Such a Scream - Bone Machine [190] ​

A third week with guest hosts Vanessa & Kent brings Martin & Sam to Poetic Analysis 101 in this funhouse-mirror love song to Brennan. We talk about the depth of imagery that Waits employs, the vocal storytelling that he and our interval artist deploy, and Vanessa finally books that gig at Martin’s much-anticipated funeral!

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Such a Scream, Bone Machine, Tom Waits (1992)

Acrobat, Half Way Home, Angel Olson (2012)

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Dirt in the Ground - Bone Machine [189] ​

More music chat (which is the goal, after all) with Kent, Vanessa, Martin & Sam, as Waits releases some of the tension established in the previous track with this weird breathy hymn to the end of life. With discussion of other weird vocal styles, a comparison between bleakness vs acceptance in death, plus an exciting bonus track featuring the resonant space inside Sam’s mouth, Song by Song continues it’s journey through Bone Machine.

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Dirt in the Ground, Bone Machine, Tom Waits (1992)

Satisfied Mind, For Pete's Sake, Pete Drake & His Talking Steel Guitar (1965/2005)

Pete Drake and His Talkbox on the Jimmy Dean Show, via YouTube

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Earth Died Screaming - Bone Machine [188] ​

Hey there - how’s it going? Oh nothing much, you? Yeah, it has been a while, but you know how it goes. Hey, you want to talk about some new Tom Waits songs? Cool.

As we embark on our 14th season, Sam and Martin welcome Vanessa Lowe and Kent Sparling to talk through the quasi-religious eco-disaster anthem which opens Waits’s 1992 offering. We take a look at the contributors to this track and their relationship to Waits, the technical expertise both in this as well as the the work of Primus... plus Martin Austwick’s Tom Waits Secret Origin story, true believers!

Music extracts used for illustrative/review purposes include:
Earth Died Screaming, Bone Machine, Tom Waits (1992)

Tommy The Cat, Sailing the Seas of Cheese, Primus (1991)

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