The P.O.D. Kast

Latest Episodes:

Episode 56: Stone Sour's "Stone Sour", or How Corey Taylor Became the Omega Dog Apr 04, 2024

Show notes

It's one of our longest episodes ever, but we simply had to do it, as there's too much here to process, even with a 2-hour running time. A complicated departure from their work in Slipknot, Corey Taylor and Jim Root set out to have their own thing that doesn't sound all that different from Slipknot and we still aren't quite sure why it happened. But they do try to explain it, from Corey and Clown not talking to each other for seven months to "Bother" launching them into Gold status to what really boils down to Corey's ultimate desire to unmask and be a famous guy. Plus, we get a little "Guys" snapshot as we find 2002 Blabbermouth comments sections that still exist and Chad Kroeger of Nickelback absolutely bodies Corey Taylor. Oh, and the album ends with a slam poem. Like I said...there's a lot to process.

If you want to process even more of our show, head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you THREE bonus episodes every month, AND you immediately get access to our entire back catalog, which now totals over 130 episodes. Last month, Z from the Nu-Metal Agenda joined us to discuss Godflesh's "Pure", and it was wonderful. We also have an exclusive Discord, merch discounts, and if you want, you can hit a donor tier that allows you to tell us what to do for an episode. It's cool. Check it out.

Episode 55: Soulfly's "Soulfly", or the Plastic "Oh No!" Band Mar 06, 2024

Show notes

After being in SEVEN Polls, Soulfly finally get their day in the sun, and not a moment too soon as we dig into their weird and wonderful history, with Max desperately trying to duck Yoko Ono allegations about his wife's involvement with Sepultura. It's an album that meant a lot to Bryan and we go over in detail what the split from Sepultura meant in 1998 and what it continues to mean now, as both bands are still active and Max and his brother have reunited. It's a heavy album with a bunch of nu-metal guest spots that borrows a lot from late-era Sepultura, and we speculate just how much Max wanted the band to mirror his old one, from the name to the sound. We also read one of the more thorough interviews with a nu-metal lead singer we've ever read, get the full Sepultura break-up story from Max 20 years later, and read one of the most vicious quotes from a fellow band member we've ever read on the show.

If you want some more vicious quotes from us, you can head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you access to THREE bonus episodes every single month. Last month, Alex Goldman (Western Kabuki, Reply All) joined us to discuss Element Eighty's self-titled record, and it was a real blast. Plus, YOU can tell us what to cover for an episode. So head on over there and support your beloved boys!

Episode 54: Linkin Park's "Meteora", or How John Learned to Stop Worrying and Skipped School to Buy Linkin Park Feb 06, 2024

Show notes

It took exactly FIFTY episodes, but Linkin Park is back on the show and we are talking about their legendary, 16 million copy-selling, sophomore album "Meteora". It's an album that is the last effort of Linkin Park's that could be considered nu-metal and finds John and Bryan at two totally different places in their life upon its release: an album so big it's the first that 17 year-old John can remember buying on its release day, and an album by a band that 24 year-old Bryan was so checked out on he didn't even know it came out. John brings that "I skipped school for the only time ever to buy this and blast it in my parents' 2000 Chevy Venture" energy to the show, and for the second time in POD Kast history, tries to get Bryan to love Linkin Park. And once again, it almost works. We also get multiple Rolling Stone profiles, a SPIN cover story, and we learn an awful lot about how this band hated partying. It's probably why John loved them so much. A massive album whose cultural legacy is completely cemented and we get into all of it here.

If you want even more of our show's legacy, head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you access to THREE bonus episodes every single month. Last month, Bryan and John reviewed Ho99o9's debut album, "United States of Horror", and it was a doozy. You also get access to our entire back catalogue, access to our Discord, and you can also tell us what to cover for a bonus episode! Support the boys and you won't miss out on a single time we're talking Nu!

Episode 53: Saliva's "Every Six Seconds", or How To Make the Perfect Album (For Us) Jan 05, 2024

Show notes

It's one of the longest episodes of the show ever, and how could it not be when we're discussing an album that so perfectly captures the strange gap period between nu-metal's brief dominance and butt rock's eventual takeover, Saliva's "Every Six Seconds". It's clear this was a band that was unashamedly shooting for the rafters of stadiums, going so far as to write a 90s alt-rock jangle-pop song in the middle of an album that also has "Click Click Boom" on it, a song clearly designed to be on movie soundtracks. A band that got famous by doing everything they could to become famous, we look at some of the more insane lyrics the genre has ever featured, we learn they got their start by coming second in a Grammys-sponsored nationwide battle of the bands (?), and it appears that if they had their way, they actually might've been a Christian band (???). Hey, it's just a secular world, man, and we're all living in it.

If you want to live in our POD Kast world, you can head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month will get you THREE bonus episodes every single month! Last month, John's Blocked Party partner Stefan Heck returned to the show to discuss "Nightmare Revisited", a remixed version of the "Nightmare Before Christmas" OST that goes on far, far too long and includes far, far too many strange bands. We also have merch discounts, an exclusive Discord, AND you can tell us what to do for a bonus episode! So check it out and support the show today!

Episode 52: Primus' "Frizzle Fry", or The Cult of Virtuosity Dec 05, 2023

Show notes

Who is a Primus Guy, exactly? We turn to Bryan's expertise on the subject (both Guys and Primus) to dig in on one of the 90s' most confounding top-selling bands, Primus. How is it that a band whose angular-yet-heavy take on rock music, centered on one man's virtuosic playing of the BASS (of all things) led to a multi-platinum-selling band? We try to figure it out by tackling Primus' studio debut album, "Frizzle Fry", which features Primus at their heaviest but maybe not quite weirdest. We also imagine a world where Les Claypool is the bassist in Metallica, we hear from Les' parents in their seminal Rolling Stone profile, and we do our due diligence by uncovering the ways in which this album was Proto-Nu and what nu-metal bands took from this meandering, deeply strange journey of a record.

If you want to head on some more deeply strange journeys, get your ass over to patreon.com/thepodkast to support the fellas and get access to our entire back catalogue (over 120 episodes!). AND you'll also get THREE new bonus episodes every damn month. Last month, Mike York from Pianos Become the Teeth and SUAHN joined us to discuss some remixes that a listener did, and it was one hell of a discussion you won't wanna miss. You can also tell us what to cover for a bonus episode, get access to our Discord, get video bonus episodes, and get merch discounts. What a place!

Episode 51: Chevelle's "Wonder What's Next", or Band of Brothers: Like the Miniseries, but Worse Nov 07, 2023

Show notes

After a little detour and something a little different on our last episode, we are back to covering a regular album this month, and what a regular album it is, as we take a peek at Chevelle's major label debut "Wonder What's Next", an album with two MASSIVE singles and a whole swath of drama. You see, Chevelle at this point in time consists of 3 brothers, the Loefflers. And they don't exactly like each other. Or more specifically, they hate Joe. We dig into all the contention amongst the bandmates and how this record went on to go double platinum without either of us feeling like it's a true touchstone album in the genre. We also take a long, hard look at the 2024 Sick New World lineup, which sees the festival already sold out despite the lineup not really delivering on the promise of Year 1's lineup, or the promise of a nu-metal festival, really.

If you want a true festival of nu-metal, head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you THREE bonus episodes every single month. Last month was an iconic one on the Patreon, as Riv from Nu-Metal Agenda joined us to present our Nu-Metal Bang List. That's right, we each created a 5-song nu-metal playlist to have sex to, and the results were varied and probably pretty surprising. We also have merch discounts, an exclusive Discord, and a $7 tier that gets you all the bonus episodes in video format. Plus! You can tell us what to cover for a bonus episode. Check it out!

Episode 50: Our Favorite Nu-Metal Songs w/ Raina Douris, Dan Ozzi, Ed Zitron, and Andy Anaya Oct 06, 2023

Show notes

We made it! Who knew that this podcast, birthed out of a random DM from John to Bryan after they effectively hijacked his episode of Blocked Party and made it the de facto first episode of POD Kast, would make it all the way to damn Episode 50! And we thought, what better way to celebrate than by bringing on some of our friends to talk about their favorite nu-metal songs, what makes the genre great (or bad, according to one of our guests), and then at the end of the episode, Bryan and John reveal their all-time favorite nu-metal songs and we go all the way deep with this 2.5-hour classic. So please join us, Raina Douris (NPR), Dan Ozzi (Sellout), Ed Zitron (Where's Your Ed At?) and Andy Anaya (Pool Kids) for what was one of our most fun episodes yet.

And if you want more fun episodes, head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you THREE bonus episodes every single month. Last month, Luke Owen from WrestleTalk joined us to discuss the Daredevil 2003 soundtrack, and it was a real 20-track, Wind-Up Records-curated doozy. And for $7/month, you get access to every single bonus episode in video format, plus you'll get to vote in this month's exclusive Poll, only available to our donors. Plus, there's merch discounts, access to our Discord, and you'll get every bonus episode we've ever recorded immediately upon donation. Get it!

Episode 49: Limp Bizkit's "Three Dollar Bill, Y'All$", or Some Days It's Wack Sep 05, 2023

Show notes

When Limp Bizkit gets in the studio, some days it's heavy, some days it's mellow, some days it's good, and some days...well, some days it is wack. Fred is honest with us and we are honest with Fred as we review Limp Bizkit's classic debut album, "Three Dollar Bill, Y'All$". Bryan remembers seeing Limp Bizkit very early on as we reminisce about some of their early gigs and demo tapes, and we once again debate Fred Durst's status as a sex symbol. We also learn a lot of people discovered this album after Significant Other came out, a club that includes John, as he remembers listening to this for the first time well after Limp Bizkit had broken big, and how that affected the way he took it in at the time. We also wonder why more bands could never really replicate Limp Bizkit's style, and how this album in particular stands alone as a singular artifact. And the articles are a fascinating look at how Fred Durst was beginning to create his public persona, forcing us to once again acknowledge his business genius.

If you want to acknowledge more of our genius, you can head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you access to THREE bonus episodes every single month. Last month, we reviewed Glassjaw's "Coloring Book EP", as well as some singles that included a Christian band and a hyperlocal Texas band, two staples of the nu-metal genre. You'll also get our entire back catalogue (over 100 episodes!), access to our Discord, merch discounts, and for $7/month, you can also see all of our bonus episodes in video format. Check it out!

Episode 48: P.O.D.'s "The Fundamental Elements of Southtown", or P.O.D. and the Works of Darkness Aug 03, 2023

Show notes

For just the second time in the show's history (and perhaps the last time), we are covering our namesake band, as we dive into the P.O.D. well once again to review their major-label debut, "The Fundamental Elements of Southtown". I'll say this: we like it a heck of a lot more than we did "Satellite". Doesn't stop us from finding lots to chew on here though, as Bryan remembers grappling with liking this album when it first came out with the fact the band was Christian, and we wonder how much that affected the general populace's enjoyment of them as well, as it's hard to like a Christian band in front of your friends. In 2023 without that context, there's quite a few great songs to be had, but it's also pretty front-loaded and limps to the finish line. We also take a look into Sonny's Christian missionary work, learn far too much about the "Miss Rocklahoma" Pageant, and we end the episode by discovering two of the most insane articles we've ever found doing this show, written by a devout Christian who spends roughly 30,000 words wondering just how Christian P.O.D. indeed are.

If you want to become a more devout follower of this show, you can head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where $4/month gets you access to THREE bonus episodes every single month. Last month, Josh Gondelman joined us to discuss the soundtrack to the weird Canadian animated sci-fi movie "Heavy Metal 2000", and for the first time ever, we introduced the $7 tier, which gets you VIDEO of that very same episode. It was a great time. The $7 Tier also comes with a bunch of other cool perks, and at any tier, you get access to our entire back catalogue, which comprises over 100 episodes. Don't miss out!

Episode 47: Metallica's "St. Anger", or My Pod Style Determines My Death Style Jul 04, 2023

Show notes

It was perhaps an inevitability that we got around to covering one of the most maligned albums in the "nu-metal" genre, when the biggest metal band of all-time dips their toe into the nu-metal waters about 3 years too late. It's Metallica's "St. Anger", the one that wrought the most cursed snare tone of all-time and the documentary "Some Kind of Monster" upon the world of music. We grapple with this album's legacy as we discuss the often bizarre production choices, the lyrics-by-community, the lack of guitar solos, and the absolutely punishing length. And of course, the band weighs in on everything from this time period from James' sobriety and strict working schedule to Lars' emergence as an art collector. It's a wild ride reviewing this time period from a band of this magnitude's perspective, and we get into all of it. We even consider joining their fan club.

If you want to join OUR fan club, you can head on over to patreon.com/thepodkast, where things are a-changin'! We are making our first tier add in 4 years of doing this show, as bonus episodes will now be available IN VIDEO, you'll get to vote in an exclusive, members-only Poll, increased merch discounts, and lots of other goodies for just $7/month. But don't worry: $4/month still gets you the best deal in podcasting: access to THREE bonus episodes every single month! Last month, we were joined by Cran from Nu-Metal Agenda to discuss "Angermeans" by early-90s hardcore band Strife, and you also get two singles episodes for your money. PLUS! As always, you can pay us to review YOUR favorite album or single. It's a fun place to be, so check it out today!

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