Talkhouse Podcast

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got a pair of singer-songwriters who came up in the social media age, and who, as you’ll hear, have leaned on each other for support as their careers have taken off. It’s Girl in Red and Gigi Perez. Girl in Red is the name under which Norwegian singer Marie Ullven started making intimate, sometimes sad bedroom recordings back in 2016 or so. Some of those songs, like 2018’s “I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend” really connected with people, and she became something of an icon, especially to young gay women. Her sound has grown over the years and Ulven has embraced bigger opportunities, including opening shows for Taylor Swift—it doesn’t get a lot bigger than that. Her last album, the hilariously titled I’m Doing it Again, Baby! was released last year, and as you’ll hear in this conversation, Ulven is stepping into acting as well: She’ll star in a film called Low Expectations, which she filmed earlier this year. Check out Girl in Red’s “Hemingway” right here. Gigi Perez is another fantastic songwriter and performer whose “Sailor Song” was everywhere last summer, and for good reason: It’s simple and gorgeous and undeniably catchy. Perez first started writing songs a few years ago in the wake of her sister’s passing, and she’s both created some incredible music and played big shows—including opening for Coldplay—in the past few years. Perez’s debut album At the Beach, in Every Life came out earlier this year, and it’s a thoughtful, sometimes uplifting, sometimes heartbreaking set of really personal songs. Check out “Sailor Song” right here. In this conversation, these two resilient ladies get into some real talk, touching on Girl in Red’s recent stint in rehab and her upcoming movie role, the inevitable comedown after a big tour, songwriting camps, and Perez’s favorite movie of all time. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Girl in Red and Gigi Perez for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

Today’s Talkhouse Podcast features a pair of guys who’ve been making records for a long time and still manage to keep things not just interesting, but awesome: Mac McCaughan and Eric Johnson. Mac is the co-founder of legendary indie label Merge Records as well as the singer and guitarist for the band Superchunk, which has been making great, great records for about 35 years now, though they did take a bit of a break in the early aughts, which Mac mentions in this chat. Since reigniting around 2010, Superchunk has released five solid records that both reflect their maturity and bring the punk-rock energy. The latest just came out, and it’s called Songs in the Key of Yikes. It’s their first with new drummer Laura King, and you can catch Superchunk this weekend at Riot Fest in Chicago and then on a West Coast tour that starts October 9 at Pappy & Harriet’s in the California desert. Check out “Is It Making You Feel Something” from Songs in the Key of Yikes right here. The other half of today’s chat is Eric D. Johnson, who’s both one-third of Bonny Light Horseman and the only constant member of Fruit Bats, the name under which he’s been recording his smart, often gentle songs since around 2001. The newest Fruit Bats record, Baby Man, just came out on Merge, and it’s an absolutely stripped-to-the-bone affair, with Johnson’s voice even more front and center than usual. He lays it all out there and it’s easy to get sucked in by his words and lovely melodies. He’ll be touring all over in October, doing it “an evening with Fruit Bats” style. Check out “Let You People Down,” a song that comes up in this conversation, right here. In this easygoing chat, Eric and Mac talk about their long histories, from Eric’s time in the Shins and I, Rowboat to Superchunk’s not-that-fun stint opening for Teenage Fanclub. They also use some baseball analogies to talk about sequencing an album, and they commiserate about being dudes with unusually high singing voices. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:37 – Start of the chat 4:10 – They commiserate about their unusually high singing voices 6:30 – On influences 8:21 – "Indie rock changed my life" 11:27 – On vocals 13:45 – On "ringing your bell" 15:02 – On the Fruit Bats record: Baby Man 16:49 – Album sequencing is like a batting order 18:47 – On the indie rock scene in the '90s 21:37 – On “Let You People Down" 22:37 – Artist discovery pre vs post-streaming era 24:55 – On bad opening gigs 31:31 – On Baby Man 33:59 – On Songs in the Key of Yikes 39:00 – On the upcoming Superchunk tour 41:24 – Eno on owning your own mistakes 42:48 – On the piano and piano songs Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Mac McCaughan and Eric D. Johnson for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff in our podcast network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

Subscribe to States of Independence. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither was Beggars Banquet. The story starts in 1974 with three mates, a little bit of cash, and the dream of opening a record shop. But when punk happens, it changes everything – and suddenly there’s a new fantasy to chase. Label founder Martin Mills drops us into the chaotic formative years of Beggars Banquet and introduces us to their very first signing, The Lurkers. Then, we meet their first star, Gary Numan, who details his meteoric rise from just another punk rock pretender to one of the definitive voices of the new wave. In the process, the legend of Beggars is born. Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got a repeat customer along with his well-known photographer friend-slash-collaborator who’s done some record covers you’re definitely familiar with. It’s Ruban Nielson and Neil Krug.  Nielson is the frontman of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, the band he started in his native New Zealand before relocating to Portland, Oregon, where he still lives. UMO, as the band is affectionately known, has often been categorized as psych-rock, but I’m not sure that label is accurate or complete. There’s definitely some oil-lamp vibes going on, but there’s something more personal and direct happening underneath the swirling guitars and hooks. That’s maybe never been more true than on this year’s Curse EP, which was Nielson’s way of writing and creating through the grief of his younger sister’s untimely death from cancer. He channeled that energy into songs that were also inspired by ‘70s Italian horror movies and gloomy metal records, but somehow it’s not a bummer at all. Check out “DEATH COMES FROM THE SKY” right here. As you know if you’re a regular listener of this podcast, we mostly feature musicians, occasionally actors, every once in a while a producer or writer. But I’m not sure if in all of these years we’ve ever welcomed someone chiefly known as a photographer. That changes today, with Neil Krug, whose photographs you’ve likely seen even if you don’t know his name. Krug is maybe best known for his shots of Lana Del Rey, and he also did the iconic cover of Tame Impala’s The Slow Rush. He and Ruban go way back, having worked on artwork and photos for Unknown Mortal Orchestra over the years—and maybe in the future?  In this great conversation, these two chat about the making of Curse, working together on UMO’s Sex and Food record as well as other UMO stuff, the ridiculously over-the-top reaction of Ruban’s fans to his dabbling in AI artwork, and the joys of David Lynch. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:20 – Start of the chat 3:02 – On making Curse and music as therapy 10:20 – Nielson on AI tools and the reaction from UMO fans 16:50 – UMO's "analog-only photography" policy at shows 21:42 – How Krug and Nielson first met 25:45 – Nielson's cape phase 26:42 – On UMO’s Sex and Food and the color blue 27:50 – Sex and Food's original title was... 31:51 – On SB mixes, Hanoi, Curse, and other non-traditional UMO records 34:45 – On David Lynch and the power of cinema 36:00 – The story behind The Slow Rush artwork 40:41 – Predictions on the next UMO record 44:02 – On "darky, spooky aesthetics" Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Ruban Nielson and Neil Krug for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

On this week’s episode of the Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got the leader of a killer Chicago band and the co-director of one of the biggest movie franchises in history in a fantastic conversation: It’s Alicia Gaines of Ganser and Lilly Wachowski, best known for The Matrix. The Matrix you surely know, but Ganser perhaps you don’t. They’re a Chicago band that’s been around for the last decade or so, but really seemed to snap into focus about five years ago with a startling stew of post-punk and art-rock sounds that snarl like some of my favorite elder statesbands—Gang of Four, Siouxsie—but updated. Their third and latest album, Animal Hospital, was produced by Angus Andrew of Liars, which makes sense. Oh, and they’re fierce live: I saw them last year opening for Mclusky and was blown away. Check out  “Stripe” from Animal Hospital right here. Lilly Wachowski cut a winding path through Hollywood; along with her sister Lana, she made the 1996 thriller Bound—it comes up in this conversation—but took the film world by surprise with 1999’s The Matrix and of course its sequels. The Wachowskis, as they’re known professionally, took their films to weirder places after that rather than trying to go mainstream, with the unfairly maligned Speed Racer—an anti-capitalist blockbuster—and Cloud Atlas, a strange, moving epic. Both Wachowskis also came out as trans in the years after The Matrix, and Lilly, as you’ll hear, has a serious interest in getting that aspect of her life onto the silver screen. In this deep and friendly chat, Lily and Alicia talk about their shared experience at Chicago’s School of the Art Institute—aka SAIC—as well as Animal Hospital, using original music versus well-known pop songs in movies, finding yourself through art, a painting of a suicidal duck, and Lilly’s next project, which is “wall to wall trans people and trans rage.” I hope she can get it made. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Alicia Gaines and Lilly Wachowski for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff in our podcast network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

One of the pleasures of putting the Talkhouse Podcast together is that the guests often leave their promotional hats at home and just dig into conversations about life, and that’s definitely what happened this week with Matty Matheson and Jennifer Castle. Matty Matheson you’ll surely recognize either as a superstar chef and restaurateur who appeared on a bunch of VICE shows way back when—or if not that then as a star and consultant on the hit TV show The Bear, where he plays the sublimely ridiculous Neil Fak. Matheson has lived several lifetimes, building a reputation as a wild partier in his youth, which eventually led to a heart attack at just 29—that’s touched on briefly in this conversation. He’s also authored a bunch of super down-to-earth cookbooks, including the great new Soups, Salads, Sandwiches—you can guess what that one covers. Matheson’s connection to singer-songwriter Jennifer Castle goes way, way back. They met working in Toronto restaurants and became good friends over the years: Castle sang at Matty’s wedding and she was a doula at the birth of his first child, a topic that comes up in this chat. Castle has been making music for the past 20 or so years, first under the name Castlemusic but more recently under her own name. Don’t let the gentleness of her indie-folk fool you; there’s a lot that cuts deep in her songs. Speaking of those songs, one of the songs from her latest album Camelot was featured in season three of The Bear—a great way for Matheson to help get the word out on the person he calls the greatest Canadian singer-songwriter ever. Check out “Blowing Kisses” ⁠right here⁠. In this lovely conversation, Castle and Matheson talk about how music and food can both bring people together, but they get really excited talking about two other natural pursuits: childbirth and farming. (Matheson co-owns a farm called Blue Goose that you’ll hear a bit about.) Matheson talks a bit about his family and his current book tour, and Castle shows off a touching gift that Matheson gave her many years ago. Enjoy. 0:00 – Intro 2:35 – Conversation starts 3:25 – Matty’s airport adventures 6:38 – “Eat little shrimps!” 8:36 – Matty loves Jennifer’s music, as you’ll see 12:36 – Matty gets melancholy about their shared Toronto past 21:51 – The birth of children and the birth of Blue Goose 37:24 – Living the creative life Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Matty Matheson and Jennifer Castle for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

Subscribe to Music Person. Karly Hartzman of Wednesday from Asheville, North Carolina. Wednesday’s new album, BLEEDS, is out September 19, 2025. Karly and Dylan discuss being an introverted observer writer girl type, the merits of staying in your local scene, complicated feelings about Los Angeles, and Karly’s breakup with partner and bandmate MJ Lenderman. + Karly answers a listener advice question. Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

On this week's Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got a guy from that band you like in conversation with Saturday Night Live's Donald Trump specialist. It's Hamilton Leithauser and James Austin Johnson. Leithauser was-slash-is the voice behind the Walkmen, the indie-rock band that burned bright from 2000 until 2013, at which point they splintered and Leithauser embarked on a solo career and some excellent soundtrack work. Last time he was on this show he was in conversation with Ethan Hawke, with whom he worked on Hawke's Paul Newman documentary; this time around, he's got a long-in-the-works solo album to promote. This Side of the Island came out earlier this year, though it probably would have come out sooner if Leithauser didn't take a break to reunite with the Walkmen for some big shows. It’s typically excellent, and a bit more slinky than his past couple. It was produced by The National's Aaron Dessner and he’s just finishing up a tour with Father John Misty. For Leithauser's latest video, he roped in comedian James Austin Johnson to play his sorta-stalker / impersonator at the legendary Carlyle Hotel in New York. Check out the video right here, it’s called "What do I Think?" If you don't recognize James Austin Johnson's name, you'll recognize his incredible impression of Donald Trump, which he's been doing on Saturday Night Live for the past couple of seasons. Now there have been many Trump impressions over the years, but nobody has quite captured the manic free-association in the way that Johnson has. With SNL off for the summer, Johnson is out doing comedy on the road, where you can catch him over the next few weeks before he returns to his main gig. In this fun chat, Johnson and Leithauser talk about SNL's schedule, about drinking wine on stage, about recording fake sounds versus real ones, and about a guy they're both a little obsessed with: Bob Dylan. Oh, and Trump, but just a little bit. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to James Austin Johnson and Hamilton Leithauser for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and make sure you check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme was composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’re giving a nod to the heavier end of things with a conversation between George Clarke of Deafheaven and Jae Matthews of Boy Harsher. Deafheaven is the impossible to pin down metal band that has pushed genre boundaries since breaking out with 2013’s epic Sunbather. They’ve been the subject of much debate in the heavy music community over the years, since they’ve wiggled elements of shoegaze and even Brit rock into the world of black metal. It’s been a fascinating journey to watch, as the band navigates its own muse, seemingly without regard to any genre lines that might exist. 2021’s Infinite Granite took a pretty huge leap toward a more accessible sound, while this year’s Lonely People With Power heads back into the darkness—even as it’s produced by the pop-leaning Justin Meldal-Johnson, whose name comes up in this chat. The other half of today’s conversation is Jae Matthews, who’s also half of the darkwave-slash-coldwave band Boy Harsher. Deeply influenced by film, the duo’s most recent album, The Runner, serves as a sort-of soundtrack to a world they continue to imagine—one full of synths, beats, and lots of mood. As you’ll hear in this chat, Boy Harsher has been busy writing new material in a way they haven’t before. But in the meantime, Matthews contributed some striking vocals to a truly striking song on the new Deafheaven record. Check out “Incidental II” right here—you’ll need to listen to the entire thing to really get where it’s coming from. In this conversation, Clarke and Matthews talk about DJing versus performing, about finding inspiration in solitude, about whether being sober hurts or helps a performance, and of course, about Matthews’ contribution to Deafheaven’s Lonely People With Power. Enjoy. Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Jae Matthews and George Clarke for chatting. If you like what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme was composed and performed by the Range. See you next time. Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got an absolute legend of the punk and indie-rock worlds in conversation with a relatively newer voice who’s making some great music, too: Bob Mould and Will Anderson. Bob Mould got his start in the late 1970s with the Minneapolis-born punk / post-punk band Husker Du, a trio that was at the tip of the spear of incredible new sounds. After that band ran out of jet fuel in the late 1980s, Mould embarked on a solo career and also created the band Sugar, itself a touchstone outfit. Mould has released a total of 15 solo albums over the years, and there’s not a dud in the bunch. His latest is a tuneful, melodic set of ragers called Here We Go Crazy, which he once again made with his ace rhythm section, Jon Wurster and Jason Narducy. He’s toured a bunch in support of the record with those guys, but his next set of dates—in August and September, check bobmould.com for details—will find him playing solo-electric, which is also a powerful way to experience these songs. Check out the title track of Here We Go Crazy right here. The other half of today’s conversation is Will Anderson, who’s been making music for the past few years under the name Hotline TNT—sometimes by himself, sometimes with a rotating band of players. His first album under the name, Nineteen in Love, was recorded by himself during COVID, all in GarageBand. His third—and second for Jack White’s Third Man Records—feels much more like a full-band affair: It’s more fleshed out and expansive. Hotline TNT has frequently been called a shoegaze band, but it’s a tag that Anderson is quick to refute, at least a little bit: In this conversation, he says that his shoegaze knowledge pretty much begins and ends with My Bloody Valentine. Whatever you call it, its swirls and layers feel pretty damn good right now. Check out a little bit of “Julia’s War” from the latest Hotline TNT album, Raspberry Moon. In this great chat, Bob and Will talk about Bob’s recent commencement speech at his alma mater and they also chat about the proper construction of an album, playing overseas for the first time, Bob’s Super Bowl appearance and much more. Enjoy! Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Will Anderson and Bob Mould for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! Find more illuminating podcasts on the ⁠⁠⁠Talkhouse Podcast Network⁠⁠⁠. Visit ⁠⁠⁠talkhouse.com⁠⁠⁠ to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Twitter (X)⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠.