The title of Max Vanderwolf’s new album Songs You’ll Never Hear has a deeper meaning than the surface-level irony of the fact that all eight songs on the collection have very much been available to listen to for over a week now. A pivot from the hard-rock scenes Vanderwolf has been involved in since the ’90s, the woozy, proggy, string-laden psych-rock opera came together at a moment when the record’s April 2026 release date seemed unlikely in the midst of political unrest instigated by our current administration’s escalation of tensions in pretty much every corner of the world. On a more personal note, Vanderwolf became aware of a five-centimeter tumor in his brain when his vision suddenly became cloudy in the midst of the project’s final mixing sessions.
With Songs You’ll Never Hear out in the world and Vanderwolf’s recovery proving quite promising (if only we could say the same of our nation’s well-being), the songwriter sat down with one of our most qualified, professional, and serious living music journalists and historians to unpack the songwriting, influences, and orchestral flourishes that define the album, as well as how the “dark cloud of Trumpism” loomed over it: sound-effects artist and comedian Fred Armisen. The wide-ranging, 20-minute chat also dives into Vanderwolf’s recent health scare and how it derailed his plans for touring these songs in the immediate future.
Check out their full chat below, and listen to Songs You’ll Never Hear here.
