Ep 158: The week Mark Zuckerberg ruined music, and how your favourite artists would like to die

Death! Like a begrudging respect for Robbie Williams, sadly, it comes to us all. Perhaps that's why Stuart has taken to asking our guests about the subject of the great beyond, which reminded us that there was a time when we asked a bunch of musicians what they thought was the perfect way to die, i…

Ep 157: The Midnight Chats festival, a horrible night of unwanted nostalgia

As Kaiser Chiefs announce shows for 2025 celebrating 20 years of their debut album, with support from Razorlight, We Are Scientists, The Cribs and The Coral, Greg and Stu put their heads together to come up with an alternative bill of artists who released records 20 years ago. The Carling will be s…

Ep 156: Kelly Lee Owens on death, Depeche Mode and hiding horse sh*t in an ex-boyfriend's car boot

Welsh electronic artist, producer and DJ Kelly Lee Owens has come along way in a short period of time. Yet, her warmth and charisma mean her A-list stories of playing Ibiza’s legendary Amnesia nightclub with Charli XCX or being welcomed into the Depeche Mode family, or dining with Bill Murray don’…

Ep 155: The return of album release hype, and the rise of listening parties

The era of surprise album releases seems to be over, with everyone from Beyonce to Billie Eilish to Charli XCX to Tyler, The Creator opting for modern (and bombastic) twists on the traditional way of hyping LPs before their release dates. Increasingly, it seems the arena listening party in a key to…

Ep 154: When artists upset their hardcore fans

We've all been there: investing our time and energy into worshiping our favourite artist only for them to call us "creepy as fuck". Ok, maybe we've not ALL been there, but thousands of Doja Cat stans were last year, whilst just a few days ago The Pretenders upset a bunch of their most hardcore fans…

Ep 153: Remix albums, and how well do you know the lyrics to your favourite songs?

As Charli XCX's Brat remix album reimagines what a remix album can be in 2024, we discuss that release and trace the remix record back to its unexpected origins. Charli's record certainly is a different approach to what Green Day have done recently with their Dookie Demastered stunt, which we also …

Ep 152: Laura Marling on psychoanalysis, motherhood, secretly cooking for Damon Albarn and, naturally, death

Seven years ago Laura Marling came on episode 19 of the podcast at a very different time in her life. As she prepares to release her 8th album, Patterns in Repeat, this month (25 Oct), she does so as a new mother, who's trained to become a yoga teacher, who's gained a masters in psychoanalysis, who…

Ep 151: When are posthumous albums a good idea? From Michael Jackson to SOPHIE to Elliott Smith

When a musician dies and leaves behind unfinished music, what should happen to it? Shelved forever? Released in its current state? Completed by someone else?  On this week's episode Greg and Stu get into when posthumous albums are a good idea and when they most certainly aren't, from last week's S…

Ep 150: Our favourite guests, most awkward interviews, and answers to your questions, with Jarvis Cocker, Matt Berninger and more

What's been our most awkward interview yet? How do we charm our guests? Who have we been starstruck by? And c'mon guys, why is this thing called 'Midnight Chats'?  As our podcast reaches its 150 episode, Greg and Stu celebrate by showing how the sausage is made, sharing stories and their tricks of…

Ep 149: Big albums coming this autumn, Jane’s Addiction implode, and are people about to start selling their vinyl collections?

The summer slump is over and what feels like hundreds of artists are gearing up for new albums this autumn. On this week's episode, Greg and Stu get into what coming soon from The Cure, FKA Twigs, Coldplay and more, along with the recent implosion of rock giants Jane's Addiction, while a meeting wi…