Hell's Kitchen Radio #579: Days Between

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It's not as much fun hosting my show remotely from home. I like my home. It's cozy. You should come over. But hosting in the studio is so much more fun. The energy is different when I'm standing at the console, looking out onto 22nd street to the people passing by, or stopping to look through the window. At home I'm sitting on the floor in my living room with my computer in front of me talking to the cat. 

That all being said, I have did manage to put together a pretty good show without any vinyl, including a tribute to Jerry Garcia who passed away 30 years ago on August 9th! That sure went fast. The days from the 1st through the 9th are considered the "Days Between", where there are a lot of tributes to Jerry. The last 30 minutes of this show I pay homage. 

And on my Tuesday night show: John Hell's Live Bootleg Bonanza, I play two hours of some stellar live Grateful Dead that focuses on Jerry. Tune in starting at 8pm Pacific.

No, I did not attend the Dead and Company shows in Golden Gate Park this past weekend. I have an issue with charging people money to see live music in a public park. And Dead and Co are really my jam. They're an OK cover band, but if I want to hear a quality Grateful Dead show I can always stream any of their 2000+ shows that are on my hard drive, or available on Archive. Or I can go see Stu Allen and Mars Hotel. 

I did however download all three live video broadcasts of the shows. They've sped up the songs, which is nice, since the two times I saw them a few years back the songs were sooooo slow. Got to hand it to Bobby Weir, his voice isn't nearly what it used to be, but he still gives it all he has. 

My money is on Mickey Hart being the last one standing. 

With all that being said, there's a lot of newish music tonight, including Wet Leg, LA Witch, Frankie and the Witch Fingers, Public Enemy, Population II, and OSees. 

I'll be back in the studio next Monday night to celebrate Radio Valencia's 15th anniversary! Can you believe we made it that long? There have been times, especially during COVID, I thought we would be closing the doors forever. Tune in and celebrate with me. 

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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Lucifer Sam/Interstellar Overdrive: Marble Orchard (1991 Savage Sleep)
Gbe Mi Lo: Ofege (1973 Try and Love)

Catch These Fists: Wet Leg
SOS: LA Witch

Fucksake: Frankie and the Witch Fingers (Trash Classic)
Sexegenarian: Public Enemy (Black Sky Over the Projects - Apartment 2025)
Back Door Man (live): The Doors (Waiting for the Sun 50th)
Le The Est Pret (The Tea is Ready): Population II (Maintenant Jamais)
Sharaf: Sahra Halgan (Hiddo Dhawr)

Ouroboros: GOAT (GOAT)
Gild the Lily: Billy Strings (Highway Prayers)

Abominiation: OSees
Fire on the Mountain: Widespread Panic
Kill Jerry Garcia: Colorfinger

Let It Ride: The Soundcarriers (Harmonium 2009)
Daylight: The Kinks (Preservation Act 1 1973)
Pork Roll Egg and Cheese: Ween (the Pod 1991)

Summertime: Coleman Hawkins and Sonny Rollins (Sonny Meets Hawk 1963)
Spidergawd/Eep Hour/The Wheel: Jerry Garcia (Garcia)

Days Between: Otiel Burbridge (Lovely View of Heaven 2023)

Hell's Kitchen Radio #561: Set The Knight On Fire

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I think I'm finally getting a handle on this radio thing. I mean how hard can it be? 

I had a recurring dream about dead air. And what DJ hasn't had that dream? It's the worst! A song is quickly ending and I have nothing cued up. In reality I am the king of the last second cue. It's happened too many times to count.

That being said, 90% of the time I have many songs cued and ready to go. In my earliest days of radio I was trained to have a safety track ready just in case a song ends and I have nothing else set. At Radio Valencia we have two turntable, two CD players, and two aux cords, which most hosts use for their laptops. I use the Mixxx app with four channels. This means at any one time I can have eight songs ready to play.

There really is no excuse for dead air. 

I spent a couple years at KALX leading up to COVID. I recall heading into the studio one night. I had a graveyard shift that I thought was running 1-3am. I was told to arrive at midnight to cover a pre-recorded show, just to be told by a staffer who was there when I arrived that my show actually starts at midnight and not 1am. It was about 11:57 at that time. I calmly seated myself, cued up a song and started the show. 

The young staffer was anxious about me not being able to start on time. When I did she noted how calm I was about the whole thing. This is what experience gets you. Just chill out and drop the needle. 

As for this show I dropped the needle on some killer tracks by amazing artists. 

I quickly pay tribute to the late David Johansen of the New York Dolls who passed away last week. I was lucky to see a late version of the NY Dolls in Washington DC in 2008. It was Johansen and Sylvain Sylvain backed by a young rhythm section, but they were incredible!

I saw some incredible modern country/western at The Ivy Room last week with local guitarist and singer Mitch Polzak, and Portland's Jenny Don't and the Spurs were in town. That was one helluva show! I spoke to Mitch after his set and he listens to Radio Valencia! Thanks Mitch. What a pleasure. I'm going to have him on my show soon. I also got to speak to Jenny Don't after her set. She was kind enough to record a station promo for me as well. What a doll! Both bands are incredible. I strongly encourage you to check them out when they hit your town.

As always there's lots of new music tonight. Check out Ty Segall's new side project Freckle. Ambrose Kenny-Smith of King Gizzard also has a new side project that I was happy to get recently. New Population 11, Lambrini Girls (I'm really loving this band), and KnightressM1 featuring metal violinist Emily Palen now living in Paris. I miss my friend, but luckily she's continuing to record incredible music to share with the world.

I bought a bunch of records over the past week so tune in Monday to hear where John Hell's paycheck goes.

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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Trash: New York Dolls
Hate The Police: The Dicks
Twilight (Elliot Smith cover): Barbara Manning

Lonesome, On'ry and Mean: Mitch Polzak

Judgement Day: Jack O'Fire

Gimme A Penny: Big Mama Thornton

Swordfishtrombones: Tom Waits

Sun Rise: Rolf Harris
Steal Softly Through The Snow: Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band

Chinese New Year: Mulatu Astatke and The Heliocentrics

One More Night: Jenny Don't and the Spurs

Louie Louie: Thee Headcoats

Dark Horse: LA Witch
Shameless Imposter: Terry Gross
Anlatmam Derdimi: Altin Gün
Let Me Be Your Ragdoll: Barbara Dane

Who's Sitting on the Moon: Freckle

TV Glotzer (White Punks on Dope): Nina Hagen

Axis: KnightressM1

1970: Boris

No Home: Lambrini Girls

The Gloater: GUM, Ambrose Kenny-Smith

The Wheel: King Tuff

Le The Est Pret: Population II

From The First Hello To The Last Goodbye: Jane Morgan and the 450 Collegians

Hell's Kitchen Radio #554: Talking Trash with the IRD

Listen to hour one right here!!!
Check out hour two right here!!!

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First show of the year, and right off the bat I have an exciting interview for you. Prog-space-b-movie-kinda-jazzy-mostly-funky trio Illogistical Resource Dept came into the studio to share their newly released third record: Cacoethes (go ahead, I dare you to pronounce it correctly the first time).

What a delight to have Dan (bass/vocals.effects), Noa (drums) and Mike (guitar) in to talk up such a wonderful collection of new music. What they do is truly magical and I can imagine the challenges of creating this music in a live setting. They talk about this and more coming up.

There are two links above, split into hour one and hour two.

Having fun with the IRD coming up right here.

Enjoy and please go buy their music!!!

jh

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

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Suspect Device: Stiff Little Fingers
Bring The Head of Jerry Garcia: Iron Prostate
Do Your Thing: Kashmir Stage Band
99 Year Blues: Hot Tuna

Interview with Illogistical Resource Department

Shrewd Awakening: IRD

Interview with Illogistical Resource Department

The Gears of Issus: IRD
The Future of Mankind: IRD

Interview with IRD

Togremelas: IRD
Hellbender's Return: IRD

Interview with IRD

Run Around: Moon Duo
Night of the Vampire: Ty Segall

Shopping: Pink Section
Cent Piasses: Population II
Don't You Make Me High: Merline Johnson
Ouroboros: GOAT

On Green Dolphin Street: Miles Davis
Mack the Knife: Ella Fitzgerald
Dead Babies: Alice Cooper

First Week/Last Week...Carefree (Acoustic Version): Talking Heads

Hell's Kitchen Radio #530: Exhausting You Into Submission

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If I've said it once, I've said it a three or maybe four times: radio is the art of the segue. You don't need to listen to a work I say on this show, but you do need to listen to these sets of tunes. Hot damn these are some fine songs I have for you tonight.

New music from Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Kevin Abstract, Population II, and Slift. There's a lot of psych and dark-psych throughout, and it really moves through you. I enjoyed the hell outta bringing you this show.

I don't do a lot of pre-planning when it comes to my sets. I generally just grab a bunch of vinyl and my external hard drive and head to the station. Once I get there i take a look at what I brought with me, and choose my first song that is to represent "the sounds of Hell". That's always a hoot.

I think it was this first set that really got my engine revving. 

Take a look at the play list below and click on the link to listen to the show.

Enjoy and please share...and go support live, local bands!

jh

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

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Bad Indian: Dead Pioneers
Institutionalized: Suicidal Tendencies

Night Gnomes: Psychedelic Porn Crumpets
Nice, Nice, Very Nice: Ambrosia

Once In A Lifetime: Kevin Abstract
Home Affairs: Osibisa
Wake Up The Sun: Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
Mutantes e Seus Cometas no Pais: Os Mutantes

Le Serpent: Population II
Solen Stiger Upp Del 1 and Del 2: Dungen
No Good Trying: Syd Barrett
Free The Skull: Moon Duo

Confluence: Slift
Dance of the Bacchantes: Dead Can Dance

Gathering of Ancient Tribes: Goat
Environs: MV and EE
IV: Aluk Todolo
Bring It On Home: Bo Diddley

Why Don't You Smile Now: Spiritualized

Hell's Kitchen Radio #492: Let Me Play You What To Think

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Someone told me the other day they really don't have any time to listen to music, and there's nothing worth listening to anyhow. I cried. Is this true for some people? For you? I can't imagine life without music. And honestly, as much as I enjoy the "classics" of my youth, including a few go-to bands, at least 50% of my music listening is music from the past couple of years, and always looking to get turned onto some fresh new artist or release. 

How is this not more common? Do you not have the time? Are you stuck in what you were listening to in high school? I guess it's more common than I thought. If that's you then I really encourage you to tune into my show Monday's 8-10PM PDST, where I mix it up by era and genre. Take a look at my playlist below and you'll see everything from proto-punk, dub, 60s-psychedelic, boogie-woogie blues, stoney rock, and much much more. 

One thing I will always love about Radio Valencia and stations like ours, is the risk our DJs take in pushing past the edges of what is acceptable to the commercial radio programmers. We will never insult you. We yearn to turn you on.

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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Heroin: Roky Erickson and the Explosives
Run Run Run: White Fence

I'm Waiting For My Man: Velvet Underground
TV Eye: The Stooges

Death Train: The Bobby Lees
Mexican Radio: Wall of Voodoo
Bye Bye Baby: Janis Joplin
Anemone: The Brian Jonestown Massacre

Presumptuous: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
Curly Dub: Lee Scratch Perry and the Upsetters

Playin' In The Band: Bob Weir
Sugar Magnolia: Joe Pop-O-Pie
Il Eut un Silence Dans le Ciel: Population II

Dominoes: Syd Barrett
Blaze In: Acid King
The Sky Is Crying: Dave Alexander

Willie Poor Boy: Mance Lipscomb
Chicken: Scott H. Biram
20th Century Boy: Siouxsie and the Banshees

Rats in Ruin: All Them Witches

What A Wonderful World: Louis Armstrong

Hell's Kitchen Radio #484: Hell Is Cuh-Ray-Zee

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Having a chance to play these tunes for you brings great joy to Hell. There's a lot of blues in the first hour, and the blues always lifts me up! Give your ears a chance to get used to something new. I read another article recently that spoke about how people get set in their musical ways by the age of 32, and most of that music is what they were listening to in high school and immediately after. 

I'm about to turn 52, and ten of the tunes I played tonight were new to me over the past six months or so. I mean seriously now. I get that we're busy. I understand that for many music just runs in the background (I actually don't understand this at all, but I know not everyone can be as obsessed with music as I am), and I get that life keeps on keepin' on. I guess that's why I will always be a strong proponent for the power and magic of non-commercial radio.

It's DJs, who have the power to program their own shows, that give you a chance to sit back and enjoy the aural ride. Let us do the driving, so to speak. That's ok. I don't mind that. As a matter of fact I get really excited about that. Just listen to my mic breaks! 

A few notes about this show: Tom Waits is celebrating the 20th anniversary of both "Blood Money" and "Alice", so you get a taste of that. Some new music from Spain's Podium, new sounds from Ty Segall and Fantastic Negrito, as well as a premier from local guitarist/producer/engineer Myles Boisen, who will be on my show in two weeks, on Monday, August 22nd. Tune in.

You are also going to want to tune in next Monday, August 13th, 8PM PDST for my guest, rock photographer Jay Blakesberg, who will be in the studio talking up his latest book. I cannot wait for this interview. I have been a fan of Jay's for many years. Check out his stuff and tune in.

The Radio Valencia studio is looking better each week: new paint job and soundproofing. We're getting our logo on the awning out front next week! Thanks to our engineering team (aka: JazzNazz) we have the turntables and CD players working better than ever! But we still need you. This is an out-of-pocket venture. Bringing you great programming is our mission, and we can really use your help. Please consider donating to Radio Valencia by going to our PayPal (we are financially sponsored by SF IndieFest) and throwing a few bones our way. Every dime is spent on station needs (rent and equipment mostly). I thank you in advance. 

Time now to sit back and enjoy two hours of aural delights.

jh

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

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Down In The Street: The Stooges
Grinder Man: John Lee Hooker

Misery Is The River of the World: Tom Waits
Hole in the Wall: Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee

Black Rat: Big Mama Thornton
I Don't Know: Blues Brothers
Go To Satan: Rube Waddell
Introspection: Population II
Dear Doctor: Rolling Stones

Saturday Pt. 2: Ty Segall
Podium: Podium

Nabbadip: Fantastic Negrito
Master Pretender: First Aid Kit
English is Cuh-Ray-Zee: Peet Seeger
Hot Cha: Roland Kirk
Wild and Free: Curtis Mayfield

Get Up, Stand Up: Bob Marley with The Chineke Orchestra
Iron Man: Brownout

Toulon Pedro: The Toulon-Pedro Connect

Returning Summer: Myles Boisen
Tomorrow Never Knows: 801

Just Got Paid: ZZ Top

Hell's Kitchen Radio #483: Internationally Known

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What do you get when your host has one kid on vacation and the other in daycare all day? You get a very well-prepared program, that's what you get. I normally have a vague idea of how I want my show to go. I listen to music all of the time, so I always know about 25% of the songs I really want to share with you, leading into a show. I bring plenty with me, so it's all about having the experience of what artist or genre may match up with what I am currently playing (let's see Spotify really do that well!). This past week I've had a lot more time on my hands to listen to a bunch of vinyl that has needed my attention.

I also went to see Melvins last week, with Helms Alee opening. What an inspiring show that was! This program is more loud than normal. You get some fine sludge and doom, but you're also going to get some fine angular post-punk, psych, jazz, and more. New music from Helms Alee, Othered, and Ty Segall. That's why you tune in, and I thank you for that. I really do. 

Take a look at the playlist below, click the link above to stream, and share with your music-loving friends.

The Radio Valencia studio is looking better each week: new paint job and soundproofing. We're getting our logo on the awning out front next week! Thanks to our engineering team (aka: JazzNazz) we have the turntables and CD players working better than ever! But we still need you. This is an out-of-pocket venture. Bringing you great programming is our mission, and we can really use your help. Please consider donating to Radio Valencia by going to our PayPal (we are financially sponsored by SF IndieFest) and throwing a few bones our way. Every dime is spent on station needs (rent and equipment mostly). I thank you in advance. 

Enjoy.

jh

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

Follow me on Twitter
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Follow Radio Valencia on Twitter
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Hag Me: Melvins
Dragonaut: Sleep

Tripping Up The Stairs: Helms Alee
Matazoa: Boris

Focus Pocus: Big Business
Kill The Badger!: William S. Burroughs
Redless: Otherered
Mars for the Rich: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard

Looking At You: Ty Segall
I Shot All The Birds: Blind Shake

Teenage Riot: Sonic Youth
Hands: Lithics
Gut The Quantifier: The Fall

Marlene Dietrich: black midi
Ce n'est Rēve: Population II

N.I.B.: Jazz Sabbath
I've Got The Death Energy: Nudity

Bloody Hammer: Roky Erickson
Hell Broke Luce: Tom Waits

Holiday: The Kinks