Only Three Lads - Classic Alternative Music Podcast O3L Media

We're going back to the days when the geeks inherited the earth...specifically, the bands that were influenced by the monumental commercial and artistic triumph that was Weezer's 1994 self titled album (or, as it's affectionately known, The Blue Album). That's the subject of the new oral history and accompanying 11-track compilation album Generation Blue, out now from Big Stir Records and Spyderpop Records. Compiled and edited by this week's Third Lad, S.W. Lauden, Generation Blue is a fascinating celebration of the '90s Hollywood scene that included bands like Ozma, Nerf Herder, Baby Lemonade, Chopper One, and more.
S.W. Lauden (aka Steve Coulter) was not only an active participant in the Geek Rock and Power Pop scenes, drumming for a series of LA bands like Ridel High, Tsar and The Brothers Steve, but is also accomplished writer. He is the editor of the essay collections Go All The Way: A Literary Appreciation of Power Pop and Forbidden Beat: Perspectives on Punk Drumming. His power pop-themed crime fiction novellas include That'll Be The Day: A Power Pop Heist and Good Girls Don't. He is also the author of the Greg Salem punk rock PI trilogy, starting with Bad Citizen Corporation. Find more of Steve’s music writing on Substack at Remember The Lightning, including his semi-annual print/ebook Guitar Pop Journals.
Generation Blue is also available as on Kindle: Generation Blue: An Oral History of The Hollywood Geek Rock Scene in the 1990s & 2000s - Kindle edition by Lauden, S.W., Koch, Karl, Fisher, Justin. Arts & Photography Kindle eBooks @ Amazon.com.
Plus, if you're a fan of unhinged Uncle Gregg rants (and who isn't?!?), this one's for you!

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1986 is undoubtedly one of the great years in music history, but one in which the chasm in alternative music grew. Especially for more established artists, 1986 represents the apex of the "BIG '80s" sound - glossy production, synth horns, Fairlights and DX-7s, gated snares, etc. Conversely, there was a new crop of guitar bands who eschewed these big budget sounds for concise, exuberant, noisy, scrappy pop music - brilliantly captured on NME's C86 cassette compilation.
Discussing the songs of 1986 with us (and whose presence is certainly one of our biggest thrills to date) is Miki Berenyi from Lush, Piroshka, and The Miki Berenyi Trio! During their initial run from 1987 - 1996, Lush were one of the essential British bands of the era, releasing three seminal early EPs (collected on Gala) and three crucial albums that showcase the breadth of the band's formidable talents: 1992's Spooky, 1994's Split, and 1996's Lovelife (all on 4AD). Miki's recently released memoir, Fingers Crossed: How Music Saved Me From Success, is one of the most compelling and searingly honest books we have read. Often traumatic, often hilarious, Fingers Crossed peels back the layers of the public figure you thought you knew from the British weeklies to reveal a complex and gifted storyteller.
The Miki Berenyi Trio is currently on a short tour of the US. Catch her if you can! The new track "Vertigo" is available on all streaming/digital platforms.
Plus, there's a lot of swearing in both Hungarian and English. This one is definitely NSFW, kids.
Special thanks to Paul Richison for the suggestion and introduction!
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Here in the U.S., it's Memorial Day weekend...the unofficial start to summer. So what better time to grab a six pack of fresh new indie tunes? This week, we highlight:


Venus Sugar High - 'The God And The Sun'

Jim Basnight - 'Summertime Again' (Power Popaholic Productions)

Steve Conte - 'Shoot Out The Stars' (Wicked Cool Records)

Yea-Ming & The Rumours - 'Big Blue Sea' (Dandyboy Records)

Ray Richardson - 'A Crack In The Sky' (Nanneroo Music)

Even As We Speak - 'Beauty, You Will Break Us All' (Skep Wax Records)


Have a great weekend!
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This week, we crank the wayback machine to 1972, a year filled with political turmoil, social unrest, and a whole lotta groovy, life affirming, socially conscious, groundbreaking music that cut across multiple genres and geographic boundaries. With possibly our most eclectic batch of lists yet, we cover a good cross section of what 1972 had to offer.
Joining us on this journey are guitarist/vocalist Henry Girard and drummer/vocalist Pablo Garcia from Montreal garage-pop provocateurs The Wesleys, who have just released their highly anticipated Self-Titled debut LP on Little Village Records. The debut album is a dynamic exploration that ventures into a sonic landscape that transcends conventional boundaries, blending elements of the rock, power pop, indie, and alternative genres. The Wesleys embrace their DIY ethos, channeling their creativity into music that feels authentic and natural, a reflection of their shared passion and unwavering dedication. The Wesleys craft melodic rock n' roll songs that resonate with both heart and adrenaline, and will surely appeal to fans of The Clean, The Replacements, Teenage Fanclub, Pixies, The Shins, or Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever.
Plus: Get the inside scoop on the awesome Montreal scene! Teletubbies on acid! Trouble at the border! Trudeau cuts off the band's wifi! Morgan Freeman! Hockey! Capes! Clam pizza!
The Wesleys:
Website: https://www.littlevillagerecords.com/the-wesleys
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewesleysmtl/
Linktree: linktr.ee/thewesleys
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_wesleys
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7dNiuSl1RTkNZgYcioK8Z5?si=PccDtLU-RTa4Y_kSIst_IQ
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Is your Tuesday grey? Does it break your heart? Give you a heart attack? Make you wanna stay in bed? We say pshaw, Robert Smith, PSHAW! He apparently doesn't know that Tuesday means brand new O3L episodes. Come to think of it, no matter what day you listen, you'll say "I'm in love." Or perhaps this our thinly veiled way of saying that, in this episode, we chat about songs with a day of the week in the title.
Our Third Lad this week is Dan Cuddy, the bassist/singer/songwriter who has been leading Hoboken, New Jersey's The Special Pillow since 1995, and was previously in the late '80s/early '90s psych-tinged indie rockers Hypnolovewheel. The Special Pillow are esteemed purveyors of a full-spectrum, string-driven sound encompassing concise ’60s-flavored pop gems, dreamy hallucinogenic reveries, and pulse-pounding propulsion redolent of your favorite antipodean indie upstarts of the ’80s. The band specializes in catchy and confounding songcraft that has earned them notable fans such as Yo La Tengo, who have covered the group’s classic "Automatic Doom"
The Special Pillow Meets the Space Monster is the latest in a series of acclaimed EPs, following in the wake of Mind Wipe (2022) and World’s Finest (2020). It is named in honor of the 1965 science-fiction potboiler, Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster, the soundtrack of that cinematic milestone being the source of the featured cover song, "That’s the Way It’s Got to Be," originally performed by Scotland’s beat titans The Poets and an underground hit for The Special Pillow in the summer of 2023.

SOCIALS:
https://www.facebook.com/TheSpecialPillow/
https://www.instagram.com/thespecialpillow/
https://thespecialpillow.bandcamp.com

Special thanks to Mike Turner from Crashing Through Publicity for the intro!
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It's a Cruel World after all. Yes, the preeminent festival for lovers of new wave, darkwave, synth-pop, goth and post-punk music (new and old) is back for a third year. Whether you're going...or just wish you were...let your friends at O3L be a part of your pre-game celebration!
We will be conspicuously absent from the fun this year. Brett's usually right there, but has something even more important to celebrate - his son's university graduation. But we won't let a little thing like that deter us from building our fantasy day at Cruel World.
This year's roster includes Duran Duran, Tones On Tail, Interpol, Blondie, Simple Minds, Soft Cell, Adam Ant, Ministry, Jesus And Mary Chain, Gary Numan, Heaven 17, The Mission, The Stranglers, General Public, The Motels, Lol Tolhurst x Budgie, and more!
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