Some FEATURED ARTISTS on this week’s Stronger Than Dirt (Saturday, May 30, 8-10pm) include Love, Hobbits, Wire, The Beat (UK), Joe “King” Carrasco, Hazel O’Connor, Stereolab, Cheater Slicks, Hyperbubble, lots of new music as well as the weekly Dusty Diamond.
COVER ART OF THE WEEK: The (English) Beat are a British ska revival band that came to prominence in the late 70s with other “2 Tone” bands like the Specials and Selecter. Formed in 1978 they disbanded in 1983, and then two different versions of the band reformed in the early 00s, one fronted by vocalist and guitarist Dave Wakeling, and one by vocalist Ranking Roger (RIP). Their first album, “I Just Can’t Stop It,” was released in May 1980 on Go-Feet Records and reached number 3 on the UK album charts. While the cover design is uncredited, the Beat-Girl icon on the cover and used in their merchandising was designed by Birmingham based cartoonist Hunt Emerson.
DUSTY DIAMOND OF THE WEEK (a vintage gem from the STD vaults): The Lost Sounds were a garage-y synth punk band from Memphis that were fronted by the prolific and multi-instrumentalist Jay Lindsey. They formed in 1999 and disbanded in 2005, and in that time released several albums and singles. “Heart Felt Toys” is a dark, pounding rocker that mixes Lindsey’s manic vocal delivery with poppier choral refrains. It appeared in 2001 on their second album “Black Wave” on Empty Records. Listen to it here:
Promo art from the Cheater Slicks’ 1995 “Don’t Like You” album on In the Red Records. Design by Art Chantry and photo by Galen Palmer.