We hear a lot about the work goes into getting the eye-grabbing visuals Hollywood blockbusters… but how much work goes into getting the sounds? You may be surprised to learn that behind, not just the explosions and fight scenes, but behind ever

#6: Series in Decline

Jun 8th, 2012

It’s happened again. Your favorite TV show (or graphic novels or movie franchise or podcast) is headed down the tubes. The shark has been jumped, and now there’s no looking back. What does it mean for a series to be in decline? What does it lo

#5: Sex, Death and Morals in Horror

May 31st, 2012

In 1980, during a “very special episode” of Siskel & Ebert, Roger Ebert made a provocative claim about the emerging genre of “slasher” horror films: “these films hate women.” Whether that’s true—and why—is a little more complicated. Dr. Lisa W

#4: The Rule of Threes

May 24th, 2012

Is three really the magic number? Sometimes it seems like it. From three blind mice to sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll, things that come in threes just seem… right.This time I’ll speak with Michael Eck, who has tracked down and documented things

#3: The Loudness War

May 18th, 2012

The Loudness War is the pejorative name given to the decades-long struggle to try and make the loudest record, to have that one song that’ll stand out above the flood of other sounds we hear, musical and non-musical, on a daily basis. Of course

#2: Bad Translations

May 11th, 2012

We all know a bad translation when we see one… or do we? Translations of all sorts can, at best, ensure our shared survival. And at worst, mistranslations have had varied, far-reaching and often disastrous effects, as basic as “all your base ar

#1: The Drums From "Be My Baby" and the Life of a Meme

May 3rd, 2012

One of the most viral memes in popular culture came way before the invention of the internet. Ever since the iconic opening bars of the Ronettes’ hit “Be My Baby” first blasted from a hi-fi back in 1963, the same drum beat has been used in song

Promo: "The Drums from 'Be My Baby' and the Life of a Meme"

Apr 26th, 2012

Sounds Familiar is a hypertextual adventure for your ears, exploring the connections and surprising stories found everywhere, just underneath the mundane and everyday.Join us May 4th for the premiere episode of Sounds Familiar, on iTunes and p

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