Podcast appearances and mentions of Mitch Easter

Over the years, Don Dixon has produced some of the greatest albums of all time. Records by R.E.M., Marshall Crenshaw, The Smithereens, Guadalcanal Diary and Let's Active. He's also produced albums by his wife, Marti Jones. Marti is a wonderful singer songwriter as well as a fine artist whose work graced the cover of White Noise & Lightning: The Continental Drifters Story. Don and Marti are great musicians and I've been a fan for years. Join me for a talk with Don Dixon and Marti Jones.Save on Certified Pre-Owned ElectronicsPlug has great prices on refurbished electronics. Up to 70% off with a 30-day money back guarantee!Buzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched!Start for FREEDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Thanks for listening to Frets with DJ Fey. You can follow or subscribe for FREE at most podcast platforms.And now, Frets is available on YouTube. There are a lot of fun extras like videos and shorts and audio of all episodes. Subscribing for FREE at YouTube helps support the show tremendously, so hit that subscribe button! https://www.youtube.com/@DJFey39 You can also find information about guitarists, bands and more at the Frets with DJ Fey Facebook page. Give it a like! And – stay tuned… Contact Dave Fey at davefey@me.com or call 314-229-8033

This week's show, after a Buck Owens bawl: brand new Dennis Davison, Chatham Rise (with Paula Kelley), Flying Vipers, Salt Collective (vocal: Mitch Easter), Stereolab, Robert Forster, and Wednesday, plus The Beatles, The Final Solution, Scott Walker, B...

After a critical success with Murmur, R.E.M. again teamed with producers Mitch Easter and Don Dixon for their sophomore effort, Reckoning. In some ways it was more of the same, but a slightly rawer, rocking sound became evident as well. 

Anyone remember the Mayflies USA? I got a promo copy of "Summertown" in 1998 and I fell in love with the album. They went on a massive hiatus but got together to record their latest album "Kickless Kids" set for release in May 2025. When I got a press release about this, I immediately asked if they could come on the show to talk about their career, the new album, and albums (and some songs) important to them.We talk with Matt McMichaels and Adam Price about the new album but also talk about Bob Mould, power pop (and finally embracing that genre tag), Jackson Mississippi, trying to emulate the Replacements (the self sabotage aspect), getting produced by Mitch Easter and Chris Stamey, Keith Richard, Steely Dan, and more.If you're not a fan yet, I think you will be after this.Check out The Mayflies USA at:  https://www.facebook.com/themayfliesusaCheck out other episodes at RecordsRevisitedPodcast.com or one all your favorite podcast providers like Apple Podcasts, Castbox, iHeartMedia, and Spotify. Additional content is found at: Facebook.com/recordsrevisitedpodcast or twitter @podcastrecords or IG at instagram.com/recordsrevisitedpodcast/ or join our Patreon at patreon.com/RecordsRevisitedPodcast

Send us a textEver wondered how the term "baker's dozen" came to be, or what it feels like to walk in the shoes of a musician? Join us as we wrap up 2024 with a delightful mix of nostalgia and musical storytelling. We journey through our top episodes of the year, opting for a unique baker's dozen selection. Revisit unforgettable moments as we look back on a fun year of the show.We'll also touch on humorous misinterpretations, engaging interviews with musical legends like Kevn Kinney from Drivin N Cryin, Mitch Easter, Iain Slater and George Cheyne from APB, Ted Ansani from Material Issue, and "My Sharona" and thematic episodes inspired by iconic films and TV shows. As we look back on cherished conversations and impactful stories, we also explore our favorite albums of 2024. The Libertines' "All Quiet on the Eastern Esplanade" emerges as a standout highlight."Music in My Shoes" where music and memories intertwine.Learn Something New orRemember Something OldPlease Like and Follow our Facebook and Instagram page at Music In My Shoes. You can contact us at musicinmyshoes@gmail.com.

In North Carolina with the talented photographer Bill Reaves, who is in the studio to talk about working with local Raleigh musicians Mitch Easter, Dave Adams, Don Dixon, The Woods, Terry Anderson and new artist Anya Hinkle; to photographing  music legends Tom Petty, Howie Epstein and Mike Cambell (The Heartbreakers); plus Robert Plant, Alison Krauss, Dale Watson, Brad Paisley and NRBQ to name a few! We also talk about his commercial photo work for Lone Star Beer, along with his published work with Guitar World magazine. Bill also discusses his upcoming book collaboration with music critic and author David Menconi about musicians in North Carolina who've made a difference. Bring your love of photography - and music - and join us! About the Spotlight Conversations podcast:Tune in as I invite friends inside my cozy linoleum free recording studio to talk about all things media - radio, television, music, film, voiceovers, audiobooks, publishing - if guests know media, we're talkin'! Unscripted and entertaining, each guest gets real about their careers in the entertainment biz; from where they started to how it's going. Join us in my swanky studio where drinks are always on ice; music + media are the conversation starters. New episodes every other Tuesday. Social media links, website and more hereFollow and subscribe to my podcast hereA very special thank you to friends who helped bring my Spotlight Conversations podcast together and especially for their continued support:Booth Announcer: Joe Szymanski ('Joe The Voice Guy')Theme Song Composer: Mark Sparrow, SongBird StudiosRadio Free RaleighHouston Radio Platinum

Karen Haglof in conversation with David Eastaugh https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdAA7_gIr5w http://www.howlinwuelf.com/clients/karen-haglof/ One Hand Up is the fourth full length release by guitarist/songwriter Karen Haglof.  The album was produced by Haglof and Mario Viele, recorded at Cowboy Technical Services and Excello studios in Brooklyn, primarily mixed by Viele. Three songs were mixed at the Fidelitorium in Kernersville NC by Mitch Easter and mastered by Scott Craggs at Old Colony Mastering in North Scituate, RI. One Hand Up is being released on CD, digital download and via streaming services on June 14. One Hand Up is a collection of 14 songs that cover widely ranging sonic territory. The writing and production started prior to 2020 and was delayed by the pandemic. Because of a renewed interest in visual art, many of the songs on One Hand Up will be accompanied by visual components: hand-drawn 2D animation, motion graphics and video clips, adding up to a mixed media extravaganza.

Send us a Text Message.Mitch Easter, the legendary musician and producer behind the defining sounds of Let's Active and R.E.M., joins us for an unforgettable episode of "Music in My Shoes." Mitch shares the intriguing story of how he crafted his signature guitar sound, influenced by English pop bands like The Move, to stand out in the early '80s rock scene. We unravel the evolution of "jangle" and discuss how it's been perceived over the years, along with insights into Mitch's musical upbringing under the influence of his parents and constant radio tunes.Venturing into his personal musical journeys, he recounts the transformative moments that shaped his career, from the first thrill of hearing the Beatles to forming his own band. Relive the excitement of the early music scene, the serendipitous milestones, and the exhilaration of experimentation that marked the beginnings of a lifelong musical adventure. Mitch talks about the pre-Let's Active band, Sneakers with Chris Stamey and their 2024 shows. We also dive into the process of securing a record deal, the memorable making of music videos, and creative transition to solo artistry with "Dynamico" in 2007.In the studio, Mitch shares his philosophy on balancing helpfulness and assertiveness in music production, offering a behind-the-scenes look at his collaborations with bands like Velvet Crush and Pavement. We reflect on the magic of producing R.E.M.'s early works, starting with their first single, "Radio Free Europe", and the special camaraderie among musicians. Our conversation wraps up with a nostalgic nod to the college radio movement of the '80s and the undying charm of R.E.M.'s music, making this episode a must-listen for both long-time fans and new listeners. Join us for a treasure trove of musical memories and industry insights.Please Like and Follow our Facebook page Music In My Shoes. You can contact us at musicinmyshoes@gmail.com.

The dB's debut album Stands for Decibels was released in 1981, the album was praised by critics and over time, came to be loved by many fans who consider it a landmark power pop jangle classic. Stands for Decibels has now been reissued through Propeller Sound Recordings digitally and on CD, but also for the first time in the US on vinyl. My guest today on Frets is singer-songwriter, keyboardist, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist – the one and only Peter Holsapple.You can purchase the reissue of the dB's Stands for Decibels from Propeller Sound here.This episode was fueled by Stringbean Coffee. Find out more here.Find or Sell Guitars and Gear at ReverbFind great deals on guitars, amps, audio and recording gear. Or sell yours! Check out Reverb.comBuzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched!Start for FREEDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Thanks for listening to Frets with DJ Fey. You can follow or subscribe for FREE at most podcast platforms. If you play guitar and are interested in being a guest, or have a suggestion for one, send me an email at davefey@me.com. You can also find information about guitarists, bands and more at the Frets with DJ Fey Facebook page. Give it a like! And – stay tuned…

Don Dixon already had spent 13 years playing, singing and writing with the North Carolina indie band Arrogance when he joined Mitch Easter to co-produce R.E.M.'s trailblazing first two albums, Murmur and Reckoning. He went on to produce the first two crunchy-and-sweet Smithereens albums plus music from Guadalcanal Diary, Matthew Sweet, Marshall Crenshaw and Marti Jones, to whom he remains married. His own infectious “Praying Mantis” got him some airplay as well. Did he see himself more as a soul singer, a songwriter, a bassist or producer? What are the secrets to being a strong producer? What happened when Nirvana asked him about producing Nevermind? Dixon has enough great stories and insights to fill two episodes. This is the first.

On this episode of the Pavement Top 50, jD has a lovely conversation with Zac from Amhearst about his Pavement Origin Story and song number 32Transcript: [1:02] Bob, what do you think about Transport as Arranged? Jamie.I just think that, I think Transport as Arranged, when the record was made inKernersville, North Carolina with Mitch Easter,was just kind of viewed and the feel around it was that, okay,that's another song that definitely should be on the record.But isn't the kind of song that it you know maybe should be a single or somethinglike that it was just it was just a song that was like really solid and goodhey this is westy from the rock and.Track 3[1:41] Roll band pavement and you're listening to the countdown hey it's jd here backfor another episode of our top 50 countdown for seminal indie rock band pavementweek over week we're we're going to count down the 50 essential pavement tracksthat you selected with your very own top 20 ballots.I then tabulated the results using an abacus and gluten.Just joking, there's absolutely no gluten. Zero.How will your favorite song fare in the rankings? Well, you'll need to tunein to find out. So there's that.This week, I'm joined by pavement superfan man, Zach from Amherst.Dude, how the fuck are you?Track 3[2:21] I'm okay. How are you? I'm great. Thanks for asking.It's good to be here with you. No, it's great to be here.Yeah, I'm excited to be a part of this. Well, let's not dilly-dally.Let's get right to it and go to your pavement origin story.Yeah, I've listened to a few and sometimes they have really good stories,but But mine's like, I think I was home from break from college or something.And, uh, my brother and sister were like playing a mixed tape of things and,and, uh, cut your hair came on and, uh, yeah.And, um, and it was apparently it was being played on their radio station all the time.So, uh, you know, and so at the time we would just constantly make copies ofwhatever. So I had like crooked rain, uh, just sort of stuck in my car forever and just wore it out.Track 3[3:16] Um, but you know, it was kind of in the mix and then it was really more,uh, wowies, always when it kind of took off, um, for me, um,that was the first tour I saw them like that was, uh, you know,but, um, so you got to experience it in real time.Yeah. A little bit. Yeah. Yeah. Not quite slanted. And so I'm not,I'm not that. No, but, but wowies alley. That's, that's pretty cool. Yeah, yeah.Um, so, so, um, on that tour, when you went to that tour, what, what were you thinking?Track 3[3:48] Well, I, so I, you know, I was, I was just obsessed with going to shows and seeing bands.Um, and, uh, I was pretty psyched to get a ticket from Ohio originally.Okay. And, uh, so I was pretty psyched to get a ticket in Cleveland,which was still like two hours away from where I lived.Um, and I was taking my little sister and, uh, yeah, it was just,we were really excited. My dad even went along because he was worried abouttaking my, I don't know, 14-year-old sister to the big city.So yeah, I got to see them with Come and Dirty 3 in the Algorra Theater or AlgorraBallroom, one of those in Cleveland.Track 3[4:34] But yeah, I just listened to Pavement nonstopat at the time and um yes yeahjust it's like one of those like that's howi always picture them they're just that's that night um andi've seen them plenty of times since but uh yeah whatother shows have you seen uh so i you know i saw that one and then like thatsummer i saw him at lollapalooza um it was before the infamous west virginiamud fight um but But it was like when they came on right after Sinead O'Connor,she was still on the tour at the time.And then I saw them like, you know, so what was after that? Like Bright in theCorners. I saw him a couple times on that tour.Dude. Yeah. And then I saw him.Track 3[5:22] There's like one or two other times in there. And then I, like,I remember that I did the one that really sticks out to me.That was, uh, I saw their last North American show before they,well, when they sort of, we thought they split up the first time. Right.Um, for terror twilight in Cincinnati, Ohio at Bogart's.Yeah. So yeah, I saw that. And then we thought, Oh, is this the end?And you know, and then it was like maybe a couple of weeks later,he did that infamous show somewhere in England where he's like,Yeah, the Burstyn Academy. Yeah, he had handcuffs and everything.So I saw him right before all that. And then I've seen him, like I saw him twiceon their first reunion tour.And then I saw him once, like the year before last.And I haven't been able to make any of the others since, but yeah.So I've seen him a few times. Oh, yeah, you've seen him a lot.That's great. And different eras as well.Yeah, yeah. Very cool. My first time was the first reunion, right?So that was my first time seeing them. Well, their reunion shows were like,they're just so tight and so together.Track 3[6:28] Some of the early shows, they were sort of a mess. Like, I remember once watchingStephen kicking Steve West off the kit and to show him how the part was supposed to be played.What? Because they kept starting the song, and he kept screwing it up.So he's like, no, no, no, no. And he went back there, and he played the part.And then he went back behind his mic and got his guitar. And then I guess Steve played it.The right way holy shit i've neverheard that story yeah that was uh incolumbus ohio that i think that was a brighton the corners tour i think yeahdamn so what are your what are your go-to uh tracks these days go-to recordsrather so it always kind of like changes but i i tend tobe like between crooked rain and wowie zowie back and forth um i just uh likei crooked rain is like a perfect album like perfectly see well i think pavementsecret is that they sequence every album perfectly.Track 3[7:33] Sometimes the songs, like sometimes there's weird stuff in between and sometimesthe songs are hits, but like, it's just perfectly sequenced.And Crooked Rain is just a perfect record.I think Wowie Zowie is just like bizarre and all over the place,but still like well sequenced.And then the only, my only issue with Wowie Zowie is that I think it finisheswith like three or four closers.So it's like you hit one of those like last three or four tracks and you'relike, oh yeah, that was great.Oh here's you know well that's a great way to close and then they have another so yeah.Track 3[8:07] That's awesome was there anything else you want to share about your pavement origin story,oh um i don't like i just think you know this was like pavement was a band thatlike like sort of binded my brother and sister and i together um we just uhthat's sort of weird sets of humor summer they're sort of strange like sportsfans um we all have like weird interactions,with them here and there that we just kind of um idon't know we're all awkward socially awkward and so like it soyou know i don't know we just kind of like um this isoddball group that just always spoke to all of us andsort of held us all together that's really cool thatyou're into it with your brother and sister are theyboth younger than you or yeah they areyeah my brother's like a year and a half younger my sister'slike uh five five and a half years younger so you got to show them the way wellthey i mean like i said they introduced me at first but then um this was a bandwe kind of all like became obsessed with kind of together um so yeah that wasfun yeah Yeah, that's a lot of fun. Cool.Well, shall we take a quick break and come back and talk about track number 32?That sounds great. All right. Well, we'll do that. We'll see you on the other side.Hey, this is Bob Mustanovich from Pavement. Thanks for listening.Track 1[9:33] And now on with a countdown. 32.Track 3[13:53] Song number 32 on the countdown comes from Pavement's masterpiece,well, one of them, Wowie Zowie.Track 3[14:37] At track 32 we have the song grave architecture come on in yeah sorry let'stry to stick that in yeah oh damn i stepped on it that's okay i I should have prepared you.What are your initial thoughts of grave architecture? This was a funny one that,that when you said it to me, I have a long, like, I think I said before,I think the album that I really kind of really felt like really grabbed me was, was wow.And yeah, this song is like the come on in like right away. Like, Oh yeah.Humanity. So it always sticks with me that way. Yeah. Yeah.It's always very cool when you can bring something cool into school right yeah,well and actually um i i didn't mention this before but i'm actually a fourthgrade teacher ah and periodically i'll have pavement playing when the kids comein but um like what's this i'm like don't worry about it's pavement,um but i guess back to the song uh so it'sit's kind of that um it's kind of like ialways felt the song was kind of jazzy kind of like the.Track 3[15:48] Uh five minus four equals unity fromcrooked rain like it has a bit of that you knowyou kind of like groove to it um and then almost from the beginning he's goingyou know saying grave architecture and that whole like the jerky uh sort ofsegmented way um mouth like uh sort of phrases things and songs especially whenhe's He's live and he's playing around with it.You know, that's always like, that's how I sing half the songs I sing along to.So I just, that one always, that always touched me. But yeah,I don't know. I just love the song. It just grooves.Like, yeah, you can just kind of sway back and forth and just kind of take it in.Track 3[16:34] Yeah. And then I thought a lot about what it meant.And a lot of these songs, I kind of put my own. I'm sure this is not what they think.But I always think of when I hear this grave architecture and walk the marblemalls, I think of the monuments and the buildings in our world that were builtby the, say, super rich in their name and are sort of left there as their monument.And the rest of us sad folk don't have anything like that.And so, they sort of left their imprint everywhere.And so, you walk through it and it's imposing everywhere.And they're almost like graves, literally, only to maybe their money, to their wealth.Um you know he even says likestiff the crypt so i'm like already it's like still gravesare in my head um yeah there'sjust a bunch of like little things like that in the song umthat i really appreciate yeah little breadcrumbs rightyeah yeah yeah yeah because nothing is ever straightforward with that soundoh no no and that's i think it's probably why we all love them i think so tooyeah you have to do a little bit of digging a little bit of investigative workum not the first song I don't think it's a song that he mentions architecture either,which is interesting.Yeah. Oh, what was that? Oh, it was that, I'm terrible at song names.You're just going to have to name it. Oh, shit.Track 3[18:02] I thought I'd written it down, but I guess I hadn't. I'm so bad at song names.With an itch they cannot scratch.Track 3[18:11] God, what song is it? Is it The Hex? Oh, yeah.When I was trying to research a little bit, I read that same line.I'm like, oh, yeah, that's right.But yeah, he mentions art throughout, art and architecture and all these sorts of things.He's married to an artist.It's a huge piece of him or part of him.And then I think the history, I believe he was like, was he like a history majorat Virginia or something?I'm not sure. Okay. Uncool and underqualified to the bitter end.No, that's all right. Half the stuff, like I said, talk out my ass still.Track 3[18:52] But, you know, but then there's like later there's lines, you know,you know, it's like, you know, found on shady ground.And I sort of, that's reminding me of hollowed ground and sort of like as opposed.Like there's a little bit of critique in here.You know, I always hear her too. There's like, um, and needs the talent to breathe.Um, I always said that I still sing it this way as breed needs the talent tobreathe, which I'm sure it was breathed, but I also know that sometimes MalcolmS plays with words that way.And so I always just think like, oh yeah. Okay. So you could breed,there's more of you pass on your wealth when you're not building,you know, or whatever it is. Oh, I like that. Yeah.So yeah. Yeah. So it was, it was fun to, to be able to kind of revisit a songthat actually does, I have thought about and have loved for a long time.Yeah, I always get worried when I do these that, you know, somebody's goingto get matched up with a song that they just don't vibe or resonate with.But that's so cool to think that you took this one, you know,and talked about it in class.Yeah, I won't tell you how old I am, But yeah, when I was in college, sure.Track 3[20:11] And yeah, I remember my girlfriend at the time was just like,I don't know how he knows all this stuff.And I'm talking about Sonic Youth and Velvet Underground and trying to like make it all connect.And somehow I thought Pavement was important. I mean, they are in retrospect,they're super important in all this.But at the time, they probably, I mean, they could have not been important. They just were. Yeah.Well, they're important to a lot of us. Oh, for sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah.Yeah. So where do you think this song lands on the countdown? It comes in at 32.Is it properly rated? Is it overrated? Is it underrated? What do you think?I mean, you know, I think somewhere in the middle makes sense.Because I think once you start naming other songs, you're like,oh, yeah, I like that one better.So I think somewhere here in the middle makes sense.Yeah. Yeah, it seems about right to me. Honestly, I have to confess, I did not submit a list.Well, that's fine. I know, I got really busy, and so I felt bad.And also, if I rated them, if I ranked them, I would just change my mind the next day.Ah, I think so, too. So I think 32 just sounds great.Track 3[21:28] Yeah. Well, is there anything else you want to mention about grave architecture?Texture any memorable live performances of it or i mean you know i.Track 3[21:40] Honestly, I go back to that first show. I remember these kids made the band t-shirts.They ironed on pavement.They were wearing homemade t-shirts.Every song in that set was just perfectly placed. Grave Architecture had its spot.I remember just even fans were out. We were all shouting out what we thought would come next.It just all made sense. And Grave Architecture is just like,I just think it fits perfectly on Wowie Zowie.If there's one thing, like, I know it's all over the place, but there's a fewtracks that really tie it together.And I think Grave Architecture is like, and I think it's right in the middleof the album, if I remember correctly.And so it's just, it just fits and it just works.Um i think even when i look at the the imageof the album cover like just something screams to me like grave like this wholealbum is grave architecture i think in a lot of ways even if it's not maybemy favorite or the best song in the album it just it just is the album it iswowie zowie interesting yeah i notice over your over your left shoulder you've got that,wowie zowie oh and you've got the bright in the corners and crooked rain aswell yeah and i've got to slant it over there i only have like four the steveking the guy who did the painting yeah um he did like like recently well hestarted selling things on ebay and so i was able to.Track 3[23:08] Uh score like a set of four of these um likethey're great and it was like super reasonable he evenlike people kept outbidding me he's like don't worry i'll makeit work and so he made sure that i got thesefour paintings um and then they even put outan art book of all of his stuff recently yeah it's just lowI don't know if you've seen it you probably have like it's just loaded withlike a bunch of um pavement artwork um abunch of those um have you ever seen the they made Ithink it was for Brighton the Corners they made like these signs thatstand up freestanding signs and it's painted inhis style like he's done it um and they were like yeah they were sent out todifferent record stores around the country as part of the promotion for Brightonthe Corners and um there's a few people that still have them they're like everyonce in a while you see one online but yeah his paintings are great they're like super affordable,yeah so yeah,wowie zowie got me into his art so yeah yeah I love it I think it's great.Track 3[24:11] Well, speaking of great, it's been great talking to you today and I really appreciateyour time and I really appreciate you doing this.It's a lot of heavy lifting on your end. For me, it's like a vacation,like I'm used to doing these alone.So to have somebody to bounce things off of, somebody as passionate as yourself,that's a lot of fun. So thank you very much.Oh, yeah. Thanks, J.D. Thanks for having me. Do you have anything that you need or want to plug?Man i wish i did i used to blog a lot like i used to have a blog where i actuallyi was breaking down each pavement song and i only got like 30 or 40 you're like way better,at this than i am and then i started doing a blog that was called um uh wellit was the original title was building coalitions through beer and pavementnow it's just called beer and pavement um but i don't i haven't updated it inforever but some people might know it some people might I might not care,but that's it. I don't have time.I have kids and I teach, so I don't have time. Yeah. You're busy as hell.Track 3[25:16] Well, once again, thanks so much. And, uh, we'll talk to you on the flip side.All right. Thank you. And wash your goddamn hands.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/meeting-malkmus-a-pavement-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

This is so fucking cool. Bob Nastanovich joins me this week to talk about a whack of shit including song 33!!!!Transcript:1:00] Loretta Scars. Alex from Portland, how are you feeling about Loretta Scars?It's a great song. I've got all kinds of thoughts on it, but it's on Flannidand Enchanted, which is a great album. it's,Slanted and Enchanted is the least varied album in my opinion like,most of the songs on it are kind of of one vibe and this is definitely no exceptionI think it's a great vibe I enjoy it Hey this is Westy from the Rock and Roll Band.Track 3[1:40] Pavement and you're listening to The Countdown Hey it's It's JD here back foranother episode of our top 50 countdown for Seminole indie rock band Pavement.Week over week we're going to count down the 50 essential Pavement tracks thatyou selected with your very own top 20 ballads.I then tabulated the results using an abacus, a bicycle pump,lotion, and some biscuits for Kevin, my homemade from uni.How will your favorite songs fare in the rankings? Well, you'll need to tune in to find out.So there's that. This week we're joined bypavement superstar bob fucking nastanovichbob what is up nookay cool and you're aren't you a toronto personsure am yeah how are thingsthere bright blue sunny skies todayabout five degrees celsius so that'slike spring weather for us especially yeah that's niceyeah we've got I don'tmean to show you up Jamie but it's 63degrees Fahrenheit here with a light breeze and a bright sunshine oh man herein Paris Tennessee you know like a typical winter day here is kind of gray and44 but it's especially nice.Track 3[3:03] Today which is pretty awesome that sounds about rightthat sounds like good you know good walking weatherso yeah how are you doing all right with thisproject so far so good i'm likelike people are lining up to do it uh likei'm caught up through march uh i'vegot to do some interviews this week with people sobasically people seem to be like iwas like i don't know how people respond to a top 50 thatthey have to listen to every week but idon't know my numbers are good and um like goodfor me you know yeah they'll get into it yeah ithink so and like just a little bit of water cooler debate rightwhat's that bud just a littlebit of water cooler debate yeah exactly youknow like what if what are you fucking thinking greenlanders likegreenlander was 46 six andyou know people were really pleased thatit made the top 50 but then there's another cohort that are like that's crazyit should be at least in the top 30 you know or whatever so no that is so weirdi mean i don't um i do know people that love greenlander and i um ineffectively insisted.Track 3[4:18] On trying to getit played live in iceland and that would have been cool yeah and um he we soundchecked it and it sounded just fine for about 70 seconds and malchus was.Track 3[4:43] Like i don't want to do that one you know and then um with him you know his attitude was so.Track 3[4:53] Sterling in 2022 and 2023 that um you don't and he was willing to play so many,different songs because in the past like specifically in 2010 um i just thinkit's uh i mean i remember his attitude back then was sort of uh.Track 3[5:18] It's going back to a more juvenile style of songwriting for him, which is more direct,but I guess maybe it kind of reminded him of certain aspects of his life.I mean, especially the earlier stuff, pre-Steve West, seems to give him a certainamount of actual PTSD, which is a word I never use.Track 3[5:48] Self-reference um just because of umthe stress caused by gary likei sat next to him when we watched the screening of gary's documentary andum it he didnot i mean it's a great documentary have you seen iti did yeah it's a great documentary andi don't think they really could have done a better job and umi mean i would have been wildly pleasedwith it i know gary was um so coolthat he got to see it before he passed at least right ican't i can't believe he lived that long i mean noway you know i mean i mean forhim to make it to 70 um should give us all belief that we can do it too um buthe comes from really supremely great genes in terms of longevity his parentslived well into their 90s and uh for some reason despite.Track 3[6:49] Every possible attempt without actually attempting suicide he basically triedto shorten his life um man imean he was just what was it like when you first met him bob what was thatsituation exactly like every other time i methim um he uhi mean at first he was kind of suspicious of me because he i mean you know verybriefly he was suspicious of me because he thought that i was like a friendof malchmas's who could probably drum and was there to replace him so So for the first,until a day or two in, we practiced in his parents'house the first time we went on tour in 1990.And when I say practice, I think we only had 12 songs and we only played six or seven shows, I think.And when he realized that I couldn't play drums, he...He relaxed a little bit. I mean, I think he realized that I was there to,like, kind of carry gear and make things happen and drive and then...You do more than that, dude. You do. I mean, back then, I actually did verylittle. There's this je ne sais quoi that you bring.Well, yeah. I mean, I developed my role over the years.Track 3[8:09] It's hard for me to really accept my overall importance. But back then,there were some shows, you know, shows back then were 45 minutes or whatever.And there were some shows where if he was on, I really didn't have to do a thingbut sort of stand there. I mean, it was, it was strange.I mean, there was a few, there's like, there were times where I would actually be like, um,pretty embarrassed because people in the audience must've thought,you know, why does the, why does the guy who doesn't do anything have to stand on the stage?And um and then also after the first time we toured europe in 92 and it waswe played like maybe 28 shows in 31 days or something and we we finished inbelgium somewhere and remco,was doing our sound for the first time that far back he goes i didn't realize that He goes back.The very first night we met him was about five o'clock on the day that we openedfor My Buddy Valentine and Super Chunk at the Old Ritz in New York. What a lineup.Track 3[9:27] Yeah. And he, uh, we played for 25 minutes and we played seven songs and, but whatever.So we met Remco outside the old Ritz. Um, we were on a, um.Track 3[9:46] On a label called Big Cat, which was run by this rather scurrilous fellow namedAbbo, Stephen Abbott, who was in a band called UKDK.And as it turned out, he was actually kind of a thief, but he knew Remco becauseRemco had worked with the band Copshoot Cop.And so he kindof figured that this young Dutch kid should do sound for us because we neededa sound man because we would turn up in a lot of places and we'd be so disheveledand disorganized and unprofessional that local sound staffs would be like,who are these assholes?You know what i mean like back then in the 90s if you didn't sort of show up.Track 3[10:41] I mean if you showed up at least in the manner thatpavement did a lot of these people you know youwere really at the mercy ofpeople um whoyou know hypothetically wereinto sound garden started and if youdidn't sound like them then you couldfuck right off um and if you didn't bringthat some level of professionalism or panache um then you could really get theshaft because people would just be like really annoyed that they had to workwith you and that's and and that's really what it's like when you have to dependon the house unless you've got one of of those rare situations where they give a crap.Right. So from that point on, you guys were on the road with Remco.Yeah, pretty much.Ninety seven percent of the time, like in 2010, like those one off things inNorth America, we wouldn't fly them over.Bob Weston did set them sound for us a few times.Now we've got this guy named Aaron Mullen.Track 3[11:54] Who did a few shows this year. I mean, it's just if it makes no sense.Financially for Remco to come over for a short stint. I mean,obviously doing sound for pavements, not rocket science,but Remco was proved his effectiveness generally at festivals.Festivals um he's prettypassionate about making sure the bands he works forsound good because it's big timeego gratification for him um iflike if people go around and say you guys sounded really great you know youknow and so he's he's very competitive in that regard which worked in our favoryeah sure did you guys sounded great at the festival i went to the Primavera in Porto.That was a fantastic show.Yeah. I'm happy that I see Barcelona didn't sound very good.Um, cause Remco didn't come to the practices, um, had trouble getting his visa.So he was completely unprepared for Barcelona.He didn't really even have Rebecca turned up.Track 3[13:08] And then a lot of the stuff that I'd learned because she's in the band now,um, Which I hadn't done before, weren't even turned on in Barcelona.And then in Porto, I'm not sure if you're aware of it,but I showed up for sound check and the bright blue case that had all of mybits and bobs of percussion,some of which I'd had since the early 90s, got stolen.Are you fucking kidding me? No, I didn't know that. No, I had no gear.I had no gear. I didn't even have anything to mount.I didn't have a tambourine that you can hit, and I didn't have anything to mount it on.And I had no tambourine maracas, cowbells, whistles, all my tricks, and claves.And thank goodness that Rebecca...Track 3[14:16] Was in the band because at first rebecca was just going to kind of come out there,and do keyboard parts and either comeand go or just kind of sit there and she's areally good i mean she's a great drummer and she'sa really good percussionist um so i said no you'regonna do something on every song andthen we you know quickly find out found out that she cando background vocals on anything and that'sgreat she can scream and obviously andshe's also very joyful performer um and she was you know she's a good very goodpercussionist so thankfully i was able to use some of her stuff um that nightbut it was still was not my stuff i I mean, it was very,very, it would be like if.Track 3[15:11] Well, actually, I think it kind of, I mean, it would be like if,like, guitars got stolen from a guitar player.I mean, that actually, it happened to Dinosaur, I think maybe in Porto,Dinosaur Jr., all their guitars got lost and they were still in Italy when they played.Oh my god yeah so theyhad to play i think they bought guitars um youknow that's so whatever i meani'm happy that it was me because if ithad been like anybody elsethen they probably would have had a harder time i mean i was able to just youkept it cool i'll just wing it you know what what i mean like it was funny becausenobody you know people you kind of realize the level of.Track 3[16:07] How, uh, you know, the, the immense level, you know, of your bandmates,they're kind of focused on their own deal.Like they couldn't deal with that.My bad news. Um, only Rebecca could like only Rebecca could like,you know, I mean, she's great.She's great. she was really a neat addition likereally uh from the fondashow i mean i went to the fonda show that was justit was mind-blowing that was a that was my favoriteshow of the tour like that was the first i can see why i mean it was long ifyou're a big fan i mean we played tons of songs and it sounded fine and it wassmall and the atmosphere was good and i mean at least 90 90% of the people inthere were way into the band. Oh, yeah.So, I mean, it was kind of an ideal time to see Pavement because we were freshoff the shelf and in a mode where we kind of had to give everything a go.Yeah, it was tremendous to be a part of it and experience it.One thing I wanted to talk to you about was Rebecca Clay Cole and you know, her, um.Track 3[17:29] Her contributions, I suppose, to the overall pavement experience,like, um, is she sort of a permanent member at this point? Is she coming to South America?I mean, of course she's coming to South America, right?Yeah. Oh yeah. Yeah. No, that's it. And that's it. I mean, right now that's it. Sure. Sure.It's 2024. You guys have been on the road for two years, man.Yeah we haven't done anything those for a long time we haven't done anything since um cincinnati,and um it's going to kind of be interesting because one good thing about southamerica is we don't obviously haven't played there um a couple of the places we've never played and,and we've only played three shows down there ever so we can just you know basicallyplay we don't have to learn 70 pavements to relearn 70 payment songs you know not that,not that they're immensely challenging but at the same time.Track 3[18:35] You know i basically could make the four set lists nowand um you knowwe're you know it's not going to be you won'tbe hearing um greenlander no butuh you go with the uh you go with theessentials not the deep cuts yeah and i think we've got i think i'm in a listof 32 that i sent out to them about six six weeks ago oh that's good yeah soundsall right well if i come into any money i'll see you in uh i'll see you in southamerica but let us know yeah yeah let us know i But,you know, times are tough.Well, should we talk about track number, what is it? Track number 33 on thecountdown? Okay, that's pretty good.All right, let's do it. Yeah, that's pretty good.Hey, this is Bob Mustanovich from Pavement.Track 1[19:32] Thanks for listening, and now on with a countdown. 33!Track 3[23:28] Okay, that was Transport is Arranged from the fourth record released February11th, 1997, Bright in the Corners.It's the third track on the album, and it's the sixth song from Bright in theCorners that is on the countdown at this point.So Bright in the Corners is representing the bottom portion of this top 50 so far.Bob, what do you think about Transport is Arranged? Jamie.I just think that, first of all, it's cool to hear that Bright in the Cornersgot a lot of action, having a lot of love.It is a very listenable pavement record. I love it.And I think Transport is Arranged, when the record was made in Kernersville,North Carolina with Mitch Easter,was just kind of viewed and the feel around it was that, okay,that's another song that definitely should be on the record.Track 3[24:33] Um but isn't the kindof song that um it youknow maybe should be a single or something like that it was just it was justa song that was like really solid and good and then as the song got played overand over again on tour and over the years um i think it's become rather clear to me that,you know, aside from kind of the more bubblegum-y songs on the record like Stereo and Shady Lane,that it would have stood up as a truly special pavement song.And I just think that it's, for the most part, an outstanding example of,Of not only Stephen's songwriting ability and composing, but I just think it'san unusually good set of lyrics.I'm with you. When I think about like verse three, I swung my fiery sword,I vent my spleen at the Lord.He is abstract and bored, too much milk and honey.Well, I'll walk through the wilderness with nothing but a compass and a canteensetting the scenes. I mean, it just got this certain depth.Track 3[25:57] Of course, you know, I am the worst of my kind. I want to cremate the crush.It's funny, some people think that that's crutch, but it's I want to crematethe crush actually has a lot of personal importance to me because that's anexpression I used to use.Track 3[26:17] Really? Yeah, Cremate the Crush. I would actually say that that's a valid lyricalcontribution from my notebook that was usurped by Balchmus,which he was more than welcome to do that.That um cremate the crush was often used when one of your mates had um regardless of.Track 3[26:45] Gender orientation had fallen really really hard for somebody and it becameclear to yourself and everyone around that it wasn't going to work and it was a really bad idea.Track 3[26:58] And um so you had to pull your friend and that believe me that happens whetheryou're You know, no matter how old you are, you know, sometimes you just,um, I think we've all seen it in our lives.We've seen people that fall really hard for the wrong person and rather thanjust sit back and watch them go through a very vile, um, heartbreak,um, an effort needs to be made to cremate the crush.Um wow and that's the expression that i used um all right man like this is ridiculouslike because you see it all the time like yes obviously amongst my dude friends like dude man,you're really barking up the wrong tree there you knowwhat i mean not yeah whatever whatever series of reasons umbut really transport is arranged umas that song got played there's a a really unusually goodversion of it really good recording and filming from an italian show that wedid um it's on youtube um oh i'll have to look that up mouth miss had reallyreally short hair um it was this really strange festival that i believe wassomewhere in the vicinity of venice um.Track 3[28:18] And it was one of these festivals that you turn up to in the early afternoon,and the people are still, like, kind of making the stage, and you're sort of,like, in this state of disbelief that any concert's actually going to happen there today.And this was the vibe. We were just like, whoa.Oh, you know, because usually it's like, you know, the Heineken banners arealready up and like, you know, the kids are already listening to,you know, a band that sounds like Green Day and, you know, people are drinkingor you see the tent village.This festival, it looked like they'd gotten the days wrong, and it was goingto happen two or three days, but somehow they whipped it all together,and we played a very memorable version of Transport is Arranged.Track 3[29:13] And you know it pretty much became a staple of ourlive show from the bright in the corners tourforward um it's just has a good um mid-tempo vibe to it good lyrics good guitarlove the tone of his voice the tone of his voice is really like in a sweet spot,i agree i just say to me it's just like a great pavement song it's always really relaxing um,kind of in a grounded sort of way but like even more relaxing and like,yeah i mean some people you know at times think that pavement doesn't rock andthen when we actually do rock we're just like pretending to be hardcore or pretendingto be like jokey metal or or something like that.I actually feel like Transporter is arranged, if it's played with a proper punch,kind of is truly a rock and roll song.Oh, when you get to that, when you get past the solo and you guys all get intoit, it sounds so tight and it sounds.Track 3[30:23] Yeah, it sounds very tight and it sounds very rocky, you know,like rock and roll. It rocks.It's a great rock and song. it kind of stomps and but then it gets really mellowit just has really really good dynamic and yeah I can tell you like wheneverI put it on a set list we don't,We don't really start with it because it doesn't, you know, sometimes songswith like kind of a very mellow lead in, it's not such a good idea.But you can sort of stick it after anything kind of noisy.Track 3[31:00] And then, so then people can sort of like return to like sort of a serene vibe.And then after a certain period of time, it kicks back in again.So, um, I just love, um, I love that song and it's always a pleasure to see,to put it on a list and see it coming up.And, um, in fact, depending on who I'm talking to, if they've never heard Pavement before, um,and I sort of get a general idea that they like rock music, then it's a songthat I would almost play first.First um to sort of youknow give them a feel and then when i do play transportersrange they're like oh okay like yeah like 90s umcollege rock or something and uhyeah yeah which is fair special it'smore special than that but i i hear you you knowbut i'm talking about complete newbiles they umbecause if you play them something toocute or i mean obviouslyyou know i'm in the horse racing profession and there's a lot of people thatyou play father to a sister of thought and range life and other sort of countrytin songs because they you know would absolutely there's a lot of people i knowa lot of my friends um who know of pavement don't like pavement because.Track 3[32:26] It to them it sounds too harsh um youknow because a lot of people don't really have any punk rock backgroundright okay um they don't want to hear anythinglike unfair or serpentine pador they don't want to hear anything medium fire lo-fi like debris slide or forklifti mean like something like forklift just sounds like 13 year olds making a horribleracket um to them like they don't see the cool in that you know yeah um youknow of course There's...Track 3[33:01] I mean, I haven't listened to it on vinyl in a long time, but Forklift,you know, I remember it sounding kind of maniacal and frenzied in a very 1990ssort of way, which was kind of cool.But I can understand, but Transport Is Arranged kind of ticks all the boxes,like Grounded would sound like kind of like too much, like a stoner type thing to people.People um shady lane might sound kind oflike listless summer babes kindof repetitive and some people might think like ohyou guys wanted to be nirvana or somethingum which we certainlydid not um that didn'tlook like much fun to me and uh but yeah no i just i just love the song andi think that it's it should definitely not be a forgotten song transport isarranged i think it It should be sort of at the forefront of anybody makinga mixtape or a tape of 10 to 15 pavement songs.I like that. Yeah, it stands up. So then you would say on the countdown,it's underrated at 33, right?Yeah, and I would, I mean, for me, it would always be in my top five.Top five? Holy shit, Bob.Yeah, it would be in my top five.Track 3[34:26] Unquestionably top 10 But probably top 5 In fact people ask you know sometimes like,You know, one lazy question by anybody is like, what's your actual favorite pavement song?And, you know, when you say transport is arranged, you're not being entirely obvious.And then if they've only heard 10 pavement songs or 15 pavement songs or justthe hits, then you're kind of forcing them to listen to a great pavement songthat they may have not heard before.So it would unquestionably be in my top five um it's under four minutes i mean um,i really am very much of the you know when it comes to a band that's a rock band in sort of the,three minute form like pavement is i mean um you know my general belief.Track 3[35:23] Maybe it has to do with attention span or something like that but songs overfive minutes better bepretty awesome for you to justify them being thatlong agree um totally agree it's alittle pretentious brilliant right there's somany great bands who have made somany great songs and they just fall preyto loving their groove so hard thatthey do it one or two passes too manyand a song thatmight have had like you know major appeal whetherit be like sort from a venom sense or from a sweetnesssense is just um losesits effect if it'sgot too much length so um i thinkit weighs in under four minutes i think it's you know it's i think it's fourminutes are justified i don't think there's any wasted motion i think it's gotgood dynamics and again one of malcolm's best sets of lyrics um you know andi think you know obviously.Track 3[36:30] David and Stephen were both very good lyricists and, you know,David's a poet. He was celebrated for it.And I think that David, you know, was an influence on Stephen and sort of challengedhim from a lyric writing perspective and would get annoyed when Stephen wasbeing too lazy about lyrics.And I think very much in, you know, the Stevens sense,it's a unusually or just a very good set of lyrics from a lyricist who had atthat point very much found his way.You know, something that had been sort of a discardable aspect of the band,even to an extent through a lot of Slanted and Enchanted.And then, you know, I mean, some people think that his lyrics are just garbled nonsense.And to an extent, you know, by intent, they are, you know, fairly good.Track 3[37:44] Senseless but i mean you know i think of songs like um this song and from acompletely different era um lyrics like trigger cut um i just think that youknow he he's he does not get,the he gets the respect he deserves as a guitar player but perhaps not as alyricist i think you know transport his range has both yeah i'd agree totallyagree what is the whole pillars of eight thing. Do you have any insight on that?What's that? The pillars of eight. Do you have any insight on that?No, no, no, I don't really have anything of that.I think it probably has to do with, um, just, uh, you know, then you're falling into him.Um, and I think you've probably seen some of his scrawlings and notebooks and stuff like that.Um, you fall into him choosingexpressions and just simply sortof loving words and how they look andhow they sound coming out of his mouth and then sothen using uh you know sets of a set of words like pillars of eight and puttingin a place where it's going to fit you know obviously that you know eight rhymeswith a lot a lot of things and fit you know i'm saying so yeah yeah you know he's.Track 3[39:06] When you're in a situation where not only are you going to have to write lyrics but,you're going to also have them umanalyzed then i think that you force yourself to you know put a certain amountof time into that process and i think throughout the course of um his entire songwriting history.Track 3[39:38] I think, you know, perhaps it's a bit freeing since Pavement ended that thingsare a little bit less under the microscope.Track 3[39:47] But certainly in 1997, they, you know, were very much under the microscope.In fact, this album, I remember getting really slammed by a writer at a majormusic publication for the lyrics in Blue Hawaiian.Um, they were actually misconstrued as sexist in, um, this, um,particularly the line, the slap is a gift. Your cheeks have lost their luster.Um, Oh my God. I would have never put that together.I would have got there from that. You know, this slap is a gift.I mean when Imean then you know in some ways like um you could see how the journalist madethat point I suppose but I mean I yeah like you I never really thought alongthose lines because maybe if you know the person and you know that they're notlike a misogynist creep then,you don't even really think about them in that context but um perhaps um thatperson did and I just remember, you know, when you write songs,which I don't do, then you are just like any type of writer,you are susceptible to...Track 3[41:10] To criticism and then you know then of course you've you'vereached a certain mantle when your lyrics are being pickedapart and every pick of you in detail is being brought to the fore um and butthat's like also a compliment that people you know care that much about whatyou write that's um yeah but you know at the same time like you know some things that are almostlike unfathomable to a songwriter, um,come to the, you know, come, come to the floor when, when people go over them with a fine tooth comb.Um, but, uh, no, I've never really heard anybody moan about Brighton the Corners,um, lyrics and, you know, maybe it's because it is like in the thirties.Um, but I really don't think it should be a forgotten song.I think that in some ways it's as good as Late Period,and when I say Late Period, I would say albums four and five,as good as Pavement was in terms of sounding like Pavement.I mean, there isn't much of Terror Twilight,which can be described as sort of typically pavement,but there is on Bright in the Corners, and you definitely cannot describe asong like Stereo as typically pavement.Track 3[42:40] So, yeah, no, pleasure talking about one of my favorite pavement songs, Jamie.Me Bob it's been a pleasure talking to you period it always is anytime man I'mbasically just basking in the glorious winter sunlight here in Paris that'sspectacular yeah with my unmade bed,And, um, I don't even know what I'm going to do.I actually have to go grocery shopping, but yeah, a pleasure,pleasure to talk to you and good luck with all of your endeavors.And, uh, let me know if you need anything more from me.Awesome. Thanks so much. Always, you know, uh, shall I remind you again that,um, Steve West would probably be, you know, gladly help, um, help you out.Oh, I'll ask him. Yeah.He'll definitely do it. Cool. I can also hook you up with Rebecca if you want her to do one.It would be cool. That would be really cool because then I could ask her thatquestion that you planted in my head.Yeah, it'd be really good actually, because then, then you'd be the first,um, prominent music journalist that tackled that question.Track 3[43:51] Anyways, love you, mate. And, uh, have, have a, have a great,uh, Canadian afternoon and I'll, I'll, uh, pass on.You've got all the Wes information, right? I do. Yeah.Yeah. I'll pass on Rebecca's. Cool. Oh, all right. All right.Take care of yourself and keep on flying the flag.You betcha. All right. Enjoy yourself. My pleasure.One more thing. Wash your goddamn hands.Thanks for listening.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/meeting-malkmus-a-pavement-podcast/exclusive-contentAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's show, we...celebrate 40 years of R.E.M.'s Reckoningspend quality time with new records from Sarah Shook & The Disarmers, Chicano Batman, Old 97's & Khruangbintry to think of a third bullet point but ultimately come up emptyAll this & much, much less!Debts No Honest Man Can Pay is over 2 rock-solid hours of musical eclectica & other noodle stories. The show started in 2003 at WHFR-FM (Dearborn, MI), moved to WGWG-FM (Boiling Springs, NC) in 2006 & Plaza Midwood Community Radio (Charlotte, NC) in 2012, with a brief pit-stop at WLFM-FM (Appleton, WI) in 2004.

In this episode, John and Stewart sit down with producer, engineer, musician, song writer, studio owner, and the Godfather of Jangle Pop, the one and only, Mitch Easter. Mitch has always been and continues to be a staple of the Indie Rock scene in North Carolina and beyond. First operating out of Drive in Studio located in his parents' garage, and in 1994 moving to his current studio, the Fidelitorium. Mitch has worked with a laundry list of seminal artists, including R.E.M., Helium, Pavement, Wilco, Ben Folds Five, Pylon, and Polvo. He's also an active musician and writer, releasing music for almost a decade with his band "Let's Active" and currently as a solo artist. In this episode Mitch discusses building, operating, and outfitting his recording studios, the joys and perils of tracking to analog tape, producing the first R.E.M. records, and why it's not always a good idea to fix everything in a recording.

The guys are joined by Patreon Revisitor Kevin Hartbarger to discuss “Murmur” from R.E.M.  Plenty of other discussion including being in the south but not being connected with the south, Athens GA, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Stephen Hague and Mitch Easter, the PTL Club, Laocoon and his (her) sons, mixtapes, Patient Zero, Marat, some listener picks, and the infamous reason why it's taken us so long to discuss this album. Check out R.E.M. at:  https://remhq.com/  Check out other episodes at RecordsRevisitedPodcast.com, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, iHeartMedia, Google Podcasts and Spotify. Additional content is found at: Facebook.com/recordsrevisitedpodcast or twitter @podcastrecords or IG at instagram.com/recordsrevisitedpodcast/ or join our Patreon at patreon.com/RecordsRevisitedPodcast

Adam sits down with music producer, songwriter, and artist Don Dixon to discuss his work as part of the producing team for Murmur and Reckoning by R.E.M..They talk about how Don became a music producer, how he met Mitch Easter, and how he started working with R.E.M.. They look at the differences between the two albums, as well as the challenges they faced whilst making them. They also touch on the legacy of the albums, how R.E.M. went on to become a much bigger band, and what it is that Don values in music.Our next episode is out on Monday February 5th and will begin our coverage of Fables of the Reconstruction, the third album by R.E.M..Join the conversation on:Twitter: https://twitter.com/whatismusicpodInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatismusicpodE-mail: whatismusicpod@gmail.comGet access to more shows, exclusive bonus content, ad-free episodes of this show, and more music discussion by subscribing to our Patreon!Head to patreon.com/whatismusicpod and receive up to two new episodes of our various shows every week (including shows about Manic Street Preachers and monthly themed playlists!), ad-free archives of What Is Music?, and access to our Patron-only Discord server for even more music (and non-music) discussion!Support our show when starting your own podcast!By signing up to Buzzsprout with this link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=780379Check out our merch!https://whatismusicpod.redbubble.comDonate to our podcast!https://ko-fi.com/whatismusichttp://whatismusic.buzzsprout.com/Support the show

BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE (STAY HIGH) - The Black Keys GOTTA MOVE - Jonathan Pushkar SADNESS AS A GIFT - Adrianne Lenker WHO WILL YOU BELIEVE - Pernice Brothers ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS - A Certain Ratio DON'T FADE AWAY - J.P. Bimini, The Black Belts NEON PILL - Cage the Elephant MASSAMBA AFUNDANCE - Jahari Massamba Unit, Karriem Riggins, Madlib BIRDS TALK TOO - Laura Jane Grace WILMER - Tourneforte FANTASNEEZE - Bombay Bicycle Club w/Matilda Mann WE BOTH WON - Bory WE MAKE HITS - Yard Act ASYLUM - Salt Collective (Juliana Hatfield, Richard Lloyd, Chris Stramey, Peter Holsapple, Mitch Easter, Susan Cowsill, et al) from the salt collective album from last year NO, THERE'S NO HOPE FOR YOU - Remo Drive CAPE MAY DIAMOND - Barrence Whitfield & the Savages SOMETHING'S RATTLING (COWPOKE) - Benjamin Gibbard YOU HAVE BOUGHT YOURSELF A BOAT - MJ Lenderman RIGHT BACK TO IT - Waxahatchee, MJ Lenderman FALLING SHORT - Vial THAT'S LIFE (LIVE) - Graham Parker & the Goldtops w/The Ladybugs

 Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist Paul Chastain co-founded Velvet Crush rock group. Signed by Alan McGee to his mythic British indie label Creation Records who gave the band's first and second albums, the latter, the seminal “Teenage Symphonies To God”, worldwide release. Paul's musical arc also includes path crossings with a handful of top-notch talent. He has been playing and singing alongside pal Matthew Sweet from the pre-”Girlfriend” days onward. Run-ins along the way with such pop music icons and ne'er-do-wells as Roger McGuinn, Mitch Easter, Susanna Hoffs, Stephen Duffy, Tommy Keene, Ami Onuki (Puffy Ami/Yumi). Drummer/producer John Louis Richardson has similar roots, brushes with greatness and dubious associations. Among them, Joey Molland's Badfinger, Tommy Keene, Gin Blossoms, Keene Brothers, Jay Bennett, Will Hoge. He still plays live and records with DIY power pop pioneers and long time friends, Shoes. John runs his Drum Farm Studio in Menomonie, Wisconsin. A major through-line for the album Ours & amp; Life-events shaped others due to the passing of longtime mutual friend and bandmate Tommy Keene. As an inspirational figure who opened for The Matthew Sweet band, toured with Velvet Crush, and played in Richardson's band, the impact of his loss was significant. This led to the inclusion of Keene's song “Baby Face” on the album, as well as aiding in the completion of the track “Can't Let Go (Oh Tommy)”.   Paul's Info https://www.instagram.com/smallish.square/ https://www.facebook.com/TheSmallSquare https://www.youtube.com/@TheSmallSquareGroup https://www.smallsquaremusic.com/ https://farmtolabelrecords.com/artists/the-small-square/  

This week we are sponsored by our Patron, Dave Brown (One Band 5 Songs). We are discussing the 1986 album, Life's Rich Pageant, by REM.One Band 5 Songs - https://open.spotify.com/show/41Qob6bGxamOq4P8FW2XuZ?si=6504e4b1dd484a90New Major Awards EP - majorawards.bandcamp.comJoin our Patreon to get bonus audio, videos, blog posts, and access to our Discord for only $1 at patreon.com/punklottopodPodcast platforms and social media links at linktr.ee/punklottopodCall our voicemail line: 202-688-PUNKLeave us a review and rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.Song clips featured on this episode:REM - Begin the BeginREM - These DaysREM - Fall On Me

The Big Mates discuss small waveforms, portmanteaus, Muse, and Murmur by R.E.M.Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their deep dive into the career and discography of R.E.M. by starting their track-by-track analysis on the band's debut album, released in 1983. They talk about the writing and recording process, the context surrounding the songs, and offer up analysis, opinions, and thoughts from three differing perspectives on music, from being deeply into analysis and music, to not caring for art or critique, and everything in between.They touch on how the band found their producers in Mitch Easter and Don Dixon, their decision to sound like a different band, how the band write their songs, and the legacy of Radio Free Europe.They do this whilst also giving their thoughts and opinions on the album as a whole, the first couple of tracks, and how they see this fitting into the band's discography going forward.How did the band evolve from their EP? How far into the album will we get? Can anyone make out the lyrics? Find out on this episode of What Is Music?Our next episode is out on Monday December 4th and will continue our track-by-track analysis of Murmur.Join the conversation on:Twitter: https://twitter.com/whatismusicpodInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatismusicpodE-mail: whatismusicpod@gmail.comGet access to more shows, exclusive bonus content, ad-free episodes of this show, and more music discussion by subscribing to our Patreon!Head to patreon.com/whatismusicpod and receive up to two new episodes of our various shows every week (including shows about Manic Street Preachers and monthly themed playlists!), ad-free archives of What Is Music?, and access to our Patron-only Discord server for even more music (and non-music) discussion!Support our show when starting your own podcast!By signing up to Buzzsprout with this link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=780379Our Sponsor this week is Unfold. Find out more at www.cristinabonnet.comCheck out our merch!https://whatismusicpod.redbubble.comDonate to our podcast!https://ko-fi.com/whatismusichttp://whatismusic.buzzsprout.com/Support the show

This week we shine a light on Athens, Georgia band Love Tractor and their fabulous, Mitch Easter produced 1989 release 'Themes From Venus'. Our guest, Milwaukee Oregon substitute teacher Matthew Kenneth, got some insider info from the band members themselves as we unpack this recently re-released gem of a record. Songs discussed in this episode: Satan's New Wave Soul Losers (Instrumental Mitch Easter mix), I Broke My Saw (Mitch Easter mix), Fun To Be Happy, Buy Me A Million Dollars (Live Atlanta Arts Festival 5-17-1983) - Love Tractor; Crazy - Pylon; So. Central Rain - R.E.M.; I Broke My Saw - Love Tractor; Alabama Getaway - Grateful Dead; Themes From Venus - Love Tractor; House On Fire - The Wind; Crash - Love Tractor; Moonage Daydream - David Bowie; Satan's New Wave Soul Losers - Love Tractor; All Going Out Together - Big Dipper; Venice, Crystal World - Love Tractor; Better Worsens - Gold Dust Lounge; Hey Mess, Nova Express - Love Tractor; Ska'd For Life - The Ska Dows; Fantasy, Here Come The Cops - Love Tractor

Interview with Tim Lee & Susan Bauer Lee of Bark Bark is a drum set, a Fender 6-string bass, two voices and more hooks than Bill Dance keeps in his tackle box. Loud is their new album. Bark comprises the collaborative duo of Susan Bauer Lee (drums and vocals) and Tim Lee (Fender VI bass and vocals) based in Water Valley, Mississippi. Susan has played and toured with Tim the past two decades with Bark and Tim Lee 3. Tim got his start in Missisippi's The Windbreakers before going on to tour as part of Mitch Easter' Let's Active and seminal college rock band Swimming Pool Q's. Loud is being releasedby Dial Back Sound / Cool Dog Sound on 12” LP vinyl, CD, digital download and stream September 5. “If you can fill the unforgiving three and a half minutes with two hundred and ten seconds of Rock n Roll, yours is the earth and everything that is in it.” I think Rudyard Kipling said that. What do you do when you don't know what to do? In the face of commercial failure, heartbreaking loss, environmental collapse, grief, one too many beers. You make a record . . . and you make it loud. It starts with “Love Minus Action,” and the lyrics “I'm a loser not a fighter.” Lennon couldn't have said it better. But the real story here is that you can't lose if you don't play the game. But what do you do if you don't play the game? You carry on without the baggage of giving a shit about the game. You dance on the graves of the forgotten winners and you play for the regulars. There's a field in North Mississippi. Several years from now. After the screens have all gone dark. The lush green glows in the dull light of a cloudy afternoon. In the middle of the field there is a drum set and two amplifiers. An old generator rattles in the silence. A woman sits at the drum stool and fixes the mic to reach her lips. A man tunes his Bass VI guitar and twists the volume knob all the way up. A ragged crowd gathers from out of the woods. A rumble of distant thunder rolls through the sky. Then the snare cracks and the band plays on. It's Bark, and they're playing us out just before the rain. They're playing Loud; it's the distillation of Rock n Roll—the beat, the riff, the words and the voice. The things that have always been there from “Psychotic Reaction” to “Satisfaction.” Bandcamp: dialbacksound.bandcamp.com bark-bark-loud.bandcamp.com Website: bark-loud.com Facebook: @Bark.Bark.Loud Instagram: @bark.timlee3

My guest is Producer/Engineer John Pfiffner, who has worked with Geggy Tah, Mitch Easter, and Church Girls. John is based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.  In this episode, we discuss North Carolina Mitch Easter REM Growing Up In Michigan Becoming a Southerner Atticus Finch For Dad Culture Shock Sanford and Son Southern Accents School Chorus Sister In Ballet MTV VHS Tapes Guitar Piano Regrets Great Teachers Smoke Breaks and Coffee Awareness of Recording Fostex X15 Tascam 246 James Brown Trying to Keep a Band Together Living in Atlanta Drinking Sweet Tea Playing Covers Playing with McKay Garner Bad Run of Tape Early Studio Lessons Learning Phase No Real Jobs Cover Bands College Radio & Hair Metal Dentist Office Studio Living Lean Magic in Musicians Feeling Isolated Susan Rodgers 1176 Knobs Mitch Easter John Keane Tape to ADATS to Pro Tools Planning Ahead Calendars Scott Solter Socioeconomics     Matt's Rant: Credits Links and Show Notes John's Site Credits Guest: John Pfiffner Host: Matt Boudreau Engineer: Matt Boudreau Producer: Matt Boudreau Editing: Anne-Marie Pleau  WCA Theme Music: Cliff Truesdell  Announcer: Chuck Smith  

This week I visited Jay Garrigan to talk about his career in music, including stints in such bands as Violet Strange, Laburnum, Temperance League, Poprocket, The Eyebrows and others! We talk about his recently broken finger and how it both has and hasn't sidelined his music, about the pros and cons of being on a label, working with Mitch Easter, self promotion, The Eyebrows upcoming record, and more! And be sure to sign up for The Eyebrows mailing list for exclusive peaks at the new album and lots more straight to your inbox!The Eyebrows: https://the-eyebrows.com/Jay Garrigan: http://jaygarrigan.com/Fidelitorium: https://www.fidelitorium.com/Songs for GGHT82:The Eyebrows - I Feel UnlovedJay Garrigan - Hard WiredViolet Strange - Graffiti LoveLaburnum - Silent NightPoprocket - BounceThe Eyebrows - Red DressThe Eyebrows - Say Yeah!The Eyebrows - Demon in My HeadVisit Gabba Gabba Records & Vintage Goods! Located inside Vintage Village, on the first floor near Dillards, in the Eastridge Mall, Gastonia, NC!Support the show

In episode #140 of The XS Noize Podcast, Mark Millar meets Scott McCaughey from supergroup The Baseball Project to discuss their fourth studio album, Grand Salami Time! The band is made up of Steve Wynn (The Dream Syndicate), former R.E.M. members Peter Buck and Mike Mills, Linda Pitmon (Filthy Friends, Alejandro Escovedo) and Scott McCaughey (The Minus 5/Young Fresh Fellows and R.E.M. Produced by formative R.E.M. producer Mitch Easter (Let's Active, The dB's) on his final album, Grand Salami Time! brought together former R.E.M. members in the studio again for the first time in over three decades, and it's The Baseball Project's first release in nine years. In this interview, Scott McCaughey talks about writing and recording Grand Salami Time! We spoke about Baseball, what it was like being a member of R.E.M. for 17 years and much more. FOLLOW XS NOIZE: ➤ WEBSITE: https://www.xsnoize.com ➤ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/xsnoizemusic ➤ INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/xsnoizemusic ➤ FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/xsnoizemusic ➤ SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/show/1Tt04km... ➤ APPLE PODCASTS: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast... ➤ AMAZON MUSIC: ⁠https://music.amazon.co.uk/podcasts/c...

Since their formation in 2007, The Baseball Project has become a part of the game by creating musical tributes to baseball, its stories and stars - and it's impact on American culture…  An indie rock super group composed of Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate), Scott McCaughey (Young Fresh Fellows), Linda Pitmon (Zuzu's Petals) and Mike Mills and Peter Buck (R.E.M.), The Baseball Project has become well-loved for their brilliant, catchy and historically accurate songs of baseball lore and oddball characters!  And this season, their fourth studio album "Grand Salami Time!" hit record stores on June 30th via Omnivore Recordings and produced by Mitch Easter, who worked with Mills and Buck in the '80s on R.E.M.'s early albums, including their debut EP, Chronic Town, and their debut album, Murmur.  Hosts Tug Cowart and Scott Munn are big fans of R.E.M., Braves baseball, and The Baseball Project - so, we're proud to welcome the Braves Fan in this "all baseball-fan rock band" to the show! Mike Mills - welcome to Braves Country! Listen & Subscribe to the Braves Country Podcast on The Podcast Park Braves Radio Network Channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and every major podcast platform! Braves Country is sponsored by our Braves Fan friends at Century 21 Solomon Properties in Savannah, Georgia servicing the historic downtown Savannah area, the Islands Area, and Atlanta,'s beach - beautiful Tybee Island, GA!  Call JOEL SOLOMON today at 912-604-0896 for ALL your Real Estate needs on the Georgia Coast! #MikeMills #TheBaseballProject #REM #GrandSalamiTime #THISISBRAVESCOUNTRY #Braves #BravesCountry  #joelsolomon #savannah #tybeeisland #realtor #century21realestate #spotifypodcasts #podcastpark #applepodcasts #bravesradionetwork #chopon #BravesCountryPodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since their formation in 2007, The Baseball Project has become a part of the game by creating musical tributes to baseball, its stories and stars - and it's impact on American culture…  An indie rock super group composed of Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate), Scott McCaughey (Young Fresh Fellows), Linda Pitmon (Zuzu's Petals) and Mike Mills and Peter Buck (R.E.M.), The Baseball Project has become well-loved for their brilliant, catchy and historically accurate songs of baseball lore and oddball characters!  And this season, their fourth studio album "Grand Salami Time!" hit record stores on June 30th via Omnivore Recordings and produced by Mitch Easter, who worked with Mills and Buck in the '80s on R.E.M.'s early albums, including their debut EP, Chronic Town, and their debut album, Murmur.  Hosts Tug Cowart and Scott Munn are big fans of R.E.M., Braves baseball, and The Baseball Project - so, we're proud to welcome the Braves Fan in this "all baseball-fan rock band" to the show! Mike Mills - welcome to Braves Country! Listen & Subscribe to the Braves Country Podcast on The Podcast Park Braves Radio Network Channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and every major podcast platform! Braves Country is sponsored by our Braves Fan friends at Century 21 Solomon Properties in Savannah, Georgia servicing the historic downtown Savannah area, the Islands Area, and Atlanta,'s beach - beautiful Tybee Island, GA!  Call JOEL SOLOMON today at 912-604-0896 for ALL your Real Estate needs on the Georgia Coast! #MikeMills #TheBaseballProject #REM #GrandSalamiTime #THISISBRAVESCOUNTRY #Braves #BravesCountry  #joelsolomon #savannah #tybeeisland #realtor #century21realestate #spotifypodcasts #podcastpark #applepodcasts #bravesradionetwork #chopon #BravesCountryPodcastSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Usnea [00:37] "Lying in Ruin" Random Cosmic Violence Relapse Records RR7280 2014 Sophomore outing from this Portland-based death/doom metal band, on lovely bone white & blue splatter vinyl. Disc one, side one, track one. Named after everyone's favorite fruticose lichen (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usnea). Stray Cats [13:32] "Something's Wrong with My Radio" Rant n' Rave with the Stray Cats EMI America SO-17102 1983 Whole lotta pickin goin on. The waning days of that particular rockabilly revival. Ray Charles [16:07] "I Got a Woman" The Ray Charles Story Volume One Atlantic 8063 1962 An early 60s Ray Charles comp. "I've Got a Woman" lays the groundwork for "What I'd Say". Ray Charles [19:01] "Rockhouse" The Ray Charles Story Volume Two Atlantic 8064 1962 A fine instrumental demonstrating some excellent r&b chops. Mariyu Takeuchi [23:00] "ドリーム・オブ・ユー～レモンライムの青い風～" Re-Collection RCA RHL-8816 1984 If Google Translate isn't steering me wrong, this track translates to "Dream of You - Lemon Lime Blue Wind". Seems like 7-Up might want to look into a new flavor. Boris Karloff [27:55] "The Princess and the Pea" Reads The Ugly Duckling and other Tales by Hans Christian Andersen. Caedmon Records TC 1109 1959 Delightfully read by Mr. Karloff of course. First published in May of 1835. John Lee Hooker [30:16] "Boom Boom" The Real Blues Tradition Everest TR 2089 1970 Arguably the canonical John Lee Hooker song. Taj Mahal [32:50] "Going Up To The Country And Paint My Mailbox Blue" The Real Thing Columbia G 30619 1971 Recorded live in New York at the Fillmore East on February 13, 1971. Featuring not one not two not three but four... four tubas! Igor Stravinsky [36:07] "Fanfare for Two Trumpets/The Owl and the Pussy-Cat" Recent Stravinsky Conducted by the Composer Columbia Masterworks ML 6454 1967 Featuring a cover illustation of the maestro by one of my favorite artists, Alberto Giacometti. R.E.M. [41:12] "Harborcoat" Reckoning I.R.S. Records SP70044 1984 Please. Find my harborcoat. I can't go outside without it. The bands second full length album and their last with the excellent producer Mitch Easter. The Records [45:06] "Starry Eyes" The Records Virgin VA 13130 1979 _Power pop doesn't get much better than this. Skinny ties and all. (https://youtu.be/8TUepa0yfyw) Originally released in the UK as Shades in Bed, but retitled and reordered as The Records for North America. _ Willie Nelson [49:27] "Time of the Preacher" Red Headed Stranger Columbia KC 33482 1975 (1979 Terre Haute repress) Side one track ones don't get much better than this. New York Dolls [51:54] "Ain't Got No Home/Dizzy Miss Lizzy" Red Patent Leather Earmark 40018 2003 (originally released in 1984 on Fan Club.) The beautiful chaos of the live Dolls. Recorded live at the Little Hippodrome Club in NYC on March 2, 1975. Not only is there a wonderful documentary on bassist Arthur Kane (https://youtu.be/7j89-oIszO0), Martin Scorcese has just released a documentary on David Johansen (https://youtu.be/qu8oFJ-eu2c) which I can't wait to watch. Music behind the DJ: "Hang 'Em High" by Booker T and the MGs

On this week's show, we... celebrate 40 years of R.E.M.'s Murmur spin fresh tracks from Lucinda Williams, Jenny Lewis & Jess Williamson  spend quality time with new records by Caroline Rose, The Hold Steady & boygenius  All this & much, much less!Debts No Honest Man Can Pay is over 2 rock-solid hours of musical eclectica & other noodle stories. The show started in 2003 at WHFR-FM (Dearborn, MI), moved to WGWG-FM (Boiling Springs, NC) in 2006 & Plaza Midwood Community Radio (Charlotte, NC) in 2012, with a brief pit-stop at WLFM-FM (Appleton, WI) in 2004.

Often side-project bands don't live up to the hype of the artist or band's main gig. But for Stephin Merritt, this isn't the case with several of his non-Magnetic Fields bands. With The 6ths, he's taken on the challenge of writing the songs but handing them over to guest vocalists. On the 1995 debut Wasps' Nests, that means a wide array of contributors, including Lou Barlow from Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr., Mary Timony of Helium and Ex Hex, Dean Wareham of Galaxie 500 and Luna, Georgia Hubley of Yo La Tengo, Mac McCaughan of Superchunk, Mitch Easter of Let's Active, and more. The musical landscape shifts from song to song, one minute aping the motortik of Stereolab and next the harmony sunshine of Laurel Canyon in the 1970s. But it's all in Stephin Merritt's wheelhouse, utilizing an array of synth and keyboard sounds over minimalist rhythms that reveal layers upon repeated listens.   Songs In This Episode: Intro - Aging Spinsters 15:56 - All Dressed Up in Dreams 20:23 - San Diego Zoo 35:02 - Here in My Heart Outro - Falling Out of Love (With You)   Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon. Listen to the episode archive at DigMeOutPodcast.com.

Often side-project bands don't live up to the hype of the artist or band's main gig. But for Stephin Merritt, this isn't the case with several of his non-Magnetic Fields bands. With The 6ths, he's taken on the challenge of writing the songs but handing them over to guest vocalists. On the 1995 debut Wasps' Nests, that means a wide array of contributors, including Lou Barlow from Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr., Mary Timony of Helium and Ex Hex, Dean Wareham of Galaxie 500 and Luna, Georgia Hubley of Yo La Tengo, Mac McCaughan of Superchunk, Mitch Easter of Let's Active, and more. The musical landscape shifts from song to song, one minute aping the motortik of Stereolab and next the harmony sunshine of Laurel Canyon in the 1970s. But it's all in Stephin Merritt's wheelhouse, utilizing an array of synth and keyboard sounds over minimalist rhythms that reveal layers upon repeated listens.   Songs In This Episode: Intro - Aging Spinsters 15:56 - All Dressed Up in Dreams 20:23 - San Diego Zoo 35:02 - Here in My Heart Outro - Falling Out of Love (With You)   Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon. Listen to the episode archive at DigMeOutPodcast.com.

Kitchen Sink #131 PlaylistDazy – Choose Yr Ramone (new, OUTOFBODY, Richmond VA power pop)Life on Venus – Stranger Times (new single, Moscow shoegaze)Love, Burns – Pencils (Phil Sutton of Pale Lights, new Fade in the Sun EP, Queens NY indie pop)Break 1Jack Skuller – Asking For a Friend (new, Draw the Lucky Card, NJ indie pop)Key Out – Train (new, afterville, Sydney indie rock)The Shop Window – Circles Go Round (new, from forthcoming A 4 Letter Word, Maidstone UK jangle pop with Beth Arzy on backing vocals)Bellavista – Shelter Shock (B side of The Northwest Room single, SF shoegaze) Alvvays – Pharmacist (new, Blue Rev, Toronto indie rock)The Orchids – I Never Thought I Was Clever (new, Dreaming Kind, first release in 8 years, Glasgow indie pop)I Was a King – Leave (new, Follow Me Home, Egersund, Norway indie rock)Ian M Bailey – Sitting in Silence (new, You Paint the Pictures, English indie pop artist collaborating with Daniel Wylie of CRR)Cheap Star - Slow Down acoustic feat. Gary Louris & Mitch Easter (new, Swiss indie rock artist Rémi Vaissiere, from his acoustic release Wish I Could See (acoustically))The Reds, Pinks & Purples - Saw You at the Record Shop Today (new, Everything You Ever Loved EP, SF indie pop from Glenn Donaldson)Break 2Echolust – If I (new single, LA based post punk)Old Moon – Ephemeral (Altars, Sharon VT indie pop)SCHONWALD – Babylon (new, Formula EP, Italian post punk)Daydream Twins - Guthrie's Trip Into the Space Continuum (new, s/t debut, Austin TX psychgaze)The Secret French Postcards – Strain (new, Life Got Claws, Swedish dark wave)Rodney Cromwell - The Winter Palace Radio Mix (new single, UK synth pop)Hollie Kenniff – Shifting Winds (new single, from forthcoming We All Have Places That We Miss, Canadian dream pop)Break 3Avalyn – Distant Days (new single, Liverpool post-punk)Nightjacket – Don't Say A Word (new single, LA dream pop)Nyte Skye - Dream State I'm Vanishing (new single, project from Film School's Nyles Lannon and his son Skye)The Death of Pop – Dream Today (new, For a Minute EP, UK psych pop)Callière & Tears Run Rings – Earthrising (collaboration between France's Callière and Portland's TRR.The Black Angels – History of the Future (new, Wilderness of Mirrors, Austin TX psych rockHeather Trost – The Devil Never Sleeps (new, Desert Flowers, Albuquerque soft psych)Skullcrusher – Pass Through Me (new, Quiet the Room, LA indie folk)Baby Cool – The Sea (new, Earthling On The Road To Self Love, Brisbane dream pop)Break 4HYLA – The Brats Are Taking Over (new single, recorded and produced by two members of Flyying Colours, Melbourne shoegaze.Dead Leaf Echo – Boo (new single, Brooklyn shoegaze)Soft Blue Shimmer – Love Being (new, from forthcoming Love Lives in the Body, LA shoegaze)Dayflower – Picturefall (new single, UK dream pop)Knifeplay – Promise (new, Animal Drowning, Philly shoegaze)The Fallen Sky Official – Sunrise (new single, London UK dream pop)T.G. Shand – WAWO (new single, Christchurch NZ artist Annemarie Duff, ex-Miniatures)SugarCandy Mountain – Superman (new, Overtime EP, Edinburgh based shoegaze)Submotile – Resonica (new, One Final Summit Before The Fall, Dublin based artists Mick Farren and Daniela Angione)Velveteen – Empty Crush (new debut Empty Crush, UK shoegaze)Break 5Black Swan Lane – Wishful (new, Blind, CD is available from the band's web site, digital out on 12/6, Atlanta GA post punk with Jack Richard Sobel and John Kolbeck)

For this episode BJ is joined by Parthenon Huxley, whose power pop career stretches all the way back to Chapel Hill in the late seventies, alongside the likes of Don Dixon and Mitch Easter. It's an inspirational tale of making it without making it in the music business.

Drummer Linda Pitmon brings her abundance of power, groove and talent to the supergroups the Baseball Project and Filthy Friends plus other bands. Growing up in Minneapolis, she banged on Tupperware to replicate the fills of her favorite songs. She had indie success with Zuzu's Petals, then moved to New York, where she connected musically and personally with Steve Wynn, now her husband. She tells of the joy of recording and performing songs about baseball with Wynn, Scott McCaughey and R.E.M.'s Peter Buck and Mike Mills. She also previews the Baseball Project's upcoming album, produced by Mitch Easter, and shares how she has thrived in the male-dominated world of rock drummers.

Singer-songwriter Parthenon Huxley is in the studio talking about music, songwriting, journalism and more, including his early work with North Carolina music legends Mitch Easter, Jamie Hoover and Don Dixon; working with 'The Blazers' and his own 'Ridiculous Band'; to leaving the Chapel Hill area to make the move to New York and LA, eventually signing with MCA and Columbia Records (plus gigs with Mick Jones of Foreigner and Robert Lamm of Chicago). Currently working on his memoir with a very catchy title (listen to the podcast!) we also  talk about teaming up and touring along with a cool symphonic rock band called 'The Orchestra starring ELO Former Members' with Electric Light Orchestra musicians Bev Bevan, Kelly Groucutt, Mik Kaminski and Lou Clark (as well as Eric Troyer). Join us!

Nuevo episodio de la serie Diversiones. Recordamos grandes canciones del pop y el rocknroll del siglo XX a manos de bandas y artistas de generaciones posteriores. Playlist; (sintonía) LOS TIKI PHANTOMS “Ni tu ni nadie” (Alaska y Dinarama) SOUTHERN CULTURE ON THE SKIDS “Funnel of love” (Wanda Jackson) MIKE NESS “Big iron” (Marty Robbins) JESSE DAYTON “Whole lotta Rosie” (ACDC) AC/DC “Baby please don’t go” (Big Joe Williams) DUCKS DELUXE “Here comes the night” (Lulu) DEE JAY “Gloria” (Them) THE SHAKE SPEARS “Summertime” (Helen Jepson) THE VINDICTIVES “What a wonderful world” (Louis Armstrong) THE TOY DOLLS “No particular place to go” (Chuck Berry) THE PROCLAIMERS “Whole wide world” (Wreckless Erik) DOWN BY LAW “(I’m gonna be) 500 miles” (The Proclaimers) MITCH EASTER “Shiny happy people” (REM) PRIMAL SCREAM “Gimme some truth” (John Lennon) LOU REED “This magic moment” (The Drifters) TED LEO “Heroes” (David Bowie) Escuchar audio

Chris Stamey played with Mitch Easter and Alex Chilton before forming the dB's and producing Pylon and other bands, but he has created a formidable body of his own work. His songwriting and arranging have grown in sophistication and skill, and he has written an illuminating memoir, A Spy in the House of Loud: New York Songs and Stories, that immerses us in his artistic development amid that city's transformative rock scene. Here he talks about Chilton, the dB's, music theory, the smell of analog tape, and those lightning-bolt moments when a new song becomes a precious secret in your head. This conversation is like a master class about songwriting and creativity.

Having made a name for himself as an engineer and producer during the burgeoning college rock scene of the early 80s, Mitch Easter would form the band Let's Active with bassist Faye Hunter and drummer Sara Romweber as a vehicle for his own songwriting. In Episode 30, Easter tells the story of the band's 1984 debut full length Cypress. Recounting the events surrounding the album's creation, the native North Carolinian touches on the band's experience working in the studio he built inside his parents' garage and how a bandmate's really great hair would lead to their signing with I.R.S Records.  

Born and raised in Nashville, Florence lives in North Carolina with her husband, drummer Will Rigby and their daughter Georgie. In addition to being a singer-songwriter, Florence has authored several books, is professor of American Literature at UNC-Chapel Hill and serves on the board of the Bob Dylan Institute. That's a busy schedule. But Florence carved out some time to talk about it all.Find out more at florencedoremusic.comPhoto by Marie KillenA new album, Highways and Rocketships is coming soon. Meanwhile, you can buy Perfect City here at Bandcamp. The song “Christmas” featured in this episode is from Perfect City . The album was produced by Eric Ambel.Buzzsprout - Let's get your podcast launched! Start for FREEInstacart - Groceries delivered in as little as 1 hour. Free delivery on your first order over $35.Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Dano's music infuses modern folk, post rock, and groove oriented rhythms with poetic lyrics creating a unique brand of conscious music that uplifts and inspires. Born and raised in the Buffalo suburb of Tonawanda, Dano's role models were The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, David Bowie, Simon and Garfunkel. As a youth during 70's, Dano began leading the band Odysseus at the age of 13, playing guitar and singing at school events and neighborhood parties. At 16 years of age he switched to bass and joined the band Crossroads. He was immediately thrust into the Buffalo music scene playing some of the biggest venues and supporting international touring bands such as Judas Priest, Ambrosia, John Cougar Mellencamp, Modern English, Spirit, as well as many others. After a lineup change Crossroads would become the Beez and Dano would leave to start The Western Voice and his song writing was now front and center. With The Western Voice there was label interest from A&M records as well as production interest from Mitch Easter and the band began traveling extensively, often playing CBGB's and the Peppermint Lounge in NYC. Dano moved to NYC to further pursue his music career starting the band Zider Zee and playing regularly in the Greenwich Village scene. Dano would later form the band Swift Running Water with collaborator and lifelong friend Kevin Henneman as well as members of the legendary NYC blues band King Dice. Dano now lives in Maine and continues to write, record, and perform. DISCOGRAPHY Beez – Me and My Girl/Losing Time Beez – Handle on My Heart/Please be Mine The Western Voice – SCREAM Bandano – Bandano DanoMatt – Jazz Holidaze

Raleigh, North Carolina's Connells have had a unique career. Jangly, college rock mainstays in America/HUGE one-hit-wonders in Europe. Throughout the 80s and 90s the band was able to make a career in Indie rock with songs like "Stone Cold Yesterday" and albums like the MItch Easter produced Boylan Heights. But, in 1993 they had a giant hit across the Atlantic with "74-75" which seemed to come out of nowhere. The band called it quits 20 years ago, but in 2021 they released their first album since then called Steadman's Wake and it's easily among their best. Lead singer Doug MacMillian joins us to recount this wild road, share stories of recording at the same studio as Shane MacGowan and Joe Strummer, and almost going to jail in Salt Lake City. If you haven't thought about the Connells in a while, now's the time to reconnect!  www.theconnells.com www.patreon.com/thehustlepod

Dano's music infuses modern folk, post rock, and groove oriented rhythms with poetic lyrics creating a unique brand of conscious music that uplifts and inspires.   Born and raised in the Buffalo suburb of Tonawanda, Dano's role models were The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, David Bowie, Simon and Garfunkel. As a youth during 70's, Dano began leading the band Odysseus at the age of 13, playing guitar and singing at school events and neighborhood parties. At 16 years of age he switched to bass and joined the band Crossroads. He was immediately thrust into the Buffalo music scene playing some of the biggest venues and supporting international touring bands such as Judas Priest, Ambrosia, John Cougar Mellencamp, Modern English, Spirit, as well as many others. After a lineup change Crossroads would become the Beez and Dano would leave to start The Western Voice and his song writing was now front and center. With The Western Voice there was label interest from A&M records as well as production interest from Mitch Easter and the band began traveling extensively, often playing CBGB's and the Peppermint Lounge in NYC. Dano moved to NYC to further pursue his music career starting the band Zider Zee and playing regularly in the Greenwich Village scene. Dano would later form the band Swift Running Water with collaborator and lifelong friend Kevin Henneman as well as members of the legendary NYC blues band King Dice. Dano now lives in Maine and continues to write, record, and perform. DISCOGRAPHY  Beez – Me and My Girl/Losing Time Beez – Handle on My Heart/Please be Mine The Western Voice – SCREAM Bandano – Bandano DanoMatt – Jazz Holidaze  

Part 2 of our conversation with Mitch Easter jumps right into the making of those classic first R.E.M. records: Chronic Town, Murmur and Reckoning. What is that weird pulsating sound that opens “Radio Free Europe”? Why are pool balls colliding in slow motion on “We Walk”? Easter also discusses the ups and downs of his band Let's Active and his work with the late Scott Miller's bands Game Theory and The Loud Family. This good-humored producer/performer offers a treasure trove of insights into the recording process. Which record and guitar would he grab if he could save just one of each? You'll learn that too.

Mitch Easter could be considered the Godfather of Jangle except he dislikes the term. His production work on the first R.E.M. records and bands such as Game Theory and the Windbreakers helped define the cool sounds of the '80s. He offered his own indelible songs, including “Every Word Means No,” in his band Let's Active. A great talker and music-history appreciator, he flashes back to his days as a guitar-loving North Carolina kid who preferred the Move to southern boogie, and he walks us through how he and R.E.M. got that amazing sound.

This week, our picks are "talkin' loud and sayin' nothing" (in a good way), as we cover some of the finest instrumental tracks of the O3L era...and beyond! Guess who's back?!?  It's Armistead Wellford and Mike Richmond from the almighty Love Tractor.  Anything goes this week - not only do you get the classic alternative jams that you'd expect from O3L, there's also prog, funk, jazz fusion, soundtrack music and more.   There's also plenty to celebrate in the Love Tractor world, as their 1988 Mitch Easter-produced masterpiece Themes From Venus gets the lovingly remastered, deluxe reissue treatment on November 19th, complete with previously unreleased bonus tracks and new artwork.  Order yours today at https://www.hhbtm.com/product/love-tractor-themes-from-venus/.  Plus, the band has been hard at work in the studio on brand new music! It's fun to be happy, so get on the party train and join us!

We're joined by Doug MacMillan, vocalist for the great North Carolina  band The Connells. Crucial matters discussed include: how Doug met the Connell brothers in the early 80's and their rocky path to getting started; working with the amazing Mitch Easter (producer of R.E.M.'s early records); their unlikely success in Germany; our mutual love of The Replacements and Guided by Voices; the band's current return to recording and touring and their great new album, Steadman's Wake; and much more.*Please forgive the occasional buzzing. It stopped before we could figure out what it was. 

Episode 181: It's a jangle pop special with two bands of brothers who are back on record after two-decade breaks. The Delevantes, Bob and Mike, are pioneers of Americana, chart toppers when the format was born thanks to their Everly Brothers harmony and country twang. Their enchanting new album will be called A Thousand Turns. Also in the hour, also with a brother named Mike, Raleigh, NC band The Connells on their work with REM producer Mitch Easter then and now. They take me back to turning 19 in Chapel Hill when my world was defined by southern college radio rock and roll. 

In this episode we chat with Producer/Engineer Mitch Easter about working on the song that launched R.E.M.'s career, "Radio Free Europe"! The version of R.E.M.'s Radio Free Europe that we have all come to know and love was released in 1980 on the band's 2nd album, Murmur, but there was an earlier version of the song recorded at Mitch's humble Drive-In Studios. Geoff Stanfield caught up with Mitch to talk this seminal track and working with the band in their early days. Enjoy! Sponsored by Rupert Neve Designs rupertneve.com

Our guest today is a native of Winston-Salem, NC. He is one Mitch Easter, legendary front man of the acclaimed Let's Active and record producer at the Drive-In and Fidelitorium Recordings. For our listeners who might be unfamiliar with Mitch's musical career to date … Easter formed Let's Active in 1981 and that same year, produced R.E.M.'s debut single "Radio Free Europe," which was issued on Johnny Hibbert's label Hibtone Records in Atlanta. Incidentally, Radio Free Europe is celebrating its 40th Anniversary in 2021 and a reissue of an exact replica of Hibbert's 7” mix is now available as of July 23rd, shortly before the time of this interview.Easter went on to produce for R.E.M. their Chronic Town EP in 1982, their first full-length Murmur in 1983, and shortly afterwards, Reckoning. Murmur's success also drew more attention to Easter, as did the release of Let's Active's debut EP Afoot, which launched the cult hit "Every Word Means No." Mitch has produced the likes of Pavement, Wilco, Suzanne Vega, Dinosaur, Jr., The Baseball Project, Chris Stamey, The dBs, Alejandro Escovedo, A Fragile Tomorrow – the list goes on and on. He is also part of an ensemble that over the past few years has paid homage to Big Star's Third record. And I would be remiss if I did not mention that he was also inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2019.Our conversation today will center on British singer/songwriter Stephen Duffy and his second solo offering from 1995 titled “Duffy” where Mitch both produced and contributed electric guitar. Some may know Stephen Duffy as a founding member, vocalist and bassist of Duran Duran and later the front man for the folk rock outfit The Lilac Time.This record is an auditory delight. If you are unfamiliar with it, please go out and get your own copy. Enjoy the conversation!

Join me as I talk to legendary producer and musician, Mitch Easter, about his career. We talk Let's Active, meeting REM and recording "Radio Free Europe", recording Wilco and so many more fantastic stories. Gracious guest with an amazing career. Tune in!

We're joined by Mitch Easter, the frontman and guitarist of college rock darlings, Let's Active, and a legendary record producer based out of North Carolina. Crucial matters discussed include: producing R.E.M.'s first single, Debut EP, and first two albums; Mitch's rich history with Chris Stamey of The dB's; what exactly are those strange sounds in the intro of R.E.M.'s Radio Free Europe; discovering the electric guitar; and so much more. 

What time is it? It's APT (Athens Party Time), y'all, because we're hanging out with the magnificent LINDA HOPPER from OH-OK and MAGNAPOP to discuss some of our favorite short songs of the O3L era. So grab a White Claw or some Willie Weed, sit back and enjoy the show. This is O3L At Our Best (exclamation point!).   We had such a great time with Linda that we couldn't fit everything into just one show! Be sure to check out our bonus episode for much more of our conversation.  Linda shares some amazing stories from her career from coming up in the early '80s Athens scene with Oh-OK, through to the heady '90s alt-rock with Magnapop, to present day....and the talented musicians with whom she's played and crossed paths - including Lynda Stipe, Matthew Sweet, REM, Bob Mould, Pylon, Mitch Easter, Love Tractor, Willie Nelson, Ruthie Morris and more.    That's two hours of O3L for you this week. Who do we think we are...Uriah Heep?!?

  We had such a great time with Linda Hopper that we couldn't fit everything into just one show! Linda shares some amazing stories from her career from coming up in the early '80s Athens scene with Oh-OK, through to the heady '90s alt-rock with Magnapop, to present day....and the talented musicians with whom she's played and crossed paths - including Lynda Stipe, Matthew Sweet, REM, Bob Mould, Pylon, Mitch Easter, Love Tractor, Willie Nelson, Ruthie Morris and more.   That's two hours of O3L for you this week. Who do we think we are...Uriah Heep?!?

This week on Revenge of the 80s Radio, Producer, Musician, Innovator (and sometimes actor) Don Dixon talks with Chris about a new live album featuring him, Chris Stamey, Mitch Easter and several people out of the Winston-Salem music scene of the late 70s and 80s titled: Yesterday's Tomorrow: Celebrating the Winston-Salem Sound. It's a live recording of a special 2018 concert featuring members of what has been dubbed "The Combo Corner."The album is due out on May 7th; the performance featured original members of bands including Arrogance, Little Diesel, Sacred Irony, and Rittenhouse Square —including Mitch Easter (Let's Active); Peter Holsapple, Will Rigby, and Chris Stamey (the dB's); singers Don Dixon, Dale Smith, Lynn Blakey, Bob Northcott; and many others — as they played together on May 12, 2018, at Winston-Salem's Ramkat club. With the added excellence of the Occasional Orchestra (live strings, percussion, and brass), music direction by Doug Davis (Vagabond Saints' Society), and stops along the way for affectionate renditions of then-favorites by Bubble Puppy, the Easybeats, the Music Machine, the Electric Prunes, the Beatles, and even Kool and the Gang, there is a lot for music lovers to appreciate in Yesterday's Tomorrow.We also play music from Adrian Belew, Marshall Crenshaw and more.

Harry & Will separated at Royal Funeral, ARod & JLo no mo, police shootings, UofD keeps mean coach, Christopher Atkins is horny, a Bonerline, Bob & Zipcast, Bieber v. Hillsong and "pulling a Macaulay Culkin".The show got a nice shoutout from the The Bob and Zipcast with Ed Kelly. We remember some of Bob River's best Twisted Tunes.'Why Did You Kill Me?' is the latest true crime documentary to hit Netflix.The recent discussion on Mitch Easter led Drew to dive into the dB's and their jangle/power pop sound.Tom Morello and Ted Nugent are unlikely BFF's. Critics also might want to learn about Morello's ethnicity.Bill Burr has added a 3rd show at the Fox Theater in November.Van Morrison is suing Northern Ireland because he can't tour... in his Van... Morrison.ARod and JLo are finished. They're totally good friends now.We're #102! We're #102!Marc is angry at all the podcasts taking credit for solving crimes.Body cam footage from a shooting in Chicago has the city on edge. Columbus now has their own shooting to deal with as well.Macauley Culkin is a father. One day he'll have to decide to let his kids sleep over with 40-year-old men or use Google.If Harry can't wear a military uniform then NOBODY CAN! Prince William and Harry will NOT be walking next to each other.The canceled coach at U of D is un-canceled.Sports: Michael Fulmer finally won a game, Carlos Rodón pitched better, Xavier Worthy is out at Michigan and Baylor is always in trouble for something.Manscaped (use promo code 'Drew') brings you a brand new Bonerline. Call or text 209-66-Boner.Dateline featured the murder of Jane Bashara and Bob's sebum.Billy Eichner totally had Colton Underwood locked in on his gaydar.Paulina Porizkova is still hot. Heidi Montag wants you to remember that she exists.Greta Van Fleet has new tunes out.Happy anniversary to LSD.Trudi liked Aaron Rodgers as host of Jeopardy!We check in with the Psychedelic Speed Dial.Justin Bieber has finally turned his back on Hillsong Church.Don't use the term 'mistress' for the chick you're banging that isn't your wife. Instead, say 'side-piece' or something.Travis Barker likes having sex with Kourtney Kardashian.Christopher Atkins, the guy from Blue Lagoon" is super horny.Hank Azaria is so sorry for playing Apu in The Simpsons that he can't stop apologizing for it.Social media is dumb but we're on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (Drew and Mike Show, Marc Fellhauer, Trudi Daniels and BranDon).

We're honored to have Jeff Firewalker Schmitt on No Simple Road this week! It's not every day that No Simple Road can bring you an individual that at 14 had started college. By 15 he was running a research lab with a famous scientist and was being published in prestigious academic journals. Now, based in Asheville, NC, Jeff is a noted scientist, holds a PhD from Oxford, is a Chinese martial Arts expert, practices Peruvian Folk medicine and is one half of the new band Saint Disruption along with improvisational titan John Medeski (Medeski Martin & Wood). The two met in a chance encounter while both in the Amazon jungle. Jeff holds a long list of musical collaborators from the former King Crimson drummer Michael Giles to spoken-word poet Cactus to REM's producer Mitch Easter. Schmitt is also a founding member of the Wheel Theater Company led by Juilliard and Moscow Art Theater artist Felix Ivanov.We get into his chance meeting with Medeski in the jungle, how synchronicity and connection played a huge part in the creation of Saint Disruption, how he started on his extremely incredible path of learning and mysticism, and so much more I can't even type it out! You have to just sit back and soak this one in. Headphones.. on and ready to have open ears!For more on Saint Disruption head over to: www.saintdisruption.comTo find out more on Jeff Firewalker Schmitt and what he offers, head over to: www.eaglecondorcouncil.orgSONG AT THE BEGINNING OF THE EPISODE IS: 'Stories (the birth of Saint Disruption)' from the upcoming album.SONG AT THE END OF THE EPISODE IS: 'Painstorms' form the upcoming album.Become a Patron of No Simple Road On Patreon.comFREE SHIPPING FROM Shop Tour Bus Use The PROMO: nosimpleroadFor 20% off Sunset Lake CBD PROMO CODE: NSR20 For 10% off Electric Fish Lights PROMO CODE: NSR INTRO MUSIC BY AND USED WITH OUR GRATITUDE AND THE PERMISSION OF:CHILLDREN OF INDIGOLeave us a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts!No Simple Road is part of OSIRIS MEDIA. Osiris is creating a community that connects people like you with podcasts and live experiences about artists and topics you love. To stay up to date on what we're up to, visit our site and sign up for our newsletter. Osiris works in partnership with JamBase, which connects music fans with the music they love and empowers them to go see live music!Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/nosimpleroad. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Your spirit guides, Dan and Matt, set sail on the maiden voyage of the Artifact Podcast with the trustiest of captains, Bob Nastanovich, of Pavement, Silver Jews, and his revived label, Broker's Tip Records. Expect brilliant stories about Lollapalooza '95, Courtney Love, working with producers Mitch Easter and Nigel Goodrich (Radiohead), and the cruel winters in Des Moines, Iowa. 

This week, host Jason Jefferies is joined by David Menconi, author of Step It Up and Go: The Story of North Carolina Popular Music from Blind Boy Fuller and Doc Watson to Nina Simone and Superchunk, which is published by our friends at University of North Carolina Press.  Topics of discussion include Charlie Poole's inexcusable absence from the Country Music Hall of Fame, Durham, North Carolina's indifference to its own blues history, how Earl Scruggs was like Beethoven and Bach, Mitch Easter's responsibility for bringing David to North Carolina, The Squirrel Nut Zippers and Ben Folds Five as Chapel Hill's claim to fame in the era of grunge, 9th Wonder's production on Kendrick Lamar's DAMN, American Idol, and much more.  Signed copies of Step It Up and Go can be purchased here with FREE SHIPPING.

This week's show boasts a preview of a forthcoming record from a brilliant smart pop band, an overview of one of our favorite side-hustle bands, some rather dry demos & a trio called called Muzz. All this & much, much less!

Connie Francis [00:49] "Heartaches by the Number" Country Music, Connie Style MGM E 4079 1962 A little Guy Lombardo-esque, but not bad. Lawrence Welk [03:34] "Slow Poke" Country Music's Great Hits Dot Records DLP 25725 1966 Some pretty great tic-tac baritone guitar going on with some fine accordionship. The Decemberists [05:36] "O Valencia!" The Crane Wife Capitol Records B0025706-01 2016 Quite an epic 10th anniversary release on translucent red vinyl and a blu-ray featuring a live performance at the 9:30 Club from 2006. And a great song (https://youtu.be/BK5860DP78E) to boot. Spike Jones [09:22] "Holiday for Strings" The Craziest Show on Earth G&O Records MF 205/4 1977 Who doesn't love a good singing chicken impression? Pylon [13:21] "Crazy" Crazy DB Records DB 61 1981 Pylon was a bit of an intriguing mystery to me as an REM fan in the 80s. Once I saw Athens GA: Inside Out however, I was hooked! King Woman [16:34] "Manna" Created in the Image of Suffering Relapse Records RR7363R 2017 So heavy, so transcendent. If live performances are ever a thing again, definitely take to opportunity to see King Woman live. Pat Benatar [22:46] "Wuthering Heights" Crimes of Passion Chrysalis CHE 1275  1980 Well of course she would cover Wuthering Heights. And not too shabby either. The Partridge Family [28:08] "One Day at a Time" Crossword Puzzle Bell 1122 1973. Great Wrecking Crew back up here on this number co-penned by the guy who brought us "Talkin' Baseball (https://youtu.be/cZuCxUd9n5w)". The original owner of this album helpfully filled out the crossword puzzle on the cover. In ink! Bananarama [31:05] "Cruel Summer" Cruel Summer London 810 291-1 1984 Yes... yes it is. The Bobbyteens [35:59] "Jenny" Cruisin' for a Bruisin' Screaming Apple SCALP 154 2004 Fantastic Bay Area garage rock from Tina Lucchesi with Russell Quan on drums. Orchestral Manœuvres in the Dark [38:04] "Bloc Bloc Bloc" Crush A&M Records SP 5077 1985 This track is oddly sort of like a mashup between The Smiths and The The. Canseides Ser Sexy [42:31] "Alala" CSS Sub Pop SP 717 2006 The sound of 2006. Ok, a sound of 2006. Bonnie Prince Billy [46:29] "Cursed Sleep" Cursed Sleep Drag City DC316 2006 Oh hey, another sound of 2006. Wymond Miles [51:56] "Passion Plays" Cut Yourself Free Sacred Bones Records SBR-106 2013 Excellent second solo outing from The Fresh & Onlys guiarist. Let's Active [55:18] "Waters Part" Cypress IRS SP70648 1984 Seems like a pretty solid tie-in between the last track and the Pylon track. Classic jangle stuff form Mitch Easter, Faye Hunter and Sara Romweber. Music behind the DJ: "Wichita Lineman" by Joe Reisman and his Orchestra.

Missy Thangs of Fidelitorium Recordings. 'Nuff said.

The Lucy Show special with Mark Bandola in conversation.   The band was formed by Mark Bandola (vocals, guitar, keyboards) and Rob Vandeven (vocals, bass), with Paul Rigby on drums, under the name "Midnite Movie". Rigby quickly quit, and Pete Barraclough (guitars, keyboards) and Bryan Hudspeth (drums) were added to the line-up, and the band changed name to "The Lucy Show". Bandola and Vandeven, two Canadian-born friends who had moved to England in the late 1970s, shared song writing and lead vocals equally, although the bulk of the early (pre-album) material had been written by Vandeven. In 1983, they released their first single, "Leonardo da Vinci," on independent record label Shout Records, which managed to receive some airplay by John Peel.[1]Guitarist Barraclough provided lead vocals on the B-side of the single for his song "Kill The Beast". In 1984, A&M Records signed the band, releasing two singles and an EP during that year (on an offshoot label imprint called Piggy Bank Records). After providing a cassette recording of their material to R.E.M., The Lucy Show was invited by the Athens band to support them on their 1984 UK tour. In 1985, the band's debut album, ...undone, was released. With a guitar-heavy, lushly atmospheric, brooding sound reminiscent of The Cure and Comsat Angels, it received generally favorable critical notices and, even more importantly, eventually went to the No. 1 spot on the CMJ album charts in the United States. The band's momentum had been steady up to that point and they naturally assumed continuing chart success would be in their future. However, they were shocked when they learned that A&M UK decided to abruptly drop the band at the end of the year. In 1986, the band signed to indie label Big Time Records, who released their second album, Mania. Produced by the now-legendary John Leckie, the band's songs were much more upbeat and bouncy this time around, with added acoustic guitar and piano, harmonica, synthesizer - and most noticeably, brass , making the group sound very different from their previous incarnation as a "jangly" guitar and new wave group. The change in direction initially promised to be effective, as the album once again topped the all important CMJ charts, and MTV began playing their music video for the first single off the album, "A Million Things". Both this song, and subsequent single "New Message", were substantial college radio hits. Bad luck would strike the band again, this time when Big Time Records went bankrupt, leaving The Lucy Show adrift. Barraclough and Hudspeth were asked to leave and Bandola and Vandeven stuck together, releasing one final single, "Wherever Your Heart Will Go", in 1988 on Redhead Records. When that single went nowhere, both Bandola and Vandeven realized it was time to quit, and they permanently disbanded The Lucy Show. Vandeven and Barraclough have continued to work within the music industry under a variety of differing names and projects. Following the breakup of The Lucy Show, Bandola released an EP under his own name in 1993 entitled 'Til Tuesday, a collaboration with Let's Active producer Mitch Easter, and, for a short while, was a member of London post-rock group Ausgang. From 2003 until 2010 Bandola released experimental pop CDs under the name Typewriter ( mostly a solo effort but with contributions from various guest musicians ), with debut album Skeleton Key in 2003, a second, Birdsnest in 2006, and finally, Pictures from the Antique Skip in early 2010.[1] After the third Typewriter album all seemed quiet until 2013, when Bandola formed psychedelic instrumental vehicle The Ramsgate Hovercraft - a duo with saxophone and synthesizer player Kit Jolly - in his recently adopted hometown of Ramsgate. Their first album ( January 2014 ) is the double vinyl LP, Arcane Empire on local indie label Galleon Records, which Record Collector magazine granted four stars and described as "... an ambience that’s both worldly and cosmic" and "a delicately layered, sumptuous odyssey". In March 2015 the duo released their 2nd album "Cinema Verite'" which also gained positive reviews. Since then, The Ramsgate Hovercraft has expanded to a quartet, adding drummer Paula Frost, as well as synthesist & pianist Paul Naudin to their ranks. The group have also played occasionally flamboyant & theatrical shows in their native East Kent. And, their new Album (third in total) will be released early in 2017 alongside a launch concert at the Ramsgate Musichall in early February 2017. In 2005, Mania was reissued on CD by the Words on Music label, with numerous bonus tracks. In 2009, ...undone was released on CD for the first time by Words on Music. In 2011, Words on Music released Remembrances, a compilation album of rare and previously unreleased songs recorded by the band during the mid-1980s.

He is Risen!! Check out this Easter Homily and see how we are called to be people of the resurrection and how important it is that we share our testimony and give witness to how the Lord has worked in our lives!

Despite being a critically acclaimed singer/songwriter in his own right, Don Dixon's legacy as an important figure in American rock was cemented when he co-produced the first two albums by R.E.M. (Murmer and Reckoning) with Mitch Easter. Helping to bring their sound to the world changed everything. He would go on to produce other excellent artists like Guadalcanal Diary, the Smithereens, Marshall Crenshaw and Matthew Sweet, while also forging his own solo path with excellent tunes like "Praying Mantis" and "A Million Angels Sigh." He's still at it today continuously releasing new albums, producing up and coming artists, and collaborating with his wife, the acclaimed singer/songwriter Marti Jones.  In this chat we discuss his long and excellent solo career as well as the stories behind the greats he produced. Enjoy!

R.E.M. se formó en Athens, un pequeño pueblo universitario en el noreste del estado de Georgia, Estados Unidos. Descubriendo que tenían gustos musicales similares, el vocalista Michael Stipe y el guitarrista Peter Buck empezaron a trabajar juntos, y con el tiempo conocieron al bajista Mike Mills y al batería Bill Berry. En abril de 1980, la banda debutó bajo el nombre de Twisted Kites en la fiesta de cumpleaños de su amiga Kathleen O'Brien. Para el verano del mismo año, la banda ya eligió el nombre que emplearía en las siguientes décadas: R.E.M. Este nombre fue elegido aleatoriamente con la ayuda de un diccionario, y en realidad designa una fase del sueño (Rapid Eye Movement, en inglés), que es aquella en la que ocurren los ensueños más profundos. En esta misma época, la banda conoció a Jefferson Holt, quien se convertiría en el mánager del grupo después de haber visto la primera actuación de la banda fuera de su estado, concretamente, en Carolina del Norte. Más tarde, los miembros de la banda dejaron la universidad, con la firme intención de concentrarse en su carrera musical. En el siguiente año y medio, la banda hizo una gira por todo el sur de su país, tocando una gran variedad de versiones. En este período, Peter Buck comenzó a desarrollar su distintivo estilo al mismo tiempo que Stipe comenzó a escribir sus primeras letras, muy enigmáticas y crípticas. En el verano de 1981, el grupo grabó su primer single, "Radio Free Europe", producido por Mitch Easter, que incluía como cara B la canción "Sitting Still". El single fue publicado por el sello discográfico Hib-Tone Records (en realidad, el estudio casero de un amigo del grupo), del que apenas se editaron 1000 copias. El sencillo se convirtió en un éxito inmediato en las radios independientes que tenían una gran influencia en colegios y escuelas de todo el sur. Las letras indescifrables de Stipe y su distintiva voz hicieron del sonido de R.E.M. un sonido único e inimitable en los tiempos que corrían.

Part 2 of my talk with renowned producer, musician and studio owner Mitch Easter. In part 2 we explore some of his other recording credits and discuss how he navigated the rapidly shrinking music industry. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Mitch Easter is most widely known for producing R.E.M.'s first three efforts and playing in the band Let's Active. His storied history gained steam upon opening Drive-In Studios in his parents garage where R.E.M. recorded their first EP Chronic Town. In the many years since Mitch has recorded and played with a variety of top acts. Today he runs Fidelitorium Recordings that boasts an impressive roster of clients who've recorded there. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Fascinating behind-the-scenes look at a concert tribute to Big Star's swan songFor an album that was deemed unreleasable at the time of recording and has never had a proper running order, Big Star’s Third has certainly gotten its due. It’s now considered one of the greatest albums of all time. After the sudden passing of Big Star frontman Alex Chilton in 2010, an all-star group of musicians got together to pay tribute, including Mike Mills of REM, Mitch Easter of Let’s Active, Chris Stamey of the dB’s and members of the Posies. They found that the magic they created was worth continuing.After playing live shows all over the world, they decided to document things with Thank You Friends - Big Star’s Third Live…and More, a DVD/CD combo just released by Concord Bicycle Music. To talk about it, we welcome in the musical director of the project, Chris Stamey. He also talks about playing in a post-Big Star band with Chilton and what led to him releasing Chris Bell’s single “I Am the Cosmos” on his own label in 1978.

The Connells came out of the same Southern Pop scene that birthed R.E.M. and Let’s Active in the early Eighties.  They scored multiple hits on US college radio with songs like “Something to Say,” “Stone Cold Yesterday,” and “Fun & Games.”  The band was even bigger overseas, turning in the surprise European smash “’74, ’75” in 1993 (the song still makes “best of Nineties’ lists overseas).The band’s 30-plus year career finally gets distilled on Stone Cold Yesterday: The Best of the Connells from the Bicycle Music Company.From the band, we talk with singer Doug Macmillan, who talks about why their classic music was unavailable for so many years. Plus he tells us stories about working with producer Mitch Easter, meeting the Pogues, and playing in Italy for a crowd of over 100,000 people.

I first became aware of Greg Calbi in 1983 when he mastered the first Pressure Boys album for us by recommendation from Mitch Easter and Don Dixon. At the time I remember distinctly not understanding exactly what the mastering process even entailed.  Of course over the years as formats have changed, that process has evolved considerably... but Greg is still considered one of the preeminent mastering engineers in the field.     My conversation with Greg discusses his early days with artists like John Lennon and David Byrne, as well as detailing some of his approaches when working with clients.

The band didn't like it. The critics didn't like it. But we do. R.E.M.'s story so far has been one of effortless creativity. They worked very hard to make good things happen, but they also had the right friends and creative partners to be truly prolific with their work. This changed with Fables of the Reconstruction, when the band traded Mitch Easter and the southern U.S. for a new producer and frigid London. The result is an album that has a reputation for being dark and weird, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's also not entirely true.

A couple of days before his unexpected passing, John Fry, a longtime supporter and source of inspiration for BSC, had called up post-producer Adam Hill and in their conversation jokingly mentioned how great it would be to hear the Big Star show again during our re-broadcasts over the holidays. So as we step into this new year, it seems a fitting thing today to remember those who won't be making this leg of the journey with us. (Previously aired). This week on BSC, the songs of the iconic album, Big Star's 3rd, fill the air in Overton Park in Memphis, TN, as Jody Stephens and an all-star cast, including Mitch Easter, Chris Stamey, and Pat Sansone, take the stage to bring the songs to life in front of an adoring hometown crowd.

www.mikegarrigan.com - Mike Garrigan interviews his brother Jay Garrigan. They discuss Jay's new band (The Eyebrows), songwriting, and musician life realities. An alternate mix of Jay's song "Let It Go" is shared as well as a demo of Mike's song "Add It Up."

Please join John with his very special guest, Bill Mallonee. Paste Music Magazine, in a poll conducted by both writers and artists, listed Bill Mallonee as 65 in their "100 Greatest Living Songwriters Poll." "At the end of the day, it's about the story living under your own skin. In my work, I've just tried to chase that story down and put something of a frame around it for a spell." Mallonee, (pronounced MAL-O-KNEE) the lyrical and musical source behind the late Vigilantes of Love, started playing music in Athens in the late 80's. Mallonee learned guitar quickly and the post-punk-pop of the La's, XTC, Joy Division, the Clash and Echo and the Bunnymen. Great college scene bands that passed through Athens, Georgia during that time were Athen's own R.E.M., the dbs (with the great Chris Stamey and Peter Hosapple), Mitch Easter's 'Let's Active. These were also big influences. Each of those bands proudly wove indebtedness to the first "British Invasion" into their musical flags. www.billmallonee.net

With the recent passing of Reg Presley of the Troggs, Icon Fetch has put together an hour-long tribute to the band and their influential lead singer. We’ll hear the story of “Wild Thing” from the man who wrote the legendary song, Chip Taylor. From Larry Page, the band’s manager & producer, who wouldn’t give up on the song, even though everyone hated it, Mike Mills of R.E.M., who played with the band on a collaboration called Athens Andover, and Graeme Clark of Wet Wet Wet, who took the Troggs’ “Love is All Around” back to the top of the charts in the Nineties. Also contributing are Richard Barone, Peter Zaremba of the Fleshtones, Tommy Keene, producer Mitch Easter, Debora Iyall of Romeo Void, pianist David Lanz, Jon Weiss of the Vipers, Peter Holsapple of the dB’s, and filmmaker Grant Wakefield, who talked with Presley about his obsession with crop circles.

Mitch Easter is best known as the co-producer for the first two REM albums, Murmur and Reckoning from the early Eighties. That exposure helped him land numerous other production gigs. At the same time, Easter was leading his own fine band, Let’s Active, who released four records for IRS. After that band’s breakup, it took him almost 20 years to release new material — 2007’s Dynamico was Easter’s first release under his own name. Icon Fetch talks to the influential producer about why it took him so long between releases, the story behind hooking up with REM, and how he feels about the state of the recording industry now.

Alas...with a nod and a tear to the great Alex.Starting off this podcast with Etta James who's letting it all hang out by Telling Mama what's it's all about, baby! Country Joe & the Fish open up the bible at the church-of-the-open-bottle singing to Martha Lorraine...she's sweet if not discreet..Amy Rigby checks in before we learn about the "bad boys & girls that smoke marijuana" via a movie clip from the 50's. Not to be outdone, The Pretty Things with an ode to the poster boy for sterility, Vivian Prince. The Hollies got inducted into the R&R Hall of Shame so Mitch Easter feels the need to "Pay You Back With Interest". Arthur Lee from the 1st Love LP follows Alice Cooper while he goes door to door selling shoes...wink, wink....saving some for later, The English Beat represents the '80's before Earl pays homage to the great "Chuckster" from St. Louis. Abunai! brings the 2nd set of music to a screaching halt with a slightly speeded up version of "Citadel".Alex Chilton died this week and I'll quote my good friend Ray Brazen: "Many artists start off underground and wind up in the mainstream. To me, Alex's single greatest accomplishment was reversing that process". Well said Siddhartha Brazen....a cut from Big Star that got obliterated by Cheap Trick for "That 70's Show" and a cover of Lowell Fulson's "Make A Little Love" by Alex pave the tarmac for L.A. DJ cum recording star Godfrey's trip "Down Whittier Blvd"...Tell your friends to subscribe the the podcast via itunes or buzzsprout.....