L+R Presents: The Truth

Summary

Love and Radio Presents: The Truth — "The Completist"

Podcast: Love and Radio (Blood Memory) | Daylight Media
Episode: L+R Presents: The Truth
Date: June 30, 2026

---

Episode Overview

This episode of Love and Radio is a crossover, spotlighting an episode of the renowned fiction podcast The Truth, created and directed by Jonathan Mitchell. Host Nick van der Kolk introduces "The Completist," a layered, cinematic audio drama about music fandom, obsession, connection, and the fine line between devotion and discomfort. Set on a single evening, the story follows Nick Needham, an earnest music fan, who follows another fan, Howard Sacklevich, on a quest to hear a rare and possibly mythical album by the cult musician Garrett Solomon. The drama explores the sometimes lonely, sometimes unsettling intensity of being a “completist” — someone who sets out to collect everything from a beloved artist.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Culture of Fandom Before the Internet

• Time: 05:12
  Jonathan Mitchell (narrator) contextualizes the story:

“Before the Internet put decades of media at our fingertips, being a fan of something could feel like a quest... if you ever got the chance to finally hear it or see it, you would take it. Even if it sent you really far out of your way... even if it meant trusting someone you didn't really know.”

• The story uses this nostalgia to frame the unfolding events — a time when the hunt for rare art was uncertain, filled with rumor and obsession.

2. The Record: 'Autumn From an Angle' by Garrett Solomon

• The episode centers around the search for a rare album, symbolic of the lengths fans will go for completion.
• Howard claims to own the only known copy, drawing Nick into an impromptu nighttime journey.
• Memorable fan talk:
  • “I just can't believe he finally went trendy, you know, with the keyboards and the fake drums...” — Nick, 02:18
  • “It's the opposite of the new one, man. That's the only one I've never heard...” — Howard, 03:21

3. Howard and Nick's Dynamic — Connection and Tension

• At first, the two bond over shared fandom and intense analysis of lyrics.
• Howard introduces heavy, quasi-mystical ideas:
  • “He’s got the gift. True north. He can’t be obscured by this culture...” — Howard, 13:51
  • “Because he’s not just making music, he’s leaving instructions. The key is in that song, Bad Hand. In surrender, there is power. You ever wonder what he meant by that? Because I know what he meant.” — Howard, 14:28
• Nick grows uneasy as Howard’s energy shifts from fellowship to something more insistent, bordering on uncomfortable.

4. A Growing Sense of Unease & Escalation

• Small signs erode trust (getting lost, locked car door, avoidance of direct answers).
• Nick tries to interrupt the night, suggesting they exchange numbers and do this later.
• Tensions peak in the car:
  • “Why are you being hostile?... I can tell something's up. We're driving in circles.” — Nick, 18:58
  • “Take me home now.” — Nick, 19:18
• Nick’s mounting fear is clear when he calls a friend from a gas station, convinced “I may be in serious trouble.” (21:17)

5. Rumors, Social Standing, and Vulnerability

• Nick calls his friend Mike, who immediately recognizes Howard as an outsider:
  • “He’s about as big a freak as you could have wound up with. Come on, Nick.” — Mike, 22:16
• When local bully Arlo turns up, listeners see that Howard is a target in his community, not a threat.

6. Emotional Denouement — Loneliness and Acceptance

• At Howard’s home, the truth surfaces: Howard orchestrated their arrival so his father would see him with a friend.
  • “Every night my dad gets home at 11 and goes straight to his room... I just wanted him to see me with a friend. Last week, I heard him tell my sister that he thinks I don’t have any friends.” — Howard, 29:36
• The dynamic shifts from fear to shared (and awkward) empathy.
• Nick and Howard finally put on “Autumn From an Angle.”
  • Quote:
    • “You want to listen to the record? Can we please listen to this record?” — Nick, 30:27

7. Music as Connection and Escape

• The closing track, full of longing and complicated feelings, underscore the story’s themes: dedication, estrangement, and the hope for meaning.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Fandom and Obsession:

  “Before the Internet... being a fan of something could feel like a quest. You’d spend years searching for that one missing piece... even if it meant trusting someone you didn’t really know.” — Jonathan Mitchell, 05:12

• On the Album's Mystique:

  "I own it."
  "What? Come on. You have a copy... isn't that, like, impossible to find?" — Nick & Howard, 03:10–03:17

• Howard’s Isolation:

  "I just wanted him to see me with a friend... I should have told you. That's why it was a whole thing about waiting." — Howard, 29:36

• Nick's Growing Fear:

  “Let me out. Let me out. Get out of my way.” — Nick, 19:40

• An Earnest Plea for Connection:

  “Can we please listen to this record?” — Nick, 30:27

---

Key Timestamps

• 00:04–01:11: Nick van der Kolk introduces The Truth and the episode "The Completist."
• 01:25–05:12: Nick and Howard meet at a party, bond over Garrett Solomon, and leave for Howard’s house.
• 05:12–06:41: Jonathan Mitchell introduces the broader themes of fandom and obsession.
• 06:41–13:19: Conversation grows increasingly intimate, as Nick and Howard swap stories and drive through the night.
• 13:19–19:40: Tension builds as the journey becomes uncomfortable; Nick tries to leave.
• 19:40–22:26: Nick calls for help, Mike warns him about Howard’s reputation.
• 22:26–27:03: Confrontation with a local bully; Howard finally promises to take Nick home.
• 27:03–31:09: Emotional reveal at Howard’s house, the record is finally played.
• 31:09–End: The haunting music of “Autumn From an Angle” plays, the story quietly closes.

---

Summary Table: Structure of the Episode

| Segment | Time | Highlights | |---|---|---| | Introduction | 00:04–01:11 | Nick introduces "The Truth", describes the drama. | | Meeting at Party | 01:25–05:12 | Nick and Howard bond over music. | | The Quest & Fandom | 05:12–06:41 | Jonathan Mitchell frames the story’s theme. | | The Drive | 06:41–13:19 | Detailed fan talk, hints of obsession and unease. | | Escalation | 13:19–19:40 | Nick’s discomfort grows; tension escalates. | | Breaking Point | 19:40–22:26 | Nick escapes, calls for help; Mike’s local insight. | | Reversal | 22:26–27:03 | Bully confrontation; Howard’s outsider status shown. | | The Reveal | 27:03–31:09 | Howard’s loneliness exposed; the record turns myth into reality. | | Resolution | 31:09–End | The music plays; emotional closure. |

---

Takeaway

The Completist is an evocatively textured story about music obsession, social alienation, and the complicated motives driving our quests for connection. More than a simple tale of creepy tension or fan devotion, it paints a deeply human portrait of loneliness and the power of art to make us reach, trust, and hope — whether for "true north" or simply for a friend.

---

For more of The Truth, visit thetruthpodcast.com or check your podcast provider.

Transcript

[A]

Hey there, it's Nick. While Love and Radio is in our off season, I'm featuring other podcasts that I've enjoyed, and I think you might too. So Love and Radio is not the only show from the earliest generation of podcasts to recently come back after a long hiatus. A lot of you who are listening to me during the radiotopia days will probably remember a wonderful fictional show I shared that network with called the Truth, directed and sound designed by Jonathan Mitchell. And if this is your first time hearing about him, then you're in for a treat, I guess technically, the Truth falls under the genre of radio drama, although to me, the term cinematic audio feels more appropriate. But in any case, Jonathan is a pioneer in the podcast world, and we're very lucky to have him back in action with brand new episodes. One of my favorite of these is a recent one called the Completist, written by Hunter Nelson. And if you enjoy this, I have a link to the rest of the truth in the show Notes. Or you can find it wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening.

[B]

The Truth.

[C]

A half 17 or 25. I was sick as a cadaver who believed he was alive.

[B]

He trying to get closer to the speakers too?

[C]

Yeah, Kind of wish everyone just shut up so we could listen.

[B]

Seriously, I do appreciate them putting this on.

[C]

I know. Yeah, they don't really seem like the kind of people who listen to Garrett Solomon records. Right?

[B]

No one can deny this one, though.

[C]

Oh, no, no, no There's a man within the shadow There's a figure in his coat his footprints in the meadow and his spirit in the words he wrote do you like the new one?

[B]

I mean, it's Garrett, but there's something off. Yeah, I just can't believe he finally went trendy, you know, with the keyboards and the fake drums and all this, like.

[C]

That's totally what it is. He had to try the new toys eventually. He's still got that compass in the middle, man. True north.

[B]

It's also honestly weird to hear him sing about Reagan and stuff. Like, I kind of just wish he'd keep the news out of it.

[C]

Don't need it.

[B]

Sorry. I could talk forever about Garrett. I'm Nick, by the way.

[C]

Oh, are you Nick Manlo?

[B]

No, Needham. Nick Needham.

[C]

Oh, hi. Howard. Zach Levich.

[B]

Nice to meet you, Howard.

[C]

Since. Since we're talking. Garrett, have you heard Autumn from an angle?

[B]

No, man. No, I never.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Have you?

[C]

I own it.

[B]

What? Come on. Yeah, you have a copy of Autumn from an angle? Isn't that, like, impossible? To find.

[C]

You gotta hear it. It's his best.

[B]

I heard he basically disowns it. Doesn't he disown it?

[C]

No, and I don't know why he does. Because it's so good. It's raw. It's way better. It's the opposite of the new one, man.

[B]

That's the only one I've never heard. I caught the end of it once. Aubrey Ryan. Played it on 97 9, middle of the night. Been kicking myself ever since for not tuning in earlier.

[C]

Do you want to hear it?

[B]

You mean, like, now?

[C]

Yeah. We go to my place. Because you're here with somebody.

[B]

I'm not, actually. I. I live a few blocks away. Just walked over. I truly barely know any of these people.

[C]

I don't know anyone. Let's go to my house to listen to the record. They got great speakers. Or Jensens. You have to hear it, man. I'll take you home after.

[B]

Wow. All right. Yeah. Yeah, sure. Let me just.

[C]

Now?

[B]

Fuck it. Yeah. Let's just go.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Okay. This is the best decision of your life, by the way. All right, Adam, from an angle is the raw feed.

[B]

True North.

[C]

Come on.

[B]

I always imagine it sounding like King and Alabaster combined with Brief Shine of Kindness, which would be my dream. Garrett Solomon record.

[C]

Oh, yeah. Oh, there's my car. Front corner.

[D]

Jesus.

[C]

It's been so long since I talked to somebody actually knew this stuff. This is so great. Just you, me and Garrett. Salomon.

[B]

That sounded. Is it closed?

[C]

Oh, yeah, it's fine. There's a trick to that door, though. I'll have to let you out when we get there.

[D]

All right.

[B]

Guess I'm trapped in here with you.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

I hope all you social climbers and drunk fakers enjoy the rest of your party. Because you, Nick, are about to have a singular experience that you're never gonna forget.

[B]

Yeah, man.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Can't wait.

[D]

Before the Internet put decades of media at our fingertips, being a fan of something could feel like a quest. You'd spend years searching for that one missing piece. A back issue, a lost episode. You'd follow leads and chase rumors. And if you ever got the chance to finally hear it or see it, you would take it. Even if it sent you really far out of your way or cost you a lot of money, even if it meant trusting someone you didn't really know. This is the truth. I'm Jonathan Mitchell, and this story is about how far you'd go to complete the collection. And if you want to hear more stories like this, please support Our show by subscribing to our ad free feed. Go to the truthpodcast supportingcast fm. There's also a link in the show notes.

[B]

In the fall of 2023, Romana Didalo, a woman calling herself the Queen of Canada, drove into Richmond, Saskatchewan with a fleet of RVs and set up her kingdom in an abandoned school. So the town banded together to get the cult out by any means necessary. My name is Rachel Brown, and in this season of Uncover, I explore what happens when a conspiracy theory lands in your backyard. The cult Queen of Canada. Available now on cbc. Listen and everywhere you get your podcasts.

[D]

And now back to the completist.

[C]

Oh, those magazines by your feet, they just go in the back or they're bothering you, you just toss them.

[B]

Okay. Yeah, just with the other magazines back

[C]

there on the mountain. I'm sorry about that.

[B]

Oh, wow. Are these all.

[C]

Yeah, don't worry, I'm not like a big hunter guy or whatever I was gonna say.

[B]

Yeah, that's.

[C]

No, no, no, no. When the library near me closed, I asked if they had any hunting mag thing I want to do. Cutouts. That one. Yeah, the outdoorsman.

[D]

I don't know.

[C]

That is pages and pages of people posing with dead things. I mean, can you imagine having a subscription to that? That must be like for some people. Playboy, you know? Yeah.

[B]

Oh, yeah. Oh, man, I don't even. I don't. That's. I don't want to think about that.

[C]

Also, somebody snapped my intent off. So. No radio?

[B]

Oh, yeah, no problem. No radio necessary.

[C]

I got this tape deck, but I cannot listen to records on tape. It never sounds right to me.

[D]

No sweat.

[C]

We can just got a history electric cassette right here somewhere from the library. University of Arizona, Dr. Lee Silvani. I listen to it sometimes. Marriage contract in colonial America. I'm just gonna grab it.

[B]

So where do you even find Autumn? From an angle, I read somewhere that Mick Jagger had a acetate of it, right? And then people had a bootleg of.

[C]

Hey, are you hungry? I'm actually starving.

[B]

Oh, I. I ate before the party.

[C]

Let me just blow through that.

[D]

Every burger.

[B]

Sure, yeah, no problem. Anyway, yeah, I guess I got into Garrett through the obvious ones. My. My brother Jake brought here in the hand home from college and he left it when he moved out for good. So I just left. I listened to that record over and over, and I was. I was obsessed with that song, the Chairmaker.

[C]

Ah, Chair Maker is an unbelievable song.

[B]

Yeah, it's seriously, seriously. So, you know, I tried to get my friends into it, but My friend Mike told me it was music for freaks.

[C]

Mike?

[B]

Yeah, and that. And that girls would think I was, like, a big freak if they saw it in my room. So I hid it in my garage. Yeah, it was a while before I even realized Garrett even made other records. So when I heard Brief Shine, that's when I went really nuts.

[C]

Well, you look at that. Can you believe teenagers will just smoke like that? All the medical stuff we know now, see, that's just another way this whole culture gets its hooks into people. It's nefarious. I mean, don't you think? It's actually nefarious. Welcome to every burger. What can I get you? Oh, hi, yes, every milk meal with a Dr. Pepper, please. You want anything?

[B]

No, thanks.

[C]

Can we do the load of potato skins as well? And that's it. 250 is your total drive up to the window? To answer your question, I work with this guy Carlo from Finland.

[B]

What?

[C]

Carlo? He. He inherited this box of stuff from his dad, his Finnish dad. He opened it at work, and there it was. Man bought him from an angle.

[B]

Oh. Oh, my God. Oh, my God. Carlo. Okay.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

Oh, my God. Just in the box.

[C]

It is wild and more wild. He's gonna hope. He was gonna throw it all away. And I said, is that what I think it is? No, no, I reached, like, Indiana Jones, you know? Voila. And he said, with the Dr. Pepper, no bag, please. And you know what? Can you take it out and hand the food to me directly? Whole world's trying to fill my car with trash, you know?

[B]

And the potato skins.

[C]

Thank you. Grab that.

[B]

Oh, those are for. For me. Thank you. And so is the COVID art just insane?

[C]

Oh, yeah. I mean, Garrett, of course, drew it himself. And apparently the original is as big as his whole kitchen floor.

[B]

I saw the grainiest picture ever of it in Rolling Stone once. That's the kind of thing I would literally stare up for hours.

[C]

See, that's it, though. You know, Garrett Solomon rewards attention, and he deserves it. It goes completely over the heads of the insensitive.

[B]

Oh, are we gonna.

[C]

Oh, yeah. I'm just gonna eat this here and then we'll go. I could drive while I eat, I guess. Yeah. No, no, no.

[B]

Yeah, of course.

[C]

I mean, if you wanna get there alive. You been to that movie theater over there? Southtown Palladium? They're showing off Blood Calendar. Supposed to be the goriest horror movie ever made. Should be just letting out. Yeah. Oh, my God. You see that girl coming out white is a sheet looking at her date like, why did you bring me this sicko? Meanwhile, he's nearly throwing up himself. No make out session tonight, right? There's a. There's a scene where they pull out a guy's vertebra one by one and show it to him. And then there's a scene where. There's a scene where there's a guy who's been buried alive and then he realizes the box he's in is made out of his parents skin. Yeesh.

[B]

How do people make that stuff up? God, if I had an idea like that, I would keep it to myself. I would not put it in a movie. I mean. I mean, don't get me wrong, I. I know, you know, people really dig horror and stuff. It's just not fun for me watching people's last moments. Did you. Did you see man with Two Brains though?

[C]

No.

[B]

Oh, man. Yeah, man. Pretty funny. So where do you live? Lomgren Lom Grin. Oh, is that where the big Irvings is, is sporting goods?

[C]

I don't think so.

[B]

By the way, if now's not a good time, you know, we could. We could exchange numbers, do it later in the week.

[C]

Why would you say that?

[B]

I just saw you looking at your watch and honestly, it's later than I thought too. You could just take me home.

[C]

No, no, no, no, no, man. Are you kidding? I mean, I finally get to tuck here at Solomon with somebody. We're stay. Hi, man. I mean, let's get into it. You're finally sitting next to somebody who wants to analyze every little lyric as much as you do. Yeah, right.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, honestly, I'm more of a melody guy.

[C]

I swear to you, when I first heard him, it was like I found a signal everyone else was missing. Every time I listen, I get that same feeling. Yeah, you do too. It's on us for not hearing the message because we've imprisoned ourselves. That line in the unlucky love I call again, but where are you? I came to ask, what will you do? I mean, do you hear that? Huh?

[B]

Yeah. Yeah.

[C]

He's one of these people, man. He's got the gift. True north. He can't be obscured by this culture, not by entertainers, not by politicians. Because now everyone's about what I want. My will versus yours. But our wills can become this construct. And I really think that if you looked at the whole timeline, you'd notice that now people are talking different than they ever did in history and walking different and different.

[B]

Oh yeah.

[C]

But no one notices at the human scale, so it can't be addressed. But at some point, Garrett's gonna say, now's the time, you know? Right.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Because he's not just making music, he's leaving instructions. The key is in that song, bad Hand. In surrender, there is power. You ever wonder what he meant by that? Because I know what he meant.

[B]

As you enter this parlor, I think.

[C]

What?

[B]

I think the lyrics are. As you enter this parlor. The song's about a poker game, right? Bad hand. Guy gets accused of cheating, gets shot. It's vague, but, yeah. As you enter this parlor.

[C]

Right. But. Still, I mean, you can, you know, it's all there.

[B]

Yeah. Right. Noise, I see. Oh, man, it is really dark out there. The city's got so many woodsy parts, you know, out in the. The sprawl, I guess. Lomgren. Wow. God, there's so many suburbs out in the, like, outlying areas, you know, I've never. Through transfer of property. And it's true, the Puritans did see courtship itself as an instrument of financial enterprise. A business deal between two pious households in the sight of God. The marriage was executed like a contract after period of negotiations that they allowed families to supply units and, let's face it, lots and lots of babies. On the other hand, gender ratios were such that bachelorhood in Chesapeake, for example, could extend well into a man's 40s without permanent effect on his reputation. Consider the courtship of Elizabeth Sewell.

[C]

How'd you end up at that party, anyway, if you didn't know anybody?

[B]

Oh, you remember I told you about Mike? He told me about it. He tries to help me meet people, girls and stuff, but he didn't even go, hey, man, are we getting close? Cause I think we passed that dealership already. Rudy Toyota? Yeah.

[C]

Man, I wouldn't bother with any of those people. Even in high school, every day you watch them fight each other to death like rats in a basket.

[B]

You. You went to school with them?

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

No. You mentioned sensitivity earlier. These people have no sensitivity at all.

[B]

Didn't you tell me you didn't know anybody there, E?

[C]

Yeah, right. I guess I did. I mean, I just meant that, you know, we didn't connect. That's what I'm saying. But, yeah, those guys, if you tried to teach them a single word of kindness, it would curdle in their mouths.

[B]

Yeah, we don't gotta talk about them. It's getting pretty late, actually.

[C]

Worship, control. It's like walking among the dam. People laugh at the gift of life. Did you notice?

[B]

I really don't want to talk behind their backs, man. Can we just change the subjects? Why do you keep looking at your watch? Is there something happening I should know about?

[C]

See her going out of Bramble Bar?

[B]

See who? Hang on. Hang on. What are you doing, man?

[C]

I know that hat. Hey, I know that hat.

[B]

Howard. Howard.

[C]

Don't do that to Michael. Almost gave me a heart attack. Well, it's just such a coincidence. We were driving around and I saw your hat. There's this joke. Nick. There's this joke that Rebecca's hat makes her look like Cindy Loppard. This is Nick Needham.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Hi.

[B]

Hi. We were just. Hi.

[D]

All right.

[C]

Hi, Nick. Hey, did you work at Fresh Fair today? No, not today.

[B]

I. I took the week off for. Well, it's my week off.

[C]

Oh.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

All right. I'll probably see you there next week.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

See you then. Howard, by. God damn it. God damn it. Damn it.

[B]

What? What are you. What are you mad about? She was perfectly nice.

[C]

Should have asked her if she wanted a ride home.

[B]

No, you definitely should not have. She went back in the bar. She's fine.

[C]

She was probably drunk and needed a ride home. I just get these noble ideas, but it's all. It's. It's all just a burden if I can't find the will to. The will to?

[B]

What are you talking about? What? Man, would you look? Where are we, man? Is this Lomgren or not?

[C]

You know what? Why are you being hostile?

[B]

I'm not dumb. All right? Well, I can tell something's up. We're driving in circles.

[C]

No. No, we're not. I'm taking you.

[B]

You're not taking me anywhere, man. I'm not stupid.

[C]

You know what Garrett would say about this. Oh, man. Paranoia will clip your wings now, you know your sorry branch. That was a branch.

[B]

Take me home now.

[C]

Why? Why?

[B]

Why right now?

[C]

Come on. Let's just listen to the.

[B]

I need you to take me out. I don't want to listen to the record anymore, man.

[C]

Anytime.

[B]

I want that gas station. There's a gas station right there.

[C]

We don't need.

[B]

Pull into that gas station. Pull into that gas station right now.

[C]

All right, all right, all right.

[B]

Let me out. Let me out. Get out of my way.

[C]

Howard. Whatever it is I did, I'm sorry.

[B]

I said get out of my way.

[D]

Why?

[C]

What are you gonna do?

[B]

I'm just. I'm gonna get us some beers, okay? Just move.

[C]

Oh, okay. Yeah. Sounds good.

[B]

Jesus Christ.

[C]

Jesus Christ, give me some freedom.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

This is so up. Okay, okay, okay.

[C]

Hello?

[B]

My kids. It's Nick. Listen, I need you to come pick me up. I think I think I may be in serious trouble.

[D]

And we'll continue our story in just a moment. To hear all of our stories ad free, go to the truthpodcast supportingcast fm. Hi, I'm PJ Vogt.

[C]

My podcast, Search Engine, has a new two part series for you.

[D]

Of all the new technologies coming out

[C]

of AI, the most transformative one might be driverless cars. They're already on the road in 10American

[D]

cities, and they're quickly coming to more.

[C]

We tell the story of how we got here. The secret team at Google that spent 15 years building what might be the

[D]

safest vehicle on the road.

[C]

And we cover the fights brewing in

[D]

blue cities where unions and politicians are working to keep those cars off the streets. Listen to Search Engine, wherever you get your podcasts. And now back to the completist.

[B]

I think I may be in serious trouble.

[C]

What do you mean?

[B]

Where are you? I don't know. Supposedly near lmgren. But I. I don't even know.

[C]

I.

[B]

Up in a car with this. This guy and. And I think he might be sick. Like, like, like actually sick. Like mentally sick. Like, like, like dangerous.

[C]

Okay, okay, slow down. Who. What guy?

[B]

His name's Howard. Howard Saclavic Sack. We're out in the middle of nowhere and he keeps lying to me, and he's clearly got. I feel like if I get back in his car, I'm gonna disappear like those kids in Brave Room.

[C]

Okay, wait one second.

[B]

Howard Sacklovich?

[C]

How the hell did you end up in Howard Sacklevich's car?

[B]

You know him?

[C]

Yeah, of course I know him. Hey, what are you saying? To scare you so bad?

[B]

It's not.

[C]

He didn't say idiot. You're not gonna meet girls hanging out with Howard Sacklevich. He's the one who made that word search for Pat Leitner's sister.

[B]

That was him?

[C]

Yeah. He's about as big a freak as you could have wound up with. Come on, Nick.

[B]

Really?

[C]

Nick.

[B]

Hang on, Mike. Jesus.

[C]

What now, Eyesore? Every time I see it, I. Howard, I do. I just. Okay, I'm sorry. Paint costs money. But you can fix this dent at home. You know how, right?

[D]

Howard?

[C]

Just give it a little hit like that. Just give it a little pop. Hey, hey.

[B]

Leave him alone, man.

[C]

Oh, is this your new boyfriend, Sacklevich?

[B]

Get in the car.

[C]

Howard made a big mistake hooking up with Sacklevich. Son, you're gonna wake up with your nuts in the car. Oh, God.

[B]

It's okay. It's okay. Just drive. Just keep driving. It's fine, man. Nothing Happens.

[D]

Just.

[B]

Just. Just drive.

[C]

Did you get the beer?

[D]

What?

[B]

Oh, no, no. I left it on the counter her. But it's fine. We don't. It's. It's fine.

[C]

Arlo's been that way to me since eighth grade. I don't know why it hasn't stopped. It's pretty embarrassing, in case you thought I was Mr. Hip Records Guy. Anyway, I'm gonna drive you home now.

[B]

Just tell me for real. Do you actually have the record?

[D]

What?

[C]

Nick, how can.

[A]

What.

[C]

What would I get?

[B]

I'm asking.

[C]

Out of line.

[B]

I'm asking, I'm asking. Do you have it or not, Nick?

[C]

Yes. Yes. In just a few minutes, we will be listening to it. I swear. I.

[D]

It.

[C]

I mean, it starts. It starts with the sound of a guitar being broken in reverse. You hear it come all the way back together from a pile of wood and strings, and then Garrett plays the first note. Whang.

[B]

Holy shit. Really?

[C]

Yeah. Song's called Parallax. Classic Solomon. First track, State of the Union type thing. His voice is bitter but pure. Whole album's got this desolation to it, but it's defiant, too. He's like, you want to take everything away from me? Fine. Now it's just me and the feeling.

[B]

I really gotta hear this thing.

[C]

Yeah, well, we're not far. Second song, vermiform, is 12 minutes long. What? Yeah, I know. And it's all there. True north, baby. Any superficial claws listening to it? Might as well be dogs reading scripture. And if you think.

[B]

Howard, listen, man, you're gonna put people off with that stuff. True north and all that, the will stuff. It's a lot to take from somebody you barely know. Yeah.

[C]

Yeah, I get it. I got a lot of ideas. But we don't have to talk about them. We don't have to talk about anything. Let's just go to my house, complete this transaction.

[B]

I wasn't trying to forget it. Tonight I will set forth with grasp and reamer. And it is then that you will learn your slope and your size. And will you serve under the starry eyed dreamers? Or will they sit in you and worry all their lives?

[C]

Or cast away timber the chair maker searches, Though the chair maker is dead

[B]

on his feet with his Travis hewn

[C]

up A thousand perches for a thousand one hearts, looking out for a seat. You know, he actually apprenticed under a real chair maker when he was writing that. Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

He researches a song like the novel that.

[B]

Dude, that is exactly what I said to my brother is his songs are like novels.

[C]

You Will learn your slope and your size. There's the message again, man. Loud and clear. And. And surrender. There's power. It all connects.

[D]

Yeah.

[B]

Unbelievable song.

[C]

Well, this is my house.

[B]

Where all I see is a garage.

[C]

The property has a weird footprint. There's a house, though. Come on. Around here. Side door. Okay.

[B]

What are you doing, man? What are you doing? Don't go in there.

[C]

Don't go in there, man. Come on. Don't go in there.

[D]

Don't drop it.

[C]

Open and lock behind you. Just let it swing.

[B]

Got it. Howard?

[C]

Yes, I'm here.

[B]

Can we turn the lights on?

[C]

Yeah, it switches by the door.

[B]

What were you doing just standing there, Howard?

[C]

All right. Just waiting for you. Oh, it's my dad. My dad's home. Howie, how about it?

[B]

You okay?

[C]

Hey, dad. Yeah, this is Nick. He came over to listen to some records.

[B]

Mr. Sacklevich, how are you?

[C]

Hi. Howie's got a good setup. Jensen's used to be mine. Said you're a friend of his.

[B]

Yes, sir. We talk music.

[C]

Oh, good, good, good. All right, well, good night. Good night, dad.

[B]

Wow. All these records yours?

[C]

Oh, yeah. Well, I mean, some of them I got from dad and.

[A]

Autumn.

[B]

From an angle.

[C]

Autumn from a freaking angle. Thanks for saying that in there.

[B]

Thanks for saying what?

[C]

I don't know. You know, every night my dad gets home at 11 and goes straight to his room. And I realized if we got here too early, we'd. We'd miss him. And I just wanted him to. I wanted him to see me with a friend. Last week, I. I heard him tell my sister that he thinks I don't have any friends. Just. Oh, okay. I'm really sorry, man. I should have told you. That's why it was a whole thing about waiting.

[B]

It's. It's all right. Yeah, I. Yeah. Glad we caught him. You want to listen to the record? Can we please listen to this record?

[C]

Yes, of course. Yes. Yes. Let's listen to the freaky record. Oh, man.

[B]

Hey, can I hold the sleeve while we listen?

[C]

Oh, yeah, of course, man. Do it up.

[B]

Look at this. Garrett really does seem to know something, doesn't he?

[C]

He knows everything. All right, here we.

[A]

Go.

[C]

I'm miserable but that's typical the moon is full But I am a Martian Come again. I'm dancing with a sacred mass I went to kiss her but she's an illusion Come again. Come again Come again Come again, baby I remember When I be waiting.

[D]

We make this show independently and premium subscriptions directly support the writers and actors who bring these stories to life. You can subscribe to our ad Free feed at the truthpodcast supportingcast fm. There's a link in the Show Notes. The Completist was written by Hunter Nelson and directed and sound designed by me, Jonathan Mitchell with songs written and performed by Dustin Lohman. We've put a link to his work on our Show Notes and you can hear full length versions of the songs from this episode right now on our Ad Free feed. Our story was performed by Josh Tobin as Nick David Carl as Howard, Lewis Kornfeld as Mike, Hunter Nelson as Arlo, Mary McDonnell as Rebecca, Mack Rogers as Lee Silvana, Ame Lutkin as the Drive Thru Voice and Michael Cullen as Howard's dad. And if you're a record collector, you can own the Truth on Vinyl featuring moon graffiti and Sylvia's blood. We have a limited number left, they're $50 and all proceeds go toward paying our writers, actors and production costs. You can find a link in the Show Notes or Visit our website thetruthpodcast.com and click shop. I'm Jonathan Mitchell and you have been hearing the Truth.