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25 O'Clock

Philadelphia's longest running music podcast (we think), with your host, Dan Drago. Conversations with artists and community, intimate musical performances, in-depth discussions on performing, touring, recording, and being alive.
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25 O'Clock
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Now displaying: 2016
Dec 21, 2016

Ever since Dan started the show, he’s been trying to get Ben Tinsley on the mic to talk. It’s been over two years, and it finally happened. Ben and Dan talk about their mutual history together, playing the same clubs and bills together, the strength of their little community for a short time, and all the life that happens to you as you get older. The discussion includes:  guitars, love and respect for their fellow musician friends, recording a record completely on your own, and how to keep being creative amidst the many demands of adulthood. Happy holidays to everyone, and a Happy New Year from 25 O’Clock!

Dec 7, 2016

Dan met Thom years ago when Thom had just moved to Philadelphia, in a big city for the first time. They would run into each other on and off for nearly a decade. Now, Dan gets the full story on Thom. They talk about Thom's rural roots, his love of Django Reinhart, making a whole record through the voice of a character, and his latest album, 'Marvin The Giant'. It's the first album that Thom has ever put his real name on, and it's (obviously) an important one. 

Nov 23, 2016

Bob shot film of Dan's old bands, and after recently reuniting at a record release show, they discovered they have a ton in common. They talk Bob's origins as a film and video maker, his time living in a small town and just making films for the heck of it, how to build yourself a network of artists to work with, and their memories of 90s MTV and movies and how it shaped them. Bob is also an accomplished documentary filmmaker, as well as a walking film encyclopedia.  

Nov 7, 2016

This week, Dan takes a break from the usual guest interview. Instead, he highlights some unreleased performances form past guests (including Abi Reimold, Bruno Catrambone, and Stephen Lorek) as well as some studio tracks from new and upcoming albums from guests like Nicklas Hughes, James Hearne, and Pilkington. Check out any guests you may have missed at 25oclockpod.com!

Oct 26, 2016

Rachel was Dan's introduction to the Wilmington, Delaware music scene. And there IS a Wilmington music scene, smarty. Dan and Rachel talk about her new EP, "Enough", getting floored by talented kids using technology to make amazing art, Elvis Costello, quieting the voice inside that tells you to give up, a mutual love of Pretenders' front-woman Chrissie Hynde, and how to just keep making your art amidst your crazy life. Also, Dan talks about his seminar on podcasting for college students at this year's CBI conference in Philadelphia. 

Oct 12, 2016

Ross and Dan met once, briefly, a few years ago, and never saw each other again until they sat down for this conversation. This is one of those good, ol' fashioned musician nerd outs. They talk Peter Gabriel, Phish, and XTC. They also talk about Ross' extensive discography, including three full-length releases in 2015 alone, his days as part of Amos Lee's band (including a tour with Bob Dylan and Elvis Costello), and his desire to never stop writing songs. 

Sep 28, 2016

Brian Walker plays under the name A Day Without Love, and talks with Dan about what it is to be one of the only young black men playing indie rock in a white-dominated DIY scene. It gets heavy, it gets real, and the two explore what the impact of race is in a seemingly all-inclusive art form. A Day Without Love’s newest LP, “Solace”, is out now on Sounds And Tones Records.

Sep 14, 2016

Dan brings another former band member on the show to catch up. Nicklas Hughes and Dan toured and played together for many years, and now Nick has a new solo album, 'Games', out very soon. They cover Nick’s growing up (which Dan kinda knew about), his songwriting and recording process for his new record (which Dan didn’t know about), and just sorta catch up on life things, as two old friends do. Fun fact: Nick is the first performer to have reverb applied to his voice. It weirds Dan out a bit.

Aug 31, 2016

First off, it's the 50th episode! Who would've thought? It's been a blast putting out 50 episodes, and here's to many more. 

This week, we take you to Tattooed Mom's on South Street for our live show as part of the Philadelphia Podcast Fest. Dan talks to new friend Brian Erick of the band The Paper Jets, as well as co-host of the fantastic The Great Albums Podcast. Dan also catches up with show favorite Ben Hughes of the band Night Windows. It's a great night of conversation and acoustic performances.

Aug 17, 2016

Host of the "Everything Is Awesome" podcast, Kevin braves the heat, traffic and DNC madness to be in the cool, temperate underground studio to talk with Dan about his almost decade-long run as a podcaster. Dan and Kevin also have the longest conversation about wrestling in 25 O'Clock history. And Dave Matthews Band. The guys talk about their early love of radio and how it influenced them to eventually becoming podcasters, and their excitement for the upcoming Philadelphia Podcast Festival.

Aug 3, 2016

From Northeast Philly to Jersey to art school to finally putting together her live band, Emily Mineo's trajectory has been quite a ride. Dan talks to Emily about learning on her dad's Guild guitar, loving Springsteen before it was cool to love Springsteen again, and her love of the Philly scene, particularly Connie's Ric Rac. And her song, "Barbara Streisand" will get stuck in your head in a wonderful way. It's still stuck in Dan's. 

Jul 20, 2016

Andrew and Dan talk Andrew's band, Shadowplay, their new album, "Almost Lifelike", and how their shift from a blues-rock band to something more adventurous and unique came about. Dan gets to namecheck some of his faves when talking with Andrew: Portishead, Drive Like Jehu, Fugazin, Mogwai, and many more as the two delve into the band's history, their recent work in the studio, and how a band keeps it fresh after nearly a decade together.

Jul 6, 2016

Tom plays drums for Modern Colour, Lou, writes and takes pictures for the Spirit Newspaper, and sleeps maybe sometimes. Dan and Tom have a spirited conversation about levels of success in music, managing your own band, Quest Love, Dan's rudimentary drum skills, and Tom's much, much better drum skills. 

Jun 22, 2016

It's a truly unique conversation to have with someone who refers to their stage personae entirely in the third person. David Sweeny is Johnny Showcase, but Johnny is not David, at least not entirely. Blurring the lines is a main topic between David and Dan as they discuss the origin of the character, being both a piece of theater as well as an honest to goodness funk band, and how it's all about the live show experience in the end. 

Jun 8, 2016

It was both strange and also incredibly fitting to have my best friend since youth/longest running musical collaborator James Hearne on the mic back in February. What was supposed to be a quick promo piece about his upcoming record became a full conversation about his move to the Hudson Valley of New York, how he's treating his new musical direction by fully embracing country music, and what it's like being your own boss after years and years of collaborating with others.

May 25, 2016

Dan thinks Abi Reimold's new record 'Wriggling' is an adventurous, challenging piece of work. It's a pretty uncomfortable record, both sonically as well as thematically. Abi talks about seeing herself as an artist but not as a musician, reading her own reviews, her love of photography, and a unique way to not actually do a real guitar solo. Plus, her live, stripped down solo performance is not to be missed. Also, Dan gives a heartfelt shout out to Gordon Downie of the Tragically Hip and his re cent news of illness.

May 11, 2016

Carolyn Lederach helps run Philadelphia's SoFar Sounds concert series, takes photos for countless music outlets, and is an important fixture to the Philly scene. Dan and Carolyn talk about being involved in the not-as-glamorous parts of the music world, wading through a 'dude-heavy' music industry, and how someone has to step up and tell a band what to do. 

Apr 27, 2016

On her way through Philadelphia on tour, Arsena and her band stop by to chat and play. Dan and Arsena talk touring, spirituality in art, doing it all yourself, and how she is a "six year-old musician" (the number of years she's been playing). Dan crams the full band down into the basement studio, and the result is impressive. Also, Dan pays his respects to Prince, remarking on his truly unique way of controlling his career himself.

Apr 13, 2016

It takes Dan and Avi most of the way through the conversation to figure out where they've met before, but they get there. Avi is an amazingly talented pianist/singer-songwriter, and he and Dan talk about choir teachers, 'Peter and the Wolf', using social media for good rather than evil, and how asking for what you want is always the way to go. 

Mar 29, 2016

Bruno fronts his band Former Belle when he isn't playing guitar in the indie rock powerhouse Cruisr. With such a busy touring life, it was well worth it for Dan to sit down with Bruno and talk touring, loneliness, settling, and getting to work with the guys you looked up to growing up. At the end, Bruno plays a song off his new EP, "Foreign Bed", out on Randm Records. 

Mar 15, 2016

Dan and Marcus met back in 2010, shared a stage one awesome night, and then never really saw each other again. Flash forward to now, and Marcus is in the chair for a long-awaited conversation. Dan and Marcus talk hip-hop, New York City, Philly, sampling, live bands, and the everlasting drive to make your art fun, fresh, and challenging.

Mar 1, 2016

WXPN and The Key are mainstays of Philadelphia music. It's only fitting that Dan sits down with The Key helmsman John Vettese for a chat about curating content on the internet, musical roots, and keeping an open mind amidst the onslaught of so much music. Also, Dan features a track from the forthcoming Dear Forbidden album, 'Glitter and Dissonance', so stay to the end!

Feb 16, 2016

Dan and Nik get right to it, talking famous frontmen, meeting your heroes, growing up amidst a ton of musical influence, and also a certain jam band. (It's Phish. They talk about Phish. It's gonna be okay.) Nik shares his journey from Jersey to NYC back to Philly, fronting two of the cities most entertaining bands.

Feb 2, 2016

Dan always knew Noelle as "the zombie piano girl", but that is only the surface. Noelle talks about her new production that combines theater, musical performance, and audience interaction. She talks about being an abuse survivor and how she's going to wave that flag for anyone afraid to put it out in the open. Mostly, they talk about how none of us really have it "together". Also, Dan rants about having his identity stolen, and congratulates the Philly music community for coming together to defeat a very restrictive piece of city legislation.

Jan 19, 2016

Dan finally gets Stephen Lorek from Shark Tape to sit still and chat, and it was worth the wait. They delve into the deep, dark recesses of what goes through your head as you're making a follow-up to a successful record, and how, in the end, it's all about playing music with your friends. Plus, Dan gives his farewell to David Bowie.

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