The Ringer

Bandsplain

Music EN ↓ 232 episodes

Bandsplain is a show where host Yasi Salek invites experts to explain cult bands and iconic artists—and why people love them.

Author

The Ringer

Category

Music

Podcast website

www.theringer.com

Latest episode

Jul 9, 2026

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Episodes

Gram Parsons with John Strohm 09.09.2021

Cosmic country pioneer, Emmylou Harris collaborator, Keith Richards bestie, and spiritual grandfather of any country-twinged rock of the last half century, the one and only Gram Parsons is celebrated by our new friend John Strohm, president of Rounder Records, founding member of the Blake Babies, and former member of the Lemonheads. Follow John Strohm on Twitter at @johnpstrohm and Rounder Records...

Tracy Chapman with Ann-Derrick Gaillot 02.09.2021

Writer Ann-Derrick Gaillot takes us through the decades-spanning career of Tracy Chapman, whose breakout hit Fast Car propelled her into the canon of singer-songwriters when she was just 24 years old. Follow Ann-Derrick Gaillot at @AnnDerrickG. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Doors with Jeff Weiss 26.08.2021

We strip down the mythical, mysterious layers of foundational band The Doors and the original rock n’ roll martyr, Jim Morrison. Fellow child of LA Jeff Weiss of the LAnd Magazine is our guest. Follow Jeff Weiss at @passionweiss and check out The LAnd magazine at @theLAndmagazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

U2 with Rob Harvilla 19.08.2021

Return guest and best friend Rob Harvilla of The Ringer’s 60 Songs That Explain the 90’s takes us through the humble Irish beginnings to era-defining rock superstardom of U2. Follow Rob Harvilla at @harvilla on Twitter and listen to his The Ringer podcast, 60 Songs That Explain the 90s, only on Spotify. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Wilco with Jason P. Woodbury 12.08.2021

With the help of writer and DJ Jason P. Woodbury of Aquarium Drunkard’s Transmissions podcast, we examine the sprawling and experimental output of Jeff Tweedy’s Wilco, from its alt-country roots to the dad rock clichés and their many genre-transcending moments throughout. Follow Jason P. Woodbury on Twitter at @jasonpwoodbury and check out Transmissions Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podc...

The Lemonheads with Chris Black 05.08.2021

We take an inspired, heartfelt journey into the slacker mythology and enduring albums of iconic 90s rockers the Lemonheads. Friend of the ‘Splain Chris Black returns to travel with us into the extended Evan Dando universe and beyond. Follow Chris Black on Twitter at @donetodeath. Subscribe to How Long Gone on Spotify Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Modest Mouse with Justin Sayles 29.07.2021

Issaquah, Washington’s indie rock torchbearers Modest Mouse get ‘splained by The Ringer’s in-house Modest Mouse guy, Justin Sayles. Follow Justin Sayles on Twitter @doxellis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kate Bush with Ann Powers 22.07.2021

Author and critic Ann Powers maps the pioneering path of one of pop music’s most inventive, mystical, and artistic trailblazers: Kate Bush. Follow Ann Powers on Twitter at @annkpowers, and find her latest book, Good Booty: Love and Sex, Black and White, Body and Soul in American Music wherever fine books are sold. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fugazi with Brandon Stosuy 15.07.2021

We dive into the DIY legacy and hardcore lineage of DC legends Fugazi with none other than writer, editor, and artist manager Brandon Stosuy. Follow Brandon Stosuy on Twitter at @brandonstosuy, and check out thecreativeindependent.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dire Straits with Sam Sodomsky 08.07.2021

Pitchfork associate editor Sam Sodomsky takes us on a bountiful journey through the smooth stylings, guitar virtuosity, and unavoidable boomer nostalgia of Dire Straits. Follow Sam Sodomsky on Twitter at @ssodomsky, find his writing at Pitchfork, and check out his podcast Late Era. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Green Day with Dan Ozzi 01.07.2021

Tracking their evolution from the Berkeley punk scene to rock stardom, and all of the sell-out discourse in between, Dan Ozzi joins us this week to talk about Green Day. Follow Dan Ozzi on Twitter at @danozzi and pre-order his book, Sellout: The Major Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore, out Oct. 26, 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Joni Mitchell with Jessica Hopper 24.06.2021

In honor of the 50th anniversary of her masterwork, Blue, author and critic Jessica Hopper comes on the show to demystify the groundbreaking genius of the one and only Joni Mitchell. Follow Jessica Hopper on Twitter at @missjesshop. Find her books, The First Collection of Criticism By A Living Female Rock Critic, Night Moves, and the upcoming No God But Herself: How Women Changed Music in 1975 (ou...

Red Hot Chili Peppers with Brittany Spanos and Joseph Patel 17.06.2021

Do you ever get scared that when you do psychedelics, your brain will break and you’ll get stuck in that place forever and never be normal again? That’s what happened here. Our brains broke somewhere along the way researching for this Red Hot Chili Peppers episode, and we will never be the same again. Fuck it, FOUR* HOUR BANDSPLAIN. *Nearly.  Featuring Rolling Stone staff writer Brittany Spanos (@...

Deftones with Suzy Exposito 10.06.2021

Suzy Exposito, music reporter for the LA Times, joins us to unpack the story and innovative musical style of Deftones, a band from Sacramento that never stopped evolving, through genres, trends, and even tragedy. Just don’t call them nü-metal. Find Suzy Exposito’s writing at the Los Angeles Times and follow her on Twitter at @HexPositive. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/...

Ween with Alex Pappademas 03.06.2021

Alex Pappademas returns to explain Ween, America’s first and only band "sprouted from the demon-god Boognish," and the one-of-a-kind bond between Boognish’s earthly conduits, Gene and Dean Ween. Alex’s book on Steely Dan, Quantum Criminals: Ramblers, Wild Gamblers, Babylon Sisters, and Other Soul Survivors from the Songs of Steely Dan is out in 2022 on University of Texas, Austin Press. You can fo...

REM with Caryn Rose 27.05.2021

REM is your favorite band’s favorite band. They’ve influenced countless musicians and had an immeasurable impact on the following decades of indie rock. Veteran music journalist Caryn Rose takes us through the lifespan and wide-ranging impact of Athens, Georgia’s own REM. Follow Caryn Rose on Twitter @carynrose. Her upcoming book, Why Patti Smith Matters, is out on University of Texas Press in 202...

Counting Crows with Steven Hyden 20.05.2021

Counting Crows are an essential inclusion to the sensitive nineties male rocker canon, one that is very close to Yasi’s heart. Music critic and author Steven Hyden joins Yasi to count the ways they love the Crows and reimagine a context in which they should be reconsidered as good and cool. Follow Steven Hyden on Twitter @Steven_Hyden, check out his podcast Celebration Rock on Spotify, and find hi...

Jawbreaker with Leor Galil 13.05.2021

Jawbreaker is one of those highly mythologized bands, the kind that feel perfectly cast in the amber of cult band-om. Yasi dissects the lore, the albums, the break-up, and the ahead-of-their-time songwriting with Jawbreaker oral historian Leor Galil, featuring a very special guest appearance by Dear You producer Rob Cavallo. Follow Leor Galil on Twitter at @imLeor and find his collection of music...

The-Dream with Rob Harvilla 06.05.2021

Superproducer The-Dream, aka Terius Nash, was behind some of the 2000s biggest pop hits: Umbrella by Rihanna, Single Ladies by Beyonce, even Baby by Justin Beiber. What’s lesser known is the intensity of the cult following that his solo R&B output amassed around the late 2000s. The Ringer’s Rob Harvilla comes on the pod to explain The-Dream’s influence and dissect his “lascivious, pristine R&B sex...

Dave Matthews Band with Grayson Haver Currin 29.04.2021

Patron saint of Yasi’s heart and soul, Dave Matthews, finally gets the Bandsplain treatment. Yasi bros down with journalist Grayson Haver Currin on their shared fave, Dave Matthews Band, with special tributes to 90s rock radio’s most quintessential fandom. Follow Grayson Haver Currin on Twitter @currincy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Blink 182 with Josiah Hughes 22.04.2021

Do waste your time on us, we’re already the voice inside your head with this mega-episode dedicated to Poway, California’s pop-punk pioneers, Blink 182. Our guide is Josiah Hughes, co-host of the prolific podcast Blink 155, which explored every single Blink 182 song in a 2 hour-plus episode. Follow Josiah Hughes, the Blink 182 expert and NOT the Christian TikTok influencer, on Twitter @josiahhughe...

Lil' Kim with Clover Hope 15.04.2021

Lil' Kim set the blueprint for much of female rap today but her legacy is so often misunderstood. With author Clover Hope, we unpack her history, her body of work, her influence, and how she walked so WAP could slide. Follow Clover Hope on Twitter @clovito and find her book The Motherlode: 100+ Women Who Made Hip-Hop wherever books are sold. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.c...

Insane Clown Posse with Nathan Rabin 08.04.2021

Juggalos may be the most cult fanbase of all time. With dedicated Juggalo and author Nathan Rabin, we dive into the beautifully twisted world of the Dark Carnival and the music of their truly fearless leaders, Violent J and Shaggy 2 Dope of the one and only Insane Clown Posse. Follow Nathan Rabin on Twitter at @nathanrabin and discover his books and podcasts at nathanrabin.com. Learn more about yo...

The Replacements with Bob Mehr, Part 2 01.04.2021

So...what happens to the Replacements? Bob Mehr returns for the rest of the band’s story, and we hear about their indelible influence on the future of rock bands and those who love ‘em. Follow Bob Mehr on Twitter at @BobMehr and find Trouble Boys: the True Story of the Replacements wherever books are sold. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Replacements with Bob Mehr, Part 1 25.03.2021

The Replacements are one of rock n’ roll’s greatest cult bands. Also: one of Yasi’s all-time favorites, which is why this gets the two part treatment (them’s the rules). Grammy award-winning journalist Bob Mehr, author of Trouble Boys: the True Story of the Replacements, leads us through the ‘Mats 101. Follow Bob Mehr on Twitter at @BobMehr and find Trouble Boys: the True Story of the Replacements...

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