Heroes and High Notes

Sean and Myron are back for another round of **Heroes and High Notes**, catching up on what they’ve been reading, listening to, and obsessing over as summer winds down. On the comics side, the conversation ranges from the road to **Amazing Spider-Man #1000**, the current state of Spider-Man, and symbiote overload to **Deadman**, **Swamp Thing**, Doctor Doom, Batman Day, and the Absolute Universe. They also spend some time celebrating **Joe Kubert’s 100th birthday**, including Myron’s personal memories of taking Kubert’s correspondence course and having his artwork critiqued by Kubert himself.

Then it’s time for the **High Notes**. Sean and Myron talk hard rock, metal, and **Texas Hippie Coalition** before Myron recommends two bands with Albany-area connections:**Plush** — fronted by Moriah Formica, whose new album *Mass Hysteria* arrived September 18. Myron describes the record as a mix of hard rock, melodic vocals, harmonies, and varied songwriting. The band’s current lineup features Formica, Ashley Suppa, and Faith Powell. :

Plush official website https://plushrocks.net/?

Listen to Mass Hysteria: https://orcd.co/masshysteria?

**Gozer** — an Albany, New York hard-rock band Myron has known through the local music scene. He calls out vocalist Jackson Tollerton and recommends their new single **“Morning Star,”** from their upcoming album. The band describes its sound as gritty modern desert and hard rock with heavy riffs and big hooks.

Gozer official website https://www.gozerny.com/?

Gozer on Bandcamp https://gozer4.bandcamp.com/?

Plus: comic-shop rabbit holes, why some characters work best alone, creator history, upcoming conventions, and the usual wandering conversation between two guys who can happily spend 40 minutes talking comics and music.**Heroes and High Notes — comics, music, art, and everything in between.**

Two lost comic-book futures finally become real.

In this episode of Heroes and High Notes, we catch up on summer adventures, family, live music, and a memorable trip to New York City before turning our attention to two long-awaited projects from legendary comic creators.

First, we enter the Green with Rick Veitch’s Swamp Thing 1989, the restored continuation of a run that was abruptly cut short decades ago. We discuss its layered storytelling, connections to the larger DC mythology, period-style presentation, and whether the completed story lives up to years of anticipation—including the surreal moment when Rick Veitch personally shared our reaction to the book.

Then we dive into John Byrne’s X-Men: Elsewhen, Volume 1, his alternate continuation of the classic X-Men era. We compare it with the original comics, examine Byrne’s artwork and storytelling choices, and debate its altered character histories, competing plotlines, and sometimes complicated creative legacy.

Along the way, we also talk about supporting comic shops and creators, artificial intelligence and artists’ rights, and the music currently finding its way into our rotation.

I came across a list of fictional characters that have truly stood the test of time, and noticed that many of them also had deep roots in comic books. That sparked a great conversation between Myron and me as we broke down the list, explored why these characters have endured for generations, and looked at how the comic book medium helped shape their legacy. Hope you enjoy the conversation as much as we did — thanks for listening.

Comic heroes and characters who have died then returned, often multiple times. Myron and I delight and decry these stories of resurrection, redemption, and damnation. Many of these dead, not dead moments come as a monkey's paw. Just ask Bucky!

Welcome to Season 2! For this episode Myron and I continue share the love and feels for recent comics and music. No controversary or shade here, instead we focus on the things that bring us joy. This month we talk about comic book sales charts, Marvel/DC collaborations, Sal Buscema, and close out the hour trying to update the Garage Band Family Tree from the Black Crowes forward.

Myron and I end the year with a discussion on the current state of the comic book market. Is it for hobbiest or collectors? The publishers are keeping the lights on but at what cost? Blind bags, stunt events that change nothing, variant covers, etc. don't improve the stories. We also share some the things we've enjoyed this year including putting this humble podcast out there for our dedicated listener.

This month we dig into the maintenance and eventual liquidation of a comic collection. Keep buying or time to sell is the question. Myron and I also weigh in on the latest Marvel/DC crossover news. Then its more con updates from Myron, he share the latest weekend appearance.

Welcome back, this episode Myron and I will share love for new comics from Marvel and DC, new and re-releases on the music side and we land with some hot takes on some of the latest offerings from our favorite streamers. We got you covered.

This month we get into the summer super hero movies. Most of the discussion is around the Fantastic Four and Superman but we also throw in some Thunderbolts commentary. Our reviews are on the kind side until we get to the Happy Gillmore sequel. Apologies in advance for the some choppy audio in this episode, we'll do better next month.

All high notes this episode! Myron and I break down the entire Back to the Beginning event in Birmingham on July 5th. Part review, part education, part fan reaction, and all fun, we hope anyways. We choose our highlights and surprises from this emotional day.