THIS PODCAST STRIKES FIRST!

Both inspired and influenced by punk culture and music, Abby Denson and jamilah met as teenagers in the 1990s, and immediately started a band (where jamilah played guitar, and Abby played bass, respectively.  Mayumi (who is still in both of their lives) played drums).  While jamilah's introduction to Bad Religion was No Control; Abby's was the band's first album, How Could Hell Be Any Worse?; in terms of the band, this is where the two part ways- jamilah continued to purchase their records (as well as going backwards); Abby never found the interest to move beyond that.  We suppose that she found other bands to inspire her to pick up the thesaurus. 
When we found out that Abby was only familiar with the first album, we knew that she was the perfect candidate (no pun intended) to be on an episode.  What made it even more interesting was that she's actually seen them live (with her husband, who is a longtime BR appreciator).  We gave her one song from every album to listen to (except the first one, of course), And she and jamilah converse, leading to a few interpretations of select songs that are...  interesting, to say the least.
There is also discussion of how Los Angeles is burning (and of course, this has never been a truer song more than now); how some music and art have been misappropriated by people who do not mean well, as past works have the capacity to lose context as time goes on; how some parents refuse to teach their kids about the world around them; as well as a personal evolution of the Crossbuster's significance. 
Thanks so much for listening!
For anyone in Los Angeles needing resources, go to:  https://mutualaidla.org/
To go to Abby's site, go to:  https://www.abbydenson.com/
Give us a holler at: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 
 
 

The title of this episode is exactly what we're discussing- The Christmas Songs album/EP, which was released 11 years ago, in 2013!!! Despite not being or feeling sick, jamilah woke up with some hoarseness out of nowhere, thereby making her a little pony.  Still, she powered through, and recorded this episode, which hopefully is not too horrible, and will bring some 'comfort and joy' to who whoever listens.
A couple of things not mentioned in the episode were that the vinyl edition of the album/EP was one sided, with an etching on the 'b side'.  Also, 20% of the proceeds from the album have gone to SNAP, or Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests which of course is very fitting. Christmas Songs was co-produced by Joe Barresi, along with Brett Gurewitz and Greg Graffin.     
We'd love to hear from you!  Contact us at:  thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 
 

jamilah sits down with her collection of vinyl and CDs (and one digital track), formulates a response to a question most people probably didn't ask- and made an episode out of it. We hope you find something positive in there somewhere.  This was not an easy one to do- but we did it!!!
What are some of your favorite non-album tracks? Let us know at: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 

It is an annual tradition in this time to celebrate the hatching of both Greg Graffin and Bad Religion; however, for many, the celebrations are somewhat clouded by the announcement of Donald J. Trump's presidential second term.  jamilah responds to this announcement, as well as adds context to the conditions that created an environment where a Trump could (and would) be elected. 
Album: https://teodorasfist.bandcamp.com/album/one-day-i-slipped-and-fell-on-a-thought
We'd love to hear your thoughts!  Contact us at: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 

Not only is Greg Graffin one of jamilah's all-time favorite songwriters; he is also one of her all-time favorite vocalists.  He is ignored among the cacophony of best of lists, but we are here to give the man his flowers, even if others aren't aware of his amazingness.
This episode was incredibly challenging, as there are too many great songs and moments to choose from, to narrow down in an episode.   But of course she, along with jesse, made it work.  There were commonalities and differences; there were surprises and well-known favorites.  
This is the first of a series of 'favorites' episodes; we will also be giving some love to the drums, bass, guitars...  and even the Ooozin' Aahs. 
Thanks so much for listening!  What are some of your favorite Professor Graffin moments? Let us know at: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 

Our objective to connect with others who may not be familiar with Bad Religion's music always gives us various perspectives we may not have actually thought about, given our familiarity with the music.  And even with our knowledge, there are things we don't necessarily know.  This is why we do this podcast- to learn from others, and expand our analytical horizon.  We were happy to have friend, educator (and science fiction fanatic) Dennis Hill on an episode, to share some thoughts!  Despite holding similar sociopolitical ideas, our methods of processing Bad Religion's music held some variances/differences, which was actually a major surprise for us.  Songs Featured:
-The World Won't Stop-All Fantastic Images-Bored And Extremely Dangerous-Let Them Eat War-Flat Earth Society-Part II (The Numbers Game)-Markovian Process-Chaos From Within-Inner Logic-Hear It(This episode was recorded on June 21, 2024- of course there have been inevitable social and political shifts (and life events) since this conversation.  However, the primary points haven't changed.)
Thanks so much for listening!  We'd love to hear from you: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 
 

Anyone who has listened to this podcast at any point may be aware of our adoration for Into The Unknown, an album we feel has been unfairly maligned.  While we understand on some level that some don't connect with it (and why they may not), we still feel it's attacked on unnecessary levels, especially because it laid the groundwork for every single thing that came after it.   
This episode is our love letter. 
Thanks so much for listening!  What are your thoughts on Into The Unknown? Let us know at: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 

The moment (which has been discussed on a few episodes) has finally arrived- Bad Religion (plus Social Distortion and Lovecrimes) came to town.  jamilah was incredibly excited, but what did jesse think about his first live experience with all of the bands?  They discuss song wish fulfillment, navigating unfamiliar environments, meeting Jay Bentley, receiving setlists, as well as sudden pleasant (and not so pleasant) surprises. 
In the middle of all of this we discovered that Steve Albini (jamilah's favorite producer of all time) passed; we discuss his philosophy, some of his works, as well as his evolution as a human. Special thanks to Rob and Carly.(Also, editor's note number 5!!!  It was tonsil cancer, not tongue cancer.  We wanna be respectful, and get it right!  Apologies for the error.  A lot of editors notes for this episode!)
Thanks so much for listening!  We'd love to hear any thoughts you've had about any of the shows you've seen on this tour, any thoughts about Steve Albini, or whatever queries or comments you have: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 

Podcasting of this type is an interesting, sometimes vulnerable space; on one end, it allows you more opportunities to 'be yourself', without the constraints of corporate instruction.  On another end, you don't want to divulge so much information about yourself that it ends up isolating and uninteresting.  When you think about it, this is not unlike the process of a songwriter. 
This delicate balance was explored on our latest episode, as jamilah (who at the time of recording was experiencing a mental health crisis) spoke with Lisa Loving, a fellow writer (who wrote the book Street Journalist: Understand & Report The News In Your Community) and long time friend.  As Lisa has experienced the end of a marriage, the premise of this episode was to connect her experiences with select songs from the Bad Religion (and Greg Graffin) catalog; but it ended up being a larger conversation about how capitalism (and all its appendages) pervades so many of our interactions and unconscious choices.  It was ultimately unexpected, but anyone who has heard this podcast knows this route shouldn't be a surprise. 
Surprise or not, it was something that took jamilah out of the head space that started the episode, and that is much appreciated. 
(Note: The episode was recorded on April 6, so there are some things discussed in the episode that have come to pass.  There are a series of events currently happening that may have been touched on, but we also did not foresee).
Thanks so much for listening!  We'd love to hear from you: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 

First thing's first- this episode is being uploaded the same day as the 32nd anniversary of Generator- so...  HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!! 
Secondly, this was an incredibly difficult list to do.  This band has too many great songs.  i don't know if i'm the only person on earth who loves all of the albums (i hope i'm not!!!), but this was definitely a great challenge, thinking about all of the songs and their significance, either personally or in accordance to the subject matter.
Thanks so much for listening!  We'd love to hear what your favorite songs are!  Are they staples in your life, or a current love, based on an experience or live performance?  Let us know: thispodcaststrikesfirst@gmail.com 
(p.s.  When talking about the North Star paper, i think i said it was published in the year 1947, but i meant 1847!!!  This is one of the things that happen when you record at 3am!!!)