Hell's Kitchen Radio #545: INDECLINE and BLF

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Some interviews are just that much more special. Monday night was twice as nice. I was honored to have Jack Napier from the Billboard Liberation Front in house to talk about his history of "improving" billboards, laughing all the while. Jack was also kind enough to bring along a representative from the artist activist collective INDECLINE, who are currently celebrating their 24th year of upsetting the status quo. You may recall their life sized statues of a nude Donald Trump that were placed around the country in the lead up to the 2016 election. Yeah, that INDECLINE.

The conversation went from the history of this clandestine cabal, to how they recruit members, skirt thelaw (they don't always), find inspiration, explore the difference between art and graffiti, and what's coming up next. Even our old friend Jack is coming out of retirement; he's been so inspired. 

INDECLINE in San Francisco this week for a few nights in celebration of their art. 

You can catch them at The Roxie on Wednesday, October 9th, starting at 6pm, where there will be a double feature of their films "The Art of Protest" and "Side Hustles". A Q&A will follow, featuring members of INDECLINE, Jack Napier, Winston Smith, and moderator Broke-Ass Stuart.

Thursday INDECLINE will be celebrating the release of their new book "Control Alter Delete" at City Lights Bookstore in North Beach at 6pm. Jack Napier will also be in attendance. 

This event will be followed at 7:30 pm by an art installation at Studio Fall Out, 50-A Bannam Place, San Francisco.

Friday and Saturday there is more INDECLINE at Studio Fall Out.

First, on Friday night there is a "Control Alter Delete" film screening, that features behind-the-scenes footage of billboard liberation adventures from 2000-2024. This runs from 7-9pm.

And finally on Saturday night INDECLINE, in collaboration with Studio Fallout presents: “Liberation Vinyl” an intimate creative workshop giving guests the unique chance to create and take home their own custom art on liberated billboard vinyl. THERE ARE TICKETS NEEDED FOR THIS EVENT.

There is a lot of subversive and silly fun to be had this week in San Francisco. Go out and make your mark.

Thanks to Chick and Winston Smith for improving my show image at the top. I'm honored.

See you at the show.

Enjoy and please share.

jh

Hell's Kitchen Radio with John Hell
Mondays 8-10PM
Radio Valencia in SF
http://radiovalencia.fm

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How To Ruin Your Life: False Flag
Christianity is Stupid: Negativland

Interview with Jack Napier - Billboard Liberation Front

Confluence: Slift

Interview with Jack Napier and rep from INDECLINE

Mountain: Meatbodies

Do You Like To Eat A Cow: Paul Leary

Interview with Jack Napier and rep from INDECLINE

Hide and Seek: The Jesus Lizard
Be My Enemy: The Bobby Lees

Interview with Jack Napier and rep from INDECLINE

Queen: Melvins

Leaning on a Travelin' Song: Billy Strings

Total Destruction of your Mind: Swamp Dogg

Roadrunner: Modern Lovers

Pressure Drop: Toots and the Maytals
Rudi, A Message to You: The Specials

Beer Drinking Woman: Memphis Slim

Hell's Kitchen Radio #500: No, You're the Special One

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and HERE - Part Two 

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Well, that was one Hell of a great night. And way too fast. Monday night I celebrated my 500th show on Radio Valencia. I've been doing weekly radio shows, with little interruption, since the fall of 1990. In the early days I taped a lot of my shows on cassette. And most of those were only the air breaks so I could go back and critique myself, hoping to learn how to improve my delivery.

Some of these early shows are so embarrassing that I can't be in the same room with the cassette!

Many of those old shows also have some excellent music mixes in there. Maybe I need to cringe a little bit and give them a listen?

I produced my 500th show in radio many many years ago, but hosting my 500th on the station I started gives a really warm feel to everything. We flipped the switch on Radio Valencia in August of 2010. I started hosting Mondays 8-10PM right away; a slot I held at three previous stations: San Francisco Liberation Radio (2000 - 2003), Pirate Cat (2005 - 2007) and FCCFree Radio (2007 - 2009). I've hosted a few specials while at RV that I never numbered, so I'm guessing I'm closer to 520, but who's counting?

On this special night I put the word out to staff and friends to come hang out. Big thanks to Radio Valencia staffers Darcy, Johnny and Edwin from Skeevy Sideshow, Wednedsays 6-10pm; Doug and Emily from Beyond All Limits, who were kind enough to yield their Monday 10-midnight slot so I could host four hours on this night. Darren from Bo's Veranda (Mondays 4-6pm) also came and hung out. Friends of RV also brought the love, including my dear friends Yas, John Law (SF Cacaphony Society, Billboard Liberation Front, ex-Suicide Club), musician Robin Coomer and her dear mate Matt "The Cleaner"!

The music was a mix of favorites from 2022 and others that are currently rolling through my brain. See the playlist below. 

What do I have planned for the next 500 shows? I have zero clue what I have planned for #501 let alone #1000. Tune in Mondays 8-10PM Pacific and hear for yourself.

Check out these milestone episodes:

Show 400

Show 300

Show 200

Show 100

Enjoy and please share this treat.

And if you're wondering, the picture at the top is my face covering the faces of my parents, Harvey and Pat circa 1975. My dad had his hair permed, which was the style at the time. So did my mom. Such swingers. HA!

jh

Hell's Kitchen Radio with John Hell
Mondays 8-10PM
Radio Valencia in SF
http://radiovalencia.fm

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I Heard it on the X: Olivelawn
Loren's Dance: Idris Muhammad

Channel Zero: Public Enemy
They Threw Me Out Of Church: Wesley Willis

Concrete Jungle: The Specials

The Biggest Blow: Sex Pistols with Ronnie Biggs

Looking For A Kiss: New York Dolls

White Riot: The Clash

Money (That's What I Want): The Flying Lizards

The Payback Mix: James Brown

Fairies Wear Boots: Brown Sabbath

Paranoid: Jazz Sabbath

Undertaker: Mark Growden

Redless: Othered

Hall of the Oyster King: Glitter Wizard

Attractive Target: Negativland

O Tannenbaum/Hava Nagilla: Phat Man Dee

Merry Christmas From The Family: Robert Earl Keen Jr.

A Christmas Song: Jethro Tull

Golden Frames: Shannon Shaw

Greta Van Fake: The Bobby Lees
You Better Have A Gun: Fantastic Negrito

Phantoms: Czarface and MF Doom

Portland, Oregon: Loretta Lynn

The Dripping Tap: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

Tommy in Seven Minutes: Vital on 45

Night Goat: Melvins

Plastic Plant: Thee Oh Sees

Cardboard Pile: Kikagaku Moyo

I'm Waiting For The Man: Lou Reed

Quicksand (2021 Early Mix): David Bowie

Telephone Call From Istanbul: Tom Waits

Free: Ty Segall

Bee Karma: WAND

Vera (2022): Roger Waters

Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere: Neil Young and the Promise Real

I Bid You Goodnight: Joseph Spence & The Pinder Family

A Season in Hell #135: The Cacophony Society Infiltrates Radio Valencia

In 1994 my friend and co-staffer at KFJC, Mark Church (aka: Mr. Antagonism) told me about this event in the desert, where a bunch of pranksters go out and shoot guns, and burn things. He said that a few hundred people attend and it's a perfect place for us to set up a pirate radio station. How could I say no?

My first Burning Man in 1994 would change me the way it changed thousands of lives. I knew I had arrived. I also knew that it wasn't the event itself that had changed me, but the people. One person in particular was a huge inspiration for me; John Law. John was the mans-man of the event. He looked the part. Part Sam Peckinpah, part John Wayne, John Law knew his shit. He was honest to a fault, and never forgot a name. And I never knew a person as inclusive as John.

This is all sounding like an obituary. John is all of this still! Following my first Burning Man it was John who called me up to participate in some urban exploration in San Francisco. I took right up with the Cacophony Society as soon as I could, which would have been in the Fall of 1994. I never looked back.

From the tunnel walks, to the laundromat readings, from the urban iditirod, to Santarchy in the streets, there wasn't an event I could say no to for about ten years. I knew I had found my "people".

John, along with Carrie Galbraith and Kevin Evans have complied and edited a wonderful compendium, looking back fondly at a time when our nation was able to laugh a bit more at itself; not take itself so seriously.

Monday night John and Carrie were kind enough to come into the RV studios (Carrie by phone) to talk about the book, the times, and the events coming up to celebrate it all. Church of the Subgenius' Puzzling Evidence joined us in the second hour.

The first big event is Thursday night, May 16th at City Lights Books in North Beach. Many other great events are to follow.

Take a walk down fuzzy, crazy, idiotic, risky, memory lane with this recent episode of A Season in Hell. You may already be a member.

Risk it all and stream the show here.
Climb the radio tower and download the show here.
Throw your finger at the man and listen to all of my shows by going here, or just scroll down.

Enjoy.

jh

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Up in Smoke: Cheech and Chong
The Noting Show: Idiot Flesh
Tamale Lady: Rube Waddell

Interview with John Law and Carrie Galbraith

Glorious: Polkacide

Interview with John Law and Carrie Galbraith

Pretty Baby: Three Day Stubble

Interview with John Law and Carrie Galbraith

In This Rubber Tomb: Mudhoney

Interview with John Law, Carrie Galbraith and Puzzling Evidence

Butt Funkin': Limbomaniacs

Interview with John Law, Carrie Galbraith and Puzzling Evidence

Up and Down: Cookie Mongoloid