June 4 - 10, 2017
1. The Cracked Podcast - "A Farewell To Cracked Editor-in-Chief Jack O'Brien"
The Cracked Podcast is one of the longest tenured shows in my regular listening lineup, and that is due in part to the amiable genius of host Jack O'Brien. O'Brien edits Cracked.com, and he brings a humble sincerity to each and every episode of the podcast. His every-man self-deprecating ethos strikes a perfect balance of humor, insight and respect for humanity, all of which coincides to create a sense that he is incredibly smart but far too humble to ever come out and say it. On this, the final episode with O'Brien as host, the man who created a revolution in research-based comedy journalism takes a look back at the mountain of topics covered over the years with the ever-expanding list of contributors. Long-time fans will appreciate the episode for it's nostalgia, but this would also serve as a decent sampler platter to the first-time listener looking for a taste of the show. The Cracked Podcast will soldier on under the capable shoulders of new host (and frequent podcast guest) Alex Schmidt, and I have every bit of confidence that the integrity of the show will be carried on admirably.
2. Code Switch - "Give It Up For DJ Blackface!"
Music, history, racial identity, a mysterious producer - "Give It Up For DJ Blackface!" seems to have it all. This story follows the strange practice of appropriating predominantly black culture narratives in service of promoting music that has been increasingly usurped by an industry flush with anglo-European influence. From the foundations of house music to the controversial promotional campaign featuring a fictional persona form Gary, Indiana, there is a lot packed into this relatively short episode (clocking in at a cool 28 minutes and 30 seconds). It's also worth noting that the Code Switch team takes on a bit more of an investigatory approach to this story, and it works swimmingly.
3. The Room Where It's Happening - "Mara Wilson: Live from NYC Pod Fest"
From musical director Alex Lacamoire to John Tesh and Kristin Chenoweth, The Room Where It's Happening has managed to land a fair amount of legit star-power to come on the show and squeal about the Hamilton. Those episodes have been great, to be sure, but there have also been a number of amazingly talented and relatively unknown people to gab alongside Mike Drucker and Travon Free. Mara Wilson fits the latter description; though her face is recognizable as the child actress who played the title role in the movie adaptation of Matilda, Wilson brings a jovial wit and deep theatre geekiness to the show. This was as charming an episode as any of those with bigger-name guests, with the added value of enjoying the show free of potentially burdensome preconceptions.
HONORABLE MENTION
I was traveling much of this past week and didn't get through anywhere near the volume of podcasts as is typical for me, so this week there aren't any specific episode mentions in this section. I did, however, listen to a lot of Mike Pesca's The Gist and would recommend the show to anyone with a small thirst for current events and a deep desire for humor. Check out the profile on the show here, featured as part of #TryPod a few months back.
SOMETHING NEW
Conspiracy Thrillers Movie Club
As producers of a myriad (nay, a Panoply) of podcasts, Slate.com has a solid grasp on the intellectual talking head market. Many have tried to pull of the casual banter driven archetype, but many, many more have failed miserably. There are admittedly moments of eye-roll inducing inflexible elitism, but I'll take this occasionally in exchange for an ultra-high standard of quality discourse between informed individuals. This is a long way of preempting the inevitable reaction to seeing the title of this show - "Who needs another podcast about movies?" True, the market is saturated with geniuses and rubes alike holding court on all things cinema, but the beauty to Conspiracy Thrillers Movie Club is in the specificity. The series, which is behind the Slate Plus paywall after the initial episode on The Manchurian Candidate, hones in on a sub-genre that tends to get overlooked from the standpoint of cultural gatekeepers. Co-hosts Sam Adams and Mark Harris get pleasingly granular in their analysis, and the production value is high with the smooth integration of select film clips. I hadn't seen either version of the film at hand, but I still found the show to be a rich listening experience. In a year where Get Out (a topic of another episode in the series) is one of the most highly acclaimed films out thus far, rendering serious thought to films often tossed aside as fodder for a date night is quite timely.
Conspiracy Thrillers Movie Club Recommended for: Tin-hat wearing loonies and their curious (more closeted) cousins
Rating: Gotta Have It
The Cracked Podcast is one of the longest tenured shows in my regular listening lineup, and that is due in part to the amiable genius of host Jack O'Brien. O'Brien edits Cracked.com, and he brings a humble sincerity to each and every episode of the podcast. His every-man self-deprecating ethos strikes a perfect balance of humor, insight and respect for humanity, all of which coincides to create a sense that he is incredibly smart but far too humble to ever come out and say it. On this, the final episode with O'Brien as host, the man who created a revolution in research-based comedy journalism takes a look back at the mountain of topics covered over the years with the ever-expanding list of contributors. Long-time fans will appreciate the episode for it's nostalgia, but this would also serve as a decent sampler platter to the first-time listener looking for a taste of the show. The Cracked Podcast will soldier on under the capable shoulders of new host (and frequent podcast guest) Alex Schmidt, and I have every bit of confidence that the integrity of the show will be carried on admirably.
2. Code Switch - "Give It Up For DJ Blackface!"
Music, history, racial identity, a mysterious producer - "Give It Up For DJ Blackface!" seems to have it all. This story follows the strange practice of appropriating predominantly black culture narratives in service of promoting music that has been increasingly usurped by an industry flush with anglo-European influence. From the foundations of house music to the controversial promotional campaign featuring a fictional persona form Gary, Indiana, there is a lot packed into this relatively short episode (clocking in at a cool 28 minutes and 30 seconds). It's also worth noting that the Code Switch team takes on a bit more of an investigatory approach to this story, and it works swimmingly.
3. The Room Where It's Happening - "Mara Wilson: Live from NYC Pod Fest"
From musical director Alex Lacamoire to John Tesh and Kristin Chenoweth, The Room Where It's Happening has managed to land a fair amount of legit star-power to come on the show and squeal about the Hamilton. Those episodes have been great, to be sure, but there have also been a number of amazingly talented and relatively unknown people to gab alongside Mike Drucker and Travon Free. Mara Wilson fits the latter description; though her face is recognizable as the child actress who played the title role in the movie adaptation of Matilda, Wilson brings a jovial wit and deep theatre geekiness to the show. This was as charming an episode as any of those with bigger-name guests, with the added value of enjoying the show free of potentially burdensome preconceptions.
HONORABLE MENTION
I was traveling much of this past week and didn't get through anywhere near the volume of podcasts as is typical for me, so this week there aren't any specific episode mentions in this section. I did, however, listen to a lot of Mike Pesca's The Gist and would recommend the show to anyone with a small thirst for current events and a deep desire for humor. Check out the profile on the show here, featured as part of #TryPod a few months back.
SOMETHING NEW
Conspiracy Thrillers Movie Club
As producers of a myriad (nay, a Panoply) of podcasts, Slate.com has a solid grasp on the intellectual talking head market. Many have tried to pull of the casual banter driven archetype, but many, many more have failed miserably. There are admittedly moments of eye-roll inducing inflexible elitism, but I'll take this occasionally in exchange for an ultra-high standard of quality discourse between informed individuals. This is a long way of preempting the inevitable reaction to seeing the title of this show - "Who needs another podcast about movies?" True, the market is saturated with geniuses and rubes alike holding court on all things cinema, but the beauty to Conspiracy Thrillers Movie Club is in the specificity. The series, which is behind the Slate Plus paywall after the initial episode on The Manchurian Candidate, hones in on a sub-genre that tends to get overlooked from the standpoint of cultural gatekeepers. Co-hosts Sam Adams and Mark Harris get pleasingly granular in their analysis, and the production value is high with the smooth integration of select film clips. I hadn't seen either version of the film at hand, but I still found the show to be a rich listening experience. In a year where Get Out (a topic of another episode in the series) is one of the most highly acclaimed films out thus far, rendering serious thought to films often tossed aside as fodder for a date night is quite timely.
Conspiracy Thrillers Movie Club Recommended for: Tin-hat wearing loonies and their curious (more closeted) cousins
Rating: Gotta Have It
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