Completely Conspicuous

September 2023
S	M	T	W	T	F	S

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17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30

Wed, 27 September 2023

Completely Conspicuous 624: Positive Jam

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2004.

Show notes:

Phil's #5: Arcade Fire with a rousing debut about suburbia
Jay's #5: First album from Mission of Burma in 19 years kicks serious butt
Phil's #4: The last U2 album Phil enjoyed
Zebra once opened for their Zeppelin cover band
Jay's #4 and Phil's #3: Drive-By Truckers unleash another powerful concept album about the South
Phil's #2: Brian WIlson finally releases unreleased epic album Smile
The Beach Boys went from "America's Beatles" to an oldies joke band
Jay's #2: Another excellent album from Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
Jay's #1: Debut from the Hold Steady combines '70s riffs with indie rock
Phil's #1 and Jay's #3: Mark Lanegan with a world-weary masterpiece with a little help from his friends
Favorite songs: "Hit the City" (Phil), "Positive Jam" (Jay)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_624_092723.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 6:00pm EDT

Tue, 19 September 2023

Completely Conspicuous 623: Take Me Out

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2004.

Show notes:

In 2004, Jay became a father for the second time, was a diaper-changing machine
Phil got married, saw the Red Sox and Patriots become champions
Jay: Got an iPod, downloaded a ton of music
Pixies reunited, Phish broke up
Many bands take hiatuses
The tale of Mr. Jimmy
William Hung becomes famous
Phil's non-top 5s: Wilco, Black Keys, Beastie Boys, Patterson Hood, Umphrey's McGee, the Killers, Green Day, Twilight Singers, Eagles of Death Metal, PJ Harvey, Franz Ferdinand, TV On the Radio, Tragically Hip
Phil invents new words
Green Day rejuvenates itself
Jay's non-top 5s: The Walkmen, Death From Above 1979
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.

Direct download: CompCon_623_091923.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 7:28pm EDT

Tue, 12 September 2023

Completely Conspicuous 622: The Hardest Button to Button

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2003.

Show notes:

Phil's #5: Raucous debut from NYC's Yeah Yeah Yeahs, featuring the electric Karen O
Jay's #5: Radiohead combined electronic and guitar-driven sounds
Radiohead albums kept leaking early on file-sharing networks
Phil's #4: The Shins hone their super catchy pop sound
Jay's #4: An indie rock gem from the Wrens that still awaits a follow-up
20 years of starts, stops, indecision and disagreements
Phil's #3: My Morning Jacket combined indie rock, Southern rock, folk and jam band sounds
MP3 blog bands abound
Jay's #3: Another kickass release from Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
Leo is one of the great unsung artists of our generation
Is Springsteen overrated?
Phil's #2: Drive-By Truckers add Jason Isbell and step up their game
Jay's #2: A departure for Sloan, but one jam-packed with great songs
The only Sloan album without an Andrew Scott song
Phil's #1: The White Stripes expand their sound and totally blow up
The Stripes made a lot of noise with minimal instrumentation
Jay's #1: Greg Dulli's Twilight Singers unleash a classic album as a tribute to late friend
Favorite songs: "The Hardest Button to Button" (Phil), "Teenage Wristband" (Jay)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_622_091223.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 7:04pm EDT

Tue, 5 September 2023

Completely Conspicuous 621: It's Gonna Be a Long Night

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2003.

Show notes:

In 2003, Jay had a toddler and found out another kid was on the way
Started downloading a lot of music via blogs
Jay saw Pat DiNizio, Gord Downie, Radiohead, Guster
Phil got engaged, saw a lot of Red Sox games
Coed softball struggles
50 Cent had the #1 song of the year
A lot of number bands on the charts
What's the deal with Kid Rock?
Phil's non-top 5s: TV On the Radio, Warren Zevon, Jason Molina, Black Keys, Jet, Outkast, Ween, Lucinda Williams, Bowie
Jay's non-top 5s: Gord Downie, Electric Six, Dizzee Rascal, Stephen Malkmus, Zeppelin
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.

Direct download: CC_621_090523.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 8:22pm EDT

Tue, 15 August 2023

Completely Conspicuous 620: No One Knows

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2002.

Show notes:

Phil's #5: Coldplay's second album turned them into superstars
Jay's #5: Spoon returns to an indie and begins a long stretch of excellence
Phil's and Jay's #4: Strong release from the Tragically Hip highlights their varied strengths
Phil's #2: The last great Foo Fighters album caused a lot of turmoil for the band
Jay's #3 and Phil's #1: Beck with another sad bastard folk-rock masterpiece
Jay's #2: Killer debut from Interpol was part of the hot NYC scene of the early '00s
It's hard for some bands to live up to a great first album
Phil's #3 and Jay's #1: Queens of the Stone Age reaches new heights with help from Dave Grohl on drums
Favorite songs: "No One Knows" (Jay), "End of the Day" (Phil)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_620_081523.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 7:10pm EDT

Tue, 8 August 2023

Completely Conspicuous 619: Do You Realize?

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2002.

Show notes:

In 2002, Jay became a first-time dad and didn't get much sleep
Jay turned 35, Phil turned 33
Phil was newly single, met his current wife
John Entwistle died the classic rock star death
Napster officially called it quits after lawsuits
Owning music is an outdated concept now
Nickelback had the top song of the year
Charts had a mixture of nu metal, hip hop and pop
Phil's non-top 5 albums: Doves, Sleater-Kinney, Flaming Lips, Spoon, Trey Anastasio, Dave Matthews Band, Interpol, Black Keys, Sonic Youth, GBV, Tom Petty, Bowie
Jay's non-top 5s: McLusky, Hot Snakes, Trail of Dead, Elvis Costello, Broken Social Scene
We never saw a lot of the rock videos of this era
This was the age of the MP3 blog
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.

Direct download: CompCon_619_080823.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 5:20pm EDT

Tue, 1 August 2023

Completely Conspicuous 618: You Say It's Your Birthday

Celebrating the podcast's 17th birthday by talking to Amanda Guest about the 10th birthday of the radio station she founded, BFF.fm.

Show notes:

Amanda was last on the podcast 10 years ago talking about moving to SF and launching BFF.fm
Plenty of surprises along the way
She was a DJ at the Salem State College (now University) station for 18 years
Commercial radio was already being automated in the mid-'90s
Built a studio in the Secret Alley in SF
A lot of the DJs at BFF now weren't alive when Amanda was DJing in the '90s
Shorter attention spans: Newer DJs are doing one-hour shows
Jay has been doing a show for BFF since the station started
"Where's Koomdogg?"
Building exposure through a crazy boat DJing gig
Became a nonprofit in 2015
Amanda was hired as the GM of the station, now doing it full-time
Went from dues-based organization to nonprofit
Allows BFF to fundraise and get grants
Celebrating the station's 10th birthday with events throughout the city
Amanda plans to stay involved but wants to retire at some point
SF went into COVID lockdown early and stayed in it the longest
Studio had to shut down so BFF enabled DJs to broadcast from home
Found free space in the SF Ferry Building so were able to broadcast from there
The future of radio won't get less corporate
Not a lot of commercial stations for indie music, except for college stations
Amanda: Big electronic music movement happening in SF
Looking for new music
The DJ as curator
BFF has 120 shows on the schedule, most done live in the studio
Different approaches to show construction
Great achievements in song segues
Jay: Coming up on 500 episodes of the radio show

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.

Direct download: CompCon_618_080123.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 12:54pm EDT

Mon, 24 July 2023

Completely Conspicuous 617: Let There Be Rock

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2001.

Show notes:

Jay's non-top 5 albums: Von Bondies, Radiohead, Sloan, Frank Black & the Catholics, Guided By Voices, Fugazi
The joy of shopping for imports
Phil's #5: Great distillation of classic rock from Sweden's The Soundtrack of Our Lives
Jay's #5: Indie folk-rock on first solo effort from Gord Downie includes spoken word
Phil's #4 and Jay's #3: Breakthrough album from the White Stripes blew up several months after it came out
Jay's #4: The Strokes led the return of guitar rock with a NYC-centric sound
Highlighted in the book and documentary Meet Me in the Bathroom
Phil's #3: Spoon with a strong release after getting dropped from a major
Phil's #2: Another great album after getting dropped came from Wilco
Phil's #1 and Jay's #2: A masterful double album about the duality of the Southern thang by Drive-By Truckers
Jay's #1: Impressive release from Ted Leo & the Pharmacists showcased a melding of diverse rock styles
Favorite songs: "Timorous Me" (Jay), "Ronnie and Neil" (Phil)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_617_072423.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 6:49pm EDT

Tue, 18 July 2023

Completely Conspicuous 616: Imitation of Life

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2001.

Show notes:

In 2001, Jay found out he was going to be a dad and also went back to his old employer
Jay turned 34, Phil turned 32
Phil got divorced
9/11 was a defining generational moment
Jay: Saw concerts by Radiohead, Gord Downie, Tragically Hip, PJ Harvey, Built to Spill, Buddy Guy
Apple launched iTunes music store and the iPod
Napster got sued into oblivion
Pop was big but garage rock started getting popular
Lifehouse had the #1 single of the year?
Scott Stapp wrote a pump-up song for the Marlins
Phil got recruited by a Scientologist
Phil's non-top 5 albums: Gorillaz, R.E.M., DMB, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Fugazi, Stephen Malkmus, Pete Yorn, Ryan Adams, Bob Dylan
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.

Direct download: CompCon_616_071823.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 6:56pm EDT

Tue, 11 July 2023

Completely Conspicuous 615: All Killer, No Filler

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our favorite music of the first half of 2023.

Show notes:

Running down our favorite albums of the year so far
Kumar's #10: Pile diversifies its sound
Breitling's #9 and Kumar's #8: Yo La Tengo keeps on Yo La Tengoing
Kumar's #9: Dangerous sounding debut from Model/Actriz
Breitling's #8: Continued excellence from Protomartyr
Kumar's #7: Excellent third release from Washer, giving off Meat Puppets vibe
Another great act on Exploding In Sound
Breitling's #7: Fog Lake returns with a compelling slowcore release; may or may not be Shady Canadians
Breitling's #10 and Kumar's #6: Perennially pissed off hip hop from UK Grim
Breitling's #6: Lo-fi folk rock stalwarts Hands and Knees return with a strong release
Kumar's #5: Yves Tumor mixes shoegaze, alt-rock and funk into a powerful concoction
Breitling's #5 and Kumar's #4: Legit supergroup Boygenius delivers the goods
Breitling's #4: Bully with another excellent rock album
Tom Cavanaugh tangent time
Kumar's #3: Catchy hardcore from Fucked Up represents a more spontaneous recording process
Breitling's #3: Quick collection of rippers from New Zealand's Guardian Singles
Kumar's #2: UK act Shame pushes out of their post-punk comfort zone
Breitling's #2: Going back to Philly with Purling Hiss, bringing hooks and attitude to the party
Kumar's #1: Power pop awesomeness from the indie all-star band that is Eyelids
Breitling's #1: Jangly indie pop straight outta Columbus with Connections
Kurt Loder tangent
Anticipated/newer albums: Drop Nineteens, Speedy Ortiz, Palehound, PJ Harvey, Queens of the Stone Age, Jason Isbell, Jeff Rosenstock, OSees, Blur

Completely Conspicuous is available through the Apple Podcasts directory. 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.

Direct download: CompCon_615_071123.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 5:28pm EDT

Mon, 3 July 2023

Completely Conspicuous 614: The Midway Point

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we discuss our favorite music of the first half of 2023.

Show notes:

Recorded at CompCon HQ
Concerts are back
TicketMaster is still a mess
Nobody's buying CDs
The Beatles and AI
Parcheesi Redux is in its third year
Talking about the band Toronto and their hit "Your Daddy Don't Know," covered by the New Pornographers
The kids are alright
Rock music is still around, although it's a minor part of the music business
Breitling's bubbling under albums: Everything But the Girl; Depeche Mode; Sharp Pins; OK Cool; Reds, Pinks and Purples; Pile; Squitch; Mui Zyu
Jay's bubbling unders: The Hold Steady; The New Pornographers; Ron Gallo; Quasi; Mudhoney
To be continued

Completely Conspicuous is available through the Apple Podcasts directory. 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.

Direct download: CompCon_614_070323.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 8:39pm EDT

Tue, 13 June 2023

Completely Conspicuous 613: Stuck In a Moment

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2000.

Show notes:

Jay's non-top 5 picks: Hot Snakes, Rollins Band, Fu Manchu, Pearl Jam
Phil's and Jay's #5: Diverse offering from the Tragically Hip
Phil's and Jay's #4: More accessible effort about living in NYC by PJ Harvey
Phil's #3: Bluesy debut album from North Mississippi All-Stars
Jay's #3: Electrifying major-label debut from At the Drive-In
Featured in Dan Ozzi's book Sellout about indie acts who sign with majors
Phil's #2: Phish blends some different styles into their jam band formula
Jay's #2: Queens of the Stone Age's second album takes a big leap onto the rock scene
Phil's #1: U2 bounces back with a back-to-basics release
Phil: Feeling down about what was once his favorite band
How bands age
The last really good U2 album
Jay's #1: Radiohead totally reinvents their sound, embracing electronics
Phil's not feeling it
Favorite songs: "Optimistic" (Jay), "Stuck In a Moment You Can't Get Out Of" (Phil)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_613_061323.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 7:06pm EDT

Sat, 3 June 2023

Completely Conspicuous 612: In the Year 2000

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 2000.

Show notes:

In 2000, Jay got married
Jay turned 33, Phil turned 31
Jay: Went to SXSW, saw Modest Mouse, Fu Manchu, Bevis Frond
Pivotal year for the dotcom boom
Albums were leaking on Napster before they came out
A better year than '99 in terms of stuff we liked
Top 100 songs were predominantly pop
Phil's non-top 5s: Ween, Sleater-Kinney, Outkast, White Stripes, Rage Against the Machine, Ryan Adams, New Pornographers, Doves, Neil Young, Steely Dan, the Hives
Phil's out on runs scaring old ladies
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.

Direct download: CompCon_612_060523.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 5:58pm EDT

Wed, 19 April 2023

Completely Conspicuous 611: Climb to Safety

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1999.

Show notes:

Jay's non-top 5s: Frank Black and the Catholics, Sebadoh, Matthew Sweet, Piebald, Fu Manchu, Superchunk, Songs: Ohia, GBV
Phil's #5: Third release from Rage Against the Machine continues their anti-capitalist bent
Jay's #5: Flaming Lips complete their transformation into a different sound
Phil's #4: Dave Grohl continues to fight Foo and get more commercial-sounding
Jay's #4 and Phil's #3: Built to Spill with the triumphant peak of their terrific '90s run
Jay's #3: The final Pavement album has only gotten better with age
Phil's #2: Debut of Rilo Kiley was financed by Dave Foley of Kids in the Hall
Jay's #2: Beck gets funky, continuing extreme genre shifts from album to album
Phil's #1: Widespread Panic melds a lot of styles in a listener-friendly jam album
Jay's #1: Back-to-back #1s from Sloan with a semi-autobiographical masterpiece
Favorite songs: "Climb to Safety" (Phil); "Friendship" (Jay)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_611_041923.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 1:08pm EDT

Wed, 12 April 2023

Completely Conspicuous 610: End of the Century

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1999.

Show notes:

In '99, Jay turned 32, Phil turned 30
Y2K was looming
Phil got married, Jay got engaged
Ireland on New Year's Eve
Pop was on the upswing
Nu metal and Woodstock 99
Music sales were high, but MP3s were about to take a big bite
Santana made a huge comeback
Phil's non top 5 albums: Magnolia soundtrack, Sleater-Kinney, White Stripes, Wilco, Sheila Divine, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Moby, Red Hot Chili Peppers,
The pickings were slim overall in '99
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.

Direct download: CompCon_610_041223.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 9:42pm EDT

Wed, 15 March 2023

Completely Conspicuous 609: Right About Now

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1998.

Show notes:

More of Phil's non-top 5s: Monster Magnet, R.E.M., Hole, Dave Matthews Band
Jay's non-top 5s: Tragically Hip, Monster Magnet, Jerry Cantrell, Frank Black and the Catholics, Beastie Boys, Rocket From the Crypt, Rancid, Cat Power
Phil tells of a magical mixtape service
Phil's #5: Moe with a jazzy jam band album
Phil says he's not a "Moe-ron"
Not hating on Steely Dan
Jay's #5: Silver Jews with downbeat indie rock classic
Phil's #4 and Jay's #2: The debut from Queens of the Stone Age kicks serious ass, combining stoner rock with robotic grooves
Jay's #4: Followed up Odelay with the experimental Mutations
Phil's #3: A fun release from the Beastie Boys
Jay's #3: R&B-influenced album from Afghan Whigs was last before they broke up
Phil's #2: Phish's 7th album featured a "cow funk" sound
Phil's #1: Big breakthrough from Fatboy Slim paved the way for DJ as frontman
Jay's #1: Sloan with a '70s vibe, from arena rockers to sunny AM pop
Favorite songs: "Praise You" (Phil), "She Says What She Means" (Jay)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_609_031523.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 5:43pm EDT

Wed, 8 March 2023

Completely Conspicuous 608: Tubthumping

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1998.

Show notes:

1998 was 25 years ago!
Jay turned 31, Phil turned 29
The one-hit wonders were abundant
Alt-rock was fading in popularity
MTV was predominantly airing programming that wasn't videos
MP3s became another way to share/steal music
Paved the way for Napster and eventually the near-collapse of the music industry
Pop was taking over: Britney, Backstreet Boys, N Sync
Artists who started out great and then just sold out/sucked
Phil's non-top 5's: PJ Harvey, Mercury Rev, Drive-By Truckers, Pearl Jam, Government Mule, Mark Lanegan, Jerry Cantrell, Tragically Hip, Neutral Milk Hotel
The Hip played at Woodstock '99 (correction: it was the weekend after JFK Jr.'s plane crash)
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.

Direct download: CompCon_608_030823.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 7:36pm EDT

Tue, 14 February 2023

Completely Conspicuous 607: My Poor Brain

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1997.

Show notes:

Jay's non-top 5 albums: Cornershop, Yo La Tengo, Elliott Smith, Chris Whitley, Portishead, Ween
Phil's #5 and Jay's #4: Ben Folds Five's breakthrough with piano-driven snark
Phil's #4: Third album from Sleater-Kinney features Janet Weiss' debut on drums
Phil's #3: Elliott Smith's lo-fi folk got a boost from Good Will Hunting
Jay's #3: Built to Spill with another of their epic '90s releases
Phil's #2: Dylan makes a triumphant return
When artists stop writing new material
Jay's #2: A masterful release from Pavement
Phil's #1 and Jay's #5; Second Foo Fighters album establishes Grohl and his band as a musical force
Jay's #1: Radiohead reaches new heights on its third album
How Jay learned to love Radiohead
Favorite songs: "My Poor Brain" (Phil), "Karma Police" (Jay)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_607_021423.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 6:50pm EDT

Tue, 7 February 2023

Completely Conspicuous 606: Brighten the Corners

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1997.

Show notes:

In '97, Jay hit the big 3-0, Phil turned 28
Big year for partying
Alt-rock one-hit wonders abounded: Marcy Playground, Third Eye Blind, Smash Mouth
Boy bands, hip hop, female singer-songwriters
Phil's "bubbling under" albums: U2, Led Zeppelin, Bjork, Bowie, Dinosaur Jr., Pavement, Guided By Voices, Whiskeytown, Steve Earle, Prodigy, Radiohead, David Byrne
U2 lost the plot with "Pop"
The interesting career of David Byrne
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.

Direct download: CompCon_606_020723.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 8:22pm EDT

Wed, 25 January 2023

Completely Conspicuous 605: Playing the Role

This week, I'm joined by guest Matt Phillion as we discuss the resurgence of role-playing games.

Show notes:

- Recorded in Salem, Mass.

- Last time we recorded for the show was two years ago

- Time is passing quickly

- Jay: Going into the office once a week now

- Matt: It was an extrovert's world for a long time

- Matt's still writing YA books

- Matt has been running Dungeons & Dragons games since pandemic started

- Unprepared for the number of people who wanted to jump in

- Matt: Didn't have enough friends to play in high school

- Was going to start doing it for corporate retreats when COVID hit

- A legal dispute over licensing with Hasbro

- Jay: Was a total comics nerd in high school

- D&D made a comeback thanks to Stranger Things

- A D&D movie is coming out with Chris Pine

- Tom Hanks starred in Mazes & Monsters, a "Satanic panic" movie about D&D

- Stopped buying comics when there were bills to pay

- Matt: Plenty of non-D&D role-playing games are popular

- Played Vampire: The Masquerade in the '90s

- Matt does a podcast called The Ravenfolly Institute that follows D&D campaigns as they happen

- Matt's super-productive in his spare time

- Working on an "adult" gritty fantasy book

- Book industry is in "dire need of reform"

- The first of Matt's books is getting an audiobook

- Struggling to get through Dune (the book)

- Matt's learning how to play a Dune role-playing game

- Listens to a lot of RPG podcasts; helps you learn the game

- D&D has had peaks and valleys of popularity since the mid-70s

- On its 5th edition; went back to older style but streamlined

- The stigma of being a nerd is gone now

- Board games in general have become popular again

- You get what you put into playing RPGs

- A lot of mystery-themed games

- Matt: Storytelling is storytelling, whether it's books or RPGs or podcasts

- Matt's the D&Dealer

- Gotta have the "math rocks"

- Also does sister podcast Characters & Class

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.

Direct download: CompCon_605_012423.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 5:30pm EDT

Tue, 17 January 2023

Completely Conspicuous 604: New Pollution

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1996.

Show notes:

- Phil's #5: Cowboy Junkies score with their first album of originals

- Jay's #5: Sebadoh with a sprawling collection of rockers and ballads

- Phil's #4: Soundgarden's last album of the '90s turned away from their big hit

- Jay's #4: Frank Black with another album of quirky greatness

- Phil's #3: Phish with a fan-friendly studio release

- Jay's #3: Cinematic-sounding crime saga from the Afghan Whigs

- Phil's #2: Double album that was the breakthrough for Wilco

- Jay's #2: After a brief breakup, Sloan comes back with a power pop classic

- Phil's and Jay's #1: Beck blows up with a spectacular album that explores multiple genres

- Favorite songs: "New Pollution" (Phil), "G Turns to D" (Jay)

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.

Direct download: CompCon_604_011723.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 9:57pm EDT

Tue, 10 January 2023

Completely Conspicuous 603: Bulls On Parade

Part 1 of my conversation with guest Phil Stacey about the music of 1996.

Show notes:

- In '96, Jay turned 29, Phil turned 27

- Days of little to no responsibility other than work

- Adventures in sports gambling

- Tougher year to come up with top 5

- The Macarena was all the rage

- Phil's non-top 5s: Rage Against the Machine, Fiona Apple, Sleater-Kinney, Tragically Hip, Dave Matthews Band, R.E.M., Pearl Jam, Moe, Tracy Bonham, Luscious Jackson, Sublime, Jerry Garcia and David Grisman, Tom Petty, Tori Amos, Cake, Silver Jews

- Rolling Stone lists are sheer clickbait

- Jay's non-top 5s: Soundgarden, Superdrag, Posies, D Generation, Weezer, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

- 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.

Direct download: CompCon_603_011023.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 6:05pm EDT

Mon, 2 January 2023

Completely Conspicuous 602: Best In Show

Part 2 of my conversation with guest Jay Breitling as we count down our favorite music of 2022.

Show notes:

- On to our top 10

- Breitling's #10: Archers of Loaf returns with a different sounding release

- Kumar's #10: Fontaines D.C. evolves its sound

- Breitling's and Kumar's #9: Radiohead offshoot The Smile with an interesting return to early '00s sound

- Breitling's #8: Pleasant surprise album from Palm

- Breitling's #7: First Sub Pop album from Frankie Cosmos

- Bernice taking over the couch

- Breitling's #6: Shimmering pop brilliance from The Beths

- Kumar's #6: A nostalgic rocker from Oceanator

- Breitling's #5 and Kumar's #7: Horsegirl bursts out of nowhere with a lo-fi banger of a debut

- Kumar's #5: Another strong release from Toronto's Kiwi Jr.

- Breitling's #4 and Kumar's #8: Harking back to '85, band full of DC punk vets lands a massive post-hardcore statement

- Kumar's #4: Triumphant return by Titus Andronicus overcoming setbacks

- Breitling's #3: METZ side project Weird Nightmare is "peak Jay (Breitling)"

- Kumar's #3: Afghan Whigs combines old collaborations with new sounds

- Breitling's #2: A "modern shoegaze classic" from Helens

- Kumar's #2: Sloan delivers another classic power pop album that they developed during the pandemic

- Breitling's #1: Side project from Johnny Foreigner principals as Yr Poetry

- Kumar's #1: Smart-ass and cynical look at being in an band from PUP

Completely Conspicuous is available through the Apple Podcasts directory. 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.

Direct download: CompCon_602_010223.mp3
Category:Completely Conspicuous -- posted at: 12:33pm EDT