The feed of updates to ELENA RAZLOGOVA
Vopli means howls, as in Allen Ginsberg’s “ Howl” ( “ Vopl” in Russian) and Soviet Ukrainian punks Vopli Vidopliassova . Indie Radio and the Poverty of Poptimism June 1, 2026 Someone asked for a copy of this paper recently so I am posting it here. This is a slightly edited version of my presentation at IASPM-US 2024 conference. Independent internet radio stations WFMU and NTS have survived in an…
WFMU I am writing a cultural biography of New Jersey independent listener-supported freeform radio station WFMU . The station exemplifies the survival of alternative media for music in America, from the turbulent 1960s to the current streaming era. “ Electric Kokaine Karma: WFMU ’ s Proto Dose of Freakform ,” LCD : WFMU Program Guide no. 29 (Summer 2025): 8-11. Illustrations by Danny Hellman “…
Set List, MC5 at Lincoln Park, Chicago, August 25, 1968 Kick Out the Jams ( MC5 ) Borderline ( MC5 ) I Put a Spell on You (Screamin’ Jay Hawkins) I Believe to My Soul (Ray Charles) Tutti Frutti (Little Richard) Black to Comm ( MC5 ) MC5 was the only band brave enough to perform at the Yippi “ Festival of Life” on the eve of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. The cops looked on, the…
The WFMU-Hypertext Connection Listen to “ Frisby,” the theme song of the Kokaine Karma show on WFMU in 1968-1969. This song is a track on Anything & Everything , a 1957 LP of a Swarthmore musical produced by a college junior Ted Nelson. Nelson later became an information technology philosopher and in 1963 coined the term “ hypertext,” an early concept that prefigured the World Wide Web. This song…
Billboard Fundraising for WFMU , November 2, 1968 The paradox of noncommercial radio’s symbiotic relationship with the music industry goes back to the late 1960s. In 1968, Billboard announced a fundraising marathon for listener-supported college station WFMU . According to Radio-TV editor Claude Hall, WFMU played “ progressive rock” (the magazine’s term for freeform radio at the time) and had “…
Sound and AI As background for my book on WFMU , I research algorithmic music recognition, recommendation, and mastering. My WFMU essays above also tackle music recommendation issues. with Jonathan Sterne, “ Tuning Sound for Infrastructures: Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and the Cultural Politics of Audio Mastering ,” Special Issue “ Infrastructural Politics,” Cultural Studies 35, no. 4-5…
WFMU Music/Art Convergence Auction, May 26-30, 1992 Read program and catalog for the WFMU Music/Art Convergence silent and live auctions and benefit performances at the Germans van Eck Gallery, May 26-30, 1992. It includes interviews with Cindy Sherman and Jim Jarmusch. The Art Auction Benefit Committee included Laurie Anderson, Glenn Branca, Willem Dafoe, Allen Ginsberg, Vernon Reid, and others.
Film Translation I am working on a family history about the art and politics of live translation of sound cinema in the age of decolonization. Live translation of sound films –also called “ live dubbing,” “ simultaneous film translation,” and “ spoken cinema”–was a key infrastructure for transnational circulation of cinema, in the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, Asia, and Africa, during…
Cinematic Diplomacy As background for my film translation book, I trace film festivals as instruments of cultural diplomacy and national liberation during the decolonization era. These anticolonial cinema networks became precursors and counterpoints to the post-1968 influential militant “ Third Cinema” movement. “ The Rise and Fall of Sino-Soviet Film Festival Diplomacy (1957–1966) ,” in…
Book “ As Elena Razlogova notes in her history of early radio, The Listener’s Voice , early serials shares something with Serial beyond merely being split up into multiple episodes. Just as Serial was taped as it aired, allowing for those familiar with the case to hear the show and volunteer new information, early radio serials relied on fan mail to help decide how the stories would move along.” —…
Historical Nonfiction Writing At Concordia, I teach a course on “ historical nonfiction”—rigorous historical writing for broader publics. Some resources: Historical Non-Fiction Workshop, Concordia University, Fall 2023 Nonfiction Writing Resources Writing Advice Writing Tools Pitching Essays Image: Harley Schwadron, “ ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…’ For goodness sake, Mr…
WFMU Live Benefits Map Listener-supported freeform radio station WFMU has been able to survive since 1958 in large part thanks to its relationships with venues and musicians in the New York City-New Jersey area, across genres and music scenes. This map-in-progress features benefit performances at rock, avant-garde and international music venues such as CBGB ’ s, Maxwell’s, Lauterbach’s, the Ritz,…
Historical Notetaking I’ve been working on a basic toolkit for historical research and writing with Zotero and Obsidian . I use it to teach honors undergraduate and graduate students. Check out 01 Notetaking for Historians - an original guide on how to set up a notetaking system with Obsidian and Zotero, Notetaking Resources for historical research, and advice on archival research with digital…