Obviously, it’s thanks to you guys spending time listening and enjoying the station, and we can’t tell you how much we appreciate it.

What’s really exciting for us is that we are closing the gap, and pretty quickly, on #1.  If our current levels of listening keep up, we think we can be number one by the end of the summer.

Want to help?  It’s pretty simple.  Just keep listening, that’s first and foremost.  Secondly, if you’re on facebook or twitter, it’s easy to occasionally let people know in your post that you are listening to the RFC, and they should check it out.  If you say something like, “Listening to radiofreeecruze.com, that will give them all the info they need to navigate to the hompage and check it out.

As always, we are thrilled that you are listening, and thank you for all of your support of RADIO FREE CRUZE.  It’s not inexpensive to keep this thing going, but we don’t ever want to ask for money, only for your help in spreading the word!

You guys rock…

Click below to check it out…

The National – “Bloodbuzz Ohio” (official video) from The National on Vimeo.

The GOOD news is that they are still getting together several times each year to play shows, primarily in the New York area.  We were fortunate enough to be able to see their Christmas show in 2008, and they were better than ever.  Billy Campion still stalks the stage like an unwound dervish, and the band has never sounded tighter or more in the groove.  Maybe the time off has been good for them.

The EVEN BETTER news is that they are actually recording new songs!  In fact, THE BOGMEN will release a digital EP, LOOKIN’ FOR HEAVEN IN THE BARRIO on May 15th via iTunes, iTunesUK, Amazon, and Rhapsody.  And we also understand they will be selling a physical cd of the EP at future shows, for those of you who still like to have something to hold in your hands. 

Of course, you can hear the tracks on RADIO FREE CRUZE, but in typical gracious BOGMEN fashion, the guys have also agreed to allow us to offer a free download of the new song SUPERVISION for RFC listeners.  We will leave the link active through June 15, so grab it now! (It’s really good!)

Click the link below to go to the download page, and then click “Download” on the right side of the page.

THE BOGMEN/Supervision

NINE IN NAILS’ TRENT REZNOR has announced, in a rather lengthy blog post, that he will no longer be participating with fans on Twitter and other social network sites.

Trent cited the difficulties in dealing with the “haters” (my word, not his) that seem to ruin sites like these, and you get the impression from what he writes that he’s grown tired of people trashing his relationship, and his fiance, MARIQUEEN MAANDIG.

It’s actually a fascinating and insightful post.  Check it out here…

It’s been a crazy couple of months at RFC, and website updates have been few and far between.  My bad…

RADIO FREE CRUZE continues to grow, with new listeners coming on board every day, and new fans at the facebook page and followers on Twitter are growing as well.

There is some AMAZING music out this summer, and we’re thrilled to be playing it on the RFC.  Please keep giving us feedback on what you’re liking, so we can keep that stuff front and center on the station!

Your email is always welcome.  Hit me at cruze@radiofreecruze.com.  Or let us know at the facebook page, and Twitter works tool. 

If you’re attending any festivals this summer, send us an email and let us know who you loved (or didn’t.)  We’ll share the info with the RFC community.

One last thing…we’ve been taking a break from Feature Artist Thursday for the past couple of months, but it should be returning shortly!  We’d also love your suggestions for who to feature, as well.

Have a great summer, and thanks again for listening!

–cruze

  I’m really excited about today’s FEATURE ARTIST THURSDAY on RADIO FREE CRUZE, because we’re featuring one of my very favorite artists!!  We’ll be playing a lot of cool tracks from THE EELS all day today…their big hits, as well as deeper tracks, B-sides, remixes, and even some live cuts all worked into our normal mix of New Rock, Indie, and Alternative!

  There is a new EELS album in the works, and it’s slated for a June release.   Unfortunately, we don’t have anything from it yet, but today’s FEATURE ARTIST THURSDAY should whet your appetite for new EELS music, and I’m guessing that we’ll have our hands on a track or two before too long.

So enjoy THE EELS today, and leave a comment or email me (cruze@radiofreecruze.com) if you have input or want to suggest an artist for FEATURE ARTIST THURSDAY.

Thanks again for listening…

–Cruze, RFC

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  In the meantime, though, there’s a really cool app we’ve discovered that will let you listen RIGHT NOW,   And it will only set you back six bucks!

The application is called WUNDER RADIO, and you can get it HERE in iTunes, or just go to the App Store via your iPhone and search WUNDER RADIO. 

  Once you buy the app on your phone or iPod Touch, or buy in in iTunes and then synch your portable, it’s pretty eash from there.  Here’s what you do:

• Launch the application,
• Click on the “Stations” button in the lower left hand corner. 
• Type “RADIO FREE CRUZE” into the search bar and we will come up.  (Yes, that’s us–the one that says “Radio Free Cruze, Emeryville, CA.”  We’re not located there, but that’s where our server is, so I guess WUNDER RADIO thinks that’s where we are.)
• Simply click on our name to launch the station. 
• Once it’s playing, click the “+” button on the top bar to add us to your favorites, and then we’ll be there every time you open the app without having to search again.

  The WUNDER RADIO app (which was developed by the Weather Underground website (yes, the weather guys) is really good…the sound quality is better than some other apps I’ve heard, and I really like its ease of use.  If you don’t feel like waiting for the free app, this one is definitely worth the six dollars. 

–Cruze, RFC

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 But that said, I’ve seen plenty of shows in my concert-going lifetime.  Some good, some REALLY GOOD, a few GREAT, and some just ok.  I remember seeing SMASHING PUMPKINS in Chicago before SIAMESE DREAM came out and they blew my mind.  I came out of that show knowing in my soul that this was going to be a really important band, and certainly they became that.  (I also saw them in Houston in 1997 and they bored me to tears, but that’s another story.)

  Anyway…I had that feeling again.  Last night.  At the BLACK CAT in DC, when I got to see THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT live for the first time.  I’m now convinced that this is one of the most important bands of the last several years.  (Last time I felt this way:  ARCADE FIRE).

  Alright, disclaimer time.  I picked these guys as my favorite band of 2008 based only on their self-titled debut album.  And we’ve certainly played plenty of tracks from TATE (for short) on RADIO FREE CRUZE.  Unless they were really awful, chances are pretty good that I was going to enjoy the show.

  But it was more than that–at least for me.  From the moment they took the stage (opening with WISHING WELL, a perfect track to start the show), to the rave-up performance of GASOLINE, to a couple of new songs (ECHO PARK was particularly good), to a “bring-the-house-down” rendition of their biggest song, SOMETIME AROUND MIDNIGHT, I was certain that this band is ”important.”

  I went on the web to see what others thought, and predictably found a few blog posts blasting them as “posers…”  Wondering how anyone could like this band, and how they weren’t authentic.

  Perfect!  Now I’m CONVINCED that I love them.  Most of my favorite bands, actually, are the ones that indie snobs seem driven to insult and dismiss…so I know I’m right on track with this one.  (And to the haters…why not spend your energy telling me about a band you DO like?  Such a better use of your time.)

  Bottom line…maybe I’m overreacting, but the debut album from THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT is one of the best albums I’ve heard in the last few years.  And the live show is enthralling.  If you have the chance…don’t miss them!

–Cruze, RFC

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