Episode 308: The Marías

“No One Noticed”

The Marías is a band from Los Angeles, made up of María Zardoya, Josh Conway, Jesse Perlman, and Edward James. They released their first EPs in 2017 and 2018, and their first album in 2021. But then, as you’ll hear, there was a period of a lot of uncertainty around the band’s future. Eventually, their second album, Submarine, came out in 2024, and it was incredibly successful. Stereogum called it one of the best albums of the year, and the band was nominated for a Grammy for Best New Artist. But all of that almost didn’t happen. I talked to María about the making of their hit song “No One Noticed.” The story’s beginning, middle, and end all took place during different eras of the band’s existence. In the middle section, when maybe they weren’t going to even be a band anymore, María enlisted the help of Grammy-nominated producer Gianluca Buccellati. And I spoke to Luca for this episode, as well.

You can buy or stream “No One Noticed” here.

For the Song Exploder episode with Arlo Parks about the song “Black Dog,” which was produced by Gianluca Buccellati, click here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

footnotes:
Paris, Texas (film)
Arlo Parks and Biig Piig

· · ·

Episode 307: Leon Thomas

“Mutt”

Leon Thomas is a singer, songwriter, producer, and actor. He’s nominated for six Grammys at this year’s Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, Best R&B Album, and Album of the Year for Mutt. Mutt is his second album, and I talked to Leon about the title track, which was a breakout hit. He’d already won a Grammy for his work with SZA, but he reached a new level in his own career with this song and this album. I also spoke to David Phelps and Rob Gueringer, AKA D. Phelps and Freaky Rob, who produced the song.

You can buy or stream “Mutt” here.

Illustration by Carlos Lerma.

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes:
Bizzy Crook – co-writer
“Silly Love Song by Enchantment
“Snooze” by SZA
Electric Dusk – Leon Thomas
Led Zeppelin, Kendrick Lamar, Miles Davis, Pink Floyd, and
Parliament-Funkadelic
Art Tatum and John Coltrane
Bootsy Collins

· · ·

Key Change: John Green

“You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Gerry and The Pacemakers

My guest today is John Green. John is the award-winning, #1 bestselling author of books including Looking for Alaska, The Fault in Our Stars, Turtles All the Way Down, The Anthropocene Reviewed, and Everything is Tuberculosis. John and his brother Hank Green have co-created a lot of projects together, including their massive YouTube channel, ‘Vlogbrothers,’ and their podcast, Dear Hank and John. He also serves on the Board of Trustees for global health nonprofit Partners in Health. And when I asked John if there was a piece of music that changed his life, he knew the answer right away: “You’ll Never Walk Alone” by Gerry and the Pacemakers.

footnotes:
The musical Carousel
The Mountain Goats, Will Oldham, and Loretta Lynn

· · ·