Sodajerker On Songwriting

Singer-songwriter and producer Beth Orton joins Simon and Brian for a conversation about the writing of her latest record The Ground Above. Beth shares how she turns instinctive first ideas into finished songs, the independence that came with producing her own records, and the influence of two formative relationships: her early collaborations with William Orbit and her guitar lessons with Bert Jansch.

Songwriter and producer Linda Perry discusses Let It Die Here, her first solo album in over 25 years, and its accompanying documentary, which offers a candid look at her life and creative process. Linda explains the ways that grief and the loss of her mother are bound up in the work, the role of vulnerability in songwriting, and what she's looking for when she collaborates with an artist in the studio.

Sean Ono Lennon joins Sodajerker to discuss The Great Parrot Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy, the new sci-fi concept album from the Claypool Lennon Delirium. Sean talks about collaborating with Les Claypool, creating characters and mythology for the record, and exploring the dangers of artificial intelligence. We also examine the duo's use of wordplay, Sean's eclectic musical influences, and the lessons he absorbed from his parents.

The The's Matt Johnson joins Simon and Brian to discuss his new book Cognitive Dissident, the idea of "method songwriting", and the way grief and personal loss have shaped his music. Along the way, this candid conversation touches on topics like memory, identity, authenticity and new frontiers of technology.

Acclaimed Irish singer-songwriter Glen Hansard joins Simon and Brian to discuss his new live retrospective Don't Settle (Vol. 1 - Transmissions East) and his creative life. The Oscar-winning artist talks about writing songs that have a beating heart, why music should be both messy and true, but never clever, and the liberating experience of burning his notebooks.