This is the long overdue second episode of 2023, thanks in part to Tyler Sorenson, host of Different Heat, who reminded me this was a project I care about. If you’re wishing there were more episodes of Deep Cuts and Superficial Wounds to listen to, go check out Different Head. Track listing: 0:00: Tapps, “Hurricane” 8:20: Marc Flores, “Magic Moment…

And… we are back! After fourteen months of no Deep Cuts and Superficial Wounds, the podcast is back with ninety minutes of 80s pop gems for you. We will not be returning to a week-to-week schedule, but my life is finally arranged in a way that I can afford to sort though music and start putting new episodes together. Let’s rock. Listen to the Italo…

Synth wave / Euro disco

It's an all-music, no-talk Halloween episode featuring three hours fo weird, spooky-adjacent music. All the tracks come from previous episodes, so if you want any context for any of these tracks, go check out the original episodes: Samantha, Sabrina and Wanda. Track listing: 0:00 Toto Coelo, “Dracula’s Tango (Sucker for Your Love)” 5:51 Fancy, “Sli…

Part two of a celebration of 80s music that’s either outright spooky or Halloween-adjacent. Listen to previous Halloween episodes, Samantha and Sabrina — and also this episode, which has a solid dark-dancey vibe. Also listen to Different Head’s Halloween episodes: Spooky, Midnight Horror and Vol. 75. Track listing: 0:00 Art Fine, “Dark Silence” — A…

The sequel to last year’s Halloween episode, Samantha, is now a two-part special. Also listen to Different Head’s Halloween episodes: Spooky, Midnight Horror and Vol. 75. Track listing (purchase/stream links TK!) 0:00 Toto Coelo, “I Eat Cannibals” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon Music 9:17 The Doctor, “Frankenstein” 14:15 Atrium, “Doctor Jekyll” 2…

No theme is the best theme. These tracks don’t suck. Listen to Katherine’s podcast Smart Mouth. “Seven DJs Share the Weirdest Records in Their Crates.” Track listing: 0:00 Imagination, “Just an Illusion” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon Music 9:57 Topo & Roby, “Under the Ice” — Spotify • Amazon Music 15:26 Clio & Kay, “Keep on Dancing” — Apple Musi…

The former U.S.S.R. had its own synthpop and new wave acts, but the Cold War prevented a lot of Americans from hearing how good they were at assembling those 80s music building blocks into cool formations we didn’t get here. Track listing: 0:00 Alyans, “At Dawn (На заре)” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon Music 8:18 Forum, “Let’s Call Each Other (Да…

It’s summer, it’s pride and it’s (almost) post-pandemic. I’m celebrating all three of these with an episode I’m hoping sets the tone for the entire season. Special thanks to DJ Eric Pruitt for for suggestions from his playlist tribute to the days of Marilyn’s Back Street. Watch the video for C.C. Catch’s “Cause You Are Young.” Track listing: 0:00 S…

Someone said they like my show but they weren’t into the Asian artists I’ve played, so here is an episode with an entire block of Asian artists. Plus some other stuff. Track listing: 0:00 Betty Miranda, “Take Me to the Top” — Apple Music • Spotify 8:43 Eddy Huntington, “Meet My Friend” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon Music 14:47 Jennifer Rush, “Ri…

Sixteen songs I totally vouch for and then one that’s about a woman who is actually a cat. Special assist from Sam Pancake, host of a podcast I produce, Sam Pancake Presents the Monday Afternoon Movie. The final track comes Steve, longtime online friend whose own collection of pop culture antiquities, Obscure Video Games, you can see on Twitter and…

Thirteen episodes in, this niche 80s mixtape podcast finally features its debut of Sylvester and Valerie Dore. With a major assist from Ryan Capiro. Also listen to the episode of Different Head that gave me this episode’s Simon Byrne track. (Different Head is the podcast that inspired me to make this show, and it is just great in general.) Track li…

Here’s a different sort of episode. Instead of blocks of a few songs, each grouped around a theme, this episode is all based on a single theme — and it’s one big block. Have you ever seen Friday the Thirteenth: A New Beginning? Well, this one is inspired by that movie’s new wave girl, Violet, and the dark dance music I’d like to think she’d listen …

And… we’re back! This episode features a selection of 80s synthpop from South Africa in addition to some classic italo disco as well as the best listener call-in this podcast will probably ever receive. 0:00 Linda “Babe” Majika, “Let’s Make a Deal” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon 5:32 Linda “Babe” Majika, “Don’t Treat Me So Bad” — Apple Music • Sp…

After a month-long absence, Deep Cuts and Superficial Wounds returns with italo disco, euro disco, a little bit a new wave and a female forward selection of 80s hits by the one and only Love Connie. Watch Drew’s big Simpsons project that kept this podcast offline all month. And here’s that big Twitter thread where people were shouting out their fav…

It’s actually the most Italian episode yet. Track listing (and where to buy these tracks): 0:00 Den Harrow, “Charleston” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon 7:06 Facts & Fiction, “Give Me the Night” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon 13:06 Duke Lake, “Dance Tonight” — Apple Music • Spotify 19:09 R. Bais, “Dial My Number” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon…

Featuring Jpop by way of italo disco, and I could not be more excited about it. Track listing (and where to buy these tracks): 0:00 John Rocca, “I Want It to Be Real” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon 8:48 Pineapples, “Come On Closer” — Apple Music • Spotify 14:18 Evelyn Barry, “Take It as a Game” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon 20:11 Paul Paul, “G…

Australians and saxophones and Madam Butterfly. First, here is the reddit threat about sax in italo disco tracks. And here is the Fantastic Planet video for ”Spacer Woman.” And here is the vide for ”Bop Girl” featuring a 15-year-old Nicole Kidman with her naturally curly hair. Track listing (and where to buy or stream these tracks): 0:00 Shannon, “…

America is still here, against all odds, so let’s listen to some music. If you’re into “Dance It Down,” then you really have to check out its music video, which is both so squarely 80s but also fairly representative for mid-2000s indie culture. Track listing (and where to buy or stream these tracks): 0:00 Freeez, “IOU” — Apple Music • Spotify 8:12 …

Italo disco makes the perfect Halloween dance party. Check out Dorine Hollier sexy-dancing out of her cardigan on Italy’s Superclassifica show in 1984. If you like this episode, you might be into Different Head’s awesome October episodes, which you can listen to here, here, here, here and here. If you want to be nosy, check out my Halloween special…

In which I offer you my new favorite song, as of this week of music researching. If you want to check out my other music podcast — Singing Mountain, which is about video game music — then I’d suggest you start with the episode that’s all about 80s dance music. And if you want to see my homemade music video for Paul Parker’s ”Right on Target,“ then …

This has been a year of surprises, but I really didn't foresee myself digging a duet by Jermaine Jackson and Pia Zadora. Yet here we are. Watch my weird homemade video using Blue Russell’s ”I Wanna Fly Away” and the Japanese stop-motion Nutcracker. And also watch the equally weird non-homemade video for the last track in this week’s episode, Krista…

This podcast will not be all italo disco, but this episode is. Track listing (and where to buy these tracks): Kano, “Another Life” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon Music Vic Trick, “I Want Someone to Love” — Apple Music • Spotify • Amazon Music Dario Delle’Aere, “Eagles in the Night” Glasses, “Fall in Love Again” Paul Lekakis, “Boom Boom (Let’s Go …

I like 80s music, and I spend time hunting down 80s gems that I didn’t hear back in the day, either because I grew up in the U.S. and missed out on all the cool euro stuff or because most 80s nights tend to feature the same few dozen hits again and again. I decided to try out putting some of my favorites in an “annotated mixtape,” to borrow the phr…