Talkhouse Podcast

For our first brand new Talkhouse episode of 2023, we’ve got a short but great chat with three guys from the rollicking Australian rock scene: Ambrose Kenny-Smith, Jack “Cool Breeze” Crowther, and Elliot “Dr. Love Wisdom” O’Reilly.Yes, they have excellent names, and so do their bands. Kenny-Smith is part of the super-prolific King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, which since coming together in Melbourne in 2010 has released an incredible 23 albums—three of those in October of 2022 alone. The band has built up a manic following along the way, building up a whole universe—people call it the Gizzverse—of characters and sounds that range from extended rock jams to jazz to microtonal exploration. If you’re not already familiar, there’s no perfect place to start, though last year’s Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushrooms, and Lava is accessible in its own way. In addition to non-stop touring and recording with King Gizz, Kenny-Smith also leads another band, The Murlocs, which put out their sixth album, Rapscallion, just last year as well. To borrow a funny line from Pitchfork, being a King Gizzard fan can feel like a full-time job, but seems like a fun one to me. Check out “Iron Lung” from that album I mentioned above with the really long name.The other two gents in this conversation, Jack Crowther and Elliot O’Reilly, are part of Babe Rainbow, another hardworking Australian band. Though not quite as busy as King Gizzard, Babe Rainbow has managed to release five full lengths in just the last five or so years as well—including one produced by a member of King Gizzard. Theirs is a slightly more focused take on psychedelic rock—no less spacey but a bit more structured. Here’s “Inner Space” from their latest album, The Organic Band.In this conversation, these three friendly guys talk about recent flooding in Australia that involved some cat rescuing, as well as fashion, having babies, surfing, and lots more. Enjoy.Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Ambrose Kenny-Smith, Jack Crowther, and Elliot O’Reilly for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out Talkhouse.com for tons of great written pieces and other podcasts in our network. This episode was recorded and produced by Keenan Kush, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!This episode was recorded live at Desert Daze 2022. Special thanks to Desert Daze and to Dad Grass for making this episode possible. 

Happy Holidays. While we're on break, we'd love to share with you a recent addition to the Talkhouse Podcast Network, Noble Champions with Santigold.This episode originally aired on Nov. 7, 2022, and is titled "Questlove, Angela Yee and Tunde Adebimpe." Subscribe to Noble Champions with Santigold. In this episode, Santi rallies her longtime friends Questlove, Angela Yee, and Tunde Adebimpe, who are fellow artists, industry insiders, and cultural critics, to try to tackle the question, 'What exactly is Black Music?'. They discuss complex issues like what happens when you step out of the genre box - specifically when Black artists are making music that’s left outside the 'Black Music' box, who built the box, and what’s the bigger impact of caging in or boxing out music and the artists that make it? All this while geeking out about some of their favorite seminal recording artists like Bad Brains, Nina Simone, Fela Kuti, The Last Poets and more.

Happy Holidays. While we're on break, we'd love to share a preview of another podcast on the Talkhouse Podcast Network, Craig Finn's That's How I Remember It.This episode originally aired on Sept. 1, 2022, and is titled "Adam Duritz (Counting Crows)." Subscribe to That's How I Remember It. 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!

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got a pair of guys who don’t know each other well, but who’ve crossed paths a few times over the years—most recently at the Desert Daze festival, Nick Allbrook and Josh Conway. Allbrook is the frontman of the Australian psychedelic rock band Pond, which is sort of inextricably linked with another Australian band, Tame Impala. Allbrook was actually a member of Tame for years while also playing with Pond—which includes some current members of Tame Impala. But Pond, which has been around about as long, has built a sound of its own, much more hard charging than that other band, and released a whopping nine albums of frenetic, fun, fuzzy rock. If you’ve never heard the band, their album titles give a hint as to what they’re all about, from Corridors of Blissterday to Man It Feels Like Space Again. Pond’s latest album has a much simpler title, it’s called 9, and among its fantastic tracks is this one, “Lights of Leeming.” Josh Conway is a huge fan of Pond, though his own band, The Marias, approaches music with a much gentler soul. Conway started the group with his significant other, the band’s namesake Maria Zardoya. Their beginnings are kind of funny: They tried to write songs for film and TV placements, none of which—as you’ll hear in this chat—were ever picked up. But, happy with what they’d written, Conway and Zardoya ended up releasing them anyway, and the Marias was born. Their alt-pop is miles from our other guest’s on today’s episode, with elements of jazz and even reggaeton sprinkled throughout a great debut album called Cinema. Check out “Hush” from that album right here. In this conversation, Allbrook and Conway talk about the work hours of Australians versus Catalonians, about how even a deliberate attempt to sell out can result in great creative work, and how taking a walk under the influence of molly and Outkast changed Conway’s outlook. Also, they declare, cheekily, that God is dead, and art is too. Enjoy. Thanks for checking out the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Nick Allbrook and Josh Conway for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcast platform. This episode was produced by Keenan Kush, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by The Range.

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve paired the frontmen for two gruff-sounding, kinda scary noise-rock bands, but who as it turns out are a couple of sweethearts: David Yow and Andrew Falkous.David Yow began his music life in the Texas band Scratch Acid, which built its own legend before burning out in the mid-1980s, and then took his maniacal presence to The Jesus Lizard. That band built a following in the next dozen years both for its confrontational music and for Yow’s intensity in their live shows. You’d often find him drunk and half-naked, howling into the faces of stunned crowds. First you were scared, and then you loved it. The Jesus Lizard benefited from the grunge explosion in the mid-1990s, but they were always too weird and scary for the mainstream—even when they got an inexplicable major-label deal with Capitol. (You know, home of the Beatles.) The Jesus Lizard split in 1999, but have reunited a few times since then, with demand for Yow’s insanity peaking every few years. There hasn’t been a Jesus Lizard show in a few years, though—or a “reenactment” as he calls their reunion shows—but Yow has been out recently singing for the early noise-punk band Flipper. You may also have seen him in bit parts in a few movies; the guy has led a varied, full life so far.Andrew Falkous unfortunately just had to postpone his own US tour-slash-reenactment with his band Mclusky, which was originally active from the mid-90s until 2006. An illness has affected his Falkous’ ability to sing, but he’s planning to reschedule very soon. In the years after Mclusky, Falkous made similarly brutish-but-incredible records both as the frontman of a band called Future of the Left and as a sort-of-solo artist under the name Christian Fitness. But as the legend of Mclusky snowballed and the 20th anniversary of their absolute classic of a second album Mclusky Do Dallas approached, he was coaxed to relaunch the name and to play those old songs again. Here’s hoping for a quick recovery and new dates soon. Here’s a little taste of what was certainly Mclusky’s biggest song, the charmingly titled “Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues.”In this spirited conversation, Yow and Falkous start by talking about Falkous’ recent battles with his own voice. They get into the nervousness of playing your first-ever show as a singer: Yow dealt with the jitters by handing out tabs of acid to the crowd, while Falkous wore a yellow T-shirt. They talk about beer and whether Australian children should be forced to live in wells. Yow casually slaughters some sacred cows of the alterna-rock world. And lest you think they’re too tough for their own good, you should know that I edited out 15 minutes where they talked about how much they love their cats. Enjoy.Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Andrew Falkous and David Yow for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting service and check out all the goodness at this very site. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!

On this week's Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got a lively conversation between two guys from different generations and geographical backgrounds, but some similar stories and experiences: Titus and Angelo Moore.Angelo Moore is the legendary frontman of the legendary punk-funk-ska-soul-etc. band Fishbone, which has been a frequently mutating unit since 1979. Fishbone were peers and friends with a who’s-who of that era’s Los Angeles scene, including Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jane’s Addiction, and plenty of others, and they’ve been a huge influence on innumerable bands over the years. It hasn’t been the straightest journey, and there’s a pretty great documentary about the band that came out about 10 years ago called Everyday Sunshine. In addition to fronting the band, which still plays shows worldwide, Moore has embarked on tons of other projects over the years, releasing music as both Dr. Madd Vibe and with a group he calls the Brand New Step. Beyond that, he’s been touring as a vocalist with a David Bowie tribute tour that’s led by Todd Rundgren and Adrian Belew.Titus, aka Randolph Newman, was a fan of Fishbone’s—no surprise for a guy who loves to blend genres, and who’s a person of color in a scene that isn’t known for a ton of diversity. Though they’re from different generations, they share some life experience, having grown up Black in largely white areas—and having ended up playing Warped Tour, though years apart. Titus’ music is less a stew than Fishbone’s: His two most prominent ingredients are pop-punk and hip-hop, with nods to titans of those genres like Taking Back Sunday and Lil’ Wayne. His latest release is an EP called Damned if I Do, and he also recently released a cover of Kate Bush’s Stranger Things-bolstered track “Running Up That Hill,” which is covered in this chat. Check out “Saddest Song” from Damned If I Do right here.Moore and Titus talk about their experiences on Warped Tour, their experiences growing up as outsiders, and drugs. Titus talks about the recent loss of his mother, which has understandably had a profound impact on him, and Moore talks about his days trying to kick some ass in the mosh pit. Enjoy.Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Angelo Moore and Titus for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all we’ve got on offer at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!

On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Podcast, the creator-star of Hulu’s Ramy, comedian Ramy Youssef, talks with Dina Amer, whose debut feature as writer-director, You Resemble Me, is in theaters now. The film is a lightly fictionalized, emotionally resonant portrait of Hasna Aït Boulahcen, a radicalized Muslim who Amer covered as a journalist in 2015 when Boulahcen was implicated in the Paris terrorist attacks. In an engaging, wide-ranging conversation, Youssef and Amer – fellow Egyptian-Americans who have been friends for years – talk about the personal nature of You Resemble Me, the major deal Dina turned down, Spike Lee’s take on her doing the film her way, casting a “hot” actor as a terrorist, and much more. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast.

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got the Scottish singer and songwriter behind some of the catchiest songs of the past two decades along with the super producer who helped bring those songs into the world: Fran Healy and Nigel Godrich.Healy is the singer, guitarist, and chief songwriter of the band Travis, which really broke big with 1999’s The Man Who, scoring mainstream hits with songs like “Why Does it Always Rain on Me” and “Turn.” They’ve since created a deep catalog that numbers nine albums. But for today’s purposes we’re going to concentrate on 2001’s The Invisible Band, which Travis is giving a belated 20th birthday celebration for at the moment, including a US tour that starts this week. It can be difficult to follow up a massive success like The Man Who, and Travis turned once again to Godrich to help them chart the proper course. It wasn’t the beginning, but rather the continuation of a long and fruitful relationship. Check out “Sing” from The Invisible Band.Godrich, by the time Invisible Band came around, had found massive success as the producer of Radiohead’s OK Computer, and of course he would go on to be the sort of unofficial sixth member of that band—recording all of their albums and even playing music with Thom Yorke in Atoms for Peace. As you’ll hear in this conversation, Godrich had some solid advice for Healy heading into The Invisible Band, though it’s not necessarily advice he would give anymore. Beyond his work with Radiohead and Travis, Godrich has also produced classics by Beck—including Mutations and Sea Change—and Air and Arcade Fire and Roger Waters. The list goes on.In this conversation, the two old friends talk about their state of mind and state of life back when they commenced recording The Invisible Band in Los Angeles. They talk about Godrich’s recent revelatory experience seeing the Pavement reunion tour—he also produced that band’s swan song, Terror Twilight. There’s even a story about a baby goat peeing in a very expensive guitar case. Enjoy.Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Fran Healy and Nigel Godrich for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting and social media platforms. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got a pair of singer-songwriters who don’t sound much alike, but who’ve traveled similar paths and have similar outlooks on life—oh, and who did a duet earlier this year—Frank Turner and KT Tunstall.Turner is a sort of folk-punk troubadour who’s built an incredible catalog and following over the past couple of decades from his home base in England. Like his hero Tim Barry of Avail or even Billy Bragg before him, Turner infuses truly catchy songs with a punk spirit, and he’s made a career buoyed by the fact that he never stops moving: He’s always on tour—including a recent “50 States in 50 Days” run—and always making new music. Not even the pandemic could stop him, though obviously it slowed down the live performance. During lockdown, Turner recorded his ninth album, a sort of back-to-basics affair called FTHC, which of course stands for Frank Turner Hardcore. Check out “A Wave Across a Bay” from that album, which was written as a tribute to Turner’s late friend, Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit.Also on that album is a song called “Little Life,” which Turner decided after the fact that he’d like to invite someone else to sing on. Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall perhaps wasn’t the most obvious choice, but then again, neither of these folks ever seems to make the obvious choice—and that’s definitely to their credit. Tunstall’s career, which stretches back to indie bands in the early 2000s, definitely started with a more mainstream-leaning trajectory, with BRIT awards and a Grammy nomination, even. But like Turner, Tunstall has a restless spirit, and some big life events not too long ago led her to sell everything she owns, move to Los Angeles, and dive into the world of musicals—where she has also, unsurprisingly, found success. And just last month, she released the final chapter in a trilogy of albums that were meant to convey the themes of “soul, body, and mind.” This one, called Nut—that’d be your mind—is great. Check out “Private Eyes” from that album right here.Turner and Tunstall have a really fun chat here, covering everything from The Clash and Bruce Springsteen to the weirdness of recording a song before you’ve ever played it live. The talk about the touring life a lot, and how that tribe of people have plenty in common, even when it seems like they don’t. They come up with a slogan for Tunstall’s career, and get into the reality of using a tour bus bathroom. Enjoy.Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to KT Tunstall and Frank Turner for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow us on your favorite platform, and don’t forget to check out all the other great podcasts in our network and written pieces on this very website. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time! 

On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got a musician and an actor who also both happen to host their own podcasts—do they let just anybody do that now?—Rhett Miller and Busy Philipps. Miller is best known as frontman and primary songwriter for the Old 97’s, a band that’s celebrating its 30th year together in 2022 and which is at least partly responsible for the phrase “alt-country” coming into existence. But don’t hold Miller responsible for lazy genre tags: He has written literally hundreds of incredible songs that transcend any pigeonhole you might want to shove him in. In addition to a dozen Old 97’s records, he’s also put out eight solo albums, and he tours regularly both on his own and with the 97’s. All that and, like I said, he’s got a podcast: Wheels Off features Miller in conversation with other creative folks, talking about creativity—kinda like the chat you’re about to hear! Before that, check out “Go Through You,” from Rhett Miller’s new solo album The Misfit.You can see why Miller has won some diehard fans, among them actor Busy Philipps, who was introduced to the world via the cult classic TV show Freaks And Geeks back in 1999. (You’ve seen Freaks and Geeks, right? If not, please remedy that immediately.) Philipps went on to a ton of other TV and film roles, everything from ER to Cougar Town to her own chat show to her current gig on the very funny Girls5Eva on Peacock. She’s also built a passionate following by just being herself on the podcast Busy Philipps is Doing Her Best. If you’ve never heard it, you’ll get a little taste of what it’s like in this conversation with her friend Rhett.The two are amazingly all over the place in this chat, talking about everything from why the Target stores in New Jersey are better than those in the big city, about how Philipps is dealing with her pandemic divorce—very well, as it turns out—bad advice received from a genius, Jon Brion, and how much fun it is to read ads for your podcast. I can relate. They also go deep in discussing the genius of Taylor Swift, which results in what may be a Talkhouse Podcast first: real tears captured during an episode. It’s a really great chat between two really charming people. Enjoy.Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Busy Philipps and Rhett Miller for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse—and Wheels Off, and Busy Philipps is Doing Her Best—on your favorite podcasting platform. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!