David Bazan of Pedro the Lion and Headphones

On today's episode, I talk to musician David Bazan. Originally from Phoenix, AZ, David started Pedro the Lion in 1995, and his first full-length album It's Hard to Find a Friend was released three years later on Jade Tree. In 2005, David recorded a more synthesizer-focused album as Headphones, and then a year later, Pedro the Lion broke up. David continued to record music under his own name, releasing albums on labels like Barsuk and Polyvinyl, and then in 2017, Pedro the Lion got back together and began a five-album cycle, with each album focusing on a city that David grew up in. The most recent was last year's Santa Cruz, which came out on Polyvinyl/Big Scary Monsters. 2025 marks the 20th anniversary of Headphones' lone album, and to commemorate the occasion, Suicide Squeeze just released a remastered edition at the end of May, and folks, it's just as fantastic as it was back in 2005! This is the website for Beginnings, subscribe on Apple Podcasts, follow me on Twitter. Check out my free philosophy Substack where I write essays every couple months here and my old casiopop band's lost album here! And the comedy podcast I do with my wife Naomi Couples Therapy can be found here! Theme song by the fantastic Savoir Adore! Second theme by the brilliant Mike Pace! Closing theme by the delightful Gregory Brothers! Podcast art by the inimitable Beano Gee!