Joshua Noel delves into the vibrant and eclectic landscape of contemporary music, highlighting three notable albums that have recently captured his attention. Central to this discourse is Harry Styles' latest offering, "Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally," which showcases a delightful blend of pop and disco influences. Additionally, he examines "Prizefighter" by Mumford and Sons, an album that evokes themes of resilience and introspection, resonating deeply with listeners. Finally, the episode features a discussion on "One for the Road (Songs from the Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry the Musical)" by Passenger, an evocative collection that intertwines storytelling with poignant musicality. Through this exploration, we aim to foster a communal appreciation for music's profound impact on our lives and relationships, inviting listeners to engage in the shared experience of musical discovery.

The episode of Some Joyful Noises presents an immersive journey into the auditory realms crafted by Harry Styles, Mumford and Sons, and Passenger. Initially, the host delves into Harry Styles' album, "Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally," articulating a sense of wonderment at the album's eclectic sound. The host's analysis reveals a deep appreciation for the lyrical content, particularly in songs such as "Coming Up Roses," which poignantly captures the transient nature of relationships. Through a careful dissection of the musical arrangements and vocal performances, the host emphasizes Styles' capacity to evoke profound emotional responses, thereby establishing a rich connection with the listener. As the discussion unfolds, the focus shifts to Mumford and Sons' latest release, "Prizefighter."

The host conveys a sense of nostalgia as he reflects on the band's signature sound, which resonates deeply within the folk genre. He highlights the collaborative efforts present in the album, noting the contributions of various artists that enhance the overall auditory experience. The host's commentary on tracks like "The Banjo Song" underscores the thematic exploration of resilience and the human experience, offering listeners a glimpse into the emotional landscapes navigated by the band. The episode culminates in an exploration of Passenger's "One for the Road (Songs from the Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry the Musical)."

The host keenly examines the narrative intricacies woven throughout the album, reflecting on the overarching themes of sorrow, redemption, and the importance of community. He articulates how the music serves as a conduit for shared human experiences, inviting the audience to engage with the story on a personal level. This thoughtful examination of the three albums not only showcases the host's passion for music but also invites listeners to reflect on their own connections to the themes presented, reinforcing the idea that music transcends mere entertainment, acting as a powerful tool for connection and understanding.

Takeaways:

1. In this episode, Joshua Noel articulates his thoughts on three distinct music albums, namely Harry Styles' "Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally," Mumford and Sons' "Prizefighter," and Passenger's "One for the Road (Songs from the Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry the Musical)."
2. The discussion delves into the intricate themes and varying styles present within the three featured albums, highlighting the emotional resonance and lyrical depth that each artist brings to their respective works.
3. Joshua reflects on the significance of music as a unifying force within communities, emphasizing how shared musical experiences foster connections among listeners and contribute to a broader sense of belonging.
4. He expresses a particular admiration for the artistic evolution seen in Harry Styles' latest album, noting its departure into a more disco-influenced sound while still retaining the essence of his previous work.
5. The episode also touches on the narrative and emotional weight of Passenger's album, which serves as a musical accompaniment to a poignant story about love, loss, and the human experience.
6. Joshua concludes by inviting listeners to engage with the podcast and share their own musical discoveries, reinforcing the communal aspect of music appreciation.

Songs sampled in this episode:

1. "Coming Up Roses" by Harry Styles
2. "Dance No More" by Harry Styles
3. "Pop" by Harry Styles
4. "The Banjo Song" by Mumford & Sons
5. "Conversation with My Son (Gangsters & Angels)" by Mumford & Sons
6. "Badlands" by Mumford & Sons (feat. Gracie Abrams)
7. "One for the Road" by Passenger

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Welcome back to Some Joyful Noises podcast. Music podcast. No rhyme, no rhythm. Reason, I don't even know what I'm doing here. Who am I Now?

We are gonna get some existentialism, but that's not why I did that bit. I'm just stuttering and struggling to start a podcast. But I am Joshua Knoll. I start a lot of podcasts. Part of the Onaza Podcast network.

Cool websites down in the show's description. You want to see a bunch of other podcasts that aren't music related. They got some seminary theology, Bible podcast.

Theology on the Rocks is a cool one. We got some just nerd stuff, Kung fu pizza party, systematic ecology. And then we have this music podcast with no rhyme, rhythm or reason.

This is some Joyful noises. I am Joshua Noel, the host or one of the hosts of the whole church podcast, also on the network.

I do a lot of the episodes over here, but this podcast has no host. So I don't want to call myself the host. But I do a lot of these episodes. So I don't know, maybe I'm the host. Who knows?

Who's to say what makes one a host? I will say that anyone can create an episode of Some Joyful Noises.

If you're listening to this and you're like, man, I want to create one of these episodes, send us an email, an audio file. We'll probably just throw it up like it's not a big deal. So let us know. We're happy to just do whatever over here.

Staying noisy, honestly, it's gonna be a random one. I'm just gonna be kind of catching everybody up with what I've been listening to recently.

Some new stuff, some not as new stuff, some stuff that I missed. Somehow I missed a Passenger album. Crazy, because that's my favorite artist.

So yeah, I am musically literate though, so take all my music opinions with a grain of salt. Even without music, I'm known as Joshua the Bad Opinions. That's just who I am. It's fine. But today we're talking about, like my bread and butter.

I love folk music. Passenger and Mumford and Sons are amongst my favorites, so it's going to be a large part of the conversation.

Of course, we're also going to be talking a little bit about the new Harry Styles album, Kiss Always disco occasionally. Kiss all the time. Disco occasionally. That's what it is. It's something. Guys, again, musically illiterate, but I'm excited to talk about.

There's some songs that I really vibed with there. We also Last episode did kind of a crossover systematic ecology.

I had Josh Patterson and DJ Blackwell over here, and they were showing me what Midwest Emo was to go with a comic that's like my favorite comic was Middle West. Check it out. By Scotty Young. But I never heard Midwest Emo before. So we listened to that on air, to that episode, and I still listen to a few more.

So I want to talk a little bit about that. It's going to be all over the place for some reason. I had this outline done for a while.

Some of the stuff I knew I was going to talk about for a little bit, and I just been nervous, which is weird.

But luckily, because we just had that Saturday Night Live with Harry Styles, it gave us a little bit more stuff to talk about with his album and gave me a little bit more motivation to do this. So here we are. So we know music is important. It forms community.

So even though we're not experts, we want to be talking about it because we want to have a community with Unazile Podcast Network and all the people who follow us and all the various shows. We believe we are in communion with one another. And that's incredibly important and incredible.

An incredibly important part of any community is the music we choose to listen to and share with one another. So I'm sharing with you guys what I've been listening to. Hopefully you'll return the favor. Email us. Create your own episode.

Let me know what you've been listening to. I want to continue to share in this also. Speaking of sharing, share this episode, subscribe to the podcast rate and review.

Again, we don't have a schedule with this. There's no rhyme or rhythm or reason. So if you don't subscribe, you won't know when episodes are coming out.

So we need you to do that because this is just a random thing that we do. That's how podcast networks.

So last time, part of that episode I mentioned we did Midwest Emo, they also included PD usa, who I'm told is not Midwest Emo. I love PD usa. Turns out, been listening to a lot of his music. I've just really dug that. I've really been getting Modern baseball Mom jeans.

So it's been kind of on loop in my earbuds recently because I'm still getting familiar with the genre and I'm like, these artists were pretty cool, so keep listening to them. Edward 40 Hands by Mom Jeans TJ specifically recommended. Fantastic. Possibly a perfect song.

I love that Bob's Burger opening and then going into it, it's just a lot of fun. I also learned that Edward 40 hands means and I'm indifferent to that, so that's fun. With that, though, do have to shout out.

Noah Kahn's released at least two of the songs from his upcoming album that I refuse to talk about. I'm trying not to listen to it. I've heard one of them. I just want to reserve opinion so I get the whole album. I like to experience albums as a whole.

I really like to do it with the records if I can, but I want to experience this whole. So I'm not getting too much into it. Now we have another friend on Systemic Ecology, Kevin Schaefer, who's a huge Noah Khan fan.

So I'm hoping I can pull him over here. Me and him can maybe talk about that. He's gonna go to a live showing so the album comes out.

He gets to see him in live, and then maybe we'll talk about that over here. It'll be fun because, you know, no con Again, more recent, but not definitely a staple in the folk music that I really vibe with.

We also haven't spoken about it too much, but I want to talk about the whole Kid Rock, Bad Bunny stuff from the Super Bowl. A lot of catching up, guys. Super bowl halftime show, Bad Money was booked. Who is Puerto Rican.

And a lot of people says, well, we need a real American, which he is a real American, Born an American, always been an American. But they decided to have an alternative. Turning Point USA had faith, family, whatever, Alternative super bowl halftime show.

It very much felt like a money grab to me. They brought Kid Rock in, and when you're gonna say about faith and family and have Kid Rock on it super feels like a money grab to me.

They even had his, like, new country Persona that he did some of. And even listening to it just like, it just, to me, Kid Rock's sound, everything, it just doesn't feel very genuine.

It feels like he's trying to stay relevant. These people are doing something to try to be counter what the super bowl is doing. So he's like, yeah, sure, I can be that too. F those guys.

Because that's his whole thing is kind of being the F somebody being mad at something, rebelling. But the older he gets, the more, I don't know, cringe it feels. And it felt very ingenuine when you hear his just criticizing the music.

Not even like, necessarily the message, which I also don't love the message, but I'm like, this didn't feel very genuine. And even the message where they were like, oh, real America, real family values and stuff.

And you listen to Bad Bunny and it's like, well, his lyrics aren't anti family. Yeah. Like, they're pop culture usual, like, party stuff at times, but also talking about love and being one with everyone and we're all American.

And like, I just don't. I don't get the resentment other than just culture war to have a culture war and people wanting money.

The interesting bit, I do want to talk about those, like, go. Kid Rock felt very much not very genuine.

He's trying to do something to fit a certain group who now sees him as one of them as he wants to make money. What's interesting is the super bowl was booking Bad Bunny because I thought, bring in a lot of people.

They want to make money for the super bowl halftime show is for. To make more money, right? Because that's a lot of time they. People only listen to that part.

But it was also to kind of expand culture because they want to reach a larger audience. Thinking of the business model, it makes sense.

But even so, Papony is genuinely from a Latin culture, singing about this stuff being genuine in his own language, even though he speaks English super well. He's like, I'm doing the song in my language. I want to be true to myself.

So it was really interesting seeing how authentic his presentation was, even though, yeah, the super bowl was doing it because they want to broaden their thing. It was a business decision for their part.

But Bad Bunny was so genuine, whereas Kid Rock came off very not, you know, very much felt like he was placating the audience. And I'm just like. And then, of course, you have the Jon Stewart thing making fun of Kid Rock's country song.

If I just want to feed my dog so you can feed your dog, dude. Like, no one's stopping you. So that was funny. I love Jon Stewart, so let's just kind of touch and base on that stuff.

I feel like it's important that the thing about music, like, good music, even stuff like, you know, bad money is not my style of music. Genuine music, just. There's something about the soul in it, the spirit in it that just resonates better, I think.

But if you're filled with anger, you want to despise something. Someone being on your side against the other people. Apparently that does resonate with some people.

Even people who claim family values and know enough about Gidrock that they should know better. They seem slow to resonate. I think it's just because, again, he's against the same people as us.

But at the very least, the people I know seem to have really enjoyed his presentation, which is weird to me because it just didn't feel genuine. But different things resonate with different people. That's just where I'm coming from. For me, it's very much like, that's not very genuine.

This is because there are some songs that I'm like, I disagree with the values that maybe are more conservative, whatever, that I'm like, yeah, that was still a good song. That came from the heart. I'm like, yeah, hey, even if I disagree with you, can. I appreciate your music.

But with the kid rock stuff, I'm like, I just doesn't feel like he means it. Like, it feels like he's just saying stuff, you know? And I'm like, so that was harder for me. Harry Styles is one.

I have often disagreed with some of his stuff and that he says in his music, his attitude, whatever, it's far more progressive than I. But I do really enjoy his music, and he had some good stuff on this album for me. So the new Harry Styles album, Kiss, all the Time.

Just go occasionally. A lot of the earlier songs in the album, I was like, they weren't sitting with me. The mix felt weird to me. Like, the music was louder than him.

Like, there wasn't a lot of word. And I'm kind of person, like, I'm here for the lyrics, the words, the meaning, the spirit behind it.

But, you know, a lot of his music is about the music, and people really love that. That's cool. One, the few that I did want to. There's a few I wanted to point out. I'm not going to play all of them, but Ready, Steady, Go.

That was a lot of fun for me. I vibed the whole way. I was like, this is good. I love this. Harry Styles, having fun, sing, having a good time.

Some nice kind of funky pop music in the mix. I like that. This one was a lot funkier than most of his albums.

Like, it felt like we're going back to disco, and I love it and we're gonna get to that. But the first one, if I'm going through the album that really stood out to me, is gonna be the song Coming Up Roses.

For a few different reasons, mostly.

Harry Styles has a beautiful voice and a lot of the songs, because he does pop to me, doesn't feel like he has a chance to showcase his range as much. But come to roses, like, oh, man, the dude's voice is just incredible.

And then I really like this song too, because it's about those relationships that you might have that were never going to last that long. They're, you know, like, you can tell, like, this isn't endgame.

This isn't, you know, the relationship of all relationships, but, like, you can still appreciate what relationship you have for the moment. And that's kind of what this one is, is like him and lover in the song, whoever it is, he's talking, singing about her too.

It's like they know it won't last forever, but they could still enjoy tonight. And it's just being present with who you have with you in this moment. And I actually thought it was a really beautiful song.

Yeah, the lyrics are good. It's not necessarily my. My favorite of all time, but showcases his voice. The lyrics are beautiful.

And he did play it on part of his stuff with Saturday Night Live just a couple days ago. For me, I don't know when this is coming out, so. But yeah, good stuff. Let's listen a little bit of this.

And fall flat on my face to the truth Just say the word and we'll take up the.

Yeah, Just one beautiful night Just me and you it's just us, it's just this day Hangover chasing, you know, like, whatever. Like, hey, we might all have different beliefs when it comes to drinking, that kind of stuff.

But, like, I love just again, the genuineness, the sincerity, the like, hey, maybe it's just a night, but sometimes that's good enough to have a night with another person that you seriously feel a connection with and just to allow yourself to feel the moment. Beautiful song again. His voice, incredible. And I'm glad as you guys.

I thought Saturday Night Live, I really thought they were just gonna do like, the fun like, Ready, Steady, Go, Pop. Dance no More. It's what I expected. They do play Dance no More, which another one from the album I want to talk about, but the I do.

I want to pause for a second.

So part of what's Cool About a Saturday Night, he addresses, like, a lot of people accuse him of, like, queer baiting or whatever, and he's like, who knows it kind of really, without outright sedating it suggests he is actually bi, bisexual, which is kind of cool. And you know, you love Harry. He's very eccentric, really fun guy. Next one. I do Want to Play the Dance no More.

And part of why I want to play this song, it's a little bit weird. And again, you know, music is subjective. He has a meaning to it.

But what I take away from it is this Idea of, like, sometimes the creator, the one that's doing the mix, the one who's behind the scenes of the art, doesn't get to participate. I don't dance no more. The painter doesn't get to just go look at paintings anymore.

It's hard for preachers to hear other preachers preaching because you're just sitting there going, well, why would he word it this way? Why did he interpret the text this way? Whatever. I relate a little bit. I know that's Eric, and I don't relate to Eric Styles.

He's incredible and I'm not. But when it comes to podcasts, there's so many shows and I feel like I have to listen to all the ones in our network.

And I'm always listening to edit to see what can we do better, how can we tweak this or that.

And a lot of times, even on like, one of the other shows on Part of Us, this Mechikology, I'm only on a couple episodes because I spend so much time editing for the show that it's like I don't feel like I get to participate in what I the part that I love as much that really got me into in the first place. So when this song talks about DJs don't dance anymore, they said, not what I thought the song said. I thought it said they sit.

So apparently so did Harry's dad, which is kind of funny. But I like this song because a. The funkiness of it.

Great, great dancing song, but also just kind of that sentiment of like, sometimes it's hard once you get into creating, to enjoy the product.

So, you know, I love podcasts, but sometimes it's hard to enjoy podcasts when I spend so much time mixing audio and editing stuff and producing stuff and whatever. So again, very different dj, podcast editor, not the same, but I related. And also the song's a lot of fun.

So definitely my favorite one off of this album. And I'm so excited that they did play it Saturday Night Live.

You can kind of hear other people singing along, which, again, you know, for me, a huge part of music is the community building of it all. So I'm glad you can kind of hear them other people in the background here. It's a lot of fun.

Also, I love that Harry very much dances like a millennial better than me. Still, Harry, that's the important thing. And when you look like that, you can dance however you want, basically.

Another one I wanted to play from this album was pop and Aries Dolls does something really he's good at being suggestive, sexually suggestive and kind of subtle, fun ways. And again, this is one that had a lot of people, wait a minute, is Harry by?

And he seems to kind of confirm that in the, you know, Saturday Night Live sketches. But pop is. Well, you know, certain stuff happens to see what's going on. And pop read between the lines. I guess I missed it the first few times.

I was like, oh, pop music. This is fun. People have to explain these kind of things to me because my brain just doesn't go there.

My brain stays far away from the gutter for whatever reason. But it is a lot of fun. I look into the cleverness with the wording and just kind of the rhythm of this song.

So this is the last one I'm going to play. I'm going to talk about one other one. But, yeah, and this is a really great album. So I had to play a few songs from it.

Squeaky clean fantasy. It's meant to be.

Yeah, it's a lot of fun. It's pretty easy to read between the lines there, but it's still kind of subtle. Like, I don't think younger minds would know what he's singing about.

I didn't know. I was just like, yeah.

I honestly don't pay a lot of attention to lyrics in certain kinds of songs, especially when they're singing fast and it's just fun. And I know I probably don't jive with the lyrics. That's when I'm like, I'm just gonna pop. Yeah. But, yeah, it's a really good album.

The last one I wanted to mention, he has another song, Paint By Numbers, which is another kind of a deeper song, more of like, are we the sum of our parts? Kind of stuff. And again, it's another slower number and I. I like the slower number, especially when people have great voice.

I want to hear the voice shine. And so I really think he does that with the paint by number.

So it's another song I will mention and hope you guys check those out because, yeah, I'd like to talk to some people about it. If you want to email me, text me, let me know your favorite song from the new Harry Styles album. I would like to talk about it. Again, I'm no expert.

I don't know a lot about Harry or music, but that's just, you know, my thoughts. With that, I'm gonna move on to Mumford and Sons. I know a lot more about their lives and kind of their history and stuff.

And we talked about an album they Released last year, that was spiritual, really moving. Overall, I do think Rushing Away that came out last year was more meaningful than this new album.

But this was the album where I'm like, oh, Mumford and Sons are really back. Like, you kind of hear their old sound in a lot of this stuff. They're doing some. I try and think of the name of that. Like, guest spots.

They're collaborating with other artists for various songs, and the music's incredible. It was really hard for me to just pick a few songs to talk about or to play. This was the album to me so far this year.

The most meaningful lyrics, the best vibes. For me, the one that I'm most like shouting along, singing in the car, pretty wide range, a lot of fun.

I'm only going to play three that I really want to talk about, but I'm going to go through just some of the songs. So the two I want to highlight. I really want to highlight this first two on the album. So the one is here, and that's with Chris Stapleton.

I get guitar, voice, everything. Like, it's an incredible song. Then you have Rubber Band man coming in the second spot. That's with Hozier.

I really thought that was going to be one of my top songs, just because, like, it is meaningful. It has Ogier, which I love him. I think he's an incredible artist as well. And I love Mumford. And that's like, this is gonna be a great collab.

And it was. I love it, but there's just so many that hit harder for me. First one, I want to play that really hit.

So this is the third song on the album is the Bandra song. It's the first one on the album of just Mumford and Sons. And I was like, oh, man, I like the collabs.

And I didn't think I was gonna like this as much, but it turned out. I think this might be my favorite one on the album, but I'm not really sure. But this the banjo song from the new Mumford and Sons album.

The Al problem is Prize Fighter. So I'm just gonna play a little bit of this and talk about it, because I think you guys will kind of see why. To me, I'm like, oh, this is.

This is good.

Well, hey, did you cry? Did you fall? Do you need someone? Do you need someone?

And hey, I'm a mess myself But I think I could be someone if you need someone I was alone it was strong I could deny all I like I could just push back and make believe and it Was all right. But hey, did you call? Did you fall? Do you need someone that could be someone for you?

Yeah, I love it. The song goes back and forth of like, hey, are you in trouble? Are you hurt? Do you need someone?

And he also sings about himself, like, his own insecurities. Like, I don't feel like I am anybody. I feel kind of like a failure. Both things that I resonate. I often want to help others all the time.

When I hear people hurting, like, it just. I can't ignore it. But I also do have a lot of insecurity. Like, I'm not anybody. I don't matter. Like, I do feel down on myself a lot.

And I know that that's just kind of personal inner struggles. I don't need people to comfort me. Like, I'm not, like, depressed. It's just I do have a lot of insecurities when I look at my life.

I'm like, ah, I probably could have done more, whatever. But when I see someone, I want to be there. And for me, there's people in my life that make me want to be someone.

Even if I do have those insecurities and feel like maybe I'm not all that, I'm like, but I think I could be for you. I could do it for you. I'm going to step up to help my friend, to help my wife, to help my family, whatever, my dog even.

I'm like, I might not feel like all that, but if you need someone, I think I can be someone. And of course, the alliteration is also fun, so. But, yeah, that song meant a lot to me. I love it. And it's easy to sing along to. And it's got a banjo.

All things that make me happy. So, yeah, that's another one, man. I'm trying to remember which all ones I actually want to play and which ones I'm just talking about. So.

Run Together. That one's fun, too. I really like the how there's, like, we run together. When we're together, we run together, but when we're apart, I fall apart.

A lot of more alliteration stuff. A lot of fun. And I feel that one deeply, too. I could also play that one.

I feel that one more deeply than the next one that I am gonna play, which is the fifth song on the album, Conversations with My Son, Gangsters and Angels. I'm playing this because I think it's the most religious of the album, and I think religious is correct in this case.

I'm gonna play a lot from this one, actually. Because I think it merits to talk about what is being said in this song. So I'm gonna let it play for a little bit. Hopefully not too long.

But yeah, just really listen the words on this one. I think they're important for where he is and probably where a lot of us are.

Gangster J darling, come and see the cross of the machine it's always the same choice the best I ever met had nothing, gave it all away maybe we'd rather be ruined than change and die and I dread Love your crooked neighbor

with your crooked heart yeah, he's singing to his son, telling him stories of gangsters and angels, you know, the. The good and the bad of the world and to just. Again, he knows scripture clearly.

He clearly grew up with some kind of churching, you know, and this goes back to some. What we talked about the Rushman last year on this show, man, and just kind of the. The best I knew, like, we would rather choose our own destruction.

We'd rather die than try to change, to try to be better. And we see what's wrong in the world and we see how we could help to be angels, but rather we want to fight fire with fire. We want to do whatever.

And it's like, again, I seem to know his son. He's telling him these stories saying we can be better, we have to choo. Change.

And I love that leaders like, love your crooked neighbor with your crooked heart. Understanding that, like, yeah, I too am fallible. My neighbor could be an angel, could be a gangster, could be whatever. I am also fallible.

I've also made mistakes. I'm also crooked.

So again, you know, that goes to the whole message of Jesus, you know, love your neighbor as yourself, but then also reminding us much like what Jesus did, none of us are perfect. None of us can throw the first stone. We're all called to love our neighbor as ourself. Understanding that our neighbor might be messed up.

I am definitely messed up. And to remember that and how we show love to one another.

The song also talks about how you end where my hand over your heart and you end where I begin. And it's just, you know, like, we're all one. We're all this body together. We're all made in the image of God.

I don't think he says that language in this song, but, like, that's kind of what it gets at here of, like, just as much as I made in the God, so are you. I must love you as myself. Love you as though you are God, because God is in you. Such A deep song. Such a good song.

Like, there's so much on this album that I love, but that one in particular, especially if you're spiritual, if you're Christian like me, I think it's worth listening to and really contemplating what he's saying there. And I love that it's phrased as a conversation to his son. So it's just a beautiful song. Alley Cat, also beautiful. Prize fighter.

Actually one of my least favorite song of the thing, but still good. You got Begin Again. Icarus was a really fun song.

Talking about getting too close to the sun Learning to humble yourself Stay Badlands is another one I do want to play. I feel like it might be going over my head, the message of it, but has Gracie Abrams, who's also one of my favorite artists, and them together.

I'm like voices together of Mumford or Mark Mumford and Gracie Abrams. That almost makes me forgive JJ Abrams for some of those films and shows I don't like. Just kidding. Just kidding.

For those who don't know J.J. abrams is Gracie Abrams dad. I didn't know that until, like last year, but yeah, Mark Mumford, Gracie Abrams singing together. Incredible song.

I'm gonna play a little bit of that one here as well. Just because the sound. Incredible.

Remember the wind on the badlands When I'm still running from loose and set myself up to be Become a man who wasn't there for the backhand get away car in the quicksand I think he may never understand don't look down now I'm not done here yet. Don't look down now.

I listened to more of that just then that I meant to. I just love their voices together. But yeah, even in the bad times, even in the badlands, even we're like, why are we here?

Being together can provide meaning again. I. I do feel like I'm missing part of the meaning of that song.

But I love their voices, so I played some of it anyway and that was, for me, the last song on the album that really stood out. You still have Shadow of a Man was really good. I'll tell you everything. It's good. Clover was good.

As far as the ones that stood out, Battling is the last one that I was like, oh, yeah, that might be making it to my favorite songs list. And eventually maybe I'll understand better the message of the song. And then I love it even more. But yeah, all kinds of great songs.

I do hope you guys go back and listen to some of those. Let me know what you think. Especially of, like Rubber Band, the Banjo song, conversation with my son.

Yeah, I just love to hear your guys thoughts on this. I think they go deep, but they keep it fun. Kind of like the old Mumford and Son stuff. So really great album. Mumford and Sons, A prize fighter.

Last one I'm going to talk about came out last year and somehow I missed it. Passenger wrote an album, One for the Road. Songs from the Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry.

So this album is for a musical about a novel and it's a great story. I do think people should read it for yourself. Or there is a movie, there's a movie. The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. Incredible, great story.

I'm actually in the process of reading the novel for myself right now before I finish the movie. I started the movie, I was like, I want to read this. Basically. Spoilers, Astrid, spoilers.

But it's about a man and a wife whose son had killed himself.

And you kind of find out that during this process, the dad really felt bad, Harold guilty, because everything he did would remind his wife of their son because they were so similar. And the wife would just keep looking out like she just couldn't get over it.

And he was like, I feel like I can't move on because anything I do makes her hurt more. And they're dealing with a lot of pain immediately after what happened with their son.

Harold did some really bad stuff, I'll say, that involved his workplace. And they had a friend named Queenie who took the blame for him. And he never said thank you to her.

She ended up losing her job, all this stuff, because she knew what he was going through and was like, he can't go through anymore. And in the story, what's happening is Queenie is now bedridden. She is sick, about to die. And Harold goes on this long walk.

I'm just going to walk to her and she's going to just be better. Because there's power in community and being there for one another and just walking. And everybody's like, you're crazy. Whatever, old man.

Me, I don't know if this was meant to be or how other people feel during the story, but I was like, did he cheat on his wife with her during all this? Is this what's going on? What I thought was maybe that's the motive. He actually fell in love with her and he's going to leave his wife.

And I'm hate that kind of pissed me off a little bit. But you find out again, asterisk, spoilers. Not the case. He just knew he had to do something for Someone who did something for him.

He had always loved his wife. He never stopped loving his wife. But he wasn't able to help her. And he thinks he can help Queenie. So just walking miles, just gonna be there.

Because maybe just being there will help her be better. And during his walk, the doctors notice that she's staying alive. And they even write them. They're like, this makes no sense. Shouldn't be helping.

But you keep walking, dude. In the end, there's a happy ending. He. Him and his wife kind of reconcile a little bit. But, you know, it's not easy. It's a hard thing to go through.

The album's incredible. It kind of walks you through the story. You're hearing all this emotional weight of what's going on.

How Harold feeling, what was his parents like, how him and his wife have dealt with the immediate aftermath of losing their son. All this stuff, and it's just really heavy. Deep album. Great story from what I can tell.

Again, I'm in the process of reading the novel, but it's hard to play any of the songs from this album without the context. And you're like, what's going on? Except for the one at the end. Along at the end, I think does kind of stand on its own.

It has meaning outside of the story of, like, hey, our odes might look different. You might be doing something that makes no sense to me, that I think strange. I'm like, how dare you walk out on your wife?

And then I realize, oh, you're not. You're trying to help someone else. You still love your wife. There's more going on than meets the eye. So this last song kind of speaks to.

We might not understand each other's journey but here's one for the road. Here's one for everybody on this wild journey that is life that's going through it.

And even though we might not know what you're going through, we can share a drink together and a song. So I am going to play some of this song again. Passenger's my favorite artist. I loved the whole album, but it doesn't.

A lot of it just doesn't make sense without the full story, the context there. But I think this song does. I'm gonna play at least this one for you all. And it's definitely making my faves playlist on Spotify. So.

Tired of walking Some are scared of being alone but afraid of talking Some are miles from their homes Others never get so far but whoever you are, here's one for the road Be it straight or Winding when the storm comes rolling or the sun is shining for the broken promises and the silver lining if your lights on your feet oh, you have a heavy load here's one for the road.

Yeah, it keeps going. It crescendos. It gets louder, more enthused. But, you know, never too enthused. Passenger. But I love that song. Here's one for the road.

Whether it's straight or winding, whether you're light on your feet or you're holding a heavy burden. We could share a drink together. We share a song together. We can be there for one another, Even if to me, your journey makes no sense. Whatever.

Let's have a drink. Here's one for the road. I wish you the best on your journey, wherever it may take you, Wherever you might be in that journey. Here's one for the road.

I think it's a great song. It's a great song to end on, which why I did that at the end of the episode, I may have thought that one ahead. I don't usually think ahead.

That one I might have. But, yeah, it's a great. I actually do really enjoy the story, so if you guys want to read along with me. The novel is by Rachel Joyce.

It's the Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry. And I might be reviewing it on my other podcast, Be Living Water.

So if you want to follow me over there when I get through the album, I might want to talk about it.

So it might be over there at some point right now going through Les Miserable in the Book of Daniel, but I might pause to talk about the Unlikely Pilgrims of Harold Fry because a beautiful story and of course, Passenger can make me feel anything 10 times deeper than I normally would. And, yeah, and of course, you guys know I love songs that are about community with deep lyrics. I love acoustics.

So, man, you get a song like that, it's just, here's one for the road. Here's one for sharing one another's journey. Wherever you might be. If you just started, you're near the end.

Light on your feet, heavy burden, straight winding, whatever. This one's for the road. This podcast goes out to you, this drink goes out to you, and so does that song, and it's beautiful. So I love that.

Anyway, that's the last of what I want to talk about. Just catch you guys up on what I've been listening to some of my thoughts in the. The music world right now.

Coming up soon, though, we are going to have an episode that doesn't have me in it. Probably. Probably. You never know. But probably why.

I mean, it will Rose and TJ Blackwell will be hosting an episode of Some Joyful Noises soon, talking about the Gorillaz album the Mountain. You might again after that. You might have me and Kevin talking about Noah Khan.

I mentioned that earlier in the episode he's at his new album the Great Divides coming soon. Kevin's gonna see it in person. I'm excited for it. I love Noah Khan. So it's going to be a great time when that comes out.

Another great time is anytime you spend rating and reviewing podcasts, right? So make sure wherever you're listening, rate and review so other people know about the the show.

Share this episode with somebody hit subscribe so you don't miss upcoming episodes. Because again, we don't know when episodes come out. They're not playing like that.

So if you don't subscribe, you're not going to know when the episode comes out either. So make sure you subscribe to this show so you know when we release some new stuff.

And we hope you guys can continue to join us as we find more music to sing along to and share on this journey that we're on together. And I hope you will consider joining me as we keep making some Joyful noises together.