Lost Lost Lost | Special 5-hour show

Inspired by Jonas Mekas's multi-hour, epic home movie, we presented a very personal, five-hour sonic collage-memory of two decades of music collecting in New York’s slowly disappearing immigrant-owned bodegas and media stores

Listen to the show, now in the archives

Carpenters

On Wednesday, December 20, we celebrated America's favorite 70s lite pop duo with a chronological throw-down of covers, deconstructions, deep cuts, hits, mashups, samples, strip-downs, and more, from Downey, Calif., to Manila, Osaka, and Phnom Penh.

Listen to the show now in the archives

Looking Back on Looking Back in 2017

On December 13, we spun tracks from some three dozen international reissues and historical compilations released this year, from selections of Arabic and Turkish electronica to a 21st century deconstruction of a watershed moment in Brazilian pop history, to an exhaustive overview of Zamrock, and more ...

Listen to the show in the archives

Esengül ‎| Gizli Yaram

[UPDATE: New link in comments]

This remarkable woman was born Ağan Esen in 1954 in Istanbul, began her career working in casinos in Ankara, Istanbul, and Izmir, and died in a car accident near Ataköy. 

Whether it really was an accident is up for debate, however; Adil at Uludag Video in Brooklyn, where I picked this delicious cassette up last weekend, assured me that Esengül was rubbed out by the mob. She had, less than three weeks prior, witnessed the owner and a waitress in a casino where she was gigging assassinated.

Esengül was 24 years old. Her voice sounds much, much more seasoned. You can hear a different sent of tracks by her in this week's Bodega Pop Live broadcast, here.

Link to DL in the comments.

What do you think? I'd love to hear from you ...

Strange Angels

On December 6, Bodega Pop Live spun the Biafran godfather of Nigerian rock, a Turkish casino star cut down by the mob at age 24, the flattest singer in ultra-vertical Hong Kong, Burma’s psychedelic synth-pop answer to yacht rock, the Pakistani ingénue who brought Bollywood to its knees, and the Russian studio producer who secretly recorded the most psychedelic bedroom tapes of all time.

Listen to the show in the archives

Selda Bağcan | Anadolu Konserleri 1970, 1990

Today's cassette rip has no J-card, but I'm assuming what we have on hand is this. Published in 1991, it features two concerts, 20 years apart, by Turkish folk and rock superstar, Selda Bağcan. I found it, along with two dozen other cassettes from the 1980s and 1990s, at Uludag Video on Avenue W in Brooklyn. 

Uludag was one of my favorite places to stop by when I used to ride my bike all over south Brooklyn in the aughts; but I was told at one point that they would no longer be importing music. When I  moved further north to Queens in 2010, I just assumed they were dry, and never went back.

Technically, they probably haven't added anything new, but they seem to have put everything they may have had in storage back up on the right hand wall.

The owner, Adil, motioned me over to a bottom corner of the wall where he'd stashed about 50-75 cassettes, a third of which looked to be ca. 1980s. We talked about the history of his store as we pulled the cassettes from their hiding place and spread them out on a glass case below the CDs.

He lives in Bay Ridge, a 10-minute car ride away, and opened the place in 1985. The back wall, against which there is now a sea of blue evil eye jewelry, had at one time been all cassettes. As I set the older-looking titles off to one side, Adil took others he thought I might like and popped them in his novelty jukebox cassette player behind the register to give me a taste. 

And that was when I saw the Selda cassette. "Which Selda is that?" I asked.

"Anatolian Concerts," Adil explained. I expressed my surprise: I have a number of Selda CDs, most of them bought in this very store, and had no idea that she had put out a live album. I gingerly asked if he might be willing to sell it. Gingerly, because it was right there beside the cassette player, suggesting that he had most likely listened to it recently. But without hesitation, Adil said he'd be happy to sell it to me.

I haven't broken up the rip into distinct tracks because, while Selda performs numerous songs, there's no real break, except at the end of each side. Also, I assume you like Selda enough to just want to take in the whole thing. Right?

Expect many more posts from this haul in the weeks to come.

Link to rip in the comments.

BYFOR&WITH CHRISTIAN MARCLAY

On Wednesday, November 22, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio celebrated Christian Marclay with three hours of Solo recordings, experimental / altered records, compositions, collaborations, homages, and live performances by the artist / turntablist, his friends, and fellow travelers

Listen to the show now in the archives

Moulay Omar | Shikhat el Haouz

A recent find at Nassem Halal Meat & Mediterranean Grocery, an Algerian bodega in Astoria. Opened by Noudine Bahri several decades ago (I'm assuming 1980s, but not sure), the place is now managed by a Mexican-American guy who told me his name is Houssain and who began working there about 1997, the year I moved to New York.

I had no idea who the man pictured on the J-card was, but assumed Moroccan, based solely on the djellaba he's sporting over his button-down shirt. Tim and Hammer confirmed my suspicion.

As Tim wrote: "Don't recognize him, but he's certainly Moroccan. The label on the J-card and the tape shell denotes Sawt el Mounadi, an imprint out of Marrakech. Some of the most bitchin' tapes in my stash are on that label. The card reads: 'Shikh Moulay Omar and Shikhat el Haouz,' so this ought to be some fine Aita Houzia!"

Hammer: "You got it all right, Tim. This is Moulay Omar a singer from Ahwaz Marrakesh who saw some mediocre fame in the late 70s in Morocco. The Sheikhat who sang this style in Morocco (Aita Houzia), were very few."

The sound quality on this cassette may not be pristine, but the energy is off the charts. Thanks to Tim and Hammer for translation and context.

Link to cassette rip in comments.

Awesome Tapes from Everywhere

On Wednesday, November 15, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio celebrated the reopening of the bodega and our first cassette series with 3 hours of killer tracks from cassette rarities from Algeria, Egypt, Japan, Lebanon, Morocco, Myanmar, Norway, Poland, Rwanda, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand, Vietnam, and beyond

Listen to the show now in the archives

Ali Salhien | تلاعبنى الاعبك

The bodega has reopened for business! 

Those of you who have been following us know that, a year or so after we joined WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio, our posting of new music here slowed down until we ceased offering new rips at all. I'm not going to bore you with the reasoning; it doesn't matter. What matters is that we're back, and -- inspired by fellow travelers Tim Abdellah Fuson and Peter Doolan -- we're going to kick off our reboot with a series of newly discovered cassettes.

First up, a live recording on cassette by Ali Salhien (على صالحين), with thanks to the aforementioned Tim for translation, transliteration, and most of the context below. 

According to a posthumously created Facebook memorial page, Ali Salhien (also transliterated Aly Salheen) was considered The Star of Mawwals and Star of Maghagha, an Upper Egyptian city about 120 miles south of Cairo. The page was created on March 13, 2011, presumably not long after the singer's untimely death. We've not been able to determine his birth date. 

This is the sole live video of the performer I was able to find -- fair warning that the sound quality leaves much to be desired. That said, it gives you a great sense of Salhien's energy and magnetism; near the end of the video you'll see a succession of audience members, all male, leaping onto the stage to dance together.

The cassette retains all of that energy, but with superior sound quality -- considering that it's a live performance, most likely in Salhien's hometown. I've ripped it at 320kbps and separated out distinct mawwals into individual tracks. It sounds something like a grungier, less electronic version of Islam Chipsy.

I found this cassette at Nourdine Bahri's Nassem Halal Meat & Mediterranean Grocery in Astoria, Queens. 

I've been visiting this particular bodega for at least 15 years. Long before I moved to the neighborhood, I made frequent trips up here from Brooklyn, visiting Nassem, the Nile Deli across the street, and a no longer extant Lebanese market run by a poet who seemed to have a story about at least one song on every single CD that I bought. 

Astoria is home to more than 75,000 residents; the population of this single neighborhood dwarfs that of the approximately 15,000 Algerian Americans spread across Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Miami, and New York City. Yet, there are somehow enough in the area to support Nassem, which up until 2010 sold hundreds of original CDs and cassettes. (Most of my Algerian CDs -- my entire Cheb Hasni collection, for instance -- were bought at Nassem in the aughts.)

The few CDs that remain are pirated copies with paper labels that you risk destroying your player or DVD drive playing, let alone taking the time to rip. Last year, when Peter Doolan came to visit, we took a tour of the neighborhood, stopping by the bodega, where each of us picked up a couple of cassettes. 

I went back last week and, after talking briefly with the Latino guy who has managed the butchery there since 1996, convinced him to pull out all of the remaining tapes for me. There were about 40 titles left. Spoiler alert: I bought them all. 

As I make my way through these Algerian, Egyptian, Lebanese, Moroccan, and Syrian rarities -- some of which have been sitting on Nassem's shelves since the late 1980s -- I'll be posting those of special sonic interest here. Expect a new one once a week or so for the foreseeable future. If you know anything about the music (or at the very least, the language) I strongly encourage you to share your insights in the comments or by email.

This Wednesday's Bodega Pop Live show, by the way, will be focused on cassettes from around the world.

Link to Ali Salhien's تلاعبنى الاعبك in the comments.

MEXROCKSAMPLER

On Wednesday, November 8, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spun 3 hours of abstract, avant-garde jazz, electronic, experimental, funk, garage, hip hop, home recordings, musique concrète, progressive, psychedelic, punk, and good ol' rock 'n' roll from the United Mexican States. 

Listen to the show now in the archives

My Jamaican Gal

On Wednesday, November 1, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spun our favorite mento, ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub, dancehall, and disco by Jamaican-born women, mostly from our personal collection, plucked over the years from the shelves of VP Records in Jamaica, Queens. 

Listen to the show now in the archives!

Radio Ethiopia | 5 Hour Special Show

On Wednesday, October 25, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio celebrated one of the greatest music cultures on the planet. We spun a few early 20th century sides, several field recordings, a bit of Amharic rap, and a few 21st century tracks recorded in Amsterdam and Washington, DC, as well as a generous selection of cuts from the golden age popularized by Francis Falceto's legendary Éthiopiques series.

Listen to the show now in the archives!

Bodega Pop's Jukebox 45s

On Wednesday, October 18, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio took a cue from Peanut Butter Wolf and filled a jukebox with some of our favorite 45s from around the world. 

Listen to the show now in the archives!

The Waves

On Wednesday, October 11, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spun three hours of Avant-Pop, Balearic, Coldwave, Darkwave, Electronic, No Wave, Synthwave, Tecno Brega, UK Garage, Vaporwave, and more.

Listen to the show now in the archives!

Puerto Rico

On Wednesday, October 4, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spun three hours of bomba, boogalo, danza, hip-hop, jíbaro, plena, post-punk, psychedelic, reggaeton, salsa, and more from one of the richest musical cultures on the planet.

Listen to the show now in the archives!

War / Machine

Three hours of leftfield and conscious hip-hop, Italian industrial music from the 80s, selected tracks from the most gripping Indonesian album of the last 20 years, and more

Listen to the show now in the archives!

Cambodian Bodega

On Wednesday, September 20, from 7-10 PM EDT, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spins three hours of Chaiyam, film song, Khmer classical, psychedelic, synth-pop, and more from CDs found in Cambodian bodegas in the Bronx, Portland, and Seattle.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!

Typical (Atypical)

Three hours of mostly recent discoveries plucked from bodegas in Astoria, Corona, Elmhurst, Forest Hills, Greenpoint, Harlem, Jackson Heights, and LeFrak City.

Listen now!

Yemeni Bodega

Three hours of disco, folk, funk, hip hop, pop, qasidah, street improvisations, and traditional music from the Republic of Yemen and the Yemeni diaspora.

Listen now!

Super Japan 5 | Super taboo to super zoo.

Over five Wednesday nights in August, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio took a 15-hour alphabetical tour of extreme examples of genres (tape music, zeuhl), states of being (violent, wounded) and more from everybody’s favorite stratovolcanic archipelago. 

On tonight's show (7-10 PM EDT): Super taboo, super take, super tape music, super thanks, super theme, super thunder, super town, super underground, super Uoredoms, super utsuroi, super venom, super violent, super vitamins, super want, super weeping, super wet, super wild, super wind, super witch, super wounded, super eX-girls, yesterday, super yé-yé, super youth, super zany, super zebra, super zeuhl, super zipper, super zoo.

Click here to listen to the show in the archives!

Super Japan 4 | Super pastiche to super syzygy.

Over five Wednesday nights in August, join Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio on a 15-hour alphabetical tour of extreme examples of genres (psychedelic, ryukoka), states of being (peaceful, raw) and more from everybody’s favorite stratovolcanic archipelago. 

On tonight's show (7-10 PM EDT): Super pastiche, super peace, super pop, super prelude, super prog, super psychedelic, super pulse, super pussycat, super Q, super question, super radio, super raw, super resonance, super reverie, super rock 'n' roll, super ruins, ryukoka, super super shamisen, super Shibuya-kei, super shima-uta, super silence, super single, super space, super stoicism, super subterranean, super syzygy.

Click here to listen to the show and join the conversation!

Super Japan 3 | Super kabuki to super onkyokei.

Over five Wednesday nights in August, join Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio on a 15-hour alphabetical tour of extreme examples of genres (mashup, noise), states of being (lugubrious, nuts) and more from everybody’s favorite stratovolcanic archipelago. 

On this coming Wednesday, August 16 (7-10 PM EDT): Super kabuki, super kamakazi, super Kanye, super kawaii, super kiss, super live, super lolita, super loud, super love, super lugubrious, super machine, super math rock, super mashup, super medley, super metal, super micro, super movie, super new wave, super noh, super noise, super nuclear, super nuts, super opera, super onkyokei.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!

Super Japan 2 | Super eighties to Super Junky Monkey.

Over five Wednesday nights in August, join Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio on a 15-hour alphabetical tour of extreme examples of genres (enka, onkyokei), states of being (abject, euphoric) and more from everybody’s favorite stratovolcanic archipelago. 

On this coming Wednesday, August 9 (7-10 PM EDT): Super eighties, super electronic, super enka, super era, super exotic, super fail, super fantasy, super folk, super funky, super fusion, super gagaku, super ghost, super glitch, super group, super hair, super harsh, super heavy, super high, super I, super ice, super imagination, super J-pop, super J-rock, super jelly, super jet, Super Junky Monkey.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night! 

Super Japan 1 | Super abject to super dusk.

Over five Wednesday nights in August, join Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio on a 15-hour alphabetical tour of extreme examples of genres (enka, onkyokei), states of being (abject, euphoric) and more from everybody’s favorite stratovolcanic archipelago. 

On tonight’s show (7-10 PM EDT): Super abject, super acid, super Ainu, super ASMR, super avant-garde, super bad, super bass, super beatbox, super b-girl, super big, super bored, super brothers, super bubblegum, super cha cha, super child star, super chiptune, super city, super cosmic, super cult, super cute, super dancin’, super dark, super desire, super dirty, super disco, super DIY, super DJ, super dream, super drums, super dusk. Super Japan!

Bookmark the page and see you tonight at 7!

STARS FROM ANOTHER SKY | Parts 1 and 2

Since 1997 I've been collecting Arabic music from bodegas and mom & pop media shops in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Boston, Montreal, Paris, and Marrakesh.

This week I'll be playing some of my favorite tracks from the Arab world over two 3-hour shows on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio. :

Part 1: TONIGHT, Wednesday July 26, 7-10 PM EDT

Part 2: Friday July 28, 9 AM-noon EDT

Hope to see you at one or the other ... or both!

Stars from Another Sky

On Wednesday, July 26, from 7-10 PM EDT, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spins three soul-searing hours of divas, forgotten greats, icons, living legends, and one-hit wonders from the Arab world.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!

Mock Doug

This Friday, July 21, from 9AM-noon, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio takes the wheel for stream master and uber-DJ Doug Schulkind, who is on vacation. Tastes like Doug, but ... 100% fill-in!

Bookmark the page and see you Friday morning!

Pop and Its Discontents

On Wednesday, July 19, from 7-10 PM EDT, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spins three hours of extreme 21st century pop and anti-pop from Awkwafina (USA), Big Freedia (USA), Die Antwoord (South Africa), GFOTY (UK), Yasmine Hamdan (Lebanon), Omodaka (Japan), Shere Thu Thuy (Vietnam), and Wunmi (Nigeria).

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!

Disques Ocora

On Wednesday, July 12, from 7-10 PM EDT, join Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio for a three-hour celebration of the great Radio France record label specializing in field recordings founded 60 years ago by Charles Duvelle and Pierre Schaeffer.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!

HEROES

On Wednesday, July 5, from 7-10 PM EDT, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spins six heroic sets from living legends Aretha Franklin, Boris Grebenshikov, Elza Soares, İbrahim Tatlıses, Jun Togawa, and Youssou N'Dour.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!

Québécois

On Wednesday, June 28, from 7-10 PM, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio spins three ear-bending hours of folk, prog, punk, Christian rock, synth-pop, hip-hop, riot grrrl, experimental and more from la Belle Province.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!

Love Saves the Party w/Carol Mirakove

Help us celebrate the first day of summer! 

This Wednesday, June 21, from 7-10 PM EDT, Bodega Pop Live on WFMU's Give the Drummer Radio welcomes poet and fellow traveler Carol Mirakove to the show to spin and chat about some of her favorite dance music - the records that fueled underground parties in New York from the Loft and Paradise Garage to the Mudd Club, Club Negril and Bang the Party.

Bookmark the page and see you Wednesday night!