Off the Clock w/Jon Eks

Slingin' Punk Tacos with Swanny

On this episode of Off the Clock, I’m joined by my Punk Tacos [https://www.iheart.com/live/punk-tacos-6954/] amigo Swanny. Here’s some of what we talk about: First Question: What was your very first ever punk or ska show? we talk about anxiety and when we choose to be the center of attention and when we want to blend in Swanny shares his unusual journey to being on the radio as we also talk about the horrors of working a corporate HR job we review each other’s Punk Tacos breaks and share what we think of them we then give a little peek behind the curtain about how the process of getting new songs on Punk Tacos goes – we take it more seriously than you might guess our shared love of live, local shows in dive bars Swanny takes me through the origin, and composition, of the “A-OK Bomb,” an alcoholic beverage you can impress all of your friends with we talk about his new band LMS [https://www.facebook.com/p/LMS-Denver-Ska-61577615399282/] and I take my guess as to what that stands for self-awareness among artists and why local music, as a general rule, is better now than it was in the past why you should go see the damned opening band hipster takes: Who is a huge band you saw as an opener? Follow Swanny on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/933swanny/] or at his website [https://markandrewswan.wordpress.com/]. Theme song by Sorry Sweetheart [https://linktr.ee/sorrysweetheart]. Logo by Nebulus Visions [https://nebulusvisions.com/]. Produced by Deft Communications [https://www.deftcom.us/]. Engage with the show on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/JoATPod], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/joatpod/] and Bluesky [https://bsky.app/profile/otcjon.bsky.social].  Recorded at Hooked on Colfax [https://www.hookedoncolfax.com/].

Touching Grass with Sorry Sweetheart

On this episode of Off the Clock, I’m joined by my friends Henry and Brian of Sorry Sweetheart, who recently signed to Bad Time Records, created the theme song for this show, and are one of my favorite bands. Here’s some of what we talk about: First Question: How did the signing to Bad Time Records come to pass? * I make a bunch of guesses about what the song “IK4ND” [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lEw_6-uVPk] stands for and they tell me the real meaning * Henry tastes some new coffee and I ask them about “getting into character” before they play a show because their stage presence is so different than them in real life * the metalcore vocals, how to do them, and how I’m never ready for them * how Days of Thunder is actually Top Gun 2 and why Henry is like Cole Trickle * how do Sorry Sweetheart songs actually get composed?  * we talk about the creation of this show’s theme song and give a special shout out to the band Good Clean Fun [https://open.spotify.com/artist/67G4Qrj2sRB05bYjofHWc2] * some dated NBA playoffs talk as we pontificate about teams that have already been eliminated * some talk about the song “Touch Grass” and its origins * a story of Sorry Sweetheart seeing an All Waffle Trick shirt completely out of context at a festival in Western Massachusetts (this was partially my doing) * could Sorry Sweetheart open for Slipknot? we debate. and which times have they been a mismatch on a bill? * smart guys that we are, we share all the ways one can use their teeth * what does success look like for Sorry Sweetheart? * theme bars “Shot Topic” and “The Squared Circle” Theme song by Sorry Sweetheart [https://linktr.ee/sorrysweetheart]. Logo by Nebulus Visions [https://nebulusvisions.com/]. Produced by Deft Communications [https://www.deftcom.us/]. Engage with the show on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/JoATPod], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/joatpod/] and Bluesky [https://bsky.app/profile/otcjon.bsky.social].  Recorded at Town Hall Collaborative [https://www.townhallcollaborative.com/].

Rich and Naked Pictures of Bea Arthur

On this episode of Off the Clock, I’m joined by my new pal Rich who’s written movies like Airheads, all 3 xXx movies, Glory Daze, and a bunch more. He also conned his way onto the Warped Tour and made a documentary called Punk Like Me. Here’s some of what we talk about: First Question: Where did you come up with “The Clydesdale Scale” in Airheads? why comedies aren’t made nearly as much these days as they were in the 90s I give Rich some background on my own personal history with Airheads and why I love it so much I invite my daughter Grace into the interview and she asks Rich two questions herself: why did you choose the same set as Die Hard for Airheads? (my follow-up: which is the more direct inspiration for Airheads: Die Hard or Dog Day Afternoon?)  how did you get so many famous people to be in that movie? how the movie Glory Daze feels like the story of why I ended up going to grad school we run down a whole list of unique insults from Airheads and I gauge Rich’s reaction to them (e.g. “you look like half a buttpuppet” or “listen, you shaved ape.”) how did he come up with the two questions (“Whose side did you take in the big Van Halen/David Lee Roth split?” and “Who’d win in a wrestling match, Lemmy or God?” to discern if Harold Ramis’s character was a cop? we debate punk orthodoxy, gatekeeping, the fallow period of the late 80s and how we both still go to local shows how Rich ended up in the Punk Rock Museum twice (the story of how he stole the Sex Pistols shirt is worth the price of admission to this episode alone) the story of the Glory Daze soundtrack is so freaking cool why you should buy a shirt at a local punk show the blessing and curse of “cult movies.” the insane amount of unmade stuff he has in the pipeline some surprising thoughts about A.I. Check out Rich on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/rich_k_wilkes/]. Theme song by Sorry Sweetheart [https://linktr.ee/sorrysweetheart]. Logo by Nebulus Visions [https://nebulusvisions.com/]. Produced by Deft Communications [https://www.deftcom.us/]. Engage with the show on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/JoATPod], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/joatpod/] and Bluesky [https://bsky.app/profile/otcjon.bsky.social].  Recorded via Google Meet.

Shepard Is Efficient with his Time

On this episode of Off the Clock, I’m joined by my friend Shepard, who was a guest on the old show, and who called me out of the blue for the first time in years a few weeks ago. Here’s some of what we talk about: First Question: How did you expect me to react when you called me? the importance of production design in movies the Fight Club concept of “single serving friends” as a metaphor for podcasting and how if we’re not helping each other, then what’s the point? how did Shepard start producing independent films (it involves Cuba!) and how does he make time for whimsy and creative pursuits “interested is interesting” returns to the show as a concept (shoutout Nate Lundy [https://www.otcjon.com/podcast/episode/7cd7c4b8/nate-the-secretly-introverted-goof]) with talk about Quentin Tarantino, Roger Ebert, Roland Barthes, the Colorado Avalanche & more a shoutout to Band Name Bureau by Kyle Ryan [https://www.bandnamebureau.com/] and sharing your compliments with creators we spend some time talking about Governor Jared Polis and how most Colorado politicians are “high in content” which is an interesting way of putting it Shepard turns the tables on me and starts asking me questions how have I intentionally curated my career? we reminisce about These Things Matter and I get into my origin story for the first time in a while why I’m a better entrepreneur than I am a salaried employee (spoiler: I’m a pain in the ass) “are you the type of person who plans 5 or 10 years ahead, or are you the person who focuses on the work and people immediately around you?” I LOVE this question how do I manage my time? weirdly, I don’t have a good answer for this even though I’m pretty effective at it! Theme song by Sorry Sweetheart [https://linktr.ee/sorrysweetheart] Logo by Nebulus Visions [https://nebulusvisions.com/]. Produced by Deft Communications [https://www.deftcom.us/]. Engage with the show on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/JoATPod], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/joatpod/] and Bluesky [https://bsky.app/profile/otcjon.bsky.social].  Recorded at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science [https://www.dmns.org/].

#OTCQuickie: Where the Hell Have I Been?

#OTCQuickies are mini solo episodes where I address a question or a topic in service of trying to be a good dude in the world. Today's topic is: Where the Hell Have I Been? It's been a month since I did a show. I haven't kept up with TTROC [https://www.otcjon.com/blog/categories/turn-the-record-over-challenge] and the reason for both is that I've been sick as hell off and on for the last 4 weeks. There have been a handful of bright spots here and there, but any energy I have has gone to my professional life and my family, and then I mostly just want to lie down. I provide more explanation -- along with my thoughts on this weird ass fucking winter, weather-wise -- in this mini-episode. Secondly, there are too many podcasts anymore. I've been doing this for 12 years and there are more now than ever, which makes finding your own motivation and how to add value to a bloated cultural discourse daunting at best, dispiriting at worst. Because a fucking podcaster is currently heading up the FBI and using our money to party with the USA hockey team like he's some Make-a-Wish kid. More on that type of thing in here too. I'm feeling better and I'll be back soon. But here's like 6 minutes of audio if you're interested. Cheers! Theme song by Sorry Sweetheart [https://linktr.ee/sorrysweetheart]. Logo by Nebulus Visions [https://nebulusvisions.com/]. Produced by Deft Communications [https://www.deftcom.us/]. Engage with the show on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/JoATPod], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/joatpod/] and Bluesky [https://bsky.app/profile/otcjon.bsky.social].