Ep499: Alice Bag and Kid Congo Powers – Jungle Cruising with Juanita & Juan
The Vinyl Guide - Artist Interviews for Record Collectors and Music Nerds
Nate Goyer
4.7 • 579 Ratings
🗓️ 26 May 2025
⏱️ 65 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Punk legends Alice Bag and Kid Congo Powers discuss their collaborative lounge project "Juanita and Juan", reflect on the diverse, inclusive LA punk scene, discussing moments like the first Germs show, the "Up in Smoke" filming, and the tight-knit community that reshaped music forever.
Topics Include:
- Alice Bag and Kid Congo Powers introduce collaborative project
- Known each other for decades from LA punk scene
- Project started with mysterious Hollywood call for Latin song
- Characters Juanita and Juan have elaborate fictional backstory
- Sound described as "loud lounge, punk folk" style
- Uses electronic music, keyboards, minimal guitar, tropical beats
- Album titled "Jungle Cruise" released on In the Red
- Songs are autobiographical, including "Here Comes the Prez"
- Originally planned for book readings with musical interludes
- Both authors used music to ease reading nervousness
- LA punk scene was incredibly diverse and inclusive
- Lasted only 18 months but reshaped music forever
- Everyone contributed something to the tight-knit community
- Alice witnessed first chaotic Germs performance with groceries
- Both attended "Up in Smoke" Battle of Bands filming
- Kid visible in background of unreleased Germs footage
- Darby Crash's death discussed - overdose versus suicide debate
- Bags single "Survive" now worth $1000 to collectors
- Both still actively collecting and occasionally selling records
- Planning more Juanita and Juan material, considering Australia tour
Order Juanita and Juan's "Jungle Cruise" vinyl here.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Welcome to the Vinyl Guide, the podcast for record collectors and music nerds. |
| 0:10.1 | Here's your host, the biggest record nerd of them all, Nate Goyer. |
| 0:13.5 | Well, hey, everyone, it's Nate. |
| 0:15.2 | Welcome to episode 499 of the Vinyl Guide. |
| 0:18.9 | 499, 499. |
| 0:21.3 | 499. |
| 0:21.4 | One shy of 500. |
| 0:23.3 | This is the podcast for record collectors and music nerds. |
| 0:26.8 | And ladies and gentlemen, a very special week this week. |
| 0:29.3 | We've got two guests. |
| 0:30.8 | Punk pioneers, Alice Bagg, and Kid Congo Powers, who are actually two of the loveliest people |
| 0:37.4 | you could ever meet. |
| 0:38.4 | And today we discuss a myriad of topics. |
| 0:40.8 | We talk about the early L.A. punk scene, the filming of the up-and-smoked Battle of the Band |
| 0:46.0 | scene, the death of Darby Crash, the collectibility of Survive, the Danger House |
| 0:50.9 | Bag single, and lots more. And we deep dive into their latest project, Juanita and Juan, which they describe as a loud lounge punk folk project. They've got a new LP Jungle Cruise. It's available now on In the Red Records. You could pop open your mobile phone right now and listen to Juan Nita and Juan streaming on any streaming services right now. |
| 1:13.8 | And if your local record shop doesn't have a vinyl copy, well, hassle them until they do. |
| 1:18.4 | It's a fun spin, Jungle Cruise by Juanita and Juan. |
| 1:22.5 | Now, before we start the interview, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention again. |
| 1:26.5 | This is episode 499. Next week, I'll be sharing |
| 1:30.5 | episode 500, and I'm pretty excited about it. So if you could all just please take a moment to check |
| 1:37.3 | slash verify that you're properly following the vinyl guide in your podcast app. In most podcast apps, like Spotify, Apple Podcasts and whatnot, there's a little follow button. |
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