Bonus Episode: Musical Sherpas and Spooky Sounds

Summary

DISGRACELAND Bonus Episode: Musical Sherpas and Spooky Sounds

Podcast: DISGRACELAND
Date: October 9, 2025
Host: Jake Brennan (Double Elvis Productions)

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Overview

In this interactive "afterparty" bonus episode, Jake Brennan explores the theme of musical discovery—paying tribute to the “musical sherpas” who turn young fans on to life-changing music, and bemoaning the shift from analog, word-of-mouth recommendations to AI-generated playlists. The episode is filled with listener stories about their own musical mentors, deep dives into Halloween-appropriate tracks, a critique of Rolling Stone’s “most terrifying” songs list, and a call for spooky music recommendations just in time for the season. Listeners are encouraged to participate in the ongoing conversation through calls, texts, and emails.

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Main Segments & Highlights

1. The Death of the Musical Sherpa (02:01–09:50)

• Jake’s Reflection: Jake laments the cultural shift from learning about music via older siblings, “cool dudes at the record store,” or friends, to receiving recommendations from algorithms and AI-powered apps like Spotify x ChatGPT.
  • “My, how far we have come from those days of searching out the cool dude at the record store to turn you on to the music that you needed to know about. Instead of stoned record store clerks... we now have artificial intelligence BOT turning us on to new music. It was always gonna come to this... All that will soon be completely gone. Dead ritual from the past…” (04:12)
• He sets up the episode’s “Question of the Week”: Who turned you on to music as a kid? Listener responses follow in the show.

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2. Halloween Playlist: Deep Cuts & Vibes (09:51–14:50)

• Jake’s Mix: Jake shares his carefully curated Halloween/fall party playlist, emphasizing Donnie Darko dinner party vibes, not haunted house kitsch.
  • Playlist includes: “Diamonds and Rust” (Judas Priest), “The Killing Moon” (Echo & The Bunnymen), “Gimme Danger” (The Stooges), “Don’t Fear the Reaper” (Blue Öyster Cult), “Fascination Street” (The Cure), “My Girlfriend is a Witch” (October Country), “Murder in the Red Barn” (Tom Waits), “Werewolves of London” (Warren Zevon), "Evil Woman" (Black Sabbath), and more.
  • “I want to look at this great Halloween music from the perspective of a list that I found on Rolling Stone... and line it up against my mix.” (12:14)

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3. Rolling Stone’s 25 Terrifying Songs – A Critical Look (14:51–21:23)

• Jake vs. Rolling Stone:
  • Critiques and discusses selections from Rolling Stone’s "25 Songs That Are Truly Terrifying" (2019), offering both praise and pushback.
  • Examples:
    • “Murder of the Lawson Family” (Carolina Buddies)—subject appropriately ‘Halloweeny’, but not sonically spooky.
    • “Knoxville Girl” (The Louvin Brothers)—his definitive murder ballad.
      • “If someone asked me what’s a murder ballad, this is the song I’m playing for them.” (17:38)
    • “The End” (The Doors)—thinks “Riders on the Storm” would fit Halloween better.
    • “Avalanche” (Leonard Cohen), “Frankie Teardrop” (Suicide), "Nebraska" (Bruce Springsteen), “Down By the Water” (PJ Harvey), “Farmer in the City” (Scott Walker), “Song of Joy” (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds), “What’s He Building in There?” (Tom Waits).
      • “Oh, Leonard was on a heater with that one. Great tune. Love it. Can't wait to put it on my list.” (18:52)
  • Invitations for listeners to recommend more “spooky music” and fill any gaps in his or Rolling Stone’s lists.

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4. Listener Segment: Musical Sherpas & Discovery Stories (23:26–32:41)

Voicemails, Texts, and Emails

• Caller 816: Big brother as first musical sherpa; skate videos in the ’90s as a portal to punk, hip hop, and obscure artists.
  • “We heard about tons of punk and hip hop acts… Just so much great music and stuff you don’t just stumble upon in your day-to-day life… Skate videos… are a great source to this day.” (23:26)
• Jake’s Response: Nostalgic story about ‘borrowing’ Circle Jerks and Bad Brains records from older skater Dan Thomas, who recently tracked Jake down to get them back. Notes the undeniable music curation power of skate culture.
  • “Dan was, of course, a skater… Very eclectic, those skate videos from the ’90s… Great taste.” (24:14)
• Caller 619 (Jeremy): Shoutout to Cliff Cunningham of Social Spit—local record store clerk who turned punks onto great music.
  • “That guy used to basically turn every local punk rocker onto some great, great music… letting them know what to buy.” (25:42)
• Caller 781 (Kelly): Emotional tribute to her late brother, Francis, who got her into Metallica, Led Zeppelin, “all that” through constant jamming and big speakers.
  • “He was a guitarist and so he had like two Marshall half stacks in his room… I just distinctly remember hearing Metallica ‘One,’ that’s the first time I ever heard it from him…” (27:07)
• Text 530: Friend Derek, who “solely responsible” for punk/hardcore exposure, later died under mysterious circumstances.
  • “He also mysteriously disappeared and was found dead in a California desert… His spirit remains close.”
• Text 416: Using “Bop” by Miles Davis as the soundtrack to an Instagram reel after a Jamaica trip, thanks to podcast recommendations.
• Email (Paulie McCracken): Cool Aunt Judy as the family Deadhead and musical confidante.
  • “She was my mom’s little sister, the fun aunt, my favorite person ever. We got along so well because she was so cool and let me do things my mom would not and I could talk to her about anything.”

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5. Sports Rant (35:15–35:23)

(Fast segment for sports fans and New Englanders; can be skipped by music heads.)

• Jake’s mea culpa: Admits being wrong about Drake May’s potential and gushes about the New England Patriots’ future.
  • “Listen, it takes a real man to admit when he’s wrong… But I’m here today to tell you flat out that I was wrong… We have a real coach and a real quarterback who can ball out.” (35:15–35:23)

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6. Hollywoodland Segment Preview (36:23–38:32)

• Dr. Zeth Lundy teases “Wrap Party” segment on Hollywoodland: the eternal question “Are movies dead?” and Ridley Scott’s claim that only 5% of movies are any good.
  • Zeth’s quick-and-dirty research shows it’s always been thus—the ratio of good-to-bad films historically has remained about the same.
    • “I quickly identified at least about 20 that I thought were great [from 1989], which was a 3% rate… it’s still about the same.” (37:32)
  • Jake encourages listeners to subscribe to Hollywoodland for deep-dive film content.

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7. Wrap-up, Next Episodes & Final Call for Spooky Recommendations

(43:02–End)

• Upcoming Episodes:
  • Pentagram full episode (out now)
  • Rewind episodes: The Cramps and Brandon Lee/The Crow
  • Next week: Houdini, featuring the Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Call to Action: Share “spooky, evil, dark” music for Halloween playlist.
  • “Which evil, spooky, dark… musical madness are you digging into in October? I want to know. I want to update my playlist with your recommendations.” (42:40)
• Community Vibe: DISGRACELAND is more than a podcast—it's “a community of the obsessed.” Jake thanks listeners and reiterates that listener participation is what makes the show work.

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Notable Quotes

• “The thrill of discovery, that sense of danger, that feeling of being special… All that will soon be completely gone. Dead ritual from the past…” – Jake Brennan (04:12)
• “If someone asked me what’s a murder ballad, this is the song I’m playing for them.” (re: The Louvin Brothers’ “Knoxville Girl”) – Jake Brennan (17:38)
• “He was a guitarist and so he had like two Marshall half stacks in his room ... I just distinctly remember hearing Metallica ‘One,’ that’s the first time I ever heard it from him…” – Kelly (Caller, 27:07)
• “We heard about tons of punk and hip hop acts… Just so much great music and stuff you don’t just stumble upon in your day-to-day life… Skate videos… are a great source to this day.” – Caller 816 (23:26)
• “She was my mom’s little sister, the fun aunt… and I could talk to her about anything.” – Paulie McCracken (via email)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 02:01 – Show intro & theme: AI vs. “vinyl sherpas”
• 09:51 – Halloween party playlist rundown
• 14:51 – Rolling Stone's most “terrifying” songs (and critique)
• 23:26 – Listener stories: musical mentors (voicemails, texts, emails)
• 35:15 – Sports rant (Patriots, Drake May)
• 36:23 – Hollywoodland preview with Dr. Zeth Lundy
• 42:40 – Final call for listener participation, community wrap-up

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Tone & Style

True to DISGRACELAND’s signature style, this bonus episode is fast-talking, witty, referential, and casual—but deeply reverent for both music history and the “weirdos” who keep its secret threads alive. Jake’s banter is self-deprecating (“I’m a dick. I admit it.”), engaging, and always laced with nostalgia for the tactile, social rituals of music fandom. The show radiates communal energy, with listeners and host forming a virtual family of music obsessives.

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Takeaways

• Jake Brennan and his audience treasure the lost art of the “musical sherpa.”
• Halloween is more than horror sound effects—it's full of mood, nuance, and playlists that blend deep cuts, classics, and personal vibes.
• Listener participation is central—DISGRACELAND thrives on stories about discovery, loss, and the music that links them all together.
• More spooky music is always welcome. Call or text (617-906-6638) to share what’s haunting your speakers this October.

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Find show notes and sources at: www.disgracelandpod.com
To submit, email: [e-mail] or call/text 617-906-6638
All Access content & exclusive convos: www.disgracelandpod.com/membership

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Transcript

[Caller 1]

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[Jake Brennan]

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[Jake Brennan]

Hey, discos. Need a little more Disgraceland in your life? Just a touch to get you through. Yeah, me too. This is the podcast that comes after the podcast. Welcome to Disgraceland. The afterparty. Welcome to the Disgraceland bonus episode. A little thing we like to call the after party. This is the show after the show. The party. After the party. The bridge to get you from one full episode of Disgraceland to the other. The backyard to dig into the dirt. Our mission, to uncover the truth. To confront the myth, to reclaim the story. On this bonus episode, we're talking about our new episode on Pentagram and we're rewinding back to our Cramps and Brandon Lee episodes for the spooky season, previewing next week's story on who Houdini with the Red Hot Chili Peppers making a guest appearance as we get into your voicemails, texts, DMs, and as always, a whole lotta Rosie. This is the podcast for the musically obsessed, the outsiders, the independent thinkers who know that the best history is the history that gets buried. Disgraceland is where I tell the stories they didn't want told. The kind you'll end up telling to someone else. Alright, discos, let's get into it. All right, before I put these afterparty episodes together, I usually do a quick cruise of the Internet just to see if there's any music news breaking that's worth talking to you guys about. This morning I came across this headline, Spotify integrates into Chat GPT to bring new Music recommendations. And it made me vomit in my mouth. But it also made me think of our new full episode where the character of the Teddy Pentagram gloriously recommends to our two young metalheads the awesomeness of his favorite band, Pentagram. My, how far we have come from those days of searching out the cool dude at the record store to turn you on to the music that you needed to know about. Instead of stoned record store clerks and cool older siblings and parents who knew their way around the cool section of their record collection, we now have artificial intelligence BO turning us on to new music. It was always gonna come to this, guys. It was bound to happen and it's here. Somehow this is more egregious to me than AI creating music, because that feels like something that I'll be able to safely ignore this artificial intelligence recommendation technology. It feels like something that's gonna quickly become normalized. It already is. I mean, this is essentially what Spotify has been doing with their playlist for years, but now with Chat G language based AI, it's just going to explode, become totally normalized. And I gotta say, like, I just feel bad for future generations. The thrill of discovery, that sense of danger, that feeling of being special, all those emotions that you got when you're musical Sensei, when you're vinyl Sherpa, when you're rock and roll, Obi Wan Kenobi played you Black Flag for the first time or explained to you what Led Zeppelin's deal with the devil was all or pass down a Grateful Dead bootleg cassette that they got from like a cool person in their neighborhood or whatever, made you swear not to tell Your parents that he or she was going to let you listen to Straight out of Compton. All that will soon be completely gone. A dead ritual from the past, like checking your messages on an answering machine or making a mixtape for a girl or a guy that you got a crush on. It's all gone. It's already gone. But it's really about to be just dead, dead, dead, dead, dead, dead, dead. Our question of the week coming into this after party was who turned you on to music as a kid? And we're going to dive into your answers later in the show. But I read this shit about ChatGPT and Spotify recommendations and it just made me go, you know what? Fucking. I just want to talk. I just want to talk about music with these guys today. I just want to recommend stuff. That's all I want to do. I want to talk about cool. That. And, and I'm going to do recommendations with Zeth later in the show in the exclusive section. But in the meantime, right here, I'm. I'm going to frame this around Halloween music and, and recommend music to you guys old school style, analog style. Just going to open up a discussion right here, right now that'll prompt some talk about a certain type of music. And then like I said, later in the show, I will dive in more fully with Zeth and give you specific recommendations. But I want to just be open here and just, just talk about the stuff that I'm vibing on right now. It's October and there's a specific type of music that I think we all get into in October. I certainly do. My wife and I, we've been hosting these October dinner parties now for a couple of years. We had it a week early at the end of September this year. That's not the point. The point is that I've had an epic mix going on since about 2022 with great fall slash Halloween music. Now with this mix, with this playlist, I'm not trying to give haunted house vibes with the mix, but I am trying to give Donnie Darko dinner party vibes. Okay? So I want to look at this great Halloween music from the perspective of a list that I found on Rolling Stone of, you know, what they recommend in this genre in this area and line it up against my mix. Okay? And then like I said, Zeth and I will come in during the exclusive section of the show and we'll give you like three just banger recommendations each on stuff that you're. You're probably not going to find. I don't Think anywhere else. I mean, some of you, I'm sure, will have heard of some of this stuff, but we're trying to, you know, pull you under the covers with us here. First, a sampling of the track listing from my Halloween playlist. I'm not gonna give you the whole thing because it's just too damn long, but here's a taste. Diamonds and Rust, Judas Priest, Joan Baez cover. It's a fucking great song. The Killing Moon by Echo and the Bunnyman. There's that Donnie Darko dinner party vibe at its best that I was talking about. Gimme Danger by the Stooges Just sounds spooky. Don't Fear the Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult because we need the classic mom and dad from the 70s are breaking up vibes. We need that peppered in. Fascination street by the Cure. Are we having sex or are we freaked out? Robert Smith. I don't know what's Happening. Explain It Like Me by TV on the Radio. You are the protagonist in your own horror movie here with this song. So Run Season of the Witch, but the Lana Del Rey version, because depending on the day, I either love or hate Donovan. Attack of the Ghost Riders by the Ravenettes. Hurdy Gurdy man by Donovan. Because the movie Zodiac made me love this song, even if I do hate Donovan on some days. My Girlfriend Is a Witch by October Country. Murder in the Red Barn by Tom Waits. Just to make sure everyone at the dinner party isn't getting too comfortable. Werewolves of London by Warren Zevon because his hair was perfect. You Make Love and Fun by Fleetwood Mac. I don't know. I find that tune haunting. London Dungeon by Misfits. Because you know London Dungeon. Evil Woman by Black Sabbath. Evil Woman by elo. Wild in the Streets by Garland Jeffries. Because city kids get to celebrate Halloween too. And of course, 96 tears by question Mark. And the Mysterious and the Ripper by Judas Priest. That's two Judas Priest songs already, if you're counting. Venus of Avenue D by Mink deville. And I could go on and on and on, but I will not. This list does not quit. But. But let's look to Rolling Stone magazine and their list of 25 songs that are truly terrifying. Now, I'm not going to give you all 25, but I'm going to give you a smattering because this is a pretty incredible list. It's from 2019. I don't know if that's why I find Rolling Stone to be insufferable these days, but, you know, they. They really came to with this. They brought it here with this list. All right, I want to get into some of these songs with you guys. Okay? At 25, number 25, they have a song called Murder of the Lawson Family by the Carolina Buddies. Now, I've heard this song. This story is the. The story of this song is the basis for our Derek and the Dominoes beeline story about the slaughter of the Lawson family by their patriarch Charlie Lawson on Christmas Day. So this tune is more of a Christmas song for me than a Halloween song. I've never heard this version, though, by the Carolina Buddies. I have heard other versions that are. Are. You know, they're not very. They're not spooky because it's kind of old timey. Walt's country, blue, bluegrass. The subject is scary, but the vibe isn't. I think it's the. The. What is the time? 2, 4. What is Walt's time? It just. It doesn't spook me out how. Okay, so. But whatever. I mean, I credit Rolling Stone for having this tune because the subject matter is as Halloweeny as it gets. Anyways, the Rolling Stone list is another old timey country song, Leuven Brothers by Knoxville Girl, which to me, scares the hell out of me every single time. There are other versions of this song that are great, most notably the Lemonheads version, which I love. Totally different. There are certain artifacts from my past where, if I didn't consume them, I don't believe I would be talking into the microphone with you right now, you know, reading Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi. As bunk as I think that book now is, but it led me on this path, and so did this song by the Leuven Brothers, specifically, Knoxville Girl. It's one of the. If someone asked me what's a murder ballad, this is the song I'm playing for them. They've got Rolling Stone has the Doors, the end, which I love, but this is the wrong Doors song for Halloween. You need to have Riders on the Storm as your Doors tune for your Halloween playlist. It's so spooky. It's so cinematic. Seth and I, for the All Access members. You're going to hear about this in a little bit more detail when we get into it, but Zeth and I spent all last night with the cameras on the microphones on, talking about Riders in the Storm by the Doors and Billy Cockeye Cook, the killing spree juvenile delinquent hitchhiker from the 1950s. If you want to know why we were doing that again, see in the exclusive section of this after party. Next on the Rolling Stone list. This is great because this is one of those songs that I know and I love and I listen to often, and I just, for whatever reason, never thought to put it on my. My playlist of great Halloween tunes. Great spooky season tunes, and it is Leonard Cohen's Avalanche. I love this song. I love it. I love it so much. From Songs of Love and Hate. Great, great album. I don't know why, man. When I'm, you know, when I got one. When I got one going, when I've tied one on and it's late at night and the wife's asleep and I'm still roaming around the house looking for shit to do. This is one of those records I put on and I just kind of, you know, do my thing. This one in this context, however. Avalanche, the song. Check these lyrics out. Your laws do not compel me to kneel. Grotesque in bear, it is your turn. Beloved, it is your flesh that I wear. Oh, Leonard was on a heater with that one. Great tune. Love it. Can't wait to put it on my list. Suicide's Frankie Teardrop. Another great song. I feel like I talked about this recently with you guys. That's on the list, of course. Springsteen's Nebraska. You can't talk about scary shit without talking about this song. I. I still remember hearing the closing lines of this tune and being chilled to my core. And this, of course, just to give you a little context, Charlie Starkweather, and this is true, he said this. He's on trial for his life after, you know, one of the first serial killers, if you want to call them that. And Springsteen says about Starkweather at trial, these are the lyrics. They declared me unfit to live. Said, into that great void my soul be hurled. They want to know why I did what I did. Well, sir, I guess there's just a meanness in this world. Crushing, chilling lyric. Also on the list. Great tune. PJ Harvey, down by the Water. Great, great. Scott Walker, Farmer in the City. I don't know this song. Maybe you guys do. And I'm. I'm talking about it here because I'm hoping. I'm hoping one of you guys out there who's a Scott Walker fan can point me in the right direction. Where do I start with Scott Walker? I want to know. Okay. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Song of Joy. This should be on my. It's from his murder ballads album. I'm sure you guys, Nick Cave, Fancy. Know this tune. We're going to do a Nick Cave episode Soon enough. Tom Waits. What's he building in there? My wife and I always joke about the song because in our very first apartment together in Arlington, Massachusetts, in the Heights. In Arlington Heights with the Soches, we had finally moved away from the Greasers and we were living in the Heights. And this dude behind us had this house. This fucking guy, man. They couldn't have made a horror movie character better than this guy. He was something else. I. You know, short in stature, and he only came out at night. And he always seemed to be dressed for winter, even if it was the summer. And I shit you not, this guy, he lived right behind us. Like I fucking kid you not. He wore surgical gloves all the time, and we never knew why. He freaked us the fuck out. He's probably responsible for us moving out a year before we should have, but we would always just. We'd see him, we'd come in the house, we'd be like, what's he building in there? And that's from that Tom Waits song. Solid, solid list from Rolling Stone. Zeth and I are going to have more non AI generated spooky music recommendations for you guys in the exclusive section of this episode. Recommendations that I promise you, you are not going to be able to get anywhere else. So stick around for that. If you're an All Access member, if you're not an All Access member and you want exclusive content like this every month, you want ad free listening on all Disgraceland and Hollywoodland episodes, if you want behind the scenes content, if you want to talk to me and Zeth and your fellow Disgraceland listeners, your fellow music obsessives daily, you want to talk to us in the chat. Well, now is the time to sign up. You're going to get everything that I just mentioned for only $5 a month. The cost of one cup, the cost of one cup of coffee a month, guys. But that price, it's going to go up before Halloween. All right? You can sign up now on Apple Podcasts or on Patreon and. And if you sign up on Patreon in the next two weeks, you're going to get a pretty significant discount on your membership. Okay, but that offer, that one's going to expire on October 21st. So now is the time to sign up. So you don't hear any ads like this one that we got coming up right now. I will be back in a flash with your voicemails and text. I was recently researching a subject for one of our podcast episodes whose home was broken into and the algorithm started to Then send me all these horrifying clips of home break ins and I got pulled into the wormhole and naturally started questioning my own home security system at the time. And what I found out was that my system wasn't very preventative. And that's because most home security systems aren't very preventative. They're actually designed to only react and take action once someone has already broken in. And that ain't good. SimpliSafe, on the other hand, my new security system stops crime before it even starts by confronting potential threats the moment they appear. These break in videos online are horrifying and they're happening in neighborhoods all over. You need your home security to be dependable, and my question is, can a home security system really call itself security if it only responds once the intruder is already in your home? SimpliSafe is the way to stop someone from actually entering your home. Their AI powered cameras detect threats while they're outside before they intrude, and they alert real security agents who take action while the intruder again, is outside, not in your house. I'm now using SimpliSafe and I'm telling you that you guys should too. It's super easy to set up. They sent me all the components in one box. I was able to hook it up by myself, Made my wife happy, and now my home is protected and I've got rapid response. I've got a security system I can depend on and a great easy, intuitive app that helps me monitor my home no matter where I'm at. Right now, my listeners can save 50% on a SimpliSafe home security system at simplisafe.com Disgracepod that's simplisafe.com DisgracePod there's no safe like SimpliSafe. Hey, so if you're like me, you might already know and love the award winning music podcast Song Exploder from award winning host Rishikesh Hirway. Well, this year Rishi started putting out a new kind of music conversation on the podcast, a series called Key Change. In each episode, he talks to a guest about a piece of music that changed their lives. Guests include actress Sophie Thatcher, writer Gia Tolentino, musician Shirley Manson from Garbage, author and food writer Samin Nosrat, actor and musician Jason Schwartzman, and more. The conversations are intimate, wonderful windows into how music can change the way that we see the world and see ourselves. Key Change comes out once a month on the Song Exploder feed, so check it out by searching for Song Exploder on your podcast app or go to songexploder.net keychange the holidays have arrived at the Home Depot and we're here to help bring the excitement with decor for every part of your home. Check out our wide assortment of easy to assemble pre lit trees so you can spend less time setting up and more time celebrating. And bring your holiday spirit outdoors with unique decorations like one of our Santa inflatables. Whatever your style, find the right pieces at the right prices this holiday season at the Home Depot. Alrighty, this week we dropped our episode on Pentagram in the feed for all of you as our newest full episode. Coming up right after this, our rewind episodes direct. For the spooky Halloween heads out there, we've got the Cramps and our episode on Brandon Lee and the Crow. Next week on Tuesday, our next full new episode will be on Houdini with a special appearance in that episode by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Okay, keeping with our haunted October theme, I want to switch it up as it pertains to the question of the week. I want to stay on this topic of scary as all hell music. I want your songs that spook you out. I want to know the records that give you the creeps. I want, you know, we talked about, you know, who are the people who turned us on to music as little kids, you know, what records are you guys playing for your little sister, for your friend who, you know, your cousin, your kids, whatever. Just kind of creep them out. I remember playing Night Prowler by ACDC for my sister when she was probably, well, 10, I was probably 15 and scaring the shit out of her. What spooky music are you, are you vibing on in October? Hit me up. 617-906-6638. Let me know. Voicemail, text. Let's lean into this spooky music this month, okay? To match all the spooky stories we got going into the feed. 617-906-6638. Voicemail and text. Let me know what songs, what records artists and bands gave you. The songs, the tunes, the records that give you the good kind of creeps. All right. And we'll get into it all next week. I'll play your voicemails, I'll play your text right here. Last week's question of the week was who was your musical Obi Wan Kenobi? Who was your Sherpa? Who turned you on to great music as a kid? Hanging on the telephone this week right now with the 8, 1 6.

[Caller 1]

Hey, regarding the question about our musical Sherpas of the past, number One would be my big brother, obviously, but another huge one for me and all my friends and was skate videos from especially from the 90s before they had to worry about music rights. We heard about tons of punk and hip hop acts, but I mean even got into stuff like Public Image Limited and Stereo Lab. Her even like Herbie Hancock and stuff. Just so much great music and stuff you don't just stumble upon in your day to day life. Gets used in skate videos and they're a great source to this day. So. All right, thanks. Thanks for the pod and keep up the good work.

[Jake Brennan]

Love this, love that you bring up skate videos. Such a great portal for incredible music. Skate skaters just had the best fucking taste, man. I never skated as a kid, but I hung out with skaters on Instagram. I did a little video and I mentioned one of my musical Sherpas growing up. This guy from Clinton, Mass. Named Dan Thomas, who was an older skater kid who let me borrow these records, turned me onto the Circle Jerks Bad Brains. And I mentioned that I wasn't sure if I ever returned the records, knowing fully that I didn't. Just one of those things. I didn't steal the records. I just, you know, Dan got busy, I got busy. He never got his Circle Jerks record back. And you know, whatever, I'm a dick. I admit it. Anyhow, his girlfriend. I haven't seen Dan in literally like three, four decades. Like forever decades. I haven't seen him and I don't. He doesn't even live in Clinton anymore. Neither do I. His girlfriend saw the video, got in touch with me. It was like Dan wants his records back. So I'm gonna work on getting them back for him. And a little something else too. Some, some Disgraceland merchant. But Dan was of course a skater. This is way before skate videos and all the great, very eclectic those skate skate videos from the 90s as. As the 816 mentions. Eclectic music, great taste. Great taste. All right, let's check out this voicemail here from the 61 9.

[Caller 1]

Yo Jay, this is Jeremy again, thanks for playing my voicemail last time, but the Pentagram episode was fucking brilliant. And it's funny that they started getting some recognition before being shut down finally. But as far as the person who influenced me would be Cliff Cunningham from the local band Social Spit. He used to work it off the record and that guy used to basically turn every local punk rocker onto some great, great music. I actually did a podcast with him on my podcast. My podcast is the Union and Metro podcast. And we talked with him about his music and then working it off the record and influencing others by letting them know what to buy. So thanks again brother. Hope all is well and I will talk to you soon. I gotta dig up this cactus so I gotta get back to work again.

[Jake Brennan]

Again with the local punk rockers and the local skate kids turning us on to music. Thanks for your message, 619. Appreciate you. Matt, play the seven eight one.

[Caller 2]

Hi Jake, this is Kelly. I'm a seven eight one. I haven't been in touch in a little while. I've had like a rough few months. But I was just talking about who influenced you musically. Question. And that would be my big brother, which is Frank Francis. And he passed away in May. But I thought of him instantly when you said that because he really was. He was a guitarist and so he had like two Marshall half staffs in his room and like his friends always playing, you know, had a band, different bands, whatever. I just distinctly remember hearing Metallica 1. That's the first time I ever heard it from him. He got me into all that. You know, he. Metallica, Led Zeppelin. My dad brought me into the Beatles when I was younger though way before that. I could sing Rocky Racombe when I was 8 years old. But definitely my big brother influenced me in regards to music because he was a musician and, and you know, had all musician friends and so yeah, that's, that's how I got into that. Now I just like everything, but wanted to call in, check in with you. Haven't talked to you because I haven't called you in a while or texted and still love the show, obviously. Keep it up, Rock and Mola.

[Jake Brennan]

781 My condolences to you. Sounds like Francis had some, some great tastes and I hope you're doing okay. I hope you're doing all right. Hope you're getting through this time. I just, you know, for what it's worth, I can hear the Massachusetts in your voice and it brought a smile to my face and it made me feel a little homesick. And I'm actually heading home this weekend. I'm really excited about it. Thanks for getting in touch. 781 let's go. Let's do some text, guys. Just a reminder. 617-906-6638. Voicemails and texts that I want to hear from you on for next week are going to be what is the sp music that gets you going? The records, the songs, the artists. All right, let's do this. Text from the 530. Hey Disgraceland crew. I'm catching up on the October 1st bonus episode. My friend Derek was solely responsible for getting me into punk rock and hardcore. When I was 12. He introduced me to bands like Dag Nasty Youth of Today, Uniform Choice List goes on and on. He also mysteriously disappeared and was found dead in a California desert in August of 2021. At the time, there were swirling stories of what happened traveling fast by wire, and many of us suspected foul play, but no cause of death or autopsy were released to my knowledge. I'd still like to know exactly what happened, but may never know. His spirit remains close. 53 0. I'm sorry for your loss. Sounds like your friend Derek had some great taste in music. What a horrific story. That's awful. All right, let's go to the 416416 text in. Hey Jake, thanks for shouting out on the corner Miles Davis record. I think his fusion is underrated. When I got back from Jamaica, great trip toward Marley's estate in the mountains, Ganja Rasta tour, drank Steel Bottom and got a private tour of Johnny Cash's secluded estate. When I got back, I set my Instagram reel of street photography pics from rural St. Anne's Town to do BOP by miles. It slaps. I use it as my wake up song now and it always makes me smile. Rocka rolla, you know? 416. I'm very happy to hear you say this. I love it when we're recommending stuff. Just talking about music and people are as hyped on things as we are. It's part of why it's why we do it, I think. You know my favorite thing in the world literally is to talk about music. So keep it coming. 617-906-6638. You can also email me disgracelandpodmail.com Paulie McCracken writes in my musical Sherpa My cool Aunt Judy. Judy turned me onto the Grateful Dead when I was a kid. She was my mom's little sister, the fun aunt, my favorite person ever. And we got along so well because she was so cool and let me do things my mom would not and I could talk to her about anything. Sounds like you had a great one there, Paulie, with your Aunt Judy. Thanks for getting in touch. I gotta shout out my aunt Tracy, who listens to Disgraceland religiously and who still is turning me on to awesome music. She gets me new records or a new record every, every Christmas and it's. It's always fantastic. Which reminds me, I still have that Canned Heat John Lee Hooker album that she got me this past Christmas that I have to fully dive into that I have not. I'm on it, Tracy. It's happening. All right, you guys want to email me disgracelandpodgmail.com you want to call 617-906-6638. You can leave me a voicemail, you can send me a text. You want to hit me up on social, you can do that too. Disgracelandpod. And just a reminder, the question of the week. I want to know what spooky music you are recommending for this Halloween season. Right now, I'm gonna take a quick little break. I'm gonna drink a little tea. I'll be back in a flash. When did making plans get this complicated? It's time to streamline with WhatsApp, the secure messaging app that brings the whole group together. Use polls to settle dinner plans, send event invites and pin messages so no one forgets mom 60th and never miss a meme or milestone. All protected with end to end encryption. It's time to time for WhatsApp message privately with everyone.

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[Jake Brennan]

ABC Wednesdays Shifting Gears is back. He has arisen. Tim Allen and Kat Dennings return in television's number one new comedy.

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[Jake Brennan]

With a star studded premiere including Jenna Elfman, Nancy Travis and. Hey buddy. A big home improvement reunion welcome.

[Caller 1]

Oh, boy, that guy's a tool.

[Jake Brennan]

Shifting gears. New Wednesdays, 8, 7 Central on ABC and stream on Hulu. All right, Matt, give me the ticker. I want to eat my crow right away. I want to get into this. Let's hit it. This 60 second sports rant in under 30 seconds is once again sponsored by Five Hour Energy's new Pumpkin spice flavor. You your favorite fall drink in an energy shot. You can pick up a pumpkin spice five hour energy shot available online at FiveHouseEnergy.com or Amazon. Listen, it takes a real man to admit when he's wrong. Teach this to my sons all the time. Couple weeks ago, I sat down in front of this very microphone and I told y' all how Drake May was at best Drake maybe. And that he wasn't the real deal. That maybe McCaffrey was better. That Drake didn't look like he had had any sand. Like he couldn't hang in the NFL. Like the Pats were headed toward a season of mediocrity at best. Well, I'm here today to tell you flat out that I was wrong. After that performance on Sunday night in Buffalo, I am convinced this dude can play. I am also convinced Mike Vrabel can coach. I think both these dudes have intangibles that lead to winning. Yes, I'll say it right now. Intangibles that lead to championships. I'm not saying we're winning anything this year, but I am saying we've got winning in our future and I think even a playoff appearance this year. That's right. I said it. I was wrong. But I'm happy about it. You know why? Because we have the two things you absolutely need to win in the NFL right now in New England. That is a real coach and a real quarterback who can ball out. All right, Matt. More of a mea culpa rave than a rant. I know I didn't do well, but just let me know where I came in on the buzzer.

[Caller 2]

Let's see here. Minute eight, Jake.

[Jake Brennan]

Not too bad. You know, I don't care. I don't care that I didn't beat the buzzer. We beat the Bills in Buffalo, baby. That was the sports rant sponsored by five hour Energy's new pumpkin spice flavor. These new pumpkin spice five hour energy sh in a bottle and bring that classic pumpkin spice flavor that we all know and love. Our favorite fall drink. In an energy shot, you can pick up a pumpkin spice 5 hour energy shot available online at 5hourenergy.com or Amazon. So every Wednesday, Dr. Zeth Lundy from the Presley Memorial Hospital graces all of you with his film and cinema knowledge in the Hollywoodland feed. Here's a little of me grilling Zeth on what he's got cooking in the wrap party bonus episode this week and why you should be subscribed to Hollywoodland for the finest and true crime in Hollywood podcasting. Okay, what are we gonna speak to? I wanted an update on rap Party because I'm not gonna. I. I don't know that I'm traveling this week. I don't know if I can. Bring me in the devil. What are you doing? What are you talking to the people about? Let me know what's up.

[Dr. Zeth Lundy]

Well, pretty interesting stuff, actually. There Was I basically opened the wrap party asking the question, are movies dead? Which is a question that people ask all the time at any given time in movie history, I guess.

[Jake Brennan]

But.

[Dr. Zeth Lundy]

But it's kind of come back in the conversation because the director, Ridley Scott, just a couple days ago was giving a talk somewhere in England and his son was like, asking questions. He took questions from the audience and someone asked him about what kinds of movies he was watching. And he basically said that he's watching his old. His own movies because they're so great. Because we are drowning, he says. I think it's. The quote is, we are drowning in mediocrity, that only 5% of movies that are made are any good. And so before I posed this question to the audience, I actually, like, went back in time. I picked a year arbitrarily from the 80s, and I sort of did a very unscientific look at the number of movies that came out of that from that year and clocked them against what I would just very quickly deem as being great movies. And their percentage rate is pretty much the same. It was like a 5 percentage rate. The same thing that really Scott was talking about.

[Jake Brennan]

What year did you go back to?

[Dr. Zeth Lundy]

To 89. 1989.

[Jake Brennan]

So you went back to 1989.

[Dr. Zeth Lundy]

And I. According to the IMDb, there were at least worldwide, 600 movies made that year. There were more than that, but I didn't have enough time to keep going and find. So there were at least 600. And I quickly identified at least about 20 that I thought were great, which was a 3% rate. And then I said, if we just doubled this rate and made it 40 out of 600, that's still a 6% rate. It's still about the same.

[Jake Brennan]

Same. So you took Ridley Scott's theory that only 5% of films made today are actually any good. You went back to 1989 and you tested it against the films that were made then.

[Dr. Zeth Lundy]

Yeah.

[Jake Brennan]

And you determined that basically it was the same percentage of good films, just 5% made back in 1989.

[Dr. Zeth Lundy]

Very unscientific view of it. I think it was just there was more to choose from. So there are more great films, but there's also hundreds of more shitty films because movies were just such a bigger deal back then. Right.

[Jake Brennan]

All right, that's Hollywoodland. That's the wrap party. Make sure you're subscribed to Hollywoodland on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcast on. Tracy, I'm talking to you. Listen, guys, don't forget the Question of the week this week. Which evil, spooky, dark. What musical madness are you digging into in October? I want to know. I want to update my playlist with your recommendations. Call me 617-906-6638 and let me know. Leave a voicemail. You'll hear yourself here in the after party. Send me a text. I might read it right here. And I respond sometimes, too, to the text. You might get a text late at night. Who the fuck is this? It's me. I don't know. Sometimes I do that, you know, Sometimes I answer it here, sometimes I answer it there. Who cares? One way or another, you're getting an answer. I think we try. Listen, if you want more on the recommendations front from Zeth and I, and trust me, you do, you're not gonna wanna miss out on these recommendations. They're coming up right now in the exclusive section of this after party. Go to Patreon and sign up. Or just go. If you're Apple Podcast listeners, go to Apple Podcasts and sign up. It's five bucks a month. You know, you can buy a beer for five bucks. Can you dip into the old wallet there for one more beer, one more coffee per month? You're gonna get that content and you're gonna support this show. And believe me, we appreciate it. It. All right, here we go. Oh, man. We mentioned a ton of great musicians in this episode. Musicians with incredible stories. Grateful Dead, Elvis Presley, Bruce Springsteen, the Doors, Black Sabbath. We've got episodes on all these artists. Got episodes on all these artists. Wait, we also mentioned Judas Priest and the Cure. We've got episodes for these guys in the pipeline. You're going to hear the Judas Priest episode this month. The Cure. You're going to hear early next year. Mentioned Leonard Cohen, Nick Cave. Got to do episodes on these folks. PJ Harvey. We should do a PJ Harvey episode next year for sure. Sure. Matt will have the episode details in the show notes of this after party for you so you can quickly find those dead Elvis, Springsteen, Doors, Sabbath episodes and you can just get to listening. All right? But right now it's time. It's time to recap. Number one, this week's full episode on Pentagram is available in your feedback feed right now for you to check out. Number two, we're rewinding with two spooky episodes this week. One on the Cramps and one on Brandon Lee and the Crow. Those are going to be in your feed right after this after party. Number three, next week on Tuesday, our episode on Houdini with, like I said, a little bit of chili pepper sprinkled in there. Number four on Hollywoodland right now, Anna Nicole Smith. Number five, 617-906-6638. Your voice keeps us digging into the dark corners of music history. So keep calling, keep texting with your answ week's question of the week or with whatever else you want to talk about. Number six, don't forget discos. This isn't just content, it's a community. A community of the obsessed. And no one cares about music, books, records and the crime and grime that ties them all together like you do. And, well, that's a disgrace. All right. Pentagram's excellent album Relentless was released in February of 1985. And here is what America was listening to right at that moment. Number one, Careless Whisper, Wham. Featuring George Michael. Last week, three weeks on chart nine. Number two, I Want to Know what Love Is. Foreigner. Last week one peak position one weeks on chart 11. Number three, easy lover, Philip Bailey featuring Phil Collins. Last week two peak position, two weeks on Charlie 13. Number four, lover boy, Billy Ocean. Last week four peak position five weeks on chart number five. Quit talking and start mixing. Cut it. Mint is still $15 a month for premium wireless. And if you haven't made the switch yet, here are 15 reasons why you should. One, it's $15 a month. Two, seriously, it's $15 a month. Three, no big contracts. Four, I use it. Five, my mom uses it.

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