Mat is another one of those people that I’ve known forever on music forums, etc. but have only met in person once (possibly twice) and that was a long time ago… so it’s a real pleasure to reconnect with him.

He currently works in market research and as ITV’s (unofficial) poet-in-residence, blogs about poetry at Wear The Fox Hat and has published a collection of poetry called Collecting the Data.

Joe - who I was put in touch with by previous guest mixer Paul Howarth - is a drummer who currently plays in a pub rock covers band called Southside Five.

A guitarist and composer with 20 years of live and recording experience. She has played with Sinead O’Connor and Skunk Anansie as well as being the musical director for Cirque du Soleil for 8 years.

Most importantly - for me anyway, and I suspect most of my listeners - she is currently the guitarist in The Wedding Present.

Iain is a music writer who’s written extensively for the website Louder Than War and has published a book about The Clash called All The Young Punks which Record Collector called ‘the perfect almanac for any Clash fan’. He also used to present the Saturday morning show Indie Brunch.

Something a bit different this week.  Once or twice every year, some of the members of the Fall Online Forum take part in 'Mix It Up',  where they swap anonymised playlists. One person hosts, distributing the mixes to the others; basically, you receive a mix for review where you don't know who the songs are by, what they're called, or who selected them.

A couple of months ago, I was the host, and set the participants the challenge of adhering to the SMT criteria. I asked each reviewer to nominate a favourite track, and concocted a playlist out of their choices. This episode features each of them telling me about their selections.

James is a music blogger from Twickenham, London. He is also a very patient man, as he sent me this some considerable time ago and has waited, uncomplainingly, while I got around to recording it. You can find his blog here: Embrace The Margin

This is one of those where he sent the notes and I did the recording, so it's just my voice this week I'm afraid. I think it's a great mix: I hope you all enjoy it.

Derek, who hails from Connecticut but currently lives in Boston, is another one of those people that I've known online for many years, but this was the first time we'd met (albeit via Zoom).  We first got to know each other via the Wedding Present online forum, and have always had a decent Venn diagram intersection, musically.

It was a pleasure to finally meet him, and he certainly didn't let me down with an interestingly varied mix...

Chris is the man behind the definitive Half Man Half Biscuit website: The Half Man Half Biscuit Lyrics Project. He is also a lover of  ‘event’ stadium rock, Ipswich Town, cinema and travel. He's pictured on the stevesmixtapes.com page with Nigel Blackwell, who he did try to get on the show; alas, to no avail, as you will hear...

Paul, along with Tony Harris (who will also produce a mix at some point, hopefully) presents the Twilight Turntable podcast - a show dedicated to the lost art of listening to whole albums. But he's not averse to the odd mix tape too...

Paul contacted me last September to say: "I realise that your podcast guests are becoming more well-known by the week but if you ever wanted a chat with someone you’ve never met who’s not a writer or a musician and has nothing to advertise then can I put my hand up?"

And, of course, I was delighted to have him on, especially as he selected a particularly thoughtful mix.

Jen, who lives in Somerville, Massachusetts, is one of those guests that I was meeting for the very first time when I interviewed her. The connection came about because I (and guest #035 Chris McAvoy) shared a house with her husband James back in our university days. 

It was my new year's resolution to get more female guests on the show, and Jen is only the first of several more on the way!

Ian is a long-standing member of the Wedding Present forum, with whom I have stood down the front at many a TWP gig over the years.

A native of the Isle of Man, he is also a huge Cardiacs fan, as will soon become apparent when you listen to his selection...

Ethan has played in Comets on Fire, Feral Ohms, Heron Oblivion and Howlin’ Rain. Last year, he teamed up with Bill Orcutt and Steve Shelley to record the Orcutt Shelley Miller album - my number 2 album of 2025 (the #1 being this).

And yes, he's yet another that Steve Shelley put me in touch with - so thanks once again to Steve for providing me another great guest!

Given that Christmas is a time for family, it seemed fitting that this episode should feature my mum.

She turned 80 this year but you'd never know it. She was a little nervous about doing it - especially as we had to do the interview twice, my laptop having mangled the first attempt! But I think she did a fine job, and it was a great trip down memory lane for me...

William is yet another guest that Steve Shelley was kind enough to put me in touch with. He is the historian and tour guide for the infamous Chelsea Hotel, as well being the singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist with Cat Casual & the Final Word.

Like Brian Turner last week, Cory is someone that Steve Shelley was kind enough to put me in touch with. He has played in bands such as When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth, Spray Paint and Winged Wheel and also owns the live music bar Tubby’s in Kingston NY.

It's becoming clear that Steve clearly has good taste in mixers, as Cory was a great guest and picked an excellent playlist.

Brian is one of several upcoming guests that Steve Shelley was kind enough to put me in touch with. He is the station manager of East Village Radio, was a regular on WMFU and is a good friend of previous guest Eleni Poulou (with whom he recently put out a show on Cashmere Radio). He's also been in the bands The Mad Scene, Äss, and Jowe Head & The Celestial Choir.

Not only is he a top bloke, he picked a cracking playlist...

Vinny (aka Alan Wilkes) is a singer-songwriter who has put out fourteen albums of literate autobiographical pop music over a twenty-year career. Uncut described him as ‘an under sung national treasure’ and The Irish Times called him ‘the missing link between Jarvis Cocker and poet Roger McGough’. Tom Robinson of 6Music said that his ‘songs make you laugh and cry and think all at the same time.’

I have known Andy - a fellow Wedding Present fan - for the best part of 20 years, online. But this was the first time we'd ever met face to face (albeit via Zoom). 

Originally from Middleton, Manchester, Andy has for many years lived in Simi Valley, California. As well as being on good terms with previous guests David Gedge and Terry de Castro, we also get to hear about the time he played pool with Mark E Smith and Eleni...

Terry is a bassist, vocalist and songwriter based in LA who has played in several bands (such as Goya Dress) as well releasing music under her own name. She is also, other than David Gedge,  the longest serving member of The Wedding Present, and was the bassist throughout the lifespan of Cinerama.

(Slightly dodgy internet connection in places, apologies!)

Eleni is a musician, composer, radio host and curator of musical events. She has released music as a solo artist and as part of a wide range of groups and collaborations. She is also the 7th ex-member of the Fall to appear on the show - her distinctive keyboard style and vocal sound having been an important feature of the last period of the group.

Eleni likes to do things her own way - an admirable quality - and so this show is different from the norm in several ways. She selected 14 tracks (and wanted add a 15th!), her mix was 2 ¾ hours long (!) and she only sent it to me the morning before our interview (she explains why in our discussion). 

No, not that one... Not yet anyway. This Ian (my third Ian in six weeks!) is another fellow Fall enthusiast. And he's been very patient, as we recorded this nearly three months ago - hence the rather dated reference to Donald Trump's golf skills!

Alan is both a work colleague and a very good friend, who my wife describes as my 'work husband'. Initially, we talked about him coming on the podcast as a bit of a joke, as musically (and in many other ways) we inhabit very different universes. But when I mentioned  in episode #024 his offer to provide a playlist that would 'bring in the girls, gays and theys', the feedback was mostly on the lines of 'bring it on'.

So buckle up and be prepared for a rather different set of songs than you're used to...

In addition, if you have a few reissue or box set CDs in your collection, it’s fairly likely that at least one of them includes some sleeve notes written by him.

Steve occupied the drum stool in Sonic Youth for 26 years and has played with musicians such as Michael Rother, Howe Gelb, Tom Verlaine, Ron Asheton and Mark Kozelek.

He also founded a label called Smells Like Records (now Vampire Blues), and has been instrumental in promoting the careers of artists such as Cat Power, Blonde Redhead and Lee Hazlewood.

Described on a Reddit thread as ‘the best drummer in rock history’, his most recent release is Orcutt Shelley Miller, with Bill Orcutt (Harry Pussy) and Ethan Miller (Comets on Fire/Howlin' Rain).

Ian is an author who came up in conversation several times last week when I talked to Ian Daley, as he has had several books published by Route. They include Bringing It All Back Home (a book about searching for a soundtrack to your own life story), Song For My Father (a reflection on a lifelong search for a father figure), and It’s The Beer Talking (a book about a lifelong love affair with local pubs).

I can particularly recommend Bringing It All Back Home, a book that I found to be both funny and deeply moving.

Ian set up Route Publishing in 2000, and since 2005 has run the company from his home in Pontefract alongside his wife Isabel Galán. 

Route has published several books about The Fall (including those by Steve Hanley, Simon Wolstencroft, Paul Hanley and me!) They've also put out a range of titles about Bob Dylan, as well as books by Helen O'Hara (Dexys Midnight Runners), Tom Hingley (Inspiral Carpets), Mark Hoyle (Dub Sex) and Iain Matthews (Fairport Convention).

David is the sole constant member of indie legends The Wedding Present, the band that I have seen live (by some distance) the most often over their 40 year career. I have also written blogs about TWP and Cinerama.

He remains relentlessly busy with work, so I'm grateful he managed to squeeze this interview in.

N.B. We had a slightly dodgy internet connection, so the sound quality isn't always as good as I'd like it to be - apologies!

Chris has been mentioned quite a few times on this podcast, because over the years he has supplied me with dozens of mix tapes / CDs (some examples in the pic on the website).

We've known each other for the best part of 40 years, and have spent countless weekends in Manchester going to gigs, eating curries and drinking beer. Speaking of which, please bear in mind that this interview was recorded face to face following a long afternoon in the pub...

David is one of those people I know from the Fall Online Forum, and is also a fellow supporter of the excellent Sombrero Fallout podcast.

Although he lives in Australia these days, he is - like me - a native of North East England. He's also addicted to travel, and estimates that he's spent more than 3 years of his life in India alone.

Steve is, by his own description, a writer, standup, actor, singer and (dad) dancer. He is the man behind the Church Of The Fall, and was recently seen performing in a highly entertaining production of Hey Luciani! at the Prestwich Arts Festival.

Chris is the man behind the remarkable website The Annotated Fall, as well as the Grateful Dead blog Every Dark Star. He was also one of the esteemed judges on the Fall Cup panel.

In celebration of her birthday, I invited my lovely wife Kirsty to select a set of songs that she loves and - just about - fit the criteria. (There was some bending of the rules that nobody other than her would have got away with!)

She has appeared on one of my podcasts before (episode #29 of the Fall in Fives Radio Show) and we got a lot of positive feedback for that. Hopefully, you'll all enjoy this one just as much...

Thurston is, of course, a founder member of the premier noise-rock band of the late 20th / early 21st century, Sonic Youth. Post-SY, he has had a rich and varied career including a multitude of solo projects and collaborations as well as a well-worth-reading memoir, Sonic Life.

This is another longer than usual episode, but hey... it's Thurston Moore ferchrissakes...

Doug and I crossed paths via a shared love of the Sombrero Fallout podcast. He resides in North Carolina (the 'Tarheel State', apparently), but in a truly random coincidence it turns out that his great-great-grandfather hailed from the same small Welsh village as my wife!

It's great to have musicians, authors, journalists on the show; but it's also a joy to have guests on that are just passionate about the music they listen to...

Billy is a songwriter, musician, producer and broadcaster who you most likely know from 'A Pessimist Is Never Disappointed', a song that he wrote and played on that was a 1998 top 30 hit for Theaudience (featuring Sophie Ellis-Bextor on vocals).  In the 2000s, he turned to travel and sports broadcasting, and has also gone on to record three solo albums, all of which you can buy here).

This turned into a bit of a mammoth chat, but it was quite hard to edit it down to my usual length as Billy was so engaging and enthusiastic!

Rob played bass in The Fall in 2006-07 as part of a lineup fondly remembered as 'The Dudes'. They were highly regarded as a live outfit, although they never recorded a studio album that did them justice - something that we discuss in the interview. We also talked about the fact that he was the only ever member of the group to be permitted by MES to have a beard!

Rob was kind enough to contribute to my Fall in Fives Radio Show a few years ago (his episode is here) and it was a real pleasure to reconnect with him. You can find his website here.

Johnny (real name John McMahon) and I have known each other - via the Wedding Present online forum - for years. As it turns out, we know each other well in some ways, but not so well in others!

He was very nervous about doing this interview (the written word is more his thing - but I'm sure you'll agree he made for a great guest, displaying real passion for his selections.

Daren drummed for The Fall in 2013-15, appearing on The Remainderer and Sub-Lingual Tablet. He appeared with the group when they played Glastonbury in 2015 (about which we hear an interesting tale in the interview) - you can see the whole performance here.

He has also played with The Nightingales and Dave Lance Callahan (of The Wolfhounds).

Ding not only played bass for The Fall in the early 2000s, he also played a substantial role in much of the group's output in the last 15 years of its existence. He's also played with a wide range of artists such as PJ Harvey, Pixies, Imperial Wax and Red Lorry Yellow Lorry.

We caught up on a Sunday afternoon in mid-May: a bit earlier in the day than I usually do these calls, but he was off to see Dinosaur Jr that evening...

The Fall's final full-time drummer, who occupied the drum stool for the last quarter of the group's existence; he played on the final half a dozen albums, from Imperial Wax Solvent to New Facts Emerge. He then went on to play in the band Imperial Wax alongside Pete Greenway, releasing Gastwerk Saboteurs in 2019 and Tranquilliser in 2024.

The second ex-Fall member to appear on this show (but definitely not the last!), he played drums alongside Karl Burns during what many would argue is the classic period of the group.

He is also a successful author, having published Leave The Capital: A History of Manchester Music, Have A Bleedin Guess: The Story of Hex Enduction Hour (which in my view is one of  the best ever books written about a single album) and Sixteen Again: How Pete Shelley & Buzzcocks Changed Manchester Music (and me).

I first met Tim nearly 40 (!) years ago when we were both students at Wentworth College at the University of York.  I am pretty hopeless at keeping in touch with people from school and university, but Tim and I have (very loosely) kept touch due to a shared love of The Wedding Present - both being members of the Facebook  group. He is also the first man of the cloth to appear on the show…

Tommy is an author, comedian and musician. He’s also the man behind the website Daily Reckless (the Bandcamp page is here; there's also a full discography here). The song I use in the intro to this episode is Totally Weird.

As well as a shared love of Beefheart and Ivor Cutler, Tommy and I have something notable in common: we both wrote blogs about The Fall that became books. You can buy Tommy's tome here (and of course you can buy mine here).

Given all this commonality, it's not surprising that we got on very well and had a most enjoyable chat about music and several other things...

Gavin, as well as being a fellow member of the Fall Online Forum, was the bass player in Telstar Ponies (alongside David Keenan (ex-18 Wheeler) and Brendan O'Hare (ex-Teenage Fanclub)). The song that I use in this week's intro is Last Outpost from their excellent 1996 LP Voices From the New Music.

He has subsequently been involved in several other bands, such as The Porch Song Anthology, Lonecop and Macrocosmica. He also records under the name Glass Miniature, whose albums include Instance and Cup And Ring. He's also recorded with future guest mixer Billy Reeves.

I first met Jonny online during lockdown when he set up the Facebook group 'HIP PRIESTS - every album by The Fall', which resulted in him contributing to the introduction to my book You Must Get Them All.

He's a singer-songwriter from Dalton-in-Furness in Cumbria - his Bandcamp page is here.

Gavin is one half of the duo (along with Steve) that is responsible for the We Are The Fall podcast, which I appeared on recently.

He is also a musician in his own right: his Bandcamp page is here.

He and Steve do a great 'deep dive' job with The Fall on their podcast, and his enthusiasm makes him a pleasure to talk to - a top notch guest.

I recorded this in a hotel room in Future Inn, Cardiff Bay, the same place where I recorded my interview with Gavin Watts for his We Are The Fall podcast (who will be the guest mixer on next week's episode).

It was a very good day: a pleasant journey in the sunshine, accompanied by a playlist of perfect length, and an excellent curry at one of my regular haunts, Zaika.

It's a selection of Fall and Fall-related tracks that I had a lot of fun putting together - I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed compiling it.

Known to the good folk of the Wedding Present Forum as Iggy, to the rest of the world he's Gricey. A primary school teacher for 32(!) years, he and I first met and bonded when I was working in the secondary school down the road. One of the joys of doing this podcast has been catching up with some old friends that I haven't spoken to for far too long, and this was a prime example...

Music journalist, novelist and comedy writer whose credits include Harry Hill’s TV Burp, On The Hour/The Day Today, Mitchell & Webb and Smack The Pony, he has even won an Emmy in 2015 for his writing for Armando Iannucci’s political satire Veep.

'Caped Hector' is - like Eric (ep004) and Richard (ep005) a regular contributor to the Fall Online Forum. He is, I think it's fair to say, one of the more eccentric members, seemingly obsessed with women wearing capes, whelks and Slade. 

He sent me his mix via email, describing himself as a 'retired crime-fighter.' I do know his real name, but he asked that, 'in the interests of national security please don't reveal my secret identity to anyone.'

Hector seems to have been under the impression that he was appearing on Desert Island Discs, and sent me his chosen book and luxury item as well as his ten songs...

Neil is another acquaintance made via the Fall Online Forum, where he goes by the name 'Cactus' (for, as we discover, for no particular reason).

Like Gavin Morgan, my guest on Steve's Mix Tapes #003, I originally know Sally from the Wedding Present forum - and if you were paying attention to that episode, you might have worked out that she is Gavin's better half!

Sally has worked in education and publishing and is currently doing a PhD in English Literature. As well as 'alternative music culture', she lists her interests as First World War literature and art, hauntology, psychogeography, Gothic and the uncanny and dystopian literature - so I was all geared up for a highly intellectual discussion...

John is the author of Electric Wizards: A Tapestry of Heavy Music, 1968 to the Present and Off the Ground: Paul McCartney in the 1990s, both of which are excellent books (and I'm not just saying that because my name appears in the former!)

He also writes the psych-rock column Columnfortably Numb for the Quietus, and he has also written for Record Collector, The Wire and The Guardian.

We knew already that we have a very healthy musical Venn diagram intersection, so it was no surprise that his mix was right up my street...

Martin very kindly took some time out from preparing for House Of All's upcoming tour to share and talk about a mix he put together for me.

Amongst other highlights, he used the word 'sexy' more often than I'd anticipated...

Although she was very positive about my first episode, it was pointed out to me by Joanna Burnett (a fellow member of the Wedding Present forum) that mix #001 was 'a bit male' - and she does have a point. And when I looked at my planned tracklist for mix #006, it was another set of male artists.

Therefore, I have revised my choices and come up with a mix that features some of my favourite female artists. If you reckon that that makes me a woke snowflake, then I'm proud to be so 😝

Also: thus far, the guest editors have stayed faithful to the default order of the categories; this time, I've tweaked it a little for the flow of the mix.

Richard, like Eric who appeared in the last episode, is a long-standing member of the Fall Online Forum, and was one of the judging panel in the Fall Cup. Amongst other things, he is a music promoter in Oxford, responsible for Gappy Tooth Industries.

On the FOF, Richard is renowned for his quirky, left of centre mixes, and he didn't disappoint here...

https://sombrerofallout.com/

This one is a complilation of my own choosing - the next few will feature guest mixers.

https://www.stevesmixtapes.com/