(The Real) Altrok Radio Music Update #207

Firstly, the important stuff:

Altrok Radio is at http://www.altrokradio.com

Please remember to tune in whenever you can - every hour you listen turns into more visibility for the station; we show up higher in search listings, and such like that. And if you'd like to help us keep the stream running, check out the advertisers if they appeal to you; your interest actually helps fund us.

Now then, in addition to the outstanding Altrok Radio music mix that got us an Editor's Pick nod at Live365 and at About.com, we've added features we know you'll like...

Mondays at 11:30am Eastern (with a preview at 0730 GMT) you get to hear Sean Carolan (often referred to in these dispatches as "me") showcase the new music we've added this week on the Altrok Radio FM Showcase. New stuff, classic stuff, and Jeff Raspe with his Altrok Radio Underground Pick Of The Week...

And on Friday, it's Altrok's Eighties Friday: music from the eighties that mattered then AND now. An eight hour playlist that features some of the best that decade had to offer, drawing from all the music that was available at the time (yes, even from the seventies.)

But for now - we've got songs to let you know about.

This week, our Grinders (the stuff we play heavily) include music from:

- Cajun Dance Party
- We Smoke Fags
- Gnarls Barkley
- Hadouken!
- Picture Books In Winter
- Mystery Jets

Plus we've got newly-added music:

- Deni Bonet - Is This A Test
- Chaingang - Get Off My Stage
- Crystal Stilts - Converging In The Quiet
- Does It Offend You Yeah - Epic Last Song
- Fratellis - Mistress Mabel
- James - Waterfall
- Make Model - The LSB
- R.E.M. - Hollow Man
- Santogold - L.E.S. Artistes
- Spiritualized - Soul on Fire
- Submarines - You Me And The Bourgeoisie
- Thailand - The Chronic Sigh
- Tokyo Police Club - Tessellate
- Violent Femmes - Crazy
- Natalie Walker - Over & Under

Our Newly-Added Classics:

- Department S - Is Vic There
- Dramarama - Ain't It The Truth
- Franz Ferdinand - The Dark Of The Matinee
- Green Day - Tired Of Waiting For You
- Interpol - Say Hello To Angels
- New Order - Age Of Consent
- The Police - Next To You
- Pop Will Eat Itself - There Is No Love Between Us Anymore
- Pulp - Common People

- Sean Carolan
Altrok Radio
On your computer now at http://www.altrokradio.com

On the radio Fridays at 10pm, at 90.5 The Night

Pinfield Heading To LA For A Few Days Of Shows...

According to Matt, there's an LA thing happening where some folks from Alice In Chains, Ben Harper and Billy Idol will be joining him on his morning show over at 'RXP next week. That's after the big free Coldplay show Monday night. Should be some good listening...before he leaves, he'll be dragging the Bluejackets (whose numbers include filmmaker Ed Burns) into the studio for Local Licks on Monday morning...

More locally, he'll be hosting some new artist nights down in Seaside Heights, at the Green Room at the Sawmill, the third Saturday in both July and August (by my calculations, that's July 19 and August. Busy guy, that...

New Violent Femmes On The FM Showcase Tonight!

We've always got great stuff on the FM Showcase...tonight's no different...

There's a new Violent Femmes track...

...more new tracks from new artists like Does It Offend You Yeah, Make Model, Thailand and Santogold...

...new tracks from classic artists like James and R.E.M....

...a couple of modern classics from Franz Ferdinand and Interpol...

...and true classics from New Order and Pop Will Eat Itself...

...with the occasional observation from Sean Carolan and an underground pick of the week from Jeff Raspe...

The first place you can hear it is TONIGHT (Friday) at 10PM on your FM radio at 90.5 The Night (or online at http://90.5thenight.org)...

...so tune in TONIGHT, and hear what's coming to Altrok Radio's web station next week!

Melody Bar DJs Infest NextUnderground Saturday!

The NextUnderground party, which has been going strong under the curatorship of DJ Drew and DJ IronMike (with the occasional assistance of yours truly) will cruise in for an extended stay this Saturday at The Corner Tavern, at the corner of Easton and Somerset in New Brunswick...

Don't know New Brunswick? Don't worry - just get on the train from NYC or Philly and head in its direction. When you get off the train, head up Easton Ave. and you'll soon see the Corner Tavern on your right...

(It's on a corner...It's a tavern...What's not to like?)

What should you expect? Real and classic alternative, from the here and now to the there and then...

The festivities start around 10pm, and continue through 2am; a welcoming crowd of like-minded iconoclasts will be there to greet you, so feel free to be your bestest you...

To summarize:

NextUnderground
Saturday, June 21, 10pm-2am
at The Corner Tavern
At the corner of Easton and Somerset
New Brunswick, NJ

All the New Brunswick legends will be there (and if you come, you'll be one, too...)

In the meantime, why not tune to Altrok Radio for a taste of the stuff we'll be playing?

(The Real) Altrok Radio Music Update #206

Firstly, the important stuff:

Altrok Radio is at http://www.altrokradio.com

Please remember to tune in whenever you can - every hour you listen turns into more visibility for the station; we show up higher in search listings, and such like that. And if you'd like to help us keep the stream running, check out the advertisers if they appeal to you; your interest actually helps fund us.

Now then, in addition to the outstanding Altrok Radio music mix that got us an Editor's Pick nod at Live365 and at About.com, we've added features we know you'll like...

Mondays at 11:30am Eastern (with a preview at 0730 GMT) you get to hear Sean Carolan (often referred to in these dispatches as "me") showcase the new music we've added this week on the Altrok Radio FM Showcase. New stuff, classic stuff, and Jeff Raspe with his Altrok Radio Underground Pick Of The Week...

And on Friday, it's Altrok's Eighties Friday: music from the eighties that mattered then AND now. An eight hour playlist that features some of the best that decade had to offer, drawing from all the music that was available at the time (yes, even from the seventies.)

But for now - we've got songs to let you know about.

This week, our Grinders (the stuff we play heavily) include music from:

- The Envy Corps
- Foals
- Envy And Other Sins
- The Shortwave Set
- The Rapture
- Florence & The Machine

Plus we've got newly-added music:

- The Alps - Something I Might Regret
- Gnarls Barkley - Going On
- Albert Hammond Jr. - GFC
- Ladytron - Tomorrow
- Late Of The Pier - Focker
- Lykke Li - Little Bit
- Mystery Jets - Two Doors Down
- Parka - Better Anyway
- Patti Rothberg - Gigantic
- Sigur Ros - Gobbledigook
- South - Better Things
- Stars And Sons - Comfy Now
- Sunset Cinema Club - Rapunzel
- Tilly And The Wall - Pot Kettle Black
- The Von Bondies - Pale Bride
- Wolf Parade - Language City

Our Featured Classics:

- Bauhaus - Telegram Sam
- Coldplay - Shiver
- Guadalcanal Diary - Trail Of Tears
- Lene Lovich - Lucky Number
- Ned's Atomic Dustbin - Happy
- Seedling - About To Fall [Altrok Radio Session]
- The Sound - Party Of The Mind
- Stiff Little Fingers - Two Guitars Clash
- Ultravox - Slow Motion
- Violent Femmes - Nightmares

- Sean Carolan
Altrok Radio
On your computer now at http://www.altrokradio.com

On the radio Fridays at 10pm, at 90.5 The Night

Altrok Radio Music Update #205

Firstly, the important stuff:

Altrok Radio is at http://www.altrokradio.com

Please remember to tune in whenever you can - every hour you listen turns into more visibility for the station; we show up higher in search listings, and such like that. And if you'd like to help us keep the stream running, check out the advertisers if they appeal to you; your interest actually helps fund us.

Now then, in addition to the outstanding Altrok Radio music mix that got us an Editor's Pick nod at Live365 and at About.com, we've added features we know you'll like...

Mondays at 11:30am Eastern (with a preview at 0730 GMT) you get to hear Sean Carolan (often referred to in these dispatches as "me") showcase the new music we've added this week on the Altrok Radio FM Showcase. New stuff, classic stuff, and Jeff Raspe with his Altrok Radio Underground Pick Of The Week...

And on Friday, it's Altrok's Eighties Friday: music from the eighties that mattered then AND now. An eight hour playlist that features some of the best that decade had to offer, drawing from all the music that was available at the time (yes, even from the seventies.)

But for now - we've got songs to let you know about.

This week, our Grinders (the stuff we play heavily) include music from:

- The Ting Tings
- Gemma Hayes
- The Charlatans
- Ida Maria
- XX Teens
- Nine Inch Nails

Plus we've got newly-added music:

- Paddy Casey - City
- Deerhunter - Like New
- Envy And Other Sins - Highness
- Florence And The Machine - I'm Goin' Down (feat. Kid Harpoon)
- Half Man Half Biscuit - Blue Badge Abuser
- Ed Harcourt - Revolution In The Heart
- Ipso Facto - Balderdash
- The Jealous Sound - The Fold Out
- The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age Of The Understatement
- The M's - Big Sound
- Picture Books In Winter - Horizontally, I Am Champion
- The Rapture - No Sex For Ben
- Spiritualized - I Gotta Fire
- Theoretical Girl - The Hypocrite
- Wave Machines - I Go I Go I Go
- We Smoke Fags - Eastenders

Our Newly-Added Classics:

- Classix Nouveaux - Guilty
- The Cure - Boys Don't Cry
- The House Of Love - Shine On
- The Human League - The Sound Of The Crowd
- It's Immaterial - Driving Away From Home
- Persil - Traces of Knots
- The Pretenders - Get Out Of London
- The Shins - So Says I
- Shriekback - Nemesis
- The Waterboys - Medicine Bow [Long Version]

- Sean Carolan
Altrok Radio
On your computer now at http://www.altrokradio.com

On the radio Fridays at 10pm, at 90.5 The Night

We Need To Pay Our Bills...Help!

(Bumped and Updated...Only $200 to go; thanks to all for chipping in. If we make more than we need for the immediate term, there's other ways for us to expand...but we'll cross that bridge if and when we come to it.)

We're coming close to royalty renewal time, and we need your help...but if you do help us by June 17, we'll make sure Altrok Radio gets even better. For details, read on...

We know you're a fan of the way we pick new music and classic tracks so that they carry on the legacy of FM106.3, WLIR and classic KROQ (with more than a small tip of the hat to the 'punk' WPIX-FM from 1978-1980 - yeah, we've been paying attention to this stuff a while.)

That's why you heard The Arcade Fire, Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party, Editors, The Killers, The Wombats, Ladytron, The Young Knives, The Kooks, Dan Le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip and so many more new bands here before you could ever hear them on commercial radio.

And it's why you're still hearing New Order and Joy Division, Depeche Mode, The Cure, The Smiths, Killing Joke, Echo & The Bunnymen, Siouxsie & The Banshees, and one-off tracks like "More To Lose" by Seona Dancing, "Considering A Move To Memphis" by The Colorblind James Experience and "XOYO" by The Passage that made modern rock so exciting to begin with.

We're committed to bringing you the best new music we can find from any scene that matters, and placing it alongside relevant classics that still carry forward the edge of new rock. But you know that already, and since you're here, you know there aren't very many places where you can hear this kind of mix 24 hours a day.

And while it's really great right now, we know you'd like it to be even better.

We've got a royalty fee renewal coming up on June 17, and our fees have gone up (thanks to record companies whose new records we, by and large, don't play anyway - go figure) to the extent that we need to ask you for help. We don't need a lot - only about $400, and we're about a quarter way there.

[Update: We're at the halfway point! Thanks to all who've chipped in thus far!]

So the deal is this: if we can hit our goal, we can become a 128k MP3 station. Our current 64k MP3Pro stream is nice, especially if you get the plug-in for WinAmp or the JetAudio player to hear it with, but a 128k MP3 stream just makes the whole process simpler for everyone to enjoy without installing things they aren't sure of.

With a 128k stream, you hit the play button and the quality just stays high. We're already doing it on our FM Showcase Channel, which plays all of our latest featured tracks at all times, but that's got a limit of 5 free listeners (and since it's only running two new hours a week, we figured that was fine - if it's full, come back later.)

All this assumes you've got the bandwidth necessary to enjoy it. These days, though, most people do, and for those who don't, we'll be keeping our low-bandwidth mono station around for you.

We'll also be able to keep it so that up to 40 people at a time can listen for free. We haven't maxed out on that, but we're getting close...of course, if you want to support us on a more ongoing basis, become a VIP and you'll no longer see or hear any ads, and we'll get a few pennies for every hour you listen. Over time, it adds up.

But if you want to help us directly, the best way to do it in a way that ensures it's going to help the station (not that you don't trust us, but this way you don't have to) is to send us a gift certificate through our station services provider, Live365.

Here's how:

• Log in to Live365. If you haven't already got a login, create one; it's a free account, and I haven't gotten any spam from it yet...
  

• Go to Live365's Gift Certificate page (not yet, read the instructions below first...)
  

• Choose "...or select a dollar amount" and drop down the amount you'd like to donate.

• Enter your name and email address, "Altrok Radio" under the recipient's name, and enter "fundraiserATaltrok.com" (you know to use "@" instead of "AT", right?) under the recipient's email address.

• Keep "send this gift via email" checked and the delivery date as-is (that means we'll get it immediately.)

• Click the Next button, enter your credit card (or PayPal or money order) information, and confirm the order. We'll get an email with the certificate info, and we'll use it the only way we can - to build our stations.

Ready? Okay, here's the link to the gift certificate page.

We really appreciate anything you can spare - from the $5 you can scrape together up to the $100 we'd be pleasantly surprised by - and not only will you be helping us stay on the air directly, you'll be convincing me you're out there caring about this stuff, and you'll making us sound better than we do now. (Yes, there is something in it for you!)

In advance, thanks!

All Day Today: Altrok's Eighties Friday!

Here's what you need to know about Altrok's Eighties Friday:

- It's on every Friday

- It's eight hours long (no matter when you happen to tune in - looping playlists'll do that for you.)

- It's filled with the AlternaPostPunkPrePunkNewWaveIndie tracks we thought were interesting twenty-five years ago, and are still interesting now.

(As opposed to the stuff we're too embarrased to admit anyone we knew owned. Not us, though, no siree...)

Every week it's different, and every week it's worth your while.

So tune in...we'll keep it relevant for you.

How relevant? Here's who we're playing today:

-----------------------------------

999

ABC, APB, Adam and the Ants, Age Of Chance, The Alarm, Alphaville

The B-52's, B-Movie, Ballistic Kisses, Bauhaus, The Beastie Boys, Big Country, Blancmange, Blondie, Blue In Heaven, The Bluebells, The Bongos, Bow Wow Wow, David Bowie, The Buggles, Buzzcocks

Cabaret Voltaire, The Chameleons, China Crisis, The Church, The Clash, Lloyd Cole, Combo Audio, The Comsat Angels, Elvis Costello, Crazy 8s, Marshall Crenshaw, Cult Hero, The Cult

The Damned, Depeche Mode, Devo, Dramarama, Ian Dury And The Blockheads

Eat, Echo & The Bunnymen, The English Beat, The Europeans

The Fabulous Poodles

Gang Of Four, The Go Betweens, Go-Gos, The Gun Club

Happy Mondays, Heaven 17, The Hoodoo Gurus, The House Of Love

The Icicle Works, Intaferon, Inxs

Joe Jackson, The Jags, The Jam, Japan, Joy Division

Kid Creole & The Coconuts, Killing Joke, Kraftwerk

Les Rita Mitsouko, Liquid Liquid, The Lords Of The New Church, Lene Lovich

Madness, Magazine, Ministry, Mission Of Burma

New Musik, New Order, Nine Inch Nails, Nitzer Ebb, Gary Numan

OMD, Oingo Boingo

Robert Palmer, Plimsouls, Polecats, Pop Will Eat Itself, Iggy Pop, The Pretenders, Psychedelic Furs, Public Image Ltd.

The Ramones, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Red Rockers, The Replacements

Secession, Seona Dancing, Sex Pistols, Pete Shelley, Simple Minds, Siouxsie And The Banshees, The Sisters Of Mercy, Patti Smith, The Smithereens, The Smiths, Soft Cell, The Sound, Sparks, Squeeze, The Stone Roses, The Stranglers

Talking Heads, Troy Tate, The Teardrop Explodes, Tears For Fears, The The, They Might Be Giants, The Thompson Twins, Tuff Darts, Tv21

U2, Ultravox

Violent Femmes, Visage

Wall of Voodoo, Wreckless Eric

X, XTC

Yazoo

-----------------------------------

You know what to do...tune in!

-Sean
Altrok Radio at http://www. altrokradio. com

Reminder: What You'll Hear Today When You Tune In...

Every day, Altrok Radio puts on a newly picked batch of great new music and relevantly-salvaged classics in the kind of punky-new-wave-modern-rock-alterna-indie vein that your local alternative rock station forgot existed.

Want specifics? How about:

----------------------------

120 Days

A Flock of Seagulls, Adam and the Ants, Animal Collective

Eef Barzelay, The Bent Moustache, David Bowie, The Breakups, The Breeders, Buzzcocks

Cajun Dance Party, Candy Panic Attack, Carbon-Silicon, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Cobra Dukes, Coldplay, Elvis Costello, Elvis Costello & Allen Toussaint, The Cure

Death Cab For Cutie, Thomas Dolby, Mike Doughty, The Duke Spirit

Electronic, Val Emmich, The Envy Corps, The Evening Episode

Factory Floor, The Farm, Florence & The Machine, Foals, Foxboro Hot Tubs

Gene Loves Jezebel, Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly., Gnarls Barkley, The Go! Team, The Good Natured

HEALTH, The Hold Steady

Joe Jackson, The Jam, Japan, Howard Jones, Joy Division

Kaiser Chiefs, Katie The Pest, Kara Keith, Killing Joke, The Kinks, Kinky

Last Perfect Thing, Late Of The Pier, Lemuria, Levy, The Lines, Lismore, The Long Blondes, Los Campesinos!

MGMT, The Mae-Shi, The Majestic Twelve, Ida Maria, Mates Of State, Murdocks, My Device, My Morning Jacket

Nada Surf, The National, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, New Order, Nine Inch Nails, No Age, Gary Numan

Of Montreal

Pendulum, Pete and The Pirates, The Pigeon Detectives, The Primitives, Princeton, Chuck Prophet, Ltd. Public Image

R.E.M., The Radio Dept., Radiohead, The Rakes, The Raveonettes, Red Cavalry, Roadside Graves

Tim Scott, Seedling, Pete Shelley, The Shortwave Set, Sky Larkin, The Smiths, The Spinto Band, Squeeze, Supergrass, Matthew Sweet

Talking Heads, Tenpole Tudor, The Thermals, These New Puritans, The Ting Tings, To My Boy, Tokyo Police Club

Ulysses

Vampire Weekend, The Video Nasties, Violent Femmes

We Start Fires, The Wedding Present, Paul Weller, Wire, Wire Train, Wolf Parade, The Wombats

XTC, Xiu Xiu

Yeasayer, The Young Knives

----------------------------

Sound appealing? Then click a station link above and hop aboard!

Saturday: Floating NextUnderground Party Docks A While At The Corner Tavern

The NextUnderground party, which has been going strong under the curatorship of DJ Drew and DJ IronMike (with the occasional assistance of yours truly) will dock for the next few weeks starting this Saturday at The Corner Tavern, at the corner of Easton and Somerset in New Brunswick.

Don't know New Brunswick? Don't worry - just get on the train and head in its direction. When you get off the train, head up Easton Ave. and you'll soon see the Corner Tavern on your right.

(It's on a corner. It's a tavern. What's not to like?)

What should you expect? Real and classic alternative, from the here and now to the there and then.

The festivities start around 10pm, and continue through 2am; a welcoming crowd of like-minded iconoclasts will be there to greet you, so feel free to be your bestest you.

To summarize:

NextUnderground
Saturday, June 7, 10pm-2am
at The Corner Tavern
At the corner of Easton and Somerset
New Brunswick, NJ

Yours truly will, in fact, be in attendance. So will other New Brunswick legends (and if you come, you'll be one, too.)

In the meantime, why not tune to Altrok Radio for a taste of the stuff we'll be playing?

Altrok Radio Music Update #204

Firstly, the important stuff:

Altrok Radio is at http://www.altrokradio.com

Please remember to tune in whenever you can - every hour you listen turns into more visibility for the station; we show up higher in search listings, and such like that. And if you'd like to help us keep the stream running, check out the advertisers if they appeal to you; your interest actually helps fund us.

Now then, in addition to the outstanding Altrok Radio music mix that got us an Editor's Pick nod at Live365 and at About.com, we've added features we know you'll like...

Mondays at 11:30am Eastern (with a preview at 0730 GMT) you get to hear Sean Carolan (often referred to in these dispatches as "me") showcase the new music we've added this week on the Altrok Radio FM Showcase. New stuff, classic stuff, and Jeff Raspe with his Altrok Radio Underground Pick Of The Week...

And on Friday, it's Altrok's Eighties Friday: music from the eighties that mattered then AND now. An eight hour playlist that features some of the best that decade had to offer, drawing from all the music that was available at the time (yes, even from the seventies.)

But for now - we've got songs to let you know about.

This week, our Grinders (the stuff we play heavily) include music from:

- The Duke Spirit
- Princeton
- The Ting Tings
- The Cure
- The Lines
- The Pigeon Detectives

Plus we've got newly-added music:

- Animal Collective - Water Curses
- Apes & Androids - Nights Of The Week
- Cajun Dance Party - The Race
- The Charlatans - The Misbegotten
- Val Emmich - The Lucky Ones
- The Envy Corps - Story Problem
- Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly. - Keep Singing Out
- Hadouken! - Declaration Of War
- Ida Maria - Queen Of The World
- Murdocks - Playhouse Down
- Pete and The Pirates - She Doesn't Belong To Me
- The Shortwave Set - No Social
- The Wedding Present - Boo Boo
- The Wombats - Moving To New York
- The Young Knives - Turn Tail

Our Newly-Added Classics:

- The dB's - Love Is For Lovers
- Gleaming Spires - Are You Ready For The Sex Girls
- Hot Hot Heat - Bandages
- Love & Rockets - It Could Be Sunshine
- The Records - Starry Eyes
- Sparks - All You Ever Think About Is Sex
- David Sylvian - Pulling Punches
- The Teardrop Explodes - Bouncing Babies
- The The - Sweet Bird Of Truth

- Sean Carolan
Altrok Radio
On your computer now at http://www.altrokradio.com

On the radio Fridays at 10pm, at 90.5 The Night