Look At My Records!

pisode 240 of Look At My Records features an interview with Pittsburgh-based songwriter Zack Keim. Keim just released his long-awaited second full-length, Battery Lane , earlier this month. The record represents a big step forward in sound for the 27-year-old musician, as the 11 songs build off of the solid foundation that Keim established on his stripped-down 2017 debut, First Step. Drawing heavy...

Episode 239 features an interview with author Bennett Kelly! Known across New Jersey for his excellent journalistic contributions to publications like New Brunswick Today and the Look At My Records! music blog, Kelly recently shared his first-ever work of non-fiction, a novel titled Sensation Blues . The book, which is set deep in the Mississippi Delta, tells the story of a young, aspiring musicia...

Episode 238 of Look At My Records! Features an interview with Jersey City-based songwriter Sean Kiely. Last month, Kiely released his long-awaited new record, Postcards of the Reckoning, an 8-song collection of folk-inspired tunes that features some of his most personal songwriting to date. His songs expound on experiences spanning both love and loss, and feature a wide range of collaborators, inc...

Episode 237 of Look At My Records! Features an interview with Bay Area songwriter Ainsley Wagoner, who performs as Silverware. In August, Silverware released their second full-length album, One True Light . It’s a record characterized by change, specifically, in Wagoner’s process, and in turn, her sound. In contrast to her 2021 album, No Plans, which was recorded quickly, Wagoner spent considerabl...

Episode 236 of Look At My Records! features an interview with New York-based artist and musician, Shonali Bhowmik. Late last month, Shonali released her second-ever solo record, One Machine At A Time , the follow up to 2011’s 100 Oaks Revival . On One Machine At A Time , Shonali takes listeners on a personal journey across multiple genres, touching on themes of love, loss, and life. During the int...

Episode 235 features an interview with Sophie Negrini of Los Angeles’ Janelane. Back in April, Janelane released their long-awaited debut full-length, Love Letters . The record was over a decade in the making, collecting songs that have origins in the mid-2010s, and showcasing Negrini’s expert ability at crafting love songs that are equal parts cutting, dreamy, and poppy. During the interview, Sop...

Episode 234 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Sun Kin. The Los Angeles-based project of Kabir Kumar just released a new record titled Sunset World , which has been years in the making. The record features songs written as far back as November 2020 and thematically, explores the dichotomy between the beauty and terror of the natural world and the convenience of the virtual. The albu...

Episode 233 of the Look At My Records! podcast features an interview with Marc Masters, author of High Bias: The Distorted History of the Cassette Tape . The cassette has a long, storied, and complex history, and in High Bias , Masters takes readers through some of its most notable moments. From the birth of magnetized sound to the proliferation of the game-changing Sony Walkman, and much of what...

Episode 232 features an interview with Eliza Vera, who performs under the moniker Hot Moms Club. The San Diego-based project just released their second EP, Welcome To The Club , which features three songs that soothingly reflect on finding joy in simple pleasures, like the calming effects of wading through Trader Joe’s and the memory-triggering scent of fried pork. But before Eliza and Tom dove in...

Episode 231 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Matt Allan of the Brooklyn-based band Star 80. We last chatted with Allen prior to the pandemic on the Look At My Records! radio program. Back then, he was releasing his first singles as Star 80, and in the intervening years, he’s accumulated a bevy of solid material. Much of it appears on his brand new, debut full-length, New View. The...

Our friend Kip Berman, who performs as The Natvral returns to the Look At My Records! podcast for Episode 230! Since he last appeared on the podcast in 2021  the former Pains of Being Pure at Heart frotman has released a few singles as The Natvral, and last week, he shared the project’s second full-length, Summer of No Light . The title, which was inspired by the climate crisis of 1816, draws...

Episode 229 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Brooklyn artist Oropendola. The project of songwriter Joanna Schubert recently shared their debut album as Oropendola, an eclectic and vibrant 11-song collection titled Waiting For The Sky To Speak . The record, which is described as a “celebration of choosing life even in the face of its ephemerality, and of finding motion even in the...

Well, it’s that time of year again. Actually, it’s a little past that time of year, but, what the hell. It’s time for Tom and Look At My Records! contributor Zach Romano’s favorite records of the year. Better late than never, right? 2022 was another stellar year for music. From New York City, New Jersey, and beyond, bands and artists of all ilks released some killer full-lengths. In Episode 228 of...

Episode 227 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Dawn Moraga and Tim Lusk of North Carolina post-punk band Cor de Lux. Recently, the band shared their second full-length, Media , a towering, eclectic-sounding record that melds elements of shoegaze, multiple eras of punk rock, dream pop, and more, while tackling themes and feelings of uncertainty, division, and human connection. During...

Logan Farmer is Tom’s guest for Episode 226 of Look At My Records! In late 2022, Farmer released his stunning sophomore effort, A Mold For The Bell . Inspired by the films of Andrei Tarkovsky and the literature of Olga Tokarczuk, the intimate and tranquil-sounding record was born out of a two-day session with Grammy-nominated producer Andrew Berlin. The rest of the album’s creation occurred remote...

Episode 225 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Zach Ellis of Brooklyn post-punk phenoms Dead Tooth. After an eventful 2022 that saw Dead Tooth release a well-received EP called Pig Pile , take home the top prize at the annual Our Wicked Lady Winter Madness tournament, and make an indelible impression at South By Southwest, Ellis is keeping the momentum going in 2023. Dead Tooth hits...

For Episode 224 of Look At My Records!, Tom spoke with songwriter Katy Rea. Rea just released her debut full-length, The Urge That Saves You, late last year. The record is a long time coming for Rea, who got her start in music in the mid-2010s on New York City’s open mic circuit, honing her craft at venues like the Sidewalk Cafe. After catching the songwriting bug during the pandemic, Rea began wo...

Episode 223 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Michael Grace, Jr. of Long Island indie pop legends My Favorite. After a long stretch of years since their last release, the project returned in the fall with the first in a trio of EPs, “Tender Is The Nightshift: Part 1.” The five-song collection is the first My Favorite extended play in nearly two decades and features more beat-driven...

Episode 222 of Look At My Records! Features an interview with Gabbi Coenen, the Los Angeles-based musician who performs under the moniker RVBY MY DEAR. The Perth, Australia native recently released a new self-titled EP, which arrives on the heels of some changes for Coenen. It’s the project’s first release since Coenen relocated from New York to Los Angeles and also follows the dissolution of the...

For Episode 221 of Look At My Records!, Harry the Nightgown returns for their second appearance on the podcast. Since the release of their excellent, analog-centric self-titled debut in 2020, the songwriting duo of Spencer Hartling and Sami Perez have leaned further into the electronic elements of their sound, which blossomed on their 2021 singles “The Painter” and “If You Were Wrong.” Last month,...

Scout Gillett returns to the Look At My Records! podcast for Episode 220. 2022 has been an eventful year for the Brooklyn songwriter, as she recently shared her highly anticipated debut full-length, no roof no floor , on Captured Tracks. The release is a long time coming for Gillett, as principal tracking for the album began two years ago at The Chicken Shack in Stanfordville, NY. There, Gillett w...

Episode 219 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Winnipeg-based songwriter Dylan MacDonald, who performs as Field Guide. In late October, Field Guide released their self-titled second full-length, which expands on the flush and warm folk textures heard on his previous works, and further, builds off of his deeply personal lyrical themes. In addition to diving into the process of record...

For Episode 218 of the Look At My Records! podcast, Tom chatted with Jackson Phillips of the Los Angeles-based Day Wave. Back in the mid-2010s, Phillips made a splash in indie rock circles with his dreamy and expansive shoegaze-influenced songs. Fast forward to 2022 and Phillips is older, wiser, and digging into his roots to plot a new direction forward. His new record, Pastlife , reflects those i...

Episode 217 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Dennis Diken, drummer of the legendary New Jersey band The Smithereens. The Carteret, New Jersey natives (and New Jersey Hall of Famers) have been at it for over 40 years. Along the way, they’ve sold millions of records, played on Saturday Night Live, toured the globe, and done just about everything you can do as a band. Following the t...

Episode 216 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Pascal Stevenson of Los Angeles’ Fashion Club. Despite an extensive background playing in various bands, including Sub Pop recording artists Moaning, Fashion Club is Stevenson’s first vessel for her own songwriting. Dark, brooding, and driven by Stevenson’s distinctively haunting voice, her debut record as Fashion Club, Scrutiny , thriv...