That's How I Remember It

Scott Z. Burns is my guest on this episode of That's How I Remember It. Scott is a talented writer/director/producer of films such as Contagion, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Report, The Informant, and more. He’s also a close friend of mine. We talked about his new Apple TV show Extrapolations as well as how he names characters, humpback whales, cleaning otters after the Exxon Valdez oil spill, Contagion's resurgence during the pandemic, and hope vs. courage. Huge thanks to Scott for joining me. Lots of great guests coming up, please listen and subscribe! 

Kevin Morby is my guest on this episode of That's How I Remember It, which is a replay of the first ever live version of this podcast. It was recorded during the 2023 On Air Festival at the Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn. Kevin and I spoke about his last record This is a Photograph, writing the record in Memphis, Jeff Buckley, his Sonic Youth superstition, Diane Lane, details he remembers about individual shows, and much more. A huge thanks to Kevin for joining us for such a special show, he was an incredible guest. We’ve got more on the way, so please listen and subscribe! 

This week’s That's How I Remember It is a flash episode featuring me and me only. We’re taking a break from guests for a week, so I just wanted to get you caught up on everything I’ve been doing lately and have coming up: live podcasts, the new Hold Steady record “The Price of Progress” and upcoming shows for The Hold Steady and myself solo. We’ll be back with some great guests soon, so please listen and subscribe. 

Amanda Shires is my guest on this week’s That's How I Remember It. Amanda is an incredible songwriter and musician. She’s an accomplished solo artist, a member of The Highwomen, and has played fiddle with The Texas Playboys, Billy Joe Shaver, Justin Townes Earle, The 400 Unit, and much more. Amanda’s incredible last record Take It Like a Man was one of the best of 2022. Here we talk about details in songs, Tom Petty, getting an MFA, the role of nature in her songs, and deliberately making songs that are present and rooted in the now. This was a fantastic talk, huge thanks to Amanda for coming on the show. Please listen and subscribe! 

Ben Gibbard is my guest on this episode of That's How I Remember It. Ben is the lead singer of Death Cab for Cutie and the Postal Service, and has written an absolute ton of great songs since DCFC formed in 1997. Most recently, the band released Asphalt Meadows, another great record and also announced a joint Death Cab/Postal Service tour for fall 2023. We had a great talk about van touring before cell phones, going pro as a musician, always finishing writing songs, Scott Hutchison, art living forever, and so much more. A huge thanks to Ben for joining me and for being so thoughtful. I loved this talk, and hope you do too. Please keep listening and subscribe! 

Eric Bachmann is my guest this week on That’s How I Remember It. Eric is the lead singer of classic indie rock band Archers of Loaf and has also made music as Crooked Fingers, as well as under his own name. Recently, Archers of Loaf put out the great Reason in Decline, 24 years after the release of their last record. I distinctly remember my first time hearing Archers of Loaf, as well as the first show of theirs I ever saw. We talk about both here, as well as Web in Front, first records, band reunions, legacy, expectations, and so much more. Big thanks to Eric for joining me, this was a ton of fun. Please listen and subscribe, and keep tuning in to That’s How I Remember It.

Welcome back for season two of That’s How I Remember It. I’m thrilled to kick off this season with a conversation with the incredible George Saunders. George has written some of my favorite recent fiction, and his 2022 book Liberation Day is a fascinating story collection that we get into deeply here. We talk about Johnny Tremain, humor in stories, drawing on memories of old jobs, late stage capitalism, gentle revolution, and so much more. We even spoke a bit about songwriting at the end of the episode. I was honored to have such an amazing mind join me here, and I’m so excited to be back with another season of the podcast. Listen, subscribe, and stay tuned for more upcoming episodes.

Katy Kirby will be joining myself and The Uptown Controllers on tour starting next week so I caught up with her on this special flash episode of That’s How I Remember It. Katy was in the parking lot of the Belly Up Tavern in Solana Beach CA when she dialed in, so there’s a little ambient noise, but that’s life on the road. And perhaps it added to our discussion about learning to sing harmonies, quality of light as a memory trigger, the making of her amazing record Cool Dry Place, the oranges that show up in her songs, and the tour we are embarking on. So cool to speak to one of my favorite songwriters, looking forward to seeing her set each night. Season 2 of THIRI coming up before too long, listen and subscribe.

Today I fly out to start the Uptown Controllers tour this weekend in Odense, Denmark. To celebrate, we’re releasing this flash episode where I have a small chat with Scott Lavene, who will be supporting on most of the dates. Scott is a brilliant songwriter who released one of my favorite records in recent memory, “Milk City Sweethearts”. We talked about the record and the upcoming tour. Check out craigfinn.net for all upcoming tour dates and I hope to see you on the road!

Adam Duritz is my guest on this week’s That’s How I Remember It and I am quite psyched about it. Adam is obviously the singer and songwriter of platinum selling band Counting Crows, and has been making thoughtful and great music for decades now. I met Adam when Counting Crows took THS on tour in Europe/UK in 2009 and was so excited he agreed to do this. We talked about how the details matter so much in songs, each of our first trips to Asbury Park, loving Christmas music, that dog., last year's fantastic Counting Crows EP, bootlegs, and the way that light attaches to a girl. That’s a wrap on season one of That’s How I Remember It; we’ll be back with season two before long. Listen, subscribe, and keep your eye on this space for tour updates, etc. Stay Positive!