*...formerly titled "Jedi"

Hear how we ended up in the little mountain town we grew up in. Some of the experiences that shaped us make us wonder how to implement those ordeals without havin' to recreate them.

We get into not knowin' one dad all the way up to the culture shock of livin' with our new one.

This episode also includes the second installment of our new segment "Shop Talk." Enjoy!

*...formerly titled "Tough"

Yeah, I made y'all wait a couple extra days on this one, but it's worth it!

Nick remembers what got him fascinated with tattoos way back in the day. Josh, unsurprisingly, struggles to share that memory. That leads to talk about ink-pen tattoos done by Josh on several people, all the way up to how Nick met the legend they call 'GRIZ.'

His name can still be seen around Alley Cat on old flash here and there, and meeting him led to the Griz & Troy partnership that eventually became Alley Cat and the rest of the story you've been gettin' pieces of.

Stick around towards the end of this episode because we have a brand new segment for you that all you tattooers are going to LOVE, and everyone else will find entertaining, too. It's called Shop Talk and this first one is with Andrew Conner who was featured on two earlier very popular episodes, and Chris 'Tatter' Porter. They bullshit with Nick and it's excellent.

Check it out now.

*...formerly titled "Buckle"

Hey bullshitters - this one's gonna sound a bit weird after those great Conner episodes. See - we're still figurin' this shit out and this one was recorded before we got Andrew on here. So I think we call it episode five and we talk about just getting our name and website.

Ignore that shit and enjoy the stories. It's a bit short, but I think talk about our new president is gonna be fillin' everyone's days for a bit anyway. Use this as a break from the insanity and enjoy!

That's Poor Farm playin' in the intro. You'll be hearing more from them and hell - maybe even live on on an episode. Keep listenin' - we're havin' a kick-ass time makin' em!

*...formerly titled "Damie"

I won't waste time with a long description on this one. If you didn't catch Episode Five, it was part one of Nick talkin' with the amazingly talented and loyal Andrew Conner.

This is Part Two.

Listen.

*...formerly titled "Precedence"

Nick & Andrew have been best friends, roommates, coworkers and partners in crime for a long damn time. Listen in on some casual conversation between them beginning with their first house (or hovel) they rented and back and forth through the last couple of decades.

Hear stories from how Conner got involved in the tattoo game, nighttime shenanigans shared by the duo and just a lot of bullshit that we know you love.

This is part one of two since these guys had a LOT to talk about. We thought we'd split it up into two episodes. Part two will be up later this week.

Get to it and thanks for kickin' it with us.

*...formerly titled "Bit"

On what would become the hill we learned to skateboard on, Nick's first encounter involves his face scrapin' down the sumbitch after fallin' out of the Scout.

What do you do when you're visitin' someone's house and their step dad takes a literal bite of your toe? That doozy and a bonus bitin' story by Nick in this episode. How could you not?

Finally, let's start talking about Nick's tattoos. Starting with the first.

We're takin' the liberty o' bullshittin' y'all. Enjoy.

*...formerly titled "Duck"

Nick goes on the road for A Captive Bead Co. solo and his first customer experience is freakin' memorable. Acquaintances reappear later.

The brothers begin to think about some of the characters they remember bein' around growing up and talk about a few stories involving them.

The Famous Cafe is introduced as a character sure to make a return.

We get a good Harlan story that may have had an effect on Nick.

Enjoy the bullshit and thanks for hangin' in as we tighten it up and get into this groove.

*...formerly titled "Pop-off"

The reception for Episode One was excellent! We've got a few of these things laid down kinda rough, so that'll be these first few episodes.

Join Nick at a punk show, then take a little trip with him in his recollection of "HIS Roanoke" in a club for some not-so-gentle men. It's a good one.

Meet Uncle Benny in the first of what are sure to be MANY stories where he'll pop up. "Millie" goes off on your hero and the brothers Swartz share a laugh rememberin' it all.

Our intro & outro music on this one are by a group made up of some of our best friends in the world. They're sure to make appearances on here in the future, musically and in and givin' good stories. This one's got Robin & Skylar on guitar with Raw Bone singin' a great tune called simply "Virginia."

Enjoy.

*...formerly titled "Establish"

In this episode, brothers Nick & Josh Swartz set the phone on the desk between them and hit record. These stories have been requested for years and now they're finally going to be accessible. Join us on the journey to figure out how best to present them.

Topics run the gambit on this one from how Nick got to Harrisonburg to how he got into business with his brother. Hear the fateful decision that made the entire thing possible and listen for clues to a huge cast of characters who will appear in a million future stories.

The intro & outro music for this first episode are by an old punk band called Brave New World that's not together any longer, but contains some of the people mentioned on this podcast and was fronted by former Alley Cat Tattoo artist and definite future No Lies Just Bullshit guest Brian Gray.