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WNYC's Coverage of the Democratic National Convention
Live performances in Soundcheck's studios
Studio 360: How Animals Communicate with Each Other
Selected Shorts featuring "The Trouble of Marcie Flint," by John Cheever
Radio Rookies: Brooklyn Broadcast Workshop
On the Media: Challenging Convention
Street Shots Challenge
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A still from the Kurt Cobain documentary "About a Son"
Cobain on Cobain
Thirteen years after his death, Kurt Cobain talks about drugs, his childhood and the future of his band Nirvana. Today on Soundcheck: the new documentary "Kurt Cobain: About a Son," created from 25 hours of interviews with the tragic music icon. Later in the show, punk legends The Mekons celebrate their 30th anniversary. And the Brooklyn-based indie-pop band My Teenage Stride performs live in the studio.
About a Son
The journalist Michael Azerrad conducted 25 hours of late-night interviews with alt-rock hero Kurt Cobain for a biography published prior to the singer's 1994 suicide. Thirteen years later, Azerrad has revisited the tapes for the documentary "Kurt Cobain: About a Son," in which Cobain narrates the story of his life over images of three cities that shaped him. We talk with Azerrad and the documentary's director, A.J. Schnack.
The Mekons
Founded in Leeds, England, in 1977, the British rock band The Mekons have outlived the Clash, the Sex Pistols, and just about every other act from the first-wave punk era. Their sound and lineup has morphed over the years, but the group’s indie credentials and cult following have remained intact. The Mekons drop by Soundcheck to talk about their 30th anniversary.
My Teenage Stride
The jangly guitars on My Teenage Stride’s latest album, "Ears Like Golden Bats," suggest an intricate knowledge of top-shelf new wave groups like the Smiths, the Go-Betweens and the Chills. Led by songwriter and guitarist Jedediah Smith, the Brooklyn-based group performs live in the Soundcheck studio.
My Teenage Stride web site
Video: Watch "That Should Stand for Something" video
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Soundcheck Smackdown: When Contemporary Met Classical
Soundcheck
Like vegetables stuck into a delicious meal, contemporary classical music is forced on concert audiences before they are allowed to enjoy their Brahms. So says humorist, critic and author Joe Queenan. Today, Queenan and John Berry, Artistic Director with English National Opera, join us for a Soundcheck Smackdown debate on the merits of contemporary music.
- Comments [25]
You Are What You Hear
Soundcheck
Washington Post reporter Paul Farhi takes us through some of the most famously botched song lyrics in rock history. We’ll explore why the words we make up are usually more interesting than the real version. Then, listeners confess their favorite and most embarrassing reinvented lyrics.
Leave a comment: Give us your favorite set of misheard lyrics! Were you disappointed when you learned the actual words?
- Comments [113]
Rosanne Cash and Mark O'Connor
Soundcheck
For her, he was a father. For him, he was a boyhood hero. For the nation, he was an icon. Singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash and composer and violinist Mark O'Connor join us to talk about how Johnny Cash has inspired their musical collaboration. And they will play live.
- Comments [1]
Soundcheck's Summer Song Poll
Soundcheck
Every year, popular and critical opinion somehow converge to settle on a "summer song." In 2007, it was Rihanna's "Umbrella." The year before, it was "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley. The practice stretches back to the very dawn of pop radio. Yet defining the essence of a "summer song" is a bit elusive. We enlist the help of Blender editor at large Lizzy Goodman -- and of our Soundcheck listeners, in an online poll.
Cast your vote: Soundcheck's Summer Song Poll 2008
Can't decide? Check out audio and video clips of the contestants here.
Our blog: John Schaefer asks what makes a good summer song,
- Comments [18]
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