleheader: Alexa Hunter of Disturbed Furniture and Ken Kurson of The Lilacs!

Alexa Hunter and Disturbed Furniture

On this week’s episode, I had the chance to meet two artists whose bands were popular back in the day, then went dormant for decades, then recently re-formed their bands and released great new EPs. I mean, one success story like this would be pretty cool–but two in one show? Wow!

In the first hour, I got to meet Alexa Hunter of Disturbed Furniture, and we had a lively chat as she drove around L.A.–safely, and hands-free, of course! Disturbed Furniture were a fixture of the late 70’s-early’80s New York City club scene. They shared bills with such heavyweights as The GoGo’s, Psychedelic Furs, Stranglers, and The Waitresses. Their music could be described as intelligent post-punk. After years of being apart, a 2017 museum show which featured their old music videos motivated them to get back together. Their new EP, Continuous Pleasures, is a fine return to the limelight. Look for west coast and east coast shows in the fall. www.disturbedfurniture.com

Ken Kurson and The Lilacs

Later on, Ken Kurson of seminal Chicago band The Lilacs joined me for some more great music talk. The Lilacs were part of the legendary Chicago music scene of the early 90s–you know, the one that produced Material Issue, Liz Phair, Urge Overkill, Smashing Pumpkins. Back then, every time you turned on the radio, it was exciting–you never knew which great new alternative band you would hear. Interestingly enough, Jim Ellison of Material Issue nurtured and even named the band, and Brad Wood (producer of Liz Phair’s Exile in Guyville) produced their first long player. Alas, they too broke up, and needed some time and space–about 25 years, and most of the band left Chicagoland. 2019 brought their new EP, The Lilacs Endure, and they haven’t missed a beat. Produced by Richard Lloyd and recorded in Nashville, it rocks hard. They’ll be playing some shows this fall as well. www.facebook.com/TheLilacs1990

Alexa Hunter interview
Disturbed Furniture | In The Front | Continuous Pleasures
Disturbed Furniture | Angel Of Losses | Continuous Pleasures

Ken Kurson interview
The Lilacs | Monica | The Lilacs Endure
The Lilacs | Shadow Of Doubt | The Lilacs Endure

September 1, 2019
Categories: Playlists . . Author: twirlradio . Comments: Leave a comment

Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #885 – 8/17/2019: Woodstock anniversary Big Stir invasion of the Twirl Radio studios!

Blake Jones and some of The Armoires

Due to the high volume of fun this summer, I have been a little bit behind in posting these blogs and playlists for my radio shows. The show on Saturday, 8/17, just piled even more fun on the already prominent heap of fun that I’ve been involved with lately. This was the day, long planned, where folks from several Big Stir bands would visit me in my Sacramento radio studios.

These guys and gals were all traveling from the Los Angeles and Fresno areas to San Francisco, to be part of the IPO (International Pop Overthrow) music festival, and took a side trip to Sacramento for some radio fun. So here’s the lineup of who we crammed into my studio on that epic day:

Christina Bulbenko, Rex Broome, Larysa Bulbenko of The Armoires.
Blake Jones of Blake Jones & The Trike Shop
John Borack of Popdudes and The Test Pressings, who was filling in on drums for The Armoires on this tour.

In addition, Dean Seavers of Sacramento’s The Decibels hung out for a while, because he wanted to meet the Big Stir folks, and Evan Palley traveled up and down the state with the Big Stir delegation as well.

This was kind of an auspicious date as well. This particular weekend was the 50th anniversary of the legendary Woodstock music festival. So to kind of honor this tradition–we had lots of people in the studio, and several live performances. (No drugs or mud, though.) This show was epic in every way, and you’ve got to listen–if only for the live performances and the laughter. These are a bunch of amazing musicians who do what they do for the love of the music, and I’m proud to call them all friends.

After two hours with Big Stir, they had to hit the road back to San Francisco. I tried to carry on all by myself for the last hour, but man, the afterglow of a wonderful visit kept going for hours. Check the bottom of this post for some bonus photos and videos from the day. Enjoy the show!
bigstirrecords.com
blakejonesmusic.com
John Borack’s Goldmine Magazine column
thedecibels.bandcamp.com

Super secret Armoires rehearsal in my living room. (L-R) Rex, Larysa, and Christina.

Blake

Larysa

Rex and John

August 25, 2019
Categories: Playlists, Twirl Radio Events . . Author: twirlradio . Comments: Leave a comment

Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #884 – 8/10/2019: Special birthday guest co-host DJ Gidget Marusak of Woody Radio!

DJ Gidget Marusak from Woody Radio

On this week’s show, the perfect storm happened: my dear friend DJ Gidget, co-owner of Woody Radio, was kind enough to have her birthday on a Saturday, the day that Twirl Radio is on the air. She’s a little shy about her birthday, but I took a chance and invited her onto Twirl, to celebrate. Lo and behold–she accepted. Since we live a couple of thousand miles apart, we did this via the miracle of Skype–so we sounded like we were in the same room together. But that really doesn’t matter–we’ve had lots of long, unscripted conversations together over the years, whether or not we were in the same room. This one was like all the others–started with no fanfare, and revved up to a fun, laugh-filled chat in no time. The only difference is that you actually have the chance to eavesdrop on us this time! (Full disclosure: I do another radio show on Woody Radio, so this was kind of an unofficial visit from the “home office”!)

What did we talk about? Well, what DIDN’T we talk about? Life, serendipitous meetings, food, Indiana, California, Woody Radio, Twirl Radio, and even music. We played a bunch of Gidge-centric and Gidge-adjacent tunes. (Editor’s note: I forgot to bring along any music by Wire Train–a big oops!) She’s been one of my favorite radio personalities for a very long time–she literally always keeps it real and personal. Her greatest trait is her ability to say something completely irreverent, funny, and wrong–and also say something completely touching and heartfelt–often in the same sentence! We’ve had lots of fun capers over the years, and this show was yet another one.

Check out the radio station that she built up at www.woodyradio.com. And enjoy this marathon chat with Gidget, punctuated by some great music. Make sure to send her some belated birthday love!

August 21, 2019
Categories: Playlists . . Author: twirlradio . Comments: Leave a comment

Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #883 – 8/3/2019: Interview tripleheader: Janet LaBelle, Christina Bulbenko / Rex Broome / John Borack / David Bash, Lannie Flowers / Danny Wilkerson

Janet LaBelle

This week’s show was kind of epic. It had everything going on: thrills, spills, chills, and Doan’s Pills (old timey reference)! Ok, maybe not all of that, but still, a pretty big show. Lots to unpack here, so let’s take it from the top.

In the first hour, we met NYC-based singer-songwriter Janet LaBelle. We spoke about her exquisite little EP “I Only See You”, and her career as a songwriter in general. She started in the punk-pop band Avery in her teens, but moved into a style that was more suited to showcasing lyrics and her vocals. Her role model for production and arranging is Brian Wilson, and her attention to detail really shines through. Our chat was fun and lively. Check out Janet’s work at janetlabelle.com.

The Armoires

In the second hour, we were scheduled to chat with Christina Bulbenko and Rex Broome of The Armoires and Big Stir Records. They literally released their second album, Zibaldone, the day before, so we wanted to talk about that. But The Armoires and I have an interesting history of phone interviews conducted from inside their car. The last time that happened they were in San Francisco, in the Haight district, and Marty Schneider of Trip Wire just happened by and said hello to them. This time, Christina and Rex were parked outside the site of the IPO (International Pop Overthrow) Festival in Los Angeles, and a couple of music luminaries not only said hello, but jumped into the car with them, and joined the interview, already in progress. So we got to say hello to writer John Borack, and the impresario behind IPO itself, David Bash! The conversation soon took a turn for the sillier–and I loved every second of it!
bigstirrecords.com goldminemag.com/blogs/power-pop-plus internationalpopoverthrow.com

Spyderpop Records Showcase 2019

And if that weren’t enough, the third hour brought us a visit with Lannie Flowers and Danny Wilkerson, two of the artists on Arlington, Texas’ Spyderpop Records, ahead of their Sacramento area appearance the following day. Lannie has been the flagship artist for the label for a decade, and is nearing completion of his next album, Home. Last year, Danny released his magnificent solo debut, Wilkerson, which made many year end “best of” lists (Editor’s note: including mine), and is just now starting to perform these amazing songs live. Those two, along with the legendary Bill Lloyd and the great Chris Church, are touring different parts of the country (currently in California), backed by the ace Lannie Flowers Band. We chatted about life on the road, and the current tour. (Editor’s other note: the show on Aug. 4th in Woodland, CA, was magnificent!)
spyderpop.com.

That’s a whole lot of radio show. I hope you enjoy it!

Janet LaBelle interview
Janet LaBelle | I Can’t Believe You Did That | I Only See You
Janet LaBelle | I Only See You | I Only See You

Christina Bulbenko, Rex Broome, John Borack, David Bash interview
The Armoires | Pushing Forty | Zibaldone
The Armoires | (How Did You Make) A Mistake Like Me | Zibaldone

August 7, 2019
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Spyderpop Records Showcase–Sunday, 8-4-2019, 2 p.m. at the Blue Note in Woodland, CA!

Spyderpop Showcase, featuring Bill Lloyd, The Lannie Flowers Band, Danny Wilkerson, and Bellygunner.

August 3, 2019
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Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #882 – 7/27/2019: In-studio guest Hannah Judson!

Hannah Judson

On this week’s show, singer-songwriter Hannah Judson returns for an in-studio visit–and a live performance of a couple of new songs. What a treat! Hannah is an American expatriate who lives in Paris. She’s the second one we’ve had on Twirl this year–Erik Blakely of The Bottle Kids visited in February. She’s also only the second musician to perform live in the Twirl studios this year, and guess who was the first? Yep, Eric Blakely again! So I can honestly say, with a straight face, that every musician who’s visited me from France this year has performed live in the Sacramento Twirl studios! Can you draw any conclusions from this? Well, I guess we’d have to get more musicians in from Paris, and see how they behave.

But enough of the statistics. We had a wonderful, lively chat. Hannah is back in Northern California for the summer, working on her next album with producer Pepe Espada of Banjo Bones. Although her self-proclaimed genre is “lo-fi indie folk rock”, her usual instrument is a Fender Telecaster, and she tends more towards the rock side of the house.

It’s pretty apparent from the sound of her new music that it can scale rather nicely, from acoustic solo performance to full rock band treatment. These new songs you’ll hear will be on an 8 song EP, due out around winter 2019-2020.

Hannah will be playing selected dates on the west coast this summer, then touring the northeast in the fall, finally winding up back in Europe in mid-October. Try to catch one of her shows if you can. More info at hannahjudson.com.

July 28, 2019
Categories: Playlists . . Author: twirlradio . Comments: 1 Comment

Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #881 – 7/13/2019: In-studio guests Natalie Cortez & Jay Knox of The Natalie Cortez Band!

Natalie Cortez Band

This week’s episode is one I’ve been long anticipating. A live, extended, in-studio visit with veteran NorCal musicians Natalie Cortez and Jay Knox. They’ve been a big part of the Sacramento music scene for longer than I’ve been living here (20+ years).

When I arrived in Sacramento in 1997, there was a thriving music scene here. A lot of straight up rock ‘n’ roll, and slightly tilting towards Americana. One of the premier bands on the scene was Natalie Cortez & The Ultraviolets. To say they were beloved would be pretty accurate. Natalie’s songs were great pop gems, and the live shows were casual affairs, with top-notch musicianship. Some of the finest local musicians did stints in the Ultraviolets (and now in the Natalie Cortez Band).

A few years later, the music scene changed. It seemingly fractured a bit, and the players changed. The Ultraviolets were no longer. About 15 years later, Natalie formed her self-named band, and started playing lots of gigs around the area again. It’s almost like the time hadn’t passed at all. For instance–I have a vivid memory of a cluster of a few women dancing joyfully at a couple of shows back in the 90’s, when the band played “Ghost Of You”. And crazy enough–I saw it again at recent shows–maybe it’s even the same women!

So I’ve been wanting to get Natalie and Jay back on the show. Jay wasn’t in the Ultraviolets, but he plays guitar in the new band, and they’ve been married for nearly two decades.

We played some of their songs, chatted about the “good old days”, and the even better “new days”, and they took over and played DJ for a set. Something cool came out of the conversation–that Natalie is working up a new batch of songs–so new music might be on the way sooner than not!

Then–we bid so long, as they needed to make their way over to a Second Saturday (Art Walk) gig at an Alfa Romeo repair shop. Seriously–this is the kind of quirky fun that Sacramento is known for. You should come visit Sacramento some time–it’s just that cool–and make sure you pick a weekend when the Natalie Cortez Band is playing. You’ll get a real feel for what this town is all about. www.facebook.com/NatalieCortezBand

One other program note: we debuted a brand new track from the Armoires second album, Zibaldone, and it’s really great. Mike, you may ask–what are you referring to as being really great–the song, or the album? BOTH! I can’t wait to play more on upcoming shows. You’re really going to like this album.

Enjoy the show!

July 16, 2019
Categories: Playlists . . Author: twirlradio . Comments: Leave a comment

Twirl Radio Playlist – Show #880 – 7/6/2019: Interview doubleheader: In Deed and Richard X. Heyman!

In Deed

The radio gods smiled down on Twirl Radio again this week. We were blessed with two fun and interesting interviews with artists who have brand new albums out.

In the first hour, we chatted with Linda Karlsberg and Marcus Segersvärd from Swedish band In Deed. They were vacationing in Finland, one time zone east from their home country, so they were kind enough to be up at 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning, to talk to me at 3:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon here in Sacramento.

In Deed has a brand new album out: Everest! It’s been out on vinyl for a while in Europe, but Big Stir Records took one listen, and had to grab these guys and put it out–with three extra tracks–before everybody else started a bidding war. A perfect match between band and record label.

In Deed had put out an earlier album in 2001 called At 4000 Meters. Life happened, and it took a while to re-form and create the next album. Both album titles are mountaineering references, so they are climbing higher with the new album. And Everest is worthy of the name. It’s a glorious slab of alt-rock. Some of the songs jump right out of your speakers and make you stand at attention. Perfect example: “Heart Attack”. That’s my favorite one on the album. Zoomy, atmospheric guitars, big drums and bass–and Linda’s powerful vocals. It’s like 1990 barged in through my front door and grabbed me by the collar. (Those who know my tastes know that this is my sweet spot.) But there’s also a 1960s pop sensibility ruinning throughout the record too. Brit-pop is a huge influence–maybe we could refer to Everest as a modern example of Swede-pop.

Check out In Deed at https://bigstirrecords.com/in-deed.

Richard X. Heyman

In the second hour, the legendary DIY pioneer Richard X. Heyman returned for his third visit to Twirl Radio. He’s been on a cadence of a new album about every two years or so, and the latest offering is the magnificent Pop Circles.

As you probably know, Richard is one of the originators of the DIY ethic in rock ‘n’ roll. But he’s been doing this since the late 1980s–before all the home computer music production apps became widely available. His usual methodology is to rent a studio and lay down all the drum tracks, then take these back to his home studio, where he and his wife Nancy put the album together. The liner notes contain a paragraph devoted to all the instruments he played on the album. They read like a who’s who of all the great instruments that built the foundation of rock music: Fender Telecaster and Stratocaster, Rickenbacker, Danelectro, Yamaha, and Martin guitars (leaving some off this list), Wurlitzer electric piano, harpsichord, and various other keyboards, and all sorts of percussion instruments. And oh yeah–drums. Richard started as a drummer, but throughout the years, has crafted a sound that is uniquely his–straddling the line between power pop and again, those dramatic alt-rock guitar sounds.

There is a playful pun-based theme to the album–one look at the album cover–which is a crop circle, based on the classic vinyl 45 spindle insert–will tell you that. Many of the song titles started as innocent, everyday conversational phrases, then Richard built entire songs around them. Some of the songs are sweet and romantic, and some are more socially-conscious. A lot of it has to do with growing up in the 1960s, and the revolutionary changes that occurred on many fronts.

And there’s a special surprise for you at the end of the 12 song album–a 5 track EP entitled Richie’s Three-Chord Garage! These are tracks written for his other band, The Doughboys, but in this case, sung by Richard. And word on the street says that if you’re patient, after these 17 wonderful songs, there “might” be a hidden track that builds upon the opening track, and ties in nicely with the essay he wrote for the inside cover.

This album is excellent, and needs to be at the top of your “must buy” list. And get the CD–you’ll want the cool packaging. www.richardxheyman.com.

I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with Linda, Marcus, and Richard on the show. And beyond that, we had tons of other great tuneage for you too. Stay tuned–next week, we’re going to have some very special, in-studio guests! And enjoy this episode.

In Deed interview
In Deed | Heart Attack | Everest
In Deed | Another Start | Everest

Richard X. Heyman interview
Richard X. Heyman | Upside And Down | Pop Circles
Richard X. Heyman | Hope | Pop Circles

July 8, 2019
Categories: Playlists . . Author: twirlradio . Comments: Leave a comment

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