Podcast Review: Radio Clash

"Radio Clash" is one of the longest podcasts I listen to. This program of mashups, remixes, unusual and outsider recordings and other types of hip sonic mayhem usually runs about 70 minutes. Episodes lasting 90+ minutes to over two hours aren't uncommon.

So there's quantity, but is there quality? Absolutely. The show's host, Tim from the UK, has been sharing his (and others) reinterpretations of pop music since 2004, and I have yet to hear an episode that didn't have some kind of sonic surprise that made it worthwhile.

As with other podcasts, if you listen long enough, you'll build up a portrait of Tim, but that's not what "Radio Clash" is really about. While the choices of music and the way they're sequenced is highly individualistic (which is revealing in and of itself), Tim keeps the focus on the music.

So what can you hear in an episode of Radio Clash? I don't know if there's a typical episode, but there's all kinds of things you could hear. There could be some Negativland, or other types of musique concrete. You might hear some pop song mashups that either blend two or more songs together, or use one song as a framework for other kinds of audio bits. Sometimes there's drum and bass, and you might get some WFMU-worthy aural oddities, and other things besides.

I've always been of the opinion that there's more to music than the top 40, and Tim effectively proves it every episode (while also showing that even the most commercial pop music is good for something if you just tweak it a little).

It's a labor of love, and I'm surprised and grateful that Tim hasn't experienced podfade yet. After four (soon to be five) years, "Radio Clash" is still going strong -- and I'm still subscribed.

Thanks, Tim!

- Ralph

Day 188 of the WJMA Web Watch.