Vinyl Emergency

Hot on the heels of I Built You A Tower — Death Cab for Cutie's 11th album, released earlier this month — bassist and founding member Nick Harmer tells us why this LP is the band's loudest in a long time. Plus, a deep dive into his personal record-hunting habits, how the group culled through nearly 100 demos to shape this release, and pinpointing the connecting tissue between Tower's themes of grief, apathy and change. Tour dates, socials and more are available at deathcabforcutie.com.

It seems that Mike Reed's musical journey has been supported and surrounded by family from the very beginning -- whether his dad was building a stage, his uncle was installing a lighting rig, or having his brother Ben Reed at his side through Small Brown Bike, Able Baker Fox or their latest project, 84 Tigers. On this week's show, Mike details the DIY efforts -- usually involving similar DNA -- that it's taken over the years to steer his musical vision. Plus, ahead of a 25th anniversary performance of their landmark album Dead Reckoning at this year's Fest 24, why reuniting Small Brown Bike without guitarist Travis Dopp (who passed away in 2023) wasn't originally an easy place to get to. Visit thefestfl.com for tickets, and hear 84 Tigers' new album Nothing Ends wherever you stream music. Find it on vinyl from either spartanrecords.com or 84tigersband.com.

Having already penned much-heralded books on both John Prine and Jason Molina, author Erin Osman is now tackling the wide genre of heartland rock — which she defines more by a spiritual and ideological geography, rather than a literal one. And while Bob Seger, Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and John Mellancamp round out the Mount Rushmore of sorts for this soundtrack of working class 80's middle-America, Osmon casts a needed spotlight on the likes of Bonnie Raitt, Tracy Chapman, Lucinda Williams and Bruce Hornsby within the pages of 'Won't Back Down,' available now wherever you get literature. On this week's show, Osman expands upon the relationship between art and province, and why the subject matter of 'Won't Back Down' stretches across generations. Plus, details on her current role on the editorial staff of the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum in Nashville, and how her two decades as a music journalist have led her there. Visit erinosmon.com for more info, past works and a killer playlist of tunes featured in 'Won't Back Down.' Music on this episode is from The Pretty Flowers, available digitally or on vinyl at theprettyflowers.bandcamp.com or forgeagainrecords.bandcamp.com.

This is an encore presentation of a previous episode.
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Global superstar Hozier ("Take Me To Church," "Too Sweet") discusses his appreciation for analog experiences, and some personal anecdotes on how records by Howlin' Wolf, D'Angelo and more -- specifically on vinyl -- have influenced his own creative output. Plus, singer/songwriter Courtney Marie Andrews and Dawes lead vocalist/guitarist Taylor Goldsmith share their thoughts about the importance of wax in a digital world. These conversations were recorded backstage at the 2018 edition of the Pilgrimage Music and Cultural Festival in Franklin, TN.

Thanks to vinyl's nearly two decades of steady growth and new pressing plants popping up almost annually, the physical act of getting LP's pressed as an independent artist is easier than ever. But, that's not to say that it's easy. Canadian singer/songwriter Tenille Townes, for instance, recently found herself taking the leap out of the Nashville country music machine and funding, recording and pressing her new album The Acrobat completely on her own. This included a modest vinyl pre-order goal of 300 copies, still more than she'd ever sold via pre-order while with a proper label. Luckily, the fan base she's been slowly building through Billboard Canada Country chart number ones and (as NPR says) "passionate and empathetic songs that capture the complexities of the heartland" more than tripled that original estimate. On this week's show, Tenille details the nuts and bolts of bringing The Acrobat from a laptop in her bedroom to turntables around the globe, and all the dollars and doubt that came with it. The Acrobat is available now via all digital platforms, and on vinyl from tenilletownes.com.