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Rewind: They Might Be Giants on Doom, Decrepitude, and the Enduring Art of the Absurd Aug 04, 2025

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Revisit the time Kyle Meredith sat down with John Flansburgh and John Linnell of They Might Be Giants on this special Rewind episode. The crew chats about the albums Nanobots and I Like Fun, digging into how the band continues to find new ways to be weird 20 albums in. Listen to their insights now.

The Johns discuss the strange comfort fans find in their music during chaotic times, how short songs and dark characters let them explore new creative corners, and why they’ve never subscribed to the cliché rock lifestyle. Flansburgh shares how Jack Bruce’s homemade Mellotron choir helped shape “I Like Fun,” and both Johns reflect on writing about death, dread, and Peter Pan syndrome with equal parts humor and sincerity. Plus: opinions about James K. Polk, writing beats by email, and the eternal mystery of Louisville’s incredible junk stores.

Listen to John Flansburgh and John Linnell of They Might Be Giants chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Luciane Buchanan on Chief of War, Polynesian Identity, and Her Spiritual Journey Jul 30, 2025

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Luciane Buchanan joins Kyle Meredith With… to talk about her powerful role in Chief of War, the new Apple TV+ series created by and starring Jason Momoa. Set during the late 18th century, the show tells the story of the unification of the Hawaiian Islands—told through an Indigenous lens—and Buchanan plays Queen Ka'ahumanu whose political savvy and presence made the unification possible. It’s an expansive, lushly shot series about resistance, legacy, and the long shadow of colonization. Listen now.

“I had no idea about Hawaiian history at all,” Buchanan admitted. “I had heard of King Kamehameha, but that was about it.” Once cast, she took a deep dive into archives and oral histories, even tracking down the Queen’s birthplace in a cave on Maui. “I just kind of let her spirit know that I might not be the right person to do so… but I wanted to honor her in the best way I could,” she said of a solo pilgrimage that turned unexpectedly spiritual. “The trees started to shake. The wind picked up. And then it all went quiet.”

Beyond the emotional weight of the role, Buchanan had to tackle practical challenges—like learning the Hawaiian language and holding her own opposite 6’4” Momoa. “I required a lot of apple boxes because of our height difference,” she laughed. But the bigger challenge was mastering a language she didn’t grow up speaking: “There was a lot of pressure. You can’t ad-lib in another language. You can’t just get the gist of it.”

Listen to Luciane Buchanan chat about all this and more our watch it on YouTube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Conor Sherry, Ethan Cutkosky, and Maxwell Jacob Friedman on Legacy, Wrestling, and Happy Gilmore 2 Jul 28, 2025

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The wait is over, and the most chaotic family reunion of the year has arrived. Happy Gilmore 2 sees Adam Sandler reprising his legendary golf-club-swinging man-child — only this time, he's got backup. Kyle Meredith caught up with the new generation of Gilmore lunacy: Conor Sherry, Ethan Cutkosky, Maxwell Jacob Friedman, and newcomer Philip Fine Schneider, who play Happy’s four sons in a long-awaited sequel that’s more absurd, more heartwarming, and somehow even more Sandler. Listen to the episode now.

“It just flowed into the movie,” said Sherry about the group’s chemistry, crediting the “banter and camaraderie” that emerged both on and off the set. “We kind of have that cartoonistic aspect,” Cutkosky added, describing the high-energy tone as something that “literally just flows through you.”

Friedman—better known as All Elite Wrestling's MJF—is also a classically trained actor who saw this as a homecoming of sorts: “Being able to go back to my roots here… it was really something else.” Schneider, meanwhile, had just come off performing Hamlet in college before getting cast as Bobby Gilmore, and while the jump sounds wild, he swears “the process was really quite similar.”

Listen to the cast of Happy Gilmore 2 chat about all this and more on YouTube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Kyle Newacheck on Bringing Happy Gilmore 2 to Life Jul 23, 2025

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Kyle Newacheck sat down with Kyle Meredith to talk about the long-awaited Happy Gilmore 2, which brings Adam Sandler’s hockey-stick-wielding everyman back to the green nearly 30 years after the original. The Workaholics alum and Murder Mystery director had the unenviable task of balancing nostalgia for one of the most quoted comedies of the ’90s with a modern polish. “It’s a comedy-first movie,” Newacheck explains. “There’s no genre overlay. It’s a family, fun, heartfelt comedy.” Listen to the episode now.

Newacheck calls the original Happy Gilmore “a fantastic building” and compares the sequel to being asked to construct a new wing on an iconic house. “There’s already so much love baked in,” he says, but he knew he had a winner when he read the screenplay: “You can’t improv a good story -- this script had it. It made me feel something — not just the laughs, but the heart.” He also speaks about striking the balance between the '90s and now: “We’re smoother at filmmaking, sure. But I didn’t want to lose that looseness, that joy. I wanted people quoting this the same way they quoted Anchorman and Billy Madison.”

Of course, part of the magic was bringing in new blood, including a surprisingly sharp performance from Bad Bunny. “Take one, I’m watching him thinking, ‘Wait — I believe this guy. Am I really feeling this much on take one?’” Newacheck recalls. “Bad Bunny is that good.”

Listen to Kyle Newacheck chat about all this and more our watch it on YouTube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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5SOS’s Michael Clifford on Fatherhood, Fourth-Walling, and His New SIDEQUEST Jul 21, 2025

Show notes

Michael Clifford is no stranger to arenas full of screaming fans as a member of 5 Seconds of Summer, but he’s now venturing into the uncharted territory of solo artistry with his debut album SIDEQUEST. The guitarist-turned-frontman caught up with Kyle Meredith to talk about how the record came to be, the joy and anxiety that came with doing it alone, and how becoming a father restructured his creative compass. Listen now.

While SIDEQUEST is certainly a departure from 5SOS’s collective sound, Clifford doesn’t go full scorched earth. “My DNA is always going to be in there as this kid who grew up listening to emo,” he admits. But instead of banking on nostalgia, he chased something more elusive: the sensation of hearing something for the first time. “Watching my daughter discover things kind of unjaded me,” he says. “It made me want to inject that into my music.”

That childlike unpredictability permeates SIDEQUEST, especially in songs like “Eclipse,” a chaotic but emotional finale that Clifford says is structured to mimic the rollercoaster of parenthood. “You don’t know the structure of the song,” he explains. He also breaks the fourth wall lyrically throughout the album, referencing his own fame and band history in ways that only he could: “Nobody else is gonna be able to say, ‘I’m the guy who caught fire with the colored hair in the band about underwear.’” No arguments there.

Listen to Michael Clifford of 5 Seconds of Summer chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Rewind: Caroline Polachek & Alison Goldfrapp on Ghostly Falsettos, Heartbreak Pop, and Disco Dreams Jul 16, 2025

Show notes

On the rewind episode of Kyle Meredith With.., hear from Caroline Polachek and Alison Goldfrapp — two vocalists who could probably sing a grocery list and still make it sound like avant-garde pop bliss.

Polachek, formerly of Chairlift, has turned heartbreak and hyperpop into an art form, floating somewhere between baroque synths and Enya-core. Goldfrapp, meanwhile, has spent decades wrapping disco, glam, and electroclash into one shimmering Goldfrapp package. Lately, she’s stepped out solo just to remind us she can still make the dance floor melt.

Expect stories of sonic reinvention, ghostly falsettos, and why "ethereal" is sometimes just another word for unstoppable.

Listen to Caroline Polachek and Alison Goldfrapp chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Ben Folds on Orchestral Album, the Kennedy Center, and Artistic Freedom Jul 14, 2025

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Ben Folds recently sat down with Kyle Meredith to talk about the complicated year that saw him record a stunning live album with the National Symphony Orchestra just before stepping down as Artistic Advisor for the Kennedy Center. Folds opens up about the importance of the Kennedy Center’s mission, how it connects communities beyond the stage, and why that made his exit during the Trump administration’s takeover so necessary. Listen now.

Reflecting on the album, Folds calls it “an absolute honor” to record with the NSO, praising the room’s natural magic and the delicate work of mixer David Boucher. The album arrives like an act of resistance, beginning with “But Wait, There’s More,” which Folds says was born out of the absurdity of the Four Seasons Total Landscaping press conference. “It felt so cynical at first, but I do still believe there’s more good than not,” he says.

The conversation also dives deep into the vital role of public funding and arts institutions, and how Folds’ Kennedy Center series aimed to break down barriers and build trust between artists and audiences. “When you bring in people with something to say, the orchestra becomes part of telling that story,” he explains. “That mission — that trust — that’s what makes it special. When the mission’s broken, it all falls apart.” Folds remains hopeful that the simple act of gathering to experience art together is itself a form of resistance. “Maybe this wakes us up,” he says. “We’re all capable of anything — don’t do the bad stuff.”

Listen to Ben Folds chat about all this and more or watch it on Youtube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Zombies 4 Cast on Vampires, Daywalkers, and Disney Channel Nostalgia Jul 09, 2025

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For the fourth time around, Milo Manheim, Meg Donnelly, Malachi Barton, and Freya Skye sat down with Kyle Meredith to sink their teeth into Zombies 4, the latest chapter of Disney’s monster-mash musical saga. This time, Zed and Addison find themselves caught in the middle of a new supernatural rivalry — Daywalkers vs. Vampires — as they play camp counselors to Seabrook’s most fang-tastic new recruits. Listen to the episode now.

Both Manheim and Donnelly have leveled up as executive producers on the film, and they’re more hands-on than ever. Meanwhile, newcomers Malachi Barton and Freya Skye came prepared for the monster mayhem, with Barton embracing a different kind of bloodsucker. “The whole writing team did such an amazing job of turning vampires into this fun-loving, friendly type of monster,” he said. Meanwhile, Skye studied up on the franchise’s style: “My way of studying was just watching the movies over and over… Zombies has such a distinctive feel to it.” Off-set, the cast bonded over music, game nights, and even boba-filled “blood fruits.”

Listen to Milo Manheim, Meg Donnelly, Malachi Barton, and Freya Sky chat about all this and more or watch it on Youtube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Wet Leg’s Rhian Teasdale on the Making of moisturizer, Queer Love, and DIY Boundaries Jul 07, 2025

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Rhian Teasdale of Wet Leg catches up with Kyle Meredith to talk about the band’s wildly anticipated sophomore album, moisturizer. After riding the wave of their self-titled debut — and the indie smash “Chaise Longue” — the CoSigned band doubled down on what made them so joyously chaotic in the first place. Now a five-piece, they holed up in the countryside, turned off their phones, and let their oddball impulses thrive. Listen now.

“A lot of it just came out of GarageBand bedroom demos the first time,” Teasdale says, reflecting on the shift from a duo to a collaborative project. “So it was the most natural thing to write the second record together. We just wanted to shut the world out and jam — the romantic version of a band you read about in music mags.” Those late-night jam sessions were fueled by repeat viewings of Aliens, Braveheart (“six times, but never the full movie!”) and cult fave Jennifer’s Body — which even inspired a song of its own.

Teasdale gets real about the lyrical layers too, exploring love from a queer perspective for the first time. “Music is a self-indulgent beast, so I needed to write about being this deeply in love,” she explains. But that openness doesn’t mean she’s dropped the punk punchlines. “We still wanted songs that feel good to play live — that’s always the point.”

Listen to Rhian Teasdale of Wet Leg chat about all this and more or watch it on Youtube. Then, snag yourself tickets to Wet Leg's upcoming tour dates by heading here.

Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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Renée Elise Goldsberry Talks Debut Album Who I Really Am, Hamilton, and Girls5Eva Jul 02, 2025

Show notes

Renée Elise Goldsberry sat down with Kyle Meredith to dive deep into her vibrant debut album, Who I Really Am. The Tony-winning powerhouse, best known for her role as Angelica Schuyler in Hamilton, is proving she’s just as compelling behind a mic as she is on stage. Blending pop with the theatrical soul of Broadway, she's crafted a record that defies genre while still feeling timeless. Listen now.

Of course, Hamilton remains a cherished chapter. She revisited “Satisfied” for the album and recently reunited with the original cast for the Tony Awards. “We’re ridiculously silly when we’re together,” she admits. “It’s love all over the room.” Meanwhile, her other family, the Girls5eva crew, might still have more stories to tell. “I dream we’ll be back in 10 years, dressing alike, singing harmony, taking over malls that probably won’t exist,” she jokes.

Listen to Renée Elise Goldsberry chat about all this and more or watch it on Youtube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

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