The Organist is a podcast from KCRW and The Believer Magazine

August 7, 2013 3:54 AM

The Organist is an arts and culture podcast [iTunes link] from The Believer Magazine and the Californian public radio station KCRW. Each episode is generally a mix of interviews, essays and music. Among the contributors so far have been Nick Offerman, Rachel Kushner, Jonathan Coulton and Matmos. Each podcast begins with a short dramatic monologue, for example episode three starts with Sarah Silverman talking about her pet owl, in a piece written by Alena Smith (Conan O'Brien has another dramatic monologue in the same episode). There have been six episodes so far and they are all worth a listen.
posted by Kattullus (8 comments total)

with Sarah Silverman talking about her pet owl,

So... is that some sexual euphemism I am not familar with?

(Seriously, looks interesting and worthy of adding to my podcast roster.)
posted by aught at 6:41 AM on August 7, 2013

I'm always looking for a great new podcast and this looks interesting. Thanks for posting this!
posted by marsha56 at 11:29 AM on August 7, 2013

I've listened to two episodes of this and it reminds me a lot of A Life Well Wasted, except not gaming-centric. But it's got that same feel of not being afraid of having 5-6 different mediums in one episode: poetry, music, interviews, spoken word, etc.
posted by JauntyFedora at 12:38 PM on August 7, 2013

One of the best things about Metafilter is getting introduced to new stuff like this. I am a fan of the Believer so this is right up my alley. Listened to three podcasts already. Gracias my friend.
posted by qivip at 6:27 PM on August 7, 2013 [1 favorite]

I listened to the first few minutes of the first episode and disliked it. I love Nick Offerman, but I hate that ironic tone. The contributors look interesting, though, so I want to like it. Does it keep on in the same style?
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:57 AM on August 8, 2013

No, the dramatic monologues are very different from the rest of the podcast. And each is different from the others.
posted by Kattullus at 10:05 AM on August 8, 2013

Ah, thanks. I'll try some more, then.
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:39 PM on August 8, 2013 [1 favorite]

What a fantastical potpourri of bizarre. I didn't really get or like it at first, but I listened to the Franco one with Cave's horses and it all became amusing and delightful. Will definitely have to be in the mood for it, but when I am it should hit the spot squarely.
posted by iamkimiam at 5:06 AM on August 11, 2013 [1 favorite]