free-range
The Drunken Monkey
01/Jun/2010 |
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Alternate names for this particularly strange and tantalizing episode: Introverted Excavator and/or Kermit's Beautiful Vision
I've been pondering what holds all of this really disparate and varied music together, why the mix sounds so cohesive to my ears even though it doesn't look like it should work if you scan the playlist.
Part of the harmony of the many is, to my ears, a prioritization of the rhythm of the song. Most of these tunes have a solid groove propelling them forward, drums out front. Some pieces are rather abstract -- I love to play with soundscapes and create moods and atmospheres -- but still have the ghosts of a rhythm floating through them.
Also: these songs feel REAL to me. like REAL musical expressions from REAL people expressing REAL emotions. I am attracted to that quality in music no matter what the genre: authenticity, integrity, soul.
Many of these songs feel erotic to me. Even though the styles and sounds are all over the map, they share some kind of sexy charge, some languid hotness, attitude and life-force juju. It must be the always-teasing rhythms and slightly-agitated grooves that get me all hot and bothered.
Most of the music in this here episode #57 (!?!?!) really has a deep and funky swing to it. Some tracks are basically all swing, a bunch of jamming around a loose groove. Listen for that underlying swing (different from the swagger) -- better yet, just feel it by swaying your hips to the music, dancing across the floor.
Alright. Dig it, if you can.
oxox, DJ Fundi
(monkey art by the fabulous Fishboy of Bellingham, WA)
Any feedback? Requests? Contact us at djfundi@podcastcafe.org.
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Intergalactic IV : Red Eyed Wonder
01/Apr/2010 |
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Medeski, Martin & Wood, Gift of Gab, St. Germain, DJ/rupture, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Critters Buggin and othe classic space-dub artists arranged in a pleasing, drifty session made for late nights. Special guests include Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper getting Jack Nicholson stoned for the first time around a campfire in the 1969 classic, Easy Rider.
fond farewell to a friend
08/Aug/2009 |
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To download MP3 version, option-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to feed via sidebar links!
Feedback: djfundi@podcastcafe.org
Summer Solstice II : Last Heron Home to Roost
21/Jun/2009 |
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This episode features a wide array of music from just about all of my favorite genres -- hip-hop, reggae, electronica, jazz, alt-folk, Grateful, ambient, funk, weird noises -- and is like a transcription of my favorite toonz this springtime. It is a sibling mix to earlier efforts including Spring Buds, Fall Equinox and Summer Solstice I, and a cousin to 080808. This episdode does two things: collects and presents some of my freshest harvesting of tracks -- new songs, old songs newly discovered -- alongside a random smattering of other tracks not new in anyway but riding high on my "favorites" playlist. A finely-tuned assortment of grooves, ballads and jams that fill my earholes as of late.
Is there deeper meaning within the seemingly randomness of it, like the procession of Bill Frisell into Sonic Youth into the Supremes? That is, I suppose , a question for the listener to decipher on his or her own time. Or you could just kick back and enjoy the ride....
And listening to the Dead -- the 2009 versions sans Garcia -- play my all-time favorite Grateful Dead song "Brokedown Palace" live at Madison Square Garden brings me a sweet, sweet pleasure. What I hear when I listen is the crowd playing the band: "In a bed, in a bed / by the waterside I will lay my head / Listen to the river sing sweet songs / to rock my soul" and "Mama, mama, many worlds I've gone since I first left home" sing to my heart. An upwelling of voices, with Jerry watching over us.
Click above to stream; to download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to Podcast Cafe feed via links in the sidebar!
Podcast Cafe 3rd Anniversary Fundraiser Special!
15/May/2009 |
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For its third anniversary on 5/15/09, the Podcast Cafe is kicking off its first ever listener-powered fundraiser. The old soundsystem, aka 5-year old MacBook, is starting to wear down and its memory banks are brimming over. The headphones recently stopped working and the music vault is straining. The whole shebang starts to smoke everytime Fundi gets deep down in to the groove, and that is unacceptable work conditions. The soundsystem can't take the strain of DJ Fundi's heavy podcasting habit and so the Cafe crew looking to upgrade to a system with more horsepower -- the better to power the Podcast Cafe!
Give a little and watch it come back to you with more musical blends to tantalize your earholes and frontal lobe. In 3 years, between all of his channels here at the Podcast Cafe and his work for www.destinationburningman.com, Fundi, sometimes in the bewigged guise of DJ Playaduster, figures he has somehow cranked out 60-70 podcasts. No kiddin'. That averages something like 2 per month, which is ridiculous. If you've been a beneficiary of this musical manna, then we hope you'll consider donating something like a 20 dollar bill to the Podcast Cafe PayPal account and help us upgrade the soundsystem for the next 60-70 podcasts. We're all looking forward to replacing things that are barely functioning now, and can see a bright future of music-mix-making on in to the future!
What does the Podcast Cafe and its steady stream of podcasts over the past three years mean to you? What are the mixes worth to you? Show us the love with a donation today and know you've contributed to the mission of sharing music freely across Planet Earth!
Click above to stream; to download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to Podcast Cafe feed via links in the sidebar!
Readymade: Golden Hits of the 1990s
20/Feb/2009 |
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Here is a recently-unearthed treasure trove of golden hits of the 1990's. This episode represents a cross-section of what I was filling my ears with in an earlier decade. I suppose you could also call this mix "The Roots of Fundi."
Featuring Built to Spill, Pearl Jam, Pharcyde, Soul Coughing, Kristin Hersh, Ben Harper, the Presidents of the United States of America, Beck, Ani DiFranco, Nirvana, Pavement, Cornershop, Blind Melon, Tribe Called Quest, Jane's Addiction, Morphine, Digable Planets, Soundgarden, Beastie Boys, Sonic Youth, Screaming Trees, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Blues Traveler, Spearhead and others!
Feedback : djfundi@podcastcafe.org
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Here's a video from one of the tunes featured here on Readymade" -- "Drop" by The Pharcyde with the immortal J-Dilla:
Yes We Did: Obama Hopecast : Part 2
19/Jan/2009 |
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Part
two of a two-part series (click
here for
part one) -- released MLK Day 2009, one day before
Inauguration Day!
Left speechless & shaking with an intense, spiritual joy after the 2008 presidential election, I was so happy for myself, for my country and for the whole entire world that I came to a rare loss for words. This "hopecast" is my best attempt to describe and share some portion of the mix of emotions the election of Barack Obama has inspired in me. It is especially informed by looking backwards, because you can't know where you're going unless you know where you've come from.
Part two centers around Obama's election night victory speech in Chicago, interspersed with Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech from the March on Washington in 1963: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character." Bob Marley, the Neville Brothers, Bill Frisell, Marvin Gaye, Common, Z-Trip, Bonobo, James Brown, the Blind Boys of Alabama, George Clinton, Fela, Prince, Public Enemy and assorted hymns, field hollers and cameos from Dubya inform this tribute, along with a cast of dozens more.
I hope that my Hopecast serves as an audio record of history in the making, set to a fitting groove. Viva Obama!
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Left speechless & shaking with an intense, spiritual joy after the 2008 presidential election, I was so happy for myself, for my country and for the whole entire world that I came to a rare loss for words. This "hopecast" is my best attempt to describe and share some portion of the mix of emotions the election of Barack Obama has inspired in me. It is especially informed by looking backwards, because you can't know where you're going unless you know where you've come from.
Part two centers around Obama's election night victory speech in Chicago, interspersed with Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech from the March on Washington in 1963: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character." Bob Marley, the Neville Brothers, Bill Frisell, Marvin Gaye, Common, Z-Trip, Bonobo, James Brown, the Blind Boys of Alabama, George Clinton, Fela, Prince, Public Enemy and assorted hymns, field hollers and cameos from Dubya inform this tribute, along with a cast of dozens more.
I hope that my Hopecast serves as an audio record of history in the making, set to a fitting groove. Viva Obama!
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Yes We Can : Obama Hopecast : Part 1
22/Nov/2008 |
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part
one of a two-part
series
left speechless & shaking with an intense, spiritual joy after the 2008 presidential election, i was so happy for myself, for my country and for the whole entire world that i came to a rare loss for words.
this "hopecast" is my best attempt to describe and share some portion of the mix of emotions the election of Barack Obama has inspired in me. it is especially inspired by looking backwards, because you can't know where you're going unless you know where you've come from.
bob marley, curtis mayfield, marvin gaye, ludacris, nas, lee "scratch" perry, maceo parker, the blind boys of alabama, george clinton, fela, prince, public enemy and assorted hymns, field hollers and cameos from MLK and Dubya people this tribute. it also features excerpts of Obama's most memorable oratory as he made the transitions from junior senator to presidential candidate to president-elect -- an audio record of history in the making, set to a fitting groove.
Part one takes the listener from Obama as junior senator from Illinois on to the campaign trail and up to the Democratic Convention when he became the Democratic nominee. I'll release part two on Inauguration Day and it will finish up the story with his acceptance speech in Chicago.
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
left speechless & shaking with an intense, spiritual joy after the 2008 presidential election, i was so happy for myself, for my country and for the whole entire world that i came to a rare loss for words.
this "hopecast" is my best attempt to describe and share some portion of the mix of emotions the election of Barack Obama has inspired in me. it is especially inspired by looking backwards, because you can't know where you're going unless you know where you've come from.
bob marley, curtis mayfield, marvin gaye, ludacris, nas, lee "scratch" perry, maceo parker, the blind boys of alabama, george clinton, fela, prince, public enemy and assorted hymns, field hollers and cameos from MLK and Dubya people this tribute. it also features excerpts of Obama's most memorable oratory as he made the transitions from junior senator to presidential candidate to president-elect -- an audio record of history in the making, set to a fitting groove.
Part one takes the listener from Obama as junior senator from Illinois on to the campaign trail and up to the Democratic Convention when he became the Democratic nominee. I'll release part two on Inauguration Day and it will finish up the story with his acceptance speech in Chicago.
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Troubled
15/Sep/2008 |
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Welcome to the 35th episode from the Podcast Cafe! This is a musical mix in the same vein as "Snowgreen Spincycle" -- I chose the concept of "trouble" and then searched through my archives for songs with that word in their title. I think the whole idea came about because of my enormous love for Cat Stevens' song "Trouble":
Trouble
Oh trouble set me free
I have seen your face
And it's too much too much for me
Trouble
Oh trouble can't you see
You're eating my heart away
And there's nothing much left of me
I've drunk your wine
You have made your world mine
So won't you be fair
So won't you be fair
I don't want no more of you
So won't you be kind to me
Just let me go where
I'll have to go there
Trouble
Oh trouble move away
I have seen your face
And it's too much for me today
Trouble
Oh trouble can't you see
You have made me a wreck
Now won't you leave me in my misery
I've seen your eyes
And i can see death's disguise
Hangin' on me
Hangin' on me
I'm beat, i'm torn
Shattered and tossed and worn
Too shocking to see
Too shocking to see
Trouble
Oh trouble move from me
I have paid my debt
Now won't you leave me in my misery
Trouble
Oh trouble please be kind
I don't want no fight
And i haven't got a lot of time"
Not a happy song by any stretch, but a powerful cry out that I've related to many different times throughout my life. This episode starts and ends with Cat's classic, and mixes in Elliott Smith, Bob Marley, Fela Kuti, Screaming Trees, Aretha Franklin, Wynton Marsalis, Keith Jarrett, Johnny Cash, Charlie Hunter Trio, Marvin Gaye, Jerry Garcia and others. Very diverse, but methinks it holds together pretty good.
Enjoy!
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Feedback: djfundi@podcastcafe.org
Oh trouble set me free
I have seen your face
And it's too much too much for me
Trouble
Oh trouble can't you see
You're eating my heart away
And there's nothing much left of me
I've drunk your wine
You have made your world mine
So won't you be fair
So won't you be fair
I don't want no more of you
So won't you be kind to me
Just let me go where
I'll have to go there
Trouble
Oh trouble move away
I have seen your face
And it's too much for me today
Trouble
Oh trouble can't you see
You have made me a wreck
Now won't you leave me in my misery
I've seen your eyes
And i can see death's disguise
Hangin' on me
Hangin' on me
I'm beat, i'm torn
Shattered and tossed and worn
Too shocking to see
Too shocking to see
Trouble
Oh trouble move from me
I have paid my debt
Now won't you leave me in my misery
Trouble
Oh trouble please be kind
I don't want no fight
And i haven't got a lot of time"
Not a happy song by any stretch, but a powerful cry out that I've related to many different times throughout my life. This episode starts and ends with Cat's classic, and mixes in Elliott Smith, Bob Marley, Fela Kuti, Screaming Trees, Aretha Franklin, Wynton Marsalis, Keith Jarrett, Johnny Cash, Charlie Hunter Trio, Marvin Gaye, Jerry Garcia and others. Very diverse, but methinks it holds together pretty good.
Enjoy!
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Feedback: djfundi@podcastcafe.org
080808
16/Aug/2008 |
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An audio postcard from where DJ Fundi's ears, heart and mind is at on the eighth day of the eighth month of the eighth year of the new century. Brewed with freshly-harvested soundstick recordings.
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Feedback: djfundi@podcastcafe.org
Snowgreen Spincycle
20/Apr/2008 |
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Poised between two seasons, with a little bit of winter hanging on and lots of spring bursting forth, this episode -- our 30th! -- takes its inspiration from two words: Snow and Green.
Every track has some connection to these terms: Snow or Green appears in either the song title, artist's name or album title. Random, yes. But lots of fun to be guided to all kinds of excellent music by way of an arbitrary set of criteria.
Feedback and salutations: djfundi@podcastcafe.org
To download MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to P'Cafe feed via sidebar links!
Feedback: djfundi@podcastcafe.org
Tales of Johnny Buckskin : episode 2 : From Whitehorn
to Nooksack
11/Jun/2007 |
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The Tales of Johnny Buckskin continue in episode two and they are full of kinetic motion and diverse strains of cosmic funksmanship...
To download the MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download the superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to Podcast Cafe feed via links in sidebar!
The story
begins with a quick recap of episode 1, with Johnny
and his boys on the banks of the Nooksack, having a
men's outing and enjoying a bracing bout of
disorientation. Episode 2 jumps ahead six months and
we find Johnny barreling across the state of
Washington, from his outpost in the Inland Empire
towards the danky northwest corner of the coastal
realm. Once mossily ensconsed, and with
freshly-scoured chapstraps, JB joins forces with
Trail Rat and Fundi. Soon, the band of merry makers
head out for Whitehorn Point on a reconnaisance
mission. They are strapped to varying degrees and
prepared for orgiastic clamjuice to penetrate their
inner toe-sacs as they browse the primordial salad
bar on the salty edge. Their "foggy arts colloquiam"
ends with an order of some NOjitos at a seaside bar,
and then they flee for the cozy safety of Lummi
Island.
Help us bring these tales and these flowing musical soundscapes to the playa this summer. Please visit www.destinationburningman.com, click on "Support" and help fund a couple of freaks with a small financial donation.
Thanks for believing in the mission.
Help us bring these tales and these flowing musical soundscapes to the playa this summer. Please visit www.destinationburningman.com, click on "Support" and help fund a couple of freaks with a small financial donation.
Thanks for believing in the mission.
Tales of Johnny Buckskin : episode 1 : A Man of the
Nooksack
25/May/2007 |
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The Tales of Johnny Bucksin begin, appropriately enough, with a blast of warped dub and disorientating babble as the three seekers enter the upper reaches of the Nooksack...
To download the MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download the superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to Podcast Cafe feed via links in sidebar!
Once safely
ensconced in the woods where Sasquatches are known to
lurk, the men drank Schmidt and frolicked on the
gravel banks of the Nooksack. The campfire was
central, and the glow sticks were a pleasing
diversion. They were visited in the night by a French
pirate-chef, but no earwigs penetrated their inner
sanctum. Just before the first light of a new day, an
ancient salmon dance was invoked...
These Men of the Nooksack all hope to get to Black Rock City, home of Burning Man, this summer, and they hope to unleash the Pacific Northwest energy. They dream of bringing fresh beats and ice-col' Schmidties to the playa. You can help them share the Nooksack Vibrations by pledging your financial support to their mission.
Visit www.destinationburningman.com/support_us and give a few mossy freaks a financial donation to help them spread the Northwest danky-love. Really, any small amount will help the cause.
Thanks.
(the rhythm tracks that open the journey are from "Continental Beats" by www.bendingcorners.com. The "night on the Nooksack (dub) grooves by Jet Jaguar from www.percussionlab.com)
These Men of the Nooksack all hope to get to Black Rock City, home of Burning Man, this summer, and they hope to unleash the Pacific Northwest energy. They dream of bringing fresh beats and ice-col' Schmidties to the playa. You can help them share the Nooksack Vibrations by pledging your financial support to their mission.
Visit www.destinationburningman.com/support_us and give a few mossy freaks a financial donation to help them spread the Northwest danky-love. Really, any small amount will help the cause.
Thanks.
(the rhythm tracks that open the journey are from "Continental Beats" by www.bendingcorners.com. The "night on the Nooksack (dub) grooves by Jet Jaguar from www.percussionlab.com)
ladies night
14/Mar/2007 |
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This month's episode is dedicated to the ladies -- give 'em all your lovin', all day, every day...
To download the MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download the superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to Podcast Cafe feed via links in sidebar!
I came up with
a mix that is one part sensual, one part mysterious,
a few parts melodramatic and ten-hundred parts Big
Hearted. Pretty ballads sit alongside pure funk, and
there is no small amount of deep, visceral, earthy
powers here too.
Of course, DJ Fundi puts his personal stamp on this whole parade of sisters, and things are seldom as straightforward as they might seem.
(My one regret is not having any Joni Mitchell digitalized -- I'll make up for it later, promise. But you do get double-shots of Cowoy Junkies, Lucinda Williams and Be Good Tanyas, so.)
Of course, DJ Fundi puts his personal stamp on this whole parade of sisters, and things are seldom as straightforward as they might seem.
(My one regret is not having any Joni Mitchell digitalized -- I'll make up for it later, promise. But you do get double-shots of Cowoy Junkies, Lucinda Williams and Be Good Tanyas, so.)
snow geese of the skagit
01/Feb/2007 |
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Flexile Sonic Quality is the connective tissue of this 100% organic, non-contrived mix conducted in a haze of full moon sparkle...
To download the MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download the superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to Podcast Cafe feed via links in sidebar!
snowed in
28/Nov/2006 |
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Come on in and warm yerselves up next to the cracklin' wood stove here at the Podcast Cafe with this special "Snowed In" episode from the DJ Fundi Podcasting Network...
To download the MP3 version, option/right-click on the "Listen Now" icon.
To download the superior AAC version with chapters & artwork, subscribe to Podcast Cafe feed via links in sidebar!
Close the door
behind you, peel off your wet mittens and boots and
enjoy some aural warmth compliments of Spearhead,
Trio Beyond, Built to Spill, Antibalas, Bad Plus,
Kurt Rosenwinkel, Mari Boine, Boards of Canada and
many other like-minded musical explorers.
Here in the Pacific Northwest, somewhere in between autumn and winter, Sunnyland Studio has been deluged with rain, hammered by wind and buried under snow, but the groove is alive and well and tonight we're dishing it up in generous servings.
What does Fundi do when he's alone in a small coastal cottage trapped beneath giant snow drifts and killer icicles with nothing but a six-pack of winter brau, a loaded pipe and a pile of leftover turkey ? Tune in to find out what it might sound like. (Do you take your hot cocoa with marshmallows or without?)
Here in the Pacific Northwest, somewhere in between autumn and winter, Sunnyland Studio has been deluged with rain, hammered by wind and buried under snow, but the groove is alive and well and tonight we're dishing it up in generous servings.
What does Fundi do when he's alone in a small coastal cottage trapped beneath giant snow drifts and killer icicles with nothing but a six-pack of winter brau, a loaded pipe and a pile of leftover turkey ? Tune in to find out what it might sound like. (Do you take your hot cocoa with marshmallows or without?)