Podcasts are kind of a crazy thing – growing up, before things like content algorithms, surveillance in your homes, and ORACLE, the idea of a conversation held some power. We’re not out here saying the art of conversation is dead, but certainly it’s more of a product now thanks to an endless sea of average people, average ideas, and average levels of conviction, all with easy access to a mic.
But that’s what makes Cult and Culture so important. Justin Pearson and Luke Henshaw bring the art of the podcast back to its roots to the point it almost feels like something totally different. They make a point of bringing in controversial guests, ask challenging questions, and often lead with angles that challenge more than they affirm.
It helps immensely that Justin Pearson and Luke Henshaw have championed outsiders their entire careers, and not just in music – guests from Martin Atkins (PiL) and Ben Weinman (Suicidal Tendencies, The Dillinger Escape Plan) to legendary director John Waters all feel right at home, all opening up in ways you’d rarely witness otherwise.
So all that being said, we’re actually beyond excited that Cult and Culture are putting out a compilation in collaboration with Smashed Plastic,featuring clips from the show as well as a ton of great music, including this legendary Swing Kids joint below:
Remember, Swing Kids is playing live again, and if you’re in Florida you MUST catch them at the legendary Fest this 10/25. And before we get you more details on the comp, it turns out there’s actually something pretty legendary about the version of “Disease” above that you’ll probably want to hear. Yes, it was slightly reworked, but how, you might ask?
“There is a bit of interesting history about this specific recording. This was the first thing Swing Kids recorded. It was also the first time I had ever recorded vocals. We also didn’t have a bassist yet, but I can’t recall who played bass in the studio, either Eric Allen or I did. The studio was at Bob Barley’s house, which was where Vinyl Communications was run. Matt Anderson of Gravity recorded the track on 1/4” tape. Of course Eric and I were late to the session, and when we got there, Jose’s supposed friend who played sax showed up, tracked on his own accord, and cut out. It wasn’t till years later that we discovered Jose just bought a CD of a sax player and sampled a part of one of the songs on it. This recording originally came out on a Food Not Bombs benefit album on a label called Inchworm. For this version, John Brady played bass over the track, which we ripped off of Youtube, and Nathan Joyner, who is in the current version of Swing Kids, sampled the original sax track and made it a bit more present, and polished the turd as one might say.” – Justin Pearson
That would be so mind blowing to learn about your own song, and Jose Palafox actually shows up for a great episode of Cult and Culture that you can check out here. Here is a little more background from the press release:
“The concept of Cult and Culture began as a short segment created by Justin Pearson, an internationally known musician, record label owner (Three One G Records), author, and actor. He is best known as bassist/vocalist for bands such as Dead Cross, The Locust, and Deaf Club, among many others. Justin has come to know and work with a broad spectrum of captivating personalities and brilliant minds, many of which are key figures in the realm of popular culture and cult followings alike. Guests include a broad scope of musicians, producers, authors, filmmakers, and anyone passionate about what they do. In its infancy, segments were shorter, 10-20 minutes, and would be recorded while on tour. Since then, Pearson has collaborated with producer and musician Luke Henshaw (Planet B, Sonido de la Frontera) to build the idea into a proper podcast, now recorded at Penguin Studios in San Diego. The focus is not intended to be in any one realm, and because guests are friends and family, the conversations are frank, informal, well-informed and genuine.
This release is a compilation featuring many of the artists who have been interviewed on the podcast thus far. It will include musical tracks from bands and musicians such as The Exploited, The Locust, ADULT., Year Future, Martin Atkins, and more, interspersed with short snippets from the podcast itself.
Additionally, there will be a limited edition 7” from Luke and Justin’s band Planet B to go with it which includes a cover of Grandmaster Flash & Melle Mel’s “White Lines (Don’t Do It)” with guest vocals from Johnny Whitney (The Blood Brothers).
This compilation will be released in collaboration with Smashed Plastic. It will be available on bandcamp as well as limited edition vinyl. It will be available Nov. 21st.”
Don’t forget to pre-order it here.