Advertise on podcast: Love is the Message: Dance, Music and Counterculture

On this week’s episode we return to 70s for the first of a mini-series on post-punk. A historical period, an unhelpful genre descriptor, a structure of feeling? Whatever it is, the guitar bands of the UK and NYC in 1978 were creating some serious music. Jeremy and Tim discuss where the term came from, what exactly the ‘punk’ it was following was, and some the music’s early proponents. With reference to The Slits, Wire, Talking Heads and more, we hear about the Hacienda, John Peel, Modernism and Mark E Smith. The guys unpack how funk and reggae were influencing bands like The Contortions in their experimentation with rhythm, visit the CBGB club in New York, and dispute received ideas about the division between punk and disco. Finally, we introduce a major character in out story over the coming months: Arthur Russell. Tracklist: The Slits - New Town (John Peel Session) Wire - I Am the Fly The Fall - Stepping Out Talking Heads - Tentative Decisions The Contortions - I Can’t Stand Myself  Books: Simon Reynolds - Rip It Up and Start Again John Savage - ‘The New Musick’ in Time Travel

To hear the extended, 12", almost-2-hour version of this conversation, including discussion on Maximo Park, Kenickie and Bob Davenport, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and become a patron from just £3 a month. In this episode of LITM Jeremy is joined by writer and editor of Tribune magazine Alex Niven to talk about the musical history of England’s North East. Our interest in this subject was piqued by Sam Fender’s victory in last year’s Mercury Music Prize. Fender is himself an artist indebted to our recent subject, Bruce Springsteen. Alex talks us through the particulars of the region, one of Britain’s main post-industrial heartlands, exploring through music various expressions of white working class identity and a particular form of masculinity that artists have variously embodied or pushed against. Jeremy and Alex discuss blues rock, ‘sophsti-pop’ and Sting, the folk club legacy of the North East, Richard Dawson, the smallpipes and the Sultans of Swing. Alex Niven is the author of Folk Opposition, Definitely Maybe for 33 1/3, New Model Island: How to Build a Radical Culture Beyond the Idea of England and The North Will Rise Again: In Search of the Future in Northern Heartlands. Tracklist: Sam Fender - Seventeen Going Under The Animals - House of the Rising Sun The Animals - We Gotta Get Outta This Place Eric Burdon and War - Spill the Wine Lindisfarne - Clear White Light Alan Hull - I Hate to See You Cry Lindisfarne - Fog on the Tyne Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing Pet Shop Boys - Being Boring Sting - All This Time Richard Dawson - The Vile Stuff Sam Fender - People Watching Kathryn Tickell - Bone Music 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing, and dozens more like it, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod to sign up. In our final episode of 2025, Jeremy and Tim spend some time exploring the life and times of Bruce Springsteen. Tracing his life from his early career up to 1984, they unpack specificities of the Boss’s politics, his particular aesthetic, and the often confused reception of his repertoire. We hear about the sense of place in his music, the influence of Dylan on his writing, the iconography of the small town and the big car, and his various attempts to express a white vernacular working class experience. Jeremy describes how Springsteen’s songs of New Jersey post-industrialisation were heard in the cities of North West England, Tim interrogates his endorsement of Obama, and both try to understand his unique mass appeal in the USA, with callbacks to Zohran and our recent Dylanology episode. This is our last show of the year - thank you everyone for coming with us on this long strange trip. We return in early 2026 for more music, dance floors, sound systems and counter culture.  www.LoveistheMessagePod.co.uk You can read Tom Williams’ article on Springsteen, ‘The Only Boss We Listen To’, on Tribune at: https://tribunemag.co.uk/2022/11/the-only-boss-we-listen-to Tracklist:Bruce Springsteen - Blinded by the Light Bruce Springsteen - 4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) Bruce Springsteen - Thunder Road Patti Smith - Because the Night Bruce Springsteen - Badlands Bruce Springsteen - The River Bruce Springsteen - Atlantic City 

It’s Mamdani time! On this episode of the show we’re bringing things right up to the here and now to celebrate New York City Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani. Tim and Jeremy recount the emergence of Zohran as a political figure, his background and parents, his democratic socialist politics and what his election means for the Left and anti-imperialism more broadly. We also hear a potted history of the DSA, consider the particularities of Left Populism as a contemporary political tendency, spend time with Bernie and de Blassio, and appraise a couple of the incoming mayor’s early rap tracks. Edited by Matt Huxley. Become a Patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod www.loveisthemessagepod.co.uk/ Tracklist: Sunidhi Chauhan - Dhoom Machale Young Cardamom, HAB - #1 Spice Mr. Cardamom - Nani  Lil Wayne - Right Above It Das Racist - Combination Pizza Hut And Taco Bell The Temptations - Smiling Faces Sometimes Books: David Harvey - A Brief History of NeoliberalismBarbara Ehrenreich - Dancing in the Streets: A History of Collective Joy 

In this episode we conclude our look at the Democratic Republic of Congo with an exploration of the music and politics of the country from 1960 to the present day. Beginning with the overthrow of Patrice Lumumba, Jeremy and Tim discuss the colonial and imperialist dynamics that have buffeted the country for the last half century, the cycles of violence this engenders and the role of nations like the US, China and Rwanda have played in destabilising the country. They also unpack the ‘resource curse’ of the DRC’s mineral stocks, the activities of companies like Apple and Tesla, and finish with a reflection from the great Franz Fanon.On the music side of things, we hear a potted history of the conga drum, some drum and bass, electric thumb pianos, handmade amplifiers and an African cousin to footwork. Edited by Matt Huxley. Become a Patron at patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. www.LoveistheMessagePod.com Tracklist: Zaiko Langa Langa - Femme Ne Pleure Pas Papa Wemba - La Vie Comme Elle Va Bola Grooverider - Rivers of Congo Konono No.1 - Lufuala Ndonga  Khalab - Chitita Kokoko! - Malembe Jupiter & Okwess - Na Kozonga Fulu Kolektiv - Lualaba Fulu Kolektiv - Nfuka 

This is an excerpt from a patrons episode. To hear the full thing, and dozens more like it, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and become a patron from £3 a month. In this patrons-only episode Jeremy and Tim revive the long-dormant ‘What We’re Listening To’ format for an exploration of what’s been on their turntables recently. Tim pulls extensively from the bag he packed for a recent Lucky Cloud party, including selections from SAULT and Cotontete, while Jeremy shares a modern slice of Bukem-esque DnB and an end-of-the-night dreamy deep cut. Elsewhere in the show we hear a post-punk Fela cover, a classic piece of Sharon Jones funk soul, Highlife guitar, a shoutout for the humble 7”, Afrofuturist mythology and… Alan Partridge. Tracklist:  Miguel ‘Anga’ Dias - A Love Supreme Evolução Africa - Liberdade  SAULT - Let Me Go Cotonete feat. Leron Thomas - Day In Day Out  Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings - What If We All Stopped Playing Taxes  Vital Disorders - Zombie Underground System - 95 South The Earons - Land of Hunger Big Bud - Lucky7 Rubies feat. Feist - I Feel Electric (TieDye Remix)

We’re continuing our series of episodes inspired by the 2024 documentary Soundtrack to a Coup D’Etat with an examination of some of the film’s key characters: the so-called ‘Jazz Ambassadors’, a group of mostly black US musicians sent around the world to (unwittingly) promote American soft power during the Cold War. Tim and Jeremy give a brief history of the emergence of the CIA in the post-war USA, explain the role of NATO, and detail a few of the great many instances of US interference in newly decolonised states around the globe. We hear about Louis Armstrong in Ghana, Dizzy Gillespie’s tours to West Asia and revisit Max Roach from our previous show, alongside Brubeck, Stravinsky and… Bing Crosby. The guys discuss these various attempts to portray America as a haven of free self expression at home while it repeatedly violated sovereignty and democracy abroad. Also included in this show: Fantasia, the Military Industrial Complex, the Kennedy assassination and some speculative White House tripping.  Edited by Matt Huxley. Become a Patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. www.LoveistheMessagePod.com Tracklist: Aaron Copeland - Fanfare for the Common Man Bing Crosby - The Isle of Innisfree Igor Stravinsky - The Rite of Spring Louis Armstrong - (What Did I Do To Be So) Black and Blue Louis Armstrong - Spooks Dizzy Gillespie - Tour de Force Dave Brubeck - Take Five Max Roach - Triptych: Prayer / Protest / Peace The Byrds - He Was a Friend of Mine Books: William Blum - Killing Hope Susan Williams - White Malice 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing, and dozens more like it, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and become a patron from £3 a month. In this patrons episode we’re taking some time to explore some of the background to our recent main feed show about colonialism, jazz diplomacy and the documentary Soundtrack to a Coup D’Etat with a bitesize primer on the origins of the Cold War. Jeremy and Tim run it all the way back to 1917 to unpack the Bolshevik revolution in Russia, the subsequent years of communist rule leading into WW2, and the musical expressions of this historic period. Along the way they discuss Soviet Realism, Modernism, formal experimentation in the arts, Stalin, the Monro Doctrine and the CIA. Elsewhere in the episode we hear about George Formby, Peter and the Wolf, the Red Army Choir, and ask whether any of us really like orchestral music.  Tracklist:The Red Army Choir - The Internationale Billy Bragg - The Internationale Shostakovich - Symphony No.2 (October) Books:William Blum - Killing Hope

Love is the Message is back! After last series’ mammoth 18-month excavation of the year 1977 we’re switching things up a bit. While we’ll continue to chart our rough way through the history explored in our work to date, for the moment we’re going to focus on a few smaller, more bite-size topics, starting with the 2024 film Soundtrack to a Coup D’Etat. A natural partner piece to our beloved Summer of Soul, Johan Grimonprez’s documentary tracks in vivid and exhilarating style the Cold War episode that led American musicians Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach to crash the UN Security Council in protest against the murder of Congolese leader Patrice Lumumba. On this show Tim and Jeremy discuss mid-Twentieth Century decolonialism, resistance and the activities of black jazz activists in America. We hear the history of the colonisation of Congo by Belgium, introduce Lumumba as a unique historical figure, and spend some time reflecting on how these imperial legacies resonate today. On the music front, we hear listen to Roach behind the kit, cue up a series of Congolese rhumbas and boleros, and close with seminal civil rights singer Nina Simone. Elsewhere in the episode we stop by Malcom X, Khrushchev, and Joseph Conrad. The horror, the horror…Edited by Matt Huxley. Tracklist:Max Roach - Freedom Day Ata Ndele - Adou Elenga Joseph Kabasele - Independence Cha-Cha O.K. Jazz - Pas Un Pas Sans… Nina Simone - Wild is the Wind Books:Joseph Conrad - Heart of Darkness

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode of the show. To hear the full episode and dozens more like it, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and sign up from £3 a month. In this episode of LITM Extra, Jeremy takes the mic solo to expand a little on our recent patrons show on Kneecap, turning an eye specifically to musical and cultural antecedents of the Irish trio’s project. With reference to music both from the island of Ireland and abroad, Jeremy discusses Stiff Little Fingers, dancehall chatting, Scousers, and Welsh language punk bands. He introduces two Irish rap outfits - Marxman and Scary Eire - which clearly foreshadow Kneecap, alongside some mid-90s Irish techno and a classic slice of rave rap. Beyond the beats, Jeremy discusses Celtic language and culture, changing attitudes to Ireland in Britain, the ‘Celtic Tiger’, and even throws in  the Mushie Picker Boogie.  The article about Papa Levi Jeremy mentions can be found here: https://uncarved.org/dub/papalevi.html  Produced by Matt Huxley. Tracklist: Stiff Little Fingers - Alternative Ulster Papa Levi - Militancy Jegsy Dodd and the Sons of Harry Cross - Mushie Picker Boogie Yr Anhrefn - Rhedeg i Paris Marxman - Sad Affair Scary Eire - Howld yer Whist Scary Eire - The Dole Q Secret Weapon - Dream Lover (Sound Crowd Remix) 

Here it is: our 18th and final episode of series 6. We’ve covered punk, Studio 54, the Warehouse, Black Disco, Eurodisco and Saturday Night Fever, but today Jeremy and Tim summarise some final reflections on the city of New York in the pivotal year of 1977. They discuss the early career of a businessman who liked to frequent the discotheques and would go on to become president of the USA, linking Mr Trump to a culture of corporate welfare and downtown development. We hear about the Son of Sam, the World Series, power cuts, looting, scratching, breaking, the Bronx and the beats that propelled the nascent Hip Hop culture. Thanks to everyone who’s joined us on our deep dive this series - we’ll be taking a short summer break and will be back some time in September with more music, dance floors, sound systems and counterculture. Produced by Matt Huxley. Do check out the podcasts Jem shouts out in end notes of this show. We're listing them here, you can find them wherever you find this: Pro Revolution Soccer Red Medicine Politics Theory Other We are now on Youtube! Find series 6 here: https://www.youtube.com/@LITMPodcast Remember, we have a rolling playlist of all the tracks discussed over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFs Tracklist: Andrea True - What’s Your Name, What’s Your Number Ryan Harvey - Old Man Trump Philadelphia  All Stars - Let’s Clean Up the Ghetto The Trammps - The Night the Lights Went Out Parliament - Flashlight

In response to the death of the Ozzy Osborne this week, we've unlocked this patrons episode from last year about heavy metal, Black Sabbath and the Prince of Darkness himself. If you like this you can hear a lot more like it by becoming a patron at Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. In this episode Jeremy raises a devil’s horn salute to the gods and demons of heavy metal. He explores the etymology of the genre term, excavating its shared roots with acid rock, and explaining how heavy metal compliments our story here on LITM. With reference to Easy Rider and the misconceived ‘end of the ‘60s’, we hear about how biker culture, the legacy of the blues and changing regimes of accumulation contributed to the anguished intensity expressed in the music of Led Zeppelin, King Crimson and Iron Butterfly.  Jeremy also explores noise, feedback and distortion as the new aesthetic tools of metal, questions why people in the late 60s would want to explore occult and black magic ideas, and finishes with a deep dive on Black Sabbath, asking: was heavy metal an expression of the blues for white guys who’s dad’s worked in the car factories of Birmingham? Books and Films: Easy RiderRobert Walser - Running with the Devil: Power, Gender and Madness in Heavy Metal Music Tracklist: Steppenwolf - Born to be Wild  Blue Cheer - Summertime Blues  The Who - My Generation (Live 1968)  Led Zeppelin - Dazed and Confused  Led Zeppelin - Whole Lotta Love  King Crimson - 21st Century Schizoid Man  Iron Butterfly - Easy Rider (Let the Wind Pay the Way)  Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath  Black Sabbath - Paranoid  Black Sabbath - War Pigs 

This is an excerpt from a patrons-only episode. To hear the full thing, and dozens more, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and become a patron from £3 a month. In this patrons episode we wanted to spend some time talking about the band on everyone’s lips: Kneecap. The Belfast three-piece have been in the headlines of all the papers in recent weeks for their vocal support of Palestine, trouble with the law, and Transatlantic festival shutdowns. Tim and Jeremy provide a healthy dollop of context to the group, including a potted history of Irish independence, the post-Good Friday Northern Irish settlement, working class culture and the changing status of the Irish language at home and abroad. In addition to this they discuss rave rap, drug humour, Welsh, McCarthyism, Kneecap’s eponymous 2024 film, their Glastonbury appearance, the BBC, and the British state response to their music and performances. Jeremy is going to follow up this show with a supplementary episode on some of the musical antecedents to what Kneecap are up to, so hold tight for that in the coming few weeks. Tracklist: Kneecap - C.E.A.R.T.A Kneecap - Amach Anocht Kneecap x DYRT - Mam Kneecap - Parful Kneecap - Guilty Conscience Kneecap ft Money - The Recap

We’re almost at the end of our 1977 series, but in true LITM fashion why have just one show on a topic when you could have two? Across this and the next episode we’ll be filling in a few gaps we haven’t touched on so far, and providing some broad economic and political scene-setting for this seminal year in both Britain and the States. In this episode we hear about the emergent neoliberal order, the oil crisis, austerity then and now, and OPEC. Jeremy and Tim consider escapism in music and film, Punk, Mods, the Silver Jubilee and the decline of the British Empire. They discuss the mighty Paul Weller, the Sex Pistols, Alice in Wonderland, and dig deep into the crates for the James Bond theme as you’ve never heard it before... Next time we’ll be looking to America for our final show of this run. Do check out the podcasts Jem shouts out in end notes of this show. We're listing them here, you can find them wherever you find this: Pro Revolution Soccer Red Medicine Politics Theory Other Produced by Matt Huxley. Become a patron for as little as £3 per month by visiting Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod. We are now on Youtube! Find series 6 here: https://www.youtube.com/@LITMPodcast Remember, we have a rolling playlist of all the tracks discussed over on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZpKyqhvhOXfTuPMHCBkFs Tracklist: Biddu Orchestra - James Bond Disco Theme (Journey into Fantasy) The Jam - In The City The Jam - Eton Rifles Sex Pistols - God Save the Queen Talking Heads - Don’t Worry About the Government 

This is an excerpt from a patrons episode. to hear the full thing and dozens more, visit Patreon.com/LoveMessagePod and become a patron from £3 per month. In this patrons-only episode we welcome writer and anti-fascist activist Joe Mulhall to the show to discuss his fantastic book Rebel Sounds: Music as Resistance, a survey across time and place of groups and cultures using musics as part of their resistance to forms of racism and imperialism. We hear about Irish rebel songs, Kneecap and an impromptu Irish history quiz in the toilets of a Wolftones gig; the role of Jazz, Blues and Soul in the Civil Rights Struggle; revisit Tropicalia with fresh eyes and ears; and fly to Nigeria to visit the Felabration in Lagos. Alongside these topics we consider how our personal tastes can divert from a music’s political power, US cultural hegemony, music in the USSR, 'bone records’, Two Tone, and bring things up to date with a trip to the trenches of Ukraine. We won’t provide an order link here, but you can get the hardback of Rebel Sounds in your local bookshop, and the paperback is forthcoming in the Autumn. Thanks to Joe for joining us.