281. Urthboy on A Tribe Called Quest 'The Low End Theory' (1991)

This week singer/songwriter and actress (Stranger Things, Little Women) Maya Hawke joins me via landline (!) from Woodstock to talk about the enduring classic of unfettered emotion, Joni Mitchell's towering Blue. We dig into Maya's love of poetry and how it intersects with her music, treating the lyrics of Joni's songs as a puzzle, separating art from the artist, how music helped with her dyslexia, the process of writing her own album and how Blue has helped her to find space, privacy and independence during Covid-19 lockdowns.

20 Mai 202045min

"If you're lucky, you get to see a lot of life. The fact that I can listen to an album like this and connect with a person to a person I was for a good deal of my life, came out of the hardest things in my childhood, and a kind of anger and sadness that motivated me to try to be who I've become and pushed me, kept me from settling. The fact that I can connect to that so directly with an album like this, to the person I was so long ago, it's like a time warp." - Bob Odenkirk. This week, the legendary Bob Odenkirk (Mr Show, Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad) joins me to talk about The Replacements classic debut album 'Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash'. Bob talks about whether the album qualifies as punk rock, his shared midwestern roots, the wit and cynicism of the lyrics, how the album helps him access the harsher emotions of his younger self, Bob Mehr's Replacements biography Trouble Boys, the recently released Replacements live record and more. Plus, Bob talks about the challenges of portraying Jimmy McGill on Better Call Saul, from playing someone fifteen years younger than him, how the character's evolving self-awareness has changed his performance and filming the brutal 'Bagman' episode of the most recent season.

13 Mai 202038min

In our first lockdown era episode, I connect with Golden Globe nominated screenwriter and producer Liz Hannah (The Post, Long Shot, All the Bright Places) to talk about Van Morrison's classic 'Astral Weeks', as well as how the current situation has impacted Liz and her media diet, how she's listening to music at the moment, iPods, puzzles, streaming services vs DVDs and much more.

7 Mai 202035min

And we're back! For our first show post-isolation, it's another guest-packed special as we finish my countdown of favorite albums of the 2010s. 7. Courtney Barnett - Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit 6. Lorde - Melodrama (both with guest co-host Caitlin Welsh) 5. Jason Isbell - Southeastern (with Camp Cope's Kelly-Dawn Hellmrich) 4. Taylor Swift - 1989 (with Imogen Clark) 3. Jenny Lewis - The Voyager (with Bernard Zuel) 2. Tame Impala - Currents (with Japanese Wallpaper) 1. Father John Misty - I Love You Honeybear (with Jonathan Wilson). It's another epic action packed episode, also featuring some voicemail messages from friends of the show Ultragrrl, Bob Mehr, Anita Lester, Davey Lane and Troy Cassar-Daley.

4 Mai 20201h 53min

9 Apr 202018min

6 Apr 202040min

Seven years and 300 episodes of the podcast in, we are marking the occasion with an epic three part celebration of my favorite albums of the past decade. Music journalist Caitlin Welsh joins me to criticise my taste and banter about the first three records on my list, and I'm joined by the artists behind those records - Dan Kelly on the rollercoaster of Dan Kelly's Dream, Margaret Glaspy on her undeniable Emotions and Math and Gang of Youth's frontman Dave Le'aupepe on their life-affirming masterwork Go Farther in Lightness. Plus we check the voicemail to hear from friends of the show Jim Lauderdale, Holiday Sidewinder, Kristina Murray, Chris Hewitt and Jeff Greenstein on what their favorite albums of the past ten years have been, and debut our special new theme song by the genius Matt Farley. Check back soon for part 2 of our 300th Episode Spectacular!

31 Mar 20201h 39min

After almost 300 episodes and 7 years, we finally talk about 'Rumours' by Fleetwood Mac, as Camp Cope bass princess and Kelso icon Kelly-Dawn Hellmrich takes me on a journey through its 11 iconic tracks, matching each to a different kind of relationship you will experience throughout your life.

18 Mar 202053min