Episode 240 of Look At My Records features an interview with Pittsburgh-based songwriter Zack Keim. Keim just released his long-awaited second full-length, Battery Lane, earlier this month. The record represents a big step forward in sound for the 27-year-old musician, as the 11 songs build off of the solid foundation that Keim established on his stripped-down 2017 debut, First Step. Drawing heavy influence from Dion’s 1975 album Born To Be With You, Keim leaned into Phil Spector’s wall-of-sound production style to create an immersive listening experience on Battery Lane. During the interview, Zack and Tom chatted all about the album, including some of the stories behind its standout tracks, the piecemeal recording process, and how decades-old songs like “Alice” evolved over time. Plus, Keim shared some pandemic-era stories and dove into his history with the garage rock band The Nox Boys.

Episode 239 features an interview with author Bennett Kelly! Known across New Jersey for his excellent journalistic contributions to publications like New Brunswick Today and the Look At My Records! music blog, Kelly recently shared his first-ever work of non-fiction, a novel titled Sensation Blues. The book, which is set deep in the Mississippi Delta, tells the story of a young, aspiring musician named McKinley as he navigates his journey through the world of the blues. Along the way, McKinley is mentored by his uncle Ira and encounters some exciting rock and roll antics, which are playfully detailed across Sensation Blues’ almost 300 pages.

Episode 238 of Look At My Records! Features an interview with Jersey City-based songwriter Sean Kiely. Last month, Kiely released his long-awaited new record, Postcards of the Reckoning, an 8-song collection of folk-inspired tunes that features some of his most personal songwriting to date. His songs expound on experiences spanning both love and loss, and feature a wide range of collaborators, including Minnie Jordan, Bobby Hawk, Jean Rohe, and more.

Episode 237 of Look At My Records! Features an interview with Bay Area songwriter Ainsley Wagoner, who performs as Silverware. In August, Silverware released their second full-length album, One True Light. It’s a record characterized by change, specifically, in Wagoner’s process, and in turn, her sound. In contrast to her 2021 album, No Plans, which was recorded quickly, Wagoner spent considerable time pouring over details and refining the end product for this go around. Though she made some alterations, Wagoner continued her fruitful collaboration with Omar Akrouche, a partnership that continues to pay dividends in terms of creative output.

Episode 236 of Look At My Records! features an interview with New York-based artist and musician, Shonali Bhowmik. Late last month, Shonali released her second-ever solo record, One Machine At A Time, the follow up to 2011’s 100 Oaks Revival. On One Machine At A Time, Shonali takes listeners on a personal journey across multiple genres, touching on themes of love, loss, and life.

Episode 235 features an interview with Sophie Negrini of Los Angeles’ Janelane. Back in April, Janelane released their long-awaited debut full-length, Love Letters. The record was over a decade in the making, collecting songs that have origins in the mid-2010s, and showcases Negrini’s expert ability at crafting love songs that are equal parts cutting, dreamy, and poppy.

Episode 234 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Sun Kin. The Los Angeles-based project of Kabir Kumar just released a new record titled Sunset World, which has been years in the making. The record features songs written as far back as November 2020 and thematically, explores the dichotomy between the beauty and terror of the natural world and the convenience of the virtual. The album also features a litany of collaborators, including Kabir’s partner Nicole Levin, his bandmates in Guppy, Julian Fader of Ava Luna, Dawson Timpany of Plum, and Mark “Echo” Edwards of Cheekface.

Episode 233 of the Look At My Records! podcast features an interview with Marc Masters, author of High Bias: The Distorted History of the Cassette Tape. The cassette has a long, storied, and complex history, and in High Bias, Masters takes readers through some of its most notable moments. From the birth of magnetized sound to the proliferation of the game-changing Sony Walkman, and much of what happened in between and after, Masters dives into key technological advancements, tape subcultures, mixtapes, tape traders, and more.

Episode 232 features an interview with Eliza Vera, who performs under the moniker Hot Moms Club. The San Diego-based project just released their second EP, Welcome To The Club, which features three songs that soothingly reflect on finding joy in simple pleasures, like the calming effects of wading through Trader Joe’s and the memory-triggering scent of fried pork.

Episode 231 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Matt Allan of the Brooklyn-based band Star 80. We last chatted with Allen prior to the pandemic on the Look At My Records! radio program. Back then, he was releasing his first singles as Star 80, and in the intervening years, he’s accumulated a bevy of solid material. Much of it appears on his brand new, debut full-length, New View. The record is a cohesive, yet eclectic mix of stories and sonics, with Springsteen, British post-punk, and more playing an influential role.

Our friend Kip Berman, who performs as The Natvral, returns to the Look At My Records! podcast for Episode 230! Since he last appeared on the podcast in 2021  the former Pains of Being Pure at Heart frotman has released a few singles as The Natvral, and last week, he shared the project’s second full-length, Summer of No Light. The title, which was inspired by the climate crisis of 1816, draws parallels to two “lost summers” in Berman’s own life, specifically, his first summer post-grad in 2002 and the shut-in pandemic summer of 2020. It was during the latter that Berman penned the songs that appear on the record, escaping nightly to the basement of his Princeton home after putting his kids to sleep.

Episode 229 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Brooklyn artist Oropendola. The project of songwriter Joanna Schubert recently shared their debut album as Oropendola, an eclectic and vibrant 11-song collection titled Waiting For The Sky To Speak. The record, which is described as a “celebration of choosing life even in the face of its ephemerality, and of finding motion even in the midst of stillness,” shimmers with bursts of energy and emotion, swinging from playfulness to earnestness with deft, technicolor brushstrokes.

Well, it’s that time of year again. Actually, it’s a little past that time of year, but, what the hell. It’s time for Tom and Look At My Records!’s contributor Zach Romano’s favorite records of the year. Better late than never, right? 2022 was another stellar year for music. From New York City, New Jersey, and beyond, bands and artists of all ilks released some killer full-lengths. We picked some of our favorites, including some great LPs from Sooner, The Beths, Smooch, Blushing, Winter, Alvvays, MJ Lenderman, and more. Listen to the end to hear their NUMBER ONE FAVORITE RECORDS OF THE YEAR!

Episode 227 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Dawn Moraga and Tim Lusk of North Carolina post-punk band Cor de Lux. Recently, the band shared their second full-length, Media, a towering, eclectic-sounding record that melds elements of shoegaze, multiple eras of punk rock, dream pop, and more, while tackling themes and feelings of uncertainty, division, and human connection.

Logan Farmer is Tom’s guest for Episode 226 of Look At My Records! In late 2022, Farmer released his stunning sophomore effort, A Mold For The Bell. Inspired by the films of Andrei Tarkovsky and the literature of Olga Tokarczuk, the intimate and tranquil-sounding record was born out of a two-day session with Grammy-nominated producer Andrew Berlin. The rest of the album’s creation occurred remotely, over texts, phone calls, and emails with a series of collaborators, including saxophonist Joseph Shabason (who also mixed the album) and renowned harpist Mary Lattimore.

Episode 225 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Zach Ellis of Brooklyn post-punk phenoms Dead Tooth. After an eventful 2022 that saw Dead Tooth release a well-received EP called Pig Pile, take home the top prize at the annual Our Wicked Lady Winter Madness tournament, and make an indelible impression at South By Southwest, Ellis is keeping the momentum going in 2023. Dead Tooth hits the road later this month for their biggest gigs yet in support of Bass Drum of Death and has plans to release more new music in the coming months. But it took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears for Ellis to get to this point. After coming to New York at 19 years old, Ellis cut his teeth as the drummer of notable 2010s Brooklyn indie rockers Haybaby, before branching out on his own with his first solo project, The Adventures of the Silver Spaceman. It was then that Ellis developed a creative relationship with DIIV guitarist Andrew Bailey, and the folk-inspired sounds of Silver Spacemen slowly evolved into the fierce, frenetic post-punk of Dead Tooth.

For Episode 224 of Look At My Records!, Tom spoke with songwriter Katy Rea. Rea just released her debut full-length, The Urge That Saves You, late last year. The record is a long time coming for Rea, who got her start in music in the mid-2010s on New York City’s open mic circuit, honing her craft at venues like the Sidewalk Cafe. After catching the songwriting bug during the pandemic, Rea began work on The Urge That Saves, eventually tracking the entire record live at Figure 8 Studios by Prospect Park in Brooklyn. The songs on the album chronicle her life’s journey through personal anecdotes and character-driven narratives that live in symmetry with ebbs and flows of intense instrumentation.

Episode 223 of Look At My Records! features an interview with Michael Grace, Jr. of Long Island indie pop legends My Favorite. After a long stretch of years since their last release, the project returned in the fall with the first in a trio of EPs, “Tender Is The Nightshift: Part 1.” The five-song collection is the first My Favorite extended play in nearly two decades and features more beat-driven tracks that draw on nostalgia while contemplating love and loss.

Episode 222 of Look At My Records! Features an interview with Gabbi Coenen, the Los Angeles-based musician who performs under the moniker RVBY MY DEAR. The Perth, Australia native recently released a new self-titled EP, which arrives on the heels of some changes for Coenen. It’s the project’s first release since Coenen relocated from New York to Los Angeles and also follows the dissolution of the backing band that appeared on her 2019 debut full-length, Waiting. The EP also marks her first collaboration with producer Andrew Lappin and also sees Coenen drawing influence from pop and ambient source material.

For Episode 221 of Look At My Records!, Harry the Nightgown returns for their second appearance on the podcast. Since the release of their excellent, analog-centric self-titled debut in 2020, the songwriting duo of Spencer Hartling and Sami Perez have leaned further into the electronic elements of their sound, which blossomed on their 2021 singles “The Painter” and “If You Were Wrong.” Last month, the duo released the follow-up to their first full-length, an EP titled Airy the Light Cloud, which sees them further exploring more digital proclivities while still staying true to the pop sensibilities they developed in the analog recording realm.