What Is This Music?!

Sean Kelly is a longtime musician and the author of Don't Call It Hair Metal: Art in the Excess of '80s Rock (ECW Press, 2023). He joins me to talk about why people dismiss hair metal, Sean's "duality of mind" regarding problematic lyrics, Brian Vollmer of Helix, our shared love of Sammy Hagar-era Van Halen, metal's prejudice against keyboards, the lines between musical taste, identity and insecurity, and a whole bunch of 80s rock talk. Check out Sean's Spotify playlist documenting the history of hair metal, one song per year from 1978-1991.

Psychologist, professor, writer, and metalhead Steve Byrne joins me for a big discussion about the psychology of extreme music fandom. We get into the weeds on how heavy music serves unmet needs, the distinctions (and similarities) between metal and punk, oppositional defiant disorder, musical and psychological dynamics, gatekeeping in extreme music communities, and more. Read Steve's blog Metal Health Matters and his article on gatekeeping in metal for Loudwire.

Tracey Lindeman is a journalist and the author of BLEED: Destroying Myths and Misogyny in Endometriosis Care (ECW Press, 2023). She joins me to discuss discovering punk rock through the book Please Kill Me, why people hate ska, machismo in punk, the value of anger, and more. Photo: Benjamin Cruz Spotify playlist of Tracey's chapter titles: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6IyjdJidJScKFBMaCCr7pL?si=0184c9184c39497e Playlist inspired by BLEED: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7FwoZa0hegizExjnDIKrC4?si=1ae0f5eb5f2a442e  

Photo: Megan Cole Jason Schreurs describes his mental health struggles, and his connection to punk music, in the podcast and new book Scream Therapy: A Punk Journey Through Mental Health. He joins me to discuss his book, getting into punk through metal, music we pretend to dislike, fronting perhaps the world's first and only punk jam band, and more. Buy Jason's book or find out more about his project at https://screamtherapyhq.com/.

Musicologist Lily E. Hirsch joins me for a conversation about her many projects. We touch on everything from music used to repel teenagers from public spaces, to parenting and music lessons, to toxic ideas about musical genius, to her recent book on Weird Al, and much more.   Find out more about Lily's work at lilyhirsch.com.

Scientist, researcher and musician David John Baker first came to my attention through his involvement with the Music For Brainwaves project, an experiment with designing music to invoke certain mental and emotional states. In addition to discussing this, we talk about the overlap of music and science, what it means to be "musical," the perception of genre, Big Data's role in shaping musical taste, and other topics. Find out more about Dave and his work on his personal website or follow him on Twitter @davidjohnbaker. For those curious, the work Dave refers to on the episode regarding streaming recommendations is by Brian Miller: https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/twentieth-century-music/article/why-the-next-song-matters-streaming-recommendation-scarcity/B2584C7C27DB8314121F4B45049EDEC2     

A fan raises the metal horns for Monster Magnet's Dave Wyndorf at Hellfest 2014 On this Very Special Episode, I discuss the beginnings of What Is This Music?! at the Hellfest metal festival in France in 2014, and give an overview of where the project is at, touching on the audience for stoner/doom metal, theories about genre and musical communities, science and technology, and assorted random thoughts. Further reading: my 2014 report on Hellfest for Vice—and, if you want to go really deep, my companion report on the neighbouring snail-sampling station entitled Shellfest.  

Noted Toronto jazz drummer (and my brother) Nick Fraser joins me to talk about the concept of genre, musical narcissism, the difficulty in separating music from nostalgia, why he loves (and so many people hate) free jazz, what he looks for in music, and (of course) Rush, among other topics. Find Nick's recordings, gigs and news on his website. And stick around after the interview for a major What Is This Music?! announcement. Photo of Nick by Bo Huang.

Yara El-Soueidi is a music writer in Montreal. She joins me to talk about why millennials get such a bad rap, why the decline of the album and the rise of the playlist isn't such a bad thing, how being a music writer changed her listening habits, the unfortunate persistence of the two solitudes in the Montreal music scene, the myth of the power of music marketing, and other topics. Follow Yara on Twitter, Instagram; read her writing in Cult MTL and Exclaim.

The one and only Peaches calls in for a chat about growing up obsessed with musicals, AM radio, Bette Midler and Barbara Streisand; the previously undisclosed truth about the first record she ever bought; becoming a folkie and then an indie-rocker before mashing up genres into her own blend; going to noise-rock university; the rise and fall of electroclash; the one genre she can't stand, and more.

Musician Marty Ballentyne has been revisiting his collection, one album a day, and sharing the experience for the past four years. We talk about this as well as the resentments of Captain Beefheart's band members, the joys of extreme metal, the pros and cons of genre, getting into the Ramones through the movie Rock n' Roll High School, the days when Metallica was heavy, 80s hardcore's sense of place and perspective, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the technical reasons that old guys have trouble appreciating contemporary pop, and more. Read Marty's recent article connecting his musical journey with the recent residential school discoveries and the larger reconciliation project in general.  

Montreal film critic and podcaster Alex Rose has spent the pandemic on a personal project: listening to, and sharing on Instagram, his entire 3,000-LP record collection. He joins me to talk about what he discovered while revisiting the collection, what to do with unclassifiable records, PouzzaFest, CHOMcore and salopette blues as musical genres, why prog is so popular in Quebec, getting into jazz as a mid-life crisis, the overlap between jazz fusion and doom metal, the musical starter pack for suburban white boys, and a whole bunch more. Check out Alex's project, his film reviews on Cult MTL, and his French-language film podcast Les voyeurs de vues.

Robert Dayton and Stephen Hamm are living legends of the music scene in Vancouver and beyond. They join me to discuss the origins of their duo Canned Hamm, our shared history with Peaches, the importance of staying freaky, the value of originality, how music opens up new worlds, Christian children's records, and much more. Check out their latest projects, Stephen Hamm: Theremin Man and Robert Dayton's latest solo EPs (produced by Hamm).

Alan Zweig's Vinyl (2000) is a dark and profound personal documentary on obsessive record collectors (particularly the filmmaker himself). Today, after nine other documentaries, he's completing a sequel of sorts entitled Records. He joins me to talk about the vinyl resurgence (and the lower-key CD resurgence), why making a film with a positive message has been his biggest challenge, why certain people become obsessive about music, and more. Watch Alan Zweig's Vinyl on YouTube. Photo of Alan from the Greetings From Isolation project.

Montreal-based singer-songwriter (and co-host of the Country Classics Hour on CKUT 90.3 FM) Katie Moore joins me for a deep dive into the mystifying mix of symbolism, history, racial and class divisions, marketing, and the slippery concept of authenticity that make up what we call "country music." All that, plus a lot of laughs along the way. Check out this Spotify playlist of much of the music discussed plus other country and country-adjacent classics!  

Peterborough, Ontario-based Karol Orzechowski has been making music and touring as garbageface for many years. He joins me to discuss his beginnings as a singer-songwriter and what turned him to louder and more confrontational music; Rage Against the Machine, Fugazi, and other case studies in the struggle between artistic practice, career ambition and personal ethics; and his own tastes - culminating in a major What Is This Music?! breakthrough in which he celebrates not one, but two of music's most widely derided genres. Check out this playlist of music we discussed on the episode, plus a few personal garbageface faves. Hear garbageface's music on Bandcamp.  

Jace Lasek is known for his music with Montreal's The Besnard Lakes and Light Conductor as well as his role as co-owner of the Breakglass Studio. In addition to his own music he's mixed Wolf Parade's debut, engineered the latest godspeed you! black emperor record, and worked on countless other Montreal recordings of recent years. He joins me for a deep dive into the overlapping status and significance of post-rock, prog rock, punk rock and soft rock, with digressions on the Grateful Dead, new country, the early-2000s rock revival, noise concerts as mating rituals, and more. See also Jace's Spotify playlist of music discussed in the episode. Photo courtesy of The Besnard Lakes on Instagram.

DJ Tamika Bernard was born in Guyana, raised in New York City, and  currently lives in Toronto. She joins me to talk about cross-cultural connections, growing up amid hip-hop culture in Queens and Brooklyn, being a DJ during covid times, her brief career as a rapper, her unexpected tastes and musical roadblocks, mumble rap, the renaissance of Toronto, the shocking truth about what Canadians really mean when they say "sorry," and more. 

Babs Vermeulen is a DJ and musician in Toronto; Sticky Henderson is a musician in Kingston, Ontario. We reconnect to talk about their first meeting in a small-town choir, our shared history with the Toronto music community that spawned Peaches, Feist, Chilly Gonzales and others, Sticky's membership in proto-supergroup The Shit (and their influence on a certain Canadian rock superstar), how the pandemic has been good for music listeners, barbershop quartets, Ween, being a moth (half-mod, half-goth), not fitting into Canadian music, our confessed musical hatreds, making music for its own sake, and more. Check out our Spotify playlist of songs and artists discussed on the show.

Amanda Burt is a producer with Banger Films, whose latest production is the series This Is Pop, chronicling some highlights of pop music history. She joins me to talk about this genre, why it's paradoxically popular and universally maligned, what it means, and what she discovered in producing the show. Listen to the Spotify playlist Welcome to the This Is Pop Multiverse .

Mariana Timony is a music journalist, senior editor at the Bandcamp Daily, and author of the Weird Girls Post newsletter. She joins me to talk about the joys and pains of being part of a music scene, criticizing music criticism, a nuanced perspective on the Burger Records scandal, how selling out is still a bad thing, the prevalence of playlists as a big tech psy-op, and more. Check out Mariana's playlist of related music on BNDCMPR, a new playlist platform for Bandcamp. 

Murray Lightburn is best known as the singer and leader of longtime Montreal rock stalwarts The Dears, and is also a solo performer, producer and composer. He joins me to talk about his favourite music (Motown, jazz, classical, and an unexpected major influence), balancing his love of music and his frustrations with the music business, as well as The Smiths, one of my least understood bands and (according to Murray) one of his most misunderstood influences. Check out Murray's Spotify playlist of the music discussed on this episode, plus a few extra faves.   Photo of Murray by Howard Bilerman

What do Rush, Korean boy band sensation BTS, and the Anthology of American Folk Music have in common? They all inspire obsessive devotion from their fans—including Taylor Savvy, Berlin-based Canadian musician and this week's guest. We get under the hood of the mentality of fandom and why certain people (such as ourselves) get so obsessive about music.  Check out Savvy's Spotify playlist of related music and his personal faves.

Julie Blake works in publishing at the Erased Tapes record label in London, licensing music to films and other projects. She joins me to talk about her background as an up-and-coming teen rocker and CD store manager, the preponderance of music business figures from Kitchener, Ontario, co-founding publishing house Third Side Music, the pros and cons of Spotify, the emotional resonance of certain sounds, her unabashed appreciation of Coldplay and Cirque du Soleil, and much more. Check out Julie's Spotify playlist for the episode. Photo of Julie by Claudia Göedke  

DJ Stashu is the host of Dance With Me, Stanley (on legendary free-form radio station WFMU), a show dedicated to the joys of polka and other musical delights. She joins me to talk about her discovery and love of polka, giving music respect, curation as an act of kindness, novelty music, Dr. Demento, Gordon Thomas, the role WFMU has played in both our lives, and more. Check out Stashu's Spotify playlist of polka and related music.  

Michelle Ayoub is known in the Montreal music community as a production worker behind the scenes, as well as co-owner of rock bar Turbo Haüs. She's also notable as a massive fan of "Weird Al" Yankovic, and joins me in a detailed discussion of Al's appeal and the mystery of his person and persona, with digressions on Michelle's emergence in the music biz as a young teen, her friendship with GWAR's Oderus Urungus, and more. Check out Michelle's Spotify playlist of Weird Al essentials here.  

Sarah Feldman is a Vancouver-based musician and composer, as well as the host of the Sounds Good Channel on YouTube, a biweekly series of music education videos. She joins me to talk about the hangups of the classical music world, the value of music theory, making music education more welcoming, formalism vs. symbolism, and more. Enjoy Sarah's Spotify playlist of music we discussed on the show and/or featured on Sounds Good episodes. Check out Sarah's own music on Bandcamp.    

Natasha Pickowicz is a pastry chef based in NYC, but before that she was a DIY promoter and enthusiast of the avant-garde music scene in Portland, Ithaca and Montreal. She joins me to talk about her  appreciation of free jazz and noise music, along with our shared history at Montreal's convenience store/diner Dépanneur Le Pick Up, the death of the alt-weekly paper, her current project, and the connections between food, music and community. Check out Natasha's Spotify playlist of related music. Photo: Georgia Hilmer  

Montreal writer Jesse Staniforth, with his reflections on punk music, politics and culture, is one of the inspirations for this podcast. He joins me to describe how he got into punk, what it means to him, neurochemical reactions to music, the pros and cons of punk politics, oppositional-defiant disorder, how harsh music can be inspiring, and much more. Check out Jesse's playlist of music we discussed. Enjoy the episode, and see you in 2021!  

Mike "Major Entertainer" Hickey and Leigh Newton's many musical projects have included their synth metal duo Daiquiri, who among other things did a notorious (if only to ourselves) US tour with me back in 2004. Here we discuss many topics, including but very much not limited to the nominal subject of the episode: their love of one of my most disliked bands, conceptual circus-metal provocateurs Mr. Bungle. Also check out Leigh's Spotify playlist of related music.

Montreal writer Kathryn Jezer-Morton joins me to mount a spirited defence of one of her favourite (and my most misunderstood) bands: The Grateful Dead. Kathryn discusses becoming a Dead fan despite (not because of) growing up on a commune, liking bands because of (not despite) their flaws, the Dead becoming unexpectedly cool again, and other topics. Check out Kathryn's playlist of live Dead faves.

Was 2003 really an amazing year for music, or are we just a couple of grumpy old hipsters? Artist, musician and noted 2003 enthusiast Steve Kado joins me for a wildly digressive discussion about this brief heyday of mainstream and underground music, nostalgia for nihilism, the relative relevance of Drake, algorithmic targeting, and much more. Also, check out our Spotify playlist of 2003 top hits + Toronto underground faves of the era.

Writer and music enthusiast Erin MacLeod talks about why she thinks Jamaican musical culture is the best, with asides on the decline of music media, the colonialist roots of the "guilty pleasure," not getting Radiohead, and more. Read more of Erin's writings on music and other topics at www.erinmacleod.ca. And check out the Spotify playlist she made specially to accompany this episode.

Eliza Kavtion joins Malcolm to discuss one of rock's most maligned (and one of her favourite) genres: nu metal. We also discuss KISS, Frank Zappa,  "bands who wear makeup" as a genre, nu metal as bubblegum, Len's "Steal My Sunshine," and much more. Eliza Kavtion's record, The Rez Last Svmmer, is available on Bandcamp. BONUS: Eliza created this Spotify playlist of "the finest moments in the genre imo."

Chilly Gonzales is a musical entertainer and, most recently, author of the book Enya: A Treatise on Unguilty Pleasures. He joins old friend and collaborator Malcolm to talk about the book, his personal journey through musical taste, why it's important for young people to seem cool, the value of cultural criticism, and several other topics. Photo by ANKA