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This episode originally aired on May 20, 2026. Subscribe to Music Person.
Kevin Morby from Los Angeles, CA and Kansas City, MO. Kevin and Dylan discuss butterflies, his return to Los Angeles, the nuances between Kansas and Missouri culture, his life with partner and fellow songwriter Katie Crutchfield, a canon of indie musicians who play the long game, examining your own mythos, Elvis, and tennis.
+ Kevin gives a letter of recommendation.
++ Kevin asks the Magic 8 Ball on Dylan’s coffee table some questions.
Artists we mentioned:
David Berman/Silver Jews/Purple Mountains, Hand Habits, Woods, Lou Reed, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Joan Baez, The National, Taylor Swift, Waxahatchee, the Babies, Geese, Elvis Presely.
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.
Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more.
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On the latest episode of Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That, Nick Dawson sits down with Goran Stolevski, the Macedonian-Australian writer-director whose films You Won’t Be Alone, Of An Age and Housekeeping for Beginners are arguably the best first three features by any filmmaker in recent memory.
Over the course of a strikingly frank conversation, Stolevski talks about why writing a shitty script is a quicker road to filmmaking success, why he won’t be making Monopoly: The Movie, his revisionist take on Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own, why the apocalypse will not feature anyone who looks like Pedro Pascal, why he wishes he didn’t want to make movies, and much more.
Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That now has a Substack, so head there to check out all of our past episodes, plus subscribe to get access to exclusive audio and video content! -
Saknas det avsnitt?
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Hey Talkhouse listeners, it's Josh Modell. Instead of a new episode this week, we're resurfacing a great one from a few years back between Blondshell and Maya Hawke. Blondshell, aka Sabrina Teitelbaum, released a new song recently and she's about to hit the road for a big tour. Maya Hawke is an actor who just signed on to star in the upcoming Netflix show The God of the Woods and she makes great records as well. Check it out!
—Josh Modell, Host of the Talkhouse Podcast
On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got two performers who’ve got friends in common, and became fast friends themselves while recording this chat: Maya Hawke and Sabrina Teitelbaum.
Maya Hawke is best known for her day job as an actor, most visibly in a little show called Stranger Things, and she was also in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and the new Wes Anderson movie, Asteroid City. But as you’ll hear in this chat, she might be most excited by a side path as a singer and songwriter. Hawke has released two understated but fantastic albums so far, and she’s basically finished another. The vibe is sort of indie-folk, sort of floating and ambient but lyrically really engaging. She’s worked with some cool folks to realize her musical vision, including Christian Lee Hutson, who’s the “Christian” referenced in this conversation, just so you know. Check out a “Sweet Tooth” from Hawke’s 2022 album Moss right here.
Sabrina Teitelbaum just released her debut album under the name Blondshell, and it’s one of the best of 2023 so far. She describes it in this conversation as an emergency album—meaning a bunch of songs that she felt almost desperate to write, record, and unleash on the world. It’s direct and angry in spots, but also darkly funny and completely unafraid. She’s toured with the likes of Horsegirl and Porridge Radio, which might give some indication of what you’re in for. Or I could just play you Blondshell’s opus, “Salad,” right here. Check it out.
These two have a fantastic conversation, and just in case it’s not clear from the context, they’re both good friends with the singer Samia, and each has contributed to a Samia covers series called Honey Reimagained. Blondshell did a song called “Charm You,” which is available now. Elsewhere in this chat, they talk about Hawke’s playing “body air guitar,” the weird emotional hit you get when a tour is finished, and the difficulties of stage banter. Enjoy.
0:00 Intro
3:20: Start of Conversation
3:21: On mutual friends and covering songs
4:58: On “perceived vulnerability” and perspectives in their songwriting
9:08: On sad songs, music you can play for friends, and “Olympus”
10:57: On the writing and jazz experiences that inspired Maya’s music
12:48: On the physicality of performing, feeling the music, and performance art
14:41: On playing live, post-tour loneliness, and active vs. passive time
20:06: On maintaining friendships
21:17: On Maya’s latest record
22:54: On onstage banter, scripting shows, and keeping shows fresh
25:53: On finishing a record and learning from the experience
27:43: On music serving as a snapshot of an artists’ life
28:26: On promoting music creatively and authentically, and social media
33:19: On the songwriting process, and tv show narratives’ influences on our experiences
38:40: On being inspired by friendships
42:13: On Maya titling her album “Moss”
43:40: On writing about past pain, and trying to balance it with joy
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Sabrina Teiltelbaum and Maya Hawke for chatting.
If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit Talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook. -
On the latest episode of Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That, Nick Dawson sits down with one of the greatest living documentary filmmakers, Kirsten Johnson, the director of Cameraperson and Dick Johnson is Dead.
In a very personal conversation that draws on their shared history around death and their parents, the two talk about their mutual pursuit of connection, Johnson growing up in the shadow of an imminent apocalypse, the truly remarkable dream she had while shooting in Sudan, a great story about Stephen Colbert’s hands, the disappointing way in which she and a legendary artist have not been collaborating, and much more.
Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That now has a Substack, so head there to check out all of our past episodes, plus subscribe to get access to exclusive audio and video content! -
On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got an absolute legend of the punk rock world in conversation with one of his band’s biggest fans—who also happens to play bass in one of the world’s most famous rock bands. It’s Joe Keithley and Duff McKagan.
Joe Keithley has been known for the vast majority of his life as Joey Shithead, singer and guitarist for the band D.O.A., which is coming up on its 50th year of existence. D.O.A. are absolute legends that have always existed on the margins—I don’t think they’d have it any other way—and who influenced and crossed paths with countless bands over the years. They’re credited with bringing the word “hardcore” into the punk lexicon with their album Hardcore ‘81, and guys like Billie Joe Armstrong and Kurt Cobain were vocal fans. Politics and activism have always been part of D.O.A.’s DNA, so it’s no surprise that Keithley decided to run for office in his native Burnaby, Canada. It was a surprise, even to him, that he actually won, and he’s been representing his area for nearly eight years. There’s a new documentary out now called Something Better Change that covers his life both as a musician and a politician, and it’s definitely worth your time. It even comes as a DVD extra in a new double-LP greatest hits collection called Take on the Tyrants: The Very Best of Punk Rock’s Most Enduring Band. Check out the trailer for the doc right here.
Duff McKagan is a lifelong D.O.A. fan; as you’ll hear in this chat, he was onto them super early, including attending a legendary hardcore festival in Canada. McKagan probably needs no introduction here: He’s the longtime bassist and founding member of Guns N' Roses, with whom he still tours—he Zooms into this chat having just landed in Poland for some gigs. But McKagan’s fascinating career and history goes well beyond GnR; he was part of the Seattle punk scene starting as a teen, and he’s been a member of more bands, big and small, than you can count. He’s also an accomplished writer whose autobiography is well worth a read and he’s got a string of solo albums and collaborations. He’s always busy, and he clearly loves music, as you’ll hear in this chat.
In addition to talking about his love for D.O.A., McKagan talks with Keithley here about the good old days of punk rock, diving deep on Black Flag in particular. They also chat about Keithley’s political career and his new venture as the face of a Canadian guitar company. It’s a fun, lively conversation—enjoy.
0:00 — Intro
2:40 — Start of Conversation
3:26 — On how D.O.A shaped Duff’s perspectives on music, and on receiving their album
4:47 — On traveling in Europe on tour, and cities with the best rock audiences
7:52 — On traveling through East and West Germany, and how fans got new music in East Germany
9:53 — On D.O.A’s documentary, Something Better Change, and the politics, music, and punk culture that inspired them both
14:05 — On the Vietnam War and its impacts on music
15:05 — On Joe’s political campaigns, door-knocking, and learning about diverse cultures
18:57 — On crossing borders on tour
22:12 — On local politics and aggressive campaign commercials
24:44 — On touring, and attending graduations
26:23 — On Joe’s new line of guitars
27:46 — On D.O.A’s influence on Duff, D.O.A’s early days, and meeting other punk musicians
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Joe Keithley and Duff McKagan for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network. Visit Talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more. Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook. -
On the latest episode Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That, Nick Dawson sits down with Charles Lane, the writer-director-actor behind the landmark indie film classic Sidewalk Stories. In a lively and frequently surprising conversation, Lane talks about such disparate subjects as how to make high-school love work (with some creative scheduling), being chased by street gangs and dinosaurs, how he copes with regret, his time as a pre-teen pyromaniac, the places one’s brain goes during a 12-minute (!) standing ovation at Cannes, becoming a Jehovah’s Witness as an act of teenage rebellion, and much more.
Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That now has a Substack, so head there to check out all of our past episodes, plus subscribe to get access to exclusive audio and video content! -
On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got a couple of old friends who are both multi-hyphenates: film directors, actors, writers, musicians, and perhaps most importantly, opinionated rabble-rousers who’ve spent decades pushing at the edges of culture—especially sexual politics—and gleefully widening its scope. It’s John Cameron Mitchell and Sook-Yin Lee.
Mitchell is perhaps best known for co-writing and starring in Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the late-'90s stage musical that became a cult-classic movie. It was the beginning of a career that has championed queerness and otherness, pushing those things into a mainstream that has sometimes been welcoming, but most times not so much. He followed Hedwig with Shortbus, whose frank depictions of sexuality were probably a little too intense for wider audiences. Mitchell has also done really interesting work as an actor in other people’s projects, including playing Tiger King Joe Exotic in a miniseries not too long ago. As you’ll hear in this chat, he’s working on a project about Alan Ginsberg in 1968, a time that should be more distant than it feels like at the moment. Mitchell is heading out on a Hedwig anniversary tour that will include screenings of the film plus live performance and conversation; check out hedwig25.com for info.
The other half of today’s chat, Sook-Yin Lee, met Mitchell way back when, as you’ll hear, when she auditioned for him—sort of. She had roles in both Hedwig and Shortbus, but has also lived other lives as a TV presenter in Canada and a prolific film director. For the past couple of years she’s taken her latest film, Paying For It, straight to audiences along with her friend Chester Brown, whose graphic novel is the film’s basis. It’s a comedy about a couple that opens their relationship, and one of them decides to experiment by paying for sex. You can stream it most anywhere now, but that’s not all Lee has been up to: She just released a new album of catchy, skewed electro-pop called 72RHR. Check out the song “A Hollow” right here.
In this funny, fiery conversation, Mitchell and Lee talk about their early days together, about Alan Ginsberg and how the times he lived through don’t seem to be over, about Mitchell’s adopted New Orleans home, the power of art and lots more. Enjoy.
0:00 — Intro
2:39 — Start of Conversation
3:13 — On celebrating Pride, and Allen Ginsberg
5:34 — On their first collaborations, why their earlier projects couldn’t be made in today’s climate and industry, and branching out with new projects
10:43 — On promoting their latest film collaboration, "Paying For It"
13:11 — On their musical backgrounds and finding inspiration from different styles and genres of art
14:10 — On up-and-coming cities and scenes for artists, marginalized communities, and progressive and punk cultures
16:57 — Comparing and contrasting modern times and today’s art to 1968
18:42 — On making a living as an artist, funding for the arts, and affordability
20:23 — On art movements in small regions, and protecting DIY art spaces, and regional culture in New Orleans
22:03 — On promoting “Paying For It” in the US
23:36 — On the frustrations of a digital world, and building connection and attention spans
25:27 — On doing screenings and gigs for the 25th anniversary of “Hedvig,” and screening “Short Bus”
26:13 — On using art to bring people together again to re-connect to reality
28:58 — On fighting ICE and data centers, and uniting over shared issues
31:46 — On using technology to connect, and young peoples’ changing identities
34:23 — On how young people are creating DIY art, and the tools that make art more accessible for creators
38:13 — On the connections between punk culture, art distribution, and resistance
42:29 — On AIDS activism and “applied punk” within the queer community
44:03 — Where you can find their work
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Sook-Yin Lee and John Cameron Mitchell for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the other great shows in our network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.
Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more.
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On the latest episode Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That, Nick Dawson sits down with the brilliant and innovative filmmaker Zia Anger, the creative force behind the 2024 feature My First Film and the legendary live multimedia show of the same name.
Over the course of their conversation, Nick and Zia touch on such topics as the problems of being ahead of your time, how Justin Bieber’s recent Coachella show followed in Zia’s footsteps, the remarkable series of “Take It to the Limit” parties she attended as a college student, the dreams she has that Jung would have a field day with, what she would do during a nuclear holocaust, and much more.
Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That now has a Substack, so head there to check out all of our past episodes, plus subscribe to get access to exclusive audio and video content! -
On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got a couple of friends who swim in the same punk-inspired scenes but whose musics are pretty different: Barry Johnson and Greg Mendez.
Johnson is the singer and guitarist for Joyce Manor, the pop-punk/emo/indie-rock/something-something band that’s been blasting out short, to-the-point songs for nearly two decades. There’s something perfectly economical about everything the band does: Their records often clock in at under 20 minutes, so there’s no fat or filler to be found. The latest is being hailed as their best, which is saying something for a band whose chosen genre rarely seems to age well—something Johnson laughs about in this chat. The album is called I Used to Go to This Bar, and it was produced by Bad Religion’s Brett Gurewitz. Check out the song “I Know Where Mark Chen Lives” right here.
The other half of today’s conversation, Greg Mendez, takes a Spartan approach to songwriting as well, but his songs are much more quiet and reflective—you’ll definitely hear Elliott Smith vibes on his new album, Beauty Land. Mendez has actually been making music nearly as long as Joyce Manor, but their shyness didn’t really push through into wider view until a self-titled album in 2023. Now he’s ready to take the next leap—this new record is on the Dead Oceans label, which has released records by like-minded souls Phoebe Bridgers, Japanese Breakfast, and Bright Eyes. Check out the song “Gentle Love” from Beauty Land right here.
In this conversation, Mendez and Johnson talk about how they first met, about the ups and downs of sequencing an album, and about doing the stream-of-consciousness creative practice called “morning pages,” where you just write whatever pops into your head. Johnson doesn’t want you to see his pages, and you’ll find out why. Enjoy.
0:00 — Intro
2:47 — Start of Conversation
5:16 — On sequencing records
7:58 — On releasing new music and planning modern album rollouts
9:20 — On the benefits of slower rollouts and appreciating singles
10:58 — On how they became friends
13:52 — On living in New York, and midlife crises
15:42 — On surfing, skating, and Long Beach
19:50 — On discovering punk through skating culture
20:28 — On touring’s impact on creativity, and finding inspiration from other musicians
23:08 — On overcoming writer’s block, exercising your creativity with age, “morning pages,” and Kurt Cobain’s diary
32:21 — On upcoming tour plans and keeping audiences’ attention while playing solo
34:14 — On seeing musicians transfix an audience, getting emotional at concerts, and live versions of songs
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Barry Johnson and Greg Mendez for a great chat. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.
Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more.
Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook. -
On the first episode of the new season of Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That, host Nick Dawson sits down with Emmy-winning actor Tatiana Maslany, whose new thriller series Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is now streaming on Apple TV. In wide-ranging conversation, the two talk about how she fell in love her husband over FaceTime, her very unconventional way of turning up for auditions, why she falls asleep thinking about coffee, the hardest time she’s ever had on a movie set, her love of taking COVID tests, and much more. Nobody’s Ever Asked Me That now has a Substack, so head there to check out all of our past episodes, plus subscribe to get access to exclusive audio and video content!
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Hey Talkhouse listeners, this week, I'm throwing you a rerun from a while back, but whose wisdom hasn't dimmed since 2018 when it was recorded. It's a great conversation between Steve Albini and Devo's Jerry Casale that was captured backstage at the Desert Days Festival. I grabbed this one from the archive because we recently passed the 2nd anniversary of Albini's untimely death, and there was a great Rolling Stone piece about his legacy that got me thinking. He was a very smart, sometimes controversial guy, always opinionated, but always thoughtful. Check it out and we'll see you with a new episode next week. —Josh Modell, Host of the Talkhouse Podcast
The Talkhouse Podcast recently headed out to the fantastic Desert Daze festival at Moreno Beach at Lake Perris in Southern California. When we weren't catching sets by Tame Impala, King Gizzard, and My Bloody Valentine, we recorded a trio of great talks; this week, we present the first.
When I saw that both Steve Albini and Devo's Jerry Casale were going to be at Desert Daze giving talks, I knew we had to pair these two icons of alternative music. They're big fans of each other's work, and halfway through their conversation, Steve said, “This is the sort of stuff no one ever talks about. These are the questions I’ve had for 30 years.”
Their fascinating talk takes in the beginning years of Devo’s existence; their complex relationship with Neil Young; Brian Eno’s proclivity for ménage à trois; the differences between poker and making records; and how the name Devo became a category alongside jocks, squares and nerds.
Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast. —Elia Einhorn, Talkhouse Podcast host and producer
0:00 — Intro
1:01 — Start of the chat
1:14 — Introductions, names, and local sports
3:50 — On Devo straddling genres, their connection to Neil Young, and punk rock
8:14 — On the orthodoxy of punk rock culture, and reactions to politics and power structures
15:17 — On Devo’s connection to the experimental and underground scene
17:58 — On lying to club owners to book shows in the '70s
19:13 — On promoting Devo’s first albums, and Stiff Records
22:44 — On working with Brian Eno, their first major record deal, and meeting David Bowie
27:41 — On Devo controlling and developing their own sound
29:04 — On making “non-functional” experimental music versus dance music, and the role of taste in producing and creating
31:58 — On studio musicians working across genres
35:56 — On being compelled to create original art, regrets, and the paradox of the mainstream record industry
39:17 — On playing poker, and the psychological relationship between poker and creative personas
45:55 — On being an outsider, and Devo becoming “a badge of courage”
This episode was recorded by Keenan Kush at Desert Daze. It was co-produced by Mark Yoshizumi.
The Talkhouse Podcast’s theme song was composed and performed by The Range.
Big thanks to Desert Daze for hosting the Talkhouse Podcast.
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.
Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more.
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On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast we’ve got a pair of songwriters who currently call Canada home, but whose music and backgrounds come from intriguingly different places: Lido Pimienta and Ora Cogan.
Lido Pimienta is an incredibly thoughtful, thoroughly outspoken musician/artist who was born in Colombia and whose music takes inspiration from there and a dozen other places. She released her first record in 2010, but it was 2016’s experimental-leaning La Papessa that won her both the prestigious Polaris Music Prize and a bigger batch of listeners inspired by her activism and genre-jumping. The laziest comparison might be Björk, so take that for what it’s worth. Pimienta’s latest album is last year’s stirring, strange, and gorgeous La Belleza. Check out the minimal song “Mango” right here.
The music made by the other person in today’s conversation, Ora Cogan, comes from a different sonic place but I think a similar emotional one. Cogan’s new album Hard Hearted Woman takes old-school West Coast singer-songwriter vibes and adds a bit of modern indie-psych edge. I hear influences like Joni Mitchell and Sharon van Etten bubbling under, but there’s something a little darker happening in Cogan’s songs that’s hard to put a finger on but a pleasure to hear. She’s finishing up a West Coast US tour at the moment that will end back home in British Columbia, so check her out if you can, and in the meantime, check out the song “The Smoke” from Hard Hearted Woman right here.
In this lively conversation, Pimienta and Cogan talk about coffee, Canada, and Pimienta’s recent career reset. They also talk about the increasing difficulties of making art in the modern economy, something we’ve heard from other guests recently as well. But they don’t let it get them down—enjoy this chat and their positive energy.
0:00 — Intro
2:46 — Start of conversation
3:29 — On coffee, productivity, fast food, and sugar
6:40 — On “road snacks” and favorite foods while touring abroad
8:00 — On fiddling and Irish and Scottish folk music
10:04 — On safety while crossing borders and making tour travel plans
10:53 — On the importance of music, creativity, and connection today
14:18 — On the contrast between spirituality and the music business
17:23 — On fame and realistic expectations for musicians
21:36 — On Lida’s music and how her culture influenced her style
26:13 — On finding connection through art, beauty, and sharing culture
28:20 — On authenticity and gatekeeping in art
29:43 — On the connections between wealth, commercialization, and the importance of real art and experience
31:46 — On raising children in a consumerist world, and introducing them to art and culture
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Lido Pimienta and Ora Cogan for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great chats and writing and Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.
Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more.
Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook. -
This week’s Talkhouse Podcast features a conversation between two ridiculously talented young songwriter/guitarists in the early days of what will surely be interesting careers: Mei Semones and John Roseboro.Semones famously found her passion for guitar by watching the “Johnny B. Goode” scene in Back to the Future, which led her to music school and the kind of genre-spanning passion that feels refreshingly unfiltered. Sometimes she’ll play delicate, jazz-inflected acoustic songs while singing in Japanese; the next minute it’s more familiar indie-pop that adds a bit of bossa nova or some shredding. The fact that it doesn’t make sense is what makes it make sense, if you get what I mean. Semones was a big hit at this year’s experimental-leaning Big Ears Festival, and she’s also got a big social media following—that’s an odd crossover, or at least I think it is. Next week she’ll open a string of shows for American Football on the west coast before heading down to charm Australia. Her first full-length was last year’s Animaru, and she followed it recently with an EP called Kurage, which includes a song made with today’s other guest, John Roseboro.Roseboro has called his music “post-Bossa Nova” or sometimes just “post-Bossa,” but that only tells part of the story. He’s a thoughtful, observant lyricist who’s great at building a vibe and then taking it to unexpected places. Like Semones, he lives in Brooklyn, though he ended up there via a strange route that took him to mortuary school and some time among the Amish. His latest full-length is 2024’s Fools, but since then he’s released a charming cover of the classic “Close To You” that removes a lot of the cheese associated with various other versions over the years. He also collaborated with Semones on a track from her EP that recounts a story of his lost tooth and a meeting on a subway platform. Check out that song, “Tooth Fairy,” right here.In this charming, relentlessly laid-back conversation, Semones and Roseboro—who are good friends, as you’ll be able to tell—hit each other with questions that lead everywhere from what food they like on the road to the magic of music. Succumb to their rhythm and enjoy the conversation.0:00 — Intro 2:28 — Start of conversation 2:50 — If you could be an animal, what would you be? 4:19 — On traveling and finding a home base 5:50 — What do you think about while performing? 8:15 — On noticing the audience at shows, and hecklers 10:10 — On favorite types of food, and go-to deli orders 12:46 — On what makes a good song & lyrics 16:29 — On underrated songs they’ve made 18:40 — On dreams and dream imagery 20:38 — On Nerd Clusters, snacks, and drinks on rider requests 22:03 — On favorite sports 22:40 — Have you ever been in a fight? 24:49 — On favorite seasons and months 25:13 — On the differences between touring and recording 27:56 — On sleeping 28:55 — On subtlety Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Mei Semones and John Roseboro for chatting. If you like what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme was composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more.Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook.
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On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got an interesting pairing—two guys that hadn’t met before, and who come from different parts of the arts world, and who are both pretty damn great at their jobs. It’s Bill Callahan and Michael Imperioli.
Bill Callahan made music under the name Smog for about 15 years, releasing an incredible catalog of gorgeous, mostly minimal, often wandering songs delivered in his unmistakable baritone. He’s one of the most profound lyricists of the past 30 years, crafting careful little worlds that are often funny and heartbreaking at the same time. In 2005, he dropped the Smog moniker and started releasing records under his own name, but there’s no obvious break in the continuity. It’s a fantastic body of work and you can start almost anywhere: I’d recommend 1999’s Knock Knock as an entry point, or maybe 2007’s A River Ain’t Too Much Too Love, which comes up in this chat. But you could just as easily jump in with Callahan’s fantastic new one, My Days of 58, which was finished after a scary cancer battle. In spite of that—or maybe because of it—it’s one of Callahan’s most relaxed and charming ever. Check out “Why Do Men Sing” right here.
Today’s other guest is instantly recognizable to fans of The Sopranos as Christopher Moltisanti, the tragic character that surely wouldn’t have been nearly as indelible without Michael Imperioli’s genius-level portrayal. You’ve seen him in a million other things, too, from Goodfellas to Summer of Sam—which he also co-wrote—to The White Lotus. What perhaps you didn’t know about Imperioli is that he’s also a musician. He’s the singer/guitarist in a band called ZOPA, which plays catchy, straight-ahead rock that sounds deeply rooted in New York City, which Imperioli still calls home. He also wrote a novel, which comes up in this chat with Callahan, and he’s a practicing Buddhist, another topic of conversation.
Even though Callahan and Imperioli didn’t know each other, they were clearly fans of each other’s work. In this chill chat, Michael tells Bill about the exact moment he first heard one of his songs. They also get into Bill’s health scare and how it inspired his new record, Michael’s kids and what they’re up to, and there’s a lot of talk about Lou Reed—a guy that inspired them both. Enjoy.
0:00 — Intro
2:35 — Living in Austin & New York
3:34 — On Bill’s new record and discovering Smog’s past work
5:03 — On birthdays and the Chinese Zodiac
6:34 — On cancer and writing the new album, My Days of 58
8:33 — On Michael’s novel, fiction, and inspiration
10:47 — On practicing Buddhism, reincarnation, and monks
16:03 — On raising kids and their musical talents
19:07 — On AI and why human emotion matters in art and work
25:10 — On playing instruments and recording musicians
29:08 — On knowing Lou Reed, and his inspirations
34:35 — On Bill’s upcoming tour, and favorite guitars
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Bill Callahan and Michael Imperioli for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff we’ve got going at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
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On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Podcast’s spin-off series, host Nick Dawson sits down with actor, writer and all-around fascinating human David Dastmalchian, whose beautiful debut graphic novel Through was just published. In an engrossing and often very profound conversation, the two discuss David’s fascinating (and impressively genre-tinged) recurring nightmares, his mother’s emotional supernatural encounter with her first love, his childhood fear of hell, how “doing the work” led him to write Through … and much more, including why David insisted this episode be titled “Pedal to the Metal”! For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse at talkhouse.com/film. Subscribe now to stay in the loop on future episodes of the Talkhouse Podcast.
0:00 — Intro
3:06 — Do you remember your dreams and/or nightmares?
6:01 — Recurring horror dreams, stress dreams, and lucid dreaming
12:47 — Do you believe in ghosts and the supernatural?
16:50 — Living “in the gray” between ideas and spiritual interconnectivity
20:19 — Concepts of religious hell and fearing hell as a child
22:55 — Favorite films about religion, and exploring religion in creative communities
25:35 — Titling podcast episodes - “Put the pedal to the metal”
26:51 — “Can you think of a time when you nearly gave up?” and addiction
30:08 — Attempting to take his own life
31:46 — Sobriety, relapsing, and managing his anxiety and depression
34:37 — Mining your own experiences in writing, and David’s new book, Through
38:58 — “How comfortable are you with discomfort?," coping mechanisms, and consumerism
44:49 — “What kind of a life would you want to live?”
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On this week's Talkhouse Podcast, we've got an intense conversation between two friends about loss, mental health, and more: It's James Graham and Rachel Goswell.
Graham is the singer and lyricist of the Scottish band the Twilight Sad, whose first full-length came out back in 2007, and who were part of a scene that included their friends in Frightened Rabbit and We Were Promised Jetpacks—the common thread being intense, emotional, heart-on-the-sleeve rock songs. They chugged along for a while there, making great records, and were eventually kind of taken under the wing of the Cure's Robert Smith, who loved their music so much that the Twilight Sad has become the Cure's default opening band. But life hit Graham pretty hard over the past decade, with a seven-year stretch that included losing his mother to dementia and a bout of his own with mental illness. Graham eventually began writing songs about it, and the result is the first Twilight Sad record in seven years, called It's The Long Goodbye. It's not necessarily an easy listen, but it's worth it. Check out "Chest Wound to the Chest" right here.
The other half of today's conversation is Rachel Goswell, best known as the singer of '90s shoegazers Slowdive. Slowdive had a pretty weird trajectory, coming up in the same scene that birthed My Bloody Valentine, Ride, and other big players, but never really getting their due back then. But history was justifiably kind to Slowdive, and they re-formed about 10 years ago, picking up a much younger fanbase in the process—theoretically thanks to TikTok and other social platforms. But Slowdive isn't just playing the nostalgia game: They've released vital new music in recent years, and their latest is 2023's Everything is Alive.
In this immediately intense conversation, Graham and Goswell talk at length about how they first got to know each other, about how they become different people on stage, and about their common bond, having both lost their mothers to dementia in recent years. Like I said, it can be intense, but I appreciate their sincerity and openness, and I hope you do too.
0:00 – Intro
2:19 – Start of the chat
3:40 – On how Rachel & James met
4:55 – Staying healthy & finding connection on tour
11:18 – On daily routines to cope with mental health challenges
14:06 – On musician personas & enjoying tour prep
19:54 – On supporting each other while both their mothers had dementia, and the types of dementia
26:42 – On processing difficult memories & mourning for the future
29:57 – On coping with their mothers' dementia during the pandemic
31:18 – On saying goodbye to their moms
33:17 – On living and working with grief
35:24 – On anxiety & working on mental health
36:25 – On "active grieving"
38:42 – On realizing what matters about art after tragedy
40:21 – On finding hope through connecting with new audiences
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to James Graham and Rachel Goswell for talking. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
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On this week’s excellent Talkhouse Podcast episode, we’ve got one of my favorite film directors in conversation with the vocalist of one of the last two decades most engaging bands—who also happened to appear in her latest movie. It’s Andrea Arnold and Jason Williamson.
Andrea Arnold is a visionary British filmmaker who doesn’t make movies very frequently, but she sure makes them count. Her first to really make a splash was 2009’s Fish Tank, a coming-of-age story—that’s a recurring theme—that was the first place I remember seeing Michael Fassbender. She’s since directed three more features: an adaptation of Wuthering Heights (though not the gaudy new one), the visceral American Honey, and last year’s magical Bird, which stars Barry Keoghan as the deadbeat working-class dad to newcomer Nykia Adams. It’s flown under the radar for sure, but please seek it out and let me know what you think. I loved it, and it’s got one of the greatest soundtracks you’ll hear all year, with Fontaines DC, Blur, and Sleaford Mods, which leads me to the other half of today’s conversation, Jason Williamson.
Williamson is the lyricist and vocalist—he doesn’t exactly sing—for Sleaford Mods, which has created an unforgettable, fully individual kind of post-punk for the past two decades, characterized by Williamson’s witty, confrontational words. Like Arnold, Williamson has roots in the working class, and his music offers an unvarnished reflection of those roots. When she got in touch with him about playing a small but important role in Bird, he admitted that he wasn’t familiar with her movies—but quickly became a fan. So he was in her movie, and she in return directed a video for the song “No Touch” from the latest Sleaford Mods album, The Demise of Planet X, which came out earlier this year. Check out that song right here.
In this open and generous chat, Arnold and Williamson talk about their shared backgrounds, about shooting Williamson's pivotal scene in Bird, and about Arnold’s career as a dancer and TV presenter for various BBC shows. I’m a fan of her work and I had no idea about this entirely different part of her career. Jason also reveals his unique post-show ritual, and laments—sort of—the fact that you can’t just simply get drunk anymore and hit people. Enjoy.
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Jason Williamson and Andrea Arnold for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out Talkhouse.com for all kinds of great written pieces and other podcasts in our network. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme was composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
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This episode originally aired on March 25, 2026. Subscribe to Music Person.
Florence Shaw of Dry Cleaning from South London, England.
Florence and Dylan discuss the difficulties of international touring, what your brain feels like on art school, black plastics, wanting to become a horse, reaching an associative songwriting state, and riding the bus as an idea-generating machine.
+ Florence gets something off her chest.
Artists we mentioned:
Cate Le Bon, Ryan Davis, Black Midi, bar italia, Jeff Tweedy, Elton John.
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On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got a songwriter with a long and varied history who’s somehow just now making her solo debut alongside the musician and producer who helped her make it: it’s Morgan Nagler and King Tuff.
You could be excused for not knowing Morgan Nagler’s name; she’s been on the fringes of the L.A. music scene for the past couple of decades, co-writing songs with Phoebe Bridgers (the remarkable “Kyoto”) and HAIM, among others—as well as fronting the band Whispertown. She’s also had another career on-screen, from Punky Brewster to American Pie 2, but that’s not relevant for today’s conversation. Just this month, Nagler released the first album under her own name, and it carries the all-time great title I’ve Got Nothing to Lose and I’m Losing It. If you love melodic, heartfelt pop with a bit of that Laurel Canyon twang, you will find something to love on this record. Check out the song “Hurt” right here, which features a cavalcade of talented backing singers, too.
Kyle Thomas has been making music under the name King Tuff for the past 20 years or so, cranking out rollicking, straightforward rockers that fit perfectly with his moniker. For his new record Moo, Thomas went back to basics after spending what he felt like was too much time cleaning things up. The result is a garage-y, thoroughly catchy set of songs that never try to overcomplicate the desire to rock. Think GBV or Ty Segall or Mikal Cronin. Check out the song “Invisible Ink” from his new album Moo right here. It’s out this week.
In this fun chat, Nagler and Thomas talk about the fun of writing lyrics together, Thomas’ move back to the snowy woods of Vermont, and what they plan to eat on their upcoming tour together. There’s also white weasels and Cadbury creme eggs, so pay close attention and enjoy.
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast, and thanks to Morgan Nagler and Kyle Thomas aka. King Tuff for chatting. If you liked what you heard, please follow Talkhouse on your favorite podcasting platform and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.
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On this week’s Talkhouse Podcast, we’ve got a great conversation between two friends and tourmates, one a musician, and one whose job title is slightly harder to pin down: It’s Langhorne Slim and Jordan Klepper.
Langhorne Slim has been making music for the past two decades, and while it’s plenty varied, it also fits nicely into that wide bucket called Americana. For his new album, The Dreamin’ Kind, Slim hooked up with a couple of guys from Greta Van Fleet and ended up dedicating some time to rocking in a way he hadn’t really done before. Parts of the record offer a more polished sound than he’s made in the past—it’s the sound of a guy who’s always loved to go for it kind of going for it in a different way. Live, Langhorne Slim always brings it, connecting with audiences whether they’re already fans or not—often by joining them right out in the audience. If you recognize the voice or name, you may have heard Langhorne Slim on a movie soundtrack or opening for the likes of The Avett Brothers or The Lumineers over the years. Check out one of the more rocking tracks from The Dreamin’ Kind right here, “Haunted Man.”
The other half of today’s conversation is a little harder to categorize. Sure, Jordan Klepper sometimes stands on stage and says funny things, but he’s not exactly a comedian. He’s probably best known as the co-host of the current Daily Show iteration, and via that avenue and others—including his own show, The Opposition and a bunch of standalone specials—he’s actually done some of the most biting and important political-culture reporting of the horrifying era we’re currently living in. He was there on January 6, somehow managing to be funny amidst all the chaos. It’s a talent that’s extended to a podcast, other TV specials, and of course, the stand-up stage. On a recent tour, he asked Langhorne Slim to join him for some dates, and as you’ll hear, the two became fast friends.
In this conversation, they talk about touring together—and Slim’s frequent trips into the audience during shows—plus the tricky business of legacy, the meeting of capitalism and art, and running into an exposed penis on the streets of New York—and how one should react to that. Enjoy.
Thanks for listening to the Talkhouse Podcast and thanks to Jordan Klepper and Langhorne Slim for chatting. If you like what you heard, please follow us on your favorite podcasting platform, and check out all the great stuff at Talkhouse.com. This episode was produced by Myron Kaplan, and the Talkhouse theme is composed and performed by the Range. See you next time!
Find more illuminating podcasts on the Talkhouse Podcast Network.
Visit talkhouse.com to read essays, reviews, and more.
Follow @talkhouse on Instagram, Bluesky, Twitter (X), Threads, and Facebook. - Visa fler
