One of my favorite benefits of the Internet is the ability to connect with media you would otherwise not likely have known: bands, bloggers, radio shows, and the like.
At the top of the shortlist of the discoveries I’m happiest about finding the online, streaming version of Morning Becomes Eclectic, a radio show from KCRW in Santa Monica, California.

MBE consistently books the best and brightest of independent, alternative, and up-and-coming artists, as well as old favorites. In December of 2006, as an example, guests included: Yusef Islam, Silversun Pickups, Aimee Mann, Johanna Kunin, Amy Millan, Jim Noir, and Lily Allen. Upcoming guests include Aqualung, Patty Griffin, Miho Hitori, and Norah Jones.

The format is simple: guests do 2-3 songs, Nic Harcourt interviews them for about 10 minutes, and then they do 2-3 more songs. The magic is in the consistency of the booking – varied, as the name suggests, but consistently exposing the listener to the best of the new and the old.

You can listen to (and view) streaming video and audio on-demand from the archives or there’s also a Podcast edition: audio and video (though not all shows that are streamed get podcasted – presumably a rights issue).

The only drawback is that the streams are heavily compressed (real audio) and the podcasts are lower bit-rate (128kbps, according to a quick check of the current feed, though I believe historically some were at 96kbps ).