Jams and Tea

This week we are thrilled to be joined once again by the wonderful AdequateEmily to discuss the ostentatious, delightfully absurd, heady maximalism of Black Midi's highly-hyped new record HELLFIRE - but how does Hellfire hold up? We also discuss the thoroughly bonkers new album Special from late '10s pop sensation Lizzo, explore the weird and wild oeuvre of Marilyn Manson, check in on new efforts from Jack White, Interpol, Gospel, and Ghais Guevera, and much much more! It's a jam-packed episode filled with insights and musings on some of the year's wildest music so far.

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0:00 Intro 3:11 The Marilyn Manson Question 12:16 World’s End Girlfriend Combines Post-Rock and Glitch 15:56 Gospel’s Amazing New EP 18:03 Jake Gets Into Ichiko Aoba 21:04 The Underrated Solo Career of Greg Puciato 24:48 New Albums from Jack White and Interpol 30:24 MF DOOM’s Best Side Project? 34:21 Emily’s Recs: Ghais Guevera & Stomach Book 42:34 Lizzo - Special 1:12:37 Black Midi - Hellfire 1:50:00 Outro

This week on Record Club we revisit a dour and sensational classic of nu-metal, Slipknot's uncompromising sophomore effort IOWA, one of the ugliest and most brutal metal records to ever achieve mainstream popularity and chart success. How does it hold up now, and why do Slipknot remain one of the era's best-sounding and most well-aged bands?

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This week on the show we are breaking down an acclaimed release from a contemporary Swedish punk band Viagra Boys, their latest record CAVE WORLD! It's not an album we're particularly fond of, and so we attempt to make an impassioned case for why it represents the worst impulses of many contemporary bands attempting to infuse relevant, hard-hitting social commentary into their records, and whether satire is even possible in music (and if so... how do Viagra Boys get it so wrong?). You might not agree with us, but we want to hear from you regardless! Which side of the fence do you fall on?

Also this week we're joined by friend of the pod Jakob Sanchez once again to discuss Singaporean grindcore act Wormrot's spectacular new record HISS, one of the best records of the year in the realm of extreme metal, plus we talk about our latest obsessions and fixations from the wider world of music!

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TIMESTAMPS  0:00 Intro 4:11 The Most Underrated Yo La Tengo Album 11:25 The Most Underrated Cocteau Twins Album 18:42 The Greatest Shoegaze Album? (It’s Not Loveless) 22:33 Jake Discovers Sigur Rós 34:09 Morgan’s Gorguts Dive Continues 37:14 A Sludge Metal Album with Synths 39:52 Where Bluegrass Meets Black Metal 43:47 Jakob Gets Deloused in the New Pornotorium 46:43 Wormrot - Hiss 1:06:33 Viagra Boys - Cave World 1:58:27 Outro

This week on Record Club, Jake, Morgan, and Ryley are discussing one of their most beloved contemporary singer-songwriters, Phoebe Bridgers, focusing in on her wonderful 2017 debut Stranger in the Alps to discuss the elements of songwriting that she lays out with confidence here, what the songs are about, and why they mean so much to us and so many people across the world.

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TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro / What Phoebe Means to Us 8:23 Smoke Signals 19:31 Motion Sickness 25:30 Funeral 32:35 Demi Moore 34:49 Scott Street 43:51 Chelsea 47:46 Georgia 50:34 You Missed My Heart 1:00:21 Ratings / Outro

This week we are reviewing two very exciting, very dense, and very great new records from artists who should be on your radar. First up is the beginning of a new story from progressive rock band The Dear Hunter, who shift their sound to adopting more pop and R&B stylings in crafting a new world and the first chapter of a new story. Following that, the main attraction is abstract hip-hop artist and poet Moor Mother, whose new album Jazz Codes deconstructs the aesthetics of jazz to craft a melting pot of black stories, reflections, and poetry.

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TIMESTAMPS 0:00 Intro 4:00 The Imperial Triumphant Discography 8:02 Jake Has Kate Bush Hot Takes 14:50 Blut Aus Nord & Atmospheric Black Metal 21:12 Lightning Bolt’s Wonderful Rainbow Is A Total Headf**k 23:33 Jake Gets Artificially Brained 27:27 The Gay IDM Punk of Water Gun Water Gun Sky Attack 30:25 Ryley is Feelin’ the Feelies 32:40 Remembering Regina Spektor & Dearing the Hunter 37:25 Ryley Does Not Like Muse’s First Album 48:17 The Dear Hunter - Antimai 1:16:43 Moor Mother - Jazz Codes 1:50:59 Outro

This week's Record Club is a very special - and unusual - one, as we tackle Tom Waits for the second time, zeroing in on his 1999 masterpiece Mule Variations, to examine the craft of his songwriting and all of the ways he is a compelling and moving musical presence and wordsmith. However, to add a wrinkle to the conversation, we also complement this by integrating Scarlett Johansson's 2008 album of Tom Waits cover songs, Anywhere I Lay My Head, which has been largely forgotten... for good reason. How did this bizarre curio (which features guest appearances from David Bowie!) go so terribly wrong, and what does it tell us about the songcraft and one-of-a-kind personality of the madman Tom Waits himself?

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We have a bumper episode this weekend for you with the long-awaited arrival of Porcupine Tree's first album in 13 years, the sensational Closure / Continuation. We spend a full hour breaking down what this return means for Steven Wilson's beloved band, the place of prog rock in modern music culture, and why the future looks bright for many forms of heavy music. Also, we spend some time discussing another long-awaited return, that of Regina Spektor with the wonderful and vibrant Home, Before and After, her first album in six years.

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On this week's Record Club, we are wrapping up our breakdown of the 2000s records of legendary prog band (and the most Jams & Tea-core artist there is) Porcupine Tree with a discussion and debate of the merits of their divisive 2009 concept record The Incident, fashioned as a 55-minute suite of 14 songs with an EP's worth of additional tracks tacked on. It's undeniably a messy record, but is it an underrated gem or a damp squib? Listen along to hear where the four of us fall, and let us know what YOU think at home!

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It is Sunday once again, and after missing last week's main episode to do the annual music quiz, we are brimming with new reviews of albums from big artists. As a warm up we have brief dissections of the latest efforts from Bartees Strange, Foals, and Asian Glow, but the main course is a deep thematic and musical analysis of Perfume Genius's latest offering, the abstract and musically eclectic UGLY SEASON! Also in this episode: Jake announces the three different discographies that the rest of the podcast have to listen to for losing the quiz, we have an extensive rave about The Zombies' seminal Odessey and Oracle, a consideration of the musical career of Joji, and some of our most chaotic moments of the year, courtesy of August.

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TIMESTAMPS  0:00 Intro / Quiz Loser Announcements 8:34 Jake Gets Into Pulp 12:22 Jake Makes Our Hopes Fall 14:46 EPs: Elder, Ride, The Radio Dept 17:53 Raving About Odessey and Oracle 23:02 The Freak Folk Bukkake Drone of John Schuller 25:03 An Aside on the Music of Joji 31:12 Six Minutes of Chaos 37:04 Tea Drinking Fellers Union Local 282  40:01 Bartees Strange - Farm to Table 46:29 Foals - Life Is Yours 50:25 Weezer - SZNZ: Summer 58:39 Perfume Genius - Ugly Season 1:30:58 Asian Glow - Stalled Flutes, Means 1:47:38 Outro

This week on Record Club, we are celebrating our favourite Fiona Apple record, 1999's When the Pawn Hits the Conflicts He Thinks Like a King What He Knows Throws the Blows When He Goes to the Fight and He'll Win the Whole Thing 'Fore He Enters the Ring There's No Body to Batter When Your Mind Is Your Might So When You Go Solo, You Hold Your Own Hand and Remember That Depth Is the Greatest of Heights and If You Know Where You Stand, Then You Know Where to Land and If You Fall It Won't Matter, Cuz You'll Know That You're Right.

Join us as we break down each song on this seminal record and discuss all the reasons why it remains one of the most enduring and emotionally powerful 90s singer-songwriter LPs.

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