Influenced

Formed at the University of Georgia in 1980, by Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Bill Berry and Mike Mills. R.E.M. Would soon become the flag bearers for the burgeoning Alternative scene in the music industry. Fueled by their love of the jangley folk-rock guitars of bands like the Byrds and the lyrical intellectualism in  the words of artists like Lou Reed and Patti Smith, they soon found themselves with a whole new musical style. Signing to indie label, IRS records, the band spent the decade of the '80s releasing yearly albums and becoming one of the biggest artists in the newly found "college-rock" scene. At the turn of the decade, the band found major success with a new deal with major label Warner Music and a creative partnership with producer Scott Litt. With dozens of hits under their belt like "Losing My Religion", "The One I Love" and "Everybody Hurts" the band became one of the most popular rock bands of the decade, selling over 80 Million albums and being touted by artists like Nirvana, The Jayhawks, Coldplay, and Mazzy Star as major influences, R.E.M. have left an undeniable mark on the music world. In this episode of Influenced, we dive deep into the influences of this seminal band and their iconic sound.  

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Inspired by the early electronic style of Brian Eno with his work in the band Roxy Music and artists like David Bowie, Talk Talk was formed in the early eighties by Mark Hollis, Lee Harris, Paul Webb ands Simon Brenner. Initially part of the synth-pop boom in the early eighties and sharing producers with acts like Duran Duran, Talk Talk began to see their early singles charting across Europe. They expanded further into art rock territory on their most successful album, The Colour of Spring which garnered  gold certifications and hit singles for the group. Contrary to their labels hopes after finding success, the band shied away from the spotlight ceasing any live shows and almost all promotional prospects. Instead they dove  deep into the avant garde with Miles Davis and ambient music becoming common touchstones for the band. They proceeded to hired dozens of session players and got to work on some of the most ambitious experimental music any mainstream group had made to that point. Commonly touted as a major influence for musicians as wide-ranging as massive arena bands like Blur and Radiohead to modern acts like Foals and Arcade Fire. In this episode of Influenced we explore the wide ranging career of Mark Hollis and Talk Talk and discuss their wide ranging influence.   

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Formed by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo in early '90s France after the dissolution of their indie rock band, Daft Punk quickly became one of the biggest forces in electronic music. The Duo was fascinated by the world of samplers and drum machines and inspired by the acid-house of Primal Scream and genre bending of Aphex Twin, the duo began pumping out house hits like "Da Funk" and "Around the World" from their first album Homework. After finding major label success with their first album, they wanted to prove they weren't just a "house" band with their next album the genre defying magnum opus Discovery. The band continued getting bigger and better with iconic sets like their 2006 headline set at Coachella and the 2010 soundtrack to the Tron: Legacy  film. After the massive success of the 2000's the band decided to look further inward toward the album they've always wanted to make with 2013's Random Access Memories which was completed with the help of some of the industries finest musicians. Check out this episode of Influenced to learn more about the career's of the most famous robots in pop culture!

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Mitski is one of the most successful indie artists of the last decade. After a globetrotting childhood living in almost a dozen countries, Mitski began her musical career in earnest while studying composition in College at SUNY in New York. Initially inspired by her classical training and the collaborative environment of her school, her first albums saw her explore a very baroque style of music. After graduating though, Mitski found herself inspired much more by alternative music like the Pixies and Kate Bush. Picking up the guitar for a few albums like the iconic Puberty 2, Mitski began to find real success in her music with the famed independent label Dead Oceans. As all good artists do, Mitski continued to grow as she continued to release music  some of her most successful music yet in her most recent albums Be the Cowboy and  this year's Laurel Hell.  She seems to get bigger with every release and has been having unfounded success on modern social media like TikTok. She has also been touted as an influence by Grammy nominated artists like Japanese Breakfast and Phoebe Bridgers. Check out this episode of Influenced for a deep dive into the career of one of music's newest icons. 

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Commonly referred to as the "Queen of Country Rock" Linda Ronstadt came belting out of the late '60s in her first band the Stone Poneys. After the breakup of the Poneys, Linda hastily began a solo career in the early '70s backed by songs from JD Souther, Jackson Brown and even Glenn Frey and Don Henley, she soon began one of the highest selling solo careers of the decade. She began to dominate the charts with a string of chart topping songs and albums and even had a hand in the formation of the Eagles after Glenn Frey and Don Henley met while in her band. Climbing the mountain that is the music industry, Linda found success in whatever music she made. With her tastes ranging from jazz, rock, pop standards to even Mexican mariachi music she's had countless platinum albums and hours of incredible collaborations. Into the modern era, she had incredible success with Trio her project with Dolly Parton and Emmylou Harris, and has gone on to influence artists as far ranging as Selena Quintanilla, Vince Gill, Carrie Underwood, and even musicians as modern as the HAIM sisters. In this episode of Influenced, we explore the incredible breath of Linda Ronstadt and her musical career.

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Formed in the UK in 1982, Sade (Sade Adu, Stuart Matthewman, Andrew Hale, and Paul Denman) was founded out of the ashes of Adu's former band Pride. Born in Nigeria to a Nigerian father and an English mother, Adu found a love of '70 soul music like Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross early in her childhood after being taken to the English countryside by her mother. Initially looking to study fashion, Sade moved to London for school. Swept into the artsy nightlife scene of early '80s London, she was quickly engrossed into the music world and found her peers in Pride which soon evolved into her eponymous group.With the release of Diamond Life in 1984 and the success of singles like "Smooth Operator" the band quickly became a hit machine from the '80s well into the 2010's. Selling over 50 million albums and ranking among the highest selling female British artists of all time, Sade has been mentioned as an influence everywhere from the jazzy world of Norah Jones to the biggest hitmakers of the last twenty years like Beyoncé and Mary J. Bilge. In this episode of Influenced, we trace the band and her incredible lasting effect of the music industry.

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Started in 1970, Electric Light Orchestra became one of the seminal acts of the decade. Combining a love of Beatles-esque rock and roll  with a flare for drawing from classical music, the band crafted some of the most timeless and impeccably produced music from the era. Led by their frontman and primarily producer and song-writer Jeff Lynne, ELO began releasing a string of hit album after hit album topping the charts on both sides of the Atlantic in sales numbers that began to even rival Lynne's Beatle heroes. As the '80's saw Lynne become one of the industries most in demand producers working with legends like Brian Wilson, George Harrison and producing some of the biggest songs of Tom Petty's career. Jeff Lynne soon gained a reputation for reviving the careers of icons from decades past as well working on albums from Roy Orbison,  Duane Eddy, and Del Shannon. In this episode of Influenced we trace ELO and Jeff Lynne from their early days covering Chuck Berry to ELO and Lynne's impact on artists as far ranging as Daft Punk, The Killers and even influencing some work by his own heroes the Beatles. 

Jenny Lewis got her start as a child actor on shows like the Twilight Zone and Baywatch, but didn't really begin to find herself until she formed her first band, Rilo Kiley, as a teenage actor in LA with an adolescent boyfriend. As they began to experiment and find their musical voices, Jenny harkened back a few decades to the country sounds of Loretta Lynn and Emmylou Harris and the classic rock of artists like Elvis Costello.  Rilo Kiley soon emerged as one of the premier alternative bands in the 2000s. Sharing the stage with artists like Coldplay and Death Cab for Cutie, Jenny began to get a taste for musical success. After the romantic relationship that formed the heart of Rilo Kiley began to wane, Jenny began to look toward the draw of going solo. Aided by a host of collaborators from industry figures like M.Ward, Ben Gibbard, and even her own heroes like Elvis Costello, Jenny's solo albums continued to expand her ever-changing musical landscape and have gotten her onstage with some of the biggest artists of the 2010's like her very fruitful relationship with former boyband member Harry Styles. In this episode of Influenced, we explore her unique voice and how it's helped to shape the last 20 years of music.


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Formed by a group of former hippies in 1970, The Doobie Brothers became one of the all-time greatest bands of the decade and certainly one of the decades most quintessential groups. Starting from the genesis of guitarists Tom Johnston and Pat Simmons, the band carved out a space in the music industry playing souther inflected hard rock while mixing in some classic folk stylings. As their tours and size of the band grew, members began flowing in and out of the band (with over a dozen members playing through the ranks over the years) including a few alum from Steely Dan, the band began to expand into R&B and Motown influences. Strengthened by the mid decade addition of singer Michael McDonald, the Doobie Brothers crafted some of the decades biggest and most enduring hit songs and albums. Throughout this podcast we trace the Doobies music lineage and the massive influence they ended up having on  the music industry as a whole, from their surprise campfire hits to being sampled by Drake and the Avalanches!

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On the season finale of season 1 of Influenced, we continue our discussion on Damon Albarn. We pick up right where part 1 left off as Gorillaz continue to pick up steam in the wake of Blur's early 2000's hiatus.  We discuss the newfound political energies that began to fuel Gorillaz creative output into the decade of the 2010's. We dive into the rather experimental music that Damon began exploring solo under his own name alongside peers like Brian Eno as well as his reunion and rekindling of  Blur.  The lasting legacy Damon's creativity has had an impressive impact on the music industry as to this day he is a sought after producer and collaborator across the musical spectrum working with an artistic roster as diverse as the Cure's Robert Smith, contemporary artists like Vince Staples, CHAI, and JPEGMAFIA, and even musical legends from decades past like Elton John, Lou Reed and Peter Hook. In this episode we finish our discussion on Damon and his long lasting career and wide arc of influence over the music industry.


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