8Track

Our Season 1 finale features 2 guest DJs: Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney. They've been staples in the indie rock scene for the past two and half decades and recently released their self-produced 10th album, "Path of Wellness." For their 8 songs, Corin picked a “heroes” theme, and it made for some great storytelling and conversation around their creative process and artists that have helped shape them professionally and personally. [Recorded 6/24/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

Vernon Reid is a Grammy award-winning musician and songwriter, and a founding member of the band Living Colour. He was also named by "Rolling Stone" magazine as one of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time. But for "8Track," Vernon joined us back in April as DJ, and the timing and the times led him to focus his songs on recovery and struggle. [Recorded 4/6/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

Anthony Mason is a music fan and as respected a journalist as they come, having been an Emmy-winning mainstay at CBS for three and a half decades. So his song picks led to some great stories about where his love of music and journalism intersect, and it was pretty insightful flipping the script with a guy who has interviewed U.S. presidents and music industry giants. As you'll hear, Anthony also has some radio DJ dreams, so 8Track got him a step closer. [Recorded 3/2/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

Gail Ann Dorsey is a world-class musician who famously played bass in David Bowie's band for 20 years. Her credits also include several solo albums and work with Tears for Fears, Indigo Girls, Lenny Kravitz, The National and many more. Gail also has a longtime love of radio, but what I didn't know was the role that film plays in her story. So this 8Track is all about songs as soundtracks — to movies and to life. [Recorded 3/8/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

For Public Radio Music Day, 8Track comes your way a day early and features a familiar voice to public radio music fans: Raina Douris. She can be heard on over 200 stations as host of "World Cafe," which is produced by WXPN in Philadelphia and celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. That gig means she talks to a lot of artists, so interviews factor into the theme of her 8Track picks: "Artists she would love (or would have loved) to interview." As you'll hear, there's a twist to that theme, and since we spoke in May, one of Raina's wishes came true. [Recorded 5/10/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

Our Guest DJ this week is Laura Jane Grace. She is the singer, writer and guitarist in the punk band Against Me. She also released her first solo album late last year, called "Stay Alive," and — since we spoke in April — a surprise EP called "At War With the Silverfish." Talking about music is a whole different story and challenge, but Laura came up with 8 great picks for us to turn up with the theme, "8 songs currently keeping me sane." [Recorded 4/12/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

This time, we have two Guest DJs on 8Track: Rivers Cuomo and Pat Wilson of Weezer. With Rivers as frontman and Pat on drums, Weezer has been crafting some of the finest power pop records of the past two and a half decades. I spoke with the guys in February of this year just after the release of "OK Human," which expanded the Weezer sound with a 38-piece orchestra. But for 8Track, we got to hear what else was inspiring them. [Recorded 2/17/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

Danny Clinch is a renowned music photographer whose credits range from Johnny Cash and Tupac to Björk and Bruce Springsteen. He's also a producer of the Sea.Hear.Now Festival, a filmmaker, and he plays harmonica. So for his 8 songs, Danny decided to put the harp in the spotlight — even giving a mini lesson during our conversation — and those songs led to some great stories, including how he introduced Paul McCartney to B.B. King, played with Blind Melon, and captured the iconic cover photo for Johnny Cash's album, "American III: Solitary Man." [Recorded: 6/16/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

Jon Batiste is our Guest DJ this week. Among many other things, he is a composer and musician who you can see as the Music Director and bandleader on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert." Earlier this year, he released the incredible album, "We Are," since we spoke in March, he's become an Oscar-winner for his work on the film, "Soul," and for 8Track, he joined me from a familiar seat at his piano. [Recorded 3/24/21; More at 8trackpod.com]

Annie Clark is an artist in every sense of the word. She's an ever-evolving musician, songwriter and producer who's released six albums as St. Vincent, including her latest, "Daddy's Home." The new album draws from vintage sounds of the '70s, but the songs Annie chose for 8Track stick more to the present and run in a range of directions. They also stirred up some fun stories and memories — from her roaming CD World as a kid in Dallas, to a dream for a future St. Vincent album. [Recorded 5/4/21; More at 8Trackpod.com]

Caroline Rose is a songwriter, producer and wildly entertaining live performer who is responsible for the incredible albums "Loner" and "Superstar" — and — the 8Track theme music. She's a hometown favorite at WFUV who is now based in Austin, but the recent discoveries and rediscoveries in her 8 song choices take us in a lot of different directions. [Recorded 3/15/21; More at 8Trackpod.com]

Welcome to Season 1 of 8Track, where you'll hear host Russ Borris, a bunch of great guests, and of course — music — as 8 songs lead the way in each conversation. Our first guest is writer, producer and showrunner Brian Koppelman. He's built an impressive resume over the last 20+ years — best known for his work on the Showtime series "Billions," and films like "Rounders" and "Oceans Thirteen." Brian also began his career in the music industry, working in A&R, and currently hosts the podcast "The Moment." So 8Track brought all of those worlds together as Brian chose a theme for his picks: “Songs that could be movies but weren't written by Bruce, Lou, Joni or Bob.” [Recorded 2/4/21; More at 8Trackpod.com]

Of all the songs in the world, pick 8. That request is a little unfair to a Guest DJ, but for music nerds — like WFUV's Russ Borris — it's also a fun challenge. And it's made even better by getting to talk music with someone. So 8Track is more than a mixtape. It's a playlist conversation where the songs and segues lead the way. In our 12 episode first season, you'll hear Russ joined by St. Vincent, Jon Batiste and writer Brian Koppelman, plus Weezer, Gail Ann Dorsey, Sleater-Kinney and more. Look for new episodes weekly, starting Thursday, September 23.