“I wanted to be a lot more emotive and vulnerable with my voice… For this one, I wanted to be just raw and screaming.”
Listen in as Thao Nguyen, frontwoman for Thao & the Get Down Stay Down, sheds light on the music and the personal experiences that inspired “Nobody Dies,” the lead single from the band’s new album A Man Alive. Drawing from a wide range of sources including John Lennon’s vocal shredding, the Pixies’ pummeling minimalism and Thao’s own family history, “Nobody Dies” skillfully swirls fist-pumping rock with painful introspection to create one of the most memorable songs in Thao’s ever-growing catalog.
This episode of the podcast was recorded on Guerrero Street in San Francisco’s Mission District.
Additional songs heard in this episode:
The Pixies, “Gigantic”