Sending Signals

What to say about REM? It might actually be hard for teenagers today, or even 20-somethings, to appreciate how big R.E.M. were in the 90s. For a while, even when they were reinventing themselves, or tackling themes not especially conducive to pop hits, they just seemed to keep getting bigger. They signed the most expensive record deal in history in 1996. They are one of the biggest selling bands of all time, having shifted something like 90 million albums.  Formed in 1980 in Athens, Georgia, they released 15 studio albums (only one of which I don’t like), before retiring with dignity in 2011. I respect them for their decision, but as a fan, would I love them to tour again? Yeah, of course I would. They have been, and still are, adamant it won’t happen, but they recently reunited to perform one song for the Songwriters Hall Of Fame, which they were inducted into earlier this year. I of course ask Mike about that decision and whether they may have talked themselves into a corner over the band’s future prospects.  I also wanted to ask about the status of the band’s reissue campaign. They’ve gradually been reissuing their back-catalogue with additional material. 1997’s “Up” was the latest to get the anniversary treatment, and I was curious if 2001’s “Reveal” was going to be next up. Anyway, R.E.M. are one of my favourite bands and I’m so glad this happened. In addition to R.E.M. stuff we touch on Mike’s recent tour with The Baseball Project, a band in which he plays alongside last episode’s guest, Steve Wynn of The Dream Syndicate. Mike also tours with Big Star drummer Jody Stephens, another previous guest, and so we talk about their plans to perform Big Star’s incredible second album “Radio City”. Let me know what you think. Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

Steve Wynn is a founding member of The Dream Syndicate, a key band in the so-called Paisley Underground scene of the early 1980’s. Their debut album “The Days Of Wine And Roses” was recorded in three overnight sessions and released in 1982. It’s one of the great indie-rock touchstones and a phenomenal debut. The band had high-profile support slots with the likes of U2 and REM, but the rest of the 1980’s saw them struggling to capitalise on their potential, and by the end of the decade they had disbanded. Steve continued to have a prolific solo career, as well as side-projects such as The Baseball Project, a supergroup featuring Mike Mills and Peter Buck of REM, who only write and perform songs about baseball. The Dream Syndicate reformed and released the first of several comeback albums in 2017. They remain an ongoing concern, but for now Steve is about to release an autobiography, charting his fascinating childhood in California, and the rise and fall of The Dream Syndicate. It’s a story of record stores, college radio, tour buses, major label shenanigans, told with warmth, humour and honesty. It’s also accompanied by a new solo album entitled “Make It Right”, released on the same day as, and intrinsically linked to, the book. I’ve probably said this a lot, but this was genuinely one of my favourite conversations I’ve had for the podcast. I really hope you enjoy it. Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

Paul Carrack is a singer, songwriter, and musician, and he’s heading out on tour in celebration of the 50th anniversary of classic song “How Long”, a hit he had with his band Ace. Paul has had an incredibly varied career since then. He was a member of Squeeze replacing Jools Holland on keyboards, and playing on their much-loved album “East Side Story”, even providing lead vocals for one of the bands most enduring songs, “Tempted”. He was a songwriter and vocalist in Mike Rutherford’s band Mike + The Mechanics from 1985 to 2004, and has been a session player for Eric Clapton, Roger Waters, and The Smiths amongst others, as well as building up a considerable solo back catalogue.   I hope you enjoy our wide-ranging chat! Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

Bill Oakley, along with his best friend and writing partner Josh Weinstein, wrote various episodes of The Simpsons during it’s glory days including “Marge Gets A Job”, “Bart vs Australia”, and the legendary 2-part season-straddling “Who Shot Mr Burns”, and they were appointed executive producers and showrunners for the 7th and 8th seasons of the show, where they continued to push the envelope of what the show could be, bowing out while the show was still on a high. One of Bill’s greatest claims to fame is having written the “Steamed Hams” scene from the 1996 episode “22 Short Films About Springfield”. The scene has taken on a life of its own with various memes and recontextualizing videos springing up on the internet. Bill and Josh also created the short lived Mission Hill, and were consulting producers on Futurama. Bill has also worked on shows like Portlandia and The Cleveland Show. In 2018 Bill started to produce short Instagram videos of himself reviewing fast food items from American outlets. These videos have become a serious concern for Oakley, and he created the annual Steamie Awards, in reference to the steamed hams sketch of course. If you’re a big Simpsons fan I hope you get something out of this, but if you’re more of a casual viewer I hope you’ll find it interesting to learn how a show like this gets made. X: @signalspodcastInstagram: @sendingsignalspodcast

It’s been five years! Yes, it’s 5th anniversary extravaganza episode of Sending Signals! I’m delighted that Dan Wilson agreed to come back on for a catch-up. He’s one of my favourite ever guests on the show and he didn’t disappoint. We talk about his recent Grammy win, the role of embarrassment in songwriter, as well as the story behind the Semisonic classic “Singing In My Sleep”. Chris has written songs with the likes of Taylor Swift, Adele, Mitski, Chris Stapleton and on and on… British singer-songwriter Sheila Lord also joins me for a chat and a heart-stopping live performance. I’m also happy that Rhys Edwards, AKA Astrel K, joined me from Stockholm to talk about his new album “The Foreign Department”, which is one of the loveliest albums of the year. As if that wasn’t enough, I’m joined by my friend, podcaster Luke Bligh who co-hosts “Star Wars Sessions” amongst other things. You can hear some of our conversation peppered throughout the episode. Wow. What a packed episode! It was a lot to put together, and I really hope you enjoy it. Thanks to all the guests on this episode, and indeed, over the past 5 years, and thank YOU for listening. It really means a lot. MattX: @signalspodcastInsta: @sendingsignalspodcast 

Would you like some toast? Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

Putting last week behind us, this was genuinely one of my favourite conversations I’ve had for the show. Like many, I was first aware of Isobel as member of Scottish indie band Belle and Sebastian. I found her such a compelling figure. She looked like she had stepped out of a French new wave movie. She was a cello player in an indie rock band. And when she sang, she had this enigmatic, whisper-quiet vocal style. While still a member of Belle and Sebastian she made a couple of solo albums under the name The Gentle Waves, the second of which, “Swansong For You”, is particularly lovely and one I listened to a lot when I was younger. It was recently reissued for Record Store Day. She left Belle and Sebastian in the middle of a US tour in 2002. Things were somewhat complicated by her romantic entanglement with the bands frontman Stuart Murdoch, and the unravelling of that relationship clearly ramped up the tension for Isobel. We get into it in our chat, and I reference some comments she made in a recent Uncut magazine feature, I think it was in the December 2023 issue. If you have access to it, it’s definitely worth reading in the light of our conversation. It was a reminder to me, that for as much as we can get fascinated and a degree of entertainment out of the interpersonal relationships and fallouts in the history of bands we love, on the other side of it are real people and real feelings, and I was certainly reminded of that during out chat. Isobel also made 3 well-received albums with the late Mark Lanegan, and clearly Mark’s well-documented erratic behaviour also took a toll on Isobel, and that bleeds into our chat as well. We also talk about her recent single 4316. We delve into her fascinating childhood. It’s a “life, the universe and everything” chat this week. I hope you enjoy it. Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

Chris Difford is having a very busy year. There’s a new Squeeze album in the works, they are supporting Heart on their forthcoming arena tour, and there’s also the matter of an enormous UK tour in hour of Squeeze’s 50th anniversary. Chris also hosts the podcast “I Never Thought It Would Happen” which is currently on Season 4. Seems like a good time to have a chat, right? Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

Roll up! Roll up! This episode I’m joined from across the Atlantic by singer-songwriter Jade Bird, who has just released a new EP, “Burn The Hard Drive”, which chronicles the breakdown of her relationship and engagement to a former bandmate. It’s the first significant release from Jade since 2021’s very excellent “Different Kinds Of Light” album. We take a deep dive into her creative process and the ethics of mining your personal life, and the lives of others in your orbit, for songwriting content. Enjoy! Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast 

Phillip Ingram is one of the founding members of Motown band Switch who formed in late 1976, and after a chance encounter, were championed by Jermaine Jackson. Motown chief Berry Gordy heard the band’s tape and signed them to his subsidiary Gordy label. Switch were a a consistent presence on the R’n’B charts in the last 1970s. Switch sort of imploded in the early 80s, although one member tried to carry on with new musicians, and Phillip began working more behind the scenes, recording vocals for commercials, and also backing vocals for the likes of Donna Summer amongst others. He’s also known for his work in film. You can hear him on backing vocals on several songs in the Disney classic, “The Little Mermaid”. He also appears as the wedding singer in the Julia Roberts movie “My Best Friend’s Wedding”. He still plays shows with the current incarnation of Switch which features a few original members in fact. Phil is also the younger brother of the late singer James Ingram, who you may have heard of. He was lovely company, and I hope you enjoy our chat. Let me know what you think. Instagram @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

It seems like a good time to take a deep dive into Best Picture nominee, and more importantly, my favourite film of 2023, “Past Lives”. This episode I’m joined by the film’s Assistant Director Ben Kahn to discuss his personal impact on the film, creating the remarkable chemistry between the cast, evoking an older digital landscape, and the profound effect the movie is having on people. Hope you enjoy! Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

This Friday, March 1st Bruce Hornsby releases a new album in collaboration with chamber ensemble yMusic. The record is entitled “Deep Sea Vents”. It straddles the line between contemporary songwriting and modern classical, and the album has an aquatic theme with all the songs dealing with the ocean, or at least water in some way. The album is emblematic of much of Hornsby’s career in that it veers from the strange to the beautiful to the funny to the challenging. He doesn’t like the easy route. If you know anything about Bruce’s career you’ll know his mid-80s smash “The Way It Is”, released by Bruce Hornsby and the Range, a powerful piece of social commentary inspired by his life growing up in Virginia, and featuring two piano solos. It’s a song that’s hung around, being sampled by rappers like 2Pac and Polo G. Bruce seems to have a conflicted relationship with the song. He often stills play it live but in a re-worked way, and he seems keen to be seen as a forward-thinking artist, not wishing to be defined by the past. He was a live member of the Grateful Dead in the early 90s playing over a hundred shows with them. In recent years, he’s collaborated often with Justin Vernon of Bon Iver, and you’ll see like the likes of Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig or The Staves or Blake Mills pop up on his album credits. I was a big admirer of his 2019 album “Absolutely Zero” which is well worth your time. Bruce was fantastic company when we spoke, and I hope you enjoy our chat!X: @signalspodcastInstagram: @sendingsignalspodcast

Welcome. My guest this episode is artist and photographer Lynn Goldsmith. Her career as a photographer has brought her into the orbit of rock n roll legends like Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, and notably Bruce Springsteen with whom she had a romantic relationship in the 70s as he was still working his way up, with his blistering live shows, and the relentlessly determined creative drive which produced the album Darkness On The Edge Of Town. Her document of this era forms the basis of a new coffee table book published by Taschen entitled “Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: Darkness on the Edge of Town”. She’s had an incredible life: working with Elektra Records in the late 60s, co-managing Grand Funk Railroad in the early 70s, and releasing music under the name of Will Powers in the early 80s. She’s also worked in other mediums of art and her photographs have graced album and magazine covers. Lynn joined me from Nashville to talk about her new book and her career in general. We had a great chat. Hope you enjoy it.  Instagram: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast

I’m listening! Hopefully you are too, as this week is incredibly fun. I’m joined by “Frasier” writer and consulting producer Bob Daily. Bob was on the writing staff for several seasons of the original run of “Frasier” and he’s back on board for the new revival series out now on Paramount+. If you’re at all interested in how TV shows like this get made, you’re going to find this fascinating. We dig into the world of show development, writers rooms, table reads, and more. Bob is very articulate about his craft but incredibly personable too, and I had a blast hanging with him. Let me know what you think! This will likely be the last show of the year, but I’ve already got things in the pipeline for next year, so I’ll be back soon. Thanks so much for listening. If you want to help the show, please keep listening, leave a nice review or rating, tell your friends about the show, and/or follow me on the socials; it’s all appreciated. X: @signalspodcastInstagram: @sendingsignalspodcast

Hey. It’s a special one this week. Juliana Hatfield is a singer-songwriter based in Massachusetts. She was a member of the Lemonheads in the early 90s, as well as bands like Blake Babies in the late 80s and Some Girls in the early 00s. She’s made albums with Matthew Caws from Nada Surf and Paul Westerberg from The Replacements. She’s also released around 20 albums under her own name, sometimes as the Juliana Hatfield Three. Although a prolific songwriter, in recent years she occasionally releases an album of covers by a specific artist. Her latest one, “Juliana Hatfield Sings ELO”, follows her albums of songs by Olivia Newton John and The Police. Being a big ELO fan myself, it seemed like a great time to talk with her. She had a particular rough time in the press in the 90s and he experience with working with a major label has clearly left it’s scars. Stick with this one, after a lot of ELO geek talk we go deep. It was genuinely one of my favourite conversations I’ve had for the show. Sometimes you have a guest where you feel you’re really chasing down some kind of epiphany. I’m not sure we reached one, but you decide. Insta: @sendingsignalspodcastX: @signalspodcast