Sonnenaufgang an der Spree
  • Welcome to the Midnight Monsoon. The Monsoon is a place where passion for music collides with love for German language and culture. I broadcast contemporary German music of all genres on KWCW 90.5 FM Walla Walla, Sunday nights from 11 to midnight, Pacific Time. The show also streams live online at www.kwcw.net. Tune in with the webstream below!


    This blog is for show news, podcasts, music recommendations, concert stories, and other tales from my adventures in German music, Germany and the beautiful city of Berlin. Come in and get drenched!

    Viel Spaß!
Sonnenaufgang an der Spree

Final broadcast: onwards to Berlin!

Leute, it has been a beautiful journey, but even the monsoon has its season, and must pass in time. As Die Toten Hosen say, alles wird vorübergehen. I graduated from Whitman College on Sunday, May 20, 2012, and with this milestone, the Midnight Monsoon has also ended its time at KWCW 90.5 FM. In preparation … Continue reading

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Scrumptious smorgasbord of new music!

We’re in the midst of a glorious few weeks for German music releases. Silbermond released a new album, Himmel auf, on March 22. There is not a bad song on it. Absolutely beautiful. Some of them tend to sound rather alike—it’s a more introspective, mellow album as a whole than some of the band’s earlier … Continue reading

Midnight Monsoon Ladies Night

Ladies Night!

This past Sunday, I decided to mix things up a little bit with another theme show! I’ve done all-female shows in the past, and I think it’s always a fun way to showcase some of the amazingly beautiful vocals of Germany’s songstresses. Playlist: Got tracks in from female-fronted rock and pop bands like Juli, Klee … Continue reading

Love is Love

Lass die Liebe regieren!

Alles Gute zum Valentinstag, liebe listeners! I enjoyed my Valentine’s theme show this past Sunday – what could be better than chilling in the studio for an hour playing gorgeous German songs about love? Here’s the playlist: Of these, I’ve been utterly enchanted with “Weil Liebe dort beginnt” lately. There’s something so disarming about the … Continue reading

Valentinstag bonanza!!

In preparation for my upcoming Valentine’s Day theme show this Sunday, I have started compiling a playlist of the best and most beautiful German love songs ever to grace human ears! At the end of this hour, not even the most tone-deaf, monolingual xenophobe in East Jesus Nowhere, Amurrka would dare to assert that German … Continue reading

I Love My Thesis, But I’ve Chosen Disco.

Another excellent reason to be a German Studies major: you get to write your thesis on awesome topics like popular music through the lens of German national identity! No, seriously. Along with many, many textbooks, I’m analyzing song lyrics from a range of eras, including the recent rap hit “Das alles ist Deutschland,” from Fler … Continue reading

David Bowie - Helden / Heroes

Spring radio season begins

Last night’s show kicked off the spring radio season—it’s great to be back in the studio! Here’s the playlist: “Helden,” the German version of David Bowie “Heroes,” is a real trip to hear. Of course, Bowie spent time in the 70s living in Berlin, in an apartment in Schöneberg with Iggy Pop! What a wild … Continue reading

Winter in Berlin Mixtape

Hallo zusammen! After a relaxing winter break, I’m back at Whitman and preparing to fire up the show again. We’ll be returning to the same time slot—Sunday nights from 11 p.m. to midnight, Pacific time! I had a lovely Silvester celebration with friends from my year in Berlin—we reunited in Chicago for a few days … Continue reading

Afternoon Monsoon

The lovely DJs of The Faux Plateau & Vovo’s View were out sick today, so I stepped in for a little Afternoon Monsoon. Spun a mix of English and German tunes to gradually seduce those non-Deutsch-speaking listeners over to the dark side. Here’s the playlist from today: I’ll be back in the studio this Sunday … Continue reading

Music Video Meltdown

This week’s show featured a bunch of awesome new artists, or artists who were new to me, at least. Every time I think I’ve got the lay of the German music scene, I discover twenty amazing artists I’d never heard of. To take the cake, these people not only make good music, but also have … Continue reading