The Sonic Cloth
The Sonic Cloth
Scattershot dives into the recesses of deep music. Thrust yourself down the rabbit hole. Track lists @thesonicclothpodcast on instagram.
TSC37: Taking a breather
Ok, I've been taking a breather since March. The Sonic Cloth will be back later with a new & improved format. More fun and spontaneity to be had with the same commitment to exploring rabbit holes of deep music. Why I need a breather Recent listening Top albums of 2024 so far 3 music podcasts to fill the void Every Album Ever Secret House Against Demolisten Chip in your pocket change to help me pay my podcast hosting fees so I can keep old episodes up while I'm on break. Donate @ https://
Jul 7, 2024 • 11:06
TSC36: From the River to the Sea to the Aux Cord feat. Sijal Nasralla (Dunums, The Muslims)
Sijal Nasralla is a diaspora Palestinian who makes music and maqluba in Durham, North Carolina. Dunums is a project that describes itself as "Arty, noisey, post-rock, bedroom fake-jazz for a free Palestine. Blending memory and homeland heartache into feelings, full sonic moments on family, love, rage, and how "God" will always be greater". SIjal also plays drums in The Muslims, a "crunchy, kickass punk band of Black + brown queer muzzies." Sijal and I set out on a deeply personal and liberator
Feb 28, 2024 • 2:11:11
TSC35: 2023 Albums You May Have Missed
As a year, 2023 was an abomination. Thankfully, the music makers made some great music for us. New friend and fellow Flenser enthusiast, Wes, hopped on the show to discuss a bunch of 2023 albums we thought were overlooked in the usual music fandom spaces. We each chose four AOTY and then another five runner ups so strap in because this one went long…fuck else you got to do? Ceasefire Now // Save Gaza // End the Occupation // Free Palestine Get this episode on all podcast apps. Subscribe & n
Dec 26, 2023 • 3:20:53
TSC34: Weirdo Black Metal with Jon Rosenthal (Invisible Oranges, Decibel Magazine)
I am joined by early metal blogosphere music writer and black metal enthusiast, Jon Rosenthal (Invisible Oranges, Decibel Magazine, Brooklyn Vegan). Jon leads us down a rabbit hole of eight fantastically bizarro black metal tracks. We’re talking operatic vocals, proggy breakdowns, Matrix-style club beats, dreamy lo-fi dirges, bebop covers, and other crimes against black metal orthodoxy. Follow @ronofjosenthal on Twitter Read Invisible Oranges, one of the oldest and still the best metal blog
Oct 26, 2023 • 1:52:43
TSC33: Billy Woods is on a Run feat. Mega & Jet of Secret House Against
I am joined by Mega and Jet, two-thirds of Secret House Against (@SecretHouseTokyo), a Tokyo based, Leftist heavy, Hip-hop, Art, and Culture discussion channel, to dive deep into a partial discography rundown of the idiosyncratic rapper and artist, Billy Woods. This exemplary run of albums spans six years and includes both Billy Woods and Armand Hammer (Billy Woods & Elucid) releases. In this episode, we dive into each album and examine themes, moods, lyricism, bars, and good old fashioned d
Sep 8, 2023 • 3:15:16
TSC32: When Hardcore Goes Adjacent w/ Jay Papandreas (Listen Up, Nerds)
Hardcore music is shit hot right now and more than ever, a lot of decidedly non-hardcore music has snuck past the pit and onto show flyers. Who let all this adjacent bullshit through the gates and is any of it even good? To help answer these dire questions, I enlisted writer and supreme music nerd, Jay Papandreas (Listen Up, Nerds) to help with the task of picking out some of the most notable, bizarre, and interesting releases of hardcore-adjacent belligerence. We explore thirteen albums from th
Jul 25, 2023 • 3:29:53
TSC31: The Roots of Ambient Country Music with Bob Holmes (SUSS)
We call back to episode TSC03: Ambient Americana but this time, we’re zooming out on this rich musical subgenre to examine the deeper roots of ambient country music, a subgenre that has evolved into a flourishing scene of diverse artists in recent years. I’m joined by music guru, Bob Holmes, of the superb ambient country group, SUSS, to examine the roots of the “high and lonesome sound”. Bob conferred with the other SUSS members and takes us through a musical lineage that carves itself through s
May 26, 2023 • 2:15:14
TSC30: anticon. Records w/ Alex Volz (Every Album Ever Podcast)
anticon. were called a lot of things in their heyday. "Avant Garde Hip Hop". "Nerd Rap". "Emo Rap". "Not hip hop". "The hip hop equivalent of post-rock" (really). Regardless, the sprawling collective of eccentric wonderkids that called themselves anticon. remained uncompromising throughout the crew's legendary artistic run from 1998 - 2014. Fellow anticon. comrade, Alex Volz, of the excellent Every Album Ever Podcast joins me as we make our case for the criminally slept-on anticon. discography.
Apr 19, 2023 • 3:21:32
TSC29: The Deep Cuts of Mike Patton w/ Jason Walton (Agalloch, Sculptured, Snare of Sixes, Earth in Sound)
Musician, Podcaster and Resident Mike Patton aficionado, Jason Walton (Agalloch, Sculptured, Snare of Sixes, Earth in Sound, I Hate Music Podcast), and I sat down to talk about the man, the myth, the legend: Michael Allan Patton. Jason put together a varied track list of some of General Patton’s deep cuts from across his flagship bands, collaborative efforts, and one-offs. We talk about Patton’s ability to subvert the frontman role, Mr. Bungle and Faith No More fandom in the 90s, the ever expand
Mar 10, 2023 • 2:11:19
TSC28: The Early Works of Cerberus Shoal w/ Jeremy DeVine (Temporary Residence Ltd.)
Restless. Prescient. Overlooked. Cerberus Shoal were an enigma of the 90s post-hardcore scene, progenitors of what would come to be known as post-rock, gurus of lush ambient rock, and ensemble avant-folk heroes. The Portland, Maine band evolved more between individual releases than most artists do throughout their careers. I was fortunate enough to have Jeremy DeVine, founder of the outstanding Temporary Residence Ltd. label, on this episode to dive deep on the first five Cerberus Shoal albums.
Jan 20, 2023 • 2:04:02
TSC27: East African Gems (Ostinato, Now Again, World Circuit, Awesome Tapes of Africa, Analog Africa, Soundway)
Part II of a survey of vintage and modern funky African music via today’s crop of excellent global reissue labels. We take things to East Africa spanning beloved regional styles like Ethio-jazz, the pan-Somali sound, Sudanese groove, Kenyan Benga, Zambian Psych Rock, and Neo-Taarab from Zanzibar, among others. Available on all podcast apps. Subscribe and never miss a new rabbit hole. Follow @thesoniccloth on Instagram to grab the track list. Please rate & review! Share your East African all t
Dec 20, 2022 • 1:21:30
TSC26: West African Gems (Soundway, Analog Africa, Sahel Sounds, Awesome Tapes From Africa)
Part I of a survey of (mostly) funky African music via today’s crop of excellent global reissue labels. These dedicated labels are introducing and reintroducing strains of outstanding West African music, new and old, to ears that have largely ignored the region’s under-recognized contributions to the breadth of music. We run through Hilife, Afrobeat, Gumbe, Afro-Rock, Malian Peulh, Edo Funk, Country-Folk, Agadez Rock, and then some. Next up is Part II where we’ll explore the musical gems of East
Oct 29, 2022 • 1:15:57
TSC25: Profound Lore Records feat. Phil’s Breakfast Metal
We’re back for another record label discography deep dive. We teamed up with Phil (Phil’s Breakfast Metal) once again to take on the mighty Profound Lore Records, a label which has left a singular mark on the world of forward thinking and riff-bringing metal & dark music. We discussed our first exposure to the label and its inevitable legendary status in setting the bar for extreme metal over the past two decades. Phil and I each plucked four tracks from the label’s rich catalog, which was not a
Aug 15, 2022 • 3:04:53
TSC24: Secondhand Songs
We listen to a bunch of cool & nice cover songs. Subscribe and never miss a new rabbit hole. Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on Instagram to grab the tracklist Join the shitposting on Twitter @thesoniccloth Hit me up at thesoniccloth@gmail.com
Jun 19, 2022 • 1:30:36
TSC23: Pre Post-Rock with Ian King (Stereogum, Under the Radar Mag, Author of ”Appetite for Definition”)
Author & music writer, Ian King (Under the Radar Mag, Stereogum, Author of "Appetite for Definition: An A-Z Guide to Rock Genres"), joins me as we tackle the wide and undefinable world of post-rock. We wrestle with this genre’s cringe name, quote Simon Reynolds ad nauseam, ponder why post-rock bands prefer to play live while sitting on chairs, and run through a based post-rock playlist curated by Ian. True to form, only real post-rock heads will stick around for the full runtime on this one. Lif
May 9, 2022 • 3:15:18
TSC22: Fringe Psych Vol.II (Eastern Migration)
In Vol.II of our ongoing Fringe Psych series, we round up eight psyched out bangers from all along the eastern hemisphere. In this one, we hit Iran, Turkey, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Morocco, Egypt, India, and Korea. Eat it up, you orientalist fucks. Grab the track list on Instagram at @thesonicclothpodcast
Apr 8, 2022 • 1:26:10
TSC21: Planes Mistaken For Stars w/ Damian Master (A Pregnant Light)
Get this episode on all podcast apps. Subscribe & never miss a new rabbit hole. Damian Master (A Pregnant Light, Colloquial Sound Recordings) dropped by to confess his love for the most underrated, savage band in rock & roll and post-hardcore: the mighty Planes Mistaken For Stars. I asked Damian to select his most beloved tracks from each of the major PMFS releases. We covered everything from the first 10’’ to their 2016 comeback record, Prey. In our discussion, we get into everything from PMFS’
Feb 8, 2022 • 2:40:30
TSC20: 90’s Electronica with Raygun Busch (Chat Pile)
Raygun Busch of Oklahoma City’s premiere noise rock band, Chat Pile, drops by The Sonic Clotherie to talk block rockin’ beats, nocturnal trip hop, manchester club music, and other strains of 90’s Electronica and Techno. This one went long but we got into the weeds on missed rave opportunities, the glory of 90’s film soundtracks, fight scene techno, BPM’s, and UK DJ bloke culture. Listen to Chat Pile on Bandcamp. Follow Chat Pile on Instagram. Look out for Chat Pile’s debut album coming out on T
Jan 4, 2022 • 3:14:00
TSC19: Fringe Psych Vol. I (Laid Back Vibes)
The debut of TSC’s first ongoing series. Fringe Psych will pop into the feed any time the creative wells are running dry. And from that void, I’ll be assembling a handful of wild psych tracks that are all smokin’ the same strain. For Vol. I, we dip our toes into the remote beaches of laid back psychedelia exploring everything from alien and porn soundtracks to dark dubby groove to a certain hungarian jazz maestro to some good old fashioned siqq brah jammin. We cap things off with one of the best
Dec 2, 2021 • 1:21:59
TSC18: Riff City (The Students)
We back at it again and continuing the saga that is Riff City: a deep dive into riff-worship music that takes its cues from the big n bad hard rock, proto metal, and heavy psych & blues from the late 60’s through the 70’s. In part II, we each picked four tracks that justify having a mullet in the modern era and showcase the youngins who never forgot where their precious dinosaur riffs came from. WE LIKE RIFF Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on Instagram to grab the tracklist Hit a dude up @ thesoni
Oct 9, 2021 • 2:54:35
TSC17: Riff City (The Teachers)
TSC has re-emerged from the normative abyss and we brought back some hard rockin' dinosaur riffs with us. I invited my good pal and brother in riffology, Clayton, over to assemble a tracklist of hard rock, heavy psych, proto metal, and heavy blues. We focus mostly on the 70's forefathers in this one. We'll be back for Riff City (The Students) where we grade riff craftsmanship over the last 20 years or so. WE LIKE RIFF DUH-NUN-NUH-DUH-DUH-DUHHHH Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on Instagram to
Aug 2, 2021 • 2:29:09
TSC16: 90's Alt-Alternative Rock with Thom Wasluck (Planning for Burial)
I’m joined by fellow music hysteric, Thom Wasluck of Planning For Burial, Glowing Window Recordings, and posterboy for The Flenser. We talk growing up in the 90’s, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and the vastness of excavating 90’s underground rock. We dug through our record shelves and desktop folders to arrive at eight songs for the episode’s tracklist and well, this thing came out sounding more 90’s than either of us would have thought. We even pulled it off without things getting gru
Apr 24, 2021 • 2:43:45
TSC15: Dream Machines
We’re back from a brief hiatus and are shifting away from heavy and into the light. We are setting out in search of the dreamiest and most blissed out sounds by scouring the valleys of dream pop, shoegaze, ambient, folk, and the spaces in between. If it’s heavenly, floaty, or dreamy then we want it. Draw a hot bath, curl up into a ball, and prepare to re-enter the womb because we are doing our damnedest to lull you into an ethereal state of consciousness. #vibez Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on I
Mar 31, 2021 • 1:30:48
TSC14: The United States of Black Metal with Daniel Lake
USBM...no four letters are more reviled to the global cvlt black metal goon squad (and yes, we’re very aware of NSBM). Esteemed writer (Decibel Magazine) and fellow music obsessive, Dan Lake, joins me as we make a case for this maligned and miraculous rabbit hole of American Black Metal music. We discuss his excellent new book, “USBM: A Revolution of Identity in American Black Metal”, the roots and evolution of black metal in this here United States, and we manage to painstakingly pull together
Feb 10, 2021 • 2:59:37
TSC13: Synth Wizards (The Students: 1990's - 2020)
The second episode in a two-part series on the wizards of the synthesizer with a focus on those artists twisting knobs in the 1990’s - 2020. Analog gurus like John Carpenter, Eno, Tangerine Dream, Suzanne Ciani, and Vangelis produced plenty of copy-cat fetishists but only a few spiritual protegees. The 90’s brought with it the advent of hybrid rigs thanks to digital signal processing. But more tools in the toolbox ≠ synth slappers. And what monster would totally abandon the celestial warmth of a
Jan 14, 2021 • 1:51:51
TSC12: Synth Wizards (The Teachers: 1970's - 1980's)
The first of a two-parter series on the wizards of the synthesizer. We hone in on the 70’s and 80’s and pluck out the troo nerds and flush them down the rabbit hole one by one. What are we after here? Easy. Just picture someone sitting down in front of a rack of analog synths and not emerging from that spot for three weeks. We get into everything from progressive electronic music to soundtrack composers to minimalists to krautrock to early breakbeat shit. All of these bleeps and bloops turned o
Dec 12, 2020 • 1:52:02
TSC11: Goin' Down the Hole with Chandan Narayan (Carrom)
For this episode, we hand over the reigns to Toronto-based experimental guitarist, improvisational artist, and DIY label owner, Chandan Narayan, of the musical project, Carrom, who released two excellent tapes and a corresponding compilation of those two releases ("Alter-destinies/Prehistories"). We discuss Chandan’s musical lineage leading up to Carrom, weird Arizona musical connections, the relevancy of cultural heritage in music, and then jump into a track-by-track playlist of sounds that
Oct 27, 2020 • 3:19:42
TSC10: The Psychedelic Metal of I, Voidhanger feat. Phil (Phil’s Breakfast Metal Podcast)
Free yourself up for the next three or so hours; for the time hath arrived to worship the riff. Special guest, Phil of Phil’s Breakfast Metal Podcast, joins me as we tunnel into the mind-bending vaults of the best weirdo extreme metal label in the game right now, the uncompromising I, Voidhanger Records. Together, Phil and I compiled eight tracks that should serve as a solid primer into the cult. Get all of your physical and digital swag at I, Voidhanger on bandcamp. Subscribe to one of the bes
Oct 6, 2020 • 3:39:33
TSC09: The Quieter Side of Boom Bap
If beats that barely bump are what you’re looking for, I invite you to hop in the whip while we drive around the city and marinate in the quieter side of boom bap, rap, hip hop, whatever. In this rabbit hole, we’re tracking down rap music that is ignoring almost every trend in modern hip hop without devolving into pure abstraction. The early 90’s east coast influence is strong here but it’s treated as more of a launching off point than strict era worship. The most gorgeous beats are being made i
Sep 4, 2020 • 1:35:11
TSC08: Ecstatic Music (The Students)
Part deux of our expedition into ecstatic music. This episode will make a lot more sense if you’ve listened to the previous episode, TSC07: Ecstatic Music (The Teachers). Just sayin. Here, we look to the students to see if they paid attention in class. Less of a thru-line between generations and more of a continuation of ecstatic sounds into the modern era where culture, tech, and globalization have run amok. Ultimately, we’re looking for the same things: free-form expression, incantations and
Aug 1, 2020 • 1:31:41
TSC07: Ecstatic Music (The Teachers)
This episode is the first of a two-parter where we jump down a rabbit hole that’ll have you surrendering your feeble mind, arrhythmic bodily function, and normie spirit to ecstatic music. You are the cobra that is being charmed. The palm bending in the hurricane. The Teachers and their Teachers have preserved these rituals. From Balinese gamelan to guitar armies to Jbala Sufi trance, ecstatic music is all about locking you in and rejecting the daily grind. Forthcoming in part two, we will see ho
Jul 11, 2020 • 1:44:17
TSC06: The Flenser feat. Dan (Create & Destroy Podcast)
In our first guest episode, Dan Donnarumma of the fantastic Create & Destroy Podcast joined me as we worship at the altar of gloom powerhouse record label, The Flenser. We agonizingly compiled eight track selections to get you started on the best label in the game. Prepare to get bummed out, blissed out, freaked out, and thoroughly Flensed. and remember to throw all your cash at The Flenser’s webstore. Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on Instagram to grab the tracklist
May 27, 2020 • 2:24:36
TSC05: New Spiritual Jazz, a Reawakening
If cool cat jazz makes you cringe and you’re too dumb for free jazz then come on into the welcoming church of spiritual jazz. Albert Ayler once said ‘Trane was the Father, Pharaoh was the Son, I am the Holy Ghost’. I don’t know what that means exactly but we back it 100%. The old guard (Sun Ra, Pharaoh Sanders, John Coltrane, Alice Coltrane, Don Cherry, Idris Muhammad, etc) faded out with their astral, consciousness-shifting music in the mid 1970’s but these sounds eventually got picked up by ne
May 15, 2020 • 1:20:24
TSC04: Messin with the Middle East
This rabbit hole hits close to home. We’re heading eastward to the Levant, North Africa, and Central Asia to chase down independent artists who are drawing out both modern arabic and age-old oriental sounds in singular and badass ways. Kinda like “Desert Rose” by Sting but listenable. Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on Instagram to grab the tracklist
Apr 30, 2020 • 1:19:38
TSC03: Ambient Americana
Saddle up, chuds. In this one, we listen to the only type of drone you can let out a big ol’ yeeeehaw to. This rabbit hole leads us to the contemplative side of cowboyin’. Pour yourself some bourbon, strap on your facemask, and watch the empire decay. Let’s get errrrr dun. Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on Instagram to grab the tracklist
Apr 18, 2020 • 59:14
TSC02: Nasty Prog
What's the most popular genre of music in the Czech Republic? In this episode, we take a huge steaming shit on prog rock only to give it a second chance by focusing on the weirdo prog bands who are the only thing preventing decent people from condemning the whole genre. Follow @thesonicclothpodcast on Instagram to grab the tracklist
Apr 6, 2020 • 52:09