Vol. 170: A Deep Dive Into Music & Meaning with Polyphonic’s Noah Lefevre
We’re not gonna lie—this one is a dream come true. Noah Lefevre, the creator behind Polyphonic, is one of our all-time favourite music content creators, and we were beyond honoured when he agreed to join us for this episode of Strange Grooves.
If you’ve never watched his content before, stop what you’re doing and dive in. Noah brings deep, entertaining, and insightful analysis to music—past and present—through a lens that blends journalism, storytelling, and cultural critique in a way nobody else does. He’s a true music journalist, and we’re thrilled to share this conversation.
From Punk Beginnings to Music Journalism
We kick things off by asking Noah where his passion for music began. His answer? Punk rock. Bands like Billy Talent and System of a Down shaped his early relationship with music, and a school project analyzing “B.Y.O.B.” in the 8th grade marked his first taste of musical analysis. That rebellious spirit? It all clicked when he first heard American Idiot by Green Day—an album he still cites as pivotal.
Building Polyphonic: From Brews & Tunes to Viral Essays
Noah shares how Polyphonic was born—from his background in journalism and early experiments with a podcast called Brews and Tunes, to going all in on YouTube. His breakthrough video on John Mayer blew up, and before long, he was creating music video essays full-time.
We even pitch him a fun idea to react to his own viral videos… Stay tuned, because he just might do it.
Crafting the Content: Curiosity, Rigor, and Respect
Whether it’s a Led Zeppelin retrospective or a series on the evolution of music videos, Noah’s work is known for its thoughtfulness. He walks us through his research process—starting with Wikipedia, sure, but always verifying through primary sources and digging deeper. One great example? Debunking a myth about Jimi Hendrix and Rory Gallagher through careful research.
Noah also talks about the balance of using well-known topics as a gateway to introduce new ideas—something all creators and music lovers can relate to.
Canadian Deep Cuts, Ghost Notes & A Century of Song
As a Canadian, Noah shares his excitement about covering more homegrown music, including plans for a short-form series on Canadian deep cuts—think The Tragically Hip and Blue Rodeo. We are so here for that.
He also tells us about Ghost Notes, his podcast with Corey from 12Tone, and Century of Song, his upcoming book that explores American music history through 100 songs. (Yes, it sounds as epic as it is.)
Try New Music—You Might Just Love It
In true Strange Grooves fashion, we wrap with a reminder from Noah that’s worth repeating: keep exploring. Try different genres, challenge your tastes, and let music surprise you.
🎧 Watch or listen to the full episode below or wherever you get your podcasts!
👇 Don’t miss this conversation:
