I love when podcasts recommend other podcasts for people to listen to. These recommendations are one of the reasons it is so much fun to listen to a podcast...you get to hear what is interesting to someone you find interesting. The recommendations don’t always work out but when they do...WOW! This blog post is about one of those WOW moments that I was lucky enough to experience and benefit from ever since.
I cannot remember which podcast he was on when he did it but I know I have Merlin Mann to thank for the podcast I’m getting ready to talk about. The name of the podcast is Strong Songs and it is bringing me great joy! The show is hosted by Kirk Hamilton and what he basically does is take the listener into a deep exploration of...you guessed it...a song he deems to be...for lack of a better word...”strong.”
Kirk is an amazing musician and incredibly knowledgeable about music in general was well as music theory. His talents are on full display during these podcasts as he breaks down the song of choice...frequently playing a wide variety of instruments (from piano to electric guitar) in an attempt to better help the listener understand what makes the song work. His taste in music is as diverse as his talents. It is for that reason that I am currently personally listening to the episodes that focus on the genres of music that resonant most with me...classic rock and alternative rock. So far I've listened to him break down songs from Queen, Led Zeppelin, Radiohead, and most recently the song “Tom Sawyer” by the prog rock group Rush.
What is it about this podcast that is bringing me great joy? For starters...I find it very stimulating listening to someone extremely intelligent talk intelligently about a topic they know a lot about. Kirk did a deep dive into rhythm and harmony recently that blew my mind! I can't recall how many times I stopped that particular podcast, rewinding so I could hear again some of the things he was saying a second and then third time in an attempt to make sense of it all. Another reason I listen is the music. Readers of this blog know how big a fan I am of music. When I am not going through my podcast queue I am most likely listening to music. Kirk’s podcast provides me the opportunity to do the two things I like most when I am alone!
After listening to his podcast for a little more than a month I can say that one of the things I’ve come to understand about Kirk is that he too is a massive fan of listening to music. His understanding of a group’s contributions to music is evident through his ability to pick the songs he chooses to break down. Put both the music and Kirk’s Uber intelligence about it all together and I could listen to it all day long!!!
If the thought of listening to a podcast about music hasn’t crossed your mind I “strongly” recommend you give Kirk’s podcast Strong Songs a try! You will NOT be sorry you did!