Download podcast MP3 file.

Acecast podcast number one (MP3, 128Kbps, 35.3MB, 38m:28s) (you can download the MP3 file using the podcast link if you are not using a podcasting application).

Hey ho, let’s go.

Finally, the first proper podcast from Acecast. Bring It On! Another show is planned before the end of March. I’ve been through some 500-600 tracks and about 10% have passed “quality control”. All tracks played are free and legal downloads.

Some of the individual artist websites are substandard (Flash-usage, bad layout, no updates etc) but on this site I have decided to let it be about the good music only. I’ll try to reserve my ranting for halvorsen.org …

I have also decided against providing background information for each artist (like the fine people at 3hive sometimes do). It takes too much time, I’ve got dozens of more tracks I want to play. So I will focus on getting the shows out and getting the site right. If an artist deserves special mention (for ie use of legal MP3s) I might put up a short entry.

The initial Acecast is dedicated to the great John Peel, champion of good music. The Delia Derbyshire site has a fine John Peel mashup done for the Top Gear programme in 1969 and the Laura Cantrell track I play contains John’s voice at the end (you have to download the track to hear Peelie’s voice, it is not on the podcast. Since Peelie was God, would including his voice be blasphemy?).

Production notes.

I used a cheap dynamic microphone, the Hitachi HMP-606 (as tested), for this show. There is bit of hiss, but it will hopefully be less on the next show (for the next podcast I hope to have my condenser microphone and tube pre-amp working). I know a couple of my fades are not of the finest standard for the debut, but this will improve.

Applications used: Audacity for the main production, MP3tag for tagging the MP3 file and the very useful MP3Gain to do lossless normalization of each track before importing to Audacity. Listening tests were done, using iTunes and Windows Media player. Heavily field tested on my iPod and the old Rio 600. Thanks to my “beta-tester” Carl.

Extended tracklisting for Acecast number 1, 16 March 2005.

If you like the music in my little show (or prefer not to listen to it at all) use the links for each MP3. All MP3-links point to the artist’s own website, unless listed otherwise. All tracks were available at the time when the podcast was recorded (16 March 2005).

• Intro — Darran from the Gub.
• Bring It On (Anti.com) — Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds.
• Delia’s Theme — Delia Derbyshire.
• Fat Larry’s Skank (excerpt) — Kode 9.
• I Love the Sunshine (Acecast.com) — Gub.
• Out of the Sun (Download.com) — Joy Zipper.
• As Complicated and As Beautiful As Always — Alog.
• Late Night Shopping (Tweaking the Tweaker remix) — David Sylvian.
• Faint Star (demo) (Acecast.com) — Milk for the Morning Cake.
• The Hebbex (Loadrecords.com) — Noxagt.
• New Years Resolution (live) — Laura Cantrell. Special kudos to Laura for a good website (a dozen or so MP3s, good layout, no Flash).

Brief playlist for first podcast.

Lydia Lunch’s Hangover Hotel was to feature, but the song has been removed from her site since I did the original tracklisting (and I haven’t had the time to listen to the three MP3s Lydia currently has available).

Initial post: Thu, 17 Mar 2005.