Best David Mokas Podcasts (2024)

1
FROM THE VAULT: Sound is a Pound Episode 1 - (Onka's Big Moka by Toploader) 19:49

3h ago19:49

19:49

Born from a fever dream, Mark had the idea to review records found in poundland. You used to be able to get some primo garbage for a quid. Sadly, you can no longer buy CDs in poundland but the memory lives on. To that end, we thought it'd be fun to revisit the first in our series called Sound is a Pound. And on episode one, we reviewed Onka's Big M…

1
The Jingle-Bangers and Adver-tunes Mixtape (Side B) - 314 1:00:17

3d ago1:00:17

1:00:17

We break down the usage of music in ads into four categories: best original ad jingles and songs, songs made famous by adverts, famous songs best appropriated, songs ruined by ads. We also hear from our listeners on their favourite and least favourite tunes in adverts.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
The Jingle-Bangers and Adver-tunes Mixtape (Side A) - 313 48:07

3d ago48:07

48:07

Given the sheer amount of work we've done lately on the pod, we thought we'd do something a little easy and do an episode on music in advertising. Except, it actually turned out to NOT be that easy because, well, this is a pretty fascinating topic. In part one we talk about the history of music in advertising and pick a couple of examples.…

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 68 - Terrifyer by Pig Destroyer 1:29:35

7d ago1:29:35

1:29:35

We've been on a real run of pulling out shows from 2019 recently and it seems the trend is not gonna break this week. We decided that we'd double down on the heavy, dirty misery of Yacøpsæ and revisit our episode on Pig Destroyer. Y'know, a proper grindcore band.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
Tanz, Grosny, Tanz by Yacøpsæ (Side B) with Joe McGlynn from Man Must Die, Go Down Fighting and the Shit You May Not Have Seen Podcast - 312 1:29:39

10d ago1:29:39

1:29:39

It's time to get really grindy and real with the band's more recent material, which is very fast, brutal and dark. It's a bracing but also fun. This band have a lot of songs but it's all quite short, so you can really batter through their discography in short order. Joe also gives us some of his thoughts on the band and then we get to the nexus.…

1
Tanz, Grosny, Tanz by Yacøpsæ (Side A) with Joe McGlynn from Man Must Die, Go Down Fighting and the Shit You May Not Have Seen Podcast - 311 1:02:37

10d ago1:02:37

1:02:37

There's a fair chance you haven't heard of Yacøpsæ before unless you're very much in tune with DIY grind/powerviolence. One of the things we started this podcast to do was to shine a light on great bands were think are truly unsung. This band are one such example of that. They're very underground, and are very, very, very brutal. In part one we tal…

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 90 - Shaking the Habitual by The Knife 1:35:16

14d ago1:35:16

1:35:16

We're throwing it back to Sept 2019 on this episode, as Chris talks about an album he adores - Shaking the Habitual by The Knife. This was the band/act that Karin was in before they did Fever Ray and it is very very good indeed. Hope you dig this look back!By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
Radical Romantics by Fever Ray (Side A) - 309 45:58

18d ago45:58

45:58

When we suggested doing Fever Ray after our episode on The Knife's Shaking the Habitual back in Sept 2019, this album didn't even exist. Indeed, Radical Romantics now takes the title of the most recent album covered on Unsung. Back in 2019 Chris would have picked their debut album but as you can see, that's now longer the album he thinks is the bes…

1
Radical Romantics by Fever Ray (Side B) - 310 1:02:36

18d ago1:02:36

1:02:36

And to wrap up our two episodes on Fever Ray we talk about Plunge before Chris goes deep on why their new album, Radical Romantics, is the best thing they've yet done.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 140 - The Ugly Organ by Cursive 1:21:16

21d ago1:21:16

1:21:16

The pandemic was still stalking the world when we recorded this episode, so you'll have to bear with the sound quality. It's decent, mind, but recorded remotely. Anyway, this was, until recently, our only flirtation with a Saddle Creek artist so we thought it fittings to bring this one out of the vault. We do talk a little about the label, Bright E…

1
Digital Ash in a Digital Urn by Bright Eyes w/ Kyle Wood from Lovers Turn to Monsters (Side C) - 308 49:15

24d ago49:15

49:15

THE CONCLUSION. Kyle's still alive. Barely. In side C we get to the point of this whole sorry triumvirate of episodes: to discuss Digital Ash in a Digital Urn. And the nexus. Of course.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
Digital Ash in a Digital Urn by Bright Eyes w/ Kyle Wood from Lovers Turn to Monsters (Side B) - 307 56:43

24d ago56:43

56:43

Kyle's still with us in this episode, but he's dreaming about taking a bath. Which we kept him from. Sorry. Sadly, there was work to do. And that work is to continue our chat about Bright Eyes' back catalogue, covering everything from Fevers and Mirrors to Down In the Weeds, Where the World One Was.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
Digital Ash in a Digital Urn by Bright Eyes w/ Kyle Wood from Lovers Turn to Monsters (Side A) - 306 57:55

24d ago57:55

57:55

This week we're joined by Kyle Wood, who creates music under the name of Lovers Turn to Monsters. He has chosen Digital Ash in a Digital Urn by Bright Eyes, claiming rather boldly, that it's amongst the band's best work. Which many fans would no doubt disagree with. In side A we talk a wee bit about Conor Oberst, his history, the pre-Bright Eyes mo…

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 210 - The Covermount Mixtape: Radio Kerrang! Vol. 5 1:22:33

28d ago1:22:33

1:22:33

Calling in our good friend Crag from Australia, we chat about the covermount CD from a 1998 issue of Kerrang! The CD is called, obviously, Radio Kerrang! Vol. 5 and it has an intro from the Deftones and an exclusive Soulfly track on it. Remember how bad nu-metal could be at times? Well, it's all on display in this pearler of a collection. Relive it…

1
The Unsung History of Turbofolk (Side D) - 305 37:43

1M ago37:43

37:43

On this episode we look at modern turbofolk. It's still hugely popular in some areas of the Balkans, in particular Croatia. So we dive into some recent examples from the genre and then take a wee peek into what the future of the genre might be.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
The Unsung History of Turbofolk (Side C) - 304 41:17

1M ago41:17

41:17

Last week was heavy. We ended on a pretty sour note. This week is slightly better if only because you get to hear some actual music and we talk a lot less about war criminals. Operative word here being less; we're talking about Ceca this week which means we must talk about Arkan. After that we then get start to look at some of the other popular tur…

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 71 - Weezer (White Album) by Weezer 1:23:54

1M ago1:23:54

1:23:54

Turbofolk is heavy. Not musically. Thematically. You'll notice that, if you've made it through both episodes, that Side B ends with Weezer, so for this week's From the Value episode we thought, let's go back to that episode! The band have a massive back catalogue. One which has only grown since. It's a tough listen at times, but we did it. Rumour h…

1
The Unsung History of Turbofolk (Side B) - 303 49:46

1M ago49:46

49:46

WARNING: This episode contains some pretty hideous shit. We play samples and quote some truly despicable lyrics. Now that we've laid the foundations for what turbofolk is and the environment from which it came, we talk about some actual music in side B. We looked at Rate Your Music's list of the most critically acclaimed turbofolk albums and decide…

1
The Unsung History of Turbofolk (Side A) - 302 47:33

1M ago47:33

47:33

Turbofolk is basically Serbian, and sometimes occasionally Balkan, pop music. It's something of a thriving scene these days - think eurodance with traditional Balkan rhythms - but it's origins are very, very murky. It came to prominence in Serbia during the Yugoslav wars in the 90s, and was heavily exploited by Slobodan Milosevic government. In fac…

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 145 - Mitch's Movie Mixtape (Side B) 1:40:00

1M ago1:40:00

1:40:00

Four people with a bunch of songs each is, as it turns out, a whole lot of songs to talk about. That's why Mitch's Movie Mixtape is split into two parts. Across both episodes, the first of which you can find here, we chat about our favourite needle drops in films. We also talk about why they work and also chat more generally about film. Mark even d…

1
Any Other City by Life Without Buildings (Side B) - 301 1:12:06

2M ago1:12:06

1:12:06

Modern post-punk music (the post-punk revival revival?) has a fair few acts that all indulge in sprechgesang and sprechstimme vocals. From Dry Cleaning and Squid to Idles and Fontaines D.C., there's a whole lot of artists out there using the same vocal technique that Sue Tompkins deploys effectively on Any Other City. In part two we chat about mode…

1
Any Other City by Life Without Buildings (Side A) - 300 48:29

2M ago48:29

48:29

In part one we chat a little about Life Without Buildings and their origins. In doing so, we're forced to reckon with the particular vocal style of Sue Tompkins. In some quarters it's been quite divisive (there's a particularly bad NME interview that is a good example of this) but really her style is part of a much longer and larger legacy, one tha…

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 144 - Mitch's Movie Mixtape (Side A) 1:28:55

2M ago1:28:55

1:28:55

With our levels of existential dread reaching the normal level following our episodes on The Haxan Cloak, we thought we'd stick on the movie theme but go in a completely different direction for this week's From the Vault episode. We're going back to pandemic times and revisiting our excellent two part movie mixtape with our good friend Mitch Bain. …

1
Excavation by The Haxan Cloak (Side B) - 299 1:13:38

2M ago1:13:38

1:13:38

We wrap up this week's dual episodes on The Haxan Cloak with Mark going deep into the Returnal soundtrack, doing a quick drive-by on the Beef soundtrack, touching on a couple of other movie scores, before taking Excavation on in its entirety. Due to the hype around Excavation when it came out, we go on quite the tangent about PR in music. We discus…

1
Excavation by The Haxan Cloak (Side A) - 298 48:16

2M ago48:16

48:16

Diving deep into the discography of R.E.M. rapidly turned into a sorta of existential torture, particularly as we got towards the end of their career. So what did we decide to follow it up with? A journey into what existential despair may ACTUALLY sound like with The Haxan Cloak. Under the guise of The Haxah Cloak, Bobby Krilc has only released two…

1
FROM THE VAULT: Episode 93 - Turn on the Bright Lights by Interpol 1:32:35

2M ago1:32:35

1:32:35

This week's From the Vault episode is from the pre-pandemic days when we were starting to get into the flow of how this show goes. There's still a few rough edges, but the dynamic and banter are all here. There's some particularly spirited debate in this episode where Chris talks about one of his favourite albums ever and Mark absolutely detests ev…

1
New Adventures in Hi-Fi by R.E.M. (Side D) - 297 51:39

2M ago51:39

51:39

Well, we did it. We got to the end of R.E.M.'s discography and now we turn our attention to the album that started this journey in the first place - New Adventures in Hi-Fi-. Chris explains to us why he thinks it's unsung classic, and grapples with the possibility that his choice may not have been the right one. And as ever, we drop the nexus too. …

1
The Unsung History of R.E.M. (Side C) - 296 1:08:28

2M ago1:08:28

1:08:28

R.E.M. never really chased superstardom, and yet they found themselves thrust into it in the mid-90s. Last week we ended by talking about Green and Out of Time. In part three we chat about Automatic for the People and Monster, before diving into the records they made after drummer and founding member Bill Berry left: Up, Reveal, Around the Sun, Acc…

1
FROM THE VAULT: The Remote Part by Idlewild 35:37

2M ago35:37

35:37

2017 was a much simpler time. Both for society and for this podcast. Every Thursday we'll be putting out an old episode and to mark the occasion we thought it'd be good to revisit the very first episode: The Remote Part by Idlewild. The episode lengths were shorter, we were all younger, fresher, more naive. Oh and we still had three hosts. Dave was…

1
The Unsung History of R.E.M. (Side B) - 295 57:59

2M ago57:59

57:59

Welcome to part two of our R.E.M. series! Now that the context is out the way, we dive headlong into their discography. In Side B we talk about all the records the released on I.R.S., and also dispense some trivia about the band during the time on the label. We talk about Murmur, Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, Lifes Rich Pageant and Docum…

1
The Unsung History of R.E.M. (Side A) - 294 43:35

2M ago43:35

43:35

Welcome to part one of our short series on R.E.M. So, as fans of the show know, the general thrust of Unsung is that each week we choose a record by a band. That record is either a classic by an unsung artist, or an unsung classic by a well known (and we take a fairly liberal view on what "well known" actually means) artist. The catalyst for this s…

1
Episode 293 - Town Hall: Xmas Leftovers 49:47

2M ago49:47

49:47

We're back! In new surroundings (digitally). To kick off our tenure in our new home of Bleav we thought we'd get out some Christmas leftovers and reheat them for you. Long time fans of the show will know that every Xmas we answer questions from our lovely listeners. Well, we had a couple we didn't answer from the 2023 Xmas specials and it just so h…

1
Episode #55 A Close Call With Death with guest Stein Rosqvist - Life Flight Nurse Medic Lone survivor of fatal crash in Salt Lake City Fog. 1:17:14

3M ago1:17:14

1:17:14

Our interview is with the lone survivor Stein Rosvquist, a flight Nurse Medic whose helicopter went down one night in a dense fog over Salt Lake City's western border near Salt Lake City International Airport. Stein suffered a severed lower back and other life threatening injuries and yet survived. The pilot and other medic on board did not make it…

1
An Update on the Future of Unsung 3:50

3M ago3:50

3:50

A little update on what's in store for the future of this podcast.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
Episode 292 - The (Belated) Xmas Xtravaganza 2023 (Side C) 3:00:54

3M ago3:00:54

3:00:54

So here we are, the truly magnificent, slightly chaotic, overly long conclusion to our Xmas madness. It’s seen us well into January this year, which is maddening and funny. We had so many questions this year. A ridiculous amount, frankly. But we couldn’t let the die hards down, and that meant doing each and every single one. Somehow, despite divvyi…

1
Episode 291 - The (Belated) Xmas Xtravaganza 2023 (Side B) 2:11:58

3M ago2:11:58

2:11:58

Christmas and New Year are very much in the rear view by this point, but due to our schedule having shifted due to ransomware attacks and COVID, we only managed to record parts two and three of our Xmas special last week. Usually part two is where we really get cooking. The booze is starting to kick in, the takes are at a reasonable level of spice,…

1
Episode 290 - The (Belated) Xmas Xtravaganza 2023 (Side A) 1:46:46

4M ago1:46:46

1:46:46

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Due to COVID we recorded part one of our Xmas Xtravaganza remotely, so this is a relatively subdued affair both in terms of banter, hilarity and searing hot takes. But we do get through a fucking TON of your questions, and that’s awesome. Thanks to every single person who sent us some in December. We’ve got two more episodes to reco…

1
Episode 289 - The Karaoke Mixtape (Side B) 1:07:46

4M ago1:07:46

1:07:46

IT’S CHRISTMAS! Is this our first ever Christmas day episode drop? Possibly. But don’t quote us on that. It’s been six years. So it’s likely we’ve done it before…anyway, this week is NOT part one (or two) of our Xmas Xtravaganza, but it’s part TWO of our karaoke mixtape! Last week we spoke all about the history of karaoke. This week we’re chatting …

1
Episode 288 - The Karaoke Mixtape (Side A) 58:41

4M ago58:41

58:41

Karaoke is a divisive artform. In fact, even calling an “artform” is divisive in itself. For most people it’s a fun thing to do with friends, and for that reason it is hugely popular around the world. Inspired by Chris’ recent birthday night out that ended in a karaoke booth, we thought we’d do something FUN and explore the history of karaoke. In p…

1
Episode 287 - In Humor and Sadness by '68 w/ Grant Donaldson 1:45:59

4M ago1:45:59

1:45:59

This week we have a guest! Grant Donaldson from Moni Jitchell (and many others) joins us to talk about the debut album by ‘68. Launching almost immediately after the abrupt end of the critically acclaimed Christian Metalcore The Chariot, ‘68 are a very different proposition indeed. At various points channelling equal parts southern blues, angular p…

1
Episode 286 - Live at Montreux Jazz Festival by Anna Von Hausswolff 1:26:47

5M ago1:26:47

1:26:47

This week we talk about something positively wintery indeed, as we explore the foreboding sounds of Swedish sonic sorceress Anna von Hausswolff. Tracing influences from baroque pop storytellers like Tori Amos through to the cavernous industrial churn of Swans, we chart Anna's evolution across a series of bold studio works and her new live album. Wh…

1
Episode #54 - "A Close Call With Death", with guest Kennedy Littledike, Burley Idaho - Car Crash Survivor and hung 30 feet from a power line for over an hour waiting for rescue! 57:36

5M ago57:36

57:36

Kennedy Littledike, is a miracle! Kennedy was involved in a horrific car wreck that launched her 30 feet into the air and onto a power line in Idaho, breaking her femur and hanging for over an hour waiting for rescue. Two of her friends were also ejected out of the car breaking their necks and backs but lived and are fully recovered. Kennedy tells …

1
Episode 285 - You Come Before You by Poison the Well 1:51:54

5M ago1:51:54

1:51:54

We're back! After over a month away due to technical issues, the Unsung Podcast has returned with an explosive new episode on metalcore pioneers Poison the Well and their 2003 album 'You Come Before You.' Joining Chris and Mark for the first time in many months is Dave, who chose Poison the Well as his band for the episode. Hailing from Florida, Po…

1
Unsung x Sh*t You May Not Have Seen - God Bless America 1:12:18

6M ago1:12:18

1:12:18

We have no new episode this week due to Chris' ransomware calamity. However, we do have something to share. A wee while ago Chris was on the excellent Sh*t You May Not Have Seen podcast talking all about the Bobcat Goldthwait film God Bless America. Enjoy! We'll be back in a few weeks.By Bleav + Unsung Podcast

1
Episode #53 A Close Call With Death with Guest Ben Gunn - Survivor of a plane crash in Alaska 1:53:32

6M ago1:53:32

1:53:32

This episode is with guest Ben Gunn who 20 years ago experienced a tragic plane crash into the frigid waters of the ocean in Alaska on his way with his family to Anchorage for go fishing. Ben and his five family members went down into 42 degree ocean waters losing four of his family that day and only he and his brother in law survived. Tune into th…

1
Episode #52 A Close Call With Death with guest David Osmond - Relaunch of episode #31 54:24

6M ago54:24

54:24

This episode we re-launch episode #31 with David Osmond who wrote the new music for our podcast series A Close Call With Death, with the song "Last Day" from the Reflected Album. David's lyrics in this song truly reflect the meaning of the podcast series with looking at our survival stories with the eye of living life like it just may be the last d…

1
In Session 10 - Jan Alkema from The Drum/China Drum 1:20:54

6M ago1:20:54

1:20:54

Good news, folks! Chris has managed to recover the audio files needed to get our interview with Jan Alkema, drummer from The Drum, out the door! The quality might not be up to the usual standard, but we're so happy to share this with you. Just over a year ago, we did an episode on The Drum's only album/China Drum's third album, "Diskin." As a resul…

1
Total Catastrophe - An Unsung Unepisode 3:51

6M ago3:51

3:51

Let's get down to brass tacks here, folks, there is no episode this week. Last week, Chris was subject to a randsomware attack which has unfortunately resulted in a complete loss of data from his laptop. In fact, it has rendered his entire laptop unusable. Not only that, but they gained access to all his accounts, and even our shared Dropbox folder…

1
Episode 284 - Playola: The Dark Side of Spotify (Side B) 1:34:20

6M ago1:34:20

1:34:20

This week we get into the meat of Spotify streaming manipulation. We’ve already discussed the history, but how did Spotify become so influential? And why? The advent of music streaming opened new avenues for questionable promotion tactics to thrive. While piracy dealt a blow to record sales in the 1990s and 2000s, streaming's growth led to playlist…

1
Episode 283 - Playola: The Dark Side of Spotify (Side A) 58:50

6M ago58:50

58:50

Everybody wants to get famous. Or so they say. Fact is, for many emerging artists these days there’s a direct correlation between fame and the number of streams your tracks have on Spotify. As with anything online though, streaming figures can be manipulated. So over the next two weeks we’re going to tell you all about the phenomenon of playola, wh…

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