In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Nick Dika (@NickDika) of Arkells (@arkellsmusic) to discuss Silverchair's debut album Frogstomp. It was Blake's first album purchased with his own money, at $1 from Columbia House. How fitting. Find out more about Silverchair's unlikely and meteoric rise as 15-year-olds, where they fit in the grunge scene with the benefit of hindsight, and why Nick has a deep appreciation for the artistic...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by comedian John Cullen (@cullenthecomic, @blockedpartypod, @thePOD_Kast) to discuss Broken Social Scene’s sophomore album You Forgot It In People. But not before they get derailed talking about Disturbed, Korn, labret piercings, and John’s love of nu-metal. The guys eventually talk BSS, we promise. Find out more about the ways Broken Social Scene are tied to myriad Toronto artists and bands, how...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Erin to discuss Lorde’s 2017 sophomore album Melodrama. Melodrama being considered a pop album is accurate, but it paints Lorde in a way that sometimes seems to undersell her excellent as a songwriter. Find out more about her growth as a person and writer over the four year gap between albums, which Lorde song Jakes thinks is perfect, and why her eventual third album may be analyzed through a...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Sarah MacDonald (@sarahsmacdonald, sarahsmacdonald.com), to discuss Phoebe Bridgers’ 2020 sophomore album Punisher. This is the show’s first crack at covering a new album without the benefit of at least some nostalgia, so it’s good the hosts had Sarah to guide them. Find out more about Bridgers’ songwriting process, the influence of gender and power dynamics in the industry and how her work...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy make Conor Oberst the third member of the CHP two-time subject club, exploring Bright Eyes’ 2002 album Lifted or The Story Is in the Soil, Keep Your Ear to the Ground. Find out more about Saddle Creek’s epic early-2000s run as a label, why the hosts think Bright Eyes was so influential as a thread between folk eras despite often being classified as emo on this week’s podcast.  Sick of hearing all the ads?...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Jeff Rosenstock (@jeffrosenstock) to discuss Rilo Kiley’s excellent 2004 album More Adventurous. Is there a cooler band than Rilo Kiley, and a cooler singer than Jenny Lewis? It’s hard to figure.. Find out more about which Rilo Kiley song Jeff had his first dance too, which Rilo Kiley song Jeff has covered, and why the guys think Rilo Kiley weren’t a bigger breakthrough success on this week’s...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy dive into Say Anything’s 2004 pop-punk classic …Is a Real Boy (and, technically, their 2006 build-on …Was a Real Boy). It’s an album that stands out from its own scene upon review, somewhat ironically given the album’s heavy criticism of the scene itself. Find out more about the cost and benefit of Max Bemis’ sprawling creativity and perfectionism over the band’s life, how the hosts – and Bemis himself – deal...

Please open your sad teen textbooks to Page 1. In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are screaming infidelities and sharing all their best deceptions as they break down the 2001 album from Dashboard Confessional, The Places You Have Come to Fear the most. Find out more about Chris Carrabba’s transition from Further Seems Forever to Dashboard Confessional, what we know – and don’t know – about what went into his painful songwriting, and why one...

Watch Out! In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Sam Sutherland (@SamSthrlnd) of the blink-155 podcast to talk about…not blink-182, surprisingly. Instead, the trio takes a deep look at alexisonfire’s sophomore 2004 album Watch Out! Sam’s choice of album surprised, but explained through the lens of that moment in Canadian music history, it was the right choice. Find out more about Sam’s encyclopaedic knowledge of the early-2000s...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Taylor Markarian (@TKMarkarian), author of From The Basement: A History of Emo Music and How It Changed Society, to reminisce about the self-titled 2003 debut from The All-American Rejects. Tyson Ritter hive, it’s your time to log on. Find out more about Taylor’s AOL Instant Messenger association with the Rejects, which song stands out as a missed opportunity as the follow-up single behind Swing,...

It’s about time. In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy finally open up the grunge side of the podcast, diving deep on Nirvana’s industry-changing 1993 album In Utero. If you preferred Nevermind, well, blame the Patreon supporters who voted for this, and maybe give that take a second thought upon re-listening. Find out more about what Kurt Cobain set out to do with the impossible task of following up on Nevermind, the difficult process of trying to...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Katie Heindl (@wtevs) to discuss FEELINGS and the 2014 album Singles from Future Islands. It’s a bit more of a pop turn than usual for the hosts, but upon deeper listening, it fits right in with the CHP ethos. Find out more about how freestyle rapping played a role in Future Islands’ development, Katie’s emotional run-in with the lead singer, and whether Jake could dance on late-night TV on this...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy explore TV on the Radio’s Return to Cookie Mountain, what they feel is one of the best albums to come out of the early-2000s indie rock boom. So much so, in fact, that this episode invites the first discussion of a potential CHP Hall of Fame for one of TV on the Radio’s members. Find out more about the David Letterman performance that helped put them on the map, where they veer from otherwise similar Meet Me...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by poet, essayist, and cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib (@NifMuhammad, abdurraqib.com) to discuss the seminal 1982 Descendents album Milo Goes to College. It’s a wider-ranging chat than usual, thanks to Hanif’s incredible insight and thoughtfulness about how and why we connect with music at different stages. Find out more about the album’s iconic artwork, how we deal with problematic lyrics nearly...

Isn’t it ironic? In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy go deep on a Canadian classic, Alanis Morissette’s incredible 1995 album Jagged Little Pill. Not only is the album excellent, it’s credited with facilitating important change in the rock scene for the late-90s and beyond. Find out more about Alanis’ roots as a child star in Ottawa, why and how she changed her approach for Jagged Little Pill, and who we think You Oughta Know might be about on...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Arkells frontman Max Kerman (@arkellsmusic) to discuss Shine A Light, the 2003 sophomore album from Constantines. The Cons had a huge influence on Max and his bandmates, and this episode allows us to explore how influences make their way into a band’s sound, consciously and subconsciously. Find out more about The Cons’ 519 roots, how their legendary live shows helped build a following, and why...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy trace the so-called emo tree back up almost all the way to the top, exploring the definitive parent of the Midwest emo branch, Sunny Day Real Estate’s 1994 album Diary. It stands to reason that if you listen to this podcast, a lot of the bands you enjoy (and episodes we’ve done to date) were influenced by Diary, as SDRE genuinely helped move the genre forward. Find out more about why SDRE couldn’t sustain...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by NBA writer James Herbert (@outsidethenba) to discuss At The Drive-In’s 2000 album Relationship of Command. This is a fun revisiting of a very influential album. Find out more about James and Blake’s unlikely non-friendship in university, how At The Drive-In became the Mars Volta and Sparta separately, and how Relationship of Command holds up against In/Casino/Out in the present on this week’s...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by Sasha Kalra (@sashakalra) to discuss Lil Peep’s 2017 album Come Over When You’re Sober, Pt. 1. While Lil Peep is admittedly outside of the podcast’s normal genre wheelhouse, his influences are so similar to the podcast’s and to the artists that the podcast covers that he represents a unique look into the out-of-genre effects of industry and cultural changes. Find out more about how Lil Peep...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy break down Modest Mouse’s 2004 breakthrough Good News for People Who Like Bad News. Unlike some of the other bands to perform at The Bait Shop, Modest Mouse were already quite well-established, but The OC rub and an enormous hit in Float On helped push them into the mainstream consciousness. That didn’t mean Good News was any less weird and fun, though. Find out more about why a band like Modest Mouse would...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by culture writer Sarah MacDonald (@sarahsmacdonald, sarahsmacdonald.com) to discuss The Killers’ 2004 debut Hot Fuss. Another Meet Me In The Bathroom-era breakthrough sees our hosts bring Sarah back because The Killers require a certain level of cool they can’t reach alone. That’s a long way to have come for some kids from Las Vegas sneaking in to UNLV to practice and record. Find out more about...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy break down The Walkmen’s 2004 album Bows + Arrows. The Walkmen represent an interesting and often self-defeating secondary character in the indie rock boom and an unlikely Bait Shop performer. They’re also emblematic of the Meet Me In The Bathroom-era New York rock scene, dripping in cool while made up of the pieces of other, disbanded groups. Find out more about the enormity of The Rat, the overall excellent...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are joined by comedian Lauren Mitchell (host of the @cavernofsecrets podcast) to discuss Death Cab For Cutie’s enormous 2003 hit Transatlanticism. The podcast will explore bands that performed at The Bait Shop on the hit show The OC, which served as a snapshot and elevator of the early-2000s indie rock scene. Find out more about Ben Gibbard’s workmanlike songwriting approach for Transatlanticism, what...

In the latest episode of Columbia House Party, hosts Jake Goldsbie and Blake Murphy are just two boys talking about Just A Girl as they dive deep on No Doubt’s 1995 classic Tragic Kingdom. They’re also joined briefly by Cassie Leigh Clancy (@cassleigh, co-host of the @restingonpod podcast) to discuss the fashion side of Gwen Stefani’s legacy. Find out more about some of the controversy around Stefani’s more problematic choices in that regard, how Stefani became a major pop culture influence...