On this episode, Weird Al has finally made a monkey out of us. Our latest batch of reconstructed mid-'80s pop hits includes lots of drum machines, two covers of '60s classics (to varying degrees of success), a cameo from Danny Aiello's brief and inexplicable recording career, and an ode to Mozart for people who hate every ape they see, from chimpan-A to chimpanzee.

Songs:

The Rolling Stones - Harlem Shuffle
Bananarama - Venus
Janet Jackson - Nasty
Falco - Rock Me Amadeus
Tears for Fears - Shout
Madonna - Papa Don't Preach

Co-hosts: Rich Bunnell, John McFerrin, Libby Cudmore

Links:

"Harlem Shuffle" music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAkMTu6q2pY

"Dr. Zaius" (from The Simpsons): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlmzUEQxOvA

Danny Aiello's "Papa Wants the Best for You": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xg11hwVs-M

Weird Al "interviews" Madonna in 1985: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twunYSrARk0

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Other clips:

Bob & Earl - Harlem Shuffle
"Weird Al" Yankovic - (This Song's Just) Six Words Long
"Weird Al" Yankovic - I Think I'm a Clone Now
"Weird Al" Yankovic - Alimony
Bananarama - Aie a Mwana
Shocking Blue - Venus
Dead or Alive - You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)
Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up
Kylie Minogue - I Should Be So Lucky
Morris Minor & the Majors - This Is the Chorus
Ministry - Everyday Is Halloween
Bananarama - Cruel Summer
Bananarama - Robert De Niro's Waiting ...
Genesis - Land of Confusion
Janet Jackson - Fast Girls
Falco - Der Kommissar
Falco - It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
Tears for Fears - Mad World
Tears for Fears - Everybody Wants to Rule the World
XTC - This World Over
Tears for Fears - The Tipping Point
Madonna - Everybody
Danny Aiello - Papa Wants the Best for You
Kelly Osbourne - Papa Don't Preach
"Weird Al" Yankovic - Like a Surgeon

For over twenty years, Ted Leo has been one of the most intelligent and consistent songwriters of the indie rock world. In this episode, Dan, Rich, and guest rude-boy James Boo discuss the 2003 album Hearts of Oak, which showcases Leo’s talent for crafting thoughtful, politically-charged lyrics and channeling them into immediately catchy anthems. Whether it’s navigating the confusing climate of a post-9/11 America or simply ruminating on the power of ska, Ted serves it up in a poignant, ear-catching package.

Cohosts: Dan Watkins, Rich Bunnell, James Boo

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/106-ted-leo-and-the-pharmacists-hearts-of-oak-2003

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Discord & Rhyme merch: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Emboldened by the success of "Eat It" and "Like a Surgeon," Weird Al titled his fourth album Polka Party!, and the 1986 record-buying public shunned what they assumed was a full album of accordion music. It wasn't, but the title track was the latest of Al's reliable polka medleys rounding up the chart music of the day. This time around we've got #1 hits by two members of Genesis, the Queen of Soul's voice doing battle with mushy '80s production, and an inconsistent but underrated Australian band that Ben and Rich have bonded over for decades.

Tracks:

Peter Gabriel - Sledgehammer
Phil Collins - Sussudio
Eddie Murphy - Party All the Time
Lionel Richie - Say You, Say Me
Aretha Franklin - Freeway of Love
INXS - What You Need

Co-hosts: Rich Bunnell, Ben Marlin, Amanda Rodgers

Links:

"Sledgehammer" music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJWJE0x7T4Q

"Urban Renewal," the hip-hop/R&B Phil Collins tribute album: https://www.discogs.com/release/1925875-Various-Urban-Renewal

100+ pink Cadillacs at Aretha Franklin's funeral procession: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLTOnOUcLbU

Get early access to bonus episodes on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Discord & Rhyme merch: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Other clips:

"Weird Al" Yankovic - Living with a Hernia
Otis Redding - Change Gonna Come
Bo Carter - Please Warm My Wiener
"Weird Al" Yankovic - Waffle King
"Weird Al" Yankovic - Talk Soup
Prince - 1999
Genesis - Misunderstanding
Ol' Dirty Bastard - Sussudio
Brandy - Another Day in Paradise
Kelis - I Don't Care Anymore
Eddie Murphy - Put Your Mouth on Me
Sisqo - Thong Song
Joe Pesci - Wise Guy
Eddie Murphy - My God Is Color Blind
Lionel Richie - You Are
Phil Collins and Marilyn Martin - Separate Lives
Aretha Franklin & Eurythmics - Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves
Lisa Simpson, Ann Wilson & Nancy Wilson - Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves
INXS - Need You Tonight
INXS - Don't Change
INXS - Heaven Sent
Eddie Murphy - Boogie in Your Butt

This Halloween we’re celebrating FALLoween, as we hit the north and take on the Mighty Fall! Other than a few singles that barely scraped the UK top 40, the Fall never achieved commercial success, but they built a large cult following due in large part to the personality and antics of their difficult, irascible, intelligent, and borderline unintelligible bandleader, Mark E. Smith. But what we hope to emphasize in this episode is that despite Smith’s outsized influence over the Fall, and his tendency to fire members on a whim, the Fall was always a band. Smith’s ideas formed the bedrock of their songs, but their music was always the product of a back-and-forth between him and incredibly talented musicians who added their own distinctive stamp to every iteration of the Fall. Their discography can be large and intimidating to new listeners, so we’ve chosen their 1985 opus This Nation’s Saving Grace, which is relatively accessible, but also a legit candidate for their greatest album. So even if you don’t come away from this episode as the Fall’s 50,001st fan, we hope you’ll at least understand why anyone would willingly listen to this band.

Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Mike DeFabio, Dan Watkins

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/105-the-fall-this-nations-saving-grace-1985

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Discord & Rhyme merch: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

We talked about our first classical suite a few episodes back, so now it’s time for Discord & Rhyme to talk about its first symphony! Electric Light Orchestra have been going through something of a resurgence in the 21st century, but in the ‘70s, music critics savaged Jeff Lynne’s attempts to mix pop songwriting with orchestral pomp. But with 1974’s Eldorado, Lynne was attempting to please his harshest critic of all, his classical-loving father, who claimed that ELO’s songs “have got no tune.” The result was a fascinating, overblown concept album about a Walter Mitty-esque character who escapes the real world through the power of fantasy, and whether the concept holds for the entire album (it doesn’t), it dazzled Producer Mike as a child and continues to dazzle him today. So join our hosts for an evening at the symphony, as we fight some of the holiest wars and smash some of the holiest jawrs(?!!).

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, Phil Maddox, Ben Marlin, Amanda Rodgers

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/104-electric-light-orchestra-eldorado-1974

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Discord & Rhyme merch: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Closing out our first round of arguments in defense of progressive rock with some extra heavy hitters! And some truly baffling weirdness.

Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention - Inca Roads
Focus - Hocus Pocus
The Nice - America
King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man

Other clips:

King Crimson - Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part 1
Frank Zappa - Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar
Focus - Hocus Pocus (live on The Midnight Special)
Rita Moreno - America
R.E.M. - It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Giles, Giles and Fripp - One in a Million
King Crimson - Schizoid Men 3

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, John McFerrin, Dan Watkins, Amanda Rodgers

Get early access to bonus episodes on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Discord & Rhyme merch: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

As luck would have it, two of Discord & Rhyme’s most powerful villains have been turned loose for an episode that will strike terror into the hearts of men! This week, Rich and Mike take on the 2004 hip-hop classic Madvillainy, a team-up between MF DOOM, a rapper with a metal mask and a tragic, comic-book backstory, and Madlib, a DJ with eclectic taste and an unpredictable, artfully imprecise style. The album’s 22 tracks unfold like a fever dream over just 46 minutes, with samples drawn from Bollywood, Brazilian music, Zappa, and Sun Ra crashing headfirst into snippets from old cartoons. And this is all presided over by DOOM, who packs almost unfair amounts of wordplay and meaning into every line. It may seem like chaos at first, but there’s a method to Madvillainy, and it shows how hip-hop can contain the world.

Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Mike DeFabio

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/103-madvillain-madvillainy-2004

Discord & Rhyme merch: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Continuing our enthusiastic defense of progressive rock with this extremely compelling evidence!

Jethro Tull - Cross-Eyed Mary
Yes - Starship Trooper
The Soft Machine - As Long As He Lies Perfectly Still
Gentle Giant - Knots

Additional evidence:

Yes - Heart of the Sunrise
Jethro Tull - Aqualung
Iron Maiden - Cross-Eyed Mary
Jethro Tull - Lap of Luxury
Yes - The Ancient (Giants Under the Sun)
Yes - Starship Trooper (Yessongs version)
The Soft Machine - All White
The Soft Machine - A Concise British Alphabet – Pt. 1
The Soft Machine - A Concise British Alphabet – Pt. 2
Björk - Submarine
Simon Dupree & The Big Sound - Kites
Gentle Giant - Alucard

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, Phil Maddox, John McFerrin

Get early access to bonus episodes on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Discord & Rhyme merch: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

The Jefferson Airplane's drugged-up, hyper-political jams are often dismissed as a relic of the late 1960s. But the band's talent was in abundance on their earnest debut album The Jefferson Airplane Takes Off; and when they added vocalist Grace Slick to their lineup and recorded their second album, 1967's Surrealistic Pillow, the whole world discovered what they were capable of.  In discussing that album, Ben, Amanda, and John make the case that the Airplane's musicianship, harmonies, and attitude all hold up today.

Cohosts: Ben Marlin, John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/102-jefferson-airplane-surrealistic-pillow-1967

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod