... And we're back! It's been a while, gang, but we hope you've missed us like we missed you. After a brief intervention on the part of Life (with a capital L), we make our triumphant return, comparing and contrasting The Life of Pablo with Untitled Unmastered. This episode also features new music from Rhianna and Spanish rockers Hinds, plus a record 3 references to friend of the show Eric Brown. A good time is guaranteed for all.

In honor of Kendrick Lamar taking home 7 Grammy's tonight, here is part 1 of the best-of cast we recorded... an embarrassingly long time ago. Enjoy the nostalgia of timely-at-the-time references from January 2016 as we discuss and debate the best record of the year. This episode is the shortlist for the top slot, and includes music from Kendrick, Sufjan Stevens and Father John Misty. Shoutouts: http://www.people.com/article/barack-obama-michelle-obama-favorite-songs-movies-moments-2015 http://pitchfork.com/thepitch/980-lowell-brams-discusses-sufjan-stevens-album-about-his-life/ http://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/9595-true-myth-a-conversation-with-sufjan-stevens/ http://grantland.com/features/father-john-misty-i-love-you-honeybear/ Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSW7sgOtDKFqFQTVcfke6DToDMqtjS1dA

It’s a sad week for us here at S&V. Naturally, as a podcast named after a David Bowie Song, we were getting ready to record a review of his new album, Blackstar, when we got the news of his death. In place of a proper review, this episode is half exploration of Bowie’s swan song (released just two days before his death) and half reflection on his legacy. Shoutouts: www.ew.com/article/2016/01/11/…e-moments-movies-tv www.ew.com/article/2016/01/11/…owie-favorite-books www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense…vice_provider.html www.vulture.com/2016/01/brian-eno…-final-email.html www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/243882 www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-wEBmLht5g www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyO5MRTbL2s Playlist: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLS…cfke6DToDMqtjS1dA Special thanks to Joe Bowman and Ben Baker who provided the acoustic rendition of “Sound and Vision”, which opens the episode.

This week, we explore the joys of Christmas media. John transcends his own inherent grinchiness with the help of holiday tunes by Elvis, Sufjan Stevens, Mark Kozelek and She and Him. Christian confesses his undying love for both Zooey Deschanel, Christmas Angel, and Grant Morrison, who has written a new comic about Santa.

Remix! In our first themed episode (sort of), we discuss solo projects from some of our favorite artists. The singers of Real Estate and The Hold Steady have just launched self-titled solo projects. But in reviewing Martin Courtney’s “Many Moons” and Craig Finn’s “Faith in the Future,” we realize how hard it is to talk about a solo project without the context of the original band. We wrap up with a discussion of David Mazzucchelli’s masterful graphic novel “Asterios Polyp.” In this episode, we cited an EW interview that our good buddy Eric Brown did with Martin Courtney. Check it here. Also, there were a BUNCH of tunes in this episode.

We’re back! With a very sPoOkY special episode that makes no mention of Halloween. Take a break from the pumpkins and candy with a review of Joanna Newsom’s new album Divers, out on Drag City last week. From there, we discuss Brian K. Vaughn’s legendary Y: the Last Man and reveal the REAL reason why you can’t go back in time and kill baby Hitler.

In our inaugural episode, we set out to discuss Neko Case’s 2006 album Fox Confessor Brings the Flood and Image Comics’ The Manhattan Projects… and somehow, we manage to cram in tangents ranging from Marvel’s Secret Wars to the 1994 rom-com IQ.