Across the Margin: The Podcast

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with the directors of Songs of Black Folk, Haley Watson & Justin Emeka. Songs of Black Folk is a documentary that explores the Pacific Northwest's largest annual gathering of Black musical talent. At its heart is Ramón Bryant Braxton, who — alongside his uncle, Rev. Dr. Leslie Braxton — brings to life a powerful Juneteenth celebration that honors their family's legacy. The film captures a vibrant, often-overlooked community and commemorates a pivotal chapter in American history. Songs of Black Folk reminds audiences of the vital role music plays in healing, uniting, and uplifting. By sharing this story, Haley and Justin aim to honor history, inspire pride, and ignite a deeper understanding of the enduring impact of Black artistry.Haley Watson (director and producer) is known for films exploring human experience. Her storytelling prowess was exemplified when she pitched the original story for the Oscar-winner The Queen of Basketball. In June 2024 she debuted the short documentary she directed, Motorcycle Mary, at Tribeca Film Festival. The film was acquired by ESPN's 30 for 30 series. Justin Emeka (director) is an award-winning filmmaker from the Pacific Northwest with over 25 years of experience as a theater director. He is especially known for blending classical works with Black cultural expression. In 2022, he received a prestigious TV/Film Directing Fellowship from the Drama League of New York, expanding his creative vision into screen storytelling. His first two original short films, BIOLOGICAL and Six Winters Gone Still, have screened at festivals around the world, earning acclaim for their poetic visual language and emotional depth. He is a tenured professor of Theater and Africana Studies at Oberlin College, where he teaches directing, acting, and Capoeira. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Alec Karakatsanis. Alec is the Founder and Executive Director of Civil Rights Corps and as one of the country's leading experts in constitutional civil rights he has pioneered cases to challenge the size, power, profit, and everyday brutality of the punishment bureaucracy across the United States. He has also worked with directly impacted communities across the U.S. to design innovative new legal, advocacy, and narrative strategies for challenging widespread illegal and harmful practices of prosecutors, police, probation officers, judges, and private companies who work with them to profit from the punishment bureaucracy. His recently-released book, Copoganda, is the focus of this episode. In this groundbreaking expose that is Copoganda, essential for understanding the rising authoritarian mindset, readers are introduced to the concept of “Copaganda.” Alec defines Copaganda as a special kind of propaganda employed by police, prosecutors, and news media that stokes fear of police-recorded crime and distorts society's responses to it. Every day, mass media manipulates our perception of what keeps us safe and contributes to a culture fearful of poor people, strangers, immigrants, unhoused people, and people of color. The result is more and more authoritarian state repression, more inequality, and huge profits for the massive public and private punishment bureaucracy. Copaganda documents how modern news coverage fuels insecurity against these groups and shifts our focus away from the policies that would help us improve people's lives — things like affordable housing, adequate healthcare, early childhood education, and climate-friendly city planning. These false narratives in turn fuel surveillance, punishment, inequality, injustice, and mass incarceration. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Mark Lo. Mark has worked on films and TV across many genres for over twenty years, first as a music agent and supervisor, collaborating with composers and artists to bring music to films, and then as an Executive Music Producer. As an Executive Music Producer, he worked on films including Todd Hayne's Carol (Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara), Paul Haggis's Third Person (Liam Neeson, Mila Kunis, and James Franco), and The Railway Man (Colin Firth, Nicole Kidman and Stellan Skarsgard), amongst others. Mark set up the production company Asylum Giant as a creative hub to develop and produce a slate of Film and TV projects, tell stories that celebrate our humanity and create projects that deepen our relationship with the non-human world. He recently produced and directed the feature music documentary Count Me In — the focus of this episode. Count Me In takes viewers behind the kit with some of the world's most iconic drummers, featuring insightful interviews and narration from Taylor Hawkins, Stewart Copeland, Chad Smith, Emily Dolan Davies, Roger Taylor, Nick Mason, Cindy Blackman Santana, and more. In their own words, they share the passion that took them from banging on pots and pans as kids to performing on some of the world's biggest stages. Along the way, these legendary drummers discuss the dedication that fuels their craft and pay tribute to the musical icons who influenced and inspired them, including Ringo Starr, Charlie Watts, Keith Moon, John Bonham, Ginger Baker and others. Count Me In is available on streaming services everywhere including Apple TV, Amazon, and Fandango at Home. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Mattea Kramer, a writer who comprehensively explores weighty ideas about drugs, power and powerlessness, and the voice in your head. She's been published in The Guardian, The Nation, Mother Jones, Guernica, and The Washington Post, and she has appeared on MSNBC and on radio stations across the country. Her first novel, The Untended — the focus of this episode — will be published in May 2025. In The Untended, Casch Abbey is a waitress, single mom, and recreational boxer who falls in love twice: first with a veteran who secretly grows pot on a rich man's land in Vermont's Green Mountains, and then with a painkiller that eases her long-buried pain. After her foot is crushed under the wheel of a station wagon, Casch loses her waitressing gig and goes broke — and the meds for her foot are her only source of relief. But when the drug is recalled due to outcries of widespread addiction, Casch's dependence imperils her already tenuous life, as cravings lead her into her small town's simmering netherworld. Intimate and exhilarating, The Untended will upend your every assumption about who is a hero and who is worthy of love. In this episode host Michael Shields and Mattea Kramer explore the consequential themes present throughout The Unintended having to do with addiction, corporate greed, PTSD, generational trauma, and so much more.Order The Untended now! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Erin Osmon, an award-winning, Los Angeles-based music journalist, critic, and author. She's written long-form album notes for archival releases on Blondie, Hüsker Dü, Townes Van Zandt, Sparklehorse, and many others. A veteran of Chicago newsrooms, her work appears in Rolling Stone, LA Times, New York Times, Washington Post, and other publications of record. She is part-time faculty at USC's Annenberg School of journalism. Her new book, about heartland rock in the 1980s, will be published by W.W. Norton in 2026. Her first book, Jason Molina: Riding with the Ghost — the focus of this episode — was published in 2017 and named a Best Music Book of the year by Pitchfork. Her book about John Prine's landmark debut album was published by Bloomsbury's 33 1/3 series. In Jason Molina: Riding with the Ghost, Erin presents a detailed, human account of the Rust Belt–born musician Jason Molina — a visionary, prolific, and at times cantankerous singer-songwriter with an autodidactic style that captivated his devoted fans. It details Molina's personal trials and triumphs and reveals for the first time the true story of his last months and works. Offering unfettered access to the mind and artistry of Molina through exclusive interviews with family, friends, and collaborators, the book also explores the Midwest music underground and the development of Bloomington, Indiana–based label Secretly Canadian. As the first authorized and detailed account of this prolific songwriter and self-mythologizer, Riding with the Ghost provides readers with unparalleled insight into Molina's tormented life and the fascinating Midwest musical underground that birthed him. In this episode host Michael Shields and Erin Osmon discuss how Molina's deep ties and affinity to the state that birthed him (Ohio) shaped his life and influenced his career. They explore Molina's surprising and varied musical influences, the comparison to singer-songwriter Will Oldham which shadowed Molina throughout his career, the birth of the timeless classic album that is Magnolia Electric Co., and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Brooklyn-based musician and Garcia Peoples bassist/vocalist Andy Cush. Cush, under the moniker Domestic Drafts, has recently released his debut album entitled Only The Singer (Glamour Gowns Records) — the focus of this episode. Many years in the making, Only the Singer is an ambitious and dramatically engaging debut that spotlights the distinctive songwriting sensibility that Cush has leant to Garcia Peoples (as bassist, co-composer, and vocalist). It bursts with inspired ideas, with lyrics and arrangements ranging from the intimate to the windswept and cinematic. Its songs sketch richly personal, romantic narratives with a brainy sense of humor, demonstrating Cush's singular prowess as a storyteller, while the musical treatments take cues from country music, '90s indie-rock, outré folk, smooth '70s pop, progressive jazz, bossa nova, and more. In this episode hosts Michael Shields and Andy Cush discuss the bevy of talented musicians who helped Andy bring the album to life while exploring how many of the songs on Only The Singer have lived with Andy for some time, and others are freshly crafted, yet they uniquely co-exist harmoniously. They dig into the specifics of a few of the songs on the album, expounding how the title track was inspired by an interview with Leonard Cohen and how others are inspired by relatable life struggles and hardships, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with musician and bandleader Andy Frasco. Frasco, celebrated for his good time spirit, is a tireless and consummate showman who plays some 250 concert dates a year with his band, Andy Frasco & The U.N., and has been doing so since he was 19. His band's sound has been described as "blues-rock fueled by reckless abandonment and a disregard for the rules, with witty lyrics to back it all up.” This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast is dedicated to Frasco's latest album, entitled Growing Pains. Produced by Frasco himself for the first time, Growing Pains acts as a tribute to his 15-year journey in music, and the group's landmark 10th studio album showcases his growth as songwriter and frontman. Growing Pains features assists from brilliant musicians such as Billy Strings, Eric Krasno, and G. Love, and it's a refreshingly introspective album full of self-flection and weighty, relatable themes, while still being a hell of a good time. In this episode hosts Michael Shields and Andy Frasco discuss the themes present in Growing Pains and what it meant to him to produce the album personally. They dig into Frasco's growth as a musician and songwriter, why he decided to record songs for Growing Pains in Nashville, his excellent World Saving Podcast, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Lee Klinger, Ph.D., an Independent Scientist and Consultant in Big Sur, CA currently working with the Department of Natural Resources of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County, and with the Mutsun Costanoan leaders at Indian Canyon Nation. Since 2005 he has served as the director of Sudden Oak Life, a movement aimed at applying fire mimicry practices to address the problems of forest decline and severe wildfires in California. He has more than forty years of experience in forestry, plant and soil ecology, atmospheric chemistry, earth system science, and nature photography, and has held scholarly appointments at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, the University of Colorado, the University of Oxford, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Geological Society of London. His book — Forged By Fire : The Cultural Tending of Trees and Forests in Big Sur and Beyond — is the focus of this episode. Big Sur is home to many remarkable trees, including ancient groves of oddly shaped oaks and peculiar groupings and strange fire scars in old-growth redwoods, all dating from a time when the Esselen People were the sole human occupants of the region. Upon close inspection, these oddities are found to be the result of cultural burning and other tending practices by the Esselen. Now, however, too many of these living artifacts are dying and perishing in flames from the stresses imposed by our modern culture. By bringing together both Western science and Traditional Ecological Knowledge systems, the solutions to these problems become self-evident — either reintroduce cultural fire to the land or, if that is not possible, mimic its effects using materials and practices that emulate fire. In this episode hosts Michael Shields and Lee Kliger discuss the importance of using fire as a tool in landscape and forest management, the craft of fire mimicry, the benefits of marrying Western Science with Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Antonio A. Casilli, professor of sociology at the Institut Polytechnique de Paris and a member of the Interdisciplinary Institute on Innovation of the French National Center for Scientific Research. In addition to co-leading the research team DiPLab (Digital Platform Labor), he is the co-founder of the INDL (International Network on Digital Labor). His latest book — Waiting for Robots: The Hired Hands of Automation — is the focus of this episode. In his bracing and powerful book, Casilli uses up-to-the-minute research to show how today's technologies, including AI, continue to exploit human labor. Waiting for Robots urges us to move beyond the simplistic notion that machines are intelligent and autonomous. This eye-opening book makes clear that most “automation” requires human labor — and likely always will — shedding new light on today's consequences and tomorrow's threats of failing to recognize and compensate the “click workers” of today.Grab a copy of Waiting For Robots here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with directors Dominic and Nadia Gill. Born in Oxford, United Kingdom, and educated at Shrewsbury, Dominic became a biologist who, at the age of 25, left the corporate world of environmental consulting to fulfill his dream as an adventurer and filmmaker. He set up shop creating and producing film and television content. Dominic's first adventure film Take A Seat: Alaska to Argentina, in which he rode a tandem bicycle from the top of Alaska to the bottom of Argentina, won Special Jury Prize at the Banff Mountain Film Festival in 2009 and has since been shown in over 400 cities worldwide. He also published the story of this journey in the book, Take A Seat. Nadia Gill, a former lawyer, left her job to join Dominic in biking across the United States in 2010 while they produced a television series: Sharing A Ride Across America. In 2015 they released their first feature documentary Coming To My Senses, chronicling the vision quest of former motocross athlete Aaron Baker as he crossed Death Valley in the culmination of a 14-year effort learning how to walk again. Together Dominic and Nadia formed Encompass Films, and their latest documentary, Planetwalker, is the focus of this episode. Planetwalker tells the story of black environmentalist Dr. John Francis, known the world over as “Planetwalker.” In 1971, after witnessing an oil tanker collision in San Francisco Bay, he gave up motorized transport in protest and relied solely on his own two feet. Months after that he took a vow of silence, convinced that listening rather than adding fuel to any argumentative fire was the way ahead. During the next 17 silent years — serenaded only by his banjo — he walked across the United States listening to and studying the environment around him. Planetwalker focuses on the period of John's life from the oil spill through his meandering 20-year journey across the States where he resumes speaking to work on oil spill legislation with the US Coast Guard. During this time, it seemed like the whole world, every creed and color, saw John pass by and interacted with him if only fleetingly. Planetwalker re-introduces the world to the inner-magic of Dr. John Francis, a central figure in the intersectional environmental movement who's story takes on new meaning today. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an with interview Sarath "SkIZ" Fernando, a former music critic, who has written for The New York Times, Rolling Stone, The Source, Spin, and Vibe. Later, under the alias Spectre he became a record producer, rapper, and electronica artist. He is the founder and the head of his own label WordSound, as well as the author of several books about hip hop music, including The New Beats: Exploring the Music, Culture & Attitudes of Hip-Hop and From The Streets of Shaolin: The Wu-Tang Saga, the definitive biography of hip-hop's greatest group. His latest book, a biography of MF DOOM, The Chronicles of DOOM: Unraveling Rap's Masked Iconoclast (Astra House) is the focus of this episode. Sweeping and definitive, The Chronicles of DOOM: Unraveling Rap's Masked Iconoclast recounts the rise, fall, redemption, and untimely demise of MF DOOM. Broken down into five sections: The Man, The Myth, The Mask, The Music, and The Legend, journalist S. H. Fernando, or SKIZ, chronicles the life of Daniel Dumile Jr., beginning in the house he grew up in in Long Beach, NY, into the hip-hop group KMD, onto the stage of his first masked show, through the countless collabs, and across the many different cities Daniel called home. Centering the music, SKIZ deftly lays out the history of east-coast rap against DOOM's life story and dissects the personas, projects, tracks, and lyrics that led to his immortality.Including exclusive interviews with those who worked closely with DOOM and providing an unknown, intimate, behind the scenes look into DOOM's life, The Chronicles of DOOM is the definitive biography of MF DOOM, a supervillain on stage and hero to those who paid attention. Learn more about MF Doom and SKIZ's compelling book on this episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast.Grab a copy of The Chronicles of DOOM: Unraveling Rap's Masked Iconoclast here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Jordan Chariton, an independent investigative reporter known for reporting on-the-ground across America on significant stories that often fall through the cracks of mainstream media. Chariton has made twenty reporting trips to Flint since 2016 investigating the water crisis and cover-up. He also covered the indigenous-led protests at Standing Rock in North Dakota against the Dakota Access Pipeline, the United Auto Workers strike across the Midwest, and the 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, and he has reported across the US on union drives, worker exploitation, poverty, homelessness, and protest movements. He is the CEO and lead reporter for Status Coup News, an independent news outlet on YouTube. His recent book, We The Poisoned : Exposing the Flint Water Crisis and the Poisoning of 100,000 Americans, is the focus of this episode. From crooked Wall Street financial schemes to political payoffs, destruction of evidence, witness tampering, falsified water data, threatened whistleblowers, and panicked phone calls, We the Poisoned: Exposing the Flint Water Crisis Cover Up and the Poisoning of 100,000 Americans reveals, for the first time, the real story behind how the government poisoned a major American city — and how they are still getting away with it. We the Poisoned is a cautionary tale about “run-government-like-a-business” leaders who champion privatization and economic development at the expense of the environment, public health, and vulnerable citizens. Perhaps even more important, with water and environmental contamination surging across the US, Chariton's revelations provide a road map for how to fight back and prevent similar tragedies from happening to other communities. In this episode host Michael Shields and Jordan Chariton discuss how Jordan originally became compelled to invest so much time and effort covering this multifaceted scandal. They expound upon just how bad the water in Flint was when the source was switched to the Flint River, how the declaration of a financial emergency was used to hijack Democracy in Flint, the utter lack of accountability to those responsible for so much pain and loss, how the Flint scandal is emblematic of many profound problems in America, and so much more.Grab a copy of We the Poisoned here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with acclaimed violinist and composer Jenny Scheinman. Scheinman has produced several critically acclaimed solo albums, including 12 Songs, named one of the Top Ten Albums of 2005 by The New York Times. She has played with Norah Jones, Nels Cline, Lou Reed, Ani Difranco, Aretha Franklin, Lucinda Williams, Bono, Bill Frisell, and Allison Miller. For years, Scheinman nursed the idea of a musical homage to Humboldt, in particular the area known as the Lost Coast, a remote, earthquake and mudslide-prone region of coastal northern California, where she was raised. She considered the project from many angles. That idea has come to fruition in the form of her latest album entitled All Species Parade, the focus of this episode. All Species Parade is an epic and sprawling double album with an A-list ensemble, featuring guitarists Bill Frisell, Julian Lage and Nels Cline, pianist Carmen Staaf, bassist Tony Scherr and drummer Kenny Wollesen. Though the album does evoke a sense of pastoral wonder, it also strives to capture in Jenny's words, “a charged relationship to nature, a feeling of being part of something bigger than ourselves, powerful, and fragile, and constantly changing. Something alive. With All Species Parade, I set out to musically reflect that experience of awe.” In this episode host Michael Shields and Jenny Scheinman discuss how nature, and a personal musical challenge of Jenny's regarding song length and breadth, inspired the soundscapes found on All Species Parade. They talk about the outstanding grouping of players on the album, how Jenny paid tribute to the Wiyot Tribe with the song “Jaroujiji,” what the true meaning of the song “Shutdown Stomp” actually is, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with director James Kicklighter and political analyst / producer Guy Tal Seemann. Kicklighter spent the first eighteen years of his life in Bellville, Georgia, population 123. Since then, he has gone on to become an award-winning director and producer of narrative films, documentaries, and advertising. His latest film, The American Question — the focus of this episode — seeks to answer the pressing question: can America rediscover its unifying values and restore trust among its people? The captivating documentary is narrated by political analyst Guy Tal Seemann who has worked in government and campaigns since the age of 16. He is an entrepreneur and community leader. He was a political journalist for a year and a half and worked in the U.S. Senate as an aid. He worked on Middle East national security strategy while in the Israeli government and most recently became an entrepreneur by developing his own startup company in drug discovery and a nonprofit in the performing arts.Examining the heart of a divided America, The American Question explores the historical and contemporary factors that have eroded our trust in our neighbors, communities, institutions, and government. The film takes viewers on a journey from historical empires to pivotal moments in modern America, through an independent team's eight-year mission to discover the forces that shaped our now divided society. The film shares personal stories from diverse Americans in swing state communities in Pennsylvania and Michigan, and analysis from leading political scientists and historians. The American Question uncovers how economic shifts like globalization and the atrophy of local communities have fragmented the national identity. In this episode host Michael Shields, James Kicklighter, and Guy Tal Seemann discuss a bevy of factors that have led to the political division that is viscerally felt in America today. James and Guy expound on what they learned in the eight years they spent talking to people on both sides of the political divide in crucial swing states while offering thoughts on potential solutions that can begin to heal a divided America, and so much more.Streaming everywhere on October 29th. Find it Here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Subhadra Das who specializes in the history and philosophy of science, particularly the history of scientific racism and eugenics, and what those histories mean for our lives today. For nine years, she was Curator of the Science Collections at University College London where she was also Researcher in Critical Eugenics at the Sarah Parker Remond Centre for the Study of Racism and Racialisation. Her debut novel, UNCIVILISED : Ten Lies That Made The West, is the focus of this episode. Western civilisation is a powerful brand, and full of accepted wisdoms that we rarely question. Taking cues from Greek philosophy and honed in the Enlightenment, certain notions about humanity and society grew into the tenets many of us still live by today. But if we take a closer look at these ideas, it seems they are not all they're cracked up to be. In fact, some of them are outright lies — and we can start to ask who really benefits from them. What is the value of a scientific worldview that conjured up ‘race'? Are the Western concepts of ‘saving' and ‘wasting' time really the best ways to live? Who are our laws actually designed to serve? And the real question: is the West as civilized as it likes to think it is? In an age of division and entrenched inequality, UNCIVILISED is a timely, provocative and entertaining counter to the ideas and assumptions that have shaped the West, exposing the fatal flaws at its core. In this episode host Michael Shields and Subhadra Das discuss Subhadra's work with museum collections, as well as her background growing up in Abu Dhabi, which have both informed her worldview and the stories told throughout UNCIVILISED. They dig into a few of the lies that embolden the West such as ‘Knowledge is Power', ‘Justice is Blind', and ‘Time is Money” while also celebrating cultures (Blackfoot Nation / First Australians) that Westerners could learn a great deal from, and so much more.Grab a copy of UNCIVILISED : Ten Lies That Made The West here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with A.R. Moxon, author of The Revisionaries, a genre-bending debut novel that The Washington Post said "might be the weirdest novel of the year." His weekly online newsletter, The Reframe, enjoys a readership of over 10,000 people. His latest release — Very Fine People: Confessions of an American Fool — is the focus of this episode.For some people, the rise of Donald Trump's MAGA cult represented only ongoing proof of a supremacist nation they had endured all along. Author A.R. Moxon was not one of them. He was caught unaware. Thus begins this confession of an American fool, a methodical mapping of the nation the author failed to see — a nation of "very fine people" too convinced they are exceptionally good to acknowledge the ways they participate in abuse and harm. Very Fine People is an essay collection contemplating what to do about a populist far-right authoritarian uprising involving so many of our friends and family members. Written from 2016 to 2023, it is a work of progressing awareness, pondering the questions "how did we get here?" and "what do we do about it?" In this episode host Michael Shields and A.R. Moxon ruminate over their shared nativity about how many people in their life, and in America, are comfortable with an open white supremacist and fascist as a president of the United States, while considering how it's clear that an emboldened and vocal minority is willing to do anything to protect their supremacy. They talk about the power of love, art, and story in combating a movement riddled with hate, how being frank with language is a way to replace “current ideas with new ones,” how a hope full of rugged resolve exists within all the madness, and so much more.Grab a copy of Very Fine People here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with New York City based musician Mike Horn, who helms the experimental folk project Seawind of Battery. Seawind just released their second album, a mesmerizing work full of gorgeous ambient and drowning soundscapes that is called East Coast Cosmic Dreamscaper. While Seawind of Battery is just a few years young, it is not Mike's first musical project. In 2017, Mike launched his indie folk solo project Goldkey, which released several impressive EP's — Background and escapes. His other musical collaborations include Static Traveler (with Eric Lense) and the psychedelic experimental rock project Sunblinders (with Eric Lense and Jeff Saltzburg). We are also thrilled to feature Jarrod Annis in this episode, a tremendous lap-steel guitar player who became an official Seawind member after he started backing Mike up at live appearances back in late '22. In this episode host Michael Shields, Mike Horn, and Jarrod Annis discuss the evolving sound of Seawind of Battery as they wade into their sophomore release while considering the songwriting process for the songs on the album often derived from live improvisational moments. They discuss Mike and Jarrod's shared influences and life events that have led to the birth of the project's unique, soothing instrumental sound, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with singer / songwriter Irena Eide who goes by the stagename Rainy Eyes. A Norway Native now based in Southern Louisiana, Rainy has recently released her second album entitled Lonesome Highway, a soulful, vulnerable, and beautiful work of art that is the focus of this episode. Lonesome Highway, as the story goes, was born out of revelry and resolution in a redwood cabin tucked into the California coast, endowed with a spirit simmering in wanderlust, and ornamented with the rich traditions of the Louisiana bayou. The 11 songs that comprise the album are brimming with perseverance and perspective, written as Rainy reflected on the juxtaposition of her circumstances. As she basked in the joy of motherhood, she was simultaneously confronting a troubled relationship that had turned toxic. Lonesome Highway marks a hope-filled and assertive new beginning for Rainy Eyes, as electric guitar and drums now join fiddle and banjo. In this episode host Michael Shields and Rainy Eyes discuss Rainy's musical and geographic journey from Norway to California to Louisiana while exploring the musical influences she acquired along the way. They dig into the ins-and-outs of her new album, exploring the weighty and relatable themes present within it, while also celebrating the collection of 70 original folk songs for children entitled Little Folkies she recently released…and so, so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with Alan Swyer, an award-winning filmmaker whose recent documentaries have dealt with Eastern spirituality in the Western world, the criminal justice system, diabetes, boxing, singer Billy Vera, and beyond. In the realm of music, among his productions is an album of Ray Charles love songs. His novel The Beard was recently published by Harvard Square Editions. His latest documentary, When Houston Had The Blues — the focus of this episode — shines a bright light on a vibrant Black music scene that has never gotten its just due…until now. Houston's early and indelible mark on American music and the blues — often overlooked despite its rich history — is celebrated in the soulful, feature-length documentary, When Houston Had the Blues. While Houston may not come to most people's minds as a major “music city” like Memphis, Chicago or New Orleans, it has a legacy that few other cities can match. Years before Elvis hit the charts with “Hound Dog,” it was originally recorded by Houston's Big Mama Thornton (arguably the defining version). And long before Motown, Houston was home to one of the most successful Black music empires in the country. When Houston Had the Blues features an extensive collection of photos from the '40s and ‘50s and vintage/contemporary performances by Bobby “Blue” Bland, Chic “Juke Boy” Bonner, Charles Brown, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Jewel Brown, C.J. Chenier, Arnett Cobb, Albert Collins, Diunna Greenleaf, Lightnin' Hopkins, Albert King, Freddie King, Trudy Lynn, David “Guitar Shorty” Kearney, Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton, Katie Webster aka The Swamp Boogie Queen, Don Wilkerson and more. With a unique timber and flavor unlike any other town in America, even other Texan cities, Houston's blues scene — ranging from “gut bucket” to highly sophisticated — has long been a melting pot of music, influenced by salsa, tejano, cajun, zydeco (then known as la-la), jazz, country and, later, rock ‘n' roll. Stream Houston Had The Blues on iTunes / Apple TV. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Dr. Genevieve Guenther, a former Renaissance scholar who turned to climate research and activism after having a child and becoming increasingly alarmed about the world her son could inherit after she died. Now an expert in climate communication, Dr. Guenther is the founding director of End Climate Silence. At End Climate Silence she directs strategy and outreach, helping journalists explain the links between global warming and extreme weather, headline the urgent findings of climate science, and foreground the role of climate breakdown in news about politics, energy, business and finance, immigration, real estate, health, travel, food, and even the arts. She is affiliate faculty at The New School, where she sits on the board of the Tishman Environment and Design Center. Dr. Guenther advises NGOs, corporations, and policymakers on fossil-fuel disinformation and climate communication, and she serves as Expert Reviewer for the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Her recently released book, The Language of Climate Politics, is the focus of this episode, A groundbreaking investigation into the propaganda justifying the fossil-fuel economy, The Language of Climate Politics offers readers powerful new ways to talk about the climate crisis that will help create transformative change. In an illuminating analysis, Dr. Guenther shows that the climate debate is not, in fact, neatly polarized, with Republicans obstructing climate action and Democrats advancing climate solutions. Partisans on the right and the left often repeat the same fossil-fuel talking points, and this repetition produces a centrist consensus upholding the status quo, even as global heating accelerates. Ultimately, The Language of Climate Politics is an inspiring call to arms, a book that equips readers with powerful new terms that will enable them to fight more effectively for a livable future.Grab a copy of The Language of Climate Politics here, and follow Dr. Genevieve Guenther on Twitter here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with Brooklyn-based singer/songwriter Leslie Mendelson. Modeling her music after such '70s icons as Carole King and Joni Mitchell, Leslie Mendelson began making waves in 2009 with her debut Grammy-nominated album Swan Feathers, which was followed by two outstanding offerings, 2017's Love & Murder and 2020's If You Can't Say Anything Nice. Just last month Leslie released her fourth studio album — the focus of this interview — an outstanding collection of tracks entitled After The Party (Royal Potato Family). For this latest effort, she collaborates with not one, but three producers: the legendary Peter Asher (James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt), the young, in-demand Tyler Chester (Madison Cunningham, Sara Bareilles, Sara Watkins) and her longtime songwriting partner, three-time Grammy Award-winner, Steve McEwan. Recorded at Jackson Browne's studio Groove Masters in Santa Monica, CA, she was joined by an ace band featuring guitarists Waddy Wachtel and John Jorgenson, bassists Leland Sklar and Derrick Anderson, and drummers Jim Keltner and Abe Rounds. Throughout After The Party's ten tracks, Leslie crafts a distinctive folk-rock, pop-Americana flavor, evoking the sounds of Laurel Canyon, but with the downtown grit and sharp wit of Brooklyn, the city she has called home for over two decades now. There's a refreshing realness and effortless musicality that feels both nostalgic and new throughout After The Party. In this episode host Michael Shields and Leslie Mendelson talk about how Leslie's recent album's title was inspired by Andy Warhol's still life of the same name while recounting the compelling story how she came to working with famed producer Peter Asher on the album and recording in Jackson Browne's Groove Masters Studio. They discuss the remarkable band that backed Leslie for After The Party, the diverse and introspective themes found throughout the album, what life on the road is like for Leslie currently, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with journalist and essayist Santi Elijah Holley who covers music, books, culture, and religion. His work has appeared in The Atlantic, The Guardian, VICE, Tin House, and elsewhere. He is the author of an excellent 33 ⅓ book which is the focus of this episode, a deep dive into Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' Murder Ballads. Murder Ballads, the ninth studio album from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, is a gruesome, blood-splattered reimagining of English ballads, American folk and blues music, and classic literature. Most of the stories told on Murder Ballads have been interpreted many times, but never before had they been so graphic or profane. Though earning the band their first Parental Advisory warning label, Murder Ballads, released in 1996, brought Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds their biggest critical and commercial success, thanks in part to the award-winning single, “Where the Wild Roses Grow,” an unlikely duet with Australian pop singer, Kylie Minogue. Closely examining each of the ten songs on the album, Santi Elijah Holley investigates the stories behind the songs, and the numerous ways these ballads have been interpreted through the years. Murder Ballads is a tour through the evolution of folk music, and a journey into the dark secrets of American history. Learn more about it and Santi Elijah Holley's book in this episode!Grab a copy of Murder Ballads by Santi Elijah Holley here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with novelist and activist Liz Jensen, Liz's critically-acclaimed work spans black comedy, science fiction, satire, family drama, historical fantasy, psychological suspense, and most recently, a memoir. Beyond her prolific writing output, Liz is a founder member of Extinction Rebelion Writers Rebel, a literary movement using words and actions to highlight the climate and ecological emergency, and in 2023 she launched The Rebel Library, a resource for readers of climate and ecological literature in all genres. She also teaches creative writing in the UK and Denmark and volunteers on the grief helpline run by the Danish National Grief Centre. In her recent memoir, Your Wild And Precious Life: On Grief, Hope and Rebellion (Canongate, 2024) — the focus of this episode — she shares her reflections on personal and ecological grief and finding resilience after the tragic sudden death of her son Raphael in 2020. Liz's son's death will never make sense to her. But it has taught her that it's possible to find meaning, collectively and individually, in the loss of what we love. Resilience, Liz believes, is a seed that we all bear inside us. It germinates in emergencies. It sets down roots in astonishing and unexpected ways. And if we notice it, and tend to it, it blooms. Liz's son, a zoologist, conservationist, and ecological activist, was twenty-five when he collapsed and died unexpectedly. She fell apart. As she grieved, forest fires raged, coral reefs deteriorated, CO2 emissions rose, and fossil fuels burned. Your Wild and Precious Life is the story of how a mother rebuilt herself, reoriented her life, and rediscovered the enchantment of the living world. Set against the backdrop of climate and ecological catastrophe, Your Wild and Precious Life is an argument for agency, legacy, and the wild possibility of hope after devastation. Liz's book is so very special and so many things all at once. It's a deeply honest handbook encompassing the grief one experiences when they suffer profound loss. It's a loving ode from a mother to a son. It's a celebration of activism and a call to action. It's a story of resilience, and proof that it's possible to find life beyond the pain. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Zach Schonfeld, a freelance writer, journalist, and critic based in New York. He contributes to Pitchfork, Paste Magazine, and other publications. He was formerly a senior writer for Newsweek, where he was on staff for five years. His first book, 24-Carat Black's Ghetto: Misfortune's Wealth was published in 2020 as part of the 33 1/3 series. His latest book — entitled How Coppola Became Cage — is the focus of this episode. In 1982, a gangly teenager named Nicolas Coppola made his film debut and changed his name to Nicolas Cage, determined to distance himself from his famous family. Once he achieved stardom as the rebel hunk of 1983's Valley Girl, Cage began a career defined by unorthodox risks and left turns that put him at odds with the stars of the Brat Pack era. How Coppola Became Cage takes readers behind the scenes of the beloved cult movies that transformed this unknown actor into an eccentric and uncompromising screen icon with a wild-eyed gift for portraying weirdos, outsiders, criminals-and even a romantic capable of seducing Cher. Throughout How Coppola Became Cage Zach Schonfeld traces Cage's rise through the world of independent cinema and chronicles the stories behind his career-making early performances, from the method masochism of Birdy to the operatic torment of Moonstruck and abrasive expressionism of Vampire's Kiss, culminating with the astonishing pathos of Leaving Las Vegas. Drawing on more than 100 new interviews with Cage's key collaborators — including David Lynch, Martha Coolidge, John Patrick Shanley, and Mike Figgis — How Coppola Became Cage offers a revealing portrait of Cage's wildly intense devotion to his performances and his creative self-discovery as he drew on influences as far-flung as silent cinema and German Expressionism. These were all crucial ingredients in the creation of a singular acting style that rejects the limits of realism. Join in as host Michael Shields and Zach Schonfeld celebrate an actor that Ethan Hawke describes as “the only actor in the history of the form to really change the form” while invoking David Lynch to describe Cage as “the jazz musician of actors,” in an episode that is as Nic Cage as they come. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with the author of the 33 ⅓ book dedicated to the legendary Britpop band Pulp's renowned album This is Hardcore, Jane Savidge. As co-founder and co-head of legendary PR company Savage & Best, Jane Savidge is widely credited as being one of the main instigators of the Britpop movement that swept the UK in the mid 1990s. During this time, Savage & Best represented Suede, Pulp, The Verve, Elastica and Longpigs, whilst representing many other artists of the era including the Cranberries, The Fall, and Jesus and Mary Chain. She is the author of Lunch With The Wild Frontiers (2019) and Here They Come With Their Make Up On: Suede, Coming Up and More Adventures Beyond The Wild Frontiers (2022). This Is Hardcore is Pulp's cry for help. A giant, sprawling, flawed masterpiece of a record, the 1998 album manages to tackle some of the most inappropriate grown-up issues of the day – fame, aging, mortality, drugs, and pornography – and still come out crying and laughing on the other side. In this episode host Michael Shields and Jane Savidge dig into the weighty themes present in This is Hardcore revolving around fame, aging, success, and pornography. They expound upon the “Michael Jackson Incident” which propelled lead singer Jarvis Cocker to unfathomable fame, how Jarvis used music and the crafting of This is Hardocre as catharsis for his real life struggles, what the final legacy of Pulp might be, and ultimately they celebrate a 33 ⅓ book that serves as a love letter to a remarkable album.Grab a copy of Jane Savidge's This is Hardcore here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Jen Rainin and Rivkah Beth Medow, co-directors of the critically-acclaimed documentary Ahead of the Curve which chronicles the career of lesbian-rights icon Franco Stevens who launched Curve, the best-selling lesbian magazine ever published. Against the hostile backdrop of hate crimes and family rejection in the 1990s, with few celebrities or politicians willing to be out publicly, Curve magazine dared to celebrate a full, inclusive range of lesbians, queer women, and nonbinary people, seeding some of the most pressing conversations around LGBTQ+ community today. Growing up, Franco never saw any representation of queer women — she didn't even know it was possible for a woman to be gay. When she realized she was a lesbian, it changed the course of her life. In 1990, Franco created a safe place for lesbians in the form of Curve magazine. Her approach to threats and erasure in the ‘90s was to highlight all kinds of LGBTQ+ women and make them beautifully visible. The magazine helped build the foundation for the movements being led by today's queer activists. In this episode host Michael Shields, Jen Rainin, and Rivkah Beth Medow dig deeply into what the existence of Curve magazine meant to lesbians and the lesbian community while marveling about the obstacles and adversities Franco Stevens navigated bringing Curve to life. They discuss the controversy and complexities surrounding the word “lesbian,” a dispute concerning the name of the magazine which almost brought the publication down, the important work of The Curve Foundation, and, ultimate, they celebrate the profoundly inspiring legacy of Franco Stevens and the magazine she created which meant so much to countless people. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with music journalist and author Katherine Yeske Taylor. Taylor began her career as a rock critic in Atlanta in the 1990s, interviewing Georgia musical royalty such as the Indigo Girls, R.E.M., and the Black Crowes while still a teenager. Since then, she has conducted several hundred interviews and contributes regularly to Billboard, Flood, Spin, and American Songwriter, among others. She is a longtime New York City resident and is extremely active in the downtown rock scene. Her book, She's a Badass: Women in Rock Shaping Feminism, is the focus of this episode. Feminism has always been a complex and controversial topic, as female rock musicians know especially well. When they've stayed true to their own vision, these artists have alternately been adored as role models or denounced as bad influences. Either way, they're asked to cope with certain pressures that their male counterparts haven't faced. With each successive feminism movement since the 1960s, women in rock have been prominent proponents of progress as they've increasingly taken control of their own music, message, and image. This, in its way, is just as revolutionary as any protest demonstration. In She's a Badass, Taylor interviews twenty significant women in rock, devoting an entire chapter to each one, taking an in-depth look at the incredible talent, determination — and, often, humor — they needed to succeed in their careers (and life). Interviewees range from legendary artists through notable up-and-comers, including Ann Wilson (Heart), Gina Schock (The Go-Go's), Suzanne Vega, Amy Ray (Indigo Girls), Orianthi, Amanda Palmer, and more. Their experiences reveal the varied and unique challenges these women have faced, how they overcame them, and what they think still needs to be done to continue making progress on the equality front. Their stories prove that promoting feminism — either through activism or by living example — is undeniably badass. In this episode Michael Shields and Katherine Yeske Taylor talk about the inspiring and eclectic interview subjects found in She's a Badass while considering all the varying struggles they each have faced in a male-dominated music industry. They discuss how feminism has always been a complex and complicated topic, the attributes that propelled the passionate musicians in Taylor's book to success, the importance of ally-ship, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with author Noa Silver, who was born in Jerusalem, raised between Scotland and Maine, and now resides in Berkeley, California. After receiving her BA in English and American literature and language from Harvard University, Noa lived and taught English as a Second Language on Namdrik — part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the smallest inhabited atoll in the world. She later completed her MFA in creative writing from San Francisco State University and then worked as an editor on various oral history projects, ranging from an archive documenting the Partition of India and Pakistan to a cancer researcher telling the stories of trauma experienced by cancer survivors. Her debut novel, California Dreaming — the focus of this episode — will be available everywhere on May 21st, 2024. In California Dreaming, we find Elena Berg, having grown up on stories of her mother's wild youth in California, relocating from New England to the Bay Area in 2011 for a placement as an English teacher with Teach for America. Once there, she is eager to inspire a love of poetry and literature in her diverse but underprivileged students. Her own grandfather — a Holocaust survivor — was a storyteller and teacher who touched the lives of his students for years to come. Elena's mother followed in his footsteps, leaving behind the hippie lifestyle of her twenties to become a university professor.But Elena quickly finds herself feeling disconnected from teaching, unable to inspire her students, and before long, she grows disillusioned with her career. Coming of age between the Occupy and #MeToo movements and against the backdrop of the 2016 election and California's ever-worsening fire season, Elena reckons with California as she imagined it, and California as it really is. As she does so, she must also ultimately reconcile the person she envisioned herself to be with the person she actually is.California Dreaming is a robust debut in literary fiction. It is an earnest story that encourages readers to think about how we make meaning in our lives, and how the stories we tell ourselves influence the ways in which we see the world — and our place in it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Sean Enfield, an essayist, poet, bassist, and educator from Dallas, TX. Currently, he resides in Milwaukee, WI where he is a PhD candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He received his MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks where he served as the Editor-in-Chief of Permafrost Magazine. Now, he serves as an Assistant Nonfiction Editor at Terrain.org. His essays have been nominated for three Pushcarts and he was featured on NPR's All Things Considered as a finalist for their Three Minute Fiction contest. His debut essay collection, Holy American Burnout!, — the focus of this episode — was the runner-up for the Ann Petry Award, a finalist for The Megaphone Prize, a finalist for River Teeth's Literary Nonfiction Book Prize, and is available now. Threading his experiences both as a Texan student and later as a first-year teacher of predominantly Muslim students at a Texas middle school, Holy American Burnout! weaves personal essay and cultural critique into the historic fabric of Black and biracial identity. In it, Enfield intersects examinations of which voices are granted legitimacy by virtue of school curriculum, the complex relationship between basketball and education for Black and brown students, his students' burgeoning political consciousness during the 2016 presidential campaign, and cultural figures ranging from Kendrick Lamar to Hamlet. These classroom narratives abounding in Holy American Burnout! weave around Enfield's own formative experiences contending with a conflicted biracial family lineage, reenacting the Middle Passage as the only Black student in his 7th grade history class, and moshing in both Christian and secular hardcore pits. As Enfield wrestles with the physical, mental, and emotional burdens that American society places on educators, students, and all relatively conscious minorities in this country, he reaches for an education that better navigates our burnt-out empire. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with Ben Proudfoot, a Los Angeles-based filmmaker most noted as the director of The Queen of Basketball, winner of the 2021 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject. With co-director Kris Bowers he also brought to life the short documentary film A Concerto Is a Conversation, which was an Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Short Subject at the 93rd Academy Awards in 2021. His latest documentary, The Last Repair Shop — the focus of this episode — is nominated at this year's Academy Awards for Best Documentary Short Subject. Once commonplace in the United States, today Los Angeles is by far the largest and one of the last American cities to provide free and freely repaired musical instruments to its public schoolchildren, a continuous service since 1959. The Last Repair Shop grants an all access pass to the nondescript downtown warehouse where a dwindling handful of devoted craftspeople keep over 80,000 student instruments in good repair and in it the film blends the unexpectedly intimate personal histories of the repair people with emotional, firsthand accounts from the actual student musicians for whom their instruments made all the difference. In this episode host Michael Shields and Ben Proudfoot expound upon what music and access to instruments means to the lives of the children in Los Angeles while considering how the power of music has changed the lives of those who passionately labor in the repair shop. They talk about how the promise of the American Dream manifests itself within the documentary, the message of hope that is abounding in the film, and so much more. Ultimately this episode celebrates an inspiring documentary that serves as a passionate love letter to Los Angeles and to those unsung heroes who gave countless others the gift of music. This is an episode that pays tribute to a truly unique program that has produced countless legends from John Williams to Kendrick Lamar.Watch The Last Repair Shop here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Rick Korn, the founder of In Plain View Entertainment who is a film and TV producer, writer, and director that works with entertainment companies on creating socially conscious documentaries. He was co-founder of Television Production Partners, an award-winning branded entertainment company that was nominated for an Oscar, Emmy and won a Peabody Award for Hank Aaron Chasing The Dream. Rick has produced benefit concerts with Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Eric Clapton, and Joan Jett. He executive produced the documentary My Old Friend with Paul McCartney and Carl Perkins and Rick and Perkins collaborated on several documentary concerts, benefits, and an album called Go Cat Go which included Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Tom Petty, Eric Clapton, John Fogerty, and Paul Simon. Recently, Rick directed and wrote the docu-concert Do Something and Vote which included performances from Bruce Springsteen, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Black Puma's, Nathaniel Rateliff and Alabama Shakes, and featured many prominent activists fighting for a safer and healthier world. The film A Father's Promise — Rick's latest documentary — tells the inspirational story of one man's journey from devastating tragedy to personal triumph. When his young son Daniel is murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School, a grief-stricken Mark Barden, a world class guitarist, loses all joy in the music that had defined much of his life. But, in time, Mark rewires himself to become a powerful voice for change, becoming the co-founder of Sandy Hook Promise and a tireless advocate for gun violence prevention. Mark is a father on a mission, and, with the help of his many famous music artist friends, he slowly rediscovers himself, eventually playing and performing the music that had always meant so much to him and his family. In A Father's Promise Rick takes you on Mark's powerful 10-year journey as he gradually finds his way back to music with the help of friends Sheryl Crow, Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks, Bernie Williams, Jimmy Vivino, the Alternate Routes, and many others. The film impactfully mixes live music performances into the storyline, underlining powerful emotions, as Mark continues to find ways to empower his music with his activism, and vice versa. A Father's Promise finds Mark honoring his son by working for change, playing his music, and building hope for a better tomorrow. In this episode host Michael Shields and Rock Korn discuss the intriguing story of how Rick came to know Mark Barden and began to work with him to tell his inspirational story.. They dig deeply into what A Father's Promise says about the power of music to heal and unite and fight for change in the world while also celebrating Mark's daughter Natalie's journey into activism. They highlight what Mark's work with Sandy Hook Promise aims to accomplish, the inspiring work of the Where Angels Play Project and the Artist For Action movement, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Nancy Kates, the acclaimed filmmaker behind the groundbreaking documentary, Brother Outsider: The Life Of Bayard Rustin. This pivotal work was instrumental in introducing a broader audience to the life of Rustin — an openly gay Black civil rights leader and a driving force behind the March on Washington. Nancy also produced and directed the feature-length HBO documentary Regarding Susan Sontag, about the late essayist, novelist, director and activist. Her other film credits include Castro Cowboy, a short film about the late Marlboro model Christen Haren who died of AIDS in 1996, Joining the Tribe, Married People, and Going to Extremes. During his 60-year career as an activist, organizer, and an angelic "troublemaker," Bayard Rustin formulated many of the strategies that propelled the American Civil Rights Movement. His passionate belief in Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolence drew Martin Luther King Jr. and other leaders to him in the 1940s and 50s. In 1963, Rustin brought his unique skills to the crowning glory of his civil rights career: his work organizing the March on Washington, the biggest protest America had ever seen. But his open homosexuality forced him to remain in the background, marking him again and again as a "Brother Outsider." Brother Outsider: the Life of Bayard Rustin combines rare archival footage — some of it never before broadcast in the U.S. — with provocative interviews to illuminate the life and work of a forgotten prophet of social change. Rustin's monumental role as a central strategist in the Civil Rights Movement and his unwavering stand for peace and justice casts him as a towering figure in U.S. history. His narrative, particularly as an openly gay advocate in perilous times, has found a renewed resonance in our current socio-political environment. And Nancy's documentary brings back to life a man who profoundly influenced the course of the civil rights and peace movements. In this episode host Michael Shields and Nancy Kates dig deeply into just how pivotal a figure Bayard Rustin was in the Civil Rights Movement while questioning why he often remained outside the scope of notoriety as a “Brother Outsider.” They discuss what it was like for Rustin to be openly gay in America in the 1960s, his on-and-off relationship with Martin Luther King, how he brought the March on Washington to life, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with author Tim Johnston, author of the novels Descent, The Current, the story collection Irish Girl, and the young adult novel Never So Green. He is the recipient of the 2015 Iowa Author Award and his latest novel — Distant Sons — is the focus of this episode.What if Sean Courtland's old Chevy truck had broken down somewhere else? What if he'd never met Denise Givens, a waitress at a local tavern, and gotten into a bar fight defending her honor? Or offered a ride to Dan Young, another young man like Sean, burdened by secrets and just drifting through the small Wisconsin town?Instead, Sean enlists Dan's help with a construction job in the basement of a local—the elderly, reclusive Marion Devereaux — and gradually the two men come to realize that they've washed up in a place haunted by the disappearance of three young boys decades earlier. As Sean and Dan's friendship deepens, and as Sean gets closer to Denise and her father, they come to the attention of a savvy local detective, Corrine Viegas, who has her own reasons for digging into Dan's past — and for being unable to resist the pull of the town's unsolved mystery. And with each chance connection, an irreversible chain of events is set in motion that culminates in shattering violence and the revelation of long-buried truths.Gripping and immersive, this crime novel by bestselling author Tim Johnston becomes so much more: a book about friendship and love and good hard work — and a masterful read about how the most random intersection of lives can have consequences both devastating and beautiful.This episode is hosted by educator and author Douglas Grant, author of the novels Preemptive and Imaginary Lines.Grab a copy of Tim Johnson's Distant Sons here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Maria Smilios, a New York City native who has a Master of Arts in religion and literature from Boston University, where she was a Luce Scholar and a Presidential Scholar. Smilios spent five years at Springer Science & Business Media as development editor in the biomedical sciences, and has written for The Guardian, American Nurse, The Forward, Narratively, The Rumpus, and DAME Magazine. Her book, The Black Angels — the focus of this episode — tells the untold story of the nurses who helped cure tuberculosis. Nearly a century before the COVID-19 pandemic upended life as we know it, a devastating tuberculosis epidemic was ravaging hospitals across the country. In those dark, pre-antibiotic days, the disease claimed the lives of 1 in 7 Americans. In the United States alone, it killed over 5.6 million people in the first half of the twentieth century. Nowhere was TB more rampant than in New York City, where it spread like wildfire through the tenements, decimating the city's poorest residents and communities of color. The city's hospital system was already overwhelmed when, in 1929, the white nurses at Staten Island's Sea View Hospital began quitting en masse. Pushed to the brink of a major labor crisis and fearing a public health catastrophe, city health officials made a call for Black female nurses seeking to work on the frontlines, promising them good pay, education, housing, and employment free from the constraints of Jim Crow. Spanning the Great Depression and moving through World War II and beyond, The Black Angels puts these women back at the center of this riveting story by spotlighting the twenty-plus years they spent battling the disease at Sea View. Using first-hand interviews and never-before-accessed archives, Smilios details how they labored under inconceivable conditions, putting in 14-hour days caring for people who lay waiting to die or, worse, become “guinea pigs” to test experimental (and often deadly) drugs at a facility that was understaffed, unregulated, and marred by rampant racism. Their narrative is interspersed with the parallel story of the tuberculosis cure, a miracle of public health policy that couldn't have happened without the work of the nurses at Sea View. In this episode host Michael Shields and Maria Smilios explore just how terribly tuberculous was riddling the United States (and particularly New York City) and the birth of the Sea View treatment center in Staten Island where a cure was eventually brought into being. They celebrate the Black Angels, Black nurses who worked at the hospital who answered a call to help, and eventually changed the world. They discuss how racial discrimination affected the nurses, both in the deep South also upon their landing in New York. They also discuss the drug trials that led to the cure, the patent wars that followed, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Katherine Stewart, an investigative reporter and author who has covered religious liberty, politics, policy, and education for over a decade. Her latest book, The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism, — the focus of this episode — is a rare look inside the machinery of the movement that brought Donald Trump to power. Stewart's journalism appears in the New York Times op ed, NBC, the New Republic, and the New York Review of Books. For too long the Religious Right has masqueraded as a social movement preoccupied with a number of cultural issues, such as abortion and same-sex marriage. But in her deeply reported investigation that is The Power Worshippers, Stewart reveals a disturbing truth: America's Religious Right has evolved into a Christian Nationalist movement. It seeks to gain political power and to impose its vision on all of society. It isn't fighting a culture war, it is waging a political war on the norms and institutions of American democracy. Stewart shows that the real power of the movement lies in a dense network of think tanks, advocacy groups, and pastoral organizations, embedded in a rapidly expanding community of international alliances with like minded, anti-democratic religious nationalists around the world, including Russia. She follows the money behind the movement and traces much of it to a group of super-wealthy, ultraconservative donors, and family foundations. The Christian Nationalist movement is far more organized and better funded than most people realize. It seeks to control all aspects of government and society. Its successes have been stunning, and its influence now extends to every aspect of American life, from the White House to state capitols, from our schools to our hospitals. The Power Worshippers is a brilliantly reported book of warning and a wake-up call. Stewart's probing examination demands that Christian Nationalism be taken seriously as a significant threat to the American republic and our democratic freedoms. In this episode host Michael Shields and Katherine Stewart discuss the distressing vision the Christian Nationalist movement has for Americans while considering the very real and important rights at stake. They talk about the lies about the history of the United States the movement are employing to further their cause (mostly from a man named David Barton), how the Christian Nationalist movement is going global, how Christian Nationalist are intent on stacking the courts throughout the country, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with innovative film and documentary Director and Producer Jeremy Pion-Berlin. Jeremy's diverse skill set is reflected in the projects that he created: branded content for Samsung and Folgers, a docu-series Heartlandia (CarbonTV), and documentary chronicling professional football player, Derek Carr. His latest documentary — Failure to Protect — is the focus of this episode. Failure To Protect follows five parents -— Anna, Trish, Rheta, Ernst, and Rosa — as they fight desperately to reunify with their children taken by Child Protective Services (CPS). It's an unwavering and nuanced look at the child welfare system where criminals have more rights than parents. Through these highly personal stories, Failure To Protect explores many tough questions, such as do parents whose personal struggles compromised their children's safety deserve a second chance? Is the CPS system biased against minorities, LGBTQIA+ couples, and the economically disadvantaged? To avoid leaving a child in an abusive or dangerous environment, do social workers remove children first and ask questions later? The film offers an unprecedented, in-depth window into the grim realities of the child welfare system through the often ignored perspective of parents. In this episode host Michael Shields and Jeremy Jeremy Pion-Berlin discuss the surprising truth that a person has more rights as a criminal in the criminal justice system than as a parent in the child welfare system. They consider the amount of power social workers have while also acknowledging the immense challenges of their work. They talk about the profound trauma that affects both the parents and children in dealing with the foster system, potential changes that could make the child welfare system more just, and much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with Peter Kiesewalter, who is the NYC-based composer and producer behind the new multimedia show “The Moth Project,” the GRAMMY nominated and Emmy Award winning East Village Opera Company, and Brooklyn Rundfunk Orkestrata's song for song adaptation of the iconic musical “The Sound of Music” (titled “the Hills Are Alive”) — a project for which he received the much publicized blessing and support of the notoriously protective Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization. His prolific composition and arranging work (Film, TV, Theater, and commissions) balances formal classical and jazz studies with decades worth of experience performing and writing in many popular music idioms. "The Moth Project" is a multi-media production, music album, and book that marries art, science, and an innate connection to the environment. The Moth Project showcases how artists and musicians are stepping into the spotlight, collaborating with scientists to amplify the call of climate change in a captivating manner, filling the gaps where scientific data falls short. At the heart of "The Moth Project" lies two brothers. One, a passionate artist; the other, a dedicated botanist engrossed in our ecosystem. Amidst the 2020 quarantine in upstate New York, they, along with their six children, bonded over evening campfires, insightful dialogues, and the fascinating biodiversity around them. Inspired by the life cycle of the underappreciated moth, they crafted a narrative intertwining moth migrations with the immigration journey of Peter's family. In a world where millions are in constant movement, seeking new beginnings, it emphasizes the resilience of both nature and the human spirit, and highlights the interconnectedness between the two. In this episode host Michael Shields and Peter Kiesewalter discuss how the Moth Project began amid the depths of the pandemic, when Peter and his family left New York City for his family's cottage in Canada where his connection to nature deepened. The converse upon how esteemed botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer, the author behind Braiding Sweetgrass, lent her voice to the project's central piece (entitled “Reciprocity”). They talk about violinist Whitney La Grange's unforgettable contributions to the project, the incredible diversity of moths and the common themes humans share with them, how learning about moth migration had Peter thinking about his family history, and much, much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with lauded drummer, composer, bandleader, and teacher Allison Miller. Miller is a musician who has mastered a vast array of musical settings — from guesting on late night TV to keeping time for some of today's most beloved singer-songwriters (such as Ani DiFranco, Natalie Merchant, and Brandi Carlile). She has recorded six albums as a bandleader — 5 AM Stroll, Boom Tic Boom, No Morphine-No Lilies, Live at Willisau, Otis Was a Polar Bear, and Glitter Wolf — as well as working as a session musician. Her work with bands has included forming the band Honey Ear Trio with Rene Hart and Erik Lawrence, Holler and Bam with Toshi Reagon, and her own band, Allison Miller's Boom Tic Boom. She is also a member of the jazz supergroup ARTEMIS. Miller's latest album Rivers in Our Veins — the focus of this episode — is a 12-song cycle embracing the concept of flow and renewal, and dedicated to the United State's crucial rivers, watersheds, and the organizations devoted to reviving and protecting them. Her band features a deeply telepathic cast of improvisers, including violinist Jenny Scheinman, Ben Goldberg on contra-alto and Bb clarinets, pianist Carmen Staaf, trumpeter Jason Palmer, bassist Todd Sickafoose, and a grouping of remarkable tap-dancers (learn more about this in the episode!). The captivating piece of American art that is Rivers in Our Veins was commissioned by the Lake Placid Center for the Arts and acts as a tribute to the natural environments we are blessed to live within and around and to those who make it their mission to protect them; In this episode host Michael Shields and Allison Miller discuss just how, specifically, her latest album was inspired by five American rivers and our nation's crucial waterways in general. They talk about the phenomenally talented assemblage of musicians featured on the Rivers in Our Veins and the tap dancers who enliven a bevy of songs on the album. They discuss the tour which boasts an ambitious multimedia production, the curiosities of being a bandleader as a drummer, Miller's musical inspirations, and a whole lot more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with author Ben Apatoff, whose writing has appeared in Alternative Press, Loudwire, Ultimate Classic Rock, Metal Injection, MetalSucks, Daily News, The Deli, Electric Literature, Beyond Race, Outburn and MLB.com. He is the author of Metallica: The $24.95 Book (2021). His latest book — the 33 ⅓ dedicated to Bodycount's Bodycount — is the focus of this episode. Drawn from years of research and dozens of new interviews, Apatoff's book tells the story of a band of high school friends who revolutionized modern music, brought explosive live performances, and raised questions America's lawmakers didn't want to answer, overcoming some of the country's most powerful forces to reshape the world's cultural conversation. In this episode host Michael Shields and Ben Apatoff expound upon just how fast Ice-T's fame was amplifying before the “Cop Killer” controversy boiled over. They talk about how the controversy began, how it swelled to a level no other music industry artist faced prior, and explore the fallout of the dispute on Ice-T, Bodycount, and Time Warner. The discuss the genius of guitarist/producer Ernie Cunningham, Body Count's enduring legacy, and how Body Count, ultimately, outlasted the politicians that scorned them and the record stores that banned them. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with musician Louis Michot, best known as the fiddle player and lead-singer for the Grammy-award winning Lost Bayou Ramblers. Rêve du Troubadour, the first solo album from Louis Michot and the focus of this episode, is set for release on September 22, 2023. Special guests on these recordings include Nigerian Tuareg guitar wizard Bombino and critically acclaimed singer / cellist Leyla McCalla, among others. Although known as a fiddle player, Michot can be found performing on guitar, bass, T'fer (triangle), samplers, percussions, and accordion on the album. Some of the eclectic, captivating tracks feature him playing every part, while others find him backed by bassist Bryan Webre and drummer Kirkland Middleton of the Ramblers. Middleton also engineered and mixed the album at Nina Highway Studios in Arnaudville, Louisiana with various, talented musicians building on tracks Michot had recorded at his home, houseboat studio. Though Michot has published over 100 songs, he feels that Rêve du Troubadour is his first collection of “writing” as these songs tell their stories in much greater depth than he's achieved before and utilize words peculiar to Louisiana French which seldom appear in musical compositions. Michot's passion for Louisiana French and local folklore, and sustainability in the fastest disappearing landmass in the world, are what fuels his career as a musician. With over 20 LPs under his belt, his music career continues to push the boundaries of the Louisiana French music traditions. In this episode host Michael Shields and Louis Michot discuss Michot's Cajun roots and the varied influences that helped shape his unique musical stylings. They thoroughly explore Michot's latest album, how it was crafted in his studio which was built in a houseboat dry-docked on his property, and how many of the soundscapes on it were inspired by nature and the ethnomusicologist Alan Lomax. They talk about the amazing guests featured on the album, what to expect from Michot's forthcoming tour, Michot's work in scoring films, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with journalist, author, and conspiracy theory expert Mike Rothschild. Mike has written two previous books, including The Storm is Upon Us: How QAnon Became a Movement, Cult, and Conspiracy Theory of Everything. He has been interviewed by CNN, MSNBC, NPR, the BBC, the Washington Post, and the New York Times, among many other outlets, to discuss conspiracy theories and has testified to Congress on the threat of election disinformation. His latest book, Jewish Space Lasers: The Rothschilds and 200 Years of Conspiracy Theories, is the focus of this episode. Jewish Space Lasers: The Rothschilds and 200 Years of Conspiracy Theories is a deeply researched dive into the history of the conspiracy industry around the Rothschild family — from the “pamphlet wars” of Paris in the 1840s to the dankest pits of the internet today. Journalist and conspiracy theory expert Mike Rothschild, who isn't related to the family, sorts out myth from reality to find the truth about these conspiracy theories and their spreaders. Who were the Rothschilds? Who are they today? Do they really own $500 trillion and every central bank, in addition to “controlling the British money supply?” Is any of this actually true? And why, even as their wealth and influence have waned, do they continue to drive conspiracies and hoaxes? In this episode host Michael Shields and Mike Rothschild explore just how the Rothschild family originally became the focus of countless antisemitic conspiracy theories while considering how the story of the Rothschild conspiracy theories is the story of modern antisemitism. They talk about the “myth to end all myths” involving the Battle of Waterloo, how authentically dangerous the Rothschild conspiracy theories are, how George Soros has become the present-day stand-in for the Rothschilds, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with musician Mike Baggetta, one third of the experimental rock/punk band Main Steam Stop Valve (mssv). mssv recently released their second studio album, Human Reaction, a captivating collection of songs that is the focus of this episode. The band, composed of guitarist Mike Baggetta, Stephen Hodges on drums, and Mike Watt on bass, creates music that is an unimagined hybrid of a punk power-trio and a dreamy experimental rock band, though they prefer the term “post-genre.” Recorded mostly on May Day immediately following their last tour, Human Reaction traverses a deeply broad sonic landscape, as expected from this nearly unclassifiable group. With inventively churning drum textures from Hodges (an instantly identifiable sound honed in his days with Tom Waits and David Lynch) and the full-steam-ahead all-in attitude from Watt, (as he's displayed throughout his storied career with MINUTEMEN, fIREHOSE, and The Stooges), there is still the impression of “pressure, combustion, power, and hissing clouds of sonic poetry,” as Premier Guitar puts it. Also evident is the more fearless exploring that comes from a band that has spent a lot of time together crafting their vision. In this episode host Michael Shields and Mike Baggetta discuss the origins of mssv before diving in deeply about how their second album came to life on the road. They discuss the band's lyrical awakening featured on the album, working on music with Nels Cline, the forthcoming 58 date fall tour, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with author and political organizer Doug Greco. Greco has organized for over 15 years in Austin and San Antonio with the Industrial Areas Foundation, the nation's largest and longest-standing network of faith and community-based organizations. Before that, he served as Director of Programs with Equality California, the nation's largest statewide LGBTQ organization. His book, To Find a Killer: The Homophobic Murders of Norma and Maria Hurtado and the LGBT Rights Movement, is the focus of this episode. Despite monumental gains in legal equality over the past decade, the LGBTQ community still faces harsh disparities in physical and mental health, economic status, racial stratification, and hate crimes victimization. These factors compound for LGBTQ persons of color, low income individuals, immigrants, and members of the transgender community. In To Find a Killer — a finalist in the Writers' League of Texas 2021 Manuscript Contest for Nonfiction — Doug Greco explores the next phase of the LGBTQ rights movement and how issues of race, class, sexuality, gender identity, and economic status often intersect producing negative outcomes for members of the LGBTQ community. Beginning with a gripping, firsthand account of the 2011 anti-gay murder of twenty-four year-old Norma Hurtado, a student the Greco taught in an Austin high school ten years earlier, To Find a Killer employs a mix of narrative nonfiction and political analysis to uncover the intersectional nature of the disparities impacting the LGBTQ community. Drawing from his fifteen-years' experience as a grassroots organizer in Texas and California, Greco argues for the types of political organizations and public policies necessary to address these challenges. To Find a Killer charts a robust but pragmatic course for the LGBTQ movement today: investing in grassroots leadership development, rooting organizations in local civic and religious institutions, and focusing not just on legal equality, but a wider set of socio-economic issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, author, and artist Michael Gira. Gira is the founder of the band Swans, in which he sings and plays guitar. He is also the founder of Young God Records and previously fronted Angels of Light. The focus of this episode is on Swans latest release, a terrific album entitled The Beggar. Michael Gira founded the groundbreaking NYC band Swans in 1982. Initially notorious for their relentless, brutal, high-volume onslaughts of sound, the extreme, abject imagery of Gira's lyrics, and his thundering vocals, Swans latest album, The Beggar, is a sprawling, sonically dizzying, and thought-provoking work of art that showcases the extreme abilities of a legendary frontman and band that somehow still sounds at the height of their talents. In this episode host Michael Shields and Michael Gira discuss the themes abounding in The Beggar and the influence Argentine author Jorge Luis Borges had on the album. They give a hat tip to the talented instrumentalists that were part of the project while exploring how birthing The Beggar during the pandemic affected the entirely captivating work of art. They dig into the ins-and-outs of the 44 minute track on the album entitled “The Beggar Lover” (Three)” where, in the episode, Michael reads a section of poetry found within the all-encompassing journey of a track. They also talk about what to expect from the upcoming tour, how Jim Morrison has inspired Michael throughout his life, and a whole lot more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with director Simon Lereng Wilmont. Simon's first feature documentary film, The Distant Barking of Dogs (2017), premiered at IDFA and was awarded Best First Appearance. It has since gone on to win 35+ awards worldwide. His latest documentary, A House Made of Splinters, the focus of this episode, made its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival where it won the Best Director prize in the World-Cinema Documentary competition. The celebrated film was an Academy Award Nominee for Best Documentary Feature Film for the 2023 Oscars® and has continued to be a word-of-mouth success and essential to dialogues around crisis-caregiving amid the Russian-led invasion of Ukraine. A House Made of Splinters explores how the most vulnerable are caught up within institutional bureaucracies, generational traumas, and international flexes of power beyond their control and limits of understanding. It's a film, as Simon Lereng Wilmont tells it, about “the long term, less visible, but no less devastating consequences that war has had on many of the small communities situated along frontline of the war in Eastern Ukraine. It is also a story about love, compassion and hope. This is what powers the dedicated, big-hearted caregivers working tirelessly to try and give the children a better future, and what makes these incredible children still want to reach out and dare to try and form close human connections despite the tragic circumstances of the broken families that they come from. In this episode host Michael Shields and Simon Lereng Wilmont discuss the psychological and emotional trauma that is inflicted upon children in times of war. They discuss how profoundly special the shelter at the heart of the film and those working there are. They talking about the generation cycles of trauma caused from war, coping mechanisms that kids are drawn to in dire situations, the power of hope , and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with journalist, author, and an acknowledged expert in American right-wing extremism, David Neiwert. Neiwert has appeared on Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Newsroom, and The Rachel Maddow Show and is the Pacific Northwest correspondent for the Southern Poverty Law Center. His work has appeared at Mother Jones, The Washington Post, MSNBC.com, and many other publications. His previous books include Of Orcas and Men: What Killer Whales Can Teach Us, And Hell Followed With Her: Crossing the Dark Side of the American Border (NationBooks: Winner of the International Latino Book Award for General Nonfiction), and Alt-America: The Rise of The Radical Right in The Age of Trump. He has won a National Press Club award for Distinguished Online Journalism and his latest book — The Age of Insurrection: The Radical Right's Assault On American Democracy — is the focus of this episode. From a smattering of ominous right-wing compounds in the Pacific Northwest in the 1970s, to the shocking January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, America has seen the culmination of a long-building war on Democracy being waged by a fundamentally violent and antidemocratic far-right movement that unironically calls itself the “Patriot” movement. So how did we get here? In his book, The Age of Insurrection, award-winning journalist Neiwert — who been following the rise of extremist groups since the late 1970s, when he was a young reporter in Idaho — explores how the movement was built over decades, how it was set aflame by Donald Trump and his cohorts, and how it will continue to attack American Democracy for the foreseeable future. In this episode host Michael Shields and David Neiwert get to the bottom of exactly how dangerous the radical right is at this juncture of American history. They break down the components of Trump's Army while pondering how extremism has gone mainstream in a variety of ways. They talk about Steve Bannon's role in spreading authoritarianism internationally, how the police have been infiltrated by the radical right, how organized the alt-right attacks are on democratic institutions at every level including local, state, and federal targets, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with director Sean Claffey who has more than 25 years in the film industry spanning feature films, industry documentaries, and commercials. His latest film, Americonned, is a documentary about income inequality in the U.S. and the tragic destabilizing effects it has on Americans. Radical inequality has led to radicalization at every level of society, and this powerful documentary depicts what happens when America hits its tipping point. Americonned looks back through American history at similar critical moments of instability and notes that the labor movement of the past was born in times like these. Despite an increase in productivity in recent decades, compensation for the American worker has been stagnant. In addition, 47% of American jobs are at high risk of being lost to automation and A.I. by the mid-2030s. In the United States, there has been an upward redistribution of over $50 trillion from the bottom 90% to the top 1% over the last 40 years. Politicians on both sides of the aisle have created a protection racket for the rich, and corporations are deliberately crushing unions. Americonned takes a hard and important look at a critical problem facing the United States and offers hope, through real life stories of those fighting back and working towards a rebirth of labor that is happening in America right now. In this episode host Michael Shields and Sean Claffey discuss Chris Smalls inspiring movement to unionize Amazon workers for the first time. They talk about just how rapidly the income inequality gap in America has grown in the past 40 years and the nefarious tactics many in power use to increase their own wealth while drastically eroding the middle class. They explore how A.I. will contribute to increased wealth inequality, how the wealth gap contributes to Democratic instability, and much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Ukrainian-born artist, songwriter, and frontman of International punk band Gogol Bordello, Eugene Hütz. Hütz is a rare musical force, raucously illuminating stages alongside System of a Down, Rancid, and Dropkick Murphys, dueting with Regina Spektor, and cutting albums with Rick Rubin & Steve Albini. A lifelong lover of the punk scene growing up in Ukraine, Hütz found himself where he felt he belonged, in New York's Lower East Side in the late 90s, where he went to shows and later performed at the legendary CBGB. Crashing at friends' apartments and playing acoustic sets in NYC Ukrainian bars, his group, Gogol Bordello, steadily grew to an 8 piece multicultural band, combining Eastern, Western and Latin traditions. Hütz is a tireless advocate for Ukrainian solidarity, partnering with Nova Ukraine and ArtDopomoga, as well as putting together benefits with Patti Smith, The Hold Steady, Suzanne Vega, Magnetic Fields, Matisyahu and more. Hütz has also appeared in arthouse films such as Liev Schreiber's Everything Is Illuminated with Elijah Wood, Filth and Wisdom helmed by Madonna and the documentary Gogol Bordello Non-Stop. On June 13th, a new documentary about Gogol Bordello, entitled Scream of My Blood: A Gogol Bordello Story, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. An intimate, career-spanning portrait of punk legend Eugene Hütz, Scream of My Blood chronicles Hütz's childhood journey to the U.S., his rise to fame with Gogol Bordello, and his defiant return to Ukraine after the Russian invasion. Through never-before-seen photo and video archives spanning two decades — including concert performances, backstage moments, and intimate interviews — Scream of My Blood follows the epic journey of Hütz as he uses music as a rallying cry for the cultural identity of Ukraine while it continues its fight for sovereignty. Born in Ukraine to a family with Romani roots, Hütz fled his homeland during the Chernobyl disaster. Now, after years of exercising demons through his music, he journeyed home to face down the biggest demon of all. A wild punk-rock-doc that explodes off the screen, Scream of My Blood is a testament to the power of speaking your truth, no matter the cost. In this episode host Michael Shields and Eugene Hütz discuss what fans can expect from the new Gogol Bordello documentary and how the career-spanning look into the band found within Scream of My Blood came to life. They converse about Hütz's early days in New York City and the band's remarkable rise to prominence while exploring the bands that inspired Hütz's unique sound, what Hütz thinks about the war in Ukraine and his recent visit to the front lines, wild stories of life on the road, and so much more.The song which closes the podcast, entitled “United Strike Back” is a Gogol Bordello collaborative charity Song For Ukrainian soldiers featuring Tre Cool (Green Day), Jello Biafra (Dead Kennedys), Joe Lally (Fugazi, The Messthetics), Roger Miret (Agnostic Front), Monte Pittman (Ministry), Sasha (Kazka) & Puzzled Panther. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with the senior director of the NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine program, Larissa Trinder. Larissa is one of the talented people behind the project that inspired the new book Healing Walls: New York City Health + Hospitals Community Mural Project (2019 - 2021) which commemorates a brilliant and benevolent three-year Community Mural Project that persists as a flagship of the NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine Program. Supported by the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund, the Community Mural Project is designed to encourage creativity, lower stress, build trust, and to increase engagement between hospital staff and members of their surrounding communities. The murals also create space for joy as well as healing for patients and frontline medical workers who are always under enormous pressure and were hit especially hard during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Community Mural Project builds upon a mural tradition that began in the 1930s when the Works Progress Administration (WPA) supported the creation of murals in virtually every New York public hospital. Healing Walls — a beautiful coffee table book that was gifted to every H+H staff member who participated — vividly documents the ongoing community project as well as many WPA-era hospital murals with new scholarship and images. What's best is — 100% of all sales of the book will benefit NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine programs. In this episode host Michael Shields and Larissa Trinder (and all too briefly editor and author Jan Rothschild) dig into exactly how the Community Mural Project initially came to life while exploring how the gifted artists who are participating in the project were selected. They discuss the cathartic power of art and how decades of research prove that the arts can play a role in “healing the healers” as well as improving patient outcomes and forging community health awareness and partnerships. They talk about the painting parties that occurred when the murals were first erected and the collaborative process that goes into creating each mural that ensures they are strong representations of their respective communities. They talk about the HHArt empathy workshops, a fascinating and important idea known as “Social Prescribing,” and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with musician trumpeter, slide trumpeter, arranger/composer and bandleader from New York City, Steven Bernstein. Steven is best known for his work in The Lounge Lizards, Sexmob, Spanish Fly, and the Millennial Territory Orchestra. He has released four albums under his own name on John Zorn's Tzadik Records and he has performed with jazz giants including Roswell Rudd, Sam Rivers, Don Byron, and Medeski, Martin & Wood, as well as musicians ranging from Aretha Franklin to Lou Reed, from Linda Ronstadt to Digable Planets, from Sting to Courtney Love. Steven was a member of Levon Helm's Midnight Ramble band, playing in Helm's Woodstock home, as well as touring with the band. As an arranger he has written for Bill Frisell, Rufus Wainwright, and Elton John, just to name a few. He has composed for dance, theater, film and television, and with composer John Lurie, arranged the scores to many feature films, including Get Shorty. While Steven is prolific with his output, this episode centers on two of his projects, Sexmob, which just released a terrific new album called The Hard Way, and The Millennial Territory Orchestra, which recently released four excellent records, in one day, on the Royal Potato Family label. Sexmob's latest release is a bit of a departure for the band, as with producer Scotty Hard at the board, The Hard Way skews decisively electronic. On it, Hard's beats and soundscapes provide Steven, saxophonist Briggan Krauss, bassist Tony Scherr and acoustic/electric drummer Kenny Wollesen, all the stimulus they need for further compose and fearlessly reinvent. With each offering, and certainly with The Hard Way and its rich electro-acoustic groove canvas, Steven and crew reveal a modernizing impulse, but also an equally strong foundation in the roots of jazz and American song. Funky, bluesy, with a tattered dissonance conjured up by Krauss Throaty saxophone tone, the distinctive wail of Steven's rare horn, and the swagger of Scherr and Wollesen's rhythm section grind, Sexmob continues to chart new paths in 21st-century creative music. In this episode host Michael Shields and Steven Bernstein talk about Sexmob's new direction sonically found on The Hard Way while exploring the production process behind this captivating work of art. They converse on producer Scott Hard's influence on the album, the unique art house label that The Hard Way was released on called Corbett vs. Dempsey, and the four albums Steven recently released with The Millennial Territory Orchestra. They even discuss Sexmob's forthcoming tour with Laurie Anderson, the many “gifts” Steven received in his career from renowned producer Hal Willner, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast presents an interview with Los Angeles-based writer Will Hagle. Will is a co-host of the Connecting The Classics podcast and a great deal of his work can be found on the webzine Passion of The Weiss. He is also the author of the excellent 33 ⅓ book dedicated to MF DOOM and Madlib's album Madvillainy. The book — which is the focus of this episode — celebrates Madvillainy as a representation of two genius musical minds melding to form one revered supervillain. A product of circumstance, the album came together soon after MF DOOM's resurgence and Madlib's reluctant return from avant-garde jazz to hip-hop. Written from the alternating perspectives of three fake music journalist superheroes — and featuring interviews with Wildchild, Cut Chemist, M.E.D, Walasia, Stones Throw execs, and many other individuals involved with the album's creation — Will's book blends fiction and non-fiction to celebrate Madvillainy not just as an album, but as a folkloric artifact. It is one specific retelling of a story which, like Madvillain's music, continues to spawn infinite legends. In this episode host Michael Shields and Will Hagle discuss both Madlib and MF DOOM's origin story while expounding at length what makes Madvillainy such a special and enduring piece of art. They explore the somewhat disputed stories on how MF DOOM and Madlib connected for the project, and dig into how unique it was that Madvillainy existed as an album that straddled the analog and digital eras. They celebrate the song “Accordion,” as one of the most unparalleled songs in hip-hop history, remark on Madvillainy's profound influence in modern music, and so much more.Grab a copy of Will Hagle's Madvillainy 33⅓ here — and learn more about Will's projects at his subtack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.