When Nabil Ayers set out to write his memoir he could have focused on a long list of personal and professional accomplishments. He’s been a drummer in bands on major labels. He opened and ran a record store in Seattle that is known and revered worldwide. He has had his writing published in the New York Times, NPR and more. He has run a division (4AD) of one of the world's most revered indie record labels (Beggars Group) and currently is the president of that label’s U.S. operations.

In our final episode of the year (and final post for ChunkyGlasses) we’re talking about some of the music that meant the most to us and more.

Bill Frisell’s latest LP Four is a masterclass in subtlety and connection. To celebrate the release, we’re dishing up a brief history of Frisell’s work and what it means to the American songbook. Then we’re digging into the new album to find out if his latest fits comfortably alongside his earlier releases or if maybe he’s starting to go a radical new direction.

On 2016’s The End Of Comedy and its 2019 follow up Raw Honey, it was clear that Drugdealer, the LA-based musical project led by Michael Collins had one foot firmly planted in the era of AM smooth-rock glory. On Hiding In Plain Sight, Collins and his semi-rotating cast of co-conspirators fully embrace that aesthetic and in doing so not only accept their destiny as the inheritors of Steely Dan’s legacy but deliver one of the most forward thinking yet familiar sounding records of the year.

Swedish psychedelia masters Dungen are leaning into a poppier sound on ‘En Är F​ö​r Mycket och Tusen Aldrig Nog’, — their first album in seven years — but they’re losing none of the head-trippy goodness that fans have come to know and love. Join us as we dig into this far-out listening experience, discuss what music can mean if the listener doesn’t understand the language it is sung in, and more!

On this edition of discologist we’re spinning new tracks from Milwaukee’s Ladybird, Sweden’s HNNY, and then digging into 1992’s Play With Toys, the forgotten classic by the Michael Ivey fronted “hip hop” group Basehead from Washington D.C.

Tune in now for all this PLUS new music from Maximilian and the Reinhardt, and a discussion about THAT Pitchfork list that everyone is talking about.

For over a decade, singer/songwriter/Southerner Kim Ware has been crafting indie-folk songs full of heart and twang with her project Kim Ware and the Good Graces. On her latest album Ready, she’s digging deeper inside then ever before. The result is an album overflowing with brutal honesty, (often hilarious) youthful angst, and an emotional core that could melt even the most hardened of hearts. Join us as we sit down with Ware to discuss the new album, making music in isolation, teaming up with producer Jerry Lee, and much, much more.

PLUS! Music we love from Chicago’s Bitchin Bajas, some tasty guitar work from Jon Camp, and a whole lot more!

We’re kicking off Season 11 with a THICC episode packed full of great music!

Depending on who you ask, saxophonist Sonny Stitt is either one of the most revered players in jazz history or the guy who never said no to a session, no matter how schmaltzy. Over his career he played on hundreds of albums and we’re diving deep into one of his best, 1974’s Satan!

Depending on your frame of mind, black midi are either an acquired taste or one of the most essential bands of the 21st century. On their new album Hellfire, the trio continues to push their maximalist sound to its limits while polishing the execution of their high-minded art till it shines brighter than ever. If finding beauty deep within absolute chaos is your idea of a good time then tap in as we discuss one of the wildest, and best, albums of 2022 to date.

PLUS! Music we love from California Celtics The Fire, and new sounds from the wild, wonderful world of The A’s (Amelia Meath and Alexandra Sauser-Monnig)!

In layman’s terms, the Boltzmann Brain Theory imagines a universe where the only thing that matters is what we perceive. Are we beings flitting about in a universe of someone else’s design or are we simply “brains” floating briefly thru the void, imposing OUR universe on that emptiness and anyone who happens to cross our path?

That central idea was the spark that drove this piece for most of its development, but as it came in to sharper focus the question of “what?” or “why?” we exist and perceive became secondary to the act of perceiving itself.

We spend so much of our lives searching for answers — Why do I exist? Why would “God” allow so much suffering in a world of his own creation? Is Bigfoot real? — and rarely have the thought to simply let a moment be, let it go, and look forward to the next. And that’s where this piece landed.

Washington D.C.’s Broke Royals have always been one of the hardest working indie bands we know, but like a lot of up-and-comers, COVID-19 slammed the brakes on what should have the beginning of their ascent to the big leagues. But rather than wait for things to return to normal, the band started a video series (Alone, Together), headed in exciting new creative directions, and came out of the experience stronger than ever!

Now the band [new addition Rebecca Silverstein (keys), Ben Wilson (guitar), Taimir Gore (bass), Colin Cross (drums), and Philip Basnight (vocals, guitar)] are back with a new energy, a new look, and a brand new album, Local Support (produced by Bartees Strange), ready to take over the world with a thrilling take on pop rock for the 21st Century.

Panamá 77, the debut album from Chicago’s Daniel Villarreal (drummer for Dos Santos) is a psychedelic exploration of the music of his culture married to the modern jazz scene that label International Anthem excels at shining a light on. Part live session, part studio wizardry, and ALL soul, Panamá 77 is a powerhouse of undeniable vibes featuring a who’s who of special guests (Elliot Bergman, Jeff Parker, Kellen Harrison, Bardo Martinez, and more!), and is one of this, or any years, most enjoyable listens.

Music plays a huge role in shaping the tone of any film, and on a special Holiday edition of Discologist we’re exploring some of the best to ever put sound to image, starting with John Carpenter whose new score for the film Firestarter mines familiar territory for the director/composer but manages to be a unique and essential addition to his growing film score catalog.

Dim the lights and break out the popcorn, we’re headed to the movies!

When they first collaborated almost sixty years ago, Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder came together over a shared love of the music of blues legends Sonny Terry and Brownie Mcghee. Now with the help of Joachim Cooder, the two friends have reunited to make sure that the music of the past isn’t forgotten and Get On Board, a recreation of the classic Folkways release is the result.

Over the course of the pandemic, Gerald Clayton thought a lot about time. What it means, how we spend it, and how the past and the now influence the future in unexpected ways. His new album Bells On Sand is the result of this philosophizing and finds the acclaimed pianist and composer creating sublime new worlds out of simple melodies and space, and the resulting abstraction of time that both can provide.

Alabaster DePlume’s (aka Gus Fairbairn) To Cy & Lee: Instrumentals, Vol. 1, was roundly praised as one of the best albums of 2020 and served as a balm for music fans of all types as they settled into a new, pandemic reality. Now he’s back with GOLD, an uplifting, quasi-spiritual journey towards understanding the value of self-worth in a world where it may no longer be valued. Part free-jazz, part primitive hymnal, GOLD builds on the strengths of DePlume’s earlier work to coalesce into his strongest statement on our shared humanity to date.

In 2006 Midlake set the bar for lush, thought-provoking indie rock with their album The Trials of Van Occupanther. On For The Sake Of Bethel Woods, their first album in eight years, the newly invigorated group is acknowledging the power of their earlier work while looking ahead to a limitless future of sonic innovation and pastoral existentialism.