Sounds Like Liberty

In Sounds Like Liberty: Episode 42 we talk with Jeremiah Harding of the Weekly Hellscape, look at some new music and examine the NOFX song Bleeding Heart Disease to see if it’s really as commie sounding as Nick recalls. http://bit.ly/2I759UI In this week’s I Heard This Happened Nicky invokes a legacy with the Folk Ep Sleep Is My God EP by Spencer Tweedy. In case that name sounds familiar he does happen to be the son of Jeff Tweedy guitar player for Wilco.  His Comments:  Not to make it sound derivative right off the bat but it is in the best way possible. I’m not complaining about something that sounds like classic Wilco, hopefully it gets you to listen to it. There is an odd soundscaping to it I love that supports the more musical elements with tasteful juxtaposition. This thing sounds exactly how I imagine Tweedy’s sons album would sound. Both the songwriting & production are incredible. http://spencertweedy.bandcamp.com/album/sleep-is-my-god I picked a rocker from Nashville band Free Throw. What’s Pas

In Sounds Like Liberty: Episode 41 we talk with @Car Campit of the FAGcast. We’ll start with an analysis of I Fought the Law as performed by The Clash. Clearly we’re talking about crime and punishment, but where does it land on the scale? In I Heard This Happened, a long long awaited pick by Nicky: I Made a deal With Myself by Alex Evans. He waited months for this record to come out and totally missed it the week it did so we’re a little late to the party but it was well worth the anticipation. His Comments: The first track was a lil shakey for me but I bought the ticket and the ride was worth staying.  The album reminds me of what Mayer Hawthorne did on A Strange Arrangement but with a more St. Paul & Broken Bones vibe. The production lands somewhere in between. The whole record is just a big homage to the Stax recording artists and god bless em, we could use more of that. https://alexisevans.bandcamp.com/album/ive-come-a-long-way I picked something more mellow for this episode Reign the Sky with Phone

In Sounds Like Liberty: Episode 40 we talk with Mr. Bruce Wilke Jr. We’ll start with an analysis of that once ubiquitous hip hop romp Mo Money Mo Problems. Is it true? In I Heard This Happened: Nicky brings to the table some modern psych. Colors E.P by Triptides carries the best parts of 60s psych rock & bears some resemblance to acts like: Tame Impala, The Sea & Cake & The Stepkids. First off I'm a bit sick of constantly having to say LA-based band. What's wrong with these people? Move to a place that isn't overrun with socialists. Ugh. Anyway, the EP has a sound similar to the modern psych fare of the Stepkids with a less funky more authentic ambience. Summed up more Beatles less Beegees. The EP does well to balance the more shimmery garage stuff with the more ambient pieces. All in all a solid listen. https://salty-dog.bandcamp.com/album/colors-e-p This episode I went for some music for breaking stuff and probably gaming. It’s Anatomy by thrash metal band Death Be Not Proud. This record has gri

In Sounds Like Liberty: Episode 39. Hi folks. I’m (Lizzie) taking over writing these things, so dig these value packed new show notes. In today’s episode we talked with the wonderful Mr. Chris Spangle of We Are Libertarians fame. We go through the Libertarian gossip mill and of course culture. It always comes back to culture doesn’t it? To begin today we examine that classic hippy tune People Got to be free by The Rascals. But do people want to be free? http://bit.ly/2ClcOLn   In I Heard This Happened: Nicky brings to the table some pop-rock gold in the form of the record Topiary by LA artist Alex Jules. The songs might remind you of classic Billy Joel. In fact if you couldn’t discern the modern recording techniques you might assume it was straight from the 70’s. There is something almost like Styx or Supertramp in Alex’s tenor and he has moments of swagger like early Ben Folds Five. The record came out on Match 8th and you can check it out here: http://alexjules.bandcamp.com/album/topiary I have the record A

A recording of a song I wrote for the fantastic Brian Mcwilliams creation Do Nothing Man. If you laugh too hard head over to bandcamp and pick up your copy. https://nickpiccone.bandcamp.com/track/the-ballad-of-do-nothing-man

Free Your Mind by En Vogue in today’s analysis. Is there something inherently libertarian about inclusivity? Find out. Get smooth with some soft rock and then get rowdy with power pop in I Heard This Happened. Nicky went with Try And Begin by NY band UV Rays  The entire album has this incredibly strange mix of California pop-punk and 90’s female fronted alternative groups like Veruca Salt & The Breeders. There are moments where it has the shimmer and technical bits I might expect from the theme music to an anime. http://uvrays.bandcamp.com/album/try-and-begin Liz’ pick is City Pop by Amsterdam artist Benny Sings . It has a sound like Metronomy and Phoenix with a heavy dose of 70’s soft rock smoothness. It’s a summery breath of fresh air. https://bennysings.bandcamp.com/album/city-pop Mason Joseph is the other half of the Tasting Anarchy podcast. He adds fuel to the fire of our awkward conversation & we know how much nick loves awkward conversation.  https://tastinganarchy.com Mason Recommends The Dece

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Signs by The Five Man Electric Band. No need to even guess where this one goes if you’ve ever heard it...but how riled will I get? http://bit.ly/2StIGCT Synthpop and Stoner Metal this week in I Heard This Happened. Nicky’s pick is Swedish metal band Ordos with The End.  I really enjoyed the textured approach to vocals on the record. Some Jim Morrison-esqe cleans next to some Tray Sanders styled grows really works. There is a fantastic squelch on the guitars that is incredibly appealing. They’re crazy thick but somehow smooth & never drop the heavy. They’re not exactly breaking the sludge/stoner mold here but fans of the genre probably see that as a feature not a bug. I certainly do. http://ordosofficial.bandcamp.com/album/the-end-2 Liz’ went for some Synthpop with Pastel Skies by  Detuned Goom. It sounds like the ‘80 we wish there was. You would have looked fab in those leg warmers.It is not completely instrumental but the vocals are so oddly tonal that they

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine We the People by A Tribe Called Quest.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vO2Su3erRIA In I Heard This Happened: Some Chiptune indie and jazzy jazz Jazz. Nicky is continuing his self-titled debut kick this week it’s Lisipi by Italian Jazz trio Lisipi. If I have to get into specifics, I particularly enjoy how varied the tracks are, it never buys into one style of jazz One of my favorite parts of Bandcamp is it brings me things like this. I can guarantee you I otherwise would have never heard this trio. https://lisipi.bandcamp.com/album/lisipi Twelve Months by Curious Quail is Liz’ pick this week . It’s sort of a concept album with each song being written in a month according to a random list of requirements. The result is an album that sounds a bit like Coldplay’s Chris Martin and Our Lady Peace collaborating on an album of Stephen Page’s pop songs. https://curiousquail.bandcamp.com/album/twelve-months Killian Hobbs is host of the podcast Coffee Shop Philosophy

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Peace Train by Cat Stevens.  Is this our first divided vote on SLL? http://bit.ly/2SrCBeY This week in I Heard This Happened: We have all the feels today with some melodic hardcore and something a little harder to define. Nicky picked self-titled debut Astronoid by Astronoid. I’m calling this rock because I’m honestly not sure what genre it is. It reminds me of pop-punk but is far too atmospheric to wear the label well. Somewhere between Four Year Strong, 30 Seconds To Mars and The Used smothered in Mew. I often say the best advice in music is more reverb and they heeded my advice unknowingly and I’m yet again proven absolutely correct.The album finds a nice pocket where it’s got an assaulting drum beat underneath a soupy wash of vocals and synths with occasional bits of guitar riff peaking out and I find it damn fabulous. https://blood-music.bandcamp.com/album/astronoid Lizzie’s pick is Hindsight by Hometown Losers. She doesn’t know genres, just feelings. This

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine You Don’t Own Me by Leslie Gore.  Sure there are a few weak points, but it really is about personal liberty...right?   http://bit.ly/2GngRd0 This week in I Heard This Happened: Moody pop from Akron and some Jazz(?) from the great northwest Nicky’s pick First Appearance by G.S. Schray is downright elegant and meanders through all sorts of sonic spaces. A literal cave of wonders in its ambient marvels. You could describe the sound by imagining that Vince Geraldi got way into 80s synth pop & started listening to The Sea & Cake and Indie movie scores exclusively. Every few measures bring some new musical idea to each track. It never sits in one place long enough to get stale & ebbs and flows with smooth instrumental and dynamic shifts constantly. http://gsschray.bandcamp.com/album/first-appearance Lizzie’s pick is Shakes by WA artist lissikeyj. The album is mostly instrumential. Think Boney James  from the 90’s. The vocalist sounds eerily like Rufus Wain

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine City Hall by Tenacious D. Is this the hit we needed but didn’t deserve? Is this the core of libertarian ideology in song-form? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMug1HsNoHM This week in I Heard This Happened: Garage Pop from Cali & a collection of sounds from North Carolina Power Chords by Mike Krol is the best guitar driven garage album I’ve heard in years with those overfuzzed riffs spinning around on the peripheral of the headphones. The album sounds like Built To Spill dipped in some Ben Kweller & OK GO, injected with some Superdrag then run through the machine that gave The Strokes that Lo-Fi sound. .It’s like he reaches in to my soul and pulls out all my teen angst from the 90s and sings it back to me in familiar melodies.My only issue with the record is that the lo-fi overdriven vocal holds the record back from its true potential, I think it limits the accessibility of these pop gems. http://mikekrol.bandcamp.com/album/power-chords Lizzie’s pick is

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Liberty & Justice by Agnostic Front. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ocw_s5tDNww&list=OLAK5uy_kpS6d8QgKOXsOQjbuiEarRsnzN1syLMAg This week in I Heard This Happened: djent from gay Paris & some girly Philly indie. Nicky’s album this week is Super 90 by Kadinja, This band from Paris, France has touches of VOLA, Twelve Foot Ninja, Plini, and Polyphia. They keep just enough of the metalcore roots to feel legitimately hard while washing it over in modern guitar prog. I’m not usually into the metal vocal this much but it’s surrounded by so much dissonant musicality and sing-along hooks it’s hard to look past it. Surprisingly textured for the genre, it’s still crazy techie but has nice little peepholes into genres from my youth. https://kadinja.bandcamp.com/album/super-90 Lizzie’s pick is Sunset Blush by Kississippi. This artist from Philadelphia, PA. It reminded Lizzie of Florence and the Machine with a little Death Cab and Best Coast. It’s so smooth and

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Silent Running by Mike + The Mechanics. It’s everybody’s favorite sleeper anarchist anthem from the 80’s. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ep7W89I_V_g This week in I Heard This Happened: some Preo & Pop-Rock. Nicky’s album this week is Spending Eternity In A Japanese Convenience Store by Forests, The band hails from Singapore. So, I suppose it was bound to happen. Those techy Asian musicians were gonna smash Prog & emo together eventually. Frankly I’m glad. No genre picking. The record came out New years day. I would describe it as Chon meets Built To Spill meets Boys Night Out. The songs all have intricate & interesting parts but somehow it manages to be a singalong manufacturing device at the same time. Why do asian bands always seem to slay face? Is it genetic or just a function of the best stuff manages to make it here, the world may never know. http://weareforests.bandcamp.com/album/spending-eternity-in-a-japanese-convenience-store Lizzie brings

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Declaration Day by Iced Earth. I love a song with those Dio notes. Does this song truly live up to it’s charge, or is it simply trading one master for another? https://youtu.be/EZnB9fv0GBA This week in I Heard This Happened: some guitar prog & vintage rock throwback. Nicky’s album this week is Everything That Is You by Thrailkill, which sounds a bit like Satriani if he decided to incorporate Fusion into Djent and spent a summer as the guitarist for Chevelle...probably better than that honestly. The songs take the prog tact where they have to be genuinely difficult to follow but at least some of those riffs on top of riffs are catchy.  I’m always grateful when synth work seems to be an integral part of any album and this is especially rare in Guitar-prog where it is often left out to feature more guitar. I’m surprised when a guitar centered group doesn’t make that mistake. In the same vein I’m a big fan of the list of contributing players on the album. It’s a

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Redemption Song by Bob Marley. Reggae just gets me. But do we get raggae? You decide. https://youtu.be/xUNh9lmmUA8 This week in I Heard This Happened: some power-pop-rock and some russian post-rock. Nicky’s album this week is Night Terrors by Wires, somewhere between Cheap Trick & They Might Be Giants filtered through Fountains Of Wayne & Rooney. It’s got a great late-90’s early 00’s production & sensibility that reminds me of the mood & tone of everything hip when I went to college. For what is predominantly a solo album, there is a surprising depth of songwriting, my favorite being Let It Go which has some moments where it reminds me of Queen & ELO…so you can do the math on how I feel about it. http://wiresmusic.bandcamp.com/album/night-terrors-2 Lizzie brings us Firefly by iwantsummer, an instrumental post-rock album out of St. Petersburg, Russia. Lizzie was unclear on what post rock was prior to me telling her that’s what this is.  Now sh

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Happy Christmas (War Is Over) by John Lennon. I know we said we needed more lyrics but give us this one, it’s a political christmas song. That’s a pretty tall order, leave it to the commies to ruin Christmas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flA5ndOyZbI This week in I Heard This Happened: some another deep dive into 90’s pastiche and some Ruski piano. Nicky’s album this week is House Plants by House Plants. Imagine if you will, pavement meets The Ataris, with a lil Dashboard Confessional, Built To Spill & The Walkmen stirred in for measure. House Plants has one of my favorite qualities music can have. It makes me feel as though I'm 14 again and lamenting that girls aren't interested in me...despite not being sure what a relationship at that age would even look like. Also, don't hate me but I'm a sucker for wordy kinda crappy lyrical phrasing...I like to call it conversational. These guys are atonal in the way this music requires. It gives it the Joe everyman

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Ohio by Crosby Stills Nash & Young. Perhaps we should have chosen one with more lyrics? Worth bringing to the table either way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1PrUU2S_iw This week in I Heard This Happened: some one of my good friends electronic music and an upbeat pop-rock EP. Nicky’s album this week is Sentient Commuters by P.STOOPS. So i’m breaking with form & not linking to bandcamp this week. One of my good friends here in Cleveland just released a killer electronic album that is just as danceable as it is weird. It comes out on the 13th so follow the link to save it to your list of choice. https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/pstoops/fsmA Lizzie brings us No Time by Z By Z, an almost too poppy for me rock band. I can’t quite place what they remind my of, maybe Magic! meets RX Bandits meets the nice kids you went to highschool with. It’s a tight 3 song EP tho and keeps the blood pumping for sure. https://zbyz.bandcamp.com/album/no-time This week’s int

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine The Message by Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five. Obviously a classic in the world of hip-hop, this song paints a bleak portrait of reality. I think they draw different conclusions why things are the way they are but i’m sure you’ll see what i see. This week in I Heard This Happened: some Nicky P original material & some Christmas Jazz... Nicky’s album this week is Vol. 1 by Puma Thurman. I won’t wax poetic because it’s my own album. Me and a bunch of my dad friends released create adventure rock. Most of the songs are about movies. Enjoy! Lizzie brings us Luminous by Betty’s Bounce, a Django Reinhardt inspired gypsy jazz take on some holiday classics. Nothing to belabor just some fun takes on some seasonal classics...maybe Liz is taking this gypsy jazz thing too far. This week’s interview is with Jae Caetano, host of Anarcho Inc & Owner Of Anarcho Coffee. This is a serious businessman taking the capitalist part of Anarcho-Capitalist real seriousl

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Anthem by Rush. I shouldn’t need to say much about this one, it’s literally based on an Ayn Rand book’s themes. It’s also a kick ass rock song without being overly complex in lyric or musicality. This week in I Heard This Happened: different Jazz’s. Does that make sense? I said it cause it sounds confusing.. Nicky’s album this week is Underwater by Elephant Gym. Somewhere between jazz, funk, modern prog and hip hop, this album is great of purely thinky music. It keeps spiraling down, down, down. It’s primarily instrumental but does incorporate a few different vocalist on the second half. My favorite part is where the MC on Bad Dream keeps shifting between what I assume is Japanese and English. Lizzie brings us Sprinkled Eyes by Dotschy Reinhardt. An interesting jazz guitar slash singer songwriter album by an German artist. It has moments where it carries the breezy feeling of Corrine Bailey Rae but with a more complicated guitar emphasis. Clearly trying to show

In today's episode Nicky P & Lizzie examine Cult Of Personality by Living Colour. Aside from being one of the greatest collection of musicians to ever perform, they also never shied away from making a statement. This particular song has always been a favorite. Where does it stand in my life after Ancap-ism? This week in I Heard This Happened: some posthumous soul & one of the greatest band names i’ve ever seen.. Nicky’s album this week is Black Velvet by Charles Bradley. This dudes story is amazing enough but they did him right with this release. It captures the earnest soul of his previous releases but broadens the palate in great ways. My personal favorites are Luv Jones and Stay Away (a beautifully reimagined Nirvana cover.) Lizzie brings us Schlock Value from Harmonica Lewinsky,  lo-fi garage-punk surf-sploitation contradiction that does more than enough justice to earn their name. Somewhere between the old B-52s & your cousin’s friends jamming in his basement, there is something to be said b