“New Jersey” (Used 12 times)

A little over a year ago, WFMU featured Smersh -- "NJ's Prolific Legends of the Cassette Underground" -- to coincide with the release of the Smersh Library Sampler -- 15 tracks recorded between 1983 and 1994.

Working out of a Piscataway basement full of seemingly endless musical toys and creative inspiration, beat studio guru Mike Mangino and vocalist Chris Shepard wrote & recorded one song every week dating back to 1979. So this sampler was just scratching the surface of Smersh's tremendous and influential output, which ranged from industrial to pop to electronic to noise and earned them a cult following all over the world.

Mike has recently made some of the Smersh catalog available again through his Mirandette Popular label, along with newer electronic works by artists including The Dirty Outlet and Andrew Mascardi. From the label website: "M-Pop Recordings is a really, really small music label. We're so small we're almost microscopic. Contact us for our latest catalog."

This week, M-Pop announced the newest Smersh compilation is here: We Like To Be Listened includes five tracks that were also part of the Smersh Library Sampler (below) along with 15 more gems culled from Smersh's vast output. A personal favorite is the outtake of "Sweet Little Bishop," a bizarro-world Michael Jackson sorta sick jam which was the first Smersh recording I ever heard (via 7" on Börft), but really every track is a hit and if you like these sounds, you will like listening to We Like To Be Listened.

With one free Creative Commons song every Monday for well over a year now, Bad Panda Records has introduced us to an incredible range of musicians from all over the world, sometimes even from our own backyards.

Delicate Steve is the solo recording project of Steve Marion, a 23-year-old from Fredon, New Jersey, deep in the forestry alongside the Delaware Water Gap. His debut album Wondervisions shines with instrumental rhythmic, melodic, and textural ideas -- "Butterfly" offers a glimpse. Wondervisions was recently given a proper release via David Byrne's Luaka Bop label, where Delicate Steve fits nicely among international superheroes like Os Mutantes and globally-minded sound-absorbing young folk like Javelin.

Delicate Steve recently blossomed into a 5-piece for a string of live dates with Akron/Family (they're on the west coast right now -- tourdates here). I had the chance to catch a live set during SXSW, and they do a great job bringing the album to vibrant life, allowing Steve to focus on dishing out his trademark liquid smooth guitar runs. They told me that Delicate Steve has also been jamming on some new ideas as a band, so keep an ear out!

Oh! and speaking of Bad Panda Records, their first-ever vinyl LP release is out now from Dumbo Gets Mad (BP#49), also available for a free download in exchange for a tweet -- here's a track off Elephants at the Door:

From their basement headquarters in Fayetteville, Arkansas, the psychedelic rock band Voyageurs explore new worlds through sound. Voyageurs recently joined the Free Music Archive with three full albums:

Voyageurs also tipped us off to White Moon Recordings, a label specializing in a range of home-recorded music -- mostly rock with some folk and electronic sounds in the mix. It's a freeform approach that WMR founder Waylon admits is inspired in part by WFMU. Waylon is based in Lake Butler, Florida, where he records solo and as Waylon Thornton and the Heavy Hands, a duo with his wife Meg. They've got a real Cramps-y swamp-rawk vibe goin on in the fuzzed out Goner blues-punk vein, while some of the solo stuff reminds me more of the breezy lo-fi pop coming out of the Bay Area these days -- artists like the Fresh & Onlys, Sonny & The Sonsets, the backporch folk phase John Dwyer had as OCS (pre-"Oh Sees").

Dig into the White Moon discography at FMA and the WMR tumblr for more by these artists and a range of musically diverse yet somehow likeminded fellow sound travelers, including Toms River New Jersey's own fuzz-pop duo Ba Babes!

From the surface, Julian Lynch's submerged pop betrays Ridgewood NJ roots, but his unique folk stylings are as much about timbre as melody and rhythm. Maybe this depth can be traced to studies in ethnomusicology (he's currently pursuing a PhD at University of Wisconsin-Madison), or to influences that range from the Cocteau Twins to Kadri Gopalnath.

While in town for a few rare NY-area performances this winter break, Julian Lynch made his WFMU debut with a special acoustic set on Talk's Cheap. He was joined by Ian of Big Troubles on bass, and Brody of Family Portrait on electric guitar & synth. Julian brought along his new 12-string acoustic, which he swapped for an effect-laden clarinet (á la the aforementioned Karnatic saxophonist Gopalnath) on the last drone piece.

That untitled track is unreleased, as are "Back," and "Terra" (Terra will be the title of Julian Lynch's 3rd LP). "Nen Vole" is available on a 7'' / "Born2Run" cdr combo from Brody's Underwater Peoples imprint (who've released a great smattering of Julian Lynch recordings, including a split with Ducktails, a fellow Ridgewood native and frequent collaborator). The original version of "Just Enough" opens up Mare, the latest of two 12'' LPs available from Olde English Spelling Bee. All of these releases plus a handful of cdr's can be found in various formats here. Also check the Space Mountain tumblr, where Julian occasionally sneaks in some mp3s of his own material.

Julian Lynch is back in Wisconsin for the spring semester, but he'll be touring Europe this summer, including a stop at the Primavera Sound Festival in May.

With all the High School Musical, Glee, talent reality shows, and packaged poplets saturating the mainstream media, it almost becomes unfathomable to imagine a teenager creating sophisticated experimental yet melodic compositions these days. Thankfully, Henry Hynes exists.

Not only does this 16-year-old kid play drums in the great NJ band Home Blitz, but he writes great songs, and also volunteers for the FMA from time to time.

Henry recently released a great CD called "The Portal" (Cryptic Carousel), full of home recordings from 2006-2010, and it's been getting a lot of play on WFMU lately. You can check out a sampling of songs from the album here on the FMA. The tunes veer from lo-fi pop to dreamy experimental ramblings and concrete departures, all catchy in a strange otherworldly way.

If you dig Henry's music, I hear he's looking to release some on vinyl...