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Finest Worksongs is a music commentary and history podcast hosted by Matt Lail and Matt Stevens. The podcast is dedicated to discussing ”great albums” and delving into the music and history of the artists behind them. The hosts often reminisce about their 80s childhoods, providing a nostalgic lens through which they explore the chosen albums. While the podcast covers a wide range of musical genres and artists, their discussions often center around seminal albums, exploring their impact, production, and the context in which they were created. They also have ”Summer Jamz” episodes where they focus on a single song instead of an entire album. ”Finest Worksongs” has been recognized in local media, being named one of Raleigh’s Top Podcasts by Raleigh Magazine and voted ”Best Local Podcast” in Wake Living Magazine’s Reader’s Choice Awards. The podcast concluded its regular episodes in early 2025 with its 129th episode, a listener’s choice discussion on The Replacements’ ”Let It Be.”
Episodes

Tuesday Feb 16, 2021
44. Nirvana - Nevermind
Tuesday Feb 16, 2021
Tuesday Feb 16, 2021
Very few musical “events” transform the pop music landscape – and pop culture – overnight. But Nirvana’s “Nevermind” absolutely did just that. Coming seemingly out of the blue (but really from the Pacific Northwest), Nirvana gave power to the disillusioned children of the ‘80s, the latchkey kids and wannabe punks who were just searching for authenticity. In the blink of an eye, the hair metal, glam and slick production of the late-1980s and early-‘90s became silly and passe’. Cardigans, corduroys and dirty hair was where it was at. But it wasn’t just a look. Oh no. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” remains an anthem of the disenfranchised. “Come As You Are,” “In Bloom” and “Lithium” became alt-rock and mainstream radio standards. And they still are. And that was just essentially side 1 of “Nevermind,” an album of noise and beauty, anger and sadness, and irony and truth. All of those things made up Nirvana.
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