There is a lot happening at the Lydian Spin! Lydia and Tim are both touring and we're recording and editing the next batch of interviews, set to debut next week. Meanwhile, Lydia, a big Melvins fan, is thrilled about the recent release of their new album, Tarantula Heart. To share her excitement, this weeks episode features a new intro combined wit…

The cover photograph for the second and final Richard Hell and the Voidoids album, Destiny Street features a woman standing in the background. For years, this woman was unfairly credited as "unknown woman." However, the truth is that the woman is Anne Militello, who would go on to become an accomplished lighting designer and professor at CalArts. A…

Meredith Monk is truly an American treasure. She is a composer, performer, and interdisciplinary artist. Her unique contributions to music and experimental theater have spanned over six decades. Meredith's body of work combines elements of music, voice, movement, and visual art. Through these mediums, she explores the myriad ways one can freely as …

Jeffrey "Chairman" Couch fronts the Portland, Oregon band Nasalrod, known for their frenetic, genre-bending, manic art-punk style. Nasalrod's music attempts to look beyond punk's boundaries, all the while retaining the genre's adventurous spirit. Jeffrey and Lydia crossed paths at one of her last Portland shows, where he invited her to participate …

Dan Levenson is a visual artist based in Los Angeles who engages in installation, performance, video, painting, and sculpture. His artistic endeavors revolve around the concept of an imagined institution, the State Art Academy, Zürich (SKZ). Dan's paintings adhere to the formalist teachings of this fictitious academy, employing metrically sized can…

Berlin based band Cuntroaches is composed of Claire Panthère(drums), David Hantelius(bass) and Martina Schöne-Radunski(guitar, vocals). Together they unleash a ferocious blend of hardcore-infused no wave. Their music is a cacophony of intoxicating chaos. They have a new album coming out on Skin Graft Records.…

Trans woman Swedish-US American writer Alvina Chamberland, co-authored All that is mine: Rape, Stigmatization and Reparation, which was published in 2015. In 2018, she released Locked Out – A nostalgic account of growing up for freaks. Her works have appeared in journals and newspapers in Swedish and English. Her book Love the World or Get Killed T…

Ben Greenberg has played in over 50 bands, including The Fugue, Archaeopteryx, Bloody Panda, The Men, Little Women, and his project Hubble. He attended the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, joining the avant-garde band Zs. Ben is also involved in recording music through his recording studio Circular Ruin, having recently recorded Couch Sl…

Sandy Ewen, is an experimental guitarist, artist, and architect based in Brooklyn, NY. She focuses on texture and timbre in her guitar playing, using various objects and extended techniques. Her recent recordings include collaborations with Jason Nazary, Maria Chavez, Lisa Cameron, Roscoe Mitchell, Damon Smith, Weasel Walter, and Keith Rowe. Sandy …

At 14, budding draftsman and tattoo artist Eddy Deutsche left his birthplace, Detroit, for the west coast, immersing himself in the local punk rock scene. It was there that he honed his tattooing skills through trial and terror. Initially struggling to get a start as a professional due to his young age, Eddy eventually found a mentor who guided him…

Cynthia Ross co-founded the all-girl band the B-Girls in Toronto before relocating to New York City. The band quickly made a mark, touring with acts like the Clash and sharing stages with Iggy Pop, Blondie, and others. In this episode, she reminisces about her musical journey, her relationship with Stiv Bators of the Dead Boys, and shares some of h…

Wayne Kramer, the guitar force behind MC5, has passed at 75. His raw sound and defiant spirit set the stage for punk rock. From Detroit's streets to global stages, his music was a call to arms. Beyond the music, he championed change, founding Jail Guitar Doors U.S.A. His legacy as a rebel and visionary lives on. Rest in power, Wayne. As a tribute t…

Musician and friend of the podcast Thurston Moore discusses his latest book, Sonic Life which has garnered widespread acclaim. The book is a meticulous work of research and a heartfelt homage to Thurston’s formative years. The memoir paints a vivid picture of the downtown Manhattan music scene of the late 1970s and ’80s. Sonic Life is an essential …

M. Lamar is a composer whose work spans the genres of opera, metal, performance, and visual arts, crafts narratives of radical transformation. Holding a BFA from The San Francisco Art Institute and starting at Yale School of Art before dropping out and shifting to music, M's work has been presented globally, including The Rewire Festival in The Hag…

Music Journalist Katherine Taylor, just published her new book She's a Badass: Women in Rock Shaping Feminism, which was released on January 16th, through Backbeat Books. The book features the stories of twenty influential female rock musicians, spanning from the 1970s to the present. The introduction emphasizes the significant role each of these w…

Born in Cucuta, Colombia, in 1977, Alex Brahim is an independent curator. At the helm of Fundación El Pilar, he spearheads the international initiative 'Juntos Aparte - Encuentro Internacional de Arte, Pensamiento y Fronteras,' unfolding in Cucuta since 2017. Alex's multifaceted approach extends across theory, production, programming, communication…

Author and friend of the podcast Jack Sargeant returns. He is an author who focuses on underground film and culture. Notable works include Flesh And Excess: On Underground Film, Against Control, Naked Lens: Beat Cinema, and Deathtripping: The Cinema of Transgression, which was republished as Deathtripping: The Extreme Underground. Jack's writings c…

Gainesville, Florida's, Andrew Chadwick AKA Ironing, is an active figure within the Southern experimental music scene. He has an extensive catalog of 24 albums on his Bandcamp page. Andrew also engages in tours across the country, local performances, and curating over 233 Action Research events. Ironing's musical style encompasses a diverse range, …

Roddy Bottum, the seasoned Faith No More co-founder and keyboardist, made waves in the early '90s by publicly coming out, which at the time defied norms in the rock scene. In 2012, he shared his experience with Out Magazine, highlighting the excitement and danger of being openly gay at the time. Now, collaborating with boyfriend Joey Holman, Roddy …

JG Thirlwell, is an accomplished composer, producer, and performer, with a diverse and prolific career. Known by various pseudonyms such as Manorexia and Foetus, he has released over thirty albums, showcasing a dramatic intensity and cinematic quality across genres. His collaborative spirit extends to numerous artists, including Karen O, Nine Inch …

Colin Marston is a record producer and musician based in New York City. He is the owner of Menegroth The Thousand Caves Recording Studios in Woodhaven, Queens. Colin is recognized for his versatile contributions as a multi-instrumentalist, proficient in guitar, bass, and keyboards. When not on tour with bands like Behold... The Arctopus, Dysrhythmi…

Richard Edson is a multifaceted artist with notable contributions to both the music and acting. In 1979, he co-founded the San Francisco art rock band The Alterboys, where he played both drums and trumpet. Richard was also Sonic Youth's original drummer from 1981 to 1982, and he concurrently played drums for Konk. Post-Sonic Youth, he played trumpe…

Ric Royer, a writer and performer, is known for crafting narratives that are both mordant and morbid, as well as staging plays characterized by absurd wonder. As the founder and artistic director of Psychic Readings Co, a performance collective established in 1999, Rick has consistently entertained, frightened, and confused audiences with interdisc…

Vocalist Alan Dubin is known for his role in the drone metal band Khanate. In the early 2000s, Khanate, with Alan's distinctive and tortured vocal approach, pushed the boundaries of doom metal, creating an atmosphere of everlasting torture and despair. His haunting screeches, particularly in tracks like Under Rotting Sky, were spine-chilling and pe…

Film director and musician Marc Hurtado is actively involved in bringing the iconic music of Suicide to life on stage. He has achieved this through films such as The Infinite Mercy Film (2009), Saturn Drive Duplex (2011), Saturn Drive Duplex Redux (2014), Infinite Dreamers (2016), and Saturn Drive (2016). Marc is currently on tour in Europe alongsi…

Jochen Arbeit is a German musician whose career is marked by his influential contributions to bands such as Einstürzende Neubauten and Die Haut. Beyond his collaborations, Arbeit has also made a name for himself as a solo artist, lending his musical talents to various artistic mediums, including dance theater and movies. His solo works have showcas…

Dave Dictor, the frontman of the punk rock band MDC, originally hailing from Long Island, New York, pursued his education at Boston University and the University of Texas in the 1970s. Dave co-founded the Reejex in 1979, which later evolved into MDC (Millions of Dead Cops). Relocating from Austin to San Francisco in 1982 and then to Portland, Orego…

John Robb is an English musician and journalist renowned as the bassist and vocalist for the mid-1980s post-punk band The Membranes. He is a prolific writer, contributing to and managing the Louder Than War website, as well as overseeing a monthly music magazine by the same name. John has authored multiple books on music and occasionally appears in…

Sally Gates is a New Zealand musician and composer currently based in New York. Her avant-rock trio, Titan to Tachyons, recently launched their second album, Vonals under John Zorn's Tzadik Records. This album has received widespread critical acclaim, earning a spot on Spin's Best Metal list and being described as "harnessing virtuosity with an ent…

Little Annie, is an artist known for her diverse creative pursuits. Her career spans across music, painting, poetry, writing, stage acting, and even pastoring. She started her musical journey at the age of 16 with Annie and the Asexuals and later ventured into the UK music scene, collaborating with influential figures like Crass and Rubella Ballet.…

Franz Stahl, guitarist of seminal hardcore band Scream, helped shape the band's journey from its inception in 1979. Alongside drummer Kent Stacks(AKA Kent Stax), bassist Skeeter Enoch Thompson, and his brother Pete Stahl, Franz attended school in Bailey’s Crossroads, Virginia, where they discovered the punk and new wave scene of Washington, D.C. In…

Denton, Texas native Rick Eye is a guitarist involved in several bands, including Bitch Teeth, Gay Cum Daddies, Flesh Narc (his main band), and Vomitatrix, with whom he is currently on tour in Europe with bandmates Tim, Weasel Walter, and Gyna Bootleg. Early in his career, Rick faced a crucial decision: whether to relocate to a cultural hub like Ne…

Lydia and Tim are currently on their respective tours, with Tim currently in France alongside Vomitatrix, while Lydia is touring the Southwest with Kevin Shea. This week's episode features a live recording of a spoken word show that took place in Albuquerque last week. The show kicks off with an opening performance by Jessica Helen Lopez, a nationa…

Friend of the podcast, musician, and artist Rick Froberg, who fronted Drive Like Jehu and many noted bands, sadly died on June 30th of this year. We have wanted for the last couple of months to do something to remember him, so in his memory, we are replaying his episode. Rick was as talented as he was kind, and he will be assuredly missed.…

Abby Travis boasts a prolific career that spans back to the early 1990s, encompassing both significant contributions to music as a touring artist and a sought-after session player. Her diverse musical journey has seen her collaborating with artists such as The Go-Go’s, Cher, Beck, Elastica, KMFDM, Eagles of Death Metal, and Masters of Reality. Othe…

For the past 30 years, Matt Shapiro's mission has been to embrace the "dark, weird, extreme, and wrong." As the former co-owner of Elbo Room and a beloved promoter within the Bay Area, he's indelibly marked San Francisco and Oakland's music scenes. Notably, he facilitated the transition of Elbo Room's Oakland location to new ownership, safeguarding…

Dubbed the "Godfather of Punk Rock Comedy" by Chicago Now, JT Habersaat's one-hour special Swamp Beast, snagged the top spot on the comedy charts. He has also had appearances on Comedy Central, roles in Troma Films including Toxic Avenger 4, and a touring roster featuring icons like Eddie Pepitone and Doug Stanhope, as well as being the driving for…

Aaron Dilloway, a prominent figure in the American experimental/noise scene, has long been celebrated for his innovative use of rhythmic loops, found sounds, and vocal improvisations, often employing contact microphones for distorted effects, His performances balance dark energies with playful absurdity. Aaron is a co-founder of the Michigan noise …

This week's guest on the podcast is Donita Sparks, a very talented musician, songwriter, and close friend of Lydia. She is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the legendary all-female rock band L7. With her unmistakable voice and fierce guitar skills, Donita has been a driving force in the rock scene for decades. Her dedication to social and enviro…

This week's episode deviates from the traditional Lydian Spin mold as there will be no intro or interview. Instead, join Lydia on tour with Tim and Matt Nelson in the spoken word outfit Murderous...Again. And if they didn't come to a town near you, don't worry because today's episode features a live recording of their show last week in Palo Alto. I…

Gregory Jacobsen is a visual artist and performer renowned for his fusion of beauty and horror in his art. He collaborates with bassist Alex Perkolup, a long-time musical partner from Cheer-Accident, to bring this nightmarish artistic vision to life. Their joint project, Lovely Little Girls, showcases Gregory's masterful use of lush colors to adorn…

Poet Eva H.D. authored Rotten Perfect Mouth, Light Wounds (with photographer Kendall Townend), The Natural Hustle, and the short film Jackals & Fireflies, which was directed by Charlie Kaufman. Her poem Bonedog appeared in the 2020 Netflix film I'm Thinking of Ending Things, also directed by Charlie Kaufman.…

Author Craig Clevenger's debut novel, The Contortionist's Handbook, garnered critical acclaim for its masterful exploration of identity and deception. Craig's second novel, Dermaphoria, further solidified his reputation as a maestro of the noir genre, effortlessly blending themes of memory, drugs, and paranoia. With his latest work, Mother Howl, Cr…

Author Nolan Knight is known for his books including Gallows Dome, The Neon Lights Are Veins, and Beneath the Black Palms. He hails from Los Angeles and is a fourth-generation Angeleno. Nolan previously worked as a staff writer for the prominent music publication, L.A. Record. His short fiction has been featured in various respected publications su…

Photo By: Sebastien Greppo Virginie Despentes is a French writer and filmmaker. Her writing explores themes of gender, sexuality, and power, often challenging societal norms and conventions. Virginie gained widespread recognition with her novel Baise-moi(Fuck Me), which was later adapted into a film. Her works often feature complex and flawed chara…

Guitarist Kawabata Makoto is renowned for his association with the band Acid Mothers Temple and his experimental approach to the group's sound. His guitar work encompasses a wide range of techniques and effects, reflecting his exploration of various genres such as psychedelic rock, noise, and improvisation. Kawabata's contributions to Acid Mothers …

photo by: Orestes Gonzales Pat Irwin, has been making music for over 40 year. He has continuously pushed boundaries with his captivating soundtracks for renowned television series such as Dexter: New Blood, Nurse Jackie, Bored To Death, and animated classics like Rocko's Modern Life, and SpongeBob SquarePants. Alongside his TV contributions, Patt w…

Oran Canfield's upbringing took him across various locations, including Massachusetts, Philadelphia, Central America, New Mexico, Arizona, and the San Francisco Bay area. While attending the San Francisco Art Institute, Oran began his career as a drummer and became heavily involved in San Francisco's underground music and art communities. Along wit…

Adel Souto is a writer and musician from Miami, Florida, who is now based in Detroit. He began the fanzine Feast of Hate and Fear in 1990, later opting for the internet in 2001. He has released a ‘best of’ FHF entitled Some Words (2010), Schizotypal (2011), which uses ritualistic automatic writing, and a book of poetry, 200 Throwaways (2012). He ha…

Mike Doskocil, the frontman of Drunks With Guns, continues to excite audiences with his persona and controversial actions. Mike's energy propelled the band's presence in the St. Louis music scene. From launching burritos at unsuspecting performers to his captivating stage charisma, Doskocil is the epitome of rock and roll rebellion. Drunks With Gun…