CrossFade: The Dueling Album Review Show MinnMax
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- Music
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CrossFade is a dueling album review show about expanding your musical horizons hosted by Matt Helgeson. Released every two weeks, CrossFade has guests introduce one of their favorite albums of all time to Matt Helgeson (and vice versa) as they review the highlights, play clips, and compare each other's picks. On every episode, we answer questions from the community via MinnMax's Patreon page - https://www.patreon.com/minnmax
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Give to the Max 2023: Ne Obliviscaris's "Portal Of I"
Surprise! It’s a special episode of CrossFade, thanks to a generous member of the MinnMax community.
On Give to the Max Day, the MinnMax community raised more than $57,000 to help foster kids in Minneapolis. One of the many appealing donation rewards was an episode of CrossFade where the donor got to choose the album we talked about! Chris Fayter (a.k.a. Crayter) chose “Portal Of I,” the debut album of Australian prog metal band Ne Obliviscaris, which became one of his COVID-era comfort listens.
We’re really jazzed to get back behind the mic to discuss some great, unique music. Thanks to Chris and the MinnMax community for their ongoing generosity!
Go back a few decades to find new music: http://www.mediatraffic.de/tracks.htm
We’d love it if you’d rate and review CrossFade on iTunes, ‘cause it means more people can find the show and love it, too! You can find Matt and Jason on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MattHelgeson and https://twitter.com/nintendufus respectively and in the #music channel of the MinnMax Discord server.
Our theme song is “The Lights” by Maps Of Norway from their 2008 record, “Die Off Songbird”: https://open.spotify.com/album/7tNrjnRB1f1oQizkkAePrI
Support MinnMax on Patreon and get access to tons of great, exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/minnmax/
Listen to the CrossFade Community Playlist, a growing Spotify playlist of our community’s favorite music: https://spoti.fi/3aRRgox
Timestamps
0:00 - Give to the Max 2023: Ne Obliviscaris’s “Portal Of I”
3:04 - A message from Crayter, charitable sponsor of this episode
13:40 - Ne Obliviscaris - "Portal Of I"
14:31 - Tapestry of the Starless Abstract
24:16 - Xenoflux
30:08 - Of the Leper Butterflies
37:06 - Forget Not
41:23 - And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope
51:23 - As Icicles Fall
54:44 - Of Petrichor Weaves Black Noise
1:05:15 - Community questions
1:40:43 - Sampha - “Jonathan L. Seagull” (suggested by MinnMax supporter notweirder) -
Ending Season 2 with the Last Community Shuffle for A While, Probably!
CrossFade is taking a break! We haven’t picked a return date yet, but Matt and Jason have ideas about how to make it even better going forward.
We decided to end this season on a high note by bringing back the CrossFade Community Shuffle. It’s an episode where dozens of our Patreon supporters send us their current favorite songs, we shuffle a bunch of them, and we listen to and talk about them live on the show! It’s one of our favorite CrossFade traditions, so we hope you enjoy it.
You can still enjoy all 60-some episodes of CrossFade for free wherever you listen to podcasts. From the bottom of our hearts, we want to express our appreciation for everyone who’s enjoyed the show so far. Thanks for listening, chatting, asking, tweeting, posting, and sharing in the fun of CrossFade! You’re the ones who make it great.
We’d love it if you’d rate and review CrossFade on iTunes, ‘cause it means more people can find the show and love it, too! You can find Matt and Jason on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MattHelgeson and https://twitter.com/nintendufus respectively and in the #music channel of the MinnMax Discord server.
Our theme song is “The Lights” by Maps Of Norway from their 2008 record, “Die Off Songbird”: https://open.spotify.com/album/7tNrjnRB1f1oQizkkAePrI
Support MinnMax on Patreon and get access to tons of great, exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/minnmax/
Listen to the CrossFade Community Playlist, a growing Spotify playlist of our community’s favorite music: https://spoti.fi/3aRRgox
Timestamps
0:00 - The Last Community Shuffle for A While, Probably!
6:30 - Niyaz - “Shir Ali Mardan (Song of a Warrior)” suggested by Shazirah
11:27 - Nation of Language - “Sacred Tongue” suggested by Nolan Kelly
15:25 - Puscifer - “Green Valley” suggested by Ian Pierce
19:22 - Taylor Swift - “mirrorball” suggested by Mackenzie Beyer
23:52 - The Killers - “Miss Atomic Bomb” suggested by Ramses Garcia
28:56 - Black Country, New Road - “Chaos Space Marine” suggested by Holden Hintz
33:51 - Frightened Rabbit - “The Modern Leper” suggested by Halea Kasishke
38:00 - Craig Finn - “Messing with the Settings” suggested by Gabriel Cleveland
44:07 - The Knife - “Heartbeats - Live” by podbod
48:25 - Paolo Nutini - “Through The Echoes” suggested by Luca Alberti
51:52 - honeyhoney - “Thin Line” suggested by Matt Rogers
55:47 - Haken - “Invasion” suggested by Sjors van Berkel
1:00:34 - Rahul Sipligunj, Kaala Bhairava - “Naatu Naatu” from RRR suggested by Bob Kinnear
1:08:24 - P.O.S - “Wearing a Bear” suggested by Josh LaBaw
1:11:51 - Yot Club - “u dont kno me” suggested by Bezlo
1:16:05 - MEMBA, EVAN GIIA, Nooran Sisters - “For Aisha” suggested by Geoff Enright
1:20:43 - Algernon Cadwallader - “Pitfall” -
Neil Young, “Our Rock Dad” with Tyler Wilcox
Neil Young’s had quite a career. A hugely influential solo career, his work with CSNY, that thing during The Last Waltz, and now you can’t even hear his music on the biggest music streaming platform on Earth. Wow!
To finally crack the nut on Neil, Matt brought in writer and fellow Neil Young fanatic Tyler Wilcox for an in-depth discussion on two essential Neil records: Citizen Kane Jr. Blues 1974 (Live at The Bottom Line) and Tonight’s the Night. Take a listen to some Real Neil with the biggest Youngheads out there!
Find Tyler at the following links:
https://twitter.com/tywilc
https://doomandgloomfromthetomb.tumblr.com/
https://aquariumdrunkard.com/
https://www.uncut.co.uk/author/twilcox/
We’d love it if you’d rate and review CrossFade on iTunes, ‘cause it means more people can find the show and love it, too! You can find Matt and Jason on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MattHelgeson and https://twitter.com/nintendufus respectively and in the #music channel of the MinnMax Discord server.
Our theme song is “The Lights” by Maps Of Norway from their 2008 record, “Die Off Songbird”: https://open.spotify.com/album/7tNrjnRB1f1oQizkkAePrI
Support MinnMax on Patreon and get access to tons of great, exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/minnmax/
Listen to the CrossFade Community Playlist, a growing Spotify playlist of our community’s favorite music: https://spoti.fi/3aRRgox
Timestamps
0:00 - Neil Young, “Our Rock Dad” with Tyler Wilcox
0:10 - Tyler and Neil Young
3:27 - The “expanding Ditch universe” of Neil Young
5:45 - Citizen Kane Jr. Blues 1974 (Live at The Bottom Line)
8:18 - Revolution Blues
13:08 - Pushed It Over the End
19:01 - Long May You Run
24:53 - Ambulance Blues
29:45 - Motion Pictures
38:53 - Tonight’s the Night
44:25 - Speakin’ Out
47:59 - Mellow My Mind
51:06 - Come On Baby Let’s Go Downtown
55:38 - Tired Eyes
1:00:33 - Albuquerque -
The Impact of Yo! MTV Raps in 13 Songs
Was rap already everywhere by the time you were old enough to choose what you wanted to listen to? If so, then it might be hard to imagine how important a show like Yo! MTV Raps was for the genre and for the music industry as a whole. It only ran for seven years, but in that time, it had an indelible impact on the kinds of music people were exposed to.
In this episode, Matt (who was around for the rise of rap) and Jason (who was not) pore over the show’s lasting impact by listening to some of the music you probably would’ve heard on Yo! MTV Raps back in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. It’s quite a trip, spanning everything from classic braggadocio to harrowing tales of gangland paranoia to bit-based schtick and more.
Watch the MTV-produced Yo! MTV Raps documentary Jason references at the beginning of the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gyji4m-exjU
We’d love it if you’d rate and review CrossFade on iTunes, ‘cause it means more people can find the show and love it, too! You can find Matt and Jason on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MattHelgeson and https://twitter.com/nintendufus respectively and in the #music channel of the MinnMax Discord server.
Our theme song is “The Lights” by Maps Of Norway from their 2008 record, “Die Off Songbird”: https://open.spotify.com/album/7tNrjnRB1f1oQizkkAePrI
Support MinnMax on Patreon and get access to tons of great, exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/minnmax/
Listen to the CrossFade Community Playlist, a growing Spotify playlist of our community’s favorite music: https://spoti.fi/3aRRgox
Timestamps
0:00 - The Impact of Yo! MTV Raps in 13 Songs
0:52 - Demme, Freddy, and the origin of Yo! MTV Raps
7:39 - Eric B. & Rakim - “Follow The Leader”
12:07 - Boogie Down Productions - “My Philosophy”
19:21 - Sir Mix-A-Lot - “Posse On Broadway”
24:02 - Special Ed - “I Got It Made”
27:26 - EPMD - “You Gots To Chill”
33:02 - The D.O.C. - “It’s Funky Enough”
36:55 - Queen Latifah & Monie Love - “Ladies First”
42:07 - N.W.A. - “Express Yourself”
47:22 - Jungle Brothers - “Beyond This World”
54:15 - Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - “They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)”
1:01:13 - Slick Rick - “Children’s Story”
1:07:12 - Ghetto Boys - “My Mind Playing Tricks On Me”
1:12:51 - 3rd Bass - “The Gas Face”
1:18:28 - Ice Cube - "It Was a Good Day" -
11 Songs to Remember Mimi Parker of Low
We’ve talked a lot about the Duluth-based indie rock band Low on this show, because Matt knows them well and Jason’s never heard them. In the wake of co-founder/drummer/vocalist Mimi Parker’s death in early November 2022, we wanted to dedicate an episode to a short retrospective on the group and Mimi’s contributions to it. If you know Low, we hope this is a faithful look back at the group’s impact. If you’re new to the group, we hope you find a lot to love.
Also, Matt put together a Spotify playlist of Low’s music for our discussion, and you can listen along at this link: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2XvYeoVFqsiKKcQIcSQO66?si=c23db47cf12349f5
We’d love it if you’d rate and review CrossFade on iTunes, ‘cause it means more people can find the show and love it, too! You can find Matt and Jason on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MattHelgeson and https://twitter.com/nintendufus respectively and in the #music channel of the MinnMax Discord server.
Our theme song is “The Lights” by Maps Of Norway from their 2008 record, “Die Off Songbird”: https://open.spotify.com/album/7tNrjnRB1f1oQizkkAePrI
Support MinnMax on Patreon and get access to tons of great, exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/minnmax/
Listen to the CrossFade Community Playlist, a growing Spotify playlist of our community’s favorite music: https://spoti.fi/3aRRgox
Timestamps
0:00 - 11 Songs to Remember Mimi Parker of Low
1:53 - Discovering Low and remembering Mimi’s work
5:11 - Over The Ocean
12:18 - Shame
16:44 - Just Like Christmas
22:35 - In Metal
27:23 - Laser Beam
32:35 - (That’s How You Sing) Amazing Grace
37:52 - Monkey
43:13 - Holy Ghost
47:21 - Especially Me
53:37 - More
58:30 - Community thoughts and questions
1:06:01 - Lullaby -
Bruce Springsteen & Archers Of Loaf with Natalie Marlin
This episode of CrossFade (The BossFade?) featuring writer, podcaster, and music journalist Natalie Marlin (https://twitter.com/NataliesNotInIt/) is devoted to rock icon Bruce Springsteen and ‘90s indies Archers of Loaf! Matt and Natalie chat a lot about the kinds of stories Bruce tells through his music and what makes his mild corniness endearing, as well as why Archers Of Loaf’s sound cut through the Pavement-esque slacker rock vibe of the ‘90s.
Follow Natalie on Twitter at https://twitter.com/NataliesNotInIt/
Starting to Feel Small Again: Twinkle Park’s “As Much As I Forget” by Natalie Marlin for Bandcamp Daily: https://daily.bandcamp.com/resonance/twinkle-park-as-much-as-i-forget-essay
Broken Social Scene's Brendan Canning on 20 Years of You Forgot It in People and the Gratitude of Connection by Natalie Marlin for Paste Music: https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/broken-social-scene/you-forgot-it-in-people-20th-anniversary/
We’d love it if you’d rate and review CrossFade on iTunes, ‘cause it means more people can find the show and love it, too! You can find Matt and Jason on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MattHelgeson and https://twitter.com/nintendufus respectively and in the #music channel of the MinnMax Discord server.
Our theme song is “The Lights” by Maps Of Norway from their 2008 record, “Die Off Songbird”: https://open.spotify.com/album/7tNrjnRB1f1oQizkkAePrI
Support MinnMax on Patreon and get access to tons of great, exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/minnmax/
Listen to the CrossFade Community Playlist, a growing Spotify playlist of our community’s favorite music: https://spoti.fi/3aRRgox
Timestamps
0:00 - Bruce Springsteen & Archers Of Loaf with Natalie Marlin
1:09 - Bruce Springsteen - "Darkness On the Edge of Town"
6:50 - Badlands
10:45 - Adam Raised a Cain
14:47 - Something in the Night
18:38 - Candy’s Room
22:30 - Racing in the Street
27:38 - The Promised Land
31:39 - Factory
33:59 - Streets of Fire
37:42 - Prove It All Night
42:02 - Darkness On the Edge of Town
47:12 - Archers Of Loaf - “Icky Mettle”
50:36 - Web in Front
53:47 - Last Word
56:25 - Wrong
59:28 - Might
1:02:35 - Learo, You’re a Hole
1:07:43 - Hate Paste
1:11:09 - Sick File
1:13:38 - Beavis and Butt-Head clowning on Archers Of Loaf
1:15:35 - Community Questions
1:48:05 - Neil J & Daniel Wilkins with Austin C - "The Man Who Outran Time" (suggested by MinnMax supporter Tactical Dreamer)
Customer Reviews
Excellent taste, relaxed vibes
I listen to most podcasts at 1.5 but this one at normal speed. Which is high praise, in my opinion. The hosts have great taste (especially Helgeson) and the format manages to be relaxing and informative at the same time.
Excellent podcast
Do I like Blue Öyster Cult now?
A thorough dissection of music albums
This is the podcast for all music lovers! The format is really simple: Matt Helgeson brings on a guest to discuss two albums of their choosing in great detail.
I appreciate the wide array of musical styles that they showcase from different genres and time periods. Honestly, the variety is what keeps me coming back as I always feel compelled to leave my comfort zone with artists and albums I’m not familiar with that they feature on their show. The passion and insight that they bring to the albums they discuss is truly refreshing.
The long-form content is great too, as they include track snippets that lead into hearty discussions. Definitely great for those with keen ears for details.
Do not skip out on this if this remotely sounds like something you’d enjoy!