Announcement - We're Back! A Podcast's Story
You heard it here first! Bill and Brian will be returning with all new episodes, a fresh format, and the same great taste on June 1st. Listen in for all the details!
May 01, 2026•31 min
The Great Albums
Two indie rock musicians, Bill Lambusta and Brian Erickson, dive into great rock and pop music through the lens of the medium they care for most - the album. Every episode features a track-by-track review, discussions about the sounds they love, and their own stories. Guests include musicians, podcasters, and journalists who are fellow deep-dive music nerds.
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Episodes
Liner Notes - Bill's Listening Habits in 2021 (plus emails!)
Bill and pulls up Spotify's curated 2021 playlist and talks about what he enjoyed listening to in the last year! Plus some listener emails!
Jan 03, 2022•1 hr 3 min
Top 10 Albums of 2021 (Jeff)
Jeff Fiedler joins Bill to discuss his top 10 albums of 2021! Listen in to find out where he ranked albums from: ABBA, Adele, Leon Bridges, Coldplay, Crowded house, Del Amitri, David Duchovny, Gary Kemp, John Mayer, and Silk Sonic!
Dec 20, 2021•1 hr 35 min
Liner Notes - Bill's Listening Habits in 2020 (plus emails!)
Bill and Brian pull up Spotify's curated 2020 playlist and talk about what Bill enjoyed listening to in the last year! Bill talks about Pearl Jam, Craig Finn, the Beths, Great Grandpa, The Promise Ring, and maybe more? Also we share listeners' top 10s of 2020 and their thoughts on Brian and Jeff's lists.
Jan 04, 2021•58 min
Top 10 Albums of 2020 (Jeff)
Jeff Fiedler joins Bill and Brian to discuss his top 10 albums of 2020! Listen in to find out where he ranked albums from: Fiona Apple, Bob Dylan, Haim, the Killers, Kylie Minogue, Mandy Moore, Harry Styles, Keith Urban, The Who, and Hayley Williams.
Dec 21, 2020•1 hr 26 min
Top 10 Albums of 2020 (Brian)
It's that time of year again! So, Bill and Brian dust off their microphones to chat about Brian's top albums of 2020. Featured in this episode include albums from: Fiona Apple, Beach Bunny, Phoebe Bridgers, Drakeo the Ruler, Bob Dylan, Haim, Jyoti, Mac Miller, Run the Jewels, and Jessie Ware.
Dec 14, 2020•1 hr 32 min
Liner Notes - A Look Back on 10 Classic Pop Punk Bands' "Mature" Albums from Brooklyn Vegan
Bill and Brian are back once again to talk about a fun article, this time from Brooklyn Vegan, in which Andrew Sacher explores the phenomenon of classic pop punk bands ditching their youthful sound for a more "mature" expression of art. We have fun talking about some of the albums we've enjoyed like Green Day's Warning or Hellogoodbye's Would It Kill You and others we didn't know too much about prior to this like Panic at the Disco's Pretty Odd and The Early November's The Mother, the Mechanic, ...
Jul 27, 2020•1 hr 14 min
Liner Notes - Pearl Jam's 25 Best Deep Cuts from Spin
Bill and Brian dive into the Spin magazine article Pearl Jam's 25 Best Deep Cuts by Dan Weiss to see where they agree, disagree, and maybe dip into thoughts on the band's latest release, Gigaton.
Apr 06, 2020•1 hr 46 min
High Fives - Top 5 Albums We've Not Covered
Bill and Brian create content by listing 5 albums each that we wish we'd have covered on the podcast! There's always hope!
Mar 23, 2020•1 hr 45 min
Liner Notes - Bill's Listening Habits in 2019
Bill pulls up Spotify's curated 2019 playlist and sits down to talk about what he enjoyed (or just listened to) in 2019. Bill talks about the Weakerthans, the National, the Hold Steady, Craig Finn, the Beths, PUP, Ex Hex, Charly Bliss, the Extensions, Frightened Rabbit, Wilco, the New Pornographers, and maybe more?
Dec 30, 2019•39 min
Top 10 Albums of 2019 (Jeff)
Bill and Brian hang out with thegreatalbums.com blogger Jeff Fiedler as he counts down his favorite albums from 2019. Listen to find out where he ranked albums from: Lana Del Rey, Bruce Hornsby, Jonas Brothers, Jenny Lewis, New Pornographers, Thomas Rhett, Raphael Saadiq, Sturgill Simpson, Vampire Weekend, and Kanye West!
Dec 16, 2019•1 hr 18 min
Top 10 Albums of 2019 (Brian)
Brian lists his favorite albums of 2019! Bill listens. Listen in to find out where Brian ranked albums from: Black Belt Eagle Scout, Lana Del Rey, King Princess, Jenny Lewis, Lizzo, Angel Olsen, Purple Mountains, Tyler the Creator, Jamila Woods, and Nilufer Yanya!
Dec 09, 2019•1 hr 28 min
Liner Notes - All Good Things...
Bill and Brian give thanks, list our top 10 episodes, and read a bunch of emails in the midst of our indefinite hiatus.
Sep 09, 2019•1 hr 33 min
The Replacements - Let It Be (Reprise)
In our final episode that'll be part of a regular release schedule, we take a look back at the first album we ever discussed, the Replacements' Let It Be (1984, Twin/Tone). Bill and Brian use the skills they've honed during their years of podcasting experience to see what a conversation revisiting the first album would sound like. Enjoy!
Jul 01, 2019•1 hr 48 min
Radiohead - OK Computer
It's finally happening! As we reach the penultimate episode to be part of our weekly releases, Bill and Brian take the time to talk about what's great about Radiohead's OK Computer (1997, Parlophone/Capitol). Bill spends a little time talking about what happens when fans say things like they can't get into an artist or album and how it can be perceived. Then we get to the track by track review, focusing on what we enjoy in the tunes!
Jun 24, 2019•1 hr 53 min
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Let Love In (w/ guest Doug Robertson)
Author and educator Doug Robertson, AKA the Weird Teacher, joins Bill and Brian to discuss Nick Cave and the Bad Seed's Let Love In (1994, Mute Records).
Jun 23, 2019•2 hr 4 min
The Hold Steady - Separation Sunday (w/ guest Sean Barna)
Musician Sean Barna drops by to discuss the Hold Steady's sophomore effort Separation Sunday (2005, Frenchkiss).
Jun 09, 2019•2 hr 10 min
Sonic Youth - Murray St. (w/ guest Scott Sylvester)
Musician Scott Sylvester (Meeko Brando) hangs out with Bill and Brian while we discuss Sonic Youth's Murray St. (2002, DGC Records).
May 27, 2019•1 hr 50 min
The Police - Synchronicity (w/ guest Maureen Zahn)
Writer, blogger, and vlogger Maureen Zahn joins Bill and Brian to discuss the Police's Synchronicity (1983, A&M). *There's a part in the show where we reference Synchronicity and Thriller being out in the same year. Thriller was actually released in November 1982 with this following in June 1983. However, it's worth noting that in that time period they were both eligible for the same Grammy awards ceremony in 1984.
May 20, 2019•2 hr 8 min
Garbage - Self Titled (w/ guest Rachel from We Are Weezer)
Podcaster Rachel from We Are Weezer joins us from across the country to talk about one of her top 3 bands of all time, Garbage, and their debut self titled album (1995, Almo).
May 13, 2019•2 hr 13 min
Liner Notes - Special Announcement
We're back from a month long break from the podcast with a Liner Notes episode. Bill and Brian discuss what they've been up to in their time off - check out Brian's new band the Extensions, and check out Bill's band Fake Pockets' entry into the Tiny Desk contest! Also, we've got a special announcement regarding the future of the podcast. Jump to 32:25 if you want to just get the bad news out of the way...
May 06, 2019•50 min
The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (w/ guest Matt Warren)
On another exciting episode of the Great Albums...Bill and Brian are joined by Matt Warren, Digital Content Manager for filmindependent.org, to discuss the Flaming Lips' Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (2002, Warner Bros.).
Apr 01, 2019•2 hr 3 min
Aretha Franklin - I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You (w/ guest Savannah Pope)
Bill and Brian are joined by musician Savannah Pope (savannahpopemusic.com) to discuss Aretha Franklin's I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You (1967, Atlantic).
Mar 18, 2019•1 hr 50 min
Superchunk - Here's Where the Strings Come In (w/ guest Nikki Karwacki)
Bill and Brian are joined by musician Nikki Karwacki (Finding Feebas, Triage, Batting a Thousand) to discuss Superchunk's unique brand of punk/power pop/alternative music on the album Here's Where the Strings Come In (1995, Merge).
Mar 11, 2019•2 hr 7 min
Foo Fighters - There Is Nothing Left to Lose
Bill and Brian go sans guest this episode in order to dive into one of Bill's favorites from his formative years, Foo Fighters' There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999, Roswell, RCA).
Mar 04, 2019•1 hr 54 min
Tenacious D - Self Titled (w/ guest David Rosen)
Podcaster and musician David Rosen (piecingpod.com and bydavidrosen.com) joins Bill and Brian to discuss Tenacious D's self titled debut (2001, Epic).
Feb 25, 2019•2 hr 10 min
Barenaked Ladies - Maroon (w/ guest James Anderson)
Podcaster James Anderson (Unabashedly Obsessed, Kids on Bikes) steps into Brian's large shoes to cohost and help Bill discuss the Barenaked Ladies' Maroon (2000, Reprise).
Feb 18, 2019•2 hr 18 min
Depeche Mode - Violator (w/ guest Vincent Onorati)
Bill and Brian are joined by radio-film-book-trivia guy (really unsure how else to define him!) Vincent Onorati to discuss Depeche Mode's Violator (1990, Mute). Vinny discusses finding his people when he discovered new wave radio and Depeche Mode's output. Then he explains how he got to experience the band's breakout success while interning at his favorite radio station. Then we get into a bunch of detail about loving this album with the track by track review!
Feb 11, 2019•1 hr 54 min
High Fives - Top 5 TV Theme Songs
Bill and Brian don't spend much time discussing albums on this week's episode. Instead, we talk about our top favorite theme songs from TV shows!
Feb 04, 2019•1 hr 23 min
Sunny Day Real Estate - Diary (w/ guest Cassidy Robinson)
Podcaster and journalist Cassidy Robinson (Jabber and the Drone) joins Bill and Brian to discuss Sunny Day Real Estate's debut album Diary (1994, Sub Pop). Cassidy talks about his journey of first discovering the mainstream emo of the early 2000s, not enjoying it much, then finding his way back to the genre's hardcore roots, and discovering this Sunny Day Real Estate thanks to the recommendation of a record store clerk. Plus we talk about much more as we make our way through album track by track...
Jan 21, 2019•2 hr
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