Archive for the 'podcasts' Category

Lies.com Podcast 27

Wednesday, January 30th, 2008

Lies.com Podcast 27 is all about the explicit-content rating: Grown-up talk about pre-marital (or extra-marital) sex of various skeezy varieties. Oh, and a nice long chunk on the Hillary-and-Bill-versus-Barack stuff from the campaign trail. Details below.

Special thanks, by the way, to Sven for turning me onto the Tool song, Adam for turning me onto the Patty Griffin song, and Dave for turning me onto Mute Math. My Robot Friend I came by on my own.

By the way, if you like these podcasts, please consider helping me get more listeners by casting a vote at Podcast Alley. You could also post a customer review at iTunes, if you’re feeling frisky.

Lies.com Podcast 26

Sunday, January 6th, 2008

The newest podcast is available: Lies.com Podcast 26. This one features the following:

I really like how this one turned out, especially the part where I followed (sort of) listener pelonpelon’s suggestion and played around with mixing in a little Bush at the beginning of “Post-modern Sleaze”. Anyway, check it out.

Lies.com Podcast 25

Saturday, November 10th, 2007

Lies.com Podcast 25 is the “fucking jail” edition, featuring:

In response to the feedback offered by Sven, I’ve cut back on the music (but the music I included is pretty badass). No Aly and AJ; I promise.

Lies.com Podcast 24

Saturday, September 15th, 2007

Join me in exploring my obsessions in Lies.com Podcast 24: lying politicians, in-the-moment actors and reporters, and teenage girl pop stars.

I don’t know what people think of this format I’ve been using for the podcasts lately; people are downloading them and presumably listening, but the number is small and I don’t get a lot of feedback.

I mostly make these as audio journals of the more-interesting stuff I’ve been listening to on my commute. When I hear something that makes me think, huh, I could listen to that again, I make a mental note to throw it in a podcast. Then I try to add some music that seems appropriate, either in terms of mood, or in terms of a specific lyrical commentary.

I don’t know that there are many other people doing podcasts like this, which may be trying to tell me something. But I find it interesting, and I enjoy listening to them myself (re-listening to them) during the commute.

Anyway, if you’ve listened to these recent ones and have any comments pro or con, feel free to pass them on. Thanks.

Lies.com Podcast 23

Saturday, September 1st, 2007

Some Alberto Gonzales, some Larry Craig, some Miss Teen South Carolina… Lies.com Podcast 23 has something for everyone.

Lies.com Podcast 22

Friday, August 17th, 2007

I had fun with the last one, so I kept going. Lies.com podcast 22 follows the same approach, only moreso: Most of it is captured audio from YouTube (the new Napster), interspersed with shamelessly stolen music. I speak exactly 10 words in the whole thing.

Lies.com Podcast 21

Thursday, July 19th, 2007

If Lies.com Podcast 21 were a person, it would be old enough to buy alcohol.

This show is dedicated to my mom.

Lies.com Podcast 20

Thursday, June 15th, 2006

It’s Lies.com podcast 20, including:

  • Bush’s good week, what with rebounding polls, blowing up Zarqawi, a chance to play preznit in the Green Zone, and Rove’s non-indictment.
  • The Republican playbook for the midterm elections, in which I bone-headedly say “Republicans” (twice!) when I mean to say “Democrats”. See? The Republicans are everywhere! Aiyee!!
  • Julia’s imminent graduation from Santa Barbara Middle School, and a sneak preview of the speech I’ll be delivering in her honor tomorrow.
  • Some sailing I’ll be doing in the next month or so.
  • An extended paean to the Keith and the Girl podcast, including a description of why I think they’re so good for each other.

Lies.com Podcast 19

Friday, June 2nd, 2006

Here’s Lies.com podcast 19, in which I talk about:

  • The Haditha massacre, and Craig and trg34221’s comments about it.
  • Moral relativism, right-wing style.
  • Blue Grosbeaks and White-tailed Kites at the Carpinteria Bluffs.
  • Audio of my real-time reaction to an almost-accident when some paintings fly off the roof of a car in front of me.
  • The odd paradox of feeling like I’m not talking to anybody, really, so I can talk about anything I want, while realizing that actually, I’m publishing my comments for the entire world to download, should the world be foolish enough to want to.
  • Apropos of that, some (possibly too personal) detail about a visit to the doctor’s office that I made this week.

Get it while it’s hot.

Lies.com Podcast 18

Saturday, May 27th, 2006

I actually recorded this a week ago Friday, but didn’t get around to posting until now. Apologies for the delay. Anyway: Lies.com podcast 18.

In this installment:

  • The recent announcement by the Cornell team of this past winter’s non-findings regarding the Ivory-billed Woodpecker, and my response to some of the discussion that has been taking place at Tom Nelson’s Ivory-bill Skeptic weblog. Note that at one point I refer to him as “Wilson”, and at another point as “Tim Nelson.” Sorry about that. Misidentifications everywhere you look!
  • Seeing Lazuli Buntings and Blue Grosbeaks, woo hoo.
  • Podcasts I’ve been listening to lately: The Hollywood Saloon, Filmspotting (née Cinecast), and Keith and the Girl.
  • The joys of vicarious domestic surveillance via the Internet.
  • The psychology of the long-distance commuter.

Enjoy!

Lies.com Podcast 17

Saturday, May 6th, 2006

More technologically-amplified meat flapping: Lies.com podcast 17. Includes:

  • Audio of the Ray McGovern/Donald Rumsfeld debate.
  • Commentary on same.
  • A little about the Moussaoui verdict.
  • A mind-boggling amount of detail about the new birds I saw at the office this week.
  • Watching a missile launch from Manhattan Beach.
  • Ranting about Bush’s emotional problems.

Enjoy!

Lies.com Podcast 16

Friday, April 28th, 2006

I was feeling pretty low-energy when I started recording this, and I think it shows. For what it’s worth, though, here’s you go: Lies.com Podcast 16.

  • A mention of coming attractions: The as-yet-unposted Lies.com Tenth Anniversary Reader (sitting in my Drafts queue staring at me as I write this, waiting for me to find time to finish it).
  • A digression on why I’m really not interested in debating people who aren’t willing to accept even the possibility that they might be wrong. (I don’t state it that clearly in my comments, but in hindsight I think that’s what I was going for.)
  • An extended revisiting of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker controversy, this time with me providing more specifics about my objections to the approach taken by Sibley et al. in their criticisms of the rediscovery evidence.

That’s it.

Lies.com Podcast 15

Friday, April 21st, 2006

I was so jazzed about getting the last podcast successfully completed that I turned right around and recorded one the next day. So here you go: Lies.com podcast 15.

This one covers:

  • Listening to Disney obsessives, especially Jesse O. of the MousePod.
  • Again with the new Pride and Prejudice adaptation. In this installment, I realize that my resistance to crediting Keira Knightly with the stunning performance she actually delivered was simply a recapitulation of the story’s main theme: It was my own pride and prejudice that prevented me from doing so. But I’ve come to appreciate the error of my ways.
  • Arguing with Andy and John of the Hollywood Saloon that they really ought to give chick-flicks a try.
  • More Austen adapations: Sense and Sensibility, Persuasion, Emma. Must-see chick flicks all.
  • Kick-ass podcast special effects: I’m interrupted by the sight of an actual whale.

So. There it is.

Lies.com Podcast 14

Thursday, April 20th, 2006

Woo! I finally managed to record one and save it to disk without my battery expiring first: Lies.com podcast 14. Featured drivel:

  • My bonehead consumerism with respect to the poorly named Belkin Universal Microphone Adapter.
  • A musical interlude from Rx of The Party Party, with his awesome mashup My name is Rx (mp3 file; streaming versions also available from his web site). Note that in the podcast I mistakenly say that the song is titled “Will the real Rx please stand up?”
  • The Ivory-billed Woodpecker rediscovery, David Allen Sibley, Guy McCaskie, my own history of obsessive birding, and how I was re-introduced to the hobby by my wife, Linda.

Podcastus Interruptus

Friday, April 7th, 2006

It won’t actually do you any good, but I wanted to mention that I’ve tried — twice now, dammit — to record a podcast for y’all. Both times I’ve suffered a lockup of my powerbook (I’m guessing due to my sleeping it, then shutting off/unplugging the USB mic; I think that’s exercising some bug or other), which has prevented me from saving the thing before the battery runs out.

It’s actually been fairly depressing. Those weren’t half-bad podcasts, at least by my standards.

Anyway, today I ordered a recording adapter and a new microphone for the iPod, and with any luck I’ll be able to use that to record the podcasts more reliably.

Anyway, keep the faith. More lies.com goodness shortly. Thanks.

Lies.com Podcast 13

Saturday, March 18th, 2006

If you’re dying to hear me go on (and on) about the usual stuff, here you go: Lies.com Podcast 13. Among the usual stuff in this installment:

  • My take (at last!) on the Cheney shooting accident.
  • Some chatter about the Claude Allen shoplifting (sort of) story.
  • Gushing fanboy love for Paul Hackett, the Daily Show, and Ed Helms, and corresponding scorn for the Democratic party generally and Iraq-war-supporting tools in particular.
  • A (too brief) account of my (too brief) encounter with kickass Congresswoman Lois Capps (D-CA).
  • A shout out to the Best Podcast Evar: The Hollywood Saloon.

Lies.com Podcast 12

Saturday, March 4th, 2006

Valued Lies.com reader Bob writes to ask:

Hey,
Where’s the Podcast? C’mon

Bob, this is for you: Lies.com podcast 12. It was recorded three weeks ago, so it has nothing at all about Cheney’s shooting accident, Katrina-related recriminations, and the Dubai port deal, but I finally got around to editing out most of the ums and pauses and loud bangs when I doofishly smacked the microphone into something.

Left in are all of the following:

  • Extended discussion of my addiction to the game Halo. (Note: At one point I’m talking about the different enemy races in the game’s campaign mode, and I inadvertantly say “Covenent” when I meant to say “Flood” — and I don’t notice it as I’m talking, so I’m correcting myself here. Anyway, listen for that.)
  • A (very little) bit about George Bush and domestic eavesdropping.
  • Movie talk about Brokeback Mountain, Sense and Sensibility, Saving Private Ryan, and Rumblefish.

Knock yourselves out.

Lies.com Podcast 11

Sunday, January 29th, 2006

Lying in bed this morning, Linda asked me what the latest podcast was about. “Nothing,” I answered, honestly. But anyway: Lies.com Podcast 11.

Seriously, there’s not much there. I’ve become my worst nightmare: Humming Dave-Winer-esque as I go through my pointless rambling, mocking my audience for their inability to bypass my breathtaking inanity.

Technically, I do talk about a few things:

  • My commute, giving non-surfer surf reports on the break at Rincon, and being trapped in a never-ending car commercial.
  • Bush and alternatives to Bush, the KCRW radio show “Left, Right, and Center,” and the difference between Hillary and Gore as candidates in 2008.
  • James A. Baker (mistakenly misidentified by me in the podcast as the old Bush-family fixer James A. Baker, III, though this is actually a different guy, it turns out), who gave misleading testimony to Congress about proposed FISA changes in 2002.
  • The Industry Outsider podcast (rss feed), and my pathetic audio crush on Lauren Morrill (or at least her voice).
  • Donnie Darko
  • Rumble Fish

Knock yourselves out.

Lies.com Podcast 10

Saturday, January 21st, 2006

More Bush-bashing (now with perspective!), some discussion of movies (including the Hollywood Saloon podcast, Man on Fire, and the Golden Globes), and extended rambling about The Grail Bird, Tim Gallagher’s book on the recent ivory-billed woodpecker rediscovery: Lies.com Podcast 10.

Lies.com Podcast 9

Saturday, January 7th, 2006

Here you go: Lies.com Podcast 9. Featuring:

  • Bush’s illegal eavesdropping.
  • Moments of clarity.
  • High-end podcast special effects: An actual train. Heh.
  • Movie reviews (Chronicles of Narnia, King Kong, and a little Love, Actually).
  • Almost (but not quite) watching my daughter die. (Update: Please understand that I’m talking about her hospitalization several years ago, not anything that happened recently. Apologies for freaking out my non-podcast-enabled sister M’Liz.)

I actually recorded it a week or so ago, but didn’t have time to delete the “uhms” and stuff until now.

Lies.com Podcast 8

Friday, December 23rd, 2005

Continued apologies for the light posting schedule. In the meantime, you can listen to Lies.com Podcast 8, including breathtaking inanity on:

  • The masturbatory nature of weblogging and podcasting.
  • The time I got bonked on the head as a teenager racing on my dad’s sailboat.
  • My pleasure at reading Judge John Jones’ ruling in the Dover school board case.
  • Similar pleasure at recent good news regarding the defeat of Bush initiatives in the Senate.
  • A brief meteorological digression.
  • A fantasy of mine involving Helen Thomas (now there’s some must-listen podcasting).
  • A Malibu surf report.

Lies.com Podcast 7

Saturday, December 17th, 2005

My apologies for the dearth of posting lately. I’ve recently switched from consulting to an actual job (gasp!), and that, plus a lengthy daily commute, have been cutting into my available lies.com obsession time.

It’s an ill wind that blows no good, though; that lengthy commute means I have plenty of time for rambling, extemporaneous podcasts. Case in point: Lies.com podcast 7.

Featured ranting in this podcast includes:

  • More about my new job, and the commute.
  • Willliam’s eighth birthday, and the differences between him and Julia.
  • The execution of Stanley “Tookie” Williams, and the death penalty, generally.
  • State-sanctioned torture by the US as an indicator of George Bush’s stunted moral development.

Enjoy!

Lies.com Podcast 6

Monday, August 8th, 2005

Just when you thought it was safe: Lies.com podcast 6.

I recorded this one in my car driving down for last Thursday’s Devo concert. No music or found audio; just me doing the stream-of-consciousness thing re:

  • the use of “random” as a pejorative term
  • the Bush administration’s visible elephant with the Plame outing
  • a few anecdotes from my history as a geeky Devo fanboy
  • skepticism and credulity re: bouncy balls and Art Lad
  • working the graveyard shift
  • offshore sailboat racing at odd hours

Enjoy!

Lies.com Podcast 5

Wednesday, July 13th, 2005

Now available for your listening pleasure: Lies.com podcast 5 (30 MB mp3 file). Lots of fun audio clips re: Karl Rove and Valerie Plame, along with material about Iraq war fatalities, the space shuttle, my trip to a rose farm, and my special pillow. Special secrets available only to podcast listeners! Well, or boring, unscripted chatter about my personal life, depending on your point of view.

This one also features some music clips from my new favorite Magnatune artist, Williamson.

Lies.com Podcast 4

Monday, May 23rd, 2005

No script, music, or found audio this time; just random yacking in my best Dave Winer fashion: Lies.com Podcast 4 (13.9 MB mp3 file). I talk about my car accident, the lies.com manifesto, and (of course) I complain some about George Bush.

I’m curious what you all who actually listen to these (both of you!) think about the unscripted vs. the scripted approach. Thanks.

Lies.com Podcast 3 (or 2.1, really)

Tuesday, May 17th, 2005

Here’s a “new” lies.com podcast: Lies.com podcast 3. The catch is, it’s actually the same podcast as Podcast 2, except I’ve “unencumbered” it by removing all the Magnatune music and the Dave Winer piece. That way, I think I’m safe distributing it in a commercial setting. I wanted to submit this to the people at KYOU Radio, but didn’t think I’d be able to (easily) get permission from Magnatune, so I just cut those parts out. (On the Dave Winer removal, I think I could make a case for “fair use” in including a short excerpt of his podcast for the purpose of criticism, but I didn’t want the hassle of dealing with him on it.)

Anyway, if you’ve heard the original version of this podcast, there’s even less reason than usual for you to listen to this one. Move along. Nothing to hear, here. And if you haven’t heard it, you probably should listen to that one, rather than this one, so you can bask in the healing light of my Winer-bashing, and my 733t musical mixing skillz.

Lies.com Podcast 2

Monday, May 16th, 2005

My second podcast is done: Lies.com podcast 2 (21.6 MB mp3 file). I backed off some on the audio quality in the interest of making the file size smaller, but I ended up talking longer (about 45 minutes’ worth), which ate up some of the savings.

This podcast features the following:

  • The secret Tony Blair memo on Iraq.
  • The aftermath of the wayward Cessna over Washington, D.C.
  • The question of whether Iraq has become a “failed state.”
  • A musical look back at Bush’s Abu Ghraib speech impediment.
  • The Spanish-American War, Teddy Roosevelt, and Mark Twain’s story, “The War Prayer.”
  • Chicago’s Virgin Mary water stain.
  • Dave Winer’s mental health (or lack thereof).

Links and sources for the items mentioned in the podcast:

Last but not least, the music included in this podcast:

  • Bjorn Fogelberg, for the track ‘quite derivative’ from the ‘Karooshi Porn’ album.
  • Aerobic Jonquil, for the tracks ‘Shinjuku Line’ from ‘Brain Stomach’.
  • The track ‘Prison System’ was created by Michael Fisher, and is used
    with his permission. For more information about his music, see his web
    site at http://m-fisher.com.
  • Kenji Williams, for the track ‘Soul Captain’ from ‘Faces of Epiphany’.
  • Cargo Cult, for the track ‘Ambriel’ from ‘Alchemy’.

Podcast the First

Tuesday, May 10th, 2005

Everyone else is jumping off a cliff, so I figured I would too: Lies.com Podcast 1 (32 MB MP3 file). It’s basically 35 minutes of me talking about items that have appeared recently on the site, with some amateurish mixing in of music and whatnot.

The whole process was very much an experiment, and I’m reasonably happy with how it turned out. It reminds me a lot of what it was like being involved in the early days of desktop publishing, and then the early days of the Web: a bunch of excited amateurs wake up one day and realize that they have everything they need to do something that hitherto required a lot of expensive equipment and professional expertise. So they all start making mudpies, and the established experts can only look on in horror as the newbies recreate every mistake in the book.

So anyway, check it out, and let me know what you think. This first installment features lots of ragging on Bush (really? you think?), along with scattered other items, including a long rant about Troy and Josh and the downside to a fundamentalist Christian education. I mixed in some cool music, too, without ever (quite) violating anyone’s copyright (I think).

In the future (assuming I do more of these) I’ll probably back off on the fancypants mixing and music, and just yack, since that seems to be plenty challenging for my minimal audio engineering skillz. In that case I’ll probably also back off on the audio quality, which will make the resulting files smaller; this one is stereo, 128 bit depth, and 44.1 khz sampling rate, which is bigtime overkill for my not-made-for-radio voice, but I figured the music deserved it.

I still need to figure out how to do the RSS feed, so hypothetical future installments can be conveniently downloaded onto your intellectual-property-repurposing tool of choice. I’lll update this entry when that’s done.

Update: Hm. I think I’ve got the RSS 2.0 feed available. You should now be able to subscribe to lies.com content generally, or just subscribe to lies.com podcasts. Please let me know if you notice any problems. Thanks.

Later update: I credited the artists whose music I used at the end of the podcast itself, but meant to list them here, and forgot to do so. Thanks to all of the following:

  • Bjorn Fogelberg, for the track ‘quite derivative’ from the ‘Karooshi Porn’ album.
  • Aerobic Jonquil, for the tracks ‘Shinjuku Line’ and ‘Drop’ from ‘Brain Stomach’.
  • rx of the party party, for ‘Imagine’.
  • Belief Systems, for the track ‘Deep House’ from ‘Eponyms’.
  • AntiGuru, for ‘Rectify’ from ‘Fall Submissions’.
  • Artemis, for ‘Beautiful Life’ and ‘Fountain of Life’ from ‘Gravity’.

Lies.com podcasts are copyrighted by John Callender, and are distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.