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The Best Podcasts You Should Be Listening To (2016 Edition)

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Best Podcasts 2016

Best Podcasts 2016

It’s 2012, I’m newly single and I’m working at a sleazy “small business financing” company which I am coming to learn feels more like a loan shark than a lender. After working in a gaming startup, the Midtown office seems decidedly Dilbertesque with the cubicles, buzzwords and business wear I had convinced myself I’d never have to experience. I’m at least a decade younger than anyone else in the office, not that see much of anyone on an average day since I’m the only person in my department. I spend a hearty portion of my day wondering how my life went so wrong — I certainly have the time, this office moves more like a glacier slowly crushing my concept of life planning.

But my day has one saving grace: I can put in my earbuds and be somewhere else for a while. A place where I’m surrounded with the sparkling and witty conversation I remember from before my friends chose to stay in Upstate New York. A place where my creativity is stimulated and I’m filled with a sense of infinite potential. Podcasting, I realize, is a world where you can make people happy with only a USB microphone and engaging banter. The flaking cubicle ceiling has been lifted and I can see a wild blue yonder for the first time in a longer than I’ve cared to keep track of.

Today, things are much better for me. I have a great job and a happy home with the woman I love. I’ve begun podcasting myself, and I’ve never lost my reverence or undying enthusiasm for the medium that helped me through one of the worst chapters of my life. That’s why I want to share a small sampling of my favorite podcasts which I consume voraciously and have helped shape the kind of podcast I hope to make. And for those of you surrounded by darkness, maybe podcasts like these will be a light for you as they have been for me.

Retail Nightmares podcast

#13: Retail Nightmares

 

Recommended Listening

Retail Nightmares was a newcomer in 2015 that built its fan base in part around the popularity of “co-ghost” Alicia Tobin’s frequent appearance on Stop Podcasting Yourself (also appearing on this list). I know that’s why I started listening. But what’s kept me listening is the novel conceit of the show: inviting comedians in to discuss their worst retail jobs. If you’ve ever looked at sites like Clients From Hell or Not Always Right, you’ll know that the horror stories you get from working with idiots are some of the best anecdotes imaginable, so hearing them straight from the charming and funny comedians only makes them better. Also great is the weekly “Puppo Of the Week” section, which describes weekly encounters with something adorable (dog, cat, elderly person, etc.) The show is still young but is starting to hit its stride in figuring out what it is, and what it is is turning out to be quite enjoyable.

Taxes and Tater Tots podcast

#12: Taxes and Tater Tots

 

Recommended Listening

A bit of self-promotion here but, hey, it’s good to be proud of your work. My college friends Cory, Matt and I are in our late-late twenties and coming to terms with that. Each episode, we look at another aspect of growing up like vacations, holidays, fashion and food. We discuss our own childhood experiences, our present situations and how we predict for the future. It’s a hilarious look at how we all come to be adults and how we can be functional members of society without having to “grow up.”

No Such Thing As a Fish podcast

#11: This American Life

 

Ira Glass’ This American Life is a cornerstone in the world of podcasting. It’s an incredibly long-running radio series and it perfectly blends investigative reporting, education and in-depth storytelling. Episodes generally have multiple stories which follow a theme, though some are devoted to single stories. Personally, those are my favorite because they tend to have something very important to say. It’s incredibly well produced, well sourced and in some cases has been societally important (like in the case of the ProPublica/This American Life collaborative episode breaking secret recording from the Federal Reserve that showed complacency.)

Comedy Bang Bang podcast

#10: Comedy Bang Bang

 

Before there was Comedy Bang! Bang! on IFC, there was Comedy Bang! Bang! the podcast. And in the interest of accuracy, before Comedy Bang! Bang! the podcast there was Comedy Death Ray but let’s not get into that right now. What you need to know is that Scott Aukerman is a very funny and gifted improviser who is apparently friends with every great performer in the greater Los Angeles area. The strength of CBB lies in it’s cavalcade of characters, the best of whom are voiced by Paul F. Tompkins, James Adomian, Nick Kroll and Lauren Lapkus.

International Waters podcast

#9: International Waters

 

Recommended Listening
As a topical quiz show, it’s probably best to check out the latest episode

The United States and United Kingdom have long been inseparable allies. Until now. This joint US-UK audio panel “game show”, hosted by the silver-tongued Dave Holmes, pits American and British comedians against each other in stories about current events and popular culture. Points are awarded for correct OR funny answers, and they manage to get some great talent in the contestant seats. While our cultures are very similar, you get a really interesting sense of the differences between American and British entertainment industries and national senses of humor. And humour.

The Adventure Zone podcast

#8: The Adventure Zone

 

Recommended Listening

Well met, traveler. Yes, the Dungeons & Dragons podcast is a bit of a trope now, especially comedic ones. And yes, Adventure Zone isn’t the only podcast on this list involving playing D&D (Harmontown features that segment). But this one features the McElroy brothers (more below) and their father in a tongue-bloodily-poking-through-cheek series of mini campaigns. This has got to be the most accessible fantasy podcast out there, and the character work Dungeon Master Griffin puts in makes it feel more like a funny story than a heavily-regimented game.

Sawbones podcast

#7: Sawbones

 

“A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine” is how Justin and actual, factual Dr. Sydnee McElroy brand their show and I struggle to phrase it any better. There’s a maxim about of comedy that says it’s a mixture of tragedy and time. And boy howdy, the history of medical science is filled with a lot of tragedy.

Medical science has come a long way and Sydnee does a good job of explaining complex topics in a way that’s easy to digest. Justin, on the other hand, plays the idiot perfectly. They’re funny independently but they make an even better comedy duo. In lesser hands this series could have wound up boring and pedantic but the couple make it a continuous delight.

Jordan Jesse Go!

#6: Jordan, Jesse, Go!

 

Jesse Thorn and Jordan Morris have been friends since college and the bond between them is evident the moment you hear the perfect fluidity of their conversation. JJGo is among the lowest-energy podcasts on the list, but there’s something disarmingly comfortable about their conversation. It really is like being part of a conversation with an old friend. A very funny conversation. Jordan, who is a writer for @Midnight, is an incredibly underrated talent and is bolstered by Jesse’s [relative] straightness. A lot of the series is based around living in LA which at first glance seems like a flaw but the show is so inviting that you begin to feel like you’re living the “Industry” life too.

Factor in the stream of super-talented guests from the world of stand-up, film & TV and music and you have an amazing chance to feel like you’re where the action is.

99 percent Invisible podcast

#5: 99% Invisible

 

Look around you. All the things you take for granted, from the shape of your city to the shape of your pen was painstakingly designed by someone. This serious, narrated by the silky-voiced Roman Mars, explores the honest-to-God fascinating world of architecture and design. But it’s more than that. It’s a study of why things are the way they are.

Confused? 99% Invisible plunges into the stories behind the design things great and small like the wife of an undertaker who saved her husband’s business from an unscrupulous competitor and wound up inventing the modern telephone system. Or the lawyers who fought for the write to make truly horrible television ads. You’ll find the topics are eye-opening and the production value (voice over, background music, editing) absolutely phenomenal.

Radiolab podcast

#4: Radiolab

 

Recommended Listening

Radiolab, the podcast of the WNYC radio show by the same name, is one of the most interesting podcasts I’ve come across yet. At first glance I’d describe it as a science podcast, but it’s so much more. Perhaps it would be more fitting to say that Radiolab covers the human side of physical and sociological science & discovery. Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich discuss scientific breakthroughs and human achievement with in-depth interviews and some narrative detective work.

Consistently rated as the best-produced podcast, Radiolab finds the human interest in topics that in lesser hands could seem dry. Here’s an example: instead of simply explaining the Heimlich Maneuver to you, they interview the man himself in a piece that tackles what may well be his growing mental instability, strong allegations of quackery and leads us to question whether it should be named after him at all. Radiolab is a hard-hitting, mind-expanding podcast that finds drama in places you never even knew existed.

Stop Podcasting Yourself podcast

#3: Stop Podcasting Yourself

 

There was a time when podcasting was a wide-open frontier. Comedians Dave Shumka and Graham Clark from from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada braced the rough and barren podcast landscape of 6 years ago to plant their flag with a loose-format chat show. Today it may not sound like much of a gimmick, but these are innovators we’re talking about and it shows.

Not only am I unable express how funny and personable these two are together, the show also features guests. There have been a fair share of big name guests: Paul F. Tompkins is a “bumper” (fan of the show)  who has been on many episodes, as has Moshe Kasher, Baron Vaughn, Jimmy Pardo, Debra DiGiovanni and Kyle Kinane.) But what makes this show so great isn’t the star power of the guests. I have learned more about the Canadian standup scene from this show than I ever thought I had the mental capacity to contain. I have fallen in love with a roster of amazingly talented people who regrettably do not have the level of fame they deserve, people like Alicia Tobin, Charlie Demers, Ryan Beil and Erica Sigurdson.

When I first approached the show I was hesitant because I didn’t recognize anyone associated with it, but that was almost the biggest mistake of my podcast-listening life. Dave and Graham are the perfect comedy sherpas for introducing you to a whole new world of laughs (and Graham certainly has the beard for it).

The Flop House podcast

#2: The Flop House

 

The Flop House is one of the funniest podcasts I’ve heard, and when you find out who it stars you won’t be surprised. Elliot Kalan (former head writer of The Daily Show) and Dan McCoy (Daily Show staff writer) are joined by the equally funny Stuart Wellington in what might be the original bad movie podcast since it’s over 7 years old and still the best one out there.

What sets The Flop House apart from other bad-movie podcasts like How Did This Get Made? is that where the latter would just comment about how absurd something is (Jason Mantzoukas, I’m looking at you) the Floppers do their own improv comedy riff off of it. They’re more inventive, much funnier, and infectiously addicting. Shout out to Elliot for his wonderfully annoying songs.

My Brother, My Brother and Me (MBMBAM) podcast

#1: My Brother, My Brother and Me

 

I’ll be the first to admit that My Brother, My Brother and Me seems to be a love-it-or-hate-it experience. Me? I love these brothers. Every week, Justin, Travis and Griffin McElroy take your questions and turn them alchemy-like into wisdom (along with…unfortunate questions from the Yahoo! Answers service). I cannot count the times I’ve risked getting fired cracking up while listening to this in the office. Individually they are each gifted (Justin and Griffin were founders at Polygon, Travis works in theater) but together they play off each other in a way that is so creative and organic that it makes it look easy. Hopefully not deceptively so, because they are my inspiration for trying out my own podcast.

There are 2 kinds of people in the world: people who like to hear other people laugh and people who don’t. The McElroys like to laugh, and if that’s going to put you off well, you’re missing out. Their off-the-cuff ‘goofsmithing’ will change the way you think improv and might just inspire you to take a swing at punching up your own conversations.

An interesting note, Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda is a huge fan of the podcast. He’s been on the show as a “guest-pert” (as has Eat, Pray, Love author Elizabeth Gilbert), routinely posts on the Facebook fan group, and even snuck a reference to the show into one of the musical’s iconic songs.

On My Radar:

What else should I have put on the list? Tell me in the comments.

 

The post The Best Podcasts You Should Be Listening To (2016 Edition) appeared first on Jeremy, frankly.


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