GREETINGS from PODD DEEP!

OH LORD how long it’s been. Insanely long. I’ve been thinking about the Podd Deep blog ever since I clicked ‘SAVE AND PUBLISH’ on the last one, and I’m so sorry it’s been this long to get it back up and running. A lot of life has happened, many moves, much box lifting and shifting, a gang of podcasts edited and tweaked, and a grip of beats made - but always with that unanswered question of Podd Deep in the back of my mind… Some of it has to do with the Pod Bible magazine that I talked about last Podd Deep - I feel like they are covering that podcast goodness to a very high degree, and I’m fortunate enough to contribute too, but I also have a few picks which might not always show up over there and it’d be dope if people can just keep discovering the goodness, the newness, the podness out there.

Been a hell of a few months here in Margate yo. Weather-wise? I’m glad you asked! We had a mad spell of Summer take over for a little minute, and now we’re in some no-man’s land of up and down roller coaster craziness which is flipping my wig daily. All good though - the sunsets are looking powerful glorious out there and the evenings are spreading out and stretching their wings, so it’s a super sweet time of year. I hope things are likewise in your necks of the woods. Let me know eh. People call it small talk but I defy that - I find the weather so resonant with us, it ties us all together and we can’t do a bloody thing about it, so we’re all linked by this random force above and around us at all times. When it’s too hot we get cranky and slow and when it’s too cold we get all hunched over and quick. So while YES it’s a simple fallback, it does hint at a greater thing happening out there. I don’t know. I think about this stuff sometimes you know.

…too much…

Oh also - let me know what you would like to see in here too - I mean it’ll be mostly a single podcast per blog but do holler if you would like different things happening in here. It’d be really cool to hear what you reckon.

ANYWAY! We proceed…

FILMS TO BE BURIED WITH | live at the BRIGHTON PODCAST FESTIVAL! | April 7th

Brett Goldstein is taking the Films To Be Buried With show on the road for a special live show at the Brighton Podcast Festival! Unfortunately I won’t be in attendance as plans have coincided, but it’s gonna be a grand one. Brett is joined by Asim Chaudhry (aka Chabuddy G of People Just Do Nothing) to pick his cinematic treats in front of a Brighton crowd, and if you’ve been to one of the BFI shows you’ll know how enjoyable it all is in front of a fun-loving crowd. If you can get in on it, go do it! Enjoy yerselves. Come to the next BFI one too, I’ll shout about that next time - I’ll be at that so we can have a gin and tonic eh.

BUDDY PEACE | live at ELSEWHERE, MARGATE! | 13th April

Ah this’ll be a sick one… I’m playing a live set over at Elsewhere on APRIL 13th, as part of their Record Store Day celebrations. Weirdly enough my set might not be vinyl BUT it will be a proper full on live mixtape jammy with pad-tapping and whatever else I can get in there. Expect drums of death, neck-snapping boom bap and just all round beats to make you frown. You’ll dig it. Lemme know if you’re about, be great to see you… Not sure the EXACT time I’m on yet but as I say, if you’re in town gimme a hollah!

BUDDY PEACE | ‘PRESENT’ project | soon come…

I’ve covered this in previous posts but if you missed them, basically I’m getting my ‘Present’ project together for a physical release very soon. The covers will be riso-graph printed and I’m getting some ill patches made, but at the moment all the cassettes are ready and so it’s just a case of preparing the whole lot so it’s all ready to go. It will be SUPER limited, but I’ll post on my Twitter and Instagram when it’s almost there.

The ‘Present’ project was something I completed last year, where I made a one minute beat every day for the whole year. This resulted in 6.5 hours of music by the end of it all, which is all available on my Bandcamp page in respective months. It was rough going at times, as I did all the artwork and mini videos for em each day too, but it was a powerful exercise in being quick and non-laboured in my approach. It also helped tighten up some of my techniques along the way which was very cool. I always wanted it to be a physical product and this will be it!

PODD DEEP • Volume 008 • Friends Like Us

TO SUM IT UP IN A SENTENCE

“A podcast featuring women of color with different views on hot topics.”

That’s the synopsis on Twitter and I can’t improve on that or distill it any more so we’ll go with that!

WHERE TO FIND IT

https://twitter.com/friendslikeus10

https://friendslikeus.libsyn.com

https://www.patreon.com/friendslikeus

Twitter will have regular updates, the main site has every episode on there and the Patreon page is for the hardcore supporters!

WHO MAKES IT?

Friends Like Us is hosted by comedian and writer Marina Franklin, who is hilarious and a perfect podcast host. I found out about Marina shamefully late, when she guested on You Made It Weird with Pete Holmes back in 2016 - it was such a great episode and made me head straight over to the podcast, which I hooked myself on and have been ever since. Marina is in charge, but is joined regularly by the great and grand comedian Pat Brown and an ever-changing cast of guests and pals. The cast is mainly female but every so often there’s a male guest - in those cases it’s usually one man, and said man isn’t the focus of the episode as with many other podcasts which is infinitely refreshing. I think Marina is in charge of edits and the rest of the whole shebang too.

WHAT IS IT AND WHAT’S THE FORMAT?

It’s a pretty straight forward podcast in terms of format which makes it very easy to fall into from the first listen. Essentially it’s friends getting together to work through the more pressing issues of each given week, and any guests who aren’t part of the regular crew become fast friends during the course of the podcast. Often the issues and topics concern race, politics and the state of the country, and have a uniquely female perspective, and it’s ultimately really positive and uplifting. It’s also very honest and open, which is perfect for a podcast - honesty and entertainment.

WHEN DOES IT COME OUT?

You can expect a new episode every Wednesday.

WHAT DO I LIKE ABOUT IT?

It’s interesting to think about why I love it so much. When I first started listening I didn’t even think of the reasons why - I just really fell for, like I say, the honesty of the guests and how hilarious they were with each other. They really dig into each other but in a real loving way, as pals do! Also, in terms of honesty, it’s not just people getting their thoughts out in the open and everyone else nodding their heads in agreement. If anyone has an issue with something said or wants to pick someone up on a point, it will happen and it will be worked through, seriously or with jokes. I have to say too, while I keep up on most things happening out in the US mainly through podcasts, there are a lot of subjects that come up that I would have previously been oblivious to. Admittedly, the things that come up in Friends Like Us which I am familiar with, I probably have heard through podcasts with two guys sitting down talking, and so it’s amazing to actually get a balance and perspectives from women. While it’s not gossip, the chats have a really open and inclusive element so I always feel like I’m not eavesdropping or spying - Marina was my gateway into the podcast and usually when I really enjoy a comedian or presenter, I’ll take to the friends or colleagues of them to and that’s kind of what happened. From then on it was a case of getting to know everyone on the show better and better, and now I really look forward to my Wednesday fix of friendly banter but with a little pepper in there too - some spike in the punch. As I say, it’s not just people getting along famously and agreeing. It’s women who respect each other and don’t mind calling each other on things when they come up. I love the relationships and it just makes me grin a lot. Especially when Marina gets bagged on for mis-pronouncing something - she refers to that as ‘Keisha’, her alter-ego character. There is stand-alone podcast potential for Keisha I reckon…

LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT

You’ll be fine settling into an episode without any prior knowledge of the podcast - Marina lays the table at the start, with a brief interjection in the middle sometimes but otherwise, if you’re familiar with any given rountable/panel style podcast you’ll be all set.

HOW MANY EPISODES AT THE TIME OF POSTING THIS?

Tons! The podcast catcher I use myself displays about 100, but there are definitely more than that - maybe like 200 or so. They are relatively time-sensitive but there is a lot of fun to be had in the archives, and a lot of really interesting takes on what were then current events, so you’d be well advised to dig into the old ones too…

LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT

To be honest, wherever you pick up on it is a good episode to start. Any episode with regular guest Pat Brown is going to be a slammer, but as it’s as current as the news the panel discuss, you’re all set wherever you start.

THANK YOU!

THANK YOU KINDLY for peeping episode 8 of Podd Deep. This USED to be a weekly thing and I’ll make sure I get back on that schedule. There are so many amazing podcasts out there that one a week wouldn’t even nearly cover even a fraction of them, but goddammit I’ll do what I can. Please do peep Friends Like Us, and follow em on the socials won’t ya. They’re great people.

I produce Scroobius Pip’s Distraction Pieces Podcast, and Brett Goldstein’s Films To Be Buried With podcast, both on Acast and Spotify.