Radio

It was a quiet week on Bubble Wrap this week, with no theme to guide us and all the freedom from that.  Consequently, we were extra entertaining.  For example, the very first set was killer, leading off with The Lounge Society and their moody manifesto “Burn The Heather.”  If you like Fontaines DC, you’ll like The Lounge Society.  Then there was “Weekends” by Classixx & the Local Natives, a guilty pleasure for sure, but so hooky.  Finishing off that set was “The Duke” by Menahan Street Band of Brooklyn, NY, doing their own brand of retro smooth jazz.  It’s a groove, and the horns are nothing short of mellifluous.

The annual Bubble Wrap Valentine’s Day show featured love songs galore. We got sweet love, modern love, lacquered love, and of course our love. Old love, new love, young love, and not so love. What more can we say? It’s all about the love.

Riding the times like ocean waves, hoping not to get swamped, taking the good with the bad — these are all themes of life here on Bubble Wrap. Helping us do that was our artist of the week, Mori, whose new ep seekseek is chock full with playful keybs and wildly processed vocals including our […]

Although the elections were yesterday, we still don’t know who won although we have a pretty good idea…. So we distracted ourselves with music.  Kiwi Jr. got their second play in as many weeks with “Undecided Voters.”  We dragged Pavement and the Mountain Goats out of semi-retirement.  We basked in the gentle pop stylings of Miloe, a new artist out of Minneapolis who has a thing for Winona Ryder.  Adam Levy’s “Cadiz” recalled a kinder, gentler Kid Creole.  Arlo Parks’ “Green Eyes” was mesmerizing.  And the bonus tracks on the Prince Sign of the Times megaset are unusually good bonus tracks — we played 2 Nu 1’s 4 U.

What can you really say these days?  Not much so play more music.  Lately Bubble Wrap Radio has been more off than on due to remote broadcasting difficulties, but we haven’t given up yet.  This week, we managed to get a show in which means listeners got a chance to hear a few new tunes for a change.  Favorite new pop band:  The Creachies, from Baltimore, who have a new EP out called (appropriately enough) 3 for Free.  We liked “Bad People” especially.

Aquarium Drunkard released some live Velvet Underground recently, giving us a chance to listen to “White Light White Heat” in all its gritty glory.  Would indie rock have been possible without them?

Still catching up on tunes from prior weeks here on Bubble Wrap Radio as well as some new releases. Past artists with new tracks included Bob Mould’s new single “Forecast Rain” from his upcoming Merge release, as well as some typically grinding rock from Throwing Muses called “Dark Blue” from her recent record Sun Racket. We also enjoyed a couple more tracks from the new compilation Allopop from La Souterraine in Paris, which we believe to be their best comp yet. And, to cap off the evening, the new track “Hit The Floor” by Go-Go legends Rare Essence with Snoop Dog, no less — definitely check it out.

Lots of great music from around the world to kick off the fall season including Postcards (dreampop from Beirut), Mexican Institute of Sound (mid tempo pop from Mexico City), Nearfield (electronica from Lisbon), and Seva Kavalenka (subway sounds from Minsk).  There was also a bit of American music such as post rocking Old Canes from Lawrence, Kansas and some awesome punk pop courtesy of Syntax Valley (“a happy nihilist”) from Cape May.  

The heat wave continues inspiring a spate of “hot” songs on Bubble Wrap this week. Also, new songs by Chemtrails, the wryly cheery “Slag Heap Deity 1” (“we do our best we are unsuccessful!) as well as Fontaines D.C. with another slab of moody prose called “Televised Mind.” They remain a band to watch… Meanwhile, […]

As summer winds to a close and students across the country prepare with degrees of trepidation to return to school and work, writing and releasing new music doesn’t seem to have been a top priority. From the very few new tunes to choose from, we had a few faves this week on Bubble Wrap. Among […]

Code Red! that’s where we’re at right now. It’s summer and pandemic or no, the heat is getting to us and we want a vacation! Alas, we cannot. So we staged a trip to the beach right here on Bubble Wrap, and despite the absence of actual sun, surf, or for that matter, beach, it almost felt like being there…. All it takes is the magic of recording technology and a lot of imagination. Of course we brought some tunes with us, because what’s the beach without a soundtrack?

And what a soundtrack it was. Highlights: revolutionary fervor from Bristol UK’s IDLES (“Grounds”), fervent gospel-backed joy from Kendall Morgan (“Rescue Me”), and more delightful hippy rock from King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard (“Honey”).