Performance Anxiety

This is an interesting episode. We have a previous guest returning with a new guest. We have a singer/songwriting and a poet/comedian/rapper. We are joined by Elizabeth McCullough, also known as Alpha Cat and Jamal Hassan, who raps under the name Kid Anansi We talk about the two sides of Jamal’s poetry. One of the worst experiences he’s witnessed at a poetry event. What inspired and continues to i...

I know I’ve mentioned that when I starting thinking about doing this podcast, I had a top ten list of guests I wanted to have. Some were obvious and others less so. This one is one of the top three. Richard Black is the singer for the band Shark Island. They played in the LA area beginning in the late 70’s through to the early 90’s. They released one major label album and a handful of songs on sou...

Keith Kenny is a one man band. But not the kind with an accordion and cymbals on his knees. He does use a suitcase as a drum, but more on that later. He's known for his multiple extended and varied sets. I mean how many people do you know who can pull off a one man, acoustic based Tool medley? His new album Lifetimes Ago Motel is out after a six month delay. But it's well worth the wait. Follow hi...

Christopher Harold Wells joins us on this episode. Growing up, his house was full of music and sports. His dad was a linebacker for the Eagles. But Christopher’s passion was music. He’s jammed with some incredible people like Lauryn Hill & Bubba Sparxxx. He’s released an album under the name The Neverlutionaries and it’s a wonderful mix of genres and styles. The album was recorded at Hyde Studios...

This week Laura Carbone joins us from Berlin. She’s released a Live album, Live at Rockpalast that’s the closest thing to a live show we’ve had in over a year. Why? Because it’s a live album with absolutely no overdubs or corrections. We talk about how an accidental gift of Nirvana’s Nevermind changed her musical perspective, causing her to put down her flute and pick up a guitar. She also talks a...

Steve Almaas was on the cutting edge of punk music in the 70’s with the band Suicide Commandos. In the 80’s he took a turn towards pop music with the album & band Beat Rodeo. He began releasing true solo albums a short time later. He’s got a new album coming out called Everywhere You’ve Been and it’s a lot of fun. It includes two tracks that came to Steve in his sleep. You can check Steve out on F...

It’s not everyday that an artist comes out of the blue to make me pause. Derek Day did exactly that. He started out playing on the street in Santa Monica doing over 70 different cover songs. Now he’s writing and recording with artists like Vernon Reid and opening for Living Colour, Ted Nugent, & Steve Vai. He has so much energy on stage and in everyday life. I’m so glad we met and I really look fo...

We welcome the arrival of Peter Holmstrӧm. In addition to playing guitar for The Dandy Warhols, he’s been busy with his project Pete International Airport. He explains how that began and who else is involved. We also get some great Dandy’s history. They’ve been together for over 25 years, so they’ve done just about everything you can think of, including writing both the longest AND the shortest so...

We’re joined by a musician who thrives when he’s uncomfortable. Tobias Nathaniel’s greatest enemy is muscle memory. That’s why he switched from guitar to organ. He formed The Black Heart Procession and kept his penchant for being uncomfortable by playing instruments like sheetmetal and being the wedding band for Melvins drummer Dale Crover’s nuptials. He also explains how he inadvertently wrote Ri...

Tamar Aphek has been called Israel’s guitar goddess. Her music is a wild combination of styles and genres. She’s fearless and knows exactly what sounds she’s looking for. But she didn’t start out as a guitar deity. She began her musical journey with piano. Singing came a little after that as she joined a prestigious children’s choir. It wasn’t until she was 18 that she really started listening to...

Keith Lowell Jensen is a comedian. He doesn’t use music in his act. He doesn’t play in a band on the side. But he started performing as a frontman in bands growing up, and that experience gave him a head start in comedy. He began his comedy career abruptly with Spike & Mike’s Festival of Animation as kind of a one man cover band of comedy. He’s performed with a lot of great artists, including an u...

Let’s welcome singer, guitarist, & all around chill dude, Ryan Scully to the podcast. We talk about a lot of different topics, getting a little philosophical at times, but in a way that ultimately ends in one of laughing. He tells how he wound up in New Orleans after growing up in Missouri, working in his family’s restaurant. He also tells me about how he found his own voice as a songwriter. He’s...

Sean Dowdell and Mace Beyers from the band Grey Daze join the show to talk about their favorite Unplugged albums. And as luck would would have it, they are releasing their own acoustic EP called Amends...Stripped. It’s acoustic versions of five tracks from their recent album Amends. Grey Daze was Chester Bennington’s band before he shot to stardom in Linkin Park. It’s a rare chance to hear someone...

We welcome SoCal punk legend & legitimate scientist, Alfie Agnew to the podcast. Alfie spent his youth with his brothers Rikk & Frank defining the SoCal punk sound. We talk about that and what it takes to create a new musical landscape. He was a vet by the time he was a junior in high school. But one book changed the entire trajectory of his life. After decades in academia, writing pieces like A T...

Today we're joined by recording engineer, producer, musician, gardener, part-time luthier, & breakfast burrito enthusiast, Tom Biller. He's worked with heavyweights like Jon Brion, Fiona Apple, & Kanye West. I think it all started with the amazing advice his dad gave him about taking guitar lessons: Learn how to play & then we'll think about lessons. He won a grammy...and then broke it. He's been...

Today we are joined by royalty. Corey Ledet’s family has been at the forefront of jazz, bebop, blues, & zydeco from the beginning. His grandfather, Buchanon, is known as the originator of the double clutch drum pattern that defines zydeco. Corey started in his grandfather’s footsteps, as a drummer, playing professionally by the ripe old age of ten. But things really started to click when he took u...

We’re joined by author Robert Duncan. He’s led a pretty rock & roll life. He saw the Beatles live, walked out of The Who on their first US tour, & played “22” with Mitch Ryder. One of his first writing assignments was interviewing KISS the same day Paul Stanley got his infamous rose tattoo. He became the first managing editor at Creem Magazine, working with the legendary Lester Bangs and wrote the...

Let’s welcome drummer Andrew Toy to the Performance Anxiety family. He’s played in so many genres of music that I lost count. He likes to use music genres like chords; building one on top of another to create something unique. And it began by playing on a cruise ship! Now he’s got a solo album out that is full of experimental percussion. And it’s a true solo album. He plays everything. It’s called...

Dale Crover joins us. You may remember him from one of his many bands: The Melvins, Altamont, Redd Kross, or maybe The Dale Crover Band, who are releasing a new album. If you’re not familiar with Dale’s solo music, it’s definitely a separate entity from The Melvins. But Dale tells some great stories about Gene Simmons & KISS, meeting Buzz, playing biker sleepover parties as a teen, & Greg Bissonet...

We’re joined by head honcho at Bar None Records & founder of Glenn Morrow’s Cry For Help, Glenn Morrow. We talk about his career in music as a musician as well as head of a record label. He’s worked with some great bands & former guests like The Mendoza Line & El Ten Eleven. Glenn Morrow’s Cry For Help has just released their second album & we discuss the new difficulties releasing music during th...

Today’s guest may have the hardest last name to pronounce. Christian Kjellvander joins us to discuss his new album, About Love and Loving Again. But first we have to figure out how he got there. His career started as a Swedish slacker. But he soon realized how much he loved creating music. That’s when his sound changed. His bass voice combined with the Americana vibe of the music is familiar but h...

I’d like to welcome Peter Milton Walsh of The Apartments to the show. Peter’s life has been full of triumphs and unimaginable tragedy. He survived the drug fueled 70’s Brisbane music scene and moved on to the form the band The Apartments. He moved to New York for a fresh start and then relocated to England where he signed to Rough Trade. After his first a couple of EP’s and a full length album, he...

Welcome to a very special episode of Performance Anxiety. Today we tackle a very sensitive subject: The defense of hair metal. No other podcast will touch this volatile topic. But we here at Performance Anxiety, a proud member of the Pantheon Podcast Network, are willing to traverse the minefield that is hair metal. We tangle with topics like the best hair metal for the gym; What hair metal band w...

This was such a cool episode. First of all, I’ve got my new mate Spencer Cullum co-hosting with me. But just as exciting is my guest B.J. Cole. B.J. has played on some of the most loved albums of all time. He’s played with Elton John, Sting, T. Rex, Bjork, Gerry Rafferty, Robert Plant, Richard Ashcroft, & The Verve. He & Spencer talk about how the role of pedal steel is changing, even in Nashville...

This is a weird episode. It’s all about music and the paranormal. But the really weird part is the panel I’ve put together. I’m joined by former guest Morgan Geer of Drunken Prayer, first time guest Josh Moss of The Modern Folk, & my daughter Maggie. We discuss Mothman, Bigfoot, ghosts & their loopholes, & the music written about them. I would love you guys to check Drunken Prayer & The Modern Fol...