FEATURE: 5 podcasts for lovers of ‘weird’
Photo by John Soltes.
For your listening pleasure, here are five of the best podcasts that are currently spinning yarns — both real and imagined — and offering commentary on all things wondrously weird. These are selections for cinephiles, horror fiends and lovers of cultural footnotes. Ranking these shows is purely a subjective enterprise, but Hollywood Soapbox stands behind these picks for some of the best audio storytelling in the world of podcasts.
5. The Severin Films Podcast
Severin Films is one of the best boutique physical-media companies in the world. They keep pumping out fascinating titles, often forgotten by mainstream film lovers, in jam-packed box sets that feature interviews, documentaries and trailers. Every month, the creatives of Severin jump on the podcast bandwagon for a gargantuan show of seismic proportions. The first part is a roundtable discussion of new titles that are about to be unleashed on the masses. The tone is a humorous chat amongst genre film devotees, but it’s also educational how much these team members know about this corner of the physical-media world. Past episodes have dug up tasty morsels on Lamberto Bava, Cliff Twemlow, Doctor Who, Russ Meyer and the Scala movie palace in London. The second part of each episode is a curated song list — like a DJ set — that is influenced by that month’s film picks. Long live Severin.
4. Mahoning Drive-In Radio
There is no drive-in theater like the Mahoning in Lehighton, Pennsylvania, and there may be no other podcast in the world that celebrates drive-in culture like Mahoning Drive-In Radio. A recent episode welcomed guest Mike Weatherford, writer of The Drive-In Kings of 1977 comic book, to offer some thoughts on the Mahoning’s June offerings, including Schlock-O-Rama IX, set for June 27-28, when Exhumed Films stops by to offer screenings of eight films on 35mm. That allowed Weatherford and Mark Nelson, the Mahoning’s general manager, to talk about everything from Seven Bros Meet Dracula to The Devil’s Rain. Other episodes have welcomed guests like Brett Ryan Bonowicz of the Odyssey Film Institute, Greg Mills of the High-Way Drive-In Theatre in New York, and Joe Berger and Jeff Cashvan of The Deuce Film Series in Brooklyn. Virgil Cardamone, partner and film booker of the Mahoning, is Mark’s co-host and a constant presence on the drive-in lot.
3. Radio Rental
Radio Rental is one of the best narrative podcasts in the business. Host Terry Carnation, brought to audio life by Rainn Wilson, shuffles through a collection of VHS tapes to find scary stories that are based on true encounters. The tales are quite creepy, running from true crime to the paranormal. They are short morsels, told in monologue fashion usually by the person impacted by the encounter (or so it would seem). For those with a penchant for horror programming, Radio Rental is worth a listen.
2. The Antiquarium of Sinister Happenings
The good folks who bring The Boo Crew podcast to life have branched off into fictional horror storytelling with The Antiquarium of Sinister Happenings. With a similar format to Radio Rental, this audio show features Stephen Knowles as the Antique Dealer, with theme music by the Newton Brothers. Many episodes also feature Trevor Shand, one of the hosts of The Boo Crew. This one has an Edgar Allan Poe vibe, with some H.P. Lovecraft thrown in for good measure. The episodes run approximately 30 minutes, and some of the best plots extend to a few episodes. The audio storytelling is quite addictive and features top-notch editing and production value.
1. The Dana Gould Hour
Every month, I wait for The Dana Gould Hour to be released like a child waiting for Christmas morning. There is simply nothing like this audio festival of all things “weird,” a word that is celebrated on the show and really means culturally significant but not exactly in the mainstream. Gould has taken deep dives into the worlds of David Lynch, James Bond, Ed Wood, Ida Lupino, cults, Fritz Lang’s M and magic, among other topics. Helping him with these explorations are invited guests, usually authors who have new books or fellow podcast hosts, all of them experts in their corner of pop culture. After the Q&A sessions, the listeners are given a monologue by Gould called “True Tales From Weirdsville,” which are stories about various cultural phenomena, everything from Dracula to A Face in the Crowd. The reason The Dana Gould Hour works so well is because Gould is a comedian with a witty sense of humor, and his obsessions are shared by this reviewer (and likely many of his listeners). He speaks David Lynch. He bleeds Ed Wood. He is a permanent resident of Roger Corman-land. He has a lot to say, with most episodes clocking in at more than two hours, but every bit of his audio storytelling is inspired fun, hilariously rendered and wondrously weird.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
