Episodes

Miami drag icon Shelley Novak aka 'Tommy Strangie' joins us for another BONUS "Mixtape Episode", where we invite a special guest to curate a mixtape for our listeners and dig into their musical selections. At a time when drag performers - among others - seem to be under attack, Shelley's here to ask the question, "Why can't we all just listen to the music we love and get along??" It's Shelley Novak's High School Musical 1985 Mixtape! Songs discussed in this episode: English Summer - Eurythmics;...

This week's guest, audio engineer, producer, teacher (and lead singer of Indianapolis punk band Zero Boys) Paul Mahern, brings us Public Enemy's landmark sophomore record 'It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back'. Hugely influential and sonically explosive, Chuck D, Flavor Flav and the production team known as The Bomb Squad combined rap, soul, rock, funk, punk, musique concrète and everything in-between to forge the sound of a unit keenly aware of its purpose and capabilities. Bring the n...

Milwaukee guitarist/vocalist Joe Cannon (WORK, Resurrectionists) brings us Dutch experimental/punk band The Ex, and their 1995 release 'Mudbird Shivers'. “Fasten your seatbelts, here is the news Just come and get it, The Thunderstruck Blues…” Songs discussed in this episode: Eyoleo - The Ex & Han Bennink (Ziway, Ethiopia 2004); (hotel with pool) - Resurrectionists; Bluefield #2 - Delicious Monsters; Stupid Americans - The Ex; Symfonie Voor Machines - Ex Orkest; State Of Shock, Thunderstruck Blue...

We hate to throw around the phrase 'criminally unheralded', but it sure does seem to fit San Francisco slowcore pioneers American Music Club and lead singer/songwriter Mark Eitzel. This week's guest, DAGGERzine creator Tim Hinely, brings us their 2nd album, 'Engine'. Warning: Eitzel's poignant, devastatingly raw songs will get under your skin and fester. Beautifully. "And anything beautiful That you can contrive Has no desire to survive..." Songs discussed in this episode: Kaleidoscope World - T...

Artist/Musician Beatriz "Betty" Monteavaro returns with an album that both frightened and inspired her twelve-years-of-Catholic-school-self, 'Join Hands' by goth pioneers Siouxsie and the Banshees. "Are you ready?" Songs discussed in this episode: Love In A Void - Siouxsie and The Banshees; Bowling Green - Holly Hunt; Dog Eat Dog - Adam and the Ants; Poppy Day, Regal Zone - Siouxsie and The Banshees; Colony - Joy Division; Placebo Effect, Icon, Premature Burial, Playground Twist, Mother/Oh Mein...

Still reeling from the drug-related deaths of Crazy Horse guitarist Danny Whitten and roadie/friend Bruce Berry, Neil Young's 'Tonight's The Night' is as raw an expression of grief and mourning you're likely to find. Canadian filmmaker Alan Zweig (Vinyl, When Jews Were Funny) joins us as we take a deep dive into this dark but ultimately beautiful document of death and loss. Songs discussed in this episode: Tonight's The Night (Pt II) - Neil Young; O Canada - Geddy Lee & Alex Lifeson, featuring ...

For our 300th episode (!!!), we invited original TRGMH co-host Barry Stock and That Facebook Group Got Me High admin Mark Guerita to dissect Beck's contagiously-fun magnum opus of a party album, 1999s 'Midnite Vultures'. A good time was had by all. Songs discussed in this episode: Debra (2 Meter Sessions, 1999) - Beck; Crazy Horses - The Osmonds; Loser - Beck; Little Red Corvette - Prince; Sexx Laws, Nicotine & Gravy - Beck; The Dope Show - Marilyn Manson; Mixed Bizness - Beck; Cold Lampin' Wit...

Teacher and poet Josh Medsker brings us California iconoclasts Camper Van Beethoven and their wonderful 1989 album 'Key Lime Pie'. It's a sweet, slightly tangy slice of musical heaven! Songs discussed in this episode: Pictures Of Matchstick Men - Status Quo; Pictures Of Matchstick Men, Eye Of Fatima - Camper Van Beethoven; Finger-Pointing-Man - Mike Watt; Wasted, Take The Skinheads Bowling, Opening Theme, Jack Ruby, Sweetheart - Camper Van Beethoven; Old Mother Reagan - Violent Femmes; When I W...

For this BONUS Patron-curated episode we asked our Patrons to send in a song that samples, references or pays tribute to ANOTHER song. They delivered. Remember, if YOU'D like to become a Patron of the podcast head over to: Https://Patreon.com/TRGMH Songs discussed in this episode: Sister Ray - Velvet Underground; Velvet Underground - Jonathan Richman; Witness The Fitness - Roots Manuva; Blindness - The Fall; Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2; All By Myself - Eric Carmen; Dust In The Wind - Kansas...

Anthemic. Angular. Inscrutable. These are all words that could describe Wichita, Kansas indie-rock-cum blister-pop band The Embarrassment. Musician Bob Fay (Sebadoh, Cardinal, Lost Hours) discovered them at the end their short-but-prolific existence, after they moved to Boston and eventually splintered off into other bands - Big Dipper and The Del Fuegos to name two - leaving behind a slew of excellent releases including the 1983 mini-LP 'Death Travels West'. "We Were Famous, You Don't Remember"...

Industry veteran, musician, composer, producer and engineer Mark Bingham has had a long and decidedly eclectic career in music. We sat down to talk some jazz - specifically Archie Shepp and his 1965 release 'Fire Music' - and may have finally cracked the code to Rob's ambivalence to the genre. REALLY fun conversation! Songs discussed in this episode: Hambone (recorded live at the Village Gate March 28, 1965) - Archie Shepp; William Blake In Bakersfield - Mark Bingham; Doctor My Eyes - Jackson B...

Perth, Western Australia alternative/pop band The Triffids remain one of Australia's best-loved, post-punk groups, but are virtually unknown in the US. This week's guest Erik Auerbach brings us their stunning 1986 release, 'Born Sandy Devotional'. Leader David McComb's lyrically tragic songs of love, life and obsession form a sweeping soundtrack to an imaginary film that's at once disturbing and inviting. Songs discussed in this episode: Femme Fatale - The Triffids (Live at The Club, Melbourne ...

This week's guest, Don Cowan (Kraut), brings us T. Rex's 1972 release 'The Slider'. Leader Marc Bolan - still at the top of his game - unleashes a trippy cast of characters (Telegram Sam, Baby Strange, Jungle-face Jake, Buick Mackane...etc) on this rock-and-roll dream of a record. Rock on! Songs discussed in this episode: Metal Guru - Nena; Don't Believe - Kraut; Ziggy Stardust, Heroes - David Bowie; Bang A Gong (Get It On), Metal Guru - T. Rex; Panic - The Smiths; Elenore - The Turtles; Mystic...

Award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster Dan Nolan didn't have to think too long about a record that got him high. Coming up in Manchester UK in the early 90s, he was there right at the start of the band Oasis and their meteoric rise to superstardom. We sat down to discuss their eight times platinum 1994 debut 'Definitely Maybe', and it was definitely NOT shite. Songs discussed in this episode: Live Forever (Live Paris in-store, 1994 - Oasis; Step On - Happy Mondays; Cigarettes and Alco...

Michigan music fan Ron Wade is a sucker for alternative/pop female-fronted bands, and when he first heard Ivy and their 1997 release 'Apartment Life' while working at a Detroit weekly, it ticked all his musical boxes! Lush, breezy and expertly crafted, the songs written by Andy Chase and the late/great Adam Schlesinger - with the magnificent Dominique Durand on vocals - will most-surely tick the boxes of any/all pop music lovers. Songs featured in this episode: Sleeping Late - Ivy; Panic In Det...

Singer/songwriter John Davis (Superdrag, The Lees of Memory) brings us the third and final album by Texas psyche rock pioneers The 13th Floor Elevators: 'Bull Of The Woods'. With other founding members Roky Erickson and Tommy Hall somewhat sidelined with various legal and personal issues, guitarist/songwriter Stacy Sutherland stepped-up to complete this dreamy, evocative slab of psychedelia that proved to be their swan song. Songs featured in this episode: Bull Of The Woods (Radio Spot) - 13th ...

Hey there! For this BONUS Patron-curated episode, we asked our Patrons to send in a song about a PLACE. As usual, they delivered. Please enjoy this collection of 'songs about places', and if YOU'D like to become a Patron of the podcast head over to: Https://Patreon.com/TRGMH Songs featured in this episode: Los Angeles - X; Dirty Blvd - Lou Reed; Beverly Hills - Weezer; Viva Las Vegas - Elvis Presley; California Dreamin' - The Mamas & The Papas; Discovering Japan - Graham Parker; California Sun -...

When he was a young teen, Oscar Herrera (Former lead singer with The Sleep of Reason, Halo, El Duende and Black Tape for a Blue Girl) discovered the Beatles and there was no looking back. When he and his wife had children they made sure that music - and especially the Beatles - was front-and-center in their lives. For this special episode, Oscar is joined by his daughter Danielle Herrera as they unpack some songs from the Fab Four's 1968 release 'The Beatles' aka The White Album. Along the way t...

There's no mistaking the fact that The Gaslight Anthem and their leader Brian Fallon are from New Jersey. The earnest storytelling and vivid imagery in their breakout album The '59 Sound is pure Born/Darkness-era Springsteen. This week's guest Todd Bauch was skeptical at first, but eventually got sucked-in by the punk rock edge, stellar songwriting and dizzying musical references contained within this banger of a record. Songs featured in this episode: Great Expectations (Acoustic version from ...

Guitarist and Songwriter Mike Baggetta came across Mike Watt's 1997 punk rock opera 'Contemplating The Engine Room' at just the right time for him. Watt's expansive and highly personal song cycle that uses navy life as an extended metaphor for both his family history and his band, the Minutemen - created with guitarist Nels Cline and drummer Stephen Hodges - became a touchstone of sorts for Baggetta, opening his mind to the possibility of making highly original, authentic music independent of ge...

Record purveyor Karl Ueberbacher (Phoenix Records, Waitsfield Vermont) nixed his original album pick for a more in-your-face Spring-centric selection, 1993's 'Saturation' by Chicago postmodern rockers Urge Overkill. Shedding their noise-rock roots - their first few releases were recorded by Steve Albini - for a more alternative arena rock sound, their major-label debut combines a tongue-in-cheek irony with a weirdly appealing sense of rock and roll fun. "Come around to my way of thinkin'…" Song...

With their seventh release, 1990s 'Violator', Depeche Mode completed their transformation from quirky synth-pop pioneers to international rock stars. A more stripped-down, sinister sound aided by producer Flood perfectly showcases these dark songs about guilt, salvation and obsession. It's a sound that this week's guest, poet and music lover Sarah Nichols, has kept close to her heart for over 30 years. Songs featured in this episode: Enjoy The Silence - Tori Amos; Run - New Order; Pictures Of Y...

Author Aug Stone (Nick Cave's Bar, Off-License To Kill) joins us to discuss his latest book, the bonkers rock-n-roll novel 'The Ballad of Buttery Cake Ass', and a record that blew his 8-year-old mind: Van Halen's '1984'. Might as well jump! Songs featured in this episode: Hot For Teacher - Van Halen; Cinnamon Scented Stardust - Aug Stone; Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love - Van Halen; Beat It - Michael Jackson; Why Can't This Be Love, Top Of The World, 1984, Jump, Panama - Van Halen; Slug (Demo) - Ramon...

For this BONUS Patron-curated episode, we asked our Patrons to send in a song by a band/artist that's best known for ANOTHER song. So, there's this band. Many people know them by that one song. You know, "That band that did that song." Here's the thing, though: there's ANOTHER song they did that's just as good...or maybe even better! Songs featured in this episode: Come On Eileen - Dexys Midnight Runners; Call Me Maybe, Want You In My Room - Carly Rae Jepsen; Another Girl, Another Planet, Out T...