Car Con Carne

Tom Higgenson of Plain White Ts joined me for a long overdue catchup. And for this episode, we went for burritos at Los Burritos #2 in his old stomping grounds of Villa Park. We talked at length about the band's excellent new release, "Parallel Universe," as well as:

• Villa Park is like primordial soup.
• How important are the ties back to Chicago as the band continues to take over the world? "I'm such a suburban kid... always have been."
• "Parallel Universe," and the experimentation the band did with the songs for the album.
• Is Tom a "romantic" at heart? ("I used to be 'all in'... ")
• Tom snuck a peak at the interview notes, and was given an unfair advantage.
• The hints of darkness that weave their way through PWTs music.
• My favorite song on the new album: "Top of the World"
• "Bonnie I Want You": It's not about a hooker (much to my surprise).
• The band's commitment to video-making (and their incredible success with it).
• The video for "1, 2, 3, 4" and its coming-together of romantic spirit, Chicago scenery and DIY approach.
• The much-rumored TV show based on the Grammy-nominated super huge megahit "Hey There Delilah" ("We've got this story arc... we've got this idea").
• The whirlwind that engulfed the band when "Hey There Delilah" took off.
• The band's performance on "iCarly" and the relative awesomeness of that show compared to other tween shows on Nick and Disney.
• The band's early days in the suburbs: Truly the "good old days."
• Tom's nomination for a Tony Award ("BFF" from Spongebob Squarepants: The Broadway Musical).
• The evolution of Plain White Ts: "It's been a weird one."

My guest this week is Ike Reilly, a man whose voice, lyrics and songs are entirely unique, original and unforgettable.

We talked at length about his musically interesting and wide-spanning new album, “Because the Angels.” We also talk about Ike’s music career, specifically from the release of “Salesmen and Racists” forward.

Also covered:

• Family: Working with them and writing songs about them.
• Ike’s milkshakes bring all the podcasters to the yard.
• I’ll straddle anything.
• Would Ike ever write a book? How about a screenplay?
• The latest developments in the Ike Reilly documentary.
• The song on Because the Angels that had a highly memorable live reaction, and also stands as Ike’s favorite recording.

For this recording, we met at Buona in Mount Prospect (861 E Rand Rd, Mt Prospect, IL 60056). We made it a hot dog night... he had the Chicago dog and I had the double dog. Ike wisely added a vanilla shake to his order.

Speaking of Buona, Christmas is SATURDAY. If you’ve procrastinated gifts and stocking stuffers, load up on Buona gift cards. When you buy 25 dollars in gift cards, you get a five dollar bonus card for free (do it in-store or online)!

Tom Higgenson of Plain White Ts/Million Miler is one of my favorite guests. He’s a mega-talented guy with an enviable list of accomplishments (Grammy & Tony nominee, VMA nominee, Teen Choice winner), but he’s still the humble, hard-working, midwestern guy he’s always been.

He jumped in my car to talk about his record label’s upcoming holiday special: The Humans Were Here Holiday Extravaganza, happening live Sunday night (12/19). Get tickets at humanswerehere.com.

We talked about his label, making music, the divergent 80s path of Million Miler and what’s next for the Ts. We also talked a lot about music, which is always easy to do with Tom.

As for dinner tonight? We were lucky to have our meal provided by the amazing people of Buona. We ate at the Countryside location (20 W. Plainfield). I had the beef & giardiniera pizza, and I swear I could eat that every day for the rest of my life.

Look, the clock’s ticking. The holidays are coming up, and if you still haven’t figured out food for your office party... your house party... your gathering of friends... let Buona take care of everything. They cater. You party. Try their signature Italian beef as a ready-made sandwich... or a side of delicious rigatoni marinara.. Starting at 12.95 per person... be a hero this holiday season, and feed your guests Buona!

Michael Vallez of the Rotten Drapes is tonight's guest.

Car Con Carne is sponsored by C&H Financial Services and Siren Records McHenry

David McMillin of Fort Frances returns to Car Con Carne, as the band’s new song, “If You Look Hard Enough” is gathering attention. The song is the band’s self-described “most optimistic” tune yet, and it's available in two versions: full band and piano/solo. You should listen to both.

I always enjoy talking to David... and if you’re watching on Facebook or YouTube, see if you agree that he looks like your cool philosophy professor from college.