Heavy Decibel Operations

Host Keith O'Brien is joined by four guests. Jeff Klingman and Randall Monty discuss how diminished live music will be when the pandemic ends and the surfeit of bad and privilege art that is likely being created now. In segment two, Sebastian Hernandez and Yonah Korngold discuss the Congressional stock unloading scandal and the plight of the grocery worker. 

Jeff Klingman, Sebastian Hernandez, and Keith O'Brien go long on when the world will re-open, the privacy implications of testing and demonstrating you are healthy, and what will and will not return when the pandemic ends. 

A long-lost (circa 10 days or so) podcast was discovered and remastered. Jeff Klingman and Keith O'Brien discuss The Ringer's quarantine-distracting Tournament for the Best TV Character of the 21st Century. Why Michael Scott is a bad choice, the missing entries from Halt and Catch Fire and Party Down, and what was so great about the Sopranos. 

SPOILERS AHOY! Keith O'Brien records a solo pod about Devs, the FX on Hulu show with which he is obssessed. BIG SPOILERS AHEAD. The first part is recorded right before watching the season finale. And then the last few minutes are his reaction after watching it.

Keith O'Brien hosts Yonah Korngold and Randy Monty to discuss the travails of the labor movement immediately following  Bernie Sanders' suspension of his presidential campaign and the continuing impact of COVID-19. Is this labor's time or will things remain the same? Does COVID-19 make a strong case for Medicare for All? Will people continue to vote against their economic interests? This and more in Labor of Love. 

Jeff Klingman joins a special and somber episode of the podcast discusses the passing of Ze Records and No Wave icon Cristina. A proto-Madonna, Cristina embodied the DIY nature of the NYC-based No Wave scene, bringing insouciance and noise to pop. We also discuss Ze labelmates like James Chance and Kid Creole, and compare her music and that movement to the electroclash blip of the early 2000s. RIP Cristina, hope you got your ticket to the tropics. For supplemental listening, Jeff Klingman created a Cristina-specific playlist https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7at0ooMo5bDBfBOiE5EIrY?si=niVSsEtqRIaedSzj0xiAjA and one featuring Ze Records' Greatest Hits https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1FmYfrWc6o6wsTQDV4CTVg?si=U0srmeo5SOOYvEoYUFlwGw

Randy Monty stops by to discuss embracing the simple and quiet moments and being mindful. Then a discussion about the political press's abdication of its duties.

Jeff Klingman and Yonah Korngold join Keith O'Brien to discuss Bob Dylan's surprise song release, ponder where exactly Zack de la Rocha went all these years, and shared their thoughts on the recent spate of quarantine concerts. 

Heavy Decibel Operations is a podcast focused on the politics and current events of the quarantine at the edge of a failed world. This episode is our teaser.

Sebastian Hernandez and Randall Monty join Keith O'Brien to discuss how schools are establishing curriculum and adapting to online learning, the politics of President Trump initially failing to invoke the Defense Production Act, how civil liberties are eroding during the quarantine, and how musicians are attempting to entertain homebound fans instead of embarking on tours.