[Podcast] Mundofonías

January 12, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

A couple of years ago, I had the absolute joy and pleasure to make the acquaintances of Juan Antonio Vázquez & Araceli Tzigane, two radio hosts who run Spain’s best World Music program, Mundofonías.

You can sample of bit of one of their recent shows, ‘Orientando & Africando’, here.

[Music] Melodiya rereleases classic Russian albums on vinyl

January 9, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

Russia was rich with good music, even during the Soviet Era. It’s nice to see so many classics, even the cheesy metal ones, getting reissued in wonderful packaging by Melodiya.

Many thanks to Vladimir Kozlov, who wrote this article for the Moscow Times.

[Music] Fifty Years of Tape

January 9, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

I grew up listening to a lot of experimental music in my youth, most of in in the cassette format. It was quite something to have a cheap and easy tool to trade with friends, to purchase from very creative sorts who would hand-craft something resembling music from some God-forsaken place and receive it in my little suburbia. Though I prefer the clarity of digital recordings, hearing poorly compressed audio via a tape done by modern artists trying to look ironic has its charms. Thanks to Staalplaat’s Staalzine for posting this little slice of nostalgia.

[Lit] 35 Perfect Examples of the Art of the Short Story

January 9, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

Thanks to Jason Diamond at the otherwise-nearly-unreadable Flavorwire for this post covering some of the masters of the short story form.

[Podcast] Broad Church Mix Forty Five

January 8, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

Broad Church Mix Forty Five by Sonic Cathedral on Mixcloud

A stunningly good podcast by Sonic Cathedral featuring Krautrock, shoegaze music, electronic music and some simply beautiful tracks.

[Podcast] PMB158: Outer Realms

January 6, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

PMB158: Outer Realms by Project Moonbase on Mixcloud

Mixcloud, by itself, is proving to be a wonderful tool with little treasures worth sharing. One of my favorite recent podcasts comes from the United Kingdom is Project Moonbase, where DJ Bongoboy and MC Zirconium play some of the corniest, cheesiest and charming lounge, sci-fi, exotica and other sundry novelties.

[Lit] Papers of Paris

January 4, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

Many thanks to Hugh Oram from The Irish Times for this article on James Joyce’s years in Paris.

[Podcast] The Exotic Sounds Of Les Baxter

January 3, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

The Exotic Sounds Of Les Baxter by Adam Kvasnica on Mixcloud

Many thanks to one of the coolest DJs in the Mixcloud universe, Adam Kvasnica from Slovakia, for spinning this great set filled with cheesy lounge goodness from the inimitable Les Baxter!

[Lit] The Daggers of Jorge Luis Borges

January 2, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

Michael Greenberg of The New York Review of Books writes on the ever-magnificent Jorge Luis Borges and his fascination with blades, that most macho piece of fighting machinery, and what it meant to his vision of criollo Argentina.

The book reviewed is Professor Borges: A Course on English Literature
by Jorge Luis Borges, edited by Martín Arias and Martín Hadis, and translated from the Spanish by Katherine Silver, available for purchase here.

[Podcast] Beneath The Valley

January 1, 2014 / Rudy Carrera

Beneath The Valley by Miss Phi 1.61803399 on Mixcloud

Though I don’t know the host personally outside of comments back and forth, Miss Phi 1.61803399 has a stunningly good ear for dub, jungle, drum & bass and Reggae. Click her name and see what she’s offering – it’s quite a varied bag, all of high quality!