NEM#230: Dean Wareham (Luna, Galaxie 500) Waxes Poetic

Nakedly Examined Music Podcast

Dean has released about 20 albums, starting with three ’88-’90 with his Harvard classmates as Galaxie 500, then started fresh in New York as Luna, releasing 7 albums and some EPs through 2005 (plus a later reunion), then continued with his Luna bassist and now spouse Britta Phillips as Dean and Britta for 5 albums, interspersed with now four albums under his own name (plus an album of country covers with Cheval Sombre).

We discuss “We’re Not Finished Yet” (and listen at the end to “The Cloud Is Coming” from That’s the Price of Loving Me (2025), “Love Is Colder Than Death” from Emancipated Hearts (2013), and “23 Minutes in Brussels” by Luna from Penthouse (1995). Intro: “Strange” by Galaxie 500 from On Fire (1989). More at deanwareham.com. Check out Dean’s autobiography Black Postcards.

Hear all of “Strange.” We also mention Galaxie 500’s first single, the lyrically repetitious “Tugboat.” See them play it live (and slower!), and then Dean & Britta’s live interpretation.

Watch the full 2006 documentary about Luna, which starts out with a live version of “23 Minutes in Brussels.” Here’s Luna live on MTV’s 120 minutes back in the day. Watch a show from the 2017 reunion tour, and here’s one from as recently as last December.

See the video for “Love is Colder than Death.” Here’s one from his collaboration with Cheval Sombre. Here’s a playlist of Dean’s Luna videos and other things.

Here’s Francoise Hardy’s “La fin de l’ete” which Dean mentions as the inspiration for “Love Is Colder Than Death.” (I’m not sure which Serge Gainsbourg track he was referring to as providing the basis for “We’re Not Finished Yet,” but here here’s Serge singing a waltz on TV, so we’re in the same neighborhood.

Dean mentions his producer for the new album (and the Galaxie 500 albums) Kramer; he also collaborated quite a bit with one of my past guests, Jad Fair.

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