Never Ending Mashed Potatoes (Episode 106)

Jason Tate Dec 3, 2015

After a wonderful little holiday break, Encore is back with an episode spanning everything that’s happened over the past two weeks. We talk about our Thanksgivings, real vs fake Christmas trees, Adele flat out destroying sales records, Foo Fighters releasing a surprise EP, Thrice recording a new album, Brand New releasing their leaked demos on tape and the story about the first time I heard them, the rumor that Apple will kill the 3.5mm audio port, and all sorts of other goodness peppered throughout. You’ll find show notes, ways to subscribe, and links to stream and/or downloaded this episode in the replies.

Stream Punchline’s New Album ‘Thrilled’

Jason Tate Dec 2, 2015

After being gone for over three years, Punchline are back with their new album Thrilled. From classic pop-punk jams to contemporary pop tunes, from electronic flourishes to indie influences, this is the ever-evolving group’s most eclectic effort yet. The album drops on Friday, December 4th via InVogue Records. Stream it by clicking read more.

Interview: William Beckett of The Academy Is…

AbsolutePunk Nov 25, 2015

I recently spoke with William Beckett. The Academy Is… have recently just gotten back together for RIOT Fest and are now ready to kick off their Ten Year Anniversary tour of Almost Here.

Was coming together for RIOT Fest the only reason the band started to talk again, or was it something that was in the back of your mind?

Well; RIOT Fest was always a bucket list goal being from the Chicago area. It’s potentially our favorite festival and I’m not sure if our band was cool enough to get it in the past. But the offer came up and we all got on the phone; Adam, Mike, and I, and we discussed it. The consensus was we really want to do this for the right reasons. Our tour with Jack’s Mannequin, we cancelled and that was not the ideal circumstance. When the RIOT Fest email came in we talked it over and always wanted to, it was like a festival in Chicago, where were celebrating Almost Here ten year anniversary and it just felt right.

Craig Manning Nov 20, 2015

Here’s a monster of an unenviable task: following up an album that sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, spawned multiple ubiquitous singles, won a truckload of Grammys, spent 24 nonconsecutive weeks at number one, and was labeled by Billboard as “the Greatest Album of All Time”—whatever that means. Adele’s 21 was the kind of phenomenon that doesn’t happen in the music world anymore. Albums are obsolete for the average listener, right? Digital track sales are plummeting? Monoculture is dead? Adele defied every expectation and turned her sophomore album into a cultural sensation that was probably as close as our generation will ever get to having a Thriller. No wonder the British songstress took the better part of five years to drop the follow-up.

Unsurprisingly, 25 has arrived to endless comparisons to its predecessor—many of them unflattering. The reviews are mixed, and while the album will undoubtedly be a juggernaut that breaks sales records and single-handedly keeps the record business on life support for another few years, it’s already pretty clear that 25 is not going to have the legacy of adoration that its world-beating predecessor did.

Jason Tate Nov 19, 2015

This week’s episode of Encore is almost as delicious as macaroni and cheese stuffed chicken wings. This week we look at if an early leak will hurt Adele, the idea of an “infinite” movie franchise, going to shows by yourself, what can impact the price of vinyl, if an artist contributing music to a political campaign bugs us, and the big topic: How would we “fix” Apple Music, the death of Rdio, and the retirement of the Zune. You’ll find show notes, ways to subscribe, and links to stream and/or downloaded this episode in the replies.

The Matches – “Life of a Match” (Director’s Cut)

Jason Tate Nov 19, 2015

The Matches have (sorta) returned and graced us with new music, and it only seems right that we get a music video to go along with it. While the band released a version of the video a few weeks ago, we’ve got the group’s directors cut. They’ve dropped the lyrics from the video and added a little tweak for good measure. Hit read more to watch the video for “Life of a Match.”

There Will Be a Quiz (Episode 104)

Jason Tate Nov 12, 2015

This week’s episode of Encore tackles world building in movies and where it works (Star Wars, Marvel, etc.) and where it fails (Spectre). We talk quite a bit about Star Wars in this one — spurred by a certain someone live tweeting their first viewing of the series mere minutes before we started recording. We also look at the death of Cobra Starship, Brand New recording, and answer a variety of listener topics: how often we go to shows, do we play instruments, should Blink-182 re-record old music with Matt Skiba, is pop-punk trying too hard, did pop-punk rule the world this year, what is up with cassette tapes, what do we think of @FutureAltPress, do our significant others shape our musical tastes, more Star Wars, and what happened to the very, very old versions of this website. We hope you like this one, thanks for spending an evening with us. You’ll find show notes, ways to subscribe, and links to stream and/or downloaded this episode in the replies.

Interview: Julien Baker

Aaron Mook Nov 10, 2015

I had the opportunity to speak with the extremely humble and extremely talented Julien Baker about her recent album, Sprained Ankle. We covered everything from the album’s recording to spirituality and, naturally, we nerded out over David Bazan. Baker is a young songwriter with a lot to say, and luckily for all of us, it seems her career is only just beginning.

Another Loser Anthem (Episode 103)

Jason Tate Nov 5, 2015

Ever wonder about the first time I heard Good Charlotte? Probably not, but you can get the story in this week’s episode of Encore. This week we look at why pop-punk no longer seems capable of writing a hook and can be painfully un-catchy at times, if we like “deluxe” albums, what albums we play most on vinyl, following up the Victory vs Spotify kerfuffle, Good Charlotte is back, we may get new The Starting Line music next year, ESPN shut down Grantland, and Conde Nast buying Pitchfork. Also a huge thank you to everyone that bought Encore t-shirts! Please send us some photos once you get yours. You’ll find show notes, ways to subscribe, and links to stream and/or downloaded this episode in the replies.

Pop-Punk Ladder (Episode 102)

Jason Tate Oct 29, 2015

This week on Encore the pop-punk ladder explains to me what it means to be “posi.” I learn something new about all these youngins every day. This week’s topics include: Basketball is back, the Star Wars trailer was released and watched, some bands do “follow backs” on Twitter and that’s kinda weird, music being listening to exclusively on YouTube, advice for someone wanting to be a music producer, Spotify vs Victory Records vs Streetlight Manifesto, Adele, Google Play Podcasts, the new Apple TV, and favorite singles so far in 2015. Please note: This is the last week you can get a t-shirt if you want one! So pick one up. You’ll find show notes, ways to subscribe, and links to stream and/or downloaded this episode in the replies.

Viking Wizard Eyes (Episode 101)

Jason Tate Oct 22, 2015

I’m not sure I’m used to typing Encore yet when introducing the new podcast episodes. However, here we are with episode 101. Just a quick reminder that there are 12 days left to pick up our limited run of Encore t-shirts on teespring and thank you to everyone that has ordered one so far. I can’t wait to see pictures of people wearing the new logo. This week’s episode has us discussing some football, talking a little about other podcasts we like to listen to, the idea of “self-titled” albums and if they should have a certain “feel” to them or not. Then we discuss Thrice’s Vheissu turning 10 and how much that album in particular meant to me, Fall Out Boy’s re-release of “Irresistible,” some Panic! at the Disco stuff, and other random things spliced in there. Note: This episode features special guest Drew Beringer as Thomas had some family commitments this week. You’ll find show notes, ways to subscribe, and links to stream and/or downloaded this episode in the replies.

This Is Encore (Episode 100)

Jason Tate Oct 15, 2015

We made it to the 100th episode of our podcast — now it’s time to shake things up. Today we’d like to introduce you to the new podcast: Encore. We’ve undergone a name change, a little re-brand, and we’re coming at you with a brand new special episode this week. This week’s topics look at the reasons we decided to make this change, the process we went through in picking our new name and logo, the announcement of a special teespring campaign for limited edition Encore t-shirts, a special segment with guest Drew Beringer (where we talk about new music, what Drew’s been up to, technology, and all kinds of stuff), and then — of course — we end talking about Jesse Lacey’s emotional speech and the thoughts of Brand New calling it a day. We think it’s an episode worthy of this milestone.

I’d just like to take a moment to thank each and every one of our listeners for going on this journey with us. When we started the podcast I had no idea what it would be or become. I had no idea that I would end up looking forward to recording an episode each week. I had no idea we’d be able to grow it to the audience we have. It sounded fun to try and it has ended up being one of the highlights of my entire career here on the website. So, from Thomas, Drew, and I — truly thank you. I hope you enjoy this episode, and maybe the next 100, as much as I know I will recording them. We’re very excited about the new launch, logo, and t-shirts — they’re only available for about three weeks, so act fast. And if you like our show, we’d love it if you could help spread the word. Maybe tell a friend about the podcast, post about it on Twitter or Facebook, share our new logo, recommend it on Overcast or rate it in iTunes. Any of those things really would go a long way in helping us continue to grow the show and reach even more music fans. If everything goes to plan you won’t need to re-subscribe to the podcast (the new version should show up in your podcast player of choice). You’ll find show notes, ways to subscribe, and links to stream and/or downloaded this episode in the replies.

Review: Mayday Parade – Black Lines

Drew Beringer Oct 9, 2015

Out of all the bands I listen to, Mayday Parade has always been one of the most frustrating. Not because they can’t write pop-punk and pop-rock hits, it’s because the band has always been so close to writing a complete album that turns into one of the genre’s essential listens. After Jason Lancaster departed the band following the release of fan-favorite A Lesson In Romantics, Mayday Parade has had its collection of hits and misses; always close to that career-defining release but just never putting it all together. That all changes with Black Lines.

Jonathan Bautts Oct 2, 2015

Frontman Justin Pierre discusses Motion City Soundtrack’s latest album Panic Stations, writing from a more instinctual place, how his relationship with music has changed over the years, struggling with writer’s block, and not planning the future too far in advance.

Interview: Vince Staples

Jonathan Bautts Sep 23, 2015

Vince Staples discusses his debut full-length Summertime ’06, giving people an understanding of where he’s coming from, telling both sides of the story, and wanting to have a legacy in music.