Each month, Podcast Review’s staff offers recommendations on the best new podcasts to listen to. Here are our favorites for August:
Truth.media’s Firebug investigates a serial arsonist in California, who wrote a novel depicting crimes similar to those perpetrated across the state throughout the 1980s. Host Kary Antholis claims multiple decades of fascination with the arson spree in the show’s first episode. The dramatic intrigue comes in the lining up of the documented investigations next to scenes from the manuscript.
The latest from Pineapple Street gives away little about its intentions other than its release date. As explained on the network’s site, The 11th will release a story on the 11th of each month, and those stories will vary in length from a single episode to a full miniseries. The first of these stories is an addendum to Sarah Viren’s 2020 essay about false sexual harassment claims made against her wife. In four parts, Viren explores emails she received in the aftermath of her essay, detailing the disparate experiences of readers who underwent similarly unfair investigations. The show’s long-term plan is yet to reveal itself, but it seems a potential landing spot for all genres of short-form podcasting.
WILD, from LAist Studios, is a show about origin stories. Hosted by writer Erick Galindo and produced by Megan Tan, the podcast features interviews with musicians, comedians, and various other artists who speak to their unique experiences growing up or facing a tough time. Artfully interspersed with music and voice-over narration, each episode is more like an audio memoir than a straightforward Q&A exchange. “Immersive” is an overused word when it comes to podcasts, but WILD is a show truly deserving of this adjective.
¤
Want to receive the week’s best podcast episodes in your inbox? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.