Nope, not a new episode (hassle Conrad here) , but for those of you hungry for more Black Sand episodes, head over to the old blog for links to six episodes from 2005!

Check it out!

We're back at last with a new episode...Greg from Time Machine Records came by with a clutch of private press lps - some xian (& krishna) folk, what sounds like a smacked out Hendrix tribute, and lots more...despite the convoluted process of cueing up songs without the dj mixer (somehow it took all three of us), the whole thing came together pretty well, and only went 20 minutes over time...if you don't see a playlist down there, it's because I haven't made it yet... hope you dig it...

Lots of proper names this time: Dennis Olivieri, Freddy Lindquist, David Welsh, Steve Hayes, John Wonderling, Viva La Musica (with a nutso version of "Popcorn"), Right Of Little Rest, etc.

Greg is feeling a little under the weather, so we didn't record a show the other night...I figured I shouldn't leave you guys high & dry, so here's a repeat of the Halloween show from way back in aught five...long time listeners - or folks that have the Black Sand Archives Vol. 1 - have probably heard this (John & Troels, I'm looking in your direction)...But if not, prepare for a journey back in time, to the creepy and annoying basement studios of WXOJ-LP...

We'll be back soon with a new episode, promise...

Playlist

Jesus, we weren't really planning to take the summer & part of the
fall off, but we've been kinda busy over here, I guess. Let's see,
last show was in June, then there was the Festival Of Endless Gratitude up
in Brattleboro VT, held in honor of BS listener extraordinaire,
Troels. Conrad & I both did double duty; I played as Red
Favorite & with Sephiroth, Conrad with Tarp & Sunburned. It was
great to meet Troels finally, and an awesome way to spend my
birthday (belated presents are welcome). Check out some pics here. I think there's some more of Conrad in there somewhere to add to your collection, desktop wallpaper, etc. Cappy was also in The Wire a couple or three issues back, dude is everywhere!

Then, I don't really remember what happened...oh yeah, Conrad's
turntable belt broke, and as far as I know he still hasn't bought a
new one...busy doing photo shoots I guess...so the next show should
be sometime this weekend, special guest will be Greg from Time Machine Records,
the record store we've been plugging on the show last couple times
out. Greg was a guest on Black Sand back in the VFR days (shudder),
and brought some ridiculous sides, this time should be no
different. That Merv Griffin LSD track still haunts my dreams...

So, that's about it...here's a shot of the lovely wood paneled
Black Sand studio (where all the magic happens), and the record
"wall of shame".

Another tightly paced episode of Black Sand...I think this one runs about 2 hours & 20 minutes, most of it spent trying to pronounce "Swlabr". But if you don't have anything better to do with your time, here's your ticket....

Artists: The Smack, Hero, Alain Markusfeld, Blo, Phillipe Besombes, The Spikedrivers, The Medium etc.
Playlist

An episode with a message: don't do everything rock stars tell you to. I know I learned something, maybe you will too...

Artists: Art Fleury (pictured), Baby Grandmothers, Saddhu Brand, Witch, Incredible Hog, etc.

Playlist

Back with another dose of B.S...I know I promised to fix the playlist links last time, but I promise a lot of things. Might as well get used to being disappointed for now...just listen to our detailed and accurate descriptions in between sets for all the relevant info...

Artists: Zarpa, Horton, People's Victory Orchestra & Chorus, Deuter, Alceu Valenca, etc.

...the playlist links that is. Not sure how it happened, but it looks like the Red Favorite domain name (the website where I stored all the playlists) might have expired, and was possibly purchased by a reseller. Or I might just be an idiot. Either way, I'll have it straightened out soonish, but until then, no playlists. Time to huff some spray paint & forget about the whole thing...

NOTE: THIS EPISODE IS NOW OFFLINE

OK, here's the first episode recorded in my home studio, and things went surprisingly well, despite Conrad almost knocking his beer into his lap while ejecting a cd (twice)....gotta say it does feel weird not giving out the phone number or having to do station i.d.'s , but the positive benefits of doing the show at home are becoming readily apparent ....*belch*...

Artists: Joe Rosanova & The Vineyard (pictured), Besombes/Rizet, Vulcan, Maximillian, Butterfingers, Nurt, The Peace,etc.

Playlist

Wha? Back already? Last show at Valley Free Radio...next episode will be recorded at my house, where there is little to no contact with wingnuts & power trips. Anybody interested in why VFR will probably bite the dust soon is invited to read this article from the Hampshire Gazette (which seems to have disappeared from the internet). Personally, I think Kathy deserves to win. Disagreeing with a person's ideas (or motives for that matter) isn't racist & it never will be. Despite the sincerity and good intentions of many people involved in the station, there is something very...off...about the whole venture, and it was starting to make me & Conrad kind of edgy. He even took a swipe at my head at one point.

So fuck that shit, here's the last one from VFR. As Cappy would say, some solid action from: The Feed-Back, Seompi, Homer, A Decada, The Trees, Sky Saxon + Universal Stars Peace Band, etc.

Playlist

NOTE: THIS EPISODE IS NOW OFFLINE...
It's been a while, huh? VFR has been having a hard time keeping itself on the air - last episode was actually not broadcast at all, but we weren't alerted to this until a full hour & a half into it. Which kind of speaks volumes about our listenership(?) and VFR in general....I decided the stuff I played last time was too good to be lost to the ether, so here it is...nothing Christmas related this time around (except some grotesque military ads), but I haven't bought presents for anyone yet either, so fuggit.

Artists: Walter Franco, Art Boys Collection, Boots, Heitkotter, Green, etc.

Playlist

Thought today might be a good time to post the Halloween episode, being Thanksgiving and all. For those who don't know about this most American holiday, Thanksgiving is a day when we show our appreciation for the things we have by disemboweling a baby, ripping the intestines out through a fist sized hole in the bowel region. The guts are replaced with a mixture of bread, onions & spices. It is then cooked until the skin turns crispy, and the blood and juices are used to make gravy. Wait, did I say baby? I meant turkey. I always get those mixed up.

Playlist

Suppose you're all wondering what happened to the Halloween show, huh? No? Well it didn't record, OK? Are you happy now?

Anyhow, back on track with this episode...this was a good one, despite having to edit back in portions that got screwed up mid-broadcast (Radio Shack makes some cheap-ass cable). Next episode might be the last one at VFR - we're thinking of doing it at my pad from now on, which should bring a new dimension to the show...

Artists: Osage Tribe (pictured), Rabble, I Teoremi, Moolah, Samuel Prody, Piel De Pueblo, etc.

Playlist

Writing this through the fog of last night's post-show "festivities", so not much to say here...but a pretty spaced out episode in general that kinda tests the confines of what the show is about, which is always a good thing. It also insures my good standing in Valley Free Radio's "Free Form Collective". Beautiful.

Artists: Marconi Notaro (pictured),Arica, Proyecto A, Association (no, not that one), Fanny Adams, Bernard Estardy, Om, etc.

Playlist

Another episode of Black Sand is listened to by absolutely no one in our vicinity. Thank Christ for the intranet...felt pretty good about the show afterwards, except for the left channel dropping out a couple of times (I got some cable problems). Cap played Sir Lord Baltimore and Paternoster. What is it, my birthday or something?

Artists: Joakim Skogsberg (pictured),Freedom's Children, Warlord, New Dawn, Byron Black, Tabaco, Brazda Brothers, Crazy People, etc.

Playlist

Holy living fuck! Looks as though I can say with a certain amount of conviction that we are finally broadcasting in stereo! Dedicated listeners may find this new "stereophonic" sound a bit disorienting (& psychedelic) at first, but soon tons of things will be in stereo. Time to get with the program, pops!

Artists: Fire, Water & Air(pictured), Condello, Amphyrite, Gläns Över Sjö & Strand, Oddmenn, November & the oddly subversive pop stylings of Contact.

Playlist

OK, turntables working again, nothing could possibly go wrong, right? Wrong. Wrong? Yes. Accidentally recorded the show on the smallest drive in my computer, therefore cutting off the last 20 minutes or so of the show. Luckily, most of it was Lard Free's 17 minute "Spirale Malax", so I just tacked it on the end from my CD. But yeah, if you're wondering why I stop talking abruptly, that's why. Some parts are a tiny bit fuzzy as well, due to bad reception, but not unlistenable. Fascinating!

Thanks to our new corporate sponsor: Coca-Cola!

Artists: Braen's Machine (pictured), Orriel Smith, Too Much, Earthen Vessel, Peter Kaukonen, Ora,etc.

Playlist

It seems like I just did the last one, but Vol.5 of the archives is ready to go. This one spans a pretty long period of time, due to our July slackfest: 4/25/06 - 8/2/06. Features the handsome Jura Havidic & the very stoned Miljenko Balic of Fire on the cover, but no Emil. Sorry pal. $5.00 ppd in US, and a reminder that it's MP3s, not some miracle cd that plays for 12 hours, OK?

This week's thrilling episode: The mystery of the broken turntables is solved when Conrad makes a shocking confession!

Artists: Underground Failure, Federal Duck, Egor, Charlie & Esdor, Crystals, East Of Eden, etc.

Playlist

Back from vacation to discover some VFR dj (presumably with "skillz") had busted up both turntables...much on-air griping ensues, not to mention a bunch of technical goofs (check out the studio computer's contribution at the 1:25:00 mark). Great to be back!

Artists: Dwarr, Marconi Notaro, Supersister, Cruciferius, Assim Assado, Feather Da Gamba, Fremont's Group, The New Folk,etc.

Playlist

Must be summer, the repeats keep coming...we had to take the second week in a row off, cause Conrock was playing a show...we'll be back next week with a new theme song (well, kind of), and a recap of the last real episode, just to get everything back in order. Here's the old description of this show (first aired 11/8/05):

We arrive "completely sober" (as required by our beloved FCC) to find the studio in a scandalous state of back rubbing & booze swilling. And who knew the couch could fold out into a bed? Turns out it was VFR guy Tristan's birthday party, which I actually knew about but forgot. Anyway, the festive atmosphere must have lent something special to the show, cause this was a good one. I'd like to think we rocked the party, but I'm pretty sure they turned it down after the opening Night Sun/Baumstam 1-2 punch. So we stole the tap.

Artistes: Coloured Balls, Paternoster, Los Speakers, Paraphenalia, Cool Stove, etc.

Playlist

Yeah, eagles can cry, bet you didn't know that...

This is our first ever repeat, as Cappy & I will be checking out Zodiac Mountain over at the Flywheel...James & Clay of the Zodiacs/Wooden Wand/Davenport/etc. are two of our faithful listeners, swelling the ranks to...I dunno, four? Another of this elite group is John Shaw, who provided me with this recording from way back in November of last year. As you can probably hear, the sound quality is not up to the usual standard, it sounds like the studio compressor was cranked up or something - it was also recorded off of the VFR webstream, which usually means dropouts & skipping, but I went through the whole 2 hours & hopefully fixed everything. I had thought this episode was lost forever (see the old blog entry) , so big thanks to John, and congrats on his high score, which is audible at the top of the second hour...

Artists: Hairy Chapter, West Coast Workshop, Speed Glue & Shinki, Pax, Red Noise, and a great song about "a town called L.S.D." by Stu Mitchell.

Playlist

P.S. Oh yeah, happy Independence Day.

Guess what, it's Conrad's birthday! Why don't you drop him a line in the comments section or something? Hah? C'mon, do it!

Uh, anyway, another fine episode, unburdened by listener expectations - a good amount of hard rock, a set of Brazilian singles & some talk about pie...we go further than ever before to try & get folks to call in, but no such luck. Considering moving to a podcast only format soon, any thoughts? Anybody?

Artists: Charlies (pictured), Lobby Loyde, Pao Com Manteiga, Sleepy John, Alrune Rod, and the delightfully named Slut. And so on.

Playlist

NOTE: THIS EPISODE IS NOW OFFLINE. GET IT HERE.

Who would have thought today would be so boring? With 100 years of prep time, I figured the Satanists out there would pull something really sick out of their pointy hats, but no such luck (?). Really dull time in the studio as well, no callers, no nothin'. But a fine show nonetheless, with the first 20 minutes dedicated to the dark lord himself (Conrad).

Sacrificed upon the altar: Ugly Custard (pictured), Gomorrha, Tool Shed, Madrigal, Mazhar Ve Fuat, Elli, etc.

Playlist

Ok, ok, so I know this has been done to death already, but how could I not? I mean, it's Volume 4 (my favorite Sabbath album), it already said "Black Sa...", and the last time I was on an album cover was "Look At Yourself" (cheers to Ken & the lads for that). Plus, I thought our faithful listeners from out of state/country might like to put a face with the voices they hear every week - that's Conrad on the right - anyway, $5.00 for 6 shows spanning 2/7/06 - 4/11/06, you know the rest...

NOTE: THIS EPISODE IS NOW OFFLINE. GET IT HERE.

It's fundraising week at VFR - check out our completely botched attempt to raise some green for the station...my vaguely threatening "we want cash" technique combined with Conrad's inability to remember what station we're on resulted in zero calls, but hey, we tried. Maybe if we were really offering those hemp diaper bags as a premium it might have helped.

Can anyone tell me what the hell is going on with this cover?

Artists: El Reloj (pictured), Steeplechase, Fort Mudge Memorial Dump, Might Of Coincidence, Pierrot Lunaire, Edip Akbayram & Dostlar, Crystalaugur, and, uh, Bachman Turner Overdrive.

Playlist