For those of us stuck at the office in Los Angeles, we can live vicariously through dublab, streaming live from Austin for the next few days.

dublab.com will be web-casting live audio & video via Yowie from inside Domy Books, Austin’s amazing creative culture-hub/bookshop/gallery, during SXSW.

The whole Domy space will be activated with awesome energy. In the backyard dublab and Yowie are helping present Domy’s “What x Whatever” showcase booked by the Smell, KXLU & KVRX. Check the line-up and listen in.

BROADCAST SCHEDULE:

WEDNESDAY 3/16

12-4pm: What x What-ever Warm up with dublab x Domy x KXLU. Live art action by Crummy House.

THURSDAY 3/17

12-1pm: Mount Kimbie
1-2pm: Adventure
2-3pm: Sun Araw
3-4pm: Matthewdavid
4-5pm: Bell Gardens
5-6pm: Yale (Luaka Bop)
6-7pm: Simulcast from outdoor stage featuring Peter Pants
7-8pm: One Am Radio
8-9pm: frosty
9-10pm: Daedelus

FRIDAY 3/18

12-1pm: Anenon
1-2pm: Sodapop (Anticon)
2-3pm: DJ Chicken George
3-4pm: Asura
4-5pm: Anika
5-6pm: KXLU simulcast of outdoor stage featuring Batwings Catwings & Grass Widow
6-7pm: Young Magic
7-8pm: Light Pollution
8-9pm: Tearist (live from outdoor stage)
9-10pm: Butchy Fuego

SATURDAY 3/19

Full schedule TBA. We’ll have the Stepkids (Stones Throw) at 3pm, the LA Record crew, Warp artists and much much more!

Domy Books
913 E Cesar Chavez
Austin, TX 78702

Anne Litt has been involved with KCRW for fifteen years, and has earned critical acclaim not only for her on-air talents, but also her supervision of the Little Miss Sunshine soundtrack. She’s also the one responsible for the recent appearance of the Black Keys and Sean Hayes on Subaru commercials. Litt was a crucial player in the establishment of KCRW’s internet identity and on-line music channel, and you can hear her on Saturday and Sunday from 2 to 5 pm (or on demand) playing “progressive pop and new rhythms.” This interview by Kristina Benson.

What are your favorite five albums of 2010 from L.A.-based artists?

Anne Litt:

Flying Lotus – Cosmogramma – Flying Lotus is a genius, in my opinion. The beat culture that he has been instrumental in building truly defines an L.A. sound. Other artists like Nosaj Thing, Gaslamp Killer, Tokimonsta, Daedelus, Teebs, Take, and on and on are part of a scene that is hands down the most exciting one happening now. I want to hear more from all of them in 2011.

Darker My Love – Alive As You Are – I’ve written a lot about Darker My Love’s latest record because I keep going back to it over and over again. The sounds are from another era and feel distinctly West Coast. The psychedelic, trippy guitars and down in the dirt, organic sounds of this record have made it a favorite.

Local Natives – Gorilla Manor – They are so good live and I think this record is a great example of what bands are doing today, pulling in different influences and sounds from a global perspective.

Warpaint – The Fool – This record missed some Top Ten mentions because it’s such a new release, but I think it’s just amazing. This is their debut full length and their sound is easy and unforced. It’s hazy and organic and will seep into your brain. Their cover of “Ashes To Ashes” on Manimal Vinyl’s Bowie tribute record rivals the original.

Ozomatli – Fire Away – Ozo has been the standard bearer for L.A. culture for two decades. The responsibility they feel to the community and the fun they have making music is inspiring. This record is razor sharp. I was also proud of the remixes we KCRW DJ’s did of tracks from the record too.

What releases in 2011 are you most looking forward to?
Anne Litt: I hear that new records are coming from all of these artists in 2011, but I’m sure there are tons more amazing records that I don’t even know about yet!
* Other Lives
* Devotchka
* Iron and Wine
* The Shins
* Death Cab For Cutie
* DJ Shadow

Do you think it’s hard for an artist to keep the attention of listeners and music fans these days, given how much music is out there competing for our attention through internet-based blogs, radio stations, MTV, YouTube, etc?

Anne Litt: On the one hand, I think it’s much harder and more work to keep the attention of the listeners. But, on the other hand, since the playing field has been leveled, so many more artists have a voice. Honestly that’s what gets me most excited. I feel as though I stumble upon something new that I like almost every day.

The “noise” level is high though because of the sheer volume. And because there are not physically enough hours in the day to read every blog and watch every YouTube video, I have my trusty, secret sources who hip me to things that I might have missed. For example, just last week one of my secret agents turned me on to Danish singer songwriter, Agnes Obel. Her debut, Philharmonics, came out in a few European countries in October and has gotten a lovely review from the BBC. The world might have missed her spare and lovely compositions if this was 1991 when the world was ruled by major labels.

There are a couple artists that appear consistently on a lot of top tens. I’m thinking of Flying Lotus and Janelle Monae in particular. What do you think it is about these artists that resonated so broadly?

Anne Litt: I think that people today are looking for art—for sounds that remember our collective past but look forward with a new perspective. Also, because the globe has gotten smaller through technology, sounds from other eras and times have seeped into our consciousness and music in a really exciting way. Flylo and Janelle Monae are two great examples of that. Flying Lotus takes jazz, soul, and electronic music and has twisted into something else, while Janelle Monae’s songs are musical theater with messages and hooks.

How has the music scene in Los Angeles changes since you started at KCRW?

Anne Litt: My sense (I’ve been here since 1991) is that the scene and sounds are more cohesive. I don’t mean that all the bands sound alike, but that everyone is supporting each other. The independent records stores, club scene, internet radio stations like Dublab, KXLU, KCRW, and KPFK are supporting a giant variety of local music and it’s flourishing.

Picture Con Secuencia: A Show of Exquisite Corpses

Presented by walt! productions and Eraser Zine

Free opening reception November 12th, 2010 8pm
with DJ sets from KXLU DJ Molly
Echo Curio
1519 Sunset Blvd. Echo Park, CA 90026

Featuring a (not so) silent auction to benefit Echo Curio.

Missed Connections cassette presented by No Girls Allowed Records
featuring music by the following artists (and members of):
Moses Campbell, XBXRX, kit, No Babies. Charlyne Yi, Michael Nhat, Magick Orchids, Lola Loshkey, Big Whup, Pizza!, Heller Keller, Sugar Frosted Light Bulbs, Tusk, Peter Pants and more!

New video and animation collaborations from:
walt!, Eri Hawkins, Sean Solomon, Chloe Mandel, Steven Sanchez, champoyhate, Sam Yurick, Joan Zamora, Andrew Lush, Dave Sirus, Jordan Santos, Joe Holliday, Michael Reyder, Julie Orlick, Rachel Cole, Craig Miller, Anthony Anzalone, Steven Andrew Garcia, Carla Orendorff, Vim Crony, Lillie West, Austin Wolf-Sothern

Featuring new work in drawing, painting, collage, writing, installation, music, video, animation, and more!

what’s an exquisite corpse? see here
questions? e-mail
corpseshow@gmail.com

http://www.echocurio.com/
http://www.waltproductions.com/ec.html
http://www.eraserzine.com/
http://www.nogirlsallowedrecords.com/

LMU’s Mason Stockstill tells us “It’s a victory for KXLU, perhaps the only radio station in Los Angeles that will play indie artists like most of those in LA Record.” Here’s his official statement on behalf of Loyola Marymount University & KXLU:

LMU Radio Station Prevails in Frequency Dispute

LOS ANGELES – Student-run radio station KXLU 88.9 FM has returned to the airwaves in the eastern areas of Los Angeles and cities in the San Gabriel Valley, ending a long-running dispute over interference from another station.

Since 2002, Loyola Marymount University has been working with the Federal Communications Commission to resolve the infringement on KXLU’s radio “contour” – a geographic area where a radio station’s broadcast frequency is protected.

“We’re all excited and stoked that finally, after all this time, we can finally see some progress,” said Alison Potoczak, KXLU’s general manager and a student DJ. “Those areas, Downtown and Silver Lake and Pasadena, are a great area for underground music, and KXLU is the perfect outlet for them.”

KXLU is a rarity in Los Angeles, where many college radio stations are staffed by professionals rather than students. Founded in 1957, KXLU broadcasts an eclectic mix of music, and its DJs and programs are regularly featured in local publications’ “Best of Los Angeles” lists.

Listeners first reported interference with KXLU’s signal eight years ago, after Lancaster-based broadcaster KTLW set up a translator in the San Gabriel Mountains, which repeated its signal on the 88.9 FM frequency. That created interference for KXLU, in areas ranging from Pasadena to Echo Park, and in parts of the San Fernando Valley.

LMU challenged the signal encroachment, and the FCC sided with the university earlier this year. Though the dispute took nearly a decade to resolve, staff at the station are focusing on the positive aspects of the resolution.

“The feedback from listeners, even that first night, was fantastic,” said Lydia Ammossow, KXLU’s adviser. “We’re just so excited to be able to bring our music back to those folks.”

—Mason Stockstill (LMU)

For fourteen years, Reverend Dan Bueler’s “Music for Nimrods” has been bridging the gap between the freeform FM radio shows of the Sixties and Seventies and the anything-goes looseness of college radio. An old anti-drug PSA might be followed by a radio spot for a Fifties sci-fi movie, followed by a skit from a vintage comedy record, followed by an interview with the Mau Maus or your friend’s power pop band, culminating in a half-hour set of uninterrupted music, and yet somehow, he’s still allowed to do it–even if he did get fired from KPFK ten years ago and had to move to the sanctuary of Loyola Marymount’s KXLU. He speaks now, belligerently, to Janet Housden.

How long have you been doing Music for Nimrods?
Fourteen years. I got the first show January of ’96 at KPFK, and I was there during the most problematic years. There was a lot of political infighting going on with the station, people trying to turn it this direction, that direction, and here I’ve got this goofy Rock and Roll show at three in the morning…I realized I’d been on the air for four years because they’d never heard the show. The day they finally heard it was the day they cancelled me. I had five transsexual porn stars on…I found out how far left you could go on KPFK.
So how’d you end up on KXLU?
Stella, who just celebrated 30 years at KXLU, was the one who championed me over there. I’ve been there since 2000.
You’ve described yourself as a “teenage radio geek.” Why did you want to be on the radio so bad
The Real Don Steele. He used to do that dance party show on Saturday afternoons, and he was a maniac. He’d smash things and crash things, he looked cool, he had the New York Dolls on…I just thought, “this is the job for me.” And ever since probably eleven or twelve years old, Dr. Demento was a big influence on me, as soon as Rodney hit in ’75 or ’76 I was listening to all that, just trying to find the music that didn’t suck.
Are you a real Reverend? Can you marry people and stuff?
I can marry people. I am ordained with the Universal Life Church like any other crackpot. I’ve done several renewals, but I’ve not yet done an actual ceremony. Stella wanted to marry an Oster percolator from the ‘60’s that she was in love with, so I did do a ceremony for Stella and the percolator. It was a very, very touching ceremony.
Who’s this Ronald X. Sensor guy?
I don’t know Ronald X. Sensor. Here’s the deal: When I had the show on KPFK, I used to let everybody get on the air. One day, this Nixon-voiced person came on and said (does Nixon impression), “Dan, this is Ronald X. Sensor from the Federal Communications Commission. You played a song with the lyric ‘I’ve got a Wiggle Stick Mama.’ This is not going to look good in my report.” And ever since then, if I played an offensive song, with a dirty word or something, he would call in. I’ve made him a
part of the show but I’ve still never met the fellow. We’ve never talked outside the show, he’s always in character. He has many characters – he’s got Hadji the 7-11 owner, he’s got the Vampire Gardener…sometimes it’s rambling, sometimes it goes nowhere, but it’s still fun for me.
Do you think Rock and Roll has lost something now that it’s no longer the music of choice for juvenile delinquents?
I don’t think Rock and Roll is the music of degenerates. Bad pop music is the music of degenerates.
But don’t you think it’s kind of sad that modern delinquents don’t listen to Rock and Roll?
They never liked Rock and Roll.
Oh, come on! All those movies I used to see on late-night TV were lies? You know, the Cool and the Crazy, High School Confidential, Blackboard Jungle? Rock and Roll was hoodlum music! I thought that’s why people were so up in arms about it when it first got popular…
No, I think that was just racism. “Ugh, it’s that jungle music, it’s infecting our kids.”
That’s what my dad called it. I could never tell if he was joking…but even when we were teenagers, being really into Rock and Roll, people thought you were a freak.
When my younger sister started dating her now-husband, I would come back from my job at Tower Records wearing my boots and my punk shirts, and I would scare him. I did have that effect at one time.
We all did, and I kind of miss it in a way. I mean, I don’t miss being harassed by the police, I don’t miss having people try to beat me up on the street, no one’s throwing bottles out of cars…
“Hey Devo!”
Yeah, this was a daily occurrence. “Devo fag!” I don’t really miss that, but it’s kind of like something’s missing. Rock and Roll is totally the music for the good kids now. You see little kids with their rock shirts and they’re going to their lessons at the Silverlake Conservatory with their moms…
Yeah, there shouldn’t be Ramones onesies, should there?
I’ve actually seen entire families decked out in Ramones-wear.
But do they listen? I think they just shop at Hot Topic…’cuz I think we’d be hearing the Ramones a lot more often…
Well, that’s another question I had…the first time I heard “Blitzkrieg Bop”, my life was completely changed in two minutes, it was a really heavy moment, and yesterday I was in Von’s and they were playing “Blitzkrieg Bop” in the store. I ran into a friend of mine and we were like “does this mean we won? Or does this mean we’re so old and irrelevant that the music we liked as kids is now Muzak?” It’s gone from people literally wanting to kill you for liking this band, to background music for grocery shopping.
But you still don’t hear it on the radio…
You hear it in commercials.
You get great music on commercials, you get great music in supermarkets these days…across the way there’s a Superior Food Warehouse, and the music in there is never less than interesting. It’s shocking how hip it is in there.
What do you think that means? That Rock and Roll is totally safe now?
If it was it would be in more places. We find it in little niches. It hasn’t been mainstreamed yet, it’s just that the people who like it and are able to put in places are doing so. But usually when I hear music in public places it’s the worst music I’ve ever heard in my life.
That’s one of the reasons I avoid public places. Some of that so-called R&B stuff sounds like a bad day at the vivisection lab.
What kills me is that someone is getting paid to program that music and it’s not me. This guy is getting paid to select crap, just like every radio programmer in Los Angeles – they get good money to play what the record companies tell them to play. There’s no other reason for what they play.
Your show’s on in the middle of the night. You must get some random people calling in. What’s the weirdest call you ever got?
On KXLU the calls aren’t that weird.
You’d think there would at least be some random tweakers. You’ve never had a Play Misty For Me type of stalker?
I had a guy who wanted to find out everything about me, which was kind of creepy. He called himself Wormwood, and he’d want to get into these long discussions about the songs I’d play. He found my unlisted number, so I changed the number the next day.
You did have a Play Misty For Me kind of stalker! That’s awesome! He wanted to talk about the songs?
Yeah, “what does this mean? Why are you playing this?” ‘Cuz it’s got a good beat! Shut up! I don’t like to explain songs much when I’m on the air, normally I don’t even want to say what year a song was made, because I think all songs are viable. I’ll play an unknown band, someone famous, it doesn’t matter. The songs work, and that’s all I really care about.
That’s kind of unusual. It seems some of the kids on KXLU just try to top each other with the most obscure or unlistenable thing they can come up with.
Some of the noise fans on KXLU at very dedicated. And I don’t know why they’re on during the day, but…
Sometimes I just don’t tune in because I get really tired of just clicking and beeping and thumping sounds. I wonder if they really like the way it sounds, or what?
Well, kids who are in college right now, they’ve spent the last ten years listening to the worst music of all time. So the fact that they’ve been able to find anything is kind of impressive.
Some people can’t wrap their heads around why anyone would put so much time and effort into something that’s not going to make them rich or famous, and here you stay up all night playing obscure records for God knows who…explain to these people why you do it.
Stella and I had this talk…some people have jobs, some people are drawn to a vocation, and we are drawn to being radio people. We’ve always been the kind of people that want to go to radio transmitters just to feel the electromagnetic vibrations in the air. We were the people who actually spent time listening – “who’s a good DJ? Who’s picking good songs?” It’s what we do. We have to do it. That’s why we do it for so many years for no pay, because it just brings us joy. The cover of Donald Fagen’s album Nightfly captures radio for me. It’s a very romantic image of radio – just a guy, alone at night, with the turntable and the microphone…just a guy in a room playing great songs for people. That’s all it should be. It’s just a very pure thing. And when I heard people like Rodney just playing music…and you know Rodney has no radio skills whatsoever, but he does have absolute love for the music.
Yeah, and you can hear it. And that’s what’s different with you guys. It seems like a lot of people I hear on commercial radio, they’re there for their “Radio Careers,” not because they love music.
They don’t care what they play. It just saddens me. They’d better be well paid, because if I had to play the crap they play I would be in psychotherapy. I don’t even think they listen to what they’re playing. I’m very envious of people on commercial radio stations, because they get to eat, but…
If someone offered you a drivetime slot, and enough money to live on, but you had to play what they told you to, what would you do? Do you love the radio enough to do that?
No. I wouldn’t be able to do it for any real length of time. But if radio is willing to hire people with asshole opinions like Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity and all these people, why not hire someone for their musical opinion as well?

Download: Daniel Johnston “Freedom”

(from Is And Always Was out now on High Wire)

“Daniel’s got his marbles in a row right now so I guess that’d be all right,” Daniel’s dad, Bill, told me when I called the Johnston family home. “Daniel’s a regular person, you know, like you and me.” “That might be so,” I said, “but Daniel’s done some things I’ve never done that I’m real curious about—plus I think we might have a fun time talkin’ to each other.” We did. This interview by Drew Denny and Chris Ziegler.

I heard you went to Austin this weekend. I’m from Austin.
Daniel Johnston: You’re from Austin? Oh, how ’bout that! We was there the other day for that show—part of the festival. We were over by the Coliseum on the other side of the river. I sang and I played and that was about it. The band was real good and there was like a million people—at least a hundred thousand people—it was one of the biggest crowds I ever played for. Well, a hundred thousand might be stretchin’ it, but there was a lot of people. I wonder how many people there was—I really don’t know.
Austin is a good crowd—friendly people.
Daniel Johnston: That’s right—they come out a lot for original music. There’s that type of people and then people that’d just rather hear top 40 and stuff …
What’s your favorite joke to tell on stage when you play?
Daniel Johnston: This is a real dream that I had and I tell this story when I’m in concert: I had a dream that this guy was sentenced to death for attempting to commit suicide. And in the dream, I was there and I was going, ‘Nooo! NOOO!’ It was a nightmare.
Do you ever try to use your dreams for songs?
Daniel Johnston: I try to. I wish I could remember more than I do.
When did you first go to Austin?
Daniel Johnston: I got in Texas—in Austin—when I came in with the carnival in 1984.
That’s when I was born.
Daniel Johnston: That’s when you were born? How can you be that young? That’s wild!
What was it like back then in Austin?
Daniel Johnston: It was pretty fun. Sure is a wild town.
Did you hang out at Barton Springs?
Daniel Johnston: Yeah, when I used to live there working at McDonald’s, me and my girlfriend would go out and go swimming. It’s like Woodstock there.
I was a carhop at Sonic in high school. What was your fast food experience like?
Daniel Johnston: The manager at the place was real impressed when he saw the newspaper article that featured me about the MTV thing, you know. That was pretty funny ’cause I never got any respect from him until I was in the newspaper.
And then you didn’t have to work too hard?
Daniel Johnston: Nah, I still had to work.
Did you ever play house parties back then?
Daniel Johnston: I used to just make tapes for my friends—that’s how I started out. They had me thinking I was famous! All my friends would come over and I’d play some songs or we’d all get together and do a show on tape. We’d pretend it was a talk show and they’d interview me. For real—I felt like a star! Maybe more than today.
Where you livin’ now?
Daniel Johnston: I live out here towards Houston—it’s a couple hours from Austin. On down the road here.
Is it pretty?
Daniel Johnston: It sure is. I like it. When I lived in town I was always getting arrested and getting into trouble and everything, so I’m glad to be out here where there’s no cops around. I don’t go anywhere so I’m safer that way, you know.
You go to church out there?
Daniel Johnston: We used to go to church but we don’t go to church anymore. It’s been a long time since we gone. … I always enjoy going and seein’ the pretty girls. I was like, ‘Wow.’ I was talking to one once and she appeared to be a grown-up girl. I says, ‘Hi, how old are you?’ and she says, ‘Twelve’ and I go, ‘Aw, man—get me out of this place!’
They’re growin’ up faster these days I think!
Daniel Johnston: It’s true! And even old people don’t look that old. It’s strange. I don’t feel that young. I’m supposed to be quite a bit old, but I just feel just fine. It must be the better drugs and the better food—maybe somethin’ like that. You know that science and technology has advanced and there’s better food for you in some places, I guess.
I live in L.A. now but I miss Texas. I just found a church out here—it seats like three thousand and they have a big band and people speak in tongues. What do you think about that?
Daniel Johnston: I ain’t into that kinda stuff. We never did that kinda crazy stuff at our church. You know it wasn’t like that at all. I been to one of those once and it was hilarious. My friend had been going—it was like after high school, you know—so he picked me up and my other friend. We went and it was hilarious. It was a woman preacher and she was yellin’ and screamin’ and it’s comedy material!
So you’re making new music?
Daniel Johnston: Tryin’ to. Doin’ concerts. Keep on drawin’ all the time. I draw a lot.
When did you start?
Daniel Johnston: I ’member when we moved to West Virginia a long time ago when I was just a kid and there weren’t any kids around to play with—or it didn’t seem like it—so my mother bought me some pamphlets—writing paper—and I started drawing all day and I was happy!
I didn’t have any friends when I was little but I couldn’t draw, so all I did was eat cake and ride horses.
Daniel Johnston: All my life I wanted to be a comic book artist.
What were the first comic books you got?
Daniel Johnston: Herbie. I love all comic books. When I go to look at ’em, no matter what they are, if I like it—or if it’s cheap is the main thing, if it’s cheap enough—I’ll buy it.
What do you do with your drawings?
Daniel Johnston: I sell ’em. That’s my spending cash!
How do you feel about exhibiting your drawings?
Daniel Johnston: That’s a lot of fun too. We did this big gallery show—it was like a festival thing. Sometimes my bigger drawings would sell for a thousand five hundred, and I see ’em writin’ out those checks and go, ‘I can’t believe this! Wow!’ We have a book out this year with my drawings. I don’t know if you know about it but it should be in your bookstore.
Any plans for when you come to L.A.?
Daniel Johnston: I was in L.A. a month ago recording a new album that’s already out. It’s called Is and Always Was. It sounds just great. I like it a lot. I played while I was there but I’m sure to come back out to L.A. and do some shows. We just went in and recorded some tracks and they re-dubbed the music and I sang along with the tapes—karaoke style!
Have you ever done karaoke?
Daniel Johnston: No. I almost did one time. But that’s what this was like!
What would you sing if you did it?
Daniel Johnston: Daniel Johnston songs, I guess.
What are your favorite things to draw or to sing about?
Daniel Johnston: I draw pretty much the same kind of thing over and over again—try to catch some characters I’m workin’ with. I just like listenin’ to music and watchin’ movies and playin’ piano and guitar—
Bill Johnston: And shop!
Daniel Johnston: Ha—yeah! I love to go shoppin’! All around the world, everywhere we go. Comic books—that’s right.
What’s the best present you ever got in the mail?
Daniel Johnston: Oh, well, they usually send me something like a shirt with their band name. And I don’t like to wear ’em because I don’t know who they are. They should send comic books—stuff like that. Comic books and magazines or something.
Have you got to play that video game they made about your art yet?
Daniel Johnston: Yeah—this is crazy! It’s a lot of fun. What’ll they think of next, really? They made some shoes—one company had some shoes with my drawings all over ’em. And another company made a toy out of the frog. Converse shoes and they’re making the toys. What’ll they think of next? I don’t know—something crazy!
I just got one more—it’s sort of a personal question for me. My mother’s in a mental hospital in Austin right now and I was wondering if you could give me some advice about what I could do to make that time easier on her.
Daniel Johnston: You should definitely go visit her ’cause when I was at the mental hospital that was like the highlight of my day if someone come visit, you know. And bring her a soda pop.

L.A. RECORD AND KXLU PRESENT DANIEL JOHNSTON WITH SOKO AND HYMNS ON SAT., OCT. 24, AT THE HENRY FONDA THEATER, 6126 HOLLYWOOD BLVD., HOLLYWOOD. 8 PM / $22-$27 / ALL AGES. GOLDENVOICE.COM. DANIEL JOHNSTON’S IS AND ALWAYS WAS IS OUT NOW ON HIGH WIRE. VISIT DANIEL JOHNSTON AT HIHOWAREYOU.COM OR MYSPACE.COM/DANNYJOHNSTON.

Download: Farmer Dave Scher “Bablone Nights”

(from Flash Forward To The Good Times out now on Kemado)

Farmer Dave Scher is almost the Chris Darrow of his day—he’s got the cosmic aplomb and the cheerful versatility to put him in collaborations with Elvis Costello, Jenny Lewis, Nobody and the Mystic Chords of Memory, dios, Miranda Lee Richards and more. He now lives in Venice, where he listens to KXLU—where he famously used to DJ—and where he is basking in the happy after-effects of his new solo album Flash Forward To The Good Times. This interview by Thomas McMahon.

Did you consider having the album be just ‘Farmer Dave,’ or did you need to have your last name on there to distinguish from other Farmer Daves?
Farmer Dave Scher: It just landed. It’s weird if you have a nickname—like the ‘Farmer’ nickname has been around since I was up at KXLU. I think that the last name sort of landed in the present a little more. Sort of like tethered the balloon somewhat.
Do you still listen to KXLU?
Farmer Dave Scher: Yeah—now that I’m living in Venice, I hear it much better and I’m excited. I couldn’t hear it when I was in Highland Park, and I was also on the road a lot the last few years. It kind of was like coming full circle to be able to hear it because that time at the station was pretty much what blew my mind—got everything going the way it is.
You give Long Beach a couple of shout-outs on the album.
Farmer Dave Scher: Yeah, I’m from there. I went to the high school downtown—Long Beach Polytechnic. Snoop Dogg was there, just a few years ahead. Sublime were playing in backyards at keg parties. And so it’s definitely always been on my mind, the LBC and all that. This particular record, I wanted to have a little fun like that—shout things out. The last record I made was a little more under the microscope, so this one I wanted to have a little fun with it like that. But, yeah, I’m stoked on Long Beach. I think I’m going to go play down there a bit. My friends have asked me to do something at the end of September. And then I used to work at Fingerprints down there when I was a young guy, so I might go play there, too. Either way, I like that city. When I would come home from tours the last few years, I would go there to chill out. It’s closer to beaches with good waves, and my family is there, and it’s relaxing. And it has good clubs and bands, and it’s happening a little bit.
Another place you mention is San Miguel de Allende.
Farmer Dave Scher: That’s in Guanajuato, Mexico, and my dad lives there. But if you ever look into it, it’s a beautiful town, and old colonial town that’s still pretty intact. Especially at the center of the town—it’s got the plaza and the church and the cobblestone. There’s also a lot of American expatriates there. A lot of GIs after World War II went down there and studied art or just chilled out. My grandfather went to Instituto Allende and studied fine arts for a bit in the ’60s. And then my dad moved to Cabo San Lucas and ran a boat, kind of like a catamaran that gave people margaritas or something. And then he moved down to San Miguel, and he met a lady and got married, so I have a rad family there. I put in as much time there as I can. When I was playing with Interpol, we played in Mexico City, and my family all rolled down to that. So that was exciting. I know there’s a lot of cool stuff going on in Mexico City, so I’m hoping to get into that. I’d also like to make some of these songs into Spanish language. But I kind of want to do it the right way. I think I’m going to go down over Thanksgiving and work with a couple of my cousins. My cousin and my aunt are actually these hip young ladies, so I think they can help me.
Are you talking about doing the whole album in Spanish?
Farmer Dave Scher: At least a few of the songs. I don’t think all of them are built for it, but I know a couple of them would be really fun. And here we get some records once in a while where people are using English as a second language, you know? Even ABBA or Shakira or Nico. I think it could be a little bit charming if my Spanish isn’t perfect. But yo puedo hablar Español un poquito—you know, I can do it.
Would you say that ‘We Have a Way’ has a sort of Motown vibe?
Farmer Dave Scher: It does. I had some friends over to visit. One of them was ‘Z’ [Elizabeth Berg], who has that band the Like. She sang a little bit on a song, and then when I played her that, she pointed out that I absorbed a lot of vibes from my neighbors. This part of Venice I’m in, the family next door is African-American. They’ve lived there for fifty years. I wasn’t surfing as much when I made the record in the winter, but I’d ride my bike every day. And I think that they were always playing really good soul music, and I think it gave that song a little extra of that mood than I had thought at the beginning. I didn’t want to copy anything specific. 92.3 has that guy Art Laboe, who plays really good soul music at night, and then he does the dedications. I think that might have spun it a little bit. Aside from loving Motown a lot, the musicians on that song are also really proficient. If I had played the instruments myself, it probably wouldn’t have made it to that destination.
Was ‘Our Love Is a Wave’ inspired by a wedding?
Farmer Dave Scher: Yeah! I guess it’s like a composite of two different weddings, but it’s actually made for a third. I first started to think about that for my friend’s wedding a long time ago, but I never finished the words, so it sat there. Then other friends got married on a cliff by the ocean in Malibu, and me and the two violinists who played on my record, Paz and Ana Lenchantin—Paz is on the cover of L.A. RECORD right now; she’s in Entrance. So Paz, Ana and I were playing in a little trio at this wedding, so when they walked off, we played this really sad music. That was the second wedding. And then a third wedding up in Big Sur, also on a cliff. They got lucky—there was no fog, a full view north to south, like, panorama. So I started thinking about that and also the fairy tale aspect. I’m single as hell right now, but someday I feel like I’ll be ready to do that. That song is my kind of hopes for that mood, you know?
In one song on this album and a few of your earlier songs, you’ve mentioned ‘ghost dance.’ Are you referring to the Native American ritual?
Farmer Dave Scher: Yeah. From what I’ve learned about those ghost dances and what I imagined was just a lot of motion, transcendence—it seemed to be their last hope to make it to a new plane. But I get motion and color when I think about it. When I just think about it, I can hear sounds. Kind of like a little maelstrom. If you’ve ever really stirred up your chi or just tried to get something really cooked up, you get in this kind of frenzied spot. The Whirling Dervishes did it; the Sufi mystics would get into that. A lot of cultures—even Americans, even a rave. If you dance enough, you get to another spot. To me, the idea of a ghost dance is just even a little more fantastic. I feel like there’s something that’s hard for me to describe to you that’s just pushing on the edges of everything that you consider a daily reality. Even that scene in that Doors movie when he’s got the kid in the car and he looks out the window, and they put the Indian music in there, and they drive past an accident or something. I’m just trying to figure out a way to explain that mood I get. I start to hear these kind of sounds. And I just like the idea of it, of this particular kind of a dance. And I’m actually making another song about it with the Beachwood Sparks guys. We got together, and we’re writing.
What do you guys have in the works?
Farmer Dave Scher: Well, I think that we’ve got a good shot to make a record. It took a while, but I think that everybody’s in good form. I went up to Santa Cruz and wrote with Chris [Gunst] and Brent [Rademaker], and we hope to take the ideas and get them ready. I’d like to record at the end of the year if possible, but we’re taking it comfortably.
How has the music scene in L.A. changed over the years that you’ve playing?
Farmer Dave Scher: When I got out of college and moved to Echo Park for the first time, it was 1998, so I’d say that I’m not really a fit candidate to say how it’s changed. Because I think a lot of people at my age probably don’t go to shows the same. I used to be out at Spaceland every night, and when I was in my 20s, I was completely steeped in it. And then Beachwood Sparks—the version that we formed eventually that went off and started touring, and then you start to notice when you come home maybe you don’t want to get as involved, you know? It’s like different levels of activity. So I don’t think I really know a lot of what’s going on. But I will say that I’ve been on the road for about five years playing the hired-gun kind of a thing, and I would like to plug in more again and see for myself. I’d like to get more involved in a lot of the projects that are going on. I would say that dublab for me is really rad. I like to see the events that they’re teamed up in. This Silent Movie Theatre that I’m going to play at is very exciting. It seems like a chance to gather a lot of really interesting visual media and just have another approach to what a concert should be.
Are you still selling the Hot Nuts?
Farmer Dave Scher: I hung up that business when I started playing. But I had it based on an aunt’s recipe. And Danny Preston from Rainbow Arabia used to run a supermarket up in Malibu at Point Dume. So I’d go up there and use an FDA-approved oven, and I sold them at the Echo, Little Joy, Sea Level Records and a few other spots. And I sold them to the catering for that show The O.C. [Laughs.] That was a good one. So, yeah, now that I’m home and have a little more free time, I think I definitely have to revive the nuts.

‘AN EVENING IN THE FARMER DAVE ZONE’ WITH FARMER DAVE SCHER ON TUE., SEPT. 15, AT CINEFAMILY AT THE SILENT MOVIE THEATRE, 611 N. FAIRFAX AVE., LOS ANGELES. 8 PM / $13 / ALL AGES. CINEFAMILY.ORG. FARMER DAVE SCHER’S FLASH FORWARD TO THE GOOD TIMES IS OUT NOW ON KEMADO. VISIT FARMER DAVE SCHER AT MYSPACE.COM/FARMERDAVESCHER.

Demolisten sends out the following to alert people that it’s time to donate and deserves a few bucks just for brutal personality. (“I grew up Catholic and can hold a grudge for a long time…”) Please listen and donate if you can.

Dear friends, family, bands, fans, listeners, volunteers and stragglers of KXLU:

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Donate between the hours of 6 and 8pm PST by calling (310) 338-5958.

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Busdriver by Daiana Feuer

Taking over the grounds of a giant furniture import warehouse called Out of Asia, Beach Dazed offered free ice cream, a blow up Slip n Slide, face painting, Korean taco truck, and two stages.  After enjoying a typically spot-on Pizza! performance, I found an over-sized rattan couch where I could wait for the next band, sweating all over the upholstery with a group of tweens wearing floral print mini-dresses and leather boots.  Oh, how happy I am to see the ’90s coming back! The lovely Mapi of KXLU fame adorned my face with some psychedelic war paint before I got back up to check out Best Coast.

Best Coast reaffirmed my theory that all two-human bands in Los Angeles should include Bobb Bruno, though perhaps that’s not so much theory as observation.  How much music can that man make? He provided the perfect backing band—bass, guitar, beats and all—for (former?) Pocahaunted member Bethany Cosentino’s beach blanket ballads. Her sincere delivery and love letter lyrics make singing about heartbreak feel so good I wish somebody would dump me right now.

I missed Haim cause I was really busy doing 360s and trust falls on the Slip n Dip out back but Daiana said they were pretty cool plus they’re sisters which is always nice.

After drying off, we slipped out the gate- past the baby faced organizer and his dad (who was wearing a sharp pin-striped suit and a gold ring that read “DAD”)—to find some food. Supper became quite an adventure complete with an African drumming circle, a dare devil puppy who almost got crushed by oncoming traffic, and free vodka drinks at a fancy Laxart opening. We found some tacos then headed back to the parking lot to chug Bud Lights before Busdriver.

Busdriver is awesome! The pink-polo shirted Regan Farquhar commanded the stage, spouting rhymes I didn’t even try to keep up with while his heroic sidekick, Anti MC, calmly manipulated a swath of drum pads and synth sounds, an electric guitar and pedals without breaking a sweat.  I was having a hard time keeping my cool ’cause a pair of teenage lesbians were getting’ freaky right in front of the stage, grabbing each others’ crotches and grind dancing. Oh, how happy I am to see the ’90s coming back!

—Drew Denny

kids by Daiana Feuer

Alejandro Cohen wants to put you to sleep. He came to L.A. from Buenos Aires in ‘96 to spin records and stir up dusty dino bones. On May 28th, Ale and friends from L.A.-based collective dublab will take over the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur to create an night of ambient music event aptly titled “Tonalism”—a term Ale appropriated from late-19th-century painters who tried to capture the mood of nature by representing it with misty atmospheres. This interview by Drew Denny.

When did you come up with the concept for Tonalism?
Alejandro Cohen: The first Tonalism happened in 2007, but the idea probably came to me in 2006. My friend Adam, who runs the label Pehr—pehrlabel.com—released a compilation called Tonalism. The idea of the comp was to have music that was meant to fall asleep to when listening to it. From there I thought it’d be fun to do an event where we play music with the same idea in mind. Also at the time I was reading more and more about events that people like La Monte Young, Terry Riley, John Cage and Yoko Ono were having both in the East Coast and the West Coast that had a similar concept to the one behind Tonalism. And from there the main idea came.
The flyer describes the event as an ‘ambient music happening’ but I saw names like Michael Stock—from Part Time Punks—included as well. How did you curate the event? Will everyone be playing ambient music or are you mixing it up?
The music and performers behind Tonalism all share a same sense and taste in music and styles. The live performers, DJs and visual artists are chosen not really based on genres of music, but mostly by having a common understanding on how things should sound, look and feel. So to answer to your question, yes—it is a mix of styles, eras, genres and instrumentation. But at the end all is connected.
Is it true that Brian Eno coined the term ‘ambient music’?
I’m not sure about that. I do believe there’s an artist that presented that concept a few years before Eno did. His name is Douglas Leedy and the record is Entropical Paradise—from 1972. In the liner notes I remember him pretty much presenting the concept of ambient music. It’s a fantastic release consisting of three records, six songs, one on each side.
What does that term mean to you?
It’s just a term. It helps simplify your everyday conversations when you want to refer to a certain feel, emotion or style in music. But it’s not too far off. What most people consider ambient…that’s another thing. It varies greatly, and all of them are valid. To me ambient music is melodies, songs, sounds, compositions or noises that create an environment—it’s not background music, but it doesn’t require for you to listen to it actively… It is somewhere in between those two. At Tonalism many recordings we play aren’t meant to serve that purpose, but we present it in a way that it does.
Where are you from?
I’m originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, from the neighborhood of Recoleta. I moved to L.A. in August 1996. When I moved to L.A., I ended up in Altadena—it’s a long story—but fortunately I didn’t find myself in the middle of Hollywood surrounded by European students trying to play guitar like Joe Satriani or Pastorius. I was fortunate to meet by pure coincidence—through a Recycler ad for a Volkswagen car—Damon Aaron. He introduced me to Michael Morgan a.k.a. Transistor Cricket, and from there I connected with other people, eventually meeting the folks at KXLU. Back then everything was more isolated—things happened at random a lot more, and mainly because it was before the Internet and Myspace became popular. Post-rock was in its infancy, with Tortoise only having one release, but people were already paying attention. Up in Altadena we really lived in our own world. Personally I fell in love with Further, Summer Hits and affiliated bands, including many that were part of KXLU and the clubs Jabberjaw, the Smell—in the valley—and the Impala Cafe. But it did feel much much smaller than now. You could sense that there were only a handful of people doing this. Silverlake wasn’t what is now, same with Los Feliz. Spaceland was just starting, and I remember the LA Weekly running an article about it. But that’s about it.
What do you think about the radio stations in L.A.? What is the future of Internet radio organizations like dublab?
I don’t really know commercial radio enough to have an opinion. KPFK, KXLU and KCRW are the ones that I’m mostly familiar with. And I think between the three of them, they offer a wide range of music that most cities only wish they could enjoy. Those stations can be quite adventurous in their choices, and that’s great! Internet radio seems to be getting more and more accessible as technology advances in its favor. The number of listeners will probably increase. Hopefully Internet radio will have the reach that FM/AM radio has in terms of accessibility. In regards to programming, I don’t see it departing radically from what FM and AM radio are nowadays in relation to content and options out there. It will probably offer the same type of options that FM and AM radio offers but in more quantity.
When did you start spinning?
I don’t remember when I started—it wasn’t a decision I made consciously. Little by little I started getting more and more involved in events, sometimes playing music, sometimes organizing. After a while I found myself playing records more and more, and that’s what happened. But if I have to give you a rough estimate, I’d say it was around 1998 or so.
Tell me about Languis. What’s your role in that project?
Languis is a band I started with Marcos Chloca in 1997. We released a bunch of records through the years. We toured a bit, and played with a lot of local bands and artists that came through L.A., like Broadcast, and Mouse On Mars. The band is still around—we released a record last year called Fractured through Plug Research. We have some releases planned for this year, but no live shows. Marcos moved on to play with a band called Lower Heaven, so at the moment I’m the main person behind the group.
Tell me about when Languis recorded at the Natural History Museum.
Oh, that was awesome! The natural reverbs sounded so beautiful. It really makes you realize how awful it is having to rely on reverbs from a computer all the time, since most people don’t have access to a room like that or natural echo chambers to record. It’s like watching a movie all your life on a tiny black and white TV, and all of a sudden someone plays that same movie on the big screen from its original film. In other aspects it was also a great experience. We—Languis—were there late at night to record a piece for the Natural History Museum’s Sonic Scenery exhibit. It was such a contrast to how you see the museum during the day. Everything comes to life!
Which is your favorite dinosaur?
I’m not sure—they are all pretty cool. Never went through the dinosaur phase as a kid. If I have to pick one, I’d say the Argentinasaurus, since I’m originally from there.

TONALISM PRESENTED BY DUBLAB WITH MUSIC BY THE DUBLAB SOUNDSYSTEM, WINDY & CARL, PHARAOHS, WHITE RAINBOW, NUDGE, ANDY CABIC, CARLOS NIÑO, MIA DOI TODD AND MANY MORE PLUS JIMMY TAMBORELLO, MICHAEL STOCK, KATIE BYRON, SMALL TOWN TALK, DJ COOL CHRIS AND OTHERS ON THU., MAY 28, AT THE HENRY MILLER LIBRARY, HIGHWAY ONE, BIG SUR. 4:20PM / $20 / ALL AGES. DUBLAB.COM.