WTF is Sombr? Plus: Yay or Nay on Freak Folk

Steven and Ian begin with a quick conversation about living in a time of political violence and horrific videos popping up freely on social media feeds (0:00). From there, they do a hard pivot to a conversation about the recent MTV Video Music Awards (which continue to exist for some reason) and the rapid ascent of the pop-rock singer Sombr, whose recent LP I Barely Know Her dropped last month (5:45).After that, they do a "yay or nay" segment on freak folk (26:13). They also find time to finally dip into the mailbag, where they answer emails about the best "day" bands (32:02) and whether it's okay to wear a band T-shirt to that band's concert (39:33).In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about emo band Algernon Cadwallader and Steven goes for the Michigan rock outfit Liquid Mike (45:30).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 256 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven and Ian begin with a cute story about Michael Stipe logging into Bluesky and clarifying commonly misstated lyrics for R.E.M.'s "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)," the latest stop on the band's world-class old-guy retirement (1:43). They also talk about news that Radiohead is going back on the road for the first time in seven years (8:13).Steven also does a quick Sportscast on the Packers acquiring Micah Parsons, and what this means for the team's Super Bowl chances (13:16). From there, they do an update on the Fantasy Albums Draft, which looks very close (18:33). Then they review the new Big Thief album, and discuss where one of the most acclaimed indie bands of recent years stands now (26:15). After that, they do a "yay or nay" segment on Slipknot (43:36).In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about post-hardcore band La Dispute and Steven goes for '90s-style country singer Zach Top (47:43).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 254 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven and Ian begin with a quick Swift-cast about the pop singer's recent engagement (1:06), and then segue to a Sportscast segment about the potential dominance of the Philadelphia Eagles and the weird ineptitude of the Dallas Cowboys (5:07). After that, they discuss the recent album by Deftones, private music, and the group's current "critic's darling" status (12:38). Speaking of critics, the guys talk about a recent "state of music criticism" thinkpiece about whether music critics now are too nice (26:02). Then they do a "yay or nay" segment on Beach House (47:15).In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about the new album by emo band Hot Mulligan and Steven talks up the indie-R&B project Nourished By Time (52:14)New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 253 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven and Ian open with a quick Sportscast about the new Dallas Cowboys documentary on Netflix, which Steven loves (1:05). They also discuss a viral tweet about the supposed best rock songs of the last 25 years, which includes a lot of "not best" songs (8:09). Then they check in on the Fantasy Album Draft, discussing new releases by Water From Your Eyes, Nourished By Time, and Wolf Alice (17:48). After that, they review the new Mac DeMarco album, Guitar, his first "vocal" release in six years (29:39). After that, they do a "yay or nay" on Belle And Sebastian (42:59).In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about the new Pool Kids record and Steven goes for Greg Freeman (48:31).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 252 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven and Ian open with an acknowledgement of the show's fifth anniversary, which actually occurred a few weeks ago (0:30). From there, they note the announcement of yet another new Taylor Swift album and liken her to the MCU (3:43). They also talk about Steven's son recently getting into Eminem, and the scarcity of "danger-coded" music now (11:45). After that, they talk about the new Ethel Cain album and disagree slightly on its strengths and weaknesses (24:13). They also note the arrival of a new Chance The Rapper album, and how such news would have been a much bigger deal 10 years ago (33:43). Then they do a "yay or nay" on My Chemical Romance (46:00).In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about the slow-core band Teethe and Steven goes for veteran indie rocker Cass McCombs (49:52).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 252 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We open this week in a very unexpected place: "Home," the 2010 hit by Edward Sharpe And The Magnetic Zeros, which had a viral moment this week that went on for days. What is it about this song that people hate so much, and what are some of the actual worst songs of all time? (0:58)The guys also talk about the recent Billy Joel documentary, which Ian recently watched, and pick the modern-day equivalent to the Piano Man (16:47). After a brief check-in on the Fantasy Album Draft (27:45), Steven and Ian run down a list of classic albums turning 20 in the next month or so, including landmark releases from My Morning Jacket, the New Pornographers, Wolf Parade, and more (30:42). They also do a "yay or nay" segment on Death Cab For Cutie (41:24).In Recommendation Corner, Ian recommends Anamanaguchi and Steven stumps for Tyler Childers (49:07).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 251 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven and Ian open this week's episode with Steven reflecting on his experience seeing Oasis in London (5:38). Ian counters with his own big concert experience -- Waka Flocka at San Diego SeaWorld (9:35). From there, they touch on some news that they missed when Steven was overseas, including the death of Ozzy Osbourne (15:22), the new Tame Impala single (24:42), and the trend of indie artists leaving Spotify (33:27). They also do a "yay or nay" on music reunions (43:35). In the mailbag, they address Indigo De Souza's reaction to a recent negative review (47:49).In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about the shoegaze band Bleary Eyed and Steven stumps for psych-rocker Cory Hanson (1:02:32).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 250 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey, with Steven out of town this week, the guys planned a banked episode featuring emails from you, the Indiecast listener. Topics include the growing instances of AI songs showing up under the names of real bands (including Uncle Tupelo) (11:13), the biggest "jaw dropper" moments when listening to albums for the first time (25:05), the best musician biopics (34:34), and the surprisingly decline (maybe?) of phones at concerts (45:46).In Recommendation Corner, Ian talks about the latest from ambient band Disiniblud and Steven goes for the indie-country act Ryan Davis And The Roadhouse Band (51:58).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 249 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven and Ian open with a quick conversation about fireworks and fireworks-adjacent emo music. Then they dive into the outcry from Lorde fans about the faulty "transparent" CD edition of her latest album, Virgin (3:36). Steven is excited to see CD discourse go mainstream, though he worries that this bad publicity might turn people off to the format.After that, they discuss the AI band The Velvet Sundown, which has already racked up 500,000 monthly listeners on Spotify in just a few weeks (11:02). They also talk about the recent Glastonbury Festival and speculate on why European music festivals look so much more fun than American ones (22:11). Finally, they do the Q3 Fantasy Albums Draft, and talk about some of the most anticipated releases of the next three months (33:50).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 246 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steven and Ian begin with a conversation about Virgin, the new album by Lorde out today (2:20). Judging by the singles, it's not clear if this is going to be the comeback she needs. They also talked about Guitar, the new album just announced by Mac DeMarco, his first "proper" record of songs in years (15:15).Then they pivoted to a conversation about the weird state of music in 2025 (24:14), which already seems like a weaker year than 2024, before they each listed their five favorite releases of the past six months (30:26).New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 243 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.