Radio at the End of the World: Audio Fiction and Drama Podcast Roundup June 2020
An A.I. fights a deadly engineered monster in the cold reaches of space. Magical spells lurk around every bend, tempting the bad and seducing the good. Ghost children run through the halls all while you, dear listener, try your best not to get lost in the imaginary world playing through your speakers.
Audio drama and fiction podcasts give listeners a taste of the real and imaginary—the frightening and obscure. They give listeners a shot at a new world that seems so similar to ours except much more exciting, and at times, hopeful.
In this new series from Discover Pods, I’ll be doing a monthly roundup of the best, and maybe worse, audio fiction and drama podcasts out there.
I’ll be covering all genres and themes in hopes of delivering a wide sample of new and beloved podcasts to listen to on your commute, while playing video games, or just to put on while you’re having a relaxing moment to yourself.
FANTASY
Beneath Ceaseless Skies ‘The Widow’ by Emma Torzs Episode #261
Each issue of the adventure fantasy magazine Beneath Ceaseless Skies takes two stories published in the online adventure fantasy magazine and puts a reading of them on the magazine’s podcast. For Issue 305, the first story chosen was ‘The Widow’ by Emma Torzs and read by Tina Connolly. This is a story filled with world coloring that brings the imaginary to the forefront of the listeners mind. It’s a piece that balances itself between the whimsical world and the dark. Some moments it’s scary and unnerving, making the listener want to stop and take in what has just happened before plowing ahead to its quietly horrifying and happy ending. There is a content warning that accompanies this piece due to domestic violence.
Listen Here: Apple Podcasts | Google Play
Lightspeed Magazine Podcast ‘Destinations of Love’ by Alexander Weinstein
Similar to Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Lightspeed is a science fiction and fantasy magazine that publishes some of the stories from its issues on their podcast. Issue 120 features several great stories that are worth a read, but one of the fantasy stories deserves special attention. Alexander Weinstein’s ‘Destinations of Love’ narrated by Paul Boehmer from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is a part of a series, of what could be deemed, fantasy travel guides with the latest installment on the podcast for this month. One of the things that stands out about this episode is the narrative personality that Boehmer is able to immolate so clearly that you can almost see the smug expression on the travel guide. This is a perfect listen for car drives to nowhere.
Listen Here: Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher
HORROR
Palimpsest Entire Series
Palimpsest is a horror audio drama podcast that has been recommended to fans of Shirley Jackson due to its intimate horror vibes and chilling prose. Palimpsest reminded me of Channel Zero: The Dream Door. It had the same urgency in its telling. An urgency that propelled me through the first episodes of season one before I told myself to stop, breathe, check the shadows in the hallway, and take a break. An added bonus to the creepy writing of Jamieson Ridenhour is the captivatingly chilling music by Ian Ridenhour that accompanies every episode. The show is an anthology horror series with each season focusing on one person as they live through an emotional and horrifying time in their life. It’s intimately baroque and pulls the listener in with the stellar voice acting of Hayley Heninger.
Listen Here: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify
The Drabblecast Episode 425 ‘The Bodies’ by Tim Pratt
The Drabblecast is a special blend of audio fiction and drama. If you’re a fan of Augustus Burroughs ‘Wolf at the Table’ audio book, then you’ll find a home at the Drabblecast. It promotes weird fiction by weird authors and each episode sets a musical atmosphere that provides a soundtrack to the odd and abusrd. They read old works and new, reprints and originals. There’s a wild kindling of strange and horrible in the archives of the Drabblecast. Episode 425 ‘The Bodies’ is a horror story from well-known author Tim Pratt, The Wrong Stars. The story follows the main character as they somehow keep stumbling across gruesome slain bodies littering their common haunts.
It’s not a coincidence that I note the music in both Palimpsest and the Drabblecast. Audio fiction and dramas, especially horrors, are all about the atmospheres they are able to set for their listeners. War of the Worlds didn’t just scare listeners with its vocals but with the sound effects placed just right throughout the broadcast.
Listen Here: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify
SCIENCE FICTION
Escape! SciFi Season 1 Supercut
Escape! SciFi is a nifty podcast with a majority of its characters voiced by A.I. After all of her crew is slain by the monster they were making in space, AMI-42 must contain and control the piece to make sure the mission does not fail. Like many stories featuring AI characters, Escape! SciFi plays with the common themes of being a sentient artificial intelligence. What I found refreshing in the show and what won me over was the back and forth dialogue between the two A.I. characters throughout the story. Hearing the dialogue of freedom and life actually being spoken by two created entities in some way made the experience realer like listening to Tara the Android. I recommend listening to the supercut of all the episodes over the shorter single episodes.
Listen Here: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify
Janus Descending
Follow two xenoarcheologists as they discover and walk on new worlds to learn of the civilization that lived and died there all while fighting with the creatures that killed them. This podcast would go great under the horror section, but the world is so science fiction that it deserves to be listed in this area. There’s only one season of this podcast, but luckily, it’s all completed. There is a supercut available, but I would still recommend that each episode be listened to in order and separate. Give your ears that small moment of silence to take in what you’ve recently listened to. Let the screams die down before listening to the next episode. Everything from the acting to the music sets this podcast up to reel its listeners in from the first minute. It’s emotions, action, and horror all in audio format.
Listen Here: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify
MYSTERY
Fireside Mystery Theater Episode 49.3 ‘The Fortune Teller: The Impossible Seeker’
Styled after olde time radio dramas, Fireside Mystery Theater provides listeners with an atmospheric anachronism of stories, characters, and themes. The episode above is a small sampling of one of their characters and showcases the talent on the show. Following Anita—The Fortune Teller—, listeners go on a journey through a city that comes to life through stellar audio production and acting. At times, the telling verges on the comedic and scary, but walks a delicate line between both, so that the conversations feel real.
Listen Here: Apple Podcasts | Google Play
Next month, I’ll be rounding up more podcasts from around the net and cataloging them in this new series Radio at the End of the World. I hope you join me as I showcase what is out there for your listening enjoyment. All of these are available for free for listeners, so don’t hesitate to start your new favorite show or binge listen.
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