Show Notes
Willy Vlautin is my guest on the first That’s How I Remember It episode of 2025. Willy is an amazing songwriter and novelist. He’s published seven incredible novels, most recently 2024’s The Horse. After leading the band Richmond Fontaine for years, he moved over to a pure songwriting role in The Delines, who are releasing a great record Mr. Luck & Ms. Doom next month. We talked about that as well as the effect of anxiety on memory, Steinbeck, William Kennedy, TV/Film adaptations of his work, and so much more. Willys is a friend and also a complete inspiration. I was so happy to go deep with him here. Listen and subscribe.
More from That's How I Remember It
James Austin Johnson is my guest on this episode of That’s How I Remember It. James is a cast member of SNL, best known for his impersonation of our current president. He also does a masterful Bob Dylan, with a loving attention to detail. His great new comedy special He’ll Yeah is out now. We talked about that as well as trusting an editor, the correct pronunciation of Moleskine, Christian ska, Bill Frisell, handwritten signs in Brooklyn, and so much more. Really an incredible guest, this one was a blast. Listen and subscribe!
Steven Hyden is my guest on this episode of That’s How I Remember It. He’s got a cool new book out about The Strokes called Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of the Strokes (and Rock n’ Roll), which I found both fun and thought-provoking. We talked about the book as well as his high school writing, “Upper Mississippi Shakedown” by the Lamont Cranston band, getting into music from reading artist interviews, The BoDeans, Ellen Willis, five person bands, and a lot more. Really great talk, check it out and subscribe!
Caithlin De Marrais is my guest on this episode of That’s How I Remember It. Caithlin is a member of classic emo band Rainer Maria and has also put out some great solo records. She’s got a new solo record called Vowes due soon, and she’s already released two videos from it. We talked about that record as well as her going back to school for music education, rote memorization, archaic spellings, almost drowning, Echo & The Bunnymen, and leaning into the physicality of playing music. Really enjoyed this one, please listen and subscribe!
Tommy Stinson is my guest on this episode of That’s How I Remember It. Tommy is a rock and roll hero of mine, and I was thrilled to have him on the podcast. We talked about Sly & The Family Stone’s “It’s a Family Affair,” old Minneapolis clubs The Nacirema and Duffy’s, loving Minneapolis band The Suburbs, starting on stand-up bass, what he learned from his time in Guns N' Roses and whether he remembers anything from the show at 7th Street Entry where I first saw the Replacements. Was a thrill to have Tommy here, listen and subscribe!
Johanna Samuels is my guest on this episode of That’s How I Remember It. Johanna first hit my radar with her awesome 2023 release Bystander, produced by long-time friend of the pod Josh Kaufman. Now she’s got a fantastic new record called Sorry Kid coming out this week and we talked about that as well as waterbugs, morally complex endings, having a panic attack at Moulin Rouge, going to movies by yourself, and Blue vs. Pinkerton. As always, I had a blast talking to Johanna, it’s a great episode. Please listen and subscribe!