RiYL

Well before her debut album We Need to Talk arrived in April 2019, Tayla Parx had already established herself as a music force. As a songwriter, she’d penned tracks for some of the biggest names in the business,fFrom Mariah Carey and Ariana Grande, to K-Pop bands like BTS. A decade prior, Parx made her film debut, in the role of Little Inez in the adaptation of the stage music. At the ripe old of age of 26, the music is ready to take on the world, courtesy of a prolific writing career, tireless work ethic and a thoroughly choreographed stage show. We sat down with Parx in a Manhattan rehearsal space for broadway performers — a perfect temporary home for the Los Angeles musician. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It was shaping up to be a banner year for Wire. When we sat down in the Musical Hall of Williamsburg green room, the band was in the process of adding a west coast leg to their tour in support of the band’s terrific new record, Hive Mind. The band also used the opportunity to announce 10:20, a second new LP released in conjunction with Record Store Day. The album finds the band taking a very Wire-esque approach to revisiting old material, revamping sketches and long abandoned work from earlier decades. There are no half-measures with Wire — and there has very rarely been a misstep. It’s an absolutely remarkable track record for a 44 year old band that took nothing less than a global pandemic to monetarily slowdown. Frontman Colin Newman joins us to discuss how the band has managed to stay ahead of the curve so many decades into its career and describe the touring life of rockstars who are now pushing 70. Episode 400 also features an introduction from friend of the show, The Moth’s Dan Kennedy.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At 19, Kelli Dunham was living in Haiti in the midst of a Civil War. From there, it was a fairly straightforward path to becoming a nun — albeit one that also required a conversion to Catholicism. These days, Dunham lives in New York City as a genderqueer nurse and standup comedian. It’s a natural combination for an artists who happily draws the line between comedy and tragedy, drawing on material from her own life for both. Experience as a hospice nurse and the death of two partners who died of cancer have left her uniquely positioned to grapple with the darkest subject matter in her comedy routines. What’s more, she manages it all with an unwavering sense of positivity, no better exemplified than in the track “Deep Biological Optimism” from her new standup album, Not the Gym Teacher. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When I first met Emily Panic, she was a touring musician. Her work as a bass player and backup singer brought tours with Foxygen, Run the Jewels, Sleigh Bells and Miike Snow. There was even a spot performing vocals on a Bryan Ferry album. In recent years she’s shifted into comedy — arguably an even harder racket than the life of a professional musician. But her sketch work has landed her a hosting gig for Pitchfork and appearances on Funny or Die and Netflix. She also cohosts the paranormal comedy podcast, Ghosts to Show You. Panic joined us to discuss transitioning career focuses, the ups and downs of comedy and a podcasting run-in with a pig ghost. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The grandson of an opera singer, Michael Blume took to music at an early age, first learning the piano and trumpet and ultimately touring with an a cappella group while attending Yale. Yes, the it was the Whiffenpoofs. But the singer found his true voice after moving away from academia. Supporting himself in New York first through SAT tutoring and later wedding gigs, Blume has since become and idiosyncratic front man, blending genres and peppering in performance art. To mark the release of his latest track, In Between, Blume joined us to discuss queer identity in music and simple acts of transgression in the age of Trump. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A fixture in the New York indie comics scene for some years, Colleen AF Venable has made a name for herself designing covers for publishers like First Second. An accomplished author in her own right, Venable has released a number of children’s and YA titles, including Mervin the Sloth and the Guinea Pig series. Most recently, her young adult comic, Kiss Number 8, earned her and artist Ellen T. Crenshaw a National Book Award nomination. Venable joins us to the discuss the genesis of the book, which deals with a range of deeply personal issues, from LGBTQ identities to Catholic school. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At 19, Jamie Drake was sure that she was too told to break into the music business. Nearly two decades later, she officially has, with the arrival of Everything’s Fine. There was music in the meantime, of course, but the singer-songwriter is confident that she finally found her voice of what’s been deemed her debut LP. And indeed, she’s in fine form, as both writer and musician. On a trip to New York, the Los Angeles-based musician sat down to discuss the road that brought her the debut, and how she learned to stop worry and love simply love the music. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the music world, everyone sounds like someone — except Mary Halvorson. All musical touchstones feel like a stretch when attempting to describe the work of the New York-based musician. Avant-garde or free jazz works to the extent that either actually describe a musical style. There’s rock in there, certainly, and I’ve even seen the term “experimental flamenco” bandied about. But all belie the unpredictable nature of her time signatures and chord progressions. Among her best known works is a cover of “A Little Help From My Friends” that sounds like a familiar work stripped bare, run through the grinder and reassembled in ways that defy the laws of physics. It’s the sort of things that rewires the listener’s brain, while giving you hope for a continued way forward for jazz experimentation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 2019, Saves the Day’s debut LP, Through Being Cool, turned 20. Unsurprisingly, the New Jersey band marked the event on the road, with a tour that found them playing the album in its entirety. Two decades and nine full lengths in, a lot has changed for the band, including several lineup shifts that have left frontman Chris Conley as the sole founding member. Now 40, the musician has come a long way from the teenager who penned one of emo’s most iconic debuts. Conley is now the parent to a teenager himself. But through all the ups and downs, his music has remained a constant. Hitting a major milestone has given him ample opportunity to reflect on his work and where he and the band go from here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For those exclusively familiar with Nels Cline’s work as the guitar player for Wilco, Spinning Creature may come as a kind of surprise. But well before the musician began playing with the indie rock juggernaut, he was never afraid to let his freak flag fly. A student of jazz and the New York rock and avant garde scenes that gave birth to legends like John Zorn and Sonic Youth, much of Cline’s work is a sort of musical 180 from the band. CUP, a duo that finds him collaborating with Cibo Matto alum (and his wife) Yuka Honda, mines deep veins of experimental pop. Following the release of the band’s debut last fall, Cline sat down to discuss his musical history, the ups and downs of the gig economy and finding his voice as a musician. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.