Cover to Cover with Matt Tarka
di Matt Tarka
A podcast featuring musical conversations about an album or song which has changed and enhanced someone’s life.
Episodi del podcast
Episode 104: Jonny Swift - Wild Nothing/Gemini
Jonny Swift (ex Beat the Radar, Paloma Café) is a Cumbria, UK-based artist who writes, performs and releases music under his own name, and since 2020 has released three albums (Dalton Daze, Story of Luna & Kalimera) via local independent label Seahouse Records. Swift has received national and international radio play and exposure from BBC 6 music, BBC London, BBC introducing, Amazing Radio as well as local independent radio stations. Jonny has released the lead single "She Said" on 17 November 2023 off his forthcoming record "An Awesome Dream" (1 December). Recorded, Mixed and Mastered by Matt Kassell at Digital Man Recording Studio, Barrow, Cumbria, these releases are available on all digital platforms. Sounding like something from 80s indie label Sarah Records, there’s no denying that ‘She Said’ is a straight forward indie pop song. Jangly guitars, female backing vocals, tambourines and lyrics about rejection place this track firmly in a particular category. With strong influences by The Vaselines, The Wake as well as more modern indie acts such as The Cribs, this perfect slice of pop is perfect for both daytime radio as well as indie-specific shows and playlists. For our conversation today, we discussed the artistic impact of "Gemini" - the debut album by an American indie rock, dream pop act known as Wild Nothing, Released on May 25, 2010, on Brooklyn, NY’s Captured Tracks, Wild Nothing is a brainchild of Blacksburg, VA’s Jack Tatum and a mainstay of the group since its inception back in 2009. Enjoy the conversation!
Episode 103: Scout Gillett (Musician)
Today, we’re speaking with one Scout Gillett, from Brooklyn, NY by way of Kansas City, MO. Scout is a musician and runs her own booking agency called Road Dog Booking. Her atmospheric and contemplative debut record titled “no roof no floor” is out now via Captured Tracks, and at the time of our conversation in November 2022, wrapped up a tour in support of Sarah Shook and the Disarmers, and celebrated a release party for “no roof no floor” at the record Bar in KC with The Whiffs, Blanky, and Magic Marty. The music of Scout Gillett is very difficult to pin down sonically, and I personally believe that’s a very good place to land for an artist. If you enjoy the musical stylings of Sharon Van Etten, Angel Olsen, Mazzy Star, and Patty Smith, Scout has a seat at that table. And, I highly recommend catching her upcoming solo tour on the West Coast through the month of December, starting on Dec 7 at The Firehouse in Joshua Tree, CA, dear listeners. For our conversation, we will be discussing The Man Who Died in His Boat, the 9th studio album by American “experimental pop” musician Liz Harris under the moniker, Grouper, which was released on Monday, February 4, 2013. This record consists of outtakes from the previous years, when she was in the process of recording Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill. Enjoy the conversation!
Episode 102: Jeff Cumpson - Musicologist/Marketing Professional
Today, we are speaking with a very old friend of mine. He is one Jeffrey Thomas Cumpson. These days, he’s a marketing professional and I also know him as a musical mastermind in such projects as The 9th Great Power and The Block Signals. I first met Jeff in the summer of 1989 on the ball fields in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Sports were always part of the fabric of our friendship and as time marched on, music also began playing a crucial role – fiddling around with a four-track recorder, writing our own songs, playing in high school variety shows and the like. For our conversation, we will be discussing in great detail John Hiatt and his eighth studio record called Bring the Family, which was released on May 29, 1987 for A&M Records. This was a pivotal moment in Hiatt's career, as it very well could have been his last chance in the music business. Welcome in and enjoy!
Episode 101 - Continental Drifters (Rock band)
Today’s conversation focuses on an as-yet untitled book written by musician Sean Kelly (A Fragile Tomorrow, So Sure) about an acclaimed and criminally overlooked American rock and roll band known as Continental Drifters . Formed in Los Angeles in 1991, the Drifters consist of guitarist/vocalist Vicki Peterson from The Bangles and The Psycho Sisters, bassist Mark Walton from The Dream Syndicate, Susan Cowsill of The Cowsills and also Psycho Sisters, Peter Holsapple from the dBs, Carlo Nuccio, Robert Maché, Russ Broussard and many others throughout the band's history. With Sean, I was delighted to speak with both Vicki and Mark, who go into great detail about the origins of the group, songs which comprise their 1998 studio album Vermilion, and so much more! Be on the lookout for details surrounding the forthcoming biography on Instagram! @continentaldriftersbook
Episode 100: Jamie Aston (Musician/Bassist)
Our guest today is south central Pennsylvania's Jamie Aston, acclaimed bassist of Wes Hoke and the Bare Roots and the Joe Olnick Band. Back in August of 2022, we had a lively conversation about Burlington, Vermont's Phish and their fifth studio album released in 1994 titled Hoist. The mid 1990's was a pivotal era for the band, which saw Jon (Henrietta), Trey (Big Red), Mike (Cactus) and Page (Chairman of the Boards) leap from the club circuit in the U.S. to large scale amphitheaters and beyond. I think you'll enjoy his tale of how he discovered the band, subsequent touring/taping and his love of the music, which has never waivered for nearly thirty years. Enjoy!