My Podcast Recommendations by Category

Because I’m Over Music

Once I studied lyrics and liner notes while music blasted through my speakers; now I slouch through the world with voices talking at me through little white headphones. Yes, the podcast boom has taken over my audio.

I use podcasts as a way to learn more about my interests. And when the following podcasts aren’t informative, they’re entertaining. Here is a breakdown of my favorites by category. Enjoy:

Business / Design Podcast

Adventures in Design — This daily business podcast stands heads and tails above the rest because it is host Mark Brickey’s full time job. Monday through Friday, Brickey chats with all manner of creative professionals as he finds “chicken nuggets” of wisdom to apply to your specific situation. It’s less about the tactics of actual designing, and more about designing a creative and adventurous life and business. Brickey and his cast of characters are among the most authentic personalities on the air, and their real world advice and transparency is the secret weapon in this show. The AID community is incredibly strong, and you really feel like you’re a part of the show. The first hour of each episode is free, but pretty soon you’ll realize that subscribing is a necessity.

Culture Podcast

Bret Easton Ellis Podcast — I thought I was culturally savvy until I listened to Bret Easton Ellis discuss film, society, and music. The author of “American Psycho” and “Less Than Zero” is a huge movie buff who interviews an astounding array of directors, actors, and musicians. The podcast begins with an expertly written analysis/borderline rant of a Gen-Xer’s viewpoint on the landscape of culture and how modern entertainment reflects that. What follows is an interview full of intense questions that dig deep into key themes of an artist.

Film Podcast

Birth.Movies.Deathcast (or Birthcast, Moviecast, Deathcast, Padcast, Podcast) — This show’s charm is the goofy and mostly unprofessional personalities of the two co-hosts, who share a cross country film bromance. Quirky Evan Saathoff and stoic Phil Nobile Jr. begin each episode with film news which always spirals into some absurd tangent. They then proceed to discuss a movie (sometimes new release, and sometimes old classic) before wrapping up the episode with listener questions to fill in any holes they missed. I recommend start with the podcast series on Rocky or Mad Max. If you learn to love the two hosts, you’ll never grow tired of their fun and digressive banter.

Real Estate Podcast

BiggerPockets Podcast — Attempting to bring quality real estate education to the masses, without the need for a guru or an expensive course, this podcast is the accompaniment to the popular website BiggerPockets. The knowledgable co-hosts bicker and fight like old lovers, but always manage to get incredibly useful information from their investor guests. The show segments which include “Quick Tip,” “Fire Round,” and “The Famous Four” add a structure and familiarity to every episode to keep it informative. I learn something new every episode.

Comic Book Podcast

Off Panel — David Harper is among the best modern comics journalists. His old website SKTCHD had some of the deepest analysis of the comics industry around, and he is the prolific sole writer. Harper’s interviews are well researched and include deep questions while also completely nerding out. The guests include everyone in the industry including writers, colorists, artists, letterers, editors, and retailers. The show typically digs into the creator’s latest project, but also includes smart viewpoints of the state of the industry. “Of Panel” is far better than any other comic book podcast around.

Current Events Podcast

Common Sense with Dan Carlin — Dan Carlin is a radio-veteran who also hosts the fantastic “Hardcore History.” His insane knowledge of history allows him to have incredible perspective as he deconstructs and analyzes what current events mean, as opposed to simply reporting the news. I like knowing what is happing in the world, but understanding its context and significance is so much more valuable. Each “Common Sense” episode analyzes one core theme based on a current event(s). It is a high level show, so it requires attention and thought, but it’s well worth the effort.