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PODCAST

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music

Adam Scott Glasspool, Steve Murphy, Lucas Way

A podcast that dives deep into discographies - one artist per season. Hosts Adam, Steve, and Lucas go album by album, track by track, exploring how context shapes our experience of music, why fans become obsessed, and what music really is. With three hosts coming from wildly different levels of musical knowledge, expect sharp analysis, wild tangents, hot takes, and more information about the artists (and the hosts) than you ever asked for. Current focus: Björk. Previous seasons featured Manic Street

music music commentary

All Episodes

60:23

Björk Handles Ants and Spiders and Lizards

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/06/15

The Big Mates provide a special kind of audio accompaniment for a variety of clips from across the career of The Sugarcubes. Adam, Steve, and Lucas discuss Icelandic cuisine, currency conversion rates, successful side projects, milk, Top of the Pops, Joan Jett, Netflix podcasts, and MTV programming whilst watching some music videos for the band’s biggest hits, footage of them performing on TV, and archival footage of Björk’s earlier projects. Head to YouTube to watch along by clic...

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66:21

Stick Around for Joy

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/06/08

The Big Mates discuss antique shops, alternative dance music, relatively new sweets, and Stick Around for Joy by The Sugarcubes. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue the prologue of their deep-dive exploration into the music of Björk by talking about the third album by The Sugarcubes. They discuss the details of the band's hiatus, the journey to America to make the album, the incorporation of dance-influenced sounds, and offer analysis, interpretation, and opinion from three differing perspe...

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75:13

Here Today, Tomorrow Next Week!

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/06/01

The Big Mates discuss classic cities, CBGB’s, allergies, and Here Today, Tomorrow Next Week! by The Sugarcubes. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue the prologue of their deep-dive exploration into the music of Björk by talking about the second album by The Sugarcubes. They discuss how the band reacted to their early success, how the album was made, the expansion of the line-up, and offer analysis, interpretation, and opinion from three differing perspectives on music, from being deeply into...

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102:38

Life's Too Good

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/05/25

The Big Mates discuss speaking, growling, fasting, and Life's Too Good by The Sugarcubes. Adam, Steve, and Lucas properly begin their deep-dive exploration of Björk by talking about her upbringing, her musical background, the influences she found whilst discovering music, and how she started off her career. They discuss the early days of her creative output, the many projects she engaged with in Iceland, and how she found her artistic voice. They then talk about The Sugarcubes and ...

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75:03

Season 8 Introduction

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/05/18

Adam, Steve, and Lucas introduce Season 8. Our next episode is out next Monday, May 25th! Join the conversation on: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/whatismusicpod.bsky.social Threads: https://www.threads.net/@whatismusicpod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatismusicpod E-mail: whatismusicpod@gmail.com Get access to more shows, exclusive bonus content, ad-free episodes of this show, and more music discussion by subscribing to our Patreon! Head to patreon.com/whatismusicpod and receiv...

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41:50

We Went to See Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft:...

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/05/11

The Big Mates discuss the cats, burgers, popcorn, and the new Billie Eilish film. Adam, Steve, and Lucas met in person for the first time in decades to go and see Billie Eilish - Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour (Live in 3D). They discuss the film, its focus, its direction, the performance, and its use of 3D! Our next episode is out next Monday, May 18th, and will see us begin a brand new season! Join the conversation on: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/whatismusicpod.bsky.soc...

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62:05

Who Is Music?: The Reckoning

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/05/04

The Big Mates look to the future of the podcast by kicking off a tournament to decide the artist covered in a future season of What Is Music? Adam, Steve, and Lucas reveal the participants for the forthcoming competition and set the first round of matches. These head-to-heads will take place daily, starting on Tuesday May 5th. The matches will be voted on by you, our listeners, and will take place exclusively on our Patreon - but you only need a Free Membership to participate. Head to...

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248:36

Album Club: U2 - The Joshua Tree

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/04/27

Now on our main feed, we present to you The WIM Album Club, with an episode we released on our Patreon earlier this year. The episode is a classic WIM deep-dive into the album The Joshua Tree by U2 and features all of the usual discussion, analysis, commentary, history, insight, and tangents you've come to expect from the podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, head over to our Patreon to hear more episodes on a range of different artists, in different genres, from different countries and era...

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225:18

Arctic Monkeys Final Thoughts

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/04/20

The Big Mates discuss and conclude their thoughts on Arctic Monkeys and their career. They bring a year-long journey to a close, with thoughts on the sound, story, and attitude of the band, a recap of each of their albums and moods, and a look at their impact and legacy. Thank you all for joining us! Our next episode is out next Monday! Join the conversation on: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/whatismusicpod.bsky.social Threads: https://www.threads.net/@whatismusicpod Instagram:...

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159:51

Arctic Monkeys Music Videos

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/04/13

The Big Mates watch all of Arctic Monkeys' music videos in one sitting. You can watch along with us here: www.bilibili.com/video/BV1AiQWBqEkR/ Or you can just listen without watching anything - that works too! Or you could make your own playlist - scroll down to see which videos we covered! Our next episode will see us wrap-up and offer final thoughts on the whole 7-album, 22-year career of Arctic Monkeys and is out on Monday April 20th! Join the conversation on: Bluesky: https://bsky.a...

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44:34

INTRODUCING: Welcome to Twin Peaks

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/04/08

Welcome to Welcome to Twin Peaks: A Twin Peaks Podcast for Beginners. Join Adam and Steve as they put on their investigation trenchcoats, pour a hot steaming cup of coffee, and dive into the world of Twin Peaks. In this first episode they introduce the podcast, the season to come, and their relationship with Twin Peaks and David Lynch. They discuss their knowledge of the show, including its place in culture at the time it was released and now, the vibe of the show, and whether or not the co...

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90:07

Arctic Monkeys B-Sides (Pt. 2)

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/04/06

The Big Mates mixed bags, S Club Juniors, tracklistings, and A Selection of B-Sides by Arctic Monkeys. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their dissection of the career of Arctic Monkeys by looking at a variety of b-sides from across their career. They discuss the writing, rehearsal, and recording of these songs from numerous eras, exploring the composition, tone, lyrics, meaning, and context for each song in turn - all from three differing perspectives, from being deeply into music and an...

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90:39

Arctic Monkeys B-Sides (Pt. 1)

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/03/30

The Big Mates discuss crows, ravens, flamingoes, and A Selection of B-Sides by Arctic Monkeys. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their dissection of the career of Arctic Monkeys by looking at a variety of b-sides from across their career. They discuss the writing, rehearsal, and recording of these songs from numerous eras, exploring the composition, tone, lyrics, meaning, and context for each song in turn - all from three differing perspectives, from being deeply into music and ...

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116:32

Arctic Monkeys Live at Glastonbury Festival 2023...

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/03/23

The Big Mates provide pointy and muddy audio commentary for Arctic Monkeys Live at Glastonbury Festival 2023. Adam, Steve, and Lucas discuss the 2023 headlining performance as broadcast to television, and as witness with Adam's own two eyes. They also talk about how the band toured The Car. Head to YouTube to watch along here: https://archive.org/details/arctic-monkeys-glastonbury-2023 Or don't watch along - the episode works fine either way! Our next episode comes out Monday M...

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100:47

The Car (Pt. 2)

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/03/16

The Big Mates discuss Arrested Development, cowboys, J.W. Pepper, and The Car by Arctic Monkeys. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their exploration of the career of Arctic Monkeys and conclude their track-by-track analysis of their seventh studio album. They explore the composition, tone, lyrics, meaning, and context for each song in turn - all from three differing perspectives, from being deeply into music and analysis, to not caring for art or critique, and everything in between!...

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106:34

The Car (Pt. 1)

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/03/09

The Big Mates discuss textual mishaps, DVD technology, Waluigi, and The Car by Arctic Monkeys. Adam, Steve, and Lucas begin their dissection of the band's seventh and most recent album by talking about orchestras, pandemics, and how they entered the studio to record a guitar-based rock album. They discuss the writing, rehearsal, and recording of what became The Car, explore the overall themes and sound, and begin their track-by-track analysis, exploring the composition, tone, lyri...

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65:35

Arctic Monkeys Live at the Royal Albert Hall

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/03/02

The Big Mates discuss the Turkish barber experience, winter camping, live documents, and Live at the Royal Albert Hall by Arctic Monkeys. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their exploration of the band's career by examining their one and only live album! What do we make of this album? What do we make of live albums in general? What is munge? Find out on this episode of What Is Music? Our next episode is out next week, Monday March 9th, and will see us begin the deep-dive into The Car! Joi...

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88:00

Arctic Monkeys Live at Les Nuits de Fourvière 2018...

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/02/23

The Big Mates provide brisk and unwieldy audio commentary for Arctic Monkeys Live at Les Nuits de Fourvière 2018. Adam, Steve, and Lucas discuss the 2018 concert and talk about how Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino divided opinion upon release. Head to YouTube to watch along here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9_DFJsNu_0 Or don't watch along - the episode works fine either way! Our next episode comes out Monday March 2nd! Join the conversation on: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/pro...

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94:45

Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino (Pt. 3)

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/02/16

The Big Mates discuss moon firsts, flesh worlds, word symmetry, and Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino by Arctic Monkeys. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their exploration of the career of Arctic Monkeys and conclude their track-by-track analysis of their sixth album. They explore the composition, tone, lyrics, meaning, and context for each song in turn - all from three differing perspectives, from being deeply into music and analysis, to not caring for art or critique, and every...

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83:56

Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino (Pt. 2)

What Is Music?: A Music Podcast About Music ·

2026/02/09

The Big Mates discuss automobile mishaps, instagram tacos, virtual reality, and Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino by Arctic Monkeys. Adam, Steve, and Lucas continue their dissection of the band's sixth album by talking about the musicians involved in creating it, a change in the credits, how much of the creative weight landed on Alex Turner's shoulders. They discuss the recording of the album and continue their track-by-track analysis, exploring the composition, tone, lyrics, me...

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