Washington D.C.’s Broke Royals have always been one of the hardest working indie bands we know, but like a lot of up-and-comers, COVID-19 slammed the brakes on what should have the beginning of their ascent to the big leagues. But rather than wait for things to return to normal, the band started a video series (Alone, Together), headed in exciting new creative directions, and came out of the experience stronger than ever!

Now the band [new addition Rebecca Silverstein (keys), Ben Wilson (guitar), Taimir Gore (bass), Colin Cross (drums), and Philip Basnight (vocals, guitar)] are back with a new energy, a new look, and a brand new album, Local Support (produced by Bartees Strange), ready to take over the world with a thrilling take on pop rock for the 21st Century.

Panamá 77, the debut album from Chicago’s Daniel Villarreal (drummer for Dos Santos) is a psychedelic exploration of the music of his culture married to the modern jazz scene that label International Anthem excels at shining a light on. Part live session, part studio wizardry, and ALL soul, Panamá 77 is a powerhouse of undeniable vibes featuring a who’s who of special guests (Elliot Bergman, Jeff Parker, Kellen Harrison, Bardo Martinez, and more!), and is one of this, or any years, most enjoyable listens.

Music plays a huge role in shaping the tone of any film, and on a special Holiday edition of Discologist we’re exploring some of the best to ever put sound to image, starting with John Carpenter whose new score for the film Firestarter mines familiar territory for the director/composer but manages to be a unique and essential addition to his growing film score catalog.

Dim the lights and break out the popcorn, we’re headed to the movies!

When they first collaborated almost sixty years ago, Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder came together over a shared love of the music of blues legends Sonny Terry and Brownie Mcghee. Now with the help of Joachim Cooder, the two friends have reunited to make sure that the music of the past isn’t forgotten and Get On Board, a recreation of the classic Folkways release is the result.

Over the course of the pandemic, Gerald Clayton thought a lot about time. What it means, how we spend it, and how the past and the now influence the future in unexpected ways. His new album Bells On Sand is the result of this philosophizing and finds the acclaimed pianist and composer creating sublime new worlds out of simple melodies and space, and the resulting abstraction of time that both can provide.

Alabaster DePlume’s (aka Gus Fairbairn) To Cy & Lee: Instrumentals, Vol. 1, was roundly praised as one of the best albums of 2020 and served as a balm for music fans of all types as they settled into a new, pandemic reality. Now he’s back with GOLD, an uplifting, quasi-spiritual journey towards understanding the value of self-worth in a world where it may no longer be valued. Part free-jazz, part primitive hymnal, GOLD builds on the strengths of DePlume’s earlier work to coalesce into his strongest statement on our shared humanity to date.

In 2006 Midlake set the bar for lush, thought-provoking indie rock with their album The Trials of Van Occupanther. On For The Sake Of Bethel Woods, their first album in eight years, the newly invigorated group is acknowledging the power of their earlier work while looking ahead to a limitless future of sonic innovation and pastoral existentialism.

Chicago’s FACS create entire worlds out of dissonant noise and chaotic rhythms. But there is a method to the madness and a beauty to be found in the chaos. Join us on our journey into this new sonic universe PLUS spin some music we love from Erin Rae’s new album Lighten Up and Elza Soares on an all-new episode of the all-new Discologist.

Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes featuring Teddy Pendergrass were one of the pillars of the mighty Philadelphia International label run by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff. On their fourth album (and last with Pendergrass) mixed social issues with quiet storm and the results were an album that – despite hitting #1 on the R&B charts in 1975 and producing a ubiquitous disco hit – still seems underappreciated to this day.

It’s been a long road, but Phil Cook has slowly but surely become one of the most important voices in modern Americana. On his latest LP All These Years, Cook takes it back to his roots – just a man and his piano – and the sublime results are the most honest work of his career. Eduardo and Kevin discuss this quiet masterpiece, the WHY of the return of Discologist, and share tracks by Oceanator and Poco that made them fall in love with music all over again on the beginning of the next chapter of the greatest music podcast that ever was.

Hi. Hello. How are you? It’s really great to see you. We missed you. 💛

Above all else, this has been a show about finding your family. We hope you are as lucky as we are to have found ours.

Thanks for tuning in. We love you.

Somebody hit the lights on the way out...

After almost nine years and five-hundred episodes it is finally time to say goodbye to the #1 music podcast ever made in a basement in Washington, D.C., and other places.

Join us as here at the end as we discuss some of the iconic bands that we never quite made it to, the importance of listening, and more.

It has been a long, strange trip. Thanks for coming along for the ride.

While the pandemic of 2020 affected just about every aspect of our lives, it was professional musicians who may have been hit the hardest. Without the possibility of tours or even an audience, artists who previously relied on performing their work for a living were forced to re-evaluate how they would get by. For many, this meant a shift to DIY streaming performances, which, while they have the potential to offer uniquely intimate connections to artists, have not proven to be a suitable replacement or method of output. Enter bassist Dezron Douglass and harpist Brandee Younger and their series of shows on Instagram.

What began as a simple way to connect to friends and fans over “brunch” became a bright spot to look forward to in the early days of the pandemic. Locked down in their apartment in New York City, the two interpreted an entire history of song revealing almost by accident that no matter what the circumstance, no matter how bleak it got, music and art would find a way.

Force Majeure, the resulting album of highlights from those performances, is many things, but above all, it is a gift. For all the darkness we ALL experienced this year, despite all the confusion and pain, Douglass and Younger’s spirit manages to illuminate the world and let the listener know how not alone they really are. A musical journey through our seemingly endless days so filled with beauty, humor, and, most of all, life, Force Majeure stuns, not by being flashy, but by being human.

For most of us, 2020 has been one of the most challenging years of our lives. It has changed the way we relate to our world, each other, and our music.

On an all-new episode of Discologist, Kevin, Eduardo, Wes, and special guest Philip Bassnight (Broke Royals) are taking time to explore the music that meant the most to us this year, what songs both old and new lit up our darkest hours, and why now, more then ever, it is so very important that us human’s continue to strive to connect with each other any way we can.

The Butterfly Effect: How Kendrick Lamar Ignited The Soul Of Black America is as much a document of the Compton superstar’s journey-to-date as it is author Marcus J. Moore’s journey from one of the most recognizable and important names in music journalism to a burgeoning cultural pundit whose voice is already having an impact. Moore’s words take you inside the culture that fueled Lamar’s ambitious work and beyond to explore the real-world implications of black excellence and community in an America that still, in 2020, largely rejects both.

This week, Moore joins us for a candid discussion of his work, a re-imagined view of creative culture, and how the journey is the thing you can often learn from the most.

On their new album Never Give Up, Canadian rockers Partner are putting an end to decades of machismo mediocrity and claiming the rock n’ roll throne for two queer Canadian young women, as it was always meant to be. Join us as we take one of the most joyous albums of 2020 out for spin and head off towards a new world where Partner rule over us all.

Violinist Johanna Burnheart shines on her lush and challenging debut record Burnheart, and harpist Mary Lattimore returns with Silver Ladders, one of the strongest releases of her career. Join us as we dig into these stellar releases, talk ambient, and the future of music on an all new episode of Discologist.

On Heritage of the Invisible II, Aquiles Navarro (trumpet) and Tcheser Holmes (percussion) – one half of the mighty Irreversible Entanglements – are celebrating their Afro-Carribbean heritage in ecstatic fashion. The resulting album is less a collection of songs than an organic rendering their culture, friendship, and seemingly telepathic level of communication the duo shares.

PLUS! Discover a collection of gorgeous new songs about transformation and peace with Jennifer Castle’s Monarch Season.

In 1998 nobody would have expected that Willie Nelson would deliver what is arguably the best album of his career. But that is exactly what happened with the Daniel Lanois produced Teatro. We’re digging into what makes this essential classic one of the most perfect distillations of Nelson’s talent and how it reinvigorated the country legend’s already storied career

PLUS! Country superstars Brothers Osborne are back with another dose of countrified rock n’ roll on their new album Skeletons.

Thirty-five years ago, Brothers In Arms took over the airwaves with some pop perfection and a generation-defining video for the song “Money For Nothing.” But there is much more to this classic than money for nothing and chicks (or whatever gender norm you find yourself attracted to!) for free.