Completely Conspicuous 681: Quick and to the Pointless

This week, it's part 3 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about our favorite American artists post-2000. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as"). 

Show notes:

• Our favorite American artists since 2000
• Phil's honorable mentions: Black Keys, Dead & Co., Gary Clark Jr., Jack White, Kurt Vile, MJ Lenderman, My Morning Jacket, Parquet Courts, Raconteurs, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, St. Vincent, Them Crooked Vultures, Vampire Weekend, Waxahatchee, Yeah Yeah Yeahs
• Jay's honorable mentions: Walkmen, Neko Case, LCD Soundsystem, At the Drive-In, Stephen Malkmus, Speedy Ortiz, Jeff Rosenstock, Protomartyr, Outkast, the Strokes, Interpol, Titus Andronicus, Run the Jewels, Jason Isbell, Ty Segall, The Hold Steady
• Phil's #5: Billy Strings is bringing bluegrass to the mainstream
• Mixes in some rock touches
• Jay's #5: Indie rock stalwart Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
• Has also worked with Aimee Mann and Gang of Four
• Phil's #4: Young guitar hero turned Americana icon Jason Isbell
• Started with Drive-By Truckers and now is playing big theaters
• Jay's #4: The indie rock greatness of TV on the Radio
• Big emphasis on falsetto harmonies
• Phil's #3 and Jay's #2: The prolific and epic catalog of Drive-By Truckers
• Provided a different voice for Southern rock fans
• Jay's #3: The White Stripes provided a jolt for the rock scene in the early '00s
• Jack White has continued on after the Stripes split up
• "Seven Nation Army" might be the biggest song of the 2000s
• Phil's #2:  The bluesy versatility of the Tedeschi Trucks Band
• Led by a married couple
• Phil's #1: Goose is the premier jam band going right now
• They incorporate a lot of diverse covers
• Jay's #1: The sinister hard rock excellence of Queens of the Stone Age
• The Josh Homme-led band has had many incarnations over the years
• 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 680: Welcome to the Occupation

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

Show notes:

• Jay's take after seeing Goose
• Took us a while to get into the show
• Phil's #6: Phish took over the jam band crown from the Dead
• Jay briefly met Trey Anastasio at UNH before they got famous
• Goose hasn't been accepted by the entire jam band audience
• Jay's #6: Originally had Van Halen ranked higher, but dropped them because of the Hagar years
• Combined Eddie VH's revolutionary guitar work with DLR's showmanship
• Eddie inspired a generation of guitarists and Dave inspired a generation of hard rock singers
• Phil's #5: Steely Dan spits in the face of being called "yacht rock"
• Went from a live act to a studio perfectionist act to a live act again
• Fagen and Becker were demanding taskmasters
• Jay's #5: The imperfect perfection of the Replacements
• They self-sabotaged whenever things were about to break for them
• Never got to see them live
• Phil's #4 and Jay's #3: The singular genius of Jimi Hendrix
• Hugely influential guitarist and performer
• Must have blown a lot of minds when he was around
• Jay's #4: Pixies were a major influence on the alternative rock sound that shaped the '90s
• The band's first stint (1986-93) was epic
• Introduced weirdness into indie rock
• Still touring behind their classic material but making new music as well
• Phil's #3 and Jay's #10: Talking Heads were art school kids who became big
• Part of the CBGB scene of the '70s that went in a lot of different directions
• Explored a lot of sounds and influences
• Phil's #2: The Allman Brothers Band invented and transcended Southern rock
• Persevered through deaths and changing trends
• Jay's #2: No arguing with the greatness of Prince
• Hundreds of hours of unreleased music
• Was super talented at multiple instruments
• Was Prince the best all-around musician of the 20th century?
• Phil's #1: Duh, it's the Dead
• Inspired an entire subculture
• There are literally hundreds of Dead cover bands
• Jay's #1: The pride of Athens, GA, R.E.M.
• Helped create the "college rock" scene that grew into alternative rock
• Blew up in the early '90s
• Distinct career phases
• Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy have been covering R.E.M. albums in their entirety the last three years
• 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 679: Yankee Rose

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

Show notes:

• Recorded in the CompCon HQ backyard studio
• America's 250th birthday 
• Looking at our favorite American singers and bands, pre-2000 and post-2000
• Starting off with our top 10 of bands who debuted pre-millennium
• Sticking to rock artists for the most part
• Phil's honorable mentions include: B-52s (toughest omission from top 10), Beach Boys, Beasties, Beck, JB, Cars, early Chicago, Doors, early Foos, Little Feat, Nirvana, Pixies, Linda Ronstadt, Seger, Sleater-Kinney, SRV, Stevie Wonder, VU, VH, Wilco
• Jay's HMs: Living Colour, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Run DMC, Beasties, Public Enemy, Dino Jr., the Cars, JB, Fugazi 
• "Love Shack" overstayed its welcome 
• "Good Vibrations" could be a perfect pop song
• Seger was obsessed with a certain topic
• Billy Joel's metal roots with Attila
• Mutt Lange's production methods were tedious
• Fugazi refused all offers to reunite
• Phil's # 9: Pearl Jam formed almost by accident after another band broke up
• Still doing their thing all these years later
• Jay's #9: Were only together for about 8 years, but Husker Du amassed a legendary catalog
• Sound evolved from speedy hardcore punk to more melodic sounds
• Phil's #8: Tom Petty was a late bloomer who was hard to categorize at first
• Took advantage of the advent of MTV with plenty of iconic videos
• Jay's #8: The Afghan Whigs were the first non-Seattle band signed by Sub Pop
• Quickly distinguished themselves from their peers by combining soul and R&B influences with indie rock
• Jay's #7: Nirvana was only around for a short time, but they had a seismic impact
• Nirvana merch is now a lifestyle brand
• Saw them a week before they taped MTV Unplugged in NYC
• Packed a lot into a brief period
• 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 678: Knee Deep in the Hoopla

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we count down our favorite music of 2026 so far. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• Breitling's #6: Kurt Vile's love letter to Philly
• KV writes songs about nothing and they're great
• Kumar's #6: Great album from Chicago's Ratboys
• Leading the wave of bands with sweet female vocals and rocking instrumentation
• Breitling's #5: 17-track compilation from the Laughing Chimes
• It's like a typewriter, retro and satisfying
• Kumar's #5: Hot indie rock from Philly's Gladie
• Led by former singer of Cayetana
• Breitling's #4: First new LP from Broken Social Scene in a decade
• Reembracing the combustible
• Freakin' Fanelli
• Bootlegs became readily available in the early '00s
• Kumar's #4: Montreal post-punk trio with an excellent release
• Political lyrics
• Breitling's #3: The Notwist returns with a sound that combines their different phases
• Back to basics
• Documentary captures their weirdness
• Kumar's #3: Austin synth-punk weirdos Drakulas return with gloriously fun release
• Featuring members of the Riverboat Gamblers and Rise Against
• Breitling's and Kumar's #2: We did it!
• Courtney Barnett with a triumphant album recorded in California
• Sings about everyday issues in her life
• Breitling's and Kumar's #1: We did it again!
• Alex Edkins of METZ with his second Weird Nightmare album
• Not as dark and heavy as METZ, but exciting and exhilarating
• Very hooky and uplifting
• Looking forward to new stuff from Kiwi Jr., Strange Pains, Johnny Foreigner, Afghan Whigs, The Cramps (archival release), The Fall, Eddy Current Suppression Ring, Evil Island  
  

  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 677: Time for a Slacker Revolution

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about the best music of 2026 so far. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• AI music is apparently a thing on streaming services
• Saxophone Colossus, mfer (RIP)
• Blue dot syndrome: Tours getting canceled because of poor ticket sales
• Who woulda thunk Kiefer Sutherland couldn't sell out concerts?
• Many artists are trying to fill venues that are too big
• We're going to a lot of concerts
• Why is beer so expensive at music venues?
• What is a walking class?
• The Osbourne family has licensed an Ozzy hologram for use in ads
• ABBA does a hologram show of them in their prime
• Maybe older bands should be replaced by holograms
• Car Seat Headrest remade their 2016 album, removed swear words and drug references
• Books are being updated with current references
• AI is used a lot to make pop and R&B music
• Young H-Dawg is into grunge now
• Breitling's honorable mentions: Crooked Fingers, Sleaford Mods, Stomptalk Modstone, Softjaw, Reds Pinks and Purples, Mclusky, Fugazi, Hedge
• Kumar's HMs: King Tuff, Bevis Frond, New Pornographers, Gord Downie and the Sadies, Damaged Bug, Sub*T, Ecca Vandal, Broken Social Scene
• Breitling's #10: Philly's Nothing with a different sound
• Influenced by the singer's neurological disorder
• Kumar's #10: Mclusky returns with a killer mini-album
• Recent spate of touring has made the band even better
• Breitling's #9: Lofi Legs may or may not have released an album this year
• The time is right for a slacker revolution
• Kumar's #9: Joyce Manor sings about getting older
• LA trio makes with the emo pop-punk
• Breitling's #8: Reunited original lineup of the Grownup Noise
• Band deserves more props
• Kumar's #8: Pure pop magic from the Lemon Twigs
• Reminiscent of Sharp Pins and Redd Kross
• Breitling's #7: Pittsburgh's Feeble Little Horse persevere without Ryan
• All killer, no filler
• Kumar's #7: Canadian artist Daniel Romano continues to bring the heat
• Split up songwriting duties for this album
• 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 676: Out There

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

Show notes:

• Continuing our top 10
• Phil's #9: Trey Anastasio of Phish stretches out
• No studio version of the song
• Jay's #9: The concise awesomeness of Alex Lifeson
• A virtuoso in a band of virtuosos
• Phil's #8: Back to the jam with RIck Mitarotonda of Goose
• Another band that saves their best for the live setting
• Jay's #8: Another Matthew Sweet song, this time featuring Richard Lloyd on lead guitar
• Features a fake ending with even more soloing
• Phil's #7: Square dancing in gym class led Phil to this Beatles song
• George Harrison with a beautiful, heartfeld solo
• Great video, too
• Jay's #7: A ripping solo from J. Mascis from '93
• Video wasn't directed by Matt Dillon; he did the "Get Me" video
• Mascis has recorded a ton of great solos over the years
• Phil's #6: Eddie VH's magnum opus
• The instrumental that changed the face of hard rock
• Wasn't meant to be recorded at first
• Jay's #6: Less overplayed solo from Jimmy Page
• A lesser-known album from Zeppelin
• Phil's #5: Mick Taylor shines for the Stones
• The band started jamming at the end of the song and they kept recording
• Jay's #5: Robert Fripp with a ripper of a solo for Brian Eno
• Eno's first solo album after Roxy Music
• Phil's #4: The Allman Brothers' tribute to Django Reinhardt
• Three different solos
• Jay's #4: More Richard Lloyd along with Tom Verlaine on a 10-minute art-rock classic
• Kind of jam band adjacent
• Phil's #3: Neil Young with an epic love song
• Recording starts in the middle of a jam
• Jay's #3: Monster instrumental featuring Eddie Hazel's psychedelic playing
• Mike Watt does a cover with J. Mascis handling the guitar
• The interesting career of Prakash John
• Phil's #2 and Jay's #1: Hendrix blows minds with acid blues rock
• SRV does an incredible cover
• Jay's #2: Nasty riff and solo from Eddie VH
• One of Van Halen's darker songs
• Phil's #1: A Grateful Dead classic that highlights Jerry Garcia
• Cover of a Bonnie Dobson folk song
• Builds to a roaring crescendo

Completely Conspicuous is available wherever 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 675: Solo Flights

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

Show notes:

• Occasional chiming in from CC intern Lily
• Rolling Stone recently released a top 100 solos list
• Phil likes the long jammy solos
• Solos can go along with a riff or go off on crazy tangents
• Steely Dan used many guitarists
• Jay used to be into '80s speed guitar
• Vinnie Vincent went way over the top
• Charlie Sexton was a guitar prodigy who went on to play in Dylan's band
• The greatness of early Dire Straits
• Tough to narrow down our lists
• Appreciating Billy Idol
• Eagles bad, Joe Walsh good
• Terry Kath could rip
• So many great Jimmy Page solos
• The vast and weird catalog of Frank Zappa
• Billy Corgan has many excellent solos
• Kim Thayil was an unconventional soloist
• Bowie worked with many great guitarists: Mick Ronson, SRV, Belew, Earl Slick, Reeves Gabrels
• Townshend's solo on "I Can See for Miles" is simple but intense
• Fun weirdness from Focus on "Hocus Pocus"
• Phil's #10 is a tie
• Roger Hodgson of Supertramp was better known for playing keyboards
• Many hidden gems in the Who catalog
• Jay's #10: Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age
• Phil's not a fan of mosh pits
• To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through wherever 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 674: You Can Leave Your Hat On

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey as we celebrate the return of the MLB season by counting down our favorite baseball hats. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• On to our top 10
• Phil's #10: Reaching back to the '50s with the Phillies
• Jay's #10: Mid-90s Mariners 
• Good use of seafoam green
• '90s uniforms had a lot of bold colors: Teal, purple
• Phil's #9: The simplicity of the SF Giants hat
• Hat designs got pretty weird over the years
• Corduroy hats were a thing for a while
• Jay's #9: Classic A's green and yellow look
• Phil's #8: Dodgers' classic blue and white is another look that hasn't changed
• Bandwagon jumpers are inevitable
• Jay's #8: St. Louis Cardinals navy blue with red logo
• Had one that got ruined at Lollapallooza '93
• Phil's #7: The mid-70s Angels hat with the halo
• Lots of different looks for the Angels over the years
• Jay's #7: Phillies' hat from late '70s/early '80s
• Phil's #6: Sticking with Philly with the A's from the '30s
• Some hats are instant conversation pieces for middle-aged guys
• Jay's #6 and Phil's #4: Another classic look with the Tigers
• Ruining hats by working out in them
• Phil's #5: Kansas City A's with the kelly green
• Jay's #5: Brooklyn Dodgers with the classic B
• Jackie Robinson era
• Jay's #4: Can't go wrong with the Cubs "C" hat
• Some cool Cubs hats over the years
• Phil's #3: Iconic Red Sox blue hat
• Jay's #3: White Orioles hat with the cartoon bird
• Tried a more realistic bird in the '90s
• Phil's #2: The Braves' 70s hat with the lower case A
• Jay's #2: The Blue Jays' all-blue hat introduced in the late '80s
• Are middle-aged guys more likely to wear hats?
• Phil's #1: Orioles' mid-60s to mid-70s black hat with orange bill
• Jay's #1: Original Expos hat
• In Canada, Toronto fans hate the Canadiens but love the Expos
• Defunct but beloved team

Completely Conspicuous is available through wherever 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 673: A Tip of the Cap

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey as we celebrate the return of the MLB season by discussing our favorite baseball hats. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• We've both purchased many hats over the years
• Back in the '70s and '80s, you didn't have a lot of viewing choices for baseball games
• Baseball cards were a big factor in figuring out the hats and logos you liked
• Hats can fade, especially the dark blue ones
• When you just can't wear a Yankees hat
• Now there are so many alternate jerseys, hats, logos
• You can get hats in different colors and styles
• Old guys like us don't like flat-bill caps
• Other sports don't wear hats as part of the uniform, but you can get hats for their teams
• We often get hats of teams we have no affinity for
• Phil's honorable mentions: Black Sox-era White Sox, Boston/Milwaukee Braves, Cardinals from the '40s, Pirates pillbox hat from the '70s, Cleveland Chief Wahoo hat from the '50s
• Jay's honorable mentions: Reds, Brewers '70s hat with the glove logo, Royals, Expos all-blue hats in the '90s, Mariners '70s hat, Blue Jays original hat
• Phil: Seattle Pilots had a bad hat, with a touch of stolen valor    
• To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through wherever 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 672: Amazing Disgrace

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

Show notes:

• Jay's #6: The Spinanes with a decidedly not-grunge album on Sub Pop
• Female singer-songwriter teamed with kickass drummer
• Phil's #5: Power pop that never hit big from Boston's Gigolo Aunts
• Got a song on the Dumb and Dumber soundtrack
• Jay's #5: Another power pop gem from the Velvet Crush
• Saw them play in Austin in '94
• Phil's #4: B-52s avoid the sophomore slump and getting labeled as a novelty act
• Didn't hit as hard as the debut, but strong nonetheless
• Jay's #4: Late '80s/early '90s anthemic indie rock from O-Positive
• Influenced by R.E.M. and briefly on CBS
• Phil's #3: More Boston-area indie rock with Belly
• Tanya Donelly had a great rock pedigree, first playing with Throwing Muses and Breeders
• Jay's #3: Ex-Dumptruck guitarist Kevin Salem with Replacements/Tom Petty sound
• Released a couple of strong albums in the mid-90s before moving into production
• Phil's #2: U2's electronic departure that turned off a lot of their fans
• They were ahead of the game with the techno sounds
• Bad choice for lead single
• Jay's #2: Again with the power pop, this time from the Posies
• Band fell out of favor, Geffen refused to promote it
• Angry album that nobody heard
• Phil's #1: The Neil Young album where he was backed by Pearl Jam but couldn't publicize it
• "Godfather of grunge" with the biggest band at the time
• Did a brief tour of Europe, couldn't play here because of PJ's Ticketmaster litigation
• Jay's #1: Another major label flameout courtesy of Jawbreaker
• Punk act that faced sellout cries from fanbase, but label didn't like finished product and dropped them
• Great album that was a big influence on emo acts to come

Completely Conspicuous is available through wherever 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 671: Welcome to the Boomtown

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

Show notes:

• First episode of the year!
• Recorded right after the gold medal men's hockey game
• What is underrated?
• A well-known artist's less popular release or lesser-known artists
• Phil: Neil Young has a few underrated albums among his vast catalog
• Other Phil honorable mentions: Big Star, Bob Mould, Best Coast, Kaiser Chiefs, Bettie Serveert, Built to Spill, Keith Richards, N. Mississippi All-Stars, Ben Folds Five, Until the End of the World soundtrack, Til Tuesday, Neko Case, Passengers, Big Head Todd, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Fela Kuti, Dead Milkmen, Shuggie Otis, Uncle Tupelo, Waterboys
• Jay's honorable mentions: Trail of Dead, Material Issue, Peter Gabriel, The Church, PiL, Afghan Whigs, QOTSA, Smashing Pumpkins, Blind Melon, Elliot Easton, Pearl Jam, Elvis Costello, Matthew Sweet
• Phil's #10: Cracker's debut album
• Lowery's first post-Camper Van Beethoven release
• Jay's #10: Keith Richards releases a stripped-down solo album
• Was pissed at Jagger, created the antithesis to his flashy style
• Phil's #9: Prince creates a new band in the early '90s
• No more Revolution, going for more of a hip hop sound
• Jay's #9: Only release from David + David
• Studio musicians who teamed up to release atmospheric story songs
• Phil's #8: Indie supergroup comprised of members of Sleater-Kinney and Helium
• Only released one album
• Jay's #8: Living Colour's third album was criminally overlooked
• Introduced industrial elements but was lost in the wave of grunge
• Phil's #7: Jerry Harrison goes solo
• More pop than what Talking Heads were doing
• Jay's #7: Sebadoh unleashes ripping indie rock masterpiece
• Contributions from two songwriters
• Phil's #6: Self-assured debut from Elastica
• Waited too long to release their next album
• To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through wherever 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 670: Stacking the Deck

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about our favorite music of 2025. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• Counting down the rest of our favorite albums of the year
• Kumar's #8: Indie rock godfather Bob Mould is still pissed off and rocking
• Mould has also reunited his '90s band Sugar
• Kumar's #7: Triumphant return for Mclusky
• Falco and crew having fun ripping on various targets
• Breitling's #6: Superchunk keeps going with new drummer
• If you thought they were angry in 2018...
• Chock full of "banglociraptors"
• Kumar's #6: Straight outta Asheville with Wednesday's killer combo of alt-country, shoegaze and heavy guitar rippers 
• Band features MJ Lenderman but it's Karly Hartzman's show
• Breitling's #5: Debut from Slumberland act The Cords
• Scottish indie jangle-pop banglociraptors
• Kumar's #5: Thrilling post punk from South London act Shame
• Returning to harder rocking sound of first few albums
• More albums are shorter nowadays
• Breitling's #4: Prolific Chicago psych-pop act Sharp Pins keeps bringing it
• Flashes of GBV and early Kinks
• Breitling's #3: Crutchfield sisters (Waxahatchee, Swearin') drop surprise release as Snocaps
• Again with the Lenderman, on drums this time
• Kumar's #3: PUP applies newfound maturity to pop-punk bangers
• Singing about adult stuff 
• Breitling's #2: Mini-album from Peel Dream Magazine
• Autumnal-sounding leftovers from previous album recording session
• Kumar's #2: Sloan keeps bringing the heat with 14th release of diverse and rewarding power pop
• Four singer-songwriters keep the offerings varied and on point
• Breitling's #1 and Kumar's #4: Monumental four-album conceptual triumph from Hallelujah the Hills
• Lot of guest stars including Ezra Furman, Clint Conley, Sadie Dupuis, Patrick Stickles
• Staggering amount of excellence 
• Kumar's #1 and Breitling's #7: NYC's Geese blows up with wide-ranging collection that grabs your attention
• Their club tour sold out immediately
• Frontman Cameron Winter leads a sound that ranges from Pavement to soul
• Looking forward to 2026 releases from: Notwist, Kiwi Jr., Courtney Barnett, Sleaford Mods, Crooked Fingers, Strange Pains
• Reunion shows next year from Silkworm, Superdrag
  

  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 669: Fight the Good Fight

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling about our favorite music of 2025. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• The 17th annual year in music review
• AI-generated music is lame
• Especially fake music that purports to be by real artists
• Spotify is a juggernaut that still sucks
• Checking out other services (Qobuz, Amazon)
• You don't get to own downloads via streaming services
• The kids love the K-pop
• Only a handful of artists make any money these days
• Oh yay, LIve Nation is going to get richer
• Ticketmaster is now a ticket reseller as well
• We're still seeing the live rock
• Breitling: Thumbs up for the Aimee Mann/Ted Leo Christmas show
• Saw Oasis in Mexico City
• We both saw Hallelujah the Hills 
• Kumar: Saw Frank Black, Narducy/Shannon do R.E.M., Gang of Four with Ted Leo, Bob Mould, Greg Norton, Ducks Ltd., Pixies, the Who, Buffalo Tom
• Breitling's bubbling under music picks: Ava Luna, Lifeguard, Winter, Frankie Cosmos, Golden Apples, Lemonheads, Sister Ray Davies, Jeff Tweedy, Glimmer, Tiberius, Telephone Numbers
• Kumar's honorable mentions: Tweedy, The Convenience, Snocaps, Turnstile, The Hives, Viagra Boys, Pulp, Car Seat Headrest, Charm School, Horsegirl, Superchunk, Pile, The Beths, Tony Molina, Sharp Pins, They Are Gutting a Body of Water, Militarie Gun, Kestrels, Destroyer, Dean Wareham, Kinski, Ty Segall, Stereolab, Lunchbox, Cam Keiber, Husker Du and Replacements box sets
• Breitling's #10: Autocamper's debut asks a valid question 
• Kumar's #10: Debut solo release from TV On the Radio's Tunde Adebimpe 
• Breitling's #9: Energetic indie rock from Chicago's OK Cool 
• Kumar's #9: Ripper out of nowhere from The Men
• Breitling's #8: Urgent EP about ancient Greece by Strange Passage
• Reunion tours with strange combinations
• Triumph is coming around next year
• 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 668: Hate to Say I Told You So

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey as we pick our favorite songs released in the 21st century. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• Phil's #6: Frenetic assault from Parquet Courts
• Definite late '70s post-punk influences
• Jay's #6: A bold move into electronic sounds by Radiohead
• Phil still doesn't get Radiohead
• Phil's #5: Slacker guitar hero vibes from Kurt Vile
• Stream-of-consciousness lyrical approach
• Jay's #5: Garage rock anthem that introduced the Hives to the world
• Punchy and super catchy, it took two years to hit in the U.S.
• The battle for car music supremacy
• Phil's #4: New Orleans vibe from Tedeschi Trucks Band
• Phil's intro to the band
• Jay's #4: A first single that will never be topped by Franz Ferdinand
• Catchy, danceable stomper comparing love to a sniper's duel
• Phil's #3: Goose brings jam band versatility to the masses
• Blew up since the pandemic and are now selling out Madison Square Garden
• Jay's #3: Queens of the Stone Age craft a perfect hard rock song
• The magic of the killer riff plus Dave Grohl's drumming
• Phil's #2: Ripper from Aussie Courtney Barnett
• Lyrics focus on everyday life
• Jay's #2: Indie rock classic from the Walkmen
• Emerged from the early '00s NYC scene
• Tension keeps building throughout
• The greatness of Joe Jackson
• Phil's #1: Epic and creepy classic from Death Cab for Cutie
• Song builds for 4 1/2 minutes before the vocals kick in
• Menacing bassline underlines the lyrics about obsession
• Jay's #1: TV On the Radio with a killer song from a killer album
• Intensity driven by Tunde Adebimpe's vocal delivery
• Also came up in NYC in the early '00s

Completely Conspicuous is available through wherever 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 667: Everything In Its Right Place

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey as we pick our favorite songs released in the 21st century. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• We're a quarter through this century
• Phil: Thought this would be easy but came up with a long list
• What about a song grabs you?
• Jay: Original top 10 list was all songs from the 00s
• Songs that didn't make our top 10
• Phil: Tribe Called Quest, Vampire Weekend, Meatbodies, Wilco, Ryan Adams and the Cardinals, TV On the Radio, Wet Leg, Franz Ferdinand, Michael Kiwanuka, MJ Lenderman, U2, Frances Forever, Patrick Sweeney, Mudcrutch, Sufjan Stevens, Shearwater, Jason Isbell, Songs: Ohia
• Jay: Radiohead, Bowie, At the Drive-In, Drive-By Truckers, Sloan, Sleater-Kinney, Death from Above 1979, Jay-Z, Hold Steady, Gord Downie, Tragically Hip, Living Colour, Outkast, Wild Flag, White Stripes, PJ Harvey, Parquet Courts, Spoon, M.I.A., Kaiser Chiefs
• Jay: Found out about a lot of new music from MP3 blogs in the early 00s
• Phil's #10: Spoon breaks through
• Song was a cover of a song by The Natural History
• Jay's #10: Last song from Bowie's iconic farewell album
• Love the album but it's hard to listen to because of the sadness
• Phil's #9: Mournful ballad from Mark Lanegan
• Jay: My favorite Lanegan song
• Mixing bubblegum and chewing tobacco is a bad idea
• A duet with Chris Goss of Masters of Reality
• Jay's #9: A fiery hip hop blast from Run the Jewels and Zach de la Rocha
• Waiting for their next album; last one was in 2020
• Phil's #7: Bluegrass turn from Billy Strings
• Strings is winning over a lot of fans of other genres
• Phil's #8: Protest song from Drive-By Truckers
• Band chronicles a lot of real-life injustices
• Jay's #8: Angry ripper from Superchunk
• Commentary on the political climate of 2018
• Sometimes fans don't like the message
• Jay's #7: White Stripes hit the mainstream
• Took a year for their third album to become a hit
• To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through wherever 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 666: Playing Favorites

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey as we pick our favorite songs by randomly selected artists. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as"). [NOTE: Something weird is going on with the Libsyn player but the episode definitely exists. You can still download it and it's in all the podcast catchers of choice.]

Show notes:

• More of our favorites from artists picked out of a hat
• Phil: Pretenders
• Overcoming the deaths of half the band
• Jay: James Brown
• Love the '70s funk era
• Prince was able to replicate JB's dance moves in concert
• Phil: Parquet Courts
• Built a great catalog over the last 13 years or so
• Influenced by the late '70s NYC CBGB sound
• Jay: Beatles
• How do you pick a single Beatles song?
• Phil: Sleater-Kinney
• Powerful band
• Janet Weiss is a powerhouse drummer
• Jay: Led Zeppelin
• Favorite song depends on the day
• Phil: Prince
• He could play any style
• Jay: Hoodoo Gurus
• Saw them for the first time last year
• Caught the mid-80s college rock wave
• Phil: The Police
• Ghost in the Machine was one of the first albums Phil ever bought
• Early Police is untouchable
• Jay: The Clash
• Political rock that still holds true today
• Covered a lot of musical ground
• Phil: R.E.M.
• Was introduced to the band by his uncle
• People who jumped off the bandwagon after they went to a major are missing out
• Jay: Elvis Costello
• EC has been all over the map musically, but his lyrics are always on point
• Phil: Squeeze
• Difford and Tilbrook were great songwriters
• Amazing string of classic songs
• Jay: Joe Jackson
• Easy choice 
• The first few albums were outstanding
• Musical chameleon

Completely Conspicuous is available wherever 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 665: Choose Your Fighter

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey as we pick our favorite songs by randomly selected artists. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• Phil's idea: Blind rankings
• We each pick 10 artist names out of a hat and name a favorite song for each
• Phil picks names from N-Z, Jay gets A-M
• No prep time for our answers
• Phil: Velvet Underground
• Plenty to choose from
• Trying not to choose popular songs
• Jay: B-52s
• They made the "no play list" at Jay's wedding
• Great catalog of bangers
• Phil: Talking Heads
• Band had different phases
• Mixed Afro rhythms, funk and skronky guitar from Adrian Belew
• New David Byrne album is good
• Jay: Living Colour
• Band played many different styles well
• They still bring the heat
• Phil: Neil Young
• A musical chameleon
• Amazing solo or with Crazy Horse (or other backing bands)
• Jay: Grateful Dead
• Easy choice
• Always had a favorite song by them
• 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 664: Time Stand Still

This week, I'm joined by fellow podcast pioneer Brian Salvatore as we discuss the first 20 years of podcasting. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• Brian: First heard about podcasts in 2004
• Started making the FrankBlack.net Podcast in 2006
• Jay: Got my first iPod in 2004 and then learned about podcasts
• Brian: The internet was so much better 20 years ago
• Great for digging into niche interests
• Jay and Brian met through the Frank Black podcast in 2010 and realized that Brian lived near Jay's brother-in-law
• Jay: The start of CompCon in 2006
• Always loved radio but never worked at the college station
• First few years were just me talking about pop culture
• Eventually started bringing on guests after a few years
• Podcasting got an early boost when Apple started a podcast directory
• Early podcasts I listened to were by Adam Curry, Ricky Gervais
• Marc Maron started his podcast in 2009 and is airing his last episode next week
• Now everybody's got a podcast
• Brian: Before podcasts, blogging was a thing
• Brian produces podcasts for other people in addition to his own
• Podcasting never became a career for us, just a hobby
• But some people have made lots of money from them
• Brian: Not much innovation in the podcast space lately
• Music podcasts were hampered by copyright issues
• Podcast networks started popping up
• Conan O'Brien created a great podcast after his TV talk show went away
• Podcasting is much more interesting than commercial radio these days
• Brian: Grew up loving radio, especially WFMU
• Jay: College radio is still good, but commercial radio blows
• DJs used to be dependable arbiters of taste
• Now everything's heavily formatted
• Jay: Been doing my own radio show on BFF.fm for the last 12 years
• Brian co-owns a sports podcast company
• People have trouble committing to a show once they start it
• Listening habits have changed
• Jay: Currently listen to WTF, The Best Show, sports shows about Toronto teams, The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers
• Brian: Election Profitmakers, Song Exploder, Never Not Funny, Conan, Indiecast, Who Cares About the Rock Hall?, Mets podcasts
• So much content to wade through
• Just like with music; it's much easier to release an album now but there's so much out there
• Tough to make it as a musician now
• Podcasts have gone beyond a niche thing
• Jay: I love listening to audio
• The value of playing songs people haven't heard a zillion times
• Every celebrity has a podcast
• Will podcasts go back to the indie days at some point?
• Jay: I do two podcasts for work
• The bubble will burst at some point
• AI could have a strange, negative effect
• Connections formed via podcasting
• Brian: Start a podcast, people

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 663: Shadow Dancing

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about songs we hate to love. Listen to the episode below or download directly (right click and "save as").

Show notes:

• Our top 10 songs we hate to love in no particular order
• Phil: A song from the infamous Great White
• One of the many bands who tried to sound like Zeppelin
• Jay: Rupert Holmes somehow got cheesier than the "Pina Colada Song"
• Classic AM gold shizz
• Phil: A big hit for the Carpenters
• Originally written for a bank commercial
• Jay: Monster disco one-hit wonder from Patrick Hernandez
• Phil: Britney with an earworm
• Jay: Raspy pop smash from Kim Carnes
• Crossed over to MOR stations that our parents listened to
• Phil: Digging into the Jefferson Starship ballads
• Marty Balin got on the wrong side of the Hell's Angels at Altamont
• Jay: Phil Collins did a lot of soundtrack music in the '80s in addition to everything else
• A patented Collins Angry Ballad
• Phil digs that calypso beat in one of Lionel Richie's biggest hits
• Richie was one of the driving forces behind "We Are the World"
• Jay: A synth pop cover of "Lean On Me"
• Phil: Secretly loved the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack as a kid
• Yvonne Elliman sang backups on several Clapton albums
• Jay: Non-English hit by Falco
• Only German-language #1 song in America
• Phil: Frankie Valli's disco song in Grease
• Written by Barry Gibb, who was unstoppable in the late '70s
• Jay: Early '70s soft rock jam from Albert Hammond
• Phil: John Mayer's wuss rock moment
• More familiar with his work in Dead and Co.
• Jay: Rediscovered recently his love of Little River Band
• Australian purveyors of catchy dad rock
• Original members lost the rights to the band name
• Phil: Shout out to the Weather Girls
• Catchy and co-written by Paul Shaffer
• Jay: Another huge hit from the Queen of Disco, Donna Summer
• Phil: An apparently ironic love ballad from the Captain and Tennille
• Jay: Another hit from the Gibb family, this time younger brother Andy
• Too much cocaine, apparently

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 662: Songs We Hate to Love

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

Show notes:

• Surprised at how good the Who were in concert despite their advanced age
• Songs we hate to love, not necessarily guilty pleasures
• Things we were embarrassed to say we liked when we were in school
• Most of our picks were from when we were kids
• Jay: I liked hard rock and metal and would never admit I liked poppier stuff like Duran Duran
• Jay: In doing research, I discovered there was a "rock" version of the Lord's Prayer that was a minor hit in 1973
• Phil: ABBA wrote some pop classics
• When REO Speedwagon had that one huge album
• AOR was huge in the early '80s
• Jay: I loved KISS's disco song, but never got into the band
• Phil: Listened to a lot of Manilow as a kid
• Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" captured that swinging '60s vibe
• The pop goodness of the Association
• Phil: The band Boston has been played to death in these parts, but they had their moment
• Controversial choice: Phil likes the worst Genesis song
• Dumb song, dumb video
• When Eddie Murphy became a pop star
• Phil also likes Crazytown's hit
• Released at the height of nu metal/rap rock
• Jay: Begrudgingly liked Animotion's big hit
• First album Jay had as a kid was by Glen Campbell
• Campbell wasn't a typical country singer
• Jay: Got into some of Paul Simon's mid-70s solo work
• Getting into early Loverboy deep cuts
• Billy Joel wrote a lot of bad songs, but a few good ones
• Jay: Always a big fan of "Rump Shaker"
• ABC was good at the foppish synth pop
• Jay: I hate everything about Smash Mouth except their first single
• Totally dig one George Michael song above all others
• Late '70s pop blast from M
• Foreigner struck gold with catchy rock jams
• 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.