The Vinyl Countdown

Welcome back everybody! After skipping this episode last year, I figured I’d dive into my AOTY for this year along with my favorite pickups of the year as well (regardless of original release date). So sit back and relax and let’s relive some of the musical highlights of 2023!

Welcome back for another episode of The Vinyl Countdown, this week with none other than Armor for Sleep frontman Ben Jorgensen! I had a nice chat with him about the history of the band, Dream to Make Believe’s 20th anniversary (👴🏽👴🏽👴🏽) and much more! Leave a comment and/or review if you could everyone, and as always, thanks for listening!

Welcome back to another episode and yet another record I thought I’d never own lol RJA’s “Don’t You Fake It” feels like an underrated and almost forgotten gem of the time. I’m here with Dillon yet again to give it its proper due and to hopefully shed some light on this absolute banger of a record.

Welcome back everybody. This week I’ll be diving into the Tiny Moving Parts aka The Emo Partridge Family and their 2019 release, “breathe”! Yet another record that I’m shocked it’s taken me this long to talk about. This was absolutely one of the best releases of 2019 but was maybe slept on by myself (due to that year having A TON of incredible releases) but I’ll dive into all that and more so I hope you all enjoy!

Doing something a little different this week by covering a single song instead of a whole album but I’m on vacation so, enjoy this short and sweet one! I’m diving into a song that actually inspired me to start the show in the first place so I hope you enjoy hearing me discuss it in detail this week. Thanks for listening!

Another week, another scene classic here at The Vinyl Countdown! I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to deep dive into 2005’s, “Almost Here” by The Academy Is… but I’m so glad I finally did. A few songs from this record have been permanently burned into my brain and instantly bring me back to 05-06 and I just love it. The rest of the record is outstanding too so, I hope you all have as much fun listening to this episode as I did recording it!

Welcome back to another episode and boy is it a good one! This record is my current front runner for AOTY, Initiate’s “Cerebral Circus” is brutal, beautiful, introspective, fucking angry and just all around incredible and I can’t wait to discuss it this week!

4 years, holy shit. This episode marks the 4th year of the show and I figured I’d break out something special and dive into one of my favorite albums of all time! Coheed’s “Good Apollo Volume 1” from 2005 is an all time classic, hands down. This is the album I think you can use to let people hear Coheed for the first time and it’ll rope them in every time lol it’s accessible in a way while also still being decidedly “Coheed”. I’ll get into that and so much more! Thank you all for sticking around and listening for the past 4 years, it really means a lot.

On this week’s episode, I’m finally diving into one of my favorite emo classics, 2004’s “The Weak’s End” by Emery! This album really hit me so hard back in the day so I’ve always held it in very high regard so hopefully you’ll enjoy my deep dive into it!

Anberlin has always been a solid band on my list but Dillon (from the Off the Beaten Clef podcast) absolutely loves them. So, I figured who better to have on to help me dive into their 2007 masterpiece, “Cities” but a bigger fan than me? Come along with us as we break this album down!

On this week’s Listener Request Week episode, I’ll be diving into a nü-metal classic, 2003’s “Meteora” by Linkin Park! This album definitely holds a special place in my heart and, for the most part, still holds up today. Crazy to think this album just turned 20 as well. Come along with me as I discuss the record and the band this week and let’s have some fun!

Oh man, back again with another grail! A Skylit Drive’s 2007 EP “She Watched the Sky” is a scene classic, one of my favorite EPs of all time and one that a lot of people hold near and dear to their hearts. Come along with me as I discuss it this week!

Well hello everyone, welcome back to the show! It’s been over a year since my last episode but this album is damn good, I had to come out of retirement and bring my wonderful wife along for the ride. I hope you have fun as we dive into Paramore’s latest and greatest this week!

Episode 100 is finally here! Although I’m taking a little break after this, I wanted to go out with a special episode and what can be more special than I chatting with Rody Walker of Protest the Hero? I learned a bunch about “Fortress” so I hope you all do too and have a good time while doing it! Thanks for all the support as well over these last 100 episodes, it really means a lot. I’m excited to take a break but I know I’ll be just as excited to come back in the future 🙌🏽🙌🏽

Hello, and welcome back to a short episode this week! I decided to do another 7” due to time constraints and the holidays and whatnot. These 2 songs are great but one of them is not only favorite Thursday song, it’s one of my favorites songs of all time. Which one you ask? Well, you’ll have to listen to find out!

The title says it all for this week.

Ohhhhh man, do we have a banger this week! Turnstile’s “GLOW ON” has quickly become one of my favorite albums of not only this year, but of the past few years. It is a definite AOTY candidate and I’m so excited to dive into it this week.

The grails just keep coming! Last week, I discussed FFAF’s debut record and this week, I’ll be discussing the 2005 classic follow up, “Hours”! This record is one of the defining records of the mid-2000s in my opinion. Funeral for a Friend have had a long and impressive career with some great late career albums but this album seemed to showcase them at their very best. Come along with me as I dive into it and let’s have some fun this week.

Welcome back everybody! On this week’s looooong overdue episode, I finally am getting to discuss a record I’ve been chasing for years….Funeral for a Friend’s stellar debut record, “Casually Dressed and in Deep Conversation”! Long out of print, it finally saw a 3rd pressing recently so I had to get it. I hope you all enjoy this deep dive into one of my grails, then come back next week for Funeral for a Friend part deux: Hours!

Welcome back to the show everyone! On this week’s very small episode (a mini episode some might call it), I’ll be diving into one of my favorite songs from 2010s! The album this song comes from isn’t great but it does have some interesting fun facts so I figured I’d talk about it this week, hope you all enjoy!

Hello there, and welcome back! This album by the St. Louis darlings Foxing is possibly their best to date, which is saying quite a bit considering every release has been outstanding. Come along with me as I dive into this incredible record!

Welcome back everyone! I cannot put into words how awesome the album “This Will Be the Death of Us” by Set Your Goals is…BUT, I had some help this week from one of the people who helped to create it, Matt Wilson! Matt was gracious enough to come on and chat with me about the record and a bunch of cool stories associated with it. So, grab your checkered Vans and skinny jeans and let’s take a trip back to 2009 shall we?

Welcome back for the 5th and final installment of this year’s October Spooktacular! Jason Takes Manhattan is a movie I remember watching as a small child and being freaked out about but as an adult, boy howdy is baaaaad (but that’s what makes it great) lol come along with me as I dive into the score and all it’s campy-ness for the last week of Spooky content before going back to the regular format 🎃🎃🎃

Welcome back to week number 4 of this year’s October Spooktacular! This month has flown by but it has been so much fun rewatching these movies and getting to talk about them. The Fog is a cult classic and has a wonderful score to boot, thanks to one of the masters of horror and movie music, John Carpenter. Hope you all enjoy this week and come back next week as I close the month out with Friday the 13th VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan!

Welcome to the October Spooktacular 3D: Beyond the Gates of Hell! I’m starting off my 3rd annual Spooktacular this year by speaking with Martin MacPhail, 1/3 of the award winning group Blitz//Berlin who scored the film, Psycho Goreman! I had a blast speaking with him and I hope you all have a good time listening as well 🙌🏽🙌🏽

Welcome back for another “surprise” episode! This is another album I’ve been wanting to cover since starting the show I just never felt like the time was right. Well, that’s over now because here we are. I think this record is hard to discuss because Soupy’s writing is so good and relatable and depressing but also hopeful but ALSO a fucking bummer….it’s a rollercoaster of a listen but it’s a goddamn classic. I’m excited to discuss this week and hope you all are as excited to listen!

Hello and welcome back everybody! This week I will be discussing The Mountain Goats, “The Sunset Tree”. I just want to say up top for this one, CW/TW: abuse (physical, substance and emotional) will be discussed in this episode so, I just want you all to be aware of that. “The Sunset Tree” is a dark, depressing and at times, hard to listen to record but it’s absolutely amazing. Let’s all get through this episode together and maybe have a drink after, yeah?

Welcome back! Oh man, this record is one I’m so glad I finally was able to pick up. 2017’s Pulitzer Prize winning, “DAMN.” by Kendrick Lamar aka K. Dot aka Kung-Fu Kenny! I can’t wait to dive into this record and what it means to not only me, but to the culture as well.

As the title says, I’ll be diving into my top 5 releases of the year but also, the top 5 records I purchased regardless of when they originally released as well! It should be a good time!

Oh man, this week I will diving into what is probably my 2nd favorite album of all time, #1 favorite by Thursday...War All The Time, from 2003. This album changed my life in a few ways and opened my eyes to so many bands I otherwise would’ve missed...I can’t wait to get into it all for you all out there.

Hello, and welcome back for this very special “Thanksgiving” edition of the show! I mean, it’s not really but it just so happens to be releasing on Thanksgiving so just go with it lol I will say, I’m thankful for the represses of this album this year because the OG presses are super expensive. As the title says, I’ll be diving into 2005’s “All’s Well That Ends Well” by Chiodos!

I’m back this week with another one of my all time favorites, this time from a band that broke up waaaay before their time: Armor For Sleep and their second album, “What To Do When You’re Dead”. This album has so many things associated with it for me (both good and bad) and I’m excited to share it with you all!

Welcome back everyone! I told you this month would be filled with classics both new and old and this week, I’m covering a new one. Touché Amoré latest, “Lament”! This album is just classic TA, from start to finish its incredible and I cannot wait to dive into it for you all!

Oh man, I’m excited for this week! This whole month is going to be filled with classics (both new and old, but mostly old), albums that defined my music tastes for years to come. First up, 2003’s “IKSSE:3” by Coheed and Cambria, my favorite from them hands down. Come along with me as I dive deep into this huge album!

This is it. The last week of the October Spooktacular and what a way to go out. “The Exorcist” is considered by many as the scariest movie of all time and for good reason: it’s still downright terrifying at times. I can’t wait to get into all this week!

“Jacob’s Ladder” is one of the creepiest, unsettling films I’ve ever seen and I cannot wait to discuss it and its equally disturbing score for all of you! This is probably the one no one wants spoiled for them so if you haven’t seen it, do not listen yet lol

Oh boy, another classic one this week. 2017’s “Get Out”! This movie, my god. A movie so scary for me and other people of color (for obvious reasons) that’s still relevant and unfortunately will be for the foreseeable future. Come along with me as I break it down!

Welcome back to week 2 of the October Spooktacular! I’ll be discussing the super influential and downright creepy classic, 1976’s “The Omen”! I love this movie so much and the score is also great. “Look at me Damien! It’s all for you.” 💀💀💀

October Spooktacular: The Return is here! And I’m back baybeeeeeeee!!! After Hurricane Laura blew in and uprooted our lives, I took a month off to regroup and get things settled and I’m so excited to be back. It’s even better that it’s Spooky Season too! First up, 2015’s “It Follows” and its score by Disasterpeace. Hope you all enjoy!

Welcome back to another mini-(EP)isode of the Vinyl Countdown! This week, I’ll be diving into the wonderfully upbeat and super depressing “Losers” 7” from Spanish Love Songs!