Anne’s music is a beautiful blend of ambient, experimental, and modern classical styles. I was introduced to Anne’s through Soundwave guest deejay Peter van Cooten (listen to his mix here and here), host of Ambientblog and DreamScenes on Concertzender.
Anne Bakker
Based in the Netherlands, Anne Bakker is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer. Her music often incorporates field recordings, found sounds, and electronic elements to create unique and immersive soundscapes.
Anne has released several albums and EPs on labels such as Dronarivm, Whitelabrecs, and Rusted Tone Recordings. Her music has been described as “a delicate and hypnotic work that shines with an inner light” and “a moving and atmospheric experience.”
Many of the tracks in Anne’s mix feature minimalistic arrangements and slowly evolving textures, often exploring the sonic nuances of single notes or simple harmonic progressions. Using drones and sustained tones is also prevalent, creating a sense of sonic stasis or timelessness. Several pieces also feature acoustic instruments, such as piano, guitar, and strings, woven into the electronic soundscapes to create a delicate interplay between the organic and synthetic elements.
Join us next week when our guest deejay will be zaké.
I ask each guest to deejay who they know who would be interested in participating in the show with a mix. Harrold Roeland, who was a guest deejay on Soundwave back in December, suggested Peter. I’ve known about Ambientblog for years and have listened to many of Peter’s mixes on Mixcloud. I’m thankful that Harrold made the introduction because Peter’s mix is exceptional.
Peter’s Soundwave mix.
Mix is not the word for what Peter does on today’s show.
It’s more accurate to say that Peter composed a concept album masterfully weaved from a multitude of sampled material. Take a look at the “playlist” below to get an idea of the scope of today’s show. It’s a work of art you get to immerse yourself in for the next hour.
Peter’s mix, like all of his Ambientblog shows, is an experience. Follow Ambientblog on Mixcloud to hear more of his work.
I’ve included an excerpt about today’s show from Peter’s website below.
Today’s show is special because it’s also Soundwave’s one-year anniversary.
I launched Soundwave to help me cope with the stress and isolation of COVID-19.
This close to what we all hope is the finish line of the pandemic its easy to forget that we were all white-knuckling it for the first couple of months. Every day was filled with existential dread. Would this trip to the grocery store kill me or someone I love? It’s exhausting to live that way.
During that time, I could not watch tv or movies or listen to music because they were not speaking to the truth of our new reality. I’d watch a tv show and fret how there was no social distancing and why the cast wasn’t wearing masks. Pop music was particularly difficult to listen to because it was so painfully vapid. How am I supposed to enjoy a love song when I might be a patient or a vector in this pandemic?
The only music that I could tolerate and gave me solace was ambient, classical, experimental, and instrumental music. It was the soundtrack for my stay-at-home lockdown. And if I found some relief with this music, why not share it with others? Any why not ask people I respect to share their mixes?
I’m humbled by everyone’s gift of generosity of time and effort. We’re all going through this together, each in our way. I’m grateful that during this pandemic that each guest deejay lovingly crafted mixes to share with us.
My first vaccination shot.
Today’s show is also special because today, I also got my first shot for the COVID-19 vaccination.
I was shopping for groceries when the Mercy Plaza Pharmacy called me and told me they had extra doses. Could I stop by for a vaccination? Most definitely.
My cilantro stymied the woman who was ringing up my items at the grocery store: were they regular cilantro or organic? She was about to do a price check when I explained that I needed to get the hell out of there to be vaccinated. I didn’t care about the cilantro’s cost; ring me up so I can leave! She understood.
The folks at Mercy Plaza Pharmacy couldn’t be nicer. They’re a family-owned business, and the owner checked up on me after my shot to see how I was feeling. We talked about San Diego, Sacramento, and our kids. This is going to sound weird, but I had such a great time that I can’t wait to go back.
So here we are a year later. We’re almost at the finish line. Hopefully, next year, this will be behind us, and we can all enjoy each other’s company. I’m looking forward to meeting some of you in person. Maybe I’ll even get to meet Peter.
Join us next week when our guest deejay will be Michał Milczarek.
See you then!
Ambientblog album art.
It’s my honour to open the second year of this series with my contribution. Of course, we can only hope that the series will continue for musical reasons, not because of the pandemic.
Clicking through the list of contributions, you’ll find that most of them are what I call mixtape-style compilations: a head-tail-mix of (full) tracks. Traditionally, my (Ambientblog) mixes are different (which does not mean necessarily ‘better’, by the way) in that they incorporate many sampled parts of tracks (a full-length track is either an exception or a very short track itself), mixed in a layered collage-style. I always try to shuffle the collage’s fragments so that they seem to melt together and thus start telling a different story.
Whether this is successful or not can only be determined by the listener.
This mix is simply named after the podcast Soundwave. It is a happy coincidence that it literally starts with waves—sonically manipulated by Jos Smolders—and ends with the same waves morphing into the sound of a cheering crowd.
Different kinds of soundwaves are all around us, every moment. Sometimes we’re aware; most of the time, we are not. This mix (hopefully) shows that it can be rewarding to take a moment’s rest to really listen and let the sounds affect you.
Today’s guest deejay is Julie Carpenter, AKA Less Bells.
Several months ago, I did a deep dive on musicians on Bandcamp who explored ambient, classical, experimental, and instrumental music. Julie explores all those genres, so naturally, I invited her to join us on SOUNDWAVE. I expected to be surprised, but I didn’t expect how surprised by her mix. Dirty Projectors? Buddy Sainte-Marie? Big Star? What the hell?!? I’m not complaining. In fact, I’m delighted!
Speaking of delights, I urge you to go on your music streaming platform of choice and listen to Julie’s music. I’ve been listening to her albums constantly since first discovering her music, and I have a feeling you’ll do the same. Better yet, if you like what you hear, and you will, why not spend a few dollars on some of her songs or her albums. You can thank me later.
Julie will talk about her mix below.
I need to wrap this up because my wife will visit me for the next week and I need to tidy up around the house. The pandemic and work have kept us apart for months at a time. While I’m used to a solitary life, I don’t like being apart from her this long. But I have relapsed into my former bachelor ways and need to get things shipshape before she’s back in town.
Join us next week when our guest deejay will be Emil Zapffe, AKA João Guimarães.
See you then!
Julie Carpenter, AKA Less Bells
Putting together a coherent playlist makes me feel like I’m having a party and leaving some of my favorite guests standing outside in the cold. I start with way too many ideas and then eliminate the various contestants. This is how I write music, too. It isn’t until I’m done that I can see what I was trying to do. This list revealed itself as a collection of my favorite sound palettes.
I love music that makes me ask, “how on earth did they do that?” The whole Bitte Orca album from Dirty Projectors is a cabinet of wonders, but this is the crowning gem for me. They hung this beautiful melody on reversed swelling strings, and it’s sculptural.
The Clint Heidorn piece that follows has its own kind of dimensionality but pursues it through timbres. The way the sax, strings, guitar, and upright bass move together creates one gorgeous multi-faceted instrument.
Windy & Carl have such a deep body of work, it was hard to choose, but I love the little chimes that litter the winter landscape of “Snow Covers Everything.” Guitar and vocal sounds are their trademark, but it’s the attention to little sonic details that sets them apart.
“Sleep Walk” is a song I’ve loved my whole life because it’s one of those perfect melodies that embodies yearning and satisfaction in the same moment. Also, it’s got the best reverb.
Christina Vantzou’s piece that follows is from a completely different planet, but the dialogue between the elements she’s chosen is so subtle and warm. It’s a piece you can wrap up in.
The Books take us in yet another direction, a frantic scramble of chopped acoustic bits that comes together in an emotionally resonant way.
Buffy Sainte-Marie is a hero of mine in many ways, but I especially love Illuminations for her experimentation with processing. “Poppies” shows off her acrobatic voice in such a chilling atmosphere.
I debated putting “Kanga Roo” on this list as it’s such a well-known song, but it’s got so many elements that draw me in. It’s the ultimate beautiful mess: distortion clashing with strings, dissonance, and melody, timing fluid to the point of falling apart.
I closed out the playlist with “Queen of Crickets” from the most recent Less Bells album Mourning Jewelry because I feel like its one of our most successful experiments with texture. I loved bringing together the sound of a 120-year-old banjo with synthesizers and strings. In the end, it’s all just vibrations and how they move the listener.
Some months ago, Jason Engling was a guest deejay on SOUNDWAVE (you can hear his mix here). After Jason’s show I asked who he thought might be interested in contributing to SOUNDWAVE, and he recommended Steve.
I’ve been a fan of Jason’s music since discovering him through my electronic music show, solipsistic NATION. If Jason recommended Steve, then as far as I was concerned, it was a done deal. I’m not disappointed with Steve’s mix, and neither will you. It’s a thing of beauty. It’s also a perfect way to wind down four years of a corrupt and inept presidency and an attempted coup. Whew!
Steve has some words about his mix below.
I want to note that Steve included a lovely track from Brian Eno. That’s not anything remarkable, given that Eno practically invented the ambient genre. What is impressive is that Eno pitch-shifted his voice, creating a vocoder-like effect. I usually hate that sort of thing, but Eno being Eno, the song gave me goosebumps. And when I looked over Steve’s playlist and saw that the track was by Eno, I thought to m myself, “That makes sense.”I thank Steve for introducing me to an Eno track I had not heard before.
W. David Oliphant’s Remote Listening: Rag Dun vs Life Garden album
Before we get to Steve, I want to share with you the latest release from W. David Oliphant, who guest deejayed on SOUNDWAVE in September. The album is called Remote Listening: Rag Dun vs Life Garden. Oliphant describes remote listening as “the practice of seeking impressions about a distant or unseen target, purportedly ‘sensing’ with the mind.” Like everything else I’ve heard from Oliphant, his music is stepping into someone’s fever dream.
Join us next week when our guest deejay will be Ishmael Cormack.
See you then!
Steve Swartz
I don’t know anyone who escaped the intense gravity of 2020. In addition to a pandemic, this year also saw the unexpected passing of my father. A loss I’m still trying to process. I’ve spent a great deal of time contemplating death, disease, and division over the last several months. Music has always been my primary outlet of expression. As a result, I made a lot of music in 2020. (Four releases!) But as I land on the other side of them, I find myself increasingly feeling lost and out of place. I am often daydreaming about being somewhere else and unreachable. This sense has carried over into my music listening habits as well. I’ve desired quieter sounds that feel less tethered to a place or time. Fewer words. More feeling. To, perhaps, communicate something words cannot yet find. And that is what I have found in these songs over the last several months. To me, each of these pieces feels like rivers that drift or breeze stirring trees in a geography I would prefer to dwell. So I sit in these songs and let them fill my house throughout the days and evenings until, hopefully, I embody the spirit of their imagined origins.
Today’s guest deejay is Fitz Gitler, and he has a beautiful mix to ease us into 2021.
I met Fitz when I asked Jason Randall Smith (listen to Jason’s mix here) who he knew would be interested in sharing a mix on SOUNDWAVE. Jason did not steer me wrong. Fitz is a musician, deejay, and designs sounds for theatrical productions, many of those in collaboration with director Tim Lee. He also creates under the name Techniken Defunkus or Techdef.
I’m particularly fond of this mix because it was the perfect soundtrack for an eight-hour wintery drive to Sacramento last week. Fitz’s mix had my tapping out rhythms on my steering wheel and grooving in my seat. Don’t be lulled by some of the jazz standards because there are plenty of surprises. More than once, I found myself scrambling to purchase albums featured on Fitz’s mix. As I write this I’m listening to Dan Tepfer’s album, Goldberg Variations/Variations, which is a delight.
Join us next week when our guest deejay will be Pavlo Storonsky AKA Tineidae.
See you then!
Fitz Gitler Photo credit: Cyndi Shattuck
Twenty years ago, I met Jason Randall Smith behind the decks in a tiny bar in New York’s East Village, and music forged our friendship. I’m honored to be in his company and the full cast of mixes that Joseph has artfully assembled.
Jason and I were thrown together by our friend, EL Soundscraper, who I’ve known since junior high, but fortuitously reconnected with because of our shared love of music. Enrique (Soundscraper) called my tracks meditation music—not the sound, but because of how it functioned for me. This mix I created for SOUNDWAVE does that; it’s a sort of spirit guide through the insomniac thoughts of the small hours, and a kind of requiem too. This year has had no shortage of tragedy; there’s enough to go around.
I already loved music in college, but then I met Bill Hileman, aka Ronin Tengu, aka DJ Payce, aka Gandalf Punk. He gave me his world: hip hop, techno, ambient, jungle, acid jazz, funk, plenty of mischief, and more. He passed last month, too young, taken by cancer, not COVID. Bill is with me in every mix, laughing and needling me to keep searching. Too few experienced his true wealth of knowledge and love, but he influenced many, and his spirit lives on in his musical descendants.
It falls somewhere among the worlds of jazz and electronic music, but really it’s a sound design of sorts. I’m still exploring the loose idea “free-format” that I first witnessed in the middle of the night on college radio in the early ‘90s.
Sadly Supercontext is now defunct although Christian and co-host Charlie Bennet still release a monthly podcast for Patreon supporters where they chat about the media they’ve been consuming. I highly recommend you go through their archives and listen to shows you think might strike your fancy.
I respect Christian and Charlie’s taste in music and invited them to guest deejay on SOUNDWAVE. Christian has delivered a mix that ranges from prog to math to dirge rock with a dollop of hip hop. Not your usual SOUNDWAVE fare but for me, at least, it was the perfect soundtrack to this week. 300,000+ dead from COIVD-19 and a President and his supporters who seemingly want to upend democracy. Christian’s mix is the blast of sound and fury I needed to propel me though the week.
Special thanks go out to Taylor Shechet for sequencing this week’s mix. Christian didn’t have the original tracks and when I offered to assemble the mix GarageBand refused to import the audio files. Taylor did me a solid by putting the mix together. And if you love today’s show then you’re definitely going to love Taylor’s mix for SOUNDWAVE that I’ll release in the next month or so.
CORRIDOR Magazine
Before I go, I want to mention that Christian and David Moore are launching a project called CORRIDOR Magazine, a new horror magazine bringing the weird worlds of short fiction, art, comics, and essays together under one roof. I’m helping fund it and so should you if this sort of thing is your bag.
Jonathan Ammon’s American Splendor album
I also wanted to share Jonathan Ammons’s new release, “Living Proof,” from his forthcoming album, American Splendor. I’m looking forward to the album. If you want to hear more music from Jonathan, listen to his mix for SOUNDWAVE here.
Harold Budd
Lastly, some sad news. Ambient composer Harold Budd died December 7. Just the day before I was listening to The Pearl, an album he recorded with Brian Eno, the day before he passed and was thinking how much I enjoyed his music. Harold was a pioneer in ambient music. He will be missed and my condolences go out to his family and friends.
And on that somber note, it’s time for me to say goodbye.
Join us next week when our guest deejay will be Harrold Roeland.
This week our guest deejay is Joel Shearer, an international and highly regarded session and touring musician, composer and producer based in Los Angeles, CA.
I met Joel through Carmen Rizzo when he was our guest deejay back back in July (check out Carmen’s mix here). Carmen’s mix was beautiful and as is my wont I asked Carmen who he knew personally that would be interested in participating in the show and he recommended Joel. I can’t thank Carmen enough for introducing me to Joel because we very much need to hear Joel’s mix.
If you’re new to SOUNDWAVE then you should know that I launched the show to help cope with the isolation of stress of COVID-19 and the stay at home orders back in March. The only thing that gave me solace was ambient, classical, instrumental and experimental music and I decided to share what I was listening to whoever else might need to hear it as well.
Here we are nine months later in the second wave of COVID-19 infections and deaths. It's going entirely as predicted. What I don’t think think anyone could have predicted is the absolute magnitude of our current administrations ineptness at handling the pandemic. Several vaccines to combat the virus have been developed at astounding speed. That's breathtaking. Equally breathtaking is that instead of the 300 million doses the administration had promised before the end of the year the plan is now to only distribute 35 to 40 million doses. We’re at the beginning of a second wave with over 288,000 deaths and there’s finally a light at the end of the tunnel except that light is being blocked by an administration that seems to go out if its way to bungle the distribution of the vaccines.
When I began SOUNDWAVE there is no way I could have predicted these infuriating and crazy making responses to the pandemic by our current administration, which is why I, and maybe you, need to take comfort in Joel’s mix. It's exactly the kind of succor we need. I’m Listening to Joel’s mix as I write this and I find myself wrapping it around me like a cherished and well worn coat to keep me warm in the winter.
Joel has some words to share about today’s mix below but before we get to that I wanted let you know that guest deejay Robert Rich has released his new album, Neurogenesis, earlier this week.
Robert Rich’s Neurogenesis album
I’ve been listening to Robert’s music since last century when I heard I discovered him on the From Here To Tranquility Volume 2 compilation album. I later interviewed him and when I featured his live set on solipsistic NATION. I had the pleasure of finally meeting Robert face-to-face (at a safe and respectable six foot distance, of course) this summer while I was in Northern California and Robert was kind enough to play me a few tracks from Neurogenesis in his studio.
Robert started recording Neurogenesis in Spring of 2019 inspired by a lucid dream. Robert says Neurogenesis expresses optimism about the potential for human consciousness. At the start of pandemic lockdown in March he stopped working on Neurogenesis to record Offering to the Morning Fog because listeners were asking for something calm. He got back to work on Neurogenesis in June, and finished in late October. I’ve been listening to Neurogenesis all week and I’m glad Robert is able to share his album with the world.
You can hear more music from Robert in his mix for SOUNDWAVE here.
Join us next week when our guest deejay will be Christian Sager.
See you then!
Let’s hear from Joel about today's mix.
Joel Shearer
This playlist is intended to turn folks onto new music from known and unknown ambient artists.
Today on SOUNDWAVE our guest deejay is n5MD recording artist, Daniel McCagh. I’ll talk about Daniel’s mix shortly but first let me tell you about the election that just took place in the U.S.
As I write this Joe Biden has been declared the president-elect of the United States. The vice president-elect is Kamala Harris is the first Indian-American, the first African-American, and the first female vice president in U.S. history. It is so long overdue that someone like Harris becomes a vice president that it took a while for me to recognize the significance of this accomplishment. This should have been the norm a very long time ago. Of course a woman should be a vice president. Of course a woman of color should be vice president. There shouldn’t be anything remarkable about this at all. But here we are at long last.
Here in San Diego the mood is ebullient. There are motorcades, the honking of horns and cheering. You can feel the difference; the joy and the relief. After four years of mendacity, racism, cruelty and incompetence we are ready for a change.
SOUNDWAVE was created as a coping mechanism to the isolation and stress of COVID-19. President Trump and his administration bungled the management of the crisis of COVID-19 so badly that they contributed to the spread of the virus. So badly, in fact, that the Trump administration effectively gave up. I can only hope that Biden’s administration will reign in the virus and accelerate a cure. As Americans we need to get back to our lives and loved ones and we need an economy that will work for everyone.
I’m not naive. I know this presidency will disappoint and outrage me as all other presidencies have in the past. But at least it will be a normal disappointment and outrage and not that nauseating horror show I’ve had to endure for the last four years.
Let’s take a break from politics.
Planet Boelex’s new album, Connect
Planet Boelex is a previous guest deejay on SOUNDWAVE and he has just released and new album called Connect. It’s about as beautiful as you’d expect and you can find it on Bandcamp for the very affordable price of $7.
Want more of Planet Boelex? You can listen to his mix for SOUNDWAVE here or listen to his live set for solipsistic NATION here.
Daniel McCagh
Okay, let’s talk about our guest deejay, Daniel McCagh.
Daniel describes his mix as a collection of some favourite tunes both beautiful and sometimes uncomfortable for deep and immersive listening. It’s the kind of soundscape that’s perfect for the rare rainy day we’re having this weekend in San Diego. After you are done listening to Daniel’s mix you will know that you have just experienced something profound and that you will need time to process it.
Daniel’s mix comes to us by way of Mike Cadoo, the founder of n5MD. I interviewed Mike and featured music from his label on solipsistic NATION some years ago. When I launched SOUNDWAVE I reached out to Mike to do a mix for a show. Mike was busy at the time but suggested that Daniel put together a mix for SOUNDWAVE. Great idea, Mike. Oh, and I still want you to do a mix of your own when time permits.
Daniel McCagh is an electronic music producer and sound artist currently residing in Melbourne, Australia. Daniel uses acoustic instruments and digital manipulation to create powerful emotive and cinematic music. Daniel is also the sole composer and sound designer behind Gutterbox Audio, having composed music and designed sound for global companies such as Polestar, Huawei, Acura and Volkswagen.
You’re in good hands. Enjoy today’s mix!
Join us next week when we’ll listen to a mix featuring Cryo Chamber recording artist Paleowolf.
Today’s guest deejay is Jonathan Ammons, a journalist, radio producer, and musician living in Asheville, North Carolina. You can find his music on Bandcamp and listen to his radio show from WPVM and Pacifica Radio Network at the Dirty Spoon.
Jonathan is yet another amazing person I was introduced to through my old friend, Steve Howard (listen to Steven’s SOUNDWAVE mix here). Meeting Jonathan is one of the unexpected pleasures in the evolution of SOUNDWAVE.
I launched SOUNDWAVE to help cope with the stress of the pandemic. In the first few months of COVID-19 it seemed that stepping outside your house might kill you. If that wasn’t terrifying enough, my family was scattered about the country so for a long time it was just me and my dog. That took a toll on me and my usual distractions, music, reading and television, could not hold my interest at all. In fact, they annoyed me or angered me. The only thing that provided any comfort was ambient, classical, experimental and instrumental music. I reasoned that if that music was giving me solace it might help others as well so I launched SOUNDWAVE. Very soon afterwards I decided to invite the talented people I know who might enjoy or, more importantly, need to share a mix of their own. And that very quickly led to asking my friends who they knew personally who might want to participate in the show. That decision introduced me to such wonderful people as Adrian Utley, Hannah Peel, Charles Hazlewood and Jonathan.
I don’t really know Jonathan, though. We’ve just had a few email exchanges arranging today’s show but through his mix I feel I know him more intimately than I might know him through a dozen conversations. That’s all projection, of course, but that is the power of music. It bypasses the rational and hits on emotional truths, which is why I launched SOUNDWAVE in the first place.
Back in 2016 there were a series of forest fires that broke out throughout Western North Carolina, surrounding my home in Asheville. The air was thick with smoke, and a perpetual haze fell over everything. It just so happened that it fell right on the heels of a devastating national election, and for a moment, it truly felt like the whole world was on fire.
I had just started spending time with a very lovely lady, and I asked her one night if she’d like to go watch the mountains burn.So I threw some camping chairs in the truck, grabbed a camera and a bottle of Champagne, and we headed out to the center of the fires.
There’s a strange feeling when you sit and watch your home burn to the ground. Halloween orange glowing from every hilltop, brick red clouds in the night sky. Knowing that everything would grow back eventually, but that the sights you grew up seeing would be permanently scarred. The world would be better, maybe even healthier than it was before, but it would take a lot of ash and rubble to get there.
I started making my first ambient LP — First Sight — during those fires. At the time, my office was on my screened in porch, and I could sit while I composed and watch ash fall from the sky. I like to think that much of my approach to the way I currently make music came from that experience.
I remember calling a friend one day, and saying, “you know how I’ve been complaining a lot about that knot in my stomach that wouldn’t go away? I think I finally figured out what that is. I think it’s despair. I just think it’s the first time I’ve ever felt it. Ithink I just didn’t realize it because it doesn’t feels as hopeless as I would have thought.”
From that point on, I was able to see the fragile, delicate things that fall apart, and not feel the overwhelming sense of loss I had initially felt. Instead, I understood it to be a burning of the dross, a disposal of things that were unnecessary. When a fire burns, after all, it makes way for far better things than grew there before. Sometimes you just have to let it burn.
I like to think of this mix as songs from the fire. Pieces of music that are as devastating as they are restorative. A little hazy, a little bleary, but beautiful in their own right. There are three original compositions in the mix, the first and last are from an as of yet unreleased record (this is actually their debut). The other, “Open Eyes”, is from my new album First Sight. The rest of the mix runs a gamut between crumbling organic sounds and stark synthesis. Ian William Craig actually wrote his new and beautiful record while also being surrounded by forest fires, Goldmund delivers gorgeous ambient versions of old Civil War era songs, and Oliver Patrice Weder delivers the most thoughtful, pensive piano performance… music to watch the world end. My favorite kind.
On today’s SOUNDWAVE our guest deejay is Hannah Peel! I’ll tell you why I am so excited to have her on today’s show shortly.
I just got back from traveling to Chicago for a vacation. I love that city and each time I go to there the more I want to move there. Granted, we went there just before fall, which is the best time to visit Chicago. It was neither hot and humid or wet and frigid.
I got to spend time with my brother and sister-in-law, run to the lakeshore and watch the sunrise, and bike around the city but overall it was an eating vacation. I live near Los Angeles so my expectations for superior restaurants is high. Chicago surpasses those expectations. You simply can’t get a bad meal in that city. The restaurant that served the best meals was The Purple Pig but our favorite dining experience was Podhalanka. We met Greg, the owner, who made us feel welcome and ordered our meals for us and each dish was delicious. Greg clearly loves what he does and he cares deeply that you are well fed.
But I’m not here to talk about what I did on my vacation. I’m here to tell you that I’m grateful that I was able to spend time with family and friends. I hadn’t realized how much I needed a vacation until we landed in O’Hare. Usually it takes me a day or two to unwind but I instantly relaxed the moment we arrived. And I’m also grateful for our vacation because it gave me some time to process a lot of my thoughts and feelings regarding COVID-19 and how to lead my life going forward. I’m not going to go into the details here but what I will share with you is that COVID-19 has brought into sharp relief that our time on this planet is short and we could leave it at any moment. The last few months I’ve met many people who have I opened up and shared their deepest thoughts with me. And why not? Now’s the time to do it. And like a lot of people, I’ve been reevaluating my life and what I want to do with it during the time I have remaining. Despite the anxiety of COVID-19 I’m also excited about the possibilities that lie before all of us.
I began SOUNDWAVE to help cope with the stress of the pandemic but over the last half year my relationship to COVID-19 has changed dramatically. I hope it has for you as well. Carpe diem.
Let’s get to today’s show, shall we?
As I mentioned above, our guest deejay is Hannah Peel.
Until a few weeks ago I wasn’t familiar with Hannah and had only become acquainted with her when I asked SOUNDWAVE guest deejay, Charles Hazlewood, who he knew personally that might be interested in sharing a mix on the show. Charles put me in contact with Portishead’s Adrian Utley and Hannah Peel. Adrian’s mix was lovely and Hannah’s mix is no less so.
On today’s show Hannah will take you to some very surprising places and she begins her mix with a track from Joni Mitchel. So unexpected! You’re in her capable hands so enjoy the journey. I know you’re going to love today’s show.
As I said, I was unfamiliar with Hannah but I’ve been getting up to speed. And you should, too, because Hannah’s music is also unexpected. Her songs can be delicate and achingly familiar. She’’ll paint impressionistic music with swathes of sound but will also delight you with covers of pop songs from the ‘80s performed on music boxes. I catch myself singing Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love” constantly thanks to Hannah.
Join us again next week when our guest deejay will be Jonathan Ammons.
