Line Out - Comments on "The Dreams in Which I'm Dying are the Best I've Ever Had"

Comment by ndrwmtsn

ndrwmtsn — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:33:33 -0800

that was the first time i'd heard the kate bush song in it's o.g. form and not chromaticized. i was very glad to hear it this morning on my way to work.

Comment by xina

xina — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:40:46 -0800

maybe the fans are requesting the dark playlist, as the dark days of seattle's winter will begin soon. moving cross country is incredibly difficult - and in JR's case perhaps gong from big fish in little city to small fish in really, really big city is bringing on the angst.

Comment by MJ

MJ — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:49:04 -0800

I think it's just a difference in time zones--lyrics are probaby taking a back seat to the need for something harder-core at 11. I'm not adjusting too well to that happening at 8 our time. I'm also not adjusting to the "15 minutes after the hour" version of saying what time it is. Too NPR for me, not KEXP-ish at all.

I don't like change.

Comment by Comment Deleted

Comment Deleted — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:49:22 -0800

COMMENT DELETED: Threatening
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Comment by genevieve

genevieve — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 10:54:26 -0800

I think people are reading way too much into John Richards' playlists.

Comment by Liesel

Liesel — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:00:41 -0800

Moving from Seattle to NYC is really, really hard; I just moved back from a couple years in Brooklyn a few months ago and am infinitely happier. But John has been playing "Mad World" on a regular basis for years, so you probably shouldn't read much into that particular song.

Comment by tomasyalba

tomasyalba — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:16:13 -0800

Well, the playlist might reflect current events that a lot of listeners have had to wake up to kind of suddenly, and it's got to be personally challenging to find himself in a much more expensive city whose economic underpinnings are center stage in a not very nice way. And maybe as a family man at his age, he's got something salted away for college and retirement and suspects those asset values are at risk too. "Could Be Worse" is perrrfect right now.

Comment by tabletop_joe

tabletop_joe — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:21:08 -0800

I've been listening every morning, and I've noticed this trend too. Actually, the other morning he expresses gratitude to the concerned listeners who have contacted him, and acknowledged that he's been having some personal problems.

I second David on the hug thing. I would like to give him a big Welcome-Back-to-Seattle hug.

Comment by brinsonian

brinsonian — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:36:32 -0800

Third to the hugging.

We're very lucky in Seattle to have stations like KEXP, KUOW and KPLU on the FM dial. Their awesomeness stems in large part from their djs and hosts like John, Steve Scher and Abe Beeson (to just name a few). So to haters like #4--why be so mean? We got it good!

Comment by brinsonian

brinsonian — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:38:24 -0800

@4...snap. Never mind.

Comment by itchy not scratchy

itchy not scratchy — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:47:43 -0800

i'd be a bit insane too if i was living in nyc and only making 100+ thousand a year. poor guy!

kexp in the morning and daytime is plain awful. get over it.

Comment by Sean

Sean — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 11:56:45 -0800

You don't move to New York City in your 30's with small children. That's when you move OUT of New York City.

I'd be surprised if he wasn't depressed.

Comment by matt

matt — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 12:53:30 -0800

Sounds like his typical fare to me.

I know this may sound crazy, but perhaps a better way to measure how the guy is doing would be to listen to him when talks. Does he sound sad? Is he saying sad things? No? Just the usual self-deprecating charm? Okay then. John has publicly shared his rough moments with his listeners before (his mom's passing comes to mind).

@8's comment is the most relevant one on this post.

Comment by Hal

Hal — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:17:51 -0800

Can you commentors say "kiss-ass?"

Comment by seattle musician

seattle musician — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:29:06 -0800

John's a great DJ. KEXP is a phenomenal station. What it offers to the bands of Seattle is huge.

You don't have to listen to it, you don't have to give.

You should try getting your band on the radio in LA, San Fran, or Chicago. If you hate John, you'd really hate those stations. You'd come crawling back to KEXP and be praising it and the chance it gives your band. Cause that chance doesn't exist elsewhere.

Name me a station as big as KEXP who will listen to your demo and if they like it, play it.

Comment by rainking

rainking — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:29:59 -0800

I'm with itchy not scratchy. I'm newish to Seattle and cannot understand the region-wide love for JitM. Move, schmove his playlist is predictable and repetitive. One of my least favorite KEXP djs.

Give it up for Jack and Stevie.

Comment by christopher h

christopher h — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:37:49 -0800

Ugh, that "Mad World" cover is sonic herpes. A song that somehow manages to be both turgid and one-note. Bleh.

Comment by wendy

wendy — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 14:44:20 -0800

Gag me. John got KEXP listeners to finance his move to NYC and now he isn't happy there? Boo fucking hoo. People in NY couldn't care less about KEXP. Is anyone surprised this expensive syndication experiment is failing? Perhaps this has all been a vehicle to get Richards and his wife closer to the Marc Jacobs store? KEXP lost the plot a long time ago. I can't believe there isn't more outrage over his 120k salary. Think about that for a minute: ONE HUNDRED TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS PER YEAR. For playing records. I won't even comment on his mediocre taste. Are the other (far more interesting) long time KCMU vets still volunteering their time? Richards can afford a good therapist, and he can hire someone to give him hugs. Just bill the listeners who are still dumb enough to donate during one of their many self-love drives. I used to give every year, never again. There are far worthier causes out there.

Comment by Folsom Bob

Folsom Bob — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 17:08:25 -0800

wendy @18: Finally somebody is saying this. I could not agree more. The NYC move underwritten by kexp donors is just sick. That's only the tip of the iceberg, though. I wish an enterprising reporter would do an in-depth investigation of Richards & kexp generally, see what their business practices are really like & where all the money goes. And get to the bottom of what were they hoping to accomplish with the NYC move. Besides getting John's wife closer to the Marc Jacobs store. Did they have goals for what they wanted to happen that their listeners/donors can hold them accountable for? It would be interesting to see what kind of progress they're making toward those goals.

Comment by yeah

yeah — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 18:21:08 -0800

yeah! troy in the morning! rachel in the morning! i bet any number of far more talented djs would happily take over the job for a fraction of jitm's gigantic paycheck. i'm sure john is a nice, hard working guy...but how can 120k be justified? for reals? is kexp still considered a non profit?

Comment by FireFireFire

FireFireFire — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:08:52 -0800

I really don't mind John's show, but goddamn! Once Sheryl Waters comes on at 10am, I go running for the OFF switch. I can't stand her boring and hazy music selection. It's mid-day, I want to wake up, not be put back to sleep!
What really cracks me up is that it's supposed to be "listener powered" but if you even attempt to call in a request during her show, no one ever picks up the phone.
I just wish they would get rid of her as she is definitely the weakest link in the chain that is KEXP...

Comment by hahaha

hahaha — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:39:36 -0800

hit it herb....