In this episode, we spoke with Charlottesville, VA based singer/songwriter Brian Franke who also comprises one-half of the duo FarAway. We talked about an important rock band known as King's X, and their 1994 album Dogman, King's X is a musician's band - a group whom many believe did not receive the critical acclaim that they rightfully deserve from rock critics - even after playing a spell-binding set at Woodstock in 1994! If you want to listen to a hard-rocking, power trio go to work, they are some of the most technically proficient musicians still out there cutting records and taking names. In fact, a new King's X record is slated for late 2020. Mark it on your calendars and enjoy this discussion!

Today's episode features Beau from The Rock Savages Podcast! We rifled through a few stacks of records and fell upon The Black Crowes and their 1994 record Amorica. We find the "classic lineup" playing by their own set of rules outside a musical landscape consumed by "grunge" and experimenting with newer sounds and rhythms at this juncture. It's still the Crowes you've known and grown to love, but perhaps with a little more introspection, Beau also shared a few anecdotes about meeting a few band and crew members up in Woodstock. Enjoy!

Today's guest is London, UK's Danny Green of the bands DG Solaris and Laish. Green shared a record that has played a pivotal role in his own explorations of songwriting: Will Oldham (AKA Bonnie 'Prince' Billy)'s 2001 LP "Ease Down the Road." We spent a considerable amount of time attempting to dissect the lyrical meaning behind the songs on this record. Be forewarned: Bonnie Prince Billy's lyrics are dark, bawdy and perhaps not for the faint of heart. Our conversation surely earned its explicit rating in the land of podcasts. We had several laughs throughout at BPB's lyrical construction and documentation of sexual escapades, and I hope you laugh along with us. Enjoy!

This week's episode features a discussion with Ric Gordon, a Kansas City & Nashville based artist and Director of A&R and a staff songwriter with music publisher Ammar Music Group is this week's guest. Recently his original songs have been recorded by pop singer Taylor Mac and country artist Jim Martin. We took some time to chat about a pivotal record in Ric Gordon's life and rock music as a whole: 1967's The Velvet Underground and Nico.

In a career spanning 5 decades, Ric has forged an innovative and original Americana/alt-country sound. Ric moved to NYC’s Greenwich Village as a 17 year old singer/songwriter in 1970, where he honed his craft; next landing in Nashville in 1976 as an up and coming record producer, where he co-produced three releases with Country Music Hall of Fame Producer Fred Foster on historic label Monument Records. Ric released his debut album "Just Can't Get Enough" in 1980 and has now released 16 albums and EPs under various monikers, ranging from punk rock to electronic music to folk/Americana. In 1983,

Ric returned to the music business full time in 2007, founding indie label Russian Winter Records in 2008. From 2011 to 2019 Ric also published the Floorshime Zipper Boots music blog, featuring daily reviews of releases from emerging artists worldwide. During its operation the blog published 2,300 features. In 2018, Ric launched his second independent label, Buffalo Burger Records as a home for his special projects focused on Americana and acoustic music. He produced the debut album from Nashville stalwart Jim Martin and the debut single from Midwest folk duo Ehrnman/Pearson Over his career, Ric has produced 54 albums and EPs by 26 different artists. Enjoy the conversation!

Alexandria, VA based multi-instrumentalist and record producer Jarrett Nicolay (Mixtape Studios) is our guest on the program this week! For those unfamiliar with Nicolay's work, check out his solo project My New Mixtape, and bands Virginia Coalition, Astra Via and Franklin Gotham. We discussed an important English Rock band known as The Smiths and a their 1987 compilation titled Louder Than Bombs. LTB was released as a double album and features a wonderful breadbasket of singles, B-sides and John Peel Sessions. Enjoy!

In this episode, singer/songwriter Kevin Conaway and I discuss in great detail Canada's finest prog-rock band, Rush, and their 1987 album Hold Your Fire. We explore a variety of topics, namely, lyrical themes presented to the listener by drummer Neil Peart, what was happening in the world in 1987 that informed the band and their continued influence on Conaway's approach to his musical craft. Enjoy!

In this episode, we spoke with Kendra Muecke of Kendra and the Bunnies about the sixth record from Animal Collective titled Merriweather Post Pavilion (Domino Records). Kendra discussed her favorite tracks, meeting the band, as well as the open-ended interpretations of lyrics presented on this record. We also wound up discussing the use of an Oxford Comma in the English language. Do you appreciate the Oxford Comma, dear listener? Enjoy!

Our guest this week is artist, producer, Palo Santo Records co-founder, and Dallas, TX indie music godfather Salim Nourallah. We spoke by telephone on a lazy, April afternoon and discussed The White Album by The Beatles, which changed the course of popular music forever, and cast aside traditional methods of presenting one main musical genre on a record. Salim reminisced about the impact The White Album has had on his life and career in music, beginning in the mid 1970's. We also discussed The White Album's production choices and instrumentation; clever lyrics; and gorgeous, finger picked, acoustic-driven songs from Lennon and McCartney interspersed between songs that can be considered avant garde, playful or at times, DANGEROUS. Plus, you'll hear a humorous observation from Salim on the band's decision to have Ringo sing a Lennon-McCartney penned song "Good Night" to close this 30 song masterpiece. There's much, much more in this episode for your ears to enjoy!

In this episode, Matt calls up Toronto, Canada based musician Nelson Sobral to discuss The Rolling Stones 1972 double record Exile on Main St. We extensively go track x track through Exile and all of its influences on the band, who is certainly at the peak of its powers. Enjoy!

In this episode, we sat down with guitarist and songwriter Brian Pagels of The Beanstalk Library and Uptown Boys Choir to discuss Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers 1999 album Echo, which spawned the singles "Room at the Top," "Swingin," and "Free Girl Now ". We focused on the darkness of Echo's lyrical undertones, and the increased roles of guitarist Mike Campbell, multi-instrumentalist Scott Thurston and drummer Steve Ferrone during the making of this record. The fact that Echo sounds as cohesive and full of energy as it does during this uncertain time in the group's career is remarkable in itself. Enjoy the conversation!