May 27 - A Freak Egg
Diggin on the musical magic... That's what it's all about here at Free Kick Central as Montreal enjoys some early summer weather and contemplates a smoke-free future for its bars & bistros. So relax in your hammock, sip your favourite cool drink and listen to last Saturday's show again. Here are the download links:

link expired!

Or save disk space by streaming the show from the CKUT archives: it began at 21:02 and sort of ended around 23:08 (though Shawn stuck around to fill in for a no-show until midnight while I went out on the town - thanks Shawn!).

As a bonus, allow me to point you also to a new, free internet-only EP of covers & live tunes from the ever-adorable Deerhoof, offered via their website.

Next Free Kick show: Saturday June 10, from 9-11 eastern time, on CKUT 90.3 FM. And if you're in Montreal, don't forget to check out the fabulous Suoni Per Il Popolo festival during the month of June, including none other than the Sun Ra Arkestra under the direction of Marshall Allen on Tuesday June 6 at the Salla Rossa!

Dave

Long weekend-a-rootie!
Here's wishing our Canadian readers a pleasant Victoria Day/Fete des patriotes weekend... and, I thought I would alert you to a new page with some touristic photos of Memphis and the Ponderosa Stomp over on freekick.ca.

stay cool, cats!
Dave

May 13 - Return of the Memphis Train
Actually, I flew in & out of Memphis last week. You know, it wasn't the current goings-on in that city (aside from the three nights of musical insanity at the Ponderosa Stomp which were the main reason for the trip) that really hit me, but just being in a place where so many great artists cooked up so much incredible music years ago. While they still exist in some form, Beale St - reconstructed as a cheesy tourist trap, way overpriced! - Stax, Sun, WDIA, etc. are more monuments to this past than vital cultural forces today (well, I should mention that Stax does operate a music school as well as a musem). There's still plenty of good barbecue though!

If you go, I advise you to peruse the Kreature Komforts Lowlife Guide to Memphis first. Rule #1: Bring or rent a car! And of course, despite my offhand remarks, there is some culture going on there: check the Memphis Flyer for listings.

Inspired by my trip, the first part of last Saturday's show was a tribute to the music of Memphis. As usual, Shawn contributed some cool eclectic sounds to keep the freeform vibe happening. My other set was devoted to some selections from Sun Ra, whose "arrival day" is coming up on May 22 (his arrival year, by the way, is listed as 1914). The Sun Ra Arkestra under the direction of Marshall Allen is actually coming to Montreal for the Suoni Per Il Popolo festival on June 6 - and I command you to go get your ticket soon! I guarantee you won't regret it.

• Here's a link to a video of the Sun Ra Arkestra on Saturday Night Live way back in the day (once again, courtesy of WFMU's Beware of the Blog site). I remember watching that show - I was just a baby, of course - a total mind#%$^#!

Next show is May 27, 9 - 11 pm eastern, on CKUT 90.3 FM. Bye till then...
Dave

April 29 - Feeding a Spring Fever
Hi folks, did any of you listen to the show last Saturday? It was a beautiful spring evening here in Montreal, so I don't really blame you if you ran outdoors & left the radio behind...

I thought some pretty good stuff popped up in this show, including my all-time favourite tv show theme song, courtesy of Shawn! You can look at the playlist over on freekick.ca to see the tunes we played (I also put in some links to further information about the music & musicians).

News flash: You can now download any & all of the Free Kick shows (in medium quality 64 kbps format, about 50 MB) directly from our playlists page!

Next show is on Saturday May 13 on CKUT 90.3 FM from 9 - 11 pm eastern time. I'll be freshly back from a little holiday at the Ponderosa Stomp in Memphis, so I may have some tales & new tunes to share. Catch you then.

Dave