Rock 'n' Roll Sutra

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Music geeks and yoga dorks unite! To help explain the yoga teachings that inspired the songs of Destroy It Up, frontman Joe Simek has created Rock ’N’ Roll Sutra, a companion podcast to his music. In addition to dissecting his own songs, Simek interviews yogis about music and musicians about spiritu…

Joe Simek/Destroy It Up


    • May 11, 2019 LATEST EPISODE
    • infrequent NEW EPISODES
    • 14m AVG DURATION
    • 11 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from Rock 'n' Roll Sutra

    "She Will Rise! The Serpent Coils, But Never Dormant It Lies"

    Play Episode Listen Later May 11, 2019 11:35


    Shiva. Shakti. Side A — and now side B! Joe Simek completes his dissection of Destroy It Up’s new two-song Shiva Shakti EP. In this episode, Simek debuts and discusses “Shakti (She Will Rise)”, a song inspired by the concept of experiencing shakti through kundalini energy. But this time, Simek (a yoga teacher and Quaker) is not just discussing yoga, but he also asks the question: Do Quakers also experience the rise of kundalini energy in their meeting for worship? Yoga dorks and music geeks -- this one is definitely for you. A blistering rock song about yoga’s most esoteric, important, and perhaps misunderstood practice. Learn more at www.destroyitup.com.

    "I Met Shiva And He Just Danced"

    Play Episode Listen Later May 4, 2019 13:55


    Destroy It Up singer-songwriter and yoga teacher Joe Simek is back with a new release, a two-song indie-rock EP called Shiva Shakti. In this episode, he debuts the song "Shiva" and breaks down the philosophy behind the song, which was greatly influenced by the Five Acts of Shiva as represented in the Nataraja. He also talks about why he named his project Destroy It Up, and his Jeff Tweedy and Christopher Hareesh Wallis influences! Learn more at www.destroyitup.com.

    "I Think I’ll Let It Come To Me"

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 6, 2019 12:02


    In the conclusion of his discourse on the album Sutra, Destroy It Up frontman and yoga teacher Joe Simek talks about the album closer, Chasing It (Brahmacharya). Simek talks about the yamas and niyamas, and how they are a guide for staying on the yoga path. He also shares his future plans for this podcast. Learn more at www.DestroyItUp.com

    sutra simek joe simek
    “You Think You Got It Together, But Baby, You Don’t”

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 14, 2018 16:31


    In this episode, songwriter Joe Simek tackles the five kleshas, or the five reasons we suffer as laid out by Patanjali in the ancient text called the Yoga Sutra. Concepts like ignorance, ego, attachment, aversion, and the fear of death are widely covered topics in eastern philosophy, but they also make for great fodder for rock songs. Here, Simek talks about the three songs he penned about the five kleshas for the album Sutra, which he released with his band, Destroy It Up. www.destroyitup.com

    “Why you looking for your selfie, when you should be trying to find your self?”

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 10, 2018 11:31


    In this episode, Destroy It Up frontman and yoga teacher Joe Simek looks at "Temperature Rising", a song that simultaneously pays homage to Kriya Yoga and throws shade at the Instagram yoga culture. Plus, Joe talks about his misplaced reverence for overdosing rock stars of the nineties and teases his appearance on J. Brown Yoga Talks Podcast.

    "This Enlightenment, I Can’t Attain It"

    Play Episode Listen Later May 18, 2018 14:31


    Seeds....with or without!? In this episode, Destroy It Up songwriter Joe Simek looks at two songs from his album Sutra, "Seeds (Sabijah)" and "Nirbijah (Without Seeds)," two songs Joe wrote as an honest inquiry into the state and contents of his own mind and the frustration that came from trying to understand what samadhi actually looks like. www.destroyitup.com

    "We Will Suffer And We Will Die"

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 19, 2017 9:51


    It’s a dark title, but it’s about a very hopeful song: “Brahma Viharas (Joy Is An Ecstatic Girl).” It’s been a while since host Joe Simek’s last episode, but here he gets back on the horse and dissects a wisdom teaching that has been handed down through the ages, and talks about how it fit into his album, Sutra, which was all inspired by Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra. www.destroyitup.com

    "Look in the (divine) mirror"

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 11, 2017 12:52


    Moving through Destroy It Up’s album, Sutra, singer/songwriter Joe Simek continues to unpack the songs. This time he examines the rocker “Isvara (Divine Mirror)” and gets into the personal god that Patanjali gives us in the Yoga Sutra. Simek also introduces us to Destroy It Up bass player Brad Baker and ponders the statute of limitations of contracts of yesteryear. www.destroyitup.com

    "Bear witness to it all"

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 16, 2017 20:21


    Continuing his breakdown of the songs on Sutra, Destroy It Up’s recent full-length album, frontman and podcast host Joe Simek talks about the song “Witness (Parusa/Prakriti)”. He gets into the influences for the song, which range from early Coldplay to the concepts of dualism and non-dualism in yoga philosophy. He also talks about guitar player Kurt Johnson, Jr.’s contribution to the song and the album as a whole. www.destroyitup.com www.youtube.com/user/destroyitupmusic

    "The practice is gold"

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 4, 2017 15:30


    In this episode, Rock ’n’ Roll Sutra Podcast host and Destroy It Up frontman Joe Simek continues his breakdown of his album, Sutra. He takes a look at the song “We Fall Off The Earth (Vairagya)” and talks about the concepts of non-reaction and practice in the Yoga Sutra. He also talks about his songwriting process for finding melodies, and mentions his music journalism career, as well as Joe Montone of Heat Thunder, one of the guest musicians on the album. www.destroyitup.com www.heat-thunder.com

    "All we've got is now."

    Play Episode Listen Later May 9, 2017 15:21


    This is the first episode of the Rock 'n' Roll Sutra Podcast. In this episode, Destroy It Up frontman Joe Simek talks about the band's beginnings, the inspiration for the album, Sutra, his yoga trainings, and his plans for this podcast. He also dissects "Atha," the first song on the album. www.destroyitup.com www.boomcrashdrumtracks.com www.rolfgates.com www.breathingdeeply.com

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