No Filler Music Podcast

The Self Brothers are recording on Halloween night and to help get into the spirit we dive into the music of Suspiria, the 1977 French horror film that just got a 2018 reboot featuring an original score by none other than Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke. We also listen to the original film's "theme song" by the italian prog rock group Goblin. For more info, check out our show notes: https://www.nofi...

We begin our deep dive into Radiohead with a look at their third studio album OK Computer. Coming off a successful debut and sophomore release and extensive touring, the label gives Radiohead full control over the making of OK Computer, even down to the choice of studio and producer. The result sees Radiohead take a definitive shift in their creativity and level of experimentation, setting the ton...

On this week's Sidetrack we listen to 70's post-punk band The Fall's "I Am Damo Suzuki". The Fall's members are all big fans of CAN, and this song pulls riffs and drumbeats from the Gods of Krautrock, and includes lyrics loosely based around the life and times of one of CAN's most influential frontmen Damo Suzuki.​ For more info, check out our show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/ep...

The Prodigal Twin returns to nerd out with Quentin over ​​Tago Mago,​ the third studio album from experimental krautrock band CAN. Damo Suzuki, with his eerie whispers and his nasty shrieks, steps in as lead vocalist after years of busking in the streets of Munich, and CAN feels fully realized and complete...The Gods of Krautrock are born. For more info, check out our show notes: https://www.nofil...

While Travis is out of town, I threw up a quick little sidetrack episode on a song I heard while thrifting in Austin, Texas last week. Jacqueline Taïeb was one of many successful singer/songwriters of the 1960's Yé-yé pop music movement out of Southern Europe. Check out the english vocal version of her 1967 single "7 Heures Du Matin". Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While Travis is out of town and super busy, we decided to upload a previously un-aired episode from the early days. We recorded an episode on Kings of Convenience's first studio album, "Quiet Is The New Loud" around a year ago and ended up airing an entirely different episode on their second full length, "Riot On An Empty Street" for episode 7. This is one of the first episodes ever recorded for t...

On this week's Sidetrack we dive into the sampled Polish jazz tunes of Poland's own Marcin Cichy and Igor Pudło, known collectively as Skalpel. These guys are masters of their craft and create beautifully dark & moody, cinematic nu-jazz, sampling only from old Polish jazz records from the 60s and 70s. We listen to a couple of these old records, along with two songs of Skalpel's from their 2004 sel...

We explore the jazz, hip-hop, and jungle-infused sounds on Amon Tobin's debut album, Bricolage. With this album, unlike most trip hop albums from the nineties, Tobin perfectly blends old jazz samples with a drum and bass backbone, and an IDM sensibility. Dark, moody, and effortlessly cool, this record stands out as a true gem in the field of trip hop. For more info, check out our show notes: https...

Fresh off the heels of our Animal Collective episode, we keep things weird for this week's Sidetrack with a look at Black Dice's "Tree Tops" and "Skeleton" from their 2004 release "Creature Comforts". We really tried to understand and enjoy the noisiness of these noise tracks, but the lack of song structures and melodies just left us scratching our heads. For more info, check out our show notes: h...

We explore the experimental and unconventional sounds of Animal Collective with a look at their 2004 album Sung Tongs. Avey Tare and Panda Bear's unique use of harmonies and repetition on this album are what make it such a compelling experimental record. This album ultimately proves to be the blueprint and stepping stone for the sounds and techniques heard on their 2009 album Merriweather Post Pav...

​In this week's Sidetrack we take a look at an album that Fleet Foxes' Robin Pecknold drew inspiration from and had on heavy rotation while writing songs for ​"Helplessness Blues". Roy Harper's four song masterpiece, "Stormcock", is this short and sweet, intensely beautiful & clever album (to borrow sentiments from Johnny Marr), along with other works by Harper, had a major influence on many of ro...

​We gush and fawn over Robin Pecknold's lyrics and song composition as we dive into Fleet Foxes' second album Helplessness Blues​. We also take a look at what makes Fleet Foxes stand out in the landscape of indie-folk from that era. For more info, check out our show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/ep-18-fleet-foxes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Travis offers a quick peak at the pivotal stoner metal band Sleep, and plays a track off their brand new album ​The Sciences​ called "Marijuanaut's Theme". For more info, check out our show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/music-review-black-sabbath#sidetrack Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we explore Black Sabbath's first three albums, and briefly touch on one of rock's most pivotal years, 1969. And much like our very first episode on Alice in Chains, we get to the bottom of Quentin's dislike for metal. For more info, check out our show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/music-review-black-sabbath Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho...

To top off our SpoonFest we decided to dive into the soundtrack for "Stranger Than Fiction" for our Sidetrack this week, which just happens to be chock-full Britt Daniel & Spoon. Music supervisor/composer Brian Reitzell collaborates heavily with Britt Daniel for this soundtrack, and Daniel offers up four Spoon tracks for the film, including "The Book I Write", which is an exclusive track for the m...

We finish up our SpoonFest with a look at Spoon fully realized in their 2005 release ​"Gimme Fiction"​.​ With the addition of keyboardist Eric Harvey alongside Britt Daniel's increasing comfortability behind those ivory keys, ​"Gimme Fiction"​ brings the piano to the forefront in several songs, yet still finds time to squeeze in those slightly strange & beautiful, electronic-heavy tunes that Spoon...

We explore the work of acclaimed ambient artist Adam Wiltzie and his side project The Dead Texan. Wiltzie and his collaborator Christina Vantzou approach ambient music differently than Scott Morgan of Loscil, who we talked about last week, leaning more on real instruments sampled into the mix to create more organic sounding tones and textures in their music. If you like this music, check out Wiltz...

We hit pause on indie rock and mellow out with the ambient electronic music of Loscil. Scott Morgan's approach to Loscil started as an exploration on how to represent abstract concepts such as physics and thermodynamics in musical form. On this episode, we cover his third studio album First Narrows and talk about the special relationship we both have with ambient music and how Loscil's approach se...

Powerpop synth duo The Eurythmics had found mega success behind the time the year 1984 rolled around. But when the decided to tackle the score to the film adaptation of George Orwell's book of the same name, controversy ensues. Hear for yourself why Britt Daniels of Spoon considers this to be a highly overlooked album. For more info, check out our show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episod...

We continue our quest to cover all things Spoon with a look at Kill the Moonlight. On this album, Spoon becomes more experimental with their song compositions, adding more synthesized drums and keys to the mix. But still present are Britt Daniels's always spot-on guitar riffs and Jim Eno's simple yet masterful drum beats. With songs that break away from the mainstream through risk-taking and exper...

Following last week's episode on Interpol's debut album "Turn On The Bright Lights", we focus on new wave's "chumps from Liverpool", Echo & The Bunnymen, and their second studio album from 1981, "Heaven Up Here". The album's dark, moody, somber vibes puts us in the same headspace as Interpol's TOTBL. With frontman Ian McCulloch's imperfect & strained vocals, & guitarist Will Sergeant's reverb'd &...

This week we explore the melancholic soundscapes of Interpol's debut album Turn On The Bright Lights. The emotional punch that this album packs is the perfect mix of somber and powerfully passionate in a way that, beyond their red ties and sleek haircuts, made Interpol stand out amongst the slew of bands from that era. Between the angular guitars of Daniel Kessler, the baritone attack of Paul Bank...

We take a look back at one particular incident in 1979 involving the Stephen Stills Band, too much to drink, and Elvis Costello's racist remarks toward black American musicians just as his career was starting to take off in the U.S. Costello bounces back by releasing "Get Happy!!" in 1980, a collection of soul-pop gems that demonstrated a clear respect and admiration for the music of black America...

On this week's episode we continue our dive into Spoon with a look at Girls Can Tell. This album shows a clear shift in sound from the more aggressive and punchier approach of their previous works, with Britt Daniels acknowledging that anything is fair game when it comes to a Spoon song. Pianos, vibraphones, and even harpsichords are introduced into the songwriting process, creating the blueprint...

We continue our conversation on the origins of emo music with a look at 1999 self-titled album from American Football. Stepping away from the punk-rock influence entirely, American Football's unique sound introduced elements of jazz and math-rock into the emo repertoire. The album has since achieved cult-status and is widely considered one of the greatest and most important releases in the history...