> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bubandpop.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Episode 18: Karina Rykman! - URL: https://www.bubandpop.com/episode-18-karina-rykman-2/ - Published: 2026-10-02T22:00:11.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-03T18:14:00.000Z - Description: Karina Rykman on her new album Late Checkout: a month of writing ten hours a day with Gabe Monro, tracking live at the Barn, finishing at DFA, and how the sad closer started as a System of a Down song. Plus the death crack in the van. - Author: Matt Hoffman **Bub & Pop | Episode 18: Karina Rykman** (recorded September 15, 2026) The first time Karina Rykman and I talked was not long after her first show in Philly, which [I reviewed for *Relix*](https://relix.com/reviews/detail/karina-rykman-at-milkboy?ref=bubandpop.com). She told me to remind her to tell me about the death crack in the van. It took a few years, but I finally asked, and that’s where this one starts. [Episode 18: Karina RykmanKarina Rykman has been touring since she was 17\. We talk about her new album, Late Checkout: a month of writing ten hours a day with Gabe Monro, tracking live at the Barn in Vermont, finishing at James Murphy’s DFA studio, and how the sad song that closes the record started as System of a Down’s “Mr. Jack.”Bub & PopMatt Hoffman![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/96/b9/96b93614-6cf3-4171-9c3d-fd372ff27e5a/content/images/2026/10/ep18_tedd_v3_landscape_ghost.jpg)](https://www.bubandpop.com/episode-18-karina-rykman/) Karina’s been touring since she was 17: a hired gun in a lot of bands, then on the road with Marco Benevento's trio, and now fronting her own. Along the way she worked a lot of music-related jobs, even while she was still at NYU, where she met the guys who would become her bandmates. While it may not be a conventional path, "everything has informed everything," as she puts it. Most of our conversation is about her new album, *Late Checkout,* which [I also reviewed for *Relix*](https://relix.com/reviews/detail/karina-rykman-late-checkout?ref=bubandpop.com). Her first record was called *Joyride*, a ride with no destination; a late checkout is staying right where you are. Either way, it’s all about the journey. We get into how “Easy, Rider” came out of a stay at a friend’s ranch in Boonville, California, after High Sierra; the month she and her producer and co-writer Gabe Monro spent writing ten hours a day; tracking live at the Barn in Vermont, then finishing the vocals and synths at DFA, James Murphy’s studio; and the non-obvious relationship between “Where You At,” her first sad song, and System of a Down’s “Mr. Jack." *Late Checkout* came out September 25. --- Baygrass was amazing – here's the [review](https://www.jambase.com/article/annapolis-baygrass-festival-2026-review?ref=bubandpop.com) I wrote for *JamBase*. I met a ton of great artists, writers, podcasters, and others – we had a bunch of amazing conversations there as well and will look forward to sharing them with y'all soon! My first *CREEM* and *Guitar World* pieces should hit soon. I also just wrote a [piece](https://liveforlivemusic.com/features/youve-got-to-see-this-rilo-kiley-camcorder-dive-2002/?ref=bubandpop.com) for *Live for Live Music* about an old Rilo Kiley YouTube video – four of them, actually – that I've watched at least once a year since I first uncovered it over a decade ago. I first saw Rilo Kiley at the Troc (RIP) in 2007\. (Just dug up my ticket stub.) I also saw them last year at the Met and [reviewed the show](https://glidemagazine.com/317082/rilo-kiley-rocks-philadelphias-met-opera-house-with-connective-vitality-show-review-photos/?ref=bubandpop.com). Really enjoyed writing this one and will share as they go live. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/96/b9/96b93614-6cf3-4171-9c3d-fd372ff27e5a/content/images/2026/10/IMG_2485.jpeg) **What I'm Reading** I also connected with a writer named Michaelangelo Matos, who wrote a great article for *Rolling Stone* about private equity and music rights. ([Here's a link to a version behind the paywall](https://archive.is/6Yl3p?ref=bubandpop.com).) I've been following and thinking/talking/writing about this topic, so it was cool to connect with someone else who's done so. **Recently Added** I just connected with a great new band called [Jawdropped](https://jawdropped.life/?ref=bubandpop.com) – I'm currently working on a piece about them and will share it once it's live. In the meantime, check out their debut LP, [*Secret to Spare*](https://transgressive.lnk.to/secrettospare?ref=bubandpop.com). They're playing a release show tonight in LA, for those who are around for a good show. (Tickets [here](https://link.seated.com/adef6cb1-00bd-4cd3-9f36-960433a84ce0'?ref=bubandpop.com).)