Podcast Recs

Podcast Rec :: Armchair Expert

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Today’s Podcast Recommendation is Armchair Expert with Dax Sheperd.
Armchair Expert artwork
Dax shared the hosting with his friend, Monica Padman. They have a really special relationship. I just love “seeing” them interact and love how they treat each other. I’ve long been a fan of Dex’s acting work (who doesn’t want to be a Braverman?), and I was a little dubious about how he might handle interviewing people. Not to fear, he’s a natural.

His co-host Monica is wonderful as well. She mainly stays silent and lets Dax and the guest do all the talking. But she is the fact-checker so she is taking notes and then the last part of the episode is her going over things that were said, lending some clarity to the interview if needed.

They interview some really big names. Sean Penn, Bill Gates, Esther Perel, I mean the list goes on and on. Check out my favorites below.

They interviewed Dr. Laurie Santos who is a professor at Yale and teaches a course on Coursera called The Science of Well Being. I took this course and I love it, and recommend it to everyone! Here’s the link to it, (it’s free).

Some of my favorite episodes:
Susan David – She is a psychologist and has some great ideas about emotions and growth
David Farrier – he actually has two episodes, one regular interview, and another one called Armchaired and Dangerous where he explains the Lizard People theory. I loved both episodes.
Jason Bateman – there’s a very lengthy discussion about which direction they each wipe. Yes, that’s what I said.
Hilary Clinton – I told you they get big names.
Keith Urban – “no whining on the yacht.”
David Chang – one of my favorite chefs
Esther Perel – therapist extraordinaire (has 2 of her own amazing pods too)
Beanie Feldstein – you know her if you watch TV at all; she’s very charming.


Actually, there’s only been one episode I’ve found boring and I don’t even remember who it was!

I love this show, and even if you think you are not a fan of Dax, you will be in love with him after listening. He’s a beautiful human. So is Monica.

Dax Sheperd and Monica Padman

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PS: Dr. Santos and Susan David each have their own podcasts too, I’ll talk more about them another time.

Artist News, Be on the lookout

New Tori Amos Holiday music

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Tori Amos has a new EP called Christmastide!
Christmastide album cover
She says:

“With the new songs it was so important to be positive and to try and help lift people’s spirits. This time of year should be full of thoughts of joyful reunions with family and friends but it can also sadly be a very lonely place for some.”

It’s out today!

Go here to buy or listen:
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Artist News, Artist Spotlights

Artist Rec :: Laura Marling

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Today’s Artist Recommendation is Laura Marling.

Laura Marling

 

Laura Marling was recommended to me by a relative who is a big fan. She knew what kind of music I liked and knew I’d like Laura too. I listened to a couple of songs, thought it was pretty, filed it away, and went on a trip to Scotland.  This was in 2008.

While in Edinburgh we walked into a gritty bar (which ended up being our favorite place, Bannerman’s) and there was a poster on the wall for an upcoming concert headlining, Laura Marling! I took a picture of the poster to remind me to buy some of her music. The concert was to take place after our vacation was over. So, I wasn’t able to see her live.

Fast forward to when I bought her album A Creature I Don’t Know and played it almost obsessively.

It was my car go-to for about 6 months on my way to and from a job I hated. So sometimes those songs would take me back there, and it was hard to listen. But I had to just play it over and over again while in a good place, to kill those demons. Tell me I’m not the only one who does this.

In April of this year (2020) she released Song for Our Daughter which was recently nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Folk Album.

Her voice is mesmerizing and the melodies dreamy.

If you need some soothing for your soul, this is one place to look.

 

Some of my favorite songs:

Don’t Ask Me Why (Creature I Don’t Know)

I Was an Eagle (Once I Was an Eagle)

You Know (Once I Was an Eagle)

Blow By Blow (Song for Our Daughter)

Fortune (Song for Our Daughter)

Rambling Man (I Speak Because I Can)

 

I hope you check her out, follow her, etc.

Read about Laura’s concert at Bannerman’s

 

Discography

Alas, I Cannot Swim (2008)
I Speak Because I Can (2010)
A Creature I Don’t Know (2011)
Once I Was an Eagle (2013)
Short Movie (2015)
Semper Femina (2017 – also nominated for a Grammy)
Song for Our Daughter (2020)
…and a bunch of EPs.

 

Find her in the Ether:

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Buy her Music

From her site

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Don’t Do Social?

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Did you watch “The Social Dilemma”? Are you over social media? I get it. I doubt I ever will be, but I understand those who are.

I do post some extra stuff on Social Media; things that are not really “big” enough to warrant a full blog post.
Social media logos
So if you are one who is social media averse, I made a page for you.

Just click here and you can see all the social media posts I create without having to use Facebook & Instagram. Note, you’ll see some doubles because I usually post the same things on those two platforms.

See, I’m looking out for you,
xo Amy

Podcast Recs

Podcast Rec :: Reply All

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Today’s podcast recommendation is Reply All.

Reply All Logo

Usually, I just throw it out there and give a few of my favorites, but this time I’m going to implore you to listen in particular the Happiness Episode: “#168 The Happiness Calculator vs. Alex Goldman.” More on that in a minute.


This show is hosted by Alex Goldman and PJ Vogt. It’s basically a podcast about the internet. Which may sound boring on the surface, but it’s anything but. I love it. If you’ve ever read a tweet you didn’t understand or be baffled why something is popular, this will help you understand.


OK so, in this episode Alex is interviewing a man Peter Dodds, a data scientist who is involved in this project called the Hedonometer, where researchers measure everyone’s happiness based on their social media posts. It’s fascinating how they can quantify happiness but also interesting what makes us happy (Christmas) and what makes us sad (suicide or terrorist). He is explaining this all to PJ Vogt, his co-host.


For English speakers, the happiest time is the holidays, Christmas Day in particular. So, when measuring happiness, they will say that happiness “went up half a Christmas day” and they use that as the yardstick for happiness.


It was interesting to learn about the most unhappy date in history (since this project began, and up to when the interview happened). No, I’m not going to tell you 🙂


The hosts also talk about things that make them happy and I don’t want to spoil anything, but basically, it’s about self-care. Alex talks about how he went into the kitchen one morning and saw half a lemon sitting there. He asked his wife about it and she said she used the other half for her water. He was sort of blown away by the fact that his wife had identified that she likes lemon in her water, and then went and did something for herself to make that happen. This is second nature to me, but I understand that others do not think this way. I wish they did.


So please take a listen to this podcast, but especially this episode. This might be a tough winter for some of us and I want you all to be happy.

Here’s the article for the New York Times called “Is Everybody Doing … OK? Let’s Ask Social Media”.


Other episodes I liked:
#166 Country of Liars (it’s about Q-Anon)
#51 Perfect Crime (about a woman who plays the same part in a play, every night. For years)
#164 Long Distance: The Real Alex Martin (3 years ago, Alex returned a call from a telephone spammer and held his feet to the fire. He actually traveled to India to meet him. This is the follow-up. Original episodes are #102-103)
#161 Brian vs. Brian (a Christmas song that almost wasn’t)
#96 The Secret Life of Alex Goldman (Alex lets PJ hack his phone giving him surveillance of his life)
#83 Voyage into Pizzagate (the conspiracy theory explained)
OK, I’ll stop there, I love all the episodes, but these are just a few of my favorites.

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Artist News, Artist Spotlights, Artists

Artist Rec :: Meg Myers

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Today’s Artist Recommendation is Meg Myers.
Meg Myers
Meg is another one of my E-music discoveries way back in 2013. Her album Daughter in the Choir was recommended to me and I loved it. She’s been in my rotation playlists ever since. She continues to put out amazing music.

She was born Janice Sue Meghan Myers in Tennessee (which she sings about in “Tennessee” on Daughter in the Choir). She was raised as Jehovah’s Witness and I’ve got to believe that breaking free from that must be at least part of the reason for the intensity of her music.

Her voice is fierce and dynamic. Her music is filled with strong beats and interesting melodies. Her tunes don’t go where you’d expect, most of the time.

 

Some of my favorite songs:

Running Up That Hill (Kate Bush Cover 2018 – single)

Desire (Sorry)

Take Me to the Disco (Take Me to the Disco)

Make a Shadow (Make a Shadow)

Monster, Adelaide (Daughter in the Choir–Actually I love everything from this record as it’s the one I’ve listened to the longest)

 

I hope you check her out, follow her, etc. I find it quite entertaining that on Instagram while she has over 76,000 followers but she only follows 2 people. Enya and herself, 😀

Discography
Daughter in the Choir (EP 2013)
Make a Shadow (EP 2014)
Sorry (2015)
Take Me to the Disco (2018)
Thank U 4 Taking Me 2 the Disco (EP 2020)
I’d Like to Go Home Now (EP 2020)

Find her in the ether:

Official
Instagram
Twitter
Facebook
YouTube
Store
Listen on Spotify
Listen on Amazon

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