EarWax

Come on now, you know we got geared up for this one. One of the heaviest hitters in the world music conversation, Buena Vista Social Club's self-titled debut is this week's focus on EarWax! Let's head to Cuba (by way of Mexico, if you're Ry Cooder), find some legendary Cuban musicians, get them in the studio and see what magic unfolds. After their initial idea broke down, this is how Nick Gold and...

We love our shiny, glossy pop albums here on EarWax, and this week we've got one that is among the shiniest and poppiest - Carly Rae Jepsen's "E•MO•TION." After rocketing to the top of the charts with the monster single "Call Me Maybe," Carly Rae Jepsen needed to take some time to figure out where she fit in the pop landscape, and more importantly, how to fit in a way that was comfortable for her....

We are heading into familiar territory this week as EarWax revisits the Newport Jazz Festival! Cody and Hilary pick up four years after we last left Newport to tell the tale behind Muddy Waters' incredible live album "At Newport 1960." This record is an absolutely scorching set of blues set against a weekend that was marred by capacity limits, Bermuda shorts-wearing hoodlums, riots, and a Mingus-l...

Looking for a breezy jam to cruise into the summer season? Nah, we're hitting you with beats, bars, and Vince Staples' debut album. Cody and Hilary talk about our responsibilities as fans, how to respectfully engage with weighty material, and how in the pocket Vince Staples is throughout this whole record. Weaving together a tapestry of matter-of-fact stories with a seamless display of flows, Summ...

Are you having a wonderful day? Full of joy perhaps? Just really, fully, live/laugh/loving life? Welp, good luck! Hilary and Cody careen through Nine Inch Nails' magnum opus, "The Downward Spiral." Trent Reznor was fully in his bag on this one, and it pushed him into places that would take a good long while to rebound from. What does it say about us that a record of such pain and darkness not only...

Worlds and genres collide as the EarWax crew welcome our first guest onto the show! Post-hardcore meets indie rock as Jeremy Bolm (Touché Amoré, The First Ever Podcast) joins Cody and Hilary to dive into Rilo Kiley's indie masterpiece "The Exection of All Things." This album is where LA meets Omaha, where success meets sustainability, and where Rilo Kiley cemented themselves as the indie legends t...

Tease your beehive hairdo waaaaaaay up, and put on your most gorgeous flowing dress, the GOAT girl group makes their EarWax debut! Our first 60s record is Motown perfection, although the Supremes' rise to the top was anything but perfect. Ultimately, they became standard bearers for both the label and the genre, and the hits from this record are absolute staples of the revolutionary culture of the...

Let's dismantle systemic oppression with post-riot grrrl! Hilary and Cody dance and groove to the infectious, crackling first album by Le Tigre. Fronted by the legendary Kathleen Hanna, Le Tigre is a response to the implosion of a movement she championed. Le Tigre talks about all of the stuff you're gonna hear in the riot grrrl scene, but it candy-coats them and makes them accessible for those not...

Okay...so you need a 32nd episode. Well, let us impress upon you how much we loved covering Shania Twain's ridiculously influential album "Come On Over." Cody and Hilary weave through the career path of the Queen of Country Pop, and all of the struggles and successes that culminated in the making of this album. You want catchy? Got it. Songs built for live performance? Boom, got it. How about comm...

What better way to usher in the Leap Year than to cover an artist who is arguably even more unique?  Alice Coltrane is one of the most dynamic names in jazz history. Cody and Hilary explore her journey to this record, and Ptah's journey from ancient Egypt to 1970. This lineup is absolutely stacked with jazz legends, and they are all locked in and taking their cue from the person at the helm - Alic...

Everyone get real serious...now throw that all away and gear up for a total vibe of an album - Flying Lotus' "Until The Quiet Comes." Cody and Hilary talk about floating bathtubs, lucid dreaming, and Adult Swim. All of these are integral to Flying Lotus, a true master whose talents are on full display on this record. A seamless blend of jazz, hip-hop, psych, and electro, "Until the Quiet Comes" kn...

Light some candles, turn off the lights, and slip into something a bit more...comfortable. We've got a whole vibe this week. Hilary and Cody break down the funk, the grooves, the voice, and the poetry that is D'Angelo and his second album - Voodoo. Chock full of absolute stars, this album's personnel is a who's who of 90s soul, with D'Angelo at the helm. A bit of Sly, a bit of Hendrix, a bit of Di...

Make sure you're properly stretched, because this episode is full of backflips, stage dives, and a raucous dose of hardcore royalty. Cody and Hilary explore the dichotomy that is Bad Brains. They are immensely talented musicians who helped shape a genre that relishes in its simplicity. They are furious bursts of faster-than-life music, followed by a groovy reggae jam. They are punks. They are Rast...

Grace - a name, an attribute, a vibe, and an attitude. And this week we are covering an artist and album that is all of these and so, so much more. Hilary and Cody put on their sharpest shoulder pads and strike their most stunning poses as they talk about Grace Jones' "Nightclubbing." Full of ambitiously reworked covers and autobiographical originals, this record is a dichotomy of new wave melodie...

We're pulling out all the big guns at once for this one. You want legends? Psh, how about five of them? No big deal. Here's a few names you might have heard: Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty, and George freakin' Harrison. Cody and Hilary chat about this most super of the supergroups; from the storybook way they came together to the brilliance of their songwriting. But mainly, they tal...

We found 1994 so cozy last week that we're staying right there for our twenty-fifth episode! How about a trip down to Texas to visit an absolute icon - Selena! Amor Prohibido is a flashpoint for Tejano music, and a huge influence on Latin music's injection into the pop consciousness. Hilary and Cody talk about the value of "crossing over" onto the pop charts, as well as Selena's ability to weave h...

Put on your comfiest baggy pants and unopened-condom-as-accessories, we are talking 90s slo-jams this week! Cody and Hilary weave through the history of one of the top girl groups of all time, and the album that simultaneously solidified their place in the R&B lineage and almost put them out of business. TLC is a group whose collective voice shines as bright and grooves as hard today as it did...

Put on your leather jacket, chaps, hat, vest, and anything else that has studs - EarWax is going metal once again! Hilary and Cody headbang their way through Judas Priest's unbelievably charged record "Stained Class." Acting as the bridge between the godfathers and the new wave of British heavy metal, this album showcases proto-thrash riffs, towering Rob Halford vocals, and kick drums for days. Th...

We are back and getting crazy with the Cheez Wiz! This week we are taking on the smorgasbord of sounds and genres contained within Beck's "Midnite Vultures." Hilary and Cody jump headfirst into this amalgamation that somehow sounds like the weirdest party album you'll hear. Beck is in full control of the show, and the result is a fascinating look into the mind of a musician feeling themselves. Thi...

Ho-ho-holy good grief, we have a truly special one this week! Hilary and Cody unwrap the story behind a legendary holiday album - A Charlie Brown Christmas. Ever wonder who those kids are on the recording? They're just kids, of course! Vince Guaraldi and Lee Mendelson understood the necessity for authenticity. This soundtrack has transcended beyond just the music to a classic television special; m...

Holy buckets and holly jolly everyone, we made it to episode twenty! Sharon Jones & tTe Dap-Kings usher in our first holiday season with their brilliant, groove-filled album "It's A Holiday Soul Party."  This album is set in a very specific, interesting period of time for the group, and for Miss Sharon Jones personally. The result is a record full of life, soul, and joy that encourages us all...

Surpriiiiiiissssse!!! We are back with a fury, and there's hardly a better album to get back into the swing of things than this absolute groove. Cody and Hilary dive into the B-52s second album, and man does it go in. "Wild Planet" takes no prisoners, tackling topics from a poodle abandoning its owner for another dog, to tips on how to save a flailing party, to the happenings on a dirty back road....

Hurry, hurry, step right up and follow us into an episode filled with beats, bars, and the God MC himself. This week's episode sees Hilary and Cody marveling over the second album from Eric B. & Rakim.  We flip out over the exquisite samples (shout out Bob James!) and Rakim's mastery of flow and rhymes. Studios get blacked out, there's a feud over cereal...it gets in tense. This is a landmark...

What have we here? A two...or one and a half-for one deal this week! Fiona Apple's "Extraordinary Machine" is a masterclass in melody and weaving styles together. With folks such as Jon Brion, Questlove, and Mike Elizondo contributing, this album really shows us an artist stepping into and owning their artistry. Cody and Hilary explore the story behind this record's genesis, death, and rebirth - t...

Get yourself right for this one, we're headed into the wild world of punk funk, the 80s, and Rick James. Hilary and Cody wade through the legend of Rick James, touch on the storied history of Motown, and chat about an album that is simply a masterclass in groove. Street Songs is the album most representative of Rick James's vision. Bombastic, opulent, and pretty much every superlative that can be...