Sorry if this is a dumb question, but who were the Gerhardts torturing/interrogating in the opening scene?

Oh god, that's right. Swig every time someone says 'Bob', down it every time someone says 'Hi, Bob'. I don't think we ever made it through a whole episode.

Yes! 'here's Bob, and his wife Emily, she loves him a lot, he's a psychologist…'
as i remember it, anyway.

It helps a lot if you think of him as a comic genius rather than a proper singer. 

Thanks for mentioning the Quietus feature. I checked it out and was really impressed by his take on the Byrds, Beatles, Dylan, Bowie, etc. Very insightful.