Stereothematica

This week, we share songs we really like... that is, until the singing starts.  And brace yourself for a twist! 
SONGS:
Yes: Heart of the Sunrise (1971)
The Boomtown Rats: I Don’t Like Mondays (1979)
RESOURCES AND REFERENCES:
Say Less Meaning (The Idioms)
The Band: Stage Fright (1970)
At the Movies - Deep Cuts Lost & Found Podcast
Buffalo 66 - Heart of the Sunrise Scene (1998)
Yes - Fragile - Classic Music Review (Altrockchick.com, 2026)
Heart of the Sunrise (Songfacts)
Yes World Discography - Fragile 
First Listen - Heart of the Sunrise
Yes World - Fragile
Yes Fragile Documentary (Rael's Prog Rock Documentaries)
The Story Behind Yes’ Remake of Simon & Garfunkel's America (American Songwriter)
LCD Soundsystem: Tired (Live - ending with Heart of the Sunrise, 2011)
Lizzo: Boys (Live - starting with Heart of the Sunrise, 2022)
Other Yes Favorites
Survival (Yesterdays, 1969)
Time and a Word (Time and a Word, 1970) - One of Rush’s Geddy Lee’s all-time faves.
Then (Time and a Word, 1970 - at 2:30, hearing the origins of “Heart of the Sunrise”)
A Venture (The Yes Album, 1971)
Roundabout (Fragile, 1971)
America (Written by Paul Simon, 1968) (Close to the Edge, 1972) - Possible recitation: Angine de Poitrine's Mata Zyklek
And You and I (Close to the Edge, 1972) - Possible recitation: Pescado Rabioso's Cantata de Puentes Amarillos -  even the album’s green cover is similar
Least Favorite
Yes: Owner of Lonely Heart (1983 - Only Yes song to reach #1 on Billboard Hot 100)
 
The Boomtown Rats (Punk 77)
Teds and Punks (Punk 77)
Teddy Boys (Wikipedia)
Do They Know It’s Christmas? (YouTube)
Cleveland Elementary School shooting (Wikipedia)
‘I Don’t Like Mondays’: The harrowing story behind the 1979 smash hit and Bob Geldof’s big regret (Far Out Magazine)

Connect with us on Instagram (to share your song picks or troll us), Spotify (for our ever-growing playlist), and Stereothematica.com (for extra fun)!
If you like what you’re hearing, please subscribe, and if you love it, a five-star rating and review would send us into the exosphere of excitement.
And email us at stereothematica@gmail.com! We will write back!

Sometimes the sounds of your hometown can move you to tears... and sometimes they can make you want to move your body... and if you're moving away from your hometown, you just might want to get sentimental and gush about what makes your hometown sound unique. Join us as we dive into the sounds of Houston, Texas, and Huntington Beach, California, this week! 
SONGS:
DJ DMD [feat. Lil' Keke & Fat Pat] - 25 Lighters
The Vandals: Don’t Stop Me Now (2004)
RESOURCES AND REFERENCES:
10 Essential Screwed Up Click Albums
How Swishahouse became Houston rap's North Star
25 Lighters - Genius 
The Historical Legacy of the Hip-Hop Line '25 Lighters On My Dresser'
Backseat Freestyle · Kendrick Lamar
ZZ Top - I Gotsta Get Paid
DJ Screw lays down the June 27th Freestyle
DJ Screw: A Life in Slow Revolution by Lance Scott Walker
Christina’s swang n bang playlist on Spotify
Top 25 Greatest Orange County Bands of All Time (OC Weekly, 2012)
No Doubt: Trapped in a Box (1992)
The Vandals: Urban Struggle (1982)
The Vandals: Legend of Pat Brown (1982)
From Punk to the Paranormal - A Backseat Story with Joe Escalante (2025)
Poorman’s 15 Minutes of Fame: Joe Escalante (2025)
Joe Escalante Interviews the Sugar Cubes (Bjork and Siggi) (KDOC, 1992)
The Vandals on Request Video “Devo is the best band in the universe.” (KDOC, 1991)
Request Video (KDOC)
In the 80s “Request Video” was Essential TV for SoCal Music Nerds (LA Taco, 2021) 
Tour of Punk Rock Museum with Warren Fitzgerald  in Las Vegas (2023)
LLS Profile of Joe Escalante 
Live Fast Diabetes by Warren Fitzgerald
Connect with us on Instagram (to share your song picks or troll us), Spotify (for our ever-growing playlist), and Stereothematica.com (for extra fun)!
If you like what you’re hearing, please subscribe, and if you love it, a five-star rating and review would send us into the exosphere of excitement.
And email us at stereothematica@gmail.com! We will write back!

Whether it's been a summer bummer or summer lovin', we've got the grooves to meet your mood and carry you through the rough and the smooth!
SONGS:
Peki Momés: Yildiz (Estrelar) (2025)
Ohtis: Schatze (feat. Stef Chura) (2021)
RESOURCES AND REFERENCES:
Contenders for 2026 Song of the Summer (Pitchfork)
Marcos Valle: Estrelar (Original Video, 1983)
Os Flippers: Estrelar (1983, Mr. Bongo, 2019)
Marcos Valle: Estrelar Live (2020)
Mr. Bongo Record Club Volume 3 (2019)
WhoSampled: Marcos Valle Estrelar
Estrelar is Born - How Marcos Valle’s Workout Hit Took Over the World (Mr. Bongo, 2021)
Marcos Valle: Samba de Verão (1968)
Peki Momés 10 Picks for Durum Records (Spotify Playlist)
Durum Records Interview with Peki Momes 
Seismo Talk w/Dr. Cornelia Lund, Peki Momés & Dustin Braun (Refuge Worldwide, 2025)
ByteFM with Peki Momés
Mr. Bongo Record Club Volume 3 (2019)
“Schatze” (ft. Stef Chura) - Ohtis (Pitchfork)
Ohtis – 'Schatze' (When the Horn Blows)
Ohtis (First Avenue & Seventh St. Entry)
Runnin - Ohtis (YouTube)
Stef Chura 
BONUS DAVID BYRNE PSYCHO KILLER CONCERT FOOTAGE!! (Hollywood Bowl 2026, Nancy German)
CORRECTION: When referring to the movie "I Love Boosters," Christina accidentally said Bootsy Collins when she meant to say Boots Riley. She knows the difference, whereas Christine knows the difference between the cognates but was legitimately hoping Bootsy Collins directed a movie. A girl can dream.
Connect with us on Instagram (to share your song picks or troll us), Spotify (for our ever-growing playlist), and Stereothematica.com (for extra fun)!
If you like what you’re hearing, please subscribe, and if you love it, a five-star rating and review would send us into the exosphere of excitement.
And email us at stereothematica@gmail.com! We will write back!

Gotcha! This isn't X-rated, ya freaks. We're talking about tunes where the singer tells us exactly what the song is about in the opening lines. You know, "This is a song about..." love, life, loss, summer, a girl named "Lucky." Just kidding about that last one. 
SONGS:
Janet Jackson: And On and On (1994)
Raye: Goodbye Henry (feat. Al Green) (2026)
RESOURCES AND REFERENCES:
Britney Spears - Lucky (Official HD Video)
Absolutely (Story of a Girl) by Nine Days
Rhiannon live at the Forum - 1977
What is your opinion on And On And On? (reddit)
Janet and Michael Jackson: Scream (1995)
Bob Dylan: Hurricane (1976)
Raye: WHERE IS MY HUSBAND / Nightingale Ln. (Live at Brit Awards 2026)
Rolling Stone Review of This Music May Contain Hope (2026)
Pitchfork Review of This Music May Contain Hope (2026)
Zane Lowe Interview with Raye (2026)
Riton & Raye: I Don’t Want You (2021)
The Next British Invasion is Here, and It’s Led By Women (NYT, 2026)
Songfacts - Goodbye Henry
Raye: Escapism (SNL, 2024)
EXPLICIT CORRECTION: At 19:32, Christine mistakenly says “minimalism,” when she meant “maximalism.” She just wanted to make sure you knew she knew. She also remembered “Scream” after watching the video.
Connect with us on Instagram (to share your song picks or troll us), Spotify (for our ever-growing playlist), and Stereothematica.com (for extra fun)!
If you like what you’re hearing, please subscribe, and if you love it, a five-star rating and review would send us into the exosphere of excitement.
And email us at stereothematica@gmail.com! We will write back!

Ever have a song that gets stuck in your head... and you might try all the tricks to get it out of your head and you're still stuck humming (or singing!?) wide awake at 3 a.m. We've been there! And this week we're talking about the music we don't mind getting stuck in our heads! And, as you can probably guess, these tunes aren't your... typical earworms!
SONGS:
Riton & Kah-Lo: Fake I.D. (2018)
Shannon and the Clams: What You’re Missing (2024)
RESOURCES AND REFERENCES:
Dissecting an Earworm: Melodic Features and Song Popularity Predict Involuntary Musical Imagery (Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity and the Arts, 2016)
A Natural History of the Earworm – The Song That Won’t Get Out of Your Head (British Psychological Society, 2009)
Earworms (Discovery Orchestra, 2014)
Your Brain on Music: Earworms (Kennedy Center)
Stephen King on Songs that Stick in Your Head (Entertainment Weekly, 2009)
Earworms - Songs that Stick in Your Head - Interview with Daniel Levitin (NakedScientists, 2007)
Review of Foreign Ororo (Native Magazine, 2018)
Riton (feat. Kah-Lo): Rinse and Repeat (2016)
Four on the Floor Rhythm Explained (MasterClass, 2021) 
Four on the Floor with Musical Examples (YouTube)
The Man Who Was Always There (ZeroNine)
Get to Know Kah-Lo, The Grammy-Nominated Nigerian MC (MixMag)
The Difference Between Afrobeat and Afrobeats (Revolt)
Francis Mercier (feat. Wyclef Jean and Kah-Lo): Take Me Home (2026)
Selena Gomez lip-syncing Fake ID (2018)
Shirley Ellis: The Clapping Song (1965)
Fake I.D. Lyrics (w/some annotation) (Genius)
Shannon and The Clams - 'What You're Missing' in PBS Studio 5 Live January 28, 2025
ALBUM REVIEW: Shannon and the Clams Carry Grief Unflinchingly Through ‘The 
Moon Is in the Wrong Place’ (No Depression)
Shannon and The Clams Triumph on The Moon Is In The Wrong Place (Paste)
LA Phil: Shannon and the Clams
Shannon & the Clams - The Boy [Official Video]
Connect with us on Instagram (to share your song picks or troll us), Spotify (for our ever-growing playlist), and Stereothematica.com (for extra fun)!
If you like what you’re hearing, please subscribe, and if you love it, a five-star rating and review would send us into the exosphere of excitement.
And email us at stereothematica@gmail.com! We will write back!