In 1933, a composer named Rezső Seress created one of the world's most infamous tunes -- a melancholy, mysterious piece known as 'Gloomy Sunday.' Over the following decades, this song became notorious for the sinister effects it had on anyone who listened to the song in full. Join the guys for a special end-of-the-year episode as they explore the story of the original recording -- where it came from, who wrote it, and, most disturbingly, why.
The band Vampire Weekend started in 2006, in New York. Their third album came out in 2013, and was named one of the best albums of the year all over the place, and it won a Grammy. But it took six years for their next album, Father of the Bride, to come out. This album’s also been nominated for a Grammy, for album of the year. And the lead single from it, “Harmony Hall,” was nominated for Best Rock Song.
In this episode, Ezra Koenig from Vampire Weekend takes “Harmony Hall” apart. I spoke to him along with producer Ariel Rechtshaid, and the two of them detailed winding path the song went down, over several years, before it finally took shape.
Maddie and Emily wish you Happy Holidays and share some science facts you can show off at your next holiday party. Plus, a little reminder of how you can show your support for the show. Find and donate to your local public radio station at donate.npr.org/short. Follow Maddie and Emily on Twitter, @maddie_sofia and @emilykwong1234. Email the show at shortwave@npr.org.
No one suffers more from civil forfeiture than people too poor to fight it. Alan Clemmons is a Republican lawmaker in South Carolina working to impose the most basic level of oversight on the process.
Well, we're really in the philosophical soup of it now. Out here at the edge of the universe, doing B&Es on a Chinese Room filled with scramblers, not knowing if our sentience is the only thing worth saving our a sad joke that should be shuffled offstage in the gentlest way possible. Or maybe it already has been and we're too zombie to even notice. We're into the middle section of Blindsight, which does not get enough credit as a master work of science fiction philosophy in my opinion. We've moved from discussion of the possibility of philosophical zombies to discussion of the value of sentience/phenomenal experience. We wrestle with the limitations of several accounts of the value of consciousness. This sets us up for discussing the connections between sentience and moral realism in part 3, assuming our sentience lasts that long.
Recent appearances: Thomas was just on Cog Dis talking trash about me. You should go listen and then talk trash about everyone involved to defend my honor.
For your last Allusionist of 2019, here is a quiz all about words for you to play along with as you listen. Get a pen and paper to jot down your answers, or there’s an interactive answer form all ready for you at theallusionist.org/2019quiz.
For all Allusionist episodes, extra material, transcripts, merch etc, visit theallusionist.org.
If you enjoyed this quiz, you can also play the 2018 quiz at theallusionist.org/2018quiz.
Sign up to become a member of the Allusioverse at theallusionist.org/donate, and not only are you supporting an independent podcast, you get behind the scenes info about every episode, patron-exclusive video livestreams and a Discord community full of language chat, crafts, pet pics and word games.
One of CoinDesk’s ten most influential people of 2019, Melem Demirors is a crypto renaissance woman, known best for investing, operating as CSO of CoinShares, and for explaining ‘shitcoins’ to Congress.
In this end of year Breakdown, Meltem argues explains why the entrance of governments to the digital asset game is the most significant story of 2019, as well as suggesting that the presence of an entirely new financial infrastructure around bitcoin means the halvening is likely to be unlike what anyone thinks.
The Crusades shook the world. But why did they happen? This podcast tells the story of the Crusades and how the Byzantine Empire not only contributed to their origins but shaped their development. It's the story of what was, in effect, a world war as Turkish nomads from the Asian steppe-lands faced Frankish and Norman knights from western Europe. It was a time that changed the world. And its echoes are still with us today.
Please take a look at my website nickholmesauthor.com where you can download a free copy of The Byzantine World War, my book that describes the origins of the First Crusade.
Death sentences are occasionally overturned in America; we meet a private detective responsible for saving many of those lives. We scour our foreign department taking nominations for The Economist’s country of the year. And our correspondent joins a shipment of Congolese beer for its long river journey from brewery to bars. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer
