Sunday, January 17, 2016

Casting Pods

When I was younger, I thought that podcasts were just glorified radio shows that only old people listened to. Now that I'm older, I think that they are one of the greatest media avenues ever created! Though I don't claim to know the first thing about podcast broadcasting, it is suffice to say for the layman still living under a rock that a podcast is an audio / video channel where the channel's host can upload episodic content to the podcast client server (which I presume is maintained by Apple) which is downloaded by the subscribers as often as the channel is updated. Basically, it's like TV for your earbuds.

The genres of podcasts seem as varied and versitile as what you could find on your phone's app store: news, sports, music, food, history, religion, comedy, education, etc. And I've yet to find any podcast whose content isn't free! So whatever you're into, it's likely that there's a podcast about it and that it's being regularly updated.


Below I've listed the podcasts I'm currently subscribed to and the reasons why I keep listening. I know there's dozens more I should also check out (some of which I'll list at the end), but I've kinda got my hands full with the content I already get from these 20 podcasts. If you have any suggestions, though, don't hesitate to leave a message on the (very lonely) comment bar :)

1. Lanky Guys (Runtime: 45 mins) (Updated: once a week)


This list is structured in the order that I have my podcast app (Podcast Republic) check for new updates and it's no surprise that I have it check for Lanky Guys first. Every week, Scott Powell and Fr. Peter Mussett call in from Bolder, Colorado, to break open the Scriptures and try and find the themes and topics that tie together each of the Sunday Mass readings from the Catholic Lectionary. I can always trust on the duo to be well researched, but far from sounding like a graduate lecture they do a good job of interspersing light banter and offering concrete take-aways that are pertinent to the Christian of today.

2. Word on Fire Sermons (Runtime: 15 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


On Word on Fire Sermons, Bishop Robert Barron of Los Angeles, California, shares his homily on the upcoming Sunday's Mass readings which is regularly dense with theological, philosophical, sociological and historical discussion.

3. St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology (Runtime: 3 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Every week Dr. Scott Hahn from Steubenville, Ohio, offers in his podcast a short reflection on the Sunday Mass readings and draws out the implications of not only where do the readings fit in Salvation History but also how we are called to participate in the same.



4. UMD Newman Catholic (Runtime: 25 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Like the previous three podcasts, this is also a reflection on the Sunday readings. But unlike the rest, this podcast is recorded live and subsequently posted. Fr. Mike Schmitz, the chaplain of the Newman Center in University of Minnesota Duluth shows that the message of the Gospel is news that comes alive at any age and typically targets the homily to the college students in his care, expounding on the challenges and joys of being a disciple of Christ.

5. Catholic Stuff You Should Know (Runtime: 45 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Now that we've got Sunday at church on lock, it's time to concentrate on the other days and places where life takes place. Tackling various topics of the faith, Catholic SYSK showcases a pair of priests from the Companions of Christ from two locations (Fr. Nathan Goebel and Fr. Michael O’Loughlin in Denver, Colorado; and Fr. John Nepil and Fr. Michael Rapp in Rome, Italy) riffing on all things Catholic: forgiveness, temperament, prayer, dogma, annulments, popes, Byzantines, Balthasar, etc.

6. Halfway Saints (Runtime: 45 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Halfway Saints is a weekly informal conversation between spouses Daniel and Holly Guertin from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, shared with the world where they discuss something that has struck them throughout the past week and how reflection on this topic could bolster the faith or undermine it.

7. The Fountains of Carrots (Runtime: 65 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Run by bloggers Christy Isinger (of Fountains of Home) and Haley Stewart (of Carrots for Michaelmas), Fountains of Carrots is the quintessential Catholic mom podcast. With the help of a guest host for each episode, the pair offer a light-hearted and sophisticated take on a variety of topics ranging from homesteading, Mad Men, saint-themed cocktails, G.K. Chesterton and Greek tragedy.

8. Three Dogs North (Runtime: 35 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Three Dogs North consists of three current and former students of Mundelein Seminary who set up a weekly conference call and proceed to have edifying "bro-talk" that take life's simplicities and idiosyncrasies and plumbs to the depths of how these little things reflect God's infinite love for each one of us.

9. Hobo for Christ (Runtime: 25 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Meg Hunter-Kilmer is a former religion teacher turned hobo who felt the Lord's calling to drop everything and travel the world spreading the Gospel with her smarts and her spunk. She regularly offers retreats and reflections on nearly every Catholic topic under the sun to audiences of all sizes and demographics, and she updates her podcast with recordings of these talks.

10. My Best Friend the Rhino (Runtime: 35 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


Though the name My Best Friend the Rhino has yet to be explained, this series from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is marketed as "the Catholic podcast for non-Catholics." The two hosts, Declan Wilson and Justin Tomko, attempt to dissipate common misconceptions people have about the faith, like what is Purgatory and is the Catholic Church a cult. The episodes are typically divided into two halves, the first describing the topic and the second explaining why it matters.

11. Word on Fire Show (Runtime: 30 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


A new project, the Word on Fire Show also showcases Bishop Barron from Sermons above in an interview-based platform that has Content Director of WOF Brandon Vogt ask the bishop questions on topics as broad as atheism, preaching and the pope.

12. Theologues (Runtime: 50 minutes) (Updated: once every two weeks?)


Theologues is a roundtable discussion between a handful of Christians of varying denominations (with the occasional guest speaker) seeing how the Christian ethos interacts with culture and how key persons or practices from their respective traditions can help us maneuver through certain social and moral problems. Unfortunately, the website has been down since September and no news of getting up and running have been made apparent yet.

13. The Liturgists Podcast (Runtime: 75 minutes) (Updated: once every two weeks)


It appears to me that the space between non-denominational and agnostic is where deconstructionism lies and where The Liturgists Podcast happily resides. Being just one part of the greater Liturgist Project, hosts Michael Gungor (of Gungor fame) and Mike "Science Mike" McHargue tow the very fine line separating Christianity and post-Christianity as they embark on educated conversations around topics like LGBTQ, abortion, the multiverse and the like with the threefold approach of faith, art and science, all the while not so subtly challenging the status quo of popular religion.

14. Stuff You Should Know (Runtime: 45 minutes) (Updated: twice a week)

Stuff You Should Know logo

So now that I have convinced the world (and myself) of my solid religiosity with the number of Christian podcasts I subscribe to, now its time to talk about those other heathen channels.... All sarcasm aside, SYSK is my favorite educational media because it is the most fun I have the most frequently in learning about the most random of things. Whether it's about Nazis in Florida or the Voynich Manuscript or earwax, I can always count on hosts Josh Clark and Charles W. "Chuck" Bryant to be well researched and well mannered. With over 750 episodes archived, there's no dearth in knowledge or banter.

 15. The Art of Manliness (Runtime: 45 minutes) (Updated: twice a week)


The Art of Manliness podcast has its origins in The Art of Manliness website, both run by Brett McKay in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and as the title suggests is chiefly concerned with teaching modern men the skills necessary to cultivate the art of manliness. Every episode features an interview with a professional (who is usually also an author) with a certain expertise in their field, and these fields can range from fitness to leadership to etiquette to everyday carry to psychology to philosophy. It just goes to show how loaded the phrase "Be a man!" really is.

16. All Songs Considered (Runtime: 45 and 10 minutes) (Updated: twice a week)


Finally we arrive to the music podcasts, and leading the pack is undisputedly the best music show out there, All Songs Considered. Growing up I always thought that the only thing NPR was good for was broadcasting world news and random scientific tidbits with British-accented correspondents. Then I discovered this weekly venture into the freshest soundwaves coming from budding artists and influential (though not always acclaimed) musicians. Hosts Bob Boilen and Robin Hilton share the most intriguing tunes coupled with their expert musical knowledge and the experience is so immersive that I rarely listen to an episode without wanting to check out a new album afterwards.

17. Alt.Latino  (Runtime: 45 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


I soon discovered that All Songs was not the only music podcast in NPR's programming and the title of Alt.Latino instantly grabbed my attention. Actively seeking out the most original and experimental songs put out by modern Latin artists, host Felix Contreras and Jasmine Garsd show that Spanish music extends beyond salsa and merengue into punk, hip-hop, jazz and electronica, just to name a few.

18. From the Top (Runtime: 65 minutes) (Updated: twice a week)


I would not go out of my way to seek out classical music pieces to listen to, but luckily NPR's From the Top does all the hard work for me. Every week host and concert pianist Christopher O'Riley showcases young talent (8-18 years old) from all over the country performing orchestrations from renowned composers with expert execution, taking it from the top and to the top.

19. KEXP Song of the Day (Runtime: 5 minutes) (Updated: five times a week)


Seattle-based KEXP Song of the Day simply broadcasts a song a day (Mon-Fri) from independent and up-and-coming artists. Far from being your local "Top 40" station, past artists have included Dilly Dally ("The Touch"), Titus Andronicus ("Fired Up"), Fast Romantics ("Julia") and Beach Slang ("Young and Alive").

20. Song Exploder (Runtime: 15 minutes) (Updated: once a week)


On Song Exploder, Hrishikesh Hirway invites artists from various genres and degrees of fame to discuss the process of development for one of their songs from inception to finished piece. Definitely a recommended podcast for both music seekers and music producers, past interviewees have included the likes of Björk ("Stonemilker"), Deradoorian ("A Beautiful Woman"), Best Coast ("Feeling Ok") and Natalia Lafourcade ("Hasta el Raíz").


BONUS! Other awesome podcasts I've yet to get into...




He who has ears to hear, let him hear,
Kelvin
Posted by at 2:01 AM
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