Please No Moss

To mark the album's 20th anniversary, we’re diving into the highs, the heartbreak, and the melodrama of an album that helped define a generation of eyeliner-wearing outsiders, while asking whether its grand ambitions hold up two decades later. Does The Black Parade deserve a place among the greatest albums of all time? Album Recommendations: All Killer No Filler - Sum 41 Yoshimi Battles the Pi...

We're kicking off Gothtoberfest with the seminal goth rock album by the seminal goth rock band. We discuss Robert Smith's apparently healthy relationship with his wife despite his numerous songs about heartbreak as well as the apparent influence "Lullaby" had on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. But in the end, we must decide whether this belongs on the list of the 500 great...

Hey there, Mr. Jambo! We're celebrating the 40th anniversay or Paul Simon's landmark album, Graceland. With Graceland, Simon heads to South Africa and comes back with one of the most ambitious, and most controversial, albums of the 1980s. We dig into the irresistible hooks, the complicated cultural politics, and whether the whole album was even his to make. Album Recommendations: Pata Pata...

With "In the Air Tonight, Phil Collins turned heartbreak, bitterness over his recent divorce into an unforgettable piece of music. We’ll explore the song’s mysterious mythology, its unlikely rise to iconic status, and why that drum fill still hits with such force decades later. While we all remember "In the Air Tonight" for it's iconic drum break, is it enough for it to be consi...

On a special Halloween episode of Please No Moss, Pat and Derek talk about vampires and Ezra Koenig's thoughts on religion. This episode was originally released on October 29, 2024 Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Album Recommendations: Turn Off the Light - Kim Petras Hellbilly Deluxe: 13 Tales of Cadaverous Cavorting Inside the Spookshow International - Rob Zombie Cover art by Katherine Ev...

Billie Holiday's Lady in Satin is one of the most emotionally devastating albums ever recorded, capturing a legendary voice at its most fragile, weathered, and unforgettable. In this episode, we explore the album's creation, Holiday's deeply personal performances, and the lush orchestral arrangements that make this final masterpiece so haunting. Album Recommendations: Lady Sings the Bl...

Punk exploded into the mainstream when the Sex Pistols unleashed Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols , an album that outraged critics, thrilled fans, and helped redefine rock music forever. Join us as we dig into its snarling riffs, provocative lyrics, chaotic legacy, and the cultural firestorm that still surrounds one of punk's most influential records. But is Never Mind the B...

The Go-Go's burst onto the scene with Beauty and the Beat , delivering infectious hooks, sunny California energy, and a landmark debut that became one of the defining albums of the new wave era. Join us as we explore its creation, the band's rise to fame, and the lasting impact of hits like "Our Lips Are Sealed" and "We Got the Beat." But does "We Got the Beat&quot...

She's been mentioned on almost every other episode we've done, so we'd thought we'd kick off Season 3 with album #3 from the Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. On Blue, Joni sings perhaps the most personal songs we've covered so far, but is it the third-greatest album ever made? Album Recommendations: Clouds - Joni Mitchell Between the Lines - Janis Ian Follow Please No Mos...

To mark the end of Season 2, we re-rank all 47 albums we've covered on the podcast so far. We also decide which albums should be removed from the list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and which albums that we've recommended should be added. Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art: Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

It's our Season 2 Finale! In honor of the MJ biopic Michael, coming out on April 24th, we're covering the Jackson's breakthrough solo album which redefined him as an artist and set the stage for him to become the King of Pop. Album Recommendations: Step II - Sylvester Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

“Jump” by Van Halen is the band at their most accessible, trading in Eddie’s usual guitar heroics for an iconic synth-driven hook. In this episode, we get into the song’s massive pop appeal, its role in redefining the band’s sound in the ’80s, and why it still feels like pure adrenaline decades later. But does “Jump” deserve a spot among the greatest songs of all time? Cover art by Katherine Evans...

With its woozy melodies, surreal lyrics, and that instantly recognizable guitar line, "Black Hole Sun" feels like a sun-baked fever dream that still hits hard decades later. The song is peak Soundgarden, blending grunge heaviness with psychedelic weirdness in a way that’s both catchy and deeply unsettling. So the big question is: should “Black Hole Sun” be considered one of the greatest...

Aja is Steely Dan at their slickest and most obsessive, blending jazz chops, studio perfectionism, and impossibly catchy hooks into a record that somehow feels both laid-back and insanely precise. From the smooth glide of “Peg” to the dark, cinematic sprawl of the title track, it’s the sound of a band firing on all cylinders and refusing to waste a single note. So… is Aja one of the greatest album...

Otis Blue is Otis Redding at full throttle: raw, sweaty, no-frills soul that sounds like it was cut live in the room, complete with blistering covers and some of his most iconic originals. The whole album feels loose, urgent, and impossibly confident, like a singer who knows he can out-sing, out-feel, and out-groove just about anyone. By the end, you’re left wondering whether this is merely a grea...

With the Super Bowl coming up, we'd thought we take a look at this year's halftime show headliner, Bad Bunny, and his debut album from 2018. Album Recommendations: Barrio Fino - Daddy Yankee DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS   - Bad Bunny It's Album Time - Todd Terje Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

“Toxic” is breathless, string-stabbed tune where Britney sounds both dangerously in love and fully aware it’s a terrible idea. It’s slick, dramatic, and somehow still unusual for a pop hit. But is the Grammy-winning song of Britney's career one of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time? Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gra...

Robyn’s Body Talk is basically the moment she perfected sad bangers: icy, minimal pop songs that somehow make crying on the dance floor feel empowering instead of embarrassing. It’s stacked with tracks like “Dancing On My Own” and “Call Your Girlfriend” that hit way harder emotionally than you expect, especially for music that goes this hard. Album Recommendations: La Roux - La Roux Period - Kesha...

In 1967, the country was captivated by a mystery: "Why did Billie Joe McAllister jump off the Tallahatchie Bridge?" The fictional suicide of a teenage boy in the Mississippi Delta had everyone talking about this song by southern songstress Bobbie Gentry - knocking even the Beatles off the #1 spot on the Hot 100. But is "Ode to Billie Joe" one of the all-time great songs? Follow...

Just in time for the holidays, we conclude our Phil Spector Spectacular with Disc 4 from 'Back to Mono,' which features the entirety of Spector's 1963 Christmas album, A Christmas Gift to You from Phil Spector. Also, we finally dig into the details of Phil Spector's murder of Lana Clarkson as well as some of his other various crimes and controversies. Album Recommendation: Ready Fo...

Our Phil Spector Spectacular continues with disc 3 from Back to Mono. As the popularity of the girl group sound wanes, Spector begins working with other types of artists, including the Righteous Brothers and Tina Turner. Album Recommendations - Eccentric Soul : The Capsoul Label - The Numero Group - We Are The Pipettes - The Pipettes Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover art by Katherine Evans...

Our Phil Spector Spectacular continues with Disc 2 from Back to Mono , covering songs from 1963-1964 - mostly by The Ronettes, but we also get some more from Darlene Love as well as a cover of a Beatles song that is significant for all the wrong reasons. Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover Art: Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

Before he murdered actress Lana Clarkson in 2003, Phil Spector was known as a legendary producer in the music industry, famous as the "Tycoon of Teen," launching the careers of multiple girl groups and developing his trademark "Wall of Sound" recording techniques. Pat and Derek discuss Spector's early career as documented on the first disc of the four-disc compilation Back...

In honor of the movie Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, Pat and Derek conclude Rocktoberfest 2025 by discussing the Boss's landmark album, Nebraska. Album Recommendations: All Hail West Texas - The Mountain Goats Songs from Suicide Bridge - Eric Caboor & David Kauffman Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cover art by Katherine Evans Theme Music: "Tagalong" by Blaise Gratton

We kick off Rocktoberfest II: A Hayride Through a Pumpkin Patch of Autumnal Albums by celebrating the harvest season with, what else, Neil Young's landmark 1972 album Harvest. But is Harvest as great as a flannel sweater on a crisp fall day or is it nothing more than a pile of wet leaves? Album Recommendations Bryter Layter - Nick Drake 1984 - Van Halen Follow Please No Moss on Instagram! Cove...