Podcast

This podcast was started as a place for me to talk about music and promote the songs from “Escape from Society.” Each episode plays a song from the album and tells some stories about how it was written or recorded, or what influenced it. Funny stories pop up and I also explain some things about my process and my ideas on music in general.

Podcasts are free and will be released about once every 2 weeks starting July 2012.  They are streaming below and here’s the link to go subscribe and get it at the iTunes Store: Escape From Society Podcast on iTunes

Episode 1: Middle of Nowhere

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This episode introduces song-poems by playing the Ron Davis classic “Escape From Society” and then moves on to discuss the song “Middle of Nowhere.”  Posted July 10, 2012.  Running time 17:36

Episode 2: The Verge

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This episode talks about recording in Las Vegas and being introduced to song-poems by Penn Jillette.  The bizarre song “At The Time” serves as an introduction to my song “The Verge.”  Posted July 17, 2012.  Running time 23:45.

Episode 3: Last Train To Paradise

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This episode plays some Harry Nilsson, Fred Neil, and Gillian Welch, while explaining why I think some jazz musicians are fools to think their jazz chops enable them to play any type of music.  Posted July 28, 2012.  Running time 26:08.

Episode 4: More Than Your Dog

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A conversation with the lyricist for the song “More Than Your Dog,” 10 year-old Carolina Komorova.  Also the classic song-poem “Woman’s Liberation.”  Posted August 8, 2012.  Running time 23:06

Episode 5: Infinite Shit

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Mostly music on this one.  I got inspired by a stretched out Justin Bieber track I found on the internet and slowed down one of my own pieces from about 2 minutes to about 18.  Posted August 25, 2012.  Running time 28:10. 

Episode 6: Tres Dedos Marron

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The song with words by NPR’s Mike Pesca, plus his original broadcast that they came from and some background about the ballplayers mentioned.  Also some of Kyle’s outtakes of the organ solo and a song from his own record.  Posted September 11, 2012.  Running time 17:00.

Episode 7: Election Edition

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None of my own music in this episode, just 4 classic song-poems about presidents in honor of our own upcoming election.  JFK, Nixon, Carter, and Reagan.  Hilarious and amazing songs.  Posted September 25, 2012.  Running Time 24:12.

Episode 8: South Philly Daze

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This is maybe my favorite story from the album.  A lyricist in Philly was afraid that her lyrics were being stolen and smuggled to the Roots and we had a bizarre conversation about her suspicions and demands.  Posted October 12, 2012.  Running time 17:46.

Episode 9: Bellarthur An Albino

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Inspired by a strange piece of spam I received, this piece is for six trombones and voice and reminds me of Guygax and Deerhoof.  Posted November 1, 2012.  Running time 20:20.

Episode 10: Thank You

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The tuba episode, featuring the epiphany I had that I was making MY OWN record and could put a TUBA SOLO on it if I wanted to and no one could stop me.  Posted November 29, 2012.  Running time 20:44.

Episode 11: So You Want to Be a Slug?

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One of the most fun songs, possibly the most psychedelic of all, gets its turn in the podcast spotlight.  What it was like working with real slugs, with a little Rodd Keith and Norris the Troubadour thrown in.  Posted December 14, 2012.  Running time 25:30.

Episode 12: Escape From Christmas

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A little revue of songs that I’ve written for the Yulenog series and more Christmas song-poems such as “Snowbows,” “Peppermint Stick Man,” and “Santa Came On A Nuclear Missile.”  Posted December 22, 2012.  Running time 28:48.

Episode 13: The Winter Storm

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Episode 13 first of 2013!  Changing the lyrics around and incorporating unusual sounds for the track “The Winter Storm”, plus a goodie from the Skeleton$ Big Band.  Posted January 16, 2013.  Running time 27:14.

Episode 14: I Flip My Rhythms

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This was the most collaboratively created piece on the album.  I worked with deaf artist Christine Kim on creating a rhythmic score and chose to not use pitches in the piece at all, a la Frank Zappa’s “Approximate” and Helmut Lachenmann’s “Pression.”  Posted February 8, 2013.  Running time 22:20.

Episode 15: Cynthia Hopkins

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This episode is a long-form interview with Cynthia Hopkins, a theater-maker whose recent work “This Clement World” I was a part of.  The subject of that show is climate change so we mostly discuss that, though we also listen to some of her music and take a couple of tangents.  Posted April 20, 2013.  Running time 1:24:52.