Howdy friends. This week’s guest is comedian, Substacker, and cultural commentator, Christian Finnegan.

Before we get to the actual questions in our episode, Christian and I spend some time catching up, covering everything from the recent Riyadh Comedy Festival held by the Saudi Government to Christian’s unhealthy obsession with the New York Knicks that culminated in a rather wild gift.

As always, Christian is hilarious, self-effacing and astute as we tackle the whitewashing of tyranny and the surprising appeal of body pillows.

Once the questions begin, Christian theorizes that animated characters are perhaps better able to tell us deeper and more difficult truths than human actors can. We talk about the myriad representations of mental health in what is often seen as “children’s entertainment”. Whether we are plumbing the depths of depression with Eeyore and Charlie Brown or exploring the concepts of grief in a film like Up, animated works can often distill tougher themes down to digestible elements.

As we move our discussion on to the film that most informed his world view, Christian looks intently at the class hierarchy within the neighborhood of one film that changed his outlook on the idea of monolithic communities. As a high schooler, he was enlightened by the nuance and diversity of this seemingly connected neighborhood.

Christian and I explore the differences of love and infatuation, allowing Christian to describe love as a daily or devotional act, as opposed to a mere feeling. We talk about the openness and willingness to be truly hurt that love requires. And Christian breaks down the misogynist myth of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

We learn about a fairly recent cinematic treasure that Christian feels is underseen. There is also a look at the similarities between a famous failed artist and the way that Christian and I often see ourselves in that sad, frustrated character. Christian shares the story of seeing a movie that he was sure would be terrible, and we happen upon a film that I deeply dislike, but may have misjudged.

Come get all of that and more with me and Christian Finnegan. This one runs a bit longer than a normal Six Questions installment, but I am pretty sure you’ll enjoy that extra time just as much as Christian and I did.

Let’s get into it.

Cheers,

Matty C

Show Notes

Thank you so much to Christian for joining me. Be sure to subscribe to his Substack, New Music For Olds, you’ll find a link in the show notes. 

Six Questions With Matty C is a production of What Am I Making. The show is hosted, written, and produced by me, Matty C. 

Our theme music was written by the great Pete Coe.

You can subscribe to all of our work today at whatamimaking.substack.com. 

Our work is solely sponsored by listeners and readers like you. Please lend your support today with a paid subscription at whatamimaking.substack.com. 

You can email the show us at [email protected]. You can also leave us a voicemail with your questions or concerns at speakpipe.com/whatamimaking

Hey kids. Let’s see how this thing feels on a weekday. We’re bringing Six Questions with Matty C for a Friday test run. Please let us know what you think of the new scheduling?

Hey friends. This week’s guest is music journalist, author, and Substacker, Chris Dalla Riva. Chris gets things rolling with faded memories of the songs that he first heard growing up, assuming that his mother was crafting those tunes as she was singing to him as a child. Little did he know that they were world famous songs.

We take a ride in the Six Questions Time Machine and travel back to a spot on the east coast in the late 1970s to witness Chris’s favorite artist of all time at the height of his powers.

There is talk of an amazing album from an underground band from Charleston, SC that Chris learned about from his college roommate. It is another story of a brilliant record that only a few people heard at the moment it was made, but it changed the lives of those that found it.

We talk about the amazing show opportunitites that Chris had access to as a member of the staff at the Boston College radio station. On one magical night, Chris witnessed a powerhouse soul act that changed the way he viewed the power of live music.

We’ve got nods to the Fab Four, the most integrated band in rock history, a discussion about the ways in which we have shared music going back millennia, and loads more.

Come join me and Chris Dalla Riva for six musical questions.

Cheers,Matty C

Thank you so much to Chris for joining me. Be sure to subscribe to his Substack, Can’t Get Much Higher, you’ll find a link in the show notes. Also be sure to pre-order a copy of Chris’ brand new book, Uncharted Territory, that link is also in the show notes.

Howdy friends. This week’s guest is music journalist and Substack author, Steve Bradley.

Steve and I got talking so quickly that I didn’t even get a chance to hit the record button until we had already galloped ahead with our chat. The conversation begins in mid-stream with talk of San Francisco and Chicago, and the view of America through the lens of a Brit.

As we jump into our half dozen musical questions, Steve shares the story of his study towards the priesthood, and we delve into the massive cultural influence of the hit British TV show Top Of The Pops.

We wax poetic about what is probably the greatest rhythm section in the history of rock and roll, and Steve talks about the profound impact of a legendary protest song that helped shape his outlook on life.

Steve also shares his deep love for an English act that he believes should have had much larger success, and the magical bill that featured three of his five favorite bands of all time.

There is a pile of adoration for a lost songwriting giant who never got his due, and a look at the wildly theatrical nature of our earliest musical loves.

Come join me and Steve Bradley for six musical questions.

Cheers,

Matty C

Howdy friends. This week’s guest is author and film producer, Matt Berenson.

On this installment of Six Questions, we kick things off with the debut single from a band that would go on to be one of the biggest acts in rock and roll history.

From there, Matt hops into the Six Questions Time Machine™ to travel back to witness a legendary show at the Whiskey-A-Go-Go in Los Angeles in 1966. That show featured a trailblazing headliner that would sadly go under-appreciated in their own time, while also featuring the coming out moment from one of LA’s most famous musical exports.

We talk about the rambunctious band and punk poet that first motivated the political mind of a young Matt Berenson, and how the messages of that band are still so vital to our struggles today.

In the second half of our discussion, Matt centers his love on a little band from Dayton, Ohio for more than one answer. We talk intensely about the genius of the Bobs; both Dylan and Pollard. There is talk of sublime vocal melodies, motorcycle accidents, and 100 song setlists.

Matt also shares the story of his very first concert; an intimidating experience that features a legendary west coast punk outfit, an iconic LA venue, and Matt’s hair catching on fire.

Come join me and Matt Berenson for six musical questions. Here we go.

Cheers,Matty C

Welcome back to Six Questions With Matty C. It’s a simple short-form interview show from the fine folks at What Am I Making. 

In each episode I’ll use the same half dozen questions about film or music, each with a five minute discussion limit to learn more from each guest about how the culture we consume shapes the people that we turn into. 

This week’s guest is Hannah Carlson, my youngest daughter and podcast partner over at Go See Yerself A Star War.

In this installment of the Six Questions series, Hannah and I jump into the war film that makes her cry at a surprising moment on multiple occasions. She also shares an emotional moment about the transition from childhood to the adult world, a theme that comes up more than once during our chat. 

We cover the myriad lessons Hannah learned from one of the greatest adaptations in cinema history,many of which helped to shape her progressivism and tolerance. Hannah selects a film about a failed marriage to tell the story of how real love might actually work, and she regales us with a quartet of under-seen gems.

Hannah talks about the late 90s film that helped her to better understand her own struggles with mental illness. There is a discussion of going to the movies alone, and a longing for the lost art of waiting in line for a midnight premier. 

You’ll even find a bit of bonus action as Hannah shares her Letterboxd Top 4, and we close with a bit of discussion centered on a made for Netflix gem that Hannah and I discovered together.

Come join me and Hannah Carlsonl for six cinematic questions.

Cheers,

Matty C

Welcome back to Six Questions With Matty C. It’s a simple short-form interview show from the fine folks at What Am I Making. 

In each episode I’ll use the same half dozen questions about film or music, each with a five minute discussion limit to learn more from each guest about how the culture we consume shapes the people that we turn into. 

This week’s guest is Abigail Hummel, half of the father-daughter duo behind the amazing music and beer podcast, Pops On Hops.

In this installment of the Six Questions series, Abigail returns to her days as a child actor and her introduction to musical theater. We talk about learning adult themes at an early age, the spiritual connection of people singing together, and falling in love with A Chorus Line. 

We jump in the time machine for a trip back to a moment of critical musical invention, and we learn how R.E.M. shaped Abigail’s worldview by writing amazing songs with something to say. Abigail shines a light on a band that traffics in a form of shiny, optimistic pop that isn’t always perfect for the moment, but when it hits, it hits just right. 

Abigail shares the story of an intimate show in Gainesville which she attended alone that taught her about the power of big talents in tiny rooms. We wrap up our discussion with the band that Abigail thinks she ought to begin building her physical record collection with. We also discuss why this particular band has been so important to her for as long as she can remember. 

Come join me and Abigail Hummel for six musical questions.

Cheers,

Matty C

Welcome back to Six Questions With Matty C. It’s a simple short-form interview show from the fine folks at What Am I Making. 

In each episode I’ll use the same half dozen questions about film or music, each with a five minute discussion limit to learn more from each guest about how the culture we consume shapes the people that we turn into. 

This week’s guest is Kevin Alexander, the man behind the fantastic music Substack, On Repeat Records.

In this go-round, Kevin and I talk about the records that shaped us as young children. We discuss the power of art and music on young people and talk about a a time when records were a sort ofclassroom. Kevin hops in our time machine to travel back to see a legendary multi-night run that became one of the greatest concert films of all time. 

We talk about the two bands that began to help Kevin form his political beliefs. He says he came for the beats, but stayed for the message. There is also talk of a beloved Ohio singer/songwriter that helped Kevin, a native Oregonian, come to terms with and better understand his midwestern surroundings living in Wisconsin.

Talk of favorite shows leads to discussions of lifelong connections across the merch table or standing behind a cargo van at one o’clock in the morning. And of course, Kevin tells us why New Order would be the last band he would ever let go from his record collection. 

Come join me and Kevin Alexander for six musical questions. Let’s get into it.  

Cheers,

Matty C

Emma Swift found her way to Nashville by way of the mid-sized, but isolated city of Wagga Wagga, Australia. In high school, she fell hard for the myriad female singer songwriters that were ascendant in the early 1990s. At university, Emma discovered the world of alt-country, and she began to soak up the artistry of iconic singers like Linda Rondtstadt and Emmylou Harris. 

Emma has always appreciated the interpretive talent of singing someone else’s songs. It was one of the things that first drew her to heroes like Rondtstadt and Harris. Those song selections were almost as important as the way they were performed. As much as she knew she wanted to write songs, she also knew that she possessed an interpretive talent.

Her work as a recording artist in the States received increased attention for her 2020 album of Bob Dylan covers, Blonde On The Tracks. The album, produced by Wilco’s Pat Sansone is a luscious paean to the emotional side of Dylan’s catalog. On, Blonde On The Tracks, Emma wears those songs, as she puts it, “like a Bob Dylan shaped dress”.

In September of this year, Emma will be releasing her brand new album, The Resurrection Game. The record is a laconic, gorgeously rendered collection of dreamy, alt-folk that conjures feelings of Nick Drake, Sandy Denny, Judee Sill, and Fairport Convention. 

While the record is a beautiful, immersive experience, it was not a smooth road from nascent idea to finished product. In the midst of making the record, Emma suffered a seven week breakdown while in her native Australia. It would take nearly a year of recovery for her to emerge as something close to the person she was before the breakdown. Emma admits that there were moments where she wondered if she would inevitably become a different person than she had been before the breakdown. Thankfully, after a long stretch of treatment and an amazing outpouring of love and support from family, friends, and fans, Emma finds herself well once again.

I sat down to speak with her on the eve of her massive house concert tour where she will be playing 29 shows over the course of nearly two months. We chatted about the romantic notion of driving across America, and the ways that speaks to our fifteen year old souls that first found Kerouac, and On The Road. Emma finds herself thrilled to be headed out on the road to play the songs from her new album each night, because as she puts it, “music is best when shared.’

Emma and I admit that we have no penchant for work/life balance, and we discuss the shapeshifting ways that technology is constantly changing the ways that we make and release our artistic projects. We talk about ways to fight the loneliness epidemic, why artists have to see their work as a small business, and Emma shares her theory that regular people renovate their bathrooms, while musicians just make another record.

Here now is my talk with the terrific Emma Swift. Enjoy

Cheers,Matty C

Welcome back to Six Questions With Matty C. It’s a simple short-form interview show from the fine folks at What Am I Making. 

In each episode I’ll use the same half dozen questions about film or music, each with a five minute discussion limit to learn more from each guest about how the culture we consume shapes the people that we turn into. 

This week’s guest is Thea Wood, the writer and mastermind behind the wonderful Substack, Herizon Music.

In this installment, Thea and I jump headlong into the first records we remember getting our hands on and the tune she used to sing to her Grandmother when she was still a tot. 

Thea tells us where she would land her time machine to get the chance to see an artist on the verge of becoming a legend. We briefly touch on the day that Thea met John Lennon at Disney World, a much longer story that you can hear on WAIM Podcast #081.

You’ll find talk about the AIDS crisis and the young artist who stood her ground on the cause. Thea shares a Substack star she thinks everyone should know, and we cover the similarities between the Deadheads and the Swifties. 

Come join me and Thea Wood for six musical questions. Let’s get into it.

Cheers,Matty C

Welcome back to Six Questions With Matty C, a simple short-form interview show from the fine folks at What Am I Making. 

In each episode I’ll use the same half dozen questions about film or music, each with a five minute discussion limit to learn more from each guest about how the culture we consume shapes the people that we turn into. 

This week’s guest is Michael Gilbride, an independent musician and the founder of the artist-driven label MAD Records. 

In this episode, our first musical edition, Michael and I dive deep into the vulnerability of singing to just one other person, and the musical trust that he found early on in his brother. We cover how critical storytelling is to each and every artist, and why that story will always be the center of the connection between an artist and their audience. 

We talk about the night and the show that made Michael finally understand the rhythms and beauties of New York City, and he shares the surprising album that would be the last record he would give up from his collection. 

Come join me and Michael Gilbride for six musical questions. Let’s get into it. 

Cheers,

Matty C