Podcasts I like and one to avoid

Now that iTunes has had the ability to subscribe to podcasts (more easily) for some time, here are some I listen to that I would like to share with you. 
 
Podquiz: This is done by a British guy named James Carter (as you can tell by his accent). Some of the questions are rather easy like his section about chess while the musical connections can be frustrating. Overall this podcast is very professional: no stammering and great production. Mr. Carter is a joy to listen to because his podcast is living proof of a positive outcome from all this DIY technology in a universe crowded with other whining cranks or making audio blogs. 
 
Coverville: Brian Ibbott out of Denver does about two to three half-hour shows dedicated to his love of covers. Being a huge music collector and an avid fan of unusual covers myself, this show was the first thing I looked for when iTunes gained its podcast subscription abilities. Not every show is a gem, Ibbott will focus on a particular artist, musical style or theme. If you’re not a fan of Tom Waits, a capella or Christmas songs, this may result in you skipping entire shows. However, he tends to keep the bulk of his podcasts general showcases. As he approaches 200 shows, his technique has continued to remain amateurish with all the stammering. I’ll cut him some slack though. He has a regular full-time job and he did beat me to the punch on this concept. Oddly, he has similar tastes as mine (Split Enz, Jellyfish and the Posies come up frequently). Brian is also a very generous host since he uses Coverville’s fame to promote others’ such as Podquiz (see above) and Musically Challenged; these are usually played near the end of his episodes. Fame? Coverville has received press from numerous newspapers, NPR and various music trades. Again, the variety and dedication to his material makes his weak production skills forgivable. 
 
TMBG Podcast: Definitely a must for TMBG fans who cannot get enough of them (they’re touring again this Spring, but skipping Austin). The content isn’t exclusively them talking nor demos of unreleased, unfinished songs. It’s more along the lines of what they’d be like if they were on the radio for a half-hour show; playing a song or two of theirs (solo material included), music by others they like and when they do speak, they’re genuinely funny. For example, they pretended to be a couple of movie people blathering on in a DVD commentary. The Johns prove that famous musicians can still produce original, entertaining content without it feeling like scraps to keep their fan base sated. 
 
On the Media: This isn’t really an original podcast, it’s actually a rebroadcast (or what has been coined “repurposed” content) of that week’s show. Since I have a degree in Communication from Marquette, I still have a passing interest in what is happening in the media business. The local NPR station (KUT) started carrying this a couple years ago but they play it at 6 am on a Saturday, not exactly a convenient time. At first, I wasn’t impressed with OTM. It came off more self-congratulatory and very self-important. I did enjoy their anniversary show of an average day at an NPR station starring Fred Willard, Tony Shaloub and Jeanne Garafolo (definitely the bane of the Right). They also gained some chutzpah recently (why not, both hosts are Jewish like every other NPR show) by calling Judith Miller on the carpet; boy did she get defensive; same with Tomlinson’s attempt to steer CPB to the far right. 
 
Five Hundy by Midnight: This is the one to avoid. Tim Dressen is this guy in the Minneapolis area who goes to Las Vegas several times a year so he feels it gives him the right to do a podcast about the place. Too bad the show is filled with his incessant bitching, stammering, ad-libbed format and useless opinion. If you really want to know what’s new in Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Review-Journal website isn’t a secret. If you have cable TV, turn on the Travel Channel too, at least you’ll have pictures to accompany those PR pieces. I love going to the place too, but I should’ve known his podcast was a waste of energy because he’s a slot and video poker player; flushing your money down the toilet on those games is faster since they’re designed for speed. He tried to liven up the podcast by having his wife on. She definitely has a better voice for radio, but you know that probably means, she has a face for radio too. Anyway, this just shifted his show from one kind of a boring (his yammering) to another (their he-said, she-said). I think a more interesting podcast could be done by someone who lives there and the host interviews various guests passing through. Dressen’s podcast is a demonstration of the Internet giving a voice to people who have nothing to say yet have to say something.