25 O'Clock

First off, it's the 50th episode! Who would've thought? It's been a blast putting out 50 episodes, and here's to many more. 

This week, we take you to Tattooed Mom's on South Street for our live show as part of the Philadelphia Podcast Fest. Dan talks to new friend Brian Erick of the band The Paper Jets, as well as co-host of the fantastic The Great Albums Podcast. Dan also catches up with show favorite Ben Hughes of the band Night Windows. It's a great night of conversation and acoustic performances.

Host of the "Everything Is Awesome" podcast, Kevin braves the heat, traffic and DNC madness to be in the cool, temperate underground studio to talk with Dan about his almost decade-long run as a podcaster. Dan and Kevin also have the longest conversation about wrestling in 25 O'Clock history. And Dave Matthews Band. The guys talk about their early love of radio and how it influenced them to eventually becoming podcasters, and their excitement for the upcoming Philadelphia Podcast Festival.

From Northeast Philly to Jersey to art school to finally putting together her live band, Emily Mineo's trajectory has been quite a ride. Dan talks to Emily about learning on her dad's Guild guitar, loving Springsteen before it was cool to love Springsteen again, and her love of the Philly scene, particularly Connie's Ric Rac. And her song, "Barbara Streisand" will get stuck in your head in a wonderful way. It's still stuck in Dan's. 

Andrew and Dan talk Andrew's band, Shadowplay, their new album, "Almost Lifelike", and how their shift from a blues-rock band to something more adventurous and unique came about. Dan gets to namecheck some of his faves when talking with Andrew: Portishead, Drive Like Jehu, Fugazin, Mogwai, and many more as the two delve into the band's history, their recent work in the studio, and how a band keeps it fresh after nearly a decade together.

Tom plays drums for Modern Colour, Lou, writes and takes pictures for the Spirit Newspaper, and sleeps maybe sometimes. Dan and Tom have a spirited conversation about levels of success in music, managing your own band, Quest Love, Dan's rudimentary drum skills, and Tom's much, much better drum skills. 

It's a truly unique conversation to have with someone who refers to their stage personae entirely in the third person. David Sweeny is Johnny Showcase, but Johnny is not David, at least not entirely. Blurring the lines is a main topic between David and Dan as they discuss the origin of the character, being both a piece of theater as well as an honest to goodness funk band, and how it's all about the live show experience in the end. 

It was both strange and also incredibly fitting to have my best friend since youth/longest running musical collaborator James Hearne on the mic back in February. What was supposed to be a quick promo piece about his upcoming record became a full conversation about his move to the Hudson Valley of New York, how he's treating his new musical direction by fully embracing country music, and what it's like being your own boss after years and years of collaborating with others.

Dan thinks Abi Reimold's new record 'Wriggling' is an adventurous, challenging piece of work. It's a pretty uncomfortable record, both sonically as well as thematically. Abi talks about seeing herself as an artist but not as a musician, reading her own reviews, her love of photography, and a unique way to not actually do a real guitar solo. Plus, her live, stripped down solo performance is not to be missed. Also, Dan gives a heartfelt shout out to Gordon Downie of the Tragically Hip and his re cent news of illness.

Carolyn Lederach helps run Philadelphia's SoFar Sounds concert series, takes photos for countless music outlets, and is an important fixture to the Philly scene. Dan and Carolyn talk about being involved in the not-as-glamorous parts of the music world, wading through a 'dude-heavy' music industry, and how someone has to step up and tell a band what to do. 

On her way through Philadelphia on tour, Arsena and her band