Robbie & James Talk Music

Episode 37 - Christmas II - Bleachers & Sufjan Stevens

Episode Discussion Topics:
– Christmas music. 
– Love Actually facts. 
– Artist credibility & Christmas albums. 
Tracks:Bleachers’ “Merry Christmas, Please Don’t Call”Sufjan Steven’s “Christmas in the Room” 
Further Listening/Reading:BleachersRichard Curtis’s Love Actually (2003)Sufjan StevensSufjan Stevens & Lowell Brams’ Aporia (2020)Sufjan Stevens’ Songs for Christmas (2006Sufjan Stevens’ Silver & Gold, 2012George Saunders’ “Chicago Christmas, 1984,” The New Yorker (2003)Playlists:Ongoing Pod Playlist Episode 37 Playlist

Episode 36 - Christmas I - The Oh Hellos & Run–D.M.C.

Episode Discussion Topics:
– Christmas music. 
– When we listen to Christmas music.
– The history of Christmas music. 
– Die Hard facts. 
Tracks:The Oh Hellos’ “Mvmt I: “Rejoice! Rejoice!””Run–D.M.C.’s “Christmas In Hollis” 
Further Listening/Reading:The Oh Hellos“Joy to the World”“Coventry Carol” “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” The 2025 Essay Daily Advent CalendarRun–D.M.C. John McTiernan’s Die Hard (1988)Nadia Khomami’s "British public’s verdict is in: Die Hard is not a Christmas movie," The Guardian (2025)David Mickey Evans’ The Sandlot (1993)
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 36 Playlist

Episode 35 - Punk - Geese & Wire

Episode Discussion Topics:
– The historical timeline of Punk music. 
– The aesthetic of Punk music. 
– The impact and legacy of Punk music. 
– Post Punk & New Wave
Tracks:Geese’s “Trinidad”Wire’s “Pink Flag” 
Further Listening/Reading:RamonesPatti SmithSex PistolsThe ClashThe DamnedGeese’s Getting KilledMike Nagel’s “Orientation” at The Rumpus, Oct. 2, 2025Mike Nagel’s Duplex, 2022Mike Nagel’s “Culdesac,” 2024Autofocus pressMichael Wheaton, writerLittle Engines magazineAdam Voith, writer  Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner, 1982 Phillip K. Dick’s Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, 1996New OrderThe CureThe ChameleonsDepeche ModeTalking HeadsThe Rolling Stone’s 2003 Top 500 (#412) vs. The Rolling Stone 2020 Top 500 (#310)Chuck Klosterman’s book But What If We're Wrong?Alex Cox’s Sid and Nancy, 1986Penelope Spheeris’s The Decline of Western Civilization, 1981
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 35 Playlist

Episode 34 - Brian Jonestown Massacre at SD Music Box - 10/31/25

Episode Discussion Topics:
– Brian Jonestown Massacre  
– Psychedelic Rock
– Positionality in music
 
Tracks:Brian Jonestown Massacre’s “Anemone”Brian Jonestown Massacre’s “Pish” 
Further Listening/Reading:
Brian Jonestown Massacre’s Their Satanic Majesties’ Second Request (2008) 
Ondi Timoner’s Dig! (2004) 
The Dandy Warhols
Jamie Thompson’s “The Missing Kayaker: What Happened to Ryan Borgwardt?” at The Atlantic
 
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 34 Playlist

Episode 33: On Rotation - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club & Water From Your Eyes

Episode Discussion Topics:
–  Hating vs. loving Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl.
– The inherent power of live performances. 
– AI and learning spaces. 
 
Tracks:Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s “Haunt”Water From Your Eyes’ “Nights in Armor”
Further Listening/Reading:Taylor Swift’s The Life of a ShowgirlWater From Your Eyes’ It’s a Beautiful PlaceThis Is LorelaiThanks for Coming Sean Cho A.’s “Human Error Is the Point: On Teaching College During the Rise of AI” at The Rumpus, Oct. 2, 2025Tim Robinson and Zach Kanin’s The Chair Company, 2025Zach Kanin, Joe Kelly, and Sam Richardson’s Detroiters, 2017-2018
 
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 33 Playlist

Episode 32: Penny and Sparrow at Music Box SD - 10/8/25

Episode Discussion Topics:
– Penny & Sparrow.   
– Horror films. 
– Harmony. 
Tracks:Penny & Sparrow’s “Jeopardy” Penny & Sparrow’s “Cheers to Good Friends”
Concert Set List Playlist
 
Further Listening/Reading:
(James really wants you to listen to this Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl
Scott Derrickson’s The Black Phone, 2021
Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, 2024
Osgood Perkins’ Longlegs, 2024
Mike Flanagan’s Doctor Sleep, 2019
Ti West’s X Trilogy: X (2022), Pearl (2022), and MaXXXine (2024)
Jordan Peele’s Get Out (2017)
Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining (1980)
Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later (2002)
Penny & Sparrow’s “Creature” 
Jill Christman’s “The Avocado” from Fourth Genre 16.1, 2014
 
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 32 Playlist
 

Episode 31: 1986 - Prince and the Revolution & The Cure

Episode Discussion Topics:
– The 1980s.  
– The cultural veneer of the 1980s vs. the actuality of the 1980s. 
–  Ted Williams
– 1986 Youth Cinema
Tracks:Prince and the Revolution’s “Kiss” The Cure’s “Charlotte Sometimes”
Further Listening/Reading:
Prince’s Under the Cherry Moon, 1986
1986 Hot 100
Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs of All Time
Richard Ben Cramer’s “What Do You Think of Ted Williams Now?” Esquire, 1986
4121 Utah Street, San Diego, CA
Madonna’s “True Blue,” 1986
Rob Reiner’s Stand By Me, 1986
John Hughes’s Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, 1986
Tim Hunter’s River’s Edge, 1986
River’s Edge Soundtrack
Adam Curtis’s Shifty
 
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 31 Playlist

Episode 30: Melancholy Songs - Tracy Chapman & DUG

Episode Discussion Topics:
– Melancholy/sad songs. 
– Color and contrast to position story. 
– Organizing artforms by emotion. 
 
Tracks:Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” DUG’s “In Memorium”
Further Listening/Reading:
Wong Kar-Wai’s In the Mood for Love
Thom Yorke's defense of sad music
Ander Monson’s “The Sadnesses of March: In Search of Extreme Emotions”
2016 March Sadness Essay Tournament 
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 30 Playlist

Episode 29: On Rotation - Public Service Broadcasting & Spoon

Episode Discussion Topics:
– Our artistic projects during Fall 2025.  
– The purpose of art: Art for art’s sake vs. art with a larger purpose.  
 
Tracks:Public Service Broadcasting’s “The Fun of It (ft. Andreya Casablanca)” Spoon’s “Guess I’m Fallin In Love” 
 
Further Listening/Reading:
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven 
Adam Curtis’s Shifty 
Rick Rubin on “the audience coming last.” 
 
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 29 Playlist

Episode 28: On Rotation - Oxis & Lupe Fiasco

Episode Discussion Topics:
– Artistic projects we worked on in Summer 2025.  
– Art with a purpose. 
 
Tracks:Oxis’s “Long Sardine”Lupe Fiasco’s “HOMME MADE (feat. Virgil Abloh)”
 
Further Listening/Reading:“Oxis Dives Into the Unknown Depths of Oceanic Electronica in Debut Album 'Oxis 7'”
Robbie Maakestad’s “The View from Bethlehem” at X-R-A-Y Magazine. W. G. Sebald
Playlists:
Ongoing Pod Playlist 
Episode 28 Playlist