The Tonearm

Today, the Spotlight shines On  Stephen Shaw  and  Jonathan Linden  of  Round Room Live . Round Room Live has become a powerhouse in family entertainment, from Broadway blockbusters to kids' favorite TV characters coming to life on stage. Stephen Shaw and Jonathan Linden launched the company in 2016 with a bold idea—take their experience from massive rock tours and use it...

Today, the Spotlight shines On experimental music producers and label owners  Taylor Deupree  and  Joseph Branciforte . Back in 2002, Taylor Deupree released an electronic album called  Stil.  That release captivated listeners with its quiet, repeating patterns and stark digital sound. Twenty years later, Taylor and producer Joseph Branciforte linked up to reimagine the al...

Today, the Spotlight shines On legendary Danish organist  Anders Koppel . Great music often runs in the family, and as proof, we have our first father-son episodes of Spotlight On. Last November, we had Benjamin Koppel, son and collaborator of today’s guest. But today’s story starts decades ago when Anders played Newport with his band Savage Rose. Fast forward to now, and Anders is back at th...

Today, the Spotlight shines On Christian McBride, a musician, recording artist, prolific composer, arranger, producer, cultural curator, dedicated educator, and mentor. Christian has been called the hardest-working person in jazz, and based on what I just rattled off, that might be underselling it. From his early days in Philadelphia soaking up the sounds of Philly Soul to sharing stages with lege...

What can be scarier than Halloween ghouls? How about a trip through the LSD underground? Today, the Spotlight shines On  Erik Davis , and this trip is no bummer. Erik is an author, award-winning journalist, and teacher in San Francisco. He is the author, most recently, of  Blotter: The Untold Story of an Acid Medium _, a study of LSD blotter art. And that’s what he’s joined us to talk ab...

Today, the Spotlight shines On  Josh Johnson , the Los Angeles-based saxophonist, composer, multi-instrumentalist, and Grammy Award-winning producer. Josh joined me earlier this year to talk about his second solo album,  Unusual Object , which came out this past April on Northern Spy Records. Equal parts futuristic jazz and modern composition, Josh uses processed saxophone and subtle sam...

Today, the Spotlight shines On composer and percussionist  Shawn Mativetsky . A renowned tabla player, Shawn is a pioneer in bridging the worlds of Western and Indian classical music. We discussed the intricacies of traditional Indian music, including the setup and tuning of the instruments, the guru-disciple relationship, and the reception of Western musicians in the Hindustani community. We...

Today, the Spotlight shines On  Paul Stache , co-owner (with his wife and partner Molly Sparrow Johnson) of  Smoke Jazz Club , one of New York City’s premier live music venues. Smoke is celebrating its 25th anniversary throughout 2024 and Paul joined us to talk about the storied venue’s past, present, and future. In addition to the club’s 25th Anniversary Celebration plans, we hit on top...

Today, the Spotlight is going to shine a little differently. Instead of a single guest, we will have three segments dealing with the importance of local music scenes. Our first guest is Shain Shapiro . Shain is a thought leader working at the intersection of music, culture, and urban policy. His book, This Must Be The Place: How Music Can Make Your City Better , came out last year on Repeater Book...

Today, the Spotlight shines On drummer and composer  Devin Gray . Like me, Devin is a born New Englander who made his way to Brooklyn, though unlike me, he splits his time between Brooklyn and Berlin. Devin has performed with Spotlight On alumni Angelica Sanchez and Satoko Fuji, as well as a who’s who of the creative music scene: David Liebman, Sylvie Couvoisier, Tim Berne, Nate Wooley, and m...

Today, the Spotlight shines On Brad Mindich , an entrepreneur who works directly with artists, athletes, and others in music, culture, and sports to expand their legacies and create powerful connections with their fans. Brad currently does this work as the founder and CEO of Inveniem/Definitive Authentic, which helps its clients organize, catalog, present, and oftentimes monetize their archives di...

Today, the Spotlight shines On  Andy McCluskey , the singer, songwriter, musician, and producer best known as the lead singer and bass guitarist of  Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark  (also known as OMD). Andy joined Spotlight On producer and guest host Michael Donaldson to discuss topics as varied as the political messages behind their latest work, post-modern society, Kraftwerk, a...

Today, the Spotlight shines On JUNO Award-winning oud player and guitarist Gordon Grdina . Gordon’s work defies limitations, be they geographical, distance, time, or genre. He incorporates avant-garde jazz, free improvisation, indie rock, and Arabic tradition into his music. So much music, so many collaborators, and so much ground to cover in our talk. We made the most of our time together, explor...

Today, the Spotlight shines On trailblazing songwriter and now memoirist  Steve Wynn . Steve first hit public consciousness in the early 1980s with his band  The Dream Syndicate , frequently mentioned in the same breath as REM and The Replacements as the pioneers of American indie rock. The Dream Syndicate’s initial run did not outlast the decade that birthed them, but Steve’s career did...

Today, the Spotlight shines On the acclaimed and intriguing composer, bandleader, and improviser  Graham Reynolds . The Austin-based Reynolds has composed for countless film, television, dance, and theatrical productions, serving most notably as the sonic collaborator of director Richard Linklater. He is also Artistic Director of the new music-focused non-profit Golden Hornet. Graham joined m...

Today, the Spotlight shines On pianist and composer  Satoko Fujii , an incredibly unique and prolific artist. Satoko works at the intersection of jazz, contemporary classical, rock, and traditional Japanese music, composing for ensembles of many sizes and configurations. However, she is especially adept with the jazz orchestra format. For all of her efforts, Satoko is widely decorated as an i...

Today, the Spotlight shines On the musician and producer David John Haskins, better known to the world as  David J , bassist and co-founder of both post-punk goth band Bauhaus and, subsequently, Love and Rockets. As if having such a luminary visiting our podcast isn’t enough, today’s talk is guest-hosted by Spotlight On producer Michael Donaldson, who filled in for me for this and another spe...

Today, the Spotlight was meant to shine On drummer, percussionist, and composer  Ches Smith , whose album  Laugh Ash  was released earlier this year on  Pyroclastic Records . As we arranged to get together, Ches suggested we include  Shara Lunon , the transdisciplinary poet, vocalist, composer, and improviser featured on the album. Laugh Ash  is one of the most intrig...

Today’s episode is a recording of our recent live event, which took place at The Royal Room in Seattle, WA, on June 22, 2024. The event, Improvisation in Music and Life , featured me in conversation with and performances by James Falzone’s Division Ensemble . The Division Ensemble is a group of master improvisers that includes James Falzone on clarinet, Ray Larsen on trumpet, Wayne Horvitz on pian...

Today, the Spotlight shines On Modena, Italy-based sound artist and percussionist  Riccardo La Foresta . Riccardo has spent the last several years exploring the Drummophone—an array of bass drums that create sound by being confronted with compressed air and which, in turn, produce complex acoustic drones. By combining the Drummophone with other electro-acoustic devices and changes in the air...

Today, the Spotlight shines On Berlin-based drummer, composer, and producer  Janek van Laak . Janek grew up in post-reunification Berlin which gave birth to a vibrant culture of music and art. He joined me earlier this year, around the  Sonar Kollektiv  release of his debut solo album,  Circle Of Madness , a work that makes me glad I do not own a record store because I have no...

Today, the Spotlight shines On Seattle pianist and composer Bill Anschell . We’ve had award winners of all types on the podcast, but as far as I can remember, Bill is the first to have won an award for humor: in 2014, Bill was the winner of the inaugural Paul Desmond Award, the website All About Jazz’s celebration of the funniest jazz artists. We get to that and his satirical essay, “Careers in Ja...

Today, the Spotlight shines On vocalist, composer, and improviser 王睿琪 Ruiqi Wang (pronounced as “Ray-Chee Wong”). Ruiqi Wang creates stunning experimental music, combining influences from jazz, contemporary Euro-classical music, and traditional Chinese music. Ruiqi Wang joined me earlier this year on the heels of the release of her debut album, Subduing the Silence, out through Orchard of Pomeg...

Today, the Spotlight shines On singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Paul Chastain . Paul is one half of the duo The Small Square , with drummer, percussionist, and vocalist John Louis Richardson. He is also a songwriter for and co-founder of the group Velvet Crush and has worked with Matthew Sweet, Roger McGuinn, Susanna Hoffs, the late Tommy Keene, and many others. Paul and John released...

Today, the Spotlight shines On musician, songwriter, journalist, and returning guest, Jeff Slate . Jeff joined us about two years ago and while that discussion was more focused on his work as a writer and cultural observer, this talk focuses on his music career. Based in New York City, Jeff has traveled quite an interesting road from his roots in the mid-80s post-punk world to rubbing shoulders an...