The Vinyl Guide - Artist Interviews for Record Collectors and Music Nerds

The legend himself Jack Douglas (1945-2026) shares stories from five decades of rock history — from producing John Lennon's final album to the memories Aerosmith, Cheap Trick, The Who, and his recent production of Silverplanes. Topics Include: Jack Douglas joins Nate from a snowy driveway, cigar in hand. Silverplanes' debut album Airbus is finally releasing after years of delays. Jack met Silverplanes' Aaron Smart through his college-age son. Aaron turned out to own the Sunset Boulevard studio Jack had worked in. Jeff Emerick mixed the album shortly before his sudden death in 2018. The pandemic added two more ye...

Butthole Surfers' Paul Leary and King Coffey trace the band's unlikely major label journey — from America's top-grossing indie act to MTV hitmakers to a lost album finally resurrected after nearly three decades. Preorder "After the Astronaut" LP here Topics Include: After the Astronaut releases June 26 after sitting unreleased for 28 years. Capitol signed Butthole Surfers when they were America's top-grossing indie band. Label president Hale Milgram believed in them; his firing changed everything. Pepper was written on the spot after a producer demanded one more song. Pepper won radio call-in polls for a month and pl...

In a rare interview, Greg Ginn opens up about the latest Black Flag lineup, the SST catalogue, the possibility of long-overdue reissues and the legacy of one of punk's most beloved bands. Tickets for Black Flag's 2026 Australian Tour Topics Include: Greg Ginn is based in Texas but currently in Long Beach after a tour. Black Flag is heading to Hong Kong and then Australia next. This will be Black Flag's third tour of Australia. Rumors of new recordings remain unconfirmed — Ginn stays tight-lipped. The current lineup has been together for about a year. Band pl...

From funding the first Record Store Day to producing limited one-step pressings of Pet Sounds, Prince, and Dr. Dre, Tom "Grover" Biery is one of the most influential figures in modern vinyl culture - Hear all about his next adventures with the vinyl artform. Topics Include: Tom "Grover" Biery spent 20 years at Warner Bros. Records He pushed vinyl internally around 2004 when nobody believed in it His boss Tom Wally gave him the green light to proceed First pressings were Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman catalog titles Warner's vinyl billing exploded from $300K to $5M in 18 months...

Zev Feldman returns to reveal 11 Record Store Day 2026 releases, including stunning discoveries from the legendary Joe Siegel Jazz Showcase tape archive featuring Ahmad Jamal, Yusef Lateef, Freddie King, and more never-before-heard recordings. Topics Include: Zev Feldman returns, now dubbed the "Jazz Attorney General" by Nate Feldman has 11 releases this Record Store Day — a personal record The Joe Segal tape archive is the foundation of five RSD releases Segal was an NEA Jazz Master and Chicago's greatest jazz impresario He presented legends like Lester Young starting back in 1947 Feldman first connected with Siegel around 2010-2011 via word of...

Zakk Wylde opens up about Ozzy's final show, the 17 days that followed, Dimebag's unfinished recordings, and the making of Black Label Society's crushing new album Engines of Demolition. Topics Include: Zakk runs on 14 pots of Valhalla coffee every single day. He was invited to Back to the Beginning well in advance. Tony Iommi, Jimmy Page, and Ritchie Blackmore are mythical heroes to Zakk. No More Tears was rehearsed but Ozzy pulled it on the day. Ozzy was giddy meeting Axl Rose — couldn't believe it was happening. Zakk watched Sabbath's final set alongside Axl Rose and Sharon Os...

Rikk Agnew, James McGearty, and David Glass share stories about Rozz Williams & Christian Death, the making of Only Theater of Pain, and completing his final recorded wish with the new song Flowers. Tickets for April 18 movie premiere and music reunion event Topics Include: Rikk Agnew, James McGearty, and David Glass remember Rozz Williams together. Rozz described as mysterious, enigmatic, and a deeply misunderstood artist. Rozz excelled across poetry, music, visual art, and assemblage work. He scratched images into 8mm film cells as experimental art. Rozz was a chameleon, constantly reinventing his look and sound...

Documentary producer & record collector Jeanne Elfant Festa has made films about The Beatles, Foo Fighters, Pavarotti, Bee Gees and more. Today she discusses her latest movie on Billy Preston — revealing rare archive footage, Olivia Harrison's key role, and Eric Clapton's emotional on-camera tribute and a lot more. Check outtrailer and documentary screenings here Topics Include: Jeanne lost her entire vinyl collection in the Palisades fire. Her family and animals all escaped the fire safely. A custom-built, mathematically designed sound room housed the collection. Rebuilding takes time — the turntable alone hasn't been replaced yet. Music pass...

TV Smith joins Nate to discuss the 50th anniversary of The Adverts, an Australian tour backed by The Hard-Ons, and a career full of great songs and terrible label luck. Topics Include: TV Smith is touring Australia in April with The Hard-Ons. The tour celebrates the 50th anniversary of The Adverts. The Hard-Ons are already learning the surprisingly complex Adverts songs. TV finds it odd but joyful to still be performing. He got back into vinyl to quality-check his own releases. Bowie, Roxy Music, and reggae were key early influences for TV. The Sex Pistols made...

Swami John Reis of Rocket from the Crypt and Drive Like Jehu digs deep on record collecting, the thrill of the hunt, running Swami Records, and why the next release always matters most. Get yer tix to the Punk Rock Museum's 3rd Anniversary Show here Topics Include: Swami John Reis joins to talk record collecting and Punk Rock Museum. His collection is evolving — trading old hardcore for more desired records. Collection is 95% 45s, driven by a lifelong musical pursuit. Early punk led him to hunt for MC5, Stooges, Velvet Underground. The thrill: records still ex...

Dr. Strange Records' Bill Plaster talks Summer Bash and the chaos of booking a festival, punk history, record collecting, Live Strange, and how punk rock can genuinely change lives. Get Summer Bash tix here  |  Follow Dr Strange for Live Strange here Topics Include: Bill Plaster of Dr. Strange Records joins to discuss the upcoming Summer Bash. Punk Rock Bowling's cancellation — visa bans, politics, venue loss — created the opportunity. Bill connected with Gallo, who runs the Fox Theater and the Cathedral in Pomona. The Cathedral: a stunning, refurbished 1921 four-story YMCA venue hosting the event. A massiv...

John Flansburgh of They Might Be Giants talks rare vinyl rarities, the chaotic story behind the new album's cover art, why re-recording old music is almost always a mistake and lots more Order the new album "The World Is to Dig" here Topics Include: Flansburgh owns roughly 2,000 records across three turntable setups at home He doesn't identify as a collector — just a serious listener His rarest record: an Andy Warhol-autographed Sticky Fingers with wild provenance photos He also owns a peeled-banana Velvet Underground and a Blonde on Blonde rarity Deep dive into what makes ea...

Zappa Vaultmeister Joe Travers discusses the Bongo Fury box set, the Frank and Beefheart origin story, Frank's cutting edge approach and what may be next from the Zappa Universe. Order the Zappa/Beefheart Bongo Fury 50th Anniversary editions here Topics Include: Joe and Nate bond over the Stooges and unreleased raw recordings Bongo Fury turns 50 with 48 previously unheard tracks Two complete Armadillo shows finally presented unedited in sequence Portuguese Lunar Landing emerges from rehearsal tapes—a true nugget Frank kept tour itineraries but few detailed production notes Joe worked solo digitizing tapes for decades un...

Danny Goldberg shares insider stories from his 50-year career as Led Zeppelin's publicist and Nirvana's manager, revealing Kurt Cobain's creative genius and the first-hand dynamics behind rock's biggest bands. Order Danny's book "Bumping Into Geniuses" here Topics Include: Danny discusses the 2026 reissue of "Bumping into Genius" Admits his turntables are mostly for show, prefers streaming now Kept about 100 vinyls including The Fugs on ESP Records Answered a Billboard ad not knowing music business existed Found his calling through enthusiasm and sensitivity to artists Became Led Zeppelin's US publicist in 1973 for Houses of the Holy...

Producer Plug discusses his journey from New York DJ to hip hop producer for Wu-Tang members, running multiple record stores, and launching R&G Records in Inglewood with Snoop Dogg. Topics Include: Producer Plug discusses meeting again at Austin Record Fair His three superpowers: DJing, executive producing, and music production Born in Flushing Queens with father's influential Fisher sound system Father introduced him to WCBS-FM and classic disc jockeys The Fugees "Killing Me Softly" became his first musicology lesson Father taught him to stay curious and humble about music Started buying records at Nobody Beats The...

Co-founder and former Three Dog Night frontman Chuck Negron (1942-2026) discusses the collectible records of his career, the early releases on small labels, the rare and recalled albums of Three Dog Night and mega-smash excesses and turnaround of his life and career. Interview from July 2022 Topics Include: Chuck's autobiography Three Dog Nightmare . Basketball was first passion growing up in Bronx schoolyards. Made first record "Oh Baby" in 1958 at age fifteen. Early releases on tiny Bronx Records label extremely rare today. Progressed through Rondelles, Marlinda, and Heart Van regional California labels. "I Dream of an...

Legendary drummer & producer Steve Jordan (The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Jon Batiste, SNL & more), discusses the history and deep personal reverence for the music of Chess Records and the 75th vinyl reissue series. Topics Include: Steve Jordan discusses touring with John Batiste at Davos Economic Summit He's producing Robert Cray's new album at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals JayVee Records finishing Willie Mitchell documentary, The Verbs album, and Tony Joe White posthumous record Chess Records called arguably the cornerstone of modern music New vinyl reissue campaign marks first proper Chess reissues in decades Steve's compilation "Let's...

Carina Round discusses the new Puscifer album "Normal Isn't", their creative partnership, how motherhood transformed her songwriting, the emotional experience of revisiting The Disconnection and much more. Topics Include: New Puscifer album "Normal Isn't" and concert film drop February 6th Puscifer described as dark multimedia project with interconnecting 20-year storyline New characters introduced: Belendia Black, Fanny Gray, the Synth Whisperer Writing began post-Existential Reckoning; Mat keeps a magical idea folder Maynard learned Logic software, contributed more initial musical sketches this time Carina waits for lyrics—word rhythms shape her vocal approach entirely Mat masters specific gear pe...

Lucinda Williams discusses her recent creative surge with multiple tribute albums, paying homage to the masters, Folkways days, post-stroke recovery and the new album World's Gone Wrong Topics Include: Lucinda announces her 18th album "World's Gone Wrong" releasing January 23rd Reveals dramatic shift from releasing albums every 3-8 years recently Credits husband-manager Tom Overby for keeping creative momentum going post-stroke Explains how new band members made working out songs fun Describes creative process challenges between inspiration and studio deadlines Shares need for quiet, private spaces to write freely Reveals hotel rooms as unexpected creative sanctuaries like...

Erik "Smelly" Sandin discusses NOFX life after touring, new music, sobriety through the NOFX hurricane, the Las Vegas incident controversy, the upcoming NOFX Retrospective at the Punk Rock Museum and more. Topics Include: NOFX didn't break up, just stopped touring, still recording new music together Band recorded 6-7 new songs three months ago in the studio Mike constantly writes new material, has lots of unreleased songs ready January 16-18 NOFX retrospective exhibit opening at Las Vegas Punk Rock Museum Smelly will give personal tours but doesn't know what artifacts they'll display Never kept any memorabilia from 42...