The Soundr Hour: Yacht Rock

Behold the maiden voyage of the good ship Soundr, making our our way out with a freshly pressed mashup from Mark Vidler and closing with a timeless treat from Christian Phillips - we navigate our way through classic AOR, surprisingly yacht and Nu Yacht. Minimum chat, maximum tunes. Climb aboard below...




Grab California Maneater here....

Radio Podrophenia - Music for Mentalists

The March Madness edish of Podrophenia is up for download, and it's possibly our most eccentric session yet.. Mae West goes Rock ‘n’ Roll. Petula Clark goes disco, Reginald Bosanquet goes funky, Hawkwind get schlagerd and there's a space-pop nugget wherein aliens land looking for new life in Northampton!See the info-tainment clip on the single below...



Special guest Grant Philpott brings in some of his spoken word mash-ups (including Jimmy Smith meets Mark E Smith and Pam Ayres with Roy Ayres) and talks about his television work on The Word, the Big Breakfast and his ten years on TV Burp…





There's Essex Films, Kitchen bands and Shart songs - and an 8 bit quiz based around rock classics getting digitised All here, all yours and all free

Download

Stream

or via iTunes

Radio Podrophenia 99 - The Ice Cream edition

Fill your boots with scoops and tunes by way of the latest Podrophenia.

Where else will you find James Last doing the Small Faces, Harry Nilsson doing Popeye, the Banana Splits getting on the good-foot and an appearance from Larry Grogan of the Funky 16 Corners soul site

It's all yours and it's all free. Dig in and dig it

Podrophenia - Ice Cream

Podrophenia 99: Ice Cream is the scene

Our 99th Podrophenia live tonight on SFOB has a theme of 'ice cream': 12 flavours of mashups, funk, soul and psych - with a special guest Larry Grogan from Funky 16 Corners joining us from New Jersey for a lowdown on this Banana Splits twister.





We're also after any ice cream theme songs/bands/albums: Cherry Lee Lewis/Flaking Stevens/ Arctic roll monkeys/Mivvi Ripperton/Blind Lemon Sorbet/ Screwball Wizard/Another brick in the walls 

Tune in 8PM www.sfob.co.uk

Or chip in with chat and natter at Chatwing

Radio Podrophenia: Dave Woodcock debut album special and live session tonight

What a furiously busy few days for the Boy Woodcock: open mic night and album released Monday, starring on Steve Lamacq yesterday as the Favourite New Band (listen again here) - and to top off the week an album launch gig at the Bussey Building this Saturday...

But, between his tour from one end of the Thames to the other, Dave is stopping (or having a comfort break you could say) from whipping around like a whirling dervish to join Piley and the other one for live session of tunes, chat and natter for tonight's Podrophenia.

We've a run of songs fitted around variations on 'Woodcock' - and a few live renditions of album tracks and getting the back-story on the tracklist....

And as a bonus - we've also managed to nip in an exclusive pop up appearance from Mark Vidler of Go Home Productions to talk us through a selection from his Spliced Krispies ..

Set your dials for 8pm Southend Central time tonight on Ship Full of Bombs

Snap, Crackle & Bastard Pop: Spliced Krispies 2

When I first fired up this blog, almost seven years ago - one of the earliest entries was a Fabtastic bootleg remix Jet Lady Joe - leaked from the lab of DJ and remixer Mark Vidler - aka Go Home Productions...

A few months on, and we were lucky enough to bag a world exclusive on GHP's hat-popping, bastard pop compendium - Spliced Krispes, which bolted together The Supremes with TV themes, the Beach Boys with school boys

So huzzah and hats in the air - as the Willy Wonka of soundwaves, returns with booming new batch of disco biscuits, where scraps and shrapnel from R 'n' B, punk, 80s funk, new wave and new bands are whisked and whirled into newly minted mashups and sonic screen prints.

You can grab the entire collection for free here - but first load up on a triple whammy taste test with a few words from GHP HQ..

My Paperback Sharona 
The Beatles 'Paperback Writer' vs The Knack 'My Sharona'

I've always loved 'My Sharona' with a passion that borders on the ridiculous...seriously *cough.. and always wanted to pair it up with something decent. Along come them Beatles (again) and Paperback Writer (again) but what the hell, these two tracks were made for each other. Lot's of editing went into this one but I won't bore you with technical details....for long.

The Beatles 'guitar riff' was cut to match the Sharona riff and plays with it the majority of the time. Had to edit down the long version of Sharona to match the 'single' version...easy...and had lots of fun finding relevant dub delays & reverbs. There you go...that's as boringly techy as I can be bothered with.

 


Rude Peaches 
Rihanna 'Rude Boy' vs The Stranglers 'Peaches'

Had a Stranglers fixation for a month or so earlier this year. Was hoping to do something with 'Nuclear Device' but Peaches is much easier to plunder riffage and stuff from. Listening back to this it reminds me of early GHP bootlegs...in the way that I used to pair all those 'R 'n B female vocals with rock songs...mainly due to the fact that in those heady days of 2002-2004, those were the only readily available acapellas I suppose.

Anyway, Rihanna complements the bump & grind of Peaches pretty well. Check the video! I plundered lots of the footage from The Stranglers gig at Battersea Park '78 when they brought on 10 strippers for Nice 'n Sleazy.

 


Whatever My Tears
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles 'Tracks Of My Tears' vs Oasis 'Whatever'

A cheeky little match. Was originally wanting to have Smokey's vocals with strings only from 'Whatever' but alas the strings in the verses aren't available, so had to make do with the full Oasis instrumental until the very end where the strings play out. An odd mix but the Oasis track is very 60's in structure and a handful of Motown tracks would probably work with it. Smokey got the short
straw

Radio Podrophenia: The World of Easy Listening

Slip into your leisure slacks, dust down your satin smoking jacket - pour something long and clinky from the drinks cabinet, and let Podrophenia soothe you with two hours of tunes as we make our March return with an Easy Listening special...

It's a theme chosen by Alan McPhail. Expect a few new spins on some cheesier artists, and lesser known nuggets by lounge-core lovelies from Piley and self: safari suited singers getting on the good foot, country twangers going funky, divas doing disco - and a Northern Soul cover that out-stomps the original...

All this and a universally exclusive airing of an Eight Round Rapid track from the due-soon album. Slink your way to Ship Full of Bombs from 8 pm tonight or chip in with the chat hereabouts 

One on the sub's bench  Hugo Strasser's Schlager take on the Sabb's

Get aboard with the double deckers

There's a dual action double-decking session over the next couple of days rocking away at the Railway Hotel, the epicentre of Southend's simmering music and social 'scene' (©Daryl Easlea)

Saturday from 7, it's likely to be an unscripted playlist of big 'n' beaty bouncers winging in everything from garage to glam, big beat to beatleg remixes to glam stompers and stampers



Sunday from 4, the award winning Martin McNeill is back for is every third Sunday, I'll be parked up at the bar rooting through blues, funks and soul - but trying to work in some never-before-played tunes...like..

Les McCann ltd Bucket o' Grease



Mini Vip - Block



So if you happen to round and about Clifftown Road, swing in for a scoop and a legshake

And the Geek Shall Inherit the Earth...

Pop Culture Quiz:  

Which pop star once worked for Marvel UK?

Who was the light entertainment star that, before becoming a comedian - began his career as a comics illustrator

Why do so many super villains favour purple and green duds?

Which actual American legends were Iron Man/Tony Stark and Green Lanter/Hal Jordan modelled on?

Why is it, that only the handful of married superheroes are those with the ability to extend body parts to extraordinary lengths - or vibrate at super speed?

Find the answers to these and other comicana conundrums in the Podrophenia - Superheroes:Treasury Edition. Although I forgot to chip in my Stan Lee story - when Smilin' Stan said 'Hi guys'  to Mrs M, the Mini Ms and myself........

Radio Podrophenia - Superheroes



As Mark Millar wrote in Turf 'The word is Ferd' - comics, capes, cowls and superdoings generally - have become such big business and multi industry money-spinners, that the suits are now faking nerd. Ferds...

Although for Piley and I, as well as our guests Paul Range Dye and Simon Monk we wear our 'Sing If You're Glad to be Geek' badges with pride.In fact we may very well be pinning them on lapels and suchlike as we gather together tonight, along with some of the Podrophenia panel (Marmite, Phil Hubbs, Dan) for a viewing of Simon's Secret Identities exhibition hosted at Pouch of Douglas,

If you're local-ish, why not whizz your way over to take in the full glory of Simon's spectacular artworks from 7 tonight..

Simon Monk documentary....
Simon Monk Secret Identity from Christopher Harrup on Vimeo.

Biff, Bam, Kapow

Photo's by Paul Hughes

Phew! Worra heaving evening was had by all at Saturday's Railway shindig - a shakedown, a tear up, a roof quaking, leg shaking, stompzilla of a gig. Where, by 9:30 the pub was rammed to capacity, and admission was capped at a one in/one out basis. Incredible! Bif, Bam Pow - blitzed though the winners and hits. The Len Price 3 did 45 minutes of short, sharp (suited) mod rockers : think The Ramones meet The Kinks by way of The Who…

Followed by two hours of tuney doings spun by Piley and myself. A no-wave set where anything was winged into the improv' playlist - TV Themes (Eurotrash, Grandstand), Bowie, Beatles booty remixes and covers, foreign language editions (a latin Hit the Road Jack)......

And a real treat to see so many members of the Podrophenia Panel making their way down to join us. Drakey, Mike, Phil, Martin, Reado Jnr, Pouch of Douglas, Coops, Maxwell

A huge salute is due to Steve Retroman and Fi Jacobs (and all at The Railway) for making this a full on wingdinger of a do. If you're a Facebooker pop over thus and have a peep at the rollcall of characters out and about with us .....

But on to tonight's business - this week's edition of Podrophenia comes fitted around the theme of Superheroes and sees us joined in the basement by the spectacularly talented Simon Monk, whose latest exhibition - Secret Idenities is on show at The Pouch of Douglas, Southend, running until the 23rd of March..

'Peter Parker' by Simon Monk: it's a painting not a photo - honest!

Two tunes for Tuesday: One which is on the bill and one which is on the subs bench - but you'll  have to tune from 9 for the full reveal of what's in and what's out...

The Other Brothers - Hole in the Wall



            

Return to Gender

Shocky Horror Show: white lace, see through pants - for him and for her

Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, men and women - is the musical motif for tonight's Podrophonic runout. Unisex, drugs and rock and Roll you could say

I'll be opening with this Jet/Beatles bootleg - but expect The Wolfmen and a mystery northern soul vocalist - along with the usual natter and banter from Piley and the other one. We're live from 9 at Chance Radio

If you missed last week's Leap Year Special, fill your booties below

Radio Podrophenia - Leap Year



A couple from the sub's bench......

Forgotten post Jellyfish flower-power poppers Imperial Drag..

 


The 'lost' new look League single ...

The Podrophonic Christmas album

If you're not busy or bustling about at a works do, school nativity, panto, carol service or some last minute, late night shopping - why not point yourself in the direction of Chance Radio from 9 tonight as Piley and I do our last Radio Podrophenia run out of the year - and our first (live) Christmas edition... 

Piley's doing a lucky dip from his Christmas box, while I'll possibly be playlisting tracks by Elvis, Clarence Carter, Ella Fitzgerald and Big Tiny Little. A huge thank you is due to all at Chance for taking a punt on us this year, our guests for joining us in the Podrophonic bunker - and of course all the board regulars, our silent listeners and podcast downloaders. Speaking of which.. 

Last week's edition featuring the legend that is Roman Jugg is grabbable here. Standby for a full hour of tunes and chat on Naz Nomad, The Phantom chords, Marc Almond and The Damned..

Radio Podrophenia - Roman Jugg Special



Or via Itunes

One you may find under the Christmas Podrophenia tonight

World of Sport for all..

 

Sport of all/any sort is the theme we'll be kicking around on Radio Podrophenia tonight. Joining us in the commentary box straight from the sportsdesk is our resident expert @marmite boy 

We're playing 4 a-side (tunes that is) from Piley, Marmite and myself - pitching in a couple pop quizzes with chatabouts that may include..sport in unlikely places, have you won a medal in any event and how does Hadleigh in Essex, one of the UK's flattest counties - become the arena for the Olympic mountain biking event

Kick off is at 9 tonight - join us for a ringside seat at Chance Radio

You can lend an ear to last weeks fixture here (or on iTunes), fitted around the theme of Food

Radio Podrophenia - Food



In a last minute switcheroo - we've had to play a substitute with Jack Gestures is now filling in for Marmite...





   

E is for....

Earphones, EQ and every Tuesday at 9! Musically it's Elvis, Eddie and the Hot Rods, Eno and the unlikely alliance of  Edwin and The Beatles moulded and mashed into Starr Club companions

Why? Because the 5th edition of our Podrophonic alphabet gets unwrapped and revealed on Radio Podrophenia, live from 9 on Chance Radio this very evening. Along with the usual chat, banter and live action natter from the board members and regulars.

Swing by if you're about... or if not you can grab last week's edition here, via iTunes or stream below..

Radio Podrophenia - Kinda Country



As a last minute switcheroo, getting pitched in under the 'earworm' entry is this golden nugget of delicousness discovered over at Drew's corner of the interweb. You can grab a copy by zipping here

Get your motor running

As Piley and I head out on the highway, having a run out on the theme of Types of Transport. Edwyn Collins, Jack Hammer, Bo Diddley and an exclusive preview of a new tune from Dennis Hopper Choppers are onboard for the ride. Along with possible topics for some radio pitch and put including:

How many driving tests!
Strange vehicles you've ridden in.
Who to cast in a live action Wacky Races.
Favourite TV only transport: The Banana Splits buggies, the Pink Panther car, Thunderbirds hover jet-skis.

And some new additions to the Morrisey conga. Park yourself here from 9 for a ninety minute radio ride.

It's a re-up, but from four years back - I think we can swing that..

Wilson Pickett - Born to be Wild



For me the greatest pop video of the year. No Q! Good work Soundhog..



Davy your Transport/animal husbandry shout is still under discussion...

Tuesday Night is Music Night

As Piley and I kick off with chapter two of Radio Podrophenia - covers being the banner above last week's playlist (details here), but what's tonight's motif ? Come on over and find out - perhaps pitch in with a comm' or suggestion for any we may have missed and to vote for the Pick of the Pods closing track. Or let us know your favourite celebrity look-a-likes and slebs spotted in the unlikeliest of places...all this and a Paul Weller/S Club 7 duet (yes, really)..

A couple of tracks that may get a run-out from my grab-bag are...

The Upsetters - Double Wheel






Kick off's at 9pm we'd love to hear from you here

http://www.s6radio.co.uk/

Snowbound Sounds

Photo by Bleech 

Yes it's a re-up as they say, but with good reason - I haven't had a chance to whisk together some new winter-drifters and fireside warmers yet- a playlist that would include Neu!, Ulrich Schnauss and Jon Hopkins - so whether your cosy-toes and tucked up in your pit, or like me, some poor gump schleping your way to work  (late start, early finish I reck') lend a reflective and frozen ear to this mix of frosty favourites..you know where to find the T-list.

Last Of The Winter Mixtures



Soundhog's booty of Brandy & Monica meet The Doves is a thing of such slow shifting pure beauty it really does deserve a solo posting..

Soundhog - The Doves Are Mine

Southend on Snow

Fey Rays

I've found salvation. Embraced in the arms of soft wafty pop and the soothing moonage daydreams of FC Kahuna, Jon Hopkins and Ulrich Schnauss. Waddya mean Ulrich who?

Although it's Memory Cassette who have been the real spoonful of sugar. Something like a cosmic Cocteaus glitzed with a downbeat disco shimmer. Lend an ear and melt into the magic.

Memory Cassette - Listen to the Vacuum





How can anyone feel glum after a blast of this bubblegum booty from the Grand Master of mash ups. Released yesterday (as part of a three way whammy)and grabbable here

Hello,Goodbye?

Borrowing an opening line from a cult classic..

What's it going to be then, eh?

Good Day Sunshine and on to the quarter-finals or a Long and Winding Road home?

We'll know by 4:30.

Go Home Productions - Goodbye Rocky

Funky Friday - Stratagems and Ruses

I hadn’t planned to start a run of football posts - just chip in with a couple to capture the rush and buzz of the World Cup kick off. But now I'm semi-obsessed with it, weighing up the heavy-hitters and competive form, working out possible options and placings. Even the vuvuzelas ongoing drone has begun to sound hypnotically exotic. If you’re up on events you may want to skip the next bit. If you’re not up on events.

England have to win tonight (Algeria) and next Wednesday (Slovenia)

Finishing second place in their group (C) simply won’t do. Second place means meeting Germany in the next round. That’s us pitched against a great white shark of a squad - prowling and playing a sharp, sleek and lethal form of football.

Forget the soft soap, stoicism and stiff upper lips. If England can gun it and go, hitting their fixtures with the sweaty energy of the MC5, we could breeze it to the next rounds.

MC5 - Kick Out The Jams



For a slightly Algerian feel try Gabe Durham’s excellent Beastie booty

Beastie Boys - How We Gonna Kick It? With A Mandolin, Fiddle, and Guitar!



That's it. I'll shush about football (for now)