Courtesy St. Martin’s Press
It’s a great time to be a Talking Heads fan, what with the recent publication of drummer Chris Frantz’s memoir “Remain in Love” and now not one but two podcasts dedicated to breaking down the legendary group’s recorded output album-by-album.
Q&A: Chris Frantz talks Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club and new book ‘Remain in Love’
The first of the two podcasts, “This Must Be Talking Heads,” was launched earlier this year by Australian host Rodney Gordon. Following an introductory episode centered on the band’s debut single “Love -> Building on Fire,” Gordon is now devoting each episode to a subsequent record.
The heavily researched episodes are informative and very well-produced, with music cues and archival interviews throughout. The most recent episode is devoted to 1980’s Remain in Light, and features a guest appearance by Frantz himself to discuss that pivotal album and his new book.
The second podcast is “U Talkin’ Talking Heads 2 My Talking Head,” the latest in a series from “Comedy Bang Bang” mastermind Scott Aukerman and former R.E.M. video extra Adam Scott.
The duo began in 2014 with “U Talkin’ U2 to Me?” which then morphed into “R U Talkin’ R.E.M. RE: Me?” in 2018 and ever-so-briefly became “R U Talkin’ RHCP RE: Me,” though the latter lasted just one episode last month before the hosts decided they weren’t all that into the Red Hot Chili Peppers after all. And so it became a Talking Heads podcast during Episode 2. They’ve since made it to Fear of Music.
Fair warning, though, if you’ve never listened to the two Scotts: “U Talkin’ Talking Heads 2 My Talking Head” is very much a comedy podcast, though the hosts do always get around to discussing the album in question, after what’s often an hour’s worth of lead-up that can include numerous detours into their podcasts-within-the-podcast (“Is this an episode of ‘I Love Films’?”) But they are both true fans of the material, and that does comes through — eventually.
You can hear each Talking Heads podcast’s most recent episode below — and you can subscribe to the two podcasts wherever it is that you normally subscribe to your podcasts.
PREVIOUSLY ON SLICING UP EYEBALLS
- Q&A: Chris Frantz talks Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club and new book ‘Remain in Love’
- Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz’s memoir ‘Remain in Love’ to be published in 2020
- Watch: Tina Weymouth, Chris Frantz talk Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club in 2½-hour Tokyo lecture
- Stream: Tom Tom Club, ‘Downtown Rockers’ EP — first new release in 12 years
- Talking Heads ‘Chronology’ DVD to feature live performances from 1975-1983, 2002
- Hear a newly unearthed Talking Heads song from 1976: ‘We call it Theme’
What’s funny, or at least coincidental, is that just *this* morning finished a week long project listening to the Talking Heads catalog in chronological order and had the idea to do a series dissecting them, and explaining how there are 4 distinct phases of the band.
you can always share here — what are your 4 phases?
More Talking and more Head is always good.
On a tangent: I wanted to point out that Echo and the Bunnymen has one dedicated to them breaking down their discography and also touching upon the Liverpool scene. Even touches upon music theory occasionally…well produced and satisfying podcast.
It’s called Echoing the Sound.
I think you mean “Is There an Echo in Here?”. Unless there are two Bunnymen podcasts as well. I could not find a Bunnymen podcast called “Echoing the Sound”.
Apologies, you are correct. Echoing the Sound is a NIN forum I haven’t been on for years… so must be getting old. Thanks for the correction, so others can find the podcast! Cheers perdothegit!
“ former R.E.M. video extra Adam Scott. “ is the single greatest bio blurb ever.
Kind of long, really, but it’s the album, the Eno period, then the next 2 albums, then the last 2