Ween is an American alt. rock band from New Hope, PA, formed in 1984 by Aaron Freeman and Mickey Melchiondo, better known by their respective stage names, Gene and Dean Ween.
I became aware of their highly eclectic catalog of songs in the early 90s and have been a big fan ever since. Listen to Ocean Man here.
I became aware of Johnston and his eclectic and raw music mostly from the compassionate 2005 documentary about his life, The Devil and Daniel Johnston. Filmmaker Jeff Feuerzeig chronicled the life of the manic-depressive/schizophrenic artist, using a blend of home movies, Johnston's own audiotapes, vintage performances, animation and current footage.
Johnston recorded nearly a dozen albums and amassed thousands of sketches, and has among his supporters Matt Groening, David Bowie, Sonic Youth, Beck, and Tom Waits.
Watch the trailer for the documentary here which also gives a taste of his music.
Okay, I recognize I’m a little obsessed with movies and soundtracks, so I feel like this podcast was made for me. That said, this is such fun analysis and an interesting lesson in music & sound that I think many people would enjoy what show creator/host David W. Collins does here. Listen to his excellent dissection of John Williams Raiders of the Lost Ark (Part ll) soundtrack.
He’s a blues legend and still playing. Listen.
Always weird and consistently inventive, The Flaming Lips have been breaking the rules for decades. Listen here.
These guys captured teen-angst in the 80s unlike most other young bands. Their music/lyrics had a sense of humor, wisdom and perspective surprising for teenagers.
Mostly a Kim Deal (from the Pixies) project. Last Splash was one of those albums, for me, that was in heavy rotation throughout the 90’s. Listen to Cannonball.
Our good friends Nathan and Matthew Tolzmann (and Andrea, wife of Matthew) moved to Chicago years ago and among other things, started (or maybe continued) their band Jumpsuit (not with Andrea, but with their friend Grant). Nathan did the album cover artwork below and here’s a video (Chic-A-Go-Go) from an all ages cable access show - look for Batman.
Talking Heads ’77 and Stop Making Sense (Live Album) were big albums for me. I listened to them endlessly in HS/college and on a bike trip thru the mid-west in my early 20’s. Byrne could do it all, punk, new wave, pop, world music, etc. Love his influence on music. Listen here to Don’t Worry About the Gov’t (a track from Talking Heads ‘77.
Pioneers in the world of 80’s punk rock. Listen.
Morricone has scored music for more than 400 movies and television shows (e.g., Cinema Paradiso, The Mission, Space 1999, The Hateful Eight, and on and on). He put the sauce on the Spaghetti Western. Listen here to the scoring for Once upon a Time in the West, The Good, The Bad and the Ugly and more.
Great stuff. Listen.
His music only got better as he aged. In the 3rd act of his life/career, he made American Recordings (1994) in producer Rick Rubin’s living room, mostly featuring Cash on acoustic guitar playing his favorite songs - it was his 81st album. Here’s his cover of U2’s “One” (he would do this with Rubin in 2000 on American lll). His body of work is an amazing contribution to the fabric of American music.
So good. Listen to Lou Reed’s Wild Child here.
I’ve been listening to this podcast for roughly the past 6 years (interviews drop on Mon. & Thurs. mornings). Nearly every conversation Marc has with a guest leaves me feeling like I’ve learned more about a stranger and oddly more about myself. Listen
Note: I fast-forward through the first 10-15mins of monologue & ads
They were lightning in a bottle. Listen.
He’s a wizard. Listen here.
A favorite place in Denver to hear live music.
Here is a video of a Smog song. Years ago, saw these guys at the BlueBird Theater in Denver and everyone in the audience was clearly a super-fan. The show ended with the song Ex-con - which is a favorite of mine, thank you Nathan Tolzmann.
small, dirty, cheap beer, seedy characters - but the best place in Denver to hear live music
