Completely Conspicuous 528: Burn and Shine

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Brian Salvatore as we discuss rock stars and aging. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded via Skype
- '90s butt rock is alive and well in New Hampshire
- Marlins will soar, according to Scott Stapp
- Commercial rock radio is dying
- In the mid-80s, rock radio was thriving in the Boston area
- Brian has satellite radio
- GNR/Smashing Pumpkins touring this summer
- The evolution of Sugar Ray's sound
- Mark McGrath is always working
- The Cameo economy
- Talking to musicians
- The ubiquity of Henry Rollins
- The musician deaths have always been plentiful
- 10 years ago, we lost Jay Reatard, Teddy Pendergrass, Doug Fieger, Mark Linkous, Alex Chilton, Malcolm McLaren, Dio
- So many big names in rock are getting older
- Eagles have continued to tour without Glenn Frey
- Surviving members of Nirvana have reunited for charity shows
- Rush will never play another show
- R.E.M. has never performed together since their breakup
- More fun with Cameo
- Don't wait to see a band you like
- Jay: Trying to see bands I haven't seen before
- Making up for lost time with some bands
- Some bands sound better than ever: Dino Jr., Ween
- Ozzy's looking pretty rough these days
- Some artists you don't want to see anymore

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts and anywhere else you get podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Completely Conspicuous 527: Magic and Loss

I'm joined by guest Brian Salvatore as we discuss rock stars and aging. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded via Skype
- Brian's first appearance on the show in two years
- The rock deaths keep on hitting us hard
- Neil Peart's recent death was surprising and shocking
- Brian: Not a big Rush fan, but respected them
- A couple of really good documentaries about the band
- Rush followed their own path
- Andy Gill of Gang of Four kept touring and recording right until he died
- Big deaths that impacted us
- Jay: Peart, Gord Downie, Bowie, Prince, Tom Petty
- As a kid, remember Randy Rhoads, Bonham, Bon Scott, Keith Moon
- Later, Cobain and Layne Staley
- Tortured artist syndrome
- Meanwhile, the Stones keep chugging along
- Brian: McCartney is still amazing live into his 70s
- Neither of us has seen the Stones live
- Brian: Regret not seeing classic acts at least once
- Prince played crazy long shows
- Getting harder to stay out super late
- "Farewell tours" tend to often be false alarms
- A little more urgency to see certain artists who are older
- A lot of reunion tours these days: Jawbreaker, Hot Snakes, Jawbox, Hoodoo Gurus
- Will young artists today have the same longevity as the older artists now?
- Touring's the only way to make money these days
- Not even worth it for older acts to release new material now
- Radio won't play new music from legendary acts
- Classic rock fans don't want to hear new music, they just want the hits
- You know what you're getting from a new AC/DC record
- Many bands continue on after members die
- Replacing iconic singers with unknowns
- Alice in Chains has recharged their career somewhat post-Staley
- Sublime's singer/leader died before their big album came out
- To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts and anywhere else you get podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Completely Conspicuous 526: Go to Heaven

I'm joined by guest Phil Stacey as we discuss the Grateful Dead album Go to Heaven. Listen to the episode below or download it directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at CompCon world HQ
- The Dead transitioning into a new decade, the '80s
- Cover may have given fans the wrong idea
- Short outing at only 38 minutes
- One of the least favorite studio albums among Dead fans
- Phil: A real mish-mash
- Contractual obligation: Third studio album in four years
- AOR was getting big
- The Godchauxs were gone
- Brent Mydland brings a smooth Michael McDonald vibe that is off-putting
- Grateful Dead keyboard players : Spinal Tap drummers
- Some Dead classics on this album: Alabama Getaway, Althea
- Didn't make another studio album for seven years
- Jay might go see Dead & Co. with Phil at some point
- Phil: This is their second-worst album
- Lost Sailor doesn't work
- Three straight Weir/Barlow songs
- Saint of Circumstance could be an '80s sitcom theme song
- Bob Weir loves the short shorts
- Hey, we used to wear them, too
- Mickey Hart eventually got into world music
- Mydland's Easy to Love You could have been a pop hit
- Album ends with a rave-up cover of Don't Ease Me In
- Phil: In defense of U2's Zooropa
- When we next convene, we'll talk about late '80s Dead

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts and anywhere else you get podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.

Completely Conspicuous 525: Shakedown Street

I'm joined by guest Phil Stacey as we discuss the Grateful Dead album Shakedown Street. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at CompCon world HQ
- First ep of the new decade
- Shakedown Street came out in '78
- Lots of musical stuff happening: Disco, punk, new wave, hard rock
- Disco wasn't as bad as everyone made it out to be
- Jay: No guilty pleasures: If you like it, you like it
- The Dead were coming off a triumphant '77
- This was a contractually obligated studio album
- Lots of influences thrown in: Funk, disco, African jazz, rock
- Met with savage reviews
- The version of "Good Lovin'" here pales in comparison to the live version, especially when Pigpen sang it
- The last album with Donna and Keith Godchaux
- Title track gets slagged as bad disco, but we dig it
- Shakedown Street is now the name of the merch area at Dead & Co. shows
- Pressure was on from Clive Davis for them to have hits
- This album was produced by Lowell George of Little Feat
- Seen as a disco album, but it's pretty diverse musically
- The Dead weren't a great studio band
- Mickey Hart stepped up with three songs
- Phil: "I Need a Miracle" might be the best song on the album
- "Stagger Lee"  has an interesting history; versions were covered by many different artists
- Jay: The Nick Cave version is the best, and the most profane
- Album was scattered because of different influences plus substances
- "All New Minglewood Blues" is a pretty rockin' cover
- Dead appeared on SNL that year
- Ends with a Garcia-Hunter love ballad that works
- Jay: Liked about half the songs on the album
- Next: 1980's Go to Heaven

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts and anywhere else you get podcasts. Subscribe and write a review!

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Voiceover work is courtesy of James Gralian.