River of Suck

Violinist, educator, and composer, Christian Howes, joins host, Andy Reiner, on an exploration into the River of Suck. Together, they delve into the art of setting achievable goals, and of finding the best ways to approach practicing. Christian shares his personal journey, exploring fear's role in personal growth and offering practical strategies to conquer it.  Listen in for an inspiring conversation chock full of with actionable steps to navigate the River of Suck on your own life's journey!

Join host Andy Reiner and his special guest Judy Hyman in this live episode at Fiddle Hell Online as they explore the journey of her band, The Horse Flies.  From working as a librarian to becoming a film scoring composer, Judy shares her experiences of balancing her passion for music with a serious job. Dive into the creative process as they discuss the importance of perseverance, embracing the messy aspects of music, and finding joy in the process. Uncover insights on dealing with challenges, making albums, and the thrill of creating music, and tune in for an inspiring conversation on the River of Suck podcast!"

Julian Carr explains that being a professional skier and cliff jumping world-record holder is less about being fearless than you might think.  Sharing his experiences with host Andy Reiner, Carr relays how being cool, calm, and collected in the presence of fear can change your life.  This episode promises that fear is not a roadblock and that trusting yourself is key. Carr talks about how he expanded his comfort zone, what can happen if you embrace things you are scared of, and the beauty of being in the moment. Listen to hear how the River of Suck affects even the best athletes. 

Being unique in a society that sets expectations and ingrained biases can be a difficult task. However, Kween Werk, our guest, illustrates how her individuality enables her to thrive in her surroundings. As a social justice activist and environmentalist, she acknowledges that being a woman of color has made her feel like an outsider in the spaces she cherishes. Nonetheless, discovering her true self and identity has empowered her to succeed beyond measure. In a stunning outdoor setting, host Andy Reiner and Kween Werk discuss how inclusive spaces are crucial and essential for all individuals, regardless of their identities.

Join jazz violin virtuoso, Jason Anick, as he shares his personal journey through the River of Suck. Jason and host, Andy Reiner, explore strategies for reframing shortcomings, navigating comparisons to others, and reimagining the growth mindset.  In a River of Suck podcast first, Jason's father waltzes into the conversation to share childhood stories about Jason.  And Jason reveals a hidden truth: there is no top of the mountain.  The episode finishes with a BONUS conversation with River of Suck podcast interns from CU Boulder - on skis, on a chairlift!

Sit down with harmonica master, Chris Turner, as he recounts his wild and often misadventurous stories with host Andy Reiner. Together, they discuss profound topics such as the ways which music keeps us alive, how art is bigger than what we make it to be, and what music really is. From free jazz jam sessions to going through a minefield as a stowaway, Chris reflects on all the chaos that makes being a musician a one-of-a-kind lifestyle, and how the River of Suck doesn't have to be all that bad.

Embark on a magical journey through the universe of sound guided by the Vibe Wizard herself, electric violist Martha Mooke. Martha has created musical arrangements for the likes of Phoebe Bridgers and Sturgill Simpson, performed alongside Elton John and Philip Glass, and is a trailblazer in strings education. Explore the philosophy of improvisation, listen to host Andy Reiner muse about goals, and shatter doubt from the heart with a throng of electric strings. Hear Martha Mooke connect the body to the mind. Soak in soothing modern soundscapes and learn how to become the youest you.

New York-based musician Melissa Tong, joins River of Suck podcast host, Andy Reiner, for a deep and vulnerable coversation LIVE at Fiddle Hell Online. Follow Melissa's journey from her experiences with racial and achievement bullying to her rocky path to Broadway (an overnight success in 18 short years). Arriving in NYC to not one single gig, Melissa epitomizes tenacity. Find out why someone might take a million first steps along the way. This essential episode also offers a view into musician's trade secrets: preparing to feel anxious in high-pressure performance situations. “Sometimes my feelings come out of my eyeballs.”

Six-String Electric Violinist, Tracy Silverman, shares deep thoughts about the emotional side of his musical journey.  From the future of string playing to tales of suffering.  Learn about high level performance mind techniques.  Listen to host Andy Reiner Debunk the FEAR acronym.  Visualization before performance, walking a tight wire between seemingly different words, and DANGER - both perceived and real.  

Sharing horror stories from their musical pasts, musicians Bonnie and Taylor Sims (of Everybody Loves An Outlaw) invite host Andy Reiner into their Colorado living room for deep conversations in the River of Suck. Confidence and anxiety feedback loops. Gig nightmares. Energy sources. Searching for flow states. Fear management. Self-deprecation. Ruffling feathers. Going viral. How does a long and prosperous journey into love and music survive insane challenges? Warning: Explicit Content.

Travel along the River of Suck with host Andy Reiner and guest Jason Lai for a stunning meditation on the two inescapable qualities of being alive – life and death. Composer, performer, and speaker, Jason shows the importance of vulnerability as he cannonballs into his experience with suck. How can a focus on your body lead to confidence and mindfulness? How can we turn thought piranhas of narcissism and self-doubt into something positive? Don't forget, we need darkness to see light. 

Welcome back to the River of Suck Podcast!  Join host Andy Reiner and guest Olivia Meikle as they dive deep into their own experiences swimming in suck. Co-host of WhatsHerName, professor, writer, Olivia explores into the struggles of producing podcasts, and the fulfillment of working hard through the difficult moments. How do you protect yourself in a raging river? A wetsuit, of course! Olivia investigates what one needs to to protect themselves from piranhas and dangerous rocks under the surface.

What is the first step to getting better at something? Realizing you suck at it. Recorded live from a blue-skied park in Nashville, Billy Contreras and host, Andy Reiner, discuss shoving off the shore into the River of Suck and paddling through the cycle of learning, practicing, performing, and sucking. Billy speaks to his experience as a seasoned performer always looking to improve. His answer? “Always be on the cutting edge of yourself”. In this very special live episode, Billy expresses the importance of appreciating the journey rather than the destination.

From Lurkin’ in the parking lot outside Flecktones concerts, to recording and performing with Victor Wooten and Bela Fleck, composer and steel pannist, Jonathan Scales, has surpassed his biggest dreams, yet found them to be a beginning, rather than an end.   Discover the mindstate of Fake Buddha’s Inner Child, take a stroll down the Hallway of Possibilities, take a trip to Mauritania, and learn the emotional meaning behind Jonathan’s instrumental music in this heady episode.

Recorded deep in the mine shaft of the Frightmare Compound Haunted House, River of Suck podcast episode 19 is an journey into fear with owner, Josh Holder.  After a Halloween season working as a scare actor, host Andy Reiner asks: who goes to haunted houses and why?   How do zombies swim in the River of Suck?  What scares the folks who build the scenes?  Clowns, real weapons, decapitated heads, crashed airplanes - Tune in and live that fear positive life.

How does one manifest success?  When is it the right time to take a chance on yourself?  What is the point of engaging in conversation - especially when the other participant holds diametrically opposed views?   This episode traces the rise of Joe Buckner as he follows his dreams.  But while his inspirational ideas are proven in his own boxing gym, Joe’s message is too big to be contained within any walls.  And in a time of great polarization, Joe shows us the path to greater understanding.

Masters of music as a platform to bring about change and empathy, Che Apalache sings about a better world.  In one of the last golden moments of bands touring in 2020, this Grammy-nominated string band, with members from Argentina, Mexico and the United States, performed in Colorado and sat down with River of Suck host, Andy Reiner.  Time travel back to this beautiful moment to learn how Che Apalache found their individual and collective voices - and take away some secrets to find - and use - your own.  

Open your mind to an improvised life with special guest, fiddler Enion Pelta-Tiller.  Together, host Andy Reiner and Enion examine the struggle of staying positive while playing one of the world’s hardest instruments and share secrets of how to get unstuck. For Enion, the River of Suck is a River of Discovery which goes deep … down into the crevasse, into a big world filled with lights and beautiful, alien, sea creatures.  Sing along, find a healthy outlet for your tensions and fears, and learn balance from the universe.

Discover the meaning of life as Kristen Ulmer reveals her incredible solutions to living with fear and anxiety .. AKA being a human.  In this life-changing interview, Kristen shares her spectacular insights gained from her meteoric rise from pro skier to fear and anxiety expert.  Together with host Andy Reiner, they dive headfirst into the River of Suck, and learn how to swim with thought piranhas.  These are the real-deal, practical zen strategies you’ve been waiting for.

From Electrician to Musician - from beginner to professional - J's incredible rise from bluegrass fan to sharing the stage with Yonder Mountain String Band is the epitome of swimming the River of Suck - forging ahead with unstoppable passion, no matter the obstacles.  Packed with mandolin and fiddle jams, the journey from Jonny Miller to J Robert Miller is an epic personal quest of music, health and achieving the best version of one's self - the youest you.

What can we learn from someone who thinks in pictures?  For the premiere of Season 2, Andy Reiner interviews Dr. Temple Grandin - an animal scientist, author, public speaker, and inspirational figure to the autistic community.  How do we solve big problems with simple, logical solutions?  What do animals feel?  How do we handle fear and reach a flow state?  Listen for Temple's enlightened answers and unique perspective.

Alex Hargreaves and Andy Reiner share tunes and talk shop - live at Fiddle Hell with the River of Suck Swim Team!  Dueling twin fiddles set the scene with improvised musical moments.  With an enthusiastic studio audience, good vibes abound for an open discussion about healthy musical attitudes and secrets to handle thought piranhas, downward thought spirals, improving musicianship, and playing with one's heroes.  

Bugs on Bugs is a pivotal River of Suck episode about the intersection of microbial science, mental health and the learning process.  Anne A. Madden's experience speaking at TED conferences, thinking outside of the box and winning bizarre awards brings a delightful whimsy to swimming the River of Suck.   “When are the thought piranhas really piranhas - and when are they minnows with big shadows?”  What's *your* turtle moment?

"From Here to Here" details Courtney Hartman's musical journey from her childhood home in Colorado to her current massive project renovating a barn on the same property.  Formerly of bluegrass band Della Mae, Courtney's insights into emotions, fear and creativity present a refreshingly honest view into the mind of an artist, willing to share what she has learned from her experiences with all of us. Courtney and host Andy Reiner's conversation presents a seminal chapter in River of Suck philosophy, laced with guitar licks, original fiddle tunes, and a song from her new album.

Live at Rustic Roots Music and Food Retreat, host Andy Reiner sits down with teaching artist and special guest, Ric Robertson, in a historic dance hall from the 1800’s.  Ric harnesses the power of lyrics and song for parsing packages of emotions.  With questions from the live audience of Rustic Rootians and Swim Team members, Andy and Ric go deep into the learning process, with tough mentors, practice, and on the gig.  Tunes from Laos and a free improvisation jam in the rain provide the musical setting while birds chirp and an occasional goat or cat have their say. 

Global Change Ecologist, Danica Lombardozzi, drops in to the River of Suck podcast studio to discuss climate change, political doubt about scientific research, making a difference, being outside, creativity in music and science, digging for worms, ignoring bad advice, community, taking criticism, compassion, making the world a better place, talking to people who disagree with your own views, failure and FEAR - all while fending off a mischievous off-mic kitten/demon-bat.

Recorded in front of a live studio audience, River of Suck Episode 7 finds Andy Reiner connecting with drummer, percussionist and educator Cedric Easton, both teaching artists at Creative Strings Workshop in Delaware, Ohio.  Together, their journey begins with family and church, continues with musical connections, emotional pathways and choices, and features questions about self-doubt from members of the live audience.  Cedric’s honest practical advice and thoughtful solutions for dealing with issues of the brain, music and life make this episode compulsory listening for anyone with personal goals.

Megan Rau takes River of Suck listeners on a journey across pastures of fear, consciousness and thought piranhas through the lens of training horses and instructing riders.  Megan’s unique take on French Classical Horsemanship makes a strong case for compassion for horses and other animals.  Episode 6 features being in the moment, rescue dogs, emotions, growth mindset, harmony with horses, dominance and aggression, passion, learning, questions from the River of Suck Swim Team, and music from Half Pelican.

Fiddler and singer-songwriter Jeremy Garrett takes a podcast-length break from the Infamous Stringdusters for a deep conversation about music and life.  True passion, success and satisfaction, lyrics and songwriting, playing solo and with the Stringdusters, motivation and believing in oneself.  “You can’t get good without trying to get good.”  How do we exist in a world filled with our heroes and still find our own voice?  Give Episode 5 a listen for a wide-angle perspective on a life of music.

Ecologist Pacifica Sommers takes a break from analyzing samples she collected in Antarctica to ponder rivers and water bears in Episode 4.  Cryoholes, oceans of suck, Ernest Shackleton’s journey, impostor syndrome, tardigrades, microbes and thought piranhas.  Pacifica brings her unique perspective on science, life and the outdoors to the River of Suck conversation, to a groove cafe soundtrack of octave mandolin, electric violin, and beatboxing.

Colorado fiddler and educator Natalie Padilla discusses how to survive and thrive with host Andy Reiner in the third episode of River of Suck Podcast.  Family bands, fog, cooking, fiddling, contests, teaching, and of course, thought piranhas.  Traditional and improvised duo fiddle and octave mandolin jams provide the groovy soundtrack to the conversation.  

Intel engineer Nick Economou sits down with host Andy Reiner for a spirited discussion about science and thought piranhas.  The second episode of River of Suck offers insights learned from Nick's work on developing materials for smaller and smaller computer chips, as well as a lifetime spent in search of epic skiing and mountain experiences.  All original music composed for this podcast by host Andy provides the backdrop for this engaging conversation between friends of 18 years.

The pilot episode of River of Suck with host Andy Reiner.  Cellist and singer/songwriter, Rushad Eggleston (the Bat Prince of Jick), sits down with Andy in a spare speck of time between electrifying performances and school visits in December 2018.  Using music and words, they trace the origins of the title phrase as well as Rushad's artistic journey through life and the river of suck.  Thought Piranhas, Kazoos, Nonsense, The Bounce, Blues, Extreme Metal, John McGann, Negative Ralph...