LONELIER THAN GOD

Today I’m speaking with 2 fixtures of the Champaign-Urbana music scene, MARK BALDWIN & KENT WHITESELL.

In the ‘90s, Mark sang & played guitar in the highly influential Love Cup, a band name you’ve heard in almost every episode of this show. Their discography was small but their impact was huge, gradually perfecting what Mark has called the “heavy but pretty” sound at ear-splitting volumes.

Since then, he’s played in Absconder, California Mummy (with Matt Talbott), The Shit People, & The Mezzanines, who just released a new record called Sugarpants this year. There’s lots to explore in his ever-expanding discography on Bandcamp, links below.

Kent started playing in & recording with power-pop bands in high school, including The Martyrs, Schoolyard Truce, The Outnumbered, & Three Hour Tour, with whom he’s working on new material this year. In 2010, The Martyrs released a CD reissue of their discography, including their first & only record, plus compilation tracks & other extras.

He’s also produced dozens of Champaign bands at his local studio, Clubhouse, from the ‘80s & ‘90s through today, including HUM’s first record, Hot Glue Gun, Mother, 16 Tons, Corndolly, Hardvark, & many others.

In this episode, we talk about Champaign’s early indie & alternative scene, the importance of Jane's Addiction, & the telepathic thrill of improvising songs in public.

There were some technical difficulties toward the end of the interview, so the song conversation is a little abbreviated.

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LOVE CUP BANDCAMP

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MEZZANINES BANDCAMP

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LOVE CUP INTERVIEW

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THE MARTYRS BANDCAMP

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TIMESTAMPS:
03:04 // "Billfershort" (Love Cup)
04:52 // Mark & Kent's Early History
06:06 // Kent's '80s Bands
06:55 // "Trends of the Turmoil" (The Martyrs)
08:19 // "Boy on a Roof" (The Outnumbered)
12:06 // Mark's First Bands
15:34 // Clubhouse Studio
18:03 // "Strangled with Flowers" (The Flat Earth Society)
20:55 // Love Cup Demos & Tearing Water EP
25:35 // "Tearing Water" (Love Cup)
27:30 // Jane's Addiction, the "Heavy But Pretty," & Local Touring
38:06 // ...Grefus Gronks & Sheet LP
46:47 // "Nothing in Particular" (Love Cup)
49:00 // Meeting HUM Members
53:50 // "Roar, I'm a Tiger" Discussion
01:07:00 // "Scientifically Yours" (Love Cup)

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This week I’m talking with MATT MCGUYER & ALEX WALLWORK of the Evansville, Indiana bands FAERIE RING & AMBLARE.

On August 21, Faerie Ring will release their self-titled third album on KING VOLUME RECORDS. It was produced, engineered, & mixed by Tyler Watkins, Alex Kercheval, & Morgan Satterfield @ Postal Recording in Indianapolis & mastered @ Sound Artillery in Miami by Jonathan Nuñez of Torche. Two singles are out already, & -- in my opinion -- this record is the band’s best work yet. Pre-order links below.

Across the month of July, they’re passing through Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, & Indiana, with hopefully some more dates in more cities later this year. Not to be missed.

In 2024, Amblare released their self-titled debut on Melodic Virtue, & if you haven’t heard it, pause this & play that. (Link below.) The album features the late Bryan St. Pere’s final recorded drum work, & it’s a beautiful testament to his craft & personality behind the kit. His playing is the first thing you hear on the record, as it should be.

In this episode, we discuss amplifier worship, crawling deeper into love, & vibrational empathy at the micro-scale.

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FAERIE RING

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"NEW GODS" VIDEO

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"FATTEST WITCH" VIDEO

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AMBLARE

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EPISODE 001: AFTERNOON WITH THE AXOLOTLS

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TIMESTAMPS:
02:37 // "New Gods" (Faerie Ring)
03:56 // Faerie Ring News
11:15 // Live Show Ethos
15:50 // New Singles & Videos
24:07 // "Fattest Witch" (F.R.)
25:32 // Amblare to Faerie Ring Chemistry
32:45 // Hearing HUM, Meeting Bryan
36:25 // BSP's Drum Approach
42:38 // "Puppets" Discussion
01:15:49 // What's Next
01:20:27 // "Mine'd" (Amblare)

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Today’s guest is BOB NANNA of the bands BRAID & HEY MERCEDES.

Earlier this year, POLYVINYL RECORDS reissued the entire Hey Mercedes discography on vinyl, & in 2023 they released a 25th anniversary remixed & remastered edition of Braid’s Frame & Canvas. Obviously, those are highly recommended. Links below.

His other projects include Lifted Bells, The City on Film, Friction, & -- as we’ll discuss in a few minutes -- the explosive but under-heard ORWELL, who released a compilation LP called 1995 on EXPERT WORK RECORDS.

He has an extensive archive of both original solo work & cover songs on his Bandcamp, also linked below.

In this episode, we discuss genre-fluid shows, the Champaign-Urbana/Chicago nexus, the joys of alliteration, & the sonics of the psychonautic state.

[Editor's note: the Castor song title we couldn't remember is "Stay Lo"]

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BRAID @ CBGBs '97

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BOB NANNA BANDCAMP

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HEY MERCEDES REISSUES

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BRAID, FRAME & CANVAS 25TH ANNIVERSARY ED.

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ORWELL, 1995 LP

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02:20 // “A-List Actress” (Hey Mercedes)
03:35 // CBGBs Flyer & Fireside Lineups
09:00 // Champaign/Urbana/Chicago Scenes & Venues
15:41 // Touring with (& Covering) Castor
20:53 // “Moving Backgrounds” (Bob Nanna/Castor)
21:49 // Orwell, 1995 LP
23:12 // “Ph9 Green” (Orwell)
25:25 // “4242” (Orwell)
29:06 // “9.30” (Orwell)
30:40 // HUM & Braid Shows
32:27 // “The Pod” Video & DIH Fandom
35:42 // “The Pod” Discussion
01:02:22 // Upcoming Shows
01:04:16 // “A Dozen Roses” (Braid)

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Today’s episode features a couple of LTG alumni, LYLE HODGES & KEITH M., & they’re back to discuss the first 2 Slide Away shows.

We talk about the '90s rock scene’s newest youth infusion, bask in the hypnotic audiovisual spectacle, give thanks to everyone who made it happen, & pick some standout moments from an unforgettable weekend.

Links to these guys’ previous episodes & various musical projects in the notes below.

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LYLE:

ELECTRIC STALLION // CHROME CHRIST

EPISODE 024: CENTAUR'S IN STREAMS

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KEITH:

MEMORY ENTRY // THE NEW SCENE PODCAST

EPISODE 025: THE INUIT PROMISE

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Today’s guest is DOMENIC PALERMO of the band NOTHING.

This past February, in-between tours of Japan & the U.S., they released their 5th album, A SHORT HISTORY OF DECAY, on RUN FOR COVER RECORDS. It veers from raw downer lullabies to overdriven beat-based raptures of distortion, sometimes even within the same song.

Nothing will play their second album, TIRED OF TOMORROW, in full at all 6 dates of this year’s Slide Away Festival, which begins this Friday & Saturday (May 15th & 16th), in New York City, then moves to Chicago & L.A. the following weekends.

As everyone listening already knows, HUM are headlining those shows, marking their first live performances in almost 7 years.

Nicky started the festival in 2024, & it’s already featured a multi-generational variety of shoegaze-adjacent bands like Swervedriver, Astrobrite, Swirlies, Whirr, Knifeplay, Mo Dotti, & many others.

In this episode, we discuss the logistics of festival curation, night-capping at a pseudo-strip club, the weary routines of touring, the kaleidoscopic gloom of songwriting, & meeting Kevin Shields when you can barely stand up.

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SLIDE AWAY '26

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"VERTIGO FLOWERS" VIDEO

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TIMESTAMPS:
02:35: “Cannibal World” (Nothing)
04:07: Japan & M.B.V. Shows
18:24: Album Titles
22:08: Touring Logistics
24:29: Slide Away Prep & Production
32:00: Lineups, HUM, & '90s Influences
43:24: Tired of Tomorrow LP
49:39: “Vertigo Flowers” Song & Video
57:59: “Curse of the Sun” (Nothing)

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