deary's Ben Easton spins records while prepping meals; Meanwhile, your PRB editor starts building a music server
This is Punk Rock Bach for March 19, 2026.
Happy Thursday! This week, Punk Rock Bach is entering the world of DIY hi-fi stereo components, listening to Kim Gordon’s latest album and — as always — bringing you music news from around the Internet.
Have a suggestion on music news to cover or album releases to note? Email me at punkrockbach@gmail.com!
The Weekly Stereo…
In every issue of Punk Rock Bach, we’re aiming to bring you musician listening habits and the tech they use to play a tune.
This week, Ben Easton of the band deary shares with Punk Rock Bach his recent exploration into film soundtracks and kitchen habits.
Punk Rock Bach: How do you prefer to listen to music?
Ben Easton: Vinyl is the ultimate listening experience, it’s magical, so I’m a firm advocate for that. However, for my sins, I mostly stream music.
PRB: What are you listening to now?
Easton: It’s always a bunch of different things. Right now, I’m trying to listen to more film soundtracks. There’s a beautiful track called ‘Personal Contact’ by Michel Colobier from a 1970 film called “Colossus: The Forbin Project”. The strings are just gorgeous. I’ve also been listening to ‘Slint - Spiderland’ a lot lately. It’s such a pure record.
PRB: What do you listen on?
Easton: I’ve got a Pioneer PLX 500 in my kitchen, so end up sticking records on when I’m making dinner etc. Otherwise, it’s a phone!
deary’s debut full-length album, Birding, is set to release on April 3 from Bella Union. You can listen to their single “Seabird” here.
Music News from Around the Internet…
Spice Girls singer Mel C told an Australian radio program that there will be no 30th anniversary reunion tour for the group, but said the members “want to do something,” NME’s Alex Rigotti reports. (NME)
The Hollywood Reporter’s Ethan Millman reports singer Lorde has confirmed she is now an independent artist. (The Hollywood Reporter)
Rainelle Krause, who recently performed as Queen of the Night in the Metropolitan Opera’s “The Magic Flute,” has died at age 37, according to The Los Angeles Times’ Christie D’Zurilla. (The Los Angeles Times)
Peter Frampton is set to release his first album in 16 years this May, according to Pitchfork’s Jazz Monroe. Frampton, Monroe reports, had previously been diagnosed with a degenerative muscle disease. (Pitchfork)
Rolling Stone’s Daniel Kreps reports that guitarist Phil Campbell of Motorhead has died. He was 64. (Rolling Stone)
The DIY corner…
As I continue to fine-tune this newsletter, I’ll be adding sections periodically. This week, I’m adding “The DIY corner,” where I’ll be discussing do-it-yourself hi-fi stereo builds I’m planning and constructing.
Streaming music…
I don’t know about you, but I get that giggling-in-church sense of guilt when I access songs from the cloud rather than listen with intention to an album I purchased.
Digital music has become so communal that we’ve lost that special connection with our favorite albums. Or at least it did for me.
And that’s why I’m ditching streaming music altogether. I long ago abandoned Spotify for data collection reasons, but I kept Amazon Music around. Now I’ve ended my use of that streamer, too, and sticking with the music I’ve collected over the years — including all the digital albums I’ve purchased.
No offense to the world’s music streaming audience, it’s just not for me.
But how does one keep those digital albums purchased in rotation in a world where digital hi-fi stereo components are almost exclusively streamers?
Behold! The Lois X-1000 local music server!
First, some basics. A music server is a computer that sits in your stereo system with saved digital music files. It is your digital music library saved locally — no need for the device to be internet-connected.
Dedicated music servers are obsolete by about a decade. Sony made some — such as the HAP-S1 and its more impressive sibling, the HAP-Z1ES. But in 2026, internet-connected devices that play music from the cloud are all the rage. Search audio stores like Crutchfield and you’ll find lots of ways to stream, but very little in the way of a dedicated music server.
Very few items are available commercially that meet my need, so I’m going to build one.
It may sound daunting, but I suspect it will be an easier lift than expected — especially since I’ll be using a Raspberry Pi running the Volumio operating system.
The Raspberry Pi is a small computer, about the size of a credit card. Tech enthusiasts use it for all sorts of engineering projects. Volumio — an open-source, music-focused operating system — is saved or “flashed” to a micro SD card, which inserts into the Pi.
That’s about where I stand with the server’s construction at the moment. In the next few weeks, I’ll show my progress on the server’s construction — from connecting a solid-state drive that has my music files saved to adding a digital-analog converter so I can actually hear those files.
Stay tuned…
Here’s what I’m listening to…
Going forward, I’ll end each newsletter with a quick note of what I’m listening to this week. Think of it as a weekly suggestion of an album to check out, past and present.
This week, I’m listening to former Sonic Youth member Kim Gordon’s new album “Play Me” (Matador Records). It has a 90s grunge vibe that I really quite like.
That’s all for this week. Until next Thursday!