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Life of the Record

Life of the Record / Talkhouse

Classic albums, told by the people who made them.

music music interviews

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96:30

The Making of TRAMP by Sharon Van Etten - featuring...

Life of the Record ·

2025/10/21

In celebration of Sharon Van Etten’s breakthrough third album, Tramp, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Growing up in New Jersey, Sharon Van Etten studied music by learning several instruments and singing in the choir. After graduating high school, she went to Middle Tennessee State University to study recording. Though she started writing songs around the year 2000, she didn’t perform or release music until 2005 when she moved back to New Jersey. Later she moved to New York and started

37:00

Preview: Fela Kuti: Fear No Man

Life of the Record ·

2025/10/15

Subscribe to ⁠Fela Kuti: Fear No Man.⁠In a world that’s on fire, what is the role of art? What can music actually…do? Can a song save a life? Change a law? Topple a president? Get you killed? In Fela Kuti: Fear No Man, Jad Abumrad—creator of Radiolab, More Perfect, and Dolly Parton’s America—tells the story of one of the great political awakenings in music: how a classically trained 'colonial boy’ traveled to America, in search of Africa, only to return to Nigeria and transform his sound into a

106:38

The Making of WRITER'S BLOCK by Peter Bjorn and John...

Life of the Record ·

2025/09/02

In celebration of Peter, Bjorn and John’s breakthrough third album, 'Writer’s Block,' we take a detailed look at how it was made. When Peter Morén and Björn Yttling started playing music together in high school, they bonded over a shared love of guitar rock. When they moved to Stockholm after high school, they met John Eriksson, who was a trained percussionist, playing in a percussion ensemble. They eventually asked him if he would consider playing drums with them in a pop band and the trio, Peter

93:50

The Making of A RIVER AIN'T TOO MUCH TO LOVE by Smog...

Life of the Record ·

2025/08/05

For the 20th anniversary of the Smog album, A River Ain’t Too Much to Love, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Bill Callahan began recording music under the name Smog in 1988 and releasing music on his own label, Disaster. After signing with Drag City early on, he released a series of albums in the 1990s and continued into the early 2000s. At this point, he was living in Chicago and wanted a change of scenery. After moving to Austin, Texas, he began writing songs for his 11th album. He

95:30

The Making of CLAP YOUR HANDS SAY YEAH (Self-Titled)...

Life of the Record ·

2025/06/30

For the 20th anniversary of the debut Clap Your Hands Say Yeah album, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Alec Ounsworth began recording demos of the songs he was writing, he connected with musicians he met while attending Connecticut College. The band was officially formed in 2004 and included Ounsworth, Lee Sargent, Tyler Sargent, Sean Greenhalgh and Robbie Guertin. As the rest of the band relocated to New York, Ounsworth remained in his hometown of Philadelphia and commuted for

91:50

The Making of CRAZY RHYTHMS by The Feelies -...

Life of the Record ·

2025/05/27

For the 45th anniversary of The Feelies’ classic debut album, Crazy Rhythms, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After the band formed as The Outkids in Haledon, New Jersey in 1976, Glenn Mercer, Bill Million and Dave Weckerman started playing with brothers Keith Clayton and Vinnie DeNunzio. They changed their name to The Feelies as they started playing gigs around New York City. At an audition night at CBGBs, they connected with sound engineer Mark Abel, who introduced them to manager Terry

152:38

The Making of THE MONITOR by Titus Andronicus -...

Life of the Record ·

2025/04/15

For the 15th anniversary of the second Titus Andronicus album, The Monitor, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Patrick Stickles founded Titus Andronicus in Glen Rock, New Jersey in 2005, he worked with a rotating group of musicians, many of whom he had known in high school. By the time they were ready to record their first album, the lineup had coalesced around Stickles, Liam Betson, Dan Tews, Ian Graetzer and Ian Dykstra. The New Jersey label, Troubleman Unlimited, agreed to put out

126:14

The Making of SET YOURSELF ON FIRE by Stars - feat....

Life of the Record ·

2025/03/10

For the 20th anniversary of Stars’ breakthrough third album, Set Yourself on Fire, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Torquil Campbell and Chris Seligman grew up together in Toronto, they formed Stars when they were living in New York City. Their first album, Nightsongs, was made with the help of their friends in Metric and several guest singers, including Amy Millan. Deciding to relocate to Montreal, they added Amy Millan and Evan Cranley as full-time members. Their second album,

128:39

The Making of I'M WIDE AWAKE, IT'S MORNING by Bright...

Life of the Record ·

2025/01/27

For the 20th anniversary of the sixth Bright Eyes album, I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning, we take a detailed look at how it was made. Conor Oberst began Bright Eyes in 1995 in Omaha, Nebraska as an outlet for his solo material that he had been writing as a teenager. He formed a partnership with Saddle Creek Records, a label founded by his brother Justin Oberst and Mike Mogis and began releasing his albums in 1998, starting with A Collection of Songs Written and Recorded 1995–1997. Later that year, he

103:44

The Making of MEAN EVERYTHING TO NOTHING by...

Life of the Record ·

2025/01/07

For the 15th anniversary of Manchester Orchestra’s second album, Mean Everything to Nothing, we take a detailed look at how it was made. The band started in 2004 as an outlet for Andy Hull’s songwriting that he was doing as a teenager growing up in Atlanta, Georgia. Hull connected with bassist Jonathan Corley and drummer Jeremiah Edmond and self-released their first EP in 2005. Keyboardist Chris Freeman joined the band and their debut album, I’m Like a Virgin Losing a Child was released in 2006 on

121:06

The Making of AMERICAN FOOTBALL (S/T) - featuring...

Life of the Record ·

2024/12/04

For the 25th anniversary of American Football (Self-Titled), we take a detailed look at how it was made. The origins of American Football began with Mike Kinsella’s band Cap’n Jazz, who were hugely influential in the punk scene in the Chicago suburbs. Steve Holmes went to high school with Kinsella and was inspired to learn guitar after watching Cap’n Jazz perform. Kinsella and Holmes became close friends and ended up going to college together and were roommates at the University of Illinois in

114:26

The Making of LONG AFTER DARK by Tom Petty and the...

Life of the Record ·

2024/10/30

In celebration of the new Deluxe Edtion of Long After Dark, the fifth studio album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Tom Petty connected with Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench to form Mudcrutch in Gainesville, Florida in 1970, they ended up relocating to Los Angeles. There they were able to sign a deal with Shelter Records, but Mudcrutch broke up soon after, leaving Petty under contract as a solo artist. Campbell and Tench began playing in a band

101:53

The Making of NO NEED TO ARGUE by The Cranberries -...

Life of the Record ·

2024/10/03

For the 30th anniversary of The Cranberries’ second album, NO NEED TO ARGUE, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After forming in Limerick, Ireland in 1989, with a different lead singer named Niall Quinn, the band initially took on the name The Cranberry Saw Us. When Quinn decided to leave the band, he recommended Dolores O’Riordan as a potential replacement. O’Riordan wrote lyrics and added vocals to their demo tape and when the band heard what she brought to the songs, they immediately

99:33

The Making of FOOLISH by Superchunk - featuring Mac...

Life of the Record ·

2024/09/19

For the 30th anniversary of Superchunk’s fourth album, FOOLISH, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Superchunk got their start in Chapel Hill, North Carolina in 1989, they were becoming known for their catchy punk anthems and busy touring schedule. Mac McCaughan and Laura Ballance had been a couple and formed Merge Records initially as a way to release their early singles, while releasing their full-length albums on Matador Records. Around the time of their third album, ON THE MOUTH,

85:36

The Making of THEY WANT MY SOUL by Spoon - featuring...

Life of the Record ·

2024/08/19

For the 10th anniversary of Spoon’s 8th full-length album, They Want My Soul, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Spoon concluded their remarkable run of records in the early 2000s with 2010’s Transference, they took a much needed break. During this time, Britt Daniel formed Divine Fits with Dan Boeckner, while Jim Eno produced records for other artists. When Spoon got back together, they added new member Alex Fischel on keyboards and opted to work with producers Joe Chiccarelli and

89:59

The Making of DIARY by Sunny Day Real Estate - feat....

Life of the Record ·

2024/07/10

For the 30th anniversary of Sunny Day Real Estate’s iconic debut album, DIARY, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Dan Hoerner and Nate Mendel began playing music together in Seattle in 1992, they asked William Goldsmith to join on drums, despite the fact that he was already playing in three other bands at the time. When Mendel went on tour with another band, they asked Goldsmith’s high school friend Jeremy Enigk to jam with them. Enigk took over lead vocal duties from Hoerner and when

126:11

The Making of THE RUNNERS FOUR by Deerhoof - feat....

Life of the Record ·

2024/06/04

For the past three decades, Deerhoof have been one of the most consistently inventive rock bands around. Their seventh album, The Runners Four, remains a fascinating result of a band obsessively recording themselves in their practice space for many months. After Deerhoof first began as a solo harmonica project by Rob Fisk, drummer Greg Saunier joined only one week later. They signed to Kill Rock Stars and soon after Satomi Matsuzaki moved from Tokyo to San Francisco, she became the lead singer. They

79:57

The Making of I WANT TO SEE THE BRIGHT LIGHTS TONIGHT...

Life of the Record ·

2024/04/30

For the 50th anniversary of Richard and Linda Thompson’s first album as a duo, I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After Richard helped pioneer British folk rock in the late 1960s with Fairport Convention, he was feeling burnt out and decided to leave the band to focus on writing. In 1972, he married Linda Peters, who had been performing in the folk scene during the same time as Fairport. Richard was under contract with Island Records and released his

74:21

The Making of VENEER - featuring José González

Life of the Record ·

2024/03/13

For the 20th anniversary of the debut album by José González, we take a detailed look at how it was made. After getting his start playing in hardcore bands in Gothenburg, Sweden in the 1990s, José González began studying biochemistry at the University of Gothenburg. While he was a student, he continued playing in multiple bands while recording his solo material on the side. His band Junip was working with a local label called Kakafoni and they agreed to release a 7-inch of the solo songs he was

92:07

The Making of OUT OF STEP by Minor Threat - featuring...

Life of the Record ·

2024/02/20

In celebration of the recently unearthed Out of Step Outtakes, we take a detailed look at the making of the original record. After Minor Threat formed in Washington D.C. in 1980, they began to find an audience in the American punk scene. Their first two seven-inch records contained songs written by Ian MacKaye, such as “Straight Edge” and “Out of Step,” which kickstarted the straight edge movement within punk. By 1982, guitarist Lyle Preslar had left for college and Minor Threat temporarily broke

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Life of the Record

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