Clayton Warwick sits down with Justin Hackl, Denver musician, guitar builder, and owner of Hackl Guitars, for a wide-ranging conversation about making music, discovering new artists, and building a life around the thing you love.

Justin shares the unlikely story behind Arson Charge, a band that came together after he thought he might be done playing music altogether, and reflects on three decades in the Denver music scene, from touring with The Blackout Pact to his time in Native Daughters and finding a renewed love for the creative process. They also dig into the realities of touring, Justin’s path to becoming a luthier, memorable experiences working on guitars for touring musicians, the good and bad of streaming-era music discovery, and the growing presence of AI in music. Along the way, Clayton and Justin trade stories about Warped Tour, Red Rocks, vinyl, Carpenter Brut, The Wipers, and why the human connection behind music still matters.

https://www.instagram.com/arsoncharge/

https://www.instagram.com/hacklguitars/

https://hacklguitars.com/

Clayton Warwick sits down with Bryan Ray, an Austin-based artist, producer, and the Director of Marketing and Artist Relations for John Page Guitars, for a wide-ranging conversation about music discovery, creative careers, and keeping the joy of music alive.

Bryan shares the remarkable history behind John Page Guitars, from John Page’s role in founding the Fender Custom Shop to the mission of making extraordinary, player-focused instruments more accessible. They also reflect on the blog era, the changing economics of the music business, the limits of algorithmic discovery, and why real community and human taste still matter. Along the way, Clayton and Bryan trade stories about South by Southwest, Red Rocks, vinyl, Mars Volta, jazz on YouTube, and the long, unpredictable path of building a life around music.

https://www.instagram.com/bryan_b_ray/

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4qdwXUwNF8gr1FODwl6LWx

https://www.johnpageguitars.com/

For the first episode of One of These Things First, Clayton sits down with Absofacto. Their connection stretches back to 2011, when The Music Ninja first covered his work, years before “Dissolve” found an unexpected second life on TikTok.

They revisit the blog and Hype Machine era, the strange experience of watching an older song suddenly go viral, and how that moment arrived just as Jonathan was considering stepping away from the traditional artist grind. The conversation also explores his eight years with Atlantic Records, the growing presence of AI music, and why knowing there’s a real person behind a song still matters.

Jonathan also shares what he’s building next. It’s an honest conversation about discovery, persistence, artistic identity, and returning to music on your own terms.