The Next Track
A podcast about how people listen to music today.
Episodes
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Episode #201 - Kurt Andersen on Why Music Hasn't Changed in Decades
January 20th, 2021 | 37 mins 34 secs
In his recent book Evil Geniuses, Kurt Andersen noted that people have dressed the same for decades, and that music has barely changed since the 1980s. We discuss this decades long stasis, and why it may have happened.
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Episode #200 - This Was the Year that Wasn't
January 6th, 2021 | 30 mins 59 secs
Another year is gone, and what a year. Four the 200th episode of The Next Track, we take stock of what 2020 meant for us musically, talk about some of the wonderful musicians we were able to interview in lockdown, and mention a couple of musical discoveries we have made.
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Episode #199 - Do You Know It's Christmas?
December 23rd, 2020 | 29 mins 15 secs
We again re-run our annual Christmas show, because it was so good that we couldn't imagine doing a better Christmas show. And because we really don't want to do a new Christmas show. And because we're really proud of the extensive show notes that took so long to collate. If you've already heard it and don't want to listen again, we'll understand.
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Episode #198 - Casey Rae on William S. Burroughs and Rock and Roll
December 9th, 2020 | 37 mins 29 secs
William S. Burroughs was an author who had a huge influence on rock musicians. Casey Rae's new book charts this influence through the years, as Burroughs met with many of the great musicians of his time.
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Episode #197 - I'm Not an Audiophile, But...
November 25th, 2020 | 30 mins 48 secs
A comment by a tech reviewer incited us to discuss who is qualified to pass judgment on the audio quality of devices. We discuss this with our favorite audiophile, Chris Connaker.
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Episode #196 - Really Don't Mind if You Sit This One Out
November 11th, 2020 | 32 mins 17 secs
Jethro Tull's Thick as a Brick is arguably the best progressive rock concept album of all time. Doug and Kirk have long been fans of this record, and discuss the genesis of the recording and the music, which still stands, nearly 50 years after its release, as one of the great albums of all time.
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Episode #195 - Timo Andres: Making Home Videos and the Creative Process
October 28th, 2020 | 1 hr 9 mins
We last spoke with composer and pianist Timo Andres early in the lockdown, after he made a series of videos for a recital program that had been cancelled at Carnegie Hall. Over the past few months, Andres has refined the art of filming himself at the piano, and uses both audio and video recording as part of his creative process.
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Episode #194 - Pianist Simone Dinnerstein
October 14th, 2020 | 41 mins 51 secs
Pianist Simone Dinnerstein used the lockdown to record an album of music by Philip Glass and Franz Schubert. We discuss how she built her career, how she recorded this album, and talk about Schubert's wonderful last piano sonata.
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Episode #193 - Is Stereo Wrong?
September 30th, 2020 | 30 mins 56 secs
Is stereo the right way to listen to music? After all, it is an artificial attempt to reproduce the sound of live music. Perhaps we should revolt against the tyranny of the sweet spot.
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Episode #192 - The Same as It Ever Was
September 16th, 2020 | 31 mins 18 secs
Following our discussion of CDs in episode #190, we continue our discussion about these plastic discs, mainly because Doug bought some new audio gear and is now CD-obsessed.
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Episode #191 - Exile on Monday
September 2nd, 2020 | 33 mins 56 secs
We begin an irregular series of key albums that stand out in the history of music. For our first foray into this type of discussion, we talk about The Rolling Stones' Exile on Main Street.
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Episode #190 - Nostalgic about CDs
August 19th, 2020 | 26 mins 13 secs
We wax nostalgic about CDs, those plastic (and partly metal) discs that changed the music industry starting in the mid-1980s, and whose popularity has waned since the rise of streaming.
Help support The Next Track by making regular donations via Patreon. We're ad-free and self-sustaining so your support is what keeps us going. Thanks!
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Episode #189 - Renaissance Men of Music
August 5th, 2020 | 27 mins 50 secs
A reviewer suggested that we mentioned John Cage in this podcast as a "cheap marketing ploy." That made use think about taste: highbrow, lowbrow, and unibrow. We reflect on whether we are really the "Renaissance men of music."
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Episode #188 - Kathryn Williams on the Breath in Music
July 22nd, 2020 | 37 mins 52 secs
Kathryn Williams plays the flute, and, because of some health issues, has a unique approach to the breath. In addition to being a free diver, she has been commissioning pieces of music for one single breath. And she's going to try to break the Guinness world record for the longest sustained note on a wind instrument.
Help support The Next Track by making regular donations via Patreon. We're ad-free and self-sustaining so your support is what keeps us going. Thanks!
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Episode #187 - Live Performances during Covid-19, and After
July 8th, 2020 | 41 mins 35 secs
John Wyver's company Illuminations produces films of live performances: theater, dance, opera, and music. He joins us to discuss the future of live performances in what he calls The After, that period when Covid-19 is just a memory. Will live performances be able to start again even if there isn't a vaccine? How can social distancing allow live performances to return?
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Episode #186 - Harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani
June 24th, 2020 | 51 mins 52 secs
We meet harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani, who is showing how the harpsichord is no longer an instrument just for "old" music. His latest recording features contemporary music for harpsichord and electronics.
Help support The Next Track by making regular donations via Patreon. We're ad-free and self-sustaining so your support is what keeps us going. Thanks!