Completely Conspicuous 647: Quality Pints

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about our favorite music of 2024. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• The 16th annual year in review 
• First one was in 2009
• Cybertrucks are dumb
• Self-driving cars are also dumb
• Taylor Swift just ended a monster tour
• Music is a dead-end business for most
• Spotify sucks
• Country music is huge
• Breitling: There are some good underground country artists
• A good year for Tracy Chapman
• Social media landscape is shifting
• Lots of big music deaths: Quincy Jones, Kris Kristofferson, Steve Albini, Paul Di'Anno, Greg Kihn, Karl Wallinger
• Getting out to some rock shows: Hallelujah the Hills, Nuggets tour, Gang of Four, Hoodoo Gurus, Sloan in Toronto
• Breitling's honorable mentions: The TV show The Bear, Bug Club's song "Quality Pints," Fontaines D.C.'s "Favourite," Tsunami box set, Spectres, Kal Marks
• Kumar's honorable mentions: Dale Crover, Buffalo Tom, Ekko Astral, Jack White, Ducks Ltd., Mary Timony, Los Campesinos 
• To be continued 

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple 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 590: Hoover Dam

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about our favorite music of 1992. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- More of Phil's non top 5s: Soul Asylum, Screaming Trees, Kyuss, Jayhawks, Grateful Dead, Rage Against the Machine

- A few more from Jay: Helmet, Faith No More

- Phil interviewed hockey players who liked RATM

- Jay's #5 and Phil's #4: Buffalo Tom hones their craft with their third album

- Phil's #5: Neil Young turns down after a few years of extreme volume

- Jay's #4: Beastie Boys with a killer album distinguished by more instrumentation from the boys themselves

- Jay's #3: The Tragically Hip's best album gives off a distinctly Canadian vibe

-  Phil's #3: The Singles soundtrack captured the Seattle sound

- Jay's #2: Pavement brings the slacker rock on their debut

- Phil's #2: R.E.M. at the peak of their commercial powers

- Jay's and Phil's #1: Bob Mould starts a new chapter with Sugar

- Favorite songs: "Hoover Dam" (Phil), "Summer Babe" (Jay)

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple 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 589: The End of Silence

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about our favorite music of 1992. Listen to the episode or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- In 1992, Jay turned 25, Phil turned 23

- We both worked at local newspapers

- The so-called grunge explosion kicked into full gear

- Jay: Saw lots of great shows, including Lollapallooza, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Mudhoney

- "Bohemian Rhapsody" was back on the singles chart thanks to Wayne's World

- Metal was phasing out

- Keeping the band brand going

- Jay's non-top 5s: Afghan Whigs, Sloan, Rollins Band, Black Crowes

- Phil's non-top 5s: Luscious Jackson, Phish, Lemonheads, Cracker, PJ Harvey, Nirvana, Alice In Chains, Lou Reed, Sonic Youth, Bettie Serveert, Mudhoney

- To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple 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 587: The Sound of Young America

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about our favorite music of 1991. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- In '91, Phil graduated from college; Jay worked at the Peabody Times newspaper (R.I.P.)

- A big year for rock, although a lot of the impact wasn't felt until the following year

- Seeds for alt-rock explosion had been sown in the previous few years

- Still a lot of classic rock, hair metal and pop on the charts

- Freddie Mercury died, Lollapallooza tour started

- Bryan Adams was in full balladeer mode

- The evolution of Marky Mark

- Clapton still sucks

- Neither of us was a fan of the Use Your Illusion albums

- Albums were way too long in the CD era

- Phil's non-top 5 albums: Temple of the Dog, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, Mudhoney, Dinosaur Jr., Pixies, A Tribe Called Quest, My Bloody Valentine, Tragically Hip, Neil Young, Massive Attack, Primal Scream, R.E.M., Red Hot Chili Peppers

- Jay's non-top 5s: Elvis Costello, Nation of Ulysses, Fishbone  

- Rockit Records, R.I.P.

- To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple 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 585: All Shook Down

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about our favorite music of 1990. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- Recorded in person at CompCon World HQ

- In '90, Jay turned 23 and Phil turned 21

- Phil's short career in foodservice

- Jay was a newspaper reporter in Peabody, Mass.

- Controversies over 2 Live Crew, Milli Vanilli and Madonna

- Lots of scenes happening: Alternative, New Jack Swing, Madchester, Seattle

- The era of the Jock Jam

- Albums that didn't make Phil's top 5: Uncle Tupelo, Allman Brothers, Pretenders, Living Colour, Breeders, Alice in Chains, Mother Love Bone, Pixies, World Party, Happy Mondays, Ride, Mazzy Star, Sundays, Cowboy Junkies, Replacements, INXS, Social Distortion, Bob Mould, Black Crowes

- Questions around the November Rain video (which came out in '91)

- Jay's non-top 5s: Afghan Whigs, Flaming Lips, Midnight Oil, Mark Lanegan, Robert Plant

- To be continued

 

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple 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 581: Talk Is Cheap

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about our favorite music of 1988. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- Recorded while driving to Trillium Brewing in Canton, Mass.

- In 1988, Jay turned 21 and Phil turned 19

- Jay: 21st birthday was pretty rough

- Phil tells tales of good decision-making

- Jay's long, strange trip to the Monsters of Rock show: Long drive, short show

- Big year for pop artists on the charts

- Phil's Whitesnake story

- Big soundtracks: Cocktail, Dirty Dancing

- Phil's non-top 5 albums: Keith Richards, Mudhoney, Jerry Harrison, Jane's Addiction, Cowboy Junkies, Brian Wilson, Smithereens, Smiths, Pogues, Waterboys, Dinosaur Jr., Tracy Chapman, Public Enemy, Traveling Wilburys

- Jay's non-top 5s: Fishbone, Bobby Brown, Iron Maiden, Robert Plant, The Church, Metallica

- To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple 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 580: The Dream of the '90s is Alive

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our top albums of 2021. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- Recorded at Clicky Clicky World HQ

- On to the top 10

- Breitling's #10: The Reds, Pinks and Purples with an ephemeral pop release on Slumberland

- Kumar's #10: Raw collection of rippers from Juliana Hatfield

- Breitling's #9 and Kumar's #8: Instant classic from Ovlov

- Kumar's #9: IDLES shifts gears with some stylistic changes

- Breitling's #8: Chime School with a quality jangle-rock album

- Breitling's #7: More Slumberland goodness from the Umbrellas

- Kumar's #7: St. Vincent digs into a late '70s vibe

- Breitling's #6: Toronto's Ducks Ltd. with an excellent Feelies-esque record

- Kumar's #5: Baltimore hardcore screamers Turnstile explores different sounds

- Breitling's #4 and Kumar's #2: Dino Jr. continues to kick ass

- Kumar's #4: Kiwi Jr. is another Toronto act working the '90s slacker rock vibe

- Breitling's #3: MBV-esque shoegaze from Fleeting Joys

- Kumar's #3: Parquet Courts moves into danceable Talking Heads territory

- Breitling's #2 and Kumar's #6: The War on Drugs fully embraces a mid-80s FM radio sound

- Breitling's #1: Blue Ocean with a shoegaze/post punk compilation of two EPs

- Kumar's #1 and Breitling's #5: More Bay Area-based slack-rock awesomeness with Pardoner

Completely Conspicuous is available through the Apple Podcasts directory. 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 573: It's Tricky

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1986. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- Recorded in the backyard of CompCon HQ

- Jay was 18 going on 19 in '86, Phil was 16 going on 17

- Nine of the top 10 selling albums of '86 came out the year before

- Older artists make comebacks

- Pop and hair metal were big

- Boston finally released its third album

- Phil's non-top 5s: Talking Heads, Smithereens, Prince, Run DMC, Beastie Boys, XTC, Bad Brains, Gene Loves Jezebel, Love and Rockets, World Party, Dead Milkmen, B-52s, Luka Bloom, Feelies, Joe Jackson, Pet Shop Boys, Sonic Youth, Rolling Stones, Dylan, Steve Earle, DLR

- Jay's non-top 5s: David & David, Peter Gabriel, Iron Maiden

- To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple 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 567: Unmasked

It's part 1 of my in-person conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our favorite music of 2021 so far. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

- Recorded at CompCon World HQ

- Apologies for the loudness of the fan! Pretend you're skydiving!

- First time together since December 2019

- Kumar: Check out Mdou Moctar, West African guitarist on Matador

- Rollins and his listening habits

- Breitling: Watching a lot of rock docs

- Concerts are coming back and we're going to some

- Oh great, the Eagles are touring again

- Plenty of reissues out; gotta make money somehow

- Streaming continues to be the main way to listen to music

- Remembering the days of the Walkman and then later MP3 players that held 8 songs

- Breitling's still producing a weekly radio show called Parcheesi Redux

- Internet radio shows and podcasts are filling the gap left by commercial radio's stagnancy

- I'm still doing my radio show Stuck In Thee Garage on BFF.fm

- Breitling's bubbling under picks: Lilys reissues, Mogwai, Fievel Is Glauque, Spirit of the Beehive

- To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through the Apple Podcasts directory. 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 524: Your Favorite Thing

It's part 3 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we count down our favorite albums of 2019. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at Clicky Clicky world HQ
- Breitling's #4
- Former Boston act now relocated to Nashville
- Perfecting her sound
- Kumar's #4
- Introspective album that topped my midyear list
- Sweeping, synth-driven songs
- Breitling's #3
- Worthy follow-up to classic mid-'90s indie pop release
- Expansive and experimental
- Kumar's #3
- Return to rocking from for NJ punk stalwarts, produced by Bob Mould
- Surprisingly succinct from a band known for 8-minute epics
- Breitling's #2 and Kumar's #6
- Majestic final release from artist who tragically took his own life right after it came out
- Backed by the band Woods
- Kumar's #2
- Third release from Toronto punk-pop act
- Writing about frustrations of getting older
- Breitling's #1
- Recently released instant classic from Boston indie rock act
- Frontman Ryan Walsh wrote album after dealing with struggles writing his book about Astral Weeks
- Kumar's #1
- Veteran Canadian power pop act with another great release
- All-star team of musicians
- Darker feel than some of their other albums

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. 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 523: 10/10, Would Count Down Again

It's part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we count down our favorite albums of 2019. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at Clicky Clicky world HQ
- The top 10
- Breitling's #10
- A surprising solo debut from a veteran rock legend
- Kumar's #9
- Raw shoegaze effort from Brooklyn act changing its sound
- Breitling's #9
- Electronic album with an analog feel released late in the year
- "Crust ambient"
- Kumar's #8
- Power pop-punk album about the aftermath of broken relationship
- Great album cover
- Breitling's #8 and Kumar's #10
- Strong release from shoegaze pioneers
- Trying some different things
- Breitling's  #7
- Shoegaze duo from California that likes to take its time
- All killer, no filler
- Berniece's sleep aggression
- Kumar's #7
- Second release from indie legend's latest band
- Embracing '80s hard rock sound
- Breitling's #6
- Used to call this band the Steve Miller of indie rock
- Opinion has changed, especially with the latest release
- Sound is augmented by female singers
- Kumar and Breitling's #5
- Latest in an strong stretch of releases from this punk/alt-rock legend
- Sounds as good as he ever has
- Unusually upbeat
- Next: Our top 4 albums

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. 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 522: Hey Nineteen

It's part 1 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our favorite music of 2019. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at Clicky Clicky world HQ
- This program is not affiliated with Moviefone
- A decade of talking rock

- Breitling: Had time to listen to a lot more music this year
- The Billie Eilish vs. VH debate has been raging for a while
- Kids don't know or care about music from 10 years ago, let alone 35
- A lot of butthurt older music fans getting worked up for no reason
- Most kids have zero interest in classic rock
- Listen to what you want
- The "OK Boomer" phenomenon
- When music becomes something on in the background
- Breitling needs to see Idiocracy
- The albums that didn't make our top 10 lists
- Breitling: Floating Points, Rroxy More, Top Down Dialectic, Katie Dey, Max Richter
- Kumar: Mikal Cronin, Ty Segall, Mark Lanegan, Trinary System
- Mission of Burma's second act may be done
- Breitling: Juana Molina, Bedroom Eyes, Lubec, DIIV, Tullycraft, She Sir, Snowball II
- Kumar: Sleater-Kinney with a controversial new album; Janet Weiss pushed out of the band
- Breitling: Would have been better received under a different band name like Unicorn Butt
- Kumar: Pixies, Palehound, Kim Gordon, Pile, Black Mountain, Sebadoh, Fontaines DC, Telekinesis, Hold Steady, Desert Sessions, GBV, Wilco, Plague Vendor, Oh Sees, Nick Cave
- Breitling: Better Oblivion Community Center, Florist, Big Thief
- Next: Our top 10 albums

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. 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 521: Content Overload

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Matt Phillion as we discuss the decade in TV and movies. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Going over some of our favorites of the decade
- Jay: Haven't seen a lot of critical faves
- Both enjoyed Blackkklansman
- Toy Story 3 is the best of that series
- Matt: Beasts of the Southern Wild was a stunner
- In the Loop is profanely excellent
- Jay never saw Inside Out; Matt says it's borderline educational
- The traumatic sadness of Disney movies
- Don't ban offensive old movies
- Stereotypes in older movies stick out
- The series 24 was so over the top about torture and terrorists
- Writing for women's roles in the '80s was pretty awful
- Post-9/11 jingoism
- Good Sorkin: The Social Network
- Bad Sorkin: The Newsroom
- When older celebs are trending on Twitter
- Matt: In praise of Monsters
- Timothy Olyphant is great
- Matt needs to watch Justified
- Black Mirror is predicting everything
- The Americans is an excellent show
- Matt hasn't seen Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul
- Orphan Black features an amazing performance by Tatiana Maslany
- Bill Hader elevates himself from comic genius to dramatic auteur on Barry
- Russian Doll came out of the blue
- The People Vs. OJ Simpson was excellent, with a bizarre performance by John Travolta
- The sneaky genius of Legends of Tomorrow
- Dark on Netflix is a German show that is brilliantly out there
- Downton Abbey: Cultural phenomenon that doesn't make sense
- The Leftovers got better when it went beyond the book
- The Marvel shows on Netflix were surprisingly good (except for Iron Fist)
- The fight scenes in Daredevil were intense and creative
- So much content out there that it's impossible to see it all

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 520: Streaming for Vengeance

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Matt Phillion as we discuss the decade in TV and movies. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- This decade has flown by
- 10 years ago, Matt was getting ready to move to Ireland
- Hard to rank the best movies and TV because there's so much we haven't seen
- Recording on the day that Disney+ launched
- Some bugs because of the huge demand on day 1
- Biggest change is the move to streaming content
- Binge-watching has become a huge trend
- Spoilers abound
- Jay: Don't read reviews until after I've watched something
- HBO's Watchmen series is pretty good
- So easy to fall behind on a show
- Shows switch to different streaming services
- We're so distracted that many people are doing multiple things while watching a show
- Short seasons are appealing because you can finish them quickly
- Rare to watch shows live
- Matt watched final season of LOST from Ireland, live with his family via a laptop
- Similarly, there's so much new music being released but a lot of it doesn't get heard
- Radio stations play a lot of the same music over and over
- More and more original programming on non-traditional outlets: PlayStation, Amazon Prime, Apple+
- So many streaming services available now
- The end goal is to replace your $200 cable bill with an equal amount spent on streaming services
- Jay: Cut the cord three years ago, went to all streaming
- You can't get everything
- Takes a long time to decide what to watch sometimes
- Sometimes we watch two different things while in the same room
- Seeing movies in a theater is great, but dealing with other people isn't
- Stay off social media if you don't want spoilers
- Jay: 10 years ago, I was watching late night talk shows every day
- Now, watch clips online the following day
- Jay: Haven't seen a Star Wars movie since 1983
- Something to be said for holding onto hard media
- Bringing back dead actors using AI
- Deep fakes are freaky and amazing
- Superhero movies became big moneymakers in the last decade
- The Shining happened because Kubrick was at a low spot and needed a hit
- The new Fantasy Island reboot is a horror movie
- 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 517: Top of the Heap

It's part 3 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we conclude our countdown of our favorite albums of the decade. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at CompCon world HQ
- Kumar's #3 of the decade: Parquet Courts cements their post-punk presence (2014)
- Impressive body of work with an art-rock vibe
- Breitling's #2: Johnny Foreigner's self-produced magnum opus (2011)
- Breitling was running a JF-themed blog for a while
- Kumar's #2: A punk explosion of political anger from Superchunk (2018)
- Still vital after all these years
- Breitling's #1: Post-punk legend Walter Schreifels' debut solo album (2010)
- Sincere folk rock with incredible hooks
- Kumar's #1: Bowie's final album was a masterpiece (2016)
- Recorded in secret with an unknown jazz band
- He thought he had more time, but died a few days after the album came out
- That's a decade

Completely Conspicuous is available through Apple Podcasts and just about anywhere else you get your 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 516: Tally It Up

It's part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our favorite music of the past decade. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at CompCon world HQ
- Breitling's top 10 aren't ranked in order
- JB's #10: 2014 compilation of singles by Cookies
- Experimental stuff, hooks galore
- JK's #10: Magnum opus by Titus Andronicus (2010)
- Sprawling album with lots of guest stars, loosely based on Civil War
- JB's #9: Breakout 2013 album from Speedy Ortiz
- Hot '90s indie rock sound
- JK's #9: Double album from Toronto's Fucked Up (2011)
- Sound of hardcore singer fronting Velocity Girl
- JB's #8: Dan Bejar brings the heat in 2011 with Destroyer
- Catchy '80s yacht rock vibe
- JK's 8: Jeff Rosenstock's post-election response (2018)
- Deals with disappointment and hitting your 30s
- JB's #7: Snowball II with an early '90s homage (2017)
- Produced by Kurt Heasley of Lilys
- JK's 7: Epic 2013 release from Queens of the Stone Age
- Near-death experience led to different lyrical approach
- JB's #6: The only War On Drugs worth fighting (2014)
- Adam Granduciel's mainstream breakthrough, attracting scorn from Mark Kozelek
- JK's #6: Arctic Monkeys continue evolving their sound (2013)
- Incorporated funk and hip hop beats into their indie rock
- JB's #5: Infinity Girl's debut for Topshelf (2015)
- Underappreciated shoegaze masterpiece
- JK's #5: Bob Mould's first album with Narducy and Wurster (2012)
- First of a strong stretch of ass-kickers, on par with his work with Sugar
- JB's #4: She Sir's 2014 release is painstakingly crafted
- Shimmering shoegaze
- JK's #4 and JB's #3: Courtney Barnett burst on the scene with strong 2015 debut
- Interesting lyrics combined with hot rock guitar
- To be continued: Our top picks

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. 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 515: Be Kind and Rewind

It's part 1 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our favorite music of the past decade. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at CompCon world HQ
- We did this 10 years ago, a little differently (starting here)
- Ten years is a long time inside a car
- The shift from downloads to streaming
- Not everything is available from streaming services
- iTunes didn't die, it was just split up
- Music can also disappear from streaming services
- Original MP3 players only held a handful of songs
- The kids like the vinyl
- Concerts business has evolved: Bands are playing smaller venues
- Who the hell are the Chainsmokers?
- Bands we like can't fill hockey rinks
- Nobody's making money off albums
- It's all merch
- Vinyl and box sets are big bucks
- Lots of reissues
- Albums that didn't make our top 10
- Breitling: Releases from Lubec, Funeral Advantage, Hop Along, LCD Soundsystem
- Kumar: LCD Soundsystem, Grinderman, Arcade Fire, Wild Flag, Sloan, Destroyer, METZ, Savages, Speedy Ortiz, Kurt Vile, Ex Hex, Protomartyr, Run the Jewels, Ty Segall, The War on Drugs, Jeff Rosenstock, IDLES, Fucked Up, Sharon Van Etten, PUP
- To be continued: On to the top 10

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. 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 508: Ten Spot

It's part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our favorite music of the year so far. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at Clicky Clicky world HQ
- Breitling's bubbling under albums: Purple Mountains, Katie Dey, Ava Luna, Coaches, Fennesz, William Basinski
- Kumar's not-quite top 10: Swervedriver, Piroshka, Cherry Glazerr, L7, Jenny Lewis, Flat Worms, Hash Redactor, Versing, Kiwi Jr., Business of Dreams
- Breitling's #10
- Veteran indie pop act from Seattle
- Kumar's #10
- Fuzzy power pop that's short and sweet
- Breitling's #9
- Shout out to Matt Graves
- Glittery guitar pop from Austin
- Kumar's #9
- Vital post-punk noise straight outta Dublin
- Breitling's #8
- Shoegaze from prolific LA band
- Kumar's #8
- Welcome return from indie rock veterans
- Breitling's #7
- Blistering EP from great Boston indie act
- Perry Farrell's face
- Kumar's #7
- Western Canadian stoner rock
- Next week: Our top 6 albums of the year so far

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. 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 502: Telling You How We Really Feel

Part 3 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about our favorite music of 2018. Listen to the episode below or download directly.


Show notes:
- Recorded at Clicky Clicky world HQ
- Featuring special guest/studio audience member Ric Dube
- On to our top 5 selections
- JK's #5
- An unexpectedly great album from a member of the Strokes
- JB's #5
- Weird shoegaze straight outta Philly
- JB's #4
- More excellent Philadelphia indie rock
- JK's #3
- Angry, angular UK rock act that has listened to the Fall
- JB's #3
- "I had difficulty finding fault with this record"
- Esteemed YoLa-ologist in the house
- YLT keeps doing its own thing
- JK's #2
- Another fine double album from an interesting Toronto act
- Where hardcore meets prog
- Lots of guest vocalists
- JB's #2
- Sweeping orchestral material, hot jams
- Bands still make videos for some reason
- Picking and choosing from the catalog
- JK's #1
- A political record released early in the year that still resonates
- Fiery live show to go with the album
- Countering a master of distraction
- The kids with the vaping and the pot smoking and the whatnot
- It's a strange time to be alive
- JB's #1 and JK's #4
- Bit of a grower
- A darker, moodier album than her previous work
- Terrific live performer
- Dube: Became a fan by complete accident
- Doobs recommends the Salad Boys
- New stuff on the horizon: Bob Mould, Pedro the Lion, Mike Krol, Swervedriver, Telekinesis
- Johnny Foreigner reunion seems unlikely

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. 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 501: Make With the Counting Down Already

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about our favorite music of 2018. Listen to the episode below or download directly.

Show notes:
- Recorded at Clicky Clicky world HQ
- Featuring special guest/studio audience member Ric Dube
- JB's #10/JK's #9
- On-again, off-again band led by Steve Hartlett
- Ah, the old "sweatpants-with-beers-stuffed-down-the-legs" deal
- Reminiscent of "Bug"-era Dino Jr.
- JK's #10
- Labelmates of Parquet Courts with similar sound
- The downside of "Music Limited"
- JB's #9
- Boston act traffics in "millennial mopery"
- Lo-fi, self-released effort
- Stickin' it to the Man with his Bandcamp URL
- JK's #8
- Released on 1/1/18
- Fueled by political frustration and anger
- A "fun protest album"
- JB's #8
- Brand new record from a UK supergroup
- Long-awaited followup to 2007 debut
- Rhythmically diverse look at British culture
- Whither Gorillaz?
- JK's #7
- The 12th studio album from power-pop masters
- Four songwriters who each wrote three songs
- Consistently great
- The fun of hunting down B-sides and rarities before artists started releasing compilations/reissues
- The ability to fall asleep on your feet while at a rock concert
- JB's #7
- A good record from a guitar wizard
- Less volume than his main gig
- "Relatively understated throughout"
- JK's #6
- An expansive effort from a prolific indie act
- Branching out their sound with more danceable songs
- Voicing political outrage
- JB's #6
- Venturing into jazzier realms
- Led by one of the more interesting guitarists of last 25 years
- Avant-rock/jazz; "it's not like Kenny G"
- Next: The top 5

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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.