Howdy!

Happiest of holidays

It’s been a while…welcome to the fourth installment of TRIPLE BERRY BLOB, put together by new Editor Paige Cromley!!

I’m WPRB’s new Listener Services Director, which means I’ll be the one sending out TBB. With every issue, I’ll keep you updated on all things WPRB, from specialty programming to studio updates.

In this issue, information about upcoming shows (including Jon Solomon’s WORLD FAMOUS 25 HOUR CHRISTMAS MARATHON), a DJ’s favorite holiday recipe, and a tribute to the studio’s now-destroyed ceiling.

Thanks for subscribing, and happy holidays from your favorite freeform station!!

THANK YOU FOR AN AMAZING FALL (QUIET) DRIVE

Thank you so much to everyone who participated in our annual Fall Quiet Drive!! It’s your support and generosity that allows WPRB to survive and thrive, keeping freeform programming alive!!

Welcome to the roughly 120 new ~station members~ who signed up as recurring supporters.

Missed your chance to donate but still want to make an end-of-year gift and reap that juicy tax deduction? Make a pledge below 🙂

Jon Solomon’s 25-HOUR Holiday Radio Show

5:00 PM December 24- 6:00 PM December 25

Don’t miss Jon Solomon’s 33rd holiday marathon! You’ll hear well over 300 WPRB-style holiday songs with ZERO REPEATS and Christmas stories recorded by bands, artists, comedians, and fellow DJs hourly. Audience favorite segments include the All-Ramones inspired set starting at 12:34 am ET sharp, the All-Misfits-inspired set at 1:38 am and pm, and Snaildartha: The Story of Jerry the Christmas Snail!

Email jon@wprb.com if you have any songs you want to hear!

Viva 21st Century 50/50 24-hour Marathon with Marvin Rosen

10:00 AM December 30- 10:00 AM Dec 31

Marvin Rosen, host of the ASCAP award winning program “Classical Discoveries” will be presenting his 17th, 24 hour hosted marathon totally devoted to music from the 21st Century. It will feature the works of roughly 100 different composers from all over the world, with an approximate equal representation of men and women composers.

Uneasy Listening w/ Commie Francis

Uneasy Listening is taking over the airwaves 6-11pm Christmas Day and New Year’s Day with some special programming:

December 25, 6-8pm Songs about and containing bells and human/electronic-made bell sounds

December 25, 8-11pm Commie Francis’ favorite songs of 2021 (probably not all of them)

January 1, 6-8pm Songs about NEW BEGINNINGS

January 1, 8-11pm The traditional Uneasy Listening year ending/year beginning show – one song for every show topic in the past year

Have a biz or non-profit?

Underwriting with WPRB is very affordable and will connect your audience with thousands of likeminded PRBers!

Hey there, fellow “person”

Welcome to the WPRBasement….

This is the third edition of WPRB’s listener newsletter. We hope you like it 🙂

Lot’s of goodies here – studio reopening, tons of pics, our Fall Drive, specialty programming, and more!

We’re (mostly) back in the studio!

Many DJs are back in our musty, dusty basement studio after over a year and a half of remote broadcasting! We’re so excited to have access to our music collection, real broadcast equipment, and most of all, a place to gather and work together to keep WPRB strong 🙂

Thanks to everyone who was with us in these challenging times – we’re so glad we made it!

The rest of our DJs should be back soon, too – but in the meantime, almost all of them continue to broadcast LIVE from their homes using the techniques we mastered over the last 1.5 years! Live from the studio/live from home/live from your brain

A visit to the transmitter (14k wattz)

In August, we visited the transmitter site – where WPRB’s stream lifts off into FM hyperspace after its journey through interstellar optical wires and IP protocols. The big tower off Route 1 near the increasingly-derelict mall? That’s us! An inspiring thing for all – radio is alive, malls are dead 🙂

WPRB’s Fall (Quiet) Drive!

SCARY STORIES w/ PAX

Tues, October 26th 8:00PM

PAX reads spooky stories on air during every mic break, but this time with a healthy mix of darkwave, coldwave, minimal wave, and (loosely) post-punk and post-industrial for the Halloween season, AND in celebration of the WPRB (Quiet) Drive for the station’s unconditional love for all things a little weird and scary. It’s the moody synthpop time of year!

Halloween Crafts and Cocktails – Spooky Stitching and Sipping – Stitch it Good w/ Stitching Pink

Wed, October 27th 10:00AM

Join Stitching Pink for a Spooktacular Halloween special filled with Chilling Crafts, Sinister Sips and Terrifying Treats!

INCANT SPELLS – The Lights Are On But Everyone’s Home w/ Deirdre Dionysiac

Wed, October 27th 12:00PM

The witch is a symbol and idea found in cultures all over the globe, and its perception has been instructive of and impactful on the status of women in said cultures. Presently, witches are having something of a cultural moment, and as a symbol it has of late been widely repurposed as a politically-charged and political symbol for women and marginalized peoples to draw on in their creative processes and elsewhere. Inspired in part by Séance Centre’s recently-released compilation “Incantations,” we will explore the idea of composition as spell and music as incantation, drawing on witch-identifying musicians and magic practitioners, their depictions in both popular and underground music, and a healthy portion of #witchyvibes.

INTERVIEW W/ EVAN RAPPORT – JON SOLOMON

Wed, October 27th 5:00PM

Hear an extended conversation between Jon Solomon and ethnomusicologist Evan Rapport about the latter’s new book “Damaged – Musicality and Race in Early American Punk,” Their in-depth discussion will be interspersed with myriad sonic examples of the bands, musical models, forms and styles they’re examining.

Synth from Hell – The Sonic Bloom w/ DJ Esoterica

Thurs, October 28th 12:00PM

A spooky look into the techno world of haunted dance music, post-punk, twisted disco, goth, industrial, techno, electronic body music, and more to get us into the spirit of Halloween. Ft My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult, Psychic TV, Killing Joke, Bauhaus, Joy Division, Skinny Puppy, Tones on Tail, Dead Can Dance, Virgin Prunes, Play Dead, March Violets, Cabaret Voltaire, Swans, Nitzer Ebb, Throbbing Gristle and more!

DEVILPLUSGHOUL w/ KILLBOT

Thurs, October 28th 5:00PM

The days are getting darker, and so is the music! Tune in for some oddball, freakish and haunting sounds, culled from the recesses of an ancient, recently-excavated and then reanimated record collection by yours truly, LIZBOT, in full KILLBOT mode! Somebody flipped my kill switch!

A WPRB Zine! Luxury Space Transmissions vol. 1

In late September, we mailed out a zine to all our Spring Drive supporters! Featuring WPRB goodies like drawings, stories, and Wilbo, Luxury Space Transmissions #1 blasted off via several hundred stamps and volunteer labor. If you gave in the Spring and want one but didn’t get one in the mail, drop us an email and we’ll ship one out right away!

Us, doing DJ things

Early September! We live DJ’d for 5 hours for a student event! The students did not like Flying Saucer Attack or Slowdive :(((( “Bad vibes” – a student, probably

David Byrne’s America Utopia at the Princeton Garden Theater

We partnered with the Princeton Garden Theater to present David Byrne’s America Utopia! Thanks to everyone who came over and said hi, got some stickers, and bought some t-shirts. And thanks to PGT for having us 🙂

WPRU Bulletin – ALL HAIL THE ORIGINAL TRIPLE BERRY BLOB

Here’s the second (and final in our existing archives) WPRU Bulletin. Paul Dunn ’58 was the Bulletin’s managing editor as a Princeton Undergraduate, and continued to play an important role on WPRB’s board of trustees up to his passing earlier this year. You can download the complete bulletin (.PDF) below!

Have a biz or non-profit?

Underwriting with WPRB is very affordable and will connect your audience with thousands of likeminded PRBers!

Hey there!

Here comes….the 2nd edition of TBB – WPRB’s Periodic Listener Newsletter…

WPRBreaking News

What’s goin’ on at PRB

They Are Gutting a Body Of Water (Philly Band!) – Interview + Guest DJ Set

12:00PM ET – Sunday, 08/08

The hottest shoegazin’ band this side of the Merrimack, TAGABOW joins DJ McSweden of Princeton Blue Ribbon (PBR) for a chat and guest DJ set. Big name to watch in the year’s ahead, their noisey-2019 release Destiny XL is one of the bumpiest, funnest, and all around greeattt releases of the last couple years

Movietone (Bristol, UK – 1990s-early 2Ks) – Interview + Guest DJ Set

8:00 PM ET – Thursday, 8/12

A band which defies categorization born out of the rich “other Bristol” underground of the 1990s (a scene which includes Flying Saucer Attack, Crescent, Movietone, and others) Kate Wright of the band Movietone, Crescent, and 1000 Dawns talks to Dante of TRTRS about the scene, touring, and making music which surprises you in it’s chaotic, improvisational beauty. A truly great all-DIY-all-the-time musician whose styles bridge improvisational jazz, slowcore, and general DIYerism!

Jessica Bailiff (Toledo, OH – Kranky Records) – Interview + Guest DJ Set

8:00 PM ET – Thursday, 09/02

An influential name in the ever-influential Kranky catalog, Jessica Bailiff has been active since the 1990s making ethereal, droning, and utterly beautiful tracks. Having collaborated with musicians including Low’s Alan Sparhawk and Flying Saucer Attack’s David Pierce, her influence can be heard in the likes of Grouper (some consider Jessica Bailiff to be the “proto-Grouper”). Another true DIYer, Jessica talked to Dante of TRTRS about making music, where the future lies, and how she look back upon her earliest works.

Ill Nuovo Anormale – Obscure Italian Prog Rock

Aired originally Friday 08/06 – 7AM

Dave The Obscure digs deep into the catalog of Rock Progressivo Italiano ( RPI), presenting a 3 hour retrospective of this fertile prog rock subgenre that evolved in Italy in the early 1970s, but remains mostly unknown and unheard in the USA. You’ll hear music from the best of the over 400 bands that have unfairly dwelled in obscurity.

Zach Phillips (of Fievel is Glauque, Blanche Blanche Blanche, Perfect Angels, OSR Tapes, and so much more…) – Interview + Guest DJ Set

In a special interview with Ameena of Clowntronics, the prolific and mind-melty Zach Philips discusses Uruguayan music, psychoanalysis, recording and creative processes. The show also features a special guest DJ set by Zach! Check out his most recently released album, Feed a Pigeon, Breed a Rat out on “la Loi” and the rest of his projects and collaborations.

Stabscotch (Pittsburgh) – Interview + Guest DJ Set

MONDAY DATE TBD – Stay tuned on WPRB social media!

An experimental rock band out the other big P in the big P (pitts…), Stabscotch makes music which looks like the wonderfully designed graphic right here. Stay tuned for debut date of this special interview with Catherine of Rosasolis Dream (Mondays 8-11PM)

Wednesday (Ashville, NC – Ordinal Records) – Interview

SUNDAY DATE TBD – Stay tuned on WPRB social media!

With their highly-anticipated sophomore album Twin Plagues coming out Orindal Records on August 13, 2021, Wednesday – a twangy, gazey 5 piece out of NC – will talk to DJ McSweden of Princeton Blue Ribbon. Their 2020 LP I Was Trying to Describe You To Someone was a PRB-fave for a very difficult year. Nostalgic, searching, and catchy tracks inspired by the likes of Swirlies

Radio Striptease on “The Magic of Radio”

By Marc Fisher ’80, PRB ALUM

The Magic of Radio was a late-night, sometimes all-night, program that aired once a week from about 1977 to 1980. It was a mix of music, juvenile nonsense, brilliant satire and pathetically bad taste.

We tried to stay as close to the legal and moral edge as possible. We had a weatherman with a speech impediment that rendered him entirely incomprehensible. We had a substitute weatherman who was sentenced to stand at an (imaginary) outdoor phone booth in Kingston whenever there was significant snow or, his personal favorite, freezing rain. We had a sports reporter who never once made it on the air; he always seemed to be delayed at a bar across the street. The news was read by Gus Gil, whose booming voice made the acts of a New Jersey state magistrate seem like the coming of the Lord.

Continued…

Have a biz or non-profit?

Underwriting with WPRB is very affordable and will connect your audience with thousands of likeminded PRBers!

Hey there!

This is Dante, the station manager of the only sentient radio station in the state of Nu Jazzy.

Some of what you can expect from TBB:

WPRBreaking News: What’s goin’ on at the station

WProgrammingRB: What’s goin’ to be played on the air – special interviews, shows, and more!

WPhenomenomRB: Events WPRB is going to be at, shows we’re hosting, upcoming merch, etc.~!

WPoetryaRtBooks: Coooool art, interviews, and more content that we’ve been cooking in our melty brains

WPRB History: old school PRB memories 🙂

WPRBreaking News

What’s goin’ on at PRB

• We’re hard at work on lots of behind-the-scenes projects to improve the station – including investigating a 2nd (!!) stream, investing in artist-centered content like interviews, and working to integrate our playlist data with all HD radios and online streaming!!

• We just launched a listener newsletter! The one which is burning into your eclipse-damaged retina right now! Tell your friends!

• We’re still operating on the cybernetic optical internet waves sans studio

WPRB Art Drive

Attention local artists, graphic designers, and creative weirdos!

Ever feel the urge to doodle while listening to your favorite radio program or sketch some wacky independent-radio-inspired effigy that could totally be the next WPRB mascot? Submit your WPRB inspired t-shirt and sticker designs for our Fall 2021 drive!

WPRB is accepting art submissions now through July 26th

Interview & Guest DJ Set w/ Dusty Reske of Rocketship

Thursday 07/22 – 8PM

Their 1996 A Certain Smile, A Certain Sadness is considered a cult classic – one of the best pop albums of the 1990s. Dusty Reske talks with Dante of the Right to Remain Silent (me) about how he got into making music, what he’s been working on lately, and his excellent 2019 album Thanks to You. A TRUE LEGEND you DON’T WANNA MISS!

Interview w/ Adam Elk of The Mommyheads

Thursday 07/22 – 12PM

Adam Elk of the 80s-90s NYC-Based indie pop rock band The Mommyheads joins Esoterica of the Sonic Bloom for a chat about music and what they’re up to these days!

Interview w/ Tom Scharpling

Aired originally Thursday 06/30 – 6PM

Legendary comedian, DJ, writer, producer, music video director (and more!) joins Jon Solomon for an epic interview about Tom’s new memoir It Never Ends🙂

Interview & Guest DJ Set w/ Pat Flegel of Cindy Lee & Women

Aired originally Thursday 07/01 – 8PM

Their 2020 What’s Tonight to Eternity was the most played record at WPRB for the entire year! Pat Flegel talked to Dante of the Right to Remain Silent about topics ranging from their projects Cindy Lee to Kenneth Anger to the Apocalypse to Richard Harris’ McArthur Park. Listen to the show down below if you missed it 🙂

WPRB via Three Inches of Putrid Water

By Scott Fulmer , PRB alum ’90

I remember a lot of failures. Failing to cue the right song, failing to turn on the mic, failing to read the weather report. Near-failing grades, too. Every DJ has nightmares of irrevocable failures and total chaos, only to wake up and be thankful that real mistakes are quickly lost in the atmosphere.

There were failed promotion stunts, like the rain of nerf balls dropped by the Raritan Valley Flying School over the live Communiversity broadcast on Nassau Street. The lucky person who returned a certain colored ball to Axel’s booth would have won a weekend to Florida, or something like that. However, the wind carried the balls away from the center of town. I don’t know if anyone claimed the prize….

Continued…

Have a biz or non-profit?

Underwriting with WPRB is very affordable and will connect your audience with thousands of likeminded PRBers!