Like What You Like

Producer, musician Riley Corbin joins the podcast to share his expertise in helping to artists unlock their creativity in the studio. Our conversation covers a lot about the music business which is new for the show. I think if you are a musician or just curious about the current landscape of music this is a great place to start.

Riley is a long time friend of mine who I actually met far before I started taking music seriously. Before I was scratching my head thinking about what connects people to music I was a finicky barista who was a control freak about the pandora app that we piped music into the cafe with.

Riley worked at the same cafe but was in our late night cocktail lounge. After most closing shifts I would slink back to the cocktail lounge while Riley would prep snack pretzels and batch cocktails. I knew Riley was in a band, which was impressive to me because I didn’t know anyone who was in a band. The best thing about Riley’s band, Faintheart, was that their music actually spoke to me.

As coworkers it was always easy to chat with Riley about coffee or cocktails but I would always mention the music I was listening to. Riley always took an interest in what I was listening to and would share recommendations within the same vein. I love the exchange of musical recommendations, you get to know them through the art they like.

One of my fondest music discovery memories is with Riley in the parking lot of the cafe. We were listening to some songs in Riley’s very cool Kia Soul (The Hamster Car).

Riley asked “have you ever listened to Kacey Musgraves”.

“No.” I said “I don’t really like country music”

Riley insisted that we take a listen to the first track of her newly released 2018 album Golden Hour. I hesitated but I trusted Riley’s taste so I let him put it on. Riley started “Slow Burn” and slowly raised the volume. As the crisp strums of acoustic guitar rose in the car I settled in to put on a fake smile for my friend. Then Kacey’s captivating vocal comes in. This wasn’t the stadium country or old school honky tonk I was imaging, this was something different. “Slow Burn” turned into “Lonely Weekend” and by the start of the third song of the record I was hooked. I was absolutely blown away by something that I wouldn’t have tried without the insistence of a friend.

When it came time to record my own music Riley was the first person that came to mind to help bring the project to life. I even enlisted the help of Faintheart’s drummer, Hunter Owen (formerly a guest of the pod).

I’m so happy to bring you this conversation with my good friend Riley who taught me to appreciate music in a new way.