A sixth-grade music homework assignment finally pays off as the idiots confront the Hendrix Enigma
3.7 Parallel Lines
The idiots make the very belated realization that Blondie was a very good band.
3.6 El Corazon
The newly-crowned Kings of Canada listen to Steve Earle’s landmark mix tape
3.5 5150
Chad and Keith hang out in the parking lot in their Trans Ams drinking Coors Light and cranking out as much Van Halen and Van Hagar as you can handle
3.4 Hunky Dory
The idiots get kooky, get replaced by homo superior, search for life on Mars, and all that as they dig into David Bowie’s first great album.
3.3 Van Lear Rose
The idiots head up into the hollow/holler to talk about Loretta Lynn’s 2004 collabo with Jack White, Van Lear Rose
3.2 The Soft Bulletin
Things get tttttripppppy as the idiots try to get a handle on the Flaming Lips’ controlled (and then not) psychedalia on The Soft Bulletin (1999)
3.1 It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
New era, new format for the idiots as they stumble around the Covid wasteland and take turns picking albums to examine in depth. First up: Public Enemy’s landmark It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988)
2.5 I Was in the Wardrobe and the Lion Spoke to Me
The idiots close out Actor and digress a little more then usual. Ever wondered how to tell what gender a kitten is? Covered: “Just the Same But Brand New” and “The Sequel.”
2.4 They Have Champagne on Tap
The idiots confront hard truths about transitional albums, and tell the tale of the time Annie Clark made Omaha weird. Covered: “Marrow,” “The Bed,” and “The Party.”
2.3 Bill Hicks Was the Name
Somehow Van Halen keeps coming up, and is 100% relevant each time. Also, the idiots run into the first great St. Vincent song. Covered: “Actor Out of Work,” “Black Rainbow,” and “Laughing With a Mouth of Blood.”
2.2 Pitchforks and Torches for (2009) Pitchfork
Some unfortunate microphone problems can’t stop the idiots from exposing the truth about the first 3 songs on Actor. The truth is that they’re good. Songs: “The Strangers,” “Save Me From What I Want,” and “The Neighbors.”
2.1 Spewing Out Bowie Signifiers Left and Right
Chad and Keith kick off Season 2 with an overview of St. Vincent and a wide focus on her first album, Marry Me. Also: a surprising amount of somehow-on-topic discussion of James Bond.
1.20 This Weird, Beautiful, Passive-Aggressive Thing
Chad and Keith rank the Beatles. And talk about the end of Uncle Tupelo. What’s next? Songs covered: “High Water,” “No Use in Lovin’,” and “Steal the Crumbs.”
1.19 The Fate of All (Good) Punk Bands Is to Stop Playing Punk
The idiots prepare to start landing the plane, both with Anodyne and Uncle Tupelo. Also: being Zappa-Curious. Songs covered: “Anodyne,” “We’ve Been Had,” and “15 Keys.”
1.18 Clearly, the Cocaine Is Male
Into the throbbing heart of Anodyne! Uncle Tupelo’s creative peak, plus carrot juice and who’s ride or die for Dune (1984). Songs covered: “Give Back the Key To My Heart,” “Chickamauga,” and “New Madrid”
1.17 I Grew Up Surrounded by Chew Culture
Anodyne time! With a minute or two of missing audio and a clarification: Roy Acuff appeared on Hee Haw, but wasn’t a regular. Songs covered: “Slate,” “Acuff-Rose,” and “The Long Cut.”
1.16 I Like This Gin!
The idiots close out March 16-20 by wading through the B-sides and bonus tracks. LISTEN ALL THE WAY TO THE END! Songs covered: “Take My Word,” “I Wanna Be Your Dog,” “The Waltons Theme,” and some album-track demos.
1.15 Like a 22-Year-Old Dude Growing a Mustache
IMPORTANT: KP’s beef is with band stickers on guitars, not in any way with the Clash, who rule. Songs covered: “Fatal Wound,” “Sandusky,” and “Wipe the Clock.”
1.14 You Can Only Have So Much Misery
Three Christian, non-UT songs on the back side of March 16-20: “Atomic Power,” “Lilli Schull,” and “Warfare.”
1.13 By Definition Everything Jay Farrar Plays Is a Form of Shoegaze
Convenient sequencing in the middle of March 16-20 1992: an OK song, a great song, and, uhhhhhh… Also: screw harmonicas. Songs covered are “Black Eye,” “Moonshiner,” and “I Wish My Baby Was Born.”
1.12 Even the Ones That Aren’t Famous Are Probably Douches
Some odd truths about March 16-20 1992 are revealed as Chad and Keith move forward. Also: unfortunate intros to bands and a theory of midwest punk. Songs covered are “Criminals,” “Shaky Ground,” and “Satan Your Kingdom Must Come Down.”
1.11 Eating Bulldog Gravy in Fist City, Hiding from Maoists
New Day, New album, same old idiots as Chad and Keith venture into March 16-20 1992. Barebones production is praised, and a longterm planned cat prank is revealed. Songs covered are “Grindstone,” “”Coalminers,” and “Wait Up.”
1.10 It Wasn’t Built for People But Instead to Protect the Dregs of Capitalism
Chad and Keith close out Still Feel Gone, realizing that they’ve talked themselves into not really liking it. Also: legacy bands, hating Eric Clapton, and “honest” covers. Songs covered are “If That’s Alright,” “Sauget Wind,” and “I Wanna Destroy You.”
1.9 Nobody Puts Jay Farrar in a Corner
It’s home stretch time on Still Feel Gone, as Chad and Keith battle a restless puppy to talk about Uncle Tupelo and what it feels like to be too hard core for the Beastie Boys. Songs covered are “True to Life,” “Cold Shoulder,” and “Discarded.”
1.8 Mike Watt Would Never Sue Someone for Copyright Infringement
Chad and Keith travel further up the river into the dark jungles of Still Feel Gone. There’s light chatter, but up ahead looms a giant statue of the Minutemen. Songs covered are “Punch Drunk,” “Postcard,” and “D. Boon.”
1.7 There Are a Lot of Negative People in My Life
Chad and Keith dig deeper into Still Feel Gone and if you listen closely, you can hear some terrible realizations being made about this album. Also: accordions, and what email was like back in the day. Songs covered are “Nothing,” “Still Be Around,” and “Watch Me Fall.”
1.6 On the Perversion of a G Chord
Chad and Keith venture into Still Feel Gone and encounter one of the great Uncle Tupelo 1-2 punches. But has Chad lost the faith? It’s pistols at dawn. May they fall down easy. Songs: “Gun,” “Looking For a Way Out,” & “Fall Down Easy.”
1.5 Reading Playboy for the Articles
Chad and Keith close out No Depression and work through some bonus tracks. Producers: threat or menace? Same question for harmonicas and banjos. And R.E.M., Sebadoh, and Dinosaur Jr elbow their way into the discussion. Songs covered are “John Hardy,” Left in the Dark,” “I Got Drunk,” and “Sin City.”
1.4 Twenty Dollars’ Worth of Pull Tabs, or Extremely High-Stakes Drinking
Chad and Keith hit the home stretch of No Depression, and the resulting discussion is about as funny as a screen door on a submarine, to Chad’s chagrin. Also, the honor of Rush (band, not Limbaugh) is debated. Despite the way this description sounds, Uncle Tupelo is also comes up here and there. Songs covered are “Flatness,” “So-Called Friend,” and “Screen Door.”
1.3 A Beer in Each Hand and a Smile in Between
Chad and Keith go deeper into No Depression, pondering the issues of Jay Farrar’s beef with English grammar, what’s up with trains, and where the damned mando tabs are. Also, if you like digressions about the Bottle Rockets, this is the episode for you. Songs covered include “Outdone,” “Train,” and “Life Worth Livin’.”
1.2 Liquor and Guns!
Chad and Keith continue their exploration of Uncle Tupelo’s first album, opening up the whiskey bottle and finding it full of weird laughter. Discussions include the business models of a shop that sells liquor and guns, Neil Young’s “Cortez the Killer,” and Jay Farrar, Great American Poet. Songs covered are “No Depression,” “Factory Belt,” and “Whiskey Bottle”
1.1 Graveyard Shift, That Year, and Before I Break
Chad Cook and Keith Pille, two idiots from Minneapolis, begin their song-by-song walk through the catalog of seminal alt-country band Uncle Tupelo by talking about the first three songs on the album No Depression. Also discussed: the seeming impossibility of Jay Farrar’s voice, what’s up with a Loverboy song, and where some bad places to pass out after drinking are. Songs covered are “Graveyard Shift,” “That Year,” and “Before I Break.”