Now, you may not believe this dear reader, especially if you’ve been hanging around this spot for a while, but this time around, the fact that it took damn near two months to post this final Moods In Free Time on Artform Radio & WorldwideFM doesn’t deal with any personal PTSD or issues with depression. In fact, I’d actually hoped that I’d have some really good news to share, about where I’d be either taking the show to next or where I’d be back on the radio. But, that good news has yet to materialize, and with 2022 almost over (as well as the Fall semester at CSULB) it felt like the time was right to finally say goodbye to this particular chapter of my DJ life.

Back in October, we all said goodbye to our weekly/monthly excursions as part of the Artform Radio/WorldwideFM family. The end was a bit sudden, and certainly not at all what any of us would have wanted, but as I was thinking about the final show, I didn’t want to dwell on any negative or sad emotions. Instead, I decided to take it back to the beginning, and return to the mood of our very first show, Joy, and play tunes that had sparked joy in my life recently and for many many years. Given that I had never played the song that inspired the name of the show, it felt like the right time to finally play Booker Little’s “Moods In Free Time,” to start the show, but from there most of the tunes (shared in one single set) are things that are fairly recent to my collection, but have given me immense joy to add to it and to listen to since they found a home in my home.

It’s also given me immense joy to be a part of Artform Radio and WorldwideFM for the close to two years that I was. Having the opportunity to do a show like this has been a joy and a privilege, something entirely different than what I’ve done throughout my long career in radio. As I implied at the start of this post, this “last” show is not truly an end. Moods In Free Time will carry on in some form or fashion, even if it’s just here on Melting Pot. But, in addition to the past two months, I’m gonna take a good amount of time before the show returns, but I promise, return it shall, and at some point in 2023. Until then, enjoy these sounds and all the rest in our 34 shows for Artform Radio & WorldwideFM. May they fill you with as much joy as they filled me in bringing them to you…Peace & Bright Moments to you all.

Moods In Free Time – Vol. 34: Joy II

Playlist – Moods In Free Time 034: Joy II
{opening theme} The Visitors – The Juggler – In My Youth (Muse)

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Booker Little – Moods In Free Time – Out Front (Candid)
Denny Zeitlin – The Wizard – The Name Of This Terrain (Now-Again)
Harvey Mandel – The Snake – Cristo Redentor (Phillips)
Bobby Walker – Can’t Stop Lovin’ You – This Is Walker Country (STS)
Cortex – Troupeau Bleu – Troupeau Bleu (Disques Esperance)
Lotus – Lotus: 1st-3rd Impressions – A Way Of Life (Reynolds)
Rome Sithammarat – Sao New Look – Pai Ban Khun Ar (Double Rabbits)
David Astri – Safe and Sound – Do It Right (Award)
Googoosh – Talagh – Googosh (Finders Keepers)

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{closing theme} Tony Williams – Wild Life – Believe It! (Columbia)

I’d been thinking about doing a show just filled with rock breaks for some time, as I do love them so (as I mentioned in the prior post), but the mood took a bit of time to sort out. Originally I was going to use “Bombastic,” but when I actually sat down and looked at the definition, I realized just how swayed I had been by Shaggy’s iconic song. While it seemed like it would have been perfect for a show featuring brash, loud songs, the actual definition is “high sounding, but with little meaning…inflated,” and that was quite the opposite of how I felt about these songs. So the search was on for another mood that would fit this collection of heavy tunes. Fate smiled on me when I finally made my way to “Raucous,” which I often pronounce as “Rock-Cuss,” (or in those moments where my Southern drawl makes an appearance, “Rawk-usss”) and thus all was again right in the world and this show was born. There are many Rock breaks, from every sub-genre of Rock’n’Roll, but I feel like these are some of the hardest and heaviest, and that’s why they made it into the show. Hope y’all dig.

Moods In Free Time: 033 – Raucous

Playlist – Moods In Free Time 033: Raucous
{opening theme} The Visitors – The Juggler – In My Youth (Muse)

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Black Sabbath – Behind The Wall Of Sleep – Black Sabbath (WB)
Power Of Zeus – Sorcerer Of Isis – The Gospel According To Zeus (Rare Earth)
Hush – Grand Prix – Rough, Tough & Ready (Wizard)
Jeffrey Simmons – Naked Angels Theme – Naked Angels: Original Soundtrack (Straight)
Edge – Lady Of Darkness – Edge (Nose)
Marc Hamilton – C’Est Que Tout Va Bien – Marc Hamilton (Trans-Canada)
Mount Rushmore – Toe Jam – ’69 (Dot)
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Mountain – Long Red – Mountain Live (Windfall)
Python Lee Jackson – In A Broken Dream – 7” (Eurogram)
Edip Akbayram – Daglar Dagladi Beni – Edip Abayram (Sayan)
Hard Stuff – No Witch At All – Bulletproof (Purple)
Fancy – Wild Thing – Wild Thing (Big Tree)

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{Closing theme) Tony Williams – Wild Life – Believe It! (Columbia)

In my previous post in tribute to producer, DJ, musician and all around good human, Nectail Díaz bka Sumohair, I mentioned that this month’s show would be dedicated to him and that “Tristeza” would be the mood. As the time to get the show together grew closer, I knew that I didn’t only want sadness to be the mood, but to also have something more uplifting, to recognize that even with the sadness at his passing, how beautiful Sumo’s spirit was, and so I added “Esperanza,” or “hope,” as that is the perfect mood to mix with “Tristeza” at this moment, and the perfect mix of moods to share as much music as I could in the hour I have at Artform Radio & Worldwide FM.

This show is an attempt to do my part to not only pay tribute to Sumo, but to preserve a piece of his legacy.  Part of that legacy is a fierce belief in artistic freedom & independence.  This is the only show, and likely will be the only show, in my entire career where every single song was self-released by the artist. In paying tribute to Sumo, it was important to me to not only have Sumo’s music, but to also have Sumo’s voice in this show. The last time I heard his voice, the last time I saw him and had a chance to talk with him was after Son Rompe Pera had played a free show in DTLA last Summer. Leaving the show on my way back to my car I ran into him. At the time I thought it was interesting, because I had also run into him leaving a show earlier that same Summer at the Ford, and might have even said something about that happy coincidence. I don’t have a lot of distinct memories of that night, aside from giving him a ride to his spot in Koreatown and talking about music, LA & culture on the way there. At the time it didn’t seem all that noteworthy, as I saw Sumo often, at Subsuelo parties and other events that Summer, as the City started to return to some semblance of normality post-Pandemic. I fully expected there would be many more opportunities to talk and become better friends. There was no way to have known that would be my last conversation with him, that instead of the beginning of something deeper, that was all there would ever be.

While I would have loved to have had the opportunity to interview him, to pick his brain and ask him my own questions about his craft, his use of tropical sounds, repetition, improvisation & our shared love of studio banter, in a more formal setting for posterity, that chance never came to be. But in the wake of his passing, and the many tributes others were posting online, I came upon this near 90 minute interview Sumo did in 2020 with Ray Ricky Rivera and his co-host Julio Trejo. I reached out to Rivera online to ask for permission to use clips from the interview, which he graciously allowed. So in this tribute show, presented in a single set for the hour, you’ll periodically hear Sumo in his own voice, over his own productions, talking about his chosen name, how he and Fabi Reyna came to meet and form Reyna Tropical, their storybook start as a live band opening for their heroes Bomba Estereo, their approach to making music, his approach to DJ-ing and the vision behind the art he created. Having known him briefly it’s a great relief to not only have his music, but also his voice and his philosophy preserved, at least for as long as these digital files remain and are shared. While sadness over his loss has been the prevailing emotion felt over the past month, there’s also a large measure of hope that his legacy, a truly visionary one, despite the relatively short amount of time he was with us, will continue on, and most importantly, continue to inspire others to create music and culture for the communities they represent and love. A hope I’m sure Sumo shared, and one that I imagine would cause him to smile, seeing how deeply he has touched so many with his joyful and inspiring sounds.

Moods In Free Time: 032 – Tristeza Y Esperanza – Tribute To Sumohair

Playlist – Moods In Free Time -032: Tristeza y Esperanza – Tribute To Sumohair
{opening theme} The Visitors – The Juggler – In My Youth (Muse)

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Reyna Tropical – Tristeza – Sol y Lluvia EP (Self Released)
Sumo Hair – Acapulco Gold – Single (Self Released)
Los Mirlos – Sumo Hair Rework (Si Tu Quiere Dembow) – 7 Discos 7 Versiones EP (Self Released)
Sumohair – Mister Yellowman ReWorked (Zunga Zeng) – Single (Self Released)
Reyna Tropical – Niña – Reyna Tropical EP (Self Released)
Sumo Hair – Ela Me Mata – Single (Self Released)
Reyna Tropical – No Me Quieres – Reyna Tropical EP (Self Released)
Sumo Hair – Marimba Streets – Single (Self Released)
Reyna Tropical – Mas y Mas – Reyna Tropical EP (Self Released)
QUITAPENAS, Niña Chispa & Sumohair – Ahora Queiro – Live Sessions At Red Bull Studios in LA (Self-released)
Sumo Hair – Brown Es Bonito – Single (Self Released)
DJ Sumo Hair – Excerpt – In Search Of Esperanza Vol. 1 (Self Released)
Sumo Hair – Coconut Water – Afro Mexico EP (Self Released)
Reyna Tropical feat. Y La Bamba – Encerrada (Self Released)
Sumo Hair w/ Fabi Reyna & Happy Colors – Revolucion (Self Released)

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{closing theme} Tony Williams – Wild Life – Believe It! (Columbia)

This past July’s Moods was the direct result of me going through my record collection and sorting out what things I’m going to be getting rid of during this Summer.  With the ability to rebuild my collection after the major sell-off in 2004 that left me with less than one hundred LPs, I never wanted it to get unwieldly in the future.  I have two matching shelves along a wall with 24 cubes and I want to keep everything contained within those 24 cubes.  During the pandemic I have done perhaps more record therapy than at any other point in my life and now, just as is the case with my actual pandemic weight, it’s time to “trim the fat.” That process requires me to go through all of my albums and decide whether each one still sparks joy and deserves to remain.  What’s been interesting (and is precisely the reason why I don’t want my collection to get any bigger than this) is that I kept running into records that I’d almost forgotten that I’d even bought (which might also be a consequence of how the pandemic has affected memory and created an even more elastic sense of time than normal…then again it could be the copious amounts of weed I now smoke, also a consequence of the pandemic).  One of those records was the album from the Catalan progressive psych group Om, which I bought back in 2016 at Barcelona’s Wah Wah Records.

That record, especially the song, “Excusa 6/8,” was something that I had on my turntable for months after returning, but it was also a record I likely haven’t played in three or four years, as my attention focused on newer acquisitions.  Returning to it and how much I love it got me thinking about how I could feature it in my show.  Because of the length of the song, and the largely instrumental nature of it, it didn’t immediately bring any emotion or mood to mind.  But it was that very nature, how the song wanders about in a variety of ways before returning to the sublime melody that it begins with brought “wander” to mind.  Once that was the case, I knew I’d pair it with a few similar songs, long tunes that travel far distances, and that also might have been difficult to find a home in a future Moods, despite how much I love them.  From 1970s Catalunya, we settled on Germany around the same time with songs from Achim Reichel and The Can that cover their entire album sides.  These songs don’t just wander about, or aimlessly meander, but the variety of places they travel also spark wonder in my ears and mind, and thus this “mixed” emotions show was born.  Presenting them all in a single set made the most sense, to maximize the wonderful effect of these wandering sounds.  I can almost guarantee that we’ll return with a few of these wander/wonder sessions in the future, but for now enjoy this one…Peace & Bright Moments

Moods In Free Time: 031 – Wander/Wonder

Playlist – Moods In Free Time 031: Wander/Wonder
{opening theme} The Visitors – The Juggler – In My Youth (Muse)

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Om – Excusa 6/8 – Om (Edigsa)
Achim Reichel – Vita – A.R.4 (Zebra)
Can – Bel Air – Future Days (United Artists)

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{closing theme} Tony Williams – Wild Life – Believe It! (Columbia)

As I write these words, the US Supreme Court today overturned Roe v. Wade, and has now, for the first time in our nation’s entire history, taken away rights instead of expanding rights for Americans. The writing has been on the wall for some time, given the current make-up of the court, and how radical jurists aligned with the anti-abortion movement have been (despite what they publicly stated in their confirmation hearings), and also given the leak in May of what turned out to be essentially the final draft of this opinion. That backdrop, combined with increasing anti-LGBTQ+, particularly anti-Trans, legislation, discrimination and outright violence in the US and around the world, certainly affected my choice to focus on Queer punk for this year’s Pride show on Moods In Free Time.

Whether you like it or not, Punk rock is music that you viscerally feel and that intensity of feeling is something that you cannot ignore. As I mention in the show, there aren’t a lot of genres that fully encompass all of the emotions I feel in this moment, anger, shock, horror and even more that I can’t fully articulate. With only an hour, there’s only so much that I could highlight and so I made the choice to highlight LGBTQ+ artists from different periods of time in each set, from the 1970s to the present time. The songs themselves run the gamut of the diversity of styles that fall under “punk rock” as a genre, and also speak to a variety of moods and feelings, some exhibit a righteous anger, others lambast and lampoon homophobia, some strike a defiant & prideful tone, others are more tender in how they express what life is like for Queer folk in this country and internationally.

Whether you see yourself as being Queer, or are an ally, these issues do not just affect a single group. They affect us all. That much is clear today…in Justice Clarence Thomas’ concurrent opinion he notes that the logic that overturned Roe, should now be applied to new cases that will strike down other rights, such as those around contraception, the legality of same-sex sexual relationships and same-sex marriage, but it also threatens things that Thomas left unmentioned, such as interracial marriage in the Loving case, or even the end of segregation that came via the Brown decision. All that is now required is for a state to choose to challenge those and other rights, and pass laws against them, and this court has signaled that it will overturn them as it has Roe. In thinking of this present moment, I am reminded of the poem, “First they came…” inspired by Nazi apologists in 1930s Germany, who sat back and said nothing as they rose to power, until it was too late.

“First they came for the Communists,
And I did not speak out,
Because I was not a Communist.

Then they came for the Socialists,
And I did not speak out,
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
And I did not speak out,
Because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
And I did not speak out,
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me,
And there was no one left,
To speak out for me…”

Looking at the potential future of this country, thinking about which rights are next on the chopping block, I wonder how we will look back on this day and this moment in another 10, 15 or 20 years. I wonder who will pay attention, who will stand up and add their voice to the cause to expand freedom for all, and who will remain silent, thinking that somehow they will be protected because of where they live, or what identity they have, since the fire hasn’t turned their way…yet. Perhaps next month I’ll be able to focus on more hopeful feelings, but for the moment, this was what felt right to do with the voice I have, while I still have it.

I know I say it at the close of each show, but especially in this moment, I wish you all Peace and Bright Moments…

Moods In Free Time: 030 – Queer Punk Pride

Playlist – Moods In Free Time 030: Queer Punk Pride
{opening theme} The Visitors – The Juggler – In My Youth (Muse)

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Jayne County & the Electric Chairs – Are You Man Enough To Be A Woman? – Storm The Gates Of Heaven (Safari)
The Germs – Lexicon Devil – GI (Slash)
Husker Du – Broken Home Broken Heart – Zen Arcade (SST)
The Bloods – Undercover Nation – Born In Flames (First Run Features)
Au Pairs – America – Sense and Sensuality (Roadrunner)
Controllers – Suburban Suicide – 7” (Siamese Records)

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Vaginal Davis & Robespierre – Queens – 7” (Spectra Sonic Records)
Tribe 8 – Lezbophobia – By The Time We Get To Colorado (Outpunk)
God Is My Co-Pilot – Straight Not – My Sinister Secret Agenda 7” (Blackout!)
Limp Wrist – I Love Hardcore Boys, I Love Boys Hardcore – Don’t Knock It, Til You Try It (Self-Released)
Behead The Prophet No Lord Shall Live – Lewd Lewd Lewd – I Am That Great and Fiery Force (Outpunk/K)
Huggy Bear – Pansy Twist – Taking The Rough With The Smooch (Kill Rock Stars)
Sleater Kinner – I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone – Call The Doctor (Kill Rock Stars)
Team Dresch – Don’t Try Suicide – Captain My Captain (Chainsaw/Candy Ass)

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Pansy Division with Jello Biafra – Average Man – That’s So Gay (Alternative Tentacles)
G.L.O.S.S. – Give Violence A Chance – Trans Day Of Revenge 7” (Total Negativity/Nervous Nelly)
Causa – Ya Callase – Demo (Self-released)
Dominatrix – Filhas, Maes e Irmas – EP 2009 (Self-released)
Fea – Feminazi – Fea (Blackheart Records)
Hunx & His Punx – Bad Boy – Too Young To Be In Love (Hardly Art)
Pink Suits – Fake Great Britain – Political Child (Self Released)

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{closing theme} Tony Williams – Wild Life – Believe It (Columbia)