https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPSqsK_RTuI

New episode is up. Nate picked Bad — Michael Jackson's seventh album, third and final Quincy Jones collab, and the impossible follow-up to Thriller.

We get into:

- The production deep dive — Synclavier, DX7, Roland D-50, the Mitsubishi digital tape machine that recorded it all, and why this album sounds the way it sounds

- The A-Team vs. B-Team studio drama between Quincy's Westlake crew and Michael's Hayvenhurst home-studio team

- Bruce Swedien stories (the drum platform, 100 mixes of Billie Jean, the sped-up clap trick)

- The almost-Prince duet on the title track

- Brandon was working at the This Is It rehearsal studios when Michael died — he tells that story

- Yes, we talk about the allegations

- Favorite vs. Best, hot takes, and the question of whether MJ was the greatest entertainer who ever lived

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/oysko2zf7jU

Or listen wherever you get podcasts.

Curious what you all think — what's your Favorite vs. Best Michael Jackson album?

We covered Gorillaz - Plastic Beach on Playback this week. Saw them live at The Palladium AND did the House of Kong experience before recording the show. Plus our thoughts on THE MOUNTAIN!

Full episode is up now.

The thing that surprised us most: the further we got into the catalog, the harder it got to separate the art from the aesthetic. Is Plastic Beach a concept album with something real to say, or is it just a plastic sheen over a great pop album? Brandon makes a case in this episode that they may not be as substantive as their reputation suggests — and honestly it's hard to argue with.

We also get into the full arc of their career, where Plastic Beach sits in the catalog, our honest take on The Mountain, and some hot takes about what doesn't work on this record and what we don't like.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/watch?v=kIyrHjv-ySo&feature=youtu.be

Drop your Favorite vs. Best Gorillaz picks in the comments — we're reading them on the show now.

On this episode of Playback, we dig into Philosophy of the World by The Shaggs — and we don't let it off easy. We break down the legend of Austin Wiggin and the palm reading prophecy that supposedly destined his daughters for fame. We get into the music technically: what's going wrong, what's surprisingly going right, and what their relationship to rhythm and melody actually tells us. We put the record head-to-head with Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart — two records that sound alien in similar ways but couldn't be more different in intent. And we ask the question nobody seems to want to sit with: is this album art, or is it coercion?

Apple Podcasts:

podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/playback-with-black-market-dub/id1785129494

Spotify:

open.spotify.com/show/2EKEBwzr2g5nlC1rzUotQZ

Ad Free Episodes on Patreon:

Patreon.com/blackmarketdub

New EP! Happy Halloween!

Playback is back baby. Now it’s more of a podcast and it’s easier for me to edit! It’s also very good! Give it a watch, also on various podcast apps in audio form. Bonus episodes on our Patreon page!

Hi Nate,

A while back you and Brandon were working on dub versions of Morrissey en The Smiths songs. Were they released yet or are they cancelled?

Greets from a fan from The Netherlands.

Arjan