Completely Conspicuous 143: Hardy Har Har

Special guest Ric Dube joins me on the podcast as we discuss our comedy influences. Listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Dube got into standup comedy through listening to albums with his dad

- Johnny Carson's Tonight Show was huge for comedians

- Only three main channels in the '60s and '70s

- Audience is diluted now by cable, DVRs, Internet

- Kumar: Listened to sketch comedy on radio from National Lampoon, Firesign Theater

- Watched SNL, Fridays, SCTV

- Stereos used to be furniture

- Dube's uncle would invite friends over to listen to new comedy LPs

- Kumar: Watched reruns of "Bob Newhart Show" with dad

- Comedy in the '70s went from a social to a solitary experience

- Differing opinions on SCTV

- Kids in the Hall was a brilliant show

- Letterman's 12:30 a.m. NBC show was amazing

- Kumar went to one of the last Letterman shows on NBC; Leno was guest

- Leno was hilarious back in the day

- Marc Maron's podcast features great interview with Judd Apatow

- As 16-year-old, Apatow interviewed Seinfeld, Leno, Shandling about comedy

- Steve Martin's autobiography focuses on standup days

- Martin got a job at Disneyland to get into showbiz

- Apatow started as a busboy in a comedy club

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

Japandroids - Heavenward Grand Prix

Marnie Stern - Transparency is the New Mystery

Grinderman - Heathen Child

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. Use promo code AFCOMP15 to get 10% off any order of $50 or more at Eastbay.com, AFCOMP20 to get 15% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay.com, and AFCOMPFL to get 10% off any order of $50 or more at Footlocker.com.

The Japandroids song is part of the band's ongoing 7-inch single series. Download the song for free at Pitchfork.

The Marnie Stern song is from her eponymous forthcoming album on Kill Rock Stars Records. Download the song for free at Stereogum.

The Grinderman song is on the Grinderman 2 album on ANTI Records. Download the song for free at Chromewaves.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography at his blog.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 141: Memories Can't Wait

I'm flying solo on the podcast this week as I discuss the lasting power of the mix tape. Listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Music takes you back to specific time or place

- Couldn't listen to "Wild Horses" for a few years

- Joe Jackson's "I'm the Man" brings back good memories

- Made mix tapes on clock radio with tape deck

- Mix tapes have made a comeback

- Started writing series called Mixology to look back at old mix tapes

- Oldest mix tape I have was recorded in 1981

- Lots of hard rock and prog rock featured

- Was surprised to hear that I recorded little bits on some of the tapes

- 1981 started out great

- Eighth grade was a lot of fun

- But we knew were moving to Washington state soon

- Moved in November

- Radio stations there sucked, so mix tapes kept me going

- Didn't make another mix tape until I got to college

- Made a few tapes in college, but really started making a lot after I graduated

- Listening to those old tapes really reminds of me of good and bad times

- Last mix tape was made in 1999 until my tape deck died

- Still make CD and iTunes playlist mixes

- Bonehead of the Week

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. Use the promo code AFCOMP15 to get 10% off any order of $50 or more at Eastbay, AFCOM20 will get you 15% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay, and AFCOMPFL will get you 10% off any order of $50 or more at Footlocker.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography at his blog.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 129: Whiskey in the Jar

Special guest Matt Phillion joins me on the podcast as we continue our discussion of his adventures in Ireland. Listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Running in Ireland: Matt gets racially profiled

- Rarely see runners there

- Irish drivers are either really slow or really fast

- Drunk driving laws are much stricter

- "A distinct Irish ear"

- TV in Ireland: Lots of American shows air

- Law & Order: London (real show)

- Matt wants to audition for the Irish soap opera Fair City

- Gaelic version of American Idol

- Gaelic is subtitled on TV

- You can see boobs on regular TV

- Call a restroom a "bog" or "jax," not "the loo"

- Following baseball from abroad

- Fantasy baseball challenges

- Spotting Americans

- Eating strange foods for sport

- Eating flies on the run

- Matt discovers cows and "flying chickens"

- Matt's girlfriend coming here for a visit

- Irish moonshine = "holy water"

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Bottled in Cork

Johnny Foreigner - With Who, Who and What I've Got

Ugly Casanova - Lay Me Down

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. Find gear from top brands such as Nike, Adidas and Asics. Use the promo code AFCOMP15 to get 15% off any order at Eastbay.com, AFCOMP20 to get 20% off any order at Eastbay.com and AFCOMPFL to get 15% off any order at Footlocker.com.

The Ted Leo and the Pharmacists song is on the album The Brutalist Bricks on Matador Records, where you can download the song for free.

The Johnny Foreigner song is an unreleased track you can download for free here.

The Ugly Casanova song is on the soundtrack to the documentary 180 Degrees South on Brushfire Records. Download the song for free at Stereogum.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography at his blog.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 113: Get in the Van

The podcast's back with special guest Dave Brigham as we discuss the fine art of the road trip. Click here to listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Dave used to do "big house tours"

- Dave and buddies bought a boogie van for big road trip

- Van broke down before they even left

- No destination in mind

- Diet of hot dogs, carrots and beer

- Got to Santa Fe, NM, but altitude was tough

- Went to Albuquerque, rented house and found jobs

- Stayed three months

- "Eat, drink, work"

- Jay did a road trip to Montreal that same spring

- Six years ago, Jay did another Montreal trip

- Jay was ill, decorated the breakdown lane all the way back

- Dave did long trip right after college graduation

- Saw Skinny Puppy play in Montreal, looked for Letterman's house in CT

- Dave and Beth drove to Toronto, then Madison, WI, then Chicago

- Jerry Springer sighting; then watched OJ Simpson chase on TV

- Jay and family drove to Disney few years ago; 22-hour drive

- Dave remembers family train trip gone awry

- Jay remembers family vacations to Florida in '70s

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- The Drive-By Truckers - Birthday Boy

- Spoon - Written in Reverse

- Future of the Left - The Hope That House Built

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Drive-By Truckers song is on the album The Big To-Do on ATO Records. Find out more and download the song for free here.

The Spoon song is on the album Transference on Merge Records. The song is courtesy of IODA Promonet:

Spoon
"Written In Reverse" (mp3)
from "Transference"
(Arts & Crafts Mexico)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
More On This Album



The Future of the Left song is on the album Travels With Myself and Another on 4AD Records. Download the track for free at Beggars Group USA.

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. Use these codes and save some cash: AFCOMP15 will get you 15% off any order at Eastbay.com; AFCOMP20 will get you 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay.com; AFCOMPFL will get you 15% off any order at Footlocker.com.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography at his blog.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 111: I Predict a Riot

The podcast returns with part 3 of my conversation with Ric Dube. We wrap up our pop culture predictions for the next decade. Click here to listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Dube praises the CompCon movie recap episodes

- Joseph Gordon-Levitt will continue to do good work

- Dube wants you to see 500 Days of Summer...to understand why he hates it

- "Annie Hall for dumb kids"

- Annoying Hollywood trend: Self-conscious namedropping of "cool bands"

- Talking Avatar...which neither of us has seen

- Ric loves his Kindle

- Prediction: Touchscreen technology may turn actual desktops into computers, creating virtual clutter

- Ric's moneymaking idea: Halloween costume generator

- Female version makes every costume slutty (E.g., slutty trash collector)

- Tailor made for an iPhone app

- The adventures of intern Gabe

- Ric: The TSA is comprised of power-mad mall cops

- Product idea: Terror alert level M&Ms

- Eat your way to comfort level

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- Drive-By Truckers - This F*cking Job

- Shearwater - Black Eyes

- The Smashing Pumpkins - Widow Wake My Mind

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Drive-By Truckers song was recorded for the forthcoming album The Big To-Do on ATO Records. Find out more at and download the song for free at Stereogum.

The Shearwater song is on the album The Golden Archipelago on Matador Records, where you can download the track for free.

The Smashing Pumpkins song is on the forthcoming album Teargarden by Kaleidyscope. Find out more and download the song for free here.

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. The promo code AFCOMP15 will get you 15% off any order at Eastbay, AFCOMP20 will get you 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay and AFCOMPFL will get you 15% off any order at Footlocker.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbelll. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography here.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 106: Blowed Up Real Good

The podcast returns with part 3 of my conversation with special guest Matt Phillion as we continue our recap of the decade in movies. This time around, we discuss our favorite action movies. Listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...


Topics:

- Comic book movies were good this decade

- Dark Knight was a great film, period

- Ledger put his stamp on the Joker

- Kill Bill saga: A fun combo of Uma, martial arts and violence

- The Departed: Perfect crime film?

- Alec Baldwin, an acting force

- Hey Hollywood, don't even attempt the Boston accent

- Bourne trilogy: Better than Bond movies

- In Casino Royale, Daniel Craig's Bond is true to Fleming's vision

- Children of Men is a post-apocalyptic masterpiece

- The Descent: Best of "hot chicks in danger" movies

- The decade of survival horror

- Saw movies started good, got progressively worse

- Grindhouse: A ton of fun

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- Dios - Stare at the Wheel

- Elliott Smith - Cecilia/Amanda

- Titus Andronicus - Four Score and Seven

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Dios song is on the band's album We Are Dios on Buddyhead Records, where you can download the track for free.

The Elliott Smith song is a previously unreleased track available from Kill Rock Stars, where you can download the song for free.

The Titus Andronicus song is on the album The Monitor on XL Recordings. Download the song for free at Beggars Group USA.

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. You can find gear from top brands such as Nike, Adidas, Asics, Reebok and more. Use the promo code AFCOMP15 to get 15% off any order at Eastbay.com, AFCOMP20 to get 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay.com, and AFCOMPFL to get 15% off any order at Footlocker.com.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography here.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 105: Laugh It Up, Fuzzball

Back with the podcast as special guest Matt Phillion and I continue our look at the best movies of the decade. This week, we focus on comedies. Click here to listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...


Topics:

- Matt implores you to see In the Loop

- Another Coen Brothers shout out

- John Goodman's ideal job

- Love for Pixar

- Apatow made a huge impact

- Ben Stiller nails it with Tropic Thunder

- Best in Show continues Christopher Guest's brilliant streak

- Matt reluctantly saw Amelie and dug it

- Superbad rang true for high school dorks everywhere

- A non-comedy pick: Once

- High Fidelity simultaneously salutes music nerds and reveals how guys think about girls

- Anchorman was the best of the Will Ferrell movies

- Paul Giamatti steps up with Sideways

- About Schmidt was comedy, but also horror because of Kathy Bates nudity

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- Liars - Scissor

- Flight of the Conchords - Sugalumps

- Jason Collett - Love is a Dirty Word

- Jawbox - Savory

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Liars song is on the band's album Sisterworld on Mute Records. Find out more and download the track for free at TheSisterworld.

The Flight of the Conchords song is on the album I Told You I Was Freaky on Sub Pop Records, where you can download the song for free.

The Jason Collett song is on the album Rat a Tat Tat on Arts and Crafts Records, where you can download the song for free.

The Jawbox song is on the reissue of the album For Your Own Special Sweetheart on Desoto Records. The song is courtesy of IODA Promonet:

Jawbox
"Savory" (mp3)
from "For Your Own Special Sweetheart"
(DeSoto Records)

Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at Napster
More On This Album



The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. You can find gear from top brands such as Nike, Adidas, Asics, Reebok and more. Use the promo code AFCOMP15 to get 15% off any order at Eastbay.com, AFCOMP20 to get 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay.com, and AFCOMPFL to get 15% off any order at Footlocker.com.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell; find out more at . Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography here.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 102: Trapped Under Ice

The podcast's back with special guest Phil Stacey as we look at the decade in sports. This episode, we focus on the NHL. Click here to listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Sports, "the great bringer-together"?

- NHL lost a season due to lockout

- Game has changed for the better

- Salary cap has led to more young stars

- NJ Devils introduced boring trap style in mid-'90s, continued in '00s

- Strategy and systems are more important now

- The shootout eliminated ties, but is it the right answer?

- Struggling franchises due to expansion: Phoenix, Florida, Nashville

- Phil: Cut six teams, improve the product

- TV package is troublesome: Dropped by ESPN, now on Versus

- No dynasties anymore

- Detroit was team of decade

- No Canadian team has won Cup since '93

- Ovechkin is best player in league

- Crosby: Coltrane vs. Ovechkin: The Clash

- Winter Classic has been great for the game

- Should NHL keep sending players to Winter Olympics?

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- EELS - Little Bird

- Molina & Johnson - Almost Let You In

- Calories - Let's Pretend That We're Older

- Lifter Puller - Lie Down on Lansdowne

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The EELS song is on the band's forthcoming album on Vagrant Records. Find out more and download the track for free here.

The Molina & Johnson song is on their self-titled album on Secretly Canadian Records, where you can find out more and download the song for free.

The Calories song is on the EP Let's Pretend We're Older on Smalltown America. Find out more and download the song for free here.

The Lifter Puller song is on the compilation album Soft Rock on The Self Starter Foundation. Find out more and download the track for free here.

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. The promo code AFCOMP15 will get you 15% off any order at Eastbay.com. The code AFCOMP20 will get you 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay. And the code AFCOMPFL will get you 15% off any order at Footlocker.com.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography here.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 101: The Modern World

The podcast's back with a look at the decade in technology. Click here to listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Y2K came and went

- Broadband arrived, changed everything

- Google led the way for search engines

- Social networking sites

- Blogging, podcasting became commonplace

- Communication: E-mail, chat and texting

- Napster loomed large over the music industry

- The iPod was a game changer

- YouTube revolutionized online video

- Home entertainment: Flatscreen TVs, DVDs, DVRs, Netflix

- Videogame consoles got better, wireless

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- Them Crooked Vultures - Mind Eraser, No Chaser

- The Pixies - Crackity Jones

- Melissa Auf der Maur - Out of Our Minds

- Nirvana - About a Girl

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Them Crooked Vultures song is on the band's self-titled album on Interscope Records. Download the track for free at the iTunes store.

The Pixies song is on the band's live EP commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Doolittle album. The four-song EP is available for free at Pixiesmusic.com.

The Melissa Auf der Maur song is on the forthcoming album Out of Our Minds on MAdM Music; click here to find out more and download the song for free.

The Nirvana song is on Bleach: Deluxe Edition on Sub Pop Records, where you can download the song for free.

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. The promo code AFCOMP15 will get you 15% off any order at Eastbay. The code AFCOMP20 will get you 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay. And the code AFCOMPFL will get you 15% off any order at Footlocker.com.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography here.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 98: The Decade in Rock, Part 3

The podcast is back with part 3 of my look at the decade in rock with special guest Jay Breitling. Click here to listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- Breitling's 2005 picks: A-Sides, Meneguar, The Hold Steady, Wolf Parade, Logh, Mazarin

- Big ups to Philly indie rock

- Was the Hold Steady influential?

- Kumar's 2005 picks: Bloc Party, Spoon, New Pornographers, Death From Above 1979

- 2006: Ringtones were big business

- Bands selling out in commercials

- Breitling's 2006 picks: Fields, Snowden, Armalite, Lemonheads, The Hold Steady, Okay Paddy, Up Up Down Down etc., McLusky, Haywood

- Kumar's 2006 picks: Mission of Burma, Drive-By Truckers, Arctic Monkeys, TVOTR, Destroyer, Sloan, Mastodon

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- Wolf Parade - You Are a Runner and I Am My Father's Son

- Bloc Party - Helicopter

- The Lemonheads - No Backbone

- Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start - Janet Bateman

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Wolf Parade song is on the 2005 album Apologies to the Queen Mary on Sub Pop Records, where you can download the track.

The Bloc Party song is on their 2005 debut Silent Alarm on Dim Mak Records. The song is courtesy of Mevio's Music Alley.

The Lemonheads song is on their 2006 self-titled album on Vagrant Records, where you can download the song.

The Up Up Down Down song is on the 2006 self-released EP Girls Names. Find out more and download the song here.

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. Find gear from top brands such as Nike, Adidas, Asics, Reebok, New Balance, Converse and Saucony. The promo code AFCOMP15 will get you 15% off any order at Eastbay and the code AFCOMP20 will get you 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay. And the code AFCOMPFL will get you 15% off any order at Footlocker.com. Help out the show by patronizing my sponsors.

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography here.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.

Completely Conspicuous 97: The Decade in Rock, Part 2

Jay Breitling joins me again on the podcast to continue our discussion of the decade in rock music. This time around, we review 2002-2004. Click here to listen to the show in streaming audio or download it directly here (right click and "save as").

The show notes...

Topics:

- 2002: MP3 blogs come to the fore

- Indie rock re-release craze starts with Pavement's "Slanted and Enchanted"

- Nirvana box set disappointed

- Breitling's 2002 picks: Spoon, Wilco, Interpol, Notwist, Destroyer, Manitoba

- Breitling laments his journalism degree

- Postal Service, Bigger Lovers had big songs

- Kumar's 2002 picks: Broken Social Scene, Trail of Dead, Ted Leo, QOTSA

- Breitling's 2003 picks: Moonbabies, Shins, Pernice Bros., Stars, Strokes, Belle and Sebastian, Lefty's Deceiver, Ted Leo, Dresden Dolls, Clown Down

- Kumar's 2003 picks: Radiohead, Malkmus, Black Keys, Twilight Singers

- The Darkness: Joke band?

- American Idol albums started coming out: Clay Aiken, Ruben Studdard, et al

- iTunes store took off

- New Metallica album overshadowed by documentary

- The power of video (case in point: Billy Squier's "Rock Me Tonite")

- 2004: Bands reuniting (Pixies, Mission of Burma, Dinosaur Jr.)

- Breitling's 2004 picks: MIA, Lali Puna, Walkmen, !!!, Jon Brion, Dirty on Purpose

- Kumar's 2004 picks: Arcade Fire, Hold Steady, Green Day, Burma, Lanegan, Wilco

- Bonehead of the Week

Music:

- The Postal Service - Such Great Heights

- Ted Leo and the Pharmacists - Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone?

Completely Conspicuous is available through the iTunes podcast directory. Subscribe and write a review!

The Postal Service song is on the 2002 album Give Up on Sub Pop Records, where you can download the track.

The Ted Leo and the Pharmacists song is on the 2003 album Hearts of Oak on Lookout Records. You can download the song at Insound.

The show is sponsored by Eastbay/Footlocker.com, a leading supplier of athletic footwear, apparel and sports equipment. Find gear from top brands such as Nike, Adidas, Asics, Reebok, New Balance, Converse and Saucony. The promo code AFCOMP15 will get you 15% off any order and the code AFCOMP20 will get you 20% off any order of $75 or more at Eastbay. And the code AFCOMPFL will get you 15% off any order at Footlocker.com. Help out the show by patronizing my sponsors, willya?

The opening and closing theme of Completely Conspicuous is "Theme to Big F'in Pants" by Jay Breitling. Find out more about Senor Breitling at his fine music blogs Clicky Clicky and Keeping Some Dark Secrets. Additional music used in the show is by Me and Boris the Bull, which is the brainchild of the mighty Mark Campbell. Thanks to Bob Durling for the album art; find out more about his photography here.

Completely Conspicuous is a Tan God Production. Word.