This episode we take another divergence from the Dischord saga to celebrate Government Issue's first couple non-Dischord albums, Joyride and The Fun Just Never Ends. These were two records that meant a lot to me and it was a true pleasure to be able to get granular with the legendary Tom Lyle. This is the second installment of an interview series we're doing with Tom unspooling the DNA of GI's body of songs. Long live Stabb!

Today Jeff and I talk about one of the most divisive as well as important Dischord bands. These guys carved their own path and wore their heart and politics on their sleeve. One of the earliest progenitors of punk-funk, they also blended jazz and metal into their expression. I felt blessed to be able to talk to not just one, but all of the surviving members of Beefeater. They truly put the revolution in Revolution Summer. We also got to talk to one of my oldest friends, Lars from the DC band Thorns, about how Beefeater affected him and about living at the Positive Force house with Tomas and Dug. This show stirred many memories and much inspiration in this fool heart. Dedicated from the soul, to the memory of Fred "Freak" Smith!

Not much needs to be said about this one. Not much can be said. The self-titled Rites Of Spring LP is my all-time favorite Dischord release. It was an honor to have the opportunity to talk to Brendan Canty about the record and the band in general. We also got Matt Ryan (Bitter Branches/Calvary) to share a bit about what this record meant to him. "Drink deep..."

On this weeks show, we take another field trip. This time to Chicago (by way of Seattle and many other towns) to talk to the legendary Vic Bondi. He not only has a PHD in History, he helped create the genre of hardcore and talks with us about the history of the movement and also the history of politics in this country. We ended up talking mere hours after the announcement of the election results. Most of his musical projects are briefly covered and lots besides. Steve Hansgen also gives a mini-view about our feature artist in the Stepping Stones segment. Check it!

Reptile House occupied imaginal space outside the harDCore landscape, yet infiltrated it regularly. They trafficked in dark, psych-infused poetry driven by an engine of otherworldly postpunk propulsion. This band was the seed that sprouted Lungfish and introduced the world to one Daniel Strasser/Higgs, a shaman-poet in training. It was a pleasure to re-enter the Reptile House and talk to London May about the origins of the band, as well as his work with some other bands you may've heard of, as well as his acting career. Dan Higgs is also represented, from a portion of an interview I did with him for my other podcast, Out My Way. As if that weren't a lot already, London also let us premiere an unreleased track from the session for this EP. There are some occasional audio issues with this episode, but its worth weathering them for the content this week. See you guys in two weeks!

Those VA boys strike again!This time it was with an album that blew almost everything else at the time away. Scream were one of the hardest working bands around and with these songs and this recording, adding Harley to the lineup on second guitar, they took their songwriting to the next level (and in my mind, their absolute peak). Jeff and I discuss the bands brilliant second LP, though as usual, we take many side-roads to get there. Franz and Kent fill in the details they remember (these were decidedly not straight edge dudes, ya know). It was an honor to have the chance to gush about one of the defining records of the era for a few short hours!

Today we come to the end of an era for harDCore, Minor Threat's "Salad Days" release. In this mega-sode, Brian and Jeff have conversations with Jon Roa (Justice League/Eyerlid), comedian Chris Estrada and graphic designer Jeremy Dean (Jade Tree/Grateful Dead). We get input from a couple professional photographers and Steve Hansgen. It's only three songs, but yes, it takes the EOE boys four hours to explore every inch of every song. Time is an illusion. right?

This episode was a real treat for us. Don Zientara's importance as a producer cannot be overstated. He produced and engineered almost every single Dischord release. On this episode he talks about his philosophy of capturing a band's essence, tells a few funny stories from his early years and just generally really gives us a fly on the wall perspective into the Inner Ear control room.Listen all the way through, you won't regret it!

This week Brian and Jeff look back and laugh, with a little help from their friends. The topic and release is the LP collection of the first Eps by Teen Idles, SOA, Government Issue and Youth Brigade! Gather distantly social, around the campfire and listen to these tales from long, long ago about a mythical scene that was chockablock with heroes and villains and morality tales of timeless import. Starring  Nathan Stejcek as himself (Teen Idles/Youth Brigade), Barry Henssler as the comical sidekick (Necros), Gary Bennett as the whimsical scamp (Kill Your idols), Mark O' Connor as the star-crossed and misunderstood lover (Daycare Swindlers) and a very special apperance by  Vinny Segarra (Mint Tone Records) as the Catman from outer space. Come out of lockdown and hear this never-ending story of confusion and redemption. You might not regret it!

This week we cover one of my favorite live bands, Marginal Man. Jeff and I discuss how 'Identity" holds up 36 years latter, as well as go into a little off their history. I also talk about my experience seeing them a healthy amount and what the record meant to me growing up. We also had the immense pleasure ands honor of talking to singer, Steve Polcari. Strap in, folks, this is a good one!