The excitement for the Nov. 9 launch of KERA's new sister music station KXT-FM (91.7) grew substantially this week as on-air talent and programming details were announced. Head to the new Web site kxt.org, where you can get a peek at the schedule of programs, as well as bios of the new local hosts for the station, Gini Mascorro and Joe Kozera.

We chatted on the phone Tuesday with Mascorro, a University of North Texas alum and current KERA host/producer. She'll serve as the new station's morning host, as well as its music coordinator. That means she has the lion's share of responsibility in selecting music for KXT's playlists.

"Day to day I am listening to mountains of music, trying to pick everything that I think would be a good fit for our format," Mascorro said. "There's so much out there to choose from that it's really exciting. There are a lot of great artists whose music we hope to champion."

The artists she's considering include plenty of local acts, which will be worked into the local playlists.

"This is such a great community with a huge musical tapestry," Mascorro said. "We want to feature a lot of these people and give them their rightful place in the sun."

The station is proving its local loyalty right off the bat, with scheduled in-studio performances from Sarah Jaffe (above), the O's, Andrew Tinker, Danny Balis and others.

Mascorro says there's a lot to be done before Nov. 9, but she's confident the launch will bring needed diversity to the city's airwaves: "I'm just so excited for the listeners, because I know there's that hunger for this music."

• Grammy-winning Dallas producer duo Play-N-Skillz released their new rap mix tape Recession Proof this week. It's an appetizer to the forthcoming album Out Tha Box, and features new tracks on which brothers Juan and Oscar Salinas collaborate with artists such as Big Tuck, Slim (of 112) and Slim Thug. Find out how to get the mix tape at myspace.com/playnskillz.

• It's been nearly three years since Midlake's The Trials of Van Occupanther topped our 2006 year-end local-albums list and enjoyed critical praise from, oh, everybody. So you can imagine how painful the wait for new material has been for fans of the Denton band. But earlier this week we got a glimmer of hope, if only a glimmer. Midlake's label, Bella Union, announced that the new album, The Courage of Others, will see release on Feb 2. Visit QuickDFW.com for more details and a track listing.SHOP AROUND

Best-selling titles for the week ending Oct. 26. Local artists in bold.

1. Brand New, Daisy

2. Flaming Lips, Embryonic

3. Atlas Sound, Logos

4. Neon Indian, Psychic Chasms

5. Lou Barlow, Goodnight Unknown (vinyl)

6. Built to Spill, There Is No Enemy

7. Lou Barlow, Goodnight Unknown

8. Karen O & the Kids, Where the Wild Things Are (vinyl)

9. [Expletive] Buttons, Tarot Sport

10. Phoenix, Wolfgang Amadeus

Best-selling local title for week ending Oct. 25: Sarah Jaffe, Even Born Again

Send news and music to hhauk@quickdfw.com.

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