On this week's Sidetrack we listen to a handful of tracks from Mr. Twin Sister's Eric Cardona. Unlike the band's jazz and disco-tinged pop tunes​, Cardona's solo work is much more personal, often acoustic-heavy, and intimate. We fade out the episode with "3AMFM", Cardona's take on Mr. Twin Sister's "Alien FM".

​We make the case in this episode that Mr. Twin Sister is one of the most talented acts to come out of the last decade, with a look at their 2014 self-titled 3rd album. Having gone through some rough patches as a band in the previous year (parting ways with Domino Records, lead vocalist Andrea Estella's MS diagnosis, and the entire group surviving a harrowing car crash while touring in Florida), Mr. Twin Sister emerges on the other end with a renewed energy and a fresh sound to go along with their slightly altered name (they used to go by simply Twin Sister, and were one of the many dream pop buzz bands of 2010). Effortlessly and expertly blending jazz, disco, and house electronic with a distinctly 70s and 80s vibe, this record is a true hidden gem for music lovers who want to hear something unique and refreshing.​

On this week's Sidetrack we take a quick peak at 1970's Zambia and the emergence of its Africa-tinged rock n' roll scene, affectionately named "Zamrock". We dive into the circumstances leading up to its creation, and play some tunes from three of our favorite acts out of Zambia.

From bedroom side project to headlining Coachella, Kevin Parker's blend of psychedelic, space rock, and jangly Brit pop has made Tame Impala one of the most unique and highly sought-after acts to emerge out of rock music in the last decade. With Lennon-esque vocals and phase-fuzz heavy melodies, Tame Impala is arguably the most notable acts of the psychedelic resurgence of the early 10s, and as his music continues to evolve and crossover into the mainstream, Tame Impala is always taking the genre to new places and new audiences. In this episode, we explore the origins of Kevin Parker in the Perth music scene and we listen to the music of his debut album Innerspeaker.

A young 20-something James Taylor moves to London in hopes of starting a career in music and somehow manages to get himself an audition to play a few of his demo songs for none other than Paul McCartney & George Harrison at Apple Records. Hear the rest of the story on this week's Sidetrack.

Yeah, we know....it's been a hot minute. But we are back in the swing of things and decided to bring along one of our dearest friends for this one: singer-songwriter Larry Llodra, hailing from Austin TX, to talk with us about one of the most under-appreciated folk artists of the last half century, Nick Drake. In the span of just three years, Nick Drake gave us three incredibly beautiful folk-pop records that are nothing short of masterpieces, each one bringing us just a little bit closer to the man himself. Just two years after his extremely vulnerable, poetic & raw third studio album "Pink Moon" was released to the masses, he succumbed to his own overwhelmingly troubled & isolated mind, overdosing on prescription pain medication at the age of 26. Join us as we dive into his second studio album, "Bryter Layter".

CBGB...Late 1970s...The birthplace of punk rock in New York City. Television was all up in it...at the ground floor. Join us as we dive into their debut full-length album "Marquee Moon" from 1977. Alongside Blondie and The Ramones, Television was lumped into the punk rock category, and for good reason...but their jazz-improve guitar stylings and sporadic vocals placed them on the other side of that punk rock coin.

Following our Strokes episode last week, we take a look at Balkans, a short-lived act from Atlanta that garnered obscure success with their self-titled debut in 2011. With the rock landscape already having moved past the post-punk revival of the early 2000s, Balkans proved that there was still some juice left in the lo-fi garage sound of their predecessors while still bringing something fresh to the table with an album that changes tempo nearly as often as it changes tracks. Singer-guitar player Frankie Broyles' off-key and monotone vocals pays perfect homage to Casablancas atop often relentless percussion and angular punk guitar riffs. An excellent album for those longing for a fresh take on the post-punk 2000s, Balkans proved that the next generation of rockers were paying attention and gave hope that perhaps the movement wasn't completely troubled and done.

​The boys are back together in different time zones to cover one of their favorite bands and albums of all time, The Strokes debut album from 2001, ​"Is This It".​ One of many noteworthy bands to emerge out of NYC during the post-punk, garage rock revival of the early 2000s, The Strokes gave us one of the genres' best efforts from that time. With both croonish and harsh vocals, simple, yet succinct bass lines & drum beats, and guitar solos to boot, "​Is This It​" truly is one of rock n' rolls' last hurrahs!

Quentin is flying solo again this week and continuing his journey through the eras and genres leading up to garage rock. A main influencer on rock as we know it today emerged in the 1960s alongside psychedelia & The British Invasion: Surf Rock. With fuzzy distortion, twangy reverb, & Middle Eastern tinged picking, guitarists Dick Dale, Link Wray, & Duane Eddy found mainstream success in their instrumental surf rock, and had an everlasting impact on rock n' roll.

Travis is in and out of town again for the next couple weeks, so I am all by my lonesome and we are postponing our episode on The Strokes AGAIN! Sad times. But in the meantime I'm diving into all the genres and eras leading up to the garage rock revival of the 2000s. A Wiki rabbit hole led me to these saucy boys from the late 70s: the Neo-psychedelic, post-punk group The Soft Boys. Their debut album A Can Of Bees is so goddamn good, full of killer hooks, bluesy riffs, and danceable drum beats.

On this week's Sidetrack we take another peak at the term ​"yé-yé​", a specific style of French pop music popularized in the 60's that continues to influence groups to this day, with its twangy surf guitar & upbeat bubblegum pop melodies. A favorite of ours that stands out in this style is a group that goes by Juniore, who have been perfecting that 60's retro French pop sound since 2013.

​After a month of headbanging and raging with Korn and Static X, we take a breather and relax with the loungy, space rock synth vibes of Air's 2004 release ​Talkie Walkie​. The French duo somehow manage to cultivate a sound that is both retro & futuristic, with the use of vintage synth keys, guitar pedals, and vocoders. ​​With help from Nigel Godrich (see also: Radiohead, Beck) Talkie Walkie ​is a wonderfully warm & intimate, "elegantly moody soundtrack for imaginary films".

On this week's Sidetrack we take a quick peak at Static X, one of the many bands that "followed the leader" Korn in the Nu Metal movement of the late 90s. Static X brought their own taste to the mix, dropping in some solid "four on the floor" dance beats and more repetitive hooks, leaning heavily into the industrial metal category. We also listen to a song from the movie "Queen Of The Damned", performed by Wayne Static, but written by Korn frontman Jonathan Davis​.

We take a deep dive into Korn, the pioneers that took metal into new directions with their unique blend of funk, hip hop, and thrash. Nu-metal took off with a slew of imitators and fast-followers, but Korn's lead singer Jonathan Davis and the rest of his bandmates always stayed one step ahead of the sound they created, pushing the envelope and finding new ways to evolve the genre. What really made Korn so different than their successors was Davis' truly unique vocal performances, ranging from unfiltered emotional outbursts to spazzy scat freakouts and everything in between. Here's our look at Korn's first four amazing records.

​On this week's episode, we take our first dive into hip hop, and listen to possibly its most influential album, "The Low End Theory"​. A Tribe Called Quest emerges from the Native Tongues in the early 90s, bringing with them positive-minded, Afrocentric lyrics and eclectic, unique, & jazz-influenced beats. We also take a quick peak at the golden age of hip hop, focusing on New York's hip hop community in the mid to late 80s and early 90s, leading up to the rise of A Tribe Called Quest.​

​On this week's Sidetrack we finish up our Radiohead stint with "Bangers and Mash", a B-side from ​In Rainbows Disk 2​. Borrowing From The Basement once more, we listen to audio from that recording and geek out over Thom Yorke singing and drumming alongside Philip Selway. Check out the video From The Basement in our show notes! https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/ep-31-radiohead-in-rainbows#sidetrack

On this week's episode we welcome our first guest to No Filler - musician and Radiohead superfan Nathan Forster​. To finish up our coverage of Radiohead (for now), we take our first true deep dive, and go track by track through their 2007 release "​In Rainbows​". Join us as we geek out over not just "​In Rainbows"​, but all things Radiohead - everything from Yorke's infamous lazy eye to Godrich's awe-inspiring recordings From The Basement. For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/ep-31-radiohead-in-rainbows

​On this week's Sidetrack we focus on the vibes and styles from Beck's 1994 release, "One Foot In The Grave", by taking a look at some of his early influences. Starting out as a "folk teenage hobo", Beck would take his guitar with him on city buses, covering Mississippi John Hurt and other standard folktales made famous by acts such as The Carter Family. For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/episode-30-beck-sea-change#sidetrack

The anti-folk, alt pop rock legend Beck has been cranking out some of the most unique and memorable albums for the better part of the last 20 some-odd years. Back in 2002, after making a household name for himself with songs like "Loser", "Devil's Haircut", and "Where It's At", Beck flipped the script on himself and shared his hauntingly beautiful, acoustic-heavy break-up album, ​Sea Change​, shortly after his relationship of 9 years fell apart. As David Fricke of Rolling Stone puts it, "Sea Change, gleaming with twang and heartbroken strings, is an entire album of spectacular suffering.​" For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/episode-30-beck-sea-change

​On this week's Sidetrack we take a listen to Jonny Greenwood's soundtrack for the 2017 psychological thriller ​"You Were Never Really Here​". With both ambient and beat-heavy tracks, the OST gives us a solid representation of Greenwood's diversity as both a composer and an electronic artist. For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/album-review-radiohead-hail-to-the-thief#sidetrack

We continue our deep dive into Radiohead with a look at Hail To The Thief. Coming out of the Kid A and Amnesiac tunnel where Thom nearly turned his back completely on guitar-based melodies, Hail is a return to Radiohead embracing the traditional rock song format and Thom finding his voice again. The computer was still a critical component to the song-writing process, but treated like the other instruments used in the recording session. The result is uniquely Radiohead, a mashup of every stepping stone that brought them to that point. For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/album-review-radiohead-hail-to-the-thief

David LeBleu​, drummer for The Mercury Program (and The Album Leaf!) and all-around dabbler in sound manipulation, has been creating his own electronic music for at least a couple decades now under the name Textual. We take a quick look at his first full-length, ​Hindsight Sunglasses​, which is the much more melodic and rhythmic side of Textual. Robot Science finishes out the episode with "Teacups", a song from his 2010 album, ​Square​. For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/ep-28-the-mercury-program-a-data-learn-the-language#sidetrack

Quentin is back from vacation and back on the mic with Travis to cover one of their favorite instrumental albums, "a data learn the language", by The Mercury Program. Drummer Brian Lebleu and bassist Sander Travisano showcase their skills and unique dynamic as a rhythm section, playing in tandem with Sander's brother Whit on keys and vibes and Thomas Reno on guitar to deliver one of the most memorable instrumental rock albums of the last 20 years. For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/ep-28-the-mercury-program-a-data-learn-the-language

Travis flies solo again on this episode and decides to crank it to 11 with a quick look at Soulfly's crushing and relentless track "The Summoning". Their latest album "Ritual" marks a return to form for Max Cavalera, with a throwback to the sound and energy he brought to his first group Sepultura. Fans of both groups have something to love about this new album, a tour de force and proof that Max still has something to say 12 years since his departure from Sepultura. For more info, check out the show notes: https://www.nofillerpodcast.com/episode/music-review-soulfly-the-summoning