I posted on the stations Facebook page last Sunday, the 25th, my only day off this week, that I would "hit the blog" on Monday. Well, that didn't happen. I have a sprinkling of free time this morning, so here we go!
As of this writing, the station is, in my humble opinion, doing well. In fact, it has exceeded my expectations. 360 Degrees has been "on the air" so to speak for almost 2 months. We have a whole heap of dedicated listeners and fans... thank you! Our station is part of a web based community that hosts other stations of ever imaginable genre. There are over 20,000 radio stations on the hosting site. There are over 500 "alternative" stations on there as well. Currently, 360 Degrees is in the top 50 of it's genre & in the top 2000 overall... all in less than 2 months.
For those of you who haven't checked the station out yet, I encourage you to do so. Don't let the term "alternative" fool you or keep you away due to stereo-types. This is one reason why I feature four decades of music... to squash those stereo-types.
Alternative is one of those labels that means totally different things, depending on the context and the people who listen to it. In my opinion, the music was born in the mid 60's, as an answer to not only musicians, but as well to the music industry, that you did not have to be The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, or Bob Dylan to be successful. It was OK to embrace "something different". The genre sort of got lost by the turn of 70's, but regrouped & exploded with the D.I.Y. punk ethic of the mid 70s. It continued to morph into sub-genres throughout the 80's, and then has enjoyed another revival of popularity since the mid 90's with the commercial success of Nirvana.
I must admit, I have not blogged as much this month as I did in March. I'm currently working more hours at my regular full time job, and myself & my family are contemplating a move to another location here in Maine. Even thinking about and/or planning a geographical move requires more time than most people realize. I have to face reality - I'm not single, 21 years old & in college anymore, where all my crap could fit into the back of a pickup truck & the move could take a half a day on some weekend.
Sometimes your life evolves so slowly that you don't perceive the scenery changing. All you have to do is pack up your office, or better yet, your apartment or house for a move (or even planning for one) to see how far you've really come. I feel it's the same way with music sometimes. It takes a "major move" to really shake things up. Then, after the dust settles, we can see how far we've really come. And it's usually for the better.
If the move does come to fruition, the station, the blog, email & the website (that will hopefully go live in the next week or two), will be completely unaffected. That's one of the beauties of Internet radio. I'll keep you posted. If anything, one positive thing I'll get out of all this chaos, is some bigger diggs... and that means more space for the station... and that means better things for the listeners & fans!
Peace out,
Dave
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
The "New" Jane's Addiction, More Faith No More, and Dare We Say It... More!!
As I wrote yesterday, that was pretty much my only shot at writing for the blog. That being said & time of a premium today, here's some cool links to check out what's going on in the Alternative Music world. Is it me, or are we "going forward into the past"?
1st up, former GNR bassist Duff McKagan on the new Jane's Addiction;
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2010/04/13/inside-the-new-janes-addiction-duff-mckagan-on-bands-plans/
Next, Faith No More kicks ass in San Francisco;
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2010/04/13/faith-no-more-return-to-the-u-s-with-powerhouse-san-fran-show/
Remembering Malcolm McLaren;
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2010/04/12/new-york-dolls-sylvain-sylvain-remembers-malcolm-mclaren/
Some additional "Did You Know?";
Real names of artists you know or "Good thing they used a stage name"...
- William Micheal Albert Broad aka; Billy Idol
- Micheal Blazary aka; Flea (Red Hot Chilli Peppers)
- Brian Hugh Warner aka; Marliyn Manson
- Robert Bartleh Cummings aka; Rob Zombie
Have a great weekend,
Peace out,
Dave
1st up, former GNR bassist Duff McKagan on the new Jane's Addiction;
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2010/04/13/inside-the-new-janes-addiction-duff-mckagan-on-bands-plans/
Next, Faith No More kicks ass in San Francisco;
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2010/04/13/faith-no-more-return-to-the-u-s-with-powerhouse-san-fran-show/
Remembering Malcolm McLaren;
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2010/04/12/new-york-dolls-sylvain-sylvain-remembers-malcolm-mclaren/
Some additional "Did You Know?";
Real names of artists you know or "Good thing they used a stage name"...
- William Micheal Albert Broad aka; Billy Idol
- Micheal Blazary aka; Flea (Red Hot Chilli Peppers)
- Brian Hugh Warner aka; Marliyn Manson
- Robert Bartleh Cummings aka; Rob Zombie
Have a great weekend,
Peace out,
Dave
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Iggy Pop, Taking Weeks To Pick Up The Pieces of Your Brain, What's In a Name, and More!
Well, here's this week's only (literally) shot with the blog. I'm tellin' ya, these 6 day work weeks are getting old. Starting this month, I'm going to feature a new little tidbit to the blog called, "Did You Know?" It's going to contain quirky & interesting footnotes about the music we feature here at 360 Degrees. It came to mind yesterday as I was finishing up my income taxes. The title of "Did You Know" hit me as I was searching for help tips on the governments new stimulus credit, which is so confusing. Don't ask...
With the recent introduction of Iggy Pop & the Stooges into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame, I was glancing through some interesting tidbits about the band, especially way back when they started in the 60's. I also came across an old Rolling Stone piece dating back to 1970 when the Stooges were putting the finishing touches (if you could call it that) on their 2nd album "Funhouse" which was soon to be released. Apparently, the Stooges were so different from many of the other bands (which was true) from that era, that Rolling Stone deemed it worthy to give them additional press (or perhaps it was an advanced warning).
The blurb written by Charlie Burton states, "The album finds the band drifting into longer & longer jams. The Stooges have added sax player Steve MacKay who helps the group realize the jazz style freakouts that echo their new fascination with John Coltrane. If you long to have your mind blown open so wide that it will take weeks for you to pick up the little bitty pieces, then by all means, buy this album." Wow...
Speaking of oddities, I would love to find this video... back in 1980 Gary Numan released The Touring Principle, the first full-length commercially available video. Talk about being ahead of the curve...
As I'm writing this, I'm listening to some tunes by The Pretenders. I still like Chrissie Hynde after all these years. Anyways, I'm also remembering that it was on this day back in 1983, that Pete Farndon, the original bass player for the band, was found dead from a heroin overdose. This was the 2nd death in less than a year of one of the original band members. The other being James Honeyman-Scott back in June of 1982 of a cocaine overdose. Word had it that Farndon was the midst of forming a new band with former Clash drummer Topper Headon - who coincidently also was battling heroin abuse and left the Clash because he was unable to cope with it - at the time of Pete's death.
Here's this weeks "Did You Know":
- Back in 1973, Declan McManus went solo... who?? Before his 1st gig, he changes his last name to Costello, his grandmothers maiden surname. His future record label Stiff Records, 3 years later, would come up with the idea of changing his 1st name to Elvis.
That's it for now - keep listening!
Peace out,
Dave
With the recent introduction of Iggy Pop & the Stooges into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame, I was glancing through some interesting tidbits about the band, especially way back when they started in the 60's. I also came across an old Rolling Stone piece dating back to 1970 when the Stooges were putting the finishing touches (if you could call it that) on their 2nd album "Funhouse" which was soon to be released. Apparently, the Stooges were so different from many of the other bands (which was true) from that era, that Rolling Stone deemed it worthy to give them additional press (or perhaps it was an advanced warning).
The blurb written by Charlie Burton states, "The album finds the band drifting into longer & longer jams. The Stooges have added sax player Steve MacKay who helps the group realize the jazz style freakouts that echo their new fascination with John Coltrane. If you long to have your mind blown open so wide that it will take weeks for you to pick up the little bitty pieces, then by all means, buy this album." Wow...
Speaking of oddities, I would love to find this video... back in 1980 Gary Numan released The Touring Principle, the first full-length commercially available video. Talk about being ahead of the curve...
As I'm writing this, I'm listening to some tunes by The Pretenders. I still like Chrissie Hynde after all these years. Anyways, I'm also remembering that it was on this day back in 1983, that Pete Farndon, the original bass player for the band, was found dead from a heroin overdose. This was the 2nd death in less than a year of one of the original band members. The other being James Honeyman-Scott back in June of 1982 of a cocaine overdose. Word had it that Farndon was the midst of forming a new band with former Clash drummer Topper Headon - who coincidently also was battling heroin abuse and left the Clash because he was unable to cope with it - at the time of Pete's death.
Here's this weeks "Did You Know":
- Back in 1973, Declan McManus went solo... who?? Before his 1st gig, he changes his last name to Costello, his grandmothers maiden surname. His future record label Stiff Records, 3 years later, would come up with the idea of changing his 1st name to Elvis.
That's it for now - keep listening!
Peace out,
Dave
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Devo Goes to College, Chrissie Hynde Moves to England, Elvis Costello Gets "Stiffed" and More!
Feels good to get to the blog again! This is the 1st chance I've had to do this in well over a week. As I was thinking about this, I realized a few "deficiencies" about myself. Personally, I like to be organized. Personally, I finding that I'm becoming less so. Frankly, I like to feel that I have good time management skills - had to with 2 kids growing up in the house. Frankly, I feel that the management part is still there, but the time factor is sometimes non-existent. There... I said it... that's the 1st part of therapy. To quote Lucy from the Peanuts cartoon strip, "Admitting that you have a problem indicates that you're not too far gone." OK - never mind...
Before we even get to some tidbits, I managed to catch a blurb on TV that featured a story about Alan Freed. I won't go into the history of this historical figure in rock music, but it was this week back in 1956 that Freed hosted the first national radio show devoted to the new style of rock 'n' roll that debuted on CBS. It was called Rock and Roll Dance Party. This is a classic case where "you cannot appreciate the present unless you appreciate the past". Without moments like this, there would be no rock music today.
Ten years later, in 1966, we find that David Bowie released his first solo single called, "Do Anything You Say". It was available only in the UK on Pye records.
Moving ahead to 1973, Devo makes it's 1st public appearance as part of the Kent State Creative Arts Festival. They are known as Sextet Devo, because the name sounded "academic" according to the band. Even though the loose group had only three days to rehearse, they managed to put together a pretty decent set. They performed such early classics as "Private Secretary", "Beehive Flash", and "Wiggle Worm". However, they were unlike anything the audience had ever heard. At times, the crowd was confused, amused, and some even danced. It probably didn't help that band members were oddly dressed... everything from animal masks, to a butcher's coat, to doctor's scrubs...
The same year, we find that Chrissie Hynde is an American who's in love in England. She came over about a week ago with literally a suitcase, her Iggy Pop records, and the clothes on her back. She lands a day job at an architects firm, but at night she works feverishly at the music scene in London. Within a year, she'll get her 1st byline reviewing records for the New Musical Express. Within 2 years, she'll get her first chance to meet Seymour Stein, the owner of Sire records who would eventually sign her group The Pretenders.
Elvis Costello makes his debut on Stiff Records back in 1977. The single contains "Less Than Zero" and "Radio Sweetheart". The sessions were produced by Nick Lowe and are recorded in "reasonable stereo". Reading the matrix on the records, one would find "Elvis is King" and "Elvis is King on this side too". The single actually gets good reviews, although they seemed contradictory... often within themselves. One review in the New Musical Express states, "It's a great record. Doesn't stand a snowballs chance in hell. What a bleedin' shame". Yes - this is in fact word for word.
An avid listener of the station sent me this cool tidbit; In 1981, a bottle-shaped children's book, based on the lyrics of Sting's "Message In A Bottle", is published.
In 1992 we visit the "What were you thinking department" where Billy Idol pleaded no contest to punching a woman in the face. He was fined and told to make public service announcements against alcohol and drug use.
Finally, we end today's' blog with a moment of silence. On this day, April 7th back in 1998, Wendy O Williams, lead singer of The Plasmatics, passed away.
Peace out 'til next time,
Dave
Before we even get to some tidbits, I managed to catch a blurb on TV that featured a story about Alan Freed. I won't go into the history of this historical figure in rock music, but it was this week back in 1956 that Freed hosted the first national radio show devoted to the new style of rock 'n' roll that debuted on CBS. It was called Rock and Roll Dance Party. This is a classic case where "you cannot appreciate the present unless you appreciate the past". Without moments like this, there would be no rock music today.
Ten years later, in 1966, we find that David Bowie released his first solo single called, "Do Anything You Say". It was available only in the UK on Pye records.
Moving ahead to 1973, Devo makes it's 1st public appearance as part of the Kent State Creative Arts Festival. They are known as Sextet Devo, because the name sounded "academic" according to the band. Even though the loose group had only three days to rehearse, they managed to put together a pretty decent set. They performed such early classics as "Private Secretary", "Beehive Flash", and "Wiggle Worm". However, they were unlike anything the audience had ever heard. At times, the crowd was confused, amused, and some even danced. It probably didn't help that band members were oddly dressed... everything from animal masks, to a butcher's coat, to doctor's scrubs...
The same year, we find that Chrissie Hynde is an American who's in love in England. She came over about a week ago with literally a suitcase, her Iggy Pop records, and the clothes on her back. She lands a day job at an architects firm, but at night she works feverishly at the music scene in London. Within a year, she'll get her 1st byline reviewing records for the New Musical Express. Within 2 years, she'll get her first chance to meet Seymour Stein, the owner of Sire records who would eventually sign her group The Pretenders.
Elvis Costello makes his debut on Stiff Records back in 1977. The single contains "Less Than Zero" and "Radio Sweetheart". The sessions were produced by Nick Lowe and are recorded in "reasonable stereo". Reading the matrix on the records, one would find "Elvis is King" and "Elvis is King on this side too". The single actually gets good reviews, although they seemed contradictory... often within themselves. One review in the New Musical Express states, "It's a great record. Doesn't stand a snowballs chance in hell. What a bleedin' shame". Yes - this is in fact word for word.
An avid listener of the station sent me this cool tidbit; In 1981, a bottle-shaped children's book, based on the lyrics of Sting's "Message In A Bottle", is published.
In 1992 we visit the "What were you thinking department" where Billy Idol pleaded no contest to punching a woman in the face. He was fined and told to make public service announcements against alcohol and drug use.
Finally, we end today's' blog with a moment of silence. On this day, April 7th back in 1998, Wendy O Williams, lead singer of The Plasmatics, passed away.
Peace out 'til next time,
Dave
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
