Mark your calendars, set the clocks: Jon Solomon’s 24th Annual 24-Hour Holiday Radio Show is coming soon! The marathon begins on Saturday, December 24 at 6:00 PM ET and ends Sunday, December 25 at 6:00 PM ET.

It’s not Christmas without Jon’s annual holiday marathon. Seriously! From the absurd and bizarre to the beautiful and almost-kinda-holy, Jon’s show traverses the terrain of holiday music. No two marathons are alike, and perhaps that’s why listeners both near and far flock to the radio and/or webstream. So says Inside Jersey:

Forget the Bing Crosby-Nat King Cole-Mariah Carey loop that seems to air on every station in every mall – Solomon mixes covers of traditional hits with songs by bands from the region, recordings lost to attics and basements, and esoteric picks like “Mr. Russian, Please Don’t Shoot Down Santa’s Sleigh,” a Cold War-era number.

Which is not to be confused with “Can Santa Miss Those Missiles,” Solomon says.

You can RSVP for this show on Facebook.

Jon wants you to know that if you would like to make some requests, by all means get in touch.

Watch a live stream of everything happening in Studio A (goes live on December 24th):

Bernard Wöstheinrich

Bernhard started in about 1987 to intensely experiment with his own soundsand tunes after he found out that drawing and painting simply weren’t enoughto adequately express himself. He went about to find something that mighthad a more “performing” approach. Inspired by the likes of Einstürzende Neubauten and other informal and experimental music, he finally began towork in a very personal way to compose and record some early tapes.

Bernhard leads his own solo project “The Redundant Rocker” and his maincollaborator is Markus Reuter (in CENTROZOON). He has also worked with IanBoddy, Klaus Hoffmann-Hoock, No-Man singer Tim Bowness, Conrad Schnitzler,and Synapscape’s Philipp Münch. He has released music on a variety of labelssuch as DiN, Burning Shed, Tonefloat, Unsung Records, and continues to push at the boundaries of rock, electronica, and the avant-garde.

Bernhard elicits meaning from abstraction in electronic music and painting.He has studied graphic design and has created an eclectic body of work inboth graphics and music. Using a compositional approach akin to his work asa visual artist, Bernhard usually begins by improvising abstract sonic structures which are subsequently developed into an increasingly detailed aural picture.

For more information visit:

http://www.redundantrocker.com

http://www.centrozoon.de

Vic (Left) and Dean (Right)

Master Electronic Musicians Dean De Benedictus and Vic Hennegan will be performing 3 sets on this weeks edition of Music With Space on Friday Night just after te midnight hour (technically Saturday morning.) This is a “must not miss” even for fans of electronic and ambient music.

About Dean - Dean’s music, among other mediums, is the result of his will to tie an essential common thread together between opposing genres and mentalities, as well as draw from them a natural sense of emotion, expanse and mystery. This Southern California-based producer / performer / musician / visual and conceptual artist (otherwise known to the electronic/ambient community as Surface 10 or as Surface 10 Activity) has always utilized his interest in a variety of styles and cultures to enrich the quality of his musical expression. Beginning his deep exploration of music in the 80′s, De Benedictis covered a wide gamut of musical experience; moving through many jazz fusion and progressive rock bands, music theory classes, and producing/performing source music for network television over 12 years of his career

About Vic -   An artist and a spiritualist, Hennegan contemplates the state of humanity through his music. “Many of us have lost our connection with ourselves, the planet, the universe and those around us. Through dance, we connect to our spirit self and to the earth. Through song, we connect to each other, becoming instruments in tune and in harmony reaching a new and higher level of consciousness. My intention and purpose is to create and bring forth music—for dance, for harmony and for spiritual connection.”

“Vic Hennegan absorbs the beauty of this surroundings and translates that to a fine musical expression.” (Little Universe) Hennegan’s work as a live performer makes him a rare commodity in the electronic world. With computers, samplers, vocals and synthesizers, Hennegan’s instinctive hand creates techno-trance and ambient music in a wildly fun, uplifting spiritual experience that will take your soul on a journey to the center of ecstasy.

Hennegan’s music emanates a unique warmth which moves the listener to a state of euphoria. Through complex and insistent rhythms and vocals, Hennegan accomplishes “a lush dynamic that relentlessly strives to entertain.” (Matt Howarth, SonicCuriousity.com)

Every week this summer, WPRB will highlight one its DJs in “Get To Know WPRB’s DJS.”

DJ Name: Lance Loud

Show: “Peacock Dreams” Wednesdays from 10:00PM -12:00AM.

Type Of Music Played: “Far out stuff.”

Reasons for Being a DJ: “Seemed like a good idea at the time, and apparently it was.”

Day Job: Student (and Summer Station Manager for WPRB).

Hometown: New York.

Listening To Now: Sun Araw, Alice Coltrane, Dr. John, Incredible String Band.

Favorite Summer Food: Sushi.

Currently Reading: Myths, Dreams and Mysteries by Margaret Eliade

Favorite City Visited: Tokyo.

Anything else?: “Dreams sweet.”

Deerhunter

 Day Three

by Griffin Winton-LaVieri (WPRB Music Director)

Sunday was the hottest day of them all and I was the most worn out. We saw The Fresh and Onlys, Kurt Vile, and Ariel Pink at the Green Stage but I was too tired and hot to be able to judge them well. Kurt Vile seemed to be well liked by everyone in the crowd. Ariel Pink seemed out of it as he performed, falling down at one point, and left the stage for unexplained reasons half way into the set, thus cutting the set down significantly. Also, Ravi and I made it to the festival grounds first that day.

Sunday was also the day that OFWGKTA performed. We probably made the right decision in not joining the massive crowd but viewing the chaos from afar.  It looked like madness. Tyler, the Creator, the front man of Odd Future, despite having a cast on his foot which caused him to hobble, jumped in the crowd on multiple occasions.  One of the friendly security gaurds, Jeff, described working it as the hardest thing he’s ever done. Jeff was in Iraq 6 months ago.  The meaning of Odd Future and their controversial lyrics has been and will continue to be the theme of many think-pieces. You can make your own call about the whole thing.

Sunday improved as Deerhunter’s set at the Green stage approached.  Deerhunter are simply, a quality band. Hits such as “Helicopter”,  “Revival”, and “Nothing Ever Happened” were performed. “Nothing Ever Happened” was definitely the highlight as they jammed along – rhythmic and euphoric. No new songs were played but I was fine with that, having never seen them live. Bradford said that they had just returned from the UK and concluded ”It’s good to be back in the USA. Fuck anybody that tells you it isn’t the best country in the world.”

After Deerhunter we got dinner and walk around. Cut Copy was playing so we watched them from afar. It was impressive to see the huge crowd jump up and down as a mass.  Cut Copy put on a high energy show and ended with “Need You Now.” I like that song.  After Cut Copy was the final headliner, TV on The Radio.  I’m not a big fan of them so I persuaded Ravi that we should cut out early as we were going to another after-show.  The second song TV on The Radio played was “Dancing Choose” so I felt like we saw at least one important TV on The Radio song and could leave the festival knowing it was a weekend well spent.

We traveled on the “L” to Schubas. The venue struck me as almost equivalent to Maxwell’s, in New Jersey, as it was basically a bar with a room for concerts in back.  Unknown Mortal Orchestra opened the show. I haven’t really made up my mind about them but that is more a function of me not listening to them much than anything else. Yuck had played Pitchfork earlier that day but we had missed them so it was worth the trip, time and money. They are pretty heavily indebted to their nineties influences but nonetheless the music they make is enjoyable to listen to and I’m glad I got a chance to see them live.

Overall, the weekend met if not exceeded my expectations.  Ravi and I saw pretty much all the bands we wanted to and saw them up close. It was our own summer adventure. We left Chicago the next day separately–tired but happy.

Photo Credit: Ravi Prakriya

Zola Jesus

This is the second of WPRB’s four part review of the Pitchfork Music Festival held on July 15-17  in Chicago, Illinois.

 Day Two

by Griffin Winton-LaVieri (WPRB Music Director)

Having realized it was worth it to be up front and thus arrive at the gates early; Ravi and I spent two hours waiting outside the festival grounds on Saturday.  However, that day, instead of going to the Green stage where Fleet Foxes would headline, we opted for the nearby Red Stage. Our fellow early arriving Pitchfork attendees were generally more interested in Fleet Foxes so we had no trouble making it to the barrier.

The first act on the Red Stage was Woods. Woods are a pretty solid freak folk band. I haven’t really gotten into their music so I didn’t really recognize their songs but nonetheless enjoyed my self. One of the members of Woods sang through a pair of headphones, which is a rather novel way of making music. The lead singer sang in a pleasing falsetto.

After Woods, on the Green stage was Cold Cave. Thanks to the positioning of the stages and a jumbotron, we could observe the band though either a video feed or as tiny guys on a relatively distant stage. They were dressed in black and performed with remarkably high energy considering it was not only incredibly hot out but it was likely earlier than they would be ever expected to leave their apartments. I really like Cold Cave’s first record so I enjoyed hearing tracks like “Youth and Lust”,  “Hello Rats”, and of course, the title track. As mentioned above, the members of Cold Cave danced wildly around the stage (in a cool way, though) and I was ultimately unsure how much of the sound they were actively producing themselves.

Up next on the Red Stage was No Age. I’m a big fan of No Age and so I was particularly excited to rock out to them. Dean and Randy ripped through songs off of all three of their records and the crowd ate it up; bodies were pressed against each other,  water was flung overhead to cool us down, and crowd surfers flowed regularly over the barrier. No Age covered a Black Flag and the Misfits but the highlight of the set was “Everybody’s Down” which featured Dean leaving the stage and joining the crowd.  No Age are a quality band who write good songs and put on fun shows. Fun Fact:  The picture that heads the Pitchfork article about the festival was taken during No Age’s set and I’m the kid wearing red in the front row.

Destroyer played next on the Red Stage.  Naturally, Bejar’s epic jazzy jams were a stark contrast to No Age’s punk songs but it was now late afternoon and chilling out was in order.  Destroyer make enjoyable music and they performed their tracks well so it was a good set, even Dan Bejar, who is notoriously moody, seemed like he was having fun. I had the part in “Bay of Pigs” where Bejar sings “Magnolia’s a girl/ her heart is made of wood/ as apocalypses go/ that’s pretty good/ sha-la-la/ wouldn’t you say?’ and the synths come stuck in my head all day in anticipation of hearing it live so I was quite pleased when that song concluded Destroyer’s set.

After that, Ravi and I grabbed dinner and headed to the Blue stage for Nika Roza Danilova, who is better known as Zola Jesus.  With barely any trouble we were able to make it to the front, which made me happy because Zola Jesus is actually one of my favorite musicians and I had never been able to make it to one of her shows before.  Although I had read about how small a stature she has, it was surprising to see her in real life and realize that, yes, she is 4’11”.   Her size didn’t inhibit her performance in the least as she danced and pranced across the stage as she sang tracks from her Stridulum and Valusia EPs. The standout song was probably “Manifest Destiny” which is an incredibly powerful track in terms of Danilova’s vocal performance.  Zola Jesus is an artist to watch out for and I am incredibly excited to hear her new record Conatus, which  will be released in October.

Fleet Foxes were headlining that night but neither Ravi nor I are particularly familiar with their music so we left after Zola Jesus. Instead of being satisfied with a day’s worth of live music, we ventured to Chicago’s Lincoln Hall for an unofficial after-show.  Shabazz Palaces opened the show. I’m not a big fan of rap or hip-hop so they weren’t exactly my thing but I definitely acknowledge that they could be a quality act.  It was entertaining to watch the two members perform as many of the songs featured synchronized dance routines. The headlining act was Moonface, which is Spencer Krug’s new project.  It was an interesting performance as Krug played keyboards and sang and another fellow played marimba and drum machines.  It was fun and worth going to but after two days of standing on metal barriers, I was tired and my feet were incredibly sore.

Photo Credit: Ravi Prakriya

This is the first of WPRB’s four part review of the Pitchfork Music Festival held on July 15-17  in Chicago, Illinois.

 Day One

by Griffin Winton-LaVieri (WPRB Music Director)

Every year the Pitchfork Music Festival seems to book the best bands.  Last year as I watched the artist announcements (Broken Social Scene!) come out (LCD Soundsystem!) through out the spring (Pavement!), I was all too aware that there was no way I could make it. But 2011 was different; with orientation for college in Wisconsin, a trip to Chicago would fit perfectly into my summer and thus the trip was meant to be. When Animal Collective was announced as a headliner, I ran through the halls of my high school to tell my best friend, Ravi, who would be going to the festival with me. It was going to be the high point of my summer.

Since we arrived the day before, Ravi and I had nothing in particular to do midday Friday. As I’m a big fan of being early to concerts (a result of my short stature and subsequent love of being in the front row), we arrived at the festival gates at noon- approximately 3 hours before they would open.  This was, in retrospect, one of the best decisions of the weekend because it allowed us to think about our priorities and prepare to realize our goals; namely, we decided to get through gates quickly and sprint to the Green Stage and stay there the whole day so we could see Animal Collective up close.

The first band on the Green Stage was Battles.  Despite the fact that Tyondai Braxton no longer numbers among their ranks, they rocked through “Atlas” and other songs with the help of prerecorded vocals and a screen on stage displayed the guesting vocalists.  Their set up was gear-intense as it featured such remarkable aspects as a cymbal elevated to the height of approximately 7 feet, effects pedals lining key board stands, keyboards angled at 45 degrees, and the machinery which built the loops that built the songs.

After Battles was Guided By Voices. If one band epitomized rock’n’roll that weekend, I’m pretty sure it is GBV; first off was Robert Pollard, the lead singer, who proudly took swigs of rum between songs and did multitudes of leg kicks as he performed. The guitarist took the prize, though, as he chain-smoked through the set; always needing a cigarette, he had a stagehand behind him whose sole role was to light new cigarettes and place them in his mouth. I have never gotten into GBV’s extensive catalogue so I recognized only a few songs that they play, but any set with “I am a Scientist” is a good set, right?

At 8:30, Animal Collective finally took the stage. In the break after GBV, an elaborate set was built featuring a giant head behind the band, huge glowing crystals in front of the band, and illuminated plastic bats hanging down from the rigging. The set consisted of almost entirely new tracks and the first song they performed was especially special as it was “Change”, one of the new tracks, which is the first Deakin sings on.  As for the new songs, they generally the rhythmic and aggressive, more like Water Curses than Meriwether Post Pavilion. Then again, it by the time they come out in the form of a new record they will probably not only have different names but new directions as well.  AnCo did play several old songs and each time they did, it seemed more euphoric; They worked their way through “Did You See the Words”, “Brothersport”, a slower, heavier version of “Taste”, and ended on an incredibly high note with the much loved “Summertime Clothes.” Despite the fact that they had 10 minutes before the Chicago curfew, they didn’t play an encore. Although the time they spent playing was magical, I’m sort of glad they didn’t. They couldn’t have topped “Summertime Clothes.”

Photo credit:  Ravi Prakriya

Every week this summer, WPRB will highlight one its DJs in “Get To Know WPRB’s DJS.”

Name: Dan Buskirk

Show: “Jazz with Dan Buskirk” Mondays 11:00AM -1PM.

Type Of Music Played: “Post-Coltrane era jazz.”

Reasons for Being a DJ: “I think I’m a frustrated musician and this is my way of getting that out.”

Day Job: Writer.

Hometown: Philadelphia.

Listening To Now: Roswell Rudd, “The Incredible Hunk.”

Favorite Summer Food: Oysters.

Currently Reading: Kingdom Under Glass by Jay Kirk (biography of Carl Akeley, an American taxidermist for the Museum of Natural History).

Favorite City Visited: Paris.

Anything else?: Dan  ”Enjoys taking advantage of the freedom at WPRB to play funky and free jazz that stretches beyond polite boundaries. Hail Sun Ra, hail William Parker, hail jazz’s past and future…”

Every week this summer, WPRB will highlight one its DJs in “Get To Know WPRB’s DJS.”

Name: Marvin Rosen

Show: “Classical Discoveries” (Wednesdays from 5:00AM to 11:00AM), “Classical Discoveries Goes Avant-Garde” (Wednesdays from 11:00AM to 1:PM).

Links: http://www.classicaldiscoveries.org/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Classical-Discoveries/132814286796248

Type of Music Played On Show: CD repertoires rarely heard–from all periods, with an emphasis on old and new songs from all over the world. For Avant-Garde it is more experimental, more progressive, more electronica music, music inspired by pop music sometimes.

Reason for Becoming a DJ: “There is a tremendous amount of repertoire omitted by other stations. WPRB allowed me to play out passions, I can focus on music from all around the world from South Africa to the Middle East. I also have the opportunity to give support to younger composers.”

Day Job: Full time faculty member at Westminster Conservatory. I teach piano, music history for the “Young Artists” program, and musical styles for the “Pedagogy Certification Program.”

Home town: Born in Englewood, New Jersey, now lives in Princeton!

Music You Can’t Stop Listening to Now: “Two Cellos” [played by Luka Sulic and Stjepan Hauser]– a CD of two cellists playing Rock music (will be played on next week’s show), everything from Coldplay to Michael Jackson to Guns N’ Roses.

Favorite Summer Food: ”Salsa and Chips, the hotter the better!”

Currently Reading: Couldn’t do the shows without the internet, always reading about new composers!

Favorite City Visited: In and around Warsaw, Poland.

Anything Else?: “When I get involved I have a big excitement and passion for what I do, I am thankful that a station like WPRB exists.”

Every week this summer WPRB will highlight one its DJs in “Get To Know WPRB’s DJS.”

DJ Name: Julia Factorial

Show: “Cleanr Yr Room” (with Art), Mondays from 7-9PM.

Type of music played on show: Teenage concerns–ie; songs about hating your parents. A lot of punk rock–”The Replacements, The Marked Men, So Cow, Lunachicks, Ted Leo, Karp, Lungfish, The Raincoats, Kurt Vile, Reigning Sound… Pretty much anything on the following labels: Richie, Hozac, Tic Tac Totally, Siltbreeze, Homestead, K, Hyped To Death. Art occasionally takes us on a trip through the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and beardo records, and I love scouring the stacks at WPRB for the forgotten, terribly amusing and occasionally profound records that live there.”

Reasons for being a DJ: “I began listening to WPRB when I was a lowly 8th grade loner nerd in Cherry Hill, NJ.  I spent a few years taping my favorite shows and trading those tapes with other folks.  Eventually, I became close with a few DJs.  Flash forward a couple years to 2002.  With the help of Mike Lupica (who hosted ‘Hey You Kids’ with Jen M. and ‘Hip Transistor’) I got a timeslot on the summer schedule, which I shared with Her Jazz host Maria T. I hosted ‘Mixtapemaker Heartbreaker’ from 2002-2007, and then teamed up with Art (who had a show called ‘Your Saxophone is My Guitar’ for a number of years). We’ve been hosting ”Clean Yr Room” since 2007 and love every dumb minute of it.”

Day Job: Student.

Home Town: Willingboro/Cherryville/All over New Jersey.

Listening to now: “Slutever, F*cked Up, ‘Allo Darling, The Ettes, Thin Lizzy. The Futureheads cover of Kate Bush’s ”Hounds of Love” makes me want to be in that band. So much fun!  Oh
yeah, and a friend bought me Paul & Linda McCartney’s “Ram” for my birthday and I can’t take it off my turntable. It is perpetually playing in my head. When you are talking to me, I am hearing the hook for “Eat At Home” in my head.”

Favorite summer food: Gin and Tonic.

Reading now: “Girls Like Us” by Sheila Weller. An interesting look at feminism in the 70s and the music industry as viewed through the experience of Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Carly Simon. Also, ”Something in the Air: Radio, Rock, and the Revolution That Shaped a Generation” By Marc Fisher. (Written by a former WPRB DJ!) An in-depth look at the history of radio and the movers and shakers who defined each major development.

Favorite city visited: Chicago.

Anything else?: “Little known WPRB trivia about our show: Fellow DJ Wilbo (‘The Clothesline’) sings and performs the opening theme song to our show. The song that follows is by the band Screaming Urge and it’s called ‘Homework’.  We get a phone call about each of those songs every week.”