Things have been slow on the front end but much activity whirls behind the curtain.  A new house consumes alot of time. 

A 24/7 web stream is now available of Nexus-style tunes.  Hook up the stream here or paste the following code into your favoritest music player: http://rs4.radiostreamer.com:8300
 
This whole set up is very much in beta-mode right now so bear with and please send along comments & suggestions.  You can also peep a mock up of a host site here:
http://mysite.verizon.net/woowei.

Can't forget the most recent catastrophe.  Fell off my bike, broke my jaw.  It is now wired shut (for 6-8 weeks).  This is what it looks like.

A new podcast is also moments away.  I have one cued up righ behind it too.  So get ready.  That's all for now.  Latro.

The holiday movie everyone in the family will be talking about! Download the preview here and see what the buzz is about!! I just can't stop using exclamation points!!!!

...and Louisiana and Mississippi and all those suffering from Hurricane Katrina and it's aftermath.

Remember Pete's Dragon?

I thought this piece in Slate was hilarious. I think people in adjoining cubes heard me laughing. It started me thinking of all the ridiculous things I have overheard and how I wish I had recorded it.

NOTE TO SELF: begin secretly recording people.

The active discussion and criticism of the line ups for Live 8 could be considered its biggest success. Too white, old & boring. Easy targets right? One angle that gets my attention is the complete lack of African acts so far.

Though far from an expert, I love African funk. On a whole, global popular music is as vibrant and exciting as anything going down in the states. Check out some of the links below, listen to some tracks and if you like it spread the word. This stuff is too good to keep a secret. If you know other good sources write back with links. I LOVE new music!!

Check out here or here for the low down on Afrobeat.

Hip-hop truly is a global music these days and its existence in Africa is deep & varied. Check out some of its latest permutations here.
Stylus Magazine also did a feature on Bongo Flava, a Tanzanian style of hip-hop. Read that here.

What's up besides Phil Spector's hair?

We had the pleasure of hanging at Club Joe this weekend. A South Philly row home basement with an insane lighting rig (see picture). With MG on the decks it was a transcendent experience.

Thanks Joe & happy birthday Kim!!

Ron Wood's Spinal Tap moment:
"We were doing drugs in the dressing room [at a concert in the early '80s]. Suddenly the tour manager stuck his head around the door and said, 'The police are here!' We all panicked and threw our drugs in the toilet. Then Sting, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland walked in."

via
Salon - Rush & Malloy - Guitar World Magazine

Now go listen to the Modern Lovers, or at least watch 'There's Something About Mary'.

Listening to new music is exciting. Hearing something new is like opening a present. You may have an idea of what it will be but you can't be sure until you listen. You can read reviews, hear previous tracks by the artist, even know her personally but nothing can fully prepare you for what you hear.

Even an old record can be new. Sometimes you find something from the past and, upon listening to it, you wonder how you could have not known this existed before. Why doesn't everyone know about this, and if they did why hadn't they told me?

This happened to me this past week with 'Africa Brasil' by Jorge Ben (1976). Quite possibly one of the best Brazilian funk albums ever. I could go on but why bother. The words I associate with it won't get you any closer to the music. It is a present you have to open and experience yourself. I'm just hear to tell you it exists. The rest is up to you.

Jorge Ben "Africa Brasil" (Philips, 1976)
Seek it out.

Write back and tell me about great records you have discovered.

Jim

Hello, hello.
Welcome to the Podcast home base of the Nexus. The Nexus has been airing live every Sunday on Radio Volta for the past four years. You can check my Volta homepage here.

The Nexus features music that is beyond eclectic: new, old, obscure and mainstream. Each week is a new experiment in sound. Striving to bring you varieties of music you will not find anywhere else.

Combine a love of the weird with classic rock, hip-hop, drum & bass, experimental, standards, cartoon theme songs and bossa and you start to get an idea of what this is all about. Good music my friends, all good music.

Check out this show, check out Radio Volta and definitely hit me up and we'll chat about yr favorite music.

peace.
jim
thenexus@radiovolta.org