The Podcast Playlist – January 2019

As much as this website encourages people to disconnect, podcasts are one of those things that are an exception to that rule. They’re incredible. And they can make the mundane (doing laundry, riding the bus, ironing or shining shoes) nothing short of extraordinary. Each month our resident podcast connoisseur, Dave I., finds three podcasts worth your time and ears. 

 

99% Invisible

99% Invisible is a podcast dedicated to discussing all of the small, almost imperceptible design changes that occur in the world around us and impact on our daily lives. These changes can be something as visible as why the U.S. does not utilize the metric system (Episode 280 – Half Measures), to how the design of the Baltimore Orioles baseball stadium impacted the design of ballparks around the U.S. (Episode 262 – In the Same Ballpark), to how the Salton Sea came to be (Episode 224 – A Sea Worth its Salt). Even if you aren’t interested in architecture, the natural world and design, the episodes that aired between September 25th to October 12th ought to be of interest to anyone who frequents this website.  Those six episodes, titled “Articles of Interest” focused on style, fashion, and the textile industry. Definitely worthwhile listening for anyone interested in the business of fashion.

 

Planet Money

Planet Money is a podcast dedicated to economics, which should come as no surprise based on the name of the show. Week in, week out, the hosts of the show manage to cover an economic topic of interest and manage to do so in a quick and informative manner. For example, ever wanted to know how to setup an off-shore tax haven? Give episode #390 a listen. Or perhaps you’ve been scratching your head about that chip in your credit card and want to know the history behind it; episode #695 should be able to help you out there. Do your economics tastes run more to the macro side of things and you want to know how President Trump’s economic policies are doing? If that’s the case, episode #734 will be more to your liking. In short, Planet Money is the financial podcast for those of us who want to understand economic theory, but don’t have the patience to sit through a 100 level university course.

 

Darkest Night

This is one creepy podcast and definitely not for the faint of heart/hearing. When episode one starts out with a brother and two sisters fighting to the death for control of a family owned pharmaceutical company, you know you’re in for a good show. Recorded in 360 degree immersive sound, Darkest Night manages to put the listener right in the middle of the action. If at all possible, listen to this podcast on a quality pair of headphones as opposed to an open air speaker system. Only by doing so will you truly experience the suspense of this audio drama. The podcast is a weekly series, so listeners are not recommended to download random episodes and start listening. There is good news though. The podcast started on October 31, 2016 so it will not take much binge listening to get caught up to the current episodes.

About the author: Dave I. has been a Dappered reader for several years. His interest in fashion started with shoes and expanded to encompass watches, suits, and general men’s style. When not thinking about his next purchase he can be found enjoying a pint of locally brewed craft beer.