The brilliant composer and two-time Talkhouse Podcast guest William Basinski recently dropped me an intriguing email. He wrote of a “very talented young friend, a fine guitarist from Amarillo” who has “a great story.” If Billy recommends an artist, I look into them; the more I learned about this guitarist from Amarillo, TX — Hayden Pedigo — the more fascinated I became.

A born and raised Amarilloan, Hayden is an ambient acoustic guitarist and soundscape composer who's written music dedicated to the landscape and beauty of his hometown. Changing artistic lanes late last year, Hayden undertook a satirical project inspired by Harmony Korine that was composed of a series of bizarre, Tim and Eric-esque fake campaign videos. When the vids went viral, he decided to run for City Council in Amarillo in earnest, and is now a leading contender with a real shot at being elected.

With his gonzo comedic approach and dual life in music, we thought that a convo between Hayden and Tim Heidecker — who's fresh off the release of Us — would make for a quite a show. Talkhouse pals Nick Dawson (EIC, Film) and Josh Modell (Executive Editor, Music) join me to introduce this politically-minded conversation between two great weirdos.

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—Elia Einhorn, Talkhouse Podcast host and producer

Today’s episode was co-produced by Mark Yoshizumi. It was recorded in Los Angeles by Tim Heidecker, and at Hook and Fade Studios in Brooklyn by Mark Yoshizumi.