Height Zone World

On this episode, I spin some of the tightest tunes I heard on my Talk Singer tour and try not to wake up my tour mates. Mike Riley's art this week is an homage to Kwame's The Boy Genius. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Doc Waffles, a tight Detroit MC. He’s been releasing great records since 2006’s Golf View Drive. I first became aware of him through his appearances in the Grind Time battle league, and I later became a fan of his music after we played a show together in Detroit. He talks about his days as a battle rapper, and how he sizes up the battle rap world today. He tells me about his various writing styles, and how he’s continued to change up his approach through the years. We talk about his collaborations with Eddie Logix, and their new album, This Week In Baseball. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Sir Mix-a-Lot’s Seminar. This episode is hosted by Splice Today.

My guest this week is Jumbled, aka John Bachman. He’s an excellent producer and the man behind the Harford and Reckord tape label. He’s also a Baltimore City high school teacher. We’ve known each other for a while, and I was amped to get him in the mix. He tells me about growing up on a farm in Harford County, and the unique perspective he gained from his upbringing. We talk about his shift from playing in punk bands to rapping, and another shift from rapping to producing. We also talk about his entry into the world of Baltimore club music, by way of his new Club Classics album. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Channel Live’s Station Identification. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Matt Greenfield. He recently directed Destroy Cleveland, a documentary about the Cleveland hardcore scene in the 80’s. Matt has spent years making music as MC Homeless and as Peaks, Ohio. We first met when our tours crossed paths in Pittsburgh in 2005, and I was amped to get the scoop on his whole career. He tells me about his early years playing hip-hop shows in the rust belt, and the surprise success of his debut full-length. We discuss the brutality of DIY touring, and his indefinite hiatus from the rap game. We talk about him switching gears to new forms of creativity, and the process of putting this new documentary together. The art this week is an homage to Schoolly D’s Smoke Some Kill. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is the legendary Sha-Rock, of Funky Four Plus One. They were one of the biggest hip-hop groups in the era before rap records, and they went on to release classic singles in the late 70’s and early 80’s. She was the first female MC in hip-hop, and they were the first hip-hop group to play on Saturday Night Live. She’s one of my favorite MC’s in the history of rap, and it was honor to have her on the show. She talks about her initial entrance into hip-hop as a b-girl, and her pioneering use of the echo chamber. (which Run-DMC would later cite as an influence) We talk about their journey from packed shows in the Bronx to a sold-out nationwide tour with Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five, Sequence, Sugarhill Gang and more. She explains their role in bringing rap shows to the punk rock world for the first time, and the influence they had on groups like The Beastie Boys. The art this week is an homage to James Brown’s There It Is. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Dylijens. He’s a member of the Llamadon collective, and the main guy behind Baltimore’s Beet Trip night. We first met at a show in his hometown of Frederick, MD, and I’ve admired his grind ever since. He tells me about LLamadon's formation in a defunct Jewish frat house in Pikesville, MD. We talk about their unique approach to touring, and he recaps their recent west coast tour. He breaks down the future he sees for LLamadon, and for Baltimore’s music scene as a whole. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

This is part two of my interview with Tom Kessler. Tom is the man behind She Will Rise Media, through which he’s documented hundreds of Baltimore shows. I first met him when he appeared with a camera at my record release show. Tom is a tireless documentarian and supporter of Baltimore music and arts, and I was happy to get his perspective on things. We talk about some of the local photographers and videographers he admires, and discuss his insecurities about measuring up to them. He explains the game-changing experience he had while filming Acme Corporation’s 24-hour marathon of Samuel Beckett’s “Play.” He breaks down his long-term plan for She Will Rise, which involves Tom writing and directing his own plays. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to House of Pains’s self-titled debut. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Tom Kessler. Tom is the man behind She Will Rise Media, through which he’s documented hundreds of Baltimore shows. I first met him when he appeared with a camera at my record release show. Tom is a tireless documentarian and supporter of Baltimore music and arts, and I was happy to get his perspective on things. He talked about being initially turned on to Baltimore music by Dan Deacon and Future Islands shows at the 2640 space. He tells me about being driven to document shows on the regular after being blown away by early Microkingdom performances. We talk about the frustrations he has with his non-stop grind, and his desire to step his game up. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to House Of Pains’s self-titled debut. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

This is part two of my interview with Mike Apichella. Mike is the main man behind the band Human Host. He’s spent the past few years creating Towson-Glen Arm Freakouts, an in-depth archive of the early 90’s music and arts scene in north Baltimore County. He currently contributes to Splice Today. (Who also host this podcast) I’ve been a fan of his music since 1996, and I was (very briefly) a member of Human Host. In this episode, we talk about his earliest touring experiences with The Superstation, and about the ideas that led to him forming Human Host. We talk about the endless grind of booking tours, and his desire to leave the D.I.Y. scene and enter the D.I.F.M. (Do It For Me) scene. He ends the episode by reading some of Human Host’s written work. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Trick Daddy’s www.thug.com. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Mike Apichella. Mike is the main man behind the band Human Host. He’s spent the past few years creating Towson-Glen Arm Freakouts, an in-depth archive of the early 90’s music and arts scene in north Baltimore County. He currently contributes to Splice Today. (Who also host this podcast) I’ve been a fan of his music since 1996, and I was (very briefly) a member of Human Host. He talks about being inspired by the free-form radio of Towson University’s WCVT, and how that station turned him on to Sun Ra and 60’s punk bands like The One-Way Streets. He talks about his friends coming together to form the Towson-Glen Arm scene, and and the people that helped mold it into a movement with long-lasting influence. He talks about the tragic death of his friend Dave Willemain, and how that eventually pushed him to make music and art as a life-long pursuit. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Trick Daddy’s www.thug.com. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is DavO, aka David Richardson. He’s one half of the hip-hop duo Double Duchess. We’ve known each other since 2000, and I was excited to get the full story on his music journey. We talk about his early days as a rapper/drummer in Annapolis, MD, and his struggle to find his identity as a lyricist. He tells me about moving to the west coast, and how Double Duchess was spawned from a DJ night he put together in San Francisco. We talk about their debut album Hey Girl!, and the darker territory they’ve covered on their two most recent albums. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Main Source’s Breaking Atoms. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

This is a special one year anniversary episode. I’m joined by Mike Riley, (the visual arm of Height Zone World) and Eze Jackson. (Eze was our first guest ever) We reflect on what’s gone down in our world in the last 365. Mike and I discuss the experience of doing this podcast for 52 weeks straight. We each picked out four songs to play from guests who were interviewed on the show this year. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Afrika Bambaataa and Soul Sonic Force’s Planet Rock. This episode is hosted by www.splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Jimmy MacMillan. He’s the main man behind Friends Records. We first met when Friends helped me release my album Bed Of Seeds, and I wanted to learn more about how the label came to be. He talks about being a superfan of local bands in Columbia, MD, and working as the de facto manager of the bands Pinfold and Evolve. We talk about his partner Bret Yale calling him with the idea of putting out a 7-inch, and how that blossomed into them running a full-blown record label. We discuss the different approaches they’ve had to running a label over the last five-plus years, and what he wants to do with it now. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Heavy D and The Boyz’s 'Living Large.' This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Gavin Riley. He’s the man behind Gavin Riley Smoke Machine, a years-in-the-making Choose Your Own Adventure rap epic. We first met in 2006, and he became part of Height With Friends in 2009. We talk about his first group Rowan and Hastings, and about his first solo album from the mid-2000’s. He explains how his current project initially connected unconnected songs in his live set, and how he’s slowly fleshed it out into a tight, compelling story. We talk about the intensity of spending years on one thing, and about how he isn’t anxious to knock it out and get to another thing. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince’s “He’s The DJ, I’m The Rapper.” This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Cutmayor HY. He’s a member of Food For Animals and Disturbed Individuals, as well as a solo MC. I’ve been a fan of all his projects, and we’ve played many shows together over the years. He talks about growing up in Go-go country, and his initial forays into DJing. He tells me about how working in a movie theatre during college led to him joining Food For Animals and touring Europe and Japan with them. We talk about his new methodology for making beats, and his forthcoming sophomore solo album. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Brand Nubian’s One For All. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is David Jacober. He’s a member of Holy Ghost Party and Dope Body, and he also works as a solo artist. We first met when we played a show together in 2009, and I’ve been a fan of both of his bands ever since. He talks about his childhood in Arbutus, and his teenage collaborations with (his current bandmate) Zach Utz. He tells me about Dope Body being slowly courted by Drag City Records and how working with them led to their band gaining traction in Europe. We commiserate about the inherent wackness of being compared to Rage Against The Machine and Kid Rock.
 Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Boo-Yaa Tribe’s New Funky Nation. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Chad Dawson, aka 83 Cutlass. He made his debut with a self-titled EP in 2012. We met recently when him and I played the parts of Inspectah Deck and Cappadonna, (respectively) at a Wu-Tang tribute show. He talks about being equally inspired by the older R&B he heard at his grandmother’s card parties, and the hip-hop his younger uncles were digging. He talks about his days as a graffiti writer, and how graffiti inspired his approach to music. We talk about his debut EP, and the full-length album he’s working on now. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to King Tee’s Payback’s A Mutha. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

My guests this week are Josh Kuderna and Mike Moran. Josh and Mike are Baltimore-based comedians who host the long-running Digression Sessions podcast. We first met when I appeared on a live episode of their show, and I was excited to have them on my show this time around. They tell me how they met while busing tables, and how their day jobs led to Mike attending a Landmark Forum retreat. They talk about their earliest standup experiences, and how they sharpened their skills through the years. They tell me how Digression Sessions started, and we swap notes on the podcasting game. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Three Times Dope’s Original Stylin’, This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Neal Tyson, aka The Plural MC. He’s been releasing albums since 2003, including a full-length collaboration with Chris Freeland of Beat Babies / Oxes / Frenemies. We’ve been friends since high school, and he made his debut on my first solo album in 2000. We talk about his days as a high school hip-hop bootlegger, and how this secret hustle widened his musical palette. He tells me about putting his early albums together, and how starting to work with Chris Freeland led him to finding a unique voice. We discuss balancing the passion to make music with the hassle of promoting it. Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Tone-Lōc’s Lōc-ed After Dark, which itself is an homage to Donald Byrd’s A New Perspective. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

My guest this week is Sara Autrey. Sara plays in Wing Dam, Which Magic and Glittoris. We first met when we played a show together in Shepherdstown, WV, and we stayed in touch when she came to Baltimore. We conducted this interview in the winter, as Wing Dam was about to hit the road. She reminisces on the exhilaration she felt when playing in a rock band for the first time, and the loneliness she felt after leaving that band. I ask her about the origins of her different projects, and how she ended up with three different bands. We talk about the forthcoming Wing Dam album, and the new path they’re forging. 

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Rebel Soul, by Isis. This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.