X was one of the finest and most widely acclaimed American rock bands of the 1980s. Rising out of the Los Angeles punk rock scene, X merged punk, rockabilly, blues, and country flavors into a revved-up sound that at once celebrated and deconstructed American pop culture, and the group's lyrics -- written by singer Exene Cervenka and bassist/vocalist John Doe -- used beat-influenced poetry to examine life along the margins in one of America's most privileged cities. ... The Unheard Music is a documentary that combines live footage of the band and interviews with the four members (as well as their friends and families) with surreal music videos and montages of newsreel footage and vintage television commercials which help to illustrate X's uphill struggle against the music industry. - AllRovi

Old Soul plays BAM (jazz) / hip-hop freak-out featuring Ingrid Racine (trpt), Michael Malis (keys), Josef Deas (bass & synth), Alex White (drums) and special guests.

Arbor Composer's Collective is a nonet playing original compositions. Their influences vary considerably, and their music leans heavily towards the experimental.

Arbor Vitae is located upstairs of Wazoo Records, near State and William Streets.

WCBN Fundraiser runs from Feb 10 to Feb 19, 2012; call in and pledge your support!

Last October, WCBN participated in the first annual Radiovision Conference, hosted by WFMU. We wanted to peer into the future and see where people think radio is going. Jetpacks and flying cars are here folks, and we're determined to be a part of it. Click on the link above to see our future Programming Director's take on the situation, and be sure to follow through on Heidi's detailed write up. Additionally, keep a close eye on the site, we're preparing a redesign to better interact with YOU.

Naomi Shihab Nye describes herself as a "wandering poet." She has spent 35 years traveling the country and the world to lead writing workshops and inspire students of all ages. Nye was born to a Palestinian father and an American mother and grew up in St. Louis, Jerusalem, and San Antonio. Drawing on her Palestinian-American heritage, the cultural diversity of her home in Texas, and her experiences traveling in Asia, Europe, Canada, Mexico, Central and South America and the Middle East, Nye uses her writing to attest to our shared humanity.

Live entertainment provided by School of Music Jazz Performance Studies major Kirsten Carey and refreshments in the form of WCBN's 40th birthday blend coffee - courtesy of the Ugly Mug.

Woody Goss provided a live soundtrack to projected footage from the 2001 film Winged Migration, a documentary showing the migration patterns of birds the world over.

Woody was then joined by Julian Allen on drums and Katie Battistoni on electric guitar to play songs. All three musicians went through the jazz program at U of M. Katie's playing is dedicated to the marriage of her twin sister, Julian is playing for what's left of his innocence, and Woody is playing to world-premiere his new secret technique. A magical gathering, indeed!

  

Alex Belhaj's New Orleans Jazz Quartet performed on Wednesday, November 30th, at the University's Work Gallery, and WCBN broadcast the event live. The concert showcased some great music and fine playing!

• Download Sets 1 and 2
• Stream
• Program Notes