Song of the Day

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May 24, 2024

The Cuckoos: “Dirty Pictures”

By: Jack Anderson

If you mainly draw inspiration from older generations, after taking a lengthy break, you may find that the needle on your tastes has moved forward in time too. At least that’s what we’re seeing unfold with Austin project The Cuckoos.

Ostensibly the one-man band (who also operates as a four-piece) of flock leader/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/producer Ken Frost, The Cuckoos have historically nestled around classic rock, psych, and funk. But after flying off in a near half-decade-long songwriting hiatus, The Cuckoos have recently come home to roost in the best way possible – with a touch of New Wave.

Ahead of their next record (produced by KUTX Favorite Chris “Frenchie” Smith), this morning The Cuckoos clocked in somewhere between Soft Cell and Depeche Mode with “Dirty Pictures”. “Dirty Pictures” goes face to face with the ’80s aesthetic with four-to-the-floor drums, raunchy guitar, salacious synth stabs, arousing lyrics with moody vocals, and a snapshot sound effect that’d make Duran Duran nod knowingly. A lot of producers might say “don’t go crazy” with a new sonic direction…but c’mon Ken…if you keep going cuckoo for the flashback stuff, you sure won’t rustle our feathers.


Episodes

June 4, 2024

Meggan Carney: “Ketchup”

Despite the already-blistering temps down here in Texas, Summer doesn’t officially start for another couple weeks. And with exactly one month to go until Independence Day, Hot Dog Season is coming up quick too. But you can’t have hot dogs without ketchup, right? Well, we’re set to have plenty of ketchup on deck over the […]

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June 3, 2024

om la lună: “Pescărușii zboară (Seagulls Fly)”

We rarely get to bask in the music of The Balkans, so there’s never a bad opportunity to toss the spotlight over to Romania. There’s a language barrier to the lyrics, no doubt, but the actual sounds are often familiar enough to make them plenty accessible to Westerners. Case in point: om la lună, which […]

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May 31, 2024

lluvii: “Up All Night”

As one of the southernmost states to neighbor Latin America, it’s no big surprise that Texas is home to loads of great Latin music. But what really catches us off guard is the abundance of infectious Afrobeat energy right here in Austin. And if we put Latin Psych on the same spectrum as Afrobeat, you […]

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May 29, 2024

Babe & The Crystals: “The Way You Love Me”

Sometimes all you need to reignite a long dormant project is just revamping the name. Well…that and maybe a brush with death for good measure. At least that’s what recently rekindled the creativity for Nashville four-piece Babe & The Crystals, who first started out a decade back under the handle Kid Freud. Kid Freud called […]

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May 29, 2024

Sean Austin: “Mercy” (Remix) (feat. Lion Heights)

The rapid rate of single rollouts in hip-hop have really made us take remixes for granted. Because when it’s as simple as revisiting the beat, rewriting a verse, and inviting in a few new voices, “I like the remix better” becomes a given with pretty much any commercial success. Which is a shame, since remixes […]

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May 28, 2024

Lavender Scare: “I Hate Saturdays”

Pride Month kicks off in just a few days, and to help you celebrate in style, we’re swirling the colors with a rising Queer project. And that’s Lavender Scare, whose midcentury reference of a band handle alone tips you off to their championing of LGBTQ identities. Chief songwriter Ruby Del Mar commands the quartet with […]

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May 27, 2024

Cara Van Thorn: “Rage”

Lookin’ to rage this Memorial Day? Well we’ve got something that you might not’ve expected but’ll definitely do the trick. And that’s in reference to Austin’s Cara Van Thorn, initially born from Donkey Island ex-pats Adam Donovan and Carrie Stephens who continue to spearhead what is now a six-person wagon train. Since Fall 2019, this […]

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May 24, 2024

The Cuckoos: “Dirty Pictures”

If you mainly draw inspiration from older generations, after taking a lengthy break, you may find that the needle on your tastes has moved forward in time too. At least that’s what we’re seeing unfold with Austin project The Cuckoos. Ostensibly the one-man band (who also operates as a four-piece) of flock leader/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/producer Ken Frost, […]

Listen