This week, I’m joined by Ben Ryan, guitarist and vocalist for Dogwood Tales, an indie rock band from Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Ben and I talk about growing up in Virginia, the band’s beginnings, and the Shenandoah Valley’s place in their music. We get into what it means to make a record rooted in home, the complicated feelings that come with small-town life, and the importance of having a community that shows up for you.

We also talk about Destination Heaven, their collaborative album with Euphoria Again, and the process of making music together. There’s a lot here about songwriting, collaboration, and the influences that find their way into a record, including some you might not immediately expect from listening to Dogwood Tales.

We chat about Newport Folk Festival, the new songs, and the road, because Dogwood Tales are on tour RIGHT NOW (Nov/Dec 2026) across the East Coast and Midwest.

If you’re near one of their upcoming stops, go check them out. And whether you can make a show or not, give Every Star in Rockingham County a listen. Genre-defining is not an exaggeration.

Enjoy my conversation with Ben!

Songs featured in this episode:

Ralph Sampson

7xover

Every Star in Rockingham County

Mt. Jackson

Destination Heaven

McMemories

Introduction music Blood Sugar Blues by former First Spin guest, Drew White.

If you enjoyed this episode, it’d mean a lot if you left a quick review—it's one of the best ways to help new listeners find the show.

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Thanks for listening—see you next week.

This week's episode is a little different. Instead of featuring an up and coming artist, I sit down with someone who is genuinely trying to make the music industry a better place for artists. Duncan Greive, co-founder and CEO of Lume, a new music platform built around a simple idea: putting the album back at the heart of music.

Duncan traces his path from music journalist and editor to digital media founder and, eventually, back to music with Lume. He explains how years of watching streaming reshape listening habits left him wondering whether something had been lost along the way. While platforms like Spotify and Apple Music have made virtually all recorded music instantly accessible, that convenience has also encouraged playlists, algorithms, skipping, and passive listening—often at odds with the time and intention artists put into making an album.

We also discuss the importance of superfans, creating direct relationships between artists and listeners, why Lume was designed around the needs of artists rather than investors, and whether digital music can recapture some of the permanence and intentionality of physical media.

We also turn to one of the biggest issues facing musicians today: AI-generated music and why Lume has committed to never hosting AI artists..

Introduction music Blood Sugar Blues by former First Spin guest, Drew White.

If you enjoyed this episode, it’d mean a lot if you left a quick review—it's one of the best ways to help new listeners find the show.

And if you want to hear more artists worth your time, follow First Spin on social:
📱 TikTok
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Official Spin Podcast Spotify Playlist

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Thanks for listening—see you next week.

On this week's episode of First Spin, I chat with singer/songwriter Theo Kandel about his brand new album "A Horse Named Friday," his love of riddles, life in New York, inflation resistant Miller High Life, bowling, and his upcoming West Coast tour.

Songs featured in this episode:

Flight to JFK

A Horse Named Friday

She's Mad, She's Magic

7/10 Split

The Station

Ghost Lives

Introduction music Blood Sugar Blues by former First Spin guest, Drew White.

If you enjoyed this episode, it’d mean a lot if you left a quick review—it's one of the best ways to help new listeners find the show.

And if you want to hear more artists worth your time, follow First Spin on social:
📱 TikTok
📸 Instagram

Official Spin Podcast Spotify Playlist

Official Spin Podcast Apple Playlist

Thanks for listening—see you next week.