SomaFM Blog

Listener of the Month: June

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:09:00 +0000

Jesse - an electrical engineer based in Oakland, CA - is Junes listener of the month! His favorite channels are Groove Salad and Space Station Soma. Jesse's girlfriend, Laura, prefers Indie Pop Rocks!

Jesse tunes in first thing when he gets to work and tunes out last thing before he leaves. Jesse and Laura often run into other SomaFM fans on the street and take a minute to "geek out about the goodness of Soma."

Congrats Jesse and thanks for your support!

4th of July at El Rio

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 17:30:00 +0000

No plans on the 4th of July? Hit up this local music showcase at El Rio. Cool bands+cool people+free BBQ provided by Sneaky's=good times on the 4th of July.

Writer

Details:

1:30 pm-8:30 pm

+21

$8 (that's $1 per band AND you get free BBQ)

Starfucker @ Bottom of the Hill Tonight!!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 23:19:00 +0000

Portland based indie-electro-fun time band Starfucker will be at Bottom of the Hill tonight. We'll be interviewing them before the show so keep an eye out for the podcast in the articles section.

Is there band you'd like to see us interview? A festival we should cover? Let us know! Contact us at dj@somafm.com with your suggestions.

Paul Williams Benefit Sunday, June 28 at Red Devil Lounge

rusty@somafm.com (Rusty Hodge [SomaFM]) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:48:00 +0000

There is a benefit show Sunday, June 28 at Red Devil Lounge in San Francisco with Mojo Nixon, Jello Biafra, John Easdale and Mark Eitzel; and all proceeds are going to benefit Paul Williams, the guy who created the first magazine of pop music criticism and rock culture, Crawdaddy!, when he was 17 and in college. Crawdaddy! went live on the web back in 1997, so in many ways he's the father of many of the music blogs out there.

But in 1995, Paul was in a serious bicycle accident that caused traumatic brain injury, leading to early onset of dementia, and a steady decline. He hasn't be able to write in the last few years, and he's now to the point where he now requires full-time care. Like so many freelancers, Paul didn't have the benefits of a corporate employer providing him with medical, disability or life insurance. The cost of his care has been a huge drain on his wife who has been struggling to pay for it.

A lot of writers who got their start with him – David Fricke from Rolling Stone, Jon Landau of Springsteen fame, many others – have been writing about him, and helping his family build a website to try to get word out about his legacy and to get donations to help pay for his care.

So if you care about rock journalism or just writing about music, please come out and join Mojo Nixon, Jello Biafra, John Easdale and Mark Eitzel in raising money to help Paul in this trying time for him.

It will be a great show, and it's for a good cause. Tickets are $20. and 100% of that goes direct to Paul.

Pitch Black share their techniques tonight at Pyramind

rusty@somafm.com (Rusty Hodge [SomaFM]) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 22:53:00 +0000

Pitch Black from New Zealand is in town this week for a show Friday night at Mission Rock, and tonight will share their technique at Pyramind studios, including showing their live touring rig, how they compose their music, how they incorporate visuals, as well as sharing production tips and techniques.

Check them out Tonight (Thursday) at Pyramind Studios in San Francisco's South of Market district.

Harvey visits the Studio!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:58:00 +0000

Loyal listener Harvey was in San Francisco recently and decided to stop by our studio. He also donated $50 in exchange for a t-shirt. Thanks Harvey!

Interview with Weinland

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:05:00 +0000

Do you like Weinland? Check out the interview we got with them last week! We talked to Adam, Ian and Rory about how they formed the band, where the name is from and their beard-rock status.

If you like that interview, check out others in the Articles Section.

Is there band you'd like to see us interview? A festival we should cover? Let us know! Contact us at dj@somafm.com with your suggestions.

Listener of the Month: May!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 19:49:00 +0000

We're a little behind on selecting the SomaFM Listener of the Month. But congratulations to Jonas in Germany for winning the title!

Jonas has been listening to SomaFM for 4 years now. Drone Zone is his alarm clock, Groove Salad is his choice of programming during the day and he likes Boot Liquor but only listens on Sundays. Jonas currently works in accounting but is planning to hunt for something a little more exciting in the future. Hope SomaFM helps brighten up your job hunt!

If you know someone who deserves to be listener of the month, e-mail us at dj@somafm.com. Let us know their name, age, occupation and how long they've been listening to SomaFM, and why you think they should be the listener of the month.

Mutek Nocture 1 at SAT, May, 2009, Montreal

rusty@somafm.com (Rusty Hodge [SomaFM]) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 03:28:00 +0000

A little video from Wednesday night's kickoff at SAT. Electronic music plus interactive events, starting with everyone being given color-coded clean-room suits, progressing on to live electronic music performances with analog visuals; a paper airplane construction contest; headon ping-pong, and video target shooting.

Mutek A Visions 2

rusty@somafm.com (Rusty Hodge [SomaFM]) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 03:21:00 +0000

Here's a little taste of Mutek.

Opening with THE FUN YEARS (Ben Recht and Isaac Sparks) , BURNT FRIEDMAN and CAN drummer JAKI LIEBEZEIT.

Listener of the Month for May?

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Wed, 27 May 2009 17:41:00 +0000

Do you know someone who deserves to be SomaFM's listener of the month? Let us know! If you, a friend or a family member are a devoted listener, e-mail us at dj@somafm.com with their name, occupation, favorite station and any other fun facts about them. Winners will be blogged about and receive some free SomaFM stickers!

Rusty reports from Detroit Electronic Music Festival

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Wed, 27 May 2009 17:34:00 +0000

Rusty just left Detroit Electronic Music Festival and sent us some photos from the event! Enjoy.

RJD2

Sound guys repair speaker 30 ft. off the ground

Z-trip (left) and RJD2 (right)

Main Stage crowd during Carl Cox

Rusty is headed to Mutek Festival in Montreal next so keep an eye out for photos from Canada!

SanFran MusicTech Summit

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Thu, 14 May 2009 22:22:00 +0000

Usually Mondays are nothing to look forward to. Our jobs are great and everything but nobody loves a Monday. Lucky for us, this Monday is an exception! We get to attend SF MusicTech and hear folks from Pandora, EFF and RAIN talk about their cool jobs and their outlook on the music industry. Check out a full schedule of events here.

As if that weren't cool enough, the whole she-bang ends with a cocktail party! Badges are on sale until tomorrow. Hope to see you there!

DJ Elise at Cafe du Nord Tomorrow

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Wed, 06 May 2009 21:44:00 +0000

DJ Elise will be spinning in between sets at Cafe du Nord Thursday night. If you're in the Bay Area, go check it out. Loquat will be headlining and there are some great opening acts. More info here.

More Noise Pop 2009 Podcasts

rusty@somafm.com (Rusty Hodge [SomaFM]) — Sat, 02 May 2009 01:09:00 +0000

We posted some more interviews from Noise Pop 2009, so check out the Dizzy Balloon Interview, Maus Haus and Scissors for Lefty.

You can read them as well as listen to them.

They join the Sugar & Gold, Here Here and Picture Atlantic from our previous Noise Pop coverage.

How Weird Street Faire

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 18:45:00 +0000

Summer-time is built for festivals and street fairs and next weekend in San Francisco is no exception. If you'll be in the Bay Area on May 10, stop by the How Weird Street Faire. It's going to be 10 solid city blocks of music, art, food and fun.

The street fair runs from noon to 7 and costs $10 (or $5 if you come in costume). The festival benefits World Peace Through Technology.

More info here!

Listener(s) of the Month!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:24:00 +0000

We are starting a new feature to celebrate and showcase some of our über cool listeners. So keep an eye out on the blog for our Listener of the Month!

The first listeners to get this honor are Tim and Ken in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. They run a guest house called the Taj Mahal and play SomaFM in their bar. The guests at the Taj are primarily ex-pats, journalists and international-types. Ken has been listening to SomaFM since 2003 and prefers Groove Salad.

Check out their guest house here.

Tim's blog here.

And Ken's blog here.

Miss B, a guest at the Taj, in a SomaFM t-shirt

Tim with some kids from Jalalabad

Next time you're in Afghanistan, swing by and check them out!

Music Library Makeover

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 20:18:00 +0000

While Rusty, Merin and Elise are partying and having all sorts of fun at SXSW I'll be kickin it in the office, working on making our music library prettier. How is that for thinly veiled jealousy?

Naw, it's cool. The music library is an on-going project of mine. I'm hoping to have it in beautiful working order by the end of the month. Wish me luck!

Awesome Listener!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 21:32:00 +0000

This is a quick shout out for Ty Eckley, who sent us a big box of beautiful jewelry this week. Every once in a while we'll get listener donations that are out of the ordinary but I can honestly say that a big heavy box full of necklaces is pretty uncommon. I love the pieces and can't wait to wear them!

This is the piece for Rusty:

That medallion is a Constantine coin circa 330 AD.

This is my favorite piece!

Thanks Ty!

YXSB: Yeast by Sweet Beast 2009

rusty@somafm.com (Rusty Hodge [SomaFM]) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 05:17:00 +0000

We saw some of this last year, and it was great. Cutting edge electronic music, visuals, etc. It was in a very tiny space last year, but this year expands.

"Highly Recommended" -- Rusty

Yeast by Sweet Beast 2009 Schedule and details; basic schedule below:

Admission: $5 per night

Sat mar 14 at salvage vanguard (2803 Manor Rd)
Admission: $5
Main Stage:
Projections by Eyeplug
7:15 to 7:45 pm --------Book of Shadows
8 to 8:30 pm -----------Bee vs. Moth
8:45 to 9:15 pm --------Yells at Eels
9:30 pm to 10 pm -------ecfa
10:15 to 10:45 pm ------Waco Girls
11 to 11:30 pm ---------Great Tyrant
11:45 to 12:15 am ------Future Blondes
12:30 to 1 am ----------Balaclavas
1:15 to 1:45 am --------ST37

Side Stage:
Projections by Lars
7 to 7:25pm-------------Aunt's Analog
7:30 to 8 pm -----------Carlos Villareal
8:15 to 8:45 pm --------Concrete Violin
9 to 9:30 pm -----------Tiger Hatchery
9:45 to 10:15 pm -------Clear Spot
10:30 to 11 pm ---------Skullcaster
11:15 to 11:45 pm ------Xathax
midnite to 12:30 am ----Steve Marsh
12:45 to 1:15 am -------The Watchers
1:30 to 2 am -----------Muzak John

Sun mar 15 at Plush (617 Red River)

Projections by RecSpec

8 to 8:30 pm -----------Canada Coda
8:45 to 9:15 pm --------Bobbie
9:30 pm to 10 pm -------Bright Duplex
10:15 to 10:45 pm ------7 Inch Stitch
11 to 11:30 pm ---------Dust Congress
11:45 to 12:15 am ------FM Campers
12:30 to 1 am ----------Plutonium Farmers
1:15 to 1:45 am --------Jherri Seinfeldt's Atrophied Sac

Mon mar 16 at Plush (617 Red River)

Projections by Paul Baker

8 to 8:30 pm -----------Mold
8:45 to 9:15 pm --------Johnkin'kin
9:30 pm to 10 pm -------Jacob Green & Tamara
10:15 to 10:45 pm ------Low Red Center
11 to 11:30 pm ---------Expensive Shit
11:45 to 12:15 am ------Laundry Room Squelchers
12:30 to 1 am ----------Doug Ferguson
1:15 to 1:45 am --------Aurora Plastics Company

Bay Area Take Over Party at SXSW

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 18:17:00 +0000

SXSW

rusty@somafm.com (Rusty Hodge [SomaFM]) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 05:05:00 +0000

OK, we're on the road to SXSW. Rusty, Elise and Merin will be there, keep an eye out for us. And a great place to find out what's happening at SXSW is the unofficial SXSW Insider's Guide where you'll find all the inside scoop on cool shows and parties during this years SXSW.

Festival Season Is Here!!!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 22:58:00 +0000

Keep an eye out for our Noise Pop coverage! If you're in the Bay Area, stop by SomaFM/Indie Pop Rocks' Happy Hour tomorrow.

Are you headed to SXSW? Consider stopping by the Bay Area Take Over party! Details below.

We're sponsoring a party during SXSW next month called "The Bay Area Takeover" on Thursday, March 19th, from Noon-6pm at The Beauty Bar in downtown Austin.

Featuring live performances by video mashup artist Mike Relm, Vetiver, The Morning Benders, Sholi, Thee Oh Sees, The Heavenly States, Wallpaper., The Frail, Two Sheds, The Union Trade, French Miami, Lilofee, The Red Verse.

DJ sets from SomaFM's Elise Nordling as well as Omar, Miles, and Jacob Fury.

Here's the full details. RSVP to get free, priority admission:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=63075021592

Elise's Picks for Noise Pop 09!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 00:13:00 +0000

As promised, Elise picked all of her favorite shows for next weeks Festival of Musical Awesomeness a.k.a. Noise Pop. Here are her faves:

Tuesday
Opening night at Mezzanine with Deerhunter and Lilofee
Lilofee is one of San Francisco's newest electro-pop bands, and with an all-star DJ lineup between bands (Aaron Axelson, Omar from Popscene, as well as Jimmy Tamborello (the non-Ben Gibbard half of Postal Service), it's going to rock.

Wesdnesday
Lower Class Revolt Happy Hour at Bender's, featuring the Aimless Never Miss and Sleepover Disaster, two local bands loved by indie pop rocks. Sleepover Disaster have a great new record out (available here: http://www.devilinthewoodsrecords.com/)!

Mountain Goats (John Solo) at Swedish American Music Hall, with Papercuts, both long-time IPR favorites. It'll be acoustic and mellow, with wine and beer available at the venue thanks to SomaFM friends The Bay Bridged.

Stephen Malkmus with Kelley Stoltz at Great American Music Hall with Goh Nakamura opening (Goh also plays in IPR favorite the Invisible Cities), this will be a great night of singer-songwriter awesomeness.

French Kicks with Broken West at the Independent
also featuring Here Here and the Dont's, this is a perfect night of indie pop goodness.

Thursday
Indie Pop Rocks/SomaFM happy hour at Bender's (duh)! featuring IPR favorites Scissors for Lefty, Picture Atlantic, and Man/Miracle, this FREE show will also be a great chance to meet everyone from SomaFM!

Thao Nguyen at the Swedish American Music Hall
with sometimes-San Francisco resident Dave Dondero opening, a perfectly mellow evening of story-telling songs.

Friday
Happy Hour at Bender's, presented by the Bay Bridged, featuring IPR favorites Maus Haus, Sugar & Gold, and Tempo No Tempo, a perfect lineup, and FREE. Who doesn't love free?

St. Vincent at Great American Music Hall
This lovely singer formerly of the collective known as the Polyphonic Spree has really gorgeous songs.

The Morning Benders & the Submarines at Slim's
with the Mumlers and Rademacher opening, this will be another perfect evening of indie pop goodness.

Port O'Brien at Cafe du Nord with Afternoons opening (featuring members of irving), not to be missed.

Saturday
Happy Hour at Bender's, presented by local record label Three Ring Records, featuring Music For Animals, Aim Low Kid, and Audio Out Send (who played SomaFM's happy hour last year), and FREE. Great bands, again. The happy hours are so amazing this year!

Matinee show at Bottom of the Hill
with the Matches, Dizzy Balloon, and the Ex-Boyfriends.
Indie pop-rock in the afternoon with a beer in your hand, the perfect combo. Dizzy Balloon are one of the Bay Area's most promising new bands, be sure to check them out.

Bob Mould and Mark Eitzel at the Swedish American Music Hall. Two classic indie singer-songwriters in one evening? Holy crap.

AC Newman at the Independent
The New Pornographer's frontman's new record is stunning, and this show is sure to rock. Dent May and his Magnificent Ukelele are opening, who's been getting critical acclaim all over.

Sholi at Bottom of the Hill
Another Bay Area favorite, Sholi has a brand-spanking-new awesome record out. indie pop goodness.

Sunday
Les Savy Fav at the Mezzanine
has to be seen to be believed. After a long haitus, this band finally started playing out again last year. They put on such a great show, complete entertainment.

Check out Noise Pop's line up here!

SomaFM/Noise Pop Goodness!

noreply@blogger.com (meghan) — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 01:43:00 +0000

Everyone here at the SomaFM office is really excited about upcoming Noise Pop fun. We got Elise to pick her favorites from the line up and we'll be posting those soon, so keep an eye out for them!

Also, Elise and I got the chance to hang out with Obi Best and the Bird and the Bee at their recent sold-out show at the Independent. I'll be posting my interview with Obi Best in a couple of days so check out the interviews section here!