Episode 19

      For the time being, at least, it seems that the last show’s anomalies were just that: things that belonged to a specific moment in time. Everything went exceedingly well today, perhaps because I had even less firm plans than I normally do. Still it was a remarkably low-key show. I think I’ll be happy with it after I’ve heard it. Right now, I just want to sleep. So give it a listen if you can, if you dare, and I will write again long after I have passed to the other side of sleep....

• 12:00–1:00 a.m.:
• Boards of Canada, “Chromakey Dreamcoat,” The Campfire Headphase, Warp
• Lisa Germano, “Turning into Betty,” Slide, 4AD
• Heiner Goebbels, “Fita Nos Meus Olhos,” The Man in the Elevator, ECM
• Can, “Bring Me Coffee or Tea,” Tago Mago, Spoon
• John Martyn, “Solid Air,” Solid Air, Island
• Sun Kil Moon, “Space Travel Is Boring,” Tiny Cities, Caldo Verde
• Modest Mouse, “Ocean Breathes Salty,” Good News for People Who Love Bad News, Epic
• Neil Halstead, “High Hopes,” Sleeping on Roads, 4AD
• Freakwater, “Buckets of Oil,” Thinking of You..., Thrill Jockey
• The Specials, “Doesn’t Make It Alright,” The Specials, Two Tone
• Broken Social Scene, “Our Faces Split the Coast in Half,” Broken Social Scene, Arts and Crafts
• Scheer, “Secrets and Lies,” ...And Finally, Schism

• 1:00–2:00 a.m.:
• Steel Pulse, “Uncle George,” Tribute to the Martyrs, Mango
• Swans, “Cry Me a River,” World of Skin, Young God
• Durutti Column, “Drinking Time,” Someone Else’s Party, Artful
• Sam Phillips, “All Night,” A Boot and a Shoe, Nonesuch
• Nick Lowe, “You Inspire Me,” Dig My Mood, Upstart
• Chris Whitley, “Last Million Miles,” Soft Dangerous Shores, Messenger
• Dead Can Dance, “The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove,” Into the Labyrinth, 4AD
• Emiliana Torrini, “Honeymoon Child,” Fisherman’s Woman, Rough Trade
• Gillian Welch, “One Little Song,” Soul Journey, Acony
• Spain, “Before It All Went Wrong,” She Haunts My Dreams, Restless
• Pavement, “Conduit for Sale!,” Slanted and Enchanted, Matador
• The Dream Syndicate, “Tell Me When It’s Over,” Days of Wine and Roses, Slash
• Depeche Mode, “And Then...,” Construction Time Again, Sire

Episode 18

      You know how people sometimes say that if anything can go wrong, it will? Well, this morning’s show was my realization how true that can be. One CD recorder’s settings were horribly off (a mischievous DJ?), as were those on one of the studio’s CD players. There were a few other anomalies—e.g., a mislabeled CD insert on something I bought over the weekend, a printing error that resulted in my playing “You’ll Have to Scream Louder” rather than “Happy All the Time.” Oh, well. The upshot is that the first hour was utter shite. The second one, though, turned out much better. I’m listening to it now, and it sounds most magnificent—even with a wrong song in there.
     Anyway, a lot of what is good about this episode can be attributed to my hanging out with Jason and Pedro last week. Just talking with them and listening to music gave me no less than three inspired ideas for the show. The fourth one came from my listening to another overnight radio show, on a competing station, back in September. It took a while for the CD I subsequently ordered to arrive in the mail, but that blissful, ecstatic track following Lamb wouldn’t be there otherwise. With any luck, inspiration will continue to come, and things will go better next time....

• 12:00–1:00 a.m.:
• Chocolate Genius, “Down So Low,” Black Yankee Rock, Commotion
• Spiritualized, “Stay with Me,” Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space, Arista
• Esthero, “Breath from Another,” Breath from Another, Work
• Gus Gus, “Polyesterday,” Polydistortion, 4AD
• The Selecter, “Too Much Pressure,” Selected Selecter Selections, Chrysalis
• Sparklehorse, “Gold Day,” It’s a Wonderful Life, Capitol
• The Replacements, “Unsatisfied,” Let It Be, Twin/Tone
• The Blow Monkeys, “I Backed a Winner (In You),” Animal Magic, RCA
• Shawn Colvin, “Killing the Blues,” Cover Girl, Columbia
• T. Rex, “Hot Love,” Electric Warrior, Reprise
• Pernice Brothers, “Blinded by the Stars,” Yours, Mine and Ours, Ashmont
• Doves, “Black and White Town,” Some Cities, Capitol

• 1:00–2:00 a.m.:
• Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth, “They Reminisce over You (T.R.O.Y.),” Mecca and the Soul Brother, Elektra
• Television Personalities, “You’ll Have to Scream Louder,” The Painted Word, Fire
• Mice Parade, “Waterslide,” Bem-Vinda Vontade, Bubble Core
• Mono, “Slimcea Girl,” Formica Blues, Mercury
• Robert Wyatt, “Beware,” Cuckooland, Hannibal
• Chad VanGaalen, “The Warp Zone/Hidden Bridge,” Infiniheart, Sub Pop
• Laura Veirs, “Secret Someones,” Year of Meteors, Nonesuch
• The Cure, “All Cats Are Grey,” Faith, Elektra
• Lamb, “Sugar 5,” Between Darkness and Wonder, Koch
• Shirley Caesar and the Caravans, “I Won’t Be Back,” The Best of Shirley Caesar and the Caravans, Savoy
• David Grubbs, “Hurricane Season,” A Guess at the Riddle, Drag City