O3L Media

Only Three Lads - Classic Alternative Music Podcast

Music EN ↓ 415 episodes

Only Three Lads is a lively podcast celebrating the Golden Age of Alternative Music from the '70s, '80s & '90s. Join Uncle Gregg, Brett Vargo, and a variety of ”Third Lads” as we share our Top Fives, stories, and news about the music we love, and have a lot of fun along the way! Whether you‘re into indie, punk, new wave, Britpop, power pop, synth pop, shoegaze, grunge...or whatever...there is going to be something for you to discover and love. Part of Pantheon Podcasts.

Author

O3L Media

Category

Music

Podcast website

onlythreelads.codeadx.me

Latest episode

Jul 11, 2026

Where to listen?

Podcasts in the app Replaio Radio Coming soon

Podcasts are coming to the app soon. Install now and be the first to see a whole new take on podcasts

Get it on Google Play Install for free Android 5M+ downloads · 4.8 rating iOS soon

Episodes

E295 - Gun-Shy Butterfly - Top 5 Women-led Albums of the '90s 30.09.2025

We like women. Not in a creepy way (usually)...we mean we really like music created by women. So, in our ongoing series of episodes celebrating women in alternative music, this week we are covering our top 5 women-led albums of the 1990s. Appropriately enough, our Third Lads this week are a dynamic duo who "lived through this" and are inspired by this music - Julie Exter and Andrea Tarka White fro...

E294 - Splitsville - Top 5 Covers That Are Better Than the Originals 24.09.2025

We've covered covers before, but this week we're really blowing our cover by covering covers that we feel are better than the originals. With such a controversial topic, you'd best believe that there are petty arguments, silent treatments, and fisticuffs galore as we tackle some of popular music's sacred cows. Fisticuffs, we say! (OK, well, it was more civilized than that. We're not savages!) And...

E293 - The Rain Parade - Top 5 Debut Singles, Vol. 2 16.09.2025

Who said you never get a second chance to make a first impression!?!? Well, we covered some of the best debut singles waaaay back in Episode 32...and now, five years later, we're back to revisit that topic. So take that, Head & Shoulders! Hey, speaking of second times, guess who's back as our Third Lads this week? (No fair, you cheated by looking at the episode title!) Yes, that's right, it's guit...

E292 - The Whimbrels - Top 5 Noise Rock Albums 09.09.2025

Things are gonna get LOUD! This week, we turn the amps up to 11 and put the effects pedals on stun as we celebrate Noise Rock. What exactly is "noise rock" though?? At its simplest definition, it’s rock music that emphasizes noise - distortion, feedback, dissonance, abrasion.  But as a subgenre, it only takes a cursory look through internet music forums to see how easily these things can digress i...

E291 - doubleVee - Top 5 Family Bands 02.09.2025

"Here's the story of a lovely couple Who are in a cool band they call doubleVee Allan & Barb Vest went on a podcast To discuss bands that are family. Here's the story of a groovy podcast, Hosted by two guys named Uncle Gregg and Brett They were diving deep through all the records Mostly classic alternative Til the one day when the Lads met the Vests And they knew it was much more than a fad That t...

O3L Presents: Weekend Six Pack, Vol. 25 - Music Is Our Mattress 30.08.2025

It’s Labor Day Weekend here in the U.S. and for our friends in Canada.  And you know what THAT means?  That’s right…mattress sales from coast to coast!  Slashing prices 50%, 60%, 70%!  (Plus applicable tariffs.)  Well, guess what we’ve got for you instead this holiday weekend?  Music is OUR mattress, and we’re here with insane deals on a six pack of the latest tunes. We won't rest easy 'til YOU re...

E290 - Lemoyne Alexander - Top 5 Alt-Rock Inspired Hip-Hop Songs 26.08.2025

Hip-hop culture was a dominant force during the '80s and '90s, and inspired language, fashion, film, and music. Yes, that includes plenty of alternative music. But that's not what we're talking about today. Instead, we explore the inverse - how influential was alternative music in the world of hip hop?  While perhaps not quite as pervasive, it did exist - whether it be through the use of sampling...

E289 - Chris Stamey (the dB's) - Top 5 Producers 19.08.2025

Anything is possible as we welcome power pop icon Chris Stamey from the dB's as our Third Lad! Our focus topic is on the producers of the O3L era - the sonic architects that carry out the visions of the artists we love and shape the sound of our favorite records. And Chris Stamey is someone who knows, as he's produced some fantastic records over the years, including albums by Pylon, Whiskeytown, L...

E288 - Will Dailey - Top 5 Singer-Songwriter Albums of the '80s 12.08.2025

This week, it's just "boys talking" (or lads conversing, if you will), as we welcome the sublime singer-songwriter Will Dailey as our Third Lad. Will has spent the past two decades perfecting a style that is not beholden to any one particular genre or set of influences, incorporating rock, folk, psych, funk, blues, and melodic pop into a catalogue where the songs always speak for themselves. Over...

E277 - David J (Bauhaus, Love & Rockets) - in Conversation 07.08.2025

We are thrilled to welcome one of the seminal figures of alternative music - David J. Haskins (Bauhaus, Love & Rockets, solo). O3L's Brett Vargo chats with David J about his new poetry book, Rhapsody, Threnody & Prayer, and the accompanying album of five of the poems set to music, The Mother Tree. There are plenty of new tales to tell! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

E287 - Willie Nile - Top 5 Songs about New York 05.08.2025

We’re in a New York State of Mind.  Sure, L.A. has beaches and sun, San Francisco clings onto its peace and love vibes, Chicago oozes the blues, and these make for remarkable settings for great songs, but New York…New York is something different.  She’s an active participant in the music, the protagonist, the antagonist, a vessel for vibrancy, romance, drama, grit, grime, decay, revitalization, gl...

O3L Presents: Weekend Six Pack, Vol. 24 - Pinch Punch! 01.08.2025

Pinch, punch, first of the month. White rabbit, white rabbit. Blowing cinnamon out of your front door. So superstition goes, these are all rituals that bring luck and prosperity for the month ahead. Might we suggest one more? How about starting your month off with a six pack of great new tunes from your friends at Only Three Lads? Let's kick off August with music by: The Wind-Ups - "(That's Just M...

E286 - Columbia Records SVP Paul Rappaport's Top 5 Album Rollouts 29.07.2025

The music business from the late '60s through the '90s was an exciting time that mirrored the music and the musicians making it. It was also a time of new and creative ideas on how to market this groundbreaking cultural phenomenon. Eccentric characters were everywhere, and often the managers, promoters, disc jockeys, and record company staff were just as big a show as the performers themselves. An...

E285 - Ozzy Osbourne Tribute 25.07.2025

And now for something completely different...in this special episode, we pay tribute to the late, great Ozzy Osbourne and each pick five of our favorite songs from the rock legend's career. So you may ask yourself, why are we doing an Ozzy episode on our classic alternative music podcast? We certainly don't want to be "those guys" who churn out opportunistic memorial episodes - but, quite simply,...

E284 - Knox Chandler (Psychedelic Furs, Siouxsie, Depeche Mode) - Top 5 Experimental Albums 22.07.2025

In music, experimentalism is more than just "that one time in college." This week, we cover the albums that dared to be different, were fearless in their pursuit of breaking new ground, and subverted traditional expectations of what music should sound like. The spirit of experimental music is alive and well on The Sound, the debut solo album by guitarist, cellist, composer producer, arranger, pain...

E283 - Swing Out Sister - Top 5 Songs of 1973, Part 2 17.07.2025

**PART TWO** Be sure to listen to E282 if you haven't heard the first part! It's better to travel to the kaleidoscope world of 1973 when you can breakout with great Third Lads. What, too subtle for ya?!? This week, we enter the twilight world of Swing Out Sister - Corinne Drewery and Andy Connell! Along with discussing some of our favourite songs from 1973, we are are also celebrating the release...

E282 - Swing Out Sister - Top 5 Songs of 1973, Part 1 15.07.2025

**PART ONE** It's better to travel to the kaleidoscope world of 1973 when you can breakout with great Third Lads. What, too subtle for ya?!? This week, we enter the twilight world of Swing Out Sister - Corinne Drewery and Andy Connell! Along with discussing some of our favourite songs from 1973, we are are also celebrating the release of the new Cherry Red Records box set Certain Shades Of Limelig...

O3L Presents: Weekend Six Pack, Vol. 23 - Bad July (but it's good bad, it's not evil) 12.07.2025

We gather here once more to celebrate some of the finest new independent music on the planet! This week, you'll hear a six pack of fresh tune from: Ryli - 'Bad July' (from Come and Get Me, Dandy Boy Records) Kevin Robertson - 'We Found The Summer' Daniella Binyamin - 'Without Breaking Apart' The Spongetones - 'Help Me Janie' (from The 40th Anniversary Concert...and Beyond ) Museums - 'In Waves' Pr...

E281 - The dB's Peter Holsapple - Top 5 Debut Solo Albums 08.07.2025

Based on his experiences on both sides of the record store counter, Peter Holsapple lovingly pokes a little fun at obsessive music nerds on a track from his new solo album : "I got A Love Supreme / I got a Soft Machine / I got the Dave Clark Five / I got Slade Alive / I got a Shonen Knife / I got Repeat When Necessary, Repeat When Necessary. I'm that kind of guy!" Yep, we're those kind of guys...a...

E280 - Translator - Top 5 Album Bookends 01.07.2025

How tough was it to pick our "album bookends" this week (that is, albums that have a great first and last track)? You could say that's impossible, that's im-poss-i-ble. But, fortunately, we're everywhere that you are! We're un-alone for this discussion, because (if you couldn't have guessed) we have guitarist/singer/songwriter Steve Barton and drummer Dave Scheff from one of the best American band...

O3L Presents: Weekend Six Pack, Vol. 22 - June Swoon 28.06.2025

We've got a sumptuous six pack of swoonworthy new tunes to kick off your weekend! 1) Amelia & The Housewives - 'Maybe' (single, Damaged Goods) 2) Last Tourist - 'Slowly Fade' (single, 1991recordings) 3) Splitsville - 'I Hate Going to Hutzler's' (from the LP Mobtown, Big Stir Records) 4) Lammping & Bloodshot Bill - 'Never Never' (from the LP Never Never, We Are Busy Bodies) 5) Jeanines - 'What's Lo...

E279 - Barry Andrews (Shriekback, XTC) - Top 5 Dance Crazes 24.06.2025

Get ready to do the "Lube the Anaconda and the Candle" (or maybe just a more sensible Twist or Watusi), as we hit the floor with songs that are about, inspired, or mention dance crazes. Joining us for all sorts of "idiot dancing" is the triumphant return of Barry Andrews to O3L! During Barry's last appearance in E246, we talked about his career spanning from the early days of Swindon's finest, XTC...

O3L Presents: Weekend Six Pack, Vol. 21 - Heavenly Pop Hits 20.06.2025

We haven't given you a Weekend Six Pack in a while...so what better way to kick off the summer than with a fresh flight of new music? 1) Heavenly - 'Portland Town' (Skep Wax) 2) The Parachute Testers - 'Halfway to Everywhere' 3) B-Movie - 'Polar Opposites' 4) Gun-Shy Butterfly - 'Manchild' 5) Budapest - 'Me & Everything' 6) Nelson Bragg - 'Death of Caroline' (Big Stir Records) Learn more about you...

E278 - Arthur Alexander (Sorrows) - Top 5 Beatles Covers 17.06.2025

As arguably the single most important, most influential group in pop music history, The Beatles have been honored with thousands of cover versions. This week, Uncle Gregg, Brett, and Third Lad Arthur Alexander hand pick some of the fabbest and gearest of 'em all. 101 episodes ago, power pop hero Arthur Alexander joined us to recount his fascinating life and career: growing up in Communist Poland,...

E276 - Jack Rabid (The Big Takeover, Springhouse) - Top 5 Artists 1980-84, Part 2 05.06.2025

Listen to the thrilling conclusion of our epic chat with The Big Takeover magazine magnate and Springhouse drummer Jack Rabid. We cover the top 3 of our choices for the artists/bands with the best run from 1980-84, as well as more amazing "Jack"-anory stories! If you haven't already, be sure to check out Part 1 in Episode 275! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Listen to the Only Three Lads - Classic Alternative Music Podcast podcast in Replaio

Radio and podcasts in one app - free, with no sign-up. Install today and do not miss the launch

Get it on Google Play

Replaio is not a podcast publisher; show names, artwork and audio belong to their authors and are distributed through public RSS feeds.