{"podcast":{"title":"Basic Folk","slug":"basic-folk-1030186","podcast_index_feed_id":1030186,"rss_url":"https://feeds.redcircle.com/aaf5e937-14de-4377-8d58-100b59a5150d","website_url":"https://redcircle.com/shows/basic-folk","image_url":"https://media.redcircle.com/images/2025/1/2/2/39e58f92-5091-43dd-b05e-40970bca1ffe_1-426f-94e7-bd417e8f3751_basic-folk-logo-final.jpg","author":"The Bluegrass Situation","episode_count":371,"summary":"Basic Folk features honest conversations with folk musicians hosted by Cindy Howes and Lizzie No. We approach interviews with warmth, humor and insightful questions. Since 2018, this podcast has dignified under the radar roots musicians by providing a platform that they might not otherwise have. You’ll hear interviews from Three-time Grammy-winning guitar gods like Molly Tuttle, Haitian American folk legends like Leyla McCalla and deep feelers like songwriter John Hiatt. Basic Folk is dedicated to showcasing the best in folk, bluegrass, acoustic and americana including Black, Brown and Queer folx who have been excluded, or felt like they did not belong, in the folk world. Cindy & Lizzie each bring a unique perspective to these honest conversations with folk musicians. We are equally dedicated to repainting the broad landscape of folk music as we are to tearing down the ivory towers of the music industry. What would Bruce Springsteen do if he ever got the keys to that mansion on the hill? Let's find out together on Basic Folk. Basic is an official production of The Bluegrass Situation. Thanks for listening. Welcome to Basic Folk. Follow Basic Folk on social media: https://basicfolk…","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/basic-folk-1030186"},"episode":{"title":"The Mammals Do Not Want Your Old Farm Equipment, ep. 339","slug":"the-mammals-do-not-want-your-old-farm-equipment-ep-339","published_at":"2026-03-19T06:00:48+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/basic-folk-1030186/the-mammals-do-not-want-your-old-farm-equipment-ep-339","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/basic-folk-1030186","url":"https://basicfolk.com","audio_url":"https://audio4.redcircle.com/episodes/5ef0e93e-460b-4b1c-9391-d98f33e06074/stream.mp3","summary":"Mike and Ruth Merenda have been making music together as the Mammals since 2001, with a little break in 2008 to play as Mike & Ruthy. They've been back as the Mammals since 2017 with a couple of great albums, most recently 'Touch Grass' Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. Mike, born and raised in New Hampshire, picked up the banjo after he met fiddler Ruth Unger. Ruth is the daughter of Jay Unger, a much loved folk musician who is best known for his composition, \"Ashokan Farewell,\" used as the theme tune to the Ken Burns 1990 documentary 'The Civil War,' which you now have playing in your head. Essentially, Ruth grew up surrounded by folk music, which she talked all about on her last appearance on Basic Folk. This time around, we dig into a few of the songs on their double album 'Touch Grass.' There are A LOT to choose from: seventeen tracks in all. It was a four-year project recorded at their Humble Abode studio in the Catskills. The songs offer a mix of socially conscious \"daytime\" folk-rock and introspective \"nighttime\" Americana. We get into the gospel influence on \"O The Cruelty,\" the barebones arrangements of \"Old Friend,\" and keeping the sadness in check with \"Doldrums.\" They also talk a bit about their home venue, the Ashokan Center, where their musical festival the Hoot takes place. Let it be known that the center has a ton of old farm equipment and no, they do not want any more, so don't ask them to take it. Thanks, Mike & Ruthy! Follow Basic Folk on social media: https://basicfolk.bio.link/ Sign up for Basic Folk's newsletter: https://bit.ly/basicfolknews Help produce Basic Folk by contributing: https://basicfolk.com/donate/ Interested in sponsoring us? Contact BGS: https://bit.ly/sponsorBGSpods Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands","meta_description":"Mike and Ruth Merenda have been making music together as the Mammals since 2001, with a little break in 2008 to play as Mike & Ruthy. They've been back as…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2820,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/basic-folk-1030186/episodes/the-mammals-do-not-want-your-old-farm-equipment-ep-339/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/basic-folk-1030186/the-mammals-do-not-want-your-old-farm-equipment-ep-339.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}