Stereo Embers: The Podcast

"Everything On Memory" The Fresno-born, Modesto-raised Jim Fairchild got his start on guitar as a teenager and in the mid-nineties became the lead guitar player for the indie rock outfit Grandaddy. That would be enough to make a resume’ shimmer, but Fairchild was just getting started. He was the touring guitar player for Giant Sand, he worked with everyone from Hawaii to Dappled Cities and he took over for Johnny Marr in Modest Mouse in 2009 and played lead guitar for them until 2021. Fairchild fronted the band All Smiles, he was selected to lead a project at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in 2010 and started a new project called Grace Meridian in 2020. But that’s not all—Fairchild currently is the Director of A&R for Dangerbird Records and he’s scoring films like the documentary Common Ground and Bee The Change, which is narrated by Ellie Goulding. And we haven’t even talked about Small Isles yet. Their new EP Everything On Memory has been described by Fairchild as, "written as the imagined score to

"Silent Highway" Formed out of the ashes of the post-punk outfit Finger Printz, the Silencers' core was comprised of two members of that band--guitarist Cha Burns and singer Jimme O'Neill. The Silencers quickly signed to RCA and hit the ground running, putting out three brilliant albums in under five years. They toured with Squeeze, The Pretenders, The Alarm and at one point, when opening for Simple Minds at Wembley, they played in front of 80,000 people. And they crushed it. O'Neill is one of those frontmen you can't take your eyes off--he's a dynamic performer who's loaded with energy and charisma, making every second of a Silencers gig a thrilling experience. The Silencers have put out nearly fifteen albums, including A Letter From St. Paul, A Blues For Buddah, A Night Of Electric Silence and their latest effort Silent Highway, which marks their first album in fifteen years. And they haven't lost a step--O'Neill remains one of the most thoughtful songwriters around and Silent Highway is a thrilling return

"Follow The Leader" So, Rain Phoenix first was on my radar back in 1991 when she and her brother River had a band called Aleka's Attic. They had a marvelous song called Across The Way on this compilation Tame Yourself, which also featured The Pretenders, Michael Stipe, the Indigo Girls and K.D. Lang. The Texas-born Phoenix acted in TV shows like Family Ties and Amazing Stories and in movies like Even Cowgirls Get The Blues and Hitch. She fronted Papercranes, who put out three really great albums and she was in the Galactic Country band Venus and the Moon with Chris Stills. She also put out a really stunning solo album called River, which was named after her late brother, in 2019. A native of Southern California, Kirk Hellie is like a music archeologist because he knows how to dig sounds out of the deepest of grounds. A lover and studier of Avant Garde music, was in bands like Hellie Siblings, Death Loop Detonator and Pink Noise Test. Hellie played with Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols, and toured with The Cram

"Breathwork" The Hawaii-born, New York raised and London Royal Academy of Music-educated Lara Somogyi is one of the most gifted harpists on the planet. A traditionalist and a modernist, Somogyi is an inventive instrumentalist who isn't afraid of exploring new creative possibilities for her instrument. As a composer, Somogyi has experimented with blending electronica and pedal effects and the results have yielded the boldest and most dynamic sonic leaps in the history of the harp. She has single-handedly recontextualized an instrument whose last great leap forward was probably during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, when its popularity led it to evolve into different iterations. Somogyi has emerged in recent years as the most in-demand session harpist around--she's not only recorded for movies like The Lion King and Coming To America 2 and television shows like Bridgerton and Little Fires Everywhere, she's played with John Legend, Kelly Clarkson, Ariana Grande, Josh Groban and Rufus Wainwright. Awarded as

"Thanksgiving Day Special" There's a lot of things I miss about being a kid--somebody else driving, somebody else making dinner, not having to pay bills, not having to shave or get gas or pay rent--I was just going mention one or two things, but apparently I'm not pleased about being an adult. The reason why I brought this up is because the one thing I really miss about being a kid are the holiday TV specials that mark time. From The Grinch That Stole Christmas to It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, those specials helped keep me grounded as a kid. They made the calendar kind of stop and forced me to realize where I was and who I was with.They felt like something tangible. I wish I could do something like that for you here on the podcast and the closest I can come is my chat with Justin of 98 degrees. To me, it feels Thanksgiving-ish. At first it's sort of a talking points interview, but then something happens and it just kind of takes off and it takes off in a way that has to do with actually caring about

"When We Rise" Over the course of her career, the New York born Jess Klein has put out nearly fifteen perfect albums. From her Rykodisc debut Draw Them Near in 2000 to other winning entries like 2006's City Garden and 2014's Learning Faith, Klein has demonstrated she's a singer/songwriter of tremendous strength and heart. Blessed with a natural penchant to write hook-filled songs with burning emotional center and big scruffy hearts, her new album When We Rise is another winning entry in her brilliant discography. Redolent with hope, resolve and stability in a world that doesn't stop shaking, When We Rise is a rousing call to arms--from the defiant "You're Never Gonna Break Me" to the stirring "Safe Harbor," this album is a blast of sonic comfort that's fiery, affecting and reviving. www.jessklein.com www.bombshellradio.com www.stereoembersmagazine.com www.embersarts.com www.alexgreenbooks.com Stereo Embers Twitter: @emberseditor IG: @emberspodcast Email: editor@stereoembersmagazine.com

"Continuance" Don't feel bad if Joey Alexander's resume' makes you feel inferior about your childhood achievements. We all feel that way. The Indonesian born pianist taught himself to play at age 6 and was flawlessly covering Thelonious Monk before he was in 1st grade. Because of the paucity of jazz opportunities at home, Alexander sat in with the top jazz players in Bali and Jakarta. At 8 he played for Herbie Hancock, at 9 he won the Grand Prix at the 2013 Master Jam Fest in Odessa and by 10 his family had moved to New York City so Alexander could have more playing opportunities. After catching the attention of Wynton Marsalis, Alexander made his U.S. debut at Marsalis' annual gala playing Monk's Round Midnight and the next day, nothing was the same. Hailed as a genius by the New York Times and Downbeat Magazine, from there Alexander's career took off. He's played for ex Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, snagged a Grammy nomination, put out six perfect albums, including his new one Continuance, play

"Ozark Symphony" Born in Memphis into a musical family, Kelly Hunt grew up listening to classical, folk and Delta Blues. She sang in the choir and played the piano, but it was the five-string banjo that stole her heart. Hunt was both a traditionalist and a modernist, blending old-time picking with her own brand of improvisation. After graduating from college she explored farming, the visual arts and French breadmaking and then she settled in Kansas City and got to work on the songs that would make up her debut album Even The Sparrow. Even The Sparrow is a stunner of a debut, garnering a nomination for the International Folk Music Award. Her sophomore effort Ozark Symphony ups the ante' and makes the case that Hunt might very well be one of the most spellbinding forces in folk music. Summoning philosophy, poetry and the legacies and stories of the American South, Ozark Symphony brings to mind Joni Mitchell, Walt Whitman and Rhiannan Giddens. From the soaring glory of Top Of The World to the gentle percussion

"Get Me To A Nunnery" The Hawaii-born, Wisconsin-raised Heather Lynne Horton has a lot of stories to tell and because she's a born storyteller, she does so with the perfect blend of humor, hi-jinx and self-deprecation. We'll let her tell you those stories, but in the meantime, we'll offer this quick version of who she is. After college she hit Minneapolis in search of the mythical Prince and then landed in Chicago where she met her real life prince, singer/songwriter Michael McDermott. She plays fiddle and sings backup in McDermott's band and the two also had the fabulous side project The Westies. Her first solo album Postcard Saturdays came out in 2012, which was followed by Don't Mess With Mrs. Murphy in 2018. Although it took nearly six years for the follow-up Get Me To A Nunnery to hit shelves, it was well worth the wait. A moving and stirring song cycle that brings to mind Beth Orton, Sinead Lohan and 1,000 Kisses-era Patty Griffin, Get Me To The Nunnery is redolent with strength, vulnerability, humor a

"Heart Like Thunder" The Colorado-born, Brooklyn-based Hallie Spoor is a true artist. And she's a true athlete. And she knows that to be either one of those things, you've got to put in the reps. Trust me when I tell you, Spoor has put in the reps.The trained opera singer and former collegiate soccer player is well aware of the hard work that's needed to hit a note that carries to the clouds or kick a soccer ball that soars right alongside it. Hallie Spoor's voice is wondrous, elegant and filled with limitless beauty. Her new long player and her fourth overall, is Heart Like Thunder and it's nothing short of spellbinding. Bringing to mind everyone from to Nina Simone to Beth Orton, Spoor's vocal command is a cascading blend of power and grace and her compositions are moving blends of indie folk and rolling jazz.  www.halliespoormusic.com www.bombshellradio.com www.embersarts.com www.stereoembersmagazine.com www.alexgreenbooks.com Twitter: @emberseditor IG: @emberspodcast Email: editor@stereoembersmag

"Summer of No Light" The Philadelphia-raised Kip Berman had a musical life before he was the Natvral and that life could be found in his band The Pains of Being Pure At Heart. The beloved New York outfit was around for a little over a decade, calling it a day in 2019 after four perfect albums of indie pop that brought to mind everyone from Aztec Camera to Belle and Sebastian. Berman's 2021 debut as The Natural was the scorching beauty of an album called Tethers, which, for those of you keeping score, was my favorite album of the year. His sophomore album Summer Of No Light is a straight-up killer. It's got all the howl of Basement Tapes era-Dylan and the raw pop smarts of early Dream Syndicate, and it's one of those records that grabs you from the beginning, leaving you mesmerized by its raw and tender power. I love this album. It's somehow feral and polished and it's filled with the most achingly lovely hooks you'll hear all year. www.thenatvral.bandcamp.com www.bombshellradio.com www.stereoembersmagazin

"Messages To God" The New Zealand-born Sarah Mary Chadwick fronted the deliciously feral post-Grunge outfit Batrider in the early 2000s. She made her first solo foray with the riveting 2012 album Eating For Two and from there she’s moved from strength to strength with records like Please Daddy and Me And Ennui are Friends, Baby. Her new one Messages To God is nothing short of stunning. An aching blend of Jonathan Richman, Mark E. Smith of The Fall and Rid Of Me-era PJ Harvey, Chadwick has never sounded better. The album is spare and savagely beautiful featuring brilliant songs like Shitty Town and I Felt Things In New Zealand. Chadwick’s raw emotional precision is singular and stunning and she’s one of our favorite musicians ever. IG: @sarahmarychadwick https://sarahmarychadwick.bandcamp.com/music www.killrockstars.com IG: @killrockstarsofficial www.bombshellradio.com www.embersarts.com www.stereoembersmagazinee.com Twitter: @emberseditor IG: @emberspodcast Email: editor@stereoembersmagazine.com

"Entelechy" The work of the Ohio-born Sandy Bell is pure magic. I guess by now, you're getting the feeling I'm a big admirer of what she does. But the work that we're talking about which is so effortless and beautiful, was hard-fought and the journey to get where we are today with Sandy's songs, was fraught with some pretty heavy stuff. We'll let her tell you all about that, but along the way, she went West as many do, and along the way found herself writing songs with Jeff Buckley, which many....don't. She also fronted a band that was on the cusp of some potential '90s glory before she ghosted them, and as she dug her heels into L.A. life, she was also battling deeply serious addiction issues and for a while slipped way off the grid and was living off Hollywood Blvd and grappling with demons that were in a full-time flex of trying to destroy her. But they didn't. Moving to New York with her partner and producer Jeff Lipstein, Bell was revived, rejuvenated and ready to be the artist she was meant to. Her fir

"Face To Face" Although she got her start behind the drum kit playing for her dad's band, the Detroit-born Suzi Quatro taught herself how to play bass so she could be in her sister's band, The Pleasure Seekers. She moved to England at 21 and released a string of rather massive albums like her 1973 self-titled debut and the searing Your Mamma Won't Like Me in 1975. A pioneering presence in the pop world, Quatro influenced everyone from Joan Jett to Chrissie Hynde to the Talking Heads' Tina Weymouth. A global superstar with over 50 million albums sold, Quatro's CV is a wealth of riches. Here are just a few of her highlights: She toured with Slade and Thin Lizzy, headlined the 'Girls Night Out' at the Isle of Wight Festival, won a handful of Bravo Otto awards, appeared on Happy Days as rocker Leather Tuscadero, was awarded the Icon Award by the Women's International Music Network, was inducted to the Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Hall of Fame, received an honorary doctorate in music from Anglia Ruskin Universi

"The King Of Good Intentions III" John Andrew Fredrick is the author of several books, including one on the early films of Wes Anderson, but he also happens to be the braintrust of the beloved band the black watch, whose extensive body of work is an endless orchard of sonic joy. If you know their work, you know the deal. If you don't, jump in and grab anything they've ever done and work your way forwards and backwards through their nearly 30 album discography--you will not be disappointed. As for John's The King of Good Intentions trilogy, in Part 3, which is the final volume of the series,Fredrick continues to chronicles the misadventures of the '90s indie rock outfit The Weird Sisters and there's a great deal to chronicle: love, love triangles, misunderstandings, madcap episodes and utter rock and roll chaos. The Virginia-born, but Southern California dwelling Fredrick writes with undeniable narrative velocity, comedic charm and a big, big heart. His sentences are fresh and vibrant and it's hard to think o

"Leisureland" Although he was born Eric Goulden in East Sussex, my guest today on the program is perhaps best known in the music industry as Wreckless Eric. Under that moniker he first garnered attention with his song The Whole Wide World, a shambolic blast of joyful punk that landed him a deal with Stiff Records. At the time, Stiff was just getting going and they had Ian Dury Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe on their roster. Not too shabby. The art school graduate was more than just one killer song--since the '70s he's cranked out almost ten perfect solo albums of scruffy pop magic that demonstrate Wreckless Eric is a singular and very special talent. His new album Leisureland is the perfect album to play while you're saying goodbye to summer. Wistful, nostalgic and equal parts ferocious and elegant, Leisureland is filled with ragtag pop, garage stomp, and percussive muscle augmented by beats and loops. And it's fabulous. Over the years he's played with The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, The Damned, John Wesley Hardi

"The Long Goodbye" With close to ten fabulous albums under their musical belts, Candlebox have had quite a career. The Seattle outfit has sold millions of records, played Letterman and Woodstock, toured the world with the likes of everyone from Rush, Metallica, Foo Fighters and Our Lady Peace, and over the years counted among their personnel folks from bands like Pearl Jam, Dig and Ugly Kid Joe. And not only that, but their new album The Long Goodbye, might very well be their best yet. A smoldering blast of catchy hard rock and grungy bliss, The Long Goodbye is an affecting song cycle that burns with smoldering intensity on songs like the defiant Punks and bids farewell with the moving Hourglass, which is one of the best album closers in recent memory. So if Candlebox has never sounded better, why are they calling it a day on their career? Well, Kevin will explain and his explanation is hard to argue with. As a fan, it's a tough pill to swallow and in the back of your head you remember that they had breaks b

"Paradise Blue" The Seattle-based singer/songwriter Steven Cristol has had quite a career. Well, to be more specific, he's had several careers, but today we're going to talk about the musical one. We'll let him tell you his story but a little background is important before we get to the chat. The Georgia-born Cristol's adventure with music and the music industry found him with incredible highs, like getting a phone call from Harry Belafonte about recording one of his songs to some tough lows that he'll explain, but here's the thing about those lows--what made them so hard was that they came disguised as highs. In other words, it looked like smooth sailing, but then the ship capsized. The emotional whiplash an artist gets was detailed perfectly in our chat with actor Michael Charles Roman a few months back when he talked about booking a sitcom only to have his and everyone else's part recast. Well, this is the music side of that story and it's series of suckerpunches. But this chat is about more than that--it

"My Good Friends" The Ohio-born David Wilcox is one of our great treasures. Over the course of his career the singer/songwriter has put out nearly 25 perfect albums, including 1989's How Did You Find Me Here, 1991's Home Again, 2003's Into The Mystery and his brand new one, My Good Friends.Bringing to mind Nick Drake, John Gorka, Milo Binder and Joni Mitchell, Wilcox is one of those rare singer/songwriters whose body of work has no dip in quality. My Good Friends is a perfect example of how Wilcox just keeps crushing it. From the retrospective romp of the title track, to the stirring Just A Trace Of Light to the deeply moving album closer This Is How It Ends, Wilcox has never sounded better. Observational, compelling, and wise, Wilcox's work is always punctuated by an artful blend of delicacy and strength. His resume' is a long one, but some highlights include playing Carnegie Hall, opening for the Indigo Girls, and being on the cover of Acoustic Guitar magazine. www.davidwilcox.com www.bombshellradio.com

"Hard To Find" Okay, so if you're a regular listener to the podcast, you've heard me talk endlessly about Starclub. The song you just heard Hard To Get is, in my opinion, the best pop song of the '90s, and the band's self-titled debut album from 1994 is just perfect and it seemed the band was positioned for a long and decorated career. But that career never happened and although they signed the biggest contract for a debut album in Island Records history, the label lost interest after the album didn't scale the heights they expected and they dropped the band from their roster.I've been obsessed with the Starclub story for years--I never got how a band this good, a band shot through with so much talent and promise, could just fade away with only one record under their belts. We've done several episodes with the band--the singer Owen Vyse was on, then Owen and bassist Julian Taylor did an episode, and then guitarist Steve French did one as well and slowly the picture of the band's demise started to really come