Meet Our Makers

92. Sally Shapiro - Italo Anonymous

In this chat we get to meet Swedish Italo-disco duo, Sally Shapiro. Made up of producer Johan Ageborn and singer Sally Shapiro (which is a pseudonym for the anonymous woman behind the mic, as well as the band name), the elusive duo just put out a new album, Ready to Live a Lie, and has been operating mostly in anonymity since their beginning back in the 2000s, with the release of the big first single "I'll Be By Your Side". While Johan is certainly the more public persona, Sally herself has retained her near-totally obsucred identity, a la Burial, since the start. In this chat, we talk about the brand new record - including the production, writing, and inspirations behind it - as well as some band history, including why they chose to go the anonymous route in the first place, and how they hold onto that in the ever-increasingly digital era. They barely do any interviews (especially Sally), so I was very grateful they came on. Thank you for listening.

91. Lido Pimienta - ...And Then Belong

In this chat, we get to meet Lido Pimienta. Lido is a singer, songwriter, producer, who just put out her newest record, La Belleza, via ANTI-. We talk a lot about the album, with special focus on the genre of it — which, for Lido, is something new: classical music. Where her previous work was sort of an avant-garde electronic pop kind of thing, La Belleza is steeped in classical music tradition, composition, and structure. We talk about what led Lido to try her hand at this style, which she had previously felt was sort of blocked off from her, and how she feels like she got in there and made a space for herself to belong. We talk about the writing of the record, genre pigeon holing, shirking societal expectations, working with coproducer Owen Pallett, and more. Thank you for listening.

90. Tune-Yards - Age of Interruption; or, Rhythmic Buttprint

In this chat, we get to meet Merrill Garbus of Tune-Yards. Garbus started Tune-Yards as a solo project, but quickly transformed into a duo with musical and life partner Nate Brenner, and they have now released their brand new LP, Better Dreaming, on 4AD. In this chat, Merrill and I go deep on the personal, global, emotional, and sociopolitical themes and inspirations behind the new record, as well as the production, writing, and composition process. We also touch a bit on Tune-Yards early years, and end up diving deep into the significance of art (both making it and having it in our lives), and of simply being alive, in this moment, now - and how radical that can be. Thank you for listening.

89. Uwade - Song-Gathering

In this episode, we get to meet Uwade. Uwade a Cailfornia-by-way-of-North Carolina singer-songwriter, who has just released her new debut album, Florilegium. You may have - like I did - first encountered her, though, as the first voice on the opening track of the last Fleet Foxes record Shore, called "Wading in the Waist-High Water". In this chat, she and I discuss the writing and process of creating this first solo LP, what it means for her to be going out on her own, the musical touchstones of her childhood that found their ways into these songs, and more. We do also touch on her work with Robin Pecknold & co. and the subsequent tours she shared with Fleet Foxes, and what she learned from that. Finally, we touch on her academic life, as she is currently working toward a PhD. Thank you for listening.

88. Tunde Adebimpe - Building Your Own Bicycle

In this episode we get to meet Tunde Adebimpe. Tunde is best known as one of the co-founders, singers, and songwriters of the influential indie rock band TV On the Radio. But now he has a debut solo LP called Thee Black Boltz, and this conversation, we talk a lot about how this record came to be, a process that included rescuing some archival recordings and crafting brand new work. We also touch on TV on the Radio's legacy and their "reunion" tour. Then we, of course, talk about Tunde's film work (as he is also an accomplished actor), including his recent role on Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, and his time making one of my all-time favorite films, Jonathan Demme's Rachel Getting Married. I was thrilled to chat with such a titan, and I think you'll enjoy. Thanks for listening.

87. Valerie June - We Are Oracles

In this episode, we get to meet singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer Valerie June. Here, Valerie and I go deep into her brand new record, Owls, Omens, and Oracles, including the themes, production, and writing of these genre-defying songs. We touch on music history, including Appalachian and Delta folk music, as well as the concept of being positive or optimistic in times like these. Valerie spoke with a candid warmth and was a real open book, and I think you'll enjoy this talk if you like any of her work, but also if you just want to listen to a really good talk about life, art, philosophy, history, and the like. Be transported with her like I was. Thank you for listening. 

86. Daughter of Swords - Clicking the Kaleidoscope

In this episode, we get to meet Daughter of Swords, aka Alex Sauser-Monnig. Alex just released a brand new solo album under their Daughter of Swords moniker, appropriately titled Alex, and in this chat, we discuss the record at length, including its varied themes (of both personal and societal contexts), the creation of the record, and also the huge aesthetic shift from their first DoS record, Dawnbreaker. We also talk about their various side projects, like The A's with Sylvan Esso's Amelia Meath, or the trio they and Amelia share with Molly Sarle called Mountain Man. There's also the topic of the booming North Carolina music scene - spearheaded by the Psychic Hotline indie music group led by Sylvan Esso - and what it means for them to be a part of such a special family of talented folks. Thank you for listening.

85. Baths - Sad Bastard Music

In this chat, we get to meet Baths, aka Will Wiesenfeld. Will just released his latest record - and first in a while - as Baths, called Gut, and in this conversation we dive deep into the new LP. We talk about its musicality, which is much more rock-leaning than his prior Baths work; we talk about the writing process; and we talk about the incredibly raw, honest lyricism, which revolves largely around sex and sexuality, and all the ups & downs that come with that. Thankfully, Will was just as frank in our conversation, willing to be as "open book" as I asked him to be. We also touch on his score work, the glory of bicycling, and the queer mecca that is Provincetown, MA. (Believe me - it all connects.) Thank you for listening.

84. Basia Bulat - Live From the Palace

In this episode, we get to meet singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist Basia Bulat. Basia just released a brand new album - the lovely Basia's Palace - in February, and in this conversation, we go deep into it. The process of making it (which included a mostly-remote workflow with producer Tucker Martine), the themes, the desires for this project, and more. We also take a dive into the world of video games, especially old games and their beautiful midi soundtracks, which were a surprising touchstone for Bulat on this LP. (Paging fans of Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger, and the like!) We take time to mention U.S. Girls, too, a band that Bulat has been associated with for years. It's a fun, free-flowing conversation, full of gratitude and love and good vibes, if I do say so myself. Thank you for listening.

WE MEET AGAIN II: Orenda Fink

CONTENT WARNING: Emotional and narcissistic abuse (specifically via a parent).
And now for a second helping of my new subseries. In episode two of WE MEET AGAIN, A MEET OUR MAKERS SUBSERIES, we catch up with Azure Ray's Orenda Fink. Last time we spoke was around the release of her band's last album, Remedy, but this chat was spurred by a very different release: Fink's debut memoir, The Witch's Daughter. Because we'd already "met," I think we were able to go deeper and further faster and with more candor, which is fitting given the startling honesty and blunt storytelling in Fink's book, which largely circles around her fraught relationship with her mother, and the realization that she and her sister were victims of their mother's narcissistic abuse for most of their lives. As she recounts scattered memories from childhood through adulthood, Fink reveals some shockingly personal details about her upbringing and her efforts to separate herself from her mother's abuse. In this chat, Fink speaks with just as much candor about the book, her personal story, and where she is now. I couldn't be more appreciative of her time and her openness. The Witch's Daughter is out now, and while it is a tough sit sometimes, I think it's a vitally important book and beautifully told story of recognizing and then trying to transcend emotional hardship.