It's Not Scary, It's Just Music!

SURPRISE! It's yet another special episode! We got Chuck Askerneese of The Untouchables back for a Part 2! Following our amazing first conversation, we found there was a bounty of things we missed, and more wild stories to tell about the LA counterculture scene of the 70s and 80s, the Wild Child European tour, and more! Please join us where we dig into the growing underground scene in LA back in the 70s, the unbelievable circumstances that The Untouchables found themselves in during their initial run, and a bit about how their sound influenced the 90s ska movement that hit pop culture heights. The Untouchables have and always will be fundamental to American music history, and we have the honor and privilege to hear more about how their story took shape and influenced others. Let's give Part 2 a listen!

Surprise Surprise Surprise! It's another special episode! I had the great honor of interviewing the amazing lead singer of The Untouchables, Chuck Askerneese. During our conversation we chat about his experience first discovering music; how he, his brother, and their friends entered the counterculture scene of LA in the late 70s; the early beginnings of The Untouchables; and their inevitable creation of Wild Child, one of our essential albums from 1985. Please join us where we dig into the ska genre itself, the burgeoning ska scene in LA in the late 70s and early 80s, how they found their unique sound, and eventually become one of the very first, and most foundational, ska bands in the United States. The Untouchables have been a force in the American counterculture movement for decades and have collaborated with and influenced so many of the greats in musical history. Let's all come round and listen to this bounty of amazing stories!

Surprise again! It's another special episode! I had the great honor of interviewing the visionary lead singer of The Chameleons, Mark Burgess During our conversation we chat about his childhood journey of discovering music as well as his voice; the beginnings of The Chameleons, and the creation of 1983 Essential Album, Script of the Bridge; the aftermath of its debut; and the winding road that has led him and The Chameleons here today. Please join us where we dig into the challenges in owning their creative vision, advocating for their identity, and playing the kinds of music that connected most deeply with them. Script of the Bridge is a timeless bounty of creative genius that gave rise to incalculable Brit Rock influence for decades. Come enjoy the conversation!

Surprise Surprise! It's another special episode! I had the incredible honor of interviewing the incomparable front man of Fang, Sammy "Sammytown" McBride. During our conversation we chat about his life before Fang; the coming together of their groundbreaking debut album, and 1982 Essential Album, Landshark; and how that album changed the direction of punk and its offshoots for years to come. Please join us where dive in to the counter culture scene of the late 70s and early 80s, all the ways in which Landshark influenced the birth of genres like 90s Punk, Grunge, and a variety of Metal sub-genres, and how Sammytown is exploring and supporting the counter culture movements of today. Fang changed the direction of Punk forever, fearlessly questioning any hints of conformity, and activating the inspiration for future counter culture greats and rock royalty alike. Come enjoy our most explicit episode yet as me and Sammytown jump right in!

Surprise! It's a special episode! I had the great honor of interviewing the tremendously talented Richard Barone of The Bongos! During our conversation we discussed the coming together of The Bongos, the creation of 1982 Essential Album "Drums Along the Hudson," the half-decade tour to follow, his musical journey since, and all the wonderful projects he is creating today. Please join us where we talk about the fearlessness of genre blending back in the 80s, the limitless opportunities of new technology afforded to artists at that time, and how kindness in the industry is an incalculable resource for up-and-comers. Richard has been a shining beacon in the industry for over four decades -- let's come together and listen to what he has to say!

Welcome to 2003!This year gave us a limited number of Essentials, but they were some of the most profound of the entire decade. Why was 2003 the year of so many iconic hit albums? I have no idea!We saw breakthroughs in the Rock, Metal, Pop, Rap, R&B, and J-Pop spaces this year, giving other artists all kinds of potential inspiration on where to take these genres next. Let's go on the journey together to really figure out what all this inspiration means and where it might lead us into the rest of the decade!⁠⁠⁠Link to the Essential List!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Link to the Big List!⁠

Welcome to 2002!We are officially beginning to fully leave behind the vibe of the 90s and step in to what so many in the listening world consider to be quintessential music of the new millennium! On tap for today's episode both the east and west are pushing boundaries with their own varieties of genre alchemy, giving audiences more to love, more to explore, and more to question as the future of music.A limited quantity of Essential Albums and Conspicuous absences in today's episode, we still dive deep on many of them.Come enjoy as we explore a beginning of UK Garage, Japanese Popular Rap, KPop and J-R&B's official bridge moment, and early signs that Rock is on the verge of its next great shift.⁠⁠Link to the Essential List!⁠⁠⁠⁠Link to the Big List!⁠

Welcome to 2001!The decade feels like it's fully in swing now, giving us about a thousand million ways to define what Pop music is this year. We have Neo Power Pop, Electro-Pop, Avant-Pop, Indie Pop, Garage Pop, Neo Synth Pop, Neo Dream Pop, Neo Jangle Pop...the list goes on and on and on!While we try not to drown in all these delightful, artful hooks, we stumble in to fertile ground across the Rock and Metal spaces, R&B, and Rap; and even get a lucky video game soundtrack in the mix this year. We hit just about every genre in some way, if you can believe it!The 2000s alchemy is already cooking, so let's see what this year dishes out!⁠Link to the Essential List!⁠⁠Link to the Big List!

Welcome to 2000!We are officially in the new millennium of music! Suddenly the 90s have fallen away and the musical world is opening itself to new and different ideas!...only in some cases. In many respects, the turn had been coming for some time, but we can still happily pretend that it's a brand new era just when the clocks clicked over and the Y2K bug didn't end us all.Today we ring in the new millennium with a wide array of ambitious Essential Albums and possibly some surprising conspicuous absences. We are officially in the era when 80s sounds are beginning to find their way back to the fold in retro movements, creating a nice overlap for us with Season 1, and bands are still trying to figure out how to untether themselves from what the 90s bestowed upon us. It's a busy moment!Join us as we explore this new world of the 2000s, giving us exploratory 80s sounds, 90s sounds that were just on the cusp of getting big, and some ancient sounds that are having a solid third run. This era has layers!Link to the Essential List!Link to the Big List!

Welcome to first episode of Season 3 for the "It's Not Scary, It's Just Music" Podcast!We begin the 2000s era with a brand new introduction episode to the podcast, SJ, his music listening journey, and how he decides what music to keep, toss, spotlight as essential, or give the honorable mention title of "conspicuous absence."Come hear about all we have learned coming away from the dense, often overwhelming 90s era of music as we slide in to this next, glorious world of the new millennium.And, if you're brand new to the podcast, feel free to check out SJ's existing playlists ⁠here!

Welcome to the 90s Recap for Video Game Music!As part of our 90s Recap series, today we will be going from one end of the decade to the other, discussing the distinctive subgenres within Video Game Music that impacted the 90s. We will start with how we recapped the 1980s in this genre, then move right into the next decade and how these genres grew up, evolved, and concluded the 90s on the way to what comes next in the 2000s.Join us as we walk through Japanese Role Playing Game themes (Battles, Characters, Dungeons, and Towns) and Platformers!

Welcome to the 90s Recap for Metal!As part of our 90s Recap series, today we will be going from one end of the decade to the other, discussing the distinctive subgenres within Metal that impacted the 90s. We will start with how we recapped the 1980s in this genre, then move right into the next decade and how these genres grew up, evolved, and concluded the 90s on the way to what comes next in the 2000s.Join us as we walk through Alternative Metal, Industrial Metal, and Nu Metal!

Welcome to the 90s Recap for Popular Rock of the West!As part of our 90s Recap series, today we will be going from one end of the decade to the other, discussing the distinctive subgenres within Popular Rock that impacted the 90s. We will start with how we recapped the 1980s in this genre, then move right into the next decade and how these genres grew up, evolved, and concluded the 90s on the way to what comes next in the 2000s.Join us as we walk through Grunge, Post-Grunge, Neo British Rock, Retro and Neo Roots Rock, and Neo-Psychedelic Rock!

Welcome to the 90s Recap for Country!As part of our 90s Recap series, today we will be going from one end of the decade to the other, discussing the distinctive subgenres within Country that impacted the 90s. We will start with how we recapped the 1980s in this genre, then move right into the next decade and how these genres grew up, evolved, and concluded the 90s on the way to what comes next in the 2000s.Join us as we walk through Alternative Country and Neo-Traditionalist Country!

Welcome to the 90s Recap for Girl Groups and Boy Bands in the US!As part of our 90s Recap series, today we will be going from one end of the decade to the other, discussing the distinction between Girl Groups and Boy Bands in the 90s. We will start with how we recapped the 1980s in this genre, then move right into the next decade and how these genres grew up, evolved, and concluded the 90s on the way to what comes next in the 2000s.Join us as we walk through both sub-genres!

Welcome to the 90s Recap for Pop music of the US and Europe!As part of our 90s Recap series, today we will be going from one end of the decade to the other, discussing the distinctive subgenres within Western Pop that impacted the 90s. We will start with how we recapped the 1980s in this genre, then move right into the next decade and how these genres grew up, evolved, and concluded the 90s on the way to what comes next in the 2000s.Join us as we walk through Dance Pop, Euro Dance Pop, Jangle Pop, Dream Pop, Alternative Pop, and Indie Pop!

Welcome to the 90s Recap for Electronica!As part of our 90s Recap series, today we will be going from one end of the decade to the other, discussing the distinctive subgenres within Electronica that impacted the 90s. We will start with how we recapped the 1980s in this genre, then move right into the next decade and how these genres grew up, evolved, and concluded the 90s on the way to what comes next in the 2000s.Join us as we walk through House, Jungle / Drum 'n Bass, Trance, and Techno!

Welcome to the prologue to the novel that is to come where we recap the entirety of the 90s, genre by genre!In today's episode, we review at a high level all that we experienced across the 1990s in music, bridging from what we learned coming out of the 1980s, and a bit about what we can expect going into the 2000s. There is so much music to talk about, though, that rather than drop a marathon episode on you all, we are going to drop a series of smaller episodes to lay all the juicy details out for you one at a time.So, come join us for the beginning of the end in which we talk about all the work ahead for SJ in bringing the quality and clarity to you for the decade, and what you can expect from here.This is the 1990s final challenge -- let's go through it together!

Welcome to 1999!The end of this whirlwind of a decade is officially coming to a close! After countless years of dense, deeply creative moments, I am thankful to breathe a sigh of relief as we slide into its inevitable conclusion. Yet again, we find ourselves not hitting the maximum number of Essentials for the year, continuing to signal that the overall trend of music is beginning to level out. Though, it makes me deeply excited for what the 2000s will shortly bring as we get ready for Season 3!Give yourself some time to appreciate this end we are experiencing, because trust me when I say our forthcoming season finale will be a tropical storm moment requiring you to hold on for dear life! Come enjoy the deep dive into the greats for this capstone year -- I hope it's getting you as excited for the decade recap to come as I am.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Check out the Essential List here!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Check out the Big List here!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Welcome to 1998!We're just two years away from the end of the decade! Things are starting to slow down a bit, thankfully, as we slide gently into the last couple episodes of the season. For the first time in ages, we have fewer than the maximum number of Essential Albums and Conspicuous Absences, so please enjoy this respite.Indie Rock, now being the ruler around the genre, has swiftly left its perch to begin shifting and changing with confidence, while honoring the sounds of the 80s more so now than ever before. Major strides in Pop, Rap, Country and JPop also hit this year, giving us some revitalized directions to take the genres as we consider what the next decade might hold in store.A shorter episode than the epic run of 90-minuters we've had for nearly the entire season, hopefully I didn't miss anything critical!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Check out the Essential List here!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Check out the Big List here!⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠