LSQ

“I remember meeting [guitarist] Nick [Kivlen] outside a bar that we couldn't get into because we were probably 17,” says Sunflower Bean’s Julia Cumming, reflecting on the New York City indie rock trio’s early days. “He said, ‘I’m starting a band called Sunflower Bean, and I had this gut feeling, like, ‘Oh sh*t, I’m gonna join that band, aren’t I? And it became my life.” In a conversation recorded during the lead-up to Sunflower Bean’s excellent new album Headful of Sugar (out May 6), Cumming talks about important musical moments from her childhood — four years old, wanting to play in “The Beatles 2”; harmonizing with her dad to the car radio; making a shrine in her bedroom to The Beach Boys’ Smile — and how they shaped her as an artist. She also discusses her first band, Supercute!, how Sunflower Bean has evolved since their 2016 debut album, and why Headful of Sugar is her proudest accomplishment yet.

“Fill in the blanks” - that’s how Grammy-nominated hip-hop, jazz and R&B artist, musician and producer Terrace Martin describes the special sauce he brings to any collaboration. What he means is that he is ready, willing and able to offer whatever tools from his well-equipped creative shed the situation calls for. Whether that’s playing saxophone (which he does at a master level) or putting together players or producing beats or writing melodies, Martin explains that he just wants to work in service to the music and he can truly do whatever the situation calls for. He also talks about how he first found his own creative spark while watching his uncle DJ, and how that taught him to keep audiences completely engrossed in the music. Martin also shares insight into his creative process, and how he approached collaborations with Leon Bridges and Kendrick Lamar, as well as telling the awesome story of how he became his hero Snoop Dogg’s go-to producer. Martin’s new album, Drones, came out in November and his 2020 album Dinner Party: Dessert (with fellow LSQ guest Robert Glasper, Kamasi Washington & 9th Wonder) is nominated for Best Progressive R&B Album at the upcoming 64th annual Grammy Awards.

It did honestly feel like one of those Wayne’s World "I’m-not-worthy" moments when I first got on the Zoom with the legendary Steven Van Zandt for the interview in episode 73 of the LSQ podcast. Was truly was an honor and pleasure to get to ask him about his creative ideas and process. Last fall, the musician, songwriter, producer, activist, DJ/radio maven, actor, and more, added "author" to his bona fides when he published his fascinating memoir, Unrequited Infatuations. You should read it. Order a *signed!* copy HERE. Anyway, in the book, he shares not just the incredible story of his life and careers, but also candid insight into what it takes to achieve mastery in music. He elaborates on some of that in episode 73, and we also get to hear about his early days with Bruce, how the E Street Band’s commercial ascent felt from his perspective, his views on the evolution of rock as an art form, how he tried to “turn the Sopranos into a rock band,” what new rock music excites him, and more. 

The brilliant, genre-morphing jazz, hip-hop and R&B artist (and 4x Grammy winner) Robert Glasper reflects on important early moments in his creative evolution: developing his skills at performing arts school in Houston alongside fellow talents like Beyonce and songwriter/producer Bryan-Michael Cox, honing his craft with encouragement from modern greats like Roy Hargrove and Christian McBride during his years studying at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York, collaborating with his college classmate Bilal as his music director, and getting involved with the late 90s Neo Soul scene led by artists such as The Roots and Erykah Badu.  Glasper also talks about his creative process, and how he approaches the collaborations in his phenomenal Black Radio album series, which began with the Grammy-winning Black Radio in 2012. (That LP became the first album ever to debut in the top 10 on four different genre charts simultaneously — a feat repeated by Black Radio 2 the following year.) On February 25th, Glasper will release the highly anticipated Black Radio 3, which features appearances by his frequent collaborator Terrace Martin, Q-Tip, Esperanza Spalding, H.E.R., BJ The Chicago Kid, Common, India.Arie, Ant Clemons, and more. He is also nominated for two 2022 Grammys, for Best Progressive R&B album (for his Dinner Party collaboration with Martin, Kamasi Washington and 9th Wonder) and Best Traditional R&B Performance (for “Born Again” with Leon Bridges.)

Fontaines D.C.’s leader, Grian Chatten, joins LSQ to talk about the Irish post-punk band’s newly announced third studio album, Skinty Fia, which is f*cking excellent, btw. (It’s not out until April, but I was lucky enough to hear an advance, in preparation for the interview.) Of course we also delve into his formative creative experiences — from setting up a makeshift drum kit with boxes and pots and pans to recreate a drum fill in Bad Religion’s “American Jesus” (“There was something so symmetrical about it — it reminded me of a dolphin jumping out of the water and creating an arc in the air…”) to memorizing poems in exchange for football cards (an inspired parenting idea from his dad), to playing in a group that actually won their local battle of the bands, to realizing during early gigs as a frontman that he felt an uncanny sense of calm while performing. Skinty Fia comes out April 22nd via Partisan Records and you can pre-save or pre-order it HERE.

Have you heard the song “Chaise Longue” by U.K. duo Wet Leg? Are you as obsessed with it — and with them — as I am? Great! In episode 70, get to know Wet Leg’s Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers, who talk about how they overcame their own shyness to become fearless leaders of one of the most exciting young punk bands in years. (Their self-titled debut album comes out April 8 via Domino.) Episode 70 also features an on-the-road catch-up with LSQ alumni Hamilton Leithauser and Kevin Morby, during their co-headlining “Fall Mixer” tour. Hear them talk about what they view as each other’s strengths as a performer, and share news about the music they’re working on currently.

Courtney Barnett, on the unpredictability of inspiration: “Sometimes I just sit down on the couch, and I’m watching TV, and a whole idea will come to me in one. I never know what’s gonna happen, and that keeps it really exciting. It’s sometimes very frustrating, when I feel like I don’t know the answer, and I feel like I’ll never be able to write another song again. And then a week later, I just accidentally write a song I love. There’s inspiration in everything, that’s the most important lesson I’ve ever learned. You can’t just sit down at a desk and bang your head against a wall for six hours and assume some grand idea will come, because the greatest ideas do come when you’re getting a blood test at the local medical center, and you’re sitting in the waiting room reading a magazine — that’s when the best ideas come.” We talk about the poetry of Hendrix’s lyrics, covering Foo Fighters at a high school talent show, the Australian singer-songwriter's awesome new album, Things Take Time, Take Time, and more, in episode 69 of the LSQ podcast. Courtney is on tour extensively during the coming months. Get tickets here.

The War On Drugs’ Adam Granduciel remembers feeling the electricity through the floor and the house shaking, the very first time he played an electric guitar. It was at his friend Jeff’s house, on a rig he admits he's been chasing ever since, and it ignited an obsession whose evolution he discusses in episode 68 of the LSQ podcast. We talk about Nirvana and Bob Dylan and songwriting and being a perfectionist in the studio, and his band’s brilliant new album, I Don’t Live Here Anymore. (There’s a fascinating story about an epic mixing session he and producer Shawn Everett undertook in the album’s eleventh hour; he describes it as one of the best creative experiences of his life.) The War On Drugs tour extensively next year. Get tickets here.

“When I used to be in Oingo Boingo, I was constantly battling these impulses to go in opposite directions,” says film composer Danny Elfman of his earlier career. “First, I was in weird musical cabaret theater for eight years and suddenly I hear ska music out of England and I say, I want to be in a band. Every two years I wanted to be in a different band, but you can’t do that when you’re in a band. And then suddenly I become a film composer out of the blue, and I realized these competing influences worked in my favor, rather than torturing me. Because you can go from one extreme to the other. You can go from really intense grinding music to something very small and minimal and touching to something very lush and romantic to something completely absurd and ridiculous. And that appealed to me, both sides of me settled down because they each got their turn.” Hear Elfman discuss the film scores that fascinated him as a child, how Tim Burton and Pee Wee Herman got him into doing movie music, what it was like working with Elliott Smith on the score and soundtrack for Good Will Hunting, the inspiration behind Big Mess - his first solo album in 37 years - and why he relates so strongly to his famous Jack Skellington character in The Nightmare Before Christmas. (Elfman reprises his role as Skellington for a live performance of Nightmare in Los Angeles on October 29th.)

Goo Goo Dolls' John Rzeznik discusses the music that inspired him as a kid (The Cars, Springsteen, Petty, the Kinks) and how it taught him the importance of melody and each song telling its own story. We also talk about Goo Goo Dolls' early days, touring in a van and crashing on couches (he always brought along blank cassettes so he could copy some of his host's music); what it felt like to have a huge mainstream moment that also alienated some of their original fans; and why he's taking his approach to writing and recording back to basics for the new Goo Goo Dolls album, out in 2022.