Episode 12: Sound off

Podcast Playlist sounds off as Sean and Lindsay sample podcasts that use sound in very different ways —from archival tape reels recorded in secret, to audio dramas built with highly produced sound effects, to minimal background sound to underscore a powerful conversation. 

Home of the Brave

"I rolled up my pants to my shins and walked out on Broadway feeling good every time my soles hit the street." — Scott Carrier

Home of the Brave is produced by Scott Carrier, a regular contributor to This American Life and Peabody Award winner.

This piece, "New Shoes," was three decades in the works. It starts with a trip Scott took to India in 1986, and in 1999 half the story was edited together and broadcast on The Savvy Traveler.

This year, Scott Carrier pulled the pieces together into a podcast.

As you'll hear, he finds himself just recording to record. 

Everything Sounds

"We used to say that Sade and the Gypsy Kings were the grilled salmon of sound …you either had to have it, or were so tired of it you wanted to stab yourself." — Clark Wolf

As we look at different ways podcasters use sound to tell stories, Everything Sounds is a perfect fit.

It's about sound in art, sound in everyday life, and as you'd expect, they're creative in their own use of sound as well.

The podcast is produced independently by Craig Shank and George Drake Junior.

In this episode, "Restaurant Sound Design" they deal with a type of sound design that you've likely experienced, but may not have given too much thought.

Our National Conversation About Conversations About Race

"Most of the media attention so far has been focused on the discomfort of the white liberal parents who believe in colour blindness." — Tanner Colby

A lack of sound is also a tool podcast-makers can use to create a feeling.

Our National Conversation about Conversations About Race or About Race for short — part of the Panoply Podcast Network.

It's a show that doesn't use much background music or ambient sounds. It is three people, three three unadorned voices having conversations about race.

This episode is called "I Check All The Boxes."

Illusionoid

"I think they're some kind of ancient emoji!" — photocopy shop employee

Illusionoid uses sound to create an entire universe.

The Toronto-based production is an improvised radio drama.The story is from a dystopian future, where a lone survivor sends warnings back to the past about a tyrannical computer overlord named Illusionoid.

Because it's improvised, some of the sound effects are created live off the cuff while other effects are added on afterwards to help fill out the scene.

In this episode, "Day Million," ​the employees of a photocopy shop celebrate the business's one-millionth day anniversary.

What are your favourite podcasts? Send us an e-mail, tweet us @PodcastPlaylist, or find us on Facebook.

For more great podcasts, check out CBC's podcast portal — we have more than 99 home grown podcasts available for subscription or download!