11-24-25 - Playdio DAY ONE - Bands 11-16 - VEINS OF AETHER - THE WOODWORKS - WHISKEY FAMINE - RECKLESS EDEN - WITNESS PROTECTION - GRAVES OF THE MONUMENTS

Summary

Holmberg’s Morning Sickness: Playdio Day One – Bands 11–16 (Nov 24, 2025)

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode covers Day One (Bands 11–16) of "Playdio," 98KUPD's annual local band contest. Host John Holmberg and his crew—Brady, Brett Vesely, and Nick Toluto—introduce, listen to, and hilariously critique six Arizona rock bands competing for radio glory. Their tone is sharp, irreverent, and unsparingly honest, peppered with jokes, side tangents, and the occasional heartfelt praise when a local act truly impresses.

---

1. Veins of Aether – "Siren"

[06:54–09:42]

Introduction:

• Veins of Aether, from Phoenix, described as hard rock/modern metal with electronic touches. Fronted by Sam Richardson, an emergency room physician who incorporates themes of life, death, and loss into his lyrics.
• Name discussion: aether – mythological/archaic "upper air," and the crew riff on the fancy spelling.

Song Reaction:

• Initial surprise at the professionalism: “That sounded like a real band actually trying.” – John Holmberg [09:42]
• Brett: “In the middle there, it sounded a little like Korn–Skrillex or a little Korn.” [10:00]
• John: “I heard a lot of Nothing More. Then I heard Shinedown, and a little weirdly Disturbed sometimes. At least I heard a lot of Nothing More.” [10:04]
• Nick: “Little Miles Kennedy in his voice.” [10:19]
• Joking comparison: “It sounds like a bad song by a good band.” – John [12:09]
• Crew agrees production is solid, though the direction feels a little generic.

Ratings:

• Brett & John: 6
• Brady & Nick: 7
• “Gay or not, I’d crank this in my car.” – Brett [12:18]
• “These guys have a good producer.” – John [12:20]

---

2. The Woodworks – "Threats"

[14:22–17:14]

Introduction:

• Band hails from Tempe/Phoenix, gives a minimal bio which the hosts ironically love.

Song Reaction:

• Bafflement over lyrics, vocal style, and general structure.
• John: “I don’t know what that is. Like the beginning of 60 Minutes with a seizure.” [17:41]
• Brett shortly and brutally: “I’m giving them a one for the bio.” [17:53]
• “Everything about it, not just her.” – Nick on the overall performance [18:05]
• “Listen, toots, leave the singing to the men.” – Brett [18:07]
• The hosts imagine the singer as Yoko Ono, which becomes a running joke.

Ratings:

• Brett: 1 (for the bio)
• Brady: 3
• John: 2, with debate on unquantifiability (“a shape, a circle, a zero”).
• Nick: “Fail. I’ll put ‘R’ down.” [18:37]

---

3. Whiskey Famine – "Streams of Whiskey"

[20:28–24:49]

Introduction:

• Self-described as Arizona’s only Irish thrash band, blending Celtic, punk, and metal.
• Hosts are amused-skeptical at the description: "Maybe there’s a reason for that…” – John [20:09]

Song Reaction:

• Standard Irish pub-rock with bagpipes, wild instrumentation, and rowdy vocals.
• “They’re your drunken mix.” – John [22:37]
• “It should be called March 17th.” – Nick, referencing St. Patrick’s Day [22:40]
• “Dropkick Murphy’s retarded cousin.” – John quoting a listener [23:00]
• “The only people who like Irish music are the Irish.” – John [24:06]
• General consensus: good for Irish pubs and St. Paddy’s, but not something any of them would listen to for fun.

Ratings:

• Brady: 5
• Brett: 4 (“I just can’t stand it, but I think they’re good at what they do.”) [25:00]
• John: 5
• “If you have a bar gig on March 17th, you’ll always have work.” – John [24:49]

---

4. Reckless Eden – "Skeletons"

[26:10–29:09]

Introduction:

• No proper bio provided, but the hosts know a member (Sanjay) from previous radio collaborations and from his work with "big real name bands." High expectations for production quality.

Song Reaction:

• The professionalism leaves the hosts in awe.
• “I thought we were on commercial break and this was just a song on the radio. Like, it’s not bad.” – Brett quoting a listener [30:32]
• “That was outstanding… song’s a perfect 10. Shut the contest down. That’s the winner.” – John [33:10]
• “You did play that as a wake up song… It’s memorable to that point. It’s been months, and I remembered it.” – John [33:11]
• “Pay for production.” – Nick advocating for other local bands to invest in pro quality [33:22]
• “Those guys put that together because they’re good at it.” – John [34:00]
• “If Jelly Roll did that, it would be a massive hit.” – John [31:59]

Ratings:

• All: 10 (“Perfect score, ’cause it deserved it. That was really good. Really good.” – John [34:23])
• Recognized as disqualified due to previously airing and band member’s location (Lithuania), but held up as the gold standard for local acts.

---

5. Witness Protection – "Breath of Poison"

[37:43–41:23]

Introduction:

• Humorous, mysterious bio with lots of tongue-in-cheek jokes about “witness protection,” their longevity, and kidney count.

Song Reaction:

• The panel is floored, comparing the band’s sound to international acts and questioning if it’s AI-generated due to its slickness.
• “That was spectacular… for a couple dudes throwing something together, that was great.” – John [43:03]
• “That was a 10.” – Nick [43:39]
• “If that was on this station, would be an around-the-blocker. I call it—you go around the block to hear the whole thing.” – John [44:40]
• “Honestly, those last two… I want both of—that was amazingly good.” – John [45:16]
• Producer clarification: Not made by AI, but with studio assistance apps. “You could perform this.” – John [44:40]

Ratings:

• All: 10

---

6. Graves of the Monuments – "Suffocate"

[47:12–50:46]

Introduction:

• Minimal bio: “Hello. We are Graves of the Monuments.” [47:05]
• Tough placement, following two “perfect 10” bands.

Song Reaction:

• Fast, technical, modern metal with high energy. Hosts praise musicianship and production, though genre isn’t to everyone’s taste.
• “If I’d heard that live… the crowd would have started the mosh pit without thinking these guys are just some local band.” – John [51:15]
• “Production was good. Everything about it was on point.” – John [50:47]
• “There are people who will like that song a lot… not in my house.” – Nick [51:33]

Ratings:

• John: 8
• Brett: 7
• Brady: 7

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On production value:
  “Pay for production.” – Nick [33:22]
  “If you don’t have any money, then you’re not ready… Did you hear yourself? That’s how it should sound.” – John [34:56]

• On song similarity: “Irish music sounds just like the last Irish music song you heard.” – John [23:29]

• On AI and modern tools: “Even if it’s done with AI, it takes skill to put that out.” – Nick [42:54]

• On local bands raising the bar: “If you’re listening and you thought we were too hard on you, and then you heard that, didn’t you deep down in your heart go, oh, I see now?” – John [33:54]

---

Key Segments

• [06:54] Veins of Aether — critique and scores
• [14:22] The Woodworks — critique and scores
• [20:28] Whiskey Famine — critique and scores
• [26:10] Reckless Eden — critique and scores
• [37:43] Witness Protection — critique and scores
• [47:12] Graves of the Monuments — critique and scores

---

Conclusion

Playdio Day One revs up slowly but crescendos with three outstanding acts who floor the hosts with pro-level production and songwriting. “If you’re in a band… listen to this track again. For production value alone, pay for production.” – Nick [33:22]. The episode is a masterclass in honest local music critique—with plenty of humor, deep dives into why production matters, and memorable analogies along the way.

Transcript

[Nick Toluto]

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[Brett Vesely]

Hey, it's Brett Vesely and I'm here with Byron from MMP Guns. Look Byron, I have a friend wanting to sell some guns he inherited. What's the best way for him to do that?

[John Holmberg]

Brett, the last thing you want to do is sell the gun to someone who can't legally own one.

[Nick Toluto]

Tell him not to put himself at.

[John Holmberg]

Risk and come into M and P.

[Nick Toluto]

Guns where he'll get a fair offer.

[John Holmberg]

And he can rest easy knowing it's.

[Nick Toluto]

Not getting into the wrong hands.

[Brett Vesely]

Okay, but what if he lives out of state?

[Nick Toluto]

Easy legalgunbuyer.com and he can do it all online.

[John Holmberg]

It's really that simple.

[Brett Vesely]

There you have it. MMP Guns or legalgunbuyer.com the safe and legal way to sell your fire arms. It's Brett Vesely from Homebridge. Morning Sickness Now, I've always been the kind of guy that takes care of my own lawn. That's until I found Divine Design Landscaping. These guys aren't your typical mow and blow landscaping company. They do amazing work. And it's just what I needed to finally throw on the towel and let the experts take over. If you've been unhappy with your landscaping or sick of trying to do it yourself, well, it's time to get a hold of Divine Design Landscaping. These guys handle everything. Lawn care, irrigation, tree work, low voltage lighting, 3D designs. Get a free quote@divinedesign lawn care.com that's divinedesignlawncare.com you're listening to the HMS podcast brought to you by mmpguns.com your most trusted online marketplace for firearms, ammunition and accessories.

[John Holmberg]

It's John Holmerg here from the Morning Sickness and it's time to talk about TVs Doug Hopkins of my home group and Doug hopkins.com boy, that team at Doug Hopkins office is amazing. Not only will Doug Hopkins buy your home for cash as is and get that deal done lickety split. His team is unbelievable. So if you've got a place that needs a ton of work, Doug will help you out by making that cash offer as is. Or he'll list your place. If it's already perfect. All you have to do is start the process online@doug hopkins.com or grab the phone and sing.

[Nick Toluto]

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[John Holmberg]

Still streaming Homburg's sickness online at 98kupd.com.

[Brady]

There it is.

[John Holmberg]

Remember when Metallica did that thing with Lou Reed?

[Brady]

This makes me.

[John Holmberg]

This makes me want to hear that Big Mistake album.

[Nick Toluto]

I think this is the first time I heard the vocals.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, and normally we'd make fun of you for being deaf cuz you are. But you're not. In this particular case, it's the thing. So somebody had a text that said no. Plan B. Should have gotten rid of that one early. Sorry, Chris, somebody's got to tell you. And then Kyle, who listens to this every year, says, you know, I realized this is a historically bad start to play doo. Usually there's two bands or three bands in the first 10 that I could see. You know what? Maybe they're going to be in the finals. But outside of Piss Ball Pete, who was really only in it for one reason, because that was hilarious. All these bands have sucked more than Troy and Michael on a Friday night. All right, last gay joke. That's enough. But Michael and Troy don't. I don't. I don't think they even perform like that. Veins of Aether A E T H E R A Ether.

[Brady]

Aether.

[John Holmberg]

I don't know what that word. Look that word up real quick. Brent. A E T H E R. Aether. Anybody know what that is? Not smart enough that says hello. The band Veins of Aether would be honored to participate in this year's Palladio. You sure about that? Veins of Aether, hailing from Phoenix, Arizona, carve their sonic path with hard rock infused modern metal and electronic textures. Fronted by Sam Richardson, an emergency medicine physician. Nice. Whose experiences with life, death and loss bleed into deeply emotional lyrics, the band channels raw authenticity and narrative depth. Their upcoming debut ep, Fallen Hour, introduces Veins of Ether as a band intent on honoring the genres of hard rock and metal with uniqueness all their own. Find Aether.

[Brett Vesely]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

What is it? You don't seem excited about definitions. I'm gonna read it. Yeah. Oh, it's long.

[Brett Vesely]

That's what I'm saying.

[John Holmberg]

Ancient Greek personification of the upper air. Or primordial God. A discredited 19th century scientific theory of medium for light waves.

[Brett Vesely]

That's why I had you read it.

[John Holmberg]

Or modern theoretical concepts that are compatible with Einstein's theories. Oh, there's a lot going on there. It also is an obsolete spelling for ether. They put an A in it.

[Nick Toluto]

That's what I thought.

[Brett Vesely]

We'll go with that.

[John Holmberg]

It sounds better than wacky spelling, mythology.

[Brett Vesely]

And all that kind of stuff.

[John Holmberg]

Anyway, let's see what they've got. They sound through their bio that it's a thing. Guys, we got a lot of songs to get through today. Bud, stop talking and BS and let's get through this. You know what, Junior, you're not wrong. We do have a lot to do today. Junior. All right. Veins of ether. I gotta find it. Where'd it go?

[Brady]

Mood.

[John Holmberg]

But there it is. Veins of Ether is. The song is called Siren and It is number 11 on the day one of Palladio 2026. Here we go.

[Brady]

We drift on broken waves. Here I'm alone. You were my cell in the world. Now you're gone, gone, gone But I try to find a way to turn side. You are here never. Lost Outside silence. While the sun sets. Unlo the sun sets un the sky high and low the sun, the songs of the love. Drifting broken waves. Singing down Our girl wasn't worth the cost. But I try to find a way to turn the tide. Turn the tide. You are here. The sun. The sun. Sa.

[John Holmberg]

There you go. They made it all the way through. That was a close one. All right, boys. There you go. That is Veins of Ether. Song was called Siren they sounded like a real band. You didn't have to like the song, but that sounded like a band that was actually trying, I guess, sound like.

[Brett Vesely]

Real music in the middle there. It sounded a little like that corn Skrillex thing or a little corn.

[John Holmberg]

I didn't necessarily care for that little disparature, but it was something I heard a lot of nothing more. And then I heard Shinedown and A little Weirdly Disturbed sometimes. Like the vocals. At least I heard a lot of nothing more.

[Nick Toluto]

Little Miles Kennedy in his voice.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, And a little Miles Kennedy kicking in there. They sounded like a real band. And I don't know if it's because they just followed this up.

[Brett Vesely]

Is that what he was saying?

[Brady]

If we have any plan.

[Nick Toluto]

That can't be real.

[Brady]

That's real.

[John Holmberg]

Brady. He was convinced he was gonna win. I. I actually didn't mind that. Brad, I'll start with you.

[Brett Vesely]

I guess if truly a 6. But going coming after that one, I would have given him a 7, but.

[John Holmberg]

You want to give it a. I'm gonna go six.

[Brady]

Six.

[John Holmberg]

Brady.

[Nick Toluto]

I'll go seven.

[John Holmberg]

I think I'm gonna go seven. Also. This one says it's a nothing more sound. John. They sound very similar, but good. Production quality was good. I don't know if it's because of bad skin, but this just sounds so good after that. The voice has been done before by better bands, but it's much better than what we've heard. That's what I heard. I heard a band. I heard. I heard something that wasn't this. Is someone torturing him?

[Nick Toluto]

Do we know where he is?

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. Somebody call?

[Brett Vesely]

Yeah, he's hanging out somewhere.

[John Holmberg]

No, no. We need a wellness check. This guy said, I heard Queens. Right, everybody? See, that's the thing about what we just heard from that band was Veins of Ether is that you reminded us of a lot of things we like and still didn't quite pinpoint what you are. Yeah, it sounds like a bad song by a good band.

[Brett Vesely]

Yeah, I can see that.

[John Holmberg]

I think that's exactly what you're hearing there. I didn't think the song was terrible. It just wasn't crazy good. Seven's good. Next band. A nice job. Veins of Ether.

[Brett Vesely]

Gay or not, I'd crank this in my car.

[John Holmberg]

All right. Proof that gay can be good, says Michael Jones. These guys have a good producer. That was a good producer. That was a well produced song. But again, on the heels of what we'd heard, the words he's saying are, stop asking if we have any plans. But he Hits the guitar so hard it says stop skin if we have any plans.

[Nick Toluto]

Or he was. He was mid breath on the A.

[John Holmberg]

You guys won't mind if we listen to that. You don't mind if we listen to that again. Jesus.

[Nick Toluto]

You turn it up. What did you say?

[Brady]

Poop in my pants.

[John Holmberg]

I'm going to sing.

[Brady]

Stop.

[John Holmberg]

I have poop in my pants. It's getting funnier. Sorry. It sounds like if the Bee Gees on their deathbed. Goodbye, Barry. We're gonna miss you, buddy. All right, next band is the Woodworks. We're the Woodworks, a heavy alternative four piece band from Tempe slash Phoenix. Here's our song threat. Thank you.

[Brady]

That's it.

[Brett Vesely]

I love that bio.

[John Holmberg]

Amazing Bio Boys. It's a good one. I like that.

[Brett Vesely]

They already got points for me for the bio alone.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. Woodworks song is called Threats. Let's see if they're any good. It's 98 KUPD.

[Brady]

Good luck. We saw right into the distant future. It didn't seem very far away. Oh, the m trying to eat that.

[John Holmberg]

I feel like I've been stamped in the hot.

[Brady]

I don't want to hear that word here again to be a tricky thing.

[John Holmberg]

Or say it again. What the is there to think about it?

[Brady]

The ground is moving. The sky.

[Nick Toluto]

In this case, I'm thinking we spare John's dress out of the aircraft.

[Brady]

I'm sending this to us. To you. We walk right into the distance. Future reasons.

[John Holmberg]

Guys.

[Brady]

Hear the words you say sometimes.

[Nick Toluto]

I mean, who talks like that?

[John Holmberg]

It's John Holmer here. Time to talk about TV's Doug Hopkins of my home group and doughopkins.com. i just sat down with TV's Doug Hopkins and we did some TV commercials while we're watching Florida football. So you get to see me sit next to Doug and somehow or another make Doug look pretty. And I'm happy to do it too. I bought and sold houses using Doug Hopkins. So I've been through the process and he's the real deal. He is not going to cancel or change the game with fine print contingencies. Simple cash offer and the deal is done. Start the process online@doug hopkins.com or grab the phone and sing.

[Nick Toluto]

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[John Holmberg]

Holmberg's morning sickness. That's the same singer. That's Faustion. Yes, That's Faustia. We found him.

[Brady]

We saw right into.

[John Holmberg]

3:11.

[Nick Toluto]

Faust.

[John Holmberg]

That's Faustia.

[Brady]

That's.

[John Holmberg]

They're related.

[Brady]

They're.

[John Holmberg]

They're twin brother and sister.

[Brady]

Right.

[Nick Toluto]

Now turn me up.

[Brady]

All right. Ah.

[John Holmberg]

Don't do that to me. I can't listen to that.

[Nick Toluto]

A little bit faster.

[John Holmberg]

That. I don't know what that is. Like the beginning of 60 Minutes with a seizure.

[Nick Toluto]

But yeah, they're.

[John Holmberg]

I don't know what's going on with that one. I didn't like that at all. Brett hated that the second it started.

[Brett Vesely]

Brett, I'm giving him a one for the bio. Yeah, I said I would give him a point.

[John Holmberg]

So. That bad. But it was pretty bad. Hey, tell Yoko to not submit anymore.

[Nick Toluto]

Everything about it, not just her.

[Brett Vesely]

Listen, toots, leave the singing to the men.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, man. So this is actually Timu, Katie, and the Hobbs man. Oh, man.

[Brady]

Three.

[John Holmberg]

Brady goes three. I can't decide on whether to give it a number.

[Brett Vesely]

What the is there to think about?

[John Holmberg]

No. Yeah, I'm just saying, like, maybe just an R. I think we're just giving an R and I an unquantifiable thing. A shape, a circle, a zero.

[Nick Toluto]

Fail. I'll put R down.

[John Holmberg]

I. I'll give it a two. It's not good. It's just not good.

[Nick Toluto]

No, it certainly is not.

[Brady]

No.

[John Holmberg]

And then Ed Gein over here dropping his bombs. Oh, my God. What are your plans tonight?

[Brady]

So what are you gonna do later tonight?

[John Holmberg]

I just want everyone to like me, that's all. Thanks, Ed Gein. Thanks for. And it's Bad Skin is the name of this.

[Nick Toluto]

I'm gonna win this.

[John Holmberg]

Bad skin. Mother said I would probably win it, so I think I'm going to. Thanks, Keen. Bad skin. The song's called Bad skin. It's harder to wear bad skin from a corpse.

[Brady]

Yeah.

[Nick Toluto]

Next.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Brady]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Whiskey famine. This sounds good so far. In the attached file is our song, Streams of Whiskey For Palladio. We are a bunch of hooligans who get together to make some music that blends traditional Celtic songs with modern punk and thrash metal. My brain started to put that together and that was like, put some liver in that spaghetti.

[Nick Toluto]

Yep.

[John Holmberg]

This spaghetti doesn't have enough fruity pebbles in it. Creating something unique to Arizona, where the only traditional Irish thrash band around. Maybe a reason for that. A lively bunch of musicians who are here to bring the ruckus. I am Chris Daly and I am the drummer of Whiskey Famine.

[Brady]

Not Irish.

[John Holmberg]

No, it isn't.

[Brady]

That's right.

[John Holmberg]

I hope you enjoy our music. Let's hope we enjoy your music, too. Let's hope for the best here from our friends in Whiskey Famine. Right. Streams of Whiskey is the song. Whiskey Famine is the 13th entry for this year's Palladio contest. Let's see what they got.

[Brady]

Last night I slept I tripped out with big hand I shook him by the hand now he passed the time of day Question all his views on the crux of life's philosophies he had but he's few clear and simple words to say he said I'm going I am going I let you in our ways Baby blowing I'm going when going with straight stop Whiskey not flowing. Land of jail I soften try to stretch me but the rope always been slack now that I'm a pile I'll head down to the Chelsea I walk it on my feet But I leave there on my back Because I going I am going Bam. And straight away triumph going I am going let's face the whiskey I'll flow.

[John Holmberg]

The out. Say it again what the is there to think about?

[Brady]

The words that he spoke See noise are so full to me says nothing ever came out by what they call the tear when the world is dark and I need the light inside me I walk into a bluff every 50.

[Nick Toluto]

All right, I missed that one.

[John Holmberg]

Drop a bomb in the song. On top of it. We got a cursy in there.

[Nick Toluto]

Bunch of mix.

[John Holmberg]

That's right. That's your drunken mix.

[Nick Toluto]

It should be called March 17th.

[Brett Vesely]

Expect nothing less. Yeah, I'm gonna give an extra point now.

[John Holmberg]

Why doesn't it. Yeah. Yeah. He just popped him up one. Why don't they ever call themselves March 17th? That was 17. The March of 17.

[Nick Toluto]

Guys. They have heard flogging Molly. Right?

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, but that's. You know, that's what this person.

[Brett Vesely]

You can do with that.

[Comedy Announcer]

I mean.

[Brady]

Yeah. Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Says they're Dropkick Murphy's retarded cousin. But you can't. That's what you're doing, though. That's what they do, right?

[Nick Toluto]

That's the intent. They told you that.

[John Holmberg]

This one says. Okay, fun fact. If you listen with headphones, the bagpipes just beat your ears to death. I can't hear anything but bagpipes, but it's fun. From the stuff I'm hearing, I believe there's also a flute of some sort in there amongst the snares. Yeah, it's just, you know, that's production.

[Nick Toluto]

John. I can't believe I'm saying this, but it needs more gang vocals to make the chorus tolerable.

[John Holmberg]

Well, that's what Irish music is. And people are like, oh, it sounds just like. It is. Irish music sounds just like the last Irish music song you heard.

[Nick Toluto]

They're pulling winches at the Renaissance.

[John Holmberg]

No, they're not, like, crazy. They're out there. It sounds like if Guy Fieri picked the song. Oh, man. Wow.

[Nick Toluto]

Was he singing in Gaelic as well? I couldn't understand a word.

[John Holmberg]

But again. Okay, Matt Silcock. Enough. Says drop kick Gay. All right, all right, enough. We get it. It's the word of. It's what they do, though. I mean, that's what that stuff is.

[Brett Vesely]

I assume.

[Nick Toluto]

It's good.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Nick Toluto]

I don't know.

[John Holmberg]

I didn't like that one. This one says, I think we got a winner from Micah Slayman. Micah Slayman. I think we got a winner here. This one sounds exactly like what I like to listen to. The Irish music is, ironically, only for the Irish. They're the only ones who like it. You very rarely see, like, Jani from Africa hanging out. Let's go over to the. That Irish public. Listen to those guys. I love Irish music. Said no one in Africa ever. I'm not a fan of that. Brett, you're not either. They're good at what they do. It's good for the. The. The bars that allow that. And on March 17, you've got a job for the rest of your lives. As far as this goes, I'll give you a five because you're kind of.

[Brett Vesely]

Oh, we got flogging homos that came in.

[John Holmberg]

All right, let's see. Five. Five from Brady. Brett, I hate Irish music.

[Brett Vesely]

I just can't stand it. But I'll give them a four because I think. I think they're good at what they're doing.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. But, yeah, at a certain point, it's.

[Brett Vesely]

Just not my thing.

[John Holmberg]

All right, Reckless Eden is next no bio. No bio.

[Brett Vesely]

All right.

[Nick Toluto]

We have a personal connection.

[John Holmberg]

We know one of the people in the band.

[Brett Vesely]

I have the bio if you'd like it. He. He sent it to me. We don't want to read. Just go. No, no, no.

[John Holmberg]

It's just legit.

[Brett Vesely]

Oh, yeah, it's a legit bio.

[Nick Toluto]

I was gonna say he didn't. He's like, to me, I didn't send.

[Brett Vesely]

It, but if you need it, here it is. I'm like, no, we're good.

[John Holmberg]

And the only thing we know about these guys is one of the guys we used to. That used to sort of do freelance workforce here is in the band. And also he worked in, like, real music. So, yeah, this should be for years. High quality, at least production because he was pals with. With big bands, like, big real name bands. So let's see if Reckless Eden. The song is called Skeletons. Let's see if Reckless Eden's got anything for us here. It's 98 KUPD. Good luck.

[Brady]

Can find faint a smile we wear the mask so well behind this h is a living hell we're all afraid of what they'll see the broken parts we try to keep we try to keep Building walls we're digging graves Hiding shame Drowning in blame Shadows are the ones you know we'll never leave we're all still a fan of buried deep ashamed one We've lost But the bones keep rattling Bolts they stale we're running scared we always win We're a hiding skeletons We're a hid the skeleton. Every phone's a story that we never tell Pretending it's so perfect but we're really all unwell Building walls we're digging graves how to shame everything in blame the shadows are the ones you know will never le we're all out of skeletons and our colosses Buried deep ashamed one We've lost But the balls keep rattling won't stay still we're running scared we always win we are hurting skeletons we are hurting skeletons. They come out at. The skeletons come at night. Morning sickness hear the words you say.

[Nick Toluto]

Sometimes I mean, who talks like that?

[John Holmberg]

98.

[Comedy Announcer]

All right, HMS Podcast, time again to let you know where to go for some great comedy in the valley this week. All right, Josh, John and the Flowers tour is going to be downtown at stand of live east side of the Tempe Improv. Tony Rock is performing. And up north of Desert Ridge Improv, you have Langston Kerman. And next week for the holidays, Deon Cole, Eric Griffin and Greg Fitzsimmons are coming to town for the complete lineups and for tickets, go to standuplive.com desertridgeimprov.com and tempeimprov.com looking for the best football spot in town, look no further than Hooters with wall to wall TVs, all the games and the best specials. Any we have you covered. Select big daddy beers starting at only $4 and the Hooties pick three for only $10.99 per person. It's a game changer. Honestly, where else can you go get two beers, an appetizer, two entrees and two additional non alcoholic drinks for under $30. Nowhere. So head to Hooters, your game day headquarters.

[John Holmberg]

Holmberg's morning sickness. Come on now. That's what here. We have to. We have to preface this. That I just remembered. Remembered. Sanjay sent us that when it came out and asked if we'd play it as a wake up song. And we did.

[Nick Toluto]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Long time. That was a long time ago. That was what it's supposed to sound like, though.

[Brett Vesely]

This guy made up a good one. He says, I thought we were on commercial break and this was just a song on the radio. Like, it's not bad.

[John Holmberg]

This guy says, is this the deadliest catch crab fishing song? It makes me want to go king crab fishing. Says, who put this good band in here? This isn't gay. Is this Holmberg sneaking in again? No. I wish I was in that song. We've snuck in before and made people mad. We win it. That was outstanding. This one says, and just to keep the theme alive, they sound like a homosexual. Blackstone Cherry.

[Brady]

Okay.

[John Holmberg]

Why aren't they on the radio? Let's skip right to the chase. Platio is. It's. I agree. That song was great.

[Brady]

Great.

[Nick Toluto]

Love the ending, too.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, the whole. Yeah, it got to it. It was. That was just really. You know, those are pros right there. That was good. People are actually saying, I'm looking it up. What is that? Vance, Reckless, Eden. It's funny because they came out of the closet to make room for skeletons. All right. The gay jokes have taken over for you guys actually playing.

[Brett Vesely]

Daughtery feel to it. I can see that.

[John Holmberg]

I've told Sanjay this before with other songs he sent me. I'm like, I love the singer's voice.

[Brady]

Voice.

[John Holmberg]

I want him to be even bigger. Like, it almost feels like he's holding back because when he hits that chorus in that song. Yeah, that erupts.

[Nick Toluto]

I was saying it earlier. If you give that to a country artist like Hardy or. Oh, Jelly Rolls or Jelly Roll or something like that. I think that song could be.

[John Holmberg]

If Jelly Roll did that, it would be a massive hit. And because it's not Jelly Roll. Yep. It's. They've got to work for it. But if you just said, here, buy this and he did that, that thing would be a base five finger meets Disturbed. Damn good. From what I just heard. Mixed well. Feels like they love music. I'd book these guys immediately for a show. Genuinely potential. You may have something there. It says. Yeah, that's right. I remember now. You did play that as a wake up song. So maybe we have to disqualify them.

[Brady]

Man.

[John Holmberg]

And also we have to disqualify. Just realize Sanjay's in Lithuania. Yeah.

[Brett Vesely]

They can't play anyway.

[John Holmberg]

But yeah, this one says that's a perfect mix. The vocals and instruments. They have a good producer. The member is a. Yeah. These guys have been hanging out with. I mean, Sanjay was with Shinedown for years doing PR and photography.

[Nick Toluto]

He was their primary photographer. If they can't play tomorrow, you know, if they make it. Yeah. He said scratch.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Nick Toluto]

Yeah. And they said that in there. In. In his email to me.

[John Holmberg]

And Skip that played. I agree. People. People saying skip them for the playo. Just get them on the air. Song's a perfect 10. It's a great song. Shut the contest down. That's the winner.

[Brady]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Says, I thought I'd heard this before. I was listening when you played it the first time. It's memorable to that point. And it's been months. I remembered it when we started playing. I'm like, oh, right, we did this before.

[Nick Toluto]

John. You say it every November. So please hear me when I say this. Other local bands that have already been played this morning, listen to this track again. For production value alone. Pay for production.

[Brady]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

That is a great point that they're all local bands and we've been pooping on a lot of you because what we just heard was two songs after this. Tell me you're incapable of making something sound really good. There's a reason we're tough on you is because sometimes this stuff pops up. These are local guys.

[Brady]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

It's not like Sanjay's rolling in dough and he's throwing 10, $12,000 at a recording.

[Brady]

He's not. Not.

[John Holmberg]

Those guys put that together because they're. They're good at it and they got quality people around them. That was great. I will give them a 9. Actually. I'm going to give it a 10 just because I think that's where I'm Going, yeah, you know what? Throw it up there, Brady.

[Nick Toluto]

Yeah, I mean it's not. I mean that it's a scratch though. I mean it's got.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, but still it's a 10. That's our PER.

[Brett Vesely]

We've had bands that couldn't play before and this is one of them.

[John Holmberg]

Perfect score, cuz. It deserved it. That was really good. Really good. It said 100%. Blackstone cherry and Daughtery Mix sounded too good for Plato. Now if you're in a band and you're listening to this and you've already been played and you thought we were too hard on you and then you heard that, didn't you, deep down in your heart go, oh, I see. Now don't you have the self realization to sit back and go, oh, that's. That is what it's supposed to sound like. And don't yell at me. We don't have any money. Then you're not ready.

[Nick Toluto]

Then you're not ready ready. You don't magically find money and then get.

[John Holmberg]

You're being too tough on us for not being good enough. Did you hear yourself?

[Nick Toluto]

Yeah, exactly.

[John Holmberg]

Because that's how it should be. What we just heard. You don't even have to like the song that much, but that's how it should sound.

[Nick Toluto]

God damn American rock and roll. I just called Ice on myself after listening to that song.

[John Holmberg]

Not Reckless Eden. Excellent job. That is one we're going to look at, I hope and, and say, hey, we knew those guys.

[Nick Toluto]

Please understand when I say this, John, it's not a slight, but that song does not belong in Palladio. It is a real song.

[John Holmberg]

It's a real song. That's what we're looking for, somebody to pop like that. I did my favorite part of that whole thing, just arrogance involved there is that a couple people thought it was me, you know, I would produce something excellent. But we're not in it this year. I was talking to Marty, the guitar player, player in the band I play in. And he said last night, he goes, you know what we could do? I could just show up tomorrow at like 3:30 and we'll throw something together real fast and throw it in. He said, it'll be better than like 90 of it. And I'm like, unfortunately that's true. Because Marty's such a good producer and that's what it takes. It's production, the quality of man. That was good. Reckless Eden.

[Brady]

All right.

[John Holmberg]

I feel bad for this next band. Hopefully they're good. It's called Witness Protection.

[Brady]

All right.

[John Holmberg]

And they had to follow Reckless Eden, which is one of our maybe two or three bands that have gotten perfect tens across the board support over the years. Sanjay and the boys I'm proud of. That's outstanding. We are called Witness Protection. Therefore the names have been changed to protect all the Italians.

[Brett Vesely]

I like it.

[John Holmberg]

We don't have a band name so we're working on it. We, meaning the two of us, have been around for a very long time. We post music on platforms. We have other stuff to do. We're influenced by everyone, so we're like a fruit basket at a funeral. The concrete, the concrete shoes of some of our former friends and the tides of the ocean. We've been around for a long time and made music to whatever has moved us. Vinnie, vocals, guitar since and a host of heart medication. Other Vinnie more since drums and sometimes the cowbell. The host and a host of heart Medication. For us, this is just a name in the name of fun and hopefully helping Palladio miserable again be miserable again this year. Share the takeaway here. Even if we are buzzed, we still have four kidneys between us. Oh, and even amount of kidneys. You sons of. Come on. Did you write that back? Toledo's response to this email was, come on, you can dummy up a decent bio and no names. Have chat GPT do it.

[Nick Toluto]

Well, he said. He said we don't really have a bio. And I'm like, come on, man, you can. Then he did it.

[John Holmberg]

All right, going to reveal what the band is called. Witness Protection.

[Nick Toluto]

Oh, yeah, don't reveal.

[John Holmberg]

And the song is Breath of Poison. Good luck to witness protection. It's 98. We're in Pallad.

[Brady]

Sam. Breath of poison in the air tonight World of fools under flickering light Void of thought they swallow the sound Their lies of truth keep spinning around Endless cries can drown the plain Deception of troll is all it Marching blind Me, other God still in my. And the leaders they stumble and fall Corrupt to their core they poison us all A puppet show on a hollow stage Words like smoke just fueling the rage Endless crown of pain Deception of control it's all in fate Marching blind Many other God stealing mine. Eyes wide shut they dream of chains Whispers of freedom Lost in the A system built on a house of sand but who will rise who will take A standless crown of pain Deception of controlling all in vain hide our shame Marching blind.

[John Holmberg]

What's going on?

[Brady]

Hear the words you say sometimes I mean, who talks like 98k upd?

[Comedy Announcer]

All right, HMS podcast time again. I'll let you know where to go for some great comedy in the valley this week. For the complete lineups and for Tickets, go to standuplive.com desertridgeimprov.com and tempeimprov.com hey, everybody.

[John Holmberg]

It's John Holmerg here from the morning sickness. And you hear me all the time talking about my friends at lost our home pet rescue. We do the pick of the litter and it's brought to you by our [e-mail] Every week I head over to lost our home pet rescue and I meet a brand new beautiful animal that needs a home. The work they do at lost her home is unbelievable. Not just your average pet shelter, that is for sure. They help people in a lot of situations. Look them up online. Lost our home.org and check out everything we do at 98kupd.com in the pick of the litter section, Holmberg's morning sickness. That's the best song cupd plays. What was that? Unbelievable. Witness protection. Breath of poison. Toledo's convinced it's AI.

[Nick Toluto]

I'm not convinced. I just wonder.

[John Holmberg]

It's fantastic.

[Nick Toluto]

No, I just wonder for having the.

[Brett Vesely]

Displeasure of following reckless protections.

[Brady]

All right. Yeah.

[Nick Toluto]

Oh, right. I'm not crapping on it. All I'm saying is it still takes skill to get AI the right way to do that. We played around with it long enough. I know it takes some skill to put that out.

[Brady]

Guys, we're four removed.

[John Holmberg]

We're four removed from that point.

[Brady]

Wow. Wow.

[John Holmberg]

That was spectacular. Says for a couple of dudes throwing something together, that was great to keep the theme though. I bet they're gay. Stabbing Ramstein rocks. I want to go to a witness protection show right now. So do I. Stabbing Romstein.

[Brady]

I love it.

[John Holmberg]

Two in a row. We get back to back. Incredible produced bands that want their music to take off. Cancel this content. We can't top these last two. How do we know? I would have said cancel it after reckless Eden and then that happened. I liked. I liked that more than reckless Eden. And that was a 10.

[Nick Toluto]

John, please have Toledo reply back to all other 28 or 38 bands now. He got the number wrong. All of the bands with that track. And just say if you can't match this.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. If you don't feel good about yourself. That was outrageous. Breath of poison is a bad banger. Witness protection. If it's not the pistols guys, it's these guys. Yeah. Breath of poison. Now this singer doesn't piss on his balls. Solid tracking production there. I mean, if that's AI and That was great.

[Nick Toluto]

Somebody said. I think the guy nabbed it from. From an AI this is what he says. F1 Studios Producer Edition Edition. Which is an. Which is a new thing that came out. I saw it last week. Released a sample of what a band did on their program. The electric sound sounds just like this one with a copy and paste. Again, if it's AI that is fantastic.

[Brett Vesely]

He just emailed me back, says it's honestly not A.I. the only thing that is A.I. is it is a studio help app. So kind of dial.

[John Holmberg]

But it is not an AI song. You could. You could perform this. Yeah, I knocked out. That was that literally to me right now, if that was on this station would be an around the blocker. I call it. As you get in the car and it starts and you're almost home. So go around the block to hear the whole thing. I. I'm gonna give another 10 out. That's two in a row.

[Brett Vesely]

Yeah, me too.

[Nick Toluto]

Yep.

[John Holmberg]

Can we reveal who that is? I just found out.

[Brett Vesely]

We'll wait till the end.

[John Holmberg]

Okay.

[Brett Vesely]

You know, keep it a surprise.

[John Holmberg]

I just found out.

[Brett Vesely]

Yeah, I did too. That's why I emailed him.

[Brady]

Like, what the.

[Nick Toluto]

He wanted me to keep it.

[John Holmberg]

That honestly, that those last two.

[Nick Toluto]

I'm just disturbed.

[John Holmberg]

I want.

[Brady]

Like that.

[John Holmberg]

I want both of that was amazingly good. Breath of Poison. We'll play that again. Just add that to the list.

[Brett Vesely]

Now that song's in my head.

[John Holmberg]

That's a.

[Brett Vesely]

Play it again.

[John Holmberg]

That. I agree. That is a smash rock song.

[Nick Toluto]

If I could say anything, I would only say that the lyrics are a bit cliche. But what song doesn't have a cliche lyric? It's how you remember.

[John Holmberg]

Well, if you're going to be extra critical to everything, you're going to find something. And I agree. There's going to be something there where you go, ah, they could have. This one says the only thing missing from that was an Irish flair. No one's ever said that. That's never been said.

[Brett Vesely]

That was amazing. So was the last one. Wow. This is actually gonna be an awesome show.

[John Holmberg]

I'm going tomorrow night. Copper Blues will be down there downtown watching the top five bands. And I mean. And then one of them we only get like 15 seconds out of. Let me tell you.

[Brady]

A Man Named Pistol.

[John Holmberg]

It's well produced.

[Brady]

So small he pissed on his ball Hollow.

[John Holmberg]

They Might Be Giants is mad. They didn't write that. Man. Two in a row. I don't even know if I. Now I. Now I feel really bad for Graves of Monuments.

[Nick Toluto]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

Everybody's guessing that it was Doug Hopkins.

[Brady]

It's not.

[John Holmberg]

We'll tell you who it is later. But it wasn't Graves of the Monuments. I feel bad for you guys because you just followed 60 points in two bands. Song's called Suffocate. You got a bio for that one?

[Nick Toluto]

Oh, you want to do that now? I thought you want to do one month.

[John Holmberg]

We'll go one more.

[Brady]

Okay.

[John Holmberg]

Then we'll do the last four on the other end. Holy smokes, guys. Nice job. Wow. I'm so happy.

[Nick Toluto]

Brett.

[John Holmberg]

I told you. Here's the. Here's a great bio for this. We've had two.

[Brett Vesely]

Let's not get carried.

[John Holmberg]

Calm down. Don't wipe poop on it. Why poop on it? Brett. Thanks, Keen. Ed Gein with an entry this year. Here's the best bio of them all.

[Nick Toluto]

Hello.

[John Holmberg]

We are Graves of the Monuments. Love it. There it is.

[Brett Vesely]

Got a point. Automatically for me.

[John Holmberg]

Graves of the Monument song is called Suffocate and they are following some really great stuff. Let's knock this down, see what they've got. Graves of the Monuments. Good luck. You're in a tough spot.

[Brady]

I saw my destiny for my eyes the casket parade and marches on. I just cannot from who I am I fall into space like a goddamn. How can I break flag from the demons with black when no one was around? I'm desp the spicy. There is nothing you can do I'm just Never raise me never say But I will keep on living it maybe I won't be afraid. All right.

[John Holmberg]

What is happening? I'll let him finish. I don't know. No idea what's going on. I should have played it earlier.

[Brett Vesely]

I would have liked it more.

[Brady]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Graves of the Monuments. Yeah. Had you played it before the last two guys, the positioning for them stunk. But not my cup of tea, as Brady says when he hates something. But it. They're very good at.

[Brady]

What?

[Nick Toluto]

Production was good.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, everything about it was on point. Graves. Is it Graves of the Monuments.

[Nick Toluto]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

They were really good at what they did. You can really hear that. Like Toledo said off the air, you know Exactly. When the Adderall kicks in.

[Brady]

Yep.

[John Holmberg]

That dude hits that like he's at the. Suddenly he jumped to the hardest level of a video game and his feet just go.

[Nick Toluto]

Guy says, john, I have to be honest. All I can think of is, oh, that's just cute. They're trying to be tough.

[John Holmberg]

See, I hear that with that music.

[Brady]

Music. Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

But I liked that one. And normally that pushes me out. Man. I liked It. If I'd heard that live, Brad. If we were at a concert together and we're down close and we're like, who the hell are these guys? I guarantee you the crowd would have started the mosh pit, started rolling with that without thinking that these guys are just some local band guys.

[Nick Toluto]

I recognize that there are people who will like that song a lot.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Nick Toluto]

Not in my house.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. Ain't allowed. My place. Yeah, it's.

[Nick Toluto]

I just thought a couple of the transitions were weird. The changed face. A couple we were talking about with.

[John Holmberg]

The Adiron, kind of what that style does, although it was a little abrupt occasionally. But I look again, it sounded bigger than a local band contest, which is what we're looking for. I'll give them an eight. I'm going to go seven seven. Brady. I'll go seven seven as well. I'm riding high on the last three guys. I'm gonna take a break here. I don't know how we've done this, but Plato was actually. Kevin Falcone says, you know, I work out when I listen to your show. These songs are actually getting me going. Some of them.

[Brett Vesely]

Well, the last three.

[John Holmberg]

Well, let's. Let's take a little break from that. Did he hear it?

[Brett Vesely]

Sounds like an outtake from Little Nicky.

[John Holmberg]

Somebody said it sounded like when Buddy the elf tried to sing, and he was, like, not real confident.

[Brady]

Anyway.

[John Holmberg]

All right, it's 8:50. Palladio just had three songs in a row that I hope I hear again on the radio soon. Great job, guys. There you go.

[Brett Vesely]

Oh, did you read Ryan?

[John Holmberg]

Hells, no. Ryan Howell says Guardians give it a 10 if I'm reading their smoke signals correctly as I drive past the rest. All right, Brian. Guardians do love.

[Nick Toluto]

Oh, yeah.

[John Holmberg]

I guarantee if it was an all Guardian vote, that band is number one one right now. Yeah. Graves of the monuments, prepare for some guardian love because it's coming your way. You guys are going to make it on the res. It's 8:51. Plano is rolling along, and I'm beaming. Great job so far. Outside of the first 10 or 11, it's 98kUpd, Arizona's most powerful rock radio station. He said fully erect.

[Nick Toluto]

Hey, it's Larry McFeely here with my.

[Brett Vesely]

Friend Wayne from AMCO.

[John Holmberg]

And, Wayne, if my car has an.

[Nick Toluto]

Extended warranty, do I have to take it back to the dealer for service?

[John Holmberg]

No, Larry, if you have an extended service contract, you can use it at any Amco. It's nice to have other options. I'll say Amco has dealership quality rental cars, no hassles and faster service.

[Brett Vesely]

AMCO does more than just transmissions, right?

[John Holmberg]

Right.

[Brett Vesely]

If you need car repairs or hear.

[John Holmberg]

Feel, see, smell, or even think you.

[Brett Vesely]

Have a car issue, call Amco first.

[Nick Toluto]

Just Google Amco for your nearest location. That's Amco Double A, MCO transmissions and.

[Brett Vesely]

A whole lot more.

[Brady]

Feed a family, make a kid happy, and win a new car.

[John Holmberg]

It's the 25th annivers of operation Santa Claus, presented by Sanders and Ford, Sanders and Lincoln, U haul and ABC15. Make a donation of food, new toys, child size clothing or money and you could win a new Ford F150 truck or Lincoln Corsair SUV. For more info, go to givetothecloth.com Sanders.

[Brady]

And Ford, Lincoln and ABC15.