Indiecast - New Album Announcements From Vampire Weekend, DIIV, And More + Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Nominations

Episode Date: February 16, 2024

Steven and Ian open this week's episode by doing something they promised themselves they wouldn't do — taking shots at the new Idles album out today, TANGK (Even the title is annoying). Of course they then proceed with a quick Sportscast about the Super Bowl in which Steven explains how he can't bring himself to hate the Kansas City Chiefs in their current "dominant" era (5:05). During the Fantasy Draft update, Ian finally gets a chance to draft a replacement for the still-missing-from-Metacritic jazz album he originally picked (12:19).From there the guys review some big new recent album announcements from Vampire Weekend, DIIV, Pearl Jam, and Beyoncé. Steven and Ian have heard some of these albums, and they give praise while trying to not talk in too much detail (16:35). They also dip into the discourse about the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame nominations and weigh Oasis' chances of making it in spite of the Rock Hall's aversion to alt-leaning '90s bands (34:22).In the mailbag, a reader asks Steven and Ian to "yay or nay" Jessica Pratt, who also announced a new album this week (43:17). The guys are also asked to weigh in on whether Creed was secretly "innovative." Their answers (probably) will not shock you! (48:05)In Recommendation Corner (55:51), Ian goes with the young Chicago band Friko while Steven pays tribute to the late Can singer Damo Suzuki, who passed away on Feb. 9.New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 176 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [e-mail], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Indycast is presented by Uprox's Indy Mix tape. Hello everyone and welcome to IndyCast. On this show, we talk about the biggest indie news of the week. We review albums and we hash out trends. In this episode, we talk about some big new album announcements and the 2024 nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. My name is Stephen Hayden, and I'm joined by my friend and co-host. He really loves the new idols video.

Ian Cohen. Ian, how are you? I like how we're starting off this episode, like not even at all being sarcastic. I just really, really like this Idol's video. I mean, like, it really speaks to all things that I love. You know, AI deep fakes. This made me think of, like, last week how you thought the AI video for Manikin Pussy was, like, going to sync their album release. Like, I already forgot about this.

We're already, we're already off AI and into, like, deep fakes of Cole Play Parachute songs. Can we just assume that people haven't seen. see this video yet. It's amazing. Yeah, well, yeah, there's a video out this week. It's for the latest idol single called Grace. And it's an AI deep fake video based on the video for yellow, the cold play video from, you know, God, almost 25 years ago now. And in the video, you see Chris Martin on that beach and he's lip syncing, but it's not lip syncing to yellow, it's lip syncing to this kind of crappy Idol song. And by the way, the Idol's album is out today.

And in true idols fashion, it's annoying to pronounce. It's Tank, I think. T-A-N-G-K. I'm going to assume that's what it is. Every time I look up that word, like maybe it's like a Welsh word or something like that, I either get the Idol's album or like, you know, showing results for tango. So, you know, you and I were talking this week about, you know, what was going to be on the show, and you brought up idols and, like, should we talk about idols? And I was like, you know, we've set our piece on idols in the past. We're not fans. We don't need to beat this dead horse. We don't have to keep taking shots at idols. But then they dropped this video, and I'm like, okay, we have to talk about this at least a little bit. Did you see that video also from this album cycle, like, where they're all wearing the suits? and they're kind of dancing.

Yes, I did. Oh, my God. That is so annoying. This band, so they're working with Nigel Godrich on this record. So this is sort of like they're, we're throwing out the formula here, and we're going to make kind of like a dancey, funky, hip-hop inspired record. And in True Idol's fashion, it is the perfect bad idea. You know, like, this band has bad ideas, and they commit to them,

and this is like the perfect bad idea for the fourth record. Like, oh yeah, we're this sort of screaming post-punk band, you know, very guttural singer. Let's now put on some suits and slip in some like, you know, break beats or whatever, and we're going to make our Octune Baby type record. I don't know.

I haven't listened deep to this record. I'm not going to give a definitive review, but I don't know. I just, I'm not a fan of that. band. Yeah, I also think that it's funny. They did this for their song Grace because I think of this Coleplay song, Shiver, which sounds like a deep fake version of Jeff Buckley's Grace. So we're really through the looking glass here, people. But yeah, idols, man, like, I almost admire just how committed they are to their bad ideas. I mean, they made a album with, like, Kenny Beats before,

so they were trying to do that hip-hop album. They're always going to bring something new to the table. It's never going to be just like, okay, idols, we think they're whack, they're doing their thing. Nah, they, it's so interesting how they are like one of the few bands. Like, they're, they're probably the band that most people expect us to

like, because so much of what they do, uh, kind of panders to people are, like, people are age who haven't really kept up with indie rock over the past 10 years or so. It's like, why aren't there rock bands anymore? Yeah, exactly. Where are the real rock

fans and then oh here's this band from england that shouts a lot and the guitar player has a silly mustache like they rock nice masculinity it would be a shame if somebody subverted it so anyway i don't know i'm sure we got some idols fans in the audience we're not happy about this i'm sorry hope you enjoyed this record i think kenny beats is involved in this album as well the lca's sound system i think is involved too oh my god yeah just the hits just keep on coming um Let's do a quick sports cast here. Of course, the Super Bowl last weekend. Congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Condolences to the San Francisco 49ers. I thought it was a great game. I know people didn't like the first three quarters. They thought it was boring. I was glued to the game the entire time. I don't know if I'm just like a slut for football. And I'll just take any garbage that they serve me. but I was super into it.

Did you like the game? You're a college football guy. So maybe you felt, did you think it was boring? I mean, I think it was like the quintessential NFL game of this past year in that it was close, which could fool you into thinking it was good. I mean, I watched the whole time. Don't get me wrong. But I was just taken aback at how closely it hewed to the predictions that I made about,

about like, you know. I was going to say, you nailed it. You said it'd be a close game. Yeah. And that the Chiefs would win in annoying fashion with Travis Kelsey. I think you said he'd have more than 10 catches, which he didn't quite hit 10. I think he had nine catches for 90. Yeah, he was nothing in the first half.

And I'm like, just like, just you watch. Like I would, like every five minutes like me turning to my wife saying like Travis Kelsey is going to catch this touchdown. The only thing that I, you know, the only thing that I missed out on is like I told her like as they were driving it's like Travis Kelsey's going to catch this touchdown and it didn't happen but some some rando wide receiver McColl Hardman shout to him Georgia dog you know stepped up in the end but yeah I mean it's just the grim inevitability of it all like when you give Pat Mahomes the ball

back for like the final drive like there's just nothing you can do it's it's it's It's very Tom Brady. It's very, you know, Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and, you know, these people who you used to think, like, wow, that's a really cool story. It just becomes, like, so inevitable. It's really hard to root for them. You know, I know a lot of people aren't going to like the Chiefs now because, you know, they've won three Super Bowls and, you know, five years. I can't bring myself to dislike them. I still like the Chiefs.

I like Patrick Mahomes. I have a weakness for seeing great athletes be great and knowing that I get to see it in the moment. Like, I thought it was cool seeing Tom Brady, you know, have a comeback victory against the Falcons where it's 28 to 3. Even though, like, I went into that game, not wanting them to win,

I was like, I'm seeing something incredible here. So I appreciate that kind of like historical moment aspect of this kind of thing. And I just like Patrick Mahomes' game. He's a very fun. Oh, yeah, don't get me wrong. Like, he, like, in all other circumstances, I would think, like, this is so fucking cool. He does, like, he is, like, not at all game manager. He does, like, the most ridiculous things.

And, you know, it's great. It's almost like Steph Curry. Like, that's the kind of the way I think about it, where it's, like, what you're seeing is completely unprecedented. And, you know, you really want to, like, root for them. But there's just such a three-quarter fleece zip-up, tech bro kind of thing going on here it's not cool it's not swaggy though yeah he's not cool at all like you see him in interviews

and he's like kind of a nerdy guy I mean I'm saying this multi super bowl winning quarterback as a nerdy guy I'm saying this as a music critic podcaster you know maybe not the best word to use I can't even hate Travis Kelsey really even though he almost you know murdered Andy Reid on the sidelines during the game. And even though, you know, the Taylor Swift stuff is very overbearing at this point,

have you ever listened to the podcast that he does with Jason Kelsey? I've heard of it. But like this week, we kind of brushed up on his reality dating show from 2016, which I've not seen, are you familiar with this? No, I'm not. Okay, so it was a show catching Kelsey. And it's from 2016. He looks a lot more like Lance from the other two at that time,

which I really do. I really hope that show like comes out and says, yeah, that's who we were going for here. But yeah, he goes from state to state trying, like dating a woman. And like you see a scene on a football field where they all kind of like, you know, crowd him out. And no, I mean, it's not like a secret. And it's not like it's bad or whatever that, nothing cancelable happens. But it's just like you would think more people would be talking.

talking about that, you know, just in terms of like what kind of person he is. Because one thing that I had, I heard from people, it's like, you know, I never heard him talk before, you know, he did the Viva Las Vegas thing. And it's like, oh, right, he's the, you know, to steal a line from like chopo here. He's like the guy who would wear all blue, Carolina blue and one basketball gear, you know, he's like that kind of guy. Yeah, I mean, on his podcast with Jason Kelsey, it did make me, I was dipping into it the last week or two

it did make me like him more just because I think the dynamic with his brother like Jason Kelsey's awesome That guy rules He's a cool dude He's like the Jock in high school That is on the football team

But he's also like In the theater department And he's also like friends Like with the math nerds And the goth kids Like he can hang with anybody Like he's kind of like The president of the school

but you can't hate him because he's just such a likable dude. That's like Jason Kelsey. And he kind of brings that out of Travis when they're on their show. So I can't even really hate him. Can't hate the Chiefs. I do hate the 49ers. I've said that many times on the show. But, you know, Brock Purdy played well.

Hats off to him. I will disagree with that. I think... I think Brock Purdy... Maybe I have low expectations, but like he didn't screw up, though. I thought he would throw like a pick six or something. So I love that. at the end, it's like, Brock Purdy isn't a game manager.

He's a game executive now. And also, like, yeah, executive's like, meaning, like, we have no fucking idea what they do, but they get paid a lot of money. But, like, I mean, he did incredible on that first drive. But, like, for the rest of the game, you could just get the sense. It's like, man, if they had Jimmy Garapolo or even, like, a Jared Gough, they'd be up by two touchdowns. Because every throw he makes that's, like, longer than five yards is, like, it's like a backyard duck, you know? It's like that that would be intercepted if it wasn't thrown 10 yards out of bounds.

Yeah. Well, look, we're going to have many, many months to litigate and relitigate Brock Purdy. I think this is going to be like a staple of sports talk for many months in the offseason and into next season. What's pivot off of sports cast and do a quick fantasy update here? B.J. Iyer. B.J. Iyer Gate. I'm going to call with that. Still not showing up on Metacritic.

This is like the, you know, the D.B. Cooper, if you will, of albums for us in the fantasy draft. Do you know D.B. Cooper? Is this reference flying by you? Yeah, I do. And it was also a reference on the Glass Beach Song Rare Animal. I think of it more along the lines of like Fran Vasquez from the NBA draft. The Magic picked him with like the 11th pick and he never played in the NBA. Okay, so Fran Vasquez, D.B. Cooper, I was thinking because D.B. Cooper jumped off the plane and then disappeared forever. I feel like D.J.I. or this album came out, and for whatever reason, it never landed on Metacritic.

So, this album's getting good reviews. I've seen reviews pop up here and there. But do you want to pick something else? I think we're at that point now. I think it's only fair. So I could pick something, but, like, I don't, I feel like that would be a little unfair. So I'll give you the option. Do you want me to pick one or can I give you options and you pick it for me? Well, look, I, the Faye Webster thing. Okay. You let me just put that in.

So I don't feel like I need to pick it. If you want me to pick it, I'll pick it. But if you just want to pick something you want, you can do it because I owe you a solid from Faye Webster. Okay. So I'm going to go with. I'm going to, I was thinking between Kim Gordon. That would be a good one. I think that that's like kind of getting a lot of traction.

More Mother, that's another kind of classic. But I'm going to go with Jaylen. She is a kind of a footwork techno artist from Gary, Indiana. Philip Glass, I think, is on her new album, which comes out March 22nd. Always well reviewed. I think that's, I feel that's a pretty safe pick. Also, and it kind of gets into the, it's not jazz obviously but like it's still kind of like high brow uh in its own way so we're gonna go with that

are you just being nice to me because we're gonna talk about this in our next segment there is a new vampire weekend album coming out like you don't want that that's out next quarter though oh you're right you're right okay that's how and i think bianca should just be like off limits so oh no bianzzi's on the board everything's on the board I mean if you could pick you were allowed to do the the 1989 redo so Beyonce is definitely on the board

that's going to be probably the number one prospect for the second quarter draft here well March 29th is when is when Beyonce comes out that's still Q1 I'm gonna pass on it just out of it

like not out of just kind of out of kindness in my own heart I feel like it would be unfair I feel like, you know, just the fact that I picked the jazz out, like I shouldn't be rewarded that much, you know. Yeah, okay. Yeah, I think that's fair. Okay. Okay, I was thinking that was next quarter, but yeah, you're right. It's right at the end of this quarter.

There's also Adrienne Linker. Yes, that was another one I was thinking about. But I'm going to go with something that's kind of in the spirit of the one I chose before. Okay, so Jay Lynn comes up March 22nd. I was going to say, Kim Gordon, that's like a 7.2 to me. I feel like that's, I don't see it doing better than that. And of course, I say this without having heard the album. But I just feel like you can look at it and go, that's a 7.2.

I would disagree. No better. How good or bad it is. You think it could get into the 8s? I'll tell you this much. The first single was like kind of like a SoundCloud rap song. And it would be like people really into that. And, you know, I think.

last album that came out in 2019 got Best New Music, it did. So I wouldn't like Kim Gordon, like people, people, like, I think she's got some juice, but I'm going to go with Jaylen. All right. All right. Good pick. Good pick. All right, well, let's get into our next segment here. There have been

a lot of big album announcements in the past week. And I think it's been, it seems like a good opportunity to talk about some of these records. I just let it slip what the biggest one is, at least in our universe, which is a new Vampire Weekend album. It's called, hold on a sec, I got lost here. There's a new Vampire Weekend album. It's called Only God Was Above Us. It's out April 5th. The day that this podcast posts, there should be two new songs that are being debuted online. Ian, you haven't heard these songs yet. I have heard these songs.

I do have a stream of the album that I've been listening to, and I really like this record. That's all I'll say for now, but I think it's a strong record. This is the first Vampire Weekend album in five years. The last one, of course, was Father of the Bride that came out in 2019. I was a big fan of that record. I think that record was generally well-received. I think that there were some people who maybe didn't like the turn toward more

like a crunchy, jammy sound on that record as opposed to the very sort of perfectly composed nature of like those first three Vampire Weekend records. Where are you at with Vampire Weekend at the moment? Are you excited for this record? What do you think this means? Does Vampire Weekend still have the same stature that they did, you know, in 2019 or before that? Where do you stand on this band at the moment? Well, I'm excited about this record because it's the first one that will have been released

during the indie cast era. I always like it. I always like, like, oh, wait, we haven't talked about this fan. It's going to also happen if and when Taman Paula puts out a new record because that vampire weekends indie cast era has finally arrived. Yeah. Oh my God. I mean, what a moment.

Yeah, it's funny because I didn't see the kind of crunchy, you know, Father of the Bride had a really hoard tour type cover. I didn't see that as a surprise. Because I mentioned this on this, you know, on the pod before that like Ezra reminds me a lot of like you mentioned Jason Kelsey as like one of those guys who's both the um you know on the football team but also like student class president and Ezra reminds me sort of of like the the really popular kids in Jewish youth group who you couldn't hate because they were super nice so and all those kids listen to like Dave Matthews band and fish uh when I was growing up so I'm not

surprised by that turn I like that album I don't return to it super often Contra is my favorite vampire weekend album maybe because it's the one that's like the kind of the black sheep of the bunch. I mean, relatively speaking. But I am very interested to see where they stand in 2024. I think they've kind of transcended the, for lack of a better term, haters. I don't think people are trying to like take them down for the same things they were in like 2008 or 2008 or 2010. And I think there's my prediction is like I'm expecting them to.

to make like a really just kind of crafty album where it's like oh vampire weekend doing their thing it's great um i think that they are still very much like pitchfork headliner uh type status in terms of how popular they are i think that every like i don't think any of their albums is going to like greatly reduce or greatly expand their fan base which i think is you know kind of perfect for where they're at yeah i mean they really seem like one of the rock bands, if I can put, because they are a rock band, sure. But they've also, you know,

drifted into other areas of pop and R&B and very exonically adventurous. They do seem like a band that has transcended their era in a way that, like, a lot of those other bands haven't. I mean, it's easy to forget that, like, Vampire Weekend when they started out were a blog rock band, essentially. I mean, there was a big backlash against them or part of the backlash against them initially

was that people felt like, oh, they're getting way too much hype. You know, like, all the blogs are just building this band up and, like, who are they? Like, why are they on magazine covers already? They haven't earned their stripes. And, of course, their subsequent career has shown that they had legs

and they could really go the distance. That first record, I've been listening to a lot lately, related to something, a project that I'm starting. And that record holds up. so well. That is such a just charming, totally just ingratiating debut album. And the singles off of that, I think, are just unbelievable. And man, I want to talk more about this record, but I'm not going to, but I don't know. If you're a fan of the band, I think you should be excited. I'll just say that. I think, based on the spins I've done so far, I think that

they've delivered on this album. The next album is another album that we have both, heard and look I don't know how people feel about like critics talking about albums that are coming out in a few months and hyping them up I feel like some people get annoyed by that I don't really understand why because I feel like critics that's this is what we do we hear things first and then we talk about them I'm just gonna say the new dive record which was just announced it's being announced as we speak I think I hope so yeah yeah I mean it's supposed It was supposed to be announced on Thursday.

I assume it's being announced. It's called Frog Boiling in Water. Kind of a weird title. This is maybe my favorite album I've heard this year. I think this record is great. We've talked about Dive on the show and kind of looking at this year as maybe being a moment where this band is loved by a lot of people,

but I wonder if maybe they're going to be now sort of appreciated as like one of the best indie bands. of like the last 10 years. I feel like this record that they're about to put out, I believe it comes out in May. It comes out in May 10th. I think this record could do that. I like it a lot.

And it feels like a record that is right for the moment. It really leans into like the shoegaze aspects of what dive is, maybe less so like the dream pop type stuff. I mean, there's like a song on here that I think literally quotes like a my bloody the Valentine song. Like it just takes the riff. Yeah. Yeah.

Which is incredible. But I don't know. I like this record a lot. And I think people are going to dig it once it comes out. Yeah, really well-time because it does kind of follow up more of what they were doing on Deceiver. It's, you know, you could call it Sue Gees, but there's, it's more kind of like a slow, not slow core like duster. But the songs and the tempos are like slower and kind of grungier, which, I mean, is great for a moment. when like shugays and slow core are often used interchangeably.

Yeah, I think that, I mean, this is also the first dive album of the Indycast era. And so, yes, yes. 2000. That's right. It's because it's their, because yeah, their last record was Deceiver. That was 2019. Yeah, 2019 as well. Man, the Indicast era finally coming into play in 2024.

We've only been doing the show for four years, but we're finally coming into our own in 2024. But yeah, I think this album is going to. be, I don't know if it's like going to like push them. Like I don't know if this is going to be like pushing them over the top. And I think that the people who are like into this style of music are really going to be like people have been just kind of waiting for dive to come back and reestablish themselves as you know, one of, if not like one of the definitive bands of its time. One that really cultivated an audience and kept it. And you know, continue to make good music. And you know, like for me is the is our.

That's probably always going to be my favorite dive album just because I'm a sprawl person and I like the kind of diversity of it. Yeah, I'm excited to see what people think about this one. So the next big album announcement from the past week, Pearl Jam has a new album, Dark Matter coming out April 19th. This album was produced by Andrew Watt, who did the most recent Rolling Stones record. And he's like, worked with Ozzy Osbourne. I mean, he basically works with aging rock bands and tries to make them sound modern. Like, he's a guy and I think he's like 33 years old. And, you know, I think his approach is, I mean, clearly the old guy's like the guy.

You know, the old timers love this guy. I think his approach is like a little polarizing. He is a very slick sounding dude. Like his productions are like super gloss. And the single that came out this week from Pearl Jam, it's called Dark Matter. I mean, I knew I was in trouble a little bit with this album because ahead of the single, I forget who it was, it might have been Mike McCready was saying, people are going to be surprised by how heavy this record is.

And I'm like, okay, when Pearl Jam is trying to prove, like, how hard they can rock on their late period records, I don't think that that is playing to their strengths. I think it kind of results in a lot of ham-fisted music from them. This single, I think the song is okay. The production, though, to me, I don't know if you listen to the song. To me, it sounds like verses if it was produced by Max Mark. You know, it's very shiny in a way that doesn't really speak to me personally. So I don't know.

I'm curious, I haven't heard this album. I've just heard the single. I don't even know what a Pearl Jam is. album means in 2024. And if you're saying this, I mean, you're like literally wrote like a book about Pearl Jam. Not just a book about Pearl Jam, but a book

about Pearl Jam that actually takes things they've made after 2002 into account. Right, right. And I like some of their late period albums. I feel like they, there's always at least like three or four songs that I like. I tend to like the slower songs more than the fast songs. I just think the fast songs to me,

often don't work. You know, I hate to say this, but like when old bands try to like rock too hard, you can tell. It's kind of like when you see someone who has obviously colored their hair because it's like a totally unnatural shade of brown

and there's no way they'd have that shade of brown hair. It feels a little like that. Like you're overcompensating for your age. Yeah. But again, this, the actual song I think is like, is solid and I know it'll sound great live because their songs always sound better live. Pearl Jam, I hope to see them in concert this year. They're going to be playing Wrigley Field.

I'm hoping to get to like one of those shows. One of the shows is on my wedding anniversary, so I can't go to that, but the other one I'm going to try to go to. So I know these songs will sound great live. The album, you know, wait and see, I guess. We'll see if it's any good. I don't have high expectations, though. Yeah, I mean, the first thing I had to point out is,

on a previous episode, you called the new Glass Beach album, like if Tool was produced by Brendan O'Brien, which is exactly what this cover art looks like. But I think the bigger thing is I didn't know what Andrew Watt looked like until... I always figured he was like just kind of the Jack Antonoff for like 50 plus rock dudes. Have you seen a picture of Andrew Watt? I have, but I can't remember what he looks like. He, like, if, if there was, like, a show, like, what's, what's that show with Bobby Conavall that, like, took place about the record industry?

I know you went to it. I wasn't into it. I was into hate watching. Okay. That was vinyl. Vinyl. That was vinyl. Vinyl.

Okay. So if there was, like, a show, like, vinyl, like, for the 2010s and you wanted to get, you wanted to create a producer who's going to come in for, like, the kind of, you know, like a band like Pearl Jam. You know, they were popular, but they're kind of fading out of relevancy. and we want to get a guy in there who like can really you know spice things up if you saw a picture of Andrew Watt you'd be like that's way too on the fucking nose he's got um he in the most of the pictures i see he's like leaned over like one of those big Gibson acoustic guitars with like the double pick guards but he's got like a platinum blonde shaved haircut like enormous glasses um like a suit like from the you know 2014 era the 1975

I mean, it's, it's, it's like very much an L.A. type of guy, but like a 2016 L.A. type of guy. He's perfect for his role. But you just kind of wonder, though, if he's also sort of like Rick Rubin in that regard where, like, rock man just like, okay, fine. The label says, bring him in. We'll let him come in. We'll, like, deal with his bullshit and, like, just kind of move on. Well, he's more hands on than Rubin is, though. Like, like, on the Stone's record, like, he co-wrote a couple songs.

So he's like a musician and he, you know, he's not just like stroking his beard and with his eyes closed and gently rocking his head like Rick Rubin does. My favorite story, I mean, I think I've said this on the show before, but my favorite story about Andrew Watt was during the making of the Stones record, he would come into the studio each day with a different Rolling Stones t-shirt on. And I guess the idea was we're going to get Mick and Keith in the zone of like their classic era by showing him T-shirt. shirts from old tours. And I just feel like... He is like Rick Rubin. That's like a Rick Rubin thing. It's like mind games and like vibe setting.

But like what's Keith Richards going to... What's he going to do with that? Oh right. I'm in the Rolling Stones. Yeah. I don't know. I forgot that I'm Keith Richards. Damn.

Thank you, Andrew Watt. So I don't know. I mean, I'm just guessing Andrew Watt was rocking the stick man T-shirt every day with PJ to get Eddie Vedder psyched up. We should also probably talk about the biggest album That was announced in the past week And we've already alluded to it

The new Beyonce record, Act 2 Which comes out March 29th as we said It's her country record Supposedly And she released Well she released two songs from it She's dressing like Leon Russell Which is very curious

Because she's got like this She has like this wig that's like long white hair And she's got like the cowboy hat on I just immediately thought of Leon Russell when I saw her. I don't know if anyone else has made that connection. If real journalists are still allowed to interview Beyonce, I'd love them to ask her if she's into Leon Russell. Is this going to be the think-piece-ease-iest album of the year?

Absolutely. I feel like it's going to be like, I mean, there's already a lot of think-pieces about this album. I just feel like the pitch of think-pieces is just going to grow, and grow in intensity until we hit March 29th and it'll be like the end of Oppenheimer.

Just a mushroom cloud of think pieces about this record. I didn't mind the singles. I know there were like a lot of people who were like all these songs are lame or I don't really dig this thing. I didn't mind it. Like hearing Beyonce with like banjos and stuff. I was like, okay, this is kind of interesting.

This kind of reminds me of like music I heard when I was a really, really, really little kid, which would have been like early 80s, like the urban cowboy era. Like pop country, that was also kind of like a little disco-y and like very like, you know, pop mainstream type thing. I was like, I'm kind of getting those vibes a little bit from that. And I have a soft spot for that kind of music. So I don't know.

Maybe I'll be writing my own thing pieces. Yeah, I mean, for me, it's like the think piece obviously it's going to happen i do imagine a lot of people kind of interpolating uh the tracy chapman uh luke combs uh performance of fast car from the grammies just in terms of like you know race and genre and country music and um you know i because gosh i don't know if we talk about that but like people were like acting like tracy chapman was like just somebody pulled out of a bus stop like joe flacco in the playoffs you know like when even though he's Like she was very, very popular and, like, written about a lot and was wearing, like, Prada on stage.

But now we have to contend with the fact, like, Beyonce, yes, is making country music, but is also a billionaire. So we have to kind of see it as, like, tourist, like, you know, genre tourism in a way. But, yeah, I just think a lot, it's a lot of people are just going to write the work. Like, if McSweeney's was like, McSweeney's probably is still around, maybe I'll do a McSweeney's pitch about, like, the top 10, like, Renaissance 2 thing pieces that got rejected by my editor or something. Is it Renaissance Act 2 or just Act 2? I think it's Renaissance Act 2. I think that Renaissance is like a trilogy.

So, let's assume it's Renaissance Act 2. Okay. Well, let's pivot off of that and talk for a little bit about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees were announced this one. week or was it last week? I think it was maybe late last week. Anyway, these are the nominees for the 2024 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. You got Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, Cher, the Dave Matthews band, Eric B. and Rakim, foreigner, Peter Frampton, Jane's Addiction, Cool in the Gang, Lenny Kravitz, Oasis, Shnate O'Nead O'Ne, Ozzy Osbourne, Shade, and a tribe called Quest.

This week I wrote a Ask a Music Critic column where someone asked me if I think OASIS will be inducted, not whether they should be inducted because of course, according to me the answer is yes, but will they be inducted? So I prognosticated this dispassionately. I went through the pros and cons. And it's interesting with Oasis because I think their pros are obvious. They were a very successful band in their time, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, they like success. So that's in their favor.

They're a band that's still relevant to people. Like Wonderwall has been streamed on Spotify like 1.8 billion times. It's a 90s rock song that I think has translated to younger generations. And also there are a band that I think scans as like archetypically rock and roll in a way that like, bands that came after them don't quite emulate. You know, like the 1975, they've got some like rock and roll aspects to them, but I don't know. They're not rock and roll in the same way that Oasis is. Like they feel like a 90s band, but they also feel like a classic rock band in that regard.

The negatives against Oasis, it's really like this weird prejudice that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has against alt in indie-leading bands that started their careers after like 1983 or so. Like, I wrote about this in my column. Just the number of bands from like the 80s and 90s that have not been inducted yet

is pretty staggering. Like every band in our band could be your life. There's 13 bands, you know, Sonic Youth, Minutemen, Replacements, Dinosaur Jr., none of them are in. Not even like hugely successful bands from this era are in.

You know, Nine-Each Nails isn't in. Soundgarden isn't in. Nine-inch Nails, they're not in, right? I should... I'm pretty sure they're not in. Soundgarden isn't in. You know, God, there's a whole long list. I think that R-R-R-Rat-Spotin.

Smashy Pumpkins are in. And also chains... Nine-H-Nish Nails got in in 2020. Okay, so they're in. Smashy Pumpkins isn't in. Basically, like, most of the big alt-rock bands, are not in yet. And, you know, you look here, like Dave Matthews band is nominated,

Jane's Addiction is nominated. I'll be curious to see if they make it. I mean, the fact that, like, we're getting to Foreigner and Peter Frampton in terms of, like, 70s rock bands, I mean, it really shows how the Rock Hall is still looking to the 70s. Like, now we're going for, like, the C tier acts, you know, like, like, foreigner. Like, look, I love classic rock as much as anyone. certainly more than probably

most music critics working today. I don't think foreigner should be in. I don't like foreigner. Come on. Jukebox heroes? That's all fucking whips, man. Cold is ice sampled by MOP. I mean, hot-blooded double-vile dirty white boy. Hot-blooded sucks. I like the song Urgent.

Yeah, that's good song. I think the song Urgent is good. I'm just thinking of the Aquitine Hunger Force episode with the foreigner belt. Like that alone should nominate them. but yeah foreigner and Peter Frampton I mean Jane's addiction

I mean if you they like kind of like Oasis if you're making the argument they had like two good albums and like you know not didn't really make music you know for the rest of their life you can think of them that way

but yeah I didn't realize how grim this was until I read your article because like it's so strange that like nine inch nails is in but not Soundgarden or Alice in Chains you know like like does I mean, you're a voter, right?

I mean, do they see this stuff? Like, the 90s is, like, you know, the version of the steroid era where, like, Allison Chase and seems like Ken Kamannidi or something like that? Or, like, Brady Anderson? There's a weird thing with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame because there's been a definite shift toward looking outside of rock to put bands in.

You know, like, we're putting in Willie Nelson now and Dolly Parton. And, you know, there's been more hip-hop groups getting in. And that's great, you know, I'm in favor of looking at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is not just a rock museum, but as like a popular music museum. I think that's a positive thing. But I do think that there's like this weird misconception

that like, oh, we've already put in all the notable rock bands. So we're done with that and let's put in other genres. And again, like Indian alt rock from the 80s and 90s, I think is like pretty underrepresented. I mean, like the

Smiths aren't in. You know, like they're a pretty foundational band in my musical history, no matter what you think of Morrissey, there's no denying, like, they're an important band. Like, Husker Doe isn't in. You know, like, they're a great band. I already said the replacements aren't in. They're clearly a very relevant band. Any young rock band, there's a very good chance they're going to have some replacements influence in there. I mean, they're just, like, for indie rock, for like a certain kind of rock band, like the replacements are, might as well be the Beatles in terms of just people emulating them.

Like, Wilco isn't in, you know, like, they've been eligible for a long time. So, like, you know, widely respected commercially successful bands, you know, these aren't obscure groups, you know, like they're well known, but they're not even really even sniffing the rock and roll hall fame at this point. So it's a really weird thing. Going back to Oasis, do I think they will get in? I do think they will get in. I think the thing that about this year is that there aren't really any slam dunks on this ballot, I don't think. There isn't anyone like Tina Turner was a couple years ago. Were you like, okay, Tina Turner.

She was already in with Ike and Tina Turner, but you're just like, oh, as a solo act, though, like, yeah, she's going to be in. I think that there's going to be a big push for Mariah Carey. I think a lot of people are going to want to vote for her. So she's kind of the closest thing to a lock. I think Sheenade O'Connor, too, is going to be a big push for her. Sadly, it's going to come after she passed away.

Although I could see her not even going to this if she were alive, going to this induction ceremony. It doesn't seem like her kind of thing. But she could have a good shot. But I don't know. I think Oasis, they are famous enough. And I think that there is that relevance issue there. Maybe people in the organization are going to be like,

hey, maybe they will actually get back together. We induct them. Yeah, it's not pitchfork. It's not Pitchfork Festival. But I think Oasis might consider it if it's the rock. Hall of Fame, you know. So we'll see. I don't know.

I've been disappointed many, many, many, many, many, many, many, many times by this organization. So if Oasis doesn't get in, I won't be shocked. But I do feel like they will probably get in. I think we need to mention the fact that, like, Liam was on Twitter talking about, like, Bumba Clarts, which is like spelling of that word I've never seen before. You know, it's like it tops the Homer AI cover of turn red for the best use of Bumba Clot in 24.

Yeah, because, like, Liam Gallagher was tweeting about this nomination, and he said that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is full of Bumba, Bumba Clarts. Yeah. Which,

I don't know what that way. What is that? What's a Bumba Clark? It's like a Jamaican patchwork term. Just, you know, like, it means exactly what you think it is. It's just like kind of like a multi-useful word.

I mean, you know Oasis better than I do. Do they have like any kind of give me some reggae type moments in their catalog or maybe high-flying. birds or something like that. No, but I mean, you know, I'm sure Liam has smoked a ton of weed while listening to like Bob Marley or something. I mean, I'm sure that has happened, but thankfully that has not entered the Oasis

musical palette. The musical palette of Oasis is pretty narrow. You know, like, you know what they're going to do. They're great at it. And, yeah, they're not going to go too far outside of that. Let's go to our mailbag segment here. Thank you all for writing in. It's always great to hear.

from our listeners. If you want to hit us up, we're at Indycastmailbag at gmail.com. Ian, you want to read our letter this week? Yeah. So this comes to us from Quinn, coming to us from Austin, Texas, and they are clear. This is not quarterback Quinn yours from the Longhorns. Be cooler if it was. I mean, you know, kind of a Jason Kelsey sort of college football indie cast listener.

My personal favorite album from 2019 was Jessica Pratt's Quiet. signs. I just loved how stripped down all the music was. It felt like something I hadn't heard before. With their new album coming out, I had to ask, yay or nay on Jessica Pratt. Thanks, y'all. Keep up the good work. P.S., I love sports cast, even though it's not the starting quarterback from University of Texas. Keep it coming. All right. Thank you, Quinn, for writing in. And this is another big album announcement from this week. Jessica Pratt has her first new album in five years. It's called Here in the Pitch. That'll be out May 3rd. That's another strong fantasy draft option for quarter two.

So put that in your scouting report. This is another album I've heard. I've had the promo for a while. I think it's really good. It's about what you'd expect. From Jessica Pratt, she's not reinventing the wheel on this record. But why would you want her to? She's got her vibe.

It totally works. I should mention that our good friend, friend of the pod, Riley Walker, plays some guitar on this record. He actually texted me about this album weeks ago and was like, have you heard this record? It's great. And I was like, no, I haven't.

And then, like, the next day I got the promo. So, synchronicity going on there. I'm definitely a yay on Jessica Pratt. I love her music. I've been a fan for a long time. And I just appreciate how she's this enigmatic figure

in a time where it just feels like even indie rock stars are omnipresent. on social media. Like, I've, you know, I've enjoyed her music for a long time. I don't think I know anything about her. You know, she is just like this enigmatic figure on album covers. You know, it's like she's always, like, in dark rooms by herself.

You feel like, oh, something spooky is going on here. I don't know what it is. But it's just vibes and vibes for days with Jessica Pratt. Really good songwriter. Love her voice. And like I said, she's got her thing. And she's not going to step outside of it probably, but you don't really want her to because it's very uniquely her.

And again, I just love that she's a mystery. Because who's a mystery now? Who is intriguing in a way where you're like, I really like this person's music, but they are a total mystery to me. That's what Jessica Pratt is. So yes, big time, yay from me. I feel like it was shaped enough to be a Jessica Pratt kind of year.

She already had some buzz. She was sampled on the Troy Savon. album last year on the new song seems to be doing quite well amongst the right people yeah this is like Cooper flag status for the next fantasy draft I am very very high on how this one's going to do um and yeah I like I like her past work I don't return to it very often which I think works in her favor like this is sort of artist that benefits from like coming around once every five years it's like oh yeah like you know because there's something otherworldly and mysterious about her work and you know if she put out albums every two years of this nature,

I think maybe people would maybe start to take it for granted. You know, if we don't get a Joanna Newsom album this year, this might scratch a similar itch for people in that regard. They're very, very different in their artistry, but it's the same sort of, yeah, we actually like the fact that we don't know a ton about this person, and, you know, they are like kind of the opposite of what people expect from singer-songwriters in 2024.

So I think we're both pretty obvious. I can't imagine being nay on Jessica Pratt. Yeah, yeah, I mean, she's pretty unassailable, I think, at this point. Yeah, it just makes me wonder, like, what is Jessica Pratt doing in the space between records? Like, I just wonder, like, is she, like, living in a castle somewhere? Is she, like, walking down, like, rain-soaked streets, like, in some European city? Like, I just have so many imagined adventures that Jessica Pratt is having between these records. I just think maybe she's listening to Indycast.

That's true. She's probably just like chilling with like a cup of coffee at a, you know, at her kitchen table doing a crossword puzzle. It's probably not as like romantic as I'm imagining. But again, that's the magic of Jessica Pratt. She may be in a castle somewhere. You never know. All right. We have another email in our mailbag this week.

This one we've like kicked the can on. I feel like every week because we always run out of time. This is like the Matt Damon on Jimmy Kimmel bit for us. We keep kicking this letter off the show, but like we like this letter, and we've already kind of figured out what we want to say about it. So we're going to finally do it this week. This email, it comes from Jason in Johnson City, Tennessee. And this is what he says.

So this question comes from my thoughts on a discussion on a recent episode of Endless Scroll, which it's not that recent, I guess, at this point. This might have been like in November or something. And it's about zoomers unironically enjoying the aesthetic of Creed and other butt rock bands from the early 2000s. This conversation got me thinking, have we undersold the innovations made by bands like Creed? I remember as a high school freshman loving the walls of warm, highly melodic guitar on those Creed records. At the time, it was fashionable to say that Creed was ripping off Pearl Jam, mainly because Scott Stapp sounds like a parody of Eddie Vedder.

But I think that's lazy. Creed somehow melded grunge and metal with a pop sensibility in a way that was highly palatable to the largest group of listeners. I'm not saying that Creed was good. But, but, and there's always a but, do we not give them enough credit for pioneering a short-lived genre of mass appeal hard rock for normal people? Thanks for the podcast. First thing I listen to you every Friday. And that's again, that's Jason from Johnson City, Tennessee. So Jason, he's not saying Creed was good.

Yeah. But are we not giving them enough credit for their innovations? What say you, Ian? I think this guy is saying that Creed is good. And you know what? Like, hi. Yeah, just say they're good, Jason. Come on, man.

You're copping out here. You got to commit to it. Like, we know you want to say that they're good. But you just can't quite bring yourself to do it. We're not judging you. If you think they're good, just say they're good. And I don't know if like this, like with so many things with TikTok these days, like just be like this small subset of people who, you know, and they just happen to get

interviewed. So I'm sure there are people who are ironically like Creed, me, hire in my own prison, kind of go hard. I like them in the same way. I like three doors down's loser or this is how you remind me. But, you know, in terms of innovation, like one thing I appreciate about Pearl Jam and really bands from, or no, about Creed and like bands from this. is that they have no illusions about the fact they were ripping off Pearl Jam and Allison

Chains. It's not like, you know, Interpol. Like Paul Banks says, yeah, we didn't really listen to that much Joy Division or like Julian Casablanca saying, yeah, we're really into guided by voices and bail to spill. I mean, there was a band called Godsmack that was super popular at that time. And they sound exactly like Allison Chains. But I do think that you're right in terms of, like, innovation. It's not like someone comes out, like a bolt of blue.

this music you've never heard before. I think Creed really did take what they needed from Pearl Jam, but also Christian rock. And that is kind of a pioneering sort of thing because, you know, there is something spiritual about rock music in general and Pearl Jam specifically. And, you know, they just kind of did it like Florida-styly, you know? And also, this has led me down the rabbit hole finding out that Scott Stapp was set to play Frank Sinatra in an unreleased movie about Ronald Reagan.

I think that with I think Dennis Quaid is the is the lead in this movie so look I don't think I think at this point like you know Creed is sort of seen as like a 90s band in the same way that like you see like the like Weas are in the Pixies touring together like when you get enough distance you could think all these bands are kind of on the same thing yeah I mean I think well okay let me just address the central issue here where we're saying that it's lazy to say that

Creed ripped off Pearl Jam? They absolutely did rip off Pearl Jam. That's a fact. That's what they did. What Creed did and I don't think this is innovative necessarily but I think it is canny. I'll say that they're canny here to recognize

that Pearl Jam sold a lot of records on their debut record 10, making a record that sounded like a metal record, essentially, but had a lot of pop elements and also enough alternative rock elements to make it feel like it wasn't a metal record. But if you go back and listen to 10, like, especially the way that record is produced, it sounds more 80s than 90s, especially compared to like the albums they made after that with Brendan O'Brien, which like are

very 90s sounding. I think 10 sounds like a record that came out in 88 or 89. And I think Creed, they saw the 10 template and they're like, well, Pearl Jam isn't making albums like this anymore. They're not making songs that sound like a live and even flow and black. They're making like no code. You know, these more sort of experimental

anti-commercial records. But there's still a huge audience for like those old Pearl Jam type songs. So it's like, why don't we just do that and add like a little bit of like the black album into it? Like just make the riffs a little bit heavier but with the same sort of like

sort of melodrama to the delivery you know and I think that's what they did they took a little bit of 10 a little bit of the black album and they put them together and it's like yeah those are two of the biggest albums of the 90s

like I don't think that's like a genius idea I think it's just like you are canny enough to take advantage of a huge audience that really isn't being serviced by the bands that originally created that template so I think that's what Creed did you know, I don't think that they're good, but I don't hate them, really.

And like, if I'm at a Buffalo Wild Wings and I've had a couple of Miller lights and higher comes on, I'm not going to hate it. I'm going to have a good time. So in that environment, I would enjoy them. But, yeah, they absolutely ripped off Pearl Jam. I think they ripped off Metallica too, a lot of Christian Rock. I think that they were cany. They were not innovative. Yeah.

And the funny thing is, nowadays, you could probably talk to. a lot of big time like country artists like who make not like not the ones who well even the ones who maybe like kind of make quasi rap country music but they'll say creed like was really innovative like if you talk to those guys they'll probably say that to be true and i think that uh you know creed they're funny in a way that live was you know like live kind of similarly took that lane that was left open when uh r em and uh pearl jam wanted to make a little more exotic sounding music so uh Yeah, it's just canny.

And, you know, it's the same way with, like, I kind of like the early killers when, you know, some of the bands from, like, the New Rock Revolution wanted to get a little arty. They were just kind of service, or Kings of Leon, you know, it's like, we are going to serve this, we are going to serve this population. And, look, that's good business. We don't need to bring the killers into the Creed conversation. Let's, let's sequester them. I made Kings of Leone.

I think Kings of Leon is probably who I was talking about, really. We've now reached the part of the episode that we call Recommendation Corner, where we talk about something that we're into this week. Ian, why don't you go first? All right, so I want to give first a quick shout out to Matt Pryor from the Get Up Kids. He's, his debut memoir, Red Letter Days, comes out. It came out, and it's a great book, and I'm looking forward to seeing him perform at a coffee shop in San Diego next week,

which would be great. But otherwise, I want to talk about a band called Freiko. They're from Chicago. They have a new album out this Friday, which I'm going to be writing about. They're from that same kind of scene that produced Horse Girl and Lifeguard. And I like this album a lot more than those ones

because the bands I mentioned, they sound like Sonic Youth and Blonde Redhead and every 40-year-old critics. Like, the kids are all right. Yeah, this band sounds like yuck or like Diet Blonde Erasmith Westerns to very Indycast Hall of Fame type inclusions. Great melodies, lots of energy.

And also kind of maybe the sense that like this is a lightning in the bottle moment where maybe they're going to get a little too professional or self-conscious going forward. But yeah, where we've been, where we're going, Frico, great album. I think it's just really one of those things that's going to be, you know, it's not going to be like a top 10 because it's super important, but it might be like one of the albums you listen to the most in 2024.

So I've dabbled in this album, you know, because I've been getting tons of PR emails about this band. And it hasn't totally moved me yet. It hasn't grabbed me, but your recommendation is inspiring me to go back and check it out. And I definitely like the idea of there being a yuck or diet blonde-era-smith Western's equivalent in 2024. That definitely, you know what to say to get me interested, and that gets me interested. I want to do a shout-out in my recommendation corner to Damo Suzuki, the great singer of the pioneering German band Cannes. He passed away a week ago on February 9th.

And I just feel like this is a good opportunity to remind people, maybe the young people out there who have not dipped into Cannes yet, that this really is like one of the great bands of the last 50 years, one of the most influential, I think, certainly in the indie rock space. Demos was the lead singer of Cannes on probably their three best albums, and that would be Tago Mago, Igabham Yasi, and Future Days. And look, I clearly don't say those album titles out loud very often. But they're all great records.

They're all classics. They're all essential. If you know the song Vitamin C, which is in inherent vice, and it pops up in various other contexts, that's Damos Suzuki singing on that song. And you can hear just how unique he was as a vocal presence where it really wasn't about like conventional rock vocals or, you know, delivering lyrics. It was really treating his voice as like another.

instrument in the mix. And there's just no other singer like him. Totally unique. And of course, after Cannes, he had a long and illustrious career of collaborating with other people. That's a sprawling catalog that you can dip into and a lot of interesting music there. I would also suggest dipping into the live albums that have come out from Cannes in recent years.

There's been this archival series that has just been awesome to keep up with. There's actually a Cannes live album, Live and Parish. 1973 that's going to be out next week. I haven't heard it yet, but I'm going to recommend it anyway because a Cannes live album from 1973, you can't go wrong with that kind of record. I know it's going to be great. I'm excited to hear it. But the other live records that can have put out, really great.

A lot of improvised music on those records. So if you've listened to the studio records front and back over and over many, many times, the live records might be sort of like a fresh reentry point. into Cannes catalog. Again, just a wonderful band. Can't recommend them enough. And look, Damon Suzuki,

one of the greats, RIP, had to shout them out here at the end of the episode. Yeah, there's nothing more indie cast like our kind of mode than like knowing

all the Cann albums, but like not knowing how to pronounce them. Yeah, well, exactly because like how often? Never. Yeah. I'm not,

like, can does not come up in conversation when I'm with people in my life. It's like, I don't know if I've ever I actually said those album titles out loud. Thank you all for listening to this episode of IndyCast.

We'll be back with more news reviews and hashing out trends next week. And if you're looking for more music recommendations, sign up for the Indie Mix Tate Newsletter. You can go to Uprocks.com backslash indie, and I recommend five albums per week, and we'll send it directly to your email box.