Song Exploder
Hrishikesh Hirway
Musicians deconstruct their own songs, track by track, with the show's creator.
Why we picked this
We picked Song Exploder because it treats recorded music as something constructed rather than received. Each episode lets a single artist take apart a track piece by piece, isolating the rough demos and discarded vocal takes that precede the final master. The show avoids standard music journalism chatter and focuses entirely on mechanics, choices, and the specific friction of turning an idea into a finished piece of audio. The archive functions as a massive, growing catalog of how creative work actually happens in the room.
Recent episodes
Allison Russell - The Returner
Oct 21, 202622 min
DJ Shadow - Mutual Slump
Oct 14, 202616 min
Elvis Costello - Alison
Oct 7, 202627 min
Olivia Rodrigo - The Cure
Sep 23, 202626 min
Natalie Merchant - Sister Tilly
Sep 16, 202625 min
Paula Cole - I Don't Want to Wait
Sep 9, 202629 min
Charli XCX - Camera
Aug 19, 202623 min
Mitski - Your Best American Girl
Aug 5, 202614 min
Suki Waterhouse - Back in Love
Jul 22, 202623 min
Key Change: Questlove on Prince
Jul 15, 202625 min
Metric - Victim of Luck
Jul 8, 202622 min
Hayley Kiyoko - Girls Like Girls
Jun 24, 202626 min
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