Well, I just got a spot on my school's radio station, and I more or less have the license to play whatever I want.

I'm planning on playing a wide variety of music from all over the world. Well, at least something that you don't always hear on American radio. I pitched my show with the whole "international music" sort of angle, after all.

I thought I'd pop in here and ask for some general recommendations on pretty much anything. I want to introduce my listeners to some new music, and pretty much any genre is welcome.

If I want to introduce others to new music, I'm gonna have to introduce myself to a lot of new music as well, so I've been asking around a lot of places for recommendations. I figured, why not here?

It would help if we had a better idea of what you're looking for. "International music" meaning what, for instance?

I could recommend plenty of things you don't hear on American radio, like this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K6DhNBmCdE) or this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FShc3zcLBw) or this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNzYIEY-CcM) or this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcFyl8amoEE).

But I don't know if any of those are the kinds of things you're looking for.

"International music" does sound kind of vague.

Nonetheless, here are a few of my favorite songs within my library. I believe most - if not all - of these songs you will not hear on the radio. I can send these to you as MP3s (within a RAR) if you'd like.

Amon Tobin - Marine Machines (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZWclJSaegAs)
Saul Williams - DNA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSz2ix4Fi7U)
Secede - Bye Bye Gridlock Traffic (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmfDk8rc7fI)
Solillaquists of Sound - Bulletproof (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWvH4UIDMEQ)
Noisia - Machine Gun (16-bit remix) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Waqn0jBG58)
k-os - 4 3 2 1 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRlzM4a1ll0)
Aesop Rock feat. C-Rayz Walz - Bent Life (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOujo52w2Jg)
Reanimator - Everything You Know is Wrong (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9c-dUPJEVo)
A Tribe Called Quest - We Can Get Down (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYbwFuw_QQI)
Blockhead - Forest Crunk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pj6vV1Ezn3c)
Pharcyde - Drop (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=co3qMdkucM0)
Nobuo Uematsu - Fire Above The Battle (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eM-CZvEdKu4)
Secede - Leraine (feat. Kettel) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FWf7ONmNWE)

Yeah, "international music" is intentionally vague. It's code for "I still don't know what the heck I want to play" without actually admitting it. Also I really am taking recommendations for just about anything. Because "the kinds of things I'm looking for" aren't even established until I'm actually in the process of building my playlists. I'm mainly just trying to find out about some new artists so I can start listening to their stuff and see what I can work into my playlists. Granted, stuff that is intentionally out there and avant-garde probably won't make it in, since I need to make it flow to some extent. (Examples of TOO out there are Karlheinz Stockhausen's Helicopter String Quartet and John Cage's 4'33" just... no, okay? )


Anyway, I suppose a good way to frame the question would be "What songs or artists would you be pleasantly surprised to hear on the radio?"

My only real restrictions come from the rules of the FCC, so no music with obscenity is allowed.

Gotcha.

Maybe besides A Tribe Called Quest, I would be surprised to hear any of the artists I've listed on the radio.

I'll get back to you with some recommendations soon. Have you started doing the show already?

Some aren't "international," but all are songs I'd be pleasantly surprised to hear on the radio.

Toumani Diabete - Tapha Niang (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FM84Ol6xQio)
Asha Bhosle & Kronos Quartet - Dum Maro Dum (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-K6DhNBmCdE)
Amelie soundtrack - La Valse D'Amelie (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaFDhiIUz98)
Return to Oz soundtrack - Dorothy Remembers Oz (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOceFeiwWRM)
Datarock - Computer Camp Love (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=140ea47ndME)
The Dismemberment Plan - A Life of Possibilities (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKS2r8I_egw)
Eric Whitacre - I Thank God for This Most Amazing Day (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYSCuphIEc0)
Iannis Xenakis - Rebonds A (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziQjykdLDVU)
Arcade Fire - Cold Wind (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OdZX47TG0w)
Steve Reich - The Desert Music II (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UA-iDNxKeco)
Tim & Eric - Petite Feet (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xs6DfZm36s4)
The Secret of NIMH - Main Title (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k8o8yNb6aM)
Street Fighter II V - Opening Theme (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hR4W7zD7fuk&feature=fvst)
Tom Lehrer - Poisoning Pigeons in the Park (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HVsgAWdQX8)
Arnold Schoenberg - A Survivor in Warsaw (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGWai0SEpUQ)
Michael Nyman - Big My Secret (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxJnzcNkiFo)
Ravenous soundtrack - Boyd's Journey (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeOGSIkAgZU)
Scott Weiland - Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCGxeShoPTs)

I would not play video game music on your radio show.

Check out this band from Johannesburg though:

YouTube - BLK JKS - "Molalatladi" Secretly Canadian (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p39dhBLK1U)
YouTube - BLK JKS - Summertime (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Pv9PivRJUE)

what's the latest, RadiantCadenza?

I would not play video game music on your radio show.


Ehehehe... too late.

The very first thing I played was an Orchestral arrange of the super Mario theme as preformed by the eminence orchestra.

Actually my whole first show was a video game music theme. Though, it was all fully arranged music by orchestras or bands. No straight from NES chip tunes or anything like that, so if anybody didn't know the tunes, they probably would have thought it was "normal" music.

I've been doing a two hour show weekly for a month now. I've basically been mostly playing my own music, but I've been starting to mix in things that friends have suggested to me as I get around to listening to it and seeing what fits together. And I'm trying to play a wide range of stuff.

Just to ramble off some of the stuff I played so far in case anyone's wondering:
(I'll list both specific songs and general artists/soundtracks)

The Pillows
Chancho en piedra
Palmy
YUI
Origa
Ali Project
Alina Orlova
Kalafina
Asriel
Yoko Kanno
Kajiura Yuki
Rammstien
F.I.R.
Cherry Boom
소녀시대 (Girls' Generation)
Etro Anime
Katamari On the Rock- Yu Miyake, Masayuki Tanaka
Heaven- Shihoko Hirata (Persona Music live band version)
A few vocaloid songs
Youjeen
Yousei Teikoku
Shenmue (remember that game? Has a pretty nice orchestral theme, actually)
susumu hirasawa
"Reset"- Okami credits, I forgot who sings it
Within Temptation
Bump of Chicken

Well for a few examples off the top of my head anyway.
I probably have about 70% Japanese music (not necessarily the language, but Japanese composed or produced) in any given playlist though so I should probably try to tip the scales around a little bit more. I've got basically nothing for African and Middle Eastern music, so I think I might try to dig some of that up for future use. But so far, things are going pretty good. I haven't used any of the music in this thread yet, but I should obtain some and throw a few tracks in the next couple weeks. It's possible for me to play things onto the radio strait off youtube, but I prefer not to do that. It's not very reliable to do on our system, and it loads really slow.

^ If you're looking for some African type, you should look up Angelique Kidjo.

YouTube - BENIN - Angelique Kidjo - Wombo Lombo (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVqHZHDlaKo)
YouTube - Alicia Keys and Angelique Kidjo perform "Afrika" at Mandela Day 2009 from Radio City Music Hall (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThdXkwu42aw)
YouTube - Agolo - Angelique Kidjo (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVoSpBp7DEM)
Anglique Kidjo Headlines | Ang�lique Kidjo (http://www.kidjo.com/)

i think you shouldn't.

You should play "epic" music during one of your sessions on the air. (Such as Muse, Queen, Blind Guardian, and so on....)