The Mike Herrera Podcast

Blag Dahlia returns for his third time on the podcast. The Dwarves have a new album out called Jenkem, and Blag explains exactly what the title refers to, which I immediately regret.

From there we run through the worst heat wave in European history, arguing about flat earth with your own bass player, the Stray Cats and the clean rockabilly problem, why image decided which punk bands got big and which didn't, AI and where an artist draws the line, and the difference between a person and the role he plays on stage. Yeah, it's a lot.

My guest this week is Larry and His Flask. Got three of the guys: Ian Cook, Jeshua Marshall, and Jamin Marshall. If you don't know them, they're an Americana punk band out of Bend, Oregon, and they're back after seven years off the road. We talk about busking, how they went from an electric punk band to an acoustic one, and the 3 shows in March that turned into 30. Make sure you guys follow Larry and His Flask, and check out larryandhisflasks.com.

And check out mxpx.com. We've got merch, we've got vinyl. We're at Warped Tour in Long Beach, California this weekend. We're on all the Warped Tours. We're in Milan September 5 for Punkadeka Festival. mxpx.com.

Call in and be part of the show: 1-360-830-6660

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Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi1BJ27GDAFodXuDqgYia5g

Follow @mikeherreraTD everywhere

https://linktr.ee/Mikeherrerapodcast

If you like the podcast, subscribe, rate and review on Apple.

Gearing up for Warped Tour Long Beach, and how Warped Tour meet-and-greets work.

Cyrus calls in with questions about our documentaries, It Came From Bremerton, B-Movie, and Both Ends Burning, and I walk through how each one came together. Shannon calls in and sings her own version of "Wrecking Hotel Rooms," and it's great. JJ from Alaska asks about the new Sterling by Music Man Stingray bass and what makes it play so well.

Call in and be part of the show: 1-360-830-6660

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Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi1BJ27GDAFodXuDqgYia5g

Follow @mikeherreraTD everywhere

https://linktr.ee/Mikeherrerapodcast

If you like the podcast, subscribe, rate and review on Apple.

Produced and edited by Bob McKnight @Producer_Bob

Additional production by Christine Hall @shirtsizesmall

Happy birthday to MxPx! But age doesn't matter unless you're a cheese or so they say. Mike marks it by telling the full story of how the band got started in 1992: a rented Flying V, a garage-sale snare drum, and a drummer who'd barely played before their first practice. One week later, MxPx played their first show ever, a backyard barbecue, and played the whole set twice in one day. Mike also answers a longtime fan question about the real story behind "Wrecking Hotel Rooms," co-written with Mark Hoppus. Your voicemails and news on the upcoming album Living in the Chaos.

What is up with you guys? We got a great episode this week. We played Warped Tour in DC, I played the World Cup fan zone in downtown Bremerton, the town I grew up in, and we announced the new MxPx album, Living in the Chaos. Then I got into your voicemails and ended up telling a bunch of stories about how I got into punk back in the day, the local Bremerton scene, and the bass. Thanks for calling in. Keep them coming.

New album: MxPx, Living in the Chaos. More at livinginthechaos.net.

Voicemail: 360-830-6660

Merch: mxpx.com

Produced and edited by Bob McKnight @Producer_Bob

Additional production by Christine Hall @shirtsizesmall

My guest this week is Ryan Holiday. If you don't know Ryan, he's an author and a friend of mine. He writes about philosophy, strategy, and life. We talk about what it's like being an artist, being a writer, the quirks of it, and how you deal with it. Make sure you guys follow Ryan, and check out the Daily Stoic. Follow Ryan Holiday: @ryanholiday

And check out mxpx.com. We've got tour dates. We're on all the Warped Tours coming up. New song, "The Good Days," is out on the Warped Tour comp CD. New album later this year. We're in Milan September 5 for Punkadeka Festival, our only European show. mxpx.com.

UPCOMING MxPx SHOWS:

Jul 25-26 — Vans Warped Tour, Long Beach, CA

Aug 21-22 — Vans Warped Tour, Montreal, QC

Sep 5 — Punkadeka Festival, Segrate (Milan), Italy (only European show)

Sep 12-13 — Vans Warped Tour, Mexico City

Nov 14-15 — Vans Warped Tour, Orlando, FL

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Questions or comments? Leave a voicemail: 1-360-830-6660

Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi1BJ27GDAFodXuDqgYia5g

Follow @mikeherreraTD everywhere

https://linktr.ee/Mikeherrerapodcast

If you like the podcast, subscribe, rate and review on Apple.

Produced and edited by Bob McKnight @Producer_Bob

Additional production by Christine Hall @shirtsizesmall

Topics: Mike Herrera Podcast, Ryan Holiday interview, Daily Stoic, Ryan Holiday stoicism, The Obstacle Is the Way, Ego Is the Enemy, MxPx, MxPx new album, songwriting process, Find a Way Home, punk rock podcast, Bremerton, Warped Tour 2026, Bon Iver, Springsteen Nebraska, Deliver Me from Nowhere, audience capture

I'm catching up on your voicemails, podcast stickers are here, and MxPx is on every Vans Warped Tour date this summer and fall. Amelia asked what video games I play, which took me from Pong through Zelda, Skate or Die, Mortal Kombat, Madden, and Tony Hawk Pro Skater. I was a fan before we were ever on the soundtrack. Rich asked which bass got the first Pokinatcha Punk pick guard, so I go through my StingRay history, from the first one I put on layaway to my Sterling by Music Man signature bass. David Herrera (no relation) called asking for some advice for his son who's playing bass at 16: keep it simple, keep it fun, and be consistent every day. Nate's car stereo ate his CD, which got me telling the story of microwaving rejected mixes during Panic and how one of those CDs became the album art. And Frank asked why I switched from fingers to a pick (I smashed my finger in a bus door).

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ON TOUR

Vans Warped Tour - every date, summer and fall 2026 - see you at the main stage

Punkadeka Festival - Milan, Italy - Saturday, September 5, 2026

Tickets and merch: mxpx.com

613 Music Monday Spring Edition

This week is all about Music Monday. Before the songs, a few updates: MxPx is going on the full Warped Tour (Washington DC this weekend) and on Friday I'm playing an acoustic set in downtown Bremerton (June 12 @ 5pm) for the Bremerton fan zone party. Just got back from London and Leeds with Goldfinger too. Catch the live streams on the MxPx YouTube and Facebook, and go to MxPx.com for tickets, merch, and anything else I forgot to mention.

0:00 Introduction

1:04 MxPx Summer Updates: Warped Tour, Washington DC, Bremerton Acoustic Show

3:18 Always Grounded - Rocky Hill

6:28 Nitewake - Cut Me Loose

8:54 Grownup - Let Down

12:15 Lot Lizards - Surprise Party

14:56 Reason to Leave - Out of Control

17:20 Just Happy to Be Here - Autumn's Over

19:07 Pridebowl - Disconnected

21:04 Astillas del Mismo Palo - Cuando un Monstruo Te Habla de Amor

23:17 Suit Yourself - A Million Ways

25:05 Luke Morrow - Hannah

27:25 A New Rhetoric - Flood Lines

29:40 Westnedge - Self Entitled

32:04 UXO.HXC - Animal Kingdom

34:37 King Rexxo - The American Dream

36:43 Stubborn Hearts - Driving with Your Ghost

39:32 The Overtones - Running Around

41:29 Small Steps - Thiccc & Tired

43:21 Wrap-Up, Credits, and a Pacific Northwest Show?

Moen is back from the Bremerton woods with Neutralboy's latest Rock Polishing Machine. Vinyl-only. No streaming, no YouTube, no digital.

Moen's been living off-grid for a year. No internet, no neighbors, half-mile walk to the end of the driveway. We get into what a year of homesteading has done to his songwriting.

Order Rock Polishing Machine at ployrocks.com/neutralboy

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Questions or comments? Leave a voicemail: 1-360-830-6660

Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi1BJ27GDAFodXuDqgYia5g

Follow @mikeherreraTD everywhere

https://linktr.ee/Mikeherrerapodcast

If you like the podcast, subscribe, rate and review on Apple.

Produced and edited by Bob McKnight @Producer_Bob

Additional production by Christine Hall @shirtsizesmall

No Doubt's been doing their Sphere residency out in Vegas, and man, it gives me FOMO! Telling the whole story of when MxPx opened for them way back in 1997, our first bus tour ever. That bus got stuck on an elevated road and that was the last time we had it. The three feet of stage we had to play on in front of the drums. The British tour manager. The band themselves (always 100% awesome).

Plus voicemails: Jason wants to know if Tony Kanal ripped off my look, a longtime fan calls in with a really thoughtful take on the Michael drama and a Wilco rec that gets me going about A.M. and Summerteeth, and a Star Wars debate that Robbie Aaron from Oceans Away calls in to agree on.

Upcoming live dates:

June 12 - Bremerton, WA - Free Mike Herrera solo acoustic show at Quincy Square (FIFA World Cup 2026 Bremerton Fan Zone Kick-Off Celebration)

June 13-14 - Vans Warped Tour Washington, DC

July 25-26 - Vans Warped Tour Long Beach, CA

August 21-22 - Vans Warped Tour Montreal, QC

August 22 - Goldfinger at the Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA (with The Vandals, The Suicide Machines, Pulley, and sullvn)

September 5 - Punkadeka Festival, Milan, Italy

September 12-13 - Vans Warped Tour Mexico City

November 14-15 - Vans Warped Tour Orlando, FL

Questions or comments? Leave a voicemail: 1-360-830-6660

Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi1BJ27GDAFodXuDqgYia5g

Follow @mikeherreraTD everywhere

https://linktr.ee/Mikeherrerapodcast

If you like the podcast, subscribe, rate and review on Apple.

Produced and edited by Bob McKnight @Producer_Bob

Additional production by Christine Hall @shirtsizesmall