297. - Dean Wareham (Galaxie 500, Luna)

All right, this episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by Stateside with Kai and Carter, a new podcast from The Guardian. And they are using this podcast to slow down the news and wrestle with the questions that we all have about what's happening in the world. And they do it three times a week, Jason. Does that sound familiar to you? We don't really talk about, you know, a lot of international global news items and climates and cultures and sports and things like that. We do talk about fashion and wellness, but for everything else, Kai and Carter are a great place. All right, so who couldn't use more news? Listen wherever you get your podcasts. or watch on youtube how long gone beautiful day in los angeles let's fucking podcast bro dj them jeans is here um Wicker, wicker. Speaking of music, I am a little upset. I'm a little, I don't know if spiraling is being overdramatic, but I went on, like sometimes, I don't know if you're like this, but this is, you know, I got into DJing because I love. but also because music is kind of like so much more for me than just entertainment. Are you saying, I don't want to step on your toes, but are you saying music is life? It can be. Music has helped me out of some dark corners. So are you saying that this morning you woke up and chose to listen to the Benny the Butcher featuring J. Cole song? I did not listen to that. That hasn't reached my platform. You know, it's a Thursday morning, just like every other Thursday. You know, if I am kind of spiraling, if I am going through it, I'll fire up my Weezify app and listen to a song that'll kind of calm me down. And wouldn't you know, at India, Irie took her music off of Weezify as well. And now, what am I supposed to do at this point? So you're telling me you got, you were barefoot in the crib. You had the nag chompa lit.

And you were walking around. You had your flowy skirt on. You had your shells on. You had your linen pants. My fat little ass was. You were ready to talk to God through India while you were making your matcha. And you're telling me that Weezify didn't provide. You know, like I'm asking myself and I'm kind of answering my own question as the words come out of my mouth of what did Rivers do. to make her remove, but we kind of know where it's going. He has a little bit of a troubled, storied past as it pertains to what he does behind the bedroom door. I've heard about it. It makes me sick to my stomach. Weezer makes me sick to my stomach too, Jason. I'm glad that we can agree on that, but I'm sorry that you can't. I thought you had all of India's albums on vinyl, so it's a little crazy. I do, but they're in storage like so many of my other brethren. I don't know. A-Track, if you're listening to this, or Dipler, or Wes, or Skrill, or Sonny, or any of you guys, if you have any storage solutions for all the vinyl. Yeah. Do let me know if you want. We'll read your answer on the air if it pleases you. Maybe A-Track and Dave One should, since they got money, maybe they should kind of invent some sort of record storage facility for turntablist like yourself. I thought at first you were going in a direction of a minimalist furniture company for a shelving storage solution, but you're talking about how... Let's say if I have a very impressive wine collection, I will have a temperature-controlled underground somewhere near the airport. Marina del Rey is kind of where I keep a lot of my 70s and younger. No, I think it's a nice temperature-controlled facility. Every stall comes with a obviously tuned and perfected with fresh needles, 1200 techniques turntable listening station. And then I think that could be like a cool vinyl club. And, you know, if Dave Wan would stop buying all those St. Laurent heeled boots, he could do this. They could open this shit in a week. If he just cuts down to three pairs of boots a month, this is done. Look, A-Track can sell his good music chain. And they're good to go, man. I don't know. These guys.

They're leaving money on the table, and I'm not talking about the techniques now. The problem is an endeavor like this, it's going to require a whole lot of runway, a whole lot of capital, and I don't know. I mean it's got to be three, four years with a burn before we're going to see any profits, especially because you were talking about every room was going to have a – a fresh set of needles is that what you said yeah yeah not those needles jason get your head okay well because i've seen you know like a lot of clean needle programs in in the area haven't necessarily you know kind of yielded the results that we were all hoping for so it's we're like backpedaling on that right now i understand i understand i mean maybe we can get a donation from one of our many sponsors you know what i mean that could like do we do we have a needle sponsor turntable lab if you're listening dig deep brothers I know you unfortunately did have to close your New York location, but if... That means that they probably have a lot of needles in storage somewhere. It's something to think about, but I think this is a nice business opportunity, and we could get some of the bigger dogs involved if we had to to provide some upfront equity. I mean, upfront cash in return for equity. You know, I don't like to call in favors, but something like this, you kind of got to, right? It's like this is the moment you own it kind of thing. I mean, look, when you decide to open your Smashburger restaurant, you're going to have to make these calls, so you might as well do it now. I mean, what difference does it make? You do it now or you do it later? How is that? I know a Smashburger speakeasy opened up kind of in your hood in Hollywood called For the Win. I didn't know. I haven't tried it yet. I heard it's pretty good but overpriced. But I didn't know that people still said For the Win. Well, that's the most troubling part, I think, is the name. Like a lot of things in L.A. specifically. The product itself is not bad, but everything around it is. I'm going to add for the win to my airmail-style words you can't say no more. I don't know if you saw this, Jason, and talk about upsetting. This is worse than NDRE not being available on Weezify. Vulture, our friends over at Vulture, who are still talking about succession, even though the season has been over for six months, they launched a Wordle competitor.

Oh, no, really? That's right. They're getting into the game game. Okay. I'm in the game game. And I don't like it one bit. Do you know what it's called? Does it have a name? Fuck no. I mean, they just retweet people talking about it all day and try to get people to sign up, of course. But I just don't. Well, you got to unfollow. Well, I can't unfollow because I like some of their. breaking journalism about another Che Diaz meme that's not funny or a story about how much meat they eat on Succession. These are things I need. How much meat they eat on Succession, that's a real thing? That's a real thing. This is journalism that I must devour strictly to talk about it on this show. You know what I mean? But, yeah, no pun intended there. So it's been a rough day. It sounds like it's been a rough day for all of us. Luckily, I was able to get my cardio in, which was nice. I had to go to the platform structure yesterday for a meeting. Can you explain what that is for listeners who might not know? It's an outdoor mall in Culver City. It was fucking popping. I guess there's a new Italian restaurant there by the Madeo family of the famous Beverly Hills celebrity Italian eatery. Did you know that? Oh, okay. I did not know that. Do you know what it's called? I don't. I don't remember. They have a nice bakery. It seems like something we should maybe try, to be honest with you. You know that we have a rule, don't go to Culver City unless there's a check, but... If it means spending a lot of money, then I'll consider it. Well, I could probably. Look, let's make some arrangements. But I have a bone to pick because obviously the coffee selection is blue bottle. And I wanted to be jacked up for my meeting in top four, my brain firing on 100. You want to get jacked for that meeting. I had to go to the Nestle-owned blue bottle coffee location where I ordered a bold iced coffee. So it tasted pretty good, to be honest with you. But that wasn't the issue, Jason. This was served to me in a paper cup. Okay, so this was an iced coffee in a paper cup.

And I don't know if that's something like we ran out of plastic or this is better for the environment or we hate you. I don't know which one of the three it was. It's funny because knowing Nestle, it's not environmental, but knowing Blue Bottle, it is. So it was a strange, but you know what it did allow me to do, which I do sometimes when I'm drinking a beverage because I'm a man. You can't use a straw, obviously. I use a straw with a smoothie, and I feel – you know how that makes me feel. I don't love it. Fellas, is it good to use a straw? Absolutely it is. But, I mean, is there like an exemption to that rule if you are at a place where you don't necessarily trust the cleanliness of their dishwashing practices? I mean – You know what I mean? Like if you go to some place and they hand you your water or your iced tea in a cup. Maybe it's a plastic cup or something like that, and you're like, I don't know if I like the way they clean this. No, I don't. But you're a man, so you're like, fuck it more, rub the germs in. I'm a man, bro. I'm a man. Much like you, I wash my hands before I pee. You know what I mean? That's real man shit. Anyway, but the paper cup thing did allow me to go lidless, which I love the vibe of lidless. Lidless ice. Coffee, I don't know. I'm sipping lid free, ho, and it ain't nothing. No, iced coffee, I need a thick, plastic, bio-undegradable cup. Once again, once again, you come on this podcast and... Openly admit that you're bitch made. And that's something that I just will never understand about you. What's bitch made? What is bitch made? Needing a lid? That's bitch made. You need a lid because the straw goes through the lid hole. I don't want to teach you kind of the birds and the bees out of sipping, but when a mommy straw and a daddy lid love each other very much, you kind of have to... Put the square peg in the square hole, as it were. No, I understand. No, I understand. But, I mean, look, I got jacked on the caffeine. It was a beautiful – I blasted the Mazzy Star album on the way home and was pretty traffic-free with the windows down, having a Cali afternoon. I almost –

Luckily, because we're very close with the artist known as Benjamin Edgar, we did receive our single cigarette after dinner milled cigarette holder day of release. So I did have that, and I have yours ready to rock whenever. It's on ice for me waiting. Of course, I kept it in the original packaging. I talked to Ben a lot. He actually custom made me a pair of his jeans that are very cool. So it was only natural that I kind of asked him to do a bespoke edition of his single cigarette holder. And this one's going to be a little more costly. It holds a whole carton of palm oil. Yeah, that's a great idea. No, it's not going to be enough for you. I've been in deep discussions with Ben as well about creating me some sort of permanent. gallon jug. Not unlike my carton holder. This is not only going to be expensive, but it's going to be pretty heavy. We should talk about our guest today, Jason. We do have a guest today. We're kind of dipping back into legend territory here with Dean Warham. You might know him from the... Iconic shoegaze outfit, Galaxy 500. He was also in a band called Luna. He also has done the score for two classic, well, one classic No Bombok film, The Squid and the Whale, as well as Mistress America. He went to Harvard. He's from New Zealand. I mean, there's a lot to go through here. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Grew up, you know, went to high school in the 70s in New York City. Want to, you know, want to get a scene report. You know, we can talk about, you know, are they going to pull Luna or Galaxy 500 from Weezify? We need to get hard data on how much Luna is getting streamed on Titan. And we have to go. We have to ask Dean because no one else is going to answer us. Does he like the new Charlie XCX record? Does he think Rena did a bad job? There's a lot to cover here. So let's give good old Dino Warheim a Zoomy.

This episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by a new podcast from The Guardian stateside with Kai and Carter. This is covering a lot of our bases, Jason. It's trying to slow down. The news and wrestle with the questions we all have about what's happening in the world. And I know you particularly have quite a lot of questions. A lot of questions. But how often? Because we do this podcast three times a week and that's a sweet spot. How many times do they do? Three times a week. And I have a feeling just based on the platform and these talking points that they're maybe going to be covering different stuff than we do. That's just a guess. The Guardian is not some billionaire owned. They're not afraid to say what they want to say, brother. Yeah, Rupert ain't sniffing around in what journalists Kai Wright and Carter Sherman are up to over there at Stateside. But yeah, listen wherever you get your podcasts. You can watch it on YouTube. It's three times a week. And who couldn't use more news? You know, especially when it's not, you know, from here, let's say. Give it a listen. Give it a listen. This episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by Squarespace. Obviously, Jason, you and I spend a lot of time on the World Wide Web, so do our peers, our listeners, our friends, our colleagues, maybe even your parents if they're freaky. And if you're doing anything in the world, writing, taking pictures. I do topless boxing. You need a website. Exactly, a website that works, that does what it's supposed to do, that allows you to be creative but also business-minded. Jason, there's one place to go for that, Squarespace. Yeah, Chris, I'm over here. I'm modifying calculators and putting Claude inside of them so you could cheat at school. And I just want a place where I could, you know, have everything all in one place. I can have the SEO tools so those future graduates can find me. And, you know, I'm able to accept, quote, unquote, donations for my services that might be gray area. You know what I mean? And then email campaigns. Hey, I got a new 2.3 version upgrade. Boom, boom, boom. Get the analytics going. Raise some money. Show your investor all of your cool analytics of what's going on. They're going to want to get in early. And we can use Blueprint AI to make your website look as professional as your competition, if not more.

So head to squarespace.com slash howlong for a free trial. When you're ready to launch, use offer code howlong to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or a domain. All right, this episode of How Long Gone is brought to you by Quince. Jason, the temps are warming up. It's getting hot out there. Summer always changes how I get dressed. I need pieces that feel lighter, more breathable. And they're just easy, but still put together. I don't want to look like a slob. That's why I keep coming back to Quince. They focus on high-quality essentials that feel and look amazing. Breathable linen and soft organic cottons. Well-made basics, but without the luxury markups. That rare balance where everything feels elevated. but still effortless. Yeah, Chris, linen season is here. I wore a linen blazer to dinner a few nights ago in the warm California sun. But, you know, you got that Italy trip coming up this summer and quality European linen pants and shirts. Upgrade that look starting at just $34. You know, if you get a nice linen suit, a little t-shirt underneath it, some chill shoes, you're looking good, but you're staying cool. The inside of your special areas are nice and dry as you turn up with your besties. So elevate that summer wardrobe. Go to quince.com slash how long for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns, even on a nice holiday now available in Canada. That is Q-U-I-N-C-E dot com slash how long. That'll get you free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince punto com slash how long. OK, so you said you we could have done this podcast in person because you're close by. You're in New York, though, right? No, I'm not. I live in Los Angeles. Oh. Yeah. Dean, I know you're originally from New Zealand, but you're a real New York guy in my mind. I know. So are you, Chris. I spent most of my life in New York. I moved out here eight years ago. My ex-wife moved out here with my son. Dean, so you didn't have a choice. She didn't snatch him. It was a conversation. She said, I'm thinking about doing this.

Would you move out here? And Britt and I were like, yeah, that sounds fun, actually. So we moved out here from Brooklyn. We were in Brooklyn. And now my son, the idea was we could just stay till he graduated high school. Then he went off to UC Berkeley, got a degree during the pandemic. And now he's moved back to Brooklyn. And he says it's so great in Brooklyn. He loves it. And I'm like, yes, I know it is. Well, he's wrong. I feel like he should be a Manhattan child. Do you feel any sort of way about his – I mean, I lived in New York for 13 years, and I've been in L.A. for like seven months. Is that all? Yeah. I mean, I kept my apartment in the East Village for peace of mind that's upsetting to some people in my life. But the – I just need to – go back. I mean, I have some work commitments there that keep me going back, but I also need to go back because there's nothing to do here and no culture. So I need to go back and tap in to kind of replenish my tank. Do you feel like that at all? I think there's culture here, but you do have to seek it out. You don't bump into it. That's a good way to put it. Where in LA do you seek out your culture, Dean? You know what? I finally went to the Broad Museum last week. Okay, okay. There we go. A little on the nose for culture. Okay. I thought it was kind of horrendous, actually. Okay. Go on, brother. Go on. I mean, it feels very much like a rich guy's jerk-off project, absolutely. Yes. Oh, so it's an art gallery. A friend of my dad saying this to me years ago about a friend of his who had just bought the Village Voice, and he said to him, the difference between men and boys is the size of their toys. Yeah, it's true. This is a large toy. I mean, I think there's some good stuff in there, but like, yeah. It's the size of their dinner table. Isn't that where that giant oversized dining room set is? Yes, it is. Or is that the LACMA? No, no, that's at the Broad. That's at the Broad. Yes.

one of the things I want to do the least. So you get kudos for that alone. You make a day out of it. You go to Little Tokyo, get a nice little meal, walk around, hit the road, dodge some human feces. Downtown's a great place. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, when Britt and I first moved out, we actually looked in the downtown arts district, and there was like a loft, giant loft, you know, twice the size of where we lived in Brooklyn and way cheaper. We were tempted, but then we just thought, no, we should not. Yeah. So where in Malibu did you guys end up? You know what? We were in Hollywood for a while. Now we're in Echo Park. The poor man, Silver Lake. Well, I mean, it used to be. Now it's just as expensive. Yeah, I think the houses are smaller, so it's not that fancy. But yes, you're right. Everywhere is, right? Wait, I'm a little confused. Do you live with your ex-wife? No, no, no. I live with my current wife, Britta Phillips. Oh, okay. I was confused. Okay. I was going to say, that's a twisted arrangement. Yeah, no, I got remarried. So you have an adult child, an adult son. He is 22 years old. So what is this guy into? Is he trying to follow in your footsteps or does he think you're a freak? And has he made more money than you on TikTok alone yet? Yeah, these are all good questions. You know what? He's applying to grad school. He wants to study philosophy and Lacanian psychoanalysis. God damn it. Yeah, I know. So he hasn't made more money than you. Got it. So, Dean, you're going to be paying for him until he's 40. Oh, no. You're coming to terms with that? No, no, no. I think that. Oh, no. I have to look at my contract, I think, at age 21. I've got to check my contract. No, I think that – but you're an – I mean for a guy that's been in bands for most of his adult life, you do have a proper college degree. I do. You're the outlier in that case usually. We keep accidentally having Harvard grads on the podcast. Is that right? Who else did you have? We just had a comedian and a writer who was there. He ran the lampoon when he was –

When he was down. Oh, yeah. He was a younger guy, though. I was in Conan O'Brien's class. He was at the Lampoon back then. Oh, really? Yeah, Conan came up when we were talking to him. I think he's, you know, if you're into comedy and you went to Harvard, that's kind of your North Star, you know. Yeah. Was he an asshole back then, too? He was. I barely knew him just to say hello, like wave to say hello to him. And then when I was on the show, when Luna broke up, or it must be around when we broke up. 2004. I was on the show and I was like, I went to school too. He's like, yeah, you were the guy with that hair, right? You're like, bro, you're known for the dumb hair, not me. You're the hair guy. So did you have some fucked up hair back then or what? No more than it is now. I guess, you know, yeah, it's a thing. No more than, I mean, he's the one known for his hair, right? That's what I'm saying. But you have a great head of hair. Thank you. Yeah, your hair looks quite good. Yeah, I think you've maintained nicely. You've, you know, like a fine wine. I'm impressed personally. That's why I wanted to turn the camera on. We were talking about you before you came on, and you went to high school in New York in the 70s, which I feel like was cool, or correct me if I'm wrong. Yeah, I arrived on my 14th birthday in 1977, and it was August 1, 1977. Somehow my mom got me into the Dalton school. I just missed Jeffrey Epstein. That was my next question. I was like, so did Epstein teach you economics or did you learn this stuff on your own? He had just retired at the Dalton School, which showed up in Woody Allen's Manhattan. Of course. Sure. I think Trump went there too. Is that right? I don't think so. He went to the military academy up in the – yeah, but I don't know where he went to high school. So just you and your pal Epstein. Just you and Epstein holding it down. I mean, well, it's the – But I think New York in the 70s is so mythic to most people, but being like 18, 17 or 18, were you running wild, or were you about your books? I got good grades. I got my A's, but I was also running wild a little, so a little of both. How wild are we talking, though? How wild are we talking? Yeah, not that wild. You're a Dalton boy, after all. I dropped Astrid on the...

on their class trip, whatever. I could have been expelled a couple times. Look, guys, look, guys, I could have gotten expelled a few times. You know what? The teachers, they didn't want to, I mean, I'm thinking back to the other grade trip where I think my girlfriend gave me a Quaalude and drank vodka and I passed out. Like I could have, if a teacher, if someone wanted to bust me for that, kick me out, they would, but they didn't do that. They had grounds. Okay, so. They had rules. You know what? Back then, the Jeffrey Epstein thing kind of shows you how easy it was to get a job teaching there. Did he have a college degree? I don't think so. No, I think he was friendly with someone at the top and kind of just got him in there. You know what I mean? Look, as a guy who doesn't have a lot of qualifications but has been able to do okay in his life, I can't really hate on that. No, that's fine. That's fine. That's true. But it was different. I remember another thing going to my drama teacher's apartment. He invited some of us over. We go over there, and he's giving us a drink, and he's got a penthouse magazine, and they were like, ooh. Hey, I'm the cool professor. Yes, exactly. We're going to want to get you out of that shirt now. Yeah, that would not go over well today. Absolutely not. You mentioned the magical word quaaludes. I would like to know. Could you just describe in detail what that high feels like for me, somebody who has no way of experiencing that sweet sting? I feel like I've done it twice, and both times it was the same girlfriend who gave it to me, and both times I blacked out. And then the second time, we had broken up, and then we went out. She gave me Quaalude, some champagne, and then I have no idea how I got home. And then six months later, it hit me. I was like, oh, my God, we had. We had sex that night, so I couldn't remember it at all. And I was like, that's why things are so weird. So if you remember what the Quaalude feels like, then you didn't do it right. Well, maybe with booze. Well, as a former, I'm a former Oxycontin addict, and Quaaludes are the...

You know, that's the top of the top. Like that's what you, that's, that's what you're, you know, that's what you really strive for. That's the, they don't make them like this no mole of, of drugs for a true drug aficionado, you know? The air-cooled Porsche 911, if you will. Yeah, we all romanticized the generation's previous drugs, but that one particularly, I think because of the Wolf of Wall Street, I think that brought it back into the zeitgeist of popular culture. Can you even get those things anywhere? Do they just not exist anymore? I don't think they exist. No, they don't exist. There's a lot of lore and mythology on the internet about people who have stashes hidden for decades in South America, There's scientists in another part of the country who are trying to reverse synthesize the drugs. I mean, that's how much people, like of all the drugs, it's a drug that was around and it's just fully extinct. What drug can you think of that is like that now? All the old drugs are still around. People are still doing heroin. Yeah, heroin, yes. There's no more opium. Yeah, that's true. You've done some opium in your time, haven't you? Because I have. I have. I've smoked some opium. Really? There was, for a while, there was just stuff called phopium. It was fake. What? Phopium. I've done. You got that at heroin? Yeah. No, I think if someone hands you opium, it probably is – or like opiated hash. That was the other thing. Yeah, that's what – yeah, it's more – we used to – yeah, when I was younger, we would have a thing called downer sundaes, and it was a – this is a different time. This is your parents? Yeah, yeah, me and my mom, my sister, and my dad, and we would – before the sundae roast was out of the oven, we would basically – you would get hash, you'd get opium, and you would light it on a – you know, the AOL CD tins that used to come. So you would light it, get it going. You know what I mean? Because then it's smoking, and then you would take a toilet paper tube. Oh, my God. And just kind of inhale off the tin and just float away. So which train tracks were you living by, Chris, when this was all going down? No, I was an upstanding member of society who had a job at a shoe store. I was contributing. So you would see the photos in the opium dens. They'd have those kind of –

long ceremonial straws and you're like that doesn't cut the mustard I need a straw that's about two inches in diameter. Yeah, I need the Charmin straw is what I like to refer to. My penis would be swimming in it. That's how much opium smoke that I plan on ingesting right now. So the compact disc, you're holding a flame underneath the compact? No, no, no, no. AOL would send the CDs in like a tin. You know what I mean? So you would put it on top, and you would light it, and then it would get smoking, and you would blow it out like incense almost. You've got to get resourceful back then. It was fresh. It was free. It was sustainable, if you think about it, really. You know what I mean? It was a free – it was sent in the mail. Yeah, that's true. I'm fine. I mean, you've – so you've done extensive touring. I mean, not like some – I never had a hit song, so that's when they put you on the road for like 18 months. Yeah, but you've been around long enough in enough bands where I feel like you've played the Ukraine on a Thursday. You know what I mean? The closest I got was Prague. I played the Czech Republic. Actually, it was Czech. Now, did like Galaxy 500, Luna, did each band have like weird markets that you would have to go to because you were very popular in like Germany specifically kind of thing? Galaxy 500 were popular in the UK. Well, and Germany also. I mean, something happened to Germany. market in the world for recorded music. I didn't know that. Yeah, it was huge and then all of a sudden it isn't anymore. Nowhere weird. I was hoping you couldn't walk down the street in Stuttgart. You know what I'm saying? I can't get near Honolulu. Those guys love me down there. In Spain, there have been times like... You know, I come coming off to get my luggage from the thing and the luggage hand is like, oh, can I take my photo? Really? Maybe just saw it. It's like, look, it's a guy with an electric guitar. I just think, damn. No, he was a Luna fan. Did you guys ever play like the Primavera Festival in Spain? One time. Yes, I did. How long ago was that?

Eight years, I want to say. Ten. I don't like festivals. I don't like going to them. That's one festival I've always wanted to go to. They had the perfect example of modern electronic music with the older classic bands, but they would choose the perfect ones every time. Like a Luna. Well, this year, you can do it. They're coming to Los Angeles. I saw that. You can do it. I'm going to try to weasel my way in. Speaking of festivals, I believe that this is 2022. If the stars align, I'm going to have to go to Coachella for the first time in my life at 39 years old. Well, you'll find it. You'll just be tired. Actually, the year we moved out to L.A., we moved in April. It was like a week later. I had to wangle some VIP tickets to Coachella. It's exhausting. And these were VIP tickets. You get to stand on the other side of the chain link fence. Yes. Look, I love VIP treatment and Harry Styles, so this is kind of two worlds colliding for me. But I'm a little nervous about feeling stuck. You know what I mean? Once you're there, you can't really leave is what it feels like. Are you going to camp? Who's making you go? Do I look like a camper to you? He's not going against his will. He's never been and he's kind of been actively thinking about it. He's talked a lot of shit on it over the years and in all festivals, but Coachella specifically because it's such an easy target for a lot of ridicule. He just loves Harry Styles that much. Exactly. I don't know when it really comes down to it. But you are stuck there at any festival. Once you walk in those gates and you show them your wristband, you're not... You're not going to be like, you know what, I'm just going to head back out, walk 45 minutes to my car, sit in traffic for three hours, go back home, take a little nap, and then I'll come back and catch Weezer at the end. Nobody does that. You're locked in forever. You're curled up in a ball, sleeping on the dirt floor. That's right. The best festival that I've ever played is ATP, which is like a small festival. All tomorrow's parties. Yes. And because...

It would be in these holiday camps, and you could go to sleep. You could go back to your room and take a nap in between acts. That is nice. But you've done Glastonbury and all that shit, right? Oh, I did Glastonbury with Galaxy 500, yeah, in 1990. We were the first band on the first day. So you guys played at 11 a.m. on Thursday? I think it was noon. Back then... Glastonbury only had one stage. It was just everyone was on the main. I think it's gotten huge. I just remember the mud, just mud, mud, just having to hose our feet up. I was good. I was holding out. I mean, that was the idea. I was holding out for Oasis reunion at Glastonbury. That was what I was holding out for. And as time progresses, I'm starting to think that might just never happen. So my consolation prize is Harry Styles at Coachella. You win some, you lose some. God, what a sad substitution. No offense to Harry. No, of course not. No, of course not. But I think the mud part of it is also scary. I'm not a big wellies. I don't know how many pairs of wellies you have in the house right now, Dean, but I don't love the way that – they don't make my calves look very good. You know what I mean? They had – that actually was an outbreak of trench foot. Oh, shit. The year that I was – which is something that, you know, in World War I. They played right after you on the main stage. Trench foot was on Rough Trade with you guys, right? I like that. I like that outbreak. I like that record. And also, a lot of cops, as you go in, they're just shaking, making sure they've got any drugs. They're checking. At Coachella, they're not doing that. Can you tell me what trench foot is exactly? I think we can kind of do the math. It's a little gangrene-y. Yes, exactly. Your extremities are exposed to muddy, dirty moisture for so many moments. It's probably a fungus. No, that tracks. That tracks. I can tell you at your college. Walk me through your Harvard degree and what you've been using it on lately. I have a degree in social studies, which I know sounds like something from fifth grade. I did take that course in the fifth grade, yeah. You can get a degree. I know social. I know studying. How is it compared to sociology, perhaps? That's a good question. You know what? It's like a multidisciplinary.

There were no professors in social studies. You take some anthropology, sociology, history, statistics, economics. Sounds like a real roller coaster. It does, yeah. Exciting stuff. But how did you build this into your rock and roll lifestyle? I mean, I don't understand exactly. It's confusing. It was a waste of my parents' money, I know. It was cheaper back then. I don't know. I was not really a very good student in college. I did have a band. I worked at the radio station. So maybe that had more impact on me than anything else, working at the radio station. Yeah, I mean, college radio, because I grew up in Atlanta, and we had a station there called WRES 88.5. Yeah, I've been there. Yeah, I was going to say, but I believe it was the most powerful college radio station in the country as far as reach and wattage and stuff. Not influence. No, influence as well, but I just remember how important that was to my upbringing and then realizing that it was just some doofus I knew. playing the Smiths. You know what I mean? It felt like this bigger thing than it was. That's true. I'm like, bro, this is some dumbass that's three years older than me. Yeah, he's a little older. He's heard some more records than you. It's true. If I thought I wasn't getting laid, just imagine what this guy who works at the radio station on purpose is doing. But actually, the music director when I DJed, it was a guy named Jeffrey Weiss. And he went on to various A&R jobs. He's a great guy. I've run into him since he lives in Los Angeles. Okay, well, there's a guy named Jeff Weiss who's been on this podcast before, but he's younger. I don't know if... It's not the same guy. No, yeah. This guy would be 59 or 60. Small world, huh? What do you know? The real Jeff Weiss. Shots fired. Shots fired. Wait, do you collect vinyl? You seem too smart for that. I have some vinyl, but I don't obsessively collect it. Yeah, I don't. It seems like a fool's errand to me, but I guess I buy stuff obsessively, too, that people might think is dumb, so I can't really fire shots, you know? But you managed to. So, um...

It does appreciate the value. That's true. Especially right now because things come out, it's like there's 2,000 of them and you're like, well, that's 30 bucks. That's a lot. But then a year later, people are trading them for a lot more than that. So I'm told. No, it's true. It's all true. Well, now that you're in Los Angeles, no longer New Yorker, how has your life changed? How have you gone soft? How have you improved? Are you Indica or Sativa? You know, all that stuff. What's your mile time around the reservoir? God. I go for a hike and I go for a slow walk. Yeah, you strike me as a slow walk guy when it comes to exercise. You don't really strike me as an intense guy. That's cool. It's true. I'm not an intense guy. I played golf yesterday. I did that. Where are you playing golf at? In Griffith Park, those public courses. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Wow, it's so crazy. I've played golf there a bunch of times. I DJed a wedding at that golf course one time. It was a little nasty, but I just went hiking around there last week, and now I'm like, well. You know, the guy from Galaxy 500 plays golf there. Yep. We shouldn't talk about golf. It'll scare people away from your podcast. Oh, no, no. We don't want to talk about golf whatsoever. Don't worry. We're more of a tennis family over here. You ever dabble in the gentleman's game? I was playing tennis for a little while when I moved out here, mostly to get my son. We've discussed. Oh, is he a player? No, he's not. But so to get him off the computer, stop playing Minecraft. Come on, let's go play some tennis. I got a table tennis. I tried. Great parenting. I like that. You got to get these kids moving. You know what I mean? There's three things that we cover on this podcast the most. One of those is sports, not sports, but working out, which I think we just covered. You don't really care about that stuff. We don't know that. You might do some wellness yoga. I don't do yoga. My wife, Britta, does yoga a lot. Let's get her on the mic then. Yeah, she likes it. She's always trying to convince me to do some yoga.

I do a little something. You're just blessed. You're just blessed. It must be nice. Some of us have to work for this shit, bro. It is nice, Chris. It is nice. The other thing that we like to discuss here, especially with Angelino's, is the preferred grocery store and what it says about you. You strike me as a cookbook guy, but I don't want to. Cookbook on the weekends, Chris. Yeah. What's your daily driver, though, Dean? Let me tell you how. I have a cookbook about five times a week. Oh, baby. It's just down the street from me. That was the first place I found a decent loaf of bread in Los Angeles. I was here for four years. Like, the bread sucks. Yeah. The bread is good here now, but for a while, that baguette cookbook was kind of the only thing that was really, really excellent and special, wasn't it? Yes, it's true. That was like the only good one. Yeah, you're right. It has improved. I remember I was at a restaurant once and I was like, this is a good baguette. And they're like, oh, yeah, well, we fly it in from New York. That's too far. That's too far. Are you cooking? I cook. Sometimes. Brenna cooks more than I do, but we eat home most of the time. That's a big difference between living in New York and living here. I don't know why. Maybe we're just lazy. In New York, all you have to do is walk outside, go a block or two. Brooklyn or the city, it doesn't matter. It's like, all right, let's drive to this place. It's a whole thing. I'll just have a bowl of cereal at home. I'm having Cheerios for dinner again. I don't want to unplug that. Tesla and everything. What color is your Tesla, Dean? It's, yeah. No. No Tesla. I'm not yet. No Tesla. Okay, that's cool. Are you an automobile man? Well, yeah. You need one out here, don't you? I know how to drive. Yeah, okay. I learned on the wrong side. We drove our Subaru Impreza Outback. From Brooklyn to Los Angeles with stuff in the back. Really? Why would you do that? You've done that in a bus, in a van. Why would you do that in a car? This was good, though, because it was just like eight hours a day of driving, and then I didn't have a sound check, and I didn't have a gig. I could just...

You just get to go to the shitty hotel. There's no fans. It's great. Yeah. Yeah, this is perfect. What an arrangement. It's just the best part, yeah. Yeah, I mean, I feel like you live an interesting L.A. lifestyle. I feel like you're not participating in a lot of the stuff that most people are. Like you gentlemen. If you get to work from home. a little bit, then the number one problem is eliminate, which is traffic, right? That's the thing that people scream about. Yeah, we're privileged enough to remove that from our life if we want to. Yes. That said, if you go back to New York City now, the traffic is just much worse than it was 10 years ago. How often are you going back? Like once a year for a gig. Once a year, that's it? And I'll be going back. I got a gig in May, May 11th. Where are you playing? On Bleecker Street, La Poisson Rouge. That place used to be, that used to be the Life, was that the name of it? Like Leonardo DiCaprio. Yeah, like the famous nightclub for sure. Now I've been to La Poisson Rouge. I love your accent. This is going to be like a solo show type of thing. Are you doing something new and different? What's going on? I'm playing songs from my new solo album, which is new and different to me. And then... Then a bunch of old songs, too. When does the new record come out? It came out already in October, I want to say. I think it was October. Yeah. It's called... I want to show you a picture of it. Please, please. Please. Not that anyone else can see it. I don't know why I'm doing this. It's called I Have Nothing to Say to the Mayor of L.A. That's the title of the album. Is this a politically charged album from you? A little. A little bit. More than usual. Yeah, there's a... There's an anti-war song on here. Oh, I was hoping for anti-mask, but I guess I'll take anti-war. Oh, no. Speaking of masks, I think our mayor of Los Angeles was recently spotted in a photo in a football stadium with Magic Johnson without a mask, and his excuse was, don't worry, I was just holding my breath. It's so cool. I saw that this morning.

What a wild, like, I like to imagine him with his team being like, all right, what about this excuse? I'll say him, hold my breath, and everyone's like, that's it. That's the one. No one's going to have a problem with that. I thought he would be an appointed ambassador to India. I'm not a joke. It's not a joke. It sounds like a joke, but I thought he had it. Because as payback for supporting Biden early on, that was the story. But those ambassador jobs are considered, those are just given out as gifts, right? Those are like fake jobs. But also it's a stepping stone because it's for the politics higher. Something greater than being. The mayor of L.A. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, I would love an ambassador job. I don't know if every country would be perfect for me, but I think that I could probably make it work. Whichever countries you don't jive with, Chris, I'll handle the other ones. I'm diplomatic in my own way, just like you. You get a driver and a license plate, a special license plate. Oh, you get diplomatic immunity, right? You go wild. Diplomatic plates on the G-Wagon. Oh, baby. Oh, man. I'm ready to trade some arms. You know what I mean? Yeah, I'm ready to be a criminal. Get some of that Saudi blood on my hands. Happy to be a criminal. The other thing that we talk to recording artists about on this podcast are syncs. Sync licenses. Like the license, not something that you'd see in the loo. Right. What we like to talk about are the good and the bad of the syncs. Everyone from the biggest band to the littlest band has had some type of sync scenario that... Ended up being very fortuitous. Didn't think it was going to go that way, but it did. Or full heartbreaking despair because the keyboard player didn't like Kentucky Fried Chicken, so now I'm homeless type thing. Do you have any tales like that? Any sync talk? It's hard to turn down that money. Smart man, okay. The one sync job that was kind of painful for us was...

Those Phillips ads for, I don't know, when they were getting back into, just trying to reintroduce their brand to America. And they came to us and said, we want a little cover of the Beatles singing. It's getting better all the time. I have to admit. I remember this commercial. Yeah, you did. So we did it. And we worked really hard on it in the studio. I've got to admit it's getting better. Is it I've got to admit or I have to admit it's getting better? And there were arguments at the ad agency. But anyway, we did the thing, and I remember a manager calling up, and she's like, well, she's like, and it was going to be like a quarter of a million dollars. And she said, basically, you've got it. And I said, what does basically mean? Normally, basically, it puts me at ease, but it's not putting me at ease right now. And basically what happened is that then somebody came in at Philips and changed their mind. So they had this band Gomez do it. So not only did we lose out on the job, but then every time that ad just ran all the time, we just had to watch this guy with a growly blues voice. You know, fuck Gomez. That's what I say. Whoever this creative director of this agency was was really indie-leaning. I tell you what, Gomez? That's interesting you say that because I feel like this was late 90s. At that point, the people at ad agencies were more adventurous than the people at radio stations. The interesting part about this situation is that you guys had to record a cover. It's not just the call that's like... hey, we like track three. That shit slaps. We're going to use it. Here's the money. You need to work for it. Yes. Well, doing a cover, in a way, is easier. When people call you up and say, okay, here's what it looks like. We've got this Led Zeppelin song in here. We want to get that kind of vibe. I'm just like, come on. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You're not going to get that kind of vibe from me or from anyone. It's Led Zeppelin. Hello.

That's a good point. Just quickly do a Zeppelin song. Yeah, yeah. Try it. Just capture their unique magic and spirit. But with 10% of yourself in there as well. Of course. Make it your own. I don't know. I think at this point, you live through the sellout era where that's not really a conversation anymore. Oh, yeah. Everybody does everything for money and the fans love it, whereas I think in the 90s, that wasn't the case. I'm going to talk about my record again. I've got a song in here called Cashing In. But the chorus is, I'm not selling out, I'm cashing in. So you're pro cashing in then, much like us. Well, it depends what it is. I wouldn't let a song be used in an ad for the Marines. I don't know. I draw the line. How much money is it again? Well, that's always the question. There's like the two categories. There's like absolutely not, there's absolutely yes, and then there's the... what's the budget? But I do know of another band, a Welsh band, I'll just say, but there were many members who were offered a McDonald's ad, and I think three out of the four were like, yes, please, we want that money, but one of them was like, no, they're serving up cows, and I'm opposing. So this was Manic Street Preachers? I'll take that as a yes. Okay, it goes without saying. The Mannix did it again. I mean, I think that the moral – I understand the morality of the whole thing, but I also think that we live in a world that is just – we are constantly engaging with corporations in every single way, and I just think it's unavoidable to a point. I mean, that's like the Spotify thing. I'm just like – So what are you going to do, guys? Like, you know, are you going to go to Weezify? Is that going to fit? You know what I mean? Like, what are you really going to do? I know. I've been asked this, too, obviously, this week. And I just pointed out to someone. I'm like, look, let me show you the statistics of where my digital income comes from. And it's 45% is from Spotify, 20% from iTunes. And then it's like, you know.

You're telling me that Luna's not big on title? That's crazy, man. I thought that would have been up in the top. You can be big on title, but title is 1% of the... That's true. That's the thing. Yes, Spotify don't pay enough, but they also pay the most. Yeah, when you put it like that, it's a true conundrum. They pay a worse rate. But since they're bigger, it wasn't. I'm just not a big – it's funny because I'm a big singer-songwriter guy. Neil Young was never for me. I don't know. I don't know why that is. I just never got into Neil Young. You're not a revolutionary cat. I guess – no, I'm not. I'm definitely not. I just – that is because there's a lot of young people that are like, who is Neil Young? Yes, I'm sure. Which is absolutely – I mean because he's a legend, so it's kind of crazy to see that. But I guess that – That is not music for everyone, to say the least. He's opposed to the sync lessons also, if you remember that old song, This Notes for You. It was a whole song about not. He must be very frustrated because all these things, syncing and streaming and everything, that's just normal now. It's ubiquitous. It's the status quo. It's what everyone does. He must feel like he's taking crazy pills. Well, that's true. He's wealthy, and he's getting on. Well, that's the issue that I hear from a lot of musicians, especially working class, for lack of a better term. It's like, this is our income. We haven't been able to tour. We haven't been able to do this. This is our income. It's easy for people to take a stand when they're rich, like anything else in life. Yeah, I mean, the thing is, if you're a young band, and you put your record out, and you don't put it on Spotify, It's almost like you don't exist. It's almost like it doesn't. Yeah, Bandcamp ain't hitting the same. Yeah, it's like we're writing a book and it's not available at Amazon. Right. It doesn't mean we can't organize and try and get Spotify to pay better. I'm all for that. We're working on it right now. Yes, you are. How do you feel about, you know, it seems like not a win for podcasting compared to musicians,

it was definitely a little bit of a turning of the tide in terms of podcasting being this niche little thing, and now it's starting to take big victories against music. Are you shaking in your Wellingtons over there? Well, I mean, all these big companies, Spotify, Apple, Amazon, none of them are actual music companies, right? Yeah, of course. They can use music too. lure you in they've broken a lot of careers of musicians get a song in an apple commercial back in the day it could change your life type of thing you know oh yes yes it's that yeah yeah that yeah you remember one two three four by feist i'm sure yes that's true small example yeah that is that's a small example she's been she's figured it out you know post one two three four success reeling reeling from the success we have the same but we have the same booking agent by the way you guys have the same booking agent that i do oh high road I don't know if you knew. It's funny. I just got an email from High Road while we were recording. Is that right? Yeah. I noticed that when I read about your show in the New York Times. Oh, thank you. When was that? Like three months ago, four months ago? Something like that, yeah. November-ish or so. It said you had just signed to High Road Touring. We're also assigned to Jag Jaguar, the independent record. Oh, that's right. You've got a record deal. I don't even have that. I mean. Look, I didn't want to rub it in, but, I mean, I didn't. But you've had. Did you talk to those guys for me? I can send them your demos if you just want to send them over. We transfer as best. But, you know, in your experience, because we've talked to a few people on the show, and they're kind of like, look, major labels do a lot of work that I don't want to do. It's not as bad as people. You know, it's not actually that bad if you have the right people working for you. Was that your experience, or are you on some fuck the labels shit? No, you know what? When you start doing this stuff for yourself, like if you start managing the band yourself or running a label yourself, you all of a sudden realize how much work goes into every little thing and appreciate those people a little bit more. There were some people at Electra I didn't like, but there were some people who were there working to get more people to hear your record. Yeah, that's what I mean.

You need the team, so you're doing it yourself now. Yes. Well, I mean, I have a distributor. Yes, yeah. So you get a little money from Red to promote the thing, but not a lot. I do go to the post office quite a lot. No, you're not. Shut the fuck up. I would love to see you in the Subaru just loading boxes of records at the post office. That would be a great thing to see. Dean, we've got to get you an intern over there, do some of these post office runs. It's true. Who's the staff of the label? Is it just you? Who's the staff? They're in the warehouse in North Carolina. There's people there. Oh, I understand. So they're off site. I've got my publicist, Lisa. What's up, Lisa? There's nobody here. Well, I think that I'm of the mind and Chris kind of disagrees with this, but I like. a little bit of that kind of tangible work, filing orders and stuff. Oh, yeah. Putting maybe a little handwritten thank you note on there. We'll throw in an old sticker or something like that. I feel like you're building a fan or a customer or whatever, a friend for life when you're doing that. The unfortunate part is it is a pain in the ass and it gets old in about 10 minutes. Yeah, but it's easier. It's easier to go to the post office than it is to write a song. Oh, okay. So it's a perfect distraction when you're not getting that second bridge nailed down. It is really, isn't it? I need to organize the LP. Yeah, we love busy work. I get that. And if I'm going to go over to the post, the Subaru is filthy. I should probably go take it in to get detailed. I'm probably going to get a little peckish after that, get one of those little finger sandwiches from Proof. It's right down the street. Yeah, you're making a latte in the kitchen. It takes 15 minutes minimum. So what are some other ways that you distract yourself, Dean, from the work that has to be done? You know what I mean?

Instead of writing another hit record, what are we doing? Yeah, what do you do all day? We all do it. Yeah, well, sometimes I've got to, like, clean the gutters out. Dean, my kind of guy. Brennan's like, get down off there. You'll break your leg. So you're doing the work around the house and the telecaster sitting on the wall, is what you're saying. You know what I'm doing today? I got practice today. I delayed it a little so I could talk with you two. Well, this is more important than practice. You've been playing guitar for 40 years. You're fine. That's true. That's true. I don't need to practice. The only time that telecaster is getting strummed is when a Swiffer runs across it is what it sounds like, Dean. So you're practicing with a full band? Yeah, I'm practicing with a band. I got a show coming up. It's confusing. I'm supposed to be in London today. I was supposed to be on tour, a UK and European tour. That has been postponed now for the third time. Well, we can talk to High Road for you if they're not pulling their weight. If you need us, we can. Chris, we might have to talk to Boris for this one. It might be out of their jurisdiction. We had to make the decision in December. Anyway, at the numbers, it just wasn't looking like this would be a good time to be riding around the UK in a van. It's a smart move, unfortunate, and it must be very disheartening to cancel your tour three times. It's rebooked for July. You know what? July in Glasgow will be a lot nicer than February. Anyway, so we're playing Pappy and Harriet in a month, and then San Francisco, and then the L.A. show is in May, finally. Where's the L.A. show? Zebulon. Zebulon. Whoa, damn. Okay, cool. Yeah, I like that place. Do you guys need an opener? What's going on? I have an opener. Why, do you guys like to have people abuse you? We do live shows. We did a tour. We were lucky enough to, like.

get in that little window at the end of last year before everything got shut down again. Yeah. You know, I can offer, of course, a DJ set if the budget is looking good. Otherwise, we can do a live podcast. No, D, we played only classic indie rock venues. We did Bowery Ballroom in New York. Yes, I saw that one. Oh, yeah. With the same venues. That's what I mean. It's almost as if we have the same agent. It is almost like, yeah, those guys, you know. A little peek behind the curtain of the industry. Yeah, I don't like to show people that. So your wife is in the band. She is for a long time now. Yeah, she's in Luna too, yeah. Yeah, no, you're a freak for that one. Most of the people I know, they got a studio lockup so they can go get away from the old ball and chain. You're right. But not you. So where do you go to escape and get a little solo time other than the hills of Griffith Park? Well, here I am right now. I'm in the basement. I'm in the granny flat. Granny flat. I like that. Yeah. But you guys have been making music together for like the entirety of your relationship. In and out of the bedroom. Yeah. You're a very advanced guy for that, man. I don't think a lot of fellows could deal. Yeah. Well, we have different skills. You know what? She's a much better engineer than I am. Really? So she's pulling her weight on the board. She is pulling her weight, absolutely. I just feel like it's a lot of togetherness, you know what I mean? That is true. I feel like Chris is projecting his own personal life situation. I'm really not, but it's always interesting to me when it's like... you know, everything is so deeply intertwined, you know what I mean? And touring is also like stressful, you know, it's stressful. It's like, it's not the most fun situation every day. It's true, it's true. So yeah, so it's not always perfect, but you know, I actually, I prefer this to the way my life was before, you know, leading it. You know, a whole different life on the road. Whatever. It catches up with you. Say no more, brother. Say no more. You'll find out. We've all had a Trist in Orlando, haven't we? Yeah.

Something in the water down there. The tour manager's banging on your door at the Four Seasons in Tampa, and you're not waking up. It's bad. Lobby call, Dean. Lobby call moves for no man. You know what? I'm usually the first in the van. Really? Do you party, Dean? Are you sober, or are you just a normal guy who drinks wine? I'm not sober. I'm not sober. Next question. I will drink wine, and occasionally I'll, you know. I'll let loose once in a while. Do you have a little puff of marijuana or are you talking about something like that? Something like that. I was about to say, if you're still doing coke, I'm going to have to call somebody. No, no, no. I won't do coke. I have a friend tried to get me to do that recently. This is the best, the purest coke. I'm like, I don't care how good it is. I don't like – I'd like – you put it out. You put it in front of me. I'm like, that looks like fun, and how could I say no to that? But then I just – then I think I'm going to die, and I don't like thinking I'm going to die. And maybe it's all up here. If you get bad coke, then yeah, you definitely feel like you're going to die. But sometimes – was this friend of yours, quote, unquote, somebody whose knowledge of cocaine you could trust? Yes. Because you can trust them. Okay. Yes, he was very – I have a friend. There's like three people in my life who if they're like – I know you normally don't do this. I know you're not a coke guy. But this is the shit. I've got to tell you. If they catch me in the right mood, I've got a martini or two in me, I might take a little tootski, sure. But you've done enough cocaine in your life, I'm assuming. I have, yes. I've done enough. I've done enough. I've done enough. The classic thing they say, some people have a go button and a stop button, and some people only have the go button. I certainly have the stop button. Thank God we have the stop button. Four in the morning, and I'm like, no, that's it. Did you guys do any crazy opening slots?

in your time? Who did we open for? We opened for the Screaming Trees. I was thinking more Rolling Stones. You know, I love the Screaming Trees, but... A little more Bowie. We opened for the Velvet Underground. Oh, shit, really? When they reformed. Luna did that to us. So that's the biggest... So you guys got a lot of Velvet... comparisons over the years, but you personally don't think that you guys sound like them too much, but then when they ask you to open for them, is it like, okay, it's a little on the nose, or how did you feel about that? I was just, I thought someone was putting me on that it was even happening. I was like, what? What are you talking about? Are they getting back together? What? I don't know. I wasn't going to say no to that. I'm not too worried about it. So do you agree with the comparisons of Velvet Underground? Not really. I think, I feel like, Having seen them play live, I just think nobody sounds like them. They had the viola and the drummer standing up. I think Luna's a lot more pop and melodic. I don't know. I like Luna more than the Velvets, if that makes you feel any better. Oh, I don't. That's what he needed to hear. That's what he needed to hear, Jason. Some podcaster said he liked my shit better than the dead guy's shit. Thanks, bro. Much like your life partner, I am a bit of a gear slut. A lot of people say the magic of Velvet Underground is that lo-fi quality to it, but sometimes you're like... I wish I was listening to this music in a little bit more fidelity. Oh, yeah, that's true. But also, we recorded in an era where there was more, yeah, the 90s when there was more fidelity. How are you at the drums, though? Can you play the drums? Terrible. You can't play the drums? Not at all. Unbelievable. You know what? I'm usually the worst musician. in the band that's it the songwriter is often the worst but that's good i think yeah i think that's a good sign like i don't want you to be too i don't want you to be a shredder that's dorky but it's also fun to be the worst musician in the band yeah it's true walk around and be like what are you guys gonna do kick me out that's what i thought pussy i know have fun with your little nerd time signature scales or whatever you guys i'm gonna go write another hit i'll be back i'm gonna write another hit so what's what what's some of the non uh

non-traditional music that you've been listening to lately, have your spirit soared into the world of electronic dance music? Are you into... Two-Step UK Garage, drum and bass, anything like that? No, I'm afraid not. No, Jason, he's cool. He's cool, bro. He plays guitar and listens to music made with guitars. Okay, what might be the most surprising musical artist or style of music that you happen to like? A cheeky little secret that only Mummy knows about. Well, if I like the right song, but I like... Britney Spears or something. There we go. That's right, Dean, because Dean, much like me, you can respect a hit. You don't want to hear all this bleep, bleep, bloop, bloop fucking electronic shit. You want to hear a chorus. Britney Spears makes a lot of bleep, bleep music, Chris. That's true. Jason likes bleep, bleep. I like all music, but I am partial to a little bleep, bleep as well. Bjork just played in L.A., and I missed her, and something like that is a nightmare for Chris. No, I like Bjork. I'm not going to go see Bjork. She's a nice mix of the bleep bleep and the other. I agree. That's true. I did buy tickets to go see Jawbreaker and the Lemonheads. That's a little more my – I'm a big Lemonheads guy. Where is that going to be? Wiltern. Wiltern. Wiltern, oh, yeah. Are you going to go see the Lemonheads, or are you going to go see Evan Dando and the band? It's always the Lemonheads if Dando is in front. That's my take on that, I think. But why, though? You know, is it the Stones if Keith ain't there? No, but... Is it the Smiths if Johnny ain't there, Chris? There's no other member of the Lemonheads that anybody can even name. I can, but I was there. I was there. I was there. You don't count, Dean. You don't count, Dean. I mean, but you know what I'm saying. Like, overall, there's no Keith Richards of the Lemonheads.

it's merely dando and i i mean i guess you guys are probably you and dando are similar like you guys came up at the same time i guess yeah he's probably uh probably a couple years younger than i am yeah he's a couple years younger but he like i mean it's i don't know why for me it's like always like realizing how old he is is always like surprising to me Lemonheads and Galaxy 500 came out of Boston at the same time. They were more popular than we were. Oh, I forgot the Boston Connect. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You, Van Morrison, and the Lemonheads, all my favorites. Yeah. Unfortunately, Van Morrison is no longer. I can't call him a favorite, but it'll stay between us. Yeah. I know what you mean. Final question. Were you listening to any straight-edge, hardcore punk music back in the day? A little slap shot from Boston, maybe? I like Mida Threat. Damn right, brother. What about Fugazi? I feel like you would like Fugazi. And Fugazi, too, yes. Creme de la creme for you. Yes, exactly. The prestige. He only wants the foam on top, is what he said. All right, damn. Dean, appreciate you. It was a pleasure talking to you. Thank you. Yeah, thanks so much for taking the time, Dean. You guys go listen to the record. Obviously, you've got a deep catalog available for streaming and purchase wherever music is sold. Yes, exactly. Available now. on Spotify. Exactly. You're playing in May in L.A., you said? Yes, at Zebulon. May 11th at Zebulon. So all you 19-year-old TikTokers smoking cigarettes at Zebulon, you know, stay for Dean's set. Yes, exactly. Or maybe they're coming for the after. Sometimes you're playing, but the real thing's happening later. They're loading in right as you're loading out. Whatever it takes. Whatever it takes. I will be DJing after you, yeah. And that's fine. We'll make sure to say hello. So we'll see. I'll save some of my Cosamigos for you, though, Dean. Don't worry. We'll do a shot before you go. Just like we did in the old days. Oh, man. All right, Dean. Thank you. Have a great afternoon. We'll see you soon. Okay. Bye. All right. Later, man.