Esoterica The Podcast

This week take a listen to a band from the Long Island scene, Brand New. Formed in 2000, by bassist and drummer Garrett Tierney and Brian Lane from the ashes of Rookie Lot. The band consists of Jesse Lacey (vocals, guitar), Vincent Accardi (guitar, vocals), Garrett Tierney (bass guitar, vocals), and Brian Lane (drums, percussion). The band is recognized as one of the most influential within the 2000s emo scene, celebrated for making artistic statements with their music. When asked about his influences, lead singer Jesse Lacey referenced Lifetime, Foo Fighters, The Cars, and The Smiths. The band would listen to several bands while in their van, such as Saves the Day, Modest Mouse, and Green Day, among others. For this episode, we listen to Your Favorite Weapon, their debut studio album. The album was released on October 9, 2001. All of the songs on the album were written, within the band's teenage years with some songs being written two or three years before the record came out. This album was heavily influenced by a feud between Lacey and Taking Back Sunday guitarist John Nolan, specifically "Seventy Times Seven". Nolan wrote about the feud from his point of view in Taking Back Sunday's "There's No 'I' in Team". The name of the song is a reference to a Bible passage, specifically Matthew 18:22. Your Favorite Weapon was produced by a friend of the band. The whole album was re-recorded when the original recording was lost on a computer's hard drive. Check out the music video for "Jude Law and a Semester Abroad" here!

It is a dark time for the Esoterica. Although the Old Format has been destroyed, Chris and Aaron have driven the show from it's tried and true methods and created something less likely to make you fall asleep. Welcome to Season 4! New season, new format, same guys, still no pants. Joining us today is Marty (@OliverRedboots) from the Rod in Flagon Podcast talking to us about his podcast and helping us feel out this new format!  Be sure to check out our website for your Esoterica the Podcast merch and bonus content! Now, onto the show!

For a decade, Molly Harvey was the female voice and presence in The Residents. She gave voice to some of their most memorable and loved songs. Molly joins us to discuss her time with the mysterious band, what’s been happening in her life, and what exciting things she has coming up. We also briefly discuss the 2018 release Loss of the Lizard Lady (The Molly Harvey Collection). This is a compilation released on Bandcamp featuring songs fronted by Molly, both live and studio. From the website: A collection of songs fronted by Molly Harvey between 1994 and 2005. Includes one full-length LP of studio recordings and one full-length LP of live material. Take it all in and realize what an important and amazing addition Molly was to the ever-morphing and mysterious Residents. 20 out of 24 of these tunes have never been on vinyl. 8 of them have never even been on CD and another 8 were only on rare, limited edition CDs. So grab this wonderful tribute to a wonderful weirdo. After you check out our interview, make sure to listen to and download the album!

Today we revisit a group from way back in Season One of Esoterica the Podcast! In April 2020, we discussed Fat Boys and Little Men's self titled EP. This week, the Mansfield based band joins Aaron to discuss their newest release (dropping today!), Something Could Be Nothing.  If you missed the episode, FBLM are a Mansfield, MA based band with heavy Seattle grunge influences. You can find our discussion of it here. Make sure to check out their Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube channel, etc. for all their content. Check out their Video for a single off of this record "Sticky Situation" shot at Revelry Studios!

This year marks the fortieth anniversary of the release of Einstürzende Neubauten's first official LP Kollaps. To celebrate, we are joined by none other than Blixa Bargeld. Blixa talks about the making of Kollaps, as well as some of his major influences. Einstürzende Neubauten ("Collapsing New Buildings") is a German experimental music group, originally formed in West Berlin in 1980. The group is currently composed of founder members Blixa Bargeld (lead vocals; guitar; keyboard) and NU Unruh (custom made instruments; percussion; vocals), long-time contributor Alexander Hacke (bass; vocals), plus Jochen Arbeit (guitar; vocals), and Rudolph Moser (custom-built instruments; percussion; vocals), who both joined the line-up in 1997. One of their trademarks is the use of custom-built instruments, predominantly made out of scrap metal and building tools, and noises, in addition to standard musical instruments. Their early albums were unremittingly harsh, with Bargeld's vocals shouted and screamed above a din of banging and scraping metal percussion. Subsequent recordings found the group's sound growing somewhat more conventional, yet still containing many unorthodox elements. With the release of its debut album “Kollaps” in November 1981, EINSTÜRZENDE NEUBAUTEN declared war on all conventional listening habits. The album is actually an “inaudible” record; it is a frontal attack on expectations and ways of listening that has been blunted by mainstream sound. For lack of money, among other reasons, the range of instruments consisted of “found” and self-made objects, created from sheet metal and including drills, hammers, a “non-voice” that snatched shreds of German words from a text, and professional studio equipment, which was consistently used to undermine its actual technical purposes. This nonconformist mixture itself would become the foundation of a completely new understanding of music that would later influence countless artists, and would highly stylize the band’s subsequent albums into milestones of the industrial scene. Join us as we look back, listen, and discuss Kollaps.

Recorded in the cellar of Prairie Sun Recording Studios, in an area described as “just a cement floor and a water heater,” Bone Machine is Tom Waits‘ eleventh studio album. It was released in September of 1992. Bone Machine was recorded and produced entirely at the Prairie Sun Recording Studios in Cotati, California, in a room of Studio C known as “the Waits Room”, located in the old cement hatchery rooms of the cellar of the buildings. Prairie Sun’s studio head Mark “Mooka” Rennick said, “[Waits] gravitated toward these ‘echo’ rooms and created the Bone Machine aural landscape. […] What we like about Tom is that he is a musicologist. And he has a tremendous ear. His talent is a national treasure.” Waits said of the bare-bones studio, “I found a great room to work in, it’s just a cement floor and a hot water heater. Okay, we’ll do it here. It’s got some good echo.” Bone Machine was the first Waits album on which he played drums and percussion extensively. In 1992, Waits stated: “I like to play drums when I’m angry. At home I have a metal instrument called a conundrum with a lot of things hanging off it that I’ve found – metal objects – and I like playing it with a hammer. I love it. Drumming is therapeutic. I wish I’d found it when I was younger.” If you’re not familiar with Waits, this is as good as any place to remedy that. Enjoy!

This week we cross the pond to check out Welsh band Catfish and the Bottlemen. Formed in 2007, the band formed in Llandudno, North Wales. Their musical style can best be described as indie or alt rock. For this episode, we listen to The Balcony, their debut studio album. It was released on 15 September 2014 in the United Kingdom and 15 January 2015 in the United States. On 20 March 2015, The Balcony was awarded a Gold certification from the British Phonographic Industry. The album cover depicts outlines of two headless people pleasuring each other's genitals. The illustration is by New York artist Tim Lahan who originally posted it to his Flickr account in 2009 and was subsequently contacted by the band. Join us for a listen. If you're listening while you drive, please wear clothes. That's all we ask.

We're back, and this week we're heading back to the mid-'80s to check out some proto-grunge. This week's album is Dry as a Bone, the second EP by  Green River. It was released in July 1987 through Sub Pop Records. Green River formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984. Although the band had very little commercial success outside their native Seattle, Green River were pioneers of the grunge music genre. The grunge style was featured both in Green River's own music and the music its members would create in future bands, including Mudhoney, Mother Love Bone, Temple of the Dog, and Pearl Jam. Steve Huey of Allmusic has called Dry As a Bone Green River's "strongest individual release...perfecting their sleazy, raucous fusion of '70s hard rock and post-hardcore punk."

This week finds out checking out French artist Gautier Serre, known by his stage name, Igorrr. Initially influenced by the likes of Meshuggah, Chopin, Cannibal Corpse, Bach, Domenico Scarlatti, Taraf de Haidouks, and Aphex Twin, traces of these artists can be found littered across Igorrr’s discography, but Serre has never been interested in remaining static or merely recycling ideas, and his work has dramatically evolved accordingly. It deeply explains how Igorrr’s music is such an explosion of creativity while keeping a cohesive universe records after records. In recent years, Igorrr has also become a collective, rather than the work of one man alone, which has brought a new level of intensity into the group live representations. Savage Sinusoid is the third album by Gautier Serre, under his alias Igorrr, released on Metal Blade Records on June 16, 2017. This album was named "Batshit Crazy Album of the Year" by Metal Injection. They had this to say about the album: "Igorrr is a project with no boundaries, and the personal belief of creating the art one wants to. In a world where we argue from the mainstream radio to the underground scene, Igorrr is a breath of fresh air. Savage Sinusoid isn’t just a breath of fresh air in musical technicality and emotion though, but an excellent reminder to just enjoy music." Serre combines a variety of disparate genres, including black metal, baroque music, breakcore, and trip-hop, into something unique. Check it out. You won't be disappointed. Check out the music video for "ieuD" here!

We’re back with yet another album from LA-based Dead Poet Society, and again one of our favorite guests, vocalist/guitarist Jack Underkofler joins us as well! Released less than a week ago on March 12, 2021, -!- is their first full-length album released through Spinefarm Records. Jack joins us to discuss the genesis of the album and a track-by-track discussion of the record. Dead Poet Society formed while attending college in Boston and have already amassed a dedicated following with millions of streams. Insanely catchy and unable to be pigeonholed by genre, Dead Poet Society‘s musical landscape runs from heavy, riff-driven songs to stunningly beautiful ballads. With fretless guitars and the extraordinary vocals of lead singer Jack Underkofler at the forefront, they have cultivated a signature sound that’s distinct as a fingerprint. Buy or Stream the new album "-!-" on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, and more! Be sure to purchase a -!- release bundle here! Check out Jack Collins' .swvrm. instructional video with Guitar World Magazine here, and be sure to check out the comments! Check out the music video for .intoodeep. here!

This week we dive back into the local scene, listening to the 2021 release from Massachusetts-based Pillbook. This album, El Primer Paso can best be described as psychedelic alt-pop. Pillbook is comprised of Aaron Garcia from Chelsea, Massachusetts. Aaron is a producer as well as a musician, recording most of his music in his home. Pillbook started as a high school trio that eventually devolved into a duo, finally settling into a solo project. El Primer Paso marks Garcia’s long-awaited musical marriage of his rock/grunge roots with the Latin music that serenaded his childhood. This record is softer than Boyband, his first EP as Pillbook, while still driving harder than the series of “Quarantine Session” singles he released this past summer to local acclaim. You can follow Aaron and Pillbook on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Twitch! Also, check out the music video for "HITLOW" here! We're delighted to have Garcia join us to discuss his latest outing. Enjoy!

Merriam-Webster defines esoteric thusly: designed for or understood by the specially initiated alone. This week's album choice, on the surface, may seem to be the antithesis of esoteric. But it is with this definition in mind that we take a look at one of, if not the biggest bands in the world: BTS. BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a seven-member South Korean boy band that debuted in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment. The septet—composed of RM, Jin, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook—co-writes and co-produces much of their own output. Originally a hip-hop group, their musical style has evolved to include a wide range of genres. Their lyrics, often focused on personal and social commentary, touch on the themes of mental health, troubles of school-age youth, loss, the journey towards loving oneself, and individualism. Their work features references to literature and psychological concepts and includes an alternate universe storyline. The group has released several albums and performed on several world tours. Here's the thing about BTS: Despite being second only to Drake as the best-selling artists worldwide, here in the US they get very little radio play. The band sings in their native Korean, making the dense imagery and storytelling of the songs largely inaccessible to many. Joining us to take a listen to their fourth EP, The Most Beautiful Moment In Life Part 2, is super fan, Kerry Schultz. In addition to being a card-carrying member of the BTS Army, Kerry is an English major who takes a more poetic approach to her translation and interpretation of the band's lyrics. You can check out her Facebook page President Kim's BTS Lyrics Spot. Kerry helps us unpack all that is going on with both the lyrics and the band's storytelling. Hopefully, we all walk away from this episode with a better understanding of the Bangtan Boys and the many layers of their music. We feel they fit in with our theme, but that's just us. It's up to you the listener to decide if we've helped unlock the mystery of their appeal or simply jumped the shark in our quest for more listens. Let us know what you think over on our subreddit!

This week we continue our journey through Aaron's "laid back and heavy" motif with Highly Suspect. Highly Suspect is an American rock band from Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The band consists of twin brothers Rich (bass guitar, backing vocals) and Ryan Meyer (drums, backing vocals), Johnny Stevens (guitar, lead vocals), and Matt Kofos (guitar, synthesizer, backing vocals). After starting as a bar cover band, they relocated to Brooklyn, New York, where they recorded The Worst Humans EP with producer Joel Hamilton. The band's first studio album, Mister Asylum, was released on July 17, 2015, earning Highly Suspect a nomination for Best Rock Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards. It's that album we take a dive into this week. Mister Asylum debuted at No. 56 on Billboard 200, and No. 7 on the Top Rock Albums chart, selling 4,000 copies in its first week. Although not as obscure as some of the albums we discuss, the grungy hard rock of Mister Asylum shares the same DNA as albums from Royal Blood, cleopatrick and The Fairview. You can check out their music video for Lydia here!

This week we listen to and discuss one of Aaron's picks: English rock duo Royal Blood.  Formed in Brighton in 2011, Royal Blood consists of Mike Kerr on vocals and bass and Ben Thatcher on drums. Their sound is anchored in Kerr's unique bass playing technique, in which he uses various effects pedals to make his electric bass sound like a standard electric guitar. Their self-titled debut album was released in August 2014. Their second album How Did We Get So Dark? followed in June 2017. For this episode, we breakdown their eponymous debut album. Most of the album's songs revolve heavily around the riffs written and played by bassist Mike Kerr. The recording of the album was kept under strict conditions, with the band essentially recording the album with only Mike Kerr's vocals and bass guitar and Ben Thatcher's drum kit, with the exception of shakers and tambourines on some of the album's tracks. The production of the album did not involve the use of samples or overdubbing, which meant that most of the album's material was recorded in one take, thus producing a more natural sound as opposed to the popular method of recording various takes and combining them in the final mix. Sit back and join us we discuss Royal Blood.

Chris and Aaron celebrate Esoterica the Podcast's first birthday by listening to the 1982 album Dog Police by Dog Police. On top of the album feature, they also discuss the unaired pilot for Dog Police from the 1990s featuring Adam Sandler and Jeremy Piven.  Chris and Aaron also muse about the past year from documenting a raging pandemic accidentally, interviewing a bunch of celebrities, and drinking a whole lot of Esoteric beverages.  Help us celebrate the birthday of Esoterica the Podcast and head over to www.esotericathepodcast.com and check out all of our content such as our Famous Folks Series, Vlogs, 1 on 1's, and Free Form Fridays! Also, maybe treat yourself and buy an Esoterica the Podcast T-shirt!  Until next time, stay Esoteric!

This week we are joined by Nolan McGovern and Jake Perreault of The Fairview as we discuss their album Fresh Faced & Effervescent. The Fairview is a pop punk DIY outfit from Southeastern Massachusetts / Rhode Island. Started in 2014 by Nolan McGovern and his friends from high school, the amateur band played small venues, colleges, and talent shows, including the local stage at Warped Tour MA in 2014 and 2016. 5 years and numerous line-up changes later, The Fairview remains a powerhouse staple in the NE music scene, having co-headlined numerous tours around the Eastern United States and since releasing their first studio release “It Could Be Worse… And It Is” EP in 2017, & debut LP “Fresh Faced & Effervescent” in the summer of 2020 Balancing along the lines of emo and indie with an obvious pop-punk feel, The Fairview is inspired by 2000s pop punk and contemporaries like The Wonder Years and Modern Baseball, but also pull from genres like classic rock, R&B, and jazz. The band features co-frontmen Nolan McGovern and Jake Perreault, both vocalists on guitar, Isaac Hiller on drums, and Brenna Guay on bass as of late 2019. Nolan and Jake break the album down with Aaron, and then we share our thoughts on the songs. Check out the full unedited interview here!

Welcome to our newest venture, Free Form Fridays! FFF is an opportunity for Aaron and I to do what we like best: Sample beers, muse about things, and discuss things that may not fit within the parameters of our regular show. We're not sure what every episode will look like, but we know it will be fun! For an added bonus, these episodes will be recorded on video and uploaded to our YouTube channel, so you can see what we're talking about!   Join us for our first episode, where we consult our Magic 8 Ball and chat with the members of Paint By Numbers.   Read the full blog post here: https://esotericathepodcast.com/2021/...

In September of 1967, an eccentric young musician named Don Van Vliet released his debut album under his stage moniker, Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band. That album was called Safe As Milk. Van Vliet was quite a character. He was a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist. His music blended elements of blues, free jazz, rock, and avant-garde composition with idiosyncratic rhythms, absurdist wordplay, and his wide vocal range. Known for his enigmatic persona, Beefheart frequently constructed myths about his life and was known to exercise an almost dictatorial control over his supporting musicians. Although he achieved little commercial success, he sustained a cult following as a "highly significant" and "incalculable" influence on an array of new wave, punk, and experimental rock artists. The Residents, Tom Waits, Sonic Youth and many others site him as an influence. Safe As Milk is the first album from Beefheart,  and although more approachable than some of his later work, is  definitely unusual. A&M Records decided to drop the band after hearing the demos. If you're interested in Beefheart, this is a good place to start. So sit back, relax, and join us as we listen to Safe As Milk.

This week we go North of the border to talk with Canadian rock duo cleopatrick about their 2018 EP the boys. Childhood friends Ian Fraser and Luke Gruntz grew up in Cobourg, Ontario. They have been friends since age 4 and began getting interested in music around age 8 when they first listened to AC/DC. Later in their teens they began recording their own music. The band's first music festival was the 2018 installment of Lollapalooza in Chicago. In late 2018 they were booked to play at Shaky Knees Music Festival in 2019 in Atlanta. The band has drawn comparisons in their sound and personal reflection of music to bands such as Highly Suspect, Royal Blood, Artic Monkeys, and Catfish and the Bottlemen. Ian and Luke join Aaron to discuss the boys, and then we share our thoughts.  Listen to the full, unedited interview with cleopatrick here!

On this week’s episode, we take a listen to The HU‘s 2019 debut album The Gereg. The HU is a band from Mongolia that blends heavy metal and traditional Mongolian throat singing. The band’s name, The HU, is the Mongolian root word for human being. They call their style “Hunnu Rock,” inspired by the Hunnu, an ancient Mongolian empire known as The Huns in Western culture. Some of the band’s lyrics include old Mongolian war cries and poetry. Founded in 2016 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia by their producer Dashka, along with members Gala, Jaya, Temka, and Enkush. The HU combines rock music with traditional Mongolian instrumentation like the Morin Khuur (horsehead fiddle), Tovshuur (Mongolian guitar), Tumar Khuur (jaw harp), guttural throat singing and the bombastic bass and drums of rock. All four members have earned Bachelor’s or higher degrees in music and have several years of touring experience throughout Asia and the Pacific Rim. Since the formation of their band, they have been working on their first album, The Gereg. The word Gereg was used as the first diplomatic “passport” by the Mongol Empire during the time of Genghis Khan. Thanks to an interview with Louder Sound, we take a look at the meaning of the lyrics on the songs and discuss our impressions. If you want to hear more of The HU, check out this documentary about their journey to create the album and tour in support of it. The HU recently released a new single, this amazing cover of Metallica's "Sad But True". This COVID-19 Relief Effort concert, in addition to live versions of the album tracks, contains some kick-ass new songs which hopefully will be included on their net album. Make sure to check out their YouTube channel for tons of great content, including "Cooking with The HU!"