the Blend

This is a good channel for what it is, an adult contemporary channel. It mixes in artists from several genres of music. If you're stuck in an office situation then you could do worse than this channel. I'm not a big fan of the Blend but I put it on every now and then.

the Blend, adult contemporary, XM 25
My previous experience with channel: it's not a preset but I have listened to the Blend on occasion.

Heard on the Blend:
"Spirit in the Sky", Norman Greenm; "Brilliant Disguise", Bruce Springsteen; "If I Ain't Got You", Alicia Keys; "Instant Karma", John Lennon; "Have I Told You", Rod Stewart; "Talk to Me", Stevie Nicks; "Landslide", Dixie Chicks; "You'll Never Find", Lou Rawls; "A Beautiful Morning", the Rascals; "Mercy Mercy Me", Robert Palmer; "8th World Wonder", Kimberly Locke; "Everybody Plays", Main Ingredient; "That Don't Impress Me", Shania Twain; "All By Myself", Eric Carmen; "That's the Way", Janet Jackson; "Always on My Mind", Willie Nelson; "Everyday People", Sly & the Family Stone; "Shower the People", James Taylor; "Drift Away", Uncle Kracker; "Sad Songs", Elton John; "Narrow Daylight", Diana Krall.

Time spent listening: about an hour.

Tomorrow:
No channel is scheduled for Sunday. I will review the past week and look forward to next week. Also Sunday Spot Light.

Alegria

I didn't hate Alegria and I may have even liked it if I understood Spanish.

Alegria, latin hits, XM 90
My previous experience with channel: never listened before.

Heard on Alegria:
"Se Me Pego Tu No", Amaury Gutierrez; "Salida", Alex Ubago; "Si Tu Me Faltas", Area 305; "Superf---er", Amigos Invisible; "Fuente De Energi", Estopa; "Instinto Y Deseo", Victor Manuelle; "Superficial", Ha-Ash; "Voy Hacia A Ti", Noelia; "La Llamada", Carlos Vives; "Mujer Con Pantal", Carlos Ponce; "Evolucion", Aleks Syntek; "Try to Save Your", Alejandro Sanz; "Adios", La Oreja De Van; "Asi Soy Yo", Bustamante; "Lleva", Fito Paez; "Tan Solo Son Pal", Ana Cristina; "Esa Es La Verdad", La Ley.

Time spent listening: about an hour.

Tomorrow: the Blend, adult contemporary, XM 25

Bone Yard

With all due respect to the many Bone Yard fans out there, this channel reminds me of Spinal Tap with dwarves threatening to trample on a miniature model of Stonehenge. Grown men shouldn't be wearing tight spandex pants and they shouldn't buy their hair spray by the case. Musically the songs are fun, amusing, uninteresting and almost instantly forgettable.

Bone Yard, hard rock, XM 41
My previous experience with channel: I've never listened to it before for any length of time. But I grew up with this music around me so I'm all too familiar with it.

Heard on Bone Yard:
"Stone Cold", Rainbow; "Bad Guy", Dangerous Toys; "Beggars and Hangers", Slash's Snakepit; "To Live By the Sword", Saxon; "Rock You", Helix; "Don't Thread on Me", Damn Yankees; "Lord of the Thig", Aerosmith; "Attila", Iced Earth; "Animal", Def Leppard; "Flight of Icarus", Iron Maiden; "Cum On Feel the Noise", Quiet Riot; "It's All Up to Me", Wild Hearts; "Over the Mountain", Ozzy Ozbourne; "Love Don't Come Easy", White Lion; "The Lumber Jack", Jacky; "Blood on the Moon", Lillian Axe; "Raging Fire", Seventh Key; "Blind Revolution", Winger; "Wild Hearted Son" the Cult; "You're Invited", Vince Neil; "Mr. Soul", Rush; "Blind in Texas", W.A.S.P.

What, no Ratt? No Dokken? No Twisted Sister?

Time spent listening: about an hour.

Tomorrow: Alegria, latin hits, XM 90

Unsigned

When I first got XM I thought a channel for unsigned artists was a good idea but I had one reservation. As anyone who's been to an open mike night or two at a local bar knows, sometimes there's a good reason that some musicians are left unsigned. However after one listening of Unsigned I was relieved to hear that few if any real clunkers get on the air. For the most part the songs are polished and interesting. I try to catch the Radar report on Friday nights. It's a 'best of' show that's usually pretty good.

I like to listen to Unsigned while online. That way if a song especially interests me then I can check out the group/artist on the internet. Tonight for instance, "Butterfly Collection" by Sour Deluxe sounded catchy so I visited their web page ( Sour Deluxe ) and downloaded a few more of their songs. Also Unsigned's web page links to a lot of the artists' web pages.

To me Unsigned is what XM is all about, introducing me to new music that I would have trouble hearing anywhere else. Unsigned plays a wide spectrum of musical styles and sometimes it jumps around a bit much (a singer/songwriter followed by a punk band), which is my only problem with the channel. However if you like variety in music and you can form your own opinions about songs then give Unsigned a listen. If you're a teenage lemming that just likes the 'hits' then Unsigned may be too scary for you, in which case you should avoid it and go to top 20 on 20 or the City.

Unsigned, unsigned artists, XM 52
My previous experience with channel: it's a preset, I usually check out the Radar Report.

Heard on Unsigned:
"Pretty People", Dexter Freebish; "Boomerang", Nectarphonic; "Holy One", Bittersweet Mani; "Daylight", Getaway Car; "Raining Peace", ANC; "Best Friend", King Street; "Sunspot", God's Little Joke; "A New Taste", Gooser; "Stay with Me", Celldweller; "Butterfly Collection", Sour Deluxe; "Beautiful Lunatic", Trevor Hall; "Outside the Lines", Dani; "Choking on the F", Mantis; "Red Mist", Nurotica; "Jezebel", Alicia Grant; "Conversion", Christia Mantzke; "Radiant", Early May; "Upside Down", Steve McWilliams; "Ice Cream Van", the Shivers; "Fire That Burns", Switchback.

Time spent listening: about an hour.

Tomorrow: Boneyard, hard rock, XM 41

Top Tracks

If you're a classic rock fan, then you'll probably recognize just about every song played on Top Tracks. This is a channel that I can put on with few complaints from my friends, since we all grew up listening to this type of music.

Top Tracks, classic rock, XM 46
My previous experience with channel: it's a preset that I listen to often.

Heard on Top Tracks:
"Every Picture Tells A Story", Rod Stewart; "Even It Up", Heart; "Hit Me With Your Best Shot", Pat Benatar; "Welcome to the Jungle", Guns and Roses; "TNT", AC/DC; "Roll with the Changes", REO Speedwagon; "The Letter", Joe Cocker; "Dirty Water", Standells; "Don't Stop", Fleetwood Mac; "Mississippi Queen", Mountain; "Call Me the Breeze", Lynyrd Skynyrd; "Ramblin' Man", Allman Brothers; "Life in the Fast Lane", the Eagles; "Instant Karma", John Lennon; "Horizontal Bop", Bob Seger; "Summertime Blues", the Who; "Hey Hey My My", Neil Young; "Still You Turn Me", Emerson Lake & Palmer; "L.A. Woman", the Doors; "Lay Down Sally", Eric Clapton.

Time spent listening: an hour or so.

Tomorrow: Unsigned, unsigned artists, XM 52

Beyond Jazz

Beyond Jazz is XM's modern, cutting edge jazz channel. It's jazz fusion and beyond. Also if there's a genre of music that you can meld with jazz then it's on Beyond Jazz. I prefer the traditional jazz on Real Jazz but sometimes I tune into Beyond Jazz.

Beyond Jazz, modern jazz, XM 72
My previous experience with channel: Very little. I prefer Real Jazz, but sometimes tune into BJ.

Heard on Beyond Jazz:
"10 Mile Jog", George Duke; "The Joker", Lars Horntveth; "Timeline", Michael Brecker; "How Long Has This", Carmen McRae; "Up There a One", Acid Jazz Test; "Creepin'", Crusaders; "On the Record", Ronny Jordan; "Hindi Gumbo", Garaj Mahal; "School Days", Stanley Clarke; "Flor de Venganza", Jean-Pierre Mas; "Sketches Part 6", Vince Mendoza; "I Want More (live), Cassandra Wilson; "City to the Sea", Mighty Truth; "Monk's Dream", Andy Summers; "Barbarians", George Colligan; "A Deep Motion", Va-this Is Acid; "Ozark", Pat Methany / L Mays.

Time spent listening: about an hour.

Tomorrow: Top Tracks, classic rock, XM 46

Audio Visions

Listening to Audio Visions right after XM Liquid Metal was quite a shock to my system. The two channels are polar opposites. Audio Visions is so light and smooth it quietly fades into the background. Are you having trouble sleeping? If you are, then give this channel a try. It'll knock you right out.

Audio Visions, new age, XM 77
My previous experience with channel: I listen every so often, usually to fall asleep to.

Heard on Audio Visions
"Angels in the Snow", David Arkenstone; Current; "Rapture of the Hear", Iasos; "Field of View", Torch Song; "Rameau's Nephew", Philippe Saisse; "Silene", Biosphere; "Cyflo", Les Jumeaux; "Sol", Carter/Entwistle; "Et Miscericordia", Paul Schwartz; "Duskfire", James Asher; "Unfolding Sky", R Carlos Nakai; "Dance of Angels", Oysein Sevag; "Beauty", Lucial Hwong; "Having A Good Time", Samite; "Journey of the W", Steve McDonald; "Diana", Troka; "Computer Incantation", Jean-Luc; "Gypsy Behind the", Evenson & Barabas; "One I Love", Meav; "Prayer Garden", Stephen Rhodes; "Remember This", Prem Joshua.

Time spent listening: about an hour.

Tomorrow: Beyond Jazz, modern jazz, XM 72

XM Liquid Metal

I got a little behind in my Bootcamp listening, so let me catch up now.

XMLM is not for me. The music is too fast, too loud and, most importantly, too monotonous. Additionally the lyrics are focused too much on death and destruction. Just look at the names of some of the songs I heard: "Symphony of Destruction", "Pass Out of Existence", "Time to Die", and "Suicide Soundtrack". The names of the groups aren't much better. If this is your thing then fine, but I'll listen to other XM channels.

XM Liquid Metal, heavy rock, XM 42
My previous experience with channel: never really listened in before.

Heard on XM Liquid Metal
Poison the Well 12/23/93, "Symphony of Destruction", Arch Enemy; "Gozor", Frightening; "Pass Out of Existence", Chimaira; "Simple Solution", All Else Failed; "Seabeast", Mastodon; "Time to Die", Death Before Dishonor; "Reform Reason", Scar Culture; "The Perfect Enemy", Dry Kill Logic; "Suicide Soundtrack", Scarlet; "Torn From Within", Diecast; "Paralyzing", Obituary; "Ten Ton Hammer", Machine Head.

Time spent listening: a little less than an hour.

Tomorrow: Audio Visions, new age, XM 77