Episode 54 - Mike Apichella (Part One)

My guest this week is Mike Apichella. Mike is the main man behind the band Human Host. He’s spent the past few years creating Towson-Glen Arm Freakouts, an in-depth archive of the early 90s music and arts scene in north Baltimore County. He currently contributes to Splice Today (which also hosts this podcast). I’ve been a fan of his music since 1996, and I was (very briefly) a member of Human Host.

He talks about being inspired by the free-form radio of Towson University’s WCVT, and how that station turned him on to Sun Ra and 60’s punk bands like The One-Way Streets. He talks about his friends coming together to form the Towson-Glen Arm scene, and the people that helped mold it into a movement with long-lasting influence. He talks about the tragic death of his friend Dave Willemain, and how that eventually pushed him to make music and art as a life-long pursuit.

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Trick Daddy’s http://www.thug.com. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

Episode 53 - Davo (Double Duchess)

Height Zone World 53. My guest this week is DavO, aka David Richardson. He’s one half of the hip-hop duo Double Duchess. We’ve known each other since 2000, and I was excited to get the full story on his music journey.

We talk about his early days as a rapper/drummer in Annapolis, MD, and his struggle to find his identity as a lyricist. He tells me about moving to the west coast, and how Double Duchess was spawned from a DJ night he put together in San Francisco. We talk about their debut album Hey Girl!, and the darker territory they’ve covered on their two most recent albums.

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Main Source’s Breaking Atoms. This episode is hosted splicetoday.com.

Episode 52 - One Year Anniversary Episode with Mike Riley and Eze Jackson

This is a special one year anniversary episode. I’m joined by Mike Riley, (the visual arm of Height Zone World) and Eze Jackson. (Eze was our first guest ever.) We reflect on what’s gone down in our world in the last 365. Mike and I discuss the experience of doing this podcast for 52 weeks straight. We each picked out four songs to play from guests who were interviewed on the show this year.

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Afrika Bambaataa and Soul Sonic Force’s Planet Rock. This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.

Episode 50 - Gavin Riley Smoke Machine

My guest this week is Gavin Riley. He’s the man behind Gavin Riley Smoke Machine, a years-in-the-making Choose Your Own Adventure rap epic. We first met in 2006, and he became part of Height With Friends in 2009.

We talk about his first group Rowan and Hastings, and about his first solo album from the mid-2000’s. He explains how his current project initially connected unconnected songs in his live set, and how he’s slowly fleshed it out into a tight, compelling story. We talk about the intensity of spending years on one thing, and about how he isn’t anxious to knock it out and get to another thing.

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince’s “He’s The DJ, I’m The Rapper.” This episode is hosted by Splicetoday.com.

Episode 51 - Jimmy MacMillan (Friends Records)

My guest this week is Jimmy MacMillan. He’s the main man behind Friends Records. We first met when Friends helped me release my album Bed Of Seeds, and I wanted to learn more about how the label came to be.

He talks about being a superfan of local bands in Columbia, MD, and working as the de facto manager of the bands Pinfold and Evolve. We talk about his partner Bret Yale calling him with the idea of putting out a 7-inch, and how that blossomed into them running a full-blown record label. We discuss the different approaches they’ve had to running a label over the last five-plus years, and what he wants to do with it now.

Mike Riley’s art this week is an homage to Heavy D and The Boyz’s ‘Living Large.’ This episode is hosted by splicetoday.com.