Shortly after it occurred, it was widely believed that the death of INXS singer Michael Hutchence was the result of autoerotic asphyxiation – a sex game gone wrong.
This week on NSTS I wanted to dig a little deeper to shed some additional light onto the circumstances surrounding Hutchence’s unfortunate passing, because there was a whole lot more going on than just sex games – a larger, important truth exists under the tabloidification.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
The energy and enthusiasm that guitarist Sean Kelly brings to describing the songs that make his skin vibrate is unparalleled. Sean takes the notion of skin vibration very literally with his songs, and it was a joy for me to experience his excitement during our chat on NSTS this week.
In addition to his enthusiasm, Sean shares impressive musical insights and an honest sentimentality that makes this show special. Highlights include a funny Dee Snider conversation, why he never wants to meet Pye Dubois, the unique way the new Lee Aaron record was written, and so much more. Sean Kelly is living his dream, and it’s a lot of fun to behold.
Kelly’s playlist (in Spotify):
Kim Mitchell – Kids In Action
Urge Overkill – Sister Havana
Mott the Hoople – All The Young Dudes
Thin Lizzy – Cowboy Song
Daniel Lanois – The Maker
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
Andy Curran is back on NSTS this week to talk about the five-ish songs that make his skin vibrate – he actually sneaks a few extra tunes in! Before that, we finish up last week’s discussion detailing how Coney Hatch’s excellent new new live record Live at the El Mocambo came together.
Along with the song discussion, there are more incredible stories. Andy recounts how Robin Zander took his request and played his favourite Cheap Trick song for him during their Toronto show, what it was like seeing an unknown opening act called AC/DC open for UFO at Massey Hall in Toronto, and much more. Don’t miss this.
Curran’s playlist (on Spotify):
Aerosmith – Nobody’s Fault
Cheap Trick – Auf Weidersehen
Tom Petty – Into The Great Wide Open
Deep Purple – Highway Star
AC/DC – Overdose
(Van Halen – Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love)
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
As a Coney Hatch fan from waaaaay back, it was a privilege for me to host Coney singer and bassist Andy Curran this week. The band has released their new live record, Coney Hatch Live at the El Mocambo, recorded in October 2020 at the historic Toronto venue.
Andy has some tremendous rock stories, and he shares many of them with me in this episode – playing tennis on the road with Iron Maiden’s Steve Harris and getting pelted with cutlery on stage opening up for Judas Priest among them. You don’t want to miss this.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
Since its inception, Heavy Metal has spawned a countless number of subgenres. Death Metal is one of them, and in the early 1990s Norwegian Death Metal became more than just a musical subgenre. It developed into a violent, deeply sinister belief system.
In this episode of No Sleep ’til Sudbury, we examine the dark origins and horrifying transgressions associated with the genre – Satanism, murder and corpse mutilation, church burnings, and the disturbing extremism of Norwegian Black Metal’s purveyors.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
Longtime NSTS listeners know that I love speaking with up-and-coming musical talent on the show. And I anticipate that country singer songwriter Nelson Sobral will be a well-known name fairly soon.
Nelson’s imaginative with the instrumentation he utilizes in his country-inflected material, a nod to his sophisticated musical tastes – something he credits to his mother. We talk Crowes, Otis Redding, The Ronettes, Howling Wolf….and we see things very, very similarly.
Sobral’s playlist (available in Spotify):
The Ronettes – Be My Baby
The Black Crowes – Sting Me
Willie Nelson – Can I Sleep in Your Arms
Otis Redding – I Love You More Than Words Can Say
Howlin’ Wolf – 300 lbs of Joy
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
This week on NSTS I welcome back one of the industry’s ‘good guys’, Jitters frontman Blair Packham. Blair is a friend and it’s always a pleasure to have him on the show.
In addition to chatting about the new record he’s currently working on and his skin-vibrating songs, we also discuss how his dad inadvertently named his last record, the interesting story behind how Blair became acquainted with Crowded House’s Temple of Low Men record, what Malcolm Gladwell sees him as, and how he really feels about Elvis Costello’s lyrical cleverness.
Packham’s playlist (available in Spotify):
Ron Sexsmith – Speaking With The Angel
Elvis Costello – Shipbuilding
Tom Petty – Dreamville
Crowded House – I Feel Possessed
John Legend – Everybody Knows
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
This week on NSTS I speak with someone whose parents I watched on television as a kid – her mom is Cindy Williams, who played Shirley from Laverne & Shirley, and her dad is Bill Hudson of the Hudson Brothers. Her name is Emily Taylor Hudson, and she’s a super talented singer songwriter with brand new music available.
Emily and I have a really great chat in this episode. Her new single is “Hearts We Wanna Break”, from her EP entitled Love is a Dirty Word. We also talk about her deep appreciation for the classics – old school Marvin Gaye, Joni Mitchell, The Beatles’ “Julia”, and more. Wonderful discussion.
Hudson’s playlist (found here on Spotify)
The Beatles – Revolution
Enya – Caribbean Blue
Marvin Gaye – Ain’t That Peculiar
Joni Mitchell – The Last Time I Saw Richard
Sting – If I Ever Lose My Faith In You
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
As he did in life, Doors frontman and rock icon Jim Morrison also commands mystique in death. The circumstances surrounding his death are mysterious and unclear – if he did in fact even die.
This week No Sleep ’til Sudbury examines the multiple theories associated with Morrison’s passing, including the assertions made by some who claim he’s alive and living on a farm in Oregon under the name Bill Loyer.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: RSS
As the No Sleep ’til Sudbury podcast progressed over the years, I spoke with a number of people about the usual podcast stuff – joining networks, partnering with others, adding commercials to the show, et cetera.
After a great deal of thought, and after 200 NSTS episodes, I’ve decided to work with Patreon, a platform that allows listeners to support the show if they choose, and how they choose.
Two things were and are important to me – I wanted to avoid inserting commercials and ads into episodes and disrupting flow. And, I was reluctant to join a network for fear of relinquishing any measure of creative control over something I worked so hard to build since 2017.
The thing I like so much about Patreon is that it allows creators to offer all sorts of additional rewards to patrons in exchange for support. NSTS supporters will have access to unreleased episodes (one with Big Sugar’s Gordie Johnson), show outtakes and bloopers, deleted content, behind-the-scenes photos, show notes, a chance to record the show’s intro and have it included in an actual episode, personally inscribed copies of my books, merch, and much more.
Not only do I want to keep No Sleep ’til Sudbury going, I want to make it even better. Patreon can help me do that independently. Have a look at the video here, and visit the Patreon site here to have a look at what’s offered. My sincere thanks to every single one of you for your continued support.