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Life of the Record
30 episodes
The Making of THE WARNING by Hot Chip - featuring Alexis Taylor and Joe Goddard
Ep 1 · Jul 28, 2026 · 1 hr 43 min
For the 20th anniversary of the second Hot Chip album, The Warning, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Joe Goddard and Alexis Taylor initially connected as young teenagers in secondary school in southwest London in the early 90s. They bonded over being music obsessives, listening to a wide variety of genres, reading the music press, going to gigs together and eventually recording the songs they were writing. While they attended different universities, they continued to collaborate and o…
The Making of SPIDERLAND by Slint - feat. Brian McMahan, Britt Walford, David Pajo and Todd Brashear
Ep 12 · Jun 3, 2026 · 2 hr 29 min
For the 35th anniversary of Slint’s landmark second album, Spiderland, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Brian McMahan and Britt Walford first connected over a shared love of punk rock, growing up in Louisville, Kentucky in the early 1980s. They began forming bands when they were young teenagers, including Languid and Flaccid and Squirrel Bait. Another band, Maurice, was formed around this time and they began working with guitarist David Pajo. When Maurice ended, Walford and Pajo conti…
The Making of UNDERWATER MOONLIGHT by The Soft Boys - featuring Robyn Hitchcock
Ep 11 · Mar 18, 2026 · 1 hr 21 min
For the 45th anniversary of The Soft Boys’ influential second album, Underwater Moonlight, we take a detailed look at how it was made. When Robyn Hitchcock first started a band in Cambridge, England under the name Dennis and the Experts, he recruited Morris Windsor, Andy Metcalfe and Alan Davies. They changed their name to The Soft Boys and released an EP called Give It to the Soft Boys in 1977. Kimberly Rew replaced Alan Davies on guitar as they began working with Radar Records, releasing a sin…
The Making of FUR AND GOLD by Bat for Lashes - featuring Natasha Khan and David Kosten
Ep 10 · Feb 13, 2026 · 1 hr 45 min
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of the debut Bat for Lashes album, Fur and Gold, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Natasha Khan had grown up in Hertfordshire, England and studied art at the University of Brighton. After graduating, she taught as a schoolteacher while writing songs and performing as Bat for Lashes. Her manager, Dick O’Dell, got her a publishing deal and connected her with producer David Kosten to work on some demos. The first Bat for Lashes single, “The Wizard” w…
The Making of Z by My Morning Jacket - featuring Jim James
Ep 9 · Jan 22, 2026 · 1 hr 38 min
For the 20th anniversary of the fourth My Morning Jacket album, we take a detailed look at how it was made. The band originally formed in 1998 in Louisville, Kentucky by Jim James, Johnny Quaid, Tom Blankenship and J. Glenn. After signing with Darla Records, they released their debut album, The Tennessee Fire in 1999. Danny Cash joined on keyboards before the release of their second album, At Dawn, in 2001. Patrick Hallahan took over on drums as they signed to ATO Records. Their third album, It…
The Making of "Fairytale of New York" by The Pogues - featuring Steve Lillywhite, Jem Finer and James Fearnley
Ep 8 · Dec 15, 2025 · 1 hr 13 min
In celebration of the Pogues’ 'Fairytale of New York' EP, we take a detailed look at how their classic Christmas single came together. The Pogues originally formed in London in 1982 by Shane MacGowan, Spider Stacy and Jem Finer. MacGowan had gotten his start playing in the punk band, the Nipple Erectors, and when that band broke up, he began playing in an Irish traditional music style. Gradually, he brought in James Fearnley, Cait O’Riordan and John Hasler to become a sextet. Andrew Ranken repla…
The Making of 4 by Foreigner - featuring Lou Gramm
Ep 7 · Dec 2, 2025 · 1 hr 11 min
In celebration of the deluxe edition of Foreigner’s fourth album, 4, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Mick Jones broke into the music industry as a session musician while playing in multiple bands, including Spooky Tooth, he envisioned starting a new project for the songs he was writing. He recruited musicians Ian McDonald, Dennis Elliott, Al Greenwood and Ed Gagliardi before turning his attention to finding the right lead singer for the band. After recalling meeting Lou Gramm w…
The Making of PSYCHOCANDY by The Jesus and Mary Chain - featuring Jim Reid and William Reid
Ep 6 · Nov 14, 2025 · 1 hr 45 min
For the 40th anniversary of The Jesus and Mary Chain’s landmark debut album, Psychocandy, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Growing up in East Kilbride, Scotland, brothers William and Jim Reid had their lives changed by punk and both made plans to start their own bands. When they had trouble finding like-minded musicians in their town, they realized they could pool their resources and start a band together. After their father was made redundant from his job at a factory, he gave them a…
The Making of TRAMP by Sharon Van Etten - featuring Sharon Van Etten and Aaron Dessner
Ep 5 · Oct 21, 2025 · 1 hr 37 min
In celebration of Sharon Van Etten’s breakthrough third album, Tramp, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Growing up in New Jersey, Sharon Van Etten studied music by learning several instruments and singing in the choir. After graduating high school, she went to Middle Tennessee State University to study recording. Though she started writing songs around the year 2000, she didn’t perform or release music until 2005 when she moved back to New Jersey. Later she moved to New York and starte…
Preview: Fela Kuti: Fear No Man
Oct 15, 2025 · 37 min
Subscribe to Fela Kuti: Fear No Man. In a world that’s on fire, what is the role of art? What can music actually…do? Can a song save a life? Change a law? Topple a president? Get you killed? In Fela Kuti: Fear No Man, Jad Abumrad—creator of Radiolab, More Perfect, and Dolly Parton’s America—tells the story of one of the great political awakenings in music: how a classically trained 'colonial boy’ traveled to America, in search of Africa, only to return to Nigeria and transform his sound into a…
The Making of WRITER'S BLOCK by Peter Bjorn and John - feat. Peter Morén, Björn Yttling and John Eriksson
Ep 4 · Sep 2, 2025 · 1 hr 47 min
In celebration of Peter, Bjorn and John’s breakthrough third album, 'Writer’s Block,' we take a detailed look at how it was made. When Peter Morén and Björn Yttling started playing music together in high school, they bonded over a shared love of guitar rock. When they moved to Stockholm after high school, they met John Eriksson, who was a trained percussionist, playing in a percussion ensemble. They eventually asked him if he would consider playing drums with them in a pop band and the trio, Pet…
The Making of A RIVER AIN'T TOO MUCH TO LOVE by Smog - featuring Bill Callahan
Ep 3 · Aug 5, 2025 · 1 hr 34 min
For the 20th anniversary of the Smog album, A River Ain’t Too Much to Love, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Bill Callahan began recording music under the name Smog in 1988 and releasing music on his own label, Disaster. After signing with Drag City early on, he released a series of albums in the 1990s and continued into the early 2000s. At this point, he was living in Chicago and wanted a change of scenery. After moving to Austin, Texas, he began writing songs for his 11th album. He…
The Making of CLAP YOUR HANDS SAY YEAH (Self-Titled) - featuring Alec Ounsworth
Ep 2 · Jun 30, 2025 · 1 hr 36 min
For the 20th anniversary of the debut Clap Your Hands Say Yeah album, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Alec Ounsworth began recording demos of the songs he was writing, he connected with musicians he met while attending Connecticut College. The band was officially formed in 2004 and included Ounsworth, Lee Sargent, Tyler Sargent, Sean Greenhalgh and Robbie Guertin. As the rest of the band relocated to New York, Ounsworth remained in his hometown of Philadelphia and commuted for…
The Making of CRAZY RHYTHMS by The Feelies - featuring Glenn Mercer and Bill Million
Ep 1 · May 27, 2025 · 1 hr 32 min
For the 45th anniversary of The Feelies’ classic debut album, Crazy Rhythms, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After the band formed as The Outkids in Haledon, New Jersey in 1976, Glenn Mercer, Bill Million and Dave Weckerman started playing with brothers Keith Clayton and Vinnie DeNunzio. They changed their name to The Feelies as they started playing gigs around New York City. At an audition night at CBGBs, they connected with sound engineer Mark Abel, who introduced them to manager T…
The Making of THE MONITOR by Titus Andronicus - featuring Patrick Stickles
Ep 12 · Apr 15, 2025 · 2 hr 33 min
For the 15th anniversary of the second Titus Andronicus album, The Monitor, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Patrick Stickles founded Titus Andronicus in Glen Rock, New Jersey in 2005, he worked with a rotating group of musicians, many of whom he had known in high school. By the time they were ready to record their first album, the lineup had coalesced around Stickles, Liam Betson, Dan Tews, Ian Graetzer and Ian Dykstra. The New Jersey label, Troubleman Unlimited, agreed to put…
The Making of SET YOURSELF ON FIRE by Stars - feat. Torquil Campbell, Amy Millan, Evan Cranley...
Ep 11 · Mar 10, 2025 · 2 hr 6 min
For the 20th anniversary of Stars’ breakthrough third album, Set Yourself on Fire, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Torquil Campbell and Chris Seligman grew up together in Toronto, they formed Stars when they were living in New York City. Their first album, Nightsongs, was made with the help of their friends in Metric and several guest singers, including Amy Millan. Deciding to relocate to Montreal, they added Amy Millan and Evan Cranley as full-time members. Their second album,…
The Making of I'M WIDE AWAKE, IT'S MORNING by Bright Eyes - featuring Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis
Ep 10 · Jan 27, 2025 · 2 hr 9 min
For the 20th anniversary of the sixth Bright Eyes album, I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Conor Oberst began Bright Eyes in 1995 in Omaha, Nebraska as an outlet for his solo material that he had been writing as a teenager. He formed a partnership with Saddle Creek Records, a label founded by his brother Justin Oberst and Mike Mogis and began releasing his albums in 1998, starting with A Collection of Songs Written and Recorded 1995–1997. Later that year,…
The Making of MEAN EVERYTHING TO NOTHING by Manchester Orchestra - featuring Andy Hull
Ep 9 · Jan 7, 2025 · 1 hr 44 min
For the 15th anniversary of Manchester Orchestra’s second album, Mean Everything to Nothing, we take a detailed look at how it was made. The band started in 2004 as an outlet for Andy Hull’s songwriting that he was doing as a teenager growing up in Atlanta, Georgia. Hull connected with bassist Jonathan Corley and drummer Jeremiah Edmond and self-released their first EP in 2005. Keyboardist Chris Freeman joined the band and their debut album, I’m Like a Virgin Losing a Child was released in 2006…
The Making of AMERICAN FOOTBALL (S/T) - featuring Mike Kinsella, Steve Holmes and Steve Lamos
Ep 8 · Dec 4, 2024 · 2 hr 1 min
For the 25th anniversary of American Football (Self-Titled), we take a detailed look at how it was made. The origins of American Football began with Mike Kinsella’s band Cap’n Jazz, who were hugely influential in the punk scene in the Chicago suburbs. Steve Holmes went to high school with Kinsella and was inspired to learn guitar after watching Cap’n Jazz perform. Kinsella and Holmes became close friends and ended up going to college together and were roommates at the University of Illinois in C…
The Making of LONG AFTER DARK by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - featuring Mike Campbell, Stan Lynch, Adria Petty and Ryan Ulyate
Ep 7 · Oct 30, 2024 · 1 hr 54 min
In celebration of the new Deluxe Edtion of Long After Dark, the fifth studio album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Tom Petty connected with Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench to form Mudcrutch in Gainesville, Florida in 1970, they ended up relocating to Los Angeles. There they were able to sign a deal with Shelter Records, but Mudcrutch broke up soon after, leaving Petty under contract as a solo artist. Campbell and Tench began playing in a band…
The Making of NO NEED TO ARGUE by The Cranberries - featuring Fergal Lawler and Stephen Street
Ep 6 · Oct 3, 2024 · 1 hr 42 min
For the 30th anniversary of The Cranberries’ second album, NO NEED TO ARGUE, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After forming in Limerick, Ireland in 1989, with a different lead singer named Niall Quinn, the band initially took on the name The Cranberry Saw Us. When Quinn decided to leave the band, he recommended Dolores O’Riordan as a potential replacement. O’Riordan wrote lyrics and added vocals to their demo tape and when the band heard what she brought to the songs, they immediately…
The Making of FOOLISH by Superchunk - featuring Mac McCaughan, Laura Ballance and Jim Wilbur
Ep 5 · Sep 19, 2024 · 1 hr 40 min
For the 30th anniversary of Superchunk’s fourth album, FOOLISH, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Superchunk got their start in Chapel Hill, North Carolina in 1989, they were becoming known for their catchy punk anthems and busy touring schedule. Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance had been a couple and formed Merge Records initially as a way to release their early singles, while releasing their full-length albums on Matador Records. Around the time of their third album, ON THE MOUT…
The Making of THEY WANT MY SOUL by Spoon - featuring Britt Daniel, Jim Eno and Alex Fischel
Ep 4 · Aug 19, 2024 · 1 hr 26 min
For the 10th anniversary of Spoon’s 8th full-length album, They Want My Soul, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Spoon concluded their remarkable run of records in the early 2000s with 2010’s Transference, they took a much needed break. During this time, Britt Daniel formed Divine Fits with Dan Boeckner, while Jim Eno produced records for other artists. When Spoon got back together, they added new member Alex Fischel on keyboards and opted to work with producers Joe Chiccarelli an…
The Making of DIARY by Sunny Day Real Estate - feat. Jeremy Enigk, Dan Hoerner and William Goldsmith
Ep 3 · Jul 10, 2024 · 1 hr 30 min
For the 30th anniversary of Sunny Day Real Estate’s iconic debut album, DIARY, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Dan Hoerner and Nate Mendel began playing music together in Seattle in 1992, they asked William Goldsmith to join on drums, despite the fact that he was already playing in three other bands at the time. When Mendel went on tour with another band, they asked Goldsmith’s high school friend Jeremy Enigk to jam with them. Enigk took over lead vocal duties from Hoerner and…
The Making of THE RUNNERS FOUR by Deerhoof - feat. Greg Saunier, Satomi Matsuzaki, John Dieterich and Chris Cohen
Ep 2 · Jun 4, 2024 · 2 hr 7 min
For the past three decades, Deerhoof have been one of the most consistently inventive rock bands around. Their seventh album, The Runners Four, remains a fascinating result of a band obsessively recording themselves in their practice space for many months. After Deerhoof first began as a solo harmonica project by Rob Fisk, drummer Greg Saunier joined only one week later. They signed to Kill Rock Stars and soon after Satomi Matsuzaki moved from Tokyo to San Francisco, she became the lead singer.…
The Making of I WANT TO SEE THE BRIGHT LIGHTS TONIGHT - feat. Richard Thompson and Linda Thompson
Ep 1 · Apr 30, 2024 · 1 hr 20 min
For the 50th anniversary of Richard and Linda Thompson’s first album as a duo, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Richard helped pioneer British folk rock in the late 1960s with Fairport Convention, he was feeling burnt out and decided to leave the band to focus on writing. In 1972, he married Linda Peters, who had been performing in the folk scene during the same time as Fairport. Richard was under contract with Island Records and released…
The Making of VENEER - featuring José González
Ep 12 · Mar 13, 2024 · 1 hr 15 min
For the 20th anniversary of the debut album by José González, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After getting his start playing in hardcore bands in Gothenburg, Sweden in the 1990s, José González began studying biochemistry at the University of Gothenburg. While he was a student, he continued playing in multiple bands while recording his solo material on the side. His band Junip was working with a local label called Kakafoni and they agreed to release a 7-inch of the solo songs he was…
The Making of OUT OF STEP by Minor Threat - featuring Ian MacKaye
Ep 11 · Feb 20, 2024 · 1 hr 32 min
In celebration of the recently unearthed Out of Step Outtakes, we take a detailed look at the making of the original record. After Minor Threat formed in Washington D.C. in 1980, they began to find an audience in the American punk scene. Their first two seven-inch records contained songs written by Ian MacKaye, such as “Straight Edge” and “Out of Step,” which kickstarted the straight edge movement within punk. By 1982, guitarist Lyle Preslar had left for college and Minor Threat temporarily brok…
The Making of I SEE A DARKNESS by Bonnie "Prince" Billy - featuring Will Oldham
Ep 10 · Jan 19, 2024 · 1 hr 38 min
For the 25th anniversary of the first Bonnie “Prince” Billy album, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Will Oldham grew up studying acting but decided to pursue music while he was attending Brown University. In 1992, he released his first single with Drag City under the name Palace Brothers. A series of albums followed under several variations of the Palace name, which reflected Oldham’s unique approach to treating the album, rather than the artist, as the primary entity. In 1998, he had…
The Making of SUPERFUZZ BIGMUFF by Mudhoney - featuring Mark Arm and Steve Turner
Ep 9 · Dec 13, 2023 · 1 hr 1 min
For the 35th anniversary of Mudhoney’s first 12-inch record, SUPERFUZZ BIGMUFF, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Mark Arm met Steve Turner at a show in Seattle, they became fast friends and began playing in multiple bands together. They started Green River with Jeff Ament and Alex Shumway and eventually added Stone Gossard on second guitar. Tensions over the musical direction of the band eventually caused Green River to dissolve with Ament and Gossard going on to form Mother Lov…
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