“Nothing Means Nothing Anymore”, The Alley Cats

This way: Nothing Means Nothing Anymore

The Alley Cats are a Los Angeles, California-based punk rock trio formed in 1977. The original line-up, featuring Randy Stodola (guitar and vocals), Dianne Chai (bass and vocals) and John McCarthy (drums), was a fixture of the early L.A. punk rock scene. Signed to Dangerhouse Records alongside other seminal California-based punk bands including the Bags, Black Randy and the Metro Squad, and X, they released their first single "Nothing Means Nothing Anymore" backed with "Give Me a Little Pain" on March 30, 1978. They are among the six bands featured on the 1979 compilation album Yes L.A. and appear in the 1982 film Urgh! A Music War.

The Alley Cats were regular performers at such Los Angeles venues as Club 88, Hong Kong Café, The Masque, and the Whisky a Go Go.[5] Music writer Chris Morris remarked that the band "made some of the toughest, most nihilistic music on the scene."

Reformed as "The Zarkons", they released two albums, Riders In The Long Black Parade (1985) and Between the Idea & the Reality...Falls the Shadow (1988), before disbanding in 1988. 

 

[Spotify] Nothing Means Nothing anymore 

“Here Comes the Night”, The Rivals

This way: Here Comes the Night

Here s a perfect song. The Rivals were an English punk rock band from Ramsgate, Kent, England. Mark Edwards and Paul Leinster were boyhood friends. Tired of playing air guitar to the likes of Diamond Dogs and "20th Century Boy", the teenaged Edwards bought a real guitar, a Les Paul copy, in 1976. After seeing the Sex Pistols on So It Goes, Leinster wanted to play, too, and he duly received a bass guitar for Christmas. The Rivals' first practice was on Boxing Day.

The two, like other early punks, saw shows by many of the seminal, though then mostly unhailed, giants of the nascent punk scene: the Stranglers, the Buzzcocks, the Slits, Gang of Four, and the Clash. "A skinny little Herbert" named Marc Hebden joined Edwards and Leinster on drums; they rehearsed at his house as there was more room. The Rivals played shows in and around Ramsgate, and gigged enough to be able to afford a studio session. The result, in 1979, was "Future Rights", and it was well received. Indeed, it was possible for one punk zine from Canterbury to report that, at this time, the Rivals had 'something of a hardcore following'. There was, however, no national recognition.

Personal differences led to the replacement of Marc Hebden on drums. Paul Daley (later to form Leftfield and top the British charts), a schoolfriend of Paul Leinster, joined. The band indicated that they had 'plans to release a golden oldie for [a] follow-up' to their first single. Another studio session, in 1980, produced "Here Comes the Night", partnered by "Both Sides" as the B-side. Edwards suggested that the Rivals cover the song after hearing it on David Bowie's Pin Ups. "Being stupid enough not to realise it wasn't even Bowie's song",[citation needed] that it was a Them song, the band produced a blistering, punked-up version of the bluesy hit. The record received airplay from Paul Burnett, Mike Read, and John Peel, the last of whom played the original and the Rivals' version back-to-back at the end of one of his programmes to show how superior he thought the Ramsgate lads' take was.

Unfortunately, the Rivals were unable to capitalise on the positive exposure. Oakwood Records only pressed a few thousand, and, though at least one major label was interested in taking over the distribution, Oakwood, for reasons that are still unknown, refused. 'Here Comes the Night' was the single of the week in Record Mirror, but, without national distribution, the chance for chart success had gone. Citing musical differences, Paul Daley left the band (with Edwards telling him, ironically, 'you'll never make it with that attitude'). Stan Gretsch (real name Ralph Littlejohn) proved to be the Rivals' final drummer. With Gretsch's death in a car accident (in a stolen car) in 1981, and Edwards' move to Naughty Thoughts, the Rivals dissolved.

With the resurgence of interest in first wave punk that began in the mid-1990s, it was probably inevitable that a Rivals' collection would be produced. A twenty-track compilation album called If Only came out in 2007.

[Spotify] Here Comes the Night 

“To Know Me”, Forth Wanderers

This way: To Know Me

Forth Wanderers is an American Indie rock band from Montclair, New Jersey, formed in 2013. The band consists of vocalist, Ava Trilling, guitarist and songwriter Ben Guterl, guitarist Duke Greene, bassist Noah Schifrin and drummer Zach Lorelli. Formed while the members attended Montclair High School, Forth Wanderers self-released their first EP, Mahogany, in 2013, followed by the mini-album Tough Love in 2014. Following moderate success in the DIY scene, including a Twitter shout-out from pop singer Lorde, the group released their second EP, Slop, in 2016.[4] The EP was co-released between Father/Daughter Records in the United States and Marathon Artists in the United Kingdom. In March 2017, the band played South by Southwest. 

In 2018, Forth Wanderers signed to indie label Sub Pop and on April 27, 2018, released their debut studio album, Forth Wanderers.The album was produced and recorded in Philadelphia over 5 days in the summer of 2017. eived a 7.7 rating from Pitchfork[9] and placed at #20 on Stereogum's "50 Best Albums of 2018."

In May 2019, Trilling wrote an article for Vice where she detailed her experience dealing with a panic disorder while being in a DIY band and further explained her reasoning for cancelling the tour. The band went on indefinite hiatus after the tour cancellation.

In May 2025, after an eight year hiatus, the group released a new single, "To Know You/To Love Me", through Sub Pop Records. The following day, they announced their new album, The Longer This Goes On, which was released in July 2025.

 

[Spotify] To Know Me 

“Chateau Blues”, Spoon

This way: Chateau Blues

New single from Spoon - "Chateau Blues" b/w "Guess I'm Fallin In Love" out on Matador this week. They have been in the studio working on a new LP and have let these two drop. A double A-side single, which means neither song sucks. Let her rip. 

 

[Spotify] Chateau Blues 

“Mystery Language”, Old Time Relijun

This way: Mystery Language

Old Time Relijun is a band founded in Olympia, Washington, United States and a longtime member of K Records. Current members consist of Germaine Baca on drums, Aaron Hartman on upright bass, Ben Hartman on saxophones, and Arrington de Dionyso on electric guitar, vocals and bass clarinet. The reviews of the band are radically mixed among critics. Pitchfork Media gave a very critical review of their Uterus and fire album, while another praised the band for their "brilliance". The band first began recording under a home-made audio cassette label, Pine Cone Alley, and were later adopted by indie label K Records. Old Time Relijun are currently based in Portland, Oregon. This recording from 2004. 

 

[Spotify] Mystery Language 

“Under the Water”, Nation of Language

This way: Under the Water

Nation of Language is one of my go to modern bands. This from their new EP. Nation of Language is an American indie pop band that formed in Brooklyn, New York, in 2016. The group consists of Ian Richard Devaney (lead vocals, guitar, synthesizer, percussion), Aidan Noell (synthesizer, backing vocals), and Alex MacKay (bass guitar). Michael Sue-Poi was the bassist prior to the band's 2022 tour.

Devaney and Sue-Poi were both members of the Static Jacks, but the band became inactive after the release of their second album. Devaney was inspired to start a new project after hearing "Electricity" by OMD in his father's car, a track he listened to in his childhood. What started out as Devaney "fooling around" on a keyboard later evolved into Nation of Language, with the addition of Devaney's partner Noell and former Static Jacks bandmate Sue-Poi. Current bassist Alex MacKay joined the band in 2022. 

 

[Spotify] Under the Water 

“Don't Doubt Me”, Sci-Fi Soldier

This way: Don't Doubt Me

I refuse to . > >  

 

[Spotify] Don't Doubt Me 

“Bombast”, The Fall

This way: Bombast

Here is one of the Greats Mark E Smith is a unique force of nature that is unparalleled in modern music. The Fall were an English post-punk band, formed in 1976 in Prestwich, Greater Manchester. They had many line-up changes, with vocalist and founder Mark E. Smith being the only constant member. The Fall's long-term musicians included drummers Paul Hanley, Simon Wolstencroft and Karl Burns; guitarists Craig Scanlon, Marc Riley, and Brix Smith; and bassist Steve Hanley, whose melodic, circular bass lines are widely credited with shaping the band's sound from early 1980s albums such as Hex Enduction Hour to the late 1990s. 

Originally emerging out of the late 1970s punk movement, the Fall's music underwent numerous stylistic changes often concurrently with changes in the group's lineup. Their music was generally characterised by an abrasive, repetitive guitar-driven sound, tense bass and drum rhythms, and Smith's caustic lyrics. Although, never achieving widespread mainstream success beyond minor hit singles in the late 1980s and early 1990s, they maintained a strong cult following throughout the years.

This Nation's Saving Grace is the eighth studio album by the English post-punk band the Fall, released in 1985 by Beggars Banquet. In contrast to the band's earlier albums, This Nation's... is noted for its pop sensibilities and guitar hooks, and John Leckie's accessible production. This Nation's... was recorded in London between June and July 1985, and is the second of the three consecutive Fall albums produced by Leckie.

 

[Spotify] Bombast 

“Flowers of Romance”, PiL

This way: Flowers of Romance

Public Image Ltd are an English post-punk band formed by lead vocalist John Lydon (previously, as Johnny Rotten, lead vocalist of the Sex Pistols), guitarist Keith Levene (a founding member of the Clash), bassist Jah Wobble, and drummer Jim Walker in May 1978. The group's line-up has changed frequently over the years; Lydon has been the sole constant member. 

Following Lydon's departure from the Sex Pistols in January 1978, he sought a more experimental "anti-rock" project and formed PiL in June of that year. PiL released their debut studio album First Issue (1978), creating an abrasive, bass-heavy sound that drew on dub, noise, progressive rock and disco. PiL's second studio album Metal Box (1979) pushed their sound further into the avant-garde, and is often regarded as one of the most important albums of the post-punk era.

The Flowers of Romance is the third studio album by English post-punk band Public Image Ltd, released on 10 April 1981 by Virgin Records.

The group's first studio album recorded following the departure of bassist Jah Wobble, The Flowers of Romance found PiL delving further into an experimental sound. It was recorded mainly by frontman John Lydon and guitarist Keith Levene, both of whom made heavy use of percussion, tape editing, and various effects. John Lydon – vocals, Stroh violin, saxophone, percussion: Keith Levene – electric guitar, bass guitar, piano, cello, synthesiser, percussion, drums Martin Atkins – drums.

By 1984, Levene, Wobble and Walker had departed and the group was effectively a solo vehicle for Lydon, who moved toward a more accessible sound with the commercially successful studio albums This Is What You Want... This Is What You Get (1984) and Album (1986). After a late 1990s hiatus, Lydon reformed the group in 2009 and has released several further albums, including What the World Needs Now... (2015).

 

[Spotify] Flowers of Romance 

“We can get Together”, Flowers

This way: We can get Together

Icehouse are an Australian rock band, formed in Sydney in 1977 as Flowers. Initially known in their homeland for their pub rock style, they later achieved mainstream success playing new wave and synth-pop music and attained Top 10 singles chart success locally and in both Europe and the U.S. The mainstay of both Flowers and Icehouse has been Iva Davies (singer-songwriter, record producer, guitar, bass, keyboards, oboe) supplying additional musicians as required. The name "Icehouse", adopted in 1981, comes from an old, cold flat Davies lived in and the strange building across the road populated by itinerant people. 

Davies and Icehouse extended the use of synthesisers particularly the Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 ("Love in Motion", 1981), Linn drum machine ("Hey Little Girl", 1982) and Fairlight CMI (Razorback trailer, 1983) in Australian popular music. Their best-known singles on the Australian charts include "Great Southern Land", "Hey Little Girl", "Crazy", "Electric Blue" and "My Obsession", their Top Three albums being Icehouse (1980, as Flowers), Primitive Man (1982) and Man of Colours (1987).

Icehouse were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame on 16 August 2006. ARIA described Icehouse as "one of the most successful Australian bands of the eighties and nineties... With an uncompromising approach to music production they created songs that ranged from pure pop escapism to edgy, lavish synthesised pieces..." Icehouse has produced eight top-ten albums and twenty top-forty singles in Australia, multiple top-ten hits in Europe and North America and album sales of over 28-times platinum in Australasia alone. 

 

[Spotify] We can get Together 

“Now It's On”, Grandaddy

This way: Now It's On

Grandaddy is an American indie rock band from Modesto, California. The group was formed in 1992, and featured Jason Lytle, Aaron Burtch, Jim Fairchild, Kevin Garcia and Tim Dryden, until Garcia's death in 2017 following a stroke.

After several self-released records and cassettes, the band signed to Will Records in the US and later the V2 Records subsidiary Big Cat Records in the UK, going on to sign an exclusive deal with V2. The bulk of the band's recorded output was the work of Lytle, who worked primarily in home studios.

Grandaddy released four studio albums before splitting in 2006, with band members going on to solo careers and other projects. Grandaddy reformed in 2012, and after several successful tours, released its fifth studio album, Last Place, in March 2017. Following Garcia's sudden death, the band cancelled its touring plans for the release and re-entered an extended hiatus.  

In 2024, Lytle revived the Grandaddy name to release the project's sixth studio album, Blu Wav, ahead of a full 2025 reunion tour in celebration of the 25th anniversary of The Sophtware Slump.

 

[Spotify] Now It's On 

Dark bird is home”, Tallest Man on Earth

This way: Dark bird is home

Kristian Matsson (born 30 April 1983) is a Swedish singer-songwriter who performs under the stage name The Tallest Man on Earth. Matsson grew up in Leksand, and began his solo career in 2006, having previously been the lead singer of the indie band Montezumas. His music has often drawn comparisons to the music of Bob Dylan (as is required if you play an acoustic guitar).

Since 2006, Matsson has released seven full-length albums and four EPs. He records and produces these in his home, and usually records his voice and guitar together on one track. He is known for his charismatic stage presence. He was previously married to Amanda Bergman, also known by the stage name Idiot Wind. Together, they wrote the music for the Swedish drama film Once a Year. 

[Spotify] Dark bird is home 

[Charming Live] Dark bird is home 

“Shadowplay”, Joy Division

This way: Shadowplay

Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. 

Sumner and Hook formed the band after attending a June 1976 Sex Pistols concert. While Joy Division's first recordings were heavily influenced by early punk rock, they soon developed a sparse sound and style that made them one of the pioneering groups of the post-punk genre. Their self-released 1978 debut EP An Ideal for Living drew the attention of the Manchester television personality Tony Wilson, who signed them to his independent label Factory Records. Their debut album Unknown Pleasures, recorded with producer Martin Hannett, was released in 1979.

Curtis struggled with personal problems, including a failing marriage, depression, and epilepsy. As the band's popularity grew, Curtis's health condition made it increasingly difficult for him to perform; he occasionally experienced seizures on stage. He died by suicide on the eve of what would have been the band's first North American tour in May 1980, aged 23. Joy Division's second and final album, Closer, was released two months later.

Between July and October 1980, the remaining members, with the addition of keyboardist and guitarist Gillian Gilbert, regrouped under the name New Order. They were successful throughout the next decade, blending post-punk with electronic and dance music influences.

[Spotify] Shadowplay 

[Charming Live] Shadowplay 

“Garbage Dream House”, No Joy

This way: Garbage Dream House

No Joy are a Canadian shoegaze band from Montreal formed in late 2009 by Jasamine White-Gluz and former member Laura Lloyd.

No Joy's first show was with Grant Hart of Hüsker Dü on December 15, 2009. The band continued to play locally, including a show with then-up-and-coming indie band Best Coast. The latter's lead singer, Bethany Cosentino, took a liking to the band and tweeted, "Dude, No Joy is the best band ever. Two hot blonde girls just shredding away. Sooooo amazing". 

The band soon signed to Mexican Summer and released their first 7-inch single, "No Summer" b/w "No Joy". Its release enabled No Joy to book their own national U.S. tour, bringing along La Sera (a Vivian Girls side project) for a three-week stint of mostly West Coast shows. Around this time, London-based label Sexbeat reissued the debut 7-inch for a UK/European release. No Joy toured later that fall with Mexican Summer labelmates Dungen.

The 7-inch sold out quickly; six months later, on November 16, 2010, No Joy released their debut LP, Ghost Blonde, to wide critical acclaim. Pitchfork reviewed the album, saying that "The guitars, loud enough to obliterate everything within 50 yards, create a balmy atmosphere where lacerating riffs and blurry strumming shares face time with ear-piercing feedback".

 

[Spotify] Garbage Dream House 

“Crush Story”, Too Much Joy

This way: Crush Story

Too Much Joy is an American alternative rock music group, that formed in the early 1980s in Scarsdale, New York.

The band, originally called the Rave, took the name Too Much Joy after a phrase that Quirk had seen after his first mushroom trip.

After the success of their third album Cereal Killers, TMJ released several other studio albums, but none achieved the same popular success. In 1997, TMJ announced a hiatus, saying that the commercialism of the music business had taken the "joy" out of performing. Too Much Joy emptied its vaults in 1999 and 2001 to produce the album Gods and Sods, composed of studio outtakes and demos from the period between Mutiny and ...Finally and the live album Live at Least. The later incarnation of the band briefly reunited in the early 2000s to record the one-off holiday single "Ruby Left a Present Underneath the Christmas Tree." Its members have also formed the sometimes-overlapping subprojects the ITS, Surface Wound and Wonderlick. In 2021, the band self-released the album, "Mistakes Were Made." 

Penn and Teller are fans of the band. Teller directed the video for "Donna Everywhere,"and Penn Jillette would often jam with the band in studio.

In 1990, the members of Too Much Joy were taken aback to learn that hip-hop group 2 Live Crew had been arrested on obscenity charges in Florida, and that a record store owner had been arrested for selling 2 Live Crew's music. In response, the band planned a protest concert in which several acts would cover a 2 Live Crew song in Miami. Failing to drum up much commitment among other bands, Too Much Joy played a number of selections from 2 Live Crew's As Nasty As They Wanna Be album and were arrested, spending a night in jail.

Too Much Joy went on trial for obscenity in Fort Lauderdale in January 1991. The jury took just minutes to acquit the band members. Following the abrupt acquittal, the Broward County prosecutors dropped obscenity charges in the trial of the Hollywood, Florida, nightclub owner of the venue where 2 Live Crew and Too Much Joy had been arrested and suggested that no further arrests of musicians would be made.

[Spotify] Crush Story 

“Picking Roses”, John Sharkey III

This way (live version): Picking Roses

John Sharkey III of Canberra, Australia by way of Philadelphia. He is the main person of Dark Blue, on of my favorite bands. This LP from 2021.

 

[Spotify] Picking Roses 

“Let Me Tell You a New Story”, Dark Blue

This way: Let Me Tell You a New Story

‘Victory Is Rated’ is the 3rd studio album from Philadelphia’s Dark Blue, following 2014’s ‘Pure Reality’ and 2017’s widely acclaimed ‘Start Of The World’. The ensemble —helmed by Clockcleaner / Puerto Rico Flowers founder John Sharkey III, have walked a thin line between defiance and fatalism, often trading in the anthemic with equal doses of the sardonic and the melancholy. That all of it is increasing informed & influenced by the real goddamned world probably helps. 

There’s some cruel irony in Sharkey’s (second) self-imposed exile from the USA occurring right after completing the recording of ‘Victory Is Rated’ with conspirators Andy Nelson (Ceremony), Michael Sneeringer (Strands Of Oak, Rosali) and B. David Walsh given that this is by far, Dark Blue’s most fully realized statement — in some alternative universe where this band toured consistently, they’d be way too big for this label (frankly, they already are), but really, what has America done to actually deserve their brutal honesty?

Sharkey says the album’s main themes are class war and mortality. I’m not entirely sure there are other themes (not simply on ‘Victory Is Rated’, either) , but we’re very fortunate he’s so skilled at writing about those two. He also likens the record to “if Blitz went Brit pop” and while that ticks off a couple of crucial boxes for me, let’s get something rather thorny out of the way. 

 

[Spotify] Let Me Tell You a New Story 

“Ripoff”, T .Rex

This way: Ripoff

T. Rex (originally Tyrannosaurus Rex) were an English rock band formed in London in 1967 by singer-songwriter and guitarist Marc Bolan, who was their leader, frontman and only consistent member. Though initially associated with the psychedelic folk genre, Bolan began to change the band's style towards electric rock in 1969, and shortened their name to T. Rex the following year. This development culminated in 1970 with their first significant hit single "Ride a White Swan", and the group soon became pioneers of the glam rock movement. 

From 1970 to 1973, T. Rex were extremely popular in the UK, with a run of eleven top ten singles, four of which reached number one: "Hot Love", "Get It On", "Telegram Sam" and "Metal Guru". The band's 1971 album Electric Warrior received critical acclaim, reached number 1 in the UK and became a landmark album in glam rock. The 1972 follow-up, The Slider, entered the top 20 in the US. Bolstering their style with soul music, funk and gospel, the band released Tanx in 1973 which reached the top 5 in several countries. From 1974, T. Rex's appeal began to wane, though the band continued releasing albums. Their subsequent releases blended rock with R&B and occasionally even disco.

In 1977, Bolan died in a car crash several months after the release of the group's final studio album Dandy in the Underworld, and the group disbanded. T. Rex have continued to influence a variety of subsequent artists. The band were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020.

 

[Spotify] Ripoff 

“Hardly Getting Over It”, Hüsker Dü

This way: Hardly Getting Over It

Does it get any better than this? Eventuallay I will post most of their catalogue. Hüsker Dü was an American punk rock band formed in Saint Paul, Minnesota in 1979. The band's continuous members were guitarist/vocalist Bob Mould, bassist Greg Norton, and drummer/vocalist Grant Hart. They first gained notability as a hardcore punk band, and later crossed over into alternative rock. Mould and Hart were the band's principal songwriters, with Hart's higher-pitched vocals and Mould's baritone taking the lead in alternating songs. 

The band issued their debut studio album Everything Falls Apart on Reflex Records in 1983 and subsequently released three LPs and an EP on the independent label SST Records, including the critically acclaimed Zen Arcade in 1984. Hüsker Dü signed to major label Warner Bros. Records in 1986 to release their final two studio albums. They disbanded in 1988. Mould later released two solo albums before forming Sugar in the early 1990s, while Hart released a solo album on SST and later formed Nova Mob.

After their respective bands broke up in the mid-1990s, Mould and Hart continued doing solo work, the latter until his death in 2017. Norton worked as a restaurateur and returned to the recording industry in 2006.

 

[Spotify] Hardly Getting Over It 

[Cool Live] Hardly Getting Over It 

“I'm So Tired”, Fugazi

This way: I'm So Tired

Fugazi is an American post-hardcore band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1986. The band consists of guitarists and vocalists Ian MacKaye and Guy Picciotto, bassist Joe Lally, and drummer Brendan Canty. They were noted for their style-transcending music, DIY ethical stance, manner of business practice, and contempt for the music industry.

Fugazi performed numerous worldwide tours and produced six studio albums, a film, and a comprehensive live series, gaining the band critical acclaim and success around the world. Highly influential on punk and alternative music, the band has been on an indefinite hiatus since 2003. Although the band currently has no plans to reunite, all four members remain on good terms and have regularly played music together in private since going on hiatus. 

This from Instrument Soundtrack, 1999.

 

[Spotify] I'm So Tired 

“Ruin”, The Dangerous Method with Lilly Haitt

This way: Ruin

The Dangerous Method was formed in 2014, when Nashville-born singer and songwriter Joseph Jared traded his acoustic guitar for a Telecaster and a Marshall amp, and started playing with his wife Emily Jared (bass) and their friend Chris Ryan (drums). Taking their name from the film by David Cronenberg (which explores the origins of psychotherapy), the trio created a sound which fused the confessional melodicism of singer-songwriter music from the ‘70s with the quirky intensity of alternative and punk bands from the ‘90s, resulting in a potent blend of raw, Americana-tinged power-pop. The band played their first shows in Nashville the following year, and began crafting material for their debut record. Building from Joseph’s ambitious lyrical vision, the project developed into a concept album entitled “Cinema Junkie”, featuring 10 songs exploring movies, love, obsession and addiction. Rrangement, Aunt Liss became a permanent member of the band. 

 

[Spotify] Ruin 

“Pop in G”, Heatmiser

This way: Pop in G

Third Man’s new reissue commemorates the Portland band’s 1996 album as more than just a breakthrough moment for its young prodigy, Elliott Smith.

Heatmiser was an American rock band, formed in Portland, Oregon, in October 1991. Consisting of Elliott Smith (guitar and vocals), Neil Gust (guitar and vocals), Brandt Peterson (bass; later replaced by Sam Coomes, frontman of Quasi) and Tony Lash (drums), they were known for their well-crafted lyrics and songs often featuring the juxtaposition of melancholic and cheery words and melodies. Elliott Smith's pop-oriented songs provided a contrast to Neil Gust's darker compositions, yet both songwriters explored themes such as anger, alienation, loneliness and despair.

Following their graduation from Hampshire College in 1991, Gust and Smith returned to Portland, Oregon. In Portland, Gust and Smith formed Heatmiser with Smith's high school friend Tony Lash, who'd been working at a recording studio and playing drums in local band Nero's Rome. Early versions of Heatmiser included Jason Hornick. In high school, Lash and Smith played together in the school band—Lash played flute, Smith played clarinet—and Lash played drums in Smith's band Stranger Than Fiction. Lash and Smith had bonded over a mutual love of Rush, and outside of their high school band class, they began to work out "insanely complicated songs" together, recording after school with Eric Hedford, future Dandy Warhols drummer. Tony Lash recalled about recording with Hedford: "We recorded all the backing band tracks for [Stranger Than Fiction's] Still Waters More or Less at Eric Hedford's house in 1985–86. He had a basement with drums, mics, a piano, and a mixer. He helped us set up, but he didn't play on any of it."

 

[Spotify] Pop in G 

“Academy Fight Song”, Mission of Burma

This way: Academy Fight Song

"Academy Fight Song" is a song written by Clint Conley and originally recorded by Mission of Burma. It is also known for having been performed and recorded by R.E.M.

The song has been described as one of Mission of Burma's "more melodic, shout-along tunes". Conley has declined to elaborate on the meaning of the lyrics, and according to author Michael Azerrad, was "typically evasive when asked if the song was angry. 'Yeah, pretty angry,' Conley said. 'It's just a big conceit. A metaphor. ... I find the whole notion of talking about lyrics very embarrassing.'

"Academy Fight Song" was released as a single in June 1980 by Ace of Hearts Records with "Max Ernst" as the B-side. "Academy Fight Song" received significant airplay on Boston's WBCN (FM) and sold out its initial pressing of 7,500 copies within weeks.

Miracle Legion recorded "Academy Fight Song" for their 1987 album Surprise Surprise Surprise; the band often used it as an encore at their live performances. 

 

[Spotify] Academy Fight Song 

[R.E.M.] Academy Fight Song 

[Miracle Legion] Academy Fight Song 

[Left field] Academy Fight Song 

“Tree”, David Byrne — RIP Robert Wilson

This way: Tree

Robert Wilson (October 4, 1941 – July 31, 2025) was an American experimental theater stage director and playwright who was described by The New York Times as "[America]'s – or even the world's – foremost vanguard 'theater artist.'" He also worked as a choreographer, performer, painter, sculptor, video artist, and sound and lighting designer. 

Wilson is best known for his collaboration with Philip Glass and Lucinda Childs on Einstein on the Beach, and his frequent collaborations with Tom Waits. In 1991, Wilson established The Watermill Center, "a laboratory for performance" on the East End of Long Island, New York, regularly working with opera and theater companies, as well as cultural festivals. Wilson "has developed as an avant-garde artist specifically in Europe amongst its modern quests, in its most significant cultural centers, galleries, museums, opera houses and theaters, and festivals".

Robert Wilson's "the CIVIL warS: a tree is best measured when it is down": This ambitious, multi-part opera was conceived by Robert Wilson for the 1984 Olympic Arts Festival in Los Angeles. It involved an international group of artists, but logistical and funding issues prevented a full premiere of the 12-hour work. David Byrne composed the music for a section of the opera known as the "Knee Plays". These shorter, relatively lighter interludes were designed to connect the longer, more complex scenes of the larger work. The Knee Plays feature a recurring motif of a tree, which appears in the first and last Knee Play, and undergoes transformations throughout the segments (being cut down, used for a boat, transforming into a book, and growing back again).

 

[Spotify] Tree 

“Poachers”, Tyler Childers

This way: Poachers

Timothy Tyler Childers is a Grammy-nominated Kentucky-born singer and songwriter who blends bluegrass, folk, and country music. His 2017 album Purgatory reached number one on the Top Country Albums chart. Childers is known for his unique style, which some describe as "left-of-center" and "cosmic country". He's been praised for his authenticity and refusal to conform to stereotypes of Southern country music artists. Timothy Tyler Childers is an American country singer and songwriter. His music has been described as a mix of neotraditional country, bluegrass, folk, and honky-tonk. His breakthrough studio album, Purgatory (2017), was named one of the best albums of the year by several publications, and earned Childers an Americana Music Award. He subsequently received Grammy Award nominations for his albums Long Violent History (2020) and Rustin' in the Rain (2023) and the singles "All Your'n" (2019) and "In Your Love" (2023), the latter of which was his first top 10 hit on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart.  

 

[Spotify] Poachers 

“Beth's Farm”, Jerskin Fendrix

This way: Beth's Farm

Joscelin Dent-Pooley (born c. 1995), professionally known as Jerskin Fendrix, is an English composer and musician. The composer of the score for the 2023 film Poor Things, his debut solo album, Winterreise, was released in 2020.

Fendrix was raised near Market Drayton in the West Midlands. Growing up, he listened to a wide variety of music and learned to play violin and piano. He attended Adams' Grammar School in Newport and graduated from Cambridge University with a degree in classical music. 

In 2018, Fendrix wrote the "appropriately abrasive" score for a performance of the play Ubu Roi by Alfred Jarry at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

In December 2018, he collaborated with Black Midi on the song "Ice Cream", which appeared on a charity Christmas compilation, created by Brixton musicians. He released his debut, the critically acclaimed experimental pop album Winterreise, in 2020.

Director Yorgos Lanthimos commissioned Fendrix to write the score for his film Poor Things after hearing Winterreise. It was the first film score Fendrix composed. Among other awards, the score was nominated for Best Original Score at the 96th Academy Awards. Fendrix again collaborated with Lanthimos in composing his 2024 film Kinds of Kindness and his upcoming film Bugonia. Fendrix appeared in both Poor Things and Kinds of Kindness in cameo appearances.

In 2025, Fendrix announced his upcoming second studio album Once Upon a Time in Shropshire, marking his return to original music composition following his success in film scoring.

 

[Spotify] Beth's Farm