Live Wire with Luke Burbank

Comedy writer Tamara Yajia unpacks her memoir Cry for Me, Argentina, which follows her unorthodox upbringing between the U.S. and Argentina while attempting to become a child star; stand-up comedian Susan Rice comments on life as a woman in her 70s... which includes a dating service called SilverSingles; and indie folk artist Anna Tivel explains how traveling by train across North America has inspired her songwriting, before performing her tune "California Zephyr."

Comedian and satirist Ginny Hogan explains the terms and conditions of being her undetermined partner; Oregon Poet Laureate Anis Mojgani describes a surprising encounter with an unlikely poetry fan; and jazz vocalist and Pink Martini member Jimmie Herrod recounts his successful run on America's Got Talent before performing his new song, "I Love You." 

Writer Alexis Okeowo (The New Yorker) untangles the themes of her new book Blessings and Disasters: A Story of Alabama, which weaves personal experience and the complex history of her home state; legendary comedian Maria Bamford takes the hot seat and answers her popular Vulture magazine questionnaire; and alt-folk rocker Pete Droge performs "You Called Me Kid" from his latest album Fade Away Blue.

Writer and podcaster Sona Movsesian makes the case for why she is "the world's worst assistant" to Conan O'Brien; stand-up comedian Marcella Arguello unpacks the politics of airport parking; and spiritual jazz duo Brown Calculus perform their song "Seven Seas." 

Comedian Maria Bamford riffs on money troubles... and why Instacart might be to blame; comic and crop artist Brandi Brown unpacks her childhood encounter with Prince and her favorite spots at the famed Minnesota State Fair; and The Reasonable Doubts prove that a cover band made up entirely of Minnesota state judges knows how to rock without robes.

Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and acclaimed author Timothy Egan unpacks his newest book A Fever in the Heartland, which traces the Ku Klux Klan's expansion across America in the 1920s and one woman's crusade to stop them; rapper and poet Dessa proves she's more talented than AI by performing a poem she penned backstage using popular search terms. 

Writer Edgar Gomez discusses his collection of essays Alligator Tears, which follows his various hustles as a youth in Florida — from being a flip flop salesman to getting fake teeth through a little bankruptcy fraud; author River Selby recounts how they overcame addiction and sexism to become a hotshot wildland firefighter; and classical pianist Hunter Noack performs at Silver Falls State Park in Oregon, as part of his outdoor concert series In A Landscape.

Writer and director Laura Chinn (Florida Girls) discusses her memoir Acne, which tackles her racial identity, Scientology, and of course... very oily skin; standup comedian Mohanad Elshieky riffs on embarrassing encounters with TSA and Uber drivers; and multi-instrumentalist Jenny Conlee, of The Decemberists, performs "Hawk" from her solo album Tides: Pieces for Accordion and Piano. Plus, host Luke Burbank and announcer Elena Passarello hear from our listeners about what they obsessed over as teenagers.  

Popular science writer Mary Roach dives into lab-grown organs, historical nose jobs, and unlikely hair transplants, as covered in her latest book Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy; stand-up comedian Janesh Rahlan riffs on learning Spanish as an Indian American growing up in Texas; and singer-songwriter Amy Millan (of the indie group Stars) recites her teenage monologue from Degrassi Junior High, before performing a track from her new solo album I Went to Find You.

Novelist Dana Schwartz unpacks her gothic fantasy duology, Anatomy and Immortality, then dives into her podcast Noble Blood, which explores the bizarre and risqué lives of royals; writer Jenny Odell dismantles the clock in her newest book Saving Time while explaining it's unofficial motto: "time is beans;" and indie rocker Black Belt Eagle Scout performs "Don't Give Up" from her new album The Land, The Water, The Sky,  which dreams up the atmosphere of her ancestral land of Swinomish. Plus, host Luke Burbank and announcer Elena Passarello reveal how our listeners love to "waste" time.