Detours and Outliers

SINEAD GOES REGGAE! We’ve got island fever this week on "Detours and Outliers", but which island is it, Jamaica or Ireland? Where does Sinead fit on the Enya-to-Ani DiFranco spectrum? Is this a Sly and Robbie album? Where is our Britney Spears/Burning Spear mashup? Can you do a religious album without a religion? Does this album foreshadow Sinead's conversion to Islam? Can you get excommunicated from the Catholic church just by tweeting the pope? What other '90s women do we as a society owe an apology to? Are there any other reggae albums besides Bob Marley’s "Legend"? Who recorded the most authentic reggae album, Snoop Dogg, Willie Nelson, or Sinead? Throw down your arms and throw your hands in the air on this episode of "Detours and Outliers".

DANZIG GOES CLASSICAL! Don White (Ice Troll, Never Kenezzard) rejoins us as we discuss Glenn Danzig’s instrumental album. What kind of dungeons do they use in "dungeon synth"? Who is the most litigious Misfit? What do Tom Cruise and Glen Danzig have in common? And which of them should play X-Men's Wolverine? Did Beavis and Butt-head resurrect Danzig's career? What's the highest-scoring word you can play in Scrabble without any vowels? What do you do when you can't talk a string quartet into playing your piece? Is Glenn really a cartoon character? Why do the Misfits look so different on the cartoon Jem? And most importantly, how long before we all get sued? Come celebrate the spooky season on this episode of Detours and Outliers.

DREAD ZEPPELIN DOES DISCO! One of the most original cover bands tried to shake up their schtick, and were roundly rejected for it. If you're only known for three things, how do you get rid of two? Why did the nineties hate the seventies? Did disco eventually win? Are the Bee Gees only a disco band? Was BTO ever a disco band? What Led Zep song are they putting into the beginning of this song? Can you enjoy Dread Zeppelin without knowing any Led Zeppelin songs? Is Gary B.I.B.B. trying to do an Elvis impersonation and failing? Or is he not trying at all? What happened to all the Elvis Xmas decorations at Kohl's? Find out if we have a whole lotta love for DZ’s third album on this episode of Detours and Outliers.

STEVE SINGS THE STANDARDS! No longer will the rest of The Steve Miller Band be holding Steve Miller back on his first and only solo album, an album of jazz and blues covers. Where do jazz and blues meet? Does anyone remember the UPN show "Shasta McNasty"? What songs have you heard the most in your life? Did Steve pass his test? Did he play it too safe? Did he at least use a clean tone? Should you ever open an album with "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah"? If Steve was going to pretend to be Les Paul, shouldn’t he have got someone to be his Mary Ford? Is "Hudson Hawk" any good? If this is a passion project, where is the passion? We'll try and uncover the truth behind all of this on this episode of Detours and Outliers.

THE BEACH BOYS WITHOUT BRIAN WILSON! Continuing with the "August Of Summer" we're looking at another under-performing Beach Boys album. Is this what you would expect the Beach Boys to sound like if you only knew them from "Kokomo"? How could an album with so much cross-promotion on television fail so spectacularly? Who writes the songs that make the whole world sing? Just how bland was TV in the nineties? Which of these cover songs are merely desecrations and which are full-on sacrilege? Does Mike Love have more hip-hop cred than Dee Dee Ramone? Have the Beach Boys been on the "Full House" reboot yet? Why isn't America considered America's band? Can one be a Trump supporter and an environmentalist at the same time? Does Ringo Starr remember playing with the Beach Boys? And what was the name of that guy in the Reagan administration who tried to ban the Beach Boys? It was James Watt. The answers to the other questions will all be revealed in this episode of Detours and Outliers.

BRIAN WILSON WITHOUT THE BEACH BOYS! It’s the "August Of Summer" here on Detours and Outliers and we are celebrating by a whole month of episodes about the quintessential band of summer, the Beach Boys. Did Brian Wilson predict the sound of the 1980s? Would you rather hear a middle aged man sing about teenage romance or about a late-night talk show host? Is Brian a better drummer or lyricist? How did George Lucas screw up the Beach Boys? Can you name two good albums by Bread? Was the album cover actually cross-stitched? How much does round-the-clock therapy cost? Does "Ding Dang" need anything else? And most importantly: What do the planets mean? Catch a wave and find out on this episode of Detours and Outliers.

KEITH MOON GOES SOLO! Kasey Elkington from Cattle Axe rejoins us to discuss Keith Moon's one and only solo album. The question here isn't The Who, but the why. Why did Keith make a solo album? Why can't you hear Keith on his own album? Why did the record company give him so much money? Why doesn't Keith play drums more on this? Why does Miguel Ferrer play drums on this at all? Why is there a country song in the middle of this? Why were the seventies obsessed with the fifties? Why is there a deluxe reissue of this album with dozens of bonus tracks? Why can't you find this on Spotify now? Why isn't John Entwistle on this album? Why is Dick Dale? The answer to most of these questions is "Brandy Alexanders" on this episode of Detours and Outliers.

DEE DEE RAMONE RAPS! This album is much shorter, but is it any better? Can Dee Dee rap? Can Dee Dee rap better than he sings? Can Debbie Harry rap better than Dee Dee? Is there a dress code in The Ramones? Do you need to know the name of the band you are joining? Who is playing on this record and why aren't they credited? How much hip-hop has Dee Dee actually listened to? Just how out of time and out of touch is this album? How can you brag about being afraid to wrestle? Were there any warning signs that Dee Dee's relationship was in trouble? How hard is it to make music that it feels really easy to make? And most importantly, did Dee Dee meet a mermaid? Take a deep dive into some shallow waters on this episode of Detours and Outliers.

LOU REED AND METALLICA – TOGETHER AT LAST! This week we look at "Lulu" an album that is the result of the lyrical genius behind "Metal Machine Music" collaborating with the band that brought us St. Anger. What did people expect this team-up to sound like? Does Metallica have a bass player? Is this harder to listen to than a double-album of guitar feedback? How many songs include the word "vulva" in their lyrics, much less "spermless"? Could this make for a Broadway musical? Is Lou Reed a creepy old man or is he just playing a creepy old man? Did Bob Rock neuter Metallica like Sampson, or was it a happy little accident? Can Lars groove? Or just play tennis? Even if he was right about Napster, why is he so hard to take seriously? Join us for a round TABLE discussion this week on Detours and Outliers.

VAN HALEN WITHOUT HAGAR OR DAVE! It's been a year, but we're back for the third time 'round. And speaking of the third time around, Van Halen tries to try out their third lead singer in this bloated '90s misstep. How much of this is Gary Cherone's fault? Why is the guy behind the "Law and Order" theme producing this? Who woul'’ve been a better fit for the band? Anthony Kedis? Courtney Love? Dr. Rockso? Randy Newman? Eddie himself? Did Eddie replace all the bass parts by that guy from "Sixteen Candles" and "The Breakfast Club"? Why isn't this an Eddie solo album? Is this album as much of a punch in the gut as the cover depicts? How many say I? And why is this CD so goddamn long? Find out on the third season premiere of Detours and Outliers!

VOIVOD GOES PSYCH-PROG! Third time's a charm with returning guest Mhyk Monroe (Grief Ritual, FATHERS). This week we dive into Voivod's confusing fifth album. Just how subtle are the distinctions between various subgenres of metal? How is a song about a pirate ship somehow less silly than previous albums' lyrics? Why are Men Without Hats involved in this, and are they dancing unsafely? Do French-Canadians need nicknames to make it in the world of metal? How difficult are these songs? Is this more psychedelic or progressive? Does hiring Rush's producer automatically make you prog? And what happened to Richard Hell? Find out on the fiftieth episode of Detours and Outliers!

KID CUDI TRIES TO ROCK! We crossover with the Brian from the Boothin' podcast as Kid Cudi tries to crossover into the rock world. When does a Kid Cudi get old enough to be an Adult Cudi? Who is the Phil Collins of hip-hop? Why is Travis Barker on every album? Does Kid Cudi have the same guitar pedal as Moby? When is it okay to release a bonus disc of demos for an album that you just finished? Are Beavis and Butthead the Statler and Waldorf of the nineties? What do you sound like when you try to sound like Nirvana? And most importantly: Is Kid Cudi okay? We'll check in on the Man On The Moon in this week’s episode of Detour and Outliers.

X TRIES TO GET COMMERCIAL! Michael and Jenny from Shiny Around the Edges join us to discuss X’s frustrating attempt to cash in. How obscure can an artist be and still have documentaries made about them? Is X the best or the worst name for a band? What did Ray Manzarek bring to the table? Did X just put out an album that none of us listened to? Is not being rich or famous enough a good reason to quit a band? What kind of rockabilly is this? Who else was in that movie “Road House”? Does John Doe want his fans to get home safely? Does everyone have their own X story? And how did Professor Xavier train all these mutants? We’ll dig into it all this week on Detours and Outliers.

LIL WAYNE TRIES TO ROCK! This week we are joined by fellow podcaster and Canadian DJ Bryson Worden (The BLOCK with Bryson Worden) to discuss Lil Wayne's attempt to be a dope boy with a guitar. Who is Wayne trying to impress? Was anyone rocking in 2010? Why do people remember the rap-rock of Limp Bizkit more than Ice-T's Body Count? Is Canadian Wikipedia better than American Wikipedia? Is Shanell the Mary Clyton of Wayne's “Gimme Shelter”? Why hasn’t Lil Wayne had another birth? Is it better to play the guitar badly or not at all? Does sampling a rock sound count as writing a rock song? Can you get a prescription chalice? How many notes does it take to make a guitar solo? Who does a better "Ground Zero", Lil Wayne or Chris Cornell? And how did the producer of Elton John's disco album end up involved in this? Grab a cup of codeine cough sizzyrup and join us on this week’s Detours and Outliers.

CHRIS CORNELL GOES POP! Production designer, fabricator, and saxophonist Aaron Schilling joins us to discuss Chris Cornell's attempt to remain relevant in a post-grunge world. Is this the worst album we've covered? Who wrote these songs? Who claims to have written these songs? Who is credited with writing these songs? Why is Chris smashing a guitar? What do Tom Morello and Timbaland have in common? What does Justin Timberlake's idea of the nineties Seattle scene sound like? Is it possible to get a club dancing to such angry, bitter songs? Did the failure of this album lead to a Soundgarden reunion? How much is there to say about music you hate? We'll find out this week on Detours and Outliers.

THE BOSS GOES ACOUSTIC! We are joined this week by illustrator Karl Christian Kumpholz (30 Miles of Crazy!) since he’s far more familiar with Bruce than we are. Why did he release an album of demos? Why is this only Springsteen album that the cool kids can claim to like? What exactly would the E Street Band have done to these songs? Is Bruce really a nice guy? Did he invent emo? How much of his blue collar persona is mere posturing? Why do people like to listen to sad songs? Did Reagan taint a whole generation's ability to take Bruce seriously? Do we really have a reason to believe? Do we need one? We were born to run in the U.S.A. in this week's episode of Detours and Outliers.

VILLAGE PEOPLE DON’T DO DISCO! Comedian and artist Katie Bowman joins us to discuss the Village People’s attempt to survive the death of Disco. Was cocaine a thing in the 80s? Did anyone notice that the lead singer was replaced? Are the Village People a boy band or macho men? Why are three of the eight songs on this album about food? Did the Village People pave the way for Rob Halford? Or Lou Pearlman? What message are the Village People trying to convey? Are they a band or a group? Why isn’t there a Village People Broadway musical yet? What is the plot of “Logan’s Run”? Young man, there’s no need to feel down this week on Detours and Outliers.

MOBY TRIES TO ROCK! We’re starting beef with a vegan. And to help us out we’ve got Alf (KTCL 93.3) on hand to discuss Moby abandoning electronica just as it was about to break through to the mainstream. Is that a drum machine or is Moby a drummer? Does this sound like a demo? Who was supposed to write lyrics and sing these songs? Does Moby have a soul? Should you ever mix punk and ambient? Does Moby own a bass? Or did he pawn it to buy a “grunge” guitar pedal? Is Moby afraid of being mistaken for Michael Stipe? And most importantly: Why does Moby hate America? We’ll get to the bottom of this most ill-timed of missteps this week on Detours and Outliers.

JONI SINGS THE STANDARDS! Aleeya Wilson (Death In Space) joins us virtually to discuss Joni's orchestral and big band covers album of "The Great American Songbook". Was the title an attempt to trick casual fans, or a concession to the record company (who wanted to trick casual fans)? How many sides does love have? How many musicians does it take to overwhelm Joni's voice? Does even Joni want to hear what Joni would write about the world in 2000? How is Don Henley to blame for this? What do we even know about clouds at all? Where exactly are we in this fictitious relationship? Does Joni prefer the idea of the possibility of being in love in future to the messy unpredictability of being in love with an actual person in the present? Don't we all? Join us for another look at some Canadian this week on Detours and Outliers.

NEIL YOUNG DOES DOO-WOP! We have no guest this week, so we’re reverting to our earliest days with the cross between episode 1 (Frank Zappa's "Cruisin’ With Ruben and The Jets") and episode 3 (Neil Young's "Trans"). How did this record affect R.E.M.? Why didn't this record affect Pearl Jam? Was this record even finished? What was Neil going for? Where does Sha Na Na fit into this? Or The Stray Cats? Or even ZZ Top? Is the harmonica an adequate replacement for the saxophone? Who was this note for, if not for you? Does Neil miss the days of payola? Did Ronald Reagan miss the days of segregation? Does repeating the title six times in a row count as a verse? Who put the bop in the bop-shoo-wop? Find out this week on Detours and Outliers.