Following a long career in bands like The Walkmen and Jonathan Fire*Eater, musician Walter Martin crafted his 6th studio album, The Bear, warmed by a wood burning stove in a bright red one-room schoolhouse. Tackling themes of family, art, and the changing seasons of life, the album resonated with host Talon Stradley as his own seasons changed.

Part memoir, part musical analysis, The Song Is Never Done is a track by track exploration of Walter Martin’s album The Bear. To help us along the way is Walter Martin himself as well as his collaborators, peers, and appreciators like Matt Berninger of The National, Eric D. Johnson of Fruit Bats and Bonny Light Horseman, jazz singer-songwriter Kat Edmonson, Oscar-nominated composer Emile Mosseri, many more, and even Walter’s mom.

So stop in your tracks, take stock in where you’re at, and get ready to meet The Bear.