Six Strings of Tension

It is an immense privilege to welcome genius guitarist extraordinaire Shane Parish to the show. Incredibly kind and humble, he radiates an essence of calm and clarity, while seemingly pulsating with musical vibration, excitement and wisdom.We walk through Shane's history as a player, discovering guitar and music as a teenager, and effectively dropping out of high school to work as a self-taught guitarist and musician more broadly. His journey is truly unique (and immeasurably admirable) in that as a self-taught guitarist he learned how to read music, and actively drank from whatever wells of musical knowledge and theory he was able to access from a diverse and unexpected range of sources (shout out to Freddie Bryant). Bear in mind that only a fraction of the folks who have been on this podcast are capable of even the basic rudiments of reading (let alone transcribing) music.And so today we have the Shane Parish we know and love who is capable of transcribing Bill Orcutt's digitally constructed compositions for four guitars (we also hear how this monumental meeting of some of the greatest minds and fingers in the world of guitar came to pass), and decoding the electronic music of Autechre to create a solo acoustic guitar album, which to my ear sounds as informed by John Renbourn as British electronica. The conversation is seriously one for the heads, and it delves deep into conceptual frameworks for understanding and interpreting guitar playing (and things like mechanics, timbre, kinesthetic feel, dynamics, entering a trance state, etc.), composition, transcription, improvisation and performance, as well as Shane's application of philosophy, and specifically Aristotle's Poetics to inform his playing and sequencing on the album "Undertaker Please Drive Slow".There's a lot to dive into here, and it's impossible to try and summarise the whole conversation into any kind of meaningful blurb. I cannot thank Shane enough for taking the time to talk. Seriously, do yourself a favour and listen to the whole thing - this is a conversation about guitar not to be missed. And above all else - get out there and listen to Shane Parish!

Very rad conversation with all around excellent dude and main man of The Modern Folk, Josh Moss. Remarkably prolific, immeasurably active in the scene, and a seriously deep thinker without the veil of pretentiousness, it's certainly a conversation that is worth your time to check out. We talk about musical exploration, and the constant evolution and experimentation of the Modern Folk and its numerous iterations, as well as Josh's musical history with roots in Appalachia, and now as a well established mainstay of the Portland, OR underground. This musical voyage is inextricably tied to Josh's love of recording, starting with recording his teenage punk band (which, amazingly, is available on bandcamp - link in episode description), and the undeniable magic of creating a physical object which holds the music you have created. I mean, that's a feeling I struggle to explain, but Josh articulates it beautifully here. One of my favourite topics is also touched upon, which is the question of what is folk music? Josh has some really solid thoughts in this respect, and also checks me back into gear (in the most kind and diplomatic way possible, with some cold hard insights) when I start my slandering off the folk purists. Again, the conversation lands on themes of participation and building a community around, and ultimately transcending, the music itself, and Josh is a real example to those of us who find ourselves becoming too insular and focusing on our own creative output. The man has run blogs, written for various websites, recorded countless shows and other artists' music on their behalf, coordinated compilations, put together shows, played on other peoples' songs and albums, and is constantly contributing to something bigger than his own personal musical explorations. And then on top of that there is the Modern Folk's insanely prolific output! We are lucky to live in a world with J Moss <3Enjoy the episode!

Just a super cool and inspiring dude, playing insanely rad music, running excellent labels, pressing vinyl like a boss - Michael Potter is for sure one of my favourite people I I have been fortunate enough to interview.We talk about Michael's experience of living in Minneapolis under the ICE reign of terror, and other horrors the American experience has to offer. But swiftly get back on track and unpack Michael's musical journey from childhood to the present day, discovering Sonic Youth, writing letters to Bruce Russel whilst in middle school in rural Georgia, and forging a pretty unique and singular musical path, resulting in a rich, extensive and eclectic discography to show for it.But Michael is just a thoughtful, interesting guy who's done a whole lot of living, made a whole load of music, and collaborated with an endless list of incredible musicians, so I'd suggest kicking back and listening to the man share some tales and drop some wisdom. Most importantly, go and listen to the Electric Nature - Mount Analogue is a great place to start.Take care folks.

Really stoked to have a new (to me) player on the show who I only first heard this year. Matthew Geary is making probably the finest American Primitive guitar music I've heard in 2026, and he's been seriously getting out there, with two cassettes released this year on Carbon and Scissor Tail Records respectively, as well as playing a relentless slew of live shows, and touring with last week's guest, Rob Mohan.It was really interesting to talk to Matt as someone from Philadelphia, who inadvertently saw Jack Rose open for Sunn O))) back when he was an impressionable 13 year old kid, and over nearly two decades has seen his guitar and music making endeavours come full circle from that moment. We talk music, guitar, technique, touring, recording, writing, but also dive into the emotional and expressive side of music, as well as broader topics like loneliness, the opioid epidemic, the inspirational writing of Cormac McCarthy, and a whole bunch of other stuff.Matt is an incredibly inspirational guitarist who really seems to be in the thick of his creative stride right now, with a whole lot lined up for the future. Looking forward to having another conversation in a few years' time to revisit his journey down this road.

A wonderful chat this episode with Rob Mohan, aka Night Owl. I really enjoyed this conversation - it took place between a bunch of travelling I had to do for work, and was a much needed refuge to decompress and talk guitar, music, art, community, family, and other interrelated topics of interest. Rob is a really special guitar player, who, to my ears, has mastered a unique style of playing which blends the orthodoxy and deep rooted traditional style and sound of American Primitive with the more earnestly beautiful and hopeful sound of transcendental guitar soli. We talk guitar, composition, tunings, capos, inspiration, etc. but the real good stuff for me is the conversation about family and balancing musical and artistic pursuits alongside nurturing a family, raising kids, and juggling a full time job. Not to mention the impact that these other priorities in life have materially on the type of art you create. Anyway, I really enjoyed this conversation, so check it out, but more importantly, check out Rob's music, both under his own name (for more instrumental guitar focused stuff) and as Night Owl (for instrumentally and tonally broader singer, songwriter type stuff) - it's all good and deserves a deep listen!

Were I a gambling man, my money would be on everybody (in the world of instrumental acoustic guitar, which is, admittedly, a limited world of people) knowing the name William DeLee by the end of 2026. He is finger-picking wizard playing solo acoustic guitar, charango and ronroco in a style that has extended beyond the trappings of the increasingly popular American Primitive style, and embraced flamenco and classical techniques to land on something truly unique and transcendental (bear in mind, I'm saying this as someone who absolutely loves AP). He has a full length record coming out in June on Carbon and Feeding Tube Records, and a tour with (king of AP) Liam Grant lined up for July, so the momentum is just starting to build.Our conversation covers Will's history with guitar (and a range of other instruments too), how he developed his technique and landed on his distinctive style of playing. But a prevalent thread throughout the discussion is the importance of community and connection with other people in getting Will to where he is today. Within the first three minutes of us talking he says "I can't emphasise enough how much of a mentor Rob [Vaughn] has been", while he shares numerous accounts of friends introducing him to music, his meeting with Skyler Pia at university (who now, years later, has recorded part of Will's forthcoming LP), and subsequently meeting Emmett Martin of Bud Tapes, who ultimately recorded and released Will's first EP, amongst other friendships that have nudged his musical journey along the way. It's a pertinent reminder of the importance of community and connection in this world of underground music, and frankly, in life generally.Also, as a fellow South African, I've got to shout out Derek Gripper, because after we stopped recording Will suddenly realised he hadn't mentioned how encountering Derek's Tiny Desk Concert on YouTube was a critical formative moment in helping him recognise the possibilities of acoustic guitar.

This time we have a great conversation with one of my favourite artists flying under the radar, Merit Fisher-Medrano. Merit performs under the moniker Sound and Voice, and released what is one of the finest albums of 2026, entitled "All My Dreams Are Absent From Me" on beautiful, hexagonally cut double lathe vinyl. If you have an interest in psychedelic acoustic music and great songwriting, I strongly suggest you check it out. In addition to his work as a musician, Merit also runs the wonderfully homespun label Tepid Toad, which releases lathe cut releases exclusively, cut by Merit himself at home. Every release is unique, limited, and an incredible work of art in itself. From his home studio, Merit has constructed an incredible world of sound and art, which we are fortunate to glimpse into.

This episode constitutes a remarkably wide-ranging and thoroughly enjoyable conversation with Joe Tunis of Carbon Records; a creator and artistic conceptualiser of note. To the outside observer, Joe is an insanely busy musician, artist, and curator of musical releases and shows. He generally disagrees with being called "busy" (which is wild), but some of his ongoing projects include: putting out a steady slew of diverse releases on Carbon Records (for over 30 years now!), doing his annual Joe+N Day Tour, organising what's become the annual (week long!) Carbon Fest, playing blizzard shows with the outlandishly performative project, Tumul, participating in at least 5 different musical projects, and endless other boundary pushing musical and performative exploits. Our discussion covers a broad range of topics, from Joe's musical history, to his artistic exploits, the trials and tribulations of running a label, organising shows, the interplay between personal and community expression, and a whole load of other stuff. We also briefly chat a bit about guitar and Joe's history with the instrument. For me, this is a conversation not to be missed!

We return with none other than the mighty wielder of 12-strings for the bands Elkhorn and Universal Light (and bassist / six string player for a bunch of others), Jesse Sheppard. The conversation meanders through the valleys and creeks of American Primitive, the USA underground, the musings of a lifetime spent making and being surrounded by amazing music, making videos, putting together the legendary 1000 Incarnations of the Rose Festival, and journeying through time, letting the music simply bloom along the way. Questions of community, orthodoxy in playing, and what drives us to create music thread through the conversation. Definitely one of the best chats I've had in ages. Huge thanks to Jesse for taking the time to talk.

For the first time on the podcast we have the privilege of being joined by a guitarist extraordinaire from that most illustrious of cities straddling between the Pacific coast and Blue Mountains, Sydney, Australia. He is a man with three decade's worth of experience as an active musician and DJ, and is currently carving out a path as an ecstatic primitive acoustic guitarist who dabbles in the blues-rooted traditions of American Primitive, but also bends this medium into what can be termed "madcap ambient" forms - most evident on his most recent album, Wizrad, which dropped last Friday. This isolated Australian axe-wielder is none other than Darren DC Cross. Our conversation veers through Darren's rich musical history, including collaborations with the likes of Kylie Minogue and Kool Keith, playing gigs with the Avalanches and hearing the songs that would later become their breakthrough album "Since I Left You", as well as touring with an endless list of the finest and wildest musicians and bands of the 90s and 2000s. And while a history like his undoubtedly makes for interesting conversation, the real meat of our chat (for me at least) lies in Darren's philosophy around solo acoustic guitar, as he talks about how he approaches each album and adapts his playing by adopting a new tuning and embracing new techniques. I reckon there's a lot to be learned and embraced by other players in listening to how he pushes himself on the instrument to expand his technique and compositional prowess. We also talk guitars and discuss his most recent custom made Opus acoustic, and bond over our shared feelings of disgust for Ovation guitars. Key takeaway is that plastic guitars are awful and Florentine cutaways are the best. Anyway, check out the interview, but much more importantly, go and listen to his latest album Wizrad on thee bandcamps (while it is still alive)!