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All Episodes

WorkTape — 263 episodes

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Title
1

#263 - Revisiting 1996: 30th Anniversary LPs Pt. 1

2

#262 - Revisiting 1986: 40th Anniversary LPs Pt. 2

3

#261 - Revisiting 1986: 40th Anniversary LPs Pt. 1

4

#260 - Revisiting 1976: 50th Anniversary LPs Pt. 2

5

#259 - Revisiting 1976: 50th Anniversary LPs Pt. 1

6

#258 - Revisiting 1966: 60th Anniversary LPs

7

#257 - AI Music's Biggest Problem & Brandon Flowers' Country "Plans"

8

#256 - Olivia Rodrigo Creative Leap, Clive Davis & Pop's Changing of the Guard

9

#255 - The Bitter Oliver Tree Question & Drake’s Asterisk

10

#254 - "The Cure" & "Drop Dead": Olivia Rodrigo’s Most Mature Writing Yet?

11

#253 - The AMAs, The Art of Olivia Dean & the '80s Re-Reignited

12

#252 - Chris Brown’s Code “Brown” & Drake’s "Safe" Triple Drop

13

#251 – Red Hot Catalog Sell-Offs & Kacey’s “Middle of Nowhere”

14

#250 – M.I.A.'s Stride Gone M.I.A. & the Problem with Performative “Authenticity”

15

#249 – The Michael Biopic: Are We Sure "This Is It"?

16

#248 – Ticketmaster Falls, Monopolies Exposed & the Future of Live Events

17

#247 - Coachella Chaos, Bieber’s Laptop Set & Festival Identity Crisis

18

#246 - Thundercat Possibly “Distracted” As Violet Grohl Insists Independence

19

#245 - Ye's "Bully": Himself, His Album, or Both?

20

#244 - Foo Fighters’ Return to Foos & Jack Harlow’s R&B Misstep

21

#243 - Moises AI & the Line Between Tool and Crutch

22

#242 - Harry's Electronic Styles: Derivative Pop?

23

#241 - Album Gaps, Rihanna’s Return & a (Frank) Ocean of Questions

24

#240 - The Michael Jackson Biopic, Bruno Mars’ Romantic Era, & Rock Hall Snubs

25

#239 - Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl & the Politics of Halftime

26

#238 - Protest Songs Return As the Grammys Catch Up

27

#237 - Foo Fighters Come Alive & Taylor Swift Gets Canonized

28

#236 - Cold(play) Pop & the Streaming Shakeup

29

#235 - Drake, Stake, and Fakes: When the Numbers Look Funny

30

#234 - Purple Rain Returns: Sync Culture, Nostalgia Cycles, and the Shape of Modern Albums

31

#233 - When the Giants Fall: Remembering the Voices That Shaped Everything

32

#232 - Too Big to Fail?: The Spotify Breach and the Breaking Point of Streaming

33

#231 - Spongebob. Big Fail? Not Okay: Spongebob on Thin Ice & 2026 GRAMMY Nominations

34

#230 - A Post-2025 World: Where Do We Go from Here?

35

#229 - The 15s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

36

#228 - The 15s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

37

#227 - The 15s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

38

#226 - The 05s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 5

39

#225 - The 05s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 4

40

#224 - The 05s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

41

#223 - The 05s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

42

#222 - The 05s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

43

#221 - The 95s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 5

44

#220 - The 95s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 4

45

#219 - The 95s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

46

#218 - The 95s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

47

#217 - The 95s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

48

#216 - The 85s (40th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

49

#215 - The 85s (40th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

50

#214 - The 85s (40th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

51

#213 - The 75s (50th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

52

#212 - The 75s (50th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

53

#211 - The 75s (50th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

54

#210 - The 65s (60th Anniversary LPs)

55

#209 - Why Chuck Mangione’s Legacy "Feels So Good", Jazz “Purism,” and the Line Between Fusion and Pop

56

#208 - Coldplay's "Memes" to an End, Tyler "Taps the Glass,” and Farewell to Ozzy

57

#207 - What Did Drake Miss? Kendrick’s Win, Warren’s Rise, and Bieber’s Reset

58

#206 - (Even More) AI Controversies, The British Re-Re-Invasion, and "Today" the Foos Keep on Fighting

59

#205 -Brian Wilson’s Passing, Pet Sounds vs. Sgt. Pepper, and Timbaland’s Persistent AI Push

60

#204 - Sly Stone’s Legacy, Lil Wayne’s “Carter VI,” and Andre 3000’s Quiet Exit

61

#203 - From "The New Sound" of Geordie Greep to Sabrina Carpenter’s Safe Bet. Oh! And a Major W for Taylor Swift?

62

#202 - The Call of Diddy: Baby Oil Conflict, TikTok Tactics, & Spotify's Spiral

63

#201 - Grace Bowers Plays Guitar, While Billie Not-So-Gently Sweeps (the AMAs)

64

#200 - Metalcore Meets Bubblegum: Sleep Token’s Pop Curveball & Turnstile’s Next Move

65

#199 - The Pink Elephant in the Room: Arcade's Everlasting Fire, Benson Boone, & Coldplay in Reverse

66

#198 - Jack Antonoff, Teddy Swims, and Andre’s Piano Tease: Are We Getting Too Comfortable?

67

#197 - The 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: The Right Inductees, or Hard to Please?

68

#196 - KKKanye’s Kollapse, Lorde’s Return, and the Boondocks Episode That Predicted It All (Again)

69

#195 - Fyre Festival Is Back (Again): Cheese Sandwiches, or Cheese Idea?

70

#194 - From Coachella Clout Loans to Kanye’s Collapse: Is Culture Just Maxed Out?

71

#193 - Timbaland, Ghibli, and the Great AI Soul Debate

72

#192 - The Prince Doc Is Gone—Is the Album Era Too?

73

#191 - Somebody Just Lost a Dawg, and These Michael Jackson Controversies Won't "Beat It"

74

#190 - Drake’s in Court, Fred Durst Is Too… What Year Is It Again?

75

#189 - The Millennial Folk-EDM Happening: What Were We Thinking?

76

#188 - Drake Flip-Flops Into a New Era: Mere Meltdown or Masterful Marketing?

77

#187 - Drake’s Latin Phase, & Country's Next Move (within the Country)

78

#186 - Kendrick's Superbowl Performance: "A" Minor Moment or a Major Blow?

79

#185 - Did 2024 Finally Get the Grammys Right?

80

#184 - We Don't Talk about Bruno Mars, but Please "Hurry Up Tomorrow", So That It Can Be The Weeknd

81

#183 - Did the TikTok Ban Fizzle, & Could Fanbase Replace It?

82

#182 - Mac Miller's Balloonerism & the (Continually) Looming TikTok Ban

83

#181 - The American Music Scene: Why So Difficult?

84

#180 - CGI Chimps & Bland Bands

85

#179 - The 2024 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Scrutinized and Broken Down into Tiny Little Bite-Sized Pieces (Not Really, but It Sounded Edgy)

86

#178 - COVID-Era Country & Post-Pandemic Pop

87

#177 - Why Does Christmas Music Still Sound the Same Every Year? (Money. It's literally always money.)

88

#176 - The Year That Broke the Internet: Music in 2024

89

#175 - Oversaturated Soundwaves, Kendrick’s GNX, and the Future of Originality

90

#174 - Taylor’s 7th Grammy Nom, Linkin Park’s New Era & McGee’s Rise

91

#173 - 2025 Grammy Nominations: Snubs, Predictions & Industry Shifts

92

#172 - The Impact of Quincy Jones: A Tribute to a Music Legend

93

#171 - The 14s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 6

94

#170 - The 14s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 5

95

#169 - The 14s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 4

96

#168 - The 14s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

97

#167 - The 14s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

98

#166 - The 14s (10th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

99

#165 - The 04s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 5

100

#164 - The 04s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 4

101

#163 - The 04s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

102

#162 - The 04s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

103

#161 - The 04s (20th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

104

#160 - The 94s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 3

105

#159 - The 94s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

106

#158 - The 94s (30th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

107

#157 - The 84s (40th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 2

108

#156 - The 84s (40th Anniversary LPs) Pt. 1

109

#155 - The 74s (50th Anniversary LPs)

110

#154 - The 64s (60th Anniversary LPs)

111

#153 - Celebrating Ten Years of Coldplay’s "Ghost Stories": The Sequel to "Parachutes"

112

#152 - feelslikeimoutofideas: Yet Another Coldplay Discussion

113

#151 - Circling Back to The Sphere with The Eagles

114

#150 - KAYTRANADA’s “TIMELESS” Classic Brings House Back to the Forefront, and Paramount+ Reminds Us About “How Music Got Free”

115

#149 - From the Real Slim Shady to Real Shady CEOs: The Cost of Music Creation

116

#148 - The Taylor Swift/Beatles Comparison, & Post-Grunge Post-Relevance

117

#147 - twenty øne piløts' "Clancy", and the Apple Music's 100 Best Albums List Hits and Misses

118

#146 - Billie Eilish's Freshly-Prepared "LUNCH", the End of the Drake-Kendrick War, and Apple’s "Controversial" Ad

119

#145 - Remembering Steve Albini, Dissecting Spotify’s Restructuring, and Overviewing the Escalating Drake-Kendrick War

120

#144 - From Glory to (Sam) Ashes: Music Retail Survival and the Drake-Kendrick (and J. Cole) Situation

121

#143 - those lyrics kinda sus tho ngl

122

#142 - Taylor Swift’s Department of (Somewhat) Tortured Poets

123

#141 - "Black Yacht Rock" Stealth Drops and the Future of Music Distribution

124

#140 - From Hardship to Harmony: Does Trauma Enhance Art?

125

#139 - Beyoncé Rides the Country Horse

126

#138 - Tuning Into Change: James Blake's Streaming Revolution and Drake Bell's Comeback Tune

127

#137 - TikTok's Ticking Clock...

128

#136 - Prompting a Revolution: AI in Music & Adobe's Angle of Attack

129

#135 - Beyond Beyoncé's Country Road

130

#134 - Reggae Legends and Country Rebels

131

#133 - Is There One Love for Country (After All)?

132

#132 - The Swift Effect, Grammy Glory, and Ye's "Comeback"

133

#131 - UMG’s TikTok Withdrawal and Typical Grammy Buzz

134

#130 - The Raps of Ben Shapiro, and Nepotism in the Music Industry

135

#129 - "No Doubt" About the 2024 Coachella Lineup

136

#128 - The Return of Lil Nas X and the Stirring of Music's Pot

137

#127 - Celebrating Musical Giants and Scoping the Horizon

138

#126 - New Year, New Music; New Music, New Methods

139

#125 - Wrapping Up 2023: A Musical Year in Review

140

#124 - The 13s (10th Anniversary LPs)

141

#123 - The 03s (20th Anniversary LPs)

142

#122 - The 93s (30th Anniversary LPs)

143

#121 - The 83s (40th Anniversary LPs)

144

#120 - The 73s (50th Anniversary LPs)

145

#119 - The 63s (60th Anniversary LPs)

146

#118 - Exploring Experimental and Avant-Garde Trends

147

#117 - “I Walk the Line”: The Art and Controversy of Lyrical Freedom in Music

148

#116 - Are Drake's Efforts "For All the Dogs"?

149

#115 - Scam Concerts & Partially Lowered Expectations Pt. 2: The Fyre Sequel

150

#114 - Scam Concerts & Partially Lowered Expectations Pt. 1: Was the Fyre Festival Fire?

151

#113 - Beyond Stop Making Sense: Concert Films Through the Ages

152

#112 - The Modern Talking Heads of the New Wave Revival

153

#111 - Fan Fervor and the Double-Edged Sword of Concerts

154

#110 - From Controversy to Charts: Artists "Defying" the Odds

155

#109 - The Sound of Change: How Music Artists Evolve and Face Controversy

156

#108 - The Rise of Plugins, the Return of Vinyl, and the Paradox of Progress in Music Production

157

#107 - Signature Instruments Pt. 3: Piano Icons and VSTs

158

#106 - Signature Instruments Pt. 2: The Icons of Reggae and Disco

159

#105 - Signature Instruments Pt. 1: The Stories and Controversies of Signature Instruments

160

#104 - Music Biopics Pt. 3: (Even More) Estate Limitations

161

#103 - Music Biopics Pt. 2: Original Music vs. Backing Tracks

162

#102 - Music Biopics Pt. 1: Band Progression and Music Biopics

163

#101 - Balancing Act: Musical Skill and Mainstream Appeal

164

#100 - Technically Technical: An Analysis of Red Hot Chili Peppers and Beyond

165

#99 - AI in the Grammys and Post-Grammy Declines

166

#98 - Independence and AI: Reshaping the Music Landscape

167

#97 - Ethical Echoes: Ethical Business Practices in Music Marketing

168

#96 - Hey! Jonni: The Evolving Music Industry & Remembering Music Legends

169

#95 - Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2023: Inductees and Snubs

170

#94 - Harmony Restored: How Ed Sheeran's Copyright Victory Resonates in Music

171

#93 - Memorable Coachella 2023 Moments

172

#92 - Brian Eno's Impact on Coldplay: A Journey Through Musical Evolution and Underrated Masterpieces

173

#91 - An Introduction to Brian Eno's Production (Prolific Producers)

174

#90 - The (Second) Rickiest of the Ricks - Rick Rubin (Prolific Producers)

175

#89 - Iconic 90s Rock Producers of Alternative: Butch Vig & Steve Albini (Prolific Producers)

176

#88 - Subsidiary Labels & More on Sample Clearance

177

#87 - Dr. Dre: A Quick Dive Into His Impact on Hip-Hop and Major Music Production

178

#86 - Quincy Jones' Impact: Music Production, Michael Jackson, and Modern Influences

179

#85 - Masters of 80s Dance and R&B Production: Nile Rodgers

180

#84 - J Dilla: Godfather of Lo-Fi Beatmaking and Pioneer of Black Music Production

181

#83 - Modern Music Production: The Rise of Sample Packs and the Hybrid Studio

182

#82 - Sampling: Originality & Copyright

183

#81 - Virtual Bands and Artists

184

#80 - Holograms and Artificial Intelligence

185

#79 - Music and the Rise of Artificial Intelligence

186

#78 - Posthumous Releases Pt. 2: Re-Released Re-Releases

187

#77 - Posthumous Releases Revisited

188

#76 - Untimely Deaths in Popular Music: 2022 in Retrospect (Pt. 2)

189

#75 - Untimely Deaths in Popular Music: 2022 in Retrospect (Pt. 1)

190

#74 - Master of Tickets: The Ticket Master Disaster

191

#73 - Paranews Pt 3: The Morning After "After Laughter"

192

#72 - Paranews Pt. 2: "No Doubt" About Hayley Williams

193

#71 - Paranews Pt. 1: "This Is Why" and "The News" Takeaways

194

#70 - The 12s (10th Anniversary LPs)

195

#69 - The 02s (20th Anniversary LPs)

196

#68 - The 92s (30th Anniversary LPs)

197

#67 - The 82s (40th Anniversary LPs)

198

#66 - The 72s (50th Anniversary LPs)

199

#65 - How Do You Stay Relevant for a Long Time?

200

#64 - It’s "JUST" a Modern Mix

201

#63 - Disco: Where Did "Dis Go"?

202

#62 - Disco Demolition

203

#61 - One Chip Forward, Two Chips Back

204

#60 - Bit by Boring Bit

205

#59 - Keeping It PC

206

#58 - Sounding Lively

207

#57 - Stop Wearing the Nirvana Shirts

208

#56 - Guitar Zeroes (Guitar Heroes Pt. 2)

209

#55 - Late Listens Pt. 1

210

#54 - Melismas Revisited

211

#53 - Unplugged, Not Drugs (Playing It Forward Pt. 2)

212

#52 - Juxtapositional (Playing It Forward Pt. 1)

213

#51 - Scatchat

214

#50 - Melismatic Origins

215

#49 - Messianic Music (More on Melismas)

216

#48 - Running Up That Chart (I Think Ur A Contra)

217

#47 - Nay for Ye

218

#46 - I'm Your Biggest Fanatic

219

#45 - Taylor Swift's "National" Acclaim (Mitch's Return)

220

#44 - Copy and Paste (Jeff's Songwriting Pt. 3)

221

#43 - Music Theory: Helpful or Hindering? (Jeff's Songwriting Pt. 2)

222

#42 - Don't Call Me... ...Ever! (Jeff's Songwriting Pt. 1)

223

#41 - Viet-tone (Jazz Rock)

224

#40 - "The Top" Is "The Bottom" (The Cure Discography Overview)

225

#39 - Professional Punk

226

#38 - Gibberish & Melismas

227

#37 - "Time" Is "Money" ("The Dark Side of the Moon" LP Overview)

228

#36 - In Through the Out Ear ("Presence" LP Overview)

229

#35 - From Billie to Chicago ("Happier Than Ever" LP Review)

230

#34 - Joy, Fun, & Grit: Remembering Taylor Hawkins

231

#33 - Extra Classic (Guilty Pleasures Pt. 1)

232

#32 - The Industry Is Sick

233

#31 - Mostly Women (Women's History Month)

234

#30 - Queens of the Stone(r) Age

235

#29 - Do It Yourself (Weird Voices Pt. 1)

236

#28 - Ready for Freddie

237

#27 - The Tea for Today

238

#26 - One for the Vocalists

239

#25 - The Power of Music Pt. 1

240

#24 - The 20-Year Stretch (Quality Control Pt. 3)

241

#23 - Tacos & Napster

242

#22 - Metallurga

243

#21 - He Was the Guy (Guitar Heroes Pt. I)

244

#20 - Cookies and Milquetoast (Christmas Time Is Here)

245

#19 - Sgt. Pepperoni's (Get Back)

246

#18 - Are Sublime All That Sublime?

247

#17 - We Didn't Feel the Blend

248

#16 - But Synth You Asked...

249

#15 - Movin' to the Country (I'm Gonna Eat a Lot of Turkey)

250

#14 - Give Me Some Thumbs Up

251

#13 - People That Like Audio Just a Little Bit Too Much (The AudioFiles Pt. 1)

252

#12 - Unconventionally Speaking

253

#11 - They Wish They All Could Be California Punks (California Punk Pt. 1)

254

#10 - A Casual Introduction to Punk (& Alternative)

255

#9 - Switching Over Is Much Easier Than Apologizing (Quality Control Pt. 2)

256

#8 - Quality Control Pt. 1

257

#7 - Chronically Sonic

258

#6 - Is Vinyl the Only Way? (Danthems Pt. 2)

259

#5 - The Means Still Matter (But, Apparently, Lyrics Don't)

260

#4 - Danthems

261

#3 - Popular Music's Massive Egos

262

#2 - Landmark Albums Pt. 1

263

#1 - Artistic (De-)Evolution