Soundcheck

Little May makes folky indie pop songs that perch precariously between the spaciously lonely sound of Local Natives and the lovely, soft harmonies of First Aid Kit. The Sydney, Australia trio -- comprised of Hannah Field, Liz Drummond and Annie Hamilton -- began by covering songs like Eagle Eye Cherry's "Save Tonight" in high school, but once they started creating music of their own in 2012, the band quickly made the rounds at big festivals like Splendour in the Grass, BIGSOUND and Laneway.   Little May is now touring in support of its recently-released self-titled EP, a short and sweet collection that showcases its innovative songwriting and skillful musicianship. On songs like "Hide," as the trio glides effortlessly from dark and rich melodies to bright guitars, Little May proves it's a promising act to keep an eye on. Set List: "Dust" "Hide" "Shotgun"

For most, the name Mark Mothersbaugh conjures an image of men in strange hats and matching jumpsuits playing synthesizers with a robotic gusto. But before his time performing in the influential new wave band Devo, or his work as an acclaimed TV and film composer, Mothersbaugh had his sights set on the visual arts. Now, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Denver, Colorado is presenting a retrospective exhibition which blends the visual and the musical work of Mothersbaugh. In a conversation with Soundcheck host John Schaefer, Mothersbaugh shares his thoughts on the showcase, its accompanying book, Myopia, and his love for blurring the line between multimedia art and music. Below, view selections from Mothersbaugh's book, Myopia. Interview Highlights Mark Mothersbaugh, on the autobiographical roots of his exhibition's title:  I made it through second grade without being able to see what a blackboard was. I knew where the door was because you could follow people and you would find it. Somehow I managed to make it to school every day, but it wasn't till the end of that school year that I got fitted with glasses. And within five minutes I walked out of this optometrist's shop and for the first time I saw clouds, and birds flying, and telephone wires and rooftops, and smoke coming out of chimneys, and the tops of trees.  On developing the idea for Devo at Kent State after the 1970 shootings: Music took a big turn, it seemed like, right at that time. What came next was disco and corporate power rock, and both of them had politics that we weren't particularly enamored with. It seemed like all the Bob Dylan's of the world were gone. So we thought we were gonna be musical reporters and talk about the good news of de-evolution.  On the origins of his hundreds of thousands of works of postcard art: It was back when people relied on the post-office for transmitting information. Now you just get garbage mostly, and bills. But if you sent a piece of art on a postcard to someone like Robert Indiana or Irene Dogmatic or Ant Farm, they would send you something back. A nobody could send out a piece of art to these people and sometimes they would send something back. I started saving them, and when Devo was travelling, that was a way I could keep doing visual things, write lyrics, and collect things on these pieces of paper. Now zoom ahead 40 years and there's 350 books that each have a 100 of these things.      

It's safe to say that 2004 was a great year for rock thanks to monumental indie rock albums like Arcade Fire's Funeral, The Killers' Hot Fuss and Interpol's Antics -- just to name a few. But that year also brought us an overlooked yet successful album that likely doesn't get mentioned in the same company: William Shatner's Has Been. Back in 2004, as the title suggests, Shatner was not quite the A-list actor he once was in his Star Trek peak, let alone those T.J. Hooker days. As a longtime thespian and all-around showman, Has Been was not the first time the actor best known for playing Capt. James T. Kirk on TV and in movies had dabbled with music. First there was his delightfully misunderstood 1968 record, The Transformed Man, which coupled cosmic Shakespearean readings and spoken-word interpretations of pop songs like "Tambourine Man" and "Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds." Then, in 1978, he hosted The Science Fiction Film Awards where he performed a fantastic and utterly bizarro version Elton John's "Rocket Man." So why would Shatner return to that well again? For Has Been, Shatner was coaxed back by Ben Folds, a songwriter who not only took the project serious, but was totally in on the joke. The collaboration gave weight to the album musically, which again, featured a mix of spoken-word and half-sung originals and covers -- most notably, Pulp's hit "Common People." With this song, and throughout the record, Shatner blended his trademark phrasing -- in which he parses each line as if it was a dramatic reading -- with an energetic indie rock sound. The songs were full of anger and humor, but at the heart, was an introspective sadness when he ruminated on aging and regrets. Remarkably, Has Been showed a new side to the actor, and, ultimately, helped reinvigorate his career. In a conversation with Soundcheck host John Schaefer, Dan Ozzi, an editor at Noisey, looks back to Has Been's origins and impact, as discussed in his retrospective piece, "William Shatner's "Has Been": The Album That Broke Indie Rock For Good." Plus he puts the album in the context of all the other now-classic albums that came out in 2004.  Interview Highlights Dan Ozzi, on Shatner’s previous attempts at music versus his work on Has Been: I think that the difference between “Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” and the “Common People” cover was when they were making this record he asked Ben Folds, “I don’t know how I should make this album” and Ben Fold was like, “Be honest, be yourself.” So I think that’s the difference: He dropped this sort of pretension about maybe I could have a musical career. “Common People” and Has Been is very much like I have no business being in this studio but let’s see what comes out anyway. On why Has Been did so well in 2004: If you look at Has Been it got a 7.5 on Pitchfork that year. That was more than they gave Wilco’s A Ghost Is Born" and more than they gave Rilo Kiley’s More Adventurous that year. That’s insane when looking back on what is a novelty album. It got swooped in with the rest of this indie-mania that it got taken seriously as an album.

The Budos Band may describe its sound as "Staten Island instrumental afro-soul," but trying to unpack the musical elements can be fun challenge. Listen for those polyrhythmic Afrobeat rhythms and deep funk grooves; the jazz-infused solos and soulful melodies; and the sonic experimentation of 1960's psychedelic rock. The Budos Band has done it all in ecstatic live performances that get a crowd moving. With its latest album, Burnt Offering, The Budos Band seems to have spent many hours listening to bands like Black Sabbath, Pentagram or Deep Purple on endless repeat. This latest batch of songs is way heavier. Here the ensemble leans towards scorched earth guitar distortion, some blistering brass, and the sinister droning organs, all of which conjures a far more ominous and raging vibe. While not wholly a reinvention, The Budos Band's progression feels like the logical next step from a group always looking to add something new to the mix.

The new memoir from Anthrax's Scott Ian is called 'I'm The Man: The Story Of That Guy From Anthrax.' (Courtesy of the publisher) In addition to sporting one of the most famous beards in music, Scott Ian is also a founding member of the band Anthrax. After spending his formative years as a Yankee-loving kid in Mets territory, Ian dove into New York's punk scene and eventually co-founded Anthrax in 1981. (His facial hair was founded not long after.) Along with Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer, the band would go on to become one of the so-called "Big Four" bands that defined the sound of thrash metal. Now, Ian tells his version of the band's origin story, and details the highs and lows of Anthrax's long career in his new memoir, I’m The Man: The Story Of That Guy From Anthrax.  In a conversation with Soundcheck host John Schaefer, he reflects on his most memorable performances, the band's surprising rap-metal crossover hit and his childhood love of Black Sabbath and KISS.  Interview Highlights  Scott Ian, on playing a concert at Yankee Stadium in 2011: It's one of those moments in my life where if I didn't have photos, it would be hard for me to believe it actually happened. Even now, it's not like it's a regular concert venue. Before the "Big Four" show, I think they'd done Paul McCartney, Billy Joel and the Pope. I've never been so agonizingly nervous before a gig. Not because of the size of the crowd -- it was the fact that I was standing on a stage that they built out in center field where so many of my heroes had played. It was a completely mind effing moment for me. Randy Johnson was there, someone who's been in high pressure moments in his life -- and he gave me some good advice. He got me off the ledge enough for me to get out there. We opened the show with our song "Caught in a Mosh" -- the whole five minutes of that song I had tears running down my face.  On Anthrax's rap-metal crossover hit, "I'm the Man," which he says started out as a joke: It is a joke. It was me and my friend John Rooney, sitting in my tiny little bedroom in my mom's apartment in Bayside. We were both really into rap music, and we were just messing around. I was playing the riff to "Hava Nagila," and we started messing around with lyrics, talking about the guys in the band. We had rehearsal not long after that and brought it in and everybody loved the idea.  On Anthrax's 1984 debut album, Fistful Of Metal:  If we could have had more time, I think we could have even a better debut album. Charlie [Benante] had only joined the band in the spring of '83, and that was really the missing piece of the puzzle, his ability on the drums and his sensibility that he didn't even know he had yet as a songwriter. It was such a quantum leap for us when Charlie joined. I just something think back and think, god, if we had just had six more months just gelling together in the studio, what that record could have been.  On his famous facial hair:  I've had something on my chin since '86 -- photo evidence supports that. I used to have one hat grew from my bottom lip, and it went from there down. At some point it changed, and I just started growing it from underneath. I wash it and I condition it when I'm in the shower. I forget it's there most of the time. it's not something I'm always conscious of. I think if you asked Billy Gibbons, he'd be like, yeah, I don't think about my beard all that often.  On the three lead singer shakeups in the band:  It's horrible. I'm a fan of music -- there are many bands that I'm a fan of that have done that to me as a fan. Of course, I take it personally. Case in point: Van Halen, one of my favorite bands of all time. When David [Lee Roth] was out and Sammy [Hagar] was in -- and I love Sammy Hagar -- but Sammy Hagar in Van Halen was not for me. It just didn't work, for some reason. The way their sound changed -- I appreciate it, but I stopped listening to the records until David came back. I love Van Halen and I love Sammy, it just wasn

There’s plenty to unpack in the wry, confessional lyrics of Speedy Ortiz -- the solo-moniker-turned rock band of singer and guitarist Sadie Dupuis. With lines like "Spent the summer on crutches and everybody teased / except for this one friend I almost forgot" (“No Below”), Dupuis lets us in, revealing her distinctively sharp point of view -- equal parts hilariously self-deprecating and brutally honest. On the superb record, Major Arcana, Speedy Ortiz churns through a set of seething and clever songs detailing complicated and broken relationships, and wounded angst in a way that will surely (hopefully) empower countless brooding teens to pick up a pen -- and/or a guitar -- and let it all out. Considering the subject matter and literary depth to her lyrics, it might not come as a surprise that Dupuis studied poetry at M.I.T. and Barnard, and is finishing up an MFA at University of Massachusetts Amherst. Even the band’s name is a nod to a particularly doomed character in the beloved alt-comic Love And Rockets. But Speedy Ortiz’s music is far from vulnerable; the band’s members -- Dupuis, along with drummer Mike Falcone, guitarist Matt Robidoux, bassist Darl Ferm -- are all part of a tight-knit scene in Northhampton, Mass., known for heavy and noisy music. That comes into play especially where Speedy Ortiz leans into its ‘90s influences -- think Pavement, Polvo, or Dinosaur Jr. On songs like “Tiger Tank” or “Cash Cab,” the band unleashes crooked and gnarled arrangements full of searing guitar lines, and explosive energy. It’s that mix of whip-smart wordplay and noisy contorted riffs that makes Speedy Ortiz one of the most exciting young bands of this year. This segment originally aired on Oct. 18, 2013.   Set List: "Cash Cab" "New Song" "Tiger Tank"

In a scene from the TV series Breaking Bad, the meth-dealing Walter White's alter ego, Heisenberg, is the star of a narcocorrido -- a popular type of Mexican song that glamorizes and celebrates outlaw drug traffickers. The narcocorrido is the subject of Shaul Schwarz's film, Narco Cultura. In an interview with Soundcheck host John Schaefer, Schwarz talks about the burgeoning genre, its history, and the Mexican drug war.  This segment originally aired on Nov. 19, 2013.   Interview Highlights Shaul Schwarz on the popularity of narcocorridos: They're very popular. Their popularity in the U.S. specifically has grown a lot in the past couple of years. The style of it has changed, because narcocorridos go back to bands that today almost seem classical. [For example], Los Tigres Del Norte, Chalino Sanchez, these kind of legends that really hinted more of corruption rather than what these corridos of today do which is really strong-hitting.  On narcocorridos' ties to Mexican pop culture: It's totally in their pop culture. For Americans, we've had this thing going on and we've heard about this drug war for 30 years and we kind of stick our head in the sand. But you have to understand, what we've seen in Mexico since 2006 has shaken the ground so violently and so crazy that everything's changed. It's in the media everyday, it's in the gossip, it's in crazy popular blogs like Blog Del Narco. Which are so much more than blogs now, they are able to influence actual politics, and who stays in power and who doesn't, that it's not surprising to me to see young teenage girls say, "I'd like to date a narco."  On riding-along in a narco convoy: We had this access that very few journalists had, and certainly not with a film camera in their hand, to the actual people. It was short, it was scary. We shot more than we could put out there. We saw a lot more. We [went] to a private party, we saw the meth labs, we [saw] the infamous graveyard of the big, celebrated traffickers with their million-dollar bulletproof mausoleum. It sounds so shocking now, but I think as you go through the progression of the film, by then you get how much this is ingrained in every day life. 

The band Ministry may have had humble beginnings, playing Clive Davis-penned new wave and synth pop in the 1980s. But by the '90s, Ministry was already well on the way to building its reputation as one of the most influential industrial metal bands of all time. Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen joins to talk about his new tell-all memoir, Ministry: The Lost Gospels According To Al Jourgensen, in which he details the band's progression -- as well as plenty of tales of substance abuse, band in-fighting, and near-death experiences. This segment originally aired on July 30, 2013. Interview Highlights Al Jourgensen, on being "clinically dead" three times: There was one theory put forth by a journalist recently. I have a lot of friends that have died prematurely, and a lot of friends that have died of natural causes. I've lost a lot of people over the years. This journalist basically recommended to me that God keeps me around because I amuse him. He keeps giving me cat lives. I'm on three, I've got six to go. I don't want to hit nine. Trust me, I don't want to be a cat. I'll settle at three and I'll leave it at that.  On working with co-author Jon Wiederhorn: I had a long and trusted friend that used to work at MTV, Jon Wiederhorn, who's interviewed me, I don't know, 15 times. I kind of trusted him with it. Basically my wife just said, "Look, every time we go to a party or social event you tell the same old drunken, drugged out stories. Why don't you just put it down in a book? Then hand out a pamphlet at the beginning of each social event and just sit in the corner and be quiet and drink your vodka." I took her advice. I got Jon to come out, we'd spend a week completely hammered with tape recorder rolling. Then he'd spend the next four weeks doing due diligenge -- getting witnesses to make sure it wasn't a figment of my imagination.  On putting together a record while doing a lot of drugs:  Not a lot of people were allowed razorblades while in my condition. All those early records: Psalm 69, The Land Of Rape And Honey, The Mind is A Terrible Thing To Taste, all those were done by me literally doing a boatload of drugs, with a razor-blade in my hand, and a two-track machine and just splicing up tape. I learned that from William Burroughs, Naked Lunch, you can't get more splice and dice than that. That was the '90s. The '60s and '90s were like the Wild West of the music industry. Just rampant abuse and enabling and everything else. Things are obviously on a much tighter budget now.   

Every so often, we turn our series That Was A Hit?!? on its head with frequent Soundcheck guest Chris Molanphy, calling it instead, “That Wasn't A Hit?!?” We look back at songs that -- although we may now think of them as hits -- actually weren't hits (at least in their original form) at all. If you've ever been to a wedding, you've almost certainly gotten down -- way down, down to the floor -- to the song "Shout!" The song is indeed a dance-floor classic, but it took a circuitous route to that honored status. The call-and-response tune is largely known because of its role in the 1978 comedy Animal House, as performed by a fictional group known as "Otis Day & The Knights." But the song's actual creators were The Isley Brothers, who are one of the most successful vocal groups of all time. So...is it really possible that the 1959 version of "Shout!" wasn't a hit? Pop chart writer Chris Molanphy joins John Schaefer to pull back the curtain on this ubiquitous tune.    

Amen Dunes began as the personal project of Damon McMahon in 2006, blending indie folk, 60's psychedelia and stripped-down, lo-fi rock. Despite the sharper production and help from pianist Jordi Wheeler and drummer Parker Kindred on Amen Dunes' newer recordings, McMahon’s layered vocals still remain at the dark heart of its lonesome tone. Following its self-released 2012 EP, Ethio Covers, Amen Dunes released its third LP, Love, on Sacred Bones Records in May 2014. Hear Amen Dunes perform songs from that album in the Soundcheck studio.

The official song of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil is called “We Are One,” by Cuban-American rapper Pitbull, featuring Jennifer Lopez and the Brazilian pop star Claudia Leitte. The response to it has been, well, pretty underwhelming. Soundcheck host John Schaefer and Mark Wheat of Minnesota Public Radio’s The Current take a listen to some of the more... interesting... anthem alternatives put forth by musicians from across the globe.  On the viral hit song "Zinedine Zidane," with music by Australian band Vaudeville Smash:  They had this massive viral smash with a video which is just mind-blowing. They have this guy, Les Murray, who's an Aussie radio host, and he's saying the names of great players all through. It becomes like poetry, which I really enjoyed.      On the Belgian pop anthem "Ta Fête," by the singer-songwriter Stromae:  They're kind of one of the outsiders. All the experts are saying everyone's gonna watch for Belgium. I'm psyched because the Belgian team shares the nickname with my favorite soccer team, Manchester United, of "The Red Devils." They got great bobble heads of [Marouane] Fellaini. They have the soccer guys acting in this video, and they all pull it off pretty geniusly.    On the American chant, written by Rancid drummer Branden Steineckert: As an Englishman, I stand responsible for that sound. That's exactly what I had to put up with for years and years when I was a kid. That kind of chant of song being made, usually sung by the team no less. I appreciate the enthusiasm that he's coming out in support of the USA team.    On the World Cup version of the Monty Python song "Always Look At The Bright Side Of Life":  It's a bad omen that the English team don't really have a song that they can take to the World Cup, except, of course, my old buddies Monty Python. Coincidentally, they are performing live for the first time in over 20 years during the World Cup. They've got sold out shows in London throughout July. Someone had to stand up and do something, stiff upper lip, and Monty Python stepped forward with a new verse of an old song -- but it's a good one. 

The host of this year's World Cup, Brazil, is a musical world unto itself. So over the next few weeks, Soundcheck brings you an occasional series looking at the huge musical landscape of Latin America's largest and most populous country as part of the Soundcheck Guide To Brazil. In the current American indie music landscape, there is no single formula for success. The same holds true in Brazil, the site of this year's World Cup tournament -- and, in particular, in the city of São Paulo. According to Buzzfeed audio editor and São Paulo­­ native Julia Furlan, the city is a musical “Petri dish” of indie rock, hip hop, and other sounds inherited from the city’s multi-national immigrant population. "I like a Petri dish as analogy, because it's incredibly experimental and alive and changing all the time," Furlan tells us on Soundcheck.  We talk with Furlan about five of her favorite Brazilian indie bands making music today, from both her native city and from its neighbor to the east, Rio de Janeiro. Brazilian Indie Music: A Very Brief Introduction Baleia, "Casa" (2013) This six-person band from Rio de Janeiro originally garnered attention for their jazz covers of Brazilian and American pop, such as Britney Spears' Toxic. Aurora, "Don't Let It Slip Away" (2014) Aurora’s self-titled record, recorded to reel-to-reel tape, was crowd-funded and inspired by a book about The Beatles. Featuring solo artist Barbara Eugeni (who will be playing as part of Brasil Summerfest in New York City this summer) and Fernando Cappi, guitarist for Brazilian post-rock group Hurtmold, this collaboration represents the “Petri dish” life of many musicians in São Paulo­­, where projects are constantly evolving into side projects with other band mates and friends. Boogarins, "Erre" (2013) Founding members Fernando Almeida and Benke Ferraz recorded their first album “As Plantas que Curam” (“the plants that heal”) while still in high school, living with their parents in Goiânia. Taking influence from the manic musings of São Paulo Tropicalia legends Os Mutantes and Pink Floyd member Syd Barrett, the Boogarins have created a tight and memorable four-piece live act, playing everywhere from Switzerland to Columbus, Ohio. Catch Boogarins at the Seaport Music Festival in August, here in NYC. Zulumbi, "Zulumbi" Based in São Paulo, Zulumbi includes Lúcio Maia from Nação Zumbi, Rodrigo Brandão and DJ PG -- all recognizable names in hip hop. The trio explicitly write lyrics that present positive, strong examples of national identity and combine—in their own terms—psychedelic music and hip hop with African beats.   5 a Seco, "feliz pra cachorro" 5 A Seco are a (mostly) acoustic five person band from São Paulo­­ that began releasing their own blend of Brazil’s main musical exports, bossa nova and samba, on social media. They found a larger fan base following their inaugural CD Ao Vivo No Auditorio Ibiraquera and successful DVD Live at Ibirapuera.

Loudon Wainwright III’s last album, Older Than My Old Man Now, was a rueful, often funny meditation on aging and death, much of it about his late father, LIFE Magazine columnist and editor Loudon Wainwright, Jr. Now the younger Wainwright is taking the subject a step further, with a new one-man show he describes as a “posthumous collaboration” with his dad. Loudon Wainwright III joins Soundcheck host John Schaefer to perform excerpts from the show, Surviving Twin, and listen to a bit of his forthcoming album, Haven't Got the Blues (Yet). "Oddly enough," says Wainwright, "I feel closer to my father now — and he's been dead for over 25 years — than I ever have."

Ben Watt has been a force in the British music scene since his early days of crafting folk singles in the 1980s. During the '80s and '90s, he made up half of the jazz-tinged electronic duo Everything But The Girl. By the mid-1990s, Watt took an increased interest in the electronic dance music world, and traveled extensively as a DJ and promoter. He helped establish multiple clubs in London before launching his own house and techno label in 2003. Now, Watt has released a new solo effort, 30 years after his first album. Hendra effectively marries the various jazz, rock, and folk influences of Watt's earlier work, though mostly eschewing the electronic inputs for atmospheric guitar accompaniments. The album features inspired guitar work from Bernard Butler, of seminal '90s British rock band Suede, and it also includes an appearance from Pink Floyd's David Gilmour. Watt's voice is strong and emotive on jazz-tinged numbers like "Spring" and the bluesy title track, but loses no weight when surrounded by Butler's sharp attack on "Nathaniel." Hendra introduces a new chapter in an already highly-accomplished career. Ben Watt and Bernard Butler visit the Soundcheck studio to play some of the new songs live.   

It was America's bicentennial, but 1976 didn't feel like a very auspicious year. The country was still reeling from Watergate and the recession, and the offerings from television and rock music — previously bastions of exciting innovation — were feeling stale. Yet huge changes were afoot, from politics to technology to music to comedy, that would remake the country for decades to come. In The Spirit of '76: From Politics to Technology, the Year America Went Rock & Roll, David Browne reminds us that 1976 was the year of the Apple computer, Saturday Night Live, the Ramones, and a presidential candidate who hung out with rock stars. He joins us to share the sounds of that year.