Coming Soon

New posts and contributors coming soon, y'all. Hold tight for my lazy ass to get everything done.


Love,
Lady Byrd

You'll Love My Nuts

I've been MIA getting readjusted to living back in Brooklyn, but I think it's time to resurrect this zombie of a site. Weather is getting warmer, and there are more shows coming around NYC to liven my love of music back up.

Please note that our new snail mail address has been updated under the contact/submissions section on the right sidebar, so be sure to start sending in your albums to review there. Also, I'm bringing on another NYC contributor next week, and looking for one or a few more to add on. I tried doing that before, but it's honestly hard to keep a hold on a team with a site that is purely non-profit, especially when the profitable day jobs of the writers get in the way. But if you think you might be cut out for posting once a week with your own style of reviews or playlists, please be sure to email me your information (i.e. preferred genres, links to your personal sites, etc) and available schedule (which day each week you could post) to: contact(at)whoneedsradio(dot)com. Be sure to include "WNR Contributor Position" in the subject line so it doesn't get mistaken for spam. Also, you do not have to be located in NYC, or even the USA to be a contributor.

NOTE: This is NOT a paying gig. Everything that goes into keeping this site running comes out of my own pocket and the pockets of our wonderful supporters. I strive to keep us anti-radio... which means solely independent, ad-free, and all about the music.

As a contributor, you get the following perks*:

• Your mug shot listed under the contributors section with all of your information (links to your own site / band / myspace / facebook / etc.)
  
• Your own @WNR email address to use
  
• Free music
  
• The occasional list spots at shows in your area so you can cover/review the shows.

* And You'll also get to say that you're doing something straight from the heart... for the good of music.

Moving on, I just saw this video today... and I have to say that Steve Porter's remix is fucklarious.


It's so good, that I decided to rip the audio to MP3 so I can throw it into one of my future sets. But I like to share with my friends, so here's the MP3 for your own enjoyment:
Rap Chop (Steve Porter's Slap Chop Remix)

Stay tuned for more frequent updates starting next week. Until then, I'm off to prepare for my camping trip in the Catskill Mountains this weekend.


Ciao,
Lady Byrd

Me Bypassing

I've gotten a lot of great submissions that I was planning to review and post by now, but with my moving back to Brooklyn from Florida next week... I just don't have the time. I've been spending time packing and reorganizing my belongings, along with working and spending as much time as possible with friends and family. But I wanted to get something up here to hold y'all over until everything is settled, so here's a couple of playlists in the meantime:


This first playlist I'm posting was partially influenced both by Black History month and a DJ who played some of these gems the other night (which sparked up an old school Hip Hop kick for me). I don't post Hip Hop very often on the site, but it's not because I don't appreciate it. I just don't get most of the new shit. Besides, we all know that classic Hip Hop is just another thing that us white people like.

Black Sheep - The Choice Is Yours (Revisited)
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - They Reminisce Over You
De La Soul - Buddy
The Pharcyde - Passin' Me By
Chubb Rock - Treat 'Em Right
JJ Fad - Supersonic
Warren G - Regulate
Digable Planets - Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)
Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock - It Takes Two
Will Smith - The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air
Latyrx - Lady Don't Tek No
Ol' Dirty Bastard - Shimmy Shimmy Ya

Now, this second playlist is kind of a cheat on my behalf. A good friend of mine made me a Shoegaze mix recently, and I've been listening to it A LOT. It has a lot of songs I know, but also quite I few I didn't. I decided to just select 5 songs off that mix and post them here, since I'm a lazy bastard. (All credit for these selections goes to Neil Rhodes, who quite possibly holds the title of "Best Taste in Music" out of all my friends.)

Engineers - Clean Coloured Wire
Ride - Cool Your Boots
South Ambulance - Kinky Love
Mojave 3 - Starlight, No. 1
Resplandor - Breathe

Until next time,
Lady Byrd

This is the cold that never ends...

I know I once again flaked on posting, but I've had a cold for the past couple of weeks that just doesn't know when to leave. Kind of like the creepy, wasted guy at the afterparty who can't seem to catch a hint. I'm feeling quite well today, so I took advantage of the better health and spent pretty much this entire day catching up on email and snail mail submissions. And to make up for my delay, today's post is going to be a massive one.

I hate to say that I won't be able to give each band their well deserved textual review, but my ears ache from being squeezed between massive headphones for the past 5 hours, and my head is slightly spinning from a recent dose of DayQuil. But all of these bands are respectively fantastic and diverse, so please enjoy.

On a personal note, I really don't recommend drinking straight from a bottle of Robitussin when you're sick and already somewhat out of it. I now understand what mc chris was talking about in his song "The Tussin."



First up on the list is a delicate and heavenly band that already had me enamored by a minute and a half into the first song. To be honest, usually when I sort through submissions and figure out which songs are post-worthy as a full representation of the band, I tend to skip through a majority of the songs. It's not that they are bad, I just usually don't have the time to dedicate an hour to each band. But when it came to giving Until The Autumn a listen, I couldn't bring myself to fast forward any part of it. The Story Of are a band of five friends originally from Athens, OH, (now in Austin, TX) who could probably write the perfect soundtrack to your life. It doesn't come as a surprise that their music has already been placed in a variety of independent films. This is definitely a band worth getting caught up in, as the entire album feels flawless.

From Until The Autumn, out 3/3/09 (pre-order it here):
Berkeley
Lights On The Landing
+ Myspace

Emil Hewitt is producing some stunning stuff with his electropop/soul influenced project Emil&Friends. According to his bio, music has been a large part of his life since he was a kid, taking on different projects as he grew and listening in on all of the different genres he could find. His appreciation for a vast variety of music shows in the Downed Economy EP, as it stretches across anywhere from indie rock to electropop to R&B and Soul. The lyrical content is also pretty entertaining, especially in the title track that any independent musician could relate to at this time of financial crisis. "I wanna make a tape for my best friend's label. Gotta make some changes, how I spend my savings." Don't we all, Emil. Don't we all.

From the Downed Economy EP (downloadable here):
Downed Economy
Short Order Cooks
+ Support Emil by purchasing a Downed Economy Shirt

Oh Erlend Oye, your voice is like a seraph dancing in my ears. And I'm glad to have it back in the new The Whitest Boy Alive album Rules, due out in March. From the sound of the new single, the Rhodes and Crumar synths are going to be a great addition on the new release.

From Rules (due out early March):
Island
And a remix of a song from their last album Dreams:
Golden Cage (Fred Falke Remix)
+ Myspace

If you like Italo disco, electropop, or hot brunettes with great voices... you'll definitely want to pay Los Angeles' Love Grenades some attention. The music is unquestionably geared towards getting you on a dancefloor (or dancing around your room seductively in your underwear). And get this: 25 year old Elizabeth Wight sang on the song "I Love Boys" from the classic 80s movie Teen Witch when she was 5. I have no shame in admitting that I was a fan of that movie as a kid. Anyway, enough about me. Give it a listen already. You know you want to.

From Tigers In The Fire (out now on iTunes):
Tigers In The Fire
Young Lovers (Sam Sparro Edit)

There's not really much information on the web about Ohio's Love Between Equals, and the submission email only mentioned that this dude was making some "BANGIN tracks" (which I agree)... but I just wish I had something more to write about the guy. I was able to dig up that he has over 12 years experience producing, and it's clearly shown in the quality of these tracks. Oh, and that Mr. Mystery apparently has a hand for a head. But other than that, all I can say is the shit is indeed undeniably BANGIN.

From ???:
Young Love
Get It Fit
+ Myspace

I normally can't handle most hip hop remixes/mashups since I'm pretty clueless to it, but France's DIGIKID84 actually made Fat Joe tolerable for me. And seeing as how Busta Rhymes is supposedly my new neighbor, I should probably get used to his material. I don't know if the Pat Benatar sample was a part of the original, but if not... props to DIGIKID for throwing that in. Again, I'm clueless. And this kid is only 24. Makes me feel like a real jackass for not doing more myself.

It's unfortunate that the Captain Funk remix is only a snippet, because I really like the heavily 80s sound of that too. Hopefully we'll hear more from Billy Bone aka DIGIKID84 in the near future.

Runaway vs Fat Joe and Busta Rhymes - Shorty (DIGIKID84 Remix)
Captain Funk - Hey Boy Hey Girl (DIGIKID84 Remix)

The lush sounds of New York's Xylos will certainly wrap you in upon first listen. In The Bedroom lightly reminds me of the percussion of a Beta Band track, while some of the other songs hold more of a 70s-folk or lively indie pop tone. They're giving the full EP away for free on their website, so be sure to cop that before they realize they really should be charging for such incredible material.

From Bedrooms:
In The Bedroom
This House We Built
+ Myspace

Another great indie band giving away their album away for free is Ham1 of Athens, GA. (Although, if you really wanted to be nice, you'd visit their Myspace page and purchase some of their tracks there to show your support.) But nonetheless, it is free, and it is something quite wonderful. It's captivating, hard-to-describe, southern indie rock with a flair of beach and touch of Velvet Underground to it. The instrumental Mel Bay is definitely a favorite of mine.

From The Underground Stream (downloadable here):
Mel Bay
Adirondack Chair
+ Myspace

It's obvious by the name that Favours For Sailors are from the UK. This power-pop band with jangly guitars (that give a big nod to melodies of the 60s) have definitely structured something well... thanks to the influences of Television, Cheap Trick and The Cars.

From Furious Sons (due out March):
I Dreamt That I Dreamt That You Loved Me

NYC's The Bloodsugars get their name's influence from frontman and diabetic Jason Rabinowitz's intense childhood cravings for sweets. Just as well, as their songs exude sweet, syrupy synthpop mixed with danceable indie rock. And it doesn't hurt that this band has played shows alongside WNR favorites and all around sweethearts The Lisps.

From BQEP (buy at site store here):
Purpose Was Again
Bloody Mary
+ Myspace

When I was first listening to the album and reading the bio sheet for Austin's Diagonals, I got to "The members of the band are..." section and discovered that a dear acquaintance of mine, Wiley Wiggins, is their organ/key player. I guess I'm bad at paying attention. Or maybe I'm just horrific at keeping in touch with people.

It's impressive that they've created such a great first LP that meshes fetching organ melodies (I'm not biased, I swear!), garage rock riffs, and danceable beats together. Give it a listen and decide for yourself, because if I say much more it might seem like I'm kissing Wiley's ass.

From Valley Of The Cyclops (out 2/28):
Suitcase Packed
Neil Diamond Blues
+ Myspace

Hey look, it's another band from Austin! Does every band start there now? Anyway, The Frontier Brothers combine humorously bizarre lyrics (as shown by the song title technicalelectronicsupersonicrobot t.e.s.s.) with music that seems to be slightly influenced by indie rock favorites such as Pavement. I also like that some of the songs on their album also get pretty synth heavy.

These guys are starting a tour at the beginning of February, so be sure to check out their Myspace for locations and dates.

From Space Punk Starlet (available on CDBaby & iTunes):
Space Punk Starlet
Get Up Go
+ Myspace

Last but not least, you've got to respect a band that names themselves after a classic scene in Lucio Fulci's Zombi 2. Although, I have to say... the name should probably be "Real Shark - Fake Zombie!" instead of Fake Shark - Real Zombie!, but who am I to nitpick? I'm kind of on the line with this band as they sound pretty much post-hardcore (which is not a preferred genre for me). But Angel Lust is a haunting track (with the same Stevie Nicks riff that Destiny's Child borrowed), and they seem to have a lot of energy. I'll have to wait and see what else they put out in the future to really make a solid decision. One thing I do know, the remixes I heard of them a while back were pretty good.

From Angel Lust EP:
Angel Lust
Horses In Heaven

Love,
Lady Byrd

Lady Byrd DJing tonight in NYC

Fuck. Really sorry guys. I meant to update, but I've been busy with the holidays. Family and friends are pretty time consuming. Well, now I'm up in NYC for a very short time, and just in case you're interested... I'm doing a guest set tonight at Happy Ending in the Lower East Side.


I'll be downstairs, and I go on around 12 or 1AM. I hope to see some of your smiling faces there. Lord knows this homegirl needs a good dancefloor tonight to keep her going.

Updates next week. Cross my heart!


Love,
Lady Byrd

Where Dreams Come True

I'm in the world of Mickey Mouse with family this week, and I (yet again) head back up to NYC on Christmas Day... so I haven't had time to get a post together for this week. Check back next week if it strikes your fancy pants.

In the meantime, trip out on this video:



Love,
Lady Byrd

Guest Contributor: Merry F'n Xmas from Joey Kern

I try to post up a holiday mix each year, but since my mixer is broken and I've been a little ill... I asked funny guy Joey Kern to step in and grace us with his cherished holiday classics instead. You might recognize him as the "He's already pulled over" guy from Super Troopers, one of the victims of Cabin Fever, or as the shirtless "Shirts Jokum" in The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang. He's also in the upcoming indie comedy Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Undead (with Devon Aoki, Jeremy Sisto and even Karate Kid Ralph Macchio), amongst others.

Here's what he had to share:

Ah Christmas. It's that time of year that comes... well... this time every year. I mean, you can always rely on it, unless you're Jewish. Sorry Jews. But I think we can all gather around the mistletoe with these songs. Some take me back to my childhood, and others take me back to five minutes ago when I found them on iTunes. But they all make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Some of these songs were also from a holiday mix I made a few years ago called "Merry F'n Xmas." My mom didn't like that title at all. Oh well.

Merry F'n Xmas to you all!

Bing Crosby - Happy Holiday (Beef Wellington Remix)
A little twist to the well known.

Bobby Helms - Jingle Bell Rock
Just a classic.

Ella Fitzgerald - Santa Claus Got Stuck In My Chimney
I never heard this as a lad because I'm not sure it's appropriate for kids. "Stuck in her chimney!?" I think we can all guess what she's really talking about. Do I have to spell it out? Ok! Her V-A-G-I-N-A.

The Kinks - Father Christmas
Who says you can't be badass around the holidayz? See? I'm trying it with putting a "z" at the end of Holiday. Feels good.

Bing Crosby - Mele Kalikimaka
I'd like to spend Christmas in Hawaii, just because now I know how to speak the language.

Robert Earl Keen - Merry Christmas From The Family
This humorous Christmas song so is so much better than "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer."

Elvis Presley - Blue Christmas
It's not Christmas without a really depressing song from Elvis. Thanks, King!

Gene Autry - Here Comes Santa Claus (Down Santa Claus Lane)
I like how he say "Santy" Claus.

Berlin Symphony Orchestra - Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy (Red Baron Remix)
I wonder if they've done a ballet to this version? I'd see that.

That's it. Go get drunk on the 'nog and tell your Aunt Wendy what you really think of her gift.


- Joey

You can also see some of Joey's videos over at Funny or Die, including this hilariously spot on impersonation of Matthew McConaughey:



Thanks, pretty boy!

I Will Implode With You

As I was dusting around the Electro/Indietronic charts early this morning at the site that is my bread and butter (SoundClick.com)... I was soon floored by a song titled Foreign Skies by a band called MR JIGGA. I had never heard the name before, so of course I immediately pulled up their artist page on the site to find out more. So far I've found out that they are from Australia, apparently love throwing tinted milk around, and they're pretty damn impressive. I don't know what you kids are doing or drinking over there in Australia that keeps you pushing out more and more brilliant bands, but you're starting to make me wonder if I need to make a move down under. Anyway, I'm just really stoked to find these guys and bring them to your ears.

Stream their new album songs in high quality from their SoundClick page below. I highly recommend Foreign Skies and Bitter Taste, but it's all damn good.



Also be sure to check out the visually stimulating video for Garage Party:

From Mr Jigga (out now in AUS, and soon everywhere on iTunes):
Foreign Skies

From Garage Party EP (on iTunes now):
Garage Party

+ SoundClick
+ MySpace

Built By Snow's album arrived to me yesterday in a pretty dang fancy way. Inside the bright red envelope came their CD, a press release in the style of a 3D comic book sheet, and get this... it also came with 3D glasses paperclipped to it. Bravo to you, Flying Tyrannosaurus Press! You know the way to a music blogger's heart... interesting and unique packaging. So with being utterly wooed by the goodies, I immediately gave the album a listen. OBVIOUSLY it's really good, or it wouldn't be up here this fast. It's great, fetching indie rock from a band who's located in the music mecca known as Austin, Texas. I don't have any good comparisons or in depth explanations of Built By Snow's style, as I don't feel a band this good needs it. But I will tell you that the two songs below are my absolutely favorites, especially the video game-like intro and lyrically charming build up of Implode Alright. The album won't be released until January, but you should grab these now for the next mix CD you make for your crush.

From MEGA (out 1/29/08):
All The Weird Kids Know
Implode Alright

+ MySpace

Last but not least, former San Franciscoer turned New Yorker - MC Frontalot - is performing tonight at Jack Rabbit's in Jacksonville (FL), with MC Lars and YTCracker. In celebration of nerdcore overtaking my dear old hometown tonight, here are a few Frontalot freebies for your nerdy enjoyment.

From Final Boss (order it here):
Wallflowers

From Secrets From The Future (also available here):
I Hate Your Blog
It Is Pitch Dark

+ SoundClick
+ MySpace

Love,
Lady Byrd

Ain't Gonna Slump No Mo'

I am in love with PNAU. Compromised of Nick Littlemore (Empire of the Sun, Teenager) and Peter Mayes, supposedly this duo has been putting out records since 1999... but unfortunately I only first heard of them at the start of 2008. Me likey.

Baby
Come Together
Embrace (Fred Falke & Miami Horror Remix)

I don't know much about The Laughing Light of Plenty (their Myspace is pretty vague), but I first caught wind of these guys over on BigStereo and became infected by The Rose. I was able to only find one other song by them, but I'm hoping I'll find more soon.

The Rose
Mother For You

Don't shoot me for saying this, but in my limited musical knowledge... Audrye Sessions kind of reminds me (to a slight degree) of old Radiohead mixed with a touch of Sunny Day Real Estate. And when I heard the Elliot Smith cover... I was floored by singer Ryan Karazija. Just an astounding voice that will almost drive you to tears. I only received an EP from these guys, but I really want to hear more of Ryan's voice. The more acoustic, the better. His vocals shine wonderfully that way.

Turn Me Off
Awake
Waltz #2 (Elliot Smith Cover)

I came upon a classic and hilarious Joe Tex song on YouTube, and it led me on a search for more. The results did not disappoint, as I was able to find a couple of other gems by him. And I didn't know this, but Tex and James Brown had a bit of a feud back in the day. According to the wikipedia entry, it was over a girl and dance moves. Ah, the good old days. The only way that would happen now is if that girl was Cher at a gay disco.

Ain't Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman)
Don't Let Your Left Hand Know
Man That's Your Baby

I'm still sucked into my Xbox360, as it's too cold and dark out to do anything else... but I'm going to try and pull myself away at least once or twice a week to keep this thing looking updated. But I have to warn you (I'm looking at you, Tsuru), I recently stocked up on new releases so it's going to be hard.

And speaking of video games...


I've been blowing up a lot of zombies in Left 4 Dead lately, and the Mirror's Edge song was stuck in my head all weekend... so here are my two personal addictions this week:

Fabio Frizzi - Zombi 2 Theme
Lisa Miskovsky - Still Alive (Mirror's Edge Theme)

Love,
Lady Byrd

More to lose than your dignity?

So I might have more flakes than Kellogg's, but here's another attempt on a comeback for WNR. I fell pretty hard off the musical wagon after coming to the horrific realization that some spam bots were screwing our site and inboxes in every orifice. I'm now in the process of cleaning up our neglected home and repairing the cracks in the walls to make it all spiffy and easy to maintain again (read as: I've got to wipe out the old inbox and establish a new address for submissions). So, if you've sent anything in via email in the past few months, I'm sorry. Your submissions have most likely been deleted at this time. I just honestly don't have the time to scan through a thousand penis and beastiality emails to find your MP3s. Besides, I don't even have a penis... and that's NOT how you ride a horse. But if you have sent a CD in, I will be going through them this week for reviews. The new submission email address will also be posted up shortly.

I also have to admit that half of my absence is to blame on the fact that I finally got an Xbox 360 with a Live membership a couple of months back, and I just can't put the shit down.


Bitch, you ain't no nerd.
Seriously. Do you know how much fun it is to trash talk with teenagers at 3 in the morning on GTA4? No? Uh, well, yeah... neither do I. But if you ever want to play an INSANELY AWESOME game of UNO or Street Fighter II, you can find me under the gamertag "DJ Lady Byrd." So original, I know. But at least my friends don't have to spend a half hour trying to remember who "Colonel Angus" is in their massively geeky friend lists. (I'm looking at you, Patrick Roche-Sowa of G4TV.)

And now for something completely different.


It may or may not be new to you, but last night I stumbled on a fantastically bad 80s band, so gayly named Seona Dancing (pronounced Shawna Dancing). If it is new to you, you should take a gander at that gentleman on the right up there and see if you can place who it is. I'll wait.

...

Figured it out yet? No, it's not David Bowie... it's funny man Ricky Gervais. Seems his hilarity was unintentional back then. Although the music sounds more like an early Depeche Mode demo and our beloved David Brent is looking strangely hot... the man really can't carry a tune. But it's still interesting to take a peek into Gervais' deep and dark skeleton closet.

What's even funnier than that is his reaction to it being brought up on the Room 101 show below.


I still love you, Gervais. What you did to Carell at the Emmys was brilliant, even if it was just a skit.

Seona Dancing's only two singles, including the B-Sides:
More To Lose
You're On My Side
Bitter Heart
Tell Her

And this post would not be complete without including this classic from another funny man, as well as the recent cover of it for the BuffetLibre Rewind project:
Eddie Murphy - Party All The Time
OH SNAP!! - Party All The Time


Hoping you're still around,
Lady Byrd