Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast. In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He's the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first 'solo' album Black Boy (Alternative).In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by 'SuperGroups'.Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He's produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release. The album is many things but it's nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as 'African Radiohead' which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.Read the Guardian's review for a bit of background here.Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.If you'd prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.This playlist reminds you how prolific Dahi is.Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroupsThe theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more 'spins' than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question 'Spin It Or Bin It'?Guy chose | Getting Away With It | ElectronicJoey chose | 'The Truth' | Handsome Boy Modelling SchoolDavid chose | 7/4 Shoreline | Broken Social SceneNolan chose | Definition | Black StarWe've been writing the blog for years come and have a look – https://thisisnothappening.net/
Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast.
In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He’s the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first ‘solo’ album Black Boy (Alternative).
In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by ‘SuperGroups’.
Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):
He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He’s produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release.
The album is many things but it’s nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as ‘African Radiohead’ which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.
Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.
Read the Guardian’s review for a bit of background here.
Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.
If you’d prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.
Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroups
The theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.
The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more ‘spins’ than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question ‘Spin It Or Bin It’?
October brings a new artist to the blog / pod, and one that has created one of my albums of th year, Dahi’s Black Boy (Alternative). Cards on the table, until a few months ago I had no idea who Dahi was, though he has been present in my music sphere for many years.
Dahi has spent the last decade making other artists sound unforgettable. He produced Kendrick Lamar’s “Money Trees” and has helped shape records for Drake, SZA, Travis Scott, Vampire Weekend and countless others. His name might not be familiar to everyone, but his fingerprints are all over modern music.
Now, on Black Boy (Alternative), he steps out from behind the curtain. The question is whether a producer known for elevating other people can create a world compelling enough to stand on its own?
The answer arrives almost immediately. This isn’t a conventional producer album, but something far stranger and more ambitious. Kendrick Lamar, Childish Gambino, Vince Staples, Channel Tres, Moses Sumney, Amber Mark and others appear throughout, yet nobody sounds like they’ve simply dropped in for a feature. They sound like they’ve entered Dahi’s world — and that world feels unlike anything else being released right now.
That’s what makes the album so good: it doesn’t really feel like a producer album at all.
You know the type: famous producer, enormous guest list, a succession of big-name artists doing what they normally do while the producer provides the backdrop.
This isn’t that.
This is Dahi’s album. He’s front and centre, and everyone else seems to have joined him for the ride. Kendrick appears on “How To Pray”, Childish Gambino on “Running”, while Vince Staples and Channel Tres feature on the opening track. Moses Sumney, Amber Mark, Fousheé, Baby Rose, Ravyn Lenae, Elmiene and others weave in and out of the record.
Rather than sounding like a collection of separate collaborations, they somehow sound like they’ve joined the same band.
That’s the magic of it.
Dahi has described the music as something close to “African Radiohead”, and the more you listen, the more you understand what he means. There’s hip-hop, obviously, but also 90s alternative rock, West African rhythms, soul, jazz and electronic textures. Guitar is everywhere, but rarely in the way you expect.
There’s something wonderfully unhurried about the album. It isn’t chasing a trend or trying to prove how clever it is. It sounds like someone finally getting the opportunity to make the record that has been sitting inside their head for years.
And apparently, it has been sitting there for a long time. Dahi has spoken about the project taking around twelve years to become what it is, with the idea dating back to his time at Def Jam. The album was reportedly finished more than two years ago and then quietly waited for its release.
That somehow makes the finished record even more satisfying.
Black Boy (Alternative) doesn’t sound like an album trying to catch up with the moment.
It sounds like it has waited for its moment.
“Who Are You” is an incredible introduction. “How To Pray” brings Kendrick into Dahi’s strange, beautifully constructed universe. “Running” with Childish Gambino feels effortlessly cool, while the groove of “Rest of Your Life” is impossible to ignore. Then there are quieter moments like “Drowning”, where the production is given room to breathe and you begin to realise just how much is happening beneath the surface.
There’s a looseness to it, but also incredible detail.
You can hear Radiohead’s influence in the space and Fela Kuti’s in the rhythm, but these influences never overwhelm the record. They’re ingredients in a sound that Dahi ultimately makes his own.
And maybe that’s the point. For years, he’s been the person helping other artists sound like themselves. Now he’s made a record where everyone else has had to sound a little bit like him.
It’s modern without feeling disposable. Experimental without being inaccessible. Familiar without ever becoming predictable.
Most importantly, it’s a joy to listen to from beginning to end.
Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast. In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He's the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first 'solo' album Black Boy (Alternative).In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by 'SuperGroups'.Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He's produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release. The album is many things but it's nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as 'African Radiohead' which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.Read the Guardian's review for a bit of background here.Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.If you'd prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.This playlist reminds you how prolific Dahi is.Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroupsThe theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more 'spins' than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question 'Spin It Or Bin It'?Guy chose | Getting Away With It | ElectronicJoey chose | 'The Truth' | Handsome Boy Modelling SchoolDavid chose | 7/4 Shoreline | Broken Social SceneNolan chose | Definition | Black StarWe've been writing the blog for years come and have a look – https://thisisnothappening.net/
Welcome to Episode 72 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast.
In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Guy has chosen an album that feels inevitable, Phoebe Bridgers much anticipated and long awaited ‘Lost Weekend’
In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from Phoebe our theme is ‘Miserable Music’. Tracks that make Phoebe Bridgers sound uplifting.
Part 1 | Album of the Month | Phoebe Bridgers | Lost Weekend.
Phoebe Bridgers is one of the biggest artists outside of mainstream pop but this is only her 3rd album in 8 years. She doesn’t lack for creative output or activity but still, her albums are a rare, anticipated thing. The critical response has been mostly positive but there are some naysayers dispite its current 91 score on Metacritic. But what will we make of it? The four of us have varying degrees of fondness for her music but again mostly positive. Jump on the socials and tell us what you think?
The theme this month, inspired by Phoebe’s melancholic machinations is ‘Miserable Music’. Feels like a slam dunk for Joey but what will the brothers bring?
The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more ‘spins’ than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question ‘Spin It Or Bin It’?
I was all ready to dive into one of the biggest albums of the year, Charli XcX’s Music, Fashion, Film in September’s podcast, but it turns out it wasn’t the only huge album out this summer by a female artist with obsessive fans and a lore to back it up. Phoebe Bridgers may be a very different artist, but her new album – Lost Weekend – comes with all the attention of XcX’s and even loftier ratings (currently listed as the highest ranked album on metacritic of 2026, clocking in at 91 on its release day). And while we’d have had a lot to say about the former, it feels like everything that could’ve been written about Music, Fashion, Film may already have been done in the month since it was released. Bridgers’ new album is barely a week old.
Charli’s record has rightly generated a monstrous amount of attention in the last few months, with its pivot to fuzzy guitars and meta musings on where you go as an artist after an album as mega as Brat in 2024. But for Bridgers, whose last album, the Covid-era Punisher took her from indie darling to global star in a time when she didn’t even leave her home, the gap between solo records has been much longer, and with it, ever-growing great expectations. Bridgers hasn’t spent the time idly; finally touring that record took up a significant chunk of time, after which she teamed up with Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker as Boygenius, whose album the record was a huge pod highlight in 2023 and into 2024 as the trio toured, and the time I was first fully attuned to Bridgers as an artist.
Full disclosure: I am no Bridgers completeist, though I’ve listened to her earlier work since then. I’m aware that there’s a significant and dedicated fanbase and lore to accompany her career, but I’m both too late to the party and way too old to be likely to align with them. So playing catchup, I’m finding myself getting knee-deep into her music now, while also feeling the weight of that dedication and history too, such has been the discourse around her ever since her breakout record. I’ll reference what I find, but more than aware I’ll get things wrong or miss them out. Her life as a tabloid subject also looms around this record – her much-reported relationship with Paul Mescal, the fallout from it and subsequent one with Bo Burnham – as inevitable context for its subject matter, but the themes are far more universal than just her own life. And don’t the best artists take their own experience and find a way to make it connect with every listener?
So, to my growing love for Phoebe: I adored boygenius, my gateway drug to Bridgers. It was a slow burner through 2023 and into 2024, brought to my attention by Nolan. I had been aware of her in the music world before then, as much on Twitter (ok, X, RIP good Twitter) where she was pretty outspoken at the time. There was something interesting about an artist who lived very much in the eye of their fans and the public. But for me this started with the trio of Bridgers, Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker. The album came at a time when I was starting to find my way with artists that were ‘country adjacent’ (nodded to in Spin It from Episode 45. It seemed to hit this sweet spot of country, rock, americana and Appalachian music, with guitars and banjos, ballads and storming throwdowns, and the joy of an all-female group doing it their way has really stuck with me. It has stayed with me ever since. That ‘conversion’ probably goes all the way back to Kevin Morby’s Oh My God (chosen as AOTM by Joey, interestingly, the month before we did our first podcast episode in July 2019) where the seeds were sown, even if that’s only a little bit country. It’s also the year that Joey and Nolan picked Punisher in their top 10 albums so it’s good to have early adopters around for the discussion too. I feel I’m always late to the dance! I took in Hurray For The Riff Raff, Waxahatchee and Big Thief in 2022, and by 2025, after boygenius took my heart, I was even nominating Lucy Dacus as my own album of the month, with Forever Is A Feeling. I guess what I’m saying is that while I am never going to be moving to Nashville, there’s a chunk of the ‘country venn diagram’ that I’d never have got near without this beautiful place, and that’s why I love the country/folk nexus that’s opened me up to so many great artists. So really it’s not a big surprise why I’ve chosen this album.
I knew the hype was huge, but I didn’t have much expectation given my lack of exposure to her solo work. When I’d heard Lost Boys as the lead single, popping up in the algorithm, I thought: “bloody hell, if the album is as good as this, I may have found myself a new musical infatuation.” It rocked, Bridger’s voice feeling more gutsy than my previous experience, the ‘boys’ a cipher in a broadside to toxic masculinity that calls out the bubbles that communities exist in. It sounds big, vital and an intended statement that pushes back on the reductive ‘sad girl music’ label she’s so often tagged with. Even without much background to her, I’ve never seen her music as that specific. It’s far more amorphous and interesting than this. I can see why the label persisted, but the more I’ve read and listened, it feels like Bridgers’ world is so much bigger than that: mortality, love, loss, family, grief, compassion and also fun. And there’s a lot of that on this record to me.
What I got when the album dropped surprised me. I am not sure many were expecting the electronic fingerprints all over the opening track, The Outside. Heavily vocoded/autotuned, into a disembodied chorus of Bridgers, it opined “crying in a suit and tie / but you should see the other guy”. The effects were such that you’d have barely known it was Bridgers at all. It pointed to a wider sonic palette, and perhaps a sign that this wasn’t going to be Punisher 2, whether that pleased fans or not. Straight away, we were into familiar lyrical territory, with Bridgers’ father and her fractured relationship, only this time he’s no longer here. There’s the gallows humour of his funeral, the layers of grief that envelop not just your searing loss for someone but also the complexities of their behaviour and its effect on you. It’s these moments that seem to land hardest, where Bridgers mines her own life to weave a rich narrative about the lack of binary emotions. Life, love and loss is complex, and music is never better than when it’s painted in shades.
The album is long, by relative standards of indie/folk. At 16 tracks and 52 minutes, there will inevitably be moments of different energy, pace and feeling. Some of these may be felt to be surplus to requirements, but none feel that way to me right now. The glare of a new album, a new artist, often means – to me at least – that properly wrapping yourself in an album by an artist at the top of their game means remembering some objectivity as you try and view the whole and its parts. For me, the more I’ve listened to it, the more it’s made sense: for all the big sound of Bobby – an obvious paean to Burnham and the glow of new love that feels so bright it’s unsettling – and Haunted and Never Going Back’s rootsy energy, tracks that will surely sound good in stadia around the world, it’s the dynamics between tracks and within tracks that are most appealing, and start to sew it together into a really cohesive whole.
A lot of the time, the album steps between light/dark and lively/quiet tracks, highlighting both Bridgers’ desire to step out of her ethereal zone into something bigger and broader. Jack Antonoff may be the easy explanation, but he features across the whole record here, even though his fingerprints seem most clear on the poppier tracks. But I find the slow-burning power of Kill Me (nodding to the almost destructive nature of new love and all the fear of being vulnerable) and the gossamer texture of The Governer’s Waltz – treading through the wreckage of her time with Mescal – and the half-songs of Panorama and Lost Parade – where layers of distortion and synths accompany the folk/indie template, as beguiling as any of the more obviously approachable tracks. It’s a much subtler and more fascinating progression than what I’ve heard on Punisher, and I am all the more excited by it and the willingness to push boundaries. I can see this may be a dividing line for some, but it’s a reason to draw me in. The list of collaborators is bewildering, between Antonoff, her Boygenius bandmates, Burnham, Cameron Winter and many, many others, but it also lends a collegiate, collective feel to a solo album that can often feel like a very individual endeavour.
There are also a selection – Bobby, Lost Weekend, Liberty Tree – where outros change the feeling of the track (on Lost Weekend, I feel the energy of Sufjan Steven’s The Ascension, but there are so many touchpoints to discuss. I’ve struggled with these before, notably on the Blood Orange record last year , but these feel part of the ‘being’ of the album, intentionally not wanting the listener to settle, a restless energy all of its own. Never Going Back also fades out with a voicemail from Bridgers’ father, willing to add the extremely personal to give another layer of context to the album. It’s a familial complexity writ large here, with Still Standing matter-of-factly telling of the domestic abuse her mother suffered at his hands. Lost Weekend is also dedicated to him, again finding parallel emotions of loss, indifference and pain blended into one relationship, the antithesis of syrupy, simple remembrance that music can fall into.
It’s an album that crosses over wider points too: from the toxic masculinity of Lost Boys, to wider themes of dislocation and distance, from the world of social media and existing on technology over connection, to the intoxication of love, and the desolation of grief, and the sheer overwhelming nature of the cruelest of worlds we live in (the Lost Weekend’s Reprise includes the devastating couplet: “the government isn’t trying to kill you. They just don’t care if they kill you.”). Lyrically I feel I’m only just getting into Lost Weekend, but if I’ve learned anything, it’s that Bridgers’ flair for breathtaking lyrics is perhaps her most impressive quality. If Punisher was an album built on the loneliness of Covid America and a fear for what may follow, Lost Weekend seems to fully immerse itself in the anxiety and bleakness of the current world, with Trump’s America at its centre, and all the performative cruelty it thrives on.
Bridgers is no stranger to stirring up enemies with her honesty and strong moral core, having been open about her own abortion after Roe v Wade was overturned, donating money from her concerts to Trans Rights and confronting the toxicity of her former relationship with Ryan Adams, but this honesty also allows her to offer hope. While she’s actively stepped back from social media after being a hugely online person, she’s still clearly dialled into what is going on in the world, choosing to communicate through her songs rather than 256 characters. For all the lazy ‘sad girl’ commentary, I also found this album to be uplifting and forward-looking. While she may not have all the answers, Bridgers wants to keep going, to keep exploring the complexities of life, and sharing them with the world. And I think this is where much of the connection comes from: her ability to find common ground in her own experiences, and weave them into songs that we all feel chime with our own existence.
This may be a deeply personal album, following the community of Boygenius adventure, but it’s the sound of someone that wants to explore, and move their own work onwards. And for that I am very much infatuated. I can’t wait to see what you think.
Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast. In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He's the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first 'solo' album Black Boy (Alternative).In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by 'SuperGroups'.Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He's produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release. The album is many things but it's nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as 'African Radiohead' which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.Read the Guardian's review for a bit of background here.Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.If you'd prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.This playlist reminds you how prolific Dahi is.Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroupsThe theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more 'spins' than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question 'Spin It Or Bin It'?Guy chose | Getting Away With It | ElectronicJoey chose | 'The Truth' | Handsome Boy Modelling SchoolDavid chose | 7/4 Shoreline | Broken Social SceneNolan chose | Definition | Black StarWe've been writing the blog for years come and have a look – https://thisisnothappening.net/
Welcome to Episode 71 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast.
In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month David is even more animated than usual as he has chosen ‘Oh Yeah’, Steve Lacy’s new album to discuss.
In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from ‘Oh Yeah?’ our theme is ‘duets’.
— Part 1 | Album of the Month | Steve Lacy | Oh Yeah? —
Like Olivia last week, Steve Lacy started his musical career early being part of the Odd Future collective and the critical, creative force behind the Odd Future off-shoot ‘The Internet’. ‘Oh Yeah?’ is Steve’s 3rd solo studio album and follows 2022’s Gemini Rights as his breakthrough album launching him into super-star status (?). The track ‘Bad Habits’ owned the internet for a good 12 months. But ‘Oh Yeah?’ sounds different. It is doing different things, while still doing some of the same things. David has been awaiting this release for months. Will he be happy? Joey didn’t think much of Gemini Rights … so will this one work better? As for Nolan and Guy, who knows, anything could happen.
Steve Lacy’s new album features 3 tracks where he collaborates with other artists. Are they duets? Are the collaborations? Are they ‘Tracks that feature ….’. What’s the difference? With this in mind we pick ‘Duets’ as this month’s Spin It or Bin It Theme’.
The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more ‘spins’ than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question ‘Spin It Or Bin It’?
Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast. In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He's the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first 'solo' album Black Boy (Alternative).In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by 'SuperGroups'.Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He's produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release. The album is many things but it's nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as 'African Radiohead' which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.Read the Guardian's review for a bit of background here.Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.If you'd prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.This playlist reminds you how prolific Dahi is.Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroupsThe theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more 'spins' than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question 'Spin It Or Bin It'?Guy chose | Getting Away With It | ElectronicJoey chose | 'The Truth' | Handsome Boy Modelling SchoolDavid chose | 7/4 Shoreline | Broken Social SceneNolan chose | Definition | Black StarWe've been writing the blog for years come and have a look – https://thisisnothappening.net/
Welcome to Episode 70 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast.
In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Joey is VERY happy to bring ‘You seem pretty sad for a girl so in love’ the 3rd album by Olivia Rodrigo.
In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from Olivia’s love of and references to the Cure, the theme is ‘Songs that reference other artists’.
— Part 1 | Album of the Month | Olivia Rodrigo | You seem pretty sad … —
Olivia is a force of nature. She is a song writing savant. She has a new album out, in case you didn’t notice, this means we’ve got to talk about it. And there is a lot to talk about.
— Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Songs that reference other artists —
Olivia references the Cure a number of times on this album. We’ve taken inspiration and chosen ‘Songs that reference other artists’ as our Spin It theme.
The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more ‘spins’ than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a16 track play list. We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question ‘Spin It Or Bin It’?
Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast. In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He's the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first 'solo' album Black Boy (Alternative).In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by 'SuperGroups'.Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He's produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release. The album is many things but it's nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as 'African Radiohead' which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.Read the Guardian's review for a bit of background here.Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.If you'd prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.This playlist reminds you how prolific Dahi is.Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroupsThe theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more 'spins' than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question 'Spin It Or Bin It'?Guy chose | Getting Away With It | ElectronicJoey chose | 'The Truth' | Handsome Boy Modelling SchoolDavid chose | 7/4 Shoreline | Broken Social SceneNolan chose | Definition | Black StarWe've been writing the blog for years come and have a look – https://thisisnothappening.net/
Welcome to Episode 68 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast.
In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Guy brings a Robyn’s latest release ‘Sexisitential’.
In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, the theme is ‘Sad Bangers’.
—— Part 1 | Album of the Month | Robyn | Sexistential ——
Robyn is a unique, iconic figure in contemporary music. She’s been making and releasing music since 1995, her career spans 4 decades already and she shows no signs of slowing down. Her pop career started when she was 15, she’s about to celebrate her 47th birthday, this is insane staying power!
Sexistential is her 9th studio album if you count the Body Talk series as full albums? It’s only 29 mins long, it doesn’t mess about and no track or the album in full overstays it’s welcome.
There is lots to get into in the discussion, has she still got it? Is she doing new things? Is this still relevant and if so who for? How artists change and what we expect from them as they age?
Watch some of her videos here , particularly the singles from this album.
Buy this album or some merch here. And listen to her talk about the album here.
—————- Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Sad Bangers —————-
Robyn’s biggest track is ‘Dancing On My Own’is the archetype of a genre that Guy made up ‘Sad Bangers’. This is our theme for Spin It or Bin It this month. It’s got to be sad, and it’s got to bang. Simple (in theory).
The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more ‘spins’ than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a16 track play list. We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question ‘Spin It Or Bin It’?
Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast. In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He's the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first 'solo' album Black Boy (Alternative).In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by 'SuperGroups'.Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He's produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release. The album is many things but it's nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as 'African Radiohead' which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.Read the Guardian's review for a bit of background here.Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.If you'd prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.This playlist reminds you how prolific Dahi is.Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroupsThe theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more 'spins' than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question 'Spin It Or Bin It'?Guy chose | Getting Away With It | ElectronicJoey chose | 'The Truth' | Handsome Boy Modelling SchoolDavid chose | 7/4 Shoreline | Broken Social SceneNolan chose | Definition | Black StarWe've been writing the blog for years come and have a look – https://thisisnothappening.net/
Welcome to Episode 67 of This Is Not Happening. An Album of the Month podcast.
In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Joey brings a slice of sophisticated, R&B tinged pop with Eliza’s Jill latest album ‘The Darkening Green’.
In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month the theme is ‘Sophisticated Pop’.
——Part 1 | Album of the Month | Eliza | The Darkening Green ——
Eliza is an enigma. She has recorded under a different name but has been recording under ‘Eliza’ for the past 10 years or so.
After 3 long, very complex albums on the pod we take a new direction, 9 tracks and 35 minutes of sophisticated pop, stylish soul driven vibes. Its full of grooves, it’s full of tunes and its full of all of the emotions. I have become quite obsessed with this and am recommending it to everyone.
—————-Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | New Music—————-
The theme is Sophisticaed Pop … but we also get a bit confused between this and ‘sophisti-pop’ and to be honest, Nolan loses his shit.
The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more ‘spins’ than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a16 track play list. We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question ‘Spin It Or Bin It’?
Having the album of the month choice in January is always a tricky scenario. In past years we’ve opted instead for flashbacks to albums we may have missed in recent months or all time classics we wanted to chat about instead of the dried up release schedule that January usual provides. Differing from previous years, 2026 has already shown some early green shoots (IDK, Dry Cleaning and A$AP ROCKY), especially my choice for album of the month, Zach Bryan’s With Heaven On Top. Heavily anticipated for many this will be a new artist for the majority of us. Whilst he is a new name to This Is Not Happening, Bryan has swiftly become one of the fastest growing artists globally.
Personally, I’m not going into this blind. I’m a fan. But only for a matter of months. He hit my radar last summer (2025) when a friend mentioned that he had seen Bryan play at Hyde Park the previous weekend. I’d never heard of him? He explained Zach Bryan was a country artist that had just played two sold out shows to over 65,000 people a night in London. Although I was hesitant due to the dreaded ‘C’ word, I was curious about this Zach Bryan guy. He must have something about him to sell out two massive shows in London. London and the wider UK haven’t traditionally clicked with US country stars. I’d explain Zach Bryan’s sound (to my relief and happiness) as americana drenched folk with a dusting of country that naturally comes with being a product of his environment.
Bryan was born in Yokosuka, Japan, where his parents were stationed as part of a U.S. Navy deployment. When Bryan was in the eighth grade, his family moved to Oologah, Oklahoma. Continuing a family tradition, Bryan was an active-duty member of the United States Navy for eight years, enlisting at the age of 17. Whilst in the Navy, he used his spare time to write songs, eventually posting them on YouTube to nominal success. His breakthrough came when his track Heading South went viral (to date it has gained 34m streams). Ahead of leaving the services he released two independent albums ahead of leaving the Navy and signing to Warner music. Ahead of With Heaven On Top He has released 3 albums on Warner with multiple number 1’s. His singles ‘I Remember Everything’ and Something in Orange’ have both had over 1 billion Spotify streams, with way more in the plus 100m streams.
With expectations high, and knowing I’m putting my neck on the line for an artist that undoubtably will be marmite for the other three I’ve decided to double down on Zach Bryan. Early reviews for With Heaven On Top are mixed. This may not be the best album to intro an artist with.. plus it’s long (most of his albums are)… but it’s jammed packed with stories, emotion and big sounds that are not to be sniffed at.
Being mindful that this should be an album intro and not a review here are some key points from me:
I think this album in every way is very accomplished and polished yet raw. He very much seem like a guy that you could start chatting to sitting at a bar somewhere.
Bryan’s extensive touring and large audiences undoubtably have had an influence on tracks like Appetite, Say Why and Anyways. They will all sound brilliant and will have crowds singing along (vocal solos and large crowd claps a-go-go).
Songs like Slicked Back are simplified perfection and remind me of the lyrical masterstrokes that the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan were made household names by.
Although many try; nobody can nail the sound of Americana you’re from North America (IMO). Moving from a sound and a twang to painting a picture is the hard part. Bryan has a lovely way with words and storytelling. DeAnne’s Denum, Plastic Cigarette, Cannonball and You Can Still Come Home take you to the place of their reactive songs with ease.
Globally (and internally) there’s a lot of confusion and pain about the current state of the United States is in. Bryan gives you a taste of the America that many of us (even if secretly) all romance over in our minds. Open skies, country roads and dreams. It’s nice to remember this. He also faces into the state of the nation on Bad News. A song that has split his fans, though it feels like he’s arguing on both sides of opinion.
On paper Zach Bryan should tick all the boxes for all of us. His Americana drenched folk nicely sits centre in our combined music vin-diagram.. BUT for at least 2/4 of us there is going to be some walls that need to be broken to fully embrace this album.
At time of writing this, he has done limited PR for the album, has yet to release a music video yet the album has entered the US Billboard chart at number one and the UK charts at number 3. He has also released an acoustic version of the album to silence the fans and cretics that have previously stated that they miss the Zach Bryan of old; just a dude, a guitar and some packet full of great songs.
3 weeks into the album I’m still learning it. I’m still understanding it. I’m still intrigued by it. I think it’s a lovely piece of work and I hope you do to.
Welcome to Episode 73 of This Is Not Happening, an Album of the Month podcast. In Part 1, we do a deep drive review of our Album of the Month. This month Nolan has chosen an producer and artist that was on none of our radars, Dahi. He's the producer behind many massive artists including Kendrick Lamar and has released his first 'solo' album Black Boy (Alternative).In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. This month, taking inspiration from last months focus on Phoebe Bridgers, we are picking tracks by 'SuperGroups'.Part 1 | Album of the Month | Dahi | Black Boy (Alternative):He may not be the first SuperProducer that you might think of but its hard to deny that Dahi meets the definition. He's produced for Kendrick, SZA, Travis Scott, Mac Miller, Childish Gambino, Madonna and Dr. Dre. But now he becomes the creative focal point with his debut artist release. The album is many things but it's nothing like I expected it to be. Dahi himself described the solo project as 'African Radiohead' which I feel is weird and misplaced but apparently the internet has much to say on the topic.Join us as we unpack this interesting and intriguing album.Read the Guardian's review for a bit of background here.Read this rare interview on Music Tech to learn more from Dahi.If you'd prefer to watch an interview … Saving Connie has it covered.This playlist reminds you how prolific Dahi is.Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | SuperGroupsThe theme this month, inspired by Phoebe Bridgers Boy Genius side project is the Super Group. We are defining SuperGroup as a collection of previously well known solo musicians or members of other groups who form a named, side project with other solo musicians or band members.The task is pick a track that fits the theme, the objective, get more 'spins' than your friends. We each pick four tracks for a 16 track play list . We then each pick select 1 track and ask the simple question 'Spin It Or Bin It'?Guy chose | Getting Away With It | ElectronicJoey chose | 'The Truth' | Handsome Boy Modelling SchoolDavid chose | 7/4 Shoreline | Broken Social SceneNolan chose | Definition | Black StarWe've been writing the blog for years come and have a look – https://thisisnothappening.net/
Welcome to Episode 64 of This Is Not Happening. An Album of the Month podcast.
In Part 1, we review and Album of the Month. This month Joey brings perhaps the most critically acclaimed album of 2025, Rosalia’s ‘LUX’.
In Part 2, we play Spin It or Bin It, we pick a theme and all pick songs that represent that theme. As it’s January and everybody is back in the gym or re-starting running program’s we’ve picked ‘songs to get injured to’.
_______________________Part 1 | Album of the Month | Rosalia | LUX________________________
This is a big one. Big in many ways. Massively popular, globally. But more importantly MASSIVE in scope, scale and ambition. Rosalia’s 4th album takes a major turn from the reggaeton, digital urgency of Motomami. This a symphonic, spiritual, complex and challenging collection of songs presented in 4 movements (if you’re on vinyl). It requires you to focus, engage and consume with purpose.
It’s undeniable that it is ambitious, its brilliance is clear … but will any of us actually like it? Does it make you want to listen to it? Are you drawn to come back to it?
Check out the Zane Lowe interview with Rosalia here.
___________________Part 2 | Spin It or Bin It | Songs To Get Injured To _____________________
New Year New Me. The gyms are packed. People are begging to get injured. What should you chose as your soundtrack to that achilles rupture or that rotator cuff tear? The answer is probably in this 16 track play list that we created.
We each pick 4 tracks for the playlist and submit 1 track and ask the simple question ‘Spin It Or Bin It’?
