I’ve written at length about this year’s JoCo Cruise. I gave you two jam-packed posts of highlights. I focused on the guests who were aboard. And I focused on the “unofficial” Shadow Cruise events during the week. But what if you want to get an even better feel for what the experience is like? Well, you’re in luck!
This year, many of the guests who also host their own podcasts set up shop and recorded episodes live on the boat! So you can listen to those episodes, close your eyes, and imagine yourself gently rocking along with the hosts and guests. It’s almost like being there!
And if you actually want to be there, booking for the 2018 cruise is open now. Go check it out!
The following are all of the podcasts that recorded live on the boat, along with links to those episodes. Happy listening!
The Dork Forest
“Dork-on-dork dialogue with comedian Jackie Kashian. I am interested in whatever dorky thing you want to talk about. Guests speak to their love of books, TV, movies, comic books, websites, food, wrestling, cars, action figures, and bees. There is room for all in The Dork Forest. This is a safe space.”
I gotta admit, I’m way jealous of The Dork Forest. Jackie came up with one of the best podcast names of all time. Jackie recorded six episodes on the boat (one live one and five more personal chats). To date, she’s released three of them.
On Episode 400, Jackie chats with author John Scalzi about photography! On Episode 401, she talks about scuba diving with comedian Jason Hatrick. And on Episode 402, she talks about escape rooms with Tyler Hinman.
Song Exploder
“Song Exploder is a podcast where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made. Each episode is produced and edited by host and creator Hrishikesh Hirway in Los Angeles. Using the isolated, individual tracks from a recording, Hrishikesh asks artists to delve into the specific decisions that went into creating their work. Hrishikesh edits the interviews, removing his side of the conversation and condensing the story to be tightly focused on how the artists brought their songs to life. Past guests include Björk, U2, Iggy Pop, and Carly Rae Jepsen, among many others.”
This was one of the unexpected highlights of the week for me. Hrishikesh took to the main stage with Aimee Mann and Jonathan Coulton, and they discussed Mann’s new song “Patient Zero” (which Coulton cowrote). It was a fantastic conversation (as are most of the Song Exploder episodes).
Unfortunately, this episode hasn’t been released yet, but go and subscribe to Song Exploder and get it when it drops. Plus, there’s more than 100 episodes to catch up on!
The Peanuts Gallery
“Lifelong Peanuts fans and professional fussbudgets Molly Lewis and Josh A. Cagan discuss and dissect the animated specials.”
Molly Lewis and her ukulele were all over the JoCo Cruise this year. So I’m not really sure how she still found time to record a podcast, but she did! The episode of The Peanuts Gallery still hasn’t aired, but go check out their previous episodes, which are really best described as Mystery Science Theater 3000 takes on the Peanuts specials.
Craig’s List Podcast
“Married couple/improvisors Craig and Carla Cackowski host a weekly podcast in which Craig makes Carla watch his 100 favorite movies and talk about them.”
You might know Craig Cackowski as one of the founding members of Thrilling Adventure Hour’s Workjuice Players. On Episode 26, the Cackowskis welcome Janet Varney to the show (for their first-ever live recording), and they discuss Dead Poets Society!
Gosh Darn Fiasco
“Angela M. Webber (The Doubleclicks) and her friends from the world of gaming and comedy sit down to play a game of Fiasco and improvise a brand-new story full of conflict, hilarity, and almost-certain death.”
Angela sat down and had a super-fun conversation with Gail Simone on the cruise, but the episode still hasn’t aired yet. Check this space for the inevitable awesomeness!
Unattended Consequences
“A weekly conversation between Patrick Rothfuss (Name of the Wind) and Max Temkin (Cards Against Humanity).”
Again, this episode hasn’t aired yet, but if you’re a fan of Rothfuss (or Cards Against Humanity), you definitely don’t want to miss this. Check the show out here, and give a listen to their previous episodes.
The JV Club
“Remember what it was like to be an awkward teenager? And remember how some things haven’t really changed that much for you since then? Join proud dork Janet Varney as she explores the highs and lows of the bygone years with some of her favorite women as they talk their way through the terrible teens into adult-lescence. Warning: This Podcast Contains Sincerity.”
On Episode 233, Janet sits down with Gail Simone, Jean Grae, and Rebecca Sugar. It’s a phenomenal conversation, so please do give it a listen.
We Got This! with Mark and Hal
“Every week, Mark Gagliardi and Hal Lublin take the dumb issues in life that people care strongly about and settle the argument once and for all. No topic is too small or insignificant for them to dissect and decide! Whatever minutiae you argue with friends and family, don’t worry: We Got This.”
Mark Gagliardi and Hal Lublin are two more familiar voices from Thrilling Adventure Hour, and they were both all over the boat and involved in multiple panels. Episode 109 of their podcast includes Welcome to Night Vale pals Cecil Baldwin, Jon Bernstein, Jeffrey Cranor, and Symphony Sanders.
Sawbones
“Dr. Sydnee McElroy and her husband Justin welcome you to Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine. Every Friday, they dig through the annals of medical history to uncover all the odd, weird, wrong, dumb, and just gross ways we’ve tried to fix people over the years. Educational? You bet! Fun? We hope!”
While on the cruise, they recorded an episode about norovirus…of course.
Welcome to Night Vale
“Welcome to Night Vale is a twice-monthly podcast in the style of community updates for the small desert town of Night Vale, featuring local weather, news, announcements from the Sheriff’s Secret Police, mysterious lights in the night sky, dark hooded figures with unknowable powers, and cultural events. Turn on your radio and hide.”
Welcome to Night Vale performed a live show during one of the daily mainstage performances. The cast included Cecil Baldwin, Hal Lublin, Mark Gagliardi, Wil Wheaton, Maureen Johnson, Patrick Rothfuss, and Symphony Sanders. Co-creator Jeffrey Cranor also introduced the show. The weather report (musical performance) was by Jean Grae.
All hail the glow cloud.
