Find all the links you need at https://linktr.ee/skipdpod

In episode thirty‑six of Skip’d, Rob & Mike jack into the sprawling, Afrofuturist universe of Janelle Monáe’s The ArchAndroid. A bold, visionary double album that redefines what pop, R&B, and science‑fiction storytelling can accomplish together. Part space opera, part social manifesto, part dance‑floor liberation.

Framed as chapters two and three in Monáe’s ongoing Metropolis saga, The ArchAndroid follows the mythic android messiah Cindi Mayweather as a lens through which Monáe explores identity, freedom, race, rebellion, love, and the cost of non‑conformity. The ArchAndroid plays like a movie for your ears and an album that rewards close listening and invites repeat exploration.

What’s inside:

• A deep dive into the album’s signature moments, including the kinetic pulse of “Tightrope,” the psychedelic bliss of “Wondaland,” and the cathartic release of “57821”
• An exploration of Janelle Monáe’s Afrofuturist vision and how sci‑fi storytelling becomes a powerful vehicle for examining oppression, self‑expression, and liberation
• Reflections on The ArchAndroid’s cultural impact, its genre‑defying influence, and how it helped carve out space for a more expansive and inclusive idea of pop stardom
• Plus, the moment Rob completely loses the plot trying to map the Metropolis timeline, while Mike attempts to explain android theology

Stream Skip’d on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your audio fix.

Got an album that builds worlds, challenges the status quo, or proves that pop can still be revolutionary? Send it our way and Rob & Mike will dive deep and decide if it’s truly unskippable.

PRE-ORDER THE BOXSET: https://tinyurl.com/skipd

Find all the links you need at https://linktr.ee/skipdpod

In episode thirty five of SKiP’D, Mike & Rob present a WORLD FIRST descent into the haunted and theatrical realm of My Chemical Romance’s unreleased fifth album, 'The Paper Kingdom': A project shrouded in mystery, grief, and creative reinvention, this phantom record sits at the crossroads of what MCR were, and what they might have become. The Paper Kingdom is less an album than a ghost story, told through the ashes of a band on the brink of transformation.

Conceived as a dark fairy tale about parents navigating the aftermath of losing their children, the album was poised to blend the band’s signature theatricality with a more atmospheric, grief-ridden palette. It was a world of fantasy forests and emotional devastation, a universe Gerard Way once described as “a fever dream of grief and hope.” Though the finished record never materialised, the work print provided to the show by an anonymous listener reveals a band wrestling with burnout, ambition, and the weight of their own mythology. It’s the sound of MCR standing at the edge of a new era and choosing to walk away.

What’s inside:

• A deep dive into the album’s concept: The grieving parents, the lost children, the fictional magical forest, and the emotional stakes that made The Paper Kingdom one of MCR’s most intriguing unrealised visions

• A look at the band’s creative evolution post‑Danger Days, including the shift toward moodier textures, electronic elements, and a return to narrative world‑building that pushed them put of their comfort zone, both in and out of the music

• Reflections on the cultural aura surrounding “the album that never was,” how its absence shaped the band’s legacy, and why fans obsessed over the scraps more than a decade later

• Plus, Mike spirals into a full‑blown existential crisis discussing how the work print was obtained and how it ended up in our email inbox

Stream SKiP’D on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your audio fix. Got an album that never saw the light of day, changed the course of a band, or exists only in the imaginations of devoted fans? Send it our way — Rob & Mike will dig into the lore and decide if it’s truly unskippable.

Music by Shane Ivers (excluding SKiP'D Theme) - https://www.silvermansound.com

Ad break ident: Simple Clean Logo by Muzaproduction/Aleksandr Karabanov

Find all the links you need at https://linktr.ee/skipdpod

In episode thirty‑four of Skip’d, Rob & Mike journey into the cosmic, philosophical, genre‑bending masterpiece that is Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon. An album so iconic it practically transcends the idea of “classic rock” and enters its own gravitational orbit. Meditative, psychedelic, sonically pristine, and thematically ambitious, this 1973 landmark is less a collection of songs and more a seamless 43‑minute experience that changed what an album could be.

Crafted by the legendary lineup of Waters, Gilmour, Wright, and Mason, and impeccably shaped by engineer Alan Parsons, Dark Side blends progressive rock, experimental sound design, jazz‑tinged instrumentation, and lyrical explorations of time, greed, madness, and the human condition. From the heartbeat‑to‑heartbeat sweep of “Speak to Me/Breathe” to the gravitational pull of “Time,” and the emotional catharsis of “The Great Gig in the Sky,” this is Pink Floyd at their most focused, most collaborative, and most timeless. It’s the soundtrack for late‑night introspection, long drives under star‑drenched skies, and that moment you realise an album can shift your entire perspective.

What’s inside:

• A deep breakdown of the album’s signature moments, including the iconic clocks of “Time,” Clare Torry’s transcendent vocal solo on “The Great Gig in the Sky,” and the psychedelic groove that made “Money” a chart‑bending hit
• An exploration of Pink Floyd’s evolution — how the band channelled grief, tension, and philosophical curiosity into a cohesive concept album that set the standard for immersive storytelling in music
• Reflections on the album’s cultural footprint, its record‑breaking chart run, its audiophile legacy, and the way it continues to inspire new listeners over 50 years later
• Plus, Mike has to calm Rob down after he goes into a brief psychosis after the soundscapes become a little too much for him

Stream Skip’d on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your audio fix. Got an album that reshaped a genre, expanded minds, or simply sounds best in the dark with good headphones? Send it our way, Rob & Mike will dive deep and decide if it’s truly unskippable.