R.E.M. spent the decade after Murmur growing steadily more successful, their popularity cresting with the 1991 #1 album Out of Time and its inescapable hit single “Losing My Religion.” But instead of going on an exhausting world tour like most bands would, R.E.M. went right back into the studio and recorded Automatic for the People, an album that defies rock star excess at nearly every turn. You probably know “Everybody Hurts” and “Man on the Moon,” which are still radio standards to this day, and with good reason. But even those songs were much more downcast and introspective than one would expect from a band at the height of their popularity. Automatic for the People is the sound of R.E.M. entering their thirties and taking stock of their place in both music and the world, and though it may take some time to sink in, John, Phil, Rich, and special guest Jeff Blehar all consider it one of their best albums. So join us for part 2 of a band that cannot be contained by one episode, and calluswhenyoutrytowakeherup.

Cohosts: John McFerrin, Phil Maddox, Rich Bunnell, Jeff Blehar

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/140-rem-automatic-for-the-people-1992

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We’ve held off on R.E.M. for a while, because the Athens, Ga., quartet is just such a heavyweight in the rock canon. They’re so huge, in fact, that they merit two episodes: one for the mumbly, Byrdsy alt-rock troubadours of the ‘80s, and one for the slightly less mumbly arena rock titans of the ‘90s and onward. We’re starting off with their 1983 debut Murmur, which fueled the rise of college radio with songs that were strangely out of time (so to speak) with the trends of the ‘80s. The compositions on Murmur are so hazy and oblique that they almost resist analysis, and that’s before you even consider Michael Stipe’s lyrics. But John, Mike, Phil, and Ben are willing to give it their best shot, so join them as they embark on a long-delayed pilgrimage west of the fields to discuss one of this podcast’s favorite bands.

Cohosts: John McFerrin, Mike DeFabio, Phil Maddox, Ben Marlin

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/139-rem-murmur-1983

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Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Rich, Mike, and Amanda answer a bonanza of questions from listeners. Topics include retro prog, great live albums and not-so-great live shows, fantasy supergroups, synesthesia, our favorite recent releases, and no fewer than three questions about the Moody Blues. Listen through to the end for a special request to listeners!

Clips:

• Peter Gabriel - Start
• Def Leppard - Animal
• The Moody Blues - Here Comes the Weekend
• Ween - Friends
• The Velvet Underground - I'll Be Your Mirror
• LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends
• Jenny Conlee - Hawk (Dorian)
• Mary Timony - No Thirds
• Marnie Stern - Plain Speak
• Peter Gabriel - i/o (Dark-Side Mix)
• Days Between Stations - The Man Who Died Two Times
• Mondo Drag - Out of Sight
• Opeth - Heart in Hand
• iamthemorning - 5/4
• Liza Minnelli - I Want You Now
• Robert Wyatt - Sea Song
• Johnny Cash - A Boy Named Sue (live)
• Oingo Boingo - No Spill Blood (live)
• Underworld - Cups/Push Upstairs (live)
• Girls5eva - Famous 5eva
• Lalo Schifrin - Theme from Mannix
• Andy Partridge - I Wonder Why the Wonderfalls
• The Simpsons - Canyonero
• Bob's Burgers - Thanksgiving Song
• The Simpsons - Lisa, It's Your Birthday

Theme: The Moody Blues - "Question"

Amanda on synesthesia: https://discordpod.com/blog/synesthesia-corner

Rich on synesthesia: https://discordpod.com/blog/synesthesia-corner-vol-2-born-to-synesthete

Peter Gabriel is a favorite artist of many of us here at Discord & Rhyme, but we’ve saved him for our own 138th Episode Spectacular. Peter Gabriel III (aka Melt, so called because half of Gabriel’s face on the album cover looks like a melting candle) isn’t just John’s favorite Peter Gabriel album; it’s an album that made him reconsider (in a favorable light) the entirety of popular music in the 1980s and the concept of using the production studio to create entirely new sounds, and John leads a very enthusiastic discussion on an album that we love very much. Join John, Amanda, Rich, and Mike as we gush over an album that transformed solo Peter Gabriel into something greater than “the guy who used to sing for Genesis”; a dark noisy hellscape frontier of an album full of burglars, assassins, and not one cymbal anywhere.

Cohosts: John McFerrin, Amanda Rodgers, Rich Bunnell, Mike DeFabio

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/138-peter-gabriel-peter-gabriel-iii-1980

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Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Hear that? There goes the siren that warns of the air raid – or maybe that’s just Bruce Dickinson’s voice. This week, Mike continues his quest to make Discord & Rhyme more metal with the album Powerslave by Iron Maiden. In the popular consciousness, Maiden are known for their goofy album covers and hits like “Bring Your Daughter … to the Slaughter.” But if you dig just a little deeper, they were vanguards of the new wave of British heavy metal, with a seven-album run in the ‘80s that ranks among the greatest winning streaks of the album era, metal or otherwise. Powerslave is arguably their peak, boasting some of their greatest compositions and brainiest lyrics, with subjects running the gamut from The Prisoner to the military-industrial complex to the dawn of British Romanticism. But most importantly, it rocks, and Mike has invited Phil, John, and Rich to discuss eight amazing songs that will put you at a losfer words.

Cohosts: Mike DeFabio, Phil Maddox, John McFerrin, Rich Bunnell

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/137-iron-maiden-powerslave-1984

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Kylie Minogue had a big comeback last year with the Grammy-winning TikTok hit “Padam Padam,” so Rich decided that it was finally time to give the Discord & Rhyme treatment to one of his favorite divas. Kylie’s 2007 album X wasn’t just an artistic comeback, but a physical and emotional one, recorded in the wake of her grueling but successful treatment for breast cancer. At the time, there was a groundswell of anticipation for her next big move, and X was the first album Kylie conceived as a singular project, rather than the latest entry in a production line of releases. Accordingly, there’s a certain vivaciousness and a willingness to try anything on this album that makes it unlike anything in her catalog, with songs that evoke Timbaland, Serge Gainsbourg and ‘90s R&B sitting alongside Kylie’s trademark Eurodisco. Some of the experiments work better than others, but the album as a whole is a fascinating portrait of a moment in time, both for mid-2000s pop music as well as Kylie herself. And Rich has invited returning guests Jen Carman and Dave Weigel to help elaborate on why you, too, should be so lucky to become a Kylie stan.

Cohosts: Rich Bunnell, Jen Carman, Dave Weigel, Mike DeFabio

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/136-kylie-minogue-x-2007

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Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Amanda has been threatening to talk about bluegrass on the podcast for years, and we finally settled on the perfect album to start with: Live!!!! Almost!!! by the Dillards. Half a comedy album and half a virtuoso performance by expert musicians, it’s a fantastic introduction to the genre. It was recorded in front of an audience completely unfamiliar with bluegrass music, so the band chose songs that were catchy and accessible, then made it even more engaging by adding Smothers Brothers-style jokey commentary in between. The result is an interesting and very entertaining live album that stands a good chance of winning over any bluegrass skeptics, and even if it doesn’t, it gives us a chance to explain why we like it. 

Cohosts: Amanda Rodgers, Ben Marlin, John McFerrin

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/135-the-dillards-live-almost-1964

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod

Uriah Heep were never critical darlings, but for a brief period in the early seventies, they were making some absolutely killer fantasy-tinged rock. Phil has always had a soft spot for 1972’s Demons And Wizards, which is probably the best example of what could happen when this band was truly firing on all cylinders. He, along with Dan and Mike, makes the case for why this album should be a staple of any respectable early seventies hard rock collection.

Cohosts: Phil Maddox, Mike DeFabio, Dan Watkins

Complete show notes: https://discordpod.com/listen/134-uriah-heep-demons-and-wizards-1972

Discord & Rhyme's merch store: http://tee.pub/lic/discordpod

Support the podcast! https://www.patreon.com/discordpod