Just Friends Podcast: The Juice

Season 2 episode 7!! Overall it is Episode 25. Our Podcast can legally rent a car now wow so grown up!  We got an another Audio only episode for your ass! The boys are back in town! Yanko is back and better than ever! We also got Jon Ellery of Unpassing, Mr. Brond hanging out with us once again!  Today's beverage of choice is La Croix from Brond's fridge!  It's one of the best openers we have ever...

Season 2 episode 6!! Overall it is Episode 24 Bay Area Legend Marshawn Lynch aka Beastmode wore #24 while playing in the NFL and it's absolutely no coincidence that in episode 24 we have two Bay Area Legends the dynamic duo of Avi Dey and Cody Furin!! Avi Dey is a founding member of Just Friends playing Trumpet, Percussion, Samples and running the website! Cody Furin is a Director, Photographer an...

Season 2 episode 5!! Overall it is Episode 23  Michael Jordan and LeBron James both wore #23 and its absolutely no coincidence that episode 23 we have Eric Butler of Mom Jeans in the juice box to announce the support for the Mom Jeans Headline Tour this fall!  This edition of Road Dawgs we talk to Harrison Gordon of Harrison Gordon while he drives his van to Goodwill to buy a suit for a music vide...

Season 2 episode 4!! Overall it is Episode 22 the big 2-2! (and another audio only one, I swear to god we are getting video back this season) Yanko is hasn't left, he's counting down the days until The Story So Far takes him across the pond. Take one letter out of that and you get Pod!! Which episode 22 is really something special! Mr. Brond is back again, The handsome Jon Ellery of the Bay Area D...

Season 2 episode 3!! Overall it is Episode 21 the big 2-1! We are legal baby! (and another audio only one, I swear we getting video back this season) Yanko is has returned!! Thank god! The mice were getting tired. We don't just get a cameo from Mr. Brond this episode, we got Jon Ellery of the Bay Area Death Metal Band, Unpassing for the whole episode!!! He joins us to talk about his band Unpassing...

Season 2 episode 2? Yes! But overall it is Episode 20 the big 2-0! (and another audio only one).

 Yanko is still away, the mice will still play. Brandon, Brond and Sammy are on the verge of a BBQ where the hot dogs will be delicious! Sammy takes the time to shout out the Walnut Creek Wing Stop for their impeccable service the other night! We also get a cameo from Mr. Brond himself, Jon Ellery of...

Hello & welcome to season 2 episode 1 but overall it is Episode 19 (and another audio only one). Yanko is away, the mice will play. Brandon, Brond and Sammy discuss the current trend in coffee where all these places feel like they need to have a banana themed drink all at the same time.  Our menu for today? We are sipping on Strawberry Waterloo from Brond's fridge straight to the dome.  We int...

Episode 18 (and another audio only one). It's 2026 and Yanko has walked 10,000 steps everyday for an entire week someone get this man a breakfast burrito from Tacos Don Chai in Martinez, California STAT.  Our menu for today's Dot's Homestyle Pretzels of parmesan garlic persuasion & Yerba Mates straight from the San Ramon/Danville Costco We talk Brond's brand new solo single Joy, the 2026 Bottl...

Episode 17 (and another audio only one). 2026's inaugural episode!! have a sweet and tasty treat for you today! Kent Soliday aka DJ Chuck Salad live in the Juice Box (the new official name of where we record The Juice). Kent is an original member of Just Friends but has been playing in Save Face since 2021. Our menu for today's episode was Nachos BellGrande® a Pepsi and 18 Ounces of Trader Joe's C...

Episode 16 (and another audio only one). Recorded in Late November our beloved Matt Yanko is BACK in the studio aka Brond's living room We have a jam packed episode straight from Bonne Maman! We talk Fortnite, Better Caul Saul and Make Up, you know the classics! We have Brond run a victory lap for Mother Selene and recap the Chain's first Full USA Tour And of course, as promised, as always, as bad...

Episode 15 is our second late-night show (and another audio only one). Recorded way back in the last week of September 2025 while our beloved Matt Yanko was once again out on tour with The Story So Far, but have no fear... Our very own stage right prince Brandon Downum is back on the show and he may just surprise you with that he has to say... We hit you with the yin and the yang having both My Re...

Episode 14 is our first late-night show (and another audio only one).  We’re back from the West Coast run and doing it PTI style like the ESPN show where two guys argue with a clock, except it’s three bandmates running through every gig, meal, and mess from the road. Then we roll out a brand-new segment: Respectfully, No. Sammy says no to Reverend Guitars, Yanko says no to San Francisco bikers, an...

Recorded in the Goldfield green room in Sacramento after soundcheck, two days into this lil’ West Coast headliner sprint. We’d just sold out Reno at the Holland Project on 8/1 (start the month strong, right?), and the AC is still broken because of course it is. Brandon is in the corner pouring E&J shots and handing out orange slices like some kind of demented soccer coach. Six out of seven ban...

Look who’s back it’s the whole gang: Sammy, Brond, and Yanko. Yanko just got off the road with Balance & Composure and Turnover (he’s still dehydrated). Brond has been running social media from a cruise and somehow ended up hanging out with one of her heavy metal heroes (no, seriously). And we all came together in one place, at the same time for Sammy’s wedding. Miracles happen. Oh, and there’...

Ok, we're not going to sit here and pretend we didn’t vanish for a while. We did. But now we’re two episodes deep into this comeback tour, and frankly, we’re feeling pretty good about it. Recorded on Memorial Day, powered by Celsius, donuts, and a near-total audio meltdown (we recovered beautifully, thank you). Will Levy of The Story So Far returns to the pod to talk about the band playing Bottle...

Yanko’s on tour with Turnover and Balance & Composure playing Berkeley so we snuck in a mid-tour check up over some Dunkin. He got a Dunkalatte. First time in about a month we’ve all caught up since Yanko hit the road and Sammy and Brond wrapped the UK Just Friends run. In the second segment Sammy goes suit shopping for his wedding and gets called fat by some San Francisco stores. Brond did a...

UK trilogy: complete! Three episodes, one tour, too many questionable snacks, and unforgettable moments. This episode of The Juice is the full debrief. We just wrapped our first-ever headline tour across the UK, and now we’re back in the Bay: grateful, emotional, maybe still jet-lagged. - Every show? Broken down. - Food? Yep, way too much. - Shoes? Discussed & admired. Highlights? Fans singing...

Recorded just a day before we hopped the pond, this episode is a Central Valley special. We’re joined by Ben from Just Friends, along with Bart and Logan from Chain: the full 559 crew in effect.  We dive into what it’s like commuting for hours, not just for band practice, but also to pile into a van and disappear for a month on tour. We unpack the legendary, steaming green mystery that is Pea Soup...

We are back! The kickoff to our three part UK Tour series! Recorded one week before we left for our first-ever headlining tour in the UK, starting in Ireland and working our way from Glasgow down to Brighton. Yes, we’re international now. Sammy and Brond break down what they’re looking forward to, what’s keeping them up at night, and why this tour feels different. In the second half of the episode...

This is a monumental episode, people. A landmark. The moon landing of The Juice. Why? Because for the first time ever—we’ve got a guest. And not just any guest. We’re joined by Will Levy of The Story So Far. Guitar slinger. Riff wizard. Chill dude supreme. We kick things off with some hometown talk—and yes, the rumors are true: the A’s are now in Sacramento, and it hurts. It hurts deep in the soul...

We start off the show catching up on the weekend. Brond was back in the studio with Marta, cooking up new stuff but of course, nothing’s ever easy. They discovered an issue with one of the very expensive mics. You know the one. The fancy mic. Meanwhile, Sammy and Yanko were out at the Oakland Roots home opener, and look Sammy’ll say it every time: the Coliseum is his favorite place on Earth. We ta...

Yanko survives a near-death driving experience, then we dive into “My Recent Obsessions” Ibanez guitars, one song on repeat, and Sammy’s passionate (and concerning) love for cold cheese from In-N-Out. Then, Chain’s debut record No Spirit is out! We celebrated the right way by rolling up to Chain Reaction with a Blackstone grill  And Just Friends is making a new record! Bart Thompson (Mom Jeans, Ch...

Magic of Tajín: Mom Jeans, Metal, and Mother Selene We kick things off with a gift from the heavens Brond’s signature egg sandwich, featuring mayo mixed with Tajín. A perfect choice.  Then, in The Most Current Thing Happening, Sammy’s band, Mom Jeans, just got announced for Aftershock 2025. Yes, the same festival packed with metal and hardcore bands. Emo at Aftershock? Sacramento’s getting adventu...

On today’s show, we take a trip down memory lane with some tour toilet war flashbacks because of course, that’s where we’re starting. Yanko gives us the inside scoop on a dinner outing at Thee Parkside in SF (was it good? Was it terrible? Who knows?). We break down our weekend run with Chain, and then Brond soft-launches her new doom project, Mother Selene big things happening there. And finally,...