KOOP Stronger Than Dirt

05/06/2026

It's time for yet another Friday afternoon STD name the band contest. Without further delay, tactical stalling, pointless hemming and hawing and/or needless ado, the first person to correctly identify (in comments) the artist that provided this week's pilfered promo art will receive on tomorrow night's show a streamlined, economical, to-the-point shout-out crafted in such a way to eliminate any semblance of word padding, redundancy repetition or otherwise duplicative language. Also, previous winners may choose to hold off. Thanks and good luck! (Edit: Congrats to Dotty farrell for correctly IDing Stiv Bators. Original art art from his 1980 “Disconnected” album on Bomp! Records. Cover concept by Stiv and design and ex*****on by Dianne Zincavage. Photo by David Arnoff.)

03/06/2026

Cover art of the week: Season 2 is an indie pop post-punk band based in Melbourne Australia. Formed in 2024 they include members of the bands Parsnip, Phil and the Tiles and the Stroppies. Their first album, “Power of Now,” was just released at the end of April on the Spoilsport (in Australia) and Upset the Rhythm labels. It features cover art by guitarist and vocalist Freya McLeod.

01/06/2026

This week's Dusty Diamond (a vintage gem from the STD vaults): The Vaticans were an indie post-punk band from the Bay area that included Shane White of the Rip-Offs and Infections. Active in the mid 00s they released one album and two singles, all on White’s Pure Filth label. “Little Jimmy” is a fun bouncy tune, with a funky bassline, and some nasty vocals by Mandy Taylor. It appeared in 2006 on the “Digital World” single, their second. Both sides are excellent! Listen to “Little Jimmy” here:

From the 2006 "Digital World" single on Pure Filth Records; bouncy ...

31/05/2026

You can listen to last night's show here.

Some featured artists on this week’s Stronger Than Dirt include Love, Hobbits, Wire, The Beat (UK), Joe “King” Carrasco, Hazel O’Connor, Stereolab, Cheater Slicks, Hyperbubble, as well as lots of new music.

31/05/2026

Here's the playlist from last night's show.

30/05/2026

Some featured artists on tonight's show include Love, Hobbits, Wire, The Beat (UK), Joe “King” Carrasco, Hazel O’Connor, Stereolab, Cheater Slicks, Hyperbubble, as well as the weekly Dusty Diamond. Also new music by Telehealth, Season 2, Kelley Stoltz, Yard Work, Sweeping Promises, Vinilika, and Nat Tracks. That's tonight at 8 CDT right after The Clear Spot on KOOP Radio 91.7 in Austin and streaming worldwide t koop.org. (Pictured from top left clockwise: Stereolab, Hyperbubble, The Beat (UK), Joe “King” Carrasco and the Crowns, Love, Hazel O’Connor)

29/05/2026

TGI time for another STD name the band contest! The first person to correctly identify (in comments) the band that provided this week's pilfered promo art will receive a plain spoken, completely down to Earth shout-out on tomorrow night's show. Good luck! (Edit: Congrats to Marc Fischer for IDing the Cheater Slicks. Original art from their 1995 “Don’t Like You” album on In the Red Records. Design by Art Chantry and photo by Galen Palmer.)

27/05/2026

Cover art of the week: The (English) Beat are a British ska revival band that came to prominence in the late 70s with other “2 Tone” bands like the Specials and Selecter. Formed in 1978 they disbanded in 1983, and then two different versions of the band reformed in the early 00s, one fronted by vocalist and guitarist Dave Wakeling, and one by vocalist Ranking Roger (RIP). Their first album, “I Just Can’t Stop It,” was released in May 1980 on Go-Feet Records and reached number 3 on the UK album charts. While the cover design is uncredited, the Beat-Girl icon on the cover and used in their merchandising was designed by Birmingham based cartoonist Hunt Emerson.

25/05/2026

This week's Dusty Diamond (a vintage gem from the STD vaults): The Lost Sounds were a garage-y synth punk band from Memphis that were fronted by the prolific and multi-instrumentalist Jay Lindsey. They formed in 1999 and disbanded in 2005, and in that time released several albums and singles. “Heart Felt Toys” is a dark, pounding rocker that mixes Lindsey’s manic vocal delivery with poppier choral refrains. It appeared in 2001 on their second album “Black Wave” on Empty Records. Listen to it here:

Provided to YouTube by CDBabyHeart Felt Toys · Lost SoundsBlack...

24/05/2026

You can listen to last night's show here.

Some featured artists on this week’s Stronger Than Dirt include Jesse Hector (RIP), Paper Lace, The Quick, Cassie, Units, Long Ryders, Bongwater, Dead Moon, Freak Genes (RIP Andrew Anderson), as well as lots of new music.