Worst Show Ever

Seasoned listeners of this podcast will note that the episodes vary pretty widely in length. I like having the guests present their stories without prescribing a predetermined amount of time. But I usually edit it to be sure it doesn't go over an hour or so. Not so with this epic series of stories from People With Bodies, a lovely band of buds from Reno, Nevada. I mean, I did in fact edit it down, but it's still 95 minutes even with a bit of editing. They had a story planned out, which they tell wonderfully. And then they realized they had a whole other show that was much worse. So I let it roll, and I'm glad I did. Listen to it in sections if you have to, but I highly recommend you hear the whole thing. Next week's will be shorter, I promise.

Seasoned listeners of this podcast will note that the episodes vary pretty widely in length. I like having the guests present their stories without prescribing a predetermined amount of time. But I usually edit it to be sure it doesn't go over an hour or so. Not so with this epic series of stories from People With Bodies, a lovely band of buds from Reno, Nevada. I mean, I did in fact edit it down, but it's still 95 minutes even with a bit of editing. They had a story planned out, which they tell wonderfully. And then they realized they had a whole other show that was much worse. So I let it roll, and I'm glad I did. Listen to it in sections if you have to, but I highly recommend you hear the whole thing. Next week's will be shorter, I promise.

At a Joyful Noise Recordings Xmas party in 2018, while some of the finest rock stars and weirdos were mingling and getting wasted on vegan chili, I was sitting in the office of dear friend and label owner Karl Hofstetter, talking to labelmate Jasamine White-Gluz of No Joy about some of her most harrowing tour stories. Jasamine was a blast to talk to, and had me on the edge of my seat trying to take in some truly awful and amazing events on the road.

At a Joyful Noise Recordings Xmas party in 2018, while some of the finest rock stars and weirdos were mingling and getting wasted on vegan chili, I was sitting in the office of dear friend and label owner Karl Hofstetter, talking to labelmate Jasamine White-Gluz of No Joy about some of her most harrowing tour stories. Jasamine was a blast to talk to, and had me on the edge of my seat trying to take in some truly awful and amazing events on the road.

Marisa Demarco had me over to her studio, where, in front of a table full of cheap gold earrings she was currently turning into a circuit board, she told me about her worst show ever. There's no way for me to accurately describe this amazing person without saying she's a living pioneer of experimental music and one of my personal musical heroes. It was an honor to have her on the show and get deep into intersections of politics, experimentation, and performance. Not only does she bring years of experience playing in some of my favorite musical acts (Bigawatt, Chicharra, Big Hen, and more), but her unique perspective as a founder and curator of Gatas y Vatas festival in Albuquerque made for some great stories and observations.

Marisa Demarco had me over to her studio, where, in front of a table full of cheap gold earrings she was currently turning into a circuit board, she told me about her worst show ever. There's no way for me to accurately describe this amazing person without saying she's a living pioneer of experimental music and one of my personal musical heroes. It was an honor to have her on the show and get deep into intersections of politics, experimentation, and performance. Not only does she bring years of experience playing in some of my favorite musical acts (Bigawatt, Chicharra, Big Hen, and more), but her unique perspective as a founder and curator of Gatas y Vatas festival in Albuquerque made for some great stories and observations.

Rence is a road dog if ever there was one, and I knew when I asked him to be on the show, he'd have a story that packed a punch. Boy howdy was I right.

Rence is a road dog if ever there was one, and I knew when I asked him to be on the show, he'd have a story that packed a punch. Boy howdy was I right.

I had the pleasure of seeing Melanie perform twice last year at Treefort, and both performances blew my mind. First as the bassist in a harp-led chamber pop ensemble called Wend, and then in the legendary rock band Built to Spill. She was gracious enough to meet up with me to discuss some of her most awful shows, coming from her time with her previous band, Marshall Poole. The stories range from the tragic and somber to the humiliating and indignant.

I had the pleasure of seeing Melanie perform twice last year at Treefort, and both performances blew my mind. First as the bassist in a harp-led chamber pop ensemble called Wend, and then in the legendary rock band Built to Spill. She was gracious enough to meet up with me to discuss some of her most awful shows, coming from her time with her previous band, Marshall Poole. The stories range from the tragic and somber to the humiliating and indignant.

Liz Hysen tells an incredible story of turning into a wolf on tour, while also dealing with some of the most sexist and ridiculous behavior by her driver / tour manager that has appeared on this show, which is saying a lot because (as is no surprise to women musicians, but still seems to shock some of the guys) women deal with a lot of bullshit on tour that men don't experience, and seem to rarely even notice. Thanks to Liz for sharing her remarkable account.

Liz Hysen tells an incredible story of turning into a wolf on tour, while also dealing with some of the most sexist and ridiculous behavior by her driver / tour manager that has appeared on this show, which is saying a lot because (as is no surprise to women musicians, but still seems to shock some of the guys) women deal with a lot of bullshit on tour that men don't experience, and seem to rarely even notice. Thanks to Liz for sharing her remarkable account.

William Goldsmith played in the legendary bands Foo Fighters and Sunny Day Real Estate and has the crazy stories to show for it. Just a heads up, things get pretty gross pretty fast in the first of several stories William shows.

William Goldsmith played in the legendary bands Foo Fighters and Sunny Day Real Estate and has the crazy stories to show for it. Just a heads up, things get pretty gross pretty fast in the first of several stories William shows.

Dear friends and Joyful Noise label-mates Ohmme share the story of their most bizarre tour experience at a haunted hotel in upstate New York, as well as a show in which the venue disputed the fact that there was a show at all.

Dear friends and Joyful Noise label-mates Ohmme share the story of their most bizarre tour experience at a haunted hotel in upstate New York, as well as a show in which the venue disputed the fact that there was a show at all.

Lung are one of my very favorite bands currently touring, and it was a delight to sit down and discuss so many ways shows can be shitty. This is a longer episode, with lots of twists and turns from these veteran badasses.

Lung are one of my very favorite bands currently touring, and it was a delight to sit down and discuss so many ways shows can be shitty. This is a longer episode, with lots of twists and turns from these veteran badasses.

Wether its her stellar drumming or her personality that fills up a room, Lupe Flores is a powerhouse of a lady. And it was pretty incredible to hear some of the crazy places touring has taken her.

Wether its her stellar drumming or her personality that fills up a room, Lupe Flores is a powerhouse of a lady. And it was pretty incredible to hear some of the crazy places touring has taken her.

Last winter, a bunch of us musicians who release albums on Joyful Noise met up for their holiday party in Indianapolis, and this also included us all recording a bunch of music for a holiday compilation, which ended up being more fun and more interesting musically than I had ever thought it could be. Adam Harding had a song with Thor Harris, which I ended up playing on, and there was a general love of cross-pollination all around. I clicked with Adam right away, and appreciated him taking a bit of time to tell some stories about awful shows. We were talking in the kitchen of the recording studio while Kid Millions recorded a song in the next room, which accounts for both its brevity and the sound in the background.

Last winter, a bunch of us musicians who release albums on Joyful Noise met up for their holiday party in Indianapolis, and this also included us all recording a bunch of music for a holiday compilation, which ended up being more fun and more interesting musically than I had ever thought it could be. Adam Harding had a song with Thor Harris, which I ended up playing on, and there was a general love of cross-pollination all around. I clicked with Adam right away, and appreciated him taking a bit of time to tell some stories about awful shows. We were talking in the kitchen of the recording studio while Kid Millions recorded a song in the next room, which accounts for both its brevity and the sound in the background.

It was a true delight to sit down with Matthew and hear about the show in which this full bill of fantastic Cincinnati local bands was commandeered by a certain celebrity-focused television network. It was also funny to hear us talk so much about my own life, particularly with respect to permatour. I'm releasing this episode on my first day living in an apartment after almost 12 years of nothing but living in vehicles. The episode is from over a year prior, and so I'm still talking from the perspective of staying on the road for the foreseeable future. Still, Matthew's perspectives on music, ambition, fame, and hustle resonated deeply with me. And so I can't help but wonder if this conversation was one that tipped me toward finally taking a break from touring to focus on other things for a spell.

It was a true delight to sit down with Matthew and hear about the show in which this full bill of fantastic Cincinnati local bands was commandeered by a certain celebrity-focused television network. It was also funny to hear us talk so much about my own life, particularly with respect to permatour. I'm releasing this episode on my first day living in an apartment after almost 12 years of nothing but living in vehicles. The episode is from over a year prior, and so I'm still talking from the perspective of staying on the road for the foreseeable future. Still, Matthew's perspectives on music, ambition, fame, and hustle resonated deeply with me. And so I can't help but wonder if this conversation was one that tipped me toward finally taking a break from touring to focus on other things for a spell.

Nilan Perera has been playing what he calls "adventurous music" in the Toronto scene for 35 years. We get deep into the ethics of improvised music and how it can go wrong.

Nilan Perera has been playing what he calls "adventurous music" in the Toronto scene for 35 years. We get deep into the ethics of improvised music and how it can go wrong.

A staple in the Montreal experimental music scene, my dear friend Catherine Debard recounts an adventure in the US that had huge ups and downs, and how she managed to keep her calm through it all.

A staple in the Montreal experimental music scene, my dear friend Catherine Debard recounts an adventure in the US that had huge ups and downs, and how she managed to keep her calm through it all.

Xiu Xiu frontman Jamie Stewart tells the story of their worst tour ever. But his approach to this common theme is unique in how, on the one hand, he labels himself an asshole and takes full responsibility for how terribly he treated his tour-mates (Tune-Yards). On the other hand, he makes a compelling case for having the moral high ground in this dispute, despite acknowledging how shitty he treated them. I was absolutely fascinated by what I could only call Jamie's political insight into appropriative music, and equally pleased by his unabashed dickish behavior, as it was clearly coming from a place of conscience. I can't think of the last time I've so appreciated someone attacking music and musicians I love and have loved.

Xiu Xiu frontman Jamie Stewart tells the story of their worst tour ever. But his approach to this common theme is unique in how, on the one hand, he labels himself an asshole and takes full responsibility for how terribly he treated his tour-mates (Tune-Yards). On the other hand, he makes a compelling case for having the moral high ground in this dispute, despite acknowledging how shitty he treated them. I was absolutely fascinated by what I could only call Jamie's political insight into appropriative music, and equally pleased by his unabashed dickish behavior, as it was clearly coming from a place of conscience. I can't think of the last time I've so appreciated someone attacking music and musicians I love and have loved.

I was very fortunate to run into one of my favorite current rappers, Mariah Parker (aka Linqua Franqa), at Treefort Music Festival earlier this year. And somehow I managed to keep my fanboying to a minimum for long enough to talk to her about her worst show ever. We were using the festival's press room, which was in fact reserved for someone more official, so the convo was kept short. But Mariah manages to pack in a lot in 22 minutes. Because we were rushed, I failed to give her the introduction I would have liked, so I'll just say here that I first became aware of her right after the 2018 election. I was passing through Athens, Georgia, having a burger with a friend and talking about the amazing slate of women of color who had recently been elected to congress. I think I had said something about the delight I'd felt seeing the old white Christian dudes cringe as some of the women who would later be known as "The Squad" were sworn into office on a Koran rather than a Bible, and my buddy Adam brought up the recent Athen election in which a county commissioner was sworn in on a copy of Malcom X's autobiography. He then added that this woman was also a local rapper. I had to hear the music of this person, and it wasn't long before I was a huge fan of her music and her politics. Big thanks to Mariah and her partner Deidre for the great hangs and conversations.

I was very fortunate to run into one of my favorite current rappers, Mariah Parker (aka Linqua Franqa), at Treefort Music Festival earlier this year. And somehow I managed to keep my fanboying to a minimum for long enough to talk to her about her worst show ever. We were using the festival's press room, which was in fact reserved for someone more official, so the convo was kept short. But Mariah manages to pack in a lot in 22 minutes. Because we were rushed, I failed to give her the introduction I would have liked, so I'll just say here that I first became aware of her right after the 2018 election. I was passing through Athens, Georgia, having a burger with a friend and talking about the amazing slate of women of color who had recently been elected to congress. I think I had said something about the delight I'd felt seeing the old white Christian dudes cringe as some of the women who would later be known as "The Squad" were sworn into office on a Koran rather than a Bible, and my buddy Adam brought up the recent Athen election in which a county commissioner was sworn in on a copy of Malcom X's autobiography. He then added that this woman was also a local rapper. I had to hear the music of this person, and it wasn't long before I was a huge fan of her music and her politics. Big thanks to Mariah and her partner Deidre for the great hangs and conversations.

Emmett Kelly has toured in a variety of roles from front man of Cairo Gang to sideman in Bonnie "Prince" Billy, from band leader for someone else's band to hired gun holding it down. Here he tells a story about one of the shows that made him question whether all of those roles are actually for him. Alex Dupree has also toured in many different ways, and here he recalls maybe the worst trip between shows.

Emmett Kelly has toured in a variety of roles from front man of Cairo Gang to sideman in Bonnie "Prince" Billy, from band leader for someone else's band to hired gun holding it down. Here he tells a story about one of the shows that made him question whether all of those roles are actually for him. Alex Dupree has also toured in many different ways, and here he recalls maybe the worst trip between shows.

Casey Chisholm is an old friend with whom I've shared many a stage. One of the first times we played together, he asked to interview me, standing on the street outside Mama Buzz Cafe in Oakland. It seemed fitting that I would eventually get to interview him, also standing on a street, though a much calmer one in the tiny mountain town of Sonora, California. It also seemed fitting that we'd meet up to talk about Casey's roughest show experiences on a night that I happened to have one of my own.

Casey Chisholm is an old friend with whom I've shared many a stage. One of the first times we played together, he asked to interview me, standing on the street outside Mama Buzz Cafe in Oakland. It seemed fitting that I would eventually get to interview him, also standing on a street, though a much calmer one in the tiny mountain town of Sonora, California. It also seemed fitting that we'd meet up to talk about Casey's roughest show experiences on a night that I happened to have one of my own.

Victoria Shen plays experimental music, pushing the edges of performance and noise. She might be the first on this podcast to share a story of a show that went really well, as far as she knew, but resulted in some truly brutal and vitriolic hate mail.

Victoria Shen plays experimental music, pushing the edges of performance and noise. She might be the first on this podcast to share a story of a show that went really well, as far as she knew, but resulted in some truly brutal and vitriolic hate mail.

Sam Humans and I meet up after a show in Portland to discuss some crazy and awful occurrences while on tour. Highlights include van breakdowns and the shenanigans that ensue.

Sam Humans and I meet up after a show in Portland to discuss some crazy and awful occurrences while on tour. Highlights include van breakdowns and the shenanigans that ensue.

Neil Campau and Ellie Avis are true road warriors, having actually taken a newborn on tour in an RV for a few years. Neil also created the invaluable DIY venue resource DoDIY.org, which I have to personally thank for helping me set up more shows over the last decade than I can begin to count. Ellie chose not to share a specific story, but chimed in with comments about some of Neil's worst show moments in their band Electrician and Neil's previous band, World History.

Neil Campau and Ellie Avis are true road warriors, having actually taken a newborn on tour in an RV for a few years. Neil also created the invaluable DIY venue resource DoDIY.org, which I have to personally thank for helping me set up more shows over the last decade than I can begin to count. Ellie chose not to share a specific story, but chimed in with comments about some of Neil's worst show moments in their band Electrician and Neil's previous band, World History.

Keelin and I sat down in a lovely park on a lovely day in Portland to talk about, as she put it, "crazy men with huge fucking egos". Keelin shares a few stories involving some interactions of her bands Fake Lake and Scalpels with bands who are a pretty big deal. Or something like that. You'll just have to listen.

Keelin and I sat down in a lovely park on a lovely day in Portland to talk about, as she put it, "crazy men with huge fucking egos". Keelin shares a few stories involving some interactions of her bands Fake Lake and Scalpels with bands who are a pretty big deal. Or something like that. You'll just have to listen.

On the week that marks the one year anniversary of releasing these stories of terrible shows, I wanted to celebrate the occasion by featuring one of my musical heroes, Kenseth Thibideau. He used to play in Rumah Sakit and Tarentel, 2 San Francisco bands that altered the course of my personal musical development, as well as amazing bands like Pinback, Sleeping People, Goblin Cock, and lots more. Being a positive guy, Kenseth has a hard time coming up with a worst show ever, and tends to find a silver lining in most of the awful or weird show experiences he recalls. Some gems come up though, and it's lovely to talk to him about the incestuous San Diego music scene and all the strange places that has taken him.

On the week that marks the one year anniversary of releasing these stories of terrible shows, I wanted to celebrate the occasion by featuring one of my musical heroes, Kenseth Thibideau. He used to play in Rumah Sakit and Tarentel, 2 San Francisco bands that altered the course of my personal musical development, as well as amazing bands like Pinback, Sleeping People, Goblin Cock, and lots more. Being a positive guy, Kenseth has a hard time coming up with a worst show ever, and tends to find a silver lining in most of the awful or weird show experiences he recalls. Some gems come up though, and it's lovely to talk to him about the incestuous San Diego music scene and all the strange places that has taken him.

On this week's episode, Eric Crespo insists he doesn't have a worst show, but he tells the story of a show in Bakersfield in which they had no place to stay, and goes on to relate several unfortunate events on the road.

On this week's episode, Eric Crespo insists he doesn't have a worst show, but he tells the story of a show in Bakersfield in which they had no place to stay, and goes on to relate several unfortunate events on the road.

Drummer Andrew Barr of The Slip tells a story of flying to Europe to play with Lhasa de Sela, and the highly illegal things he was willing to do in order not to miss the show.

Drummer Andrew Barr of The Slip tells a story of flying to Europe to play with Lhasa de Sela, and the highly illegal things he was willing to do in order not to miss the show.

Always a delightful conversationalist, Shenandoah Davis has spent a ton of time on the road, and has accumulated as many hilarious stories as you might imagine a road dog of her ilk would. She takes me through just a handful of the most delightful ones, including a rock opera opener, a halloween disaster, and quite possibly the best response to a sexist heckler I've ever heard.