Tape Notes

John is joined by Arlo Parks and Baird to talk about how they wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Ambiguous Desire’. Arlo Parks is an indie-pop singer-songwriter from West London. After uploading demos to BBC Introducing as a teenager, she quickly attracted industry attention. Her debut album, ‘Collapsed in Sunbeams’, arrived in 2021, establishing Arlo as one of the defining artists of her generation and earning her the Mercury Prize and two Grammy nominations. Arlo’s third record, the more electronic-focused ‘Ambiguous Desire', was released in April 2026, co-written and produced by Baird, along with additional collaborators Paul Epworth and Sampha. Sitting down at Strongroom Studios in London, with Baird joining online, Arlo and Baird discuss the “runaway train” of their symbiotic creative process and how they recreated the feel of the club and dancefloor through the record’s distinctive grooves. They share never previously heard freestyles, demos and vocal tracking secrets from the studio, and they answer questions from our Patreon community! Tracks discussed: Senses, Jetta, Heaven LISTEN to Ambiguous Desire: Ambiguous Desire by Arlo Parks, Transgressive Records TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 20% off. Try the new Tape It Denoiser  currently 50% off! TRINITY LABAN Find out more about Trinity Laban’s new MA in Songwriting.   MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your discount HERE Recorded at Platoon Studios LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective GEAR MENTIONS Soundtoys Microshift Electro Harmonix Pitch Fork Polyphonic Pitch Shifter Pedal Shure SM7B Melda MAuto Pitch Boss DS-1 Pedal Bassment Plugin Squier Jazz Bass Spitfire Audio Labs Roland Juno 106 Ibanez Electro Acoustic Nylon Guitar Krumar Keyboard Logic Distortion Ableton Live OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk

Take our audience survey and enter the draw to win! https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/t/AudienceSurvey2026/ John is joined by Jack Antonoff of Bleachers to talk about how they wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Everyone for Ten Minutes’. Jack Antonoff is an American producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. As a producer, he’s widely recognised for helping shape the sound of modern pop through his work with artists including Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter, Kendrick Lamar and many more. Alongside his production work, Jack has built a hugely successful career as a musician and songwriter, first rising to prominence with Fun in the early 2010s before founding Bleachers in 2013. Since then, Bleachers have released five studio albums and toured globally, with their latest record, Everyone for Ten Minutes, released in May 2026. Sitting down at Platoon Studios in London, Jack looks back on the process of bringing the album to life, digging into the recording techniques behind the record and demonstrating different directions the songs could have taken along the way. He also talks about how leading with simplicity became central to the album, answers questions from Patreons, and much more.  Tracks discussed: i’m not joking, we should talk, dancing LISTEN to Everyone for Ten Minutes - everyone for ten minutes by Bleachers  Dirty Hit Recordings TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 20% off. Try the new Tape It Denoiser  currently 50% off! TRINITY LABAN Find out more about Trinity Laban’s new MA in Songwriting.   MAKE NOISE PRO AUDIO Use the code TAPENOTES10 for 10% off all Franklin Audio products at makenoiseproaudio.com MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your discount HERE Recorded at Platoon Studios - Link LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective - https://lynkify.in/song/sunshine-buddy/YT47TLFI  GEAR MENTIONS Sountoys Echoboy Gooshertz Lossy Shure SM58 TC Helicon Korg VC10 Vocoder Roland Space Echo Ovation Guitars Moog Model D Korg M1 Drums Roland TR-808 Roland Juno-106 WEM Watkins Copicat Hammond B3 E-mu Systems Sampler OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk

Take our audience survey and enter the draw to win! https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/t/AudienceSurvey2026/ John is joined by Tom Misch to talk about how he wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Full Circle’.  Tom Misch is an English singer-songwriter and producer known for his innovative sound, blending hip-hop beats and soulful vocals along with his distinctive guitar style. His self-recorded debut album ‘Geography’ was a UK top ten hit in 2018, followed by ‘What Kinda Music’, released in 2020, with Yussef Dayes. Tom’s second solo album, ‘Full Circle’, arrived in March 2026.  Sitting down at Strongroom Studios, the two take a deep dive into Tom’s process. They discuss his essential gear for creating guitar sounds and his go-to vocal chain techniques, Tom breaks down three tracks from his album from demos to master and also answers questions from our Patreons, plus much more! Tracks discussed: Red Moon, Slow Tonight, Days of Us LISTEN to Full Circle - Full Circle by Tom Misch, AWAL recordings TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 20% off. Try the new Tape It Denoiser  currently 50% off! TRINITY LABAN Find out more about Trinity Laban’s new MA in Songwriting.   MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your discount HERE Recorded at Strongroom Studios LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective - https://lynkify.in/song/sunshine-buddy/YT47TLFI  GEAR MENTIONS Soundtoys Echoboy Soundtoys Plate Reverb Dunlop Cry Baby Wah Pedal Apogee Duet Interface Waves Torque Acustica Audio El Rey Tube Compressor Plugin Acustica Audio Purple Two UAD Neve Preamp Electrovoice RE-20 Moogerfooger Pedal John Mayer Signature Strat Gibson Acoustic Reel to Reel Tape Machine UAD Plate Reverb Logic Pro 9 Acoustic Guitar Amo Logic Liverpool Bass OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear! Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk

John is joined by Foo Fighters  to talk about how they wrote, recorded and produced the album ‘Your Favorite Toy’. Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed by Dave Grohl. Known for their alt-rock anthems driven by melody and personality, they have evolved into one of rock’s biggest and most influential bands. Over the past 20 years, they have released twelve studio albums, won fifteen Grammys, and in 2021 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Their twelfth studio album, ‘Your Favorite Toy’, arrived in April 2026. Sitting down at Metropolis Studios in London, Dave and bassist Nate Mendel break down tracks, all the way from Dave’s demos and early drum patterns through to the final masters. The pair also discuss how they created the distinctive Foo Fighters guitar sounds on ‘Spit Shine’, share stories from recording screaming and Ilan’s perfect flams, and answer questions from our Patrons!  Tracks discussed: Asking For A Friend, Spit Shine, If You Only Knew LISTEN to Your Favourite Toy: Your Favorite Toy by Foo Fighters, RCA Records. TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 20% off. Try the new Tape It Denoiser  currently 50% off! TRINITY LABAN Find out more about Trinity Laban’s new MA in Songwriting.   QUBE  Find out more about Qube membership here. MAKE NOISE PRO AUDIO Use the code TAPENOTES10 for 10% off all Franklin Audio products at makenoiseproaudio.com MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your discount HERE Recorded at Metropolis Studios LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective - https://lynkify.in/song/sunshine-buddy/YT47TLFI  GEAR MENTIONS API 1608 Console Neve BCM10 Wizard Amps Fender Tone master Hiwatt Amps Freedman Amps Trini Lopez Guitar Moog Theremini Shure SM58 Microphone Gibson ES-335 Ludwig Drums OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear! Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk

John is joined by TOMORA to talk about how they wrote, recorded and produced the album COME CLOSER. TOMORA are an electronic music duo made up of The Chemical Brothers’ Tom Rowlands and AURORA. Both have excelled in their fields: The Chemical Brothers’ ten albums helped define electronic music, while Norwegian artist AURORA’s ethereal songwriting has won her a devoted worldwide following. The duo began collaborating when Aurora featured on The Chemical Brothers’ Grammy Award-winning 2019 album No Geography. In turn, Tom produced parts of AURORA’s What Happened To The Heart? (2024). That led to TOMORA and their debut album COME CLOSER. Sitting down at Baltic Studios, they discuss creating the album’s distinctive soundscapes and recording AURORA’s striking vocals. They also introduce John to the vintage synthesiser crucial to the album’s sound, plus answer Patreons’ questions! Tracks discussed: Somewhere Else, I Drink the Light, Come Closer LISTEN to COME CLOSER by TOMORA, AURORA, The Chemical Brothers TAPE IT Thanks to our friends at Tape It for supporting the podcast. Visit tape.it/tapenotes or use the promo code TAPENOTES in the app to get 20% off. QUBE  Find out more about Qube membership here. MAKE NOISE PRO AUDIO Use the code TAPENOTES10 for 10% off all Franklin Audio products at makenoiseproaudio.com MUSIVERSAL Skip the waitlist and get your discount HERE Recorded at Baltic - Studio 2 LINKS TO EVERYTHING TAPE NOTES   linktr.ee/tapenotes  Intro Music - Sunshine Buddy, Laurel Collective - https://lynkify.in/song/sunshine-buddy/YT47TLFI  GEAR MENTIONS DMX 15-80S Eventide H3000 Harmoniser Neumann U87 Microphone Takstar SM-9 Octave-Plateau Voyetra 8 MPC60 Moog System 55 Makenoise DPO Logic Pro X  E-MU S-1200 Sampler EMS Synthi AKS Elektron Monomachine Cong Burn Strokes Ableton Live OUR GEAR https://linktr.ee/tapenotes_ourgear HELP SUPPORT THE SHOW If you'd like to help support the show you can join us on Patreon, where among many things you can access full length videos of most new episodes, ad-free episodes and detailed gear list breakdowns. KEEP UP TO DATE For behind the scenes photos and the latest updates, make sure to follow us on:  Instagram: @tapenotes  YouTube: Tape Notes Podcast Discord: Tape Notes Patreon: Tape Notes To let us know the artists you’d like to hear, Tweet us, slide into our DMs, send us an email or even a letter. We’d love to hear!  Visit our website to join our mailing list: www.tapenotes.co.uk