Riffology: Iconic Rock Albums

The Evolution of Linkin Park’s Minutes to Midnight

Neil Johnson 28 September 2024

Introduction In the ever-evolving landscape of rock music, few albums have made as significant an impact as...

Unpacking Hybrid Theory: Linkin Park’s Game-Changer

Unpacking Hybrid Theory: Linkin Park’s Game-Changer

Neil Johnson 28 September 2024

Introduction Released on October 24, 2000, Linkin Park’s debut album, Hybrid Theory, stands as a monumental work...

Meteora: Linkin Park’s Iconic Album Unveiled

Meteora: Linkin Park’s Iconic Album Unveiled

Neil Johnson 28 September 2024

Introduction Linkin Park’s “Meteora” stands as a defining moment in the early 2000s rock landscape. Released on...

The Evolution of Living Things: Linkin Park’s 2012 Triumph

Neil Johnson 28 September 2024

Introduction Linkin Park’s fifth studio album, Living Things, released in 2012, marks a significant evolution in the...

Anthems of Rebellion: Arch Enemy’s Melodic Metal Evolution

Neil Johnson 28 September 2024

Introduction Released on August 25, 2003, Anthems of Rebellion by Arch Enemy marked a pivotal moment in...

Unveiling the Impact of Gojira’s From Mars to Sirius

Neil Johnson 27 September 2024

Introduction In the vast landscape of heavy metal, few albums have made as significant an impact as...

Rammstein’s Reise, Reise: A Journey Through Industrial Metal

Neil Johnson 27 September 2024

Introduction In the landscape of industrial metal, few albums stand as tall as Rammstein’s Reise, Reise. Released...

The Making of Divine Intervention: Slayer’s Thrash Triumph

Neil Johnson 27 September 2024

Introduction In the mid-1990s, as the musical landscape was being reshaped by the rise of grunge and...

The Headless Children: W.A.S.P.’s Evolutionary Leap

Neil Johnson 26 September 2024

Introduction Released in April 1989, The Headless Children by W.A.S.P. stands as a pivotal moment in the...

Podcast Episodes

Riffology: Iconic Rock Albums Podcast

Welcome to Riffology, where a GenX and a Millennial talk about the albums from their youth. It’s more fun than it sounds…

In this instalment of Riffology, Chris arrives early and fully prepared, a development so shocking that Neil repeatedly checks he hasn’t fallen into a parallel universe. They introduce Stereophonics’ second LP Performance and Cocktails, whose title came from a business card handed to the band at the bizarre New York club Shine – a haunt featuring trapeze artists wearing pig’s‑heads. Chris describes the record as a “comfort blanket” and the pair recall it being one of the touchstones of their school‑days, along with Eels and NOFX. They also reminisce about making tape‑deck radio shows as teenagers, a hobby that foreshadowed their current podcast.

Neil makes the case that Performance and Cocktails is “one of the greatest sounding records.” It is both huge and warm, can be cranked up in a car yet still reveals breathy nuance through headphones, and somehow remains coherent despite being recorded in multiple studios. The album was released on Richard Branson’s V2 label, runs a lean 50 minutes with thirteen tracks, and was produced by Steve Bush and Marshall Bird. It sold 1.7 million copies even as Napster ushered in the age of free downloads and propelled the Welsh trio from club dates to arenas. The hosts note how Kelly Jones’ gritty vocals, Richard Jones’ bass and Stuart Cable’s drumming are augmented by producer Marshall Bird’s keyboards and Astrid’s backing vocals. They also relay how Scarlet Page shot the cover photograph beneath London’s Westway, with model Lucy Joplin posing after a long night of absinthe and opium.

As usual, the conversation meanders. Between facts, Chris and Neil ponder why Radio 2 suddenly plays Ozzy Osbourne, debate whether “post‑Britpop” is an actual genre, and recall how Napster made everyone stop paying for music. A mid‑show tangent sees them visit York’s Jorvik Viking Centre to admire a fossilised human poo in a glass cabinet and discuss the educational merits of taking their children to train museums. Later they imagine a future AI scraping their podcast and mistaking their nonsense for historical fact. The episode ends with some gentle ribbing about their blog, the smell of the Northern Line and whether the Hyperloop will ever rival 1990s tilt‑trains. Dry humour and affectionate digressions keep the tone light while the hosts’ admiration for the album remains clear.