Permanent Record Podcast

Episode 35: Depeche Mode - A Broken Frame (1982) Part 1 Last week, Brian and Sarah talked about the two newest releases from the legendary Boys from Basildon, the mighty Depeche Mode!  This week they go back almost to the very beginning with 1982's "A Broken Frame."   While it may not be the band's first album, it's the first to be completely penned by Mr. Martin L. Gore.   Part 1: Background 1982...

Episode 34: Depeche Mode - "Heroes" (David Bowie cover) and "Cover Me" (2017) In the last episode, our hosts mentioned they would next be doing another "emergency episode" to talk about "Cover Me," the recently-announced third single off Depeche Mode's 2017 album, "Spirit." However, the morning they started their preparations for the show, Brian and Sarah were greeted with the news that Depeche Mo...

Episode 33: New Order - Technique (1989) Part 2 After an interruption to discuss Depeche Mode's Global Spirit Tour, Brian and Sarah are back to the task at hand, which is to finish their examination of the 1989 album "Technique", by Manchester's New Order. They begin with the last song on side one and then move on to side two. Part 3: Track by Track, Continued [Warning : This episode's discussion...

Episode 32: Concert Report - Depeche Mode "Global Spirit Tour" 2017 Brian and Sarah were preparing to present the second half of the New Order album "Technique" as the next episode, but a little band from Basildon made them change their minds. Instead, our hosts decided to talk about the Depeche Mode concert they just attended in Washington, DC. Brian and Sarah have already done two "emergency epi...

Episode 31: New Order - Technique (1989) Part 1 After three weeks of discussing an album by what most would consider to be a "classic rock" band, Brian and Sarah shift back to the synthpop spectrum to look at the fifth album by the band New Order. But wait-- New Order isn't strictly a synthpop band, is it? Not at all, as our hosts are quick to point out in their discussion of this classic album. T...

Episode 30: Queen - A Kind of Magic (1986) Part 3 Brian and Sarah are back and ready to wrap up their discussion on Queen's 1986 album "A Kind Of Magic."  We've already mentioned that this record is the unofficial soundtrack to the film "Highlander", so we won't bring that up here.  Instead, let's move on and see what our hosts have to offer this episode. Part 3: Track by Track, continued Alright,...

Episode 29: Queen - A Kind of Magic (1986) Part 2 With Queen being one of Brian and Sarah's two favorite bands, and considering that the pair had just seen Queen + Adam Lambert live just a few days before recording this episode, it's no surprise that their discussion on this 1986 album went a bit long.  Last episode, Brian and Sarah talked about what was going on with Queen in 1985 and 1986, the r...

Episode 28: Queen - A Kind of Magic (1986) Part 1 With Sarah back from her travels, the two hosts shift their musical direction slightly and focus their attention on a band very beloved by them both: Queen. While by no means a New Wave or synth-pop act, Queen's output in the 1980s did tend more towards the pop segment of the music spectrum, and the album up for discussion is a strong example of th...

Episode 27: Human League - Dare (1981) Part 2 Brian and Colby are back to continue their discussion of this seminal album by Phil Oakey and the Human League.  Our hosts have already cued up side two so let's jump right into it! Part 3: Track by Track, continued This week, not only does the show bring you some fantastic music, it also brings you a very diverse collection of discussion topics.  Bria...

Episode 26: Human League - Dare (1981) Part 1 With Sarah off traveling the world, Brian welcomes back frequent co-host and friend of the show Colby Zell to sit in and discuss the classic offering from the new and different 1981 version of the Human League. Part 1: Background Pre-1981 the Human League was a fairly odd 4-piece releasing music that sometimes came close to sounding like pop, but more...

Episode 25: Depeche Mode – Going Backwards (2017) The last time our hosts had an "emergency episode" was way back in Episode 7, when the first single from Depeche Mode's new album "Spirit" was released. After several months, the second single, "Going Backwards," has finally been released, so another "emergency episode" is in order. Part 1: Brian starts off the discussion of "Going Backwards," shar...

Episode 24: Concert Report - Tears For Fears 2017 Sarah and Brian had a little extra time on their hands this week, so they put together this mini-episode detailing their recent trip to the nation's capital to see a band they talked about just a month ago, Tears For Fears! Spoiler alert!   If you are going to see TFF on their summer tour with Hall & Oates and don't want the setlist spoiled for you...

Episode 23: Howard Jones – Dream Into Action (1985) Part 3   After a bit of a break to attend a cider festival, Brian and Sarah are back and ready to finally tackle the second side of this iconic sophomore album by Howard Jones. They jump right into an analysis of the six songs on side 2 of the US cassette release. Part 3: Track by Track, continued Side two, like side one, features six tracks for...

Episode 22: Howard Jones - Dream Into Action (1985) Part 2 Last week, our two hosts, Brian and Sarah, were so long-winded in their discussion of this classic album's history and their 30-year love affair with it that they only managed to get through the first two tracks before realizing that the show was running too long.  This week, they get things back on track by finishing up the remaining four...

Episode 21: Howard Jones - Dream Into Action (1985) Part 1 After an abbreviated episode last week, this episode finds our hosts returning to the traditional format of discussing an entire album. And discuss it they do--in fact, so much so that even the first side has to be broken up into two episodes! What selection prompted so much conversation between Brian and Sarah? It's "Dream Into Action," t...

Episode 20: The 45 Face Off!! It was a very busy weekend for Brian and Sarah and although they weren't able to record a new episode, they did discover a new record shop near their house!  Their first visit resulted in them buying a small stack of 80's 7" singles, or as we more often refer to them, 45's! The hosts, together with their visiting niece Grace, select a few of the 45s to face off in a b...

Episode 19: Erasure - Wonderland (1986) Part 2 This episode continues the discussion of Erasure's 1986 debut album, titled Wonderland . In the time since the previous episode, Brian received his copy of Erasure's latest release, World Be Gone , and he reports he's been enjoying it quite a bit so far. But then the hosts return to Wonderland . Part 3: Track by Track, continued At the end of the albu...

Episode 18: Erasure - Wonderland (1986) Part 1 This week's episode is timed to coincide with the brand new release from Erasure, titled World Be Gone . But rather than discussing the new album, Brian and Sarah go back 31 years, to the debut album from the synthpop duo of Vince Clarke and Andy Bell. Part 1: Background By 1986, Vince Clarke-- or at least his music-- is familiar to many in the UK, ha...

Episode 17: Tears for Fears - Songs from the Big Chair (1985) - Part 2   This week's episode continues Brian and Sarah's discussion of the second Tears for Fears album, Songs from the Big Chair. The first side of this 1985 release contained several chart-topping hits, but the second side has a decidedly different feel to it, and our hosts engage in a spirited discussion of the four tracks. Part 3:...

Episode 16: Tears For Fears - Songs From The Big Chair (1985) Part 1 After a break to celebrate Brian's birthday, our hosts are back and ready to discuss an iconic 80s album by the British band Tears for Fears. Songs from the Big Chair was released in 1985 and produced several international hits, as well as some memorable videos.   Part 1: Background Sarah fills us in on the band's main members, R...

Episode 15: 80's Mix Tape - The Pixies, Katrina & The Waves, Thompson Twins, The Cult, & Pseudo Echo Work on our 80's mix tape continues as Brian, Sarah, Colby, and, via telephone, an under-the-weather Beil compile five classic New Wave songs for side two!  This week the group picks some truly great tracks, especially if you like stories of hobos on trains, large numbers of people getting fired, o...

Episode 14: 80's Mix Tape - Dexy's Midnight Runners, The Mission, The Church, Scritti Politti, & Depeche Mode This week finds Brian and Sarah being joined by Colby Zell (guest co-host on the "Phantoms" episodes) for a change of pace from the regular album discussion. The trio is putting together an 80s mixtape of favorite songs from the era. Sarah, Brian, and Colby have each selected three songs t...

Episode 13: Depeche Mode - Music for the Masses (1987) Part 2 A week has gone by since Brian and Sarah started discussing this late-80s classic by the boys from Basildon known as Depeche Mode. This episode finds our hosts ready to dive into the second side of the Mode's sixth album, but not before making a few more comments on their latest offering, "Spirit." Part 3 (Continued): Track by Track The...

Episode 12: Depeche Mode -  Music for the Masses (1987) Part 1 After a brief hiatus from the podcast, Brian and Sarah sit down to discuss one of their all-time favorite bands, Depeche Mode. The selected album is the 1987 opus, "Music for the Masses." However, before discussing the band's sixth album, the hosts can't resist taking a few minutes to share their initial thoughts on the fourteenth Depe...

Episode 11: Styx - Kilroy Was Here (1983) - Part 2 Last week, Brian and Beil began a discussion of the 1983 concept album "Kilroy Was Here" from Styx, the late-Seventies powerhouse who were trying to make their way in the 1980s.  This was the band's 11th record but the first to be released in and influenced by the fledgling New Wave movement.  Part 3: Track by Track Each of the five tracks on side...