Archive for the 'Music' Category

• Tagline : What’s On, What To Do And What Not To Do In The Greatest City On Earth!
• Website : This Week in London
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• Parental Rating : 15
• Star Rating : 8 out of 10

Although I’ve been living in Canada for 7 years and now call it my home, London will always be a big part of my life. Even now I still get a buzz watching the TV and seeing famous London landmarks that you just take for granted, until they are no longer part of your everyday life. So when I heard Paul Parkinson, Editor of Podcast User Magazine and creator of The Flashing 12 podcast, was doing a podcast on London, I was there quicker than you can say Pie & Mash (a delicacy mostly found in the East End of London, which is where I’m originally from).

I’ve been a listener of the Flashing 12 podcast for 6 months or so and while I do enjoy it, I much prefer the more laid back style of the London show, where it feels much more the case of someone storytelling and openly enthusing, but with more focus. Admittedly the podcast is only on it’s third show, but I really hope Paul pushes forward, as London is such an rich and endless supply of material. Paul also tries to feature a song with a London connection, and so far has picked out some great ones, even though the connection can at times be very tenuous, but hey good music, is good music.

I realise that I’m being greedy, but I’d love to hear some soundseeing tours, full of the everyday noise of London. I’ve already made a suggestion, a tour a Pi and Mash shop, but I just hope he doesn’t rub it in too much, as I haven’t had any for 5 years and I could murder it sometimes.

Conclusion : Early days yet, but full of great potential and in fact great content already. Whether your a Londoner, Travelling to London or just interested, a great podcast.

• Tagline : Your Free Music Daily
• Website : Indieish
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• Parental Rating : 15
• Star Rating : 8 out of 10

If music be the food of love, the Indieish podcast is a good candidate for starter, main course or dessert. So as you can probably now guess, this is a podcast all about music. Not only is it all about music, it itself is all music. Published usually about 5 times a week, this podcast is only as long as the single track that’s featured, which can vary from 2 minutes, to the recently featured 13 minute masterpiece from Simon Slator. Each week a different person selects the tracks to feature, which means you get a pretty diverse spectrum of music from many different genres.

The joy with this podcast is that it’s very easy to digest, being on the whole relatively short. I have to admit, there’s been a lot of music that, is most certainly not to my taste, but there’s also been a few absolute diamonds that have prompted me to investigate further and review on Indie Launchpad. At least if there’s something you don’t like, you just hit the stop button and that’s that. No need to worry about finding the end of the track by skipping and getting in a pickle. I’m pretty much on the fence with regard to having no host. Yes it’s nice to get straight into the music, but if you are away from your computer, you’ll have no way of knowing what the music was without going back to your computer and reading the podcast entry…. mmm maybe if I paid more attention I might have noticed if the ID3 tags had this information.

Conclusion : A real gem of a podcast and indeed I would love to see this idea expanded on, having separate podcasts for specific genres. Definitely check it out.

• Tagline : 12 Songs Every Week, All for Free
• Website : Next Big Hit
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• Parental Rating : 15
• Star Rating : 9 out of 10

As the tag line says, 12 songs every week and some absolute crackers amongst them too. Occasionally you get a song repeated from week to week, as if it’s been voted as the previous weeks best, it gets to return the following week, a bit like Jeopardy and those old game shows in the 70’s. As for musical tastes, this is definitely targeted at a younger audience, I’d guess from about fourteen to around the mid twenties, but suffice to say there is still a lot of music featured that crosses those predefined ages. I’ve listened to Next Big Hit for around a year now and found some absolutely phenomenal artists to review in Indie Launchpad.

The parental rating is set at 15, as on the whole, this is a pretty radio friendly podcast. Occasionally however some of the tracks can feature material that is more suitable for older audiences, but nothing most 15 year old kids don’t hear in the playground everyday.

A special mention has to go to DJ Copperhead. I’m sure he won’t mind me saying that his presentation is just like a countdown chart show on the radio, but a little less cheesy. He also features interviews and other snippets to break up the music a bit, which goes to make a pretty well rounded podcast. Also available is the Next Big Hit B-Side podcast, which provides extended coverage of some artists, with interviews and also some artists that are not featured in the regular podcast, giving you around and hour, to an hour and a half of podcast each week.

Conclusion : An excellent slice of what’s new in the indie music scene, featuring a lot of new artists and also quite a few more well established acts.

• Tagline : Radio Free Radio
• Website : Digital Flotsam
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• Parental Rating : 15
• Star Rating : 8.5 out of 10

To some people he’s Adam Curry’s satellite repair man, to some Uncle Jessie an to some just plain old P-Dub. P W Fenton is the producer extraordinaire, for the podshow empire, but lest not forget he’s also the man responsible for the podcast Digital Floatsam.

I’ve been listening to this podcast for about a year now. Whilst not the most regular of podcasts, it’s certainly one of the most enjoyable. I’m sure P-Dub won’t mind me saying he’s a man who’s experienced life, being a former policeman in Florida. He’s also one of those rare breeds of people who can tell a good story, whilst captivating an audience. Just last week his show was titled “Beauty and the Beat” detailing his experience working with rookie cops and in this show in particular a Lesbian cop (Not that there’s anything wrong with that), showing her the ropes, so to speak. I was in the garden, mowing the lawn, listening to this episode and I have to say, I nearly laughed out loud a few times. I certainly had a big smile on my face for the majority of it.

There’s also some great music featured, although this isn’t a music podcast. The music is used as a kind of segway between segments. A special shout out goes to 3 Blind Mice, a favorite band of Indie Launchpad, who provide the Digital Flotsam theme.

So yes this is a terrific podcast, but one of the key things that makes this podcast a joy to listen to, is P-Dub’s voice. There’s something very reassuring about it. I’m sure he won’t mind me saying it’s like listening to yout Grandad telling stories. Captivating and very engaging.

Conclusion : If you enjoy a good yarn, interspersed with a smattering of music, there is no finer podcast.

• Tagline : A Musicomedy Podcast
• Website : Kaflooey
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• Genre : Comedy / Drama / Music
• Parental Rating : 18
• Star Rating : 8.5 out of 10

What do you get if you cross theatrics, music and good old fashioned, in your face comedy. Why Kaflooey of course. This is what podcasts were made for. It’s highly unlikely you’d find this sort of entertainment on the radio and I think that is to podcasts benefit, as there is a hungry market wanting to be entertained and given an excuse to smile.

Kaflooey is an interesting mix of music and an ensemble cast of highly entertaining characters. There’s Rupert Thespian, he’s an ACTOR luvvey you know, and a quintessential plummy Englishman; Vinny, the American hoodlum, has a mouth straight from the gutters of Brooklyn and Bobby Gofigure, stars, advice and a whole plethora of utter drivel, but entertaining drivel nonetheless.

Based in Blackpool, UK, Chris Sherry the shows creator, must surely have previous experience of radio or something, as the presentation and production is top notch. On average the show comes out every few weeks and lasts around 30-40 minutes. With that kind of frequency I would much prefer a show around the hour mark, as it’s highly entertaining stuff.

Conclusion : Very entertaining, even if the language is a little on the blue side at times. A great find and a great example of a non music oriented podcast.

• Tagline : PC Podcast with Pete Cogle
• Website : PC Podcast
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• Parental Rating : G
• Star Rating : 9 out of 10

If ever there was a more misleading title for a podcast this would have to be it. The PC here has nothing to do with computers and everything to do with music. Actually the PC refers to Pete Cogle, the host of this absolutely amazing music podcast, who’s based in Sussex I think it is, in the south east of England. Of all the music podcasts I listen to, this would surely have to cover the most eclectic range of music, even more eclectic than my very own Indie Launchpad podcast and that’s saying something.

As with every other good music podcast, the secret is not just having an eclectic and indeed excellent range of music, it’s also having a first rate host, which I’m happy to say fits Pete Cogle to a T. I’ve been listening to this podcast for about 4 months now and have found many wonderful bands and artists, I haven’t heard anywhere else. It’s all very well covering the popular favorites, but there’s nothing that gives a greater buzz than finding a new artist and one that totally rocks.

Sound and production quality isn’t something I’ve covered much in podcast reviews, but I just wanted to mention here that it’s obvious Pete has spent a good deal of time, honing the quality of his show. It would be very interesting to see if this is something he managed to get right early on, or whether it’s something he’s perfected over time.

Conclusion : Even if you can ignore the music (and I don’t think you can), listening to Pete is a sheer pleasure. Surely one of the top music podcast, out there in the podosphere.

• Tagline : Best Podsafe Music… In The Galaxy!
• Website : Binary StarCast
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• Parental Rating : 18
• Star Rating : 9 out of 10

Music podcasts are great and usually follow the single presenter format, showcasing some of the best music.. in their opinion. Indeed this is exactly the format of our very own Indie Launchpad Podcast. Whilst these shows are predominately about the music, the single presenter format can be occasionally dry, which is why the Binary StarCast is like a breath of fresh air.

Before going any further, let me first give the caveat that this is a podcast intended for a strictly adult audience. Most of this is because our hosts Ed, Hank and Carlos use the kind of language you would be more used to hearing at the docks. Not that I’m a prude, but you probably wouldn’t want your young children picking up new words for use in the playground. You also might want to steer clear of playing this on the works P.A. system. Anyway enough of this, as with all music shows, it’s all about the music baby.

Each show is around the 30 minute mark, managing to squeeze in 5 tracks from different artists. The podcast is so far up to episode 27, and I have to say in all that time, I’ve not like about 5% of the music, which is a pretty good. In fact I’ve been put on to numerous bands which I’ve later reviewed on our Indie Launchpad review site.

Conclusion : One of the few music podcasts that makes for essential listening, but not just for the music. The inane ramblings of our hosts, makes for some great entertainment.

• Tagline : PodQuiz is a weekly trivia quiz podcast.
• Website : PodQuiz
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• Keywords : quiz, discussion, music
• Parental Rating : 12
• Star Rating : 9 out of 10

This is one of those podcasts I look forward to each week. A perfectly crafted podcast, consisting of 4 rounds of 5 questions, with a 5th prize winning bonus round every 10 episodes. Running at between 15 to 20 minutes, I try to hold the quiz over to the weekend and take it home to play with the wife. We usually listen on a Saturday morning over breakfast

Always starting with a music round, this is probably the round I enjoy most, but it’s also the round that is sometimes most infuriating. You know what it’s like when the answer is on the tip of your tongue, but you just can’t get it and then you have to move onto the next question.

Every 10th show, our host James throws in a bonus round, where you have a chance to win a T-shirt. Yes you could look the answers up on the Internet, but where’s the fun in that.

Conclusion : I love this show. It comes out once a week and is the perfect length. With a new song featured every week between the questions and answers, I can’t recommend this enough. Go on, give your gray matter a work out.

• Tagline : Showcasing some of the best in independent music.
• Website : Indie Launchpad Podcast
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• Keywords : music, discussion
• Parental Rating : 12
• Star Rating : Sister Site

Indie Launchpad was created around the same time as Podcast Launchpad and was designed with a similar purpose in mind, to showcase some of the best in independent music. The missing piece of Indie Launchpad, the podcast was launched in January and has been steadily creating a loyal listener base.

The podcast tries to hang around the 25-30 minute mark and covers 4 bands/artists that were previously reviewed in the main Indie Launchpad site. There is also the occasional fifth track that is something I’ve heard and had to play, this has included so far a tracks from the Weepies, Joe Strummer and Lesley Gore.

Admittedly the vocal sound quality is a bit up and down, but it’s the music after all that everyone is interested in. That being said, once the new equipment comes in, everything should be hunky dory.

Be sure to check it out and let me know what you think at podcast@indielaunchpad.com.

• Tagline : Recorded live from the last frontier
• Website : Alaska Podshow
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• Keywords : music, discussion
• Parental Rating : 12
• Star Rating : 8 out of 10

More excellent music, a great host and a most unusual location. Yes, this podcast comes at you from Alaska, the land of snow, moose and strange people. OK, so maybe I’ve been watching too much Northern Exposure, but there’s no denying that this is a great podcast, that will hopefully enlighten you on this little known area of the USA.

There’s such a nice homely atmosphere about this podcast and a lot of that comes from the host Scott Slone, whom I’d be highly surprised if he’s never done radio as he has a great personality that shines through in what he does.

The music on the whole is great. The only problem I have is with some of the weekend show’s that can ramble a bit, or feature music that is not to my taste, but as is the way with podcasts, if you don’t like something you just move on to the next. With any show of this kind, you are never going to please all of the people, all of the time, but pleasing them most of the time is quite an achievement in itself.

Conclusion : This is a great podcsat for finding new music and one I shall be subscribed to for a while to come.