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We're back for our 5th annual Polishing Turds Holiday special! This year we'll be covering the wacky and disturbing world of AI, perhaps the one instrument capable of making Christmas music even worse. We'll take you on a cringe-tastic sleigh ride through vast snowfields of slop; from carols of reindeer sacrifice to fake vulgar Motown hits through - and I swear to god this real - a veritable library of AI Eminem singing gospel music. Don't say you weren't warned.... Select sources for this episode: Janelle Shane's early forays into AI Christmas Carols: https://www.aiweirdness.com/the-ais-carol-19-12-24/ https://www.404media.co/ai-generated-christmas-music/ Mic the Snare video on spotting AI in music: https://youtu.be/hld8CNQdjQs?si=pVRQTldRYzRQD9MH https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/are-you-listening-bots-survey-shows-ai-music-is-virtually-undetectable-2025-11-12/ THE WEIRDEST GODDAMN YOUTUBE CHANNEL THAT EXISTS: https://www.youtube.com/@MusicBarronTrump FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

In the conclusion of our series, we bring the Babymetal story up to date. Like it our not, these kawaii heroines are here to stay, having upset the Metal Establishment and fostered a fanatically loyal fanbase that follows them through every puzzling career move. But are they in fact "the future of metal"? And if so is that a good or bad thing for the genre as a whole? Other topics of discussion include some bizarre Babymetal collabs, kawaii metal imitators and the mysterious departure of founding member Yui-metal.  FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

Fox Gods, crucifixions, and magic corsets oh my!  We continue the story of Babymetal by exploring the wild and confusing "lore" surrounding this group. We also examine the lyrical content of their early songs, cover the initial reactions they received from the Western music scene, and tackle the sticky question of whether or not Babymetal truly is "metal". [Sorry, again, about the unusual amount of random noises in this one. At least there are no babies or dogs this time!] FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

Ah, how fitting that this episode number is 2/3 of the Number of the Beast! Today we continue to excavate the origins of Babymetal by diving into the history of Heavy Metal in Japan. This episode features some of the coolest bands we've ever covered, so for once we're actually excited to talk about our subject matter! FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

What comes to mind when you think of Heavy Metal? Is it three cute little girls wearing Lolita dresses and doing synchronized dance moves? Well if you answered "no" you're out of touch, my bruh! Welcome to the preposterous world of Babymetal, a Japanese girl group that combines the saccharine imagery of J-pop with the bone-crushing heaviness of metal. Sounds incongruous? It is, and yet this group is one of the best-selling hard rock acts of our age, earning millions of fans across the globe with their unique brand of so-called kawaii metal. In the first of a multi-part series, we examine the origins of Babymetal by exploring the wild and often problematic world of Japanese Idol music. Why do millions of Japanese men devote endless hours and thousands of yen to support 13-year-old girls who sing the lamest music on Earth? We spent 90 minutes talking about it, and we still don't know... WARNING: This episode contains some rather dark subject matter, including sexual abuse of children. (Don't worry, it's still super funny, but also kinda fucked...) Nick's stupid travel blog that he plugs toward the end of the episode: https://ghostonthehighway.blog/ FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

Don't you hate it when an artist wastes everyone's time by dedicating verses or even entire songs to shouting out dozens of random cities? No? It's just us? Well too bad, we're talking about it anyway! Why do so many artists feel compelled to list off dozens of cities they may or may not have been to? Where did this phenomenon begin, and which songs are the absolute worst offenders of all? Join us for a quirky little study of one of the most annoying if unremarked-upon phenomena in music!  FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

We wrap up this beast of a series by covering the last four decades of Village People history: from their uncomfortably cringe downfall to their recent return to relevance at the hands of a fascist goon.  This ever-dumbfounding narrative winds its way through the topics of Milkshakes, Phone Sex, Copyright Law, German Soccer, and so much more! FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

The Village People hit their stride with such monster hits as "Y.M.C.A." and "In the Navy", proving that mainstream America will go to any lengths to not get the hint as to what their music's really about. We'll analyze the music from the band's golden age while also connecting it to the broader context of the late 70s music scene...  You see, by this point Disco has completely overwhelmed American culture, inserting itself into every conceivable medium including breakfast cereals (seriously!). A backlash was inevitable, the most salient example of which was an ill-fated baseball promotion-turned-riot called Disco Demolition Night, which we'll explore in detail.  FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

We begin a three part series on the Village People, who for legal reasons we must tell you are absolutely not gay at all... FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

Awww yeah! We're back with another low-effort minisode where we catch up on all the recent goings-on from artists we profiled in the past. Come hear about all the wacky exploits from your favorite Polishing Turds alumni. We've got Cruises with Creed, AI experiments with the Black Eyed Peas, juicy drama from the Cyrus family, and so much more!  What better way to start off this horrible, horrible year? FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

You thought American Christmas music was dumb? Wait till you hear what the folks across the pond are up to... This year's Holiday Special examines the annual tradition of the UK Christmas Number One. Each year the British public gets hyped up over which song is going to top the charts on Christmas week. Sounds innocent enough, and yet for whatever reason half the songs they pick make no goddamn sense at all. From schoolgirl choirs to TV characters to insufferable YouTube stars, the British people have proven themselves just as capable of desecrating this holiday as anyone else.  Bloody hell, how'd this country colonize half the world? YouTube Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-PyWfVkjZc&list=PL6QhZ78uzXMoaIUDPTT4b_au_2FRE_3_9 FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

We conclude our interminable Iced Earth series with the dramatic assault of the U.S. Capitol building on January 6, 2021. This riot was facilitated in part by a wacky  militia called the Oath Keepers, a group whose membership happened to include Jon Schaffer.  As usual we go deep; covering the history of the Oath Keepers as well as the far-right Patriot movement from which they emerged. We also discuss what happened to Jon Schaffer after his arrest, the fairness of his sentencing and whether or not we can truly heal as a nation.  YouTube Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uR-dGy_i-IU&list=PL6QhZ78uzXMq-wXFb1Z_klz2a7ss3cXwU FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

How did Iced Earth guitarist Jon Schaffer become a deranged conspiracy theorist? What led him down that toxic rabbit hole, and what exactly are the beliefs that led him to storm the Capitol on January 6? It turns out most of Jon's anger and paranoia was centered around the Federal Reserve system, which conspiracy cranks believe is responsible for a sinister plot to impose a New World Order on the unsuspecting sheeple.  But what's the actual truth? What does the Federal Reserve actually do, and why do so many people believe monetary policy is the main instrument of global socialist tyranny?  These questions have dire implications for the state of modern political discourse, and that's why it takes two random guys from Wisconsin to break it down on a music podcast. Which is what we're gonna do. For two hours.  Enjoy! YouTube Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfWkUsinRbU&list=PL6QhZ78uzXMrmu1tPp1nsQWRI0aW1EUaL FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

We cover the bizarre story of heavy metal legends Iced Earth, whose lead member was involved in the January 6 Capitol Riot.  (Sorry about the dog barking in the background lol) YouTube playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Btd2KxXOvNc&list=PL6QhZ78uzXMohSWyUqf72sHHcCMjDd1PK Selected Sources: Metal Injection article from 1/6/2021: https://metalinjection.net/politics/is-this-a-photo-of-iced-earths-jon-schaffer-raiding-the-capitol-building "The Fall of Jon Schaffer" by J. Salmeron: https://promethean.substack.com/p/the-fall-of-jon-schaffer "The Radicalization of Jon Schaffer" video by Metal Blast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfWkUsinRbU&t=1071s 2004 interview w/ Schaffer: https://bravewords.com/features/bw-bk-iced-earth-controversy-you-be-the-judge FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]

Imagine Dragons have become too popular for their own good; a worldwide backlash is only inevitable! Critics, musicians, and countless Twitter randos unite to take the piss out of this commercial rock behemoth. They are, to put it bluntly, the New Nickelback... All this ridicule naturally hurts Dan Reynolds' feelings, and he responds to it the only way he know how: by making crappy music. Indeed, the songs that bubble up in the wake of Imagine Dragons' fall from grace are easily the most unbearable of their career. But through it all the boys learn some hard-won lessons, and Dan comes out in a better place than ever before. It's actually kinda heartwarming. [Note: since this recording Cal wishes to express his apologies as he has realized that not ALL of Imagine Dragons' songs are in the same key!] FOLLOW US: Instagram: polishing.podcast Twitter/X: @polishing_turds email: [email protected]