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J and Tim dig into the grunge, alt-rock, and indie albums that changed everything—the forgotten classics, the underappreciated masterpieces, and the legends worth hearing again. One album at a time. Let’s dig it out.
Episodes
Thursday May 18, 2023
Thursday May 18, 2023
Following the breakup of the mid-90s alt-country band Scud Mountain Boys, lead singer/songwriter Joe Pernice teamed up with his brother to write and record the debut Pernice Brothers album, Overcome by Happiness, for SubPop Records in 1998. While it was the only Pernice Brothers album released by the legendary Seattle label, Joe’s continued to release music under that moniker through a label, Ashmont Records, that he started with his long-time business partner, Joyce Linehan. Superfan, and New West Records Vice President of Publicity, Brady Brock is responsible for the 25th anniversary, first-time-on-vinyl, reissue of Overcome by Happiness which is available in a deluxe version that includes a comprehensive 52-page hardback book documenting the history of the band, recollections of the recording of the album, lyrics, and a track-by-track walkthrough.
Songs in this Episode:
Intro - Overcome By Happiness by Pernice Brothers
11:03 - In A Ditch by the Scud Mountain Boys
Outro - Bum Leg by Joe Pernice
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Tuesday May 16, 2023
Tuesday May 16, 2023
By the end of the 1990s, grunge had run its course, seeing two and three waves of followers come and go. Nu-metal was ascendant thanks to the likes of Korn, Limp Bizkit, Deftones and others ruling MTV and radio, along with post-grunge acts like Creed, Chevelle, Drowning Pool and more. For a band like Oleander, their take on Nirvana-tinged grunge meant leaning into the manic energy of Bleach as much as the sculpted songwriting of Nevermind. On their 1999 major label debut February Son, itself a recording of an earlier independent album with a few track changes, the band shoot for radio with solid targeting.
Songs In This Episode
Intro - Stupid
22:13 - Never Again
31:22 - Boys Don't Cry
38:00 - I Walk Alone
Outro - Why I'm Here
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Thursday May 11, 2023
Thursday May 11, 2023
Formed in 1988 and one of the earliest acts to put out music on SubPop, TAD paved the way for bands like Nirvana and Soundgarden with their heavy and sludgy guitar noise. After releasing three albums on the infamous Seattle label, TAD put out two albums on majors, 1993’s Inhaler on Giant/Warner Bros and 1995’s Infrared Riding Hood on East West/Elektra before breaking up by the end of the decade. Lead singer Tad Doyle went on to front Hog Molly and Brothers of the Sonic Cloth before going the solo route and releasing albums that sound like SciFi-Horror soundtracks under his given name, Thomas Andrew Doyle.
Songs in this Episode:
Intro - Grease Box (from Inhaler)
8:04 - Clairvoyant Witness (from Aberrant)
Outro - Probabilities (from Aberrant)
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Tuesday May 09, 2023
Tuesday May 09, 2023
After the dissolution of Jawbreaker in 1996, lead singer and guitarist Blake Schwarzenbach spent the next year not playing music, but DJ'ing and writing video game reviews. But the itch to create came back with the help of former Texas Is The Reason drummer Chris Daly and Handsome singer Jeremy Chatelain on bass. Jets To Brazil isn't so much a reinvention as a natural evolution, leaving behind the sometimes rigid restraints of punk and hardcore, and exploring new sounds with keyboards and guitar effects.
Songs In This Episode
Intro - Crown of the Valley
20:37 - Starry Configurations
24:24 - Resistance is Futile
30:15 - King Medicine
40:16 - I Typed For Miles
Outro - Morning New Disease
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Tuesday May 02, 2023
Tuesday May 02, 2023
By the end of the 1990s, The Afghan Whigs were critical faves without the breakthrough single that propelled some of their contemporaries into the platinum or multi-platinum stratosphere. While 1993's Gentlemen and 1996's Black Love explored the dark, 1998's 1965 turned on the light long enough to find the party and get down to the business of feeling good, as lead singer Greg Dulli sings on the opener "Somethin' Hot." Much about the record is a change-up from previous efforts - guitars are dialed down while horns, pianos, and backing vocalists make their presence known on a record that shows off the band integrating the New Orleans vibe of their surroundings during recording. The result acts as a bridge between what the Whigs were and what Dulli and new collaborators would explore in the 2010s as The Twilight Singers.
Intro - 66
17:53 - Somethin' Hot
35:27- The Slide Song
39:29 - Omerta
45:46 - Uptown Again
Outro - John The Baptist
Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon.
Tuesday Apr 25, 2023
Tuesday Apr 25, 2023
By 1991, Moving Targets were already well established in the Boston music scene upon the release of their third full-length, Fall. Lead by Kenny Chambers on vocals and guitar, the band that started out playing Husker Du-esque hardcore evolved like their contemporaries, downshifting the tempos and finding more melody. Tracks like "Answer" and "Away From Me" were primed for college radio alongside The Replacements, Goo Goo Dolls, Dramarama, and other post-punks finding their songwriting footing. The twists and turns, like using an e-bow on a mid-album instrumental track, add a layer of creativity not many other post-hardcore bands would attempt, even if the payoff doesn't always hit.
Songs In This Episode:
Intro - Taang! Intro
14:18 - Answer
22:00 - Overated
31:50 - Away From Me
Outro - Travel Music
Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon.
Tuesday Apr 18, 2023
Tuesday Apr 18, 2023
Often side-project bands don't live up to the hype of the artist or band's main gig. But for Stephin Merritt, this isn't the case with several of his non-Magnetic Fields bands. With The 6ths, he's taken on the challenge of writing the songs but handing them over to guest vocalists. On the 1995 debut Wasps' Nests, that means a wide array of contributors, including Lou Barlow from Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr., Mary Timony of Helium and Ex Hex, Dean Wareham of Galaxie 500 and Luna, Georgia Hubley of Yo La Tengo, Mac McCaughan of Superchunk, Mitch Easter of Let's Active, and more. The musical landscape shifts from song to song, one minute aping the motortik of Stereolab and next the harmony sunshine of Laurel Canyon in the 1970s. But it's all in Stephin Merritt's wheelhouse, utilizing an array of synth and keyboard sounds over minimalist rhythms that reveal layers upon repeated listens.
Songs In This Episode:
Intro - Aging Spinsters
15:56 - All Dressed Up in Dreams
20:23 - San Diego Zoo
35:02 - Here in My Heart
Outro - Falling Out of Love (With You)
Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon.
Monday Apr 10, 2023
Monday Apr 10, 2023
By 1995, the alternative music revolution was in full swing, dominated MTV and radio across the US and around the world. While some of the original trailblazers, like the Pixies and Jane's Addiction, were no more, others continued and evolved their sound. Juliana Hatfield, who started out in the mid-1980s with the Blake Babies, had already released two acclaimed alternative rock albums before unleashing 1995's Only Everything. For her third release, Hatfield cranked up the guitar distortion, using big, fuzzy tones to give tracks like "What A Life" and "Dumb Fun" more punch while exploring slower, shoegaze vibes on several back half tracks. The end result is the rare combination of catchy, smart songwriting that rocks.
Songs In This Episode:
Intro - What A Life
20:53 - Hang Down From Heaven
26:59 - Fleur De Lys
34:15 - Dumb Fun
39:32 - Live On Tomorrow
Outro - Universal Heart-Beat
Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon.
Tuesday Apr 04, 2023
Tuesday Apr 04, 2023
By 1999, fans of the alternative country rock sound had a lot to choose from. At the start of the decade, the mostly underground and regional scenes were known to college radio listeners and other non-mainstream outlets. But by 1999, major labels Geffen and Warner Brothers were putting out albums and developing artists. On Elektra, the Old 97s from Dallas, Texas released their second major label release, and fourth overall. Fight Songs found the band in transition, moving away from the harsher elements of their earlier years, cleaning up the production, and find the hooks for radio.
Songs In This Episode:
Intro - Jagged
18:36 - What We Talk About
23:48 - Busted Afternoon
29:15 - Murder (Or A Heart Attack)
39:25 - Oppenheimer
Outro - Nineteen
Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon.
Thursday Mar 30, 2023
Thursday Mar 30, 2023
A perfect pick for a Dig Me Out episode, Fretblanket never seemed to get the mainstream attention the way their peers did. Formed in Stourbridge, England when the members were still in high school, the band caught the attention of Polygram Records in ‘93 and signed a deal before singer/guitarist Will Copley had graduated. A year later, Junkfuel was released with the single “Twisted” gaining a modest amount of airplay on U.S. alternative and college rock stations. Guitarist Clive Powell wrote most of the guitar-rich songs which fit in alongside artists like Sugar, The Doughboys, The Wedding Present and Ride while Copley’s grungy vocals earned comparisons to Kurt Cobain. Though they were very much of the time, the biggest touring exposure they had was opening for Oingo Boingo, a sad mismatch that likely didn’t earn the band any new fans. In 1997, they released Home Truths From Abroad which leaned more into the Brit rock side of things than the grungier side and caused a minor MTV buzz with their video for “Into the Ocean.” Songs for a third album were recorded in Michigan with Tim Patalan (Sponge, Watershed) but shelved after it was apparent there was no longer label interest and the members went their separate ways. On March 30, 2023, that long lost album, The Distance In Between, was released as a way to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Fretblanket signing a record deal.
Songs in this Episode:
Intro - Twisted from Junkfuel
13:06 - Digging Your Scene from The Distance In Between
Outro - Into The Ocean from Home Truths From Abroad
Support the podcast, join the DMO UNION at Patreon.