Since part of the BeatConscious manifesto is ensuring that excellent tunage doesn't just disappear without a trace, there's many a show that gets inspired or built around one of these classics … think of the Jeff Buckley tunes that drive the BOOK:ENDED mix from July. The current show (which takes its name -- Rain & Stars -- from two of the musical rescues) is studded with more such gems, starting out with a song I think of as being absolute August in the southland, John Hiatt's 1988 release "Feels Like Rain". This sexy slowburner is distinguished equally by the guitar work and the vocals, including killer harmonies on the chorus … Aaron Neville covered this song, with somewhat more ethereal results, in the mid-90's.

Another of the "saves" is a track from folk-singer Eliza Gilkyson … this one came off a LEAK music magazine CD (back in the 90's, when those physical constructions arrived in the mail instead of being digitally delivered as podcasts) … "Stars" is one of those seemingly minor tunes that ends up living in your head forever (if your head is anything like mine….) Highly recommended for spirited singing-along in the car …

The musical rescue impulse extends to a couple of Hefner tracks from the 2002 release Reworks … I'm hopelessly addicted to Hefner, basically because it's some wicked good stuff … note how the airy innocence of the vocals plays off against the ominous sub-bass and broken-beat drumming in the first of the two tunes, "Phonecall" -- this is the sound that drew me to downtempo in the beginning, and Hefner is one of the iconic releases from the heady period of the early aughts when the genre was golden and so much excellent music was being released.

And finally, I've brought back not only the tunes but a favorite transition as well … the Roxy Music into FC Kahuna blend that first appeared in the 2004 show Ever Since the Day … Released in 1980 on the album Flesh & Blood, the Roxy track "Oh Yeah" is the oldest piece on this set and yet still manages to sound freshly minted … and the same could be said for another selection from the same time period as that Roxy Music track, "Qu'ran" from David Byrne & Brian Eno's My Life in the Bush of Ghosts.

So that's the armature supporting a set which is further furnished with small gems from current artists like KUSH, All India Radio, Zero 7, Adani & Wolf, Marcel and others. A relatively themeless mix, perhaps (Holger alert!) but trust the flow to carry you along … just be glad to be here.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: MadameFLY,

DJ now on-air: MadameFLY
Mix Name: ..Rain & Stars..
Current Track: Phonecall
Current Artist: Hefner
Time into Mix: 00:13:34
# Listeners: 2


Glad you could stop by ... hope you enjoy the show...