Listening Room

Labor Day Vignettes

Date: September 1, 2006

LISTEN (opens 5.7 MB mp3 file in new window.)

Description: Latino USA did a call to their producers for sound snapshots of Latino laborers for their Labor Day show. In light of the immigration debate,  they wanted to show the range of work that Latinos do. They attracted stories representing a graffiti artist/gallery owner, a housing lawyer, a business man, a teacher, a domestic worker, a filmmaker, and mine,  on composer Guillermo Galindo.

I saw the crazy contraption he built with his Meet the Composer grant and I thought it would make for a fun, sound-rich story. It just so happens that he was "going to work" to perform live at KFJC during their record swap. I wanted to show that although artists look like they're having a lot of fun, they are also very hard workers and Guillermo helped bring that point home.

Broadcast History:
Latino USA on September 1, 2006

La Plebe Tours Eastern Europe

Date: June 2006

LISTEN (Downloads a 8.1MB MP3 file.)

Description: La Plebe is one of my favorite local bands. They're one of my favorite bands, period! Their love for people and music is infectious and their fans actually DANCE at shows!

A little myspace promo on their part led to me learning about several similarities between Eastern Europe and Mexico, surprisingly, including a relationship between Yugoslavia and Mexico back in the 1950s!

I created one version for Dailysonic while the band was still on tour; another for Latino USA after the band returned; and since LUSA cut the Yu-Mex connection, I produced a "director's cut" linked above, which will be licensed by KTUH through PRX.

I loved getting to know the band, learning more about Eastern Europe, and becoming intimate with their song lyrics!

Broadcast History :
  NPR's Latino USA
  DailySonic: Music Spotlight
  KTUH (director's cut)  

The Rambler

Date: October 18, 2001

LISTEN (opens 2.7 MB mp3 file in new window.)

Description: Tina Gordon embodies rock'n'roll. In light of all the music venues being shut down in 2001, she wanted to build a mobile rock unit, the Rambler. And several people backed her idea, performing for fundraisers and volunteering to buildout the van.

Broadcast History: Radio Seugue, KUSF

5 Song EP

Date: January 1, 2002

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Description: I didn't know how to respond after 9/11, but the community around me built on existing infrastructure to quickly support the soon to be scapegoated Muslim American community and demand a peaceful response to the 9/11 destruction.

I captured these responses including the dance community raising funds for South Asian victims of hate crimes, a peace vigil in Japantown's Peace Plaza, and a Walk of Shame to the consulate of several Asian countries for buying into Bush's war on terror.

Collaboration: Because of the controversial issues this piece raises about forms of patriotism, I really wanted to be able to share the work in a gathered community rather than in isolation through radio. Dhamaal's Janaka helped me hook up with their video crew and Kyle Burrows/Skip Intro helped me create figurative moving images to accompany my audio.

We made a master track with color and movement, which Skip Intro then would use to mix in other video sources in a live "jam" for an improvised element to the screening.

Broadcast History :
Private airing on New Year's Day 2002
Radio Segue, KUSF
Morning Show, KPFA
APEX, KPFA
Post-Day of Remembrance screening (Living Room)
Los Angeles Asian Pacific American Film and Video Festival 2002 (Visual Communications)
Color of Patriotism 2002 (Locus Arts)
Chicago Asian American Showcase 2003 (FAAIM)

Soundtrack to a(n) (R)Evolution

Date: September, 2001

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Description: In preparation for a zinester reading put on by KSW and Locus, I created a personal audio piece based on my journal writing. Bob helped me pull together images i could show in a timed slide show to accompany the piece, which was mixed with music. What resulted was a powerful piece. After the reading, someone encouraged me to drop it all into some video editing and with Paul's help, the video premiered at KSW's APAture. And it links to my existing body of work online.

Collaboration: Kearny Street Workshop and Locus Arts for inviting me to the reading, Paul Jaffe for help making the video, and KSW's APAture for accepting it into APAture.

Broadcast History :
Zine-licious (KSW and Locus)
APAture 2001 (KSW)
Women of Color Film Festival 2002 (UCB)
PinoisePop 8, 2003 (Bindlestiff)

Shots in the Dark

Date: July 16, 2001

LISTEN (opens 7.9 MB mp3 file in new window.)

Description: This is a feature about a gallery show put together by a bunch of photographers on the sf_indie list. The show had six photographers with their photos of live music shows.

Broadcast History: Radio Segue, KUSF

Kimo's Shutdown

Date: April 26, 2001

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Description: The dotcom boom affected everyone and when neighbor complaints threatened to shutdown Kimo's, Josh asked me to cover it.

Broadcast History: Radio Segue, KUSF

Mates of State

Date: December 2000

LISTEN (opens 10.8 MB mp3 file in new window.)

Description: This is the piece where I turned lemons into lemonade. In trying to reach Mates of State's label to do set up an interview, I wrote to the entire sf_indie list. Total faux pas. But in doing so, Josh Wilson from Radio Segue checked out the Samiam interview and asked if I wanted to join the team.

Collaborators: I think Jeanne Acceturo misses being on the radio. She's friends with Mates of State and used to DJ, so I thought she'd be a great collaborator on this interview!

Broadcast History: Radio Segue, KUSF

Cover to Cover

Date interviewed: December 21, 2000

LISTEN (opens 8.4 MB mp3 file in new window.)

Description: As San Francisco's changing economy trickled down to musicians and artists as well as local residents, the Popular Noise Foundation formed to respond to the needs of local musicians. To raise funds, this non-profit organization started a benefit called Cover to Cover.

This was a fun show where local bands covered songs originated by other local bands!

I still hadn't learned the art of producing stories, so this is a long piece mostly with Sheetal from PNF.

Broadcast History: Radio Segue, KUSF

Samiam

Date: October 1, 2000

LISTEN
(opens 5.0MB mp3 file in new window.)

Description: This is the piece that launched the independent producing Nonogirl. After buying all my studio gear (minidisc, mic, G4 processor) Redband fired me. So I took off to NXNW with a little help from Samir and found out that Samiam was still rockin' it!

Broadcast History : I think this only "aired" on Nonogirl Radio