Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants

The Stone Soup crew reconvenes to discuss the music that moved us in 2025. Thread lines of loss and longing alongside positivity and connection emerge and random sequencing reveals some unexpectedly themed 3-song sets. We venture to Ireland by way of Houston thanks to an Irish Elvis (RIP Pa - @thehipscampion1916), research the bird identification of Mexican Eagles, realize late in life the richness of the Tulsa art and music scene and accidentally upgrade Philly and Toronto to statehood along the way. Link to YouTube talk and video playlist here and to Spotify Playlist here.

A dialogue emerges about how music with deep feeling is a pathway for Soulful Connections to create Episode 32. From roots of the Motown sound, to contemporary interpretations, we pay a bit of homage to the culture of soul music, its roots and early pioneers, with an acknowledgment of music for and of everyone. Watch on YouTube here and link to songs here.

What happens during catastrophe? The way that we become more human, the way we become more willing to help each other.  The idea around the 31st hour is that it's several hours after midnight, where the day before was the catastrophe, the day of the event, the day of the, whatever it was, the dark night of the soul.  That 31st hour is when Dawn breaks. Link to YouTube Playlist here and link to Spotify playlist here.

It's the Year of the Snake (Wood Snake in fact), and we have a unique episode to celebrate with a few special guests. Adey Bell joins us with a glimpse into her Wishcraft, the symbolism and inspiration behind her Silver Wheel concept album and the paradox in her song Venom. Our very own Black Water Snake, Skip (born 2013), joins us too for some encouragement and reflection on Loving who you Love. And we feature bands from Keeled Scales, one of our favorite labels, in a first for the podcast. Watch on YouTube here and link to Spotify songs here.

Link to YouTube Playlist with songs here and Spotify Playlist of songs here.

“You had me at Pinback.” After recurring observations on how other bands seem to include elements of the Pinback style, the Stone Soup crew decide to take on the San Diego band in this return to the Headliners episode format. Including reflections on paradox, Pinback’s great balance of familiar and surprising, dynamic time signatures and computer-inspired lyrics, we take 5 songs that span the catalog as a cross section of this stalwart's unique sound. View on YouTube here to see music videos of each track mixed into the discussion. Spotify playlist of just the tracks is here.

After a long break, we return with a new format on Episode 28 on the theme of "Best of 2024" from the Stone Soup podcast which is a collaborative playlist podcast produced by 3 brothers inspired by utilizing music as a pathway to storytelling, access to emotions, and celebrating the artists and musicians that have touched our lives. View on YouTube ⁠here⁠ to see music videos of each track mixed into the discussion. Spotify playlist of just the tracks is ⁠here⁠.

Facing the unexpected loss of the Music + Talk feature, the Stone Soup crew takes on the theme of Change. Who knows what is next for us but perhaps this can change your perspective and shine a light in an intentional way. Link to playlist here.

“Life is only a series of Right Nows, thats all it is…” On Episode 26, we tackle the Right Now in its many forms including one song from each of us revealed live and reacted to after a single listen and randomizing the track order to capture another element of being in the Now and letting it come to us. Link to playlist here.

When Jason "JB" Bargas suggested a future theme of "Psych Up!” music, we said "Sure, let's do it, when can you join us?" A collaborative playlist emerged, then curated in a way to capture moments and moods throughout a normal day-in-the-life as we shift from dream-state to awake, moving through many ups and downs and transitions. JB kept score, kinda, and with that, we present Episode 25. Link to playlist here.

The year of each of our Golden Birthdays (Brett 21 on February 21st, Grant 18 on April 18th and Sean 25 on September 25th), 1996 is a special one and one of so many adventures, transitions and stories. Link to playlist here.

We dive deeper into movies (and shows and animations) on our Movie Moments episode and - SPOILER ALERT - we give away some of the plot where these songs got us hooked. Each of us have a new list of movies to catch up on and realize a few we all love. So grab some popcorn and crank up the surround sound for a nod to how music can elevate the story on the silver screen. Link to playlist here.

Taking a fresh approach to collaborative playlists, this episode inspired by Fractals, starts with a root track, then branches off in two different directions, which then branch again, then once more to make a 15 song playlist. Some interesting connections and fun transitions appear and a mind-blowing pro-baseball-father-to-rock’n roll-son realization is witnessed real time. Link to playlist is here.

To wrap up what felt like a great year in music, this episode features our Songs of 2023. Tracks released this year that hit us hard, felt something different or just made us feel connected. Too much good music to absorb these days but these are stories about our Songs of 2023. Link to these songs and many many others we like this year here.

2023 marks the 50th anniversary of Hip Hop so we take (and pass) the mic to pay respect to the genre and the many ways it has influenced each one of the Stone Soup crew. It’s a 17 song journey in reverse chronological order and was a massive challenge to take on such a diverse and expansive genre across 50 years. Come join the street party to hear fresh beats from as recent as late 2023, some of the slickest cross-genre collabs and some of the ground-breaking tracks from the very beginning when we were little snot nosed, snaggletooth whippersnappers. You’d be playin yaself to miss it. Link to the playlist here.

The first and oldest of 3 brothers finally goes last! Episode 19 culminates a 3-part gift-series of songs about/for each McCall brother, where we broaden the Stone Soup family to create a 19 song playlist for/about Sean from 17 different people that crosses genres, decades, and generations. Tune in to hear the connection between swimming and rapping, songs sung when put on the spot, and a common theme of the deep social connection that music gives. It’s a long episode but at this point you know what happens when Sean gets the mic. The road goes on forever and the podcast never ends…Link to most of the Playlist (sans Pleated Pants) is here.

In the Episode with the same number as his day of birth and the one on the back of his jersey, Stone Soup for Contemporary and Future Descendants gives a nod to all songs and stories about Grant. Despite the squirreliness, consistent "Safety First" mentality and propensity for breaking strings strumming the bass, a theme emerges about how absorbing, sharing and discussing music runs through his veins. Link to playlist here, and an easter egg/blast-from-the-past rarity in the outro.

Stone Soup for Contemporary and Future Descendants gives all the love to Jersey #17 in your programs, the middle child, the one and only... Brett. Inviting in close family and friends to offer a song or two and tell how we are all connected to B-Mac, BAM, our "TortoiseInOrbit". Link here to the playlist.

Special guest Uncle Dean joins Stone Soup for Headliners with one of his biggest influences, the great Billy Cobham. Dipping our toes into some jazz fusion with a few of Billy’s albums as well as The Mahavishnu Orchestra and John McLaughlin too. Link to the playlist that we discuss and a few additional tracks from other artists that sample Billy’s work as well, is here.

Stone Soup brings it back to our Texas roots with the third in the Headliners series, coming from Sean, featuring the prolific, yet elusive, Matt Powell. Link to parts of his catalog here (note the profile picture and some of the songs listed are not all from "The" Matt Powell from Texas discussed in this episode). Check out a live clip here of Matt playing Dragonfly live in 2014.

Stone Soup heads North continuing the second in the Headliners series, coming from Brett, with Icelandic artist Ásgeir. Link to his catalog is here. “you’re telling stories, sing me a verse in languages no one knows.”

Narrowing the scope to focus in on one band in a new multi-episode theme we are calling “Headliners.” The first in the series, coming in from Grant, is Jets to Brazil. Link to the JtB catalog here. "One man's magic, is another's plastic."

Inspired by double-hand temporary tattoos of the Japanese symbols of 夢 夢 for "Dream Dream,” the Stone Soup for Contemporary and Future Descendants get surprisingly global as they navigate various ways to interpret dreaminess. Link to playlist here. 

We close out the birth year of the Stone Soup for Contemporary and Future Descendants collaborative playlist podcast with Episode 11 featuring our Best of 2022. We invite in four special guest "Mavens" to assist us with setting a countdown-style sequence as well as adding a few of their own Best of 2022 submissions. Link to the playlist of the 22 songs we discuss is here and an additional 100+ song Extended Best of 2022 playlist is here. Cheers to 2022 as a fantastic year in music.

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants, is a collaborative playlist podcast. In Episode 10, we utilize the Volley App (volley.app) to asynchronously build a playlist and commentary, starting from a single song, we run with our synapses to add songs in a bit of “taking over as the algorithm” kind of way. Recorded over about a month, we hop on and off the Sufferbus a few times, but find ways to keep our flavor fresh. Link to playlist here. 

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants, is a collaborative playlist podcast. In Episode 9, we focus on Covers, featuring mostly artists versions of other artist's songs, but with a few twists from the traditional interpretation. Two playlists to reference - the "Covers" here and the "Originals" here. 

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants, is a collaborative playlist podcast. In Episode 8, we make space for different interpretations of the theme "Last Songs." From those that dissolve, transform and build it all back up, to others that offer you their pulse imagining how our bones and cartilage weave together, to a few that bring pause for finality and a place for various forms of rage, join us on a wild ride...never could stand that dog. Link to the Playlist here.

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants, is a collaborative playlist podcast. In Episode 7, we shake up the script and and get our extended family involved while at a family reunion to collaborate on a "Beachy"-themed playlist. Special Thanks to Grandpa Bill and Grandma Sarah for bringing us all together in Florida for a wonderful reunion. Grab your boogie board, a good enough SPF and let the waves of this playlist fill your ears. Link to the Playlist here.

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants, is a collaborative playlist podcast. In this episode we welcome the incomparable Josh Venable as our guest to collectively create a time capsule of the flourishing Dallas/Denton/Ft Worth music scene from the late 80s/90s/early 00s and pay homage to how The Adventure Club on 94.5FM The Edge informed us and shaped our love of good and local and good local music. Some of the facts may be fuzzy, but this episode is full of stories that come to life here about these damn fine people and their bands. Buckle up for a head-first dive into the deep end and stick around for the bonus discussion at the end too...Link to the Playlist here. 

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants is a collaborative playlist podcast by three brothers. On Episode 5, we get a second chance to continue digging into Brene’ Brown’s “Atlas of the Heart” with songs that help us all better define the Language of Emotion and Human Experience... and learn that It’s Okaaaay. Link to the Playlist here.

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants is a collaborative playlist podcast by three brothers. On Episode 4, Sean buys us all Brene’ Brown’s “Atlas of the Heart” and invites each of us to talk about our “Pathway to the Feels.” It get’s real deep. Link to the Playlist here. 

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants is a collaborative playlist podcast by three brothers. This episode Brett had us all take on the theme of “Play”, then added a song at the last minute and chaos ensues. Link to the Playlist here. 

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants is a collaborative playlist podcast by three brothers. This episode takes on the theme of “Energy” in many of its different forms. Link to the Playlist here.

Stone Soup, for Contemporary and Future Descendants kicks off the first episode of this collaborative playlist podcast by three brothers based on the theme of “Beginnings.” Link to the Playlist here.