The Vinyl Guide - Artist Interviews for Record Collectors and Music Nerds

John McCrea of CAKE discusses their elusive catalogue on vinyl, rarities of the band, upcoming Australian tour, new recordings, record nerdery and more.

Tickets & info on CAKE's Australian tour is here

Topics Include:

• John McCrae discusses collecting records, revisiting old favorites like Perez Prado
• He describes "chasing goosebumps" — the feeling of rediscovering great music
• Shares vivid teenage memory seeing Led Zeppelin at Knebworth, England
• Recalls dancing to washing machine rinse cycles as a toddler
• Names early formative records: Beatles, Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie, Arlo Guthrie
• His parents played accordion and folk guitar, shaping his musicality
• Discusses his dad's Eastern European minor-key accordion versus polka music
• Talks about "Rancho Seco," his first recorded song, a protest track
• Song addressed a nuclear plant illegally releasing radioactive steam locally
• Connects Dylan influence and poets to his built-in social justice streak
• Reflects on growing up near Sacramento, Berkeley, and Nevada City, California
• Compares old Bay Area culture to today's flashier Silicon Valley wealth
• Describes Cake's early '90s formation, self-financed four-song EP release
• EP funded through show earnings and merch, later expanded into album
• Album got European distribution and unexpected early popularity in France
• "Rock and Roll Lifestyle" got college radio play before wider fame
• Cake signed to Capricorn Records, a small Southern rock label
• East Bay Ray advised McCrea to fight for keeping album masters
• McCrae says most bands don't retain their masters like Cake did
• Vinyl of Cake albums historically hard to find, tied up licensing
• Discusses 2014 box set now reselling for $700–$1,000 secondhand
• New Cake album is finished, awaiting mixing, targeted early 2027
• Explains he avoids forced album themes, focuses song by song
• Reflects on why Cake albums come infrequently, citing family, industry fatigue
• Criticizes modern music industry as increasingly exploitative and financially unsustainable
• Explains reduced touring due to travel dislike and environmental concerns
• Considers eco-friendly vinyl options and shifting kids' preference toward CDs
• Discusses Cake's DIY visual identity, homemade posters, and lino-cut aesthetic
• Talks rare live vinyl pressings, including $300 Crystal Palace release
• Wraps up promoting Cake's Australian tour dates and Sydney ticket sales

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Neurosis's Steve Von Till reveals how the band secretly rebuilt itself, creating a career-defining album and making future plans for the Neurosis victory-lap that few thought possible.

Topics Include:

• The Secret recording of An Undying Love for a Burning World
• Neurosis walked away seven years ago under uncertain circumstances
• Four remaining members reunited quietly at end of 2024
• Aaron Turner brought in to help complete the musical puzzle
• Reunion tied to Firekeeper Alliance, a suicide-prevention nonprofit
• Heavy music framed as protective factor for indigenous mental health
• Steve reflects on tribal rhythms and humanity's forgotten earth connection
• Band knew instantly the new material had to be Neurosis
• Reunion forced confrontation with ego, identity, and aging as musicians
• Firekeeper Alliance's Fire in the Mountains offer pushed them forward
• Album written and recorded in secret across three studio sessions
• Secrecy maintained even among close friends touring together in Australia
• Fan reaction described as unexpectedly emotional, healing, and hope-filled
• Steve discusses reduced stigma around vulnerability in heavy music today
• Vinyl pressing strategy explained: budget-driven first run, quick sellout
• Running Neurot Recordings on a teacher's salary, tight cash flow
• Multiple color variants pressed across regional distributors and mail orders
• Debate over black vs. clear vinyl sound quality explored
• Steve's approach to buying vinyl: music over pressing obsession
• Talk turns to Melvins, Hazel Meyer, and DIY label camaraderie
• Where the line sits between fan service and variant exploitation
• Vinyl side-length considerations shaped decision to make a double LP
• Aaron Turner's artwork process detailed, sketched live in the studio
• Album title changed at the last minute, forcing new artwork
• Neurosis' visual style rooted in myth, symbolism, and Jungian archetypes
• Older catalog rights partly held by Relapse and other labels
• Steve wants a "forever version" repress of the band's earliest albums
• Original master tapes and artwork found corrupted or lost to time
• Talk closes on solo tour plans and hopes for Australia

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Comedian Shapel Lacey discusses the power of music, inspiration and how a 1981 Black Flag video sparked a lifelong punk obsession that shaped his identity, art, and resilience.

Shapel Lacey tour dates | comedy special | Mad Peaceful band

Topics Include:

• Talks local record stores, Amoeba, old Sunset location
• Discovers deep-cut Swedish hardcore at Eastside Records, Arizona
• Reflects on pre-streaming era, hunting records in person
• Notices rosary on Crash's grave, debates his beliefs
• Traces punk discovery to junior high guitar class
• Friend introduces him to ska punk, then Black Flag
• Watches 1981 Target video of Rollins-era Black Flag
• Rise Above vocals trigger emotional, tearful revelation
• Explains Black Flag filled a void from turbulent childhood
• Contrasts Korn/Deftones' anger with punk's empowering message
• Credits Rollins with teaching self-understanding and personal growth
• Recalls performing onstage with Rollins at Ohio festival
• Anger management counselor used Rollins to redirect his aggression
• Growing up Black, punk, skateboarding in Arizona desert
• Faced criticism from all sides for musical taste
• Explored funk, hip-hop, grunge without genre boundaries
• Connects N.W.A. and Black Flag's shared themes of injustice
• Discusses punk and hip-hop confronting police brutality parallels
• Champions open-mindedness across seemingly opposite music scenes
• Describes local DIY scene at Mesa's Nile basement
• Panhandled for five dollars to attend all-ages shows
• Cheerleading came after punk, called "most punk rock" act
• Discusses tattoos, straight-edge culture, Minor Threat connection
• Shares personal encounters meeting Henry Rollins and Ian MacKaye
• Praises Rollins and MacKaye's discipline, historical knowledge, friendship
• Draws parallels between punk and comedy's DIY authenticity
• Talks band Mad Peaceful, growing sold-out comedy success
• Discusses Australia tour interest, interview wrap up

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Blues legend Taj Mahal shares rare stories about Jimi Hendrix, the Rolling Stones, and the unreleased Bill Withers song that shaped his stunning new record.

Topics Include:

• Taj Mahal discusses his new album, Time, and its origins
• Reveals his decades-long friendship and mutual respect with Bill Withers
• Explains how Bill Withers heard and loved this unreleased demo
• Bill Withers' wife gave final approval before the song's release
• Withers walked away from music rather than change his sound
• Why the industry pushed Withers to sound more commercial
• Taj shares why vinyl beats digital for capturing real sound
• Breaks down the "bell curve" problem with digital audio quality
• Approaches albums as full journeys, not three-minute singles
• Reveals how effortlessly he sequences songs like a live set
• Traces his musical roots to a tight-knit 1940s community
• Recalls learning piano, clarinet, trombone before finding the guitar
• Explains how guitar evolved from rhythm to lead instrument
• Names the blues legends who shaped his earliest influences
• Credits Ray Charles as one of his deepest musical influences
• Shares rare stories of jamming with Jimi Hendrix live
• Discusses bootlegs, tape trading, and the ethics of live recordings
• Compares the Grateful Dead's bootleg policy to other artists
• Tells the wild story of Rolling Stones' Rock and Roll Circus
• Recalls dancing Stones and Clapton watching him at the Whisky
• Explains how British rockers reintroduced blues to American audiences
• Describes his first-class trip to London and Stones' hospitality
• Reveals why Labor of Love was released only on vinyl
• Shares the surprising stat: vinyl never drops below 6% globally
• Talks new tour dates and hopes to return to Australia

Photo by Mike Coeyman

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

• Apple: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-ios
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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Everlast traces his journey from Rhyme Syndicate graffiti kid to House of Pain to solo artist, revealing how Jump Around's success gave him the freedom to never chase a hit again.

New LP "Embers to Ashes" available here

Topics Include:

• Everlast's new album Embers to Ashes drops August 28th with vinyl available
• He collects art and guitars, not records — leaves vinyl to the DJs
• His guitar collection spans vintage Fender Strats, Gretsch Falcons, and Martin acoustics
• Grew up immersed in graffiti culture, his kids are graffiti artists too
• His house is essentially a private gallery of graffiti and street art
• Music was always on — mom loved R&B and doo-wop, dad loved Southern rock
• His dad had a guitar; Everlast taught himself basic chords by watching TV
• Hip hop took over at 15, but guitar quietly stayed in his life
• He plays guitar like a drummer — rhythm-first, not melody-first
• The breakthrough came post-House of Pain: suddenly he could play and sing simultaneously
• Whitey Ford Sings the Blues was conceived as hip hop — "What It's Like" changed everything
• Jump Around's success gave him the financial freedom to never chase it again
• He and Muggs deliberately made each subsequent record darker and more distant from it
• Soul Assassins kept management out of sessions — artistic control was non-negotiable
• His first ever rhyme came from tagging alongside Divine Styler and the Rhyme Syndicate crew
• Danny Boy introduced him to punk — Bad Brains and the LA hardcore scene
• His debut solo record split between pure artistic vision and label-pleasing compromises
• Tommy Boy won his loyalty over bigger-money offers purely on cultural credibility
• Just Another Victim with Helmet emerged organically on the Judgment Night soundtrack
• Lethal sampled and slowed Helmet's track, then sandwiched both versions together
• After eight-plus years away, Yellow Wolf simply asked "why don't you make a record?"
• COVID, divorce, and losing his house shaped the emotional landscape of the new album
• Yellow Wolf pushed him to fully sing — his strongest vocal performance on record
• A near-miss connection to the Bataclan attack was redirected by a last-minute camera detour
• He's got shows booked and eyes a final solo acoustic tour as his ultimate bookend

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

• Apple: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-ios
• Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-spot
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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Peter Hook reflects on 50 years of music, the emotional weight of performing Joy Division and New Order live, and the many memories and ghosts of his past.

Tickets for Peter Hook & The Light, Australia 2026

Topics Include:

• New Order toured Australia as early as 1982, helped by Factory Australasia's local support.
• Hooky calls Australia the only place he never wants to leave — he still suffers leaving every time.
• Peter Hook and the Light played their seventh-ever gig in Melbourne on their first Australian tour.
• He is now working through every New Order and Joy Division album ever recorded live.
• Get Ready features songs never played live as New Order, with Steve Morris largely absent during recording.
• The band's Grammy came from Orgy's heavy metal cover of Blue Monday — Hook loves the weird covers most.
• He revealed a plan to stage a full New Order classical concert, eyeing the Sydney Opera House.
• Ian Curtis performed with absolute conviction every single night — something Bernard Sumner couldn't match early on.
• Hook recalls first seeing Ian smash up a venue at 2:30am, dancing through broken tables — terrifying and electrifying.
• That chaotic Stiff/Chiswick talent show led directly to Rob Gretton becoming Joy Division's manager.
• Ian's lyrics, Hook says, are heartbreaking up close — Love Will Tear Us Apart masks devastating words in euphoric music.
• Singing Ian's words himself has given Hook a profound new insight into what Curtis was actually expressing.
• Tony Wilson signed them with a handshake — no contracts — while other labels arrived with thick legal documents.
• Bernard Sumner found the Unknown Pleasures pulsar image in a textbook; nobody planned the iconic sleeve.
• Hooky was actually sued for bootlegging the Unknown Pleasures artwork — which Factory themselves had originally stolen.
• Ian Curtis reportedly wrote a letter complaining about how Closer sounded — a detail Hook only learned years later.
• During Closer sessions, Curtis was being torn apart: marriage collapsing, new love, epilepsy worsening, the band pushing forward.
• Hook deeply regrets not seeing Ian before his cremation — but a gravedigger privately told him where Curtis is actually buried.
• The inquest into Ian's death so disgusted the band they decided on the spot to continue as New Order.
• Joy Division was deliberately boxed away for 30 years; Bernard called playing those songs "miserable" and refused to continue.
• Bobby Gillespie suggested the album playback concept so Hook could faithfully recreate Martin Hannett's studio sound live.
• Watching his son learn Joy Division bass lines at the same age Hook was then felt like staring into the past.
• Performing these songs, Hook says he is "living surrounded by ghosts" of collaborators now gone.
• The K-93 sessions saw Killing Joke's Geordie Walker move into Hook's Manchester home for six weeks, causing complete chaos.
• Those lost K-93 tapes mysteriously surfaced after the label went bankrupt — and Jaz Coleman promptly went silent again.

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

• Apple: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-ios
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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Jerry "Swamp Dogg" Williams Jr opens up about his new album "Contemplates the Afterlife," reflecting on death, faith, and a 70-year career that's produced over 2,000 songs.

Extended and high resolution podcast at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Topics Include:

• New album, Swamp Dogg Contemplates the Afterlife, drops on S-Curve
• Swamp Dogg shares wild theories on what happens after death
• He opens up about faith, doubt, and fear of dying
• Reveals he's written over 2,000 songs across 31 albums
• His very first record came out way back in 1954
• Stories of opening for Sam Cooke and Larry Williams
• Names the R&B legends who shaped his sound early on
• Louis Jordan's band once crashed at his childhood home
• Tells the story of the worst gig of his life
• A gorilla costume gets stabbed onstage — true story
• Joining a traveling sideshow for five dollars a night
• Discusses which Swamp Dogg records collectors hunt hardest today
• Bob Dylan secretly covered one of his songs years ago
• Bonds with the host over their shared Australia connection
• Reveals his wild Beatles-cover novelty record made in Australia
• Explains how the record business vanished almost overnight
• Teases new Trinidad soca album and Black Grass II
• Black Grass II will feature Steve Earle and Margo Price
• Talks new collaboration album with Eli "Paperboy" Reed
• Reflects on his Nixon protest era and Jane Fonda ties
• Looks back on going broke after getting rich fast
• Recalls producing hit records for Gene Pitney and others
• Shares fond memories of legendary producer Jerry Wexler
• The stopwatch story behind his studio recording ritual
• On Phil Spector's massive ego and Wall of Sound
• Reveals which British acts covered his songs in the '60s
• Talks favorite record stores and his 100-record jukebox
• Hunting down rare 45s worth up to $1,000
• The story behind his dance hit "Let's Do the Wobble"
• Closes with favorite love songs and a wild birthday coincidence

Extended and high resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

• Apple: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-ios
• Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-spot
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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Lydia Lunch unpacks the raw origins of No Wave, her squatting-and-surviving New York story, and why after five decades of confrontational art, pleasure remains the ultimate rebellion.

Australian tour tickets and show info here.

Topics Include:

• Lydia Lunch is touring Australia and New Zealand in June
• She's performing Suicide and Alan Vega covers across multiple cities
• Australia holds deep personal meaning — Roland S. Howard, Tex Perkins, lifelong friends
• Lydia considers herself a comedian; most people are just too afraid to laugh
• Words are her primary art — music is just the machine gun
• She sleeps in two-hour shifts and wakes famished at 5am every day
• Creativity has no fixed time — she writes song lyrics in five minutes flat
• She self-publishes through 48-hour printing, selling books for $20, cost $4
• True crime forensics and Matthew McConaughey in Magic Mike are her guilty pleasures
• Daily she rotates between war, politics, and apocalyptic comedy — Dear Ivanka included
• She's actively promoting new bands: Genra's Death, Bog Creeper, New City Slang
• Instrumental music — Budos Band, Yusef Lateef, Baba Zula — is her listening diet
• Suicide and Mars were already playing when she arrived in New York
• Suicide actually coined the term "punk rock" on flyers back in 1972
• No Wave wasn't a movement — it was personal insanity in a decaying city
• The name "No Wave" just came out of her mouth in one interview
• If you couldn't play, you had to be brutally tight — or else
• She taught a homeless man she'd befriended to play drums for Teenage Jesus
• Teenage Jesus songs were written on a borrowed bass she barely understood
• She squatted an abandoned Tribeca building, running electricity from neighbours to rehearse
• Teenage Jesus singles on Migraine Records likely preceded the No New York compilation
• Beirut Slump was horror rock — described as a slug over a razor blade
• She arrived in New York with $200, a suitcase, and zero contacts
• Seeing Suicide at Max's Kansas City with ten people changed everything instantly
• Martin Rev gave teenage Lydia vitamins; Alan Vega was leather-bound and irresistible
• She boycotted Bowie and Iggy in Rochester — accidentally saving them from a drug bust
• Mick Ronson's Slaughter on 10th Avenue: the glam record Bowie quietly stole from
• Lou Reed — always a dick; Warhol — vapid, but his car crashes were great
• She owns every recording, every publishing right — everything she's ever made
• Her reward for a lifetime of rebellion: pleasure, rage, and zero regrets

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

• Apple: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-ios
• Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-spot
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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Black Flag vocalist Max Zanelly shares how she went from waitressing to fronting one of punk's most legendary bands and how the new lineup is carving their own space in legacy of the band.

Australian tour tickets and info here.

Topics Include:

• Max Zanelly checks in from Toronto, post-Canada tour
• Black Flag heading to Australia: four cities in late May
• One year ago, Max had just started rehearsing with Black Flag
• Only prior music experience: saxophone in middle school band
• A longtime fan, Max attended a Black Flag show in Vancouver
• Greg Ginn noticed Max singing every word from the front row
• Numbers exchanged; Greg said he wanted to make music someday
• A month later: the vocalist left, Greg offered Max the role
• Max sent vocal demos and flew to Texas to rehearse
• Already knew the full catalog; My War was the gateway album
• Side two's slow, sludgy tracks resonated the most deeply
• Favourite songs to perform live
• New recordings underway, still at early instrumental stages
• Max currently writing lyrics for a potential new Black Flag record
• Big age gap with Greg, but the band dynamic gels well
• Lineup reveal photos triggered massive online backlash before any shows
• Live shows quickly won skeptics over, including 80s-era veterans
• Henry Rollins is Max's personal favourite past Black Flag vocalist
• First rehearsals: nervous and shy about screaming into a mic
• Fake-it-till-you-make-it; fully unleashed onstage by the fourth show
• Voice conditioned gradually; 24-hour rest between shows is enough
• Bassist David sparked Max's interest in record collecting on tour
• Grew up religious; told mum she was just selling band merch
• Mum eventually came around; Max now inspiring women to start bands

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

• Apple: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-ios
• Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-spot
• Amazon Music: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-amazon
• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide

Filmmaker Dave Markey discusses his documentary "The Secret Lives of Bill Bartell", the punk scene's most fascinating, mysterious, and surprisingly influential behind-the-scenes figure.

Stream it now | Order the Blu-Ray

Topics Include:

• Dave Markey has a large record collection but stopped buying recently.
• Vinyl prices have skyrocketed — once cheap records now cost thousands.
• Dave bought records directly from band members at punk shows.
• Ian MacKaye sold Dave a first press Minor Threat 7".
• Dave bought Minutemen and Descendents EPs from D-Boon for a dollar.
• Dave made the Bill Bartell documentary for people who don't know him.
• Bill Bartell was unknowable — different things to different people.
• Dave tried making this film in the 90s; Bill refused to cooperate.
• The film was made ten years after Bill passed away.
• Bill Bartell faked backstage passes to get into arena rock shows.
• Bill named the Iron Maiden live EP Maiden Japan.
• Bill gave Steve Harris his outfit, worn in the "Run to the Hills" video.
• Bill saw no distinction between the Scorpions, the Germs, and the Beatles.
• Bill would tell artists exactly what he thought — no filter whatsoever.
• Bill told Steve Perry he was responsible for the worst night of his life.
• Bill told Beck "I don't like you" upon their very first meeting.
• Bill tried out as guitarist for Public Image Ltd in 1981.
• Kiss circulated photos of Bill to security: do not let him in.
• Bill befriended Sean Lennon, which led to a friendship with Yoko Ono.
• Bill's 1988 Beatlefest noise performance nearly caused a riot.
• Bill talked Kiss manager Bill Aucoin into discovering Generation X.
• That connection indirectly launched Billy Idol's massive solo career.
• Billy Idol himself didn't know Bill Bartell's role until recently.
• Bill gave Kurt Cobain Os Mutantes tapes, reviving the band's career.
• Pat Smear and Drew Barrymore were sought for the film but unavailable.
• Dave's band Painted Willie did Black Flag's final tour in 1986.
• Dave preferred Painted Willie's early Spinhead Records releases over SST output.
• The Bill Bartell documentary and Love Dolls films are now on Criterion Channel.
• Bill Bartell's Flying V guitar now hangs in the Punk Rock Museum, Las Vegas.
• Bill's money, connections, and secrets largely died with him — still a mystery.

High resolution version of this podcast is available at: www.Patreon.com/VinylGuide

• Apple: https://tinyurl.com/tvg-ios
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• Support the show at Patreon.com/VinylGuide