The Guestlist With Sean Cannon

It probably won't surprise you that Black Lips bassist/vocalist Jared Swilley's reckless abandon on stage is tied to his religious upbringing. However, it might surprise you to find out that it's not because of rebelliousness, but because of how much he enjoyed being in church.

Hopefully the name "The Handsome Family" rings a bell. Even if it doesn't, there's a good chance you'll recognize at least one of the husband-and-wife duo's songs. That's thanks to the HBO sensation "True Detective," which used "Far From Any Road" as its theme.

Six albums in, Laura Jane Grace and the gang have given us quite possible the best Against Me! full-length to date. With the record comes a newfound freedom for Laura Jane as well, considering this is her first since coming out as transgender two years ago. She and I talk about the transition, her early years in punk, and 90 Pound Wuss. Plus she performs an acoustic version of "True Trans Soul Rebel."

My interview with King Khan is prefaced by a few words about the passing of Robin Williams and the frailty of life. That might seem like an odd pairing dictated solely by circumstance at face value, but my conversation with Arish "King" Khan was largely about living life to its fullest and being present with those around you (in addition to some hilarious and NSFW stuff). So it ended up all fitting together in a strange way.

I knew this was going to be a special time when I walked in on Del the Funky Homosapien and Dan the Automator (two thirds of Deltron 3030) arguing with one another about disco. Sure enough, it was a spirited conversation about hip hop, authenticity and secret mandolins. Oh and by the way, their new record, "Event 2," is badass!

When something goes wrong, it's comedian Rory Scovel's fault. Or at least that's how he seems to feel most of the time. That said, it's hard to believe Scovel is capable of doing any wrong. In addition to being incredibly funny, he's just so darn likeable.

I didn't have long to chat with Andrew Bird during Bonnaroo, but thankfully I had something to dive right in with: his new album, full of songs written by The Handsome Family (whose music you may recognize thanks to "True Detective"). It's out now, and it's called "Things Are Really Great Here, Sort Of..."

In my second interview with comedian Chris Gethard, we talk a bit about Chris's transition from improv to stand-up, handling failure, our first interview, and plenty of punk rock similes.

Just in case you were worried (or, conversely, in case you got your hopes up), I'll go ahead right now and say that Bob Mould and I didn't talk about professional wrestling for half an hour during our second interview. Instead, we discussed the genesis of his new "Beauty and Ruin" LP, as well as how he's still being affected by a recent period of self-reflection.

Murder by Death recently relocated from their longtime home of Bloomington, Ind., to right here in Louisville. So I sat down with frontman (and apparent tech guru, thanks to Kickstarter) Adam Turla to discuss the move, the band's history, his songwriting process, and utilizing technology.

Will Sheff is a smart dude. If that wasn't evident from his hyper-literate (and hyperactive) lyrics, the Okkervil River frontman proves it here by displaying his chops as a cultural critic and armchair sociologist.

Talking to Randy and Jason Sklar while the twin stand-up comedians are watching their beloved St. Louis Cardinals is intense. I sat down with them between sets at the Comedy Attic in Bloomington to chat about obsession, the desire to live in the moment, and vinyl...all while they cheered (and jeered) for the home team.

X frontman John Doe is what you might call a triple threat — musician, actor, armchair philosopher. Sure, it's not the traditional definition, but it fits. And it was fascinating to hear John talk about his outlook on success and forward momentum, because sometimes it's hard to remember that you can be content without losing your edge.

This episode is not for the politically faint of heart. It is a conversation with Wayne Kramer of the MC5, after all. You know, one of the most political active and divisive bands in the history of rock and roll. That said, it's not all politics during the interview. Wayne also discusses his musical history, how church influenced the MC5's development, and how his time in prison has affected his life.

Who hasn't picked up a handful of Turkish disco LPs at a record store, right? But unlike most music nerds, Elijah Wood bought his Turkish disco LPs straight from the source — in Instanbul. During SXSW, I sat down with Elijah and found out just how into music he is. Very, in case you hadn't figured that out yet.