Talkhouse is a media company and outlet for musicians, actors, filmmakers, and others in their respective fields. Artists write essays and criticism from firsthand perspectives, speak one-on-one with their peers via the Talkhouse Podcast and Talkhouse Live events, and offer readers and listeners uni…
The Talkhouse Podcast is a fascinating and unique podcast that brings together musicians from different backgrounds to have insightful and engaging conversations. What sets this podcast apart is the lack of hosts, which allows for organic and spontaneous discussions between artists. This format creates a refreshing dynamic where both parties can freely express themselves without any bias or preconceived notions.
One of the best aspects of The Talkhouse Podcast is the wide variety of artists featured on the show. From well-known musicians to emerging talents, every episode offers a diverse range of perspectives and experiences. This not only introduces listeners to new music but also provides an opportunity to gain insights into the creative process, songwriting, playing techniques, and the music industry as a whole. The interviews are often candid and honest, providing an intimate look into the lives of these artists.
Additionally, The Talkhouse Podcast excels in creating a relaxed and casual atmosphere during conversations. It feels like you are eavesdropping on two friends having a conversation in a living room rather than being subjected to a formal interview setting. This helps foster genuine connections between the guests, resulting in captivating discussions that go beyond surface-level topics.
However, one potential drawback of The Talkhouse Podcast is the lack of consistency in episode quality due to its format. Since there are no hosts guiding the conversation or filtering out less interesting moments, some episodes might not resonate with all listeners. However, this also means that there is always something fresh and unexpected in each episode, which can be exciting for those willing to explore various artists.
In conclusion, The Talkhouse Podcast offers an exceptional listening experience for music enthusiasts who enjoy hearing real conversations between musicians. Despite its occasional unevenness in content, this podcast consistently provides valuable insights into the music world while introducing listeners to new artists and expanding their musical horizons. Whether you are a fan of Black Midi or simply intrigued by thought-provoking discussions about music, The Talkhouse Podcast is definitely worth a listen.
On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Podcast's spin-off series, host Nick Dawson sits down with writer, director, artist and musician Terence Nance, a longtime Talkhouse Film contributor best known for his debut feature, An Oversimplification of Her Beauty, and his boundary-pushing HBO series Random Acts of Flyness. In this very wide-ranging conversation, the two touch on numerous topics, including: communing with the dead, St. Peter as a Pauline Kael archetype, Tyrese Haliburton's Game 7 injury in the context of stoic masculinity, the Abrahamic idea of God as surveillance system, why humans are seemingly hastening the end of the world, a discussion of the two AIs — Allen Iverson and artificial intelligence, plus Terence being fired by Warner Bros. as the writer-director of Space Jam 2, and how he handled the aftermath of that. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast, we've got a pair of old friends who dive right in on some light-hearted topics like death and aging: Amy Millan and Kevin Drew. Both Amy and Kevin are deeply connected to the Canadian indie scene that took shape in the late 1990s around Broken Social Scene. That band was initially Kevin's baby, but a whole constellation seemed to spring from it, including Metric, Feist, and the band that Amy is most closely associated with, Stars. The impetus for today's conversation, though, is Millan's gorgeous new solo album, I Went to Find You. It's her first in 15 years, and as you'll hear in this conversation, was inspired by stirred-up feelings about the death of her father when she was just a little kid. Millan created the album with a musician she only met recently, Jay McCarrol, after a chance encounter with him that stirred up some dormant emotions about her childhood. It's a really beautiful and quietly triumphant record that's worth some time and attention in your headphones. Check out “Kiss That Summer” right here. Kevin Drew directed that great video for that song, and he's got bona fides when it comes to writing songs about difficult subjects, too: His latest solo album, Aging, came out in 2023, and you might be able to guess what it's about from that title. It's a topic that Kevin and Amy get into here as they get deep and sweet together—they were even a little worried they'd forget they were being recorded since they're such close friends. They talk about Amy's record but also, perhaps for the first time on Talkhouse, perimenopause. There's also memories of Hal Willner, a great name for Amy's tour that she didn't end up using, and living in your “who gives a fuck” years. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Amy Millan and Kevin Drew for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff in the Talkhouse Podcast Network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Podcast's spin-off series, host Nick Dawson sits down with actors Mandy Patinkin and Kathryn Grody, who have been married for 45 years and in the past few years have become one of the internet's favorite couples thanks to their delightful TikTok channel. To coincide with the premiere this week of the pilot of their episodic series Seasoned at the Tribeca Film Festival, they opened up in their typically ebullient and charming manner about subjects as diverse as their morning routines (and nocturnal movements!), whether or not to delete someone's contact info if they've died, the role a Joni Mitchell lyric played in their most recent disagreement, their son being unfairly overshadowed by Prince William, and much more. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a couple of guys who found huge followings—on the internet and elsewhere—in different ways, but with similar outlooks: Adam Met and Julian Shapiro-Barnum. Met is one-third of the brother band AJR, who've found massive pop hits over the past decade with cheeky but sometimes deceptively deep songs like “Bang” and “World's Smallest Violin.” Perhaps those more into the indie-adjacent world have heard their collaborations with Weezer. But for purposes of this conversation, Met is wearing one of his many other hats, which include Columbia professor, non-profit founder, and as of this week, published author. He just released his first book, AMPLIFY: How to Use the Power of Connection to Engage, Take Action, and Build a Better World, As you may have guessed from the title, it's about action and advocacy, including in the area of the climate crisis, for which Met is an ardent activist. He casually mentions hanging out with Al Gore here, which may be a Talkhouse first. The book aims to provide strategies for folks who want to do their part, which is a noble cause if you ask me. It features pop-culture names like Ben Folds and Jim Gaffigan, in addition to folks more known in the activism world. It's out now. The other half of today's conversation is Met's pal, comedian and internet personality Julian Shapiro-Barnum. An inquisitive guy by nature, Shapiro-Barnum recorded a series of internet videos over the years that were largely conversations with regular people, and during the pandemic he hit on the idea of chatting with children about how they manage to stay positive when everything seems so crazy. That idea became the very popular series Recess Therapy, which is as charming as it sounds—and, it should be noted, launched the “corn kid” into internet fame. These two jump right into a lively conversation about how music and advocacy can go hand in hand, about Julian's various shows, including Recess Therapy and Celebrity Substitute, and lots more. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Julian Shapiro-Barnum and Adam Met for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and visit Talkhouse.com for lots of good stuff. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme was composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
This week's Talkhouse Podcast is kind of a dream episode for me, because I managed to wrangle two of my favorite songwriter/performer/lyricists ever into a conversation, Matt Berninger and Alan Sparhawk. Sparhawk first came to my attention way back in the early ‘90s with his band Low. Over the course of 30-ish years, he and his wife, Mimi Parker, created an almost indescribably stunning body of work. The early days were characterized by slow, spare, minimalist songs, but over the decades, Low blossomed in a hundred beautiful ways, from stark, almost confrontational music made with Steve Albini to some of the sweetest pop songs you'll ever hear to their final incarnation, in which they organically integrated some harsh electronics. It's hard to believe they went so long and stayed so true, but they did. It's a pretty perfect catalog. Then, in 2022, Parker died of cancer. Sparhawk worked through some of his grief by pushing right back into music, first with 2024's White Roses, My God, a dense, electronics-heavy album that sounds like confusion itself. Now, just months later, he's set to release another album, this one called With Trampled By Turtles. The title references the Duluth band that backed him on it, and the songs themselves offer a much more clear-eyed, straightforward look at where his head is at. They're very different but both really powerful. Check out the song “Not Broken,” which features Sparhawk and Parker's daughter Hollis on vocals. I think Matt Berninger, the other half of today's conversation, feels as strongly about Low and Alan's music as I do: He's been listening since before his band, The National, had even come together. Perhaps you're aware of their history, but just in case: The National has been making incredible records since 2001, finding pretty huge success with cathartic, arena-sized songs that are still always grounded by Berninger's intentional, literate words. Just as with Low, it's impossible for me to pick a favorite record, but today it's Alligator, from 2005. But Berninger, like Sparhawk, has had plenty of side projects over the years, and his second proper solo album is coming out this week as well. It's called Get Sunk, and it feels like a sort of deliberate step away from any semblance of gloom, with Berninger writing about childhood summers and more innocent times. Don't get me wrong, these songs aren't without their emotional perils, but they do feel different enough from his main gig that you'll notice. Oh, and in case I didn't mention it, it's really great. Check out “Bonnet of Pins” from Get Sunk right here. Sparhawk and Berninger don't waste much time with idle chit-chat in this episode. They've both been through the mental-health wringer over the years, and they explore those low-lows with the benefit, thankfully, of some hindsight. Matt has some really insightful things to say about Alan's recent solo records, and they dive into their religious backgrounds with perhaps the funniest, potentially deadliest interview question ever asked on Talkhouse: “What are your thoughts on God and religion? Go.” Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Alan Sparhawk and Matt Berninger for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
"People are real down on the subway lately but I still like taking it!!" Kareem and Michael continue on the train and talk about Michael's directorial debut, Eric Larue, directing as a way of developing every character in a movie, Kareem and Michael's future buddy comedy where they open an indie Target (and also their buddy drama where they're roommates), male best friend breakup stories as a new genre, Michael's love of R.E.M., doing a cover band, being a loafer, having a fake Chicago accent, Windsor Terrace, how being from the midwest makes you endearing, GoFundMe to pay for a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame, not being invited to the Oscars, there are too many screens on the subway, Michael's colonoscopy and other stuff. Host: Kareem Rahma Creators: Kareem Rahma and Andrew Kuo Camera: Maksim Axelrod and Tian Sippel Editor: Tyler Christie Mixer: Dale Eisinger Associate Producer: Ramy Shafi Artwork: Andrew Lawandus Theme Music: Tyler McCauley Subscribe to SubwayTakes. Watch this episode on YouTube or Spotify. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Podcast's spin-off series, host Nick Dawson sits down with iconic actress Lili Taylor, who just published her first book, Turning to Birds, a series of thoughtful, beautifully written and deeply human essays about her consuming passion for birdwatching. In an engrossing conversation, the two discuss how recovery and birding intersect, her love of naps, how nature has shifted her relationship to death, Nick getting barked at by a coyote in the Bronx, braving the acting version of the bends after finishing a role, her amazing way of releasing resentment, facing the unknown, how she's finding resilience and playing the long game as this country plunges into crisis, and much more. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got two old friends who've contributed more than their fair share to the emo world and beyond and lived to tell the tale: Evan Weiss and Chris Carrabba. Carrabba is of course the main creative force behind Dashboard Confessional, whose early albums—specifically The Swiss Army Romance and The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most—basically invented the genre's confessional acoustic-based era. He could've made those records a dozen times over the past 20 years, but instead Carrabba filled out Dashboard's sound over the years, stretching out where the muse took him. Now an elder statesman, Carrabba returned to that simpler sound but brought years of wisdom with him for 2022's All the Truth That I Can Tell, which he talks about in this great chat. Dashboard will head out on a long summer tour with Goo Goo Dolls starting July 13, but not before playing a show with Weiss's band in Vegas the day before. Weiss's band would be Pet Symmetry, a trio he's been part of for the past decade or so, and which just released an excellent new album: Big Symmetry is a big, loveable, tuneful set of songs that all start with the word “big.” It's a joyful blast of pop-punk that feels like a deliberate antidote to tough times. It may also be a bit of a reaction to what fans would consider Weiss's main band, Into It. Over It., which flies that emo flag a bit higher. But whatever, those tags are pretty silly when we ought to be talking about songs. Speaking of, check out the song “Big Wish” from the album Big Symmetry right here. In this wide-ranging chat, Carrabba and Weiss talk about the holiness of punk community, the accidental origins of Dashboard Confessional plus that band's long hiatus and rebirth, and how the financial collapse of 2008 had opposite effects on their careers. It's true! Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Chris Carrabba and Evan Weiss for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the other great podcasts in our network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme was composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On the latest episode of this new Talkhouse Podcast spin-off series, host Nick Dawson sits down with visionary writer-director Michel Gondry, whose delightful new film, Maya, Give Me a Title – a hand-drawn 60-minute feature he originally made just for his young daughter – is currently on the festival circuit. In a wide-ranging conversation, the two talk about childhood, him learning a sense of play from cats, the pivotal moment when he decided to work only on his own terms, taking David Lynch's advice for his 2015 movie Microbe and Gasoline, watching that same movie alone a plane, why people's fixation on the Bermuda Triangle is nonsense, and much more. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a lively chat between Philly friends Kurt Vile and Francie Medosch. Medosch is the singer and main creative force behind the band Florry, which exists in the same sonic universe as Courtney Barnett and the currently exploding MJ Lenderman—loose, rocking, a little bit jammy, a little bit indie, and frequently catchy as hell. The Lenderman connection makes even more sense when you realize that the upcoming Florry album was recorded with help from Colin Miller, who plays in Lenderman's band and has recorded music from the band Wednesday. That upcoming Florry album is called Sounds Like… and it's due out May 23 on Dear Life Records. It's a corker, kinda rambly and rockin' in all the right ways. You can pre-save and pre-order at all the usual spots. Check out the song “Hey Baby” right here. The other half of today's chat is a longtime supporter of Florry's, fellow Philadelphian Kurt Vile. Vile first came out swinging as part of the War on Drugs way back when, but pretty quickly established himself as a genius of hazy, dazed guitar songs pitched somewhere between the ‘70s squall of Neil Young and more contemporary indie-rock. As you'll hear in this chat, Vile is working—at his own pace, of course—on the follow-up to 2022's Watch My Moves. Whenever it's finished, it's sure to be intriguing, like all of his work. In this chat, Vile and Medosch talk about their shared hometown as well as the fact that Medosch recently moved to Vermont and is working in both a dispensary and a record store—kind of a perfect combo to describe her music, come to think of it. They also chat about a lot of stuff that they love, including John Prine, the recently departed Michael Hurley, and the deeply lovable Bob Odenkirk, who Vile was very excited to meet recently. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Kurt Vile and Francie Medosch for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and while you're at it check out all the great podcasts in our ever-growing network, including Subway Takes, Life of the Record, and many more. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
A bonus interview by How Long Gone's Chris Black and Jason Stewart with Justin Vernon (Bon Iver). Watch the companion video version on YouTube. Subscribe to How Long Gone. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On this week's episode of the Talkhouse Podcast, we've got a pair of fantastic songwriters and friends who travel in the same musical circles, and who've both released disarmingly charming records recently: Clairo and Hannah Cohen. Clairo has been making music since she was a teen, and her songs and sounds have a remarkable depth and breadth of influence, from ‘70s soft-rock to more worldly sounds. Her early viral success pointed to a pop-star trajectory, but Clairo always seems to choose a more interesting sonic path over the more obvious one. Her third album, Charm, came out last year, and it leans into a bit of slinky groove more than she had in the past. Check out the song "Juna" right here. The other half of today's conversation is Hannah Cohen, who tapped a bunch of cool guests—including Clairo—to help out on her new album. Earthstar Mountain is Cohen's first in more than five years, and you can hear the care she put into it: It's an understated but deeply considered ode to her surroundings, the Catskills—and it sounds like that area feels. She made the record with her partner Sam Evian—a Talkhouse alum himself—at their upstate New York studio, Flying Cloud. It doesn't sound rushed, which is a topic you'll hear in this chat. In addition to Clairo, it features a guest appearance from Sufjan Stevens. Check out the song “Rag” right here. These two friends get right into a delightful chat that covers Cohen's record, including the mushroom that inspired its title. They also chat about how working on music with your romantic partner can be its own form of therapy, and they get deep into soundtracks toward the end, tossing around the idea of making one, even without a movie to hang it on. Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 2:02 – Start of the chat 2:30 – On mushrooms and 'Earthstar Mountain' 8:55 – Cohen on making music with her romantic partner, Sam Evian 12:30 – "Artists are so in tune with things on whole different level" 19:20 – On the song "Rag" 24:45 – "Take what you need from [my] songs; find your own meaning" 30:05 – On soundtracks Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Hannah Cohen and Clairo for chatting. If you liked what you heard, check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com, and be sure to follow and rate us wherever you listen to podcasts. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by The Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
This episode originally aired on April 8, 2025. Subscribe to That's How I Remember It. Adam Granduciel is my guest on this episode That's How I Remember It. Adam is the principal behind the amazing band The War on Drugs and also produced my new record Always Been. We've been friends since a 2009 THS/TWOD tour which we spoke about here. We also got into rock and roll ephemera, his Live Drugs records, being flattered by bootleg merch, our 2008 joint European tour that never happened, and making my record Always Been together. Grateful to Adam in so many ways including being a guest on this podcast. Great talk. Listen and subscribe.
I hope you've been enjoying the last few weeks of the Talkhouse feed as we've been throwing some new shows your way. If you haven't checked out Summer Album/Winter Album yet, please do, and look out for new episodes of Nobody's Ever Asked Me That, featuring my esteemed colleague Nick Dawson, in the coming months, too. Today's episode of the Talkhouse Podcast features a pair of incredible songwriters in a lovely chat about the thing they love to do the most: make music. We've got Benmont Tench and Taylor Goldsmith. Tench, in case you don't recognize the name, is a founding member of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, and a guy who helped shape rock music for decades with the distinctive sound and feel of his piano, organ, and much more. Tench made music with Petty from the time they were 11 years old until Petty's death in 2017, but he's also contributed to songs and albums by a dizzying array of other artists, too, from Roy Orbison to Fiona Apple to U2. As you'll hear in this conversation, Tench is always playing music because he loves it so damn much. He recently released his second-ever solo album, The Melancholy Season, and it includes some playing from his friend Taylor Goldsmith. Check out the title track from The Melancholy Season right here. Goldsmith is best known as the singer of the band Dawes, whose Laurel Canyon-inspired folk-rock has been caressing our ears for the past 15 years or so. Dawes has gone through some personnel changes in the past couple of years, paring back to Goldsmith and his brother Griffin and releasing a new album, the fittingly titled Oh Brother just last year. Both Goldsmith brothers were hit hard by the Los Angeles fires, losing their homes and the majority of their beloved instruments. But Goldsmith, as you'll hear, is taking it in stride. In this conversation, Tench and Goldsmith talk about, again, their love of music: Tench even recalls telling his daughter that he loves her more than he loves music—the highest compliment he can pay. Both of these guys are pretty recent fathers, too, which comes up. And of course they can't get around talking about the genius of Tom Petty—and the accidental genius of Heartbreakers' guitarist Mike Campbell's shirt. Listen and you'll understand. Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 2:24 – Start of the chat Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Benmont Tench and Taylor Goldsmith for chatting. If you liked what you heard, check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com and in the Talkhouse Podcast Network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by The Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On the latest episode of this new Talkhouse Podcast spin-off series, host Nick Dawson sits down with veteran actor, director, producer and writer Griffin Dunne, who is currently starring in the family drama Ex-Husbands. Deviating from the usual, well-trodden interview path, the two talk about uncertainty, mortality, the complex nature of grief, driving cross country at times of great change, that time Griffin scared the living daylights out of Neil Simon, Nick's idea for a secret eighth day of the week, how Chekhov changed the course of Dunne's life and career, and much more. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
Dylan Tupper Rupert is a music writer, podcast host, and producer in Los Angeles. You might know her as the host of KCRW's Lost Notes: Groupies, or as the producer fka Producer Dylan of Bandsplain. This spring, her new show Music Person is coming to the Talkhouse Podcast Network—where she'll have in-depth conversations with musicians and brilliant people in the greater music ecosystem, and will sometimes maybe even go on an adventure. So here's a sneak peek—Dylan's diary of her week in Austin for South By Southwest.
Tonight on Summer Album/Winter Album: Modern Vampires Of The City. Vampire Weekend. 2013. Our special guest: Amanda Petrusich of The New Yorker. Jody Avirgan is arguing Winter, Craig Finn is arguing Summer. Craig won the coin toss. He is presenting first. This episode was recorded live at the On Air Fest in Brooklyn. Weigh in and find lots more on Instagram, and clips on our YouTube page. Get in touch through our website. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
In this bonus chat, Talkhouse host Josh Modell speaks with the guys behind the great new Summer Album/Winter Album podcast, Craig Finn and Jody Avirgan. After our conversation, stick around for an episode in which they vociferously debate whether Vampire Weekend's classic Modern Vampires of the City belongs to warm or chilly weather. Subscribe to Summer Album/Winter Album Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
This week's episode of the Talkhouse Podcast came together by way of my colleague and friend Keenan Kush, who jokingly referred to the music of today's guests as "Keenan-core." We've got a conversation between the duos Kit Sebastian and Pearl & The Oysters. Kit Sebastian came together in London, but their musical (and even geographical) pedigrees are spread much wider. Kit Martin and Merve Erdem, now based in Turkey and France, play music that reflects their locations. Tropicalia and psychedelic pop flirt with an array of other influences to create something that sounds almost out of time. Their latest album New Internationale came out last year on Flying Lotus' Brainfeeder label, and it adds Azerbaijani and some funk to the mix. Check out the track “Faust” right here. Pearl & The Oysters is also a duo with international roots, having moved from France over a decade ago to Florida, but ending up in Los Angeles. Jazz and Tropicalia also inform their indie pop, and they also ended up on a hip label run by another musician: In this case, Peanut Butter Wolf's Stones Throw. Juliette Pearl Davis and Joachim Polack—sometimes known as Juju and Jojo—put out a great album last year called Planet Pearl. Check out “Side Quest” from that album right here. In this wide-ranging conversation, these two duos talk about their geographic moves and sounds, analog vs. digital recording, favorite filmmakers, and how one cold email kickstarted Kit Sebastian. Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 4:34 – Start of the chat 6:43 – On Influences 13:02 – On Creative Processes 19:27 – On Recording styles 29:09 – Why did Pearl & The Oysters leave France? 31:56 – The DIY scene in Gainsville, FL 36:51 – On Musical Communities 44:22 – The London scene 51:38 – How one cold email kickstarted Kit Sebastian 54:32 – On musical educators 59:21 – Finding your voice 1:03:34 – On cinema and their favorite filmmakers 1:12:28 – How to interact with your audience Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Pearl & The Oysters and Kit Sebastian for chatting. If you like what you heard, check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and arranged by Keenan Kush, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a pair of songwriters with plenty in common, but who came up on opposite sides of the world: Sharon Van Etten and Nadia Reid. Sharon Van Etten will be very familiar to Talkhouse listeners; we've been huge fans of her music from the very beginning, and have followed her—as many of you have—through her early days of more spare guitar songs to the fully fleshed-out music she's been making in the past few years. Her latest album was Van Etten's first to be written and recorded with a band, and that band has a name that it shares with her latest album: Sharon Van Etten and the Attachment Theory. Working out songs with her band has resulted in a looser, somewhat more experimental Sharon Van Etten, but it's still unmistakably her voice and vision, which is to say it's fantastic. Check out "Idiot Box" from Sharon and the Attachment Theory's new record. Today's other guest, as you'll hear, is a friend of Sharon's from New Zealand, Nadia Reid. Reid has been making music for about a decade, and her latest album, called Enter Now Brightness, came out about a month ago—on the same date as Van Etten's new record, as a matter of fact. Though Reid is from New Zealand, you might hear bits of what could be described as Americana on her records, which are overarchingly gentle, subdued, and deep. Enter Now Brightness was recorded while Reid was pregnant with her second child, and these two talk a fair bit about motherhood in today's episode. Check out Nadia Reid's “Changed/Unchained” from Enter Now Brightness right here. In this chat, Van Etten and Reid talk about parenthood, including bringing your kids on tour—and Van Etten's son makes a brief appearance as well. They also get into how your band is truly like family and who's given them great advice over the years. Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 1:59 – Start of the chat 4:07 – "I feel like the cards are stacked against [musicians]" 5:40 – On bonding with your touring band 8:37 – The making of Nadia Reid's 'Enter Now Brightness' 11:00 – Sharon Van Etten on good and bad days in the studio 12:47 – On writing "Seventeen" 14:49 – On parenthood 19:05 – Balancing kids and careers 22:25 – Bringing your kids on tour 25:09 – A special guest 26:28 – Who did you look up to (bands who brought their kids on tour)? 29:10 – "You're one of my heroes" Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Sharon Van Etten and Nadia Reid for chatting. If you liked what you heard, check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com and in the Talkhouse Podcast Network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On today's Talkhouse Podcast we've got one of those episodes pairing an artist you've surely heard of, pun intended, with one you likely haven't, but will. It's Shirley Manson and Stephen McCall. Manson is of course the singer for the long-running, Grammy-nominated, chart-topping, Bond-theme-performing band Garbage, which hit it big right out of the gate in the mid-1990s. Manson and her bandmates have assembled a varied catalog since, including the biting 2021 album No Gods, No Masters. As you'll hear in this chat, Garbage is still going strong, working on a new record that goes in kind of a different direction than the last one. Manson has always been a great talker; she even hosted her own podcast for a few years called The Jump, on which she talked with other musicians about the song that provided their breakthrough. She's a huge fan of music, so it's no surprise that she was excited to chat with today's other guest, Stephen McCall. McCall, like Manson, is Scottish—that's hard to miss—though he hasn't been making music nearly as long. His debut album under the name Constant Follower came out in 2021 and was met with loads of critical acclaim in Scotland for his quiet, heartfelt, frequently intense songs—think Bon Iver or Low or even McCall's favorite, Talk Talk. This week sees the release of the second proper Constant Follower album, called The Smile You Send Out Returns To You, another intense set that covers some of McCall's intense personal journey, including addiction, fatherhood, and the violent attack he suffered that still affects his memory. Check out the song “Almost Time to Go” from The Smile You Send Out right here. In this lively but deep conversation, Manson and McCall talk about that awful attack and how it led, eventually, to Constant Follower. They also talk about longevity in the music business, the creative process—including The Artist's Way that's become a frequent topic in Talkhouse chats—and lots more, including the time that Rivers Cuomo laughed in Manson's face—in a helpful way. Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 2:25 – Start of the chat Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Shirley Manson and Stephen McCall for chatting. If you liked what you heard, check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com and on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme was composed and performed by The Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
In this new spin-off series of the Talkhouse Podcast, host Nick Dawson introduces a new conversation format by setting out to ask questions that his guests have never been asked before in an interview. On the inaugural episode, he talks with Vera Drew, the writer-director-editor-star of The People's Joker, one of the most acclaimed and talked-about films of 2024. In this wide-ranging chat, Vera and Nick talk about dreams, shoplifting, addiction, recovery, first love, self-love, self-care, polyamory, anxiety … as well as horny audiences, toxic yoga instructors and idyllic meetings with Elijah Wood and Lilly Wachowski. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
Josh Modell sits down with Transmissions host Jason P. Woodbury to preview the new season of Aquarium Drunkard's podcast, Transmissions. Subscribe to Transmissions Read more at Aquarium Drunkard
If you're a regular Talkhouse Podcast listener you know that we most often feature musicians on the show, but we're always happy when creative people in other fields share a chat, too—especially when they've had the kind of interesting careers that today's two guests have. Haley Joel Osment made a permanent mark on pop culture when he uttered the words “I see dead people” in 1999's The Sixth Sense, made when he was just 10 years old. The line still reverberates today: Just listen to Kendrick Lamar's "Not Like Us." Osment was nominated for an Oscar for his role as a psychic kid, and he has had a fruitful, relatively low-key acting career since—no scandals, no blockbusters, just a bunch of really interesting work. As you'll hear in this podcast, he's fully down to earth about his unusual journey—even ready to find a tiny bit of positivity in the recent L.A. fires, which completely destroyed both his and his parents' house. He's chatting here with his actor-comedian friend Matt Walsh, who's probably best known for playing Mike McLintock opposite Julia Louis-Dreyfuss on Veep. It was the perfect vehicle for Walsh, who made his name as an improv comedian in Chicago before his troupe, Upright Citizens Brigade, which also features Amy Poehler, took their show to New York. Walsh is one of those guys who brings the funny to every movie and TV part he's in: If you don't recognize his name, you'll certainly recognize his face. The reason these two came together today is that a movie they co-starred in is just coming out: It's called Not An Artist, and it's an ensemble comedy about a group of artists who gather at a mysterious retreat—organized by no less than The RZA—to decide whether they're actually cut out to be artists. It's available on demand now. These two chat not only about that funny film, but also about Osment's experience with the L.A. fires, about Walsh's Chicago background, weird Airbnbs, the magic of David Mamet's dialogue and lots more. It's a good one, enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Haley Joel Osment and Matt Walsh for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and be sure to check out all the great stuff on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
This episode originally ran on January 6, 2025 on the Jokermen Podcast. Subscribe to Jokermen. The Jokermen and Josh Tillman discuss creative process, theories of schmaltz, The Beatles, mental health, fatherhood and breakfast, among other things Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
We're going a little bit country again this week on the Talkhouse Podcast—gotta keep you on your toes—with a pair of Nashville singer-songwriters who share a sensibility, some history, and sobriety, as you'll hear. One of them, Margo Price, you've hopefully heard on the podcast before; the other, Lilly Hiatt, is a first-timer, but you'd never know it. Price was a critical darling right out of the gate, and for good reason: Her debut album, released by Jack White's Third Man Records, kicked some new life into country by looking both backward and forward. Since then, Price has released a series of great records as well as a phenomenal memoir called Maybe We'll Make It. Last time she was on this podcast, Price was talking to former Tom Petty sideman Mike Campbell about a collaboration they did. That's just the tip of the iceberg, and as you'll hear in this chat, she's got new music cooking, though nothing has been officially announced yet. Lilly Hiatt has a famous last name in the music world—her dad is John Hiatt—but she's cut her own path through Nashville, too. She rides a more adventurous side of the musical line, getting almost alt-rocky at some points. She's opened for everyone from Drive-By Truckers to Hiss Golden Messenger to the Mountain Goats, which should tell you something right there. This week Hiatt is releasing a new album called Forever, which is the result of some serious self-reflection and a different, entirely scrapped set of songs. The album was mixed by Paul Kolderie, known for working on early Radiohead and Pixies records. Maybe that'll also tell you something. Check out “Kwik-E-Mart” right here. In this lively conversation, Price and Hiatt talk about getting back into the game, about working with their musician husbands—Jeremy Ivey and Coley Hinson, respectively—and they talk at length about getting and staying sober in a town where that's not always so easy. I had never heard Nashville described as a “drinking town with a music problem” before. Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 2:13 – Start of the chat 3:34 – Trying to stay in good health 9:36 – Finding balance in your work life 11:20 – Being married to a musician 16:06 – A day in the life 21:26 – On Lilly Hiatt's new album, 'Forever' 23:36 – On Nashville 26:36 – Favorite songs on 'Forever' 30:40 – On Price's upcoming record 33:05 – On sobriety 43:50 – Everything else on the horizon Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Lilly Hiatt and Margo Price for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the good stuff in the Talkhouse Podcast Network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
I'm stating the extremely obvious here, but the music business has changed a bit since I started listening to and even writing about music—in some bad ways for sure, but also in some that are pretty fascinating and welcome. You can complain all you want about lowered attention spans, but social media has allowed a lot of talented voices to essentially skip past all the gatekeepers and get right to people's ears. Take today's Talkhouse Podcast guests, Bayker Blankenship and Waylon Wyatt. They're aspiring country stars from very small towns—Livingston, Tennessee and Hackett, Arkansas, respectively—who found fans—and each other—via TikTok. Both started out playing covers of big hits, but quickly pivoted to writing their own stuff, too. Blankenship has had viral hits with sweet, simple songs like “Tennessee Sunset” and “Maxed Out.” The two of them eventually met up in Nashville, convenient to both, and to the music world, and wrote a song called “Jailbreak,” which lit up social media. Check out that song right here. These guys are much younger than your average Talkhouse guest—much younger, really, than most musicians who've gotten as far as they have, and it's fun to hear them chat about their inspirations and their goals, which seem pretty modest at the moment: good tours, being able to meet fans, eventually getting a tour bus. I imagine they'll have all that and more soon enough. They also cover a funny topic that I think more seasoned musicians have already dealt with—what to do when you're on stage and nature calls. And they both talk about an abiding love for their mommas, which I'm sure their mommas will appreciate. Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 2:05 – Start of the chat 4:38 – Upcoming 2025 gigs 8:40 – What to do when nature calls on stage 11:14 – Timing your sets 12:14 – Tour logistics 15:36 – Reflecting on finding success on TikTok 19:45 – Takeaways from 2024 Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Bayker Blankenship and Waylon Wyatt for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the other great shows in our ever-growing network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
So picture this: It's 1994. The Pixies had been music-world darlings for half a decade or so, releasing some incredible records before fizzling to a stop. Their enigmatic singer, Black Francis, changes his name (again—his parents named him Charles Thompson) to Frank Black and embarks on a solo career that feels a little vexing at the time. His self-titled debut felt deeply connected to his old band, but for the next one, he struck an even richer songwriting vein: The songs kept coming and they turned into the double album Teenager of the Year, recorded with a crack studio band that included Eric Drew Feldman of Pere Ubu both as a player and producer. Teenager of the Year wasn't particularly well received upon its release 30 years ago, but it has slowly been recognized as a high point in Black's career, celebrated as his masterpiece by those paying the closest attention. It may not get the widespread attention that Pixies' Doolittle does, but the love it gets might even run a little deeper, both from its creator and his biggest fans. It's meaningful enough that Black and the original band that created it have just embarked on an anniversary tour during which they'll play the whole record, and it's being re-released on gold vinyl, a gold record that should have been. You can find dates online, they'll be hitting major US cities throughout January, ending in New York February 1 before heading to Paris and London. As a high school student, Paul Banks came to the Pixies via a love of Nirvana, and eventually found his way to Teenager of the Year, an album that—as you'll hear in this conversation—was massively important to him. Banks would of course go on to form the band Interpol, for which he has been the singer and guitarist since 1997. Their latest is 2022's The Other Side of Make-Believe, but Interpol has also been revisiting a beloved album recently, touring on the anniversary of their classic second record, Antics. These two have a great chat about Teenager of the Year here, plus they talk about Black's kids and their musical ambitions, lyric writing in general, and the time Black was asked to audition for the part of a serial killer in a David Fincher movie. They also get into some specifics about Teenager of the Year songs, including a great story about album opener "Whatever Happened to Pong?" Enjoy. Chapters: 0:00 – Intro 2:28 – Start of the chat 8:30 – Paul Banks on 'Teenager of the Year' 13:52 – The making of 'Teenager of the Year' 15:51 – How Frank almost became the Zodiac Killer (on the big screen) 18:10 – On characters in music 21:10 – On writing lyrics 24:15 – Film and book recommendations 28:22 – The formation of Frank Black's solo band 33:00 – On "Pong" and Pong 38:30 – Paul Banks on when he decided to become a musician 44:15 - The freedom of releasing music Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Frank Black and Paul Banks for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great shows on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
This episode originally aired on September 7, 2023. On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a pair of musicians who create with an air of mystery, but who have a fantastically straightforward chat here: Ethel Cain and Adam McIlwee. Ethel Cain is a character created by Hayden Anhedonia, though one that's been sort of all-consuming. Anhedonia began releasing music under the name in 2019, finding her sound and her vibe over the next couple of years before releasing the absolutely epic Preacher's Daughter in May of 2022. The album, a concept collection about the life and ultimate demise of Ethel Cain, skillfully moves through sounds from a sort of Gothic Americana to slowcore to ambient sounds to who knows what, exactly, other than it's thoroughly engaging. The album was pretty quickly hailed as a masterful debut, and Cain found herself not only the darling of the music world, but with some prominent modeling gigs as well. As you'll hear in this chat, though, the spotlight has gotten a little bit bright for her taste lately. She's currently on the European festival circuit, though she'll head back to the States in October for sold-out shows at really interesting venues. Check out “Crush” right here. Cain and today's other guest, Adam McIlwee, go way back. He was an early supporter of her music, and appears on her Inbred EP under his most prominent alias, Wicca Phase Springs Eternal. Though he started his musical journey as part of the pop-punkish band Tigers Jaw, he's moved in a dozen other directions since. He founded the emo-rap collective GothBoiClique back in 2012, which briefly counted Lil Peep among its members. As Wicca Phase, though, McIlwee combines synth-pop with more acoustic sounds and more hammering beats, depending on the track. His latest release under the name is self-titled, and it just came out in June. It's well worth checking out. In fact, check out “Moving Without Movement” right here. Now for two people who've created such interesting mystiques, this is a refreshingly down-to-earth conversation in which they talk about trying to carve out space as middle-class musicians who don't expect to conquer the charts with their music—but who'd love to be able to make a decent living at it. They talk about what to do when you hit a touring wall—this chat took place not long after Cain fainted onstage in Australia—and how great Vicks Steam Inhalers are for singers. Hey Vicks, you might have a couple of spokespeople here if you play your cards right. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Hayden Anhedonia aka. Ethel Cain and Adam McIlwee aka. Wicca Phase Springs Eternal for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the other podcasts in our ever-expanding network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! ------------------- Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
One of the pleasures of putting the Talkhouse Podcast together is that the guests often leave their promotional hats at home and just dig into conversations about life, and that's definitely what happened this week with Matty Matheson and Jennifer Castle. Matty Matheson you'll surely recognize either as a superstar chef and restaurateur who appeared on a bunch of VICE shows way back when—or if not that then as a star and consultant on the hit TV show The Bear, where he plays the sublimely ridiculous Neil Fak. Matheson has lived several lifetimes, building a reputation as a wild partier in his youth, which eventually led to a heart attack at just 29—that's touched on briefly in this conversation. He's also authored a bunch of super down-to-earth cookbooks, including the great new Soups, Salads, Sandwiches—you can guess what that one covers. Matheson's connection to singer-songwriter Jennifer Castle goes way, way back. They met working in Toronto restaurants and became good friends over the years: Castle sang at Matty's wedding and she was a doula at the birth of his first child, a topic that comes up in this chat. Castle has been making music for the past 20 or so years, first under the name Castlemusic but more recently under her own name. Don't let the gentleness of her indie-folk fool you; there's a lot that cuts deep in her songs. Speaking of those songs, one of the songs from her latest album Camelot was featured in season three of The Bear—a great way for Matheson to help get the word out on the person he calls the greatest Canadian singer-songwriter ever. Check out “Blowing Kisses” right here. In this lovely conversation, Castle and Matheson talk about how music and food can both bring people together, but they get really excited talking about two other natural pursuits: childbirth and farming. (Matheson co-owns a farm called Blue Goose that you'll hear a bit about.) Matheson talks a bit about his family and his current book tour, and Castle shows off a touching gift that Matheson gave her many years ago. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:09 – Conversation starts 2:59 – Matty's airport adventures 6:12 – “Eat little shrimps!” 8:10 – Matty loves Jennifer's music, as you'll see 12:10 – Matty gets melancholy about their shared Toronto past 21:25 – The birth of children and the birth of Blue Goose 36:58 – Living the creative life Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Matty Matheson and Jennifer Castle for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a pair of performers—and also friends—who recently collaborated on a great single: Suki Waterhouse and Ashe. Waterhouse came into the public eye as a model and later an actress, but she's always had a passion for music: As you'll hear in this chat, she started recording songs before she had any notion that they might end up out in the world. Her slightly subdued Sub Pop debut came out in 2022, after which she had a sort of unexpected viral hit with an older song called “Good Looking.” A second album, the more upbeat Memoir of a Sparklemuffin, came out just a few months ago, and she's been on tour behind it while also juggling new motherhood. In fact, she Zoomed into this conversation while visiting her movie-star dude in Boston before heading out to play more shows. (You can Google the boyfriend if you must know.) The other half of today's conversation is Ashe, a Nashville-based songwriter who had a pretty big hit with her 2019 song “Moral of the Story” and another a couple of years later with Finneas, “Till Forever Falls Apart.” But the grind of success forced Ashe to hit the brakes on her career for a bit in order to regroup and hang on to her sanity. But a collaboration with Waterhouse lit the spark for Ashe once again, and she came back this year with a great record called Willson—and retook the stage to perform their song, “Pushing Daisies” at the Greek Theater. Check out that song right here. In this lively chat, Waterhouse and Ashe talk about the intensity of performing live in front of thousands of people, about how Suki is having fun playing the more lively songs from her new record, and about the need to not overschedule yourself, even when the pressure is on. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Suki Waterhouse and Ashe for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
Rising singer-songwriter Andrea Cruz shares how she fell in love with folk music as a young girl in Aibonito. We hear about how the plants, birds and animals of Puerto Rico have shaped the fabric of her work, and the profound ways in which her art connects her to the island she calls home. Hollywood film director Miguel Arteta recalls his colorful childhood in Río Piedras, shares the Puerto Rican role model who inspired him to pursue a creative career, and teases his upcoming project, which is set on the island of birth.
Oscar-nominated screenwriter and playwright José Rivera shares with us his rich memories, both old and new, of his time in Puerto Rico: of spiders, thunderstorms and a deep sense of community in his childhood town of Espino. We hear about the joy of watching one of his plays performed in Santurce alongside the family members who inspired it, and how the island has been a constant source of inspiration that has enriched so much of his work.
The Río Piedras-based comedy band Los Rivera Destino talk about their musical childhoods, how making a music video in Bayamón changed their lives and careers forever, and the extremely unlikely place that has become their source of inspiration. Award-winning author Jaquira Díaz shares how salsa, bacalaítos and coquís defined her time growing up in the east coast towns of Humacoa and Fajardo. We also hear the wild story her grandmother told about aliens in El Yunque, and Jaquira describes the incredible sense of adventure she feels every time she explores the island.
Legendary actress, singer, dancer and EGOT winner Rita Moreno shares memories of sugar cane, coquís and parrandas during her idyllic childhood in Humacao and Juncos. We hear about her recent trips back with Lin-Manuel Miranda, and how she almost turned down West Side Story because of her loyalty to the island. Dub star innovator Pachy García (aka Pachyman) opens up about growing up in Guaynabo's vibrant reggae scene, the integral role Puerto Rico plays in his music now that he lives in Los Angeles, and the “unmistakable breeze” that greets him every time he comes back home to the island.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got two guys with more than a hundred years of music-making experience between them and the endless stories to match: Tucker Zimmerman and Tony Visconti. You'll be forgiven if you don't recognize Tucker Zimmerman's name: The songwriter existed on the fringes of the folk scene in the late 1960s but in spite of acclaim from fellow musicians—including David Bowie, as you'll hear—he never broke out. That may be because Zimmerman left America for Belgium, where he's continued to quietly create music and write for the past 40 years. But you can only keep a secret like Zimmerman for so long, and Big Thief's Adrianne Lenker happened to hear one of his records a couple of year ago and was inspired enough that one thing led to another and Big Thief ended up creating an entire record with Zimmerman called Dance of Love, which came out earlier this year. It's an odd, beautiful collaboration that's well worth checking out. In fact, check out “Burial At Sea” from Dance of Love right here; it features Lenker and Zimmerman's voices together. The other half of today's conversation is a legendary musician and producer who also had a lot to do with bringing Tucker Zimmerman into the public consciousness. Tony Visconti is best known for his many, many collaborations with David Bowie, with whom he worked closely over Bowie's entire career. Visconti has also produced records for T. Rex, Morrissey, Sparks, and way more others than I have time to list here. But for purposes of this conversation, we need to note that he helped created Zimmerman's Ten Songs album back in 1968, which they get into in this chat. They've stayed in touch over the years, and you'll hear the affection in their voices. Speaking of voices, the third person who pops up briefly in this chat is Tucker's wife Marie Claire, who also appears on the cover of Dance of Love and contributes some vocals. Elsewhere in this conversation, Tucker and Tony talk about their early adventures together, include an acid trip facilitated by a guy named Dr. Sam. They chat about Bowie, of course, and Tucker gets a chance to thank Tony for helping him out over the years—and how he's glad Tony didn't agree to produce an ABBA record when he had the chance. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Tucker Zimmerman and Tony Visconti for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and be sure to check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
Narrated by Luis Guzmán, Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico pairs stories from some of the Island's most exciting musicians, including Los Rivera Destino, Pachyman, and Andrea Cruz, with major artists outside of music, such as Hollywood film director Miguel Arteta, Oscar-nominated screenwriter Jose Rivera, author Jaquira Diaz, and legendary EGOT Rita Moreno. Listeners will get to know Puerto Rico's incredible towns, cities, beaches, rainforests, mountains, bars, and dance clubs that not only shaped their work but ultimately influenced global culture. Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico is a production of Talkhouse and Atlas Obscura, presented by Discover Puerto Rico. Tap here to subscribe.
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast, we've got two of what I'm going to call alt-rock lifers, guys with vast catalogs and the stories to match, who've ridden the highs and lows over the years and continue to make fantastic music for dedicated fanbases: John Flansburgh and Matthew Caws. Flansburgh is half the core of They Might Be Giants, one of the two Johns—along with Linnell—who started making quirky pop records about 40 years ago. They've released nearly two dozen albums, wriggling their way into the mainstream on occasion, from “Birdhouse in Your Soul” to the Malcolm in the Middle theme to popular albums aimed at kids. It's been a remarkable ride that shows no signs of stopping; They MIght Be Giants is still on tour, still making new music, and still seeming to have as much fun as they ever did. Their latest record is called Book—it's available in many formats including, you guessed it, a giant book—and there are some sparklers on it, including one in particular that the guys talk about in today's episode. Check out “Brontosaurus.” The other half of today's conversation is Matthew Caws, singer and guitarist of the fellow New York band Nada Surf. Nada Surf had a really odd start to what's turned into a long and fruitful existence. Their first album featured the song “Popular,” which turned into something of a novelty hit / summer anthem back in 1996. It wasn't particularly representative of the band's smart, layered pop—which is no knock on “Popular” itself—which confused their record label, Elektra. But after a bit of a slow period, Nada Surf found their way into indie-rock hearts with 2002's Let Go, and they've earned a place in those hearts ever since. The tenth Nada Surf album came out earlier this year, and it's among their best. It also features a surprisingly high number of more uptempo songs, as Flansburgh mentions in this chat. Check out “Second Skin” from Nada Surf's newest album Moon Mirror. In this chat Flansburgh and Caws take a deep dive into the genesis of “Popular,” which Caws had no idea would be a hit but is happy to still play. They also chat about Flansburgh's love of the new Nada Surf record, both of their time on the same major label in the 1990s, and whether it's appropriate for a band to take a group bow at the end of a good show. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:42 – Start of the chat 2:58 – Welcome to Fresh Air 9:45 – The unusual origins of "Popular' 17:45 – Nada Surf's ignoble split with Elektra Records 22:40 – John's theory on Matthew's doubled vocals 32:21 – The ups and downs of sharing your political point of view as a musician Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to John Flansburgh and Matthew Caws for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a timely conversation recorded just hours after the presidential election was called, and yes, it was on their minds. It's frequent Talkhouse alum Julien Baker and her old friend Nick Carpenter, aka. Medium Build. Baker is a powerhouse singer and songwriter who's best known these days as one third of the supergroup Boygenius—you'll hear her refer in this chat to Lucy and Phoebe, her bandmates Lucy Dacus and Phoebe Bridgers. But we've been fans here since way before that; her amazing debut Sprained Ankle will be 10 years old next year, and she's built herself an incredible catalog—and fanbase—since. Baker's last solo album was 2021's Little Oblivions, and I imagine there's some new music coming in the not-terribly-distant future. She has loaned her powerful voice to other artists since, though, including her old friend Nick Carpenter's project Medium Build—his new EP Marietta, out tomorrow, features a duet with Baker called “Yoke,” check out that song right here. Carpenter, who's based in Alaska, has made five full-lengths as Medium Build, and his deeply personal songs strike a chord in the same way that Baker's do: They have similar backgrounds, having grown up queer in religious households in the South. As you'll hear in this chat, Carpenter explores his background in his music, and his honesty tends to melt audiences that let him in. I'll be truthful: I thought these two were going to bail on chatting the morning after the election, and I wouldn't have blamed them one bit. It doesn't seem like the cheeriest time in America to be a proud member of a marginalized population. But I was so cheered up by listening to them talk: They're not psyched, naturally, but they remain undeterred and committed to spreading honesty and love. Sure, there's some earned cynicism about commercialism and the less pleasant parts of their jobs, but mostly it's the joy of homies, sincerity, and consensual hugs with your local barista. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Julien Baker and Nick Carpenter for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a special episode recorded live just last weekend in New York featuring two artists that appear on an amazingly ambitious new conceptual compilation album called TRANSA, Asher White and MIZU. The album comes from our friends at the Red Hot organization, was conceptualized largely by Dust Reid and Massima Bell, and features more than 100 artists honoring trans and non-binary artists. There are huge names like Sade, Sam Smith, Andre 3000, indie heroes like Julien Baker and Laura Jane Grace, and incredible up-and-comers like today's two guests, who worked on separate tracks. The whole thing comes out November 22, and you can pre-order it now. I won't say much more because former Talkhouse producer Mark Yoshizumi was on hand to introduce Asher and MIZU at the event. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 1:39 – Producer Mark Yoshizumi Intro 5:01 – Start of the chat 12:20 – MIZU and Asher's differing musical backgrounds 20:00 – Ad break 22:20 – "The music that I made is aesthetically different than the music I consume" 25:15 – Musical processes 31:37 – The origins of MIZU and Asher's songs on the TRANSA comp Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to MIZU, Asher White, Mark Yoshizumi, and Honey Moon Coffee in Ridgewood. Also thanks to Urosh Jovanovich, who recorded the event, and Myron Kaplan, who produced this episode. The Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
A preview of the new season of Santigold's podcast, Noble Champions. Subscribe now. Episode 1 with John Jennings and Terence Nance dives into Afrofuturism and the power of human imagination in shaping our future. In a time of global uncertainty, art that envisions a better world is essential. Santi sits down with acclaimed graphic novelist, comic book author, illustrator, and professor John Jennings, alongside artist, filmmaker, and musician Terence Nance (creator of HBO's Random Acts of Flyness) for a rich discussion. Together, they explore the tools of imagination, the role of rituals, the concept of deindustrializing oneself, nonlinear time, and much more.
Note: This episode originally aired on June 20, 2019. On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Podcast, two good friends, actor-writer-director Lake Bell and singer Santigold, sit down for a long-awaited chat together. The pair are both very busy performers – Bell is hard at work on the second season of her new show Bless This Mess and can be heard in the new animated feature The Secret Life of Pets 2, and Santi recently dropped I Don't Want: The Gold Fire Sessions and just came back from a U.S. tour – but are also highly involved mothers, and a large focus of their talk is on the challenges of balancing family life with creative work. They discuss how you can't in fact do it all or have it all, how the making art changes after you have kids, how filmmaking and parenting are (kind of) the same thing, plus Santi's social media struggles, where the roots of Lake's comedy lie, what Lake is doing to address the current political situation, Santi's move into directing, and much, much more. For more filmmakers musicians in conversation, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com and subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast. Episode recorded by Gideon Brower, and recorded and co-produced by Mark Yoshizumi at Hook & Fade Studios in Brooklyn. The Talkhouse Podcast's theme song was composed and performed by The Range. This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse episode we've got a pair of talented musicians in a chummy chat about making songs and making a life while making songs. It's Melina Duterte, aka. Jay Som, and Pascal Stevenson, aka. Fashion Club. Stevenson just released the second Fashion Club album, A Love You Cannot Shake, but it's different enough than the first that it almost feels like a debut. That surely has something to do with the fact that it's the first Fashion Club music since Stevenson's gender transition; there's a genre freedom that wasn't as evident on the first one, which felt a bit closer to Stevenson's indie-leaning band Moaning. A Love You Cannot Shake clearly honors big pop music but it frequently swerves before giving into any obvious trappings. She found some fantastic guests to add to the sideways fun, too, including Talkhouse Podcast alumni Perfume Genius and Julie Byrne as well as the other half of today's conversation, Jay Som. Now Jay Som made a splash with her first couple of bedroom-pop albums in 2015 and 2016, and though she hasn't released a new album since 2019's fantastic Anak Ko, she's been busy nonetheless, both starting some new projects, producing for other musicians, and playing bass for the indie-rock supergroup Boygenius. She's been working on new material of her own as well, and she had a song on the soundtrack to the critically acclaimed movie I Saw the TV Glow alongside like-minded artists like Caroline Polachek and The Weather Station. And of course there's her contribution to the Fashion Club record, “Ghost.” Check out that song right here. In this lively conversation, Stevenson and Duterte chat about songwriting, including Stevenson's tendency to start with the biggest parts and Duterte's opinion on what constitutes a “treat” while you're producing. They tell each other toward the end of the conversation which pop star they'd most like to write for, and we learn that Stevenson's specialty is what she calls “fucked-up ballads.” Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:20 – Start of the chat 4:45 – On Fashion Club's album, A Love You Cannot Shake 9:20 – Melina loves Pascal's record 13:30 – Contrasting approaches to songwriting 16:36 – "Everyone's a little different when it comes to what I call 'treats'" 31:36 – "Do you think it's easier now to become a producer?" Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Pascal Stevenson and Melina Duterte for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
I'm gonna call this week's Talkhouse Podcast a very special episode, since it's focused on a specific topic and also offers a call to action and hopefully some inspiration for you, the listener. It certainly did that for me, the host guy. Our guests today are frequent Talkhousers Nick Sanborn and Amelia Meath, better known as Sylvan Esso, along with fellow North Carolina musician Libby Rodenbough, who's played with a bunch of bands, most notably Mipso. These three share a home state, North Carolina, which as you know was hit hard by Hurricane Helene just a couple of weeks ago. The devastation that hit the western part of the state didn't seem to get a ton of national media attention, perhaps because Helene was followed so quickly by Hurricane Milton. But as you'll hear at the beginning of this conversation, parts of North Carolina have been affected in ways that will take years to bounce back from. Just days after the storm, Rodenbough—along with David Walker and Grayson Haver Currin and lots of others—conceived of a fundraising effort to feature musician friends, many of whom have deep ties to the area. The idea quickly ballooned into a 135-song compilation called Cardinals at the Window, available on Bandcamp and featuring previously unreleased music from huge names like R.E.M., Phish, Jason Isbell, and Sylvan Esso along with tons of other folks, both native to the area and from well beyond. In just over a week, the compilation has raised over $300,000 to provide direct relief to people whose lives have been turned upside-down by the storm. The area will need lots more than that, of course, to get back on its feet, but it's a heartening reminder that when given the chance to help, people still do, even when folks seem hopelessly divided. That's part of the focus of this chat: Meath, Sanborn, and Rodenbough have been out there helping people over the past couple of weeks, and while they're crushed by the indescribable devastation that towns like Marshall, North Carolina have seen, they're also heartened by the notion that its people have been quick to lend a hand to their neighbors. I found their actions and this conversation inspiring, and I hope you do, too. You can buy the compilation on Bandcamp or check out cardinalsatthewindow.org and lend a hand that way if you can. 0:00 – Intro 2:17 – Start of the chat 4:21 – For all you listeners out there, here's a summary of what's up. 10:23 – How being a touring musician inspires empathy 20:38 – "I've got a generator, and I've got room." 26:24 – Anarchy, anthropology, and helping each other Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Libby Rodenbough, Amelia Meath, and Nick Sanborn for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and definitely search Cardinals at the Window to see how you can help the people of North Carolina. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
We've had legends on the Talkhouse Podcast before, but perhaps none quite as legendary as Pete Townshend, who's in conversation on today's episode with a younger band he recently worked with, The Wild Things. It seems a bit silly to offer a short bio of Townshend—after all, you have chosen to listen to a podcast about music, so you're probably familiar—but here goes: Pete Townshend is the guitarist and primary songwriter of The Who, a band that cracked open the world of rock and roll in the early 1960s and inarguably changed the direction of popular music forever. He's often credited as the first guitarist to treat feedback as an essential part of his sound, influencing the likes of Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix, among many others. And that was all 50 years ago: Townshend has built on the legacy of The Who since, continuing to make music with the only other surviving member, Roger Daltrey, as well as writing books, musicals, and opera. He also keeps his eyes and ears out for new music, even at age 79, which is where the other half of today's chat comes in. Two members of the UK band The Wild Things, Sydney Rae White and Rob Kendrick, met Townshend when they were cast in the musical stage production of The Who's rock opera Quadrophenia. Though she's spent much of her career acting—you may have seen her in the Netflix series Uncle or the Michael Keaton movie American Assassin—White's passion seems to be focused at the moment on the band, which also includes her brother Cameron White and drummer Pete Wheeler. When it came time to record new Wild Things music, Townshend offered his help both as a musical ear and a man with a studio, which resulted in the new album Afterglow. Fittingly for a man with Townshend's history, Afterglow is something of a concept album, which is a big topic of discussion here. Check out “My Heart is in New York” from Afterglow, which features a guest vocal from Townshend. Townshend and the Wild Things talk about telling stories through your music, about concept albums, about working together to make Afterglow, about trying to connect with people in an overwhelming media world, and much, much more. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:32 – Start of the chat/the concept behind Afterglow 6:55 – Why Pete wanted to work with The Wild Things 16:06 – "You know, this is a real fucking Rick Rubin conversation!" 21:58 – The advantages to being able to experiment in the studio 29:15 – "The thing about Sid is that she can do fucking anything." Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Pete Townshend and all of the Wild Things for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting service, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a great chat between two guys who'd never met before: Steve Marion, aka Delicate Steve, and the one and only Reggie Watts. Delicate Steve is one of those monikers that describes both a person and a band, though Steve Marion has been the only constant member over the past 15 years or so. His music is largely instrumental, but you don't miss the singing since his intricate, emotional guitar lines tend to do the work that a vocalist might otherwise do. His latest album is cheekily titled Delicate Steve Sings, and it's a nod to records like Willie Nelson's Stardust, mixing original compositions with covers and putting Delicate Steve's inimitable guitar tone atop them all. Check out “I'll Be There” from Delicate Steve Sings. The career of today's other guest, Reggie Watts, can be tough to describe. He's part musician, part comedian, I guess, but that doesn't begin to describe what it's like to see his performances, which can include jokes, beatboxing, a variety of sampled sounds, and lots of improvisation. You may have seen Watts in his most mainstream role over the past decade as the announcer/bandleader for The Late Late Show With James Corden, where he was able to inject some spontaneity and weirdness into the late-night talk-show genre. His latest special is called Never Mind, and it seeks to warp the comedic spacetime continuum. I won't spoil it by saying any more than that. This chat starts with Delicate Steve talking about a mindblowing Reggie Watts performance that he saw recently, and heads into conversation about busting out of genre constraints, finding the brilliance in even the most popular pop, the Kanye West/Delicate Steve collaboration that was then wasn't, and how there's no substitute for sincerity. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:22 – "You are like Jimi Hendrix to me." 12:09 – The dance-music festival that Reggie thinks is the ideal. 17:05 – The Kanye/Delicate Steve collab that wasn't. 29:20 – Art meeting capitalism keeps sincere stuff extra cool Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Steve Marion and Reggie Watts for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please give us a review on your favorite podcasting platform and make sure you check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a couple of guys who are big parts of hardcore's current wave: Julian Cashwan Pratt of Show Me The Body and Graham Sayle of High Vis. Show Me The Body was conceived when Pratt was still in high school in New York City, enamored of the town's history of aggressive punk—and that music's propensity for political lyrics. But Show Me The Body, like other current hardcore bands making waves in the past few years, doesn't stick with the genre's typical signifiers. For one, Pratt's primary instrument is banjo, and it's attached to sounds that draw not only from hardcore's past, but also electronic blasts of noise and even some hip-hop. Show Me The Body's latest album is called Trouble The Water, and it's both tense and intense. It's a hell of a listen, though the band needs to be seen live to fully experience it. The other half of today's conversation is Graham Sayle, whose band High Vis formed in London around 2016, and whose version of hardcore dials in a healthy dose of British post-punk. They've been described as a mix of Factory Records and Cro-Mags—that'd be the legendary label that spawned Joy Division and New Order plus the legendary New York hardcore band—which is sort of perfect. There are elements of goth in there as well, but with a smart, sneering energy that's tough to deny. Show Me The Body and High Vis just started a US tour together, and they collaborated on a song and accompanying video that was just released on an EP called Corpus II EP II. You can find tour dates at showmethebody.com, and check out a little bit of their collaborative track, called “Stomach,” right here. As hardcore dudes often do, these guys chatted about what hardcore means to them, including that sense of community you can't get anywhere else. They also talk about how having a child has changed Pratt's outlook a bit, but how he's still fired up politically and ready to put it all out there on the stage. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Julian Cashwan Pratt and Graham Sayle for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please give the Talkhouse Podcast a review on your favorite platform, and don't forget to check out all the good stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a pair of fantastic songwriters in a sweet conversation about craft and life in general: Sima Cunningham and Roberto Lange. Lange has been making fascinating, lovely music under the name Helado Negro since 2009, mixing breezy indie-rock with electronic sounds, frequently with more than a passing nod to his Ecuadorian roots. His sonic world is always inviting, even as it's sort of otherworldly, and he often matches those sounds with cool visuals—which is no wonder considering his background in computer art. Earlier this year, Lange released the eighth Helado Negro album; it's called Phasor, and it's among his best, mixing tranquil sounds with his searching spirit. You might be lulled and puzzled at the same time, which is a great feeling. Check out the song “Colores del Mar” right here. The other half of today's conversation, Sima Cunningham, is best known as half the core of Chicago band Finom, originally known as OHMME. Finom released its Not God earlier this year, and it's full of unexpected pop turns tied together by the harmony between Cunningham and her longtime musical partner Macie Stewart. But the occasion for today's conversation is actually Cunningham's second solo album, just out on Ruination Records. It's called High Roller, and it explores a more personal side to her songwriter. For example, there's a great song written for Cunningham's brother Liam Kazar, himself a musician and one-time Talkhouse Podcast guest as well. Check out “For Liam” right here. In addition to that song, which Lange points out as a favorite on High Roller, these two chat about Cunningham's adventures in Ireland, what it's like to create an on-stage persona and interact with your audience, and how Cunningham's new album was a 10-year journey that was worth the wait. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:40 – Start of the chat 5:56 – Sima's mom is the most punk-rock person in their musical family 14:58 – Roberto on getting to a certain age in music 15:39 – Finding new ways to have a love affair with your audience 22:39 – Sima on figuring out how to be honest and vulnerable with her solo material 29:59 – Sima on playing new Finom songs and trying to figure out where to play solo Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Sima Cunningham and Roberto Lange for chatting. If you like what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and be sure to check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got an absolute legend of a singer-songwriter in conversation with a guy who's no slouch himself: Lucinda Williams and M. Ward. Williams has been writing and recording incredible songs since the late 1970s, though she didn't really break through in a huge way until 1998's stone classic Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, which garnered her the Best Contemporary Folk Album Grammy—her second Grammy—but also some of the most well-deserved critical accolades of that year. She certainly didn't rest on those laurels, having released close to a dozen more revered albums since, many of which found themselves also at the Grammy and Americana awards ceremonies—as well as in the hearts of listeners and other songwriters. Last year, Williams released a fantastic memoir about her journey from small-town Louisiana to the music business and beyond. It's a lovely look at a life well lived called Don't Tell Anyone the Secrets I Told You. The other half of today's conversation is M. Ward, another literate singer-songwriter with a varied career whose music can't be easily pinned down—he's been called folk, Americana, and indie-rock, none of which quite do his songs justice. Ward has been making records for 25 years now, and his discography includes not only thoughtful, beautiful solo records, but an entire catalog of albums made with actress Zooey Deschanel under the name She & Him. Ward's latest is last year's Supernatural Thing, another set of songs that feel like they exist out of time. Check out “Too Young to Die” from that album right here. In this conversation, Ward and Williams talk about the time they worked together, when Williams contributed vocals to an M. Ward record back in 2009. Then they get into Williams' memoir and just scratch the surface on her incredible life and career before the conversation turns to their literary influences and more. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:33 – Start of the chat 4:30 – Williams on the hard part of writing a memoir 8:13 – Ward reads his favorite passage from Williams' book 12:58 – Williams recalls meeting famous writers as a child 23:50 – "I want to be James Joyce!" Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Lucinda Williams and M. Ward for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got two women from different parts of the planet who share a common heritage and creative outlook: Serra Petale and Gaye Su Akyol. Petale is the guitarist for the multinational band Los Bitchos, which has been creating tough-to-pigeonhole instrumental music for the past seven years. The band's membership and sound are both truly worldly: Petale is from Western Australia, and her bandmates are from Uruguay, Sweden, and the UK. As you'll hear, they came together in London after Petale chased her musical dreams there, and they've made some incredibly fun music since, mixing sounds from Argentina, Turkey, and a sort of psychedelic surf-rock. Their first album, produced by Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand, came with the incredible title Let The Festivities Begin!, and they just followed it with another album, the fully delightful Talkie Talkie. Check out that album's “La Bomba” right here. The other half of today's conversation joins us from her home base in Turkey. Gaye Su Akyol has been making music—not to mention painting—for the past decade, gaining a worldwide following for records that take the flavors of her country and expand them in a dozen directions. She's been politically and artistically outspoken throughout her time in the spotlight, and you can tell that won't be changing anytime soon. The title of her latest album translates to Anatolian Dragon, and here's a song whose title I won't butcher, but that translates roughly to, “I want to, but there's no hurry.” Even if you don't understand the words, it's easy to catch its groove. I mentioned that these two share a background: Gaye grew up in Turkey, as did Serra's grandparents—as it turns out pretty close to each other. So they chat a bit about that, and occasionally drop in some Turkish words as well. They chat about how women need to go the extra mile to get their art into the world, and about manifesting your dreams rather than waiting around. If that sounds a little rah-rah, Gaye actually says, jokingly, that they sound like a Nike commercial at one point. I found it fun and inspiring, and I hope you do too. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Serra Petale and Gaye Su Akyol for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we've got a legend of ‘90s-era punk in deep conversation with a songwriter you might be hearing of for the first time: Kathleen Hanna and Jim Andralis. Hanna, of course, was a founding member of Bikini Kill, the band credited with starting the riot grrrl movement and inspiring an incredible number of young women to pick up guitars and claim their place in the rock universe. After Bikini Kill's initial split, Hanna went on to perform in both The Julie Ruin and Le Tigre, though recent years have found her spitting fire with Bikini Kill yet again—they're actually on tour now through September. Hanna also released an excellent memoir this year called Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk, which is absolutely worth a read or an audiobook listen—Hanna reads it herself, and it's awesome. Hanna's people approached us about having her chat with songwriter Jim Andralis because, as you'll hear in this chat, she might be his biggest fan. Andralis is a New Yorker whose day job is as a trauma-focused psychotherapist, but who's been writing songs for the past 20 or so years. Considering Hanna's fandom, it might surprise you to learn that Andralis doesn't come out of the punk tradition at all: He's a songwriter in the classic sense, meaning it's tough to pin him into a genre box—Kathleen tries a little bit here, but doesn't come to any conclusions. Andralis recently released his fifth album, Ghosts, check out a song they chat about toward the end of this episode, it's called “Carnival.” Hanna and Andralis jump right into their chat here, and you can tell they're old friends. As you'll hear at the top, Hanna and her band were recently honored by Olympia, Washington with Bikini Kill Day, celebrating a lifetime of achievements. After that, Hanna gets straight to picking Andralis' brain about his lyrics and songwriting. She interprets one song in particular that turns out to be… not quite right, but also exactly right? You'll see. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:48 – Happy Bikini Kill Day! 9:26 – Kathleen tries to figure out what genre Jim's songs belong in 21:07 – Jim's song about political depression 32:48 – An appreciation of Jamey Johnson 39:05 – "What a dick, if I had written the song that way!" Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Kathleen Hanna and Jim Andralis for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! This episode is brought to you by DistroKid. DistroKid makes music distribution fun and easy with unlimited uploads and artists keep 100% of their royalties and earnings. To learn more and get 30% off your first year's membership, visit: distrokid.com/vip/talkhouse
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