Number One With A Bullard

There's a type of music from the '70s and '80s that I've always categorized as "box set rock." This is a description that, for reasons I'll explain, could only have come about during a brief period around the turn of the century. And my use of the term, for reasons that will become clear, says a lot about music writing and appreciation at that time. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discu...

What is it like to be a bat, a whale, or an AI? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

Think of the last time you went out. Were most people you passed wearing headphones, earbuds, or something similar? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

First name: Gabe. Last name: Imadeapodcastandithinkitsgood. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

The audio of this edition is an interview I recorded with the hosts of the podcast Hit Factory ( Apple podcasts ; Spotify ; Patreon ). I’m using the text here to elaborate about what was on my mind when I decided to reach out for the interview, and to reflect on some of what we talked about. Also, this essay by Aaron Thorpe comes up in the interview. I’m hoping to add more interviews to my rotatio...

Late capitalism, 'The Big Chill,' and millennial burnout. Trust me, I'm going somewhere with this. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

So many Christmas songs are deeply sad. That's just right for the season. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

If a band replaces all its members, is it still the same band? A few classic rock acts are testing the theory. The larger question, though, is what will stop people from yelling "Freeeebiiiiirdddd" at the stage during concerts? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

The most popular entertainment in the world is about people with impossible technology and magic powers, but somehow it’s been nearly 30 years since anyone in a television sitcom built a robot that could be mistaken for a real person or a machine that could make nerds cool. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebul...

Why doesn’t the future feel futuristic? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

Every so often, someone on Twitter posts the video for Alien Ant Farm’s cover of Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal” and it goes somewhat viral. The comments tend to focus on the year the video dropped—2001. People marvel at how different times were 21 years ago, on the edge of the previous millennium. I think this is why the video spreads. If it were the song alone, then we’d likely see it ranked...

In a life spent online peering through windows, what is more human than a real person, present before you? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

Putting a new spin on the term "no skips." This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

What happens when you remember something but the internet doesn't? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

My memories have Kodak hues. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

First I get back on my TMNT pondering, then I think about nostalgia, memory, Hostess fruit pies, and why there are so many sequels. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

Why do we love music so much as teenagers? Why am I afraid to let people see my Apple Music activity? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

Were old toys always creepy? Has Buzz Lightyear changed at all over the last three decades? Why does Paw Patrol make me feel hopeful? These questions and more in the latest Number One With A Bullard. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

Think of the last time you went out. Were most people you passed wearing headphones, earbuds, or something similar? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit gabebullard.substack.com/subscribe

The eighth episode of the Nickelodeon show The Adventures of Pete and Pete is about the younger of the show’s titular Petes trying to track down a song. He first hears this song from a band playing in a local garage. He sings it to himself until the memory starts to fade. He hums the melody over his makeshift radio station to find anyone else who has heard it. When no one responds, he starts a ban...

On the first night of my first year of college, I opened my graduation gift PowerBook, plugged in my school-provided ethernet cable, and launched iTunes. This was the Rip. Mix. Burn. era of digital music. iTunes was the center of my world. I spent hours in the app listening to songs and updating the tags on MP3s so my music could be as cleanly organized as possible. I made playlists that lumped tr...

For most of the summer, Kate Bush's “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” has been in the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100. It peaked at number three. The song is 37-years-old, and its popularity is driven by its appearance in the show Stranger Things . This is unusual, but it’s not unprecedented. In the spring and summer of 1974, Scott Joplin’s “The Entertainer” was in the top ten of the...

Near the end of Nirvana's MTV Unplugged concert in 1993, Kurt Cobain tells the audience that someone from the Lead Belly estate offered to sell him one of the legendary musician's guitars for half-a-million dollars. The audience laughs. Cobain says he asked label boss David Geffen to buy it for him. Then he goes into a cover of "Where Did You Sleep Last Night," a song Lead Belly made famous. Twent...

Welcome to the audio edition of Number One with a Bullard. I started the newsletter as a way of clearing my head and testing out ideas. I took a break earlier this year to work on some new ideas. You’ll get those in your email and podcast app (assuming you subscribe ) soon. Here’s the link to subscribe —and here it is on Apple Podcasts . Like I wrote a few weeks ago , I’ve been missing the feeling...