Episodes

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...

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'…" So...

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...

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) - R...

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 Th...

Drummer Todd Philips (Bullet LaVolta, Juliana Hatfield Three, Lemonheads) makes his third appearance on the podcast and brings in yet another Boston - by way of Dayton, OH - classic, the 1990 debut album by The Breeders : ' Pod '. Songs featured in this episode: Lord Of The Thighs - The Breeders; Swan Dive - Bullet LaVolta; Rid Of Me - PJ Harvey; Drivin' On 9 - Ed's Redeeming Qualities; Gigantic - Pixies; Feed The Tree - Belly; Nosferatu Man - Slint; Milk It - Nirvana; Glorious, Doe - The Breede...

Returning guest, television writer, producer and director Jeff Greenstein (Will & Grace, Friends, Desperate Housewives), makes the case that Electric Light Orchestra were - at their core - a fantastic 'singles' band. The 1979 compilation ' ELO's Greatest Hits ' showcases the pop-genius of leader Jeff Lynn , as he meticulously crafted weirdly wonderful rock hits that combined classical orchestration with pop, rock and soul that somehow managed to become classic rock staples. Songs featured in thi...

Released exactly at the autumnal equinox on September 22, 2020, ' Shore ' - the ambitious release by Robin Pecknold under the guise of his Seattle band Fleet Foxes - is a sonically adventurous journey through the musical heroes and influences that shaped him. This week's guest Tom Lawery guides us in unpacking this brightly dense album that “celebrates life in the face of death” Music featured in this episode: Sunblind (Solstice Version) - Fleet Foxes; St Petersburg - Supergrass; Your Protector ...

Chicago-based singer/multi-instrumentalist Nora O'Connor has toured and recorded with the Decemberists, Neko Case, The New Pornographers and many more. This week she joins TRGMH to discuss a record/artist that never ceases to get her high: ' Parade ' by Prince and The Revolution . His eighth studio album was the soundtrack to the 1986 film he directed and starred in, Under The Cherry Moon - and the final album where The Revolution is billed - and is yet another stunning example of Prince's place...

Hey, do you like The Descendents, Lemonheads, All and Teenage Fanclub? Guess what? Shirk Circus might just be your favorite band you've never heard of! Bass Player/Singer/Songwriter Dan Bonebrake (Dashboard Confessional, Lightworkers, The Enablers) brings us the debut album by this short-lived New Jersey band, 1994s ' Words To Say '. Songs featured in this episode: Untitled - Shirk Circus; I Didn't Think - Lightworkers; Back Of A Car - Big Star; Guess Who Came Home Today, #14 (What Would You Be ...

Musician Keith Michaud (The Lightworkers) brings us the fifth album by indie rock titans Sebadoh , ' Bakesale '. With this release, Lou Barlow and co. managed to bridge their lo-fi beginnings with pure pop power chords, producing a collection of songs that hit both hard AND deep! Songs featured in this episode: On Fire (Acoustic version) - Sebadoh; Hemispheres - Keith Michaud; Coming Down Heavy - The Lightworkers; Soulmate - Sebadoh; Gold Soundz - Pavement; Too Young To Fall In Love - Motley Cru...

For this BONUS Patreon episode we asked our Patrons to submit songs that make them happy and tell us why they do. It's a pretty joyful collection of songs guaranteed to make you feel good. Come on, get happy! Songs featured in this episode: Happy Days - Norman Gimbel and Charles Fox; Happy - Pharrell Williams - Happy - The Rolling Stones; Happy House - Siouxsie and the Banshees; Happy Together - The Turtles; C herry Cherry - Neil Diamond; Our House - Madness ; A Roller Skating Jam Named "Saturda...

Beloved in their native Canada but often unheralded elsewhere, Kingston Ontario's The Tragically Hip made intelligent, intensely evocative rock music that won them legions of fans in the Great White North. Their final concert in 2016 - after lead singer Gord Downie's tragic diagnosis of terminal brain cancer a year earlier - was broadcast globally by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as a cross-platform television, radio and internet streaming special. This week's returning guest (and non-Ca...

This episode is about as punk rock as you can get: short, loud and to the point! Returning guest Joey Maya aka Joey Wrecked (The Reactions, Battalion of Saints, The Drummer of Miami Beach) brings us ' An Adjustment To Society ' by early-80s NYC punk/hardcore heroes Kraut . Turn it up!! Songs featured in this episode: Get Away - Kraut; Nights On End - The Reactions; Sonic Reducer - DHMC4 (Live at Churchill's, Miami 2019); Part Time Punks - Television Personalities; Safe European Home - The Clash ...

Birmingham UK drummer Mark Williams (The Jacobites) joins us this week to discuss ' Strawberries ', the fifth studio album - and final one featuring their classic late-70s line-up of Vanian, Sensible, Gray and Scabies - by British punk Gods The Damned . It's a fantastic album by one of Rob's all-time favorite bands, so expect some mild gushing ahead... Songs featured in this episode: I Had Too Much To Dream Last Night - The Damned (Live at Woolwich Coronet, 1985); Don't You Ever Leave Me - The J...

Los Angeles musician Marko DeSantis ( Sugarcult ) is a rock and roll lifer. Coming up in the Santa Barbara, CA music scene in the mid-90s, he's made hit records, toured the world and knows a LITTLE bit about the music-business angst described in alt-rock-cum-power-pop band Superdrag 's second record, the meticulously recorded, universally ignored unsung masterpiece ' Head Trip In Every Key '. Believe the hype! Songs featured in this episode: Amphetamine - Superdrag (Live Irving Plaza NYC 11/2/07...

For this Patreon episode, we asked our Patrons once again to send in songs that break their hearts every time they hear them. They did NOT disappoint. Make sure you have a box of tissues within reach... Songs featured in this episode: Don't Look Back In Anger - Manchester crowd; Words - Low; Fire and Rain - James Taylor; Changes - Charles Bradley; Don't Need A Reason - Beth Orton; Expert In A Dying Field - The Beths; Dear God - XTC; Mami - Melody; Them Changes - Thundercat; Ivy - Frank Ocean; Co...

For this BONUS 'Mixtape Episode', we invited drummer Sam Fogarino ( Interpol ) to curate a mixtape and dug into his selections. Sam's mixtape: 1. Auf Wiedersehen - Cheap Trick 2. Smash It Up - The Damned 3. Panorama - The Cars 4. Mustopha Dance - The Clash 5. Chessboards - Killing Joke 6. Disappearer - Sonic Youth 7. Carry The Zero - Built To Spill 8. Lullaby - Low 9. Dos Galaxias - El Mato a Un Policia Motorizado 10. Rock Music - Pixies 11. Only The Strong - Midnight Oil 12. Girl Loves Me - Dav...

This week's guest Larry Smith brings us a record by the critically acclaimed, highly influential but criminally unheralded 80s Austin TX band Glass Eye . ' Bent By Nature ' is a melodic-yet-quirky, highly intelligent collection of post-punk tunes with nods to kooky neighbors, invasive lizards and Daniel Johnston , among others. Songs featured in this episode: I Am A Baby In My Universe - Kathy McCarty; Introduction - Chicago; Walking The Cow - Daniel Johnston; Don't Worry About The Government - ...

Strap-in for this one, XTC fans: Record/Hot Sauce purveyor Kevin Chanel (Grooves Inspiralled Vinyl/El Enojado Hot Sauce) brings us a curious musical oddity called ' Take Away / The Lure of Salvage' , the 1980 debut record by XTC frontman Andy Partridge a.k.a. Mr Partridge! Consisting basically of dub remixes/rewrites of tracks originally recorded by Partridge's band XTC - and Co-produced with John Leckie - it's a weirdly confounding, highly experimental slab that challenges at every turn. Songs ...

Guitarist/vocalist Chris O'Rourke and drummer/vocalist Rachael McNally - two-thirds of the Boston band Sleepyhead - brings us a double record as intriguingly mysterious and expansive as its name: ' Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You ' by Brooklyn indie rock band Big Thief . Anchored by the stunning voice and enigmatic songwriting of singer/guitarist Adrianne Lenker , it's an ambitious and weirdly absorbing collection of songs/sounds guaranteed to get under your skin. Songs featured in thi...

Wilco 's fourth studio album, the quirky-yet-beloved ' Yankee Hotel Foxtrot ', is widely considered to be the band's masterpiece. So of course Rob dismissed it as overhyped alt-rock critic-bait for 20 years. Returning guest Steve Carroll patiently unwraps the storied tropes and mythical symbols of Jeff Tweedy and co., revealing a pretty fantastic rock record underneath. Songs featured in this episode: Jesus, etc. (Live at Sydney Opera House, 2013), Via Chicago - Wilco; After The Gold Rush - Neil...

It's hard to discuss British rock band Badfinger and NOT focus on the tragic details of their too-short career. This week's guest, legendary Miami music maven Rich Ulloa (Yesterday & Today Records, Y&T Music), doesn't shy away from the dark parts, but much prefers to focus on the wonderful music these four lads from Swansea gifted the world. Their 1971 release ' Straight Up ' is as fine an example of lush, meticulously recorded and thrillingly played power-pop as you're ever likely to find. Song...

With their third full-length album, 2011's 'The English Riviera' , British band Metronomy transitioned from garish electro-pop to a sleek, sophisticated sound that's as much Steely Dan as Daft Punk. Our guest, Scottish singer/songwriter and producer Joshua Mackenzie (The Joshua Hotel, Lional), found inspiration for his own music in leader Joseph Mount 's lush-yet-quirky songs about - among other things - his hometown of Torbay in Devon that make up this beguiling record. "You're up, but you'll g...