
Hosted by Andy Beckerman · EN

On today's episode, I talk to musician Tim Midyett. Originally from Havre, Montana, Tim started the band Ein Heit in 1985 with his friends, and two years later, they changed their name to Silkworm. In the 20 years the band was together, they released over two dozen albums, EPs and singles on a variety of labels including C/Z, Matador and Touch and Go. In 2005, Silkworm stopped performing after their drummer Michael Dahlquist was killed in a car accident. Tim and Silkworm's guitarist Andy Cohen would go on to form Bottomless Pit, who released four albums and EPs on the wonderful record label Comedy Minus One, and most recently, Tim has been writing and performing with his latest group Mint Mile! (FYI this was taped back in late December; I meant to put it out earlier and then the city caught on fire for a couple weeks - anyway, I only note this because we're a lil' flippant about the current political atmosphere in a way that I don't think we'd be if this was taped today!) This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode, I talk to writer and podcaster Dave Holmes. Born in New Jersey, but raised in St. Louis, Dave came to national prominence when he lost the inaugural MTV Wanna Be a VJ contest in 1998. Although very soon after, he was hired by the video channel to host a number of shows including 120 Minutes and TRL. Since then, Dave has led an incredibly varied career, acting in things like the first Fantastic Four film and Reno 911!, hosting podcasts like Homophilia and Troubled Waters, writing the book Party of One: A Memoir in 21 Songs, as well as creating and producing the wonderful limited podcast series Waiting for Impact: A Dave Holmes Passion Project. Just last year, Dave hosted another limited podcast series Who Killed the Video Star: The Story of MTV and currently, continues to be an editor at large for Esquire Magazine! This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode, I talk to director Guy Maddin. Originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Guy did not set out to be a filmmaker, but after working odd job after odd job, he eventually started taking film classes in his later 20s and became part of the Winnipeg Film Group. After making some short films and a surreal cable access show, he wrote and directed his debut feature, Tales from the Gimli Hospital, in 1988. It became a cult success and established Guy's reputation in independent film circles. Since then, he has written and directed over a dozen other films including The Saddest Music in the World, My Winnipeg, Keyhole and his latest Rumours starring Cate Blanchett, which had its world premiere at the 2024 Cannes Festival! This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode, I talk to comedian and actor David Cross. Originally from Roswell, GA, David started as a stand-up at the age of seventeen, first in Boston and then in New York in the '90s. David's television career began with a writing job on the The Ben Stiller Show. It was around this time that he met Bob Odenkirk, and they started performing together, eventually creating the brilliant sketch show Mr. Show, which ran on HBO for four seasons. Since then, David has done a million awesome things including Arrested Development, The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret, as well as smaller parts in everything from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind to What We Do in the Shadows. He's also performed eight stand-up albums and specials; his latest Worst Daddy in the World just came out last year on 800 Pound Gorilla, and it's a delight! And of course, you can see him touring this spring, if you live in Canada or Europe. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode, I talk to director Seth Gordon. Originally on the path to be an architect, Seth's life took a detour into documentary filmmaking when he picked up a camera while teaching abroad in Kenya. After working in different positions in filming and editing, he eventually made his acclaimed doc The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters, about rivals in the world of competitive Donkey Kong playing. From there, Seth became a comedy director, directing some of the best sitcoms of the 21st century including Parks and Rec, Community, The Office, The Goldbergs and more, as well as films such as Four Christmases, Horrible Bosses, Baywatch and, his most recent film, which just debuted on Netflix last week, Back In Action starring Jamie Foxx and Cameron Diaz! This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode, I talk to Daniel Miller and Gareth Jones of Sunroof. Daniel and Gareth have had long, varied careers for decades - as musicians, music producers and more. Daniel is the founder of Mute Records, which has released albums from numerous groups including Depeche Mode, New Order, Wire, Nick Cave and many others. And as a producer, Gareth has worked with many of those same bands and more including Interpol, Grizzly Bear, Madness and that's just a small sampling. The two began collaborating together in 1982 when Daniel asked Gareth to work with him on what became Depeche Mode’s Construction Time Again. After Depeche Mode had gone home for the day, the two would stay on to work on their own sessions. This became Sunroof, and they worked mostly as a remix project. However, in 2019, they started improvising together with modular systems as a lark and enjoyed the results. They've recorded three fantastic albums, and their latest, Electronic Music Improvisation Vol.3, came out at the end of November, and it's wonderful! This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!

On today's episode I talk to Rachel Browne. Rachel is a musician, writer and visual artist living in Philadelphia, PA. She earned a Bachelor of Music with a concentration in studio composition from Purchase College and has been writing and performing in the band Field Mouse since its formation in 2009. The band self-released their first album You Are Here in 2010, and Topshelf Records released their next two - Hold Still Life in 2014 and Episodic in 2016. Rachel also writes and performs solo under the name Anomie. This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter.

On today's episode I talk to actor and comedian Baron Vaughn. As a stand-up, Baron's performed on Conan (twice), Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and he has his own Comedy Central Half Hour. As well, AST Records released his album Blaxistential Crisis earlier this year. As an actor, he's been featured in movies like Black Dynamite and Cloverfield, and is currently a series regular on the Netflix show Grace and Frankie. Baron will also be part of the Mystery Science Theater 3000 reboot, playing the part of Tom Servo! Stay tuned for future episodes with Roy Wood Jr., Josie Long, Amber Ruffin and a special 300th episode coming up soon! This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on iTunes, follow me on Twitter.