Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

Independent Student Newspaper for the University of Texas at San Antonio

The Paisano

The buzz on the airwaves: Noteworthy podcasts to listen to

Arts onair-graphic

A podcast is radio evolved; where with radio a known personality would host a morning show or a talk radio show that could only be heard whenever that show was being broadcasted, podcast offer a greater selection of shows that are available whenever and can be created by anyone.

Big shows like “The Joe Rogan Experience” hosted by comedian and UFC commentator Joe Rogan or “The Adam Corolla Show” hosted by Adam Corolla often overshadow more minor shows like “Nerdist” or the many shows on the AfterBuzz TV Network. While these are fine shows in their own right, some lesser known shows deserve the same observation.

Here is a list of podcast you should be listening to if you are not already.

“Your Mom’s House” is a show hosted by the comedic powerhouse couple Tom Segura and Christina Pazsitzky. On the show, the two talk about their daily lives, dental hygiene and the outrageous videos and news articles fans of the show submit to them.

“Your Mom’s House” is an incredibly hilarious and extremely inappropriate show — the main focus of the show often circles back to shunned bodily functions and sexual humor — but the show rarely loses momentum. It’s scarce that a guest will appear on the show, but Segura and Pazsitzky hardly need to rely on the attendance of a third person.

“Your Mom’s House” originated as a part of Deathsquad.tv — a Los Angeles-based group composed of local comedians — but quickly gained popularity and now stand alone. Episodes of “Your Mom’s House” are available on YourMomsHousePodcast.com and iTunes.

While most shows about film — podcast, television or otherwise — would focus on the artistry and integrity of a film, “How Did This Get Made?” approaches film analysis in a different way. Hosted by comedian Paul Sheer, his wife June Diane Rafael and improviser Jason Mantzoukas, “HDTGM” focuses on what can be considered some of the worst movies ever made, begging the question-title: how did this get made?

Every episode features a different movie (both new and past releases) and a guest (often another comedian). Some notable episodes are episode 1 (“Burlesque” featuring comedian Nick Kroll) episode 43 (“Wild Wild West” featuring Kevin Smith) and episode 44 (“Halloween III: Seasons of the Witch).

New episodes are released weekly on Tuesdays — a full length episode, wherein the actual movie analysis is conducted, is released one week and a mini-episode (a prequel episode) announcing the following weeks film the other week. All 74 episodes are available on earwolf.com and on iTunes.

Comedian Marc Maron’s podcast “WTF with Marc Maron” is a semiweekly show (new episodes are released every Monday and Thursday) that focuses on Maron’s guest that week. “WTF” runs about an hour long and features diverse guests — interviewees like fellow comedians Joey Diaz, David Cross and Eugene Mirman are often contrasted with guests like Curt Kirkwood, Thom Yorke and David Sedaris.

Maron’s show is somewhat streamlined and focuses on the actual interview; the first twenty minutes of the show is often dedicated to advertisements and Maron’s weekly, somewhat depressing, self-analysis separated with two different show intros, and depending on the guest the show could go either way (good or bad).

The 50 most recent episodes of “WTF” are available through iTunes and the podcast’s website WTFpod.com while the previous 350-plus episodes can be obtained by subscribing to a monthly, semiannual and annual membership.

“SModcast,” which is hosted by writer-director Kevin Smith and his producer collaborator Scott Mosier, is a comedic show wherein Smith and Mosier talk about current events and other things that spark hilarious conversation.

Smith and Mosier, who attended film school together and have worked together since their first feature film “Clerks” in 1994, often focus on the present — their current career prospects, what funny happenings have taken place and how life has changed over the years. Smith and Mosier tend to dwell on their past as awkward outsiders as well.

Most recently, the inspiration for Smith’s latest film adventure “Tusk” was conceived on the show (episode 259: The Walrus and the Carpenter) after the two talked about an advertisement that was found on a British website for roommate inquirers.

Generally, a new episode is released every week — either on Monday or Tuesday ­— and rarely features anyone other than the two filmmakers. Episodes are available on SModcast.com and iTunes.

“Doug Loves Movies” is a comedy/film-trivia game show podcast that comedian Doug Benson has been producing since 2006. Every Tuesday, Benson hosts “Doug Loves Movies” at the Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles in front of a live audience. Three guests are invited to the show to prove how much they know about film.

The majority of the podcast is taken up by playing the “Leonard Maltin Game,” a film-trivia game co-created by Benson that employs the reviews of renowned film critic Leonard Maltin from his annually-revised book “The Leonard Maltin Movie Guide.”

Every episode of “Doug Loves Movies” is available on iTunes and on Benson’s website DougLovesMovies.com.

More to Discover