Naked Raygun's “This Place Used to Be a Strip Joint” and Eleventh Dream Day's “By the Time They Got to Lounge Ax.” We rolled through a panel discussion with Aadam and Janet Bean/Rick Rizzo of EDD and Jeff Pezzati/Eric Spicer of NR, then Rick and Janet regaled us with a rare acoustic set.

At Smashed Plastic Record Pressing to celebrate the release of the inaugural LPs from @aadamjacobs.bsky.social tape archive: Naked Raygun's “This Place Used to Be a Strip Joint” & Eleventh Dream Day's “By the Time They Got to Lounge Ax.” A+ live documents of Chicago's indie music scene: (1/2)

In celebration of @johnprine.bsky.social's 80th, the @soundopinions.bsky.social convo with JP on the occasion of his final studio LP and an in-depth look at his timeless debut album with author @erinosmon.bsky.social, all wrapped up in one show (link in comments). How lucky can one man get?

John Prine would’ve turned 80 later this week, but he slipped away in 2020, and boy, do we need his songs now. If anything, his stature has only expanded during his missing years, and the city he once called home is celebrating him big time in the next few days. A convo with JP linked below.

While in Greece, we saw a bunch of street artists playing variations on urban styles such as rebetiko. One night we ended up at Tavern Klimataria for this terrific co-ed quartet. Reminded me of Richard Thompson-Sandy Denny era Fairport Convention or Ireland’s Lankum, tinged with bluegrass and jazz.

Melissa Auf Der Maur, an aspiring Montreal artist, took a detour when she met Billy Corgan & Courtney Love. She ended up playing bass in two volatile '90s bands – Hole and Smashing Pumpkins – and lived to write about it in “Even the Good Girls Will Cry.” @soundopinions.bsky.social interview below.

Glen Hansard gone at 56. Motorcycle crash in Dublin. Shocking stuff. Street busker-turned-Oscar winner. As a songwriter, he had a way of capturing the bittersweet moments of life, and our interviews inevitably circled back to how his approach to songwriting evolved. Link in comments.