Guest Appearance on the Back By Popular Demand Podcast

High Fidelity

There’s a film out there with near-universal acclaim among vinyl enthusiasts, a cinematic gem that’s been watched and rewatched with a kind of knowing empathy. Naturally, I’m referring to the 2000 classic High Fidelity, starring everyone’s favorite lovesick, boombox-wielding underdog, John Cusack. My mate Dennis, who runs a fantastic podcast called Back By Popular Demand, invited me and our mutual friend Nick Malone to join him for a chat about breakups, physical media, and, of course, to craft some top-five lists of our own. We covered it all in this splendid discussion, a true celebration of vinyl and a heartfelt ode to the music nerd in all of us.

What came first, the music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns, or watching violent videos, that some sort of culture of violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss. Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?

-Rob Gordon, High Fidelity, first lines

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