Dive Bar Music Club

We’re big fans of public radio and festivals for music discovery. Charles Hale and Nelson Gullett had a small world radio-meets-real-life Big Ears connection. Public radio keeps new music alive and thriving, even as the federal government slashed budgets and extremist subcultures try to wield power over art.

Driver 8 Records gears up for Record Store Day and launches a vinyl record club. Sloane Spencer continues to float her musical loose associations, this time sharing, "If Randy Newman, Leon Russell, and Levon Helm hung out listening to the Beatles, this might be the song they wrote." So pour yourself something nice, slide into the booth, and get ready for a mix of good stories and the kind of musical rabbit holes you’ll be glad you fell into.

Catch Our Tastemaker Playlists

• Apple Music
• Tidal

Bands Featured in Episode 7

• Flea
• Jesse Ed Davis
• Kathleen Edwards
• Kruangbin
• Leon Bridges
• The Montvales
• Neko Case
• Silver Skylarks
• Yagody

Support Your Local Public Radio Station

• WDVX
• KRFC

Record Store Day & Driver 8 Records' Record Club

• Driver 8 Records

The Regulars

• Nelson Gullett
• Charles Hale
• Sloane Spencer

Musicians, Festivals, Venues, and Events Mentioned in this Episode

• Albert King
• Amelia Day
• Anna Butters
• Angine de Poitrine
• Arlo Guthrie
• Barley's Knoxville
• Black Pumas
• Blind Boys of Alabama
• Bloodshot Bill
• Bob Dylan
• Brennan Wedl
• Bugs Bunny
• Butch Hancock
• Carolina Chocolate Drops
• Charles Mingus
• Charlie Snider
• Chris Stapleton
• Chris Thile
• Christopher Paul Stelling
• Colin Cripps
• Driver 8 Records
• Dr. John
• Duane Allman
• Grant Alden
• Grateful Dead
• Gwenifer Raymond
• Haley Heynderickx
• International Anthem
• Jason Isbell
• Jeff Parker
• Jimmy Dale Gilmore
• John Lennon
• Kaoru Watanabe
• Kasey Musgraves
• Katie Crutchfield
• Ken Pomeroy
• Leon Russell
• Levon Helm
• Lucinda Williams
• Market Square, Knoxville, TN
• Michael Stipe
• MJ Lenderman
• Nick Cave
• No Depression
• Nonesuch Records
• Peter Buck
• R.E.M.
• Randy Newman
• Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Richard Thompson
• Smoking Dave and the Primo Dopes
• Sturgill Simpson
• Taj Mahal
• The Beatles
• The SteelDrivers
• Todd Snider
• Tom Petty
• Thom Yorke
• Tortoise
• Big Ears Festival
• Thirty Tigers
• Tyler Childers
• Waxahatchee
• WDVX
• WREK
• KRFC
• Wu Fei

Recommended If You Like

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This week on Dive Bar Music Club, we roll straight into our ever-evolving music discovery, joined by: Caitlin Cary, Amanda Miles, Kim Ware, Sloane Spencer, and Rachel Cholst.

We kick things off with a surprise protest song from Caitlin, collaborating with Chris Stamey, on a track sharing the words on the Statue of Liberty. From there, the conversation opens up into a mixtape of current obsessions, weaving from the dreamy introspection of Leith Ross to the throwback swagger of T.I.

Along the way, there’s laughter, a little friendly debate about "super double deluxe" reissues (we're rolling our eyes at you, Taylor), and plenty of real talk about why music hits so deeply. So pour yourself something good, pull up a chair, and join us for a lively exchange of songs, stories, and the shared thrill of finding your next favorite song.

Catch Our Tastemaker Playlists

• Apple Music
• Tidal

Bands Featured in Episode 6

• Courtney Barnett
• Duke Ellington
• Ida
• Will Johnson
• Johnny Blue Skies/Sturgill Simpson (vinyl/CD only)
• Jon Lindsay
• Kendra Morris
• Ratboys
• Leith Ross
• T.I.

The Regulars

• Caitlin Cary
• Rachel Cholst
• Amanda Miles
• Sloane Spencer
• Kim Ware

Musicians, Photographers, and Other Cool People and Places Mentioned

• Benji Hughes
• Boy Golden
• Brian Wright
• Chris Stamey
• Jason Isbell
• Jason Molina
• Kurt Vile
• Ludacris
• Magnolia Electric Company
• New Order
• North Carolina Music Love Army
• OutKast
• Pete Seeger
• Wren Carpenter
• Taylor Swift
• The Replacements
• Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
• Widespread Panic
• Yum Yum Tree

Recommended If You Like

dive bar music club, 90s alt rock, music podcast, emerging songwriters, cult band favorites, music playlists, protest music, singer-songwriter interviews, indie music recommendations, new music discovery, vinyl records, comfort music, live music discussions, music industry insights, alternative music culture, music nerds, music collaborations, music photography, zine culture, music trends

Summary

Grab a stool at the Dive Bar Music Club, where host Sloane Spencer and Regulars Charles Hale and Nelson Gullett share their low-key, high-taste music selections. This week’s happy hour for music nerds dives deep into the miracle of the Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy's Life's Rich Pageant R.E.M. tour, where even Bobcat Goldthwait's opening set brought joy, much to their surprise. Between Charles’s treasure trove of new vinyl finds, ranging from the haunting Magnolia and Johnson Electric Co. 7" to the garage-rock grit of the Flamin' Groovies, and Nelson’s essential preview of the Big Ears Festival featuring lap-style guitar creative Yasmin Williams, the episode is a masterclass in crate-digging. It’s a passionate, defense of the weird, the instrumental, and the feel-good oldies that make being a music obsessive worth the effort.

Catch Our Tastemaker Playlists

1. Apple Music
2. Tidal

Bands Featured in Episode 5

1. Angine de Poitrine
2. Beulah
3. The Cure
4. Cure for Paranoia
5. Flamin' Groovies
6. Gwenifer Raymond
7. Haley Heynderickx and Max Garcia Conover
8. Magnolia & Johnson Electric Co.
9. Yasmin Williams ft Dom Flemons

Venues and Festivals Mentioned

1. The 40 Watt Club, Athens, GA
2. Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, TN
3. Bijou Theatre, Knoxville, TN
4. Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN
5. Cat’s Cradle, Carrboro, NC
6. Tennessee Theatre, Knoxville, TN

The Regulars

1. Nelson Gullett
2. Charles Hale
3. Sloane Spencer

Musicians, Photographers, and Other Cool People and Places Mentioned

1. Adam Smith
2. Alvin Youngblood Hart
3. American Aquarium
4. Amethyst Kiah
5. Apples in Stereo
6. Arooj Aftab
7. Backsliders
8. Ben Nichols
9. Beulah
10. Billy Allen and the Pollies
11. Blind Boys of Alabama
12. The Carolina Chocolate Drops
13. Charles Wesley Godwin
14. Chocolate Genius
15. Chris Porter
16. Chris Thile
17. Darrell Scott
18. The Devil Makes Three
19. The Glands
20. MJ Lenderman
21. Jason Molina
22. Jason Narducy
23. Jay Farrar
24. Jim Dickinson
25. Jim James
26. John Zorn
27. Johnny Blue Skies (Sturgill Simpson)
28. Ken Pomeroy
29. Luther Dickinson
30. Madison Cunningham
31. Magnolia Electric Co.
32. Marc Ribot
33. Michael Shannon
34. Molina and Johnson
35. Nels Cline
36. Neutral Milk Hotel
37. New Multitudes
38. Nirvana
39. Patti Smith
40. R.E.M.
41. Reggie Watts
42. Sam Amidon
43. Scott Avett
44. Sturgill Simpson
45. Sun Ra Arkestra
46. Sunny War
47. Tatiana Hargreaves
48. The 400 Unit
49. Thurston Moore
50. Waxahatchee
51. The Westerlies
52. Will Johnson
53. William Tyler
54. Wu Fei

Recommended If You Like

Dive Bar Music Club, music podcast, 90s alt rock, indie music recommendations, emerging songwriters, record store culture, festival music experiences, Sturgill Simpson new album, live music events, alternative music playlists, music nerd discussions, unique musical collaborations, Big Ears Festival, folk and Americana music, underground music scene, vinyl record collecting, local music highlights, new music discoveries, eclectic music tastes, passionate music discussions, R.E.M., Jason Narducy, Michael Shannon, Johnny Blue Skies

Summary

This week, Amanda Miles, Sloane Spencer, and Kim Ware settle in for a deeper conversation about the music getting us through the mess of current American politics. We start by talking about the long history of music and creativity in protest movements, sparked by Ann Powers’ article about where all the protest songs have gone lately, and whether they’ve actually disappeared or just taken new forms.

From there, we trade the songs currently living on repeat in our headphones. A theme quickly emerges: comfort. The kind of music that steadies you when everything feels beyond us. Think the emotional pull of Jason Isbell, the warm, lived-in sound of Waxahatchee, and the storytelling power that artists like Tyler Childers and Courtney Marie Andrews bring to the table.

Along the way we talk about that tricky balance in our listening habits right now, when you want music that lets you feel the anger, but also something that softens the edges of the day.

Pour yourself something good, settle in, and join us for a thoughtful, easy-going conversation full of sharp observations, a few laughs, and plenty of appreciation for the songs helping us cope, reset, and stay connected.

Catch Our Tastemaker Playlists

1. Apple Music
2. Tidal

Bands Featured in Episode 4

1. Courtney Marie Andrews
2. Amanda Bergman
3. Tyler Childers
4. Jason Isbell
5. Dina Ogon
6. Waxahatchee

Venues and Festivals Mentioned

1. Fest, Gainesville, FL
2. Shoals Fest, Muscle Shoals, AL
3. The Cave, Chapel Hill, NC
4. Coca Cola Amphitheater, Birmingham, AL
5. Neighborhood Theatre, Charlotte, NC
6. Orange Peel, Asheville, NC
7. Radio Room, Greenville, SC
8. Red Rocks, Morrison, CO
9. Tribbles, Piedmont, SC

The Regulars

1. Amanda Miles
2. Sloane Spencer
3. Kim Ware

Musicians & More Also Mentioned in this Episode

1. The Ann Powers article about protest music
2. Healing Appalachia
3. Amanda Shires
4. Angel Olsen
5. David Childers
6. Dillon Fence
7. Drive-By Truckers
8. JPhono1
9. Michael Cera Palin
10. MJ Lenderman
11. Martha Davis (The Motels)
12. My Chemical Romance
13. Rage Against the Machine
14. Rickie Lee Jones
15. StereoLab
16. Tedeschi Trucks Band
17. Tift Merritt

indie music podcast, music nerd podcast, underground music podcast, music roundtable podcast, best new indie bands, independent music podcast, music discovery podcast, alternative music podcast, podcast for music lovers, dive bar music podcast, low key music podcast, deep cut music discussion, music tastemakers podcast, music festival discoveries, music zine culture, DIY music scene, touring musician stories, hidden gem bands, vinyl collector podcast, music conversations podcast,

Summary

It seems like it's a good time to play The Clash. Dive Bar Music Club is back and digging a little deeper this time. We’re diving into the crossroads of music and social awareness, sparked by the recent federal violence in Minneapolis. I’m Sloane Spencer, joined by Chad Cochran, the Nelson Gullett, and Charles Hale.

A couple of us are slightly under the weather this week, but we're psyched to chat about what we're listening to lately.

We’re still swapping our latest musical obsessions and what’s been living on our playlists, but today the conversation carries a little more weight. We’re talking about how music shows up when things get tense; how it pushes back, how it brings people together, and how artists turn frustration, grief, and defiance into something powerful and unifying. At the same time, we’re not forgetting what music also does best: giving us a breather, a release, a place to land when the world feels loud.

So settle in with us for thoughtful, unfiltered, interesting music conversation.

Catch Our Tastemaker Playlists

1. Apple Music
2. Tidal

Bands Featured in Episode 3

1. Iron Chic
2. Amelia Day
3. The Menzingers
4. Mon Rovîa
5. Off With Their Heads
6. Karen E. Reynolds
7. The Third Mind
8. W8ing4UFOs

Venues and Festivals Mentioned

1. Albino Skunk Music Festival, Greer, SC
2. Barley's, Knoxville, TN
3. Big Ears Festival, Knoxville, TN
4. Blue Plate Special, WDVX, Knoxville, TN
5. The Blue Room, Nashville, TN
6. Bubbapalooza, Atlanta, GA
7. First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN
8. Frank Brown Songwriting Festival
9. Lake Street, Minneapolis, MN
10. Little 5 Points Festival, Atlanta, GA
11. Nelsonville Music Festival, Nelsonville, OH
12. Star Bar, Atlanta, GA

The Regulars in Episode 3

1. Chad Cochran
2. Nelson Gullett
3. Charles Hale
4. Sloane Spencer

Musicians Also Mentioned

1. 13th Floor Elevators
2. Dave Alvin
3. Bad Bunny
4. Better Than Ezra
5. Carsie Blanton
6. The Blasters
7. BoyGenius
8. Billy Bragg
9. Peter Buck
10. Camper Van Beethoven
11. Ashley Capps
12. The Carter Family
13. Counting Crows
14. Chunklet (Henry Owings)
15. The Clash
16. Alice Coltrane
17. Cracker
18. JT Cure
19. Arrested Development
20. Lucy Dacus
21. Deacon Lunchbox
22. Drive-By Truckers
23. Bob Dylan
24. Grateful Dead
25. Billie Eilish
26. Billy Fields
27. Follow for Now
28. Will Fratesi
29. Marvin Gaye
30. The Jody Grind
31. Kelly Hogan
32. Japanese Breakfast
33. Jimmy Eat World
34. The Jompson Brothers
35. The Knitters
36. Victor Krummenacher
37. Lake Street Dive
38. MJ Lenderman
39. Barrett Martin
40. James McMurtry
41. The Minus 5
42. Nirvana
43. Joy Oladokun
44. J.S. Ondara
45. Robert Plant
46. Chuck Prophet
47. Pylon (Randy Bewley, Vanessa Briscoe Hay)
48. Pylon Reenactment Society
49. Rage Against the Machine
50. Redd and the Paper Flowers
51. The Replacements
52. Chappell Roan
53. Pharoah Sanders
54. Gregory Dean Smalley
55. Smoke
56. Bruce Springsteen
57. Mavis Staples
58. Chris Stapleton
59. The Steeldrivers
60. Taylor Swift
61. Jesse Sykes
62. Bill Taft (Chowder Shouters)
63. Chris Thile
64. Richard Thompson
65. The Toadies
66. Tuatara
67. Molly Tuttle
68. Waxahatchee
69. Weezer
70. Jesse Wells (the spectacular fiddler who plays with Tyler Childers)
71. Olivia Wolfe

Summary

This week, we’re disappearing down some serious rabbit holes. From the casual Aussie swagger of Bel Air Lip Bombs to the psychedelic sway of Alex Chilton’s cover of “Rubber Room,” the episode is a love letter to overlooked tracks that quietly demand a place in your rotation. Charles Hale, Sloane Spencer, Rachel Cholst, and Kim Ware come together like a carefully sequenced mixtape, swapping stories about their latest musical fixations and music Venn diagrams that overlap way too much and not at all. Punk-leaning jazz that used to be in a duo with a noted blues musician, and a lot of tiny touchpoints connecting us to the music. So throw on your headphones, pour yourself a drink, and sink into the rich, unpredictable soundscape of the Dive Bar Music Club.

Catch Our Tastemaker Playlists

1. Apple Music
2. Tidal

Bands Featured in Episode 2

1. Alex Chilton (Big Star, The Box Tops)
2. Audrey Hobert
3. Becky Warren
4. The Belair Lip Bombs
5. Fust
6. Gladie
7. Johanna Rose
8. Minus Five
9. Valerie June

Venues Mentioned

1. The 40 Watt Club, Athens, GA

The Regulars in Episode 2

1. Rachel Cholst
2. Charles Hale
3. Sloane Spencer
4. Kim Ware

Musicians Also Mentioned

1. Augusta Koch (Cayetana, Gladie)
2. The Baseball Project
3. Buffalo Nichols
4. Dan Auerbach (The Black Keys)
5. Dolly Parton
6. Emily Ray (Indigo Girls)
7. Florry
8. Geese
9. Gracie Abrams
10. Hurray for the Riff Raff
11. Indigo Girls
12. Jeff Rosenstock
13. Louis Armstrong
14. M. Ward
15. Nickel and Rose
16. Neko Case
17. Peter Buck
18. Porter Wagoner
19. R.E.M.
20. Replacements
21. Scott McCaughey
22. Self Esteem
23. SG Goodman
24. Steve Wynn
25. Sun Volt
26. Taylor Swift
27. Young Fresh Fellows

Recommended If You Like

Dive Bar Music Club, 90s alt rock, emerging songwriters, indie rock playlists, music podcasts, female vocalists in rock, Australian indie bands, Bel Air Lip Bombs, Alex Chilton, Big Star, record collecting, Americana music, Southern indie rock, music industry discussions, Jeff Rosenstock, indie music scenes, underground music recommendations, vinyl records, music discovery, music and mental health,

indie music podcast, music nerd podcast, underground music podcast, music roundtable podcast, best new indie bands, independent music podcast, music discovery podcast, alternative music podcast, podcast for music lovers, dive bar music podcast, low key music podcast, deep cut music discussion, music tastemakers podcast, music festival discoveries, music zine culture, DIY music scene, touring musician stories, hidden gem bands, vinyl collector podcast, music conversations podcast,

Automated Transcript

Speaker A

00:00:01.200 - 00:01:47.260

Welcome to the Dive Bar Music Club podcast, where the guest hosts drop in and out, but the opinions are always passionate and the playlists loud. It's like cheers if everyone at the bar had a strong take on 90s alt rock or a suspicious number of burned CDs.

Around our table, you'll find an emerging touring songwriter, a former cult band favorite whose work since then is even more interesting.

I a portrait photographer with a not so secret metal penchant, a record store owner who learned about Swifties the hard way, a retired folk singer who regrets nothing, and a zine maker with more cool music projects than we can count.

We're all just here to share what we're currently obsessed with and maybe convince someone that, yes, that weird Icelandic synth folk band is worth a listen. Okay, that last one's probably me, Sloane Spencer. It's Dive Bar Music Club. Low key, high taste happy hour for music nerds. Well, hey, y', all.

It's Sloan Spencer, and we are back with another episode of Dive Bar Music Club. This time diving into a few new friends. We've got Charles Hale joining us today, Rachel Colst and Kim Ware.

Hope you all had a chance to listen to those introductory bio episodes so you can get to know a little bit about them.

And if you haven't had a chance to listen to any of our prior episodes, every time we have a show, we like to start it off with everyone sharing one of the three things they've been listening to lately. Now, because I get to be the ringleader of all the episodes, I'm going to sit this one out and just kind of act as cat wrangler.

And I'm going to let our guests talk about the music that has been on their playlist lately. So let's dive in with a new friend, Kim Ware. Hey, Kim, what have you been listening to lately?

Speaker B

00:01:48.180 - 00:02:50.010

So I have been listening to a lot of, like 20, 25 releases, right? And around the end of the year, I was trying to catch up on things that I was not able to get to earlier in the year.

And Bel Air Lip Balms was one of them. I think I had seen the name come up from time to time. It stood out because I was like, what is this?

Because at first I thought it was like Chapstick lip balm, but it's not. It turns out it's like a skateboard or something is where they got their name. But, yeah, I love their album.

I had never heard of them until this year. They're from Australia. Their album is entitled Again and there's one track in particular, if you've got the time. It's the name of it.

This, like, just so freaking catchy. And, yeah, I just. I love them. It's just, like, really cool indie rock with female vocals, really neat guitar interplay stuff.

So that's one that I've been loving.

Speaker A

00:02:50.650 - 00:02:56.490

We'll kind of do a little roundtable. Rachel and Charles, have either of you heard of this band before? Bel Air Lip Balms?

Speaker C

00:02:56.970 - 00:03:08.650

Not at all. But once you said they were Australian, I was like, this makes sense.

There's just this sort of casualness that I feel like I've heard from other Australian bands. Not casual, but, like, effortlessness. Yeah.

Speaker D

00:03:09.610 - 00:03:27.110

I had not heard of them, but I did really enjoy that song, and I listened to the whole album, and I. I enjoyed the whole thing. I was surprised, but I'm also always happy when there's young people making rock music with instruments.

Speaker B

00:03:27.190 - 00:03:35.590

Yes, I know. That was one of the things when I first heard them, too. I was like, oh, these. These kids are pretty young. And, yeah, they're great.

Speaker A

00:03:36.310 - 00:03:46.250

I was not familiar with them at all. And I listened to the one song, and then I also went ahead and was like, wow, I'm checking out this whole entire record. So I. I'm super thrilled.

How did you know?

Speaker B

00:03:46.250 - 00:04:09.730

I don't. I really don't remember, honestly.

I think I had seen the name come up a couple of times, probably in, like, one of my streaming algorithms or something, I think on Tidal. Because I listened to Tidal a good bit, and I think it came up on that, and.

But it took me a while to actually, like, check it out, and then instantly I was like, oh, my God, this is like, my new favorite thing. Yeah.

Speaker A

00:04:10.450 - 00:04:11.570

Shout out to title.

Speaker B

00:04:11.570 - 00:04:11.970

Cool.

Speaker A

00:04:11.970 - 00:04:19.390

Rachel is our title expert helping us get our playlist over there. So that's pretty cool. Speaking of which, Rachel, what have you been listening to lately?

Speaker C

00:04:20.110 - 00:04:35.310

I wanted to dedicate my first song of the episode to Becky Warren, the writer of Dive Bar Sweetheart. It was just stuck in my head as soon as you invited me to be on the podcast alone. And it just seems like it's sort of the perfect theme song for us.

Speaker A

00:04:35.710 - 00:04:44.920

Well, you and I had a little chat about that, and I will admit to just shamelessly tagging Becky Warren in social media, who thought it was hilarious and reshared it.

Speaker C

00:04:46.360 - 00:06:08.890

Yeah, I did a little digging on her today, because I was thinking she hasn't put out new music since her last album, which was, I think, the very end of 2019, and it was called the six season. And then that ended up being very relevant to everybody else. But she's really cool, so if anyone out there hasn't listened to her music yet.

Her first couple albums were concept albums. The first about veterans, war surplus, and then the second one is about homeless people, specifically the stories of homeless people in Nashville.

And then she finally turned to writing about herself with the sixth season, and that was an album about depression. And all of a sudden, the medication she had been on just kind of stopped working.

And, you know, it's always such a roller coaster to have to, like, readjust your meds. And it's just like an amazing album. Just great sense of humor, as always.

And she hasn't put out an album since then, but according to her Instagram, she had, like, two posts on her official Instagram this year, and one of them was that she had started a sub stack like everybody else and that there's more music coming.

But I'm curious to read the substack because there is an entry there about how she's just continuing to live a life in music without being beholden to the album cycle. And I'm sure Kim has some thoughts on that, too.

Speaker B

00:06:08.890 - 00:06:33.010

Yeah, Yeah. I, like, I really appreciate that, and I think a lot of people are starting to do that as we get older, and it's harder and harder to.

I mean, so many reasons, right? It's harder and harder to make money on music. And, yeah, touring is also really tough.

And so I like when I see people that are just like, you know what? I'm going to do this, like, at my own pace. That makes sense for me and is healthy.

Speaker C

00:06:34.100 - 00:06:34.340

She.

Speaker D

00:06:34.980 - 00:07:00.180

She. Several years ago, she got in with the Indigo Girls, and she's been an opener on a bunch of Indigo Girls dates sort of all over the Southeast.

So I feel like she's been doing stuff, just not releasing records, but I. I feel like she's probably open for the Indigo girls 10 or 15 times since that last album came out.

Speaker B

00:07:01.210 - 00:07:13.770

Yeah, that's how I had heard of her, actually, through Indigo Girls, so that's cool. Yeah. And I. I was glad that you brought her song Rachel, because I actually. I was a fan of that sixth season. Is that what it's called?

Speaker C

00:07:14.330 - 00:07:20.250

Yeah. And Emily Girls was on there, too, as well as I think their longtime producer.

Speaker B

00:07:21.370 - 00:07:24.410

Very cool. Yeah, I like. I like her stuff a lot.

Speaker A

00:07:24.810 - 00:07:40.310

I love how this brings up so much great overlap for all of us in different areas of both our interest, but also just little tidbits that we can p. I had completely forgotten about the association with Indigo Girls. And now I'm like, how did I not know that? Charles, you've always got interesting things in your ears. What are you listening to lately?

Speaker D

00:07:40.790 - 00:09:41.150

So the thing I listed was an Alex Chilton song. Alex Chilton, being from Big Star, he put out a solo record in the 90s, and I just bought it in the last year or two called Feudalist Tarts.

And, you know, I don't digest an album sort of all at once and, and very thoroughly. So I probably had the record a few months before. I really picked up on a song on the B side called Rubber Room.

And it's a weird and strange, trippy song. And then I looked at the back of the album cover and saw that Porter Wagner wrote the song, which really confused me because this is a.

A psychedelic song about someone locked up in a padded room in a mental institution, which does not feel like the kind of thing that Porter Wagner would have ever written about. But sure enough, I. I went looking. I found the Porter Wagner version. And it's not as if Alex Chilton took a standard country song and made it trippy.

The Porter Wagner version is also weird and trippy. And I guess that he. His version came out in the 70s and he was trying to latch on to the counterculture. But the Alex Chilton version is great.

It's longer than the Porter Wagner version, so there's, you know, more guitar solos, more psychedelic effects. But I'm. I'm a huge Alex Chilton fan.

And just the thought that he hears this Porter Wagner song and decides, nope, I'm taking that into the studio and I'm going to make it even weirder, and puts it on a record just excites me no end.

Speaker A

00:09:41.790 - 00:10:30.950

This is fascinating to me. So I have no problem exposing my complete lack of knowledge when it comes to music.

So I was a big Replacements fan, and the first time I ever heard the name Alex Chilton was, of course, from their song Alex Chilton. And then that led me back in the day to go to the record store and ask some questions. And here's the weird part.

I knew the band the Box Tops, really, really well. I did not know Chilton by name, nor that he was the lead singer as a teenager, but I had never heard of Big Star at that point, not at all.

So I kind of worked backwards on all of that, of finding Chilton's name from the replacement song, going to the record store, learning about his at the time, solo work, and they assuming I knew Big Star when I did not. But me then being like, oh, yeah, I know all the Box Top stuff. So how on earth did you become a Chilton fan?

Speaker D

00:10:31.430 - 00:10:33.670

I'm a rock and roll kid from the South.

Speaker B

00:10:33.990 - 00:10:35.350

I mean, me too, though.

Speaker D

00:10:36.470 - 00:12:13.190

I know, but I came to it the same way you did, essentially that it starts with the...

Summary

Slide into the booth for a relaxed hang chatting about great music with Rachel Cholst, Charles Hale, and Sloane Spencer about what’s been on repeat lately, swapping thoughts on everything from the infectious indie rock of Weakened Friends to the timeless soul of Mavis Staples. Along the way, they shine a light on artists like SG Goodman, Florry, and Fust, talking about how these musicians tell powerful stories through their songs. They chat about live shows versus records, contrasting Billy Allen + The Pollies with Bass Battery. You’ll also hear some fun tales from the record store world, including a Taylor Swift listening party that turned into joyful chaos with kids, friendship bracelets, and plenty of laughs. Pour yourself a drink, get comfortable, and enjoy the kind of music chat that feels like catching up with friends, and hopefully inspires your next favorite listen. Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.

Playlist

1. Apple Music
2. Tidal

Bands Featured in Episode 1

1. Bass Battery
2. Billy Allen + The Pollies
3. Florry
4. Fust
5. SG Goodman
6. Mavis Staples
7. Weakened Friends
8. (We never got around to chatting about Lene Lovich and Marah, also on our lists.)

Venues Mentioned

1. 40 Watt, Athens, GA
2. 9:30 Club, Washington, DC
3. Bowery Ballroom, NYC
4. Eddie's Attic, Decatur, GA
5. The Fillmore East, NYC
6. The Foundry, Athens, GA
7. Newport Folk Fest, Newport, RI
8. The RamKat, Winston-Salem, NC
9. Sony Hall, NYC
10. Standard Deluxe, Waverly, AL
11. Sultan Room, Bushwick, Brooklyn, NY
12. Turk's Inn, NYC

The Regulars in this Episode

1. Rachel Cholst (Adobe & Teardrops, Rainbow Rodeo)
2. Charles Hale (Driver 8 Records, Ajax Diner Book Club on KRFC)
3. Sloane Spencer (Sleep with Rock Stars, Country Fried Rock, Momma Runs an Ultra)

Other Mentions

1. Norwood Cheek
2. Katie Crutchfield (Waxahatchee)
3. Drive-By Truckers
4. Mitch Easter
5. Patty Griffin
6. Buddy Guy
7. Eddie Hinton
8. Patterson Hood
9. Janis Joplin
10. Rob Ladd
11. MJ Lenderman
12. Let's Active
13. Mandolin Orange
14. Francie Medosch (Florry)
15. Mipso
16. Bonnie Raitt
17. Nathaniel Rateliff
18. Libby Rodenbough
19. Dex Romweber Duo
20. Dexter Romweber
21. Sara Romweber
22. The Staples Singers
23. Taylor Swift
24. Derek Trucks
25. Jeff Tweedy
26. Spencer Tweedy
27. Townes Van Zandt
28. Tom Waits
29. Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange)
30. Wednesday
31. Gillian Welch

indie music podcast, music nerd podcast, underground music podcast, music roundtable podcast, best new indie bands, independent music podcast, music discovery podcast, alternative music podcast, podcast for music lovers, dive bar music podcast, low key music podcast, deep cut music discussion, music tastemakers podcast, music festival discoveries, music zine culture, DIY music scene, touring musician stories, hidden gem bands, vinyl collector podcast, music conversations podcast,

Automated Transcript

Speaker A

00:00:02.000 - 00:01:00.650

Welcome to the Dive Bar Music Club podcast, where the guest hosts drop in and out, but the opinions are always passionate in the playlists. Loud. It's like cheers if everyone at the bar had a strong take on 90s alt rock or a suspicious number of burned CDs.

Around our table, you'll find an emerging touring songwriter, a former cult band favorite whose work since then is even more interesting, a portrait photographer with a not so secret metal penchant, a record store owner who learned about Swifties the hard way, a retired folk singer who regrets nothing, and a zine maker with more cool music projects than we can count.

We're all just here to share what we're currently obsessed with and maybe convince someone that, yes, that weird Icelandic synth folk band is worth a listen. Okay, that last one's probably me, Sloane Spencer. It's Dive Bar Music Club. Low key, high taste happy hour for music nerds. Well, hey, y'.

Speaker B

00:01:00.650 - 00:01:00.770

All.

Speaker A

00:01:00.770 - 00:01:32.910

Thanks for sliding on in here with us at Dive Bar Music Club. I'm Sloane Spencer, and I am so excited to have gathered a couple of my friends to hang out with me as we roll right into January 2026.

I have Rachel Colst and Charles Hale joining me today.

If you've had a chance so far, hope you've listened to those bio episodes to find out what they are up to in the past and how they bring a lot of different to the world of music. They're joining us here in Dive Bar Music Club and I can't believe we're finally doing this. How are y' all doing? Rachel, what's up?

Speaker C

00:01:33.390 - 00:01:42.910

I'm great. I have a brand new refrigerator. Yeah, this is our third refrigerator in six years.

So we were very excited to stay in for New Year's Eve and cook a nice meal.

Speaker A

00:01:43.390 - 00:01:48.830

Listen, that is absolutely something that all of us have reached the point of life where that is point of celebration.

Speaker C

00:01:50.520 - 00:01:58.760

Yeah, there was a time when a week of takeout and Trader Joe's frozen food would have seemed awesome, but that time has passed for sure.

Speaker A

00:01:59.240 - 00:02:01.080

Charles, how about you? What have you been up to?

Speaker B

00:02:01.480 - 00:02:15.240

I've been dreaming of owning a refrigerator that makes ice on its own. It's one of my goals is to have one of those before I turn 50. So I've got about 18 months to get one of those.

Speaker A

00:02:15.950 - 00:02:23.310

I love this. So that's perfect for the little sounder that I use on all the little intros to this, which is the ice hitting the glass.

That might be our recurring theme.

Speaker B

00:02:24.910 - 00:02:25.390

Wheat.

Speaker A

00:02:25.710 - 00:02:44.140

The main question of Dive Bar Music Club is asking Folks, what are the three things they've been listening to lately? I kind of like the question because it's a little different than what are your top three picks?

Especially as we get into these conversations, you'll see it's a little different. What's on your mind these days? So, Rachel Coltst, what have you been listening to lately?

Speaker C

00:02:44.620 - 00:03:52.670

Yeah. So I picked out my three songs for today based on my cool venues I went to this year or back in 2025.

So first we'll start out with Weekend Friends Weightless. It's kind of more indie rock, little grunge, a little pop punk.

I went to go see them at a place in Bushwick, Brooklyn, called the Sultan Room, which I think I mentioned in my bio episode. It was my first time there, but the venue is a couple of years old.

These guys basically imported, like, a Midwestern supper club called the Turkish Inn out to Brooklyn, and then they attached a music venue to it that has just this really cool setup. Like, you walk in and the stage is sort of sunk in. So the stage is below you.

There's like an area right around the front of the stage if you're into, like, moshing or whatever. Sort of upper level with the bar. And it's just like, there's all good sight lines and the way they decorated it was really cool.

These, like, LED panels and kind of, like Moorish style. I don't know, lattice work. It's worth looking up a picture.

The venue itself, I think, has a lot of different types of music, but this was a rock show and it was super fun.

Speaker A

00:03:52.990 - 00:04:00.910

Oh, I think I found that band when I subscribed to your email list. And so that's how I found them. And they kind of give me a little bit, like, younger riot girl vibe.

Speaker C

00:04:01.790 - 00:04:15.770

Totally. I mean, they're millennials, so they. I think they definitely have incorporated that turn as a lot with 90s rock pop.

And on my podcast, we talked a little bit about country as well into their sound.

Speaker A

00:04:16.170 - 00:04:23.850

By the way, if y' all haven't had a chance, there is a whole conversation on Rachel's podcast with the Weekenders. What? Give us that link again.

Speaker C

00:04:24.650 - 00:04:40.700

Weekend Friends. It's the most recent episode of the Rainbow Rodeo podcast. Oh, no, you're fine.

And then one thing I am figuring out this new year is what I want to be doing with the podcast this coming year. So subscribe. It might take a little while for a new episode to show up, but I have some fun ideas.

Speaker A

00:04:41.100 - 00:04:43.980

Cool. I love that. So, Charles, what have you been listening to?

Speaker B

00:04:45.020 - 00:04:52.460

The Record that has sort of been most on my mind recently is the newest Mavis Staples Record.

Speaker A

00:04:53.020 - 00:04:53.580

Mm.

Speaker B

00:04:54.060 - 00:06:04.560

Sad and beautiful world. And she is, I think, 86 years old and made a beautiful record.

It really is good, and I don't want to be fatalistic, but it might be the last record she makes, and if it is, I feel like she made an A plus record. There's two songs that I'll point out briefly, and Mavis doesn't write songs, so two songs.

One is called Hard Times, which Gillian Welch wrote, which is a beautiful song. And then the album closes with a song called Everybody Needs Love, which was written by Eddie Hinton, who is a. An old Muscle Shoals session musician.

But the song Everybody Needs Love I know, and I think probably most people know it's because the Drive By Truckers recorded it a number of years ago. And Mavis does a beautiful version. The other thing that I love about this record is who all she has playing with her, because she could.

She could get anybody she wanted, really.

Speaker A

00:06:04.560 - 00:06:04.960

Right.

Speaker B

00:06:05.440 - 00:06:14.160

And Jeff Tweedy is around a little bit. Spencer Tweedy is around a little bit. But Katie Crutchfield is on the record from Wax.

Speaker C

00:06:14.320 - 00:06:15.120

I didn't know that.

Speaker B

00:06:15.200 - 00:06:45.590

Buddy Guy is on the record. Derek Trucks is on the record, MJ Linderman is on the record.

So Nathaniel Raitliff is on the record, Patterson Hood is on the record, and Bonnie Raitt is on the record. So there's all these young people that are making interesting, creative music right now, and she's having them in.

Part of that is because Brad Cook is the producer of the record. So it's such a beautiful record. I listened to it this morning.

Speaker A

00:06:46.070 - 00:06:49.910

I love it. And there's a fantastic Tom Waits cover with Chicago as well.

Speaker B

00:06:50.230 - 00:07:10.320

Yes. Chicago is the first song on the record, and it does feel like the outlier a little bit, because it's not sort of morose or reflective. It's.

It's more celebratory. But, yeah, she's doing Tom Waits, so how can we not like that?

Speaker A

00:07:11.360 - 00:07:29.100

For sure. Forgive me if I have told either of y' all this story before, and I don't know that I've ever...

Summary

Grab your favorite drink and settle in, because we’re diving deep with Sloane Spencer, the mastermind behind Dive Bar Music Club. This week, Sloane shares her journey through the indie music scene, from her days as a radio host to her latest venture, Sleep with Rock Stars, a chill podcast that aims to lull you to sleep with the soothing sounds of music history. We chat about the evolution of her musical passion, how the pandemic sparked her return to podcasting, and her love for dive bars that serve as the heartbeat of local music communities. Sloane’s tales of sneaking into punk clubs as a kid and her nostalgic nods to legendary venues like the 40 Watt and Caledonia remind us that music isn’t just a pastime; it’s a way of life. So, whether you're a seasoned music nerd or just looking to unwind with some good tunes, this episode promises to be a cozy listen that’ll have you saying, "Y’all come back now, you hear?"

Chapters

1. 00:12 - Introducing the Host: Sloane Spencer
2. 03:18 - The Birth of Dive Bar Music Club Podcast
3. 06:30 - The Journey to College Radio
4. 07:54 - The Evolution of Music Spaces
5. 12:05 - Exploring Dive Bar Music Club

Show Notes

Diving into the depths of music culture, this episode of Dive Bar Music Club takes a relaxed stroll through the melodious journey of Sloane Spencer, a figure who embodies both nostalgia and innovation in the podcasting realm. Sloane's story unfolds like a well-worn record, starting from her childhood roots steeped in music, where her parents' love for artists like Janis Joplin laid the groundwork for her lifelong passion. The conversation meanders through her early foray into radio, where she cleverly maneuvered her way into the industry, despite her initial lack of musical talent. This candid narrative is peppered with humor, as Sloane shares anecdotes of sneaking into punk rock shows, her brief stint as a frontwoman for a Ramones cover band, and her 'soft retirement' from traditional radio.

With a charmingly colloquial tone, Sloane explains her latest ventures, including the creation of her new podcast, Sleep with Rock Stars, which takes an unexpected turn as she reads about popular bands in a soothing, sleepy voice, an idea that initially perplexed her. This shift not only highlights her adaptability but also her desire to cater to the Gen X audience, merging the worlds of music and relaxation in a uniquely engaging format. As she shares her love for indie music and her commitment to venues like the 40 Watt and Nuci's Space, Sloane invites listeners to reminisce about their own musical experiences while subtly encouraging them to explore the vibrant indie scene.

As the episode wraps up, listeners are left with a sense of camaraderie and nostalgia, as Sloane's journey reflects the broader tapestry of music culture that unites us all—reminding us that whether it's in a dive bar or through the airwaves, music has a way of bringing people together in the most delightful of ways.

---

In a heartfelt and humorous exchange, this episode of Dive Bar Music Club dives deep into the rich tapestry of Sloane Spencer's musical journey. From her early days of being a music enthusiast fueled by her parents' eclectic tastes to her evolution into a radio personality and podcaster, Sloane's narrative is as engaging as it is reflective. The episode captures the essence of Sloane's personality, allowing her quirky and relatable nature to shine through as she recounts her adventures in the music scene, including her unsuccessful attempts at playing guitar and her amusing role in a Ramones cover band.

Sloane's transition from radio to podcasting is a central theme, with her latest project, Sleep with Rock Stars, offering a fresh take on the podcast format. This 'sleep podcast' idea, born from a humorous suggestion, showcases her unique approach to storytelling, as she reads soothing narratives about beloved bands without the usual commentary. It’s a clever twist that opens up a conversation about how we consume and engage with music in today's world.

Listeners will find themselves resonating with Sloane's experiences, whether it's her favorite venues like the old Excelsior Mill or her commitment to mental health advocacy through Nuci's Space. The episode blends personal anecdotes with a broader commentary on the independent music scene, crafting a rich narrative that celebrates the beauty of live music and the community it fosters. It's a delightful reminder that at the heart of it all, music is about connection, whether you're hanging out in a dive bar or tuning in from your living room.

---

Emphasizing the intimate connection between music and community, this episode of Dive Bar Music Club features Sloane Spencer, whose vibrant storytelling transports listeners back to the golden days of indie music. Her journey is not just a recount of her career but a reflection on how music has shaped her identity, starting from her childhood experiences with her parents' eclectic playlists to her adventurous escapades as a budding music lover sneaking into clubs. The narrative is rich with humor and warmth, as Sloane shares her misadventures and the evolution of her radio career, which has spanned over two decades.

The conversation touches on Sloane's latest project, Sleep with Rock Stars, which cleverly merges relaxation with music appreciation. By reading about iconic bands in a calming voice, she's created a unique space for listeners to unwind while celebrating the music that defined a generation. This innovative approach is a testament to her creativity and willingness to explore new formats in a rapidly changing media landscape.

As she reminisces about her favorite venues, like the legendary 40 Watt and Nuci's Space, Sloane highlights the importance of community spaces in nurturing the indie music scene. Her anecdotes weave a narrative that is both personal and universal, inviting listeners to reflect on their own musical journeys and the spaces that have been significant to them. By the end of the episode, the audience is left with a sense of belonging and nostalgia, feeling as though they've shared a drink and a good laugh with an old friend, united by the love of music and its power to connect us all.

Takeaways

1. Sloane Spencer shares her journey from a radio personality to podcast creator, revealing her passion for independent music.
2. The concept of Dive Bar Music Club revolves around casual conversations about music, reminiscent of hanging out with friends at a bar.
3. Sloane's new podcast, Sleep with Rock Stars, combines soothing narration with nostalgic music history for a unique listening experience.
4. The importance of community spaces like Nucci's Space in Athens, which provides mental health support to musicians, is highlighted as essential.
5. The episode emphasizes the nostalgia and memories tied to live music venues like the 40 Watt and Caledonia, cherished by music fans.
6. Sloane's humorous take on her limited musical skills adds a relatable touch, reminding us that being a fan is what truly matters.

Links

1. Check out the rest of the Regulars on Dive Bar Music Club!
2. Sleep with Rock Stars
3. Country Fried Rock
4. YCBNYH.com Y'all Come Back Now, You Hear

Mentioned in This Episode

1. Cotton Club
2. 688
3. Excelsior Mill
4. Drivin n Cryin
5. 40 Watt
6. Dee's Country Cocktail Lounge
7. The Pinhook
8. Nuci's Space
9. R.E.M.

indie music podcast, music nerd podcast, underground music podcast, music roundtable podcast, best new indie bands, independent music podcast, music discovery podcast, alternative music podcast, podcast for music lovers, dive bar music podcast, low key music podcast, deep cut music discussion, music tastemakers podcast, music festival discoveries, music zine culture, DIY music scene, touring musician stories, hidden gem bands, vinyl collector podcast, music conversations podcast,

Transcript

Speaker A

00:00:00.560 - 00:12:40.710

Welcome to Dive Bar Music Club, the low key, high taste happy hour for music nerds. Each week we're joined by a rotating cast of true music fans, people who live and breathe independent music.

This week, I'll turn the tables on myself, Sloan Spencer, a soft retired radio personality, unwitting early podcast success, former syndicated radio host, voiceover artist, and basically the Marilyn Munster of the group. So grab a drink, pull up a stool. Part hang, part deep dive, part time machine on this week's session of Dive Bar Music Club.

Well, Sloan Spencer, we are so glad to have you be part of Dive Bar Music Club. What are you doing in the world of music these days?

Well, over the pandemic, I slowly phased out my original podcast, Country Fried Rock, and I hosted a couple of really short seasons of just fun podcasts as an excuse to talk with folks. Since then, I sorta soft retired from radio and mostly just do my voiceover work.

And after feeling a little burnt out about podcasts for a few years, suddenly I was itching to start some back. And weirdly, that's where my other new show came from. Called Sleep with Rockstars.

It's a Gen X sleep podcast and the idea started a million years ago back with Country Fried Rock, which, by the way, I just found a bunch of the hard drives and I've been uploading some of the old episodes for people again. So not new episodes, but hundreds of them, completely disorganized, whatever.

You can find [email protected] well, sleep with Rock Stars has been super fun because it started back as an idea in the Country Fried Rock early days when someone told me they listened to the episodes slowed down to fall asleep at night and I was like, kind of offended. But as I thought about it over the years, I was like, oh, a sleep podcast would be a great idea.

So it's totally different than anything else that I have done. The delivery is purposely like super quiet and slow and. And there's no commentary, no guests.

It is me reading from Wikipedia about bands that are popular with Gen X people. So I arbitrarily started with 1984 as kind of just like a focal point and looked at music that was popular then.

And so basically I'm just like choosing bands that were both quite popular, but also that I happen to like. And I'm reading from Wikipedia in a very sleepy tone of voice and it's way more fun than I ever expected.

So yeah, sleepwithrockstars.com and then as I got back into it with that, and then I Found those hard drives for country fried rock.

I thought it would be fun to try something a little different with some of my friends in music who I don't think any of them actually know each other. And that's where Dive Bar Music Club came from.

And the idea is kind of like when you get to go to a big music festival or a conference and you see your friends that you only know from that environment, and everybody gets together and it's fun to talk about music and whatever you're listening to and whatever's going on and just catch up. Kind of like a family reunion of people you pick. Well, so that's the idea here. It's super casual.

We want everybody to be able to, you know, hop in maybe once a month and chat about the top three things they're listening to these days. There's no, like, this has to be new. This has to be cool.

It's just whatever you're listening to and casually talk about the music and enjoy what's going on.

And, you know, if people have cool stuff going on in their professional lives, to be able to share that information, but just to keep it super low key, as if we all were getting to hang out in real life. And so that's where Dive Bar Music Club came from. So, Sloane, what is your villain origin story? Like, how did you end up in the world of music?

I know from your social media a few years ago that you notoriously can't play except maybe like, three power chords. Okay, so that is true. I can play three power chords. I learned them for a charity gig.

And up until the Pandemic, I temporarily fronted a Ramones cover band called Ramams, which is kind of hilarious because I can't sing either. But, yeah, here we are. Anyway, yeah, so I have always been, like, a massive fan of music. My parents were really big fans of music.

Their first date was going to see Janis Joplin at the Fillmore east in New York. So they actually went to that show because the Staple Singers were the main act. And my dad was a huge fan of them.

So I just grew up with a huge variety of music in the house, and records were a really big deal. And very first thing I ever bought with my own money was a record. So I've just always been a huge, huge fan.

And then I also have always been a major nerd, so that's no surprise to anybody. So when I was in fifth grade, I did this, like, special math thing down at Georgia State, and that's when I discovered college radio.

And so album 88 was a huge deal. Wrek from Georgia Tech as well. But I was a big album 88 person primarily, and I just became obsessed.

And so I was like this super nerdy kid who was just super, super into music. And I skipped a grade. And so I was already young and I was hanging out with kids who were way older than I was.

And I decided that it was a really good idea to sneak out of the house and go see shows. And needless to say, I got caught.

And my parents solution was to drive me to punk rock clubs and my dad would sit in the car in chain smoke and read a book by flashlight. I've seen hundreds and hundreds of shows.

It's kind of ridiculous looking back on it as a parent, like, I absolutely would never have allowed my own kid to do this. So I don't know, I'm just really lucky that I had super checked out parents of a Gen X person. Like, it wasn't even.

I wasn't even like the only kid in these clubs. It was bizarre. Anyway, that's just kind of how it went.

And that, that passion for different kinds of music and particularly emerging music never went away. I am not cool. If you've met me, you know, I'm like Marilyn Munster. I just really like the music.

And gosh, it goes all the way back to that WREK and album 88 Obsession. I mean, honestly, it goes back before that goes all the way. But you got to blame WKRP in Cincinnati.

I mean, that's, that's, that's my real origin story. Like, I loved WKRP in Cincinnati. And so go back to when I was in early elementary school and there was the Iranian hostage situation.

Y' all may remember this. There was a huge morning show in Atlanta at the time that was collecting letters from school children to send to the Ayatollah Khomeini.

And whoever collected the most letters would get to be on the radio. And I was that kid. I collected the most letters from the schools around me, and I got to deliver them and be on the morning radio show.

And it was one of those, like, very morning zoo sort of concepts. I knew I wanted to go into radio then, and that was not acceptable at all with my family. So that's how I kind of got myself into college radio.

With the first radio station I auditioned for. I did not get the job.

And it's kind of funny because I did the next best thing, which was my best friend did get hired, and I just was her unofficial co host every single morning on the radio, it was awesome. So anyway, college radio was super fun. And then I was a teacher for a really long time.

And then I got back into radio and I've worked in, gosh, more than 25 years. I worked in dozens of formats, all kinds of crazy stuff.

The biggest thing you learn when you switch to commercial radio is it doesn't matter what you think about the music, because that's not really what your job is. In some ways, it broadened my horizons. Like, I had never listened to pop music, like popular pop music. That had never, ever been my thing.

So there was stuff that was old that I had never heard. And along the way, I somehow convinced our station programmer to let me do a couple. Couple of specialty shows.

And the first one was called the Southern Rock 7 at 7 on our classic rock station. I was also on the country station at the time. And that morphed into the...

Summary

Grab a drink and slide into the booth because we're diving deep with Kim Ware, the talented songwriter behind The Good Graces and drummer for the punk band Y'All'Re. This week, we’re peeling back the layers on her musical journey that started with school band and a love for drums, turning into a vibrant career filled with songwriting and live performances across the Carolinas. Kim shares tales from her early days, where she found comfort and expression through music, especially during life’s ups and downs. We’ll also have a laugh or two about the quirks of venue life, reminiscing about iconic spots like Fat City in Charlotte, which painted the backdrop of her indie rock beginnings. So come hang out with us at the Dive Bar Music Club, where the conversations flow as freely as the drinks, and the love for independent music runs deep.

Bio

Chapters

• 00:15 - Introducing Kim Ware: A Dive into Independent Music
• 01:06 - The Journey of Kim Ware: From Drummer to Songwriter
• 03:20 - Nostalgic Venues and Memories in Music
• 06:39 - Transitioning from Corporate Life to Creative Expression
• 07:50 - Embracing Accents in Podcasting

Recommended If You Like

Kim Ware, Dive Bar Music Club, independent music, singer songwriter, punk rock band, Y'All're, Grand Epiphanies EP, music podcast, music venues, Charlotte North Carolina, music nostalgia, songwriting process, female drummers, underground music scene, booking shows, music therapy, music industry insights, Southern musicians, live music experience, music community, music interviews, the good graces

Transcript

Speaker A

00:00:00.160 - 00:00:03.760

Hey, this is Kim Ware, and you're listening to Dive Bar Music Club.

Speaker B

00:00:04.320 - 00:00:06.160

Welcome to Dive Bar Music Club, the.

Speaker C

00:00:06.160 - 00:00:32.710

Low key, high taste happy hour for music nerds. Each week we're joined by a rotating cast of regulars, people who live and breathe independent music.

This week, we'll get to know Kim Ware, songwriter for the Good Graces, drummer for the punk band y' all Are, and former booking agent. Part hang, part deep dive, it's Dive Bar Music Club.

So grab a drink, slide into that booth, and get to know Kim Ware on this week's session of Dive Bar Music Club.

Speaker B

00:00:33.670 - 00:00:40.870

So, Kim Ware, I am so glad you're going to be part of the regulars here on Dive Bar Music Club. What are you doing in the world of music these days?

Speaker A

00:00:41.270 - 00:00:57.600

I'm a singer, songwriter, and I just released a new ep. It's called Grand Epiphanies. And I also play drums in a punk rock band called Y' All Are.

And we've been really busy last play a lot around the Carolinas, so that's primarily what I'm doing these days.

Speaker B

00:00:58.160 - 00:01:06.000

Very cool. We're excited to get to know you a little bit more through the regulars and our fun chats coming up each month on Dive Bar Music Club.

Thanks for being part of what we're doing.

Speaker A

00:01:06.320 - 00:01:06.800

Yeah.

Speaker B

00:01:06.960 - 00:01:14.240

So, Kim, y', all, you're playing in a couple of different kinds of bands right now, and y' all have been busy lately, but how did you end up where you are in music?

Speaker A

00:01:14.880 - 00:02:54.330

Well, I was a big tomboy when I was a kid and when I was in middle school and it came time to choose an instrument for, like, the school band. I think I associated drums, like, as being, like, a boy instrument.

So I knew I wanted to play the drums, and I didn't really have a plan B or another interest. And the prospective drummers had to do, like, a simple rhythm exercise to be chosen.

So I did that, and I guess I, you know, passed that and it sounds cliche, probably, but, like, that became my first love really quickly, and I got my first kit at age 16, and I've been playing ever since.

And when I moved to Atlanta in 2004, I quickly fell in with a few songwriters and joined their band, became their drummer, and that got me interested in, like, the craft of songwriting and was really inspired by them.

And I picked up my first acoustic guitar a few years later around 2006, and found that I was able to just put to words some, like, really complicated feelings.

I had gone through a divorce a few years prior, so I wrote A whole bunch of breakup songs all at once and just saw the therapeutic power of that and knew that it was something that I needed in my life. And I've been doing that since then as well.

And in between those, the drumming and the songwriting, I did a lot of other things like booking shows and helping with PR for people and even had a small record label for a while, but that's basically how I got there. I love it.

Speaker B

00:02:54.330 - 00:03:04.450

I love, I love the route that it takes, but also all the way back to yay big shout out to school music programs. Extremely important and we hope they continue. They're so, so important.

Speaker A

00:03:04.690 - 00:03:07.010

Yes, absolutely.

Speaker B

00:03:07.250 - 00:03:18.720

Well, I'm enjoying this and I'm looking forward to getting to know you more as we all get to chat further with Dive Bar Music Club. Have there been any venues, past or present over the years? Did you just really love either playing or seeing music?

Speaker A

00:03:20.000 - 00:05:02.380

Yeah, you know, I don't know what made me think of this venue the other day, but I guess occasionally I am reminded of a venue that was in Charlotte, North Carolina, because I live near there now and it was in the 90s, it was called Fat City. And that was I guess my introduction to like the Noda neighborhood of Charlotte. Uhhuh, uhhuh.

And which I would, I would liken that neighborhood to like Little Five Points in Atlanta where I spent some time later, you know. Yeah, just super cool, right?

And in the 90s I played in like kind of an indie rock band and I lived in Wilmington at the time and we played at Fat City just a few times. But I just have really fond memories of it. I don't have the best memory, but for whatever reason, this venue stands out. Like I can still see it.

I can still see, see what it looked like, you know, from the stage. I can still see where the stage was. And I just remember the staff always being really, really nice, very unpretentious and it was just cool.

They had really good sandwiches as well, if I remember correctly.

And it was just, to me, it was that perfect, like neighborhoody, small to mid sized room that it really like defines the neighborhood when you have something like that, when you're fortunate enough, you know, to be near something like that.

And even though I only went probably a handful of times, like played there a few times, and then went to shows there a few other times, but there's just something about that venue that's ingrained in my memory.

Speaker B

00:05:03.320 - 00:05:15.760

I love that I'm super familiar with the Noda area these days, but the 90s I was up in the Kentucky area. And then you touched on the area. That is my reason for being a music fan, which was, for me, the 80s of little five points. So fun.

Speaker C

00:05:15.760 - 00:05:16.120

Fun.

Speaker B

00:05:16.200 - 00:05:19.000

I didn't realize there was so much overlap. This will be fun to get to explore.

Speaker A

00:05:19.160 - 00:05:32.120

Very cool. Yeah. Awesome. I have just such fond memories. I'm very nostalgic about both Atlanta and Charlotte, but yeah, in the 90s, gosh. In general. So.

Speaker B

00:05:34.810 - 00:05:40.970

I love it when people are trying to find out what you're doing creatively these days. Where do you want people to find you?

Speaker A

00:05:41.370 - 00:06:20.160

The goodgraces.org it's like my home base for. For my music, for my singer songwriter stuff and my band that I play drums in. I say I'm a Gemini. So I think it's like those two things are two.

They're almost polar opposite really, but they make sense for me. It's like the two sides of me. So I would love for people to check out the punk band also. It's. It's called Y' All Are Like. Y' all are.

Y' all are Pretty good. Y, apostrophe A, L, L, apostrophe R, E. Gosh, it's not that easy to Google.

Speaker B

00:06:20.160 - 00:06:21.240

It makes perfect sense.

Speaker A

00:06:21.240 - 00:07:04.190

Getting. I'm saying it. But yeah, I think it. It makes sense to us too. And we're. We're on, you know, all the social sites and all the streaming sites as well.

We don't really have a. Like a proper website, but we're on all of those things also. I mean, you can probably tell from my accent, I'm super Southern. And I used to, like.

I worked in the corporate world for a long time, and I kind of. I don't know, I tried to get away from that, I think, because I thought that I needed to. And eventually, finally I was like, you know what?

That's B.S. that's me, and I should just embrace it. So now I do hear ya.

Speaker B

00:07:04.510 - 00:07:13.430

I appreciate that. I went through the era of being a stage actor in the early 80s, where we had to take classes on things like let's lose that Southern drawl, y'.

Speaker C

00:07:13.430 - 00:07:13.630

All.

Speaker B

00:07:14.430 - 00:07:25.710

So for me, it comes back more like if I'm tired or. But the more comfortable I get, the more I slip back into it, which I'm not ashamed of at all. I wish I still had more of the accent that I used to.

Speaker A

00:07:26.640 - 00:07:48.640

Yeah, it definitely comes out for me. Well, now it's just out all the time. But, yeah, I definitely can relate to, like, when I was.

When I didn't live in the area I live in now, and I would come to visit, you know, it wouldn't take long at all. My husband would, wow. He'd be like, man, I can tell that you've been out of town this weekend. I'm like, yeah.

Speaker B

00:07:50.080 - 00:08:02.520

And honestly, for podcasting, you know, specifically audio only podcasting, it really helps to have people with different accents. And that was something that was important to me so that listeners can get used to who we are and what we sound like.

Speaker A

00:08:02.920 - 00:08:07.720

That makes sense. Yeah. And it seems like that would be more interesting to listen to, right?

Summary

This week at the Dive Bar Music Club, we meet one of the Regulars, the incredible Rachel Cholst, who’s here to take us on a deep dive into the colorful world of queer country and Americana. Get ready for some surprising insights and music recommendations, including jazz for non-historians.

As we sip on our metaphorical cocktails and kick back, Rachel Cholst helps us explore the magic of live music venues and how they create a sense of community, especially for those of us who don’t fit the cis het white dude roots music scene mold. And if you're a fan of Lilith Fair 90s vibes, you're in for a treat, as we also chat about how the past has shaped the music we love today.

Dive in to broad influences from peers to NPR with Rachel Cholst.

Links

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Dive Bar Music Club

03:12 Entering the Music World

04:53 The Intersection of Music and Identity

07:23 The Importance of Community Spaces in Live Music

09:53 Exploring the Music Scene in Upper Manhattan

13:17 Introduction to Dive Bar Music Club

Takeaways

1. Vibrant, Inclusive Vibes: Dive Bar Music Club is the ultimate hangout for music lovers of all kinds, where everyone can share their current obsessions and discover fresh new tunes
2. Community & Live Venues Matter: We chat about why live music venues are more than just places to hear music. They create a sense of community for both fans and artists, and that’s what makes the music scene so special.
3. Queer Country & Americana: We dive into genres like queer country and Americana, exploring how they reflect personal stories and cultural shifts, making for some pretty deep and powerful music.
4. Witty Banter & Musical History: Expect fun conversations mixed with deep dives into music history. We’ll navigate how genres and identities blend together to shape today’s music scene.

Recommended If You Like

1. Dive Bar Music Club, Rachel Cholst, Americana music, queer country, 90s alt rock, indie music podcasts, emerging songwriters, underground music scenes, live music venues, music communities, music recommendations, music reviews, jazz influences, Southern rock, intersectionality in music, music blogging, music playlists, artist highlights, cultural music discussions, music nerd culture, Yahoo, Pandora, No Depression, Good Country, Two Cow Garage, Karen and the Sorrows, Rainbow Rodeo, Penny Jo's, Rockwood Music Hall, Lilith Fair, Bad Bunny, Alt Latino, Adobe and Teardrops

Transcript

Speaker A

00:00:00.960 - 00:00:05.120

Hey, everybody, this is Rachel Cholst, and you're listening to Dive Bar Music Club.

Speaker B

00:00:05.760 - 00:00:52.390

Welcome to the Dive Bar Music Club podcast, where the guest hosts drop in and out, but the opinions are always passionate and the playlists loud. It's like cheers if everyone at the bar had a strong take on 90s alt rock or a suspicious number of burned CDs.

Around our table you'll find an emerging touring songwriter, a former cult band favorite whose work since then is even more interesting, a portrait photographer with a not so secret metal penchant, a record store owner who learned about Swifties the hard way, a retired folk singer who regrets nothing, and a zine maker with more cool music projects than we can count.

We're all just here to share what we're currently obsessed with and maybe convince someone that, yes, that weird Icelandic synth folk band is worth a listen.

Speaker C

00:00:52.790 - 00:00:54.550

Okay, that last one's probably me.

Speaker B

00:00:54.710 - 00:01:01.950

Sloane Spencer. It's Dive Bar Music Club. Low key, high taste happy hour for music nerds.

Speaker C

00:01:02.510 - 00:01:08.990

Rachel Cholst, I am so excited to have you be part of Dive Bar Music Club. What are you up to in the world of music these days?

Speaker A

00:01:09.710 - 00:01:34.600

Hey, Sloane, thank you so much for having me. I'm really excited to just nerd out with all my Twitter ati bluesky ati people.

Now you can find me editing Rainbow Rodeo, the only queer country site zine. And you'll also find my work in no Depression. I have a monthly column there, as well as the Nashville scene and good country from time to time.

Speaker C

00:01:35.080 - 00:01:54.230

I'm so excited to have you be part of this. I have learned so much about music that I otherwise would not have known, and for me, the barrier was the country part of it.

You know, I'm not really a country music fan and you've really opened my ears to some fantastic work over the years. So I'm really excited to learn more about what you're listening to these days with Die Bar Music Club.

Speaker A

00:01:54.870 - 00:02:18.070

Thanks. I've actually been listening to a lot of jazz in my free time.

I think 20 years of writing about Americana and country and roots rock has kind of made me really hate three chord songs. I'm just kidding.

But I think, you know, I'm definitely excited to expand my own horizons because I know you've got a lot of people with really exciting tastes coming onto the podcast as well.

Speaker C

00:02:18.640 - 00:02:30.480

That's the plan is that hopefully we all like different things, but we all have enough of an overlap to be able to turn people onto other things. I'm super into like early 1970s soul jazz. It's like comfort music for me.

Speaker A

00:02:31.200 - 00:02:40.800

Yeah, totally.

And you know, when I say queer country for Rainbow Rodeo, that's just because it's a nice alliteration, you know, it's mostly Americana, I think, is how we would describe it nowadays.

Speaker C

00:02:41.280 - 00:02:52.830

Sure. And I think that's important to clarify for folks, because if you're like me and you're like, I don't listen to country music, I'm not sure.

I've told the listeners of this particular podcast. I worked in pop country for 25 years. I've listened to plenty of country music in my life.

Speaker A

00:02:53.550 - 00:03:04.670

Yeah. For pop country, I don't really listen to it as much in my free time either.

But it is interesting to see, like, the sort of 90s sounds come back into fashion, for better or worse. Agreed there.

Speaker C

00:03:04.670 - 00:03:19.570

Yeah, I think we'll probably end up chatting about that at some point in an upcoming podcast because that's come up in a couple of these different little bio conversations. So, Rachel Coelst, we've known each other digitally for a pretty long time, but how did you end up working in the world of music?

Speaker A

00:03:20.290 - 00:05:23.469

I'm a millennial, kind of right there in the middle, born in 1988. So I was like in my tweens when the Internet became a thing.

And so I was just kind of used to if I liked something, doing what I could to find everything about it. And as much as streaming has really been damaging to the music industry, I think it's been great for music listeners.

I never would have found my way into altcountry in Americana if it wasn't for services like Yahoo. Radio and Pandora. Try to keep it really brief. I am like New York City kid.

My family is like third generation in Ellis island, so there's no real particular roots in what you would consider like classical country music. They don't listen to it, but I just really fell in love with sort of Southern rock and twang, for whatever reason.

And as I got older and my own politics continued to develop, I found myself gravitating towards this sort of intersection between punk and country and singer songwriting.

So not necessarily so much like the Bloodshot record bands that are really in your face, but those bands that were kind of made famous on the revival tour or artists so like Tucal, Garage, Lucero, those kinds of people.

And I noticed as I was going to more and more shows, as I was reading more and more blogs about those artists, they were almost universally featured straight white men. And I was almost always the only woman there at these shows who wasn't there with her boyfriend.

So I wanted to figure out who those other people were. This was also 2011, so kind of like as the ideas of intersectionality and like Occupy Wall street were all entering the mainstream.

So I decided to just start my own blog, Adobe and Teardrops, that tried to highlight artists of marginalized identities.

So queer artists, bipoc artists as we would call use the term now, and all people who are working somewhere within the root space and also just artists who I liked. So that also included like 2Cal Garage and Abigail Lucas and people like that.

Speaker C

00:05:24.270 - 00:05:44.760

And this is where I first discovered your work and I kind of gravitated into this field or this sort of genre is not exactly the right word. It's sort of community in around 2009.

So similar era with what I was doing back then for me to kind of get away from that world of pop country that I had worked in for so long. Professionally.

Speaker A

00:05:44.840 - 00:06:16.180

Yeah, I think maybe this could be for another episode. But I wrote about the Lilith Fair documentary that came out recently.

And as I was watching the documentary I realized like, how could I not be a country music fan growing up in the 90s? Like, all those Lilith Faire artists were using sort of folk and country modes in their music.

And then of course we had the great 90s country that crossed over into mainstream pop as well. So I was listening to country music without listening to country music. It was just there excited to kind.

Speaker C

00:06:16.180 - 00:06:25.860

Of tease that out there for our listeners. So you've always got a lot of different projects going on regarding and related to music. Where would you like people to find you or your work?

Speaker A

00:06:26.180 - 00:07:03.700

The easiest place to see my non Rainbow Rodeo work would be my Instagram account, Adobe and Teardrops. If I have an article in another publication like no Depression or Good Country, I'll write about it there.

I'm also sort of slowly wading back into non Rainbow Rodeo music blogging. I'll just sort of. If I hear an album I like, I'll just dash off a little review about it there. But for the most part, my focus is Rainbow Rodeo.

So that's Rainbow Rodeo Mag, Instagram, Blue Sky Threads, Mastodon, which I'm still a champion of, even has its viability, seems to be fading into the distance.

Speaker C

00:07:03.940 - 00:07:08.340

You're the person that got me to open an account in Mastodon, and I still don't understand it.

Speaker A

00:07:08.820 - 00:07:16.210

Fantastic. We can do a whole episode on that too. There's some really interesting music projects going on there that I'm reading about myself.

Speaker C

00:07:16.530 - 00:07:21.650

I believe it and I Have a lot of room for growth, personally in understanding how that works.

Speaker B

00:07:21.650 - 00:07:22.290

But yeah.

Speaker C

00:07:23.890 - 00:07:32.370

So one of the threads for all of us is the love of live music. What are some venues that you've been to and just really the venue is as important as the music to you?

Speaker A

00:07:32.610 - 00:08:38.140

Yeah, totally. I was thinking about this. There's a little bar on Union street in Brooklyn near the R called Union hall.

And they pretty much only do stand up comedy now. There's like a fire in the basement where the venue was about 10 years ago.

And once it reopened, for whatever reason, they just haven't been doing live music in there, even though the room looks exactly the same. But before they did that, they often had a lot of great Americana and all country bands there. And whoever was a sound engineer sounded perfect.

It was a small room, but you could stand anywhere. And like Two Cow Garage, which is very kind of screamy. Well, not screamy, but blistery band.

Like you could stand anywhere in that room and you could hear the lyrics over the music. And I always really enjoyed going to see shows there.

But also I would have to shout out Brandon Saloon, also in Brooklyn, because that's where the queer country monthly shows took place. Those were hosted by Karen Pittleman of Karen and the Sorrows.

And that kind of helped me feel like I wasn't alone in appreciating this music while also being someone who wasn't like a cishet white person from the south.

Speaker C

00:08:38.800 - 00:08:55.280

Yeah.

So venues really are important spaces, especially spaces that offer that sense of community and welcoming that there's just something magical about that. I really appreciate the magic of music. Spaces that are able to provide that and create that for community.

Speaker A

00:08:56.080 - 00:11:11.260

Yeah, I'm very interested. I think New York is just like its own sort of animal when it comes to live music because there's only so many places you can perform.

And so it's not like any one venue can really afford to have like a brand, you know.

But I am sort of interested in the idea of like a venue where you could just show up without knowing who's playing and know that you'll probably like it. I think Rockwood Music hall came the closest to that in my experience because that was a venue that really focused on singer songwriters. Yeah.

Breaking the mold. I live in upper Manhattan and there's just not really a lot of storefront space up here, which means there's just not so many places to perform.

There's a big Dominican and increasingly Mexican community up here. So I know that there's like a whole sort of scene for like mariachi and DJs and things like that, that is just like totally off my radar.

But in terms of like rock or singer, songwriter and jazz, not too many places up here.

So one of the things I would like to explore is figuring out how to have more of a folk slash root scene in Upper Manhattan because a lot of musicians do live up here and the neighborhood is increasingly becoming more affordable than the places in Brooklyn that young people have been gravitating towards. So one venue I want to shout out is Penny Joe's. It's a bar on 163rd and Broadway.

I've been doing semi regular shows for Rainbow Rodeo, but for the most part they do jazz. Every night from 9 to 11 they have different jazz bands. The neighborhood is a really big jazz community.

Obviously it's close to Harlem, but also because it's very easy to pop down to Times Square, we have a lot of actual working musicians up here who work on Broadway or in jazz or classical music. So the people are here. We just need the physical space. And it's a really nice cocktail bar.

Some of the best drinks above 125th street and they've got really nice soups and salads so you can walk in and it just feels like a regular bar. It's not like bougie or anything like that, but they treat you really well and everything is just very thoughtful.

And they have a big rainbow flag in the back, so that always helps. But it's a really nice spot and I'm very happy that they've welcomed Rainbow Rodeo because it's so different from what they usually have there.

Speaker C

00:11:11.660 - 00:11:20.220

That is very cool. I love to hear that. Is there anything else about the music that you have coming up that you want to be sure people know?

In a bio episode for my picks.

Speaker A

00:11:20.220 - 00:12:50.020

You can mostly depend upon me for anything that has sort of crunchier rock sound. But I'm probably going to be bringing some jazz too. One of my friends recently asked me to describe the kind of jazz I like.

And I'm just not schooled enough in the history to really like or really anything. And I think that's what I like about it because I don't know a thing. So it's either like I like this or I don't, you know, And I don't.

It doesn't feel like homework. Like if I'm listening to country or Americana, I'm already writing the review in my head for jazz.

I have like no idea what I'm listening for other than my own response.

And so I'll probably be bringing in all kinds of stuff, but I am a bass player, so it will have inevitably some kind of strong groove or melodic hook.

It's not gonna be a lot of modern jazz tends to be, like, really discordant and kind of very intellectualized, and that's not the kind of jazz I'm into. But I will be bringing in whatever contemporary stuff I come across. There's just some really cool, cosmic stuff out there.

And also, like, my favorite music podcast in general is all Latino. Yeah, I speak Spanish.

But I love how the hosts, Felix and Anna Marie, they just love everything they talk about and you can tell they really care about the music they're picking. And they're so knowledgeable. And even if I don't always connect with the music, I care about it because they care about it.

And I also think it's an interesting model of how to feature art by people who have a specific part of their identity in common. But that doesn't mean that all of the music sounds the same by any stretch.

Speaker C

00:12:50.420 - 00:13:04.960

Ooh, definitely. I think you also turned me onto that particular podcast. And I will say that the first two episodes I listened to were their two episodes about.

About Bad Bunny. And I absolutely recommend that to everyone, especially folks who are like, who on earth is Bad Bunny?

These episodes are for you all Latino, easy to find from npr.

Speaker A

00:13:05.200 - 00:13:15.360

Yeah, it make me cry regularly. Just the. The passion, but also the defiance and, and strength in the music that they share.

And, you know, that's certainly what draws me to Queer country.

Speaker C

00:13:16.240 - 00:13:25.120

Definitely. Definitely. Well, Rachel Cholst, I'm so excited to have you be part of the regulars.

That's our recurring rotating crew of...