Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Belgian National Day

That picture was taken very late at night in Ghent, Belgium, in the early part of this century. It's a shop window I think. It might also have been New Year's Eve.

In fact, I've been to Belgium twice. But that's not the reason for a show featuring many artists from Belgium - no, July 21 is Belgian National Day. Some American sources call it Belgium Independence Day, which it kind of is. But it isn't. Tune in to discover the nuance - & to hear some Belgian originals.

That's tomorrow, July 21, noon to 1pm on XRAY - 91.1+107.1fm in town, xray dot fm everywhere.

We will also be asking you to help XRAY purchase our 107.1fm frequency during the show. Find out more & donate here!

This Week In Self Help (July 12 14 + 16 2024)

There wasn't a new Self Help Radio this week but there was a new Dickenbock Report plus I subbed a show on XRAY & I made a three-hour radio show for Self Help Radio's timeslot even though I was a state away. Wanna listen to any of that? No? Well I'll put links here anyway just in case. You don't think I should because you'll never listen? I'll do it anyway. Just humor me. Just fucking humor me.

A week ago I was on the radio on XRAY from 4-6pm. The show is available to listen to on the XRAY website & also on the Self Help Radio website. Please remember the username/password combo SHR/selfhelp to access/download the show/

The Dickenbock Report reported on Barn Day. That show is on the XRAY website. & on the Self Help Radio website. Same username/password needed.

Finally, I forewent Self Help Radio & Corporate Standardized Programming for three hours of new releases. Listen to that either on the KBOO website or on the Self Help Radio website.

The regular nonsense continues now that I'm back in town.

Magnetic Movies

(image from the IMDb)

Over a week ago (!) I had a radio show about magnets. You can listen to it here. Or you can listen to it here. About halfway through the show our resident cinephile Chuck stopped by to talk about movies featuring magnets. Below are supplemental links provided by Chuck for your education & edification:

His Letterboxd list. (Chuck put the links to available videos in the notes for the films plus where they are available to stream for free.)

His Letterboxd reviews.

The YouTube playlist of films & trailers.

The IMDb list of films available to stream for free elsewhere.

The IMDb search list.

Chuck sez: I posted about some of the films here. I tweeted about some of the films here. It's just the same links that are here for now, but go ahead and give me a follow. I usually follow back.

Sorry it was so late in coming! I was away for a week.

Whither A Week Without Self Help Radio?

(image from here)

This week I'm on vacation! There's no Self Help Radio! But like some kinda weirdo I recorded three hours of music for you! Wow I need to be frugal with these exclamation point! I'm gonna run out of them!

The show that is not Self Help Radio airs tonight at midnight on 90.7fm in Portland & online at kboo dot fm. That's 12-3am Tuesday morning.

Honestly, you might prefer it to the nonsense that is Self Help Radio.

Preface To A Week Without Self Help Radio: The Uncomfortable End Of The 1968 Project

(image from here)

So. As I've explained before, I decided to listen to records from 1968 as voted on by users of the website Rate Your Music & then playing the longest song on the record on the radio (usually on sub shows) & talking about the song & the record. I did seven of them. & I made a dumb mistake.

Here's the mistake: the website is dynamic. Users can vote all the time on the records. & they do. So the list kept changing. Especially past the first fifty entries or so. Okay, that's not the mistake. The mistake was that I felt the desperate need to update my own list with any changes in the order on the list. Let me give you an example.

In between (let's say) the fifth & sixth entries something like ten entries moved up &/or down in such a dramatic fashion that I spent the first third of the show "catching up" - & telling you, like you give a damn, about the numbers they were & the numbers they are (as of the show).

This was a very dumb way to manage this. As I was gathering material for the eighth installment, there were so many entries that moved & changed that they would now take up the bulk of that show. It was becoming unwieldy. & it was all because I felt the need to be somewhat faithful to the list as is than perhaps as it was when I started the project.

Because the project was intermittent. I did seven parts in over a year, maybe in almost two years. Of course a dynamic, user-opinion-based list would change a lot.

Which is a long-winded way of saying that I'm not going to continue with the 1968 Project at this point. But.

Soon enough I'm going to attempt the 1969 Project. & when I do that, I am going to take a snapshot of that album list on Rate Your Music & I am going to keep that snapshot & not attempt to keep up with the changes as new users vote on the 1969 album list.

In effect I'm saying I won't make the same mistake again.

This by the way is an example of how insular my radio world is. Virtually no one heard these radio shows I'm talking about, & less might have sought them out on my website, & a sum total of nobody at all was wondering when I would return to it. But I felt the need to explain why I haven't done an eighth episode at this point.

If you're thinking, wow that's dumb. It is! I know it is! & yet. This is me.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: Barn Day

That picture of the sad remains of a once-proud barn was taken in Kentucky in 2015. I'm sure I saw plenty of awesome barns still in use. Someone those are not as photogenic as the one up there, looking so forlorn. But we shouldn't focus on crumbling barns!

July 14 is Barn Day. On the Dickenbock Report this week we'll talk about barns, hear musical reports about barns, & we might even be broadcasting from a barn! I hope it's not a haunted barn.

That's tomorrow, July 14, noon to 1pm on XRAY - 91.1+107.1fm in town, xray dot fm everywhere.

& yes, my mother, who raised me, often asked me if I were raised in a barn. It seemed like the strangest question coming from her.

This Week In Self Help (July 7 + 9 2024)

Above is a picture of The Magnetic Fields in Portland in 2022 at the Aladdin Theater. They don't have any songs about magnets so I didn't play them on my magnet show but certainly I thought about them a lot - they are one of my favorite bands.

This weeks started though with an episode of The Dickenbock Report on National Macaroni Day. It was very, very fun sorting through songs about macaroni. I liked it lots. You can listen to the show at the XRAY website here or directly from the Self Help Radio website by clicking on this link. You may need the username SHR & the password selfhelp to access.

Then comes Self Help Radio, about magnets this week. You can listen to the show at the KBOO website or you can download it from the Self Help Radio website. Same username/password issues apply.

At the end of the KBOO file is this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming, which once again focused on dead folks. You can listen at the end of the KBOO SHR episode or download the show directly right here.

There is no new Self Help Radio next week but that doesn't mean I won't have more radio to share. Like, I subbed a show on XRAY this week! But you'll have to wait a bit to listen if you missed it, sorry.

Self Help Radio 070924: Magnets

What an attractive show this was. Ho ho ho. Seriously, you won't be able to resist. Ha ha ha.

Yikes, magnet puns are affecting me negatively. Just let it be known Self Help Radio this morning was a show about magnets. Songs, interviews, a robot that defines things, the usual. I have really nothing else to add.

Listen when you want at either the KBOO website or at the Self Help Radio website. If you choose the latter, you need a username (SHR) & password (selfhelp). There's a story about the recording of this show which I may well tell soon enough but maybe not. Everything that happened on the show is below. Most everything. Some things are left to discover.

Find your true magnetic north!

Self Help Radio Magnets show

"It's A Magnet" Dorothy Collins _Experiment Songs (From Ballads For The Age Of Science)_

"Magnetism" Sonny James _Young Love: The Complete Recordings 1952-1962_

"The Human Magnet Song" Joanna Sternberg _I've Got Me_

introductions & definitions - featuring the Definition-O-Tron 3000!

"(Your Love Is Like A) Magnet" The Age Of Reason _Ear-Piercing Punk_

"Magnetism" Escombros _Love, Peace, & Poetry - Chilean Psychedelic Music_

"Magnetic Hearts" Vs. _Magnetic Hearts_

"Magnetic Attraction" Y Pants _Y Pants_

"The Electronic Magnetism (That's Heavy Baby)" Solomon Burke _Electronic Magnetism_

interview with Frank Bolton, inventor of the Bolton Method of improving personal magnetism

"The Magnet" Wandering Lucy _Leap Year_

"Fridge Magnet Song" The Lucksmiths _Boondoggle_

"Magnet" Yo La Tengo _Prisoners Of Love (A Smattering Of Scintillating Senescent Songs 1985-2003)_

"Magnets" Digitalism _Idealism_

our resident cinephile Chuck stops by!

"Magnet Face" Wet Dog _Future Love Songs_

"Magnet" Bikini Kill _Pussy Whipped_

"Capture With A Magnet" The Thermals _No Culture Icons_

"Your Life On Magnetic Tape" The Russian Futurists _Let's Get Ready To Crumble_

interview with Dude Magnet author Fay Bowers

"Psycho Magnet" Spearmint _Paris In A Bottle_

"Freak Magnet" Violent Femmes _Freak Magnet_

"Magnetic Woman" Eerie Wanda _Pet Town_

"Silver Arc Curving In The Magnetic Field" His Name Is Alive _Patterns Of Light_

interview with musician Foster Biggs, who makes music with magnets

"The Loneliness Of Magnets" The Handsome Family _Honey Moon_

"Sky Magnet" Frankie Cosmos _Inner World Peace_

"He's A Magnet" Mark Mulcahy _Dear Mark J. Mulcahy, I Love You_

"Magnetism" Lavender Blush _There's Nothing Inside Your Heart_

conclusion & goodbye

"Magnetizing (feat. Del Tha Funkee Homosapien)" Handsome Boy Modeling School _So... How's Your Girl?_

"Magnetic" Freezepop _Imaginary Friends_

"Mr. Magnetism Himself" Bill Nelson _The Two-Fold Aspect Of Everything_

"It's A Magnet (Reprise)" Dorothy Collins _Experiment Songs (From Ballads For The Age Of Science)_

Whither Magnets?

(image by David Shrigley)

Gosh. I have been racking my brain trying to remember when I first thought of magnets. It might have been one of the stranded themes I keep in a sad folder to which I return when I am out of ideas. It might have had a different inciting incident. I can't recall, sorry.

There is this story: this morning I went to a local toy store to get a horseshoe magnet. I was so inspired by the songs & interviews I had been doing that I wanted a magnet of my own & I wanted it to look like the magnets in cartoons. I checked their website & it said they had them in stock. But they did not. I must've looked as dejected as Charlie Brown as I left that local toy store.

Not that I would've taken the magnet with me to the show! I am afraid of doing what the cartoon above threatens. That might be why I currently don't have a magnet.

The Self Help Radio magnets show airs tonight midnight to 2am on 90.7fm in Portland & online everywhere at kboo dot fm. I don't think it'll erase your hard drive.

Preface To Magnets: Mid-Year Tally

(image from here*)

This post isn't about magnets. Self Help Radio this week is about magnets. But this post isn't. I just had nowhere else to mention this - & the time is right!

June 30 was almost the halfway point for the year. In 2024 it was the 182nd day of the year - because this is a leap year - with 184 days of the year. There's no "middle day" in leap years. But since it was the end of the sixth month, with six months left, it feels fine as an arbitrary midpoint.

This year for the first time ever I've kept notes about the radio shows I've done. Usually I try to count them up at the end of the year, but this year I kept & keep track every week. I have three radio shows currently - altho one of them is now tacked at the end of another, so I'm not on the radio three times a week. But sometimes I am! With sub shows & stuff.

What I didn't do - which is weird now that I think about it - is keep track of the number of individual shows. I really should do that. But here is the tally of radio so far in 2024.

As of June 30, poor old Portland has heard me on 94 radio shows on 3 different stations. Two of my shows are theme-based, but sometimes I return to previous themes, so I have explored only 44 original themes this year. Coincidentally 44 of those shows have been live (not always the ones with original themes tho). 50 of them have been recorded. It has been a total of 154 hours of radio (as of June 30). That's almost six & half days of radio. I feel just awful about that.

Here's the grand total:

27 episodes of Self Help Radio

26 episodes of Corporate Standardized Programming

26 episodes of The Dickenbock Report

15 sub shows

Does it add up to 94? I hope so. Self Help Radio moved from Freeform Portland to KBOO in March. I "recreated" two FFP SHRs for KBOO in January & February so I am counting those. I subbed a show on XRAY that was such a disaster that I am not counting it - so don't ask me to.

That's that. A little worrying. I suspect the year-end tally will be terrifying. Anyway. I'll talk magnets tomorrow.

* Steel Powder on Magnet by Aney is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: National Macaroni Day

(Image by Slice Of Chic from here*)

Hello news junkie/foodie! July 7 is National Macaroni Day. It seems important that we report on that. & so we shall.

That's tomorrow, July 7, noon to 1pm on XRAY - 91.1+107.1fm in town, xray dot fm everywhere.

We'll talk macaroni, hear musical reports, & have a live report from the Portland Macaroni Festival. & probably eat a lot of macaroni. Just because.

* Image used under the Attribution-Noncommercial Nodervis 2.0 Generic license.

This Week In Self Help (June 30 + July 2 2024)

(Death Valley rattlesnake by Jeff Sullivan from here*)

Another week of radio! From Corvettes to Death Valley. Here's the rundown.

The Dickenbock Report on Sunday was a celebration of the classic American sports car the Corvette, as it was National Corvette Day. You can listen to that show on the XRAY website or on the Self Help Radio website - here's a direct link for that. You may be asked for a username & password. Those are SHR & selfhelp respectively.

Self Help Radio this week was about Death Valley. The KBOO website is still having issues but you can listen on the Self Help Radio website - here's the link for that. The same username/password situation applies.

Finally, this week's episode of Corporate Standardized Programming was a lot of new releases - like it usually is every other week. Listen to it by clicking here.

If you'd like to see playlists & stuff, they're all on the Self Help Radio website.

Time to get started for next week!

*Shared under the Attribution-Noncommercial-Noderivs 2.0 Generic license.

Self Help Radio 070224: Death Valley

(original image by Andrew Mace found here*)

Recent events in this dying republic colored this show somewhat, as I was depressed most of yesterday, when I should have been focused on the show. That it didn't turn out so badly (in my opinion) has to do with the work done before - I wanted to find enough songs that I liked to fill up a show about Death Valley & that took a little time. It's not the most common of topics, but also it's not the most common of places. Hopefully one day I'll get to visit.

You can visit this show at the Self Help Radio website. You'll need the username SHR & password selfhelp to access. But only once! There are other radio shows there too. What happened on this this radio show is noted below.

Is Death Valley a good place to hide I wonder?

Self Help Radio Death Valley Show

"Death Valley Is Just Half Way To My Home" Lonnie Johnson _Complete Recorded Works 1925-1932 In Chronological Order Volume 5_

"Death Valley Blues" Alice Moore _St. Louis Women. Vol. 2_

"Death Valley Blues" Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup _Mean Ol' Frisco_

introduction & definitions

"Death Valley Run" The Hondells _Go Little Honda_

"Going Down To Death Valley" The Raymen _Going Down_

"Death Valley '69" Sonic Youth _Bad Moon Rising_

"Death Valley '94" Bügsküll _Phantasies & Senseitions_

interview with Oscar Telsen, who lives somewhat off the grid in Death Valley

"Death Valley" Edwin Torres _Holy Kid_

"Death Valley Rain" Steve Wynn _Here Come The Miracles_

"Driving Death Valley Blues" Mark Lanegan Band _Bubblegum_

"Death Valley" The Bellyachers _Heavy In My Hands_

interview with Otto Taylor, author of "The Monsters Of Death Valley"

"Death Valley Boogie" Death Valley Girls _Glow In The Dark_

"Death Valley Queen" Flogging Molly _Drunken Lullabies_

"Death Valley" Wearenotwhoweare _Wearenotwhoweare EP_

"Death Valley Ass" Poor Man's Whiskey _Roadside Attraction_

interview with Olivia Thomas, who wants to start a commune in Death Valley

"Death Valley" Barbara M. Hallman _Perfect Moment_

"Death Valley" Stella Schindler _Distant Hum_

"Death Valley" David Haerle _Death Valley_

"Death Valley Girls" Thee Arcadians _We've Come For Your Parents_

Sir Archibald Von Poesy favors us with a pram

"Death Valley Day" Jon Langford & Skull Orchard _Old Devils_

"Death Valley" Begushkin _King's Curse_

"Death Valley" My Jerusalem _Preachers_

"Death Valley Acid" Wylderness _Wylderness_

conclusion & goodbye

"Death Valley Days" The Western States Motel _Freeway Freeway Riverbed_

"Death Valley Sunday" The Electric Lazarus _Death Valley Sunday_

* Image is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic license. The image has been modified by adding the Self Help Radio logo to it.

Whither Death Valley?

("Death Valley Scenic Byway" from here.)

(A sad footnote is below)*

Sometimes you get a wild hair up your ass.

That delightful euphemism means, according to the Free Dictionary, to "become obsessed (with someone or something), often when said obsession is strange or unexpected."

Death Valley is not a place I've visited. I thought I drove through it almost thirty years ago, traveling from L.A. to Las Vegas, but apparently I did not.

Recently I've become a little obsessed with Death Valley. For no reason. Looking at pictures. Reading a little about it. Thinking it's not such a far drive from Portland, maybe I should head down there. & then, inevitably, wondering if there are any songs about Death Valley?

Of course there are! There are lots of them! I found tons! But did I find a lot of songs about Death Valley that I liked?

It turns out I did. & you can listen to them tonight. Midnight to 2am on 90.7fm here in Portland & at kboo dot fm everywhere in the world - maybe even Death Valley!

* I am trying to be whimsical & have fun with my radio show but the news today about the blatant corruption at the very heart of our country has made it very difficult. There's nothing I can much do about it & the helpless feeling is debilitating but I will try to make a fun radio show regardless. Just letting you know.

Preface To Death Valley: Here's A Map

(image from here)

In case you get lost in Death Valley, here's a map.

How might one get lost in Death Valley? One might be chased off the highway, & the car breaks down, & it's late at night. Sometimes it gets cold in the desert at night! It's even colder when someone is chasing you.

It has been brought to my attention that map above is a map of the National Park, not all of Death Valley. So if you do get lost in Death Valley, make sure it's in the National Park. That way you have a handy map (provided above) to help you find your way.

How might one get lost in Death Valley National Park? One might think that, since it's a National Park, one will find many amenities like a water slide or a public pool & one might try to find them. That would be a mistake! There are no water slides in Death Valley National Park.

Good thing you have the map! There are snakes out there! & people chasing you off the road!

Coming Up Tomorrow On The Dickenbock Report: National Corvette Day

(image from here)

June 30 is National Corvette Day. Lovers of sports cars rejoice! Tune in to the Dickenbock Report on XRAY FM as we explore these American icons, featuring lots of musical reports, a movie review, & more. More means me talking.

Tomorrow! Sunday, June 30, noon to 1pm, on XRAY FM - 91.1+107.1fm & online at xray dot fm.

As an aside: do not loan your Corvette to Dick Dickenbock for the day. Previous Corvette Days have been a bit heartbreaking for such generous souls.

This Week In Self Help (June 23 25 + 26 2024)

(Pete is done for the night)

Another busy week making radio almost literally no one listens to! Let's start on Sunday!

The Dickenbock Report had a show for National Typewriter Day. Lots of songs with lots of typewriter sounds. Here is it on the XRAY page. You can also listen to it (& download it) on the Self Help Radio home page by clicking here. Use the username/password SHR/selfhelp to access - anything from the SHR website will need those, but I think only once per session.

Self Help Radio has a show about mangos. You can listen to that show by clicking here. Sadly, the KBOO website is still being wonky so you'll have to listen to it on the SHR page. I thought it was a fun show, & I can say with all honestly that I very much loved finding mango songs - & typewriter songs too!

Corporate Standardized Programming had another show featuring artists we've lost. Listen to that show by clicking here. It's a cheery one. I confess to liking the song "Ramblin' Man," tho, so it's got something for everyone. What?

Finally, I subbed Dr. Zomb's Stereo Obscura on Wednesday. I have not put that show's playlist on the Self Help Radio website yet - I like Self Help Radio episodes to be at the top & so I'll put the playlist up next Tuesday. But if you wanna see the playlist anyway, you will find it at the Spinitron site. & if you'd like to listen, I have uploaded it the SHR website & you can click here to hear.

& that's how I made six hours of radio this past week. Or not how. It's the six hours I made. "How" is "shabbily."

Self Help Radio 062524: Mangos

At last! A radio show about mangos. Someone texted me, "I can't bear how good a ripe mango is. I could eat way too much." If only a radio show could make someone feel the same way! It might have to be a show about mangos.

Please enjoy two hours of mango songs + silly guests & an even sillier live performance by a pair of "musicians." The show is at the Self Help Radio website. To access you will need a username - SHR - & a password. Most everything that happens on the show is noted below.

So yeah. It's mango time!

Self Help Radio Mango Show

"Mangos" Rosemary Clooney _The Essence Of Rosemary Clooney_

"Mango Vendor" Nina & Frederik _Nina & Frederik_

"Mango Song" Marty Robbins _Island Woman_

introduction & definitions

"Mango Time" Tony Bird _Sorry Africa_

"Mango Walk" The In-Crowd _Darker Than Blue: Soul From Jamdown 1973-1980_

"Mango Talk" Hari Kondabolu _Warn Your Relatives_

"Mango" Lindsey Mills with Handmade, Amigo _Stonefruit_

interview with fruit inspector Dr. Ian Waterson

"Mango Tree" Angus & Julia Stone _Memories Of An Old Friend_

"Underneath The Mango Tree" Calypso Rose _Calypso Rose_

"Mango Meat" Mandrill _Just Outside Of Town_

"Mango" Mawaan _Mango_

interview with Self Help Radio's favorite chef Ingrid West

"El Mango" Calibre 50 _Desde El Rancho_

"Hairy Mango" Jackie Opel _The Best Of Jackie Opel_

"Mango" Coupé Cloué _Maximum Compas From Haiti_

"Djeli Mango" Kante Manfila Vs Sorry Bamba _Clash Mandique_

interview with mango booster Ivan Wickersham

"Mangos & Rice" Hanni El Khatib _Savage Times_

"Mango Terrarium" Psychedelic Porn Crumpets _Shyga! The Sunlight Mound_

"Embrace The Sloppy Chaos Of The Mango" John Oliver _Last Week Tonight S11 E13_

"Mango Juice" Shonen Knife _Heavy Songs_

a mango taste test a performance by Ned Dry & Captain McCheese

"The Mango Song" Danny Carnahan & Robin Petrie _Cut & Run_

"Mango" The Orielles _Silver Dollar Moment_

"Julie Mangos" Tom Misch & Yussef Dayes _What Kinda Music_

"Mango Tree" Hugh Masekela _Siparia To Soweto_

conclusion & goodbye

"Orange & Mango" The Phoenix Foundation _Buffalo_

"Mango Tree" Aden _Topsiders_

"Mango" Highs _Highs_

Whither Mangos?

(image found here)

Yesterday I confessed that I (unlike most of the world) am not the biggest fan of the mango. I don't hate them - just don't enjoy the difficult process of eating them, & don't seek out mango in treats & entrees.

You may well ask then "Why do a show about mangos?" The answer is, because I live with a mango fiend. This fiend, my wife, prefers a specific kind of mango. They need to be dried. & they need to have some kind of sugar chili coating. She frickin loves dried mango. & I am often tasked to find the dried mango. There's none at Costco? Have you tried Trader Joe's? What about Natural Grocers? Okay, just get the stuff at Safeway that'll be fine.

When a person spends as much time as I have looking for mango, it naturally occurs to a person (if that person has a radio show) to perhaps maybe why not do a radio show about mangos? It is a beloved fruit the world over. & in my house, where my wife's love of mangos is enough for all of us.

Also, she said to me recently, "It's summer, make me more food with mango in it." I might've heard that as "make me a radio show about mangos."

It's happening tonight. Midnight to 2am. On 90.7fm in Portland, kboo dot fm everywhere.

Preface To Mangos: A Confession

(Poem by Amir Khusrow, found on Twitter)

It is with a kind of shame that I make this confession: I'm not all that fond of mangos.

It's true, I didn't grow up eating mangos. I barely grew up eating fresh fruit at all, as my family was very poor. But the first mango I had was probably in my twenties. & I was completely unprepared.

Oh I tried to be cool. But I made a mess. & it didn't seem to worth it.

Later on, I found I enjoyed it in meals I've made - from recipes of course - there's a black bean mango quinoa salad I enjoy as well as a Thai golden curry which uses mangos - but even then I use frozen mangos which I thaw because I have been repeatedly traumatized by the embarrassing attempts to properly peel a mango.

& yet here I am, making a radio show about mangos - why is that? I'll tell ya tomorrow.