Unsung Podcast

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In Session 2 - Ben Power of Blanck Mass (Part 3)

And now, for avid fans, we present part 3 of our interview with Benjamin Power/Blanck Mass. After two weeks of talking about Blanck Mass and Ben’s career, it’s now time to talk about music that Ben thinks is underrated. There’s some great, obscure, interesting choices and discussion in this episode around the album’s he’s picked, why he’s picked them and what he loves about them. We also recommend checking out episodes 1 and 2 on the links below. Part 1: https://www.unsungpod.net/episodes/in-session-2-ben-power-of-blanck-mass-part-1 Part 2: https://www.unsungpod.net/episodes/in-session-2-ben-power-of-blanck-mass-part-2

Episode 80 - Rather Ripped by Sonic Youth (Part 2)

And now we get to the heart of the matter. The very meat of the discussion, if you will. Sonic Youth have a huge discography that, like nearly artists with catalogues of such size, varies wildly in quality. Yet someone, even towards the tail end of the career, they will still able to produce an album as cohesive and consistent as Rather Ripped. After some more discussion around what “cool” is, and how Sonic Youth are still considered as such despite their increasing commercialism, Chris gives us a highlight reel of their career before we discuss Rather Ripped as a whole. We’re not saying Rather Ripped is their best album, but does it classify as Unsung? Does it deserve to be in our discography? Vote below.

In Session 2 - Ben Power of Blanck Mass (Part 2)

As is tradition for our interviews, we’ve broken it into three parts and this is no exception. On part two Ben talks about the genesis of Blanck Mass, the method behind some of the music and the boys go on a deep dive of the Blanck Mass back catalogue, taking in as much ground as they can. Ben talks about some of the stuff he says is his favourite and things that encapsulate what Blanck Mass really is. They also touch on some of the collaborations Ben’s been a part of and so much more. Mark is again sadly absent from this episode as he’s was ill. But you’ll never even notice. Part one can be found here: https://www.unsungpod.net/episodes/in-session-2-ben-power-of-blanck-mass-part-1

Episode 79 - Rather Ripped by Sonic Youth (Part 1)

We’re back in action this week as Chris finally pulls the trigger on Sonic Youth. Behind the scenes he’d been deliberating doing this record for a while, but the time has finally come to do it. The episode turned out to be a lot longer than we anticipated - I mean, the band have a lot of records and a huge legacy - and we barely even scratched the surface of their discography, instead devoting more time to discussing their impact on music and culture. That’s why we split it into two parts. The vote comes next week, but for now, enjoy part one of our epic two parter on Sonic Youth’s 14th album, Rather Ripped.

In Session 2 - Ben Power of Blanck Mass (Part 1)

It’s taken more than a bloody year for us to arrange our second interview, but we did it! We promise not to wait so long for the next one. Promise. This week we sit with producer and musician Benjamin John Power, best known for his work in Fuck Buttons and Blanck Mass. In part 1 we talk early life, early influences, the health of electronic music, broken washing machines and sordid rap-metal pasts. Also, Chris raps. Which is a true feast for the eardrums. Mark is sadly absent from this episode as he’s was ill at the time for recording but don’t worry, you’ll hardly notice that he’s missing.

Episode 78 - The Roadtrip Mixtape

With Mark currently undertaking a road trip of the American Deep South, Chris and David thought this would be a fine time to talk about their own road trips, discussing some of their favourite tunes from playlists of old. They even trade some cool tour stories too, which is definitely worth the listen alone. And in true Unsung fashion Mark even finds some time to phone in his own comments. So this week, each of the lads take a turn at picking five songs that they feel are perfect road trip playlist fodder. And you can find the combined playlist below, if you want to listen along with the guys as you listen to the pod. We return to regular action next week.

Episode 77 - Remission by Mastodon

Purveyors of fine Southern Fried prog rock, Mastodon, are one of those bands who have slowly grown in stature with each album. Over the years, their sound has evolved, but the musicianship has remained nothing short of breathtaking. It’s rare you find a band that can play like fuck and continue pushing the limits of what they can do as their career progresses. Some will argue, as we do in this episode, that their earlier, heavier stuff is better, but that appears to be the minority opinion if record sales, tours, awards and accolades are anything to go by. Remission is their debut album, a masterwork in which they combine the speed of thrash with the twenty ton weight riffage one finds in sludge metal. There are also hints of the prog rock that they would later go on to embrace, yet as a statement, as the opening salvo of what has become a storied career, it heralds the arrival of something special. Many will say the two albums that follow this, Leviathan and Blood Mountain, constitute their best work. However, no on can deny that Remission is a fantastic start to a glittering career. Is this their Unsung classic? You know what to do.

Episode 76 - Apocalypse 91...The Enemy Strikes Black by Public Enemy

When one considers the “golden age of hip-hop”, Public Enemy are rightly discussed as vital element of it. It’s a vitality that’s both earned and odd, as their acerbic, caustic, antagonistic, overtly political message may seem at odds with the kind of content their contemporaries were discussing. Yet when viewed as another facet in the rise, and dissemination, of the black culture that PE and their kin were at the forefront of in the late 80s, they can be viewed as part of a more complete picture that aimed to communicate the black experience in America at the time. Apocalypse 91… is the end of the band’s own “golden age”. Four albums in four years is a tall order for most acts, yet Public Enemy bring this period of their career to a staggering close with their fourth release, bringing things back down to a street level, and handing the sonic reins to The Bomb Squad’s proteges, The Imperial Grand Ministers of Funk. The result is that this sounds different from what came before, with a much more upfront edge, but the samples and production work are by no means watered down. On this episode we look extensively at PE’s early career, the controversy around the band, and wax lyrical on a whole bunch of other things besides. We know this band has another three great records, but in our view only two are unsung. Is this it?

Episode 75 - Emergency Split 7" (Side B)

O HAY Because we chopped this in two we decided to drop it on Tuesday instead of Friday. SURPRISE! In keeping with the usual “Ask a question, we’ll give the answer” theme of our Split 7” episodes we’re answering another question. This time, it’s one posed by Chris: who would be the worst band to tour with? It gives him an excuse to tell some of his own touring stories, which we think is the secret reason he chose this topic, but we’ll let him off with it. There’s some interesting choices in here, and some expected choices too. We hope you like it. Remember, you can subscribe at www.unsungpod.net/donate and get these episodes as bonus content on a regular basis. It’s fun, promise. As ever, if you have a funny/interesting topic you’d want to see us cover just let us know via your preferred method of communication: Facebook, Twitter, carrier pigeon, the comments etc.

Episode 74 - Emergency Split 7" (Side A)

This week David had an urgent family emergency and couldn’t join the proceedings, so we thought we’d shelf our Public Enemy discussion until his return. With Dave (mostly) out action, Chris and Mark decided to give the general listening public a little taste of what we offer our subscribers. Our Split 7” episodes is where you, the fans, give us a topic and we talk about it. This week we’ve chosen two, one by Mr. Ricky Stewart and one that we chose ourselves. Ricky’s topic was to see if we could pick albums who have had a run of three great albums in a row. Whilst our own choice is all about bands you would hate to tour with. David also manages to join us via the medium of WhatsApp voice memos, because we’re in the future after all. So yeah, we hope you like this episode. We enjoyed doing it. If you’d like hear more then all you gotta do go to www.unsungpod.net/donate and fling some cash at us. Any amount helps, and you’ll get access to our exclusive content. Everyone wins!

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