KZUU Top 30 — 2/8

The Finn Riggins show at the Bell Tower last Friday was a success. I missed all but one song by openers Nonie and the Static. I enjoyed Nonie, yet didn’t care for the Static (just kidding, the whole band was great, I just wish I could have seen more). The crowd seemed to enjoy some of the catchy harmonies of Moscow’s Holiday Friends, who come off as the offspring of Fleet Foxes and Animal Collective. FR played last, to an energetic, moshing crowd. Not everyone joined in on the rocking though, and I’m sure more than a few came out with some bumps and bruises. In all though, KZUU fully supports FR, and was glad to have them in Pullman. Let’s hope these friends of the station come back sooner rather than later.

1. FINN RIGGINS — Vs. Wilderness
2. YEASAYER — Odd Blood
3. LOCAL NATIVES — Gorilla Manor
4. LOS CAMPESINOS! — Romance Is Boring
5. HOT CHIP — One Life Stand
6. U.S.E. — Loveworld
7. JACE EVERETT — Red Revelations
8. BEACH HOUSE — Teen Dream
9. THAO WITH THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN — Know Better Learn Faster
10. THE MAGNETIC FIELDS — Realism
11. REAL ESTATE — Real Estate
12. ANIMAL COLLECTIVE — Fall Be Kind EP
13. THE HOLIDAY FRIENDS — Neon Persuasion
14. NEON INDIAN — Psychic Chasms
15. CHARLOTTE GAINSBOURG — IRM
16. SUNSET — Gold Dissolves to Gray
17. EELS — End Times
18. IMAAD WASIF — The Voidist
19. FREE ENERGY — Free Energy EP
20. SMILE BRIGADE — Eering, Creaky EP
21. NANA GRIZOL — Ruth
22. ASOBI SEKSU — Rewolf
23. GIRLFRIENDS — Girlfriends
24. DEVENDRA BANHART — What Will We Be
25. FAMILY OF THE YEAR — Songbook
26. YARN OWL — Stay Warm EP
27. TORO Y MOI — Causers of This
28. VITALIC — Flashmob
29. VARIOUS ARTISTS — Daptone Gold
30. MIDLAKE — The Courage of Others

-Evan

KZUU Top 30 — 2/1

Heyyy, it’s you again. You might not remember me, we talked the other day… No, that’s cool, I guess I’m easy to forget hahaha. But listen, I mean if you’re going to be over this way often, maybe we could get a coffee or something? There’s this bagel shop in Moscow, it’s only like 15 minutes away. Oh, you’re seeing someone. Haha, that’s no big deal, I wasn’t, like, asking you on a date or whatever. I just thought since you were going to be spending a lot of time here I could show you around. No, I understand. That’s totally cool. Maybe I’ll see you next week then? Okay, bye!

1. BEACH HOUSE — Teen Dream
2. LOCAL NATIVES — Gorilla Manor
3. REAL ESTATE — Real Estate
4. YARN OWL — Stay Warm EP
5. TEGAN & SARA — Sainthood
6. FINN RIGGINS — Vs. Wilderness
7. YEASAYER — Odd Blood
8. NEON INDIAN — Psychic Chasms
9. THAO WITH THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN — Know Better Learn Faster
10. HOT CHIP — One Life Stand
11. PHANTOGRAM — Phantogram EP
12. EL PERRO DEL MAR — Love Is Not Pop
13. ATLAS SOUND — Logos
14. DEVENDRA BANHART — What Will We Be
15. LOS CAMPESINOS! — Romance Is Boring
16. TORO Y MOI — Causers of This
17. THE FLAMING LIPS — Embryonic
18. KINGS OF CONVENIENCE — Declaration of Dependence
19. THE KING KHAN & BBQ SHOW — Invisible Girl
20. 1997 — Notes from Underground
21. NANA GRIZOL — Ruth
22. THE TEMPER TRAP — Conditions
23. RICKARD JAVERLING — Valleys
24. JOGGER — This Great Pressure
25. AWESOME NEW REPUBLIC — Hearts
26. FAMILY OF THE YEAR — Songbook
27. THE WATSON TWINS — Talking to You, Talking to Me
28. VITALIC — Flashmob
29. WOODPIGEON — Die Stadt Muzikanten
30. ASOBI SEKSU — Rewolf

Yoni and Josiah Wolf/WHY? interview

Anticipation was pumping through my veins for weeks leading up to the Yoni/Josiah Wolf interview. WHY? is my favorite band of the moment. Why, you ask? Between the lyrics and intriguing instrumental arrangements, it is like a Siren call for me. Apparently the Sirens got me in the end because I was too excited and maybe a bit nervous about the whole event. I ended up freaking out the night before, calling a friend in another state for more questions, being unable to sleep, etc. Mr. Javier Suarez was there by my side for the interview and if you ask him I was pretty embarrassed and flustered over the technical complications we had with the phone lines. I think it set the tone of the interview to where all sides of the phone call were a bit annoyed. It took a (long) while to get rolling, but once we did I got a glance into the rather curious mind of Yoni Wolf. I’m still unsure about how I feel about it. (Insider Note: There has been recent speculation of the degree of truth in answers.) I know it could have gone worse, but I also know this was probably the only opportunity I would have to talk with the genius behind WHY?

As the sensitive-type Love Guru, I want to encourage every DJ to seek out bands they love/admire because it is worth asking the questions you’ve wanted answered for years. And if they aren’t available to talk via phone, conduct an email interview and post it here on the blog. Getting inside the minds of our favorite musicians doesn’t happen every day, and neither does hearing your favorite artists voice saying “fucking” over the FCC regulated airwaves. Cringe.

I’ve decided to post this for all to hear/benefit from/speculate on/enjoy.

(still giving) hugs and kisses,

Chelan

Listen to the interview on KZUU’s podomatic page:

2010-01-26T19_12_30-08_00

P.S. Also, if you are one of those idiots who has never listened to WHY? click here so you can stop being so uneducated.

P.S.S. Buy Josiah Wolf’s Jet Lag album when it comes out on March 2nd, 2010.

KZUU Top 30 — 1/25

Hey, what’s up? You’re Victoria, right? From Beach House? I thought you looked familiar. I love your music. We just got your album at this radio station I work at. It’s really good. I mean really good. I’m pretty sure you were #1 on the charts this past week, so yeah, I’d say people are digging it. You should totally come play a show for us in Pullman sometime soon… Oh, I see, you have to go get a copy made of your house key. No, I totally understand. Safety first. I guess I’ll see you around then? No? Well that’s cool too, but hey, it was nice meeting you!

1. BEACH HOUSE — Teen Dream
2. REAL ESTATE — Real Estate
3. LOCAL NATIVES — Gorilla Manor
4. NEON INDIAN — Psychic Chasms
5. THE FLAMING LIPS — Embryonic
6. HOT CHIP — “One Life Stand” (single)
7. YARN OWL — Stay Warm EP
8. FINN RIGGINS — Vs. Wilderness
9. TEGAN & SARA — Sainthood
10. NANA GRIZOL — Ruth
11. AU — Versions
12. EL PERRO DEL MAR — Love Is Not Pop
13. ATLAS SOUND — Logos
14. THAO WITH THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN — Know Better Learn Faster
15. FAMILY OF THE YEAR — Songbook
16. BUFFALO DEATH BEAM — The Extended Play
17. PHANTOGRAM — Phantogram EP
18. ANIMAL COLLECTIVE — Fall Be Kind EP
19. SMILE BRIGADE — Eering, Creaky EP
20. BEAR IN HEAVEN — Beast Rest Forth Mouth
21. ANNIE — Don’t Stop
22. GIRLFRIENDS — Girlfriends
23. MILES BENJAMIN ANTHONY ROBINSON — Summer of Fear
24. YEASAYER — “Ambling Alp” (single)
25. VARIOUS ARTISTS — Daptone Gold
26. THE TEMPER TRAP — Conditions
27. AH HOLLY FAM’LY — Reservoir
28. KINGS OF CONVENIENCE — Declaration of Dependence
29. DEVENDRA BANHART — What Will We Be
30. THE KING KHAN & BBQ SHOW — Invisible Girl

Los Campesinos! — “Romance Is Boring”

Los Camp! are geniuses. They’re Welsh, there are seven members, and I love them. The band is perhaps best known for their single from a couple years ago, “You! Me! Dancing!”, which gained them notability (notoriety?) in the indie scene. Their debut, Hold on Now, Youngster… was brilliant, and eight months later they released We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed, which was brilliant. That’s quite an accomplishment, really. Two classic albums in 3/4 of a year. Both are in the KZUU library.

LC! sound like a bunch of hyper, intelligent British kids, because that’s what they are. They can build up and break down like nobody else, full of horns and noise and energy. It can get a bit hectic, but rewarding if you don’t take them too seriously–their entire attitude is tongue-in-cheek, approaching typical teenage/young people topics of love and relationships with a clever, cynical bent.

The new album is much longer and much more sprawling than the previous two. There is more experimentation with tempo, sound and mood than ever before. This means it’s a much less concise pop experience, although We Are Beautiful hinted at their tendencies towards ambient, moody instrumental pieces. All in all, Romance is the sound of a band evolving as it grows older, keeping only the most effective elements of their previous sound as they incorporate more sophistication and grow up a little bit.

What really sets the band apart is their lyrics, though. I’m not sure I can adequately capture what hits me so hard about their writing. Here’s a sample of some of my favorite lines:

• “You said ’send me stationary to make me horny’ / So I always write you letters in multicolors / Decorating envelopes for foreplay / Damn extended metaphors, I get carried away” (“My Year in Lists“)
• “I cherish with fondness the day (before) I met you” (“My Year in Lists”)
• “Said every photo that you took that festival got lost in your camera in an insurance scam / And though underexposed, i could see from the quality, his K Records t-shirt and you holding his hand / And I know he took you to the beach, I can tell from how you bite on your cheek, every time the sand falls from your insoles / And when our eyes meet, all that I can read, is ‘you’re the b-side’” (“Knee Deep at ATP“)
• “I identify my star sign by asking which is least compatible with yours” (“Ways to Make It Through the Wall“)
• “I’ve spent too much time on my knees next to urinals in garish Mexican restaurants / Sobbing into my warm, pale palms for a better understanding of my dietary requirements” (“Miserabilia“)
• “I taught myself the only way to vaguely get along in love / Is to like the other slightly less than you get in return / I keep feeling like I’m being undercut” (“We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed“)
• “As if I walked into the room to see my ex-girlfriend / Who, by the way, I’m still in love with / Sucking the face of some pretty boy with my favorite band’s most popular song in the background / Is it wrong that I can’t decide which bothers me most?” (“It’s Never Got That Easy Though, Is It? (Song for the Other Kurt)“)
• “You asked if I’d be anyone from history, fact or fiction, dead or alive: I said ‘I’d be Tony Cascarino, circa 1995.’” (“All Your Kayfabe Friends“)
• “I’ve learned more from toilet walls than I’ve learned from these words of yours / Your feelings are buried in scriptures and fictions, it’s all in the words but I’m here for the pictures” (“We’ve Got Your Back (Documented Minor Emotional Breakdown #2)“)
• “I think we need more post-coital and less post-rock / Feels like the build-up takes forever but you never get me off” (“Straight in at 101“)

So yeah, that’s why I like this band. All the best songs on the new record are FCC though. Fuck. Still, you should be able to find some killer tracks. Even their lesser cuts are fire.

Also, in June, this cutie (Aleks) left the band to go back to school. She will be missed.

-Evan

Nana Grizol — “Ruth”

So there’s this genre called “folk punk.” It’s basically inspired by Irish punk bands, the most notable being The Pogues. (Wiki confirms this. Here is a photo of the Pogues’ lead singer. He is attractive.) It’s pretty much what it sounds like–folky instrumentation and aesthetics mixed with the attitudes and song structures of punk rawk. In the Celtic punk genre, there are two bands everyone has heard of, probably because they are pretty fun to listen to while getting drunk (Dropkick Murphys, Flogging Molly).

Anyway, there’s a set of American “folk punk” bands that includes Dillinger Four, Andrew Jackson Jihad, Ghost Mice, and (early) Against Me!. All great bands, all great music. There’s this one though, who is also good, and their name is Defiance, Ohio. Now that we are over 100 words into this post, I can finally make my point.

Nana Grizol are led by Theo Hilton, who is also a member of or collaborator with, Defiance, Ohio. So, knowing the folk punk roots are kinda crucial to explaining this band. NG are folky, but don’t make folk music. They are punky (has this word ever been used before?) but not punks. Definitely less abrasive and raw than Defiance, but possibly better. Their first record, Love It Love It, from 2008, was awesome but went unnoticed by just about everyone. But now they have Ruth, and it’s time to get the word out.

On first listen I kinda thought meh, but by listen 1.5 I was in. It’s an understated album, easy to overlook and underrate. There’s something about the soft textures and loose feel that seems very earnest to me. Hilton’s lyrics are for the most part pretty frank, although sometimes cryptic. (This could describe 99% of songwriters.) I just feel like these “folk punkers” think they have a strong grip on society and comment on it in interesting ways. Do they? Who knows, they could be total blowhards. Still, with a little effort, Nana Grizol could steal your heart and keep you warm until spring arrives.

UPDATE: Paste Magazine informs us that NG features “a pristine horn section that once belonged to Neutral Milk Hotel.” This is a big deal! N-M-fuckin’-H! Check out their interview with Theo Hilton.

Check out “Cynicism,” “Galaxies,” “From Here” and “Arthur Hall.”

-Evan

[CAN'T FIND A GOOD VIDEO TO ATTACH TO THIS POST]

Jay Reatard: In Memoriam

Total bummer. Jay Reatard, born Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr., was found dead at his home in Memphis Wednesday morning. He was 29.

According to this listener’s ears, Jay was one of the most naturally gifted songwriters of my generation. His prolific nature blessed rock n’ roll fans with 22 full-length albums and over 100 releases in his short career, which began at 15 when his bedroom recordings caught the ear of Gonor Records.

Jay Reatard was the sound of man who felt there just wasn’t enough time.

mp3: Jay Reatard – Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle (Nirvana cover)

mp3: Jay Reatard – Gamma Ray (Beck cover)

-curt

Seattle Hip Hop – 3rd Wave

It seems Charles Mudede’s “wave” theory regarding Seattle’s hip-hop history of scene-building is coming to fruition with the talent pool in the town of late, it’s deep like the Sonics in ‘96! According to the Mudede Theory, we are currently in the “third wave”, the “second wave” being the Blue Scholars, Common Market reign and the “first wave”, Sir-Mix-Alot, Black Anger, and the Central District crews of the ’90s. The bulk of the “third wave” artists offer a blunted blend of laptop electronica, drum ‘n bass, G-Funk beats, and classical West-Coast stylings. In a town known for flannel and bearded-indie bros, the new, vibrant “third wave” is the most fruitful and interesting scene to pass through Seattle in a minute.

Beacon Hill space-rap enthusiasts Helladope and THEESatisfaction are the brightest stars in the terrestrial Seattle sky but Mad Rad, Champagne Champagne, Fresh Expresso, and Shabazz Palaces are all doing their thing as well. The newest album to come from the blossoming scene is “They La Soul” from They Live!. Founding members DJ Bles One from Mash Hall and Massive Monkeys and Gatsby from Cancer Rising (also the KEXP DJ of the famous Sunday night “Street Sounds”) cement the suspicion that they are two of the most talented musicians in the Seattle scene over the last decade. A DJ-friendly, club rocking ode to the West Coast that’s too hard-hitting to be hipster but too fun to be taken seriously. And its free. FREE! Stream the whole album below.

Can’t get enough? Check out this dance-floor BPM J-A-M from Helladope called “Just So You Know”. Possibly the best hip-hop song from the town all year.

Also… THEESatisfaction keep getting better, offering their routine brilliance in another FREE project “Christmas On The Moon.”

Don’t Sleep.

-c-u-r-t

Lucky 13 List of Luscious Ladies and Lads

This is your resident Love Guru, Chelan, making it even more obvious who I think is hott (two “t”s are necessary). Everyone knows I spend at least half of my time checking people out on campus, googling indie celebrities, dancing in the front row so I’m visible to the band boys and telling people “you are soooooo cute that I want to put you in my pocket and carry you around with me”.

I’ve taken into account some of the other managers wishes for this list, but I’m the queen of list-making so I had to make some changes. Let’s just get this blog orgy started…

13.  Tom Waits. Yes this man is ridiculously old, but Rachel has a big fat crush on him. And it doesn’t take much for me to be convinced that someone is hot. What I love about Tom Waits: his scene with Iggy Pop in Coffee and Cigarettes, the fact that he drinks coffee and smokes cigarettes, his clever hat/suit combos, the fact he adores Kerouac and Burroughs. Truly timeless music and timeless style. Dear Mr. Waits, come to Pullman and have an affair with me.

12. Dan Deacon. I adore possibly mentally unstable assholes that do whatever they want because they make music. I really really really want to carry Dan Deacon in my pocket. Then I can bring him home with me and tell my mom we’re dating. She would really love that. Maybe then she’d leave me alone about getting a boyfriend. The combination of  what I like to call “chubby boy allure” and beautiful thrift store glasses get me to page 14(!) on my Google Images search. Oh just look at this cutie! (P.S. Listen to his latest album Bromst)

11. Andy from Local Natives. Bass player (see bass player below) from the latest indie boy band to visit the KZUU airwaves. All he needed was a bass guitar and a Mishka hat–it was obsession at first sight. Here is why bass players are hot: they can play the guitar, just like the lead guitar, but instead they take the backseat because they are “so into the music.” Duh. Someone recently pointed out to me that I have a “thing for guys in culturally relevant streetwear”. First, have you seen the new Holiday 09 collection?! Second, if that is wrong…I don’t wanna be right. (P.S. I still need his number, you guys are totally dropping the ball on me.)

10. Wale. Speaking of men who wear culturally relevant streetwear…this is just the cutest little hiphopper out there right now. I’ve had a thing for Wale since W.A.L.E.D.A.N.C.E. but his mixtape this year just solidified my idea that in order to get Wale’s attention I need to pretend to be from D.C. and start wearing clothes from KarmaLoop. I try to ignore his actual album from this year and just stick with the mixtapes. Also,  I know how to say his name correctly so I totally have a chance right? “They keep sayin whale but my name’s Wale. Hoe’s call me Mr. Never Wear The Same Thang.” Hell yeah I do.

9. Tegan(9.5) & Sara (9). I actually don’t even listen to Tegan and Sara because of their music. It’s just because they are adorable. Okay and maybe I listened to “Nineteen” a million times when I was 19 (note to readers: that really wasn’t that long ago). But the more and more I listen to “Back In Your Head” the more and more I connect with their Love Sick Teenager appeal (Bear in Heaven reference anyone?). Embarrassing confession: I once took a picture of them in to Great Clips for a haircut when I was going through my wannabe-indie-girl phase. But for realzies…Austin and Kevin love these girls so see it for yourself…

8. Spencer Krug. I love Wolf Parade. And Evan and Curt love Sunset Rubdown. So the radiant Spencer Krug has to make this list. He just looks so clean! Even in sweat! How can you not love him? I think it is the button up shirts or my undying love for Apologies To The Queen Mary. He works so hard to make music with multiple bands and he never lets our ears down. Or my computer screen background. Spencer, my love, whenever you want to sing “Modern World” to me over coffee, I’ll be around. Waiting. And then maybe we can go on a walk through the city and look through obscure bookshelves and sit on park benches?

7. Zooey Deschanel. It’s those enchanting Baby Blues! This year Zooey married Ben Gibbard and indie boys worldwide were demolished by heartbreak. Other than that I’m waiting for the She & Him album set for next spring. Zooey: DON’T LET ME DOWN–if you do I will burn the scrapbook of all your adorable outfits in my fireplace.  Also this year was the movie 500 Days of Summer where a cute boy falls in love with her because she loves The Smiths. I dream that she actually  listens to The Smiths in real life. Zooey graced GQ magazine in August, I’ve created a link for the pictures…don’t be shy, they aren’t as provocative as we would all hope. Rumor has it she also has a vintage coat collection. How much more classic can you get? Zooey, can you take me shopping and help me with my vintage coat collection? Thanks for being an indie deity.

6. Annie Clark of St. Vincent. Annie Clark is one of the most beautiful and distinct women of music today. She is classic and classy. I can’t even explain the allure we all feel to Annie Clark. I think a simple youtube.com search of her live performances will do. Miss Clark is basically a Siren (a mythological half bird, half woman who seduces foolish men to their deaths upon sharp rocks in the ocean).  I’m still not over this live performance of “Marrow”; I showed this to my 13 year old sister and she classified it as “scary”.

5. James Pants. I LOVE JAMES PANTS. Reasons why I love James Pants (yet another list): he came to Moscow and threw a great dance party, he was nice to my friends, he is from Spokane, he mixes beautifully, he threw his sweat on me, he actually has nice pants. Mr. James Pants also pulls off facial hair quite well. He is close to Pullman so I feel like we could have a relationship. James Pants: call me. I’m single and you could take me home to your mother.

4. Sondre Lerche. This is a recent obsession. Sondre makes the pretty pop-sensible music. He is a natural at this indie music thing. I can’t believe I just found out a month ago what he actually looks like. Although he is from Norway so that explains a lot. It’s the unbelievable wardrobe. He pulls off trendy without looking like a entry-level trendy asshole. Another youtube.com video of him and Regina Spektor. I think I love him. Like actually love him.

3. Yoni Wolf. This is not a recent obsession. My love for Yoni runs so deep that when someone asked me the other day why I love Why? so much I couldn’t find words to explain it. There is something about his lyrics that actually pull on my heartstrings so much it makes me cry (another awkward internet confession). Yoni will rip your heart apart and then sew it back together with an old dirty shoestring and tell you it’s okay because everyone is kinda sad. He grabs musical influence from the following: Radiohead, A Tribe Called Quest, Dylan, Pavement and Counting Crows. Yes, Counting Crows! He continues to amaze me the more and more I cyberstalk him. Quoting lyrics daily is a sure sign of love. True stalker-love. I didn’t even need to Google his name to find this picture, I just took it from my desktop background.

2. Emily Haines. Comely, distinct, fair, petite, graceful, and completely kick-ass.  I can’t think of anyone else I’d want to be my older sister. From her haunting and captivating songwriting to her small but far-reaching voice, there isn’t anything bad to say about the Metric frontwoman. In fact, I would dare you to talk shit about Emily Haines in front of me. I might look little, but I have a fierce competitive side when it comes to defending musicians I adore. I can direct you to so many things from here. The song Anthems for a 17 Year Old Girl. Check out her work with gazillion member band Broken Social Scene and solo project Emily Haines & the Soft Skeleton. So diverse and always putting out great work. The most beautiful Canadian ever born.

1. Timothy Meinig. Two words: facial hair. The best general manager KZUU has ever had is also in a band. He was also in another band, but you’ve probably never heard of them. This man is so lovable and he has so much love for KZUU. Classic sense of style–the beanie and down jacket will never die.  He plays the bass like no one else and fixes stuff in the studio like nobody’s business. If you ever have a button that won’t be pushed…Tim will be there. T.I.M. is the new KZUU Christ Krist. Thank you Tim.

That is the end. I couldn’t have asked for a better group of beauties to work with. I have some honorable mentions that I will later regret not mentioning, but I wouldn’t want you to overdo it with your Google searches. Feel free to let me know if I left any indie-relevant 2009 people out. I can’t wait to see what 2010 brings us all! It is so much work being this obsessed, but I know you all appreciate my hard work. As always, hugs and kisses.

Your (basically self-proclaimed) Love Guru,

Chelan

Holiday blessings from KZUU: The Night Before Khristmas

Hey guys. The holidays are here, and we’re all back home with our families, wishing we were still in Pullman getting drunk and listening to KZUU. We want everyone to know how much we appreciate the time and effort that our beautiful DJs spend making the station the best thing on the Palouse since John Olerud. To celebrate, Evan has prepared a KZUU-style version of Clement C. Moore’s classic poem “The Night Before Christmas,” rewritten with a few notable changes that, well, you’ll see soon enough. Enjoy it, enjoy your break, enjoy your family, enjoy your friends. Make your New Year’s resolutions, break them, then come back and continue the KZUU debauchery. Happy holidays.

“The Night Before Khristmas”
-by Clement C. Moore, adapted by Evan Reyes
(note: the “I” in the narration isn’t meant to be anyone in particular, just the voice of the narrator. use your imagination!)

’twas the night before Christmas, when all through the station
Not a creature was stirring, except the automation.
Applications were hung by the office with care,
In hopes that St. Timothy soon would be there.

The DJs were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of Yoni Wolf danced in their heads.
And Chelan in her ‘kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long Pullman nap.

When out on the mall there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the studio to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below.
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer.

He held the reins tight as he reached out his limb,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Tim.
More noble than huskies his coursers they came,
And he shouted, and called his fair Cougars by name!

“Now Adam! now, Andi! now, Josie and Brennan!
On, Shannyn! On, Nissa! on, Davis and Weston!
To the top of the CUB! to the top of Todd Hall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!”

And then, in a twinkling, I thought that I saw
The prancing and dancing of each little paw.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the staircase St. Timothy came with a bound.

He was dressed all in flannel, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot.
A bundle of records he had on his back,
And he looked like a peddler, just opening his pack.

His eyes, how they twinkled! his dimples, how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard on his face was as white as the snow.

A can of Busch Light was held firm in his grasp,
You could tell from his drink that the man was pure class.
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly!

He was handsome and kind, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself!
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

He told me of music, and the FCC’s rules,
How he works to make our station better than other schools’.
He explained why we rule over KUGR,
Video never killed this radio star.

He spoke many words, then went straight to his work,
And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk.
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”