About

“How do these guys do it?! Without any obvious affiliation, The Dumbing of America seems to get interviews with every musician of note from the past thirty years. People like Dean Wareham, Scott Kannenberg (aka Spiral Stairs from Pavement), Peter Hook and Alan McGee eschew every other media outlet. Yet these folks appear to be happy to sit down with the people who run this website. We particularly enjoy their attention to the process of making music, rather than the salacious gossip that most writers pursue.”
—Details Magazine: March 2010

“When we want to learn about exciting new bands, this is the best place to start. Period.”
Austin Chronicle: February 15, 2010

The Dumbing of America was started in an effort to document the attempt of mainstream media to “dumb down” Americans. Our primary targets were the likes of American Idol, George W. Bush, Creed, etc. Over time, our love of great music took precedence and led us to seek out interviews with great musicians.

After watching the popularity of American Idol and the awful music it’s spawned, we were concerned. When George W. Bush was re-elected for a second term, I said to friends, “This is really another sign of the dumbing of America”. When we started the site, we wanted to promote music that challenged people intellectually and attempted to fight the “dumbing” of America…. so the name seemed obvious.

We only cover and interview the bands that we truly love. Our interviews are published as they happened without editing in an effort to give you a taste of what these artists really “sound” like in conversation. Our list of past interviews spans several decades of great musicians:
Peter Hook (Joy Division/New Order)
Steven Severin (Siouxsie & the Banshees)
Howard Devoto and Dave Formula (Magazine)
Keith Morris (Circle Jerks/Black Flag)
Alan McGee (Founder of Creation Records)
Spiral Stairs (Pavement)
Charlotte Hatherley (Bats For Ashes, Ash)
Dean Wareham (Galaxie 500)
Lloyd Cole
Captain Sensible (The Damned)
Dave Allen (Gang of Four)
and many more….

Despite the great list you see above, we actually focus on the smaller, unsigned bands in hopes of giving you a jump on the rest of the world.
We welcome submissions from artists and labels. Please email mp3′s of your demos or promos using the email link in the contact sidebar.

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