World Cafe host Stephen Kallao’s got video game soundtracks, a cover, and Gloorp for Ears We Trust
Did you know World Cafe host Stephen Kallao is an avid gamer? For this week’s Ears We Trust, he’s sharing some video game soundtracks, a cover by Todd Rundgren’s band Utopia, and a new project titled Gloorp. That’s not a typo. Check out his picks here!
Music lovers across the nation tune in to World Cafe to hear Stephen Kallao spin tunes and go on deep dives with artists of all genres and generations. But what does the host listen to in his free time? Well, he dropped some music that’s been stuck in his head for this week’s Ears We Trust. Here’s what he’s shouting out.
“I don’t trust my ears. 30 years of wearing headphones at max volume will do that to you,” he said. “But the bigger question is can you trust my taste!? I have no idea, but I did promise Max and the XPN.org team that I’d try to make selections beyond video game or anime soundtracks. I mostly succeeded, but let’s start with a video game soundtrack anyway.”
NBA Street Vol. 2 Original Soundtrack — “React”
NBA Street Vol. 2 is one of a handful of perfect sports video games. An early aughts release, it’s an oversized version of playground basketball, one that involves Dr. J doing 720 windmills. It also has one of my favorite go-to summertime playlists featuring early aughts hip-hop. It’s literally what I’m listening to, now! Featuring bangers from Nate Dogg, Black Sheep, and Pete Rock and CL Smooth, it’s exactly what you’d hear if you went up to Rucker Park to see some of the best street ball GOATs in the world. The standout is Eric Sermon’s “React,” featuring Redman, a lighthearted brag-fest with an incredible backing beat courtesy of Just Blaze. It’s also notable because no one knew what they were sampling, and how the MC’s used a karaoke machine to cut the track. NSFW.
Utopia — “For the Love of Money”
I was talking to Todd Rundgren for our upcoming Sense of Place series on Philly! And while digging through his massive discography I came across a connection to Philadelphia International Records, the home of Philly Soul (and The Sound of Philadelphia). Back in 1982 with his band Utopia, he recorded a cover of The O’Jays “For the Love of Money,” a song recorded at Sigma Sound in 1973. Though Rundgren left Philly early into his career, he too once taped a session at Sigma Sound two for WMMR two years earlier. Pretty cool! So is the cover!
Gloorp — “Jeggings“
Sometimes you get an email subject so bizarre you just drop what you’re doing and go, “sure, whatever this is, I’m intrigued.” Wanna see what I saw dear reader?
I saw this.
“Gloorp announces album Gloorp Life,” is a lede I cannot imagine ignoring. It’s pure curiosity poison. I needed to listen to whatever this might be. “Jeggings,” oddly, sounds WEIRDER than I expected, which is a credit to Philadelphia musician Garrett Burke in the best way. If Autechre started in the 21st century and just had a citywide, that’s what this feels like. Full album is out July 10.
Destiny 2 Original Soundtrack — “Deep Stone Lullaby”
Destiny 2 is ending. That’s a very difficult sentence to explain if you don’t know what Destiny 2 is. But, basically it’s a space magic video game where people hung out, blew up all number of objects, and complained about it like it was a house that needed a new hot water heater. Basically, they’re going to stop updating the game, giving people who played it little reason to come back. That makes me sad, because I’ve spent so many hours, too many hours, and created so many great memories amongst friends. The series launched with a Paul McCartney song that was more meme than hit, but I think “Deep Stone Lullaby,” composed by Michael Salvatori is the high-water mark. I’ll miss the game very much, but will always come back to the soundtrack.