On today's podcast, I sat down with Greg Carlisle, a theater professor at Morehead State University in Morehead, Kentucky. I was playing a show in Lexington, so I rented a car and came to visit him. We talked about what inspired him to write his "Elegant Complexity" book, a companion piece to David Foster Wallace's "Infinite Jest". In this episode, we speculate on why "Infinite Jest" is so populary, and like a Sierpinski triangle, try to fill in the unknown parts of the mysterious plot of Wallace's book. A great talk with a brilliant teacher and writer - thanks Greg!

Lisette Rimer went through something that no mother should have to, the loss of her son Patrick Wood to suicide in 2006. In trying to figure out why someone so brilliant and succesful would take his own life, Rimer has spent the last thirteen years grieving, healing and writing a book about her experience ("Parade Rest". In this special podcast, she and I share our memories of her son, who was a close friend and roommate of mine at Stanford, as we talk about the hows and whys depression. Thank you, Lisette, for your love and bravery. A truly special episode.

Twenty years ago, Sean Donnelly and I were both teenage artists attending Stevenson high school in Pebble Beach, California. He was a year older than me and always inspired me to be creative and do my best, in our collaborations and beyond. Since graduating college, Sean has directed three of my music videos, made a feature-length documentary and co-created the hit Comedy Central animated series "Jeff and Some Aliens", amongst other projects. This week on the podcast, we talk about his creative process and his future endeavors.

MC Hawking (Ken Lawrence) and I met online over ten years ago when I announced nerdcore's problematic racial overtones. We performed together in and around Boston for the following decade, culminating in a show together in front of Stephen Hawking at the STARMUS festival in 2016. On today's episode, we talk about nerdcore's early years, the future of Lawrence's project and his conflicted relationship with MC Frontalot. Thanks Ken, it was great catching up!

Louis Logic once rapped as part of the Demigodz and was a protégé of Vinnie Paz from Jedi Mind Tricks. This week, we talk about his childhood on Long Island, the beginnings of his career as a Philadelphia indie rapper, sobriety, fatherhood and the Brooklyn real estate hustle. We talk about the importance of not repeating oneself artistically and his upcoming mystery novel. Do I manage to bring Roger Rabbit up, yet again? Tune in to find out!

I met Vinnie Caruana when I Am the Avalanche, Plain White T's and I played a show at Rutgers in 2007. We kept in touch over the years and crossed paths again at the VANS Warped Tour in 2013. On today's episode, we talk about how he and I got our start with Long Island producer Mike Sapone and continued our careers linking with the Rondo Brothers in San Francisco. We talk about his memories and short stint in Head Automatica, as well as his solo project and his current bands I Am the Avalanche and the Movielife.

Back in 2000, Atom & His Package changed my view of what punk rock could be. Mixing comedy, humor, intelligence, catchy pop choruses, punk and a QY700 sequencer, Atom Goren started performing and touring the world with just his guitar and "package" (the QY700). I met Atom at a show in Monterey, CA in 2000 and kept in touch; he would often give me advice along the way. A few year ago, I got to open for him at FEST in Florida, a career highlight. On today's episode, we talk about teaching, family, spirituality and how music fits into his life these days.

Back in 2008, Timothy Crist (a.k.a. ShoEboX, a.k.a. Worm Quartet) and I collaborated on an Atom & His Package cover for my "This Gigantic Robot Kills" album. This week, Crist and I talk about his work with VH1, his success on the Dr. Demento show and his upcoming album. We discuss similarities between nerdcore rap and the Dr. Demento-inspired comedy music scenes and the intersection of music and convention culture. Be sure to look for more collaborations between me and Worm Quartet! Thanks Tim!

When I was in seventh grade, Sam Salerno bought me Rush's "Test for Echo" on CD, and it changed my life. He showed how literature (in this case, Ayn Rand) could be translated to music, and this was deeply influential on me both personally and professionally. This week, we talk about his career as a teacher / poet / musician, and how he balances everything while continuing to release albums and books of poetry. Thank you Sam, for being a guest, and for your inspiration and love. Sam currently teaches at Stevenson School in Pebble Beach, California, my alma matter. His new book "the Soul Collects Its World" is available locally at bookshops on the Monterey Peninsula.

Boy Pierce got his start as a mashup artist, before going on to create viral rap tributes to Nick Foles, Phish, Family Matters and AOL. This week, we talk about our respecitve experiences as fans of rap, Phish and creating digital content. We speculate on the future of platforms like YouTube and talk about our respective dreams for the future. When Pierce is not making hilarious rap videos in his kitchen, he works doing marketing for a company in Manhattan. We talk about balancing work with art and the importance of being geunuine and real. Aweosme inteview with an inspring young artist!