The Load Out Music Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Today we diverge from The Load’s Out’s typical menu of Americana and roots fare into something much more complex.  

The band 2Lot is not your typical collection of musicians. Indeed, creating its own unique brand of electronic jam music—fusing electronic elements with inspiration from classic jam bands, hip hop, soul, funk, jazz and rock—2Lot teems with intellectual prowess. After all, the band’s name comes from the second law of thermodynamics, as its goal is to resist entropy, or a lack of order or predictability, gradually declining into disorder.

Led by a beacon of U.S. industry, unlike many bands, 2Lot’s primary goal focuses on activating and inspiring people while driving social change. The band seeks to highlight causes it believes in such as overcoming addiction—something near and dear to our host’s heart—helping kids overcome barriers and discovering gifts, and addressing shortfalls criminal justice.

We welcome in Chase Koch and Robert Trusko of 2Lot for a fascinating conversation on the Load Out Music Podcast. 

There has never been more high-quality music being made than there is today. However, unless you’re looking for sugar-coated, synth-driven pop sounds—the discovery of that music is often left to the mercy of streaming algorithms.

Take, for example, punk-infused Americana (think The Clash meets Loretta Lynn). There’s a torrent of it, particularly a number of very good female artists such as past-guest Sarah Borges, Lydia Loveless, Sarah Shook & the Disarmers, Jamie Wyatt and others. 

Arguably at the head of the line is our latest guest on The Load Out Music Podcast: the truly wonderful and talented Lilly Hyatt. 

The daughter of the legendary Americana artist John Hiatt, Lilly Hiatt first earned buzz with a pair of early solo records. Then came her 2017 breakout album Trinity Lane, which was produced by Michael Trent of Shovels & Rope. It’s a gritty collection of heartfelt yet rollicking rockers, including the title track, “The Night David Bowie Died” and “All Kinds of People,” among others.

Hiatt’s newest album, Forever, sees her stylistically return to Trinity Lane, as we discussed. Written and recorded in her home near Nashville, Forever is a stellar collection of vulnerable songs that grapple with growth and change, escape and anxiety, self-loathing and self-love. She cut the record with her husband, Coley Hinson, who produced and played most of the instruments throughout. The result is a raw, unvarnished collection that toes the line between guitar-driven, alt-rock muscle and singer-songwriter sensitivity.

We pick up on episode 11 of season 5 of the Load Out Music Podcast with a unique episode when we welcome in Jake Neuman of Jake Neuman and the Jaybirds, along with producer and former guest Greg Griffith. Greg not only produced the new record by the Jaybirds -- "Little Bitty Town" -- but he also produced the new album by my own band, Atomic Junction. All in the last month or so. So the three of us discuss both albums and the experiences in producing them. 

Jason Bonham’s name is synonymous with rock royalty. It started, of course, with his father—the late Led Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, who is considered one of the most transformative rock drummers in rock ‘n’ roll history. But Jason is no lesser emulation of his father. He’s a Grammy winner who has carved a different, yet highly influential path for himself, playing legendary shows with the living members of Zeppelin, touring with Sammy Hagar, leading his own band—Bonham—and playing with Foreigner and UFO among others. He has a smoking hot new album on which he yet again distinguishes his playing—just out with the super group Black Country Communion (BCC). He helped found BCC in 2010 with blues-rock icon Joe Bonamassa, the legendary Glen Hughes and Derek Sherinan, and the band’s exceptional music continues to shine some 14 years later. We speak to Jason on the latest episode of The Load Out Music Podcast and discuss his remarkable career and life—especially his turn in the legendary Steel Dragon next to Mark Wahlberg—and everything in between.

He may not be the tallest musician going, but John Oates casts a immensely large shadow in music. One part of the most successful duo in music history—Daryl Hall & John Oates—he co-wrote a number of the band’s legendary catalogue including "Sara Smile," "She’s Gone,” "Out of Touch,” "You Make My Dreams,” "I Can’t Go for That," "Maneater” and more. In 2014, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and in 2014, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

But at 76, Oates is taking stock in his life, reflecting on the love he shares with his wife and their son, with his father who is 100, and those who are truly important to him.  

“I wanted to make sure that things were clean and tight as I move forward in my life,” Oates said on the most recent episode of The Load Out Music Podcast.

Without question, he’s moving on—leaving his immensely successful business and artistic partnership with Hall behind, working to sell his stake in the duo’s catalogue, touring with a new band and performing songs that have deeper meaning in his life. Oates is simply going forward and disconnecting from things that have held him up.

He lays it all on the table in a great conversation on the Load Out. Enjoy! 

Coreen Sheehan knows how to sing. It’s how she’s toured all over the world fronting powerhouse rock ‘n’ roll bands and why Sheehan’s been employed by Grammy winners and helped countless singers prepare to compete in both U.S. and international versions of shows like NBC’s The Voice and American Idol.

In fact, the vocal technique curricula she developed is used by the Musician’s Institute Hollywood, in music schools across Japan like the Osaka School of Music and the Fukuoka School of Music, in the Taipei School of Music in Taiwan, and why Sheen has two instructional books with Hal Leonard Publications.

“That is a footprint of my work,” Sheehan told me on the most recent episode of the Load Out Music Podcast. “And because I’m so meticulous in making sure that a vocalist is absolutely prepared…mentally and physically.”

Sheehan has worked with a who’s who vocalists while receiving honors like the Vocal Instructor of the Year Award in 2008 and Curricular Appreciation Award 2014 from Musician’s Institute Hollywood. She was also nominated for the Grammy’s Music Educator Award in both 2013 and 2014, and recognized by the Recording Academy and Grammy Foundation for her excellence.

“Some of the artists are out touring 18 months of the year and they just can’t have a bad day,” she said adamantly. “I don’t care if you’re signed or not. I’ll only work with musicians, vocalists that are really serious about wanting to upgrade their voice…because that’s what you have to do. To be a professional you have to be consistent.”

So let’s get into the science of singing. Enjoy the latest Load Out Music Podcast with vocal coach extraordinaire Coreen Sheehan.

Acclaimed international jazz artist Jose James has a composure about him that one might compare to James Bond.

The Minneapolis native claims he was one of the least talented artists in his music circles growing up, yet he ultimately attended The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. His first album, The Dreamer, debuted in 2008. Since then, he’s gone on to play at the Kennedy Center, The Hollywood Bowl, Ancienne Belgique, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Melbourne Symphony and has recorded 11 more records including his latest which dropped April 5—the stunning album 1978, named for the year of his birth.

Along the way, he’s picked up honor after honor in establishing himself as an extraordinary jazz singer/songwriter—but one built for the hip-hop generation. Pitchfork called him, “one of the suavest vocal improvisers on the scene,” and it’s been said his arrangements and approach are “in deep conversation with funk, R&B, and hip-hop.”

Despite oozing cool, he’s not really all about himself. You quickly understand that James lives for the collaboration and building art that he loves with others.

“I really grew up with this idea that you make music with a band, with other people,” he told me recently on The Load Out Music Podcast. 

He grew up feeling the diverse vibes of bands ranging from the Ohio Players and Peter, Paul and Mary found in his mother’s record collection; the funky global beats of his multi-instrumentalist father’s band, Ipso Facto; the western church music of his Catholic school and diverse artists such as Nirvana, 10,000 Maniacs, De la Soul, A Tribe Called Quest and Grammy-winner Bobby McFerrin who was the creative chair of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra for a time in the early 1990s.

When he was 17, James attended a McFerrin concert with the noted jazz pianist Chick Corea. It was then that he was hooked on the idea that a career in music was inevitable—but he still was surprised that others saw it as well.

“Wow,” James said. “People see something in me that I might not see. I didn’t really go to college. I didn’t want to do the traditional route. I was like, I can have a coffee shop job and pay my rent and see what happens. This is where my spirit is taking me.”

Despite a love for jazz, early on James understood that jazz could be limiting and wanted to explore the boundaries of the genre.

“There is a strong jazz radio, but it’s pretty strict about what they play,” he said, noting that listeners essentially find smooth or classic jazz on radio, but the parameters are narrow. Thus, he approaches each record with the understanding that he must keep certain singles within the ditches, producing them to be radio friendly, while stretching boundaries on other tracks with dance, pop and hip-hop beats.

“I think it’s more frustrating that jazz, in general, is not more popular in America,” he muses, despite his voice not elevating to indicate any semblance of anger. “You go to Tokyo, go to any shopping mall, restaurant, they are playing jazz.”

As James’ star has risen, he’s realized two principal realities about his chosen career: That money and power still drive the industry and that he would be little without the graciousness of other artists. 

“It’s not just about talent, James said. “It’s about who’s pushing you and how much money.”

This became apparent to him when he released a single independently in 2012 to little fanfare. However, the same single was included on his first album for the vaunted Blue Note label and it became a sensational hit, landing him appearances on David Letterman’s and Conan O’Brien’s late-night shows. 

James credits his success to mentors who have given him their time including legendary jazz pianist McCoy Tyner (who worked with John Coltrane), singer Anita Baker, composer Christian McBride, band leader Chico Hamilton and even former late-night host Jay Leno.

“There’s so much generosity going around,” he said. “You have to take the wins.”

As for 1978, James said that it is, “The first time I’ve really gotten personal in a concrete way. I’m going to reveal more about myself and where I’m from.” 

He points to the racial politics of Minnesota and efforts to bring to bear a range of influences including Prince, Michael Jackson and even Bob Dylan.

“I call it party and politics because, to me, that’s what the 70s kind of resonates with. People knew how to party. They could throw down. But they were also famous for taking a stand.”

Thus, the first half of the album is what he calls “party,” while the second half focuses on “politics,” including pieces written in the memories of George Floyd and Trayvon Martin.

“I don’t really worry about it,” James said of injecting politics into his art. “I’ve definitely gotten some of that—the shut up and sing kind of vibe. If it’s important to you, I think you’ve got to talk about it. If people don’t like it, that’s kind of fine.”

It’s important to Jose James indeed. Enjoy a tremendous episode of The Load Out Music Podcast with the acclaimed jazz maestro. 

Earnestness. Authenticity. These are the things Nashville-based guitarist Tobin Dale relates to when he considers his chosen craft as a guitarist and playing the music he loves.

A true student of rock‘n’roll guitar, Dale has been at it since discovering the Beatles and subsequently picking up the guitar around age 12, growing up in Orlando. In music circles, he’s become known as a go-to sideman for touring and sessions when artists are seeking the much-admired weave sound of guitars made popular by the likes of Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones and heard in the sounds of bands like The Faces, Humble Pie, the Black Crowes, Dan Baird projects and more.

He first began life as a working musician in Los Angeles after following the cross-country voyage taken by one of his heroes, Tom Petty, who went from central Florida to LA. In California, he first joined the band the Nasty Souls, playing his first live show at the famed Roxy on Sunset at age 21. It was there that the likes of Bob Marley, Aretha Franklin, John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen, Linda Ronstadt, Patti Smith, Prince and more had played prior. Alcohol and drugs, of course, were ever-present in the LA music scene. In particular, booze became a particular vice when playing with Caldwell Jack & the Six Pack during a residency at the Kibitz Room.

Dale had a wakeup call during an East Coast tour that helped Dale find sobriety. He ultimately moved to Nashville with the love of his life and began finding bigger opportunities through encounters with the likes of Alejandro Escovedo, through producer Julian Raymond at Big Machine Records, touring with Brock Ganyea and ultimately hooking up with the legendary Ray Wylie Hubbard.

Dale’s relationship with Hubbard started during his time playing on tour with Ganyea, who was opening shows for Hubbard. The iconic Texas songwriter approached Dale after a few performances and asked him to come up on stage to join him on the song “You Got to Move.” Dale asked Hubbard if he wanted, “the Fred McDowell or the Rolling Stones version.” A kinship was formed and the bond has only solidified since. It didn’t hurt, of course, that Dale quickly found chemistry with Hubbard’s son and bandmate Lucas—the two weaving their guitars seamlessly—and Dale continues playing with Hubbard’s band today, such as his recent gigs on the Sirius XM Outlaw Country Cruise (where Dale also played with Andrew Leahey and the Homestead) and at Red Rocks in Colorado.

It would seem, at just age 34, Dale is only getting started. He has a big summer ahead, touring with Tuk Smith & the Restless Hearts, picking up gigs here and there in Nashville and across the U.S. But with every consideration, Dale seemingly comes back to his fundamental tenants—particularly, authenticity.

We discuss all of this and more on a terrific edition of The Load Out Music podcast with guitarist Tobin Dale. Enjoy!

Like any other art form, rap music or hip-hop has a defined, ever-evolving legacy. There are names etched in the walls of the greats industry founders ranging from Curtis Blow to Grandmaster Flash, LL Cool J to Run DMC, the Beastie Boys, Will Smith, Doug E. Fresh, the Fat Boys and Queen Latifah. As the genre evolved, rap developed more of an edge, telling painful stories of street life from performers like N.W.A., Ice-T, Public Enemy, Tupac Shakur, and the Notorious B.I.G. Rappers Jay Z, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg took rap to new heights of popularity, giving hip-hop a seat at the mainstream table. And others like Lauryn Hill,  50 Cent, Kendrick Lamar, Lil’ Wayne, Eminem, Travis Scott, Nicki Minaj, Drake, DMX, J. Cole and others have kept rap going strong and made it a viable and highly profitable music style.

But rap is incomplete without the group that coined the phrase “hip-hop” in their groundbreaking anthem “Rapper’s Delight”—the Sugarhill Gang. 

Indeed, any conversation about rap—which in 2023, celebrated 50 years as an art form—is incomplete without the Sugarhill Gang. Formed in 1979, it started outside an Englewood, New Jersey, pizza shop when singer and music executive Sylvia Robinson asked Henry “Big Bank Hank” Jackson—who would croon as he made pizza inside—to sing for she and her husband Joe in their car parked outside. Jackson was ultimately joined by Guy "Master Gee" O'Brien and the two of them went to the Robinson home along with Michael "Wonder Mike" Wright. The three young me thought they were auditioning against one another, but in the end, were assembled into a music act that would go on to become one of the first rap groups ever—the Sugarhill Gang—holding a legendary place in popular music history. 

We sit down with the Sugarhill Gang including Master Gee, Wonder Mike, Hendogg and DJ T-Dynasty for the latest episode of the Load Out Music Podcast. 

Some guests need no introduction, especially when they've been a founding member of one of the most lendary rock bands in history, Traffic. But if you need more, Dave Mason has it. He's penned well over 100 songs, has three gold records, worked with the late Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartnery, George Harrison, Eric, Clapton, Rita Coolidge and the list goes on. The self-described "country boy" from England who now lives in Nevada is about the hit the road again--because he wouldn't feel comfortable anywhere else--and has a new memoir and fresh blues album out this summer. We welcome the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee to The Load Out Music Podcast for a great kickoff to Season 5!