Episodi

  • On today's episode, I talk to TV writer Ed Herro. Originally from Madison, Wisconsin, Ed fell in love with improv in middle school. He started doing comedy in college and moved to New York where he performed on house teams in the early days of UCB. Eventually realizing that one couldn't make a living yes and-ing, he became a touring stand-up and then a TV writer, writing on shows like Jeff & Some Aliens, American Housewife, and The Neighbors. Most recently, he created, with his writing partner Brian Donovan, the series The Sticky starring the incredible Margo Martindale, and it is airing now weekly on Amazon Prime!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to rapper and musician Brian Ennals and Tariq Ravelomanana AKA Infinity Knives. Originally from Annapolis, Maryland and Tanzania respectively, Brian and Tariq made music separately for years, and after reading about Brian in the Baltimore Sun, Tariq reached out to him and eventually asked Brian to feature on his album Dear, Sudan. This led to their debut Rhino XXL in 2020. While the album was a local hit, it did not prepare them for the reception their second album King Cobra would receive. Released on Phantom Limb in the middle of 2022, it became a word of mouth sensation, organically making everybody's end-of-year lists, deservedly so, as it's fantastic!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

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  • On today's episode, I talk to musician Fred Thomas. Originally from Ypsilanti, Michigan, Fred started playing music as a teenager, and in 1994 founded the math rock band Chore. The band broke up two years later, and he joined the brilliant His Name Is Alive, and in 1999 started the well-known indie rock band Saturday Looks Good to Me. They would release eight albums, mostly on Polyvinyl, before Fred retired the band in 2013. As a solo artist, Fred has been recording albums since 2002, and his 14th album Window in the Rhythm was just released on Polyvinyl, and it is fantastic!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musician Jake Xerxes Fussell. Originally from Columbus, Georgia, Jake is the son of folklorist Fred Fussell, and as a teenager began playing and studying with elder musicians in the Chattahoochee Valley, apprenticing with Piedmont blues legend Precious Bryant, with whom he toured and recorded. In 2015, Jake released his debut self-titled album composed entirely of adapted folk and blues songs on Paradise of Bachelors, his home for his next three albums: What in the Natural World, Out of Sight, Good and Green Again. Earlier this summer, Fat Possum Records released his latest album When I'm Called, and listeners, it's a delight!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to cartoonist John Pham. Born in Saigon, John's family immigrated to the US towards the end of the Vietnam War. In the year 2000, John received a self publishing grant from the Xeric Foundation for his comic Epoxy, and later in the aughts, Fantagraphics published his books Sublife vol. 1 and 2, the latter of which was nominated for multiple Ignatz Awards. In between books, John works as an art director on some of your favorite cartoons including Lucas Bros Moving Co, Axe Cop and the new animated Everybody Still Hates Chris. His latest book J + K was published by Fantagraphics in 2020, and a new paperback edition was released mid-summer this year, and folks, it's terrific!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musicians Jenny Toomey and Kristin Thomson of the band Tsunami. Tsunami formed in Arlington, VA in late 1990, when Jenny and Kristin were housemates at Arlington, Virginia’s legendary punk-activist Positive Force house. Over the next seven years, Tsunami wrote and recorded prolifically, releasing three full-length albums (Deep End, The Heart's Tremolo and A Brilliant Mistake) and over a dozen seven-inch singles and EPs, most on their own Simple Machines label. And next week Numero Group will release Loud As Is, a 5-LP box set reissue of their entire catalog, and buddy, you better believe it's great!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to guitarist and composer Roy Montgomery. Originally from London, Roy grew up in Christchurch, New Zealand, and his first band, The Pin Group, was part of the forefront of the New Zealand post-punk scene in the early-1980s, that, along with bands like The Clean and The Chills, centered around Flying Nun Records. After this, he began recording on his own, and he began to draw acclaim by his second solo album, Temple IV, which was released on Kranky. Since then, he has recorded any number of fantastic albums, collaborated with groups like Bardo Pond and Flying Saucer Attack, and become a lecturer - and head of the Environmental Management Department at Lincoln University. His most recent work Camera Melancholia was released on Grapefruit a few years ago, and like everything else Roy does, it's wonderful!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to comedy writer Meredith Scardino. Originally from Pottstown, Pennsylvania, Meredith first got into the business of show as an animator before landing her first writing job on Best Week Ever in 2004. This led to a series of gigs including Late Night with David Letterman, Human Giant and the Daily Show before she landed at The Colbert Report, which she wrote on for six years, netting a handful of Emmy Awards for her work. Meredith's streak continued writing for SNL, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, At Home with Amy Sedaris and Mr. Mayor before creating one of the best shows of the last decade Girls5Eva, all three seasons of which are streaming now on Netflix!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musician Rose Melberg. Originally from Sacramento, California, Rose has been a performing musician since high school in the early '90s. While only lasting a year, her first band Tiger Trap garnered a cult following and put out a self-titled album on K Records. Her next band Go Sailor lasted from 1994-1996, but in that short time, recorded a number of albums and singles for Slumberland and Lookout! At the same time, Rose formed The Softies with Jen Sbragia. While it was originally meant to be a side-project, it became the main musical focus for the pair, and between 1995 and 2000, they released three fantastic albums on K Records: It's Love, Winter Pageant and Holiday in Rhode Island. Since then, Rose has released a number of incredible solo albums and performed in different bands, but most recently, she and Jen started writing music together again, and their latest album The Bed I Made was just released on Father/Daughter Records, and it's the best!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to rappers Brian Warren and Quentin Branch AKA Angry Blackmen. Both living in Chicago in the mid-20-teens, Brian and Quentin met through a mutual friend and eventually a few years later began making music together. Brian asked Quentin to form a duo saying, "I was looking at probably like, OutKast or something, and I was like, 'If they can do it, we can do it'." Their first album TALKSHIT! in 2019 netted them an online following, and subsequent albums were released on Deathbomb Arc. This includes 2020's HEADSHOTS!, 2021's REALITY! and their most recent, the fantastic The Legend of ABM, which was released back in January.

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musician Karou Ishibashi AKA Kishi Bashi. Originally from Seattle, Washington, Karou grew up in Norfolk, Virginia and although he wanted to make music professionally, it wasn't until he flunked out of college that he began to pursue it in earnest. In 2003, he formed the band Jupiter One, and they were together for a decade and released three albums. Also, during this time, he was a member of Of Montreal for a number of years. In 2011 though, Karou released his first album as Kishi Bashi, 151a, on Joyful Noise, which has been his label ever since. His fifth album Kantos was just released at the end of August, and it is fantastic!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musicians Josefine Jonsson and Agustina Ruiz of Los Bitchos. Originally from Sweden and Uruguay respectively, Josefine and Agustina formed the London-based Los Bitchos in 2017 along with Serra Petale and Nic Crawshaw. Their first album Let the Festivities Begin! was released in 2022 to widespread acclaim, and their latest Talkie Talkie just came out at the end of August on City Slang Records, and folks, it's a delight!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musician and academic Dylan Bizhikiins Jennings. Originally from Stevens Point, WI, Dylan is an enrolled member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe. As an academic, he received his Masters from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies and is currently completing his PhD. He's also on the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board and is associate director of the Sigurd Olson Environmental Institute at Northland College. As a musician, Dylan began singing at pow-wows when he was a kid, in drum groups like Midnite Express and IronBoy, with fellow singer Joe Rainey. But it wasn't until 2015, when he and Joe were given free reign to do what they wanted at the Eaux Claires Festival that Bizhiki was born. Their first album Unbound was just released on Jagjaguwar in July, and folks, it's great!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to cellist and composer Lia Kohl. Growing up in the Bay Area, Lia began playing the cello when she was eight-years-old and is trained as a classical musician. However, after moving to Chicago in the early 20-teens, she began improvising and making her own music. Her first full album Too Small to be a Plain was released in 2022 on Shinkoyo, which was followed by The Ceiling Reposes in 2023 on American Dreams Records, and her latest Normal Sounds is out now on Moon Glyph records, and it's wonderful!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to Eisner-winning comics editor and two time Pulitzer Prize Finalist in cartooning Matt Bors. Originally from Canton, Ohio, Matt attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, where he first began drawing editorial cartoons for the student newspaper. At 23, his work became syndicated by Universal Features, making him the youngest syndicated cartoonist in the country at that time. Since then, his comics have appeared in The Nation, The Guardian, Village Voice, CNN, The Intercept, and were collected in the book We Should Improve Society Somewhat. In 2013, Matt founded the wonderful political comics site The Nib and ran it until it ceased operating in 2023. Most recently, Matt created the fantastic dystopian satire Justice Warriors with Ben Clarkson and is writing an upcoming Toxic Avenger series for Ahoy Comics.

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musician Mabe Fratti. Originally from Guatemala, Mabe studied cello from a young age, but was on a path to become a journalist before a Goethe Institute residency took her to Mexico to work on her music. There she got involved in the Mexico City improvisational music scene. Mabe produced her first album Pies Sobre La Tierra in 2019, which was followed by Será Que Ahora Podremos Entendernos in 2021, Se Ve Desde Aquí in 2022, and her latest Sentir Que No Sabes was just released in June on Unheard of Hope, and folks, it's fantastic!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musician and artist Asher White. Originally from Evanston, Illinois, Asher has built an immense discography since she was a teenager, recording over a dozen self-released albums since 2015. Starting with 2023's New Excellent Woman, the wonderful label Ba Da Bing began putting out Asher's music, and her latest Home Constellation Study was just released at the end of June, and like everything else Asher's done, it's excellent!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to journalist and political writer Doug Henwood. Originally from Teaneck, New Jersey, Doug has been writing publicly about politics since he started his newsletter Left Business Observer, which ran from 1986 until 2013. He's also written for Harper's, The Village Voice, Jacobin and is a contributing editor at The Nation. In addition, Doug has written four books: State of the U.S.A. Atlas, Wall Street, After the New Economy and My Turn: Hillary Clinton Targets the Presidency. Currently, he hosts the weekly KPFA Berkeley radio show and podcast Behind the News.

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musician Colin Meloy. Originally from Helena, Montana, Colin played in a few bands in high school and college before eventually forming The Decemberists in Portland, Oregon at the turn of the century. They released their first album, Castaways and Cutouts a few years later on Kill Rock Stars, who they continued to work with until eventually signing with Capitol Records. Since 2002, the band has released nine albums, and in addition, Colin has recorded a number of solo cover albums, starting with Colin Meloy Sings Morrissey almost two decades ago. The Decemberists latest album, As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again, was just released in mid-June on YABB Records, and like everything else the band does, it's great!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!

    Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

  • On today's episode, I talk to musicians Maia Sinaiko and Susanna Thomson, the founders and 2/3 of the Bay Area band Sour Widows. Originally meeting and becoming friends at Camp Winnarainbow in their youth, Maia and Susanna formed Sour Widows in 2017, when they found themselves living near one another for the first time. Eventually they invited drummer Max Edelman to join them in the band, and since then, they've released two fantastic EPs, a self-titled one in 2020 and Crossing Over in 2021. In 2023, they recorded their first full-length album Revival of a Friend at Tiny Telephone, and it will be released on Exploding In Sound Records at the end of the month!

    This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here!