The J-Card Podcast

Six Songs That Were Lost (Until Now) w/ Darren Hayman | The J-Card Podcast

Darren Hayman has been making music since the early ‘90s, first as the frontman of Hefner, then through a sprawling catalog of projects including The French, New Starts, Hayman Watkins Trout and Lee, and Darren Hayman and The Long Parliament. In our conversation we covered his traversal through all those bands, and much more, including seeing Elliott Smith before he was the Elliott Smith. Darren’s mixtape has a specific theme: six of his songs that were either missing, mislabeled, or completely invisible online… recovered and restored by the very same person who booked this episode! Each one has a story, and Darren tells all of them. More on IG: @darren.hayman https://www.instagram.com/darren.hayman [https://www.instagram.com/darren.hayman] The J-Card is presented by Rue Defense Tape Club, a quarterly, mail-order cassette compilation and DIY audio project. Each episode is part music discovery, part oral history, part hangout show. We ask artists, musicians, filmmakers, and other music-minded folks to build us their own personal mixtape and talk about the moments and memories that inspired it. New episodes drop here and wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for watching, and if you liked this one, share it with a friend who also might. Created by Alexei Shishkin Associate Producer: Alivia Stonier Booking: Jamie Halliday 📬 Subscribe: Subscribe now [%%checkout_url%%] 📲 Follow us: IG: https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense [https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense] TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub [https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub] Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com [https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com] X: https://x.com/ruedefense [https://x.com/ruedefense] 🤝 Support / Sponsorship: https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA [https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA] 🎶 Submit Music: https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA [https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA] 📩 Contact: hi@tapeclub.biz ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro to Darren Hayman 01:39 - Sleep & Creativity 03:52 - The Origins of Hefner 09:14 - Lo-Fi Across the Ocean 12:17 - Sarah Records & UK Indie 13:07 - Portland & New Bad Things 14:50 - An Elliott Smith Sighting 18:13 - Music Industry Changes 24:18 - Advice for Young Artists 27:39 - The Mixtape 28:51 - “Pull Yourself Together (Didgeridoo Version)” by Hefner 31:48 - “Punk Rock Is Going to Die” by The French 37:53 - “Since She Started to Ride” by Hayman Watkins Trout and Lee 43:43 - “Little Squirrel, Little Arrow” by Darren Hayman 49:02 - “We Are Not Evil” by Darren Hayman and The Long Parliament 53:39 - “Elizabeth the First” by Darren Hayman and The Long Parliament 56:54 - Honorable Mentions 1:01:12 - Game: First and Last 1:06:21 - Plugs & Outro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe [https://tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Inside Duplication.com, the Company That Makes Everyone's Tapes w/ Rob Feulner | The J-Card Podcast

Rob Feulner is the Marketing Coordinator at Duplication.com, the cassette and CD duplication company that’s been a cornerstone of underground music culture since 1989. In this conversation, Rob takes us inside the world of cassette duplication, from the massive tape-loading machines, to the team of artists and technicians who keep the operation running. We talk about the Montreal underground scene that shaped his taste, how vaporwave couldn’t have happened without the cassette renaissance, and what it’s like to spend your workdays pulling random tapes out of a box and listening to them cold. Dream job, am I right? More on IG: @duplication.ca https://www.instagram.com/duplication.ca [https://www.instagram.com/duplication.ca] @bleunuitvideo https://www.instagram.com/bleunuitvideo [https://www.instagram.com/bleunuitvideo] The J-Card is presented by Rue Defense Tape Club, a quarterly, mail-order cassette compilation and DIY audio project. Each episode is part music discovery, part oral history, part hangout show. We ask artists, musicians, filmmakers, and other music-minded folks to build us their own personal mixtape and talk about the moments and memories that inspired it. New episodes drop here and wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for watching, and if you liked this one, share it with a friend who also might. Created by Alexei Shishkin Associate Producer: Alivia Stonier Booking: Jamie Halliday 📬 Subscribe: Subscribe now [%%checkout_url%%] 📲 Follow us: IG: https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense [https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense] TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub [https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub] Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com [https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com] X: https://x.com/ruedefense [https://x.com/ruedefense] 🤝 Support / Sponsorship: https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA [https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA] 🎶 Submit Music: https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA [https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA] 📩 Contact: hi@tapeclub.biz ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro to Rob Feulner 01:06 - How Rob Got the Job 03:46 - Montreal Cassette Scene 07:59 - The Production Ecosystem 12:15 - Life of a Cassette 18:40 - The Duplication Team 22:12 - Rob’s Art Practice 24:17 - Notable Projects 28:54 - The Mixtape 29:28 - “Side A” by Dead Bush 34:34 - “Death Row” by Lil Noid 37:20 - “ΛVΘN™ NiteMare Liquid Mascara (feat. 회사AUTO)” by Nmesh 43:01 - “Lamentation Fragrant Repel” by New Mexican Stargazers 46:31 - “Outside” by The Dead C 50:25 - “Through the Bindbole Wood” by Hole Dweller 52:47 - Honorable Mentions 54:35 - Game: Call and Response 1:00:27 - Plugs & Outro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe [https://tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

How to Make an Album That Sounds Like Nothing Else w/ Jeff Jakobs | The J-Card Podcast

Jeff Jakobs is a Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter who put out his beautiful album Lorem Ipsum last fall. We missed the first wave of press, but Jeff was kind enough to join us to talk about how he assembled an incredibly talented group of players for the album (including folks who’ve worked with Big Thief, Andrew Bird, and more), how the recording experiences compared to his earlier work, The Milkbarn Sessions. We also get into Jeff’s background in comedy, the overlap between comedy and music, and how he found his vocal coach, Joy. And of course there’s his mixtape, a genuine journey across centuries (no exaggeration). I believe one of his picks sets the record for oldest song featured on The J-Card! More on IG: @mrjeffjakobs https://www.instagram.com/mrjeffjakobs [https://www.instagram.com/mrjeffjakobs] The J-Card is presented by Rue Defense Tape Club, a quarterly, mail-order cassette compilation and DIY audio project. Each episode is part music discovery, part oral history, part hangout show. We ask artists, musicians, filmmakers, and other music-minded folks to build us their own personal mixtape and talk about the moments and memories that inspired it. New episodes drop here and wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for watching, and if you liked this one, share it with a friend who also might. Created by Alexei Shishkin Associate Producer: Alivia Stonier Booking: Jamie Halliday 📬 Subscribe: Subscribe now [%%checkout_url%%] 📲 Follow us: IG: https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense [https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense] TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub [https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub] Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com [https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com] X: https://x.com/ruedefense [https://x.com/ruedefense] 🤝 Support / Sponsorship: https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA [https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA] 🎶 Submit Music: https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA [https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA] 📩 Contact: hi@tapeclub.biz ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro to Jeff Jakobs 00:49 - Lorem Ipsum: The Album 07:39 - Milk Barn vs Lorem Ipsum 13:15 - Theater & Comedy Life 17:45 - Working with a Vocal Coach 22:03 - Making Music Videos 25:28 - The Mixtape 26:46 - “Everything Happens to Me” by Chet Baker 30:19 - “Visions of Johanna” by Bob Dylan 34:44 - “Je n’en connais pas la fin” by Jeff Buckley 41:09 - “It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody” by Weyes Blood 44:13 - “Hat and Beard” by Eric Dolphy 47:43 - “Great Mass in C minor” by Mozart 52:55 - Honorable Mention: Mayhem 57:19 - Game: Showdown 1:04:32 - Plugs & Outro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe [https://tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Inside the World of Fringe Theatre w/ Erin Davis | The J-Card Podcast

Theatre people and music people have more in common than you might think, and Erin Davis is living proof. Erin is a Boston-based playwright, dramaturg, and theater administrator who grew up in Georgia, and has spent the last few years developing their play Honey Hole, a story about a young queer beauty queen in rural Georgia that started as a loose adaptation of the Myth of Icarus and became something far more personal. In this episode, we get into the nuts and bolts of what a dramaturg actually does, how the fringe theater scene in Boston compares to the city’s legendary DIY music world, and why playwriting is basically a series of ten-year investment projects with no guaranteed return. Plus, stick around for a storytelling-themed mixtape that pivots into (spoiler alert) Van Halen territory. Hell yeah! Oh and we talk about a true Southern delicacy: ambrosia 🤤 More on IG: @erin.victoria https://www.instagram.com/erin.victoria [https://www.instagram.com/erin.victoria] The J-Card is presented by Rue Defense Tape Club, a quarterly, mail-order cassette compilation and DIY audio project. Each episode is part music discovery, part oral history, part hangout show. We ask artists, musicians, filmmakers, and other music-minded folks to build us their own personal mixtape and talk about the moments and memories that inspired it. New episodes drop here and wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for watching, and if you liked this one, share it with a friend who also might. Created by Alexei Shishkin Associate Producer: Alivia Stonier Booking: Jamie Halliday 📬 Subscribe: Subscribe now [%%checkout_url%%] 📲 Follow us: IG: https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense [https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense] TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub [https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub] Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com [https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com] X: https://x.com/ruedefense [https://x.com/ruedefense] 🤝 Support / Sponsorship: https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA [https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA] 🎶 Submit Music: https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA [https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA] 📩 Contact: hi@tapeclub.biz ⏱️ Chapters: 0:00 - Intro to Erin Davis 1:44 - Fried Green Tomatoes 3:05 - How Erin Got Into Theatre 4:59 - Acting vs. Tech Theatre 6:55 - What Is a Dramaturg? 9:25 - Writing Honey Hole 13:51 - The Shelf Life of a Play 18:51 - Festivals & DIY Producing 21:01 - Fringe Theatre in Boston 24:49 - Advice for Queer Artists 29:09 - The Mixtape 30:10 - “Early Morning Blues” by Sweet Petunia 32:47 - “Chosen to Deserve” by Wednesday 36:24 - “Pressure to Party” by Julia Jacklin 40:08 - “Boyish” by Japanese Breakfast 42:42 - “Percolator” by Charlie Bliss 46:20 - “Jump” by Van Halen 49:04 - Honorable Mentions 51:01 - Game: One for the Road 59:14 - Plugs & Outro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe [https://tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]

Quitting an Agency Job and Becoming a Freelance Filmmaker w/ Vince Alvarado | The J-Card Podcast

Vince Alvarado is a NYC-based videographer and documentary filmmaker who left agency life to pursue filmmaking full-time. In this episode, Vince talks about the leap from advertising strategy to freelance filmmaking, the highs and lows of freelancing, and how sometimes gigs can come when you least expect them. Vince also shares a six-song mixtape that traces the music that shaped him, from alternative rock to hip-hop classics. More on IG: @airvince1 https://www.instagram.com/airvince1 [https://www.instagram.com/airvince1] The J-Card is presented by Rue Defense Tape Club, a quarterly, mail-order cassette compilation and DIY audio project. Each episode is part music discovery, part oral history, part hangout show. We ask artists, musicians, filmmakers, and other music-minded folks to build us their own personal mixtape and talk about the moments and memories that inspired it. New episodes drop here and wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for watching, and if you liked this one, share it with a friend who also might. Created by Alexei Shishkin Associate Producer: Alivia Stonier Booking: Jamie Halliday 📬 Subscribe: Subscribe now [%%checkout_url%%] 📲 Follow us: IG: https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense [https://www.instagram.com/ruedefense] TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub [https://tiktok.com/@tapeclub] Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com [https://bsky.app/profile/tapeclub.substack.com] X: https://x.com/ruedefense [https://x.com/ruedefense] 🤝 Support / Sponsorship: https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA [https://forms.gle/8L4o4yLvX5fQnpAXA] 🎶 Submit Music: https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA [https://forms.gle/Mc7En6K8Tb2BbgxJA] 📩 Contact: hi@tapeclub.biz ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro to Vince Alvarado 00:52 - From Agency to Filmmaker 07:33 - Highs & Lows of Freelancing 15:25 - Filmmaking Projects 26:09 - The Mixtape 27:40 - “Drive” by Incubus 30:49 - “Renegades of Funk” by Rage Against the Machine 35:15 - “Definition” by Blackstar 42:06 - “Umi Says” by Mos Def 45:04 - “Can I Kick It?” by A Tribe Called Quest 48:19 - “Dákiti” by Bad Bunny 55:42 - Honorable Mentions 57:50 - Game: Firsts & Lasts 1:12:06 - Plugs & Outro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe [https://tapeclub.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2]