The Loudest Miniature Fuzz

Summary

Radiolab – "The Loudest Miniature Fuzz"
Release Date: April 21, 2010
Hosts: Jad Abumrad, Robert Krulwich
Featured Guests: Erin Dyer & Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase)

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Episode Overview

In this Radiolab short, hosts Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich put music front and center, spotlighting the Brooklyn-based duo Buke and Gase. The episode explores how the band’s unconventional instruments, intertwined personal history, and creative sound embody Radiolab’s playful, curious spirit. Through conversation and live rehearsal snippets, listeners journey into the fuzzy, energetic world of Buke and Gase, learning about the innovation and emotion underpinning their distinctive noise.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Music at the Heart of Radiolab

• Although music is always woven into Radiolab’s sound design, it’s rarely the explicit focus. In this episode, the team flips the script, digging into what makes one band, and their sound, so captivating.
  • Jad Abumrad: “Music is very important to the show. It’s never the explicit topic, but it’s always there.” (02:07)

2. Discovering Buke and Gase

• The band was introduced to the Radiolab team by producer Karen Havelik, as they were seeking a “Southern but twangy, with an edge” ambiance for a previous segment about hookworms.
• What was initially a left-field choice ended up being a sonic revelation for Jad—distinct from what the show needed, but “so right in so many other ways.” (02:53–03:45)

3. Describing the Indescribable: Buke and Gase’s Sound

• Erin Dyer presents a whimsical analogy to capture the feeling of their music:
  • Erin Dyer: “Imagine a recently retired schoolhouse janitor riding the back of a big horse…galloping over different scenes…like a calm rose petal surfaced pond…then a party with topless beachgoers…then an angry mob with pitchforks chasing rabbits who’ve stolen carrots and cabbage…” (04:06–05:24)
• Aaron Sanchez offers a more succinct version:
  • Aaron Sanchez: “It’s like…the loudest miniature fuzz.” (05:42)

4. Live Rehearsal: "Two Frog"

• The hosts allow the band to showcase their sound with a raw performance of "Two Frog" in their Brooklyn apartment.
• Robert notes the characteristic “hookwormy" quality—a callback to the origin story.
  • Robert Krulwich: "It's so hookwormy. I mean, like, right from the get go." (07:49)

5. DIY Instruments: The 'Buke' and the 'Gase'

• Erin Dyer plays the “buke,” a heavily customized baritone ukulele with added strings, pickups, and stereo outputs.
  • Erin Dyer: “The buke is a baritone ukulele…It's really light…has two pickups.” (08:07)
• Aaron Sanchez plays the “gase”:
  • Aaron Sanchez: “A hybrid between a guitar and a bass…two of the strings are bass strings…the bass strings go to their own bass amp, the guitar strings go to their own guitar amp.” (08:35–08:50)
• The band incorporates percussive elements: Aaron plays kick drum with his foot; Erin wears ankle bells. (09:04–09:15)
• Robert Krulwich: "So this is like one of those people who walk around, like, in central Europe with like nine instruments doing them all simultaneously." (09:21)

6. Evolution of a Partnership

• Buke and Gase's creative collaboration began after meeting in 2000 and playing together in a band called Hominid (2003). The band dissolved due to personal reasons—specifically, a breakup—leading to a years-long silence between Erin and Aaron.
  • Erin Dyer: “We broke up because we were dating at the time.” (10:53)
  • Aaron Sanchez: “We didn’t speak for like three years.” (11:21)
• Eventually, Aaron reached out with a casual email about Erin’s cycling hobby, rekindling both their friendship and musical partnership.
  • Erin Dyer: “He said, so how’s the cycling going?” (11:38)

7. Emotional Undercurrents in the Music

• Jad speculates about the tension and “possessed” feeling that pervades their music, linking it to the duo’s layered personal history.
  • Jad Abumrad: “There’s something about your music that feels possessed…by some sort of…history you guys have together.” (12:02–12:14)

8. Playful Banter and Inventive Language

• The episode is marked by the hosts’ and band members’ playful tone—stringing together technical curiosity, personal history, and inside jokes, maintaining the trademark Radiolab style.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Erin Dyer describing the music: "Imagine a recently retired schoolhouse janitor riding the back of a big horse...galloping over different scenes..." (04:06)
• Aaron Sanchez coining the episode title: "It's like...the loudest miniature fuzz." (05:42)
• Robert Krulwich, humorously suggesting an instrument innovation: "Wouldn’t it be cool if the bass string was actually an elongated and taut hookworm?" (08:56)
• On their past relationship:
  • Erin Dyer: "This is the first time you’ve ever said that."
  • Aaron Sanchez: "We’re bandmates."
  • Erin Dyer: "Oh, not even friends? Jesus Christ." (10:56–11:04)
• Jad speculating on the music’s emotional charge:
  • Jad Abumrad: “There’s something about your music that feels possessed…by some sort of…history you guys have together.” (12:02)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:07 — Radiolab’s relationship with music
• 02:53–03:45 — Discovering Buke and Gase for the hookworm segment
• 04:06–05:24 — Erin Dyer’s colorful analogy for their sound
• 05:42 — "The loudest miniature fuzz" description
• 06:53–07:47 — Live rehearsal: "Two Frog"
• 08:07–08:33 — Explanation and demonstration of the 'buke'
• 08:35–08:50 — Explanation of the 'gase'
• 09:47–10:40 — Performance: "Bundle Tuck"
• 10:42–11:24 — The band’s personal history and breakup story
• 11:38–11:44 — The reconnection
• 12:02–12:14 — Discussing angst and emotion in the music

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Additional Notes

• The band’s performances and creative process are interwoven with warm, sometimes teasing conversation among all participants.
• Listeners are invited to see Buke and Gase live at Radiolab’s event, and can find more about the band through Radiolab's website.
• The episode fits Radiolab’s ethos: curiosity-fueled, sonically inventive, willing to chase the strange and intimate connections that music can forge.

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For Further Listening

• Find more about Buke and Gase’s music and upcoming performances through radiolab.org.
• Explore earlier Radiolab episodes for similar blends of experimental sound, storytelling, and science.

Transcript

[Jad Abumrad]

Hey, Fidelity. How can I remember to invest every month?

[Fidelity/Michaels/State Farm Announcer]

With the Fidelity app, you can choose a schedule and set up recurring investments in stocks and ETFs.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Huh.

[Jad Abumrad]

That sounds easier than I thought.

[Fidelity/Michaels/State Farm Announcer]

You got this?

[Jad Abumrad]

Yeah, I do. Now, where did I put my keys?

[Fidelity/Michaels/State Farm Announcer]

You will find them where you left them.

[Robert Krulwich]

Investing involves risk, including risk of loss. Fidelity Brokerage Services, llc.

[Jad Abumrad]

Member nyse, sipc.

[Fidelity/Michaels/State Farm Announcer]

Hey, crafters. You're invited to visit the new knit and sew shop at Michaels. Find hundreds of fabrics in over 800 stores and over 100,000 styles. On michaels.com shop your favorite yarn brands, including Big Twist, caron cakes and Bernat in multiple styles and colors. You'll also find all the machines, tools and notions you need with top brands like Singer Brother and Pellon, plus Essential Thread and Floss. It's all new at Michaels.

[State Farm Announcer]

Let's say your small business has a problem. Like, maybe one of your doggie daycare customers had an accident. You might say something like, doggone it, Peachy Wawa.

[Jad Abumrad]

Holy schnauzers.

[State Farm Announcer]

But if you need someone who can actually help, just say, like a good.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Neighbor, State Farm is there.

[State Farm Announcer]

And get help filing a claim from your local state farm agent for your small business insurance needs. Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.

[Jad Abumrad]

Oh, wait, you're listening.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Okay. All right. Okay. All right. You're listening.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

I'm listening to Radiolab.

[Jad Abumrad]

Radiolab shorts from WNYC.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

And npr.

[Jad Abumrad]

We're gonna rip roar through this.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

Okay.

[Robert Krulwich]

Do I need to know anything or do you just want to tell me it?

[Jad Abumrad]

I'm just gonna tell you it.

[Robert Krulwich]

Okay.

[Jad Abumrad]

Maybe I'll play you some music as well.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Sure.

[Jad Abumrad]

Okay. Three, two, one. Hey, I'm Jad Abumrad.

[Robert Krulwich]

I'm Robert Krulwich.

[Jad Abumrad]

This is Ra. The podcast. That's right.

[Robert Krulwich]

I shouldn't say it that way. The podcast.

[Jad Abumrad]

Yeah. More declarative. So we do. We know music is very important to the show.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Very.

[Jad Abumrad]

It's never the explicit topic, but it's always there.

[Robert Krulwich]

It is the governor.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Really?

[Jad Abumrad]

Yeah. And today we're gonna make it front and center. So I thought for the next 10 minutes or so, let me tell you about this band that we ran into.

[Robert Krulwich]

I don't think you mean that literally. It was not a band that you had a collision.

[Jad Abumrad]

No, I kind of did. Well, let me give you the backstory.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Ok.

[Jad Abumrad]

So you remember when we were doing the parasite show?

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Yes.

[Jad Abumrad]

Hey, we did several pieces about hookworms, the first of which was about hookworms in the south. Remember this story? I do.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Very well.

[Jad Abumrad]

Just A jog. Here's a brief clip. We think that these people are sick from something because they don't behave like we do. What does that mean? They are slow.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Not mentally.

[Jad Abumrad]

They're slow physically. They're pale because they've got hookworm. Okay, so now we were searching for the right music to use. We went to our secret weapon. Her name's Karen Havelik. She works a couple cubicle rows down from us. We asked her, do you know anything that's kind of Southern but twangy, but not. Kind of has an edge? Because these hookworms are taking over people's minds. So it's got to have a little bit of an edge to it. So she gave me all this stuff and then she's like, oh, and check out Buke and Gas. Gase. Gas. So to make a long story short, she handed me a cd, this one right here called Buke and Gase. And I was like. And I was like, that's totally wrong for the show. But it was so right in so many other ways that I was like, okay. So, yeah, so here we are. I visited Buke and Gase in Brooklyn in this little basement apartment where they play. And should we just hear something, Please.

[Robert Krulwich]

I've been a fan of Duke and Gay for not yet.

[Jad Abumrad]

It's really hard music to describe.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

For instance, I'm Erin.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

You can say your last name.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

I'm Erin Dyer.

[Jad Abumrad]

Erin is one of the members of the band. Here's how she describes what they do.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Imagine a recently retired schoolhouse janitor riding the back of a big horse.

[Jad Abumrad]

That'S.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Galloping over different scenes. Like, one scene could be a really calm rose petal surfaced pond. Jumps over that. And then it gets into another scene where there's a big party with topless beachgoers that are totally pruned out from hanging out on the beach. And they're very surprised. And then it jumps into another scene where there's an angry mob with pitchforks and flames. And they're running after rabbits that have just stolen all of the carrots and cabbage and they're not going to be able to eat their feast because of it the next day. So they're very angry. But that's with the janitor's jumping over and he's excited about it.

[Jad Abumrad]

And I would be too, in this scenario. Weird, weird scenario. You just made it. Are you the janitor? So you guys the janitor on the horse?

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

No, no, I would say the audience would be the. The janitor on the horse.

[Jad Abumrad]

So that's how Aaron Describes it. But there's another Aaron in the band.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

Aaron Sanchez.

[Jad Abumrad]

Two Aarons. And here's his attempt.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

It's like. It's like miniature. It's like the loudest miniature fuzz.

[Jad Abumrad]

All right, here's Bueng Gase rehearsing a song called Two Frog.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Maybe someday you'll see. That I.

[Jad Abumrad]

That was. That.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

That's as far as we got.

[Robert Krulwich]

It's so hookwormy. I mean, like, right from the get go.

[Jad Abumrad]

Totally. Now, the amazing thing is that all of that noise just came from two.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

People just trying to make as much noise as we can.

[Jad Abumrad]

The reason that they're able to make that much racket is because they've heavily messed with their instruments. Erin, the girl plays something called the buke.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

The buke is a baritone ukulele.

[Robert Krulwich]

Oh, her name is in buke. That is the instrument she plays?

[Jad Abumrad]

Yeah, she plays a ukulele, which I didn't know comes in a bass flavor. This is yours, right?

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Yeah.

[Jad Abumrad]

Very cute. It's like a miniature guitar.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

It's really light, too, and it's a wooden body. And you notice it has two pickups. This is just a.

[Jad Abumrad]

She has actually taken this buke and modified it, added some strings, electrified it with some pickups and outputs and such.2 outputs.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

So it's a stereo.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Stereo.

[Jad Abumrad]

That's the buke. Now the gase. This seems even more complicated.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

So this guy.

[Jad Abumrad]

That's what Aaron the boy plays.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

This is the gase. And this has basically. This is a hybrid between a guitar and a bass.

[Jad Abumrad]

Get it? Guitar, bass, gase. Yeah.

[Robert Krulwich]

I'm just trying to think of. How would it look like.

[Jad Abumrad]

Well, it actually looks just like a normal acoustic guitar, but.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

But two of the strings are bass strings.

[Jad Abumrad]

The bass strings go to their own bass amp. The guitar strings go to their own guitar amp.

[Robert Krulwich]

Wouldn't it be cool if the bass string was actually an elongated and taut hookworm?

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Do you sing on this one?

[Jad Abumrad]

Except it would be hard to play because it'd be biting your fingers the whole time anyhow. So the other thing that's happening when they play is he's beating a kick drum with his left foot. She's got bells on her ankles.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

This is a really high pitch frequency. And then this is the brass.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Yeah.

[Robert Krulwich]

So this is like one of those people who walk around, like, in central Europe with like nine instruments doing them all simultaneously.

[Jad Abumrad]

A little bit, yeah. This is Buke and Gase performing from their first album, a song called Bundle Tuck.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Breaking up and up and down these days. No days of.

[Jad Abumrad]

How long have you guys been playing together?

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

We met in 2000 and then we were in a band in 2003 called Hominid. Hominid?

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

That band broke up.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Broke up?

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

We broke up because we were dating at the time.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

This is the first time you've ever said that.

[Jad Abumrad]

Really?

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Yeah.

[Jad Abumrad]

What are you now, if you mind me asking?

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Friends.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

We're bandmates.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Oh, not even friends? Jesus Christ.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

No, we're friends.

[Jad Abumrad]

We're friends now. I kept trying to push and prod the two errands about why they broke up, but they wouldn't tell me. I probably wouldn't tell me either. Suffice to say, something happened and then they just stopped speaking to each other for a really long time.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

We didn't speak for like three years.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Three or four years.

[Jad Abumrad]

Really?

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Yeah.

[Jad Abumrad]

Aaron the girl basically moved away, gave up music altogether and started racing bikes. And then one day, out of the blue, for no real reason that he can explain, Aaron the boy writes an email to Aaron the girl.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

He said, so how's the cycling going? Or something like that.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

I think I did say that.

[Jad Abumrad]

You did?

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

We've never really talked about it.

[Jad Abumrad]

Really? Yeah. And beyond that, they wouldn't really talk about it with me. But their music has something in it. Some kind of like hookworm y angst that maybe comes from stuff they don't talk about. There's something about your music that feels possessed. My temptation, maybe wrongly, is to say possessed by some sort of. The history you guys have together.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Could be. Everybody here is up to get you up to get you up to get you up to get you up to get you up to get you up to get you Everybody here is out to get you out to get you out to get you out to get you out to get you out to get you out to get you Even the people under se. Even the Even the people on the sea Even up on the.

[Robert Krulwich]

If large armies of bunnies are going to steal their carrots then they're just living in an anxious world. The truth is they fear the rabbit.

[Jad Abumrad]

I don't think they would disagree with you there. Well, that was Buke and Gase recorded with help from Michael Rayfield. You can find out more about Buke and Gase at Bukengase.

[Robert Krulwich]

How would you spell Buke? B U K E and gase G.

[Jad Abumrad]

A double S. If you have any trouble spelling it, you can just go to our website, Radiolab.org we will link you there. And for all you New York listeners, here's something. June 1, Buick and Gase are gonna join. Actually Join us on stage for the second installment of our performance series that we're calling Armageddon.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Oh, Nagada.

[Jad Abumrad]

An explosion of you will never forget.

[Robert Krulwich]

So we're gonna have Prune and Gase on our stage.

[Jad Abumrad]

Buke and Gase.

[Robert Krulwich]

Buke and Gase. But she'll be pruned out.

[Jad Abumrad]

She will. He may as well. And that's June 1st here at the Green Space. Just check our website, Radiolab.org for details. Oh, and by the way, the first one that we did, which was just a few days ago, is. The video is now on our website as well. Radiolab.org it was a really fun evening. We had a. Basically two guys talking about swarms. Swarms. You know, the science of swarms. Also kind of making art from swarms. Very cool. Radiolab.org.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

This is Seamus Pilsbury, a Radio Lab listener from Oshawa, Wisconsin.

[Jad Abumrad]

Radio podcast is funded in part by the National Science foundation and the Sloan Foundation.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Right.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

You hear it like that. Now you start. You start on your 1, 1, 1.

[Jad Abumrad]

Wait, you're not playing the same line as yes, are you? Really?

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

Well, they're two different.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Pretty much.

[Jad Abumrad]

Do that again.

[Aaron Sanchez (Buke and Gase band member)]

We should do it together. Oh, and then separate.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

Well, no, do your bass line. Do the bass line. Because it's the same.

[Radiolab Producer/Assistant]

Right.

[Erin Dyer (Buke and Gase band member)]

So where's your one? There's your one. But I'm. One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. One, two, three. So mine is in here. One and two, four. One, two. So then we were trying to.

[Jad Abumrad]

Yeah. So where's your.