This week on Beers & B-Sides, we're cracking open a few beers and getting stuck into one of the biggest albums of the late '90s — Red Hot Chili Peppers' Californication.

But there's a problem… one of us had NEVER heard the album before this episode. 😳 The other three thought that was absolutely mental, especially considering how highly they rate this record!

As always, we kick things off with Home Brewed, our segment shining a light on an emerging artist or band from the North East of England. This week we're featuring The Avelons and their recently released single “Alice (On The Comeback)”.

Then it's time for Californication. We look back at 1999, exploring what was happening in the world of music and beyond when the album was released, before getting into the story of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, how they formed and their journey into music.

We'll be discussing the album's singles, our favourite tracks, weaker songs, our overlooked track, and whether Californication lives up to its huge reputation.

And, of course, we finish with our Last Orders Verdict — would we actually buy the album?

Expect plenty of laughs, friendly arguments, questionable opinions and the usual Beers & B-Sides banter between four friends having a few beers and talking about records.

🍺 Four friends. A few beers. One album. Plenty of opinions.

🎸 Home Brewed: The Avelons – Alice (On The Comeback)
💿 Album: Red Hot Chili Peppers – Californication
🍻 Last Orders Verdict: Would you buy it?

This week on Beers & B-Sides, we’re cracking open a few beers and diving into one of the most iconic albums of the electronic music era: Depeche Mode’s 1990 classic, Violator.

But there’s a problem… we don’t all agree on it. 👀

Is Violator genuinely a masterpiece, or has its legendary status gone a little too far? With some of us absolutely loving the album and others struggling to see what all the fuss is about, this one gets VERY interesting.

Before we get stuck into the album, we kick things off with Home Brewed, our regular feature shining a light on emerging artists and bands from North East England. This week we're introducing Adam Henderson, who has recently released his new single Runaway.

Then it’s time for Depeche Mode as we take a proper trip back to 1990, looking at what was happening in music and beyond when Violator was released. We get into the story of Depeche Mode, how the band formed and found their sound, the album’s biggest singles, our favourite tracks, the weaker moments, the songs we think deserve more love, and our overall thoughts on one of the most influential albums of its generation.

And, as always, we finish with the Last Orders Verdict — would we actually buy Violator on vinyl?

Expect plenty of beer, laughs, disagreements, questionable opinions and friendly arguments between four mates who definitely don't always agree on music.

🎵 This week's album: Depeche Mode – Violator
🍺 Home Brewed: Adam Henderson – Runaway
📍 From: North East England
💿 Album: Violator (1990)

Who's right about Violator — the lovers or the haters?

Pour yourself a pint, stick the episode on and let us know what you think. 🍻

#BeersAndBSides #DepecheMode #Violator #MusicPodcast #NorthEastMusic

This week on Beers & B-Sides, we're diving into Arctic Monkeys' AM — the 2013 album that saw Alex Turner and the Sheffield four-piece take their sound from indie rock favourites to one of the biggest rock bands on the planet.

Released in September 2013, AM delivered some of Arctic Monkeys' most iconic songs, including Do I Wanna Know?, R U Mine?, Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?, Arabella and I Wanna Be Yours. But is AM really the masterpiece it's often claimed to be?

We get stuck into the Arctic Monkeys AM album, discussing the story behind the record, its evolution from the band's earlier albums, the singles, the vinyl pressing, standout tracks, underrated songs, weaker moments and the all-important question — which side of the vinyl comes out on top?

We'll also be talking about the atmosphere, production and Alex Turner's songwriting, and why AM became such a defining album of the 2010s.

🍻 HOME BREWED

As always, we shine a spotlight on fresh North East music, introducing you to an emerging artist you need to have on your radar.

💿 LAST ORDERS VERDICT

After giving AM the full Beers & B-Sides treatment, would we actually spend our money on the Arctic Monkeys record and add it to our own vinyl collections?

Arctic Monkeys. AM. Vinyl. Four mates. Plenty of opinions.

This is Beers & B-Sides — a podcast about music, vinyl records, album reviews, indie rock, alternative music and the artists we can't stop listening to.

🎵 Album: Arctic Monkeys – AM
📅 Released: 2013
🎸 Artist: Arctic Monkeys
💿 Genre: Indie Rock / Alternative Rock
🍺 Podcast: Beers & B-Sides