Program Audio’s new compilation is why I’m moving to San Francisco.
Not really. But picture this: I’m head-bobbing down the stairs carrying a 30-pound box to the sound of 3:33’s “WYWD.” Next, I’m assembling a bed frame to the deconstructed club thrum of “Piedras Negras.” Then it’s back up the stairs to Liano’s loose, off-the-cuff hip-hop. Featuring 10 different artists from across the globe, the compilation’s sound travels on its own journey. From the synth-heavy lo-fi house of “Fresh & Best II,” to the hypnotic ambience vår creates on final track “Closet Yi,” the whole thing moves like flan—the dessert, not the artist—bouncy, soft, and just structured enough to hold its shape before slipping into something else.
Even better: All proceeds from Program Audio Compliation #001 go to the National Immigrant Justice Center, which provides legal aid and advocacy for immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. That detail reframes everything. The Spanish-language titles stop feeling aesthetic and start reading as subtle, but intentional connective tissue.
Program Audio’s founders Erika and Arthur are Bay Area natives, and it shows. In the Bay Area—where roughly a third of residents are foreign-born—projects like this don’t exist in a vacuum. They reflect the communities around them. Between underground parties and the recent transformation of a 59-year-old Fotomat into a radio station, Program Audio isn’t just curating a sound. They’re building a scene.
So thank you, Program Audio, for the auditory adrenaline—and for making the San Francisco sound a little harder to ignore.
