Philosophically Sound

Gus & Tony talk about their primordial musical influence: Weird Al. Tony bought the tape (!) of Running with Scissors after a friend played some songs in elementary school for show & tell. Tony theorizes that listening to Weird Al albums encouraged in him a preference for lots of genre change on the album—something that most pop artists obviously don't provide (though this discussion is far shorter than the sheer geek out session and sing throughs of Weird Al songs).

Playlist of original songs & Weird Al parodies.

Playlist of Polka Power songs.

If the show makes you smile, give us some dollars or cents on Patreon.

Interesting shit to check out:

FAQ on Al’s site

https://www.weirdal.com/archives/faq/

Blog analyzing Al’s lyrical brilliance:

https://www.greatwriterssteal.com/2013/01/09/what-can-we-steal-from-weird-al-yankovics-you-dont-love-me-anymore/

On Queen Ida, Zydeco legned:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1986/12/03/the-queen-of-zydeco/91409f76-fb4c-489d-abe3-bd4fd28ad0c9/

On the word Hermaphrodite:

https://isna.org/node/16/

The LA times interview Tony (mis)quotes from memory at the end of the show:

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2022-10-26/weird-al-yankovic-story-movie-roku-daniel-radcliffe

“He still plays “Albuquerque,” an 11-minute-plus shaggy-dog story-song in the George Thorogood tradition, but he pauses midway through to contextualize his use of the word “hermaphrodite,” affirming that language is supposed to evolve, that certain words that seemed funny in 1999 aren’t funny anymore — unlike the word “Albuquerque,” which will always be funny.”

Technical note: An earlier version of this episode didn't deepen Gus's voice for "microscopic bacteria." My bad! Now you can hear Gus in all his edited bassiness.

Gus took a trip to Iceland and did a great job exploring new music and learning to love it. This shorter episode might become a format we try on the podcast feed in the future, or as bonus content for our Patreon page.

Check out Gus's Iceland playlist.

Let us know what you like and what you'd like to hear us try differently: [email protected]

Gus & Tony interview their father, Mick—the conversation focuses on Jimi Hendrix, but touches on the mind opening capabilities of music, the mind blowing potential of listening in stereo, and potty training.

Playlist for this episode, featuring some early Jimi Hendrix playing with Little Richard, The Isley Brothers, and King Curtis.

After you buy a new album by a musician you've not heard before, and then bought a nice stereo system to listen to it—support us on Patreon, so we can spread the Implied For Me far and wide.

Cool shit to check out:

Maui concert:

https://www.mauinews.com/news/local-news/2020/11/the-day-jimi-hendrix-played-in-an-upcountry-pasture/

Dick Cavett show interview with Jimi Hendrix:

https://youtu.be/VGf9PTYyJ4A?si=nmwqhUQTgTqlGN3Y

Dick Cavett: Any time you play in an unorthodox way…

Jimi: Oh that’s not unorthodox, I thought it was beautiful—but there ya go.

On Jimi Hendrix and Blackness:

https://www.cnn.com/2014/10/18/showbiz/jimi-hendrix-invisible-legacy/index.html

Gus & Tony experience some music that's new to them (SZA, M.O.P., Busta Rhymes, Uncle Waffles, K.O), explore BREAK MY SOUL by Beyoncé, talk through one of Plato's dialogues (Euthyphro), and continue to explore preference, economics & creativity, and the Implied For Me.

Playlist for this episode.

If you like the show, give us a little cash on Patreon.

Interesting shit to check out:

The Hollywood Reporter article by Evan Nicole Brown, with quotes from South African rapper K.O

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/2023-bet-awards-behind-the-scenes-1235524251/#!

Interview with Busta Rhymes from 2020 by Cheo Hodari Coker from GQ

https://www.gq.com/story/busta-rhymes-ele-2-interview

The Complete History of Hip Hop from Prep Scholar

https://blog.prepscholar.com/hip-hop-history-timeline

Stereogum 'Break My Soul' analysis by Vivek Maddala

https://www.stereogum.com/2197029/beyonce-break-my-soul-music-theory/columns/in-theory/

Interview with Vivek Maddala

https://theroarbots.com/the-inherent-political-power-of-music-a-conversation-with-vivek-maddala-asian-americans-composer/

In the Studio with Vivek Maddala

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zveAHs69YA

Interview with Big Freedia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQh4oq6YGyY

Tony goes over tips to sing the Philosophically Sound theme song. Remember, done is better than perfect, but if it makes you more comfortable to practice and refine your singing before sending it in, give this a listen.

Tony goes over the technical details of how to record yourself singing the Philosophically Sound Theme Song. Instructions written below.

We invite you to record yourself singing the theme song to Philosophically Sound and send it in! This podcast is really fun for Gus and I to make, but it’s only gonna be better with more input from more humans. We appreciate you offering your literal voice to the show.

If you have experience recording and have your own digital audio workstation, mics, and so on, then I don’t need to tell you what to do. If you wanna go for it, just sing and send it ([email protected])! If you like instructions, here are the technical details:

I want a recording of your voice alone, so I can mix it in with all the other voices. If I can hear my own voice & piano in your recording, it doubles the voice & piano that are already there, and everything gets muddy.

To do this, you need 2 devices.

Follow these steps to record:

Email us for help—seriously, I’m a teacher, helping folks make music is my favorite thing!

Gus & Tony get inspired by an article from the Atlantic by James Parker that uses vivid imagery to describe the music & voices of Lana & Miley, discuss whether criticism is worth spending time on, analyze Lana Del Rey's song Video Games, Sinatrafy Miley Cyrus's song Flowers, and stick to their allotted time.

Playlist for this episode (includes songs mentioned in Parker article, plus an arrangement of See You Again Tony did for his college a capella group):

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1DfMtzbt1MzWNpEFG1pToB?si=05eaf565e65f4c4b

Tony's Backyard Music Festival Playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6Fc6bkWWiZvhJuOzjnOKcK?si=e32d4dfd3de4412b

Email comments, critiques, requests to [email protected]

Give us a tiny (or huge) bit of money on Patreon.

Goodies to get ya thinkin':

The referenced James Parker article (you need a subscription to the Atlantic to read this—ask a friend!):

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2023/04/miley-cyrus-flowers-song-lana-del-rey-music/673092/

Details from the article that I investigated because I was curious:

About Frederick Seidel (Molly Young, 2010): https://www.poetryfoundation.org/articles/69484/good-poems-about-ugly-things

Daddy, by Sylvia Plath: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48999/daddy-56d22aafa45b2

Miley singing Slide Away at MTV awards 2019: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N1E80FY0aw

And more:

Dissect episode containing Cole's thoughts on criticism:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2684Yy4El60WpZddx1qKTl?si=gwQ0IgeoSZCUiOD5UFQbTQ

Daily Mail (July 2013) article with Miley expressing some of her personal philosophy:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2371313/Miley-Cyrus-reveals-raunchy-video-We-Cant-Stop-MORE-explicit-opens-shedding-squeaky-clean-past.html

Defense & exploration of music criticism by Ms. Tiarney Miekus (2015): ⁠http://collapseboard.com/where-the-metaphor-fails-writing-about-music-is-like-dancing-about-architecture/⁠

On metaphysics: https://www.britannica.com/topic/metaphysics

Listen on YouTube.

Gus & Tony talk about the unique listening mindset at a music festival like Warped Tour — "I don't usually spend 8 hours drinking and listening to music... but maybe I should!" — analyze Dead Sara's song Weatherman and theorize that the implied for me might apply to interpretations of song lyrics, too.

Playlist for this episode (meant to be shuffled):

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0mUX2NDV0s7qEPnoRT9mGH?si=86ea1cace97a4be3

Our exercise from today's episode, Tony's Backyard Music Festival Playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6Fc6bkWWiZvhJuOzjnOKcK?si=b7872eeef8b24732

Email comments, critiques, requests to [email protected]

Give us a tiny (or huge) bit of money on Patreon.

Goodies to get you thinkin':

Rando lyric interpretations:

https://www.lyricinterpretations.com/dead-sara/weatherman

Interview with good quotes about influences:

https://loudwire.com/dead-sara-interview-new-album-musical-journey-warped-tour/

Interview with Emily:

https://youtu.be/HeZM3iBhLNY

Interview with Emily & Siouxsie (What is life? A game):

https://youtu.be/9RG6YDeT6D0

Article about Music getting shorter:

https://www.vice.com/en/article/qjv8pq/pop-songs-shorter-than-ever?utm_source=digg&utm_medium=email

Wikipedia on "Weatherman" organization: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weather_Underground 

Listen on YouTube.

Tony & Gus prepare a bonafide outline for an episode, dig in to the sweetness of Simon & Garfunkel harmonies, talk about what you might owe your influences, and Sinatra-fy "Bridge Over Troubled Water."

Playlist for this episode (listen in order for an experience of connecting musical influences):

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0RYTjTKcTA1dJ7nsCzhQkc?si=bc63894eabd34d51

Playlist on Qobuz

Much of the info for this episode comes from "The Paul Simon Companion," edited by Stacey Luftig, a collection of articles from 4 decades.

Within this collection, the quote from producer Tom Wilson comes from "Simon & Garfunkel: Old Friends," by Joseph Morella and Patricia Barey.

The quotes of Art Garfunkel are from a 1990 interview by Paul Zollo for Songtalk.

Additional reading/videos we absorbed for this episode, but didn't directly reference, and that you might dig:

About Aretha Franklin's cover of Bridge Over Troubled Water

About Paul Simon giving Claude Jeter, singer of Swan Silvertones, $1,000.

An interview with Paul Simon on The Dick Cavett Show, where he talks through Bridge Over Troubled Water

A recent interview with Art Garfunkel on the PBS News Hour, where you can get a sense of what a cool person Garfunkel is

If you like us, check out the podcast Sound Philosophy, by Chadwick Jenkins. This podcast is both totally different from ours and yet united in purpose to connect music with philosophy, belief, and action.

Email us questions, comments, critiques, & suggestions at [email protected]

Listen on YouTube.

Tony gets real about his creative mental blocks as a song writer: is a song only "successful" if it sells copies and makes money? Does our language as we speak about music really reflect what we find valuable about songs? Gus offers good context about the attention economy, and how our decisions about what to pay attention to affect the livelihood of artists everywhere. Tony plays an original song, analyzes it, and discussion ensues about what we would actually do if people donate to our show through Patreon. We want to create responsibly, and your feedback is very much desired.

Listen on YouTube.