Whether he is writing books about Unconventional Vehicles, hosting a PBS series on Unusual Creatures, or composing the soundtracks for films like To Be Takei and Hunky Jesus, Hearst has spent his career exploring the weird, wonderful, and unexpected.

In his current and ongoing musical feat, 80 From The 80s, Hearst reimagines eighty songs from the 1980s, drawing on his lifelong fascination with strange sounds and instruments and an incredible roster of guest vocalists including John Linnell (They Might Be Giants), Tanya Donelly, Ezra Furman, Martha Wainwright, and many more.

He is also a founding member of the band One Ring Zero, known for The Recipe Project (singing top chefs' recipes word-for-word) and collaborations with literary icons like Paul Auster, Margaret Atwood, and Dave Eggers.

From touring with The Magnetic Fields to lecturing at museums worldwide, Hearst's work has been featured on Fresh Air, The Today Show, and in the speakers of ice cream trucks across the globe.

Albums

Schwa — Footleg Room (1991) (Joe Lee Records)
Schwa — Phoney Karate (1992) (Joe Lee Records)
Fashion Central — Underwood (1994) (Brilliant Records)
Maud Gonne — Buff Silky (1996) (Urban Geek Records)
Maud Gonne — Bonus Songs (1997) (Urban Geek Records)
Anon — Anon (1998) (Urban Geek Records)
One Ring Zero — Tranz Party (1999) (Planetary Records)
One Ring Zero — Alice (2001) (Urban Geek Records)
One Ring Zero — Interludes and Out-takes from The Pumpkin Pie Show (2001) (Urban Geek Records)
One Ring Zero — Memorandum (2002) (Urban Geek Records)
One Ring Zero — As Smart As We Are (2004) (Soft Skull Press)
Rick Moody & One Ring Zero — Rick Moody and One Ring Zero (2004) (Isota Records)
One Ring Zero — New York Spleen (2005) (Naïve Records-France)
Sophie Auster — Sophie Auster (2005) (Actes Sud / Naïve Records)
One Ring Zero — As Smart As We Are (2006) (Barbes Records)
One Ring Zero — Wake Them Up (2006) (Barbes Records)
One Ring Zero — Wake Them Up (2007) (Moor Works-Japan)
Michael Hearst — Songs For Ice Cream Trucks (2007) (Urban Geek Records / Bar-None Records)
Beat Circus — Dreamland (2008) (Cuneiform Records)
One Ring Zero — Live At Barbes (2008) (Barbes Records)
One Ring Zero — Ten Years Of Extra Stuff (2009) (Urban Geek Records)
One Ring Zero — Planets (2010) (Moor Works-Japan)
One Ring Zero — Planets (2010) (Urban Geek Records)
One Ring Zero — As Smart As We Are (2010) (Moor Works-Japan)
One Ring Zero — The Recipe Project (2011) (Urban Geek Records / Black Balloon Publishing)
Michael Hearst — Songs For Unusual Creatures (2012) (Urban Geek Records)
Michael Hearst — To Be Takei (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2014) (Urban Geek Records)
Michael Hearst — Songs For Fearful Flyers (2014) (Urban Geek Records)
Michael Hearst — Songs For Extraordinary People (2017) (Urban Geek Records)
Michael Hearst — Songs For Unconventional Vehicles (2021) (Urban Geek Records)
Mean Marcus — Say Hello To The Party (2023) (Urban Geek Records)
Michael Hearst — 80 From The 80s, Vol. 1 (2025) (Urban Geek Records)
Michael Hearst — 80 From The 80s, Vol. 2 (2026) (Urban Geek Records)

EPs

Schwa — Schwa (1993) (Brilliant Records)
Fashion Central — Fashion Central (1995) (Spin Art Records)
One Ring Zero — The Sirens of Red Hot (2004) (Isota Records)
One Ring Zero & Rick Moody (2004) (Isota Records)
Michael Hearst — Songs For Curious Constructions EP (2019) (Urban Geek Records)

Film Scores

Late Bloomer (2004), dir. Craig Macneill — with One Ring Zero
The Good Mother (2009), dir. Sarah Klein
Nicht Lustig (2010), dir. Gerd Schneider
The House of Suh (2010), dir. Iris K. Shim
Magic Camp (2012), dir. Judd Ehrlich
Kate Bornstein is a Queer and Pleasant Danger (2013), dir. Sam Feder
To Be Takei (2014), dir. Jennifer M. Kroot
Chicken People (2016), dir. Nicole Lucas Haimes
The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin (2017), dir. Jennifer M. Kroot
The Good, The Bad, The Hungry (2019), dir. Nicole Lucas Haimes
Hunky Jesus (2026), dir. Jennifer M. Kroot

Books

As Smart As We Are (2004) (Soft Skull Press)
New York Spleen (2005) (Naïve Records-France)
The Recipe Project (2011) (Black Balloon Publishing)
Unusual Creatures (2012) (Chronicle Books)
Extraordinary People (2015) (Chronicle Books)
Curious Constructions (2017) (Chronicle Books)
Unconventional Vehicles (2021) (Chronicle Books)
Insect Anatomy with Julia Rothman (2025) (Storey Publishing)
Bird Anatomy with Julia Rothman (2026) (Storey Publishing)

Video

One Ring Zero — Addendum (2005) (music video collection)
One Ring Zero — As Smart As They Are (2006) (documentary film)
Ode To Odd Instruments (2012)
Songs For Unusual Creatures (2013–2014) (PBS Digital, 10-episode series)

Dance

Alice — Star Foster Dance Company (2002)
Bridge Of Sighs — Kate Weare Company (2011)
Mandorla — Rocha Dance Theatre (2012)

Theater

The Pumpkin Pie Show — Clay McLeaod Chapman (2000-2006)