“Scribbling into oblivion” is how Lili Trifilio of Beach Bunny describes her editing process. (It's also an amazing song title.) She used this phrase in response to a question I like to ask songwriters: when you’re editing something you don’t like, do you cross it out with a single line or scratch it out? Trifilio wants that word or phrase to disappear forever. Beach Bunny’s latest album is Tunnel Vision.
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48:29
Mike Campbell (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, The Dirty Knobs)
ED NOTE: Here's my recent episode with Benmont Tench, keyboardist for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Mike Campbell doesn't have songwriting rules. He doesn't need any because he's always creating. "I'm probably writing as I'm talking to you," Campbell told me. In fact, Campbell's problem is that he can't stop coming up with ideas and sometimes wishes he could dial it back a bit. But that's what happens when you keep a guitar next to every chair in your house. Not just in every room, but next to every chair. Besides his work as Tom Petty's guitarist and collaborator/co-writer in The Heartbreakers, Mike Campbell has worked with countless others. He co-wrote "The Boys of Summer" and "The Heart of the Matter" by Don Henley, and he's worked with Bob Dylan, Stevie Nicks, George Harrison, Aretha Franklin, to name a few. After Tom Petty's passing, Campbell formed The Dirty Knobs. Their latest album Vagabonds, Virgins, & Misfits is out now. Campbell has a terrific new memoir out, Heartbreaker, co-written with Ari Surdoval (their editor, Ben Schafer, was also my editor at Hachette Books for my book Desolation: A Heavy Metal Memoir by Mark Morton with Ben Opipari.)
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44:14
Derek Miller (Sleigh Bells)
I always love having my buddy Derek Miller of Sleigh Bells on the pod! This is Miller's third time as a guest. I don't know how he ever has time to do interviews because the man is either writing music, about to write music, or thinking about why he's not writing music. Miller is inspired by everything, and I mean everything. Even LSU football. (Go Dawgs, sorry Derek!)We also talk about his newfound sobriety and how bands like R.E.M, the B-52s, and The Cars influence his music.The latest album by Sleigh Bells (Miller and Alexis Krauss) is Bunky Becky Birthday Boy, out now on Mom + Pop Music.*photo by David Perez
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57:23
Denison Witmer
Running and poetry are all Denison Witmer needs as a songwriter."When I'm being physically active, my brain opens up," he says. Running is a big part of Witmer's life and plays a big role in his creative process. The other major source of Witmer's inspiration is poetry, and we talk about its impact on his songwriting. We also make a collective case for why the poet Li-Young Lee is so, so, so great and why you should read him right after you listen to this episode. Denison Witmer's new album Anything At All (produced and recorded by Sufjan Stevens) is out now on Asthmatic Kitty Records.
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46:43
Annie DiRusso
I'm a much better songwriter when I'm reading," Annie DiRusso says. Truer words have never been spoken; a clear through line connects quality songwriting and reading. And the fact that DiRusso loves poetry makes me even more of a fan. DiRusso does most of her songwriting in her "giant mess" of a bed. "It's covered in guitars, notebooks, pens, a laptop, mics. There's ink stains all over the sheets too," she says on the pod. DiRusso's new album Super Pedestrian is out now
In-depth interviews with songwriters about their songwriting process. Nothing else. No talk of band drama, band names, or tour stories. Treating songwriters as writers, plain and simple. By Ben Opipari, English Lit Ph.D.
Canada - english