Super Sonic Chat

It's time to tackle that moment when the front man takes a back seat - yep, this one is all about 'Instrumentals'.  No vocals. It's the bands time to shine.  In this episode Leon and Adrian discuss how instrumentals can be more than just filler and can be a fundamental part to a project. You'll also hear about their favourite examples that survive the ‘skip’ test. 

Bands chatted about in this episode: - Led Zeppelin, Metallica, Neu  - Parliament, Pavement, Primus - Spiderbait, Tame Impala, TOY, Tea Party - Throbbing Gristle, Three Trapped Tigers, - Frank Zappa, Dirty Three, Mike Patton, Fantomas, Mogwai, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Explosions In The Sky - El Michels Affair, Khruangbin, Combustible Edison. 

All this and more.  

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Machine learning and artificial intelligence. How is it being used in music today? How might it be used in future music? Is it music? Is it just a curiosity and gimmick? 

Adrian and Leon hash out the sounds of the present and science fiction future discussing music from The Lost Tapes of the 27 Club, Beautiful the World by Uncanny Valley, Holly Herndon, Yacht and a couple of other tidbits thrown in. 

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So much music, so little time. Once again we seek to make good our misdeeds by listening to classic albums we have never previously pressed play on.

In Rolling Stone's 2020 poll "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time", Pink Floyd's 'Dark Side of the Moon' and Neil Young's 'After the Gold Rush' were ranked number 55 and 90 respectively.  Embarrassingly, neither of your hosts had ever taken the time to listen to them.

In this episode Adrian and Leon make up for lost time, giving each album some deep listening before offering up our thoughts. It's not often you get to hear epic albums filtered through fresh ears.  Take the trip with us and find out if these classic albums live up to the hype.

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In this episode we tackle the famous Ship Of Theseus thought experiment and give it a Super Sonic twist. 

For centuries philosophers have debated whether a ship that has all its parts replaced over time is still the same ship.

Given a music twist, we ask if a band replaces all its members over time, is it still the same band?

At the heart of the matter is the question 'what is a band'?  What defines it?  Songs? Sounds? Members? Contracts?

We chat about bands that survived the departure of lead singers, some that did not and others that found a new way round the issue.  We even chat about a famous band that still plays and tours yet has no original members and the current members are from a completely different country than where the band formed and first found fame. 

On 22nd April 2021 Leon and Adrian saw King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard play at the Enmore Theatre in Sydney, Australia.    The opening act was the equally incredible Tropical F%*k Storm.  We are very excited to tell you all about it.

Originally sold as a seated and masked show as per COVID restrictions, we were very excited when restrictions were lifted the week of the gig.  What transpired was a good old gig, standing up shoulder to shoulder amongst the throng, getting sweaty and having a time just like the old days.  Remember those?

In Australia we have had very little to no community transfer of COVID for a long time.  Venues are starting to open back up to gigs and it feels excellent.

Please support musicians and artists:  go to a show, buy a t-shirt or a record.

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There's a moment in a band room when one member turns to the rest and asks 'Does this work?'

A new riff, a new sound, a new style.

Is it fresh and new?  Dated or derivative?

What will fans think?  Should an artist care?

Should a band push the envelope or stay true to what made them successful?

In this episode we explore bands that have changed sounds:  the good, the bad and the ugly.

We traverse the fine line between exploration, creativity, commerce and bands as brands.  We knock around the idea of fan expectation versus an artists duty to follow the muse.

Which bands have made a name around changing style?

Which bands will never change?

Which bands found success with a new style and followed that sound?

Which bands grew in skill with instruments and technology, giving light to a new found sound and experimentation?

Which bands changed style and created an abomination!

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In a world where 60,000 songs are uploaded to streaming services every day, it is easy for quality recordings to get lost in the flood. This episode places these songs in the spotlight so they can get some attention they deserve. Hear a song about Anna, a lonely boy with a twist, then groove to some mambo and bop to channel z. There is a song about someone with a big mouth, someone who wants to fly like an eagle, gypsies and police also make an appearance. 

These may not be smash hits, may not be culture shifting sounds but we think these songs are worth your attention and deep listening will be rewarded.

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Is there anything that creates more fear and terror in a music fan than when their favourite band announces they are putting out a ‘concept album’.

Ade says 'No.  It's terrifying'. 

Leon says 'Hang on, I often listen to concept albums'.

Thus the debate commences.

Is it the sign of a desperately uninspired band to develop a song cycle based around a common theme?

Or is it an intelligent and creative way of creating a bigger, bolder piece of work?

We start off this chat with a challenge:  

- pitch a concept album as if we were members of a band (a band from a previous challenge in the episode 'Naming the Sound: The Best Band Names of All Time')

From there throw around the good, the bad and the very, very strange in the world of concept albums.

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For an artist, their instruments are their tools of trade.  Voice, piano, guitar and more.  They provide the colours that artists paint with, the tools that give language to their art.

It makes sense then that an artist can find fresh expression and explore new realms by simply reaching for a new instrument.  It's a new tool, a new colour giving way to new possibilities.

In this episode we chat about the strange, weird and very interesting instruments that musicians have taken up to create fresh and inspired new songs and sounds. Sometimes the instrument is familiar but how the artist chooses to use it is weird and wonderful.

We chat about musical worlds colliding; East meeting West, art meeting science, classical meeting modern.  We chat Flying Microtonal Bananas, Blue Maqams, non-instruments, music machines, stage lightning and when orchestras get weird.

The world of music fandom is endlessly interesting and always rewarding, especially when you venture off the beaten path.  Join us!

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So much music, so little time. Once again we seek to make good our misdeeds by listening to classic albums we have never previously pressed play on. 

In Rolling Stone's 2020 poll "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time", Bob Dylan's 'Highway 61 Revisited' and Joni Mitchell's 'Blue' were ranked number 18 and 3 respectively.  Embarrassingly, neither of your hosts had ever taken the time to listen to them.

In this episode Adrian and Leon make up for lost time, giving each album some deep listening before offering up our thoughts. It's not often you get to hear epic albums filtered through fresh ears.  Take the trip with us and find out if these classic albums live up to the hype.

Give us your thoughts or feedback on all the socials:

Email [email protected]

Twitter  https://twitter.com/chat_sonic

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