The Overnightscape Underground

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1:34:25 – Join Smidge as he concludes his big two-part interview with Rick Valentin & Rose Marshack of the legendary Indie Rock band the Poster Children! This picks right up where Part #1 left off… so if you haven’t heard that one yet, then you best catch it here 1st! In the midst of the 90’s Alt Rock explosion, we find the Poster Children signed to a major label which suddenly undergoes a regime change. For most bands this would mean an imminent crash & burn scenario as their safety net is pulled away. But the Poster Children had played the game smart and were ready to go full independent status again. Armed with their passion for their own unique brand of indie rock / “post wave” music (as well as a recording studio built with $$ made from the major label), they recorded a series of excellent albums which would take them into the 2000’s.

Also by this time Rick & Rose had found careers as university professors, as well as becoming parents (& even had become fairly influential podcast hosts themselves). As can be expected, the output of the Poster Children (especially their trademark for incessant live touring) dramatically slowed down during this time. But then came the re-release of Daisychain Reaction in 2016 (for a special anniversary edition combined with a live tour). This reunited them with famed audio engineer/producer Steve Albini and resulted in them going back into the studio with Steve to record a fantastic new LP called Grand Bargain (released in 2018). Smidge praises this LP as a return to form for the band (while Rick is bummed that it is still tragically relevant to current events)!

Once again (as with Part #1), this episode features many fascinating stories. Some interesting random notes (just to tease your interest) are tales of how the last major label they were signed to became an Invasion of the Bodysnatchers scenario at the bitter end, meeting Fred Schneider (of B-52’s fame) at a small bar on the outskirts of Chicagoland, playing with Fugazi who had their stage monitor stolen by Nazi skinheads at an out of control show, Rick going through the Kübler-Ross 5 stages of grief when he decides to be the band’s recording engineer, talk of the late Jay Bennett & his ties to Titanic Love Affair/Wilco, Smidge getting Rick & Rose emotional when asking about their song meanings, and much much more! In short folks, this episode is a must listen… cheers!

Also, please share the love and listen to some of our favorite podcasts at: Onsug, Static Radio, Insignificast, The Hustle, Rock Solid, The Not New Review, & Radio Zero.

License for this track: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/). Attribution: by Smidge Kurdlebaum – more info at onsug.com or trashcanrock.com

Released October 2020 on The Overnightscape Underground (onsug.com), an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a freeform monologue style, with diverse and fascinating hosts.

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1:36:00 – Join Smidge as he welcomes very special guests Rick Valentin & Rose Marshack to the show. They are the husband & wife team who are the core of the legendary Indie Rock band the Poster Children! Hear the story of their band which started on the local college scene of Champaign-Urbana (Illinois) in the mid-to late 80’s. From the beginning they made it their goal to write & record the music they are passionate about and to play live shows. They strived for longevity and not to fall victim to the corporate music machine which started snatching bands up (especially during the Grunge/Alt Rock explosion of the 90’s). The tragedy was that many of those bands had their brief moment in the sun only to be unceremoniously dumped & forgotten. But by staying true to their music & figuring out how to survive making a living at it, Poster Children have weathered the (at many times turbulent) music scene over the course of 3 decades!

So tune-in for the first part of our conversation with Rick and Rose. Many fascinating stories abound in this interview and you are in for a real treat here (especially if you are any kind of music fan)! We will be back with the second part of this interview very shortly!

Also, please share the love and listen to some of our favorite podcasts at: Onsug, Static Radio, Insignificast, The Hustle, Rock Solid, The Not New Review, & Radio Zero.

License for this track: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/). Attribution: by Smidge Kurdlebaum – more info at onsug.com or trashcanrock.com

Released October 2020 on The Overnightscape Underground (onsug.com), an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a freeform monologue style, with diverse and fascinating hosts.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

1:00:19 – CV fun for everyone!! Lots of good viewing suggestions and babble!! World War II newscast shows us what journalism once was!! New music from the Evlis people!! Old News from 1901!! A Lucky Phone Call, too!! PQ Ribber is the accountable party.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License.

Attribution by PQ Ribber.

Released March 2020 on The Overnightscape Underground (onsug.com), an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a free-form monologue style, with diverse and clever hosts presenting unique programs, historic archival material, and nocturnal audio.

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58:44 – Coptic Nerve joins the festivities and discusses Coronavirus, the New Evlis Album, and a heap of historical deaths by hazing!! ZIA Soda Reviews!! Bob and Ray visit!! Music from Evlis!! PQ Ribber is having fun!!

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License.

Attribution by PQ Ribber.

Released March 2020 on The Overnightscape Underground (onsug.com), an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a free-form monologue style, with diverse and clever hosts presenting unique programs, historic archival material, and nocturnal audio.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

1:33:28 – Join Smidge as he brings in 2020 for Gunkcast with another all-out music extravaganza! Fot this one he meets with very special guest Balthazar de Ley in the studio. Balthazar was the frontman for (as some have referred to them) the greatest band you’ve never heard! Menthol came from the humble origins of a college town in Champaign-Urbana, IL. Originally know as Mother, they were part of the wave of bands on the scene following the explosion of grunge… when the likes Indie Rock, punk, & shoegaze all were finding a home together under the umbrella of “Alt Rock.” Balthazar relates a fascinating tale of how the very unlikely chance that his band’s demo ended up on a record label executive’s desk in LA changed everything for the band. Suddenly Menthol found themselves thrust into the spotlight! Signed to a major label they released their big budget debut LP as Menthol and were off on a whirlwind tour for a few years (supporting some big name bands from that era)! Then came time for their follow-up LP, and Menthol (who were by then evolving as a band) went into the studio and fully finished an album inspired largely by a retro 80’s New Wave sound. Hear the unbelievable account of what happened next. We don’t want to give away too much here… so you will just have to listen!

This episode is packed with many cool & interesting tales of what Balthazar encountered on his music journey. From taking music lessons from one of the members of REO Speedwagon in his youth, to playing bass in the band Hum, developing crazy guitar tunings as his signature sound, playing at the legendary CBGB’s in NYC and running into a big-name actor in quite the unlikely spot in the famous punk bar, & working for Billy Corgan to maintain the studio equipment that the Smashing Pumpkins were doing their best to destroy! And just how could a series of bizarre events & Courtney Love have had an impact on how things played out for Menthol in the end? Yes, you will just have to tune-in to this episode for all these details & much more!

Balthazar later became a sound engineer, played in another band called La Scala, was a studio repair tech, and presently designs and builds custom guitar amps with his Chicago-based biz called Balthazar Audio Systems. Also, the BIG news here is that Menthol are reuniting on May 24th this year for a reunion show! To find more on Menthol online you can find their music on Discogs, Amazon, & iTunes. Also check out a Facebook Page as well as and another really cool podcast a guy named Marc with a C did several years ago! Cheers!

Also, please share the love and listen to some of our favorite podcasts at: Onsug, Static Radio, Insignificast, The Hustle, Rock Solid, The Not New Review, & The Real Congregation.

License for this track: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/). Attribution: by Smidge Kurdlebaum – more info at onsug.com or trashcanrock.com.

Released February 2020 on The Overnightscape Underground (onsug.com), an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a freeform monologue style, with diverse and fascinating hosts.

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1:24:51 – If you have been wondering where the podcast has been, Smidge has been trekking across Europe for much of this Summer (hinted at during a special intro here)! But now he’s back and he brings you the long awaited follow-up episode to the all-out music extravaganza which began back in May. So if you did not hear Part #1, we highly recommend you go back and listen… because this second part hits the ground running right where we left off!

Join Smidge as he continues his conversation with special guest Michael Lenzi (Chicago Indie-Rock musician and owner of Sweet Pea Records). While the first part episode focused on his musical journey with the band Number One Cup (from their rise, until their untimely end in the late 90’s)… the story was not over for Michael by any means! While his former band was known for their catchy brand of Indie pop, Michael now desired to start something that had much more of a searing post-punk edge to it. So he joined forces again with former Number One Cup bandmate Seth Kim-Cohen & devised yet another brilliant Indie Rock project called The Fire Show. Michael tells how The Fire Show pushed their experimental & creative ambitions to the max over the course of three albums, during which they gained critical acclaim while never conforming to any music industry standard.

Michael also chronicles his career following The Fire Show (from the early 2000’s until the present) during which he has continued as a solo artist with a series of excellent albums released as Resplendent, LENZI, and Tough Solar. And now he has re-united once again with Seth Kim-Cohen for a brand new LP release as Nil/Resplendent. This episode is a must listen as we hear many fascinating stories and explore some extraordinary music!

Also, please share the love and listen to some of our favorite podcasts at: Onsug, Static Radio, Insignificast, The Hustle, Rock Solid, & The Not New Review, The Unblinking Ear, & The Pods & Sods Network.

License for this track: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/). Attribution: by Smidge Kurdlebaum – more info at onsug.com or trashcanrock.com

Released August 2019 on The Overnightscape Underground (onsug.com), an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a freeform monologue style, with diverse and fascinating hosts.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

1:46:24 – Join Smidge as he welcomes a very special guest to the show for an all-out music extravaganza! Michael Lenzi was one of the key members of a pivotal Chicago Indie-Rock band from the 90’s called Number One Cup. Hear the story of how a Bowie/punk rock fan from DC followed his music dream to Chicago, and ended up forming a  band which found an audience very far away! Learn how mailing their 1st single to the legendary John Peel in the U.K. in the early 90’s changed everything for the band. From tales of being stranded out West on their 1st U.S. tour, to playing festivals throughout Europe, to such onstage antics as the destruction of their instruments/gear, an encounter with Thom Yorke of Radiohead, to recording in the same famous studio used by Nirvana for their final LP (while former Husker Du drummer Grant Hart wandered in!)… this episode is packed with many fascinating stories of Michael’s music journey with Number One Cup!

A special note that Michael & his wife run their own independent record label called Sweet Pea Records, and all the music used to soundtrack this episode may be found & acquired through this site. Please also check out their Facebook page as well. Besides Number One Cup, many of the other music projects Michael has been part of can be found on Sweet Pea Records as well. Cheers!

Also, please share the love and listen to some of our favorite podcasts at: Onsug, Static Radio, Insignificast, The Hustle, Rock Solid, The Not New Review, The Unblinking Ear, & The Pods & Sods Network.

License for this track: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/). Attribution: by Smidge Kurdlebaum – more info at onsug.com or trashcanrock.com

Released May 2019 on The Overnightscape Underground (onsug.com), an Internet talk radio channel focusing on a freeform monologue style, with diverse and fascinating hosts.