Pop music surrounds us, but how often do we really listen to what we’re hearing? Switched on Pop is the podcast that pulls back the curtain on pop music. Each episode, join musicologist Nate Sloan and songwriter Charlie Harding as they reveal the secret formulas that make pop songs so infectious. By figuring out how pop hits work their magic, you’ll fall in love with songs you didn’t even know you liked.

Many people write us with musical maladies and conspiracies. A recent one caught our attention.

Daniel Armbruster, lead vocalist of indie band Joywave, has been hearing the same melody on songs all across the Alt-rock charts. He believes that this hook could be the secret to securing a place on the Billboard.

Nate and Charlie investigate this issue, traveling from the contemporary charts, all the back to the archaic musical scale. The stakes are high: is it possible to hack your way into a hit alt-rock song?

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