Tag: Hillary Clinton

Categories
News Podcast

Ep. #241: Rangda

Rangda is a powerful, American instrumental trio featuring guitarists Sir Richard Bishop and Ben Chasny and drummer Chris Corsano. Their new album is called The Heretic’s Bargain, it’s out now via Drag City, and they’re on the road right now with forthcoming shows in Bloomington, IN, Columbus, OH, Pittsburgh, PA, Baltimore, MD, and Philadelphia, PA. In fact, they were just in Toronto for a tremendously powerful show at Double Double Land in Kensington Market where I had the opportunity to speak with the band about high chairs in Kensington Market, getting a sense of the tour from Rick and the story about a pastel artwork piece of Donald Drumpf he discovered in Brooklyn, Canada’s new president, ravishing Justin Trudeau, madness now versus Reagan and multiple Bush madness, how Rick is convinced Hillary Clinton was preordained to be president, conspiratorial political theory, waking Ben up to dodge three or four questions, weird things people say about Rangda, Ben subscribes to Just Say No, no rage, the first time Johnny Mathis is mentioned by Rick, emotional miscue, song titles in an instrumental band, “Without Us” and Family Ties, when Chris met Ben, how Rangda came together, Rick’s hat, why Ben’s band Six Organs of Admittance keeps oscillating, over sensitive rock, I can’t get no fulfillment, richardbishopbookseller.com, occult books, people who cast spells on their employers, Canada and its border, Montreal and Harris Newman, weird jazz festivals, Chris is busy and Rick’s busy but Ben’s somehow got a lot of free time, Rangda sort of have a band meeting in the middle of our interview, not-so-busy Ben, the song “Mondays Are Free at the Hermetic Museum,” and then I finally get to leave Chris Corsano eating my dust.   

Related links: dragcity.com/artists/rangda vishkhanna.com

Listen, subscribe, rate/review on iTunes.

Categories
News Podcast

Ep. #224: Ian MacKaye & Steve Albini (Part II)

Ian MacKaye is known for being in bands like Minor Threat, Embrace, Fugazi, and the Evens and he co-founded the Washington D.C. based label, Dischord Records. Steve Albini has sung and played guitar in bands like Big Black and Shellac of North America and he owns and operates the renowned recording facility, Electrical Audio, in Chicago, Illinois. In this second of a two-part moderated conversation between Ian and Steve, we discuss the Independent Rock Music Label Festivals organized by Heather Whinna in Chicago that featured Fugazi, Shellac, the Make-Up, Blonde Redhead, and the Ex, Jay Ryan, the Rainbow Roller Rink and the Congress Theatre, confidence versus leadership, Ian on Steve’s interviews, how disempowered people feel, Ian doesn’t talk shit about people like Marc Ribot, exemplars, why Steve might call someone out on a position or argument, critiquing your own community, relating to “political correctness” today, the Reagan Revolution and ‘to care is selfish,’ being decent toward other people, biases and presumptions, the Fugazi song “And the Same,” which includes the lyric, “Yes, I know this is politically correct…,” derailing progression, charity was selfish and greed was good, growing up in D.C. without encountering many Republicans, Democrats can’t go radically left, why musicians play music, being attacked by others, Sylvester Stallone, the Urban Outfitters/Minor Threat thing and aquarium warfare, online pile-ons and Henry Rollins and Robin Williams, Steve defends Henry, internet distractions, making sense of the age of outrage, access and speed, super communication and one-way communication and real-life communication, anonymity, the Butthole Surfers, metrics, I can’t even, Steve belongs on twitter, the way Ian demonstrated how to be a decent, thinking person, the punk rock lawyer, creeping professionalism, custodial and active responsibilities, Dischord Records and Electrical Audio, the music scene in Chicago, it’s nice to be right, work and love, people don’t own their own time, the big payback, “The People’s Microphone,” and that was that phone call.

Related links: dischord.com electricalaudio.com vishkhanna.com

Listen, subscribe, rate/review on iTunes.

ianandsteve_present_colour

fugazi_shellac_jay_ryan_1998

Categories
News Podcast

Ep. #214: Ani DiFranco

Ani DiFranco is an iconic singer, songwriter, musician, poet, activist, and entrepreneur who currently calls New Orleans home. Born and raised in Buffalo, New York, DiFranco started her own record label, Righteous Babe, when she was 18 and, one year later, released her self-titled debut record in 1990. That auspicious start has led Righteous Babe to become one of America’s most successful independent labels, while the multi-talented, poetic, and outspoken DiFranco is one of the world’s most acclaimed and inspiring musicians. Her latest album is the eclectic and vibrant Allergic to Water, which Righteous Babe released in 2014, and it brings her out on the road over the next few months, including Canadian stops at the Great Hall in Toronto on Sept. 14, the River Run Centre in Guelph on Sept, 15, the Empire Theatre in Belleville on Sept, 17, and the Algonquin Commons Theatre in Ottawa on September 18. Here, Ani and I discuss New Orleans, the Roots of Music kids’ band playing for the President, thoughts on Barack Obama, life in NOLA post-Katrina, helping children via music schools, George W. Bush appearing in the 9th Ward on the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, supporting politicians and government leaders, the left needs its own Donald Drumpf, the heartening rise of Bernie Sanders, moving to and living in New Orleans, learning to slow down, having and raising children, time and patience and work and rewards, something new in the mixing, early days and spleen rock, the underground folk and roots culture in Canada in the early 90s, moving to Canada, America swinging to the left and staying hopeful, pessimism doesn’t go with parenting, a new song about Obama’s weariness and resolve, the day after Obama was elected President in 2008, Jimmy Carter, slow going on the next record, producing an album of songs by and sung by men in prisons in America, recording some of them over the phone, “Take Down Your Flag” and the Charleston 9, workshopping new songs live, the song “Dithering,” and then we were out of range.

Related links: anidifranco.com therootsofmusic.org vishkhanna.com

ani_difranco

Listen, subscribe, rate/review on iTunes.