87. Valerie June - We Are Oracles

In this episode we get to meet Tunde Adebimpe. Tunde is best known as one of the co-founders, singers, and songwriters of the influential indie rock band TV On the Radio. But now he has a debut solo LP called Thee Black Boltz, and this conversation, we talk a lot about how this record came to be, a process that included rescuing some archival recordings and crafting brand new work. We also touch on TV on the Radio's legacy and their "reunion" tour. Then we, of course, talk about Tunde's film work (as he is also an accomplished actor), including his recent role on Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, and his time making one of my all-time favorite films, Jonathan Demme's Rachel Getting Married. I was thrilled to chat with such a titan, and I think you'll enjoy. Thanks for listening.

In this episode, we get to meet singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer Valerie June. Here, Valerie and I go deep into her brand new record, Owls, Omens, and Oracles, including the themes, production, and writing of these genre-defying songs. We touch on music history, including Appalachian and Delta folk music, as well as the concept of being positive or optimistic in times like these. Valerie spoke with a candid warmth and was a real open book, and I think you'll enjoy this talk if you like any of her work, but also if you just want to listen to a really good talk about life, art, philosophy, history, and the like. Be transported with her like I was. Thank you for listening. 

In this episode, we get to meet Daughter of Swords, aka Alex Sauser-Monnig. Alex just released a brand new solo album under their Daughter of Swords moniker, appropriately titled Alex, and in this chat, we discuss the record at length, including its varied themes (of both personal and societal contexts), the creation of the record, and also the huge aesthetic shift from their first DoS record, Dawnbreaker. We also talk about their various side projects, like The A's with Sylvan Esso's Amelia Meath, or the trio they and Amelia share with Molly Sarle called Mountain Man. There's also the topic of the booming North Carolina music scene - spearheaded by the Psychic Hotline indie music group led by Sylvan Esso - and what it means for them to be a part of such a special family of talented folks. Thank you for listening.

In this chat, we get to meet Baths, aka Will Wiesenfeld. Will just released his latest record - and first in a while - as Baths, called Gut, and in this conversation we dive deep into the new LP. We talk about its musicality, which is much more rock-leaning than his prior Baths work; we talk about the writing process; and we talk about the incredibly raw, honest lyricism, which revolves largely around sex and sexuality, and all the ups & downs that come with that. Thankfully, Will was just as frank in our conversation, willing to be as "open book" as I asked him to be. We also touch on his score work, the glory of bicycling, and the queer mecca that is Provincetown, MA. (Believe me - it all connects.) Thank you for listening.

In this episode, we get to meet singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist Basia Bulat. Basia just released a brand new album - the lovely Basia's Palace - in February, and in this conversation, we go deep into it. The process of making it (which included a mostly-remote workflow with producer Tucker Martine), the themes, the desires for this project, and more. We also take a dive into the world of video games, especially old games and their beautiful midi soundtracks, which were a surprising touchstone for Bulat on this LP. (Paging fans of Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger, and the like!) We take time to mention U.S. Girls, too, a band that Bulat has been associated with for years. It's a fun, free-flowing conversation, full of gratitude and love and good vibes, if I do say so myself. Thank you for listening.

CONTENT WARNING: Emotional and narcissistic abuse (specifically via a parent). And now for a second helping of my new subseries. In episode two of WE MEET AGAIN, A MEET OUR MAKERS SUBSERIES, we catch up with Azure Ray's Orenda Fink. Last time we spoke was around the release of her band's last album, Remedy, but this chat was spurred by a very different release: Fink's debut memoir, The Witch's Daughter. Because we'd already "met," I think we were able to go deeper and further faster and with more candor, which is fitting given the startling honesty and blunt storytelling in Fink's book, which largely circles around her fraught relationship with her mother, and the realization that she and her sister were victims of their mother's narcissistic abuse for most of their lives. As she recounts scattered memories from childhood through adulthood, Fink reveals some shockingly personal details about her upbringing and her efforts to separate herself from her mother's abuse. In this chat, Fink speaks with just as much candor about the book, her personal story, and where she is now. I couldn't be more appreciative of her time and her openness. The Witch's Daughter is out now, and while it is a tough sit sometimes, I think it's a vitally important book and beautifully told story of recognizing and then trying to transcend emotional hardship.

And now for something a little different. This is the first episode in what I hope will be an ongoing "subseries" of Meet Our Makers, called We Meet Again. Today, we talk (again) to Half Waif, aka Nandi Rose. In this series, I will be interviewing people a second time, only this time, we can cut through all the noise and background and introductions. Instead, we can get right to it. We (sort of) already know each other, so let's just dive in, right? We get to really dig into Nandi Rose's newest (startlingly personal) Half Waif record, my personal AOTY, See You At The Maypole. Content warning: This episode DOES contain some explicit language about miscarriages, so consider that before hitting play. I think this is actually a better conversation than the one we first had almost three years ago, and I'm so happy we got to do this. Thanks Nandi. And thank YOU for diving into this new venture with me. There will be more of these (and more regular episodes!) to come.

In this episode, we get to meet Gareth Paisey, the lead singer of indie rockers Los Campesinos! In this chat, Gareth and I discuss the band's newest record All Hell, which came out this past summer on the band's own label. We talk about the interim between it and its predecessor Sick Scenes, the production and background of this new one, as well as his own love-hate relationship with songwriting. We talk about the band's growth and legacy, as well as what Gareth's favorite parts of being in a band like Los Campesinos are. All Hell is probably their strongest record yet, and one of 2024's best, so if you haven't caught up with it, go take a listen, and then come hang out with us. Thank you for listening.

In this episode, we get to meet Hayden Thorpe. Hayden is a singer/songwriter from the UK, who is probably best known for his band Wild Beasts. Although they disbanded a few years ago, Hayden has been working hard within a solo sphere, and has just put out his third record, NESS, which is based upon a book by Robert Macfarlane, which itself is about the very real place of Orford Ness, a defunct military test side island off the coast of the UK. In this chat, Hayden and I discuss the conception, musicality, and production of Ness the album, but also go deep into the place it's inspired by - including the tamed and untamed wilderness there, the confluence of past and present. We talk what it was like relinquishing lyrical control, as almost all the lyrics are taken straight from Macfarlane's book. We also touch on Wild Beasts (a band I love) and what it was like working with them for so long and carving out their very distinct identity, and then having it come to a close. Thank you for listening.

In this episode, we get to meet Henry Hall. Henry is a musician and actor from LA, whose new album, Stop Doing Funny Stuff, is out now. (That didn't stop me from screwing up the title of it TWICE, but, I digress.) In this chat, Henry and I discuss the record and its myriad of influences and styles. We talk inspiration - both lyrically and musically - of folks as eclectic as Patsy Cline, Morrissey, and Jens Lekman. We also touch on his comedy lineage, as Henry is the son of comedy legends Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Brad Hall. We talk his own discovery of and relationship with comedy, including his own lead series role in the new show Dinner With the Parents, as well as the glory that is Julia's show, Veep. We talk about a lot more, too; it's a very casual, fun, funny, light-hearted conversation. Thank you for listening.