This episode of Big Sonic Heaven featured three tracks with proceeds going toward helping people in war-stricken areas. First up, an unexpected new release from Dead Can Dance, their first new single in five years, “Our Day Will Come.” For every purchase of “Our Day Will Come,” Dead Can Dance will donate 50% of the proceeds to MAP (Medical Aid for Palestinians).

MAP does incredible work to provide medical care, food, and nutritional aid to the Palestinian people. The new single also came with an announcement that all of their future music will only be released on Bandcamp, a platform that bans AI music. Their statement is below:

“We have decided to no longer support streaming platforms that continue to exploit artists and promote AI generated music. In future we will sell our music directly to the public via Bandcamp, a platform that continues to support independent artists and which has commendably banned all forms of AI generated music, a technology that threatens the very life and soul of our profession.”

We also took the new Depeche Mode and Beth Gibbons War Child Records Help(2) tracks for another spin. Proceeds help to protect, educate, and stand up for the rights of children living through conflict around the world.

In other new music, we heard the latest from Deary, ACTORS, Art School Girlfriend, Plastic Milk, and more. 

Plus, we celebrated 30 years of Stereolab’s album, “Emperor Tomato Ketchup!” Yay!

Check the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the player above. 

• “You Do Something To Me” – Sinéad O’Connor
• “All That We Had Is Lost” – Postiljonen
• “Alma” – deary
• “Love Less” – New Order
• “Vertigo” – Miki Berenyi Trio
• “Our Day Will Come” – Dead Can Dance
• “Railwayed” – Kitchens of Distinction
• “Primitive Painters” – Felt
• “Universal Soldier” – Depeche Mode & War Child Records
• “Les Yper -Sound” – Stereolab
• “Sugar Phantom Blackout” – Bluhm
• “Torture” – The Cure
• “Other Things” – Ringo Deathstarr
• “Almost Transparent” – Art School Girlfriend
• “It’s Enough Now” – Mandalay
• “A Return” – The Tear Garden
• “Overcome” – Tricky
• “chained to a cloud” – Slowdive
• “Thursday” – Asobi Seksu
• “CTRL” – ACTORS
• “Heart and Soul” – Joy Division
• “Deep Ocean Vast Sea” – Peter Murphy
• “The Robot Girl Psychiatrist” – The False Dawns
• “Punish Me With Kisses” – The Glove
• “Kiss Of Snow (feat. Krissy Vanderwoude)” – LongingSky
• “Vapour Trail” – Ride
• “Sunday Morning” – Beth Gibbons & War Child Records
• “Carolyn’s Fingers” – Cocteau Twins
• “Into You” – The Haunted Youth
• “Klettur” – Sigur Rós
• “Sticky Halo” – Plastic Milk
• “I Tried” – Shoestrings
• “Kiss a Girl In Black” – Fleeting Joys

Big Sonic Heaven celebrated a few milestones: The Cure’s re-release of the 1986 New Vocal Version of “Boys Don’t Cry” earned platinum status, with sales and streams exceeding one million. Plus, their album “Bloodflowers” turned 26!

The film “Pretty In Pink,” where New Order graced the soundtrack turns 40, and let’s not forget the Rough Trade pearl-vinyl re-release of Cocteau Twins’ “Head Over Heels” as the label celebrates 50 years!

A lot of brand-new music this week coming from Stereolab, ACTORS, Plastic Milk, Searows, Ninon, Good Day Father, which is Tanya Donelly’s new band, and more!

Check out the playlist below. The show is available on demand at WDET.org for two weeks.

• “Drink Before the War” – Sinéad O’Connor
• “Sleepsong” – Deary
• “Burrow” – AtticOmatic
• “Screw” – The Cure
• “Sonic Amadea” – Good Day Father
• “Safari” – The Breeders
• “Heaven” – CASTLEBEAT
• “October Love Song” – Chris And Cosey
• “Blush” – The Secret French Postcards
• “Cloud Land” – Stereolab
• “Leave Me Alone” – New Order
• “Verdi Cries” – 10,000 Maniacs
• “Snow Heart” – Lucy La Dusk
• “Naive” – Softcult
• “Texture” – Catherine Wheel
• “Transatlantic” – Basement Revolver
• “CTRL” – ACTORS
• “Evelyn” – Xymox
• “Goodbye Vista” – Deserta
• “Looking Glass Girl” – The Glove
• “Sloppy Heart” – Frazier Chorus
• “Gilded Shadow” – Olive Kimoto
• “Ornaments of Gold” – Siouxsie & The Banshees
• “Until We Meet Again” – Lisa Gerrard & Marcello De Francisci
• “Thoughtforms” – Lush
• “Crystals (feat. Benjamin Gibbard)” – Sea Lemon
• “In Violet” – Searows
• “Ripple” – The Church
• “Wax Tongue” – Plastic Milk
• “When Mama Was Moth” – Cocteau Twins
• “Kisses” – Slowdive
• “Army Of Me” – Björk
• “Leave on your light” – NINON
• “Stare Into Light” – Velour 100
• “Cry” – The Sundays
• “Ascension” – There’s Talk

Big Sonic Heaven has always featured talented female vocalists, and this week was no exception. 

This episode included Olivia Lee of There’s Talk, Chrisy Hurn of Basement Revolver, Geike Arnaert of Hooverphonic, Dottie Cockram of Deary, Estonian singer-songwriter Iiris Vesik of Night Tapes, and Alessandra Stella of Nother and Moon Leap. We also heard from French vocalist Rosa Rocca-Serra, featured on Tricky’s project, “Theis Thaws.”

And let’s not forget the unmistakable voices of Karen Peris from The Innocence Mission, Harriet Wheeler from The Sundays, Björk, Elizabeth Fraser of Cocteau Twins, and Sinead O’Connor.

Checkout the playlist below and listen to the replay, available for the next two weeks at WDET.org.

Big Sonic Heaven Playlist for Jan. 11, 2025

• “Mercy Street” – Peter Gabriel
• “Prayer Remembered” – Slowdive
• “Until You Come Back Home” – Nother & Moon Leap
• “Pearl” – Chapterhouse
• “En Lögn, En Sanning (note: translates to “a lie, a truth.”)” – Kallsup
• “Sweetness and Light” – Lush
• “I’m so Tired” – Deserta
• “Six Different Ways” – The Cure
• “Louise” – Clan of Xymox
• “The Big Shake” – The Mary Onettes
• “Here’s Where the Story Ends” – The Sundays
• “Golden” – There’s Talk
• “Troy” – Sinead O’ Connor
• “Before” – The Giraffe Told Me in My Dream
• “Drive that Fast” – Kitchens of Distinction
• “The Robot Girl Psychiatrist” – The False Dawns
• “Morning Theft” – Jeff Buckley
• “Skin” – Basement Revolver
• “Those Eyes That Mouth” – Cocteau Twins
• “Renaissance Affair” – Hooverphonic
• “Helix” – Night Tapes
• “Life is Wrong” – Longwave
• “Swamp Thing” – The Chameleons
• “On Your Side” – The Innocence Mission
• “Fly to the Ceiling featuring Rosa Rocca” – Theis Thaws
• “I’ll Fall with your Knife” – Peter Murphy
• “Elegia” – New Order
• “My Love” – Silk Daisys
• “It’s Oh So Quiet” – Bjork
• “Fairground” – Deary
• “Become” – Beach House
• “Hollywood Daydream” – Cigarettes for Breakfast
• “Severance” – Dead Can Dance

Sunday marked the Winter Solstice as we celebrated the longest night of the year in Big Sonic Heaven.

We played mix of traditional and non-traditional holiday songs, along with some of your favorite shoegaze, dreampop, trip-hop, and post-punk. Check out the playlist below. 

Check the playlist below and listen to the episode for two weeks after it airs using the player above.

• “Silent Night” – Sinead O’Connor
• “Shanty” – Slowdive
• “Garden” – Maria Somerville
• “2000 Miles” – Deary
• “Stumble” – Meena
• “Christmas Reindeer” – The Knife
• “Merry Christmas from Björk” – Björk
• “All is Full of Love” – Björk
• “Christmas Don’t Be Late” – Rosie Thomas
• “My Love” – Silk Daisys
• “Winter Wonderland” – Cocteau Twins
• “Thoughtforms” – Lush
• “White Christmas” – 93MillionMilesfromtheSun
• “Warmth” – Glazyhaze
• “Stripped” – Depeche Mode
• “Holiday House” – Beach House
• “You Look So Fine” – Garbage
• “Emo Song” – The Haunted Youth
• “Christmas Time is Here” – Mark Kozelek
• “Song to the Siren” – This Mortal Coil
• “Christmas Will Break Your Heart” – LCD Soundsystem
• “Mad About You” – Hooverphonic
• “Just Drive” – Postiljonen
• “O Holy Night” – Bien
• “Gorecki” – Lamb
• “Until You Come Back Home” – Nother and Moon Leap
• “Happy Xmas (War is over)” – Cranes
• “She Won’t Be Home” – Erasure
• “Say You Will” – Ivy
• “Spirit”- Dead Can Dance
• “White Christmas” (2010) – Iggy Pop
• “Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want to Fight Tonight)” (2007) – Asobi Seksu
• “Frosty the Snowman” – Cocteau Twins
• “My Christmas Prayer” – St. Etienne
• “All I Want For Christmas” – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
• “Oíche Chiún (Silent Night)” – Enya

Listen to Big Sonic Heaven with host Darren Revell Sundays from 9 p.m. to midnight ET on 101.9 WDET or stream on-demand at wdet.org.