Hello, Cleveland! This week, Producer Mike continues his quest to make Discord & Rhyme more metal by turning it up to 11 with an episode on England’s loudest band, Spinal Tap. The fictional Spinal Tap consists of guitarists David St. Hubbins and Nigel Tufnel, bassist Derek Smalls, and a series of cursed drummers, whose misadventures are chronicled in the 1984 mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap. The real Spinal Tap consists of Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer, three exceptionally gifted comedians who know what makes metal tick and are very smart at playing dumb. And that extends to the movie’s soundtrack, whose songs walk the line between sophisticated songwriting and sounding like they could conceivably have been written by three boneheads. Because why waste good music on a brain? Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, Rich Bunnell, John McFerrin Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/146-spinal-tap-this-is-spinal-tap-1984 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod Pete and the Escapologists - Chronicles of a Dead End: https://peteescapologists.bandcamp.com/album/chronicles-of-a-dead-end

George Harrison was reaching his creative peak in the late 1960s, but famously had a difficult time getting the other Beatles interested in recording his songs. So when they broke up in 1970, George got a massive group of musicians together and recorded his entire backlog to release all at once. All Things Must Pass was the first ever triple album by a single artist, and (apart from Apple Jam) is a tightly focused, intense, cathartic listening experience unmatched in popular music. In this episode, Amanda, Ben, and Mike do their best to dissect this extremely dense album and prove that George Harrison was a brilliant musician and deserves the highest respect. Cohosts: Amanda Rodgers, Mike DeFabio, Ben Marlin Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/145-george-harrison-all-things-must-pass-1970 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

In 1994, Green Day introduced a whole new generation to punk rock with their major label debut, Dookie. There has been a lot of discourse over the years about whether or not Green Day are “real” punk rock, but Dookie has endured as a classic of ‘90s rock, containing numerous standards that have long-since been memorized by anyone reasonably fluent in the rock of the era. Phil discovered Green Day when he was 12 years old - the ideal age for absorbing their combination of crude-but-relatable lyrics and hyper-catchy music, and he still loves them to this day, so he’s absolutely thrilled to get a chance to talk to Dan and Rich about how much he loves Dookie. Cohosts: Phil Maddox, Rich Bunnell, Dan Watkins Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/144-green-day-dookie-1994 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

It's time for our annual summer break, so we're letting an episode out of the Patreon vault in which Mike, Rich, and Amanda discussed some of our favorite one-hit wonders, as defined in our own heads. (Amanda is not sorry for the extremely corny title of this episode.) Make sure you listen until the end to hear Producer Mike's mashup masterpiece! The hits include: Pure Prairie League - Amie Link Wray - Rumble Nu Shooz - I Can't Wait Gotye - Somebody That I Used to Know The Crazy World of Arthur Brown - Fire Deee-Lite - Groove Is In the Heart Climax Blues Band - Couldn't Get it Right Argent - Hold Your Head Up Mark Morrison - Return of the Mack Loreena McKennitt - The Mummers' Dance Wall of Voodoo - Mexican Radio Ylvis - The Fox The Other Leading Brand - Groove Is In a Lonely Heart (also the intro is from That Thing You Do! but you probably knew that) Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Mike DeFabio, Amanda Rodgers Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

In the early 1970s, Jonathan Richman assembled a band that recorded a groundbreaking set of songs fusing garage-rock sensibilities with his own entirely unique worldview. Unfortunately, before The Modern Lovers managed to complete a proper album, Richman’s musical interests drifted into an entirely different direction, ultimately leading to the dissolution of this version of the band. The collection of recordings that finally saw release as 1976’s The Modern Lovers stands as a snapshot of a band at a specific moment in time and has served as an endless source of inspiration for punk and indie artists ever since. Take a spin past the Stop and Shop and join us with the radio on for a chat about this groundbreaking classic. Cohosts: Dan Watkins, Rich Bunnell, Phil Maddox Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/143-the-modern-lovers-the-modern-lovers-1976 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

For our annual Moody Blues episode, we’re traveling back to the beginning (sort of) and finally discussing Days of Future Passed. Although the band themselves dismissed this idea, this album is clearly one of the starting points of progressive rock, and it’s certainly one of the earliest concept albums. It’s unique not just in the Moody Blues’ discography but in all of popular music, and we had a fantastic time discussing all the reasons why it’s still so beautiful, moving, effective, and entertaining 57 years after it was first released. Cohosts: Phil Maddox, Mike DeFabio, John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/142-the-moody-blues-days-of-future-passed-1967 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Get ready for some classic Americana, brought to you by four Canadians (and one American), discussed by four Americans (including one living in Canada). Because Neil Young and Joni Mitchell weren't enough, Ben goes back to the frozen north for the Band's 1968 debut album, Music From Big Pink. Ben discusses why he loves the Band and Music From Big Pink, joined by Amanda, Dan, and Mike. Cohosts: Ben Marlin, Mike DeFabio, Amanda Rodgers, Dan Watkins Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/141-the-band-music-from-big-pink-1968 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

R.E.M. spent the decade after Murmur growing steadily more successful, their popularity cresting with the 1991 #1 album Out of Time and its inescapable hit single “Losing My Religion.” But instead of going on an exhausting world tour like most bands would, R.E.M. went right back into the studio and recorded Automatic for the People, an album that defies rock star excess at nearly every turn. You probably know “Everybody Hurts” and “Man on the Moon,” which are still radio standards to this day, and with good reason. But even those songs were much more downcast and introspective than one would expect from a band at the height of their popularity. Automatic for the People is the sound of R.E.M. entering their thirties and taking stock of their place in both music and the world, and though it may take some time to sink in, John, Phil, Rich, and special guest Jeff Blehar all consider it one of their best albums. So join us for part 2 of a band that cannot be contained by one episode, and calluswhenyoutrytowakeherup. Cohosts: John McFerrin, Phil Maddox, Rich Bunnell, Jeff Blehar Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/140-rem-automatic-for-the-people-1992 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

We’ve held off on R.E.M. for a while, because the Athens, Ga., quartet is just such a heavyweight in the rock canon. They’re so huge, in fact, that they merit two episodes: one for the mumbly, Byrdsy alt-rock troubadours of the ‘80s, and one for the slightly less mumbly arena rock titans of the ‘90s and onward. We’re starting off with their 1983 debut Murmur, which fueled the rise of college radio with songs that were strangely out of time (so to speak) with the trends of the ‘80s. The compositions on Murmur are so hazy and oblique that they almost resist analysis, and that’s before you even consider Michael Stipe’s lyrics. But John, Mike, Phil, and Ben are willing to give it their best shot, so join them as they embark on a long-delayed pilgrimage west of the fields to discuss one of this podcast’s favorite bands. Cohosts: John McFerrin, Mike DeFabio, Phil Maddox, Ben Marlin Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/139-rem-murmur-1983 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Rich, Mike, and Amanda answer a bonanza of questions from listeners. Topics include retro prog, great live albums and not-so-great live shows, fantasy supergroups, synesthesia, our favorite recent releases, and no fewer than three questions about the Moody Blues. Listen through to the end for a special request to listeners! Clips: Peter Gabriel - Start Def Leppard - Animal The Moody Blues - Here Comes the Weekend Ween - Friends The Velvet Underground - I'll Be Your Mirror LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends Jenny Conlee - Hawk (Dorian) Mary Timony - No Thirds Marnie Stern - Plain Speak Peter Gabriel - i/o (Dark-Side Mix) Days Between Stations - The Man Who Died Two Times Mondo Drag - Out of Sight Opeth - Heart in Hand iamthemorning - 5/4 Liza Minnelli - I Want You Now Robert Wyatt - Sea Song Johnny Cash - A Boy Named Sue (live) Oingo Boingo - No Spill Blood (live) Underworld - Cups/Push Upstairs (live) Girls5eva - Famous 5eva Lalo Schifrin - Theme from Mannix Andy Partridge - I Wonder Why the Wonderfalls The Simpsons - Canyonero Bob's Burgers - Thanksgiving Song The Simpsons - Lisa, It's Your Birthday Theme: The Moody Blues - "Question" Amanda on synesthesia: https://discordpod.com/blog/synesthesia-corner Rich on synesthesia: https://discordpod.com/blog/synesthesia-corner-vol-2-born-to-synesthete

Peter Gabriel is a favorite artist of many of us here at Discord & Rhyme, but we’ve saved him for our own 138th Episode Spectacular. Peter Gabriel III (aka Melt, so called because half of Gabriel’s face on the album cover looks like a melting candle) isn’t just John’s favorite Peter Gabriel album; it’s an album that made him reconsider (in a favorable light) the entirety of popular music in the 1980s and the concept of using the production studio to create entirely new sounds, and John leads a very enthusiastic discussion on an album that we love very much. Join John, Amanda, Rich, and Mike as we gush over an album that transformed solo Peter Gabriel into something greater than “the guy who used to sing for Genesis”; a dark noisy hellscape frontier of an album full of burglars, assassins, and not one cymbal anywhere. Cohosts: John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers, Rich Bunnell, Mike DeFabio Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/138-peter-gabriel-peter-gabriel-iii-1980 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Hear that? There goes the siren that warns of the air raid – or maybe that’s just Bruce Dickinson’s voice. This week, Mike continues his quest to make Discord & Rhyme more metal with the album Powerslave by Iron Maiden. In the popular consciousness, Maiden are known for their goofy album covers and hits like “Bring Your Daughter … to the Slaughter.” But if you dig just a little deeper, they were vanguards of the new wave of British heavy metal, with a seven-album run in the ‘80s that ranks among the greatest winning streaks of the album era, metal or otherwise. Powerslave is arguably their peak, boasting some of their greatest compositions and brainiest lyrics, with subjects running the gamut from The Prisoner to the military-industrial complex to the dawn of British Romanticism. But most importantly, it rocks, and Mike has invited Phil, John, and Rich to discuss eight amazing songs that will put you at a losfer words. Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, Phil Maddox, John McFerrin, Rich Bunnell Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/137-iron-maiden-powerslave-1984 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Kylie Minogue had a big comeback last year with the Grammy-winning TikTok hit “Padam Padam,” so Rich decided that it was finally time to give the Discord & Rhyme treatment to one of his favorite divas. Kylie’s 2007 album X wasn’t just an artistic comeback, but a physical and emotional one, recorded in the wake of her grueling but successful treatment for breast cancer. At the time, there was a groundswell of anticipation for her next big move, and X was the first album Kylie conceived as a singular project, rather than the latest entry in a production line of releases. Accordingly, there’s a certain vivaciousness and a willingness to try anything on this album that makes it unlike anything in her catalog, with songs that evoke Timbaland, Serge Gainsbourg and ‘90s R&B sitting alongside Kylie’s trademark Eurodisco. Some of the experiments work better than others, but the album as a whole is a fascinating portrait of a moment in time, both for mid-2000s pop music as well as Kylie herself. And Rich has invited returning guests Jen Carman and Dave Weigel to help elaborate on why you, too, should be so lucky to become a Kylie stan. Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Jen Carman, Dave Weigel, Mike DeFabio Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/136-kylie-minogue-x-2007 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Amanda has been threatening to talk about bluegrass on the podcast for years, and we finally settled on the perfect album to start with: Live!!!! Almost!!! by the Dillards. Half a comedy album and half a virtuoso performance by expert musicians, it’s a fantastic introduction to the genre. It was recorded in front of an audience completely unfamiliar with bluegrass music, so the band chose songs that were catchy and accessible, then made it even more engaging by adding Smothers Brothers-style jokey commentary in between. The result is an interesting and very entertaining live album that stands a good chance of winning over any bluegrass skeptics, and even if it doesn’t, it gives us a chance to explain why we like it. Cohosts: Amanda Rodgers, Ben Marlin, John McFerrin Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/135-the-dillards-live-almost-1964 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Uriah Heep were never critical darlings, but for a brief period in the early seventies, they were making some absolutely killer fantasy-tinged rock. Phil has always had a soft spot for 1972’s Demons And Wizards, which is probably the best example of what could happen when this band was truly firing on all cylinders. He, along with Dan and Mike, makes the case for why this album should be a staple of any respectable early seventies hard rock collection. Cohosts: Phil Maddox, Mike DeFabio, Dan Watkins Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/134-uriah-heep-demons-and-wizards-1972 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical Oklahoma! was a massive hit on Broadway in 1943. It changed musical theater forever and inspired a well-remembered 1955 film. Ben hasn't seen the musical or the film, and he doesn't know the plot or the names of the characters. But he loves the music. He and Rich and John dive into a 1964 studio recording of the Oklahoma! soundtrack and make a case for why the show’s musical numbers endure. Cohosts: Ben Marlin, Rich Bunnell, John McFerrin Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/133-rodgers-and-hammerstein-oklahoma-1964 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were gifted musicians with a deep and complicated personal relationship, which makes them perfect subjects for a Discord & Rhyme holiday episode. Their magnum opus, Bridge Over Troubled Water, was a huge hit in 1970 and is still as beautiful, innovative, and occasionally silly as it ever was. Ben, Amanda, Rich, and John love this album dearly, and discussing all its strengths and arguing over its few flaws was the perfect way to wind up Discord & Rhyme’s sixth calendar year. Happy holidays, everyone, and may all your relationships be less acrimonious than Simon and Garfunkel’s. Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Ben Marlin, John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/132-simon-and-garfunkel-bridge-over-troubled-water Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

1 2 X U! As punk was just beginning to take off in the UK, Wire was already looking ahead, itching to push the genre toward artsier, more abstract frontiers. Their 1977 LP Pink Flag planted the seeds for post-punk and hardcore before most kids had even had a chance to spike their first mohawk. Boasting a dizzying 21 tracks at an economical 35 minutes, Wire packed more into one album than some of their peers managed in a career. Join Dan, Phil, Mike, and Rich as they discuss how it holds up as one of the boldest debuts of the punk era. Cohosts: Dan Watkins, Phil Maddox, Mike DeFabio, Rich Bunnell Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/131-wire-pink-flag-1977 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

It’s time for a psychedelic podcast extravaganza, five years and two recordings in the making! The album Chips from the Chocolate Fireball by XTC’s alter-egos the Dukes of Stratosphear was supposed to be our fifth episode, but technical difficulties turned the episode into a splendid cream bun. But Rich, Ben, and Mike are finally back for a second round discussing a collection that perhaps isn’t XTC’s definitive artistic achievement, but it’s possibly the most pure fun you can have in their discography. Artistically adrift in the mid-’80s, the band adopted goofy pseudonyms and recorded a loving tribute to the ’60s music of their youth, produced by psychedelic engineering wizard John Leckie. If you enjoy Pink Floyd, the Byrds, the Small Faces, the Kinks, the Yardbirds, and especially the Beatles – which you most likely do, because you’re listening to this podcast – you owe it to yourself to take a bike ride to the moon with the Dukes. Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Ben Marlin, Mike DeFabio Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/130-the-dukes-of-stratosphear-chips-from-the-chocolate-fireball-1987 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Gentle Giant comes up so often on Discord & Rhyme, especially considering how obscure they are outside the world of hardcore prog rock fandom, that it’s amazing we haven’t covered them yet. Many 1970s prog rock bands aspired to combine rock with classical (and jazz among other things), but unlike most of their contemporaries, Gentle Giant actually knew enough about classical music to make the combination something more than rock crossed with a touch of 19th century Romanticism. John’s pick for their best album is Octopus of 1972, an album that fires ideas at the listener so rapidly that the various songs (and these are all songs, in the 3-6 minute range) become extremely memorable, even as they’re sometimes among the most complex and bewildering music to come out of the 1970s. Come listen to John, Mike, and Phil tell you why they’ve fallen in love with this band and with this album. Cohosts: John McFerrin, Mike DeFabio, Phil Maddox Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/129-gentle-giant-octopus-1972 Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod