Show Notes
On this episode my guest is Dr. Evan Martin-Casler, a Lecturer of Business Communication at the University of Arizona and lifelong punk practitioner. I asked him to share their expertise on all matters of contemporary hardcore, as well as to walk listeners through his analysis of metal subgenres like doom and sludge. Along the way we cover moshing, the disappearance of subcultures, friction as a counterweight to neoliberal acceleration, and the critical importance of—and desperation for—tenderness in our working lives. Finally, check out the book Evan's contributing to—What's Left of Metal?—coming out in fall 2026 on Revol Press.
Sensitive Topics: (Kurt Cobain's) suicide; drug use
Timestamps
00: Intro
4:00: Big Feelings hardcore
6:30: Disappearance of subculture?
13:00: Shifting mosh etiquette
16:00: Ethics and the role of violence at shows
25:00: Contemporary scenes in emo and hardcore
32:30: Feeling intensely
36:30: Slowness in doom and sludge
59:25: What’s making guest cry
References
Adeyemi, Kedi. 2022. Feels Right: Black Queer Women & the Politics of Partying in Chicago. Duke University Press.
Benjamin, Walter. 1940. “Theses on the Philosophy of History.”
Attali, Jacques. 2009. Noise: The Political Economy of Music. University of Minnesota Press.
Debord, Guy. 1967. Society of the Spectacle. Critical Editions.
Noys, Benjamin. 2010. The Persistence of the Negative: A Critique of Contemporary Continental Theory. Edinburgh University Press.
