10 to Spin | Will Dailey

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Photo by Paul Janovitz

"There is no DIY, there is only Do It Together."

Will Dailey believes that, and why shouldn't he? His upcoming album, due on 8/26, is titled National Throat, and it's being released independently, despite interest  from the "largest record label in the world." Doing it together means doing it with you, the fans. You can feel this approach in the first single, "Sunken Ship," especially when he sings, “I’m jumping overboard /And I’m swimming back to shore." Let's have a listen.



Our latest 10 to Spin playlist is from Dailey, and the theme is "Getting Free." Enjoy his commentary for each song below, and subscribe to the playlist here!

For Free - Joni Mitchell


If there is a list to be made she should always be on it. Even if it's a grocery list. Isle 7 get a box of Joni. There is a lifetime of exquisiteness to aspire to within her songs and recordings.

I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free - Nina Simone


I remember the first time a friend played me Nina. I can still smell the room we were in and the see the dust floating in the air. She is otherworldly to me. She also found artistic refuge in France to which I can relate.

Radio Free Europe - REM


I sincerely love all of REM.  The lyrical and musical adventurism are lessons in being free at all times. I heard Sunken Ship on the radio and in Whole Foods in the same day. While that has nothing to do with the subject of this song, it somehow echoes in my mind after the trials it took to get to this album.

Free Girl Now - Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers


You ever stuck in one of those days when it feels people are talking about music more than listening to it? That they are talking about the music business more than getting busy playing or listening to it? Then turn it all off and turn on some Tom Petty loud. It clears the system. I am a free girl now.

Everything Is Free - Gillian Welch


Ouch. It is, I suppose.  But maybe it was supposed to be! This one has bummed me out and but it has also felt like a companion. I'm fortunate enough that there are people out there that buy enough of my records to make the record. Ever since I released Goodbye Red Bullet the business has been "falling apart" yet I have National Throat. Art does not exist without help.

I'm Free Now - Morphine


I have refused to leave Boston though friends have gone and the music business tries to convince me to move. The spirit of Morphine is alive in the streets here. It is now part of the folk lore here. You can't beat that.

Free Until They Cut Me Down - Iron & Wine


Another artists that I became a life long fan of after hearing the first note. Not many artists make it feel like their whole catalogue is one long piece that feels like one whole. Like every drop of a painting coming to life. When I get pulled outside a dream Iron & Wine pulls me right back in.

Free - Cat Power


You Are Free is the kind of album I am checking myself with for National Throat. The variation and adventure from track to track. Anything can happen and I love that. For me, there is no need to make an album unless it's gonna cover a lot of territory and stretch out the artist. I don't want to passively listen to an album. You Are Free has that, Pearl Jam's VS and Vitology have that, Sticky Fingers by the Stones... You know what I'm saying.

Freedom! '90 - George Michael


Yes. Because sometimes I have to put on tight jeans when I'm walking away and into a better place. I actually comb my hair, put the top down anyway and unbutton two extra buttons. Drive down the main drag and smile at everyone while lip syncing this song. I'm gonna go-pro that shit next time.

I Feel Free - Cream


My father loved any band that had dynamic drummers. So there was a lot of Bonham, Moon and Ginger Baker around I had to get off a major label to feel safe and free to make the music I wanted to make. That music is National Throat. It exists because of the life, career and experiences I've had. It also exists because of all the magical songs that accompanied me to now. Of which the above are a small but significant fraction.

One eskimO (The Interview)

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One eskimO, a four-piece band from London, is impossible to categorize (if you like to do that sort of thing with your music, and let's face it, most of us do). What started as an indie rock/shoegaze sorta venture is now leaping over boundaries and even dipping into - gasp! - Top 40 radio territory. That's mostly due to the breakthrough hit, "Kandi," which samples Candi Staton's "He Called Me Baby" in a terribly groovy way. However, with Gorillaz-esque animation that accompanies One eskimO's self-titled debut album (out now on Shangri-La Music) and a tour schedule that stops at various music festivals across the U.S., One eskimO defies snap judgements.

The band's set to hit the stage at Blueberry Hill in Saint Louis for the first time tomorrow night. Doors at 7 PM, show at 8 PM. Tickets are available here, or you can get them for $12 at the door.

Drummer Adam Falkner chatted with Speakers in Code about the band's recent Daytrotter session, George Michael, and, of course, blueberries. And hey, if this band thing doesn't work out, Falkner might want to consider comedy.

Watch the video for "Kandi":


1. As I was researching the band online to develop these interview questions, I kept finding the same descriptions of your music: "ambient" and "mellow." Do you find these adjectives accurate?

Yes, but that probably doesn't describe the whole picture. We also have a lot of intense, passionate passages in our music and always try to approach everything soulfully, too.

2. I just listened to your Daytrotter session that you recently recorded. What was it like to strip down those soulful songs? Do you like the end result?

We love doing it like that, and we often play radio sessions in that way. It's actually how we recorded our album, by playing the fundamentals live as a band, then adding the blanket of electronics afterwards. It's really enjoyable when you've nothing to hide behind, and [it's a] testament to whether your songs stand up on their own or not!

3. Ok, call me crazy but some of your songs really remind me of the early '90s, solo George Michael sound. Am I crazy? If your actual sound was the spawn of any number of artists, who would those "parents" be? (And is one of them George Michael?)

We definitely view George Michael as a father figure. He gives us a lot of faith, and I don't think I could dance again without his music. Last Christmas, I bought Jamie his new album, but he said it was too funky. He said he might give it another try...

4. You guys are playing the famous Blueberry Hill, monthly home of Chuck Berry, on June 15th. Have you visited Saint Louis before? What are you looking forward to on this stop?

We haven't yet had the pleasure, so we're looking forward to it. I'd like to sit and eat blueberries on Blueberry Hill, with no particular place to go. Full of antioxidants apparently (blueberries, not Chuck Berry)...

5. If you were stuck at the top of the Arch for forty-eight hours, what three albums would you listen to on repeat?

I think we'd all have different views on this, but for me personally, Hits by Joni Mitchell, Bitter by Me'shell Ndegéocello, and Sing To God Parts 1 & 2 by The Cardiacs. I wouldn't want to be rescued!