Across The Margin: The Podcast

Across The Margin: The Podcast offers up a career-spanning interview with G. Love, famed frontman of the band G. Love & Special Sauce, now on the cusp of his latest album release, The Juice. Born Garrett Dutton in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, G. Love grew up equally enthralled with folk, blues, and rap, devouring everything from Lead Belly and Run D.M.C. to John Hammond and the Beastie Boys. After migrating to Boston, he and his band, Special Sauce, broke out in 1994 with their Gold-selling self-titled album debut, earning widespread critical acclaim for its bold vision and adventurous production. Over the next twenty-five years, G. Love would go on to release seven more similarly lauded studio albums with his band the Special Sauce (plus four solo albums on his own), solidifying his place in music history as a genre-bending pioneer. On January 17th, 2020 G. Love & Special Sauce release their latest album, the bluesy, political-fueled The Juice. Recorded in Nashville with co-writer and co-producer Keb Mo, Th

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast, host Michael Shields interviews director Mark Hayes and producer Gabriele Hayes, the filmmakers behind the recently released documentary Skid Row Marathon. Skid Row Marathon tells the tale of a criminal court judge who starts a running club on L.A.’s notorious skid row and begins training a motley group of addicts and criminals to run marathons, and soon lives begin to change. The deeply affecting documentary follows four runners as they rise from the mean streets of L.A. to run marathons around the world, fighting the pull of homelessness and addiction at every turn. Their story is one of hope, friendship, and dignity. In this episode, Michael, Mark, and Gabriele discuss at length the benevolent, inspiring judge at the heart of the film (Judge Craig Mitchell), the many challenges it took to bring the documentary to life (particularly in gaining the trust of the subjects from skid row), the many moving and encouraging life lessons one can learn from t

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast presents an interview with singer, harmonica player, producer, and all-around exemplar of American roots music, The Reverend Shawn Amos. Amos, a fascinating and insightful personality with deep knowledge of blues & roots music, has been featured on NPR’s Weekend Edition, ABC News and Good Day New York, among others. As a performer, Amos has been on a mission to unite people while speaking truth to power through the blues for the past decade. Before that, he made a name for himself as a producer for artists like Quincy Jones and Solomon Burke. Throughout his illustrious career, Amos has been an evangelist for the American musical tradition of the blues in all its forms. His commitment to this populist, down-home approach to his craft has been showcased throughout his long-running Kitchen Table Blues Youtube series. Since 2018’s acclaimed, politically charged The Reverend Shawn Amos Breaks It Down, Amos has been on the road nonstop with The Brotherhood — a band of

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast, host Michael Shields sits down with longtime Across The Margin: The Podcast contributor Georg Guidotti to examine the latest release from Paul Selig, Beyond The Known: Realization. As the story goes, in 1987 a spiritual experience left Paul Selig clairvoyant. Since then, Selig has established himself as one of the foremost spiritual channels in the self-help world. Expanding on and transcending his previous work, the first volume in the Beyond the Known trilogy, Realization, is composed of the pure, unedited words of “The Guides” as they share their wisdom and knowledge through Selig. It serves a psychological-spiritual guide to take readers beyond the perceived limitations of accepted reality and open their minds to ultimate manifestation. Throughout the episode, which marks George Guidotti’s 6th appearance on Across The Margin: The Podcast, Michael and George reveal how they personalized the timeless teachings found in Realization while expounding up

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast, host Michael Shields converses with author and researcher Samuel Miller-McDonald about Climate Change, exploring its intricacies from a vast array of crucial and compelling angles. Samuel Miller-McDonald is a regular essayist at such notable publications as Current Affairs, The New Republic, and The Baffler (to name but a few!). Currently, Miller-McDonald is working towards his PhD at the University of Oxford, researching the intersection of grassroots movements and energy transition. Through a deep dive into Samuels hard-hitting, timely, and important articles, this episode explores the absurdities of our current fossil-fueled food system, the under-discussed scandal of the U.S. bipartisan commitment to fossil fuels, how a new generation of authoritarian leaders are using Climate Change to seize power, what millennials can do to fight Climate Change, and ultimately, what decarbonized, climate-resilient, and equitable cities of tomorrow could look like

Recently The War and Treaty — the husband and wife duo of Michael and Tanya Trotter — were named Emerging Act of the Year at the 2019 Americana Music Association Awards in Nashville. In the wake of this prestigious honor, Across The Margin : The Podcast is proud to feature an interview with the extremely talented duo that comprise this exciting act. In what amounts to a celebration of the soulful, heartfelt gospel-inspired music of The War and Treaty, this episode draws you into the world of a remarkably talented act that appear to be just warming up. As The War and Treaty, Michael and Tanya serve up funky bass lines, keys, lap steel, acoustic strings, and stripped-down percussion to create a swampy Southern soul bed for the couple’s superior vocals. Their latest album, Healing Tide, is an enchanting testament to the group’s talents, and an inspiring tour de force of a release rife with themes of unity, devotion, and above all else, love. In this episode, Michael and Tanya Trotter reveal the details behind th

In its latest episode, Across The Margin: The Podcast celebrates the Nashville-based roots rock outfit Ida Mae through an interview with one half of the duo, guitarist and vocalist Christopher Turpin. Ida Mae, comprising the teaming of Christopher Turpin and vocalist Stephanie Jean Ward, recently released their debut album entitled Chasing Lights which blends elements of vintage Delta blues and gritty rock ‘n’ roll with bold modern arrangements and audacious punk swagger. Ida Mae’s music is sincere and honest, where a classic Americana sound is bolstered by rocking British blues moments. Notably, Turpin and Ward achieved a considerable amount of stardom throughout Europe with the alternate rock band Kill It Kid, but despite the successes the duo decided to move on from Kill It Kid, following their hearts towards playing the sort of Americana roots rock music that inspired them to become musicians in the first place. In this episode, the conversation centers around Ida Mae’s musical influences, their decision

In its latest episode, Across The Margin: The Podcast introduces you to the Texas-based Americana duo, Penny and Sparrow, through an interview with one-half of the incredibly talented group, lead singer Andy Baxter. Penny and Sparrow teams Baxter with guitar virtuoso Kyle Jahnke, bringing to life what Baxter describes as “scholastic folk,” where alluring and intricate compositions are paired delicately with lyrical content that explores ideas of religion, love, loss, and increasingly themes concerning coming to terms with the distressing truths of the modern world. Penny and Sparrow’s music is rife with swelling strings and enticing harmonies, and in this episode, Michael and Andy focus in on Penny and Sparrow’s latest release Finch, exploring the bewitching soundscapes and dissecting the weighty, affecting lyrics that comprise the album. Finch is a touch of a departure for Penny and Sparrow, one which finds the duo combining folk and r & b rhythms all while maintaining their soft, lush approach to music. Lis

In this episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast host Michael Shields sits down with author Casey Rae to learn more about his deeply insightful release, William S. Burroughs and the Cult of Rock 'n' Roll. William S. Burroughs's fiction and essays are legendary, but his influence on music's counterculture has been less well documented — until now. Examining how one of America's most controversial literary figures altered the destinies of many notable and varied musicians, William S. Burroughs and the Cult of Rock 'n' Roll reveals the transformations in music history that can be traced to Burroughs. In this episode, Michael and Casey bring to life Burroughs's parallel rise to fame among daring musicians of the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, when it became a rite of passage to hang out with the author or to experiment with his cut-up techniques for producing revolutionary lyrics (as both the Beatles and Radiohead did). They converse on the plethora of musicians influenced by Burroughs, the aleatory literary style know

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast host Michael Shields sits down with actor, writer, and comedian Katie Hartman. Katie has starred in film and television, most recently in HBO's series High Maintenance, TV Land's Younger, TBS's Search Party and the Netflix film The Week Of. In 2018 Katie was selected as a New Face of Comedy for the prestigious Just for Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal. She was a staff writer and performer on the WGA nominated Paid Off with Michael Torpey on truTV and a correspondent/writer for Hearst Media's Seriously.tv. Her hilarious web series Made to Order was listed as one of the "6 Brilliant Web Series" by Marie Claire. In this episode, Michael and Katie converse about her influences, her extraordinarily talented siblings, her assorted and impressive comedy/ acting projects, their shared political angst, where the term "going, going, gone" was coined, and much, much more.

In this episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast, host Michael Shields, with the help of author and National Park Service (NPS) authority Dr. Gil Lusk, celebrate the national treasure that is the United States’ National Park System. Dr. Lusk is a retired National Park Service employee with thirty-five years of experience. For his efforts, he was awarded the U.S. Department of Interior's two highest performance awards: the Meritorious Service and Distinguished Service awards, the latter presented by the Secretary of Interior and the President. Dr. Lusk’s book, National Parks: Our Living Treasure (A Time For Concern), recounts the origins and the rich history of the NPS, while also ushering readers into NPS’s current conflicted era, where an abundance of issues endanger the important mission and preservation goals of the NPS. In this episode, Michael and Dr. Lusk converse over what makes the National Parks and the National Park Service so special, break down the crucial concerns facing the National Park Servi

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast host Michael Shields interviews filmmaker Steven Cantor about his latest film Between Me and My Mind, a documentary providing an in-depth and personal look at the life and career of Phish frontman Trey Anastasio. Steven Cantor is best known as the director of such hit documentaries as Dancer (2017), Chasing Tyson (2015), loudQUIETloud: A Film About Pixies (2011), and What Remains (2007). He is also the producer of such films as STEP (2017), Devil's Playground (2002), Reporter (2011) and Unraveled (2012). He is the founder of NY-based Stick Figure Productions, and the topics of his films have encompassed Willie Nelson, ballet star Sergei Polunin, photographer Sally Mann, boxers Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield, musician James Blake, and more. Between Me and My Mind finds Cantor following Trey Anastasio as he writes songs and prepares for the band's 2017 New Year's Eve concert at New York's famed Madison Square Garden. In addition, it tracks Anastasio th

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast author Erik Rasmussen joins in on a conversation about the art of fiction writing, a discussion born from an in-depth examination of his novel, A Diet of Worms. Erik Rasmussen is the Editor-In-Chief of At Large magazine, and the former Deputy Editor at Man Of The World. His articles, essays, interviews, and photographs have appeared in a myriad of fashion magazines, literary journals, and websites. He is currently at work on a collection of short stories and his second novel: Recess For Idiots. His first novel, A Diet of Worms, tells the story of a young cynic's misadventures on the hunt for something to believe in. It is a coming-of-age story inspired by the themes of religion and addiction that have spilled into Erik's life. In this episode, Erik discusses the challenges of writing fiction, digs into the weighty themes present in A Diet of Worms (religion, sexuality, economic inequality, addiction, etc!), expounds upon his influences and stylistic cho

This latest episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with David Oks, the campaign manager of Democratic presidential nominee Mike Gravel. Mike Gravel is a former U.S. Senator from the state of Alaska and is most famous for being a fierce critic of the Vietnam War and who was responsible for reading the Pentagon Papers into the Congressional Record, a bold act that put his career at risk. Gravel is also remembered for his 2008 presidential run where he famously challenged his peers at the debates by championing an end to the Iraq war and advocating for increasing direct democracy. Initially not interested in running for president again, Oks, a senior in high school, approached Gravel and urged him to run, eventually earning himself a role as campaign manager. He then was given the keys to Gravel’s Twitter account which has been employed aggressively and shrewdly to take other presidential candidates to task for their policy record and to provide poignant thoughts on the state of progres

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast host Michael Shields sits down with filmmaker/musician Eric Mahoney to take a look back at the legacy and genius of the the Dayton-based indie-rock band Brainiac (3RA1N1AC). On the cusp of a major label deal and breaking into the mainstream, Brainiac’s lead singer and driving force, Tim Taylor, died tragically in a car accident halting the band’s trajectory and forever affecting everyone in Taylor’s orbit. Mahoney’s documentary, Brainiac: Transmissions After Zero, explores Brainiac’s rise to prominence and dissects the intricacies of their unique sound, one that was light years ahead of its time. The documentary intimately whisks viewers into the lives of those closest to Taylor as they attempt to recover from, and process, the fallout from such a monumental loss. Brainiac: Transmissions After Zero celebrates the life and creativity of one of rock music's unsung heroes, exploring with humor and heart the way in which individuals cope with the changes th

In this latest episode of Across The Margin:The Podcast listeners are introduced to the latest release from ATM Publishing, The Bounce and The Echo, with an interview with author Ian Johnson. Ian is a former pro basketball player who, for the first three decades of his existence, saw his life revolve entirely around the game. Ian played high school basketball at the prestigious Oak Hill Academy alongside Carmelo Anthony, was a star player during his four years at Davidson College in the lead up to the Stephen Curry era, and went on to play five years of professional basketball in Europe. He won multiple championships and a large number of personal accolades along the way, but Ian spent his career living a double life, both as a committed athlete who thrived on competition and as a skeptical observer who struggled to accept that he was devoting his soul to a game. Ian was a star in a cutthroat system, yet also an unwitting cog, his outward personality indentured to a sport, a fact he didn’t fully understand un

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast listeners are whisked back in time to the evening of Feb. 20th, 1939, a night where 20,000 Americans rallied in New York’s Madison Square Garden to celebrate the rise of Nazism — an event largely forgotten from American history. This chilling and distressingly relevant to today’s times event is the subject of the recently released, Oscar nominated short film “A Night At The Garden,” and this episode features an interview with the filmmaker behind the film,” Marshall Curry. Curry’s body of work is remarkable, from the 2002 Oscar-nominated Street Fight (which chronicled Cory Booker's 2002 mayoral campaign), to the Oscar-nominated If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front (about an environmentalist who faced life in prison for burning two timber facilities), and onto his work on Mistaken For Strangers (centering on the band The National). All of Marshall’s films are engaging, revealing to the human condition, socially conscious, and riveting.

In this latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast host Michael Shields welcomes author Jesse Jarnow to the podcast to discuss his latest work, Wasn't That a Time: The Weavers, the Blacklist, and the Battle for the Soul of America. Jesse Jarnow’s writing on music, technology, and culture has appeared via Pitchfork, Wired.com, Rolling Stone, the New York Times, and elsewhere, and he is a contributing editor at Relix. He is the author of Heads: A Biography of Psychedelic America and Big Day Coming: Yo La Tengo and the Rise of Indie Rock. Jesse hosts The Frow Show on the independent Jersey City radio station WFMU and is the host of the podcast Alternative Routes (Osiris Media). His latest, The Weavers, the Blacklist, and the Battle for the Soul of America, is a deeply insightful book which details the remarkable rise of Pete Seeger's unlikely band of folk heroes, from basement hootenannies to the top of the charts, and the harassment campaign that brought them down. Exploring how a pop group's harmonies m

With the final episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast of 2018, host Michael Shields curates a pairing of conversations that celebrates the varied and wondrous music released this year. Joined by the head of ATM''s Art Department, editor/artist Chris Thompson, the Top 50 Albums of 2018 as selected by the staff of Across The Margin is analyzed, where marvelous releases by the likes of Kamasi Washington, Janelle Monáe, Phosphorecent, Khruangbin, David Byrne and Spirtualized (and more!) are heralded. Up next, Michael converses with music connoisseurs, and hosts of the podcast Beyond the Pond, Brian Brinkman and David Goldstein. Beyond the Pond is a podcast that introduces listeners to a vast array of bands and artists, starting with specific pieces of improvisation by the Vermont-based band Phish. The aim of Beyond the Pond is to take music fans out of their specific comfort zones and, with the aid of their wealth of musical knowledge, steer people towards a more diverse and eclectic smattering of music. Join

In the latest episode of Across The Margin: The Podcast, ATM’s Book Club is back in session and this time it is The Emperor's Handbook by Marcus Aurelius that is placed squarely beneath the microscope. The Emperor's Handbook is a book that holds within it an abundance of enduring advice from one of the most powerful leaders in all of history. Marcus Aurelius was at the helm of the Roman Empire at its height, yet he remained true to a virtuous code of ethics and was unchanged by the wealth and power that debased many of his predecessors. The Emperor's Handbook is awash with many of the foundational teachings that aim to ground a person, and steer their thoughts and actions towards a path or righteousness, and this episode serves as an ode to Aurelius’ sage convictions. To assist in the dissection of The Emperor's Handbook, Across The Margin once again turns to the always inspiring George Guidotti who returns for his fifth episode. In a previous episode, George helped critically dissect author G. Edward Griffi