Phoenix frontman Thomas Mars subscribes to Ed Rusha's philosophy on art—that it should prompt bewilderment or even disgust before appreciation. And not the reverse. This can be applied to the French band's music. Consider their latest album Alpha Zulu, the title seems odd but dig a little and it reveals a salient truth for Thomas. Together with his friends and bandmates Deck D'Arcy, Christian Mazzalai and Laurent Brancowitz the foursome started the songwriting for this, their seventh album, after the death of their dearest friend, producer Philippe Zdar—who was crucial in helming their breakth ..read more

As a child, New Zealand singer-songwriter Marlon Williams believed that if he could nail the songs at iwi or tribe gatherings then surely everything in the world would be ok. Nevermind that elders were discussing big issues such as Maori land rights, water rights and education, Marlon had an inate believe in the virtues of song and his vocal prowess as a singer. Indeed his voice is something to behold — a melismatic, velvety croon that can register as Roy Orbison or Elvis. And before the release of his latest album My Boy, it could be said that it's a voice more comfortable in a different era ..read more

Seratones frontwoman A.J. Haynes and her Shreveport, Louisiana-based band (bassist, Travis Stewart and drummer, Jesse Gabriel) released their disco-inspired, third album Love & Algorhythms, earlier this year. At the time of writing the album, A.J. was also working full-time as an Abortion Advocate in the last standing Abortion clinic in Louisiana, an experience that brought her close to burnout and informed much of the record's theme of liberation, Afro-Futurism and radical joy as a form of protest. She draws from the works of Black Feminist authors in her lyrics –– from civil ri ..read more

Warpaint are back after six years with Radiate Like This, their excellent fourth album after 2016's Heads Up. According to drummer Stella Mozgawa, completing the album while isolated from bandmates Emily Kokal, Theresa Wayman and Jenny Lee Lindberg was challenging. Theirs is a band that have always thrived on the intimacy of being in the same room during the songwriting process, and after finally coming together in between babies, solo albums and cross-country moves, the pandemic forced them to work individually in their separate home studios, isolated from one another. Stella had the added di ..read more

In our final episode for Season 2, we listen to some raw tape that didn't make the Julien Baker episode. And we're joined by not one but two fans. Allison, a teenage fan, from Louisiana, shares how Julien's music helped her through her own bouts of depresson during the pandemic. And Azin Samari, a documentary editor on "The September Issue"—the award-winning film about Vogue magazine, Amazon docu-series "Lorena" and more recently, Hulu's "Sasquatch." Azin is currently working on a documentary about the refugee crisis. She discusses her experience with religion, editing for documentary, and its ..read more

We listen to some raw tape of Jamie Stewart—from experimental, art-pop band Xiu Xiu—that didn't make it to the main episode. And we're joined by a Xiu Xiu fan, Bay Area-electronic musician Alex Olive who shares how elements that we might ordinarily find off-putting in Xiu Xiu's more discordant, noize-led and sometimes frightening work is vital to her art and life. We also discuss gender dysphoria, trans rights and In true Xiu Xiu form, Sanrio characters. Follow Alex Olive @olivecraving on Instagram and be sure to check out her Bandcamp here. Much thanks to Rob Wilcox at Polyvinly Records and S ..read more

We listen to some raw tape of Courtney Barnett before she pressed record for our interview. We are also joined by a true fan of her music—Paul Kondo, of The Podcast Gumbo Newsletter. Not too long ago we were "hotsauce" in that newsletter. Paul recommends three podcasts in each gumbo newsletter, with an added extra podcast mention, thrown in as hot sauce. Paul shares with us the first albums he coveted—The Last Waltz, Martin Scorsese's 1978 documentary of The Band's final performance in San Francisco featuring friends such as Neil Young, Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell —still ranks high for him dec ..read more

Memphis-bred singer/songwriter Julien Baker's third album Little Oblivions revisits familiar themes in her confessional writing style — faith, addiction, mental health and her sense of isolation. However, in the process of writing the album, Julien had to undergo more transformation than ever before. She now has a radically different understanding of God, of her own struggle with addiction, and how she squares that with her own queer identity. She's also attempting to be kinder to herself. The catalyst for much of this change was losing her sobriety in 2018. It prompted her to cancel shows and ..read more

Experimental art-pop and noize band Xiu Xiu's single "Rumpus Room" found me on a particular low day in early 2021. I remember puttng it on, cranking the volume up and jumping around like a sugar-ed up toddler in a boucy castle. There's hints that the song is about more serious things but in that moment I needed joy and bouce—and that's what I found. Jamie Stewart began Xiu Xiu 20 years ago. The band has seen many configurations and different members. For the last decade, Xiu Xiu's been a duo of Stewart with Angela Seo. Xiu Xiu's music is often confronting either thematically or in the noize el ..read more

English rock duo, Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher are Royal Blood. When they burst on the scene with their eponymous, debut album in 2014—boasting an old school rock sound reminiscent of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, they were immediately hailed the saviors of guitar rock. Their sophomore album, How Did We Get So Dark followed the same playbook. There's an evolution in their sound on Typhoons, their latest studio album. It harks back to their eclectic roots. Both honed in their skills playing in various bands from soul and pop to funk and indie rock, as well as at church services and with wedding ..read more