The first episode of Song Exploder, about The Postal Service song "The District Sleeps Alone Tonight," came out 10 years ago, in January 2014. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the podcast, we're doing what bands do, and putting out a deluxe, expanded edition of our very first release: this version features a new interview, new insights, and new pieces of the song and demo.
The Postal Service formed in 2001. Their debut album came out in 2003, and it was a game changer. Their combination of electronic music and indie rock not only sold over a million copies; their songs were everywhere on TV and in film, and influenced a generation of artists. Last year, they played sold-out concerts across the US in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the album, and there are more shows to come in 2024. A few weeks ago, I spoke to Ben Gibbard, and I combined that with my original interview from 2013 with Jimmy Tamborello. And here, together, the two of them tell the story of how they made their song “The District Sleeps Alone Tonight.”
The current president of Venezuela made global headlines when he seemed on the cusp of invading the neighboring country of Guyana -- why would a country already in the grip of domestic chaos aim to start a war? In today's episode, Ben, Matt and Noel dive into the disturbing history of Venezuelan-Guyanese relations, as well as the claims that there may be more -- much more -- to the story than what we're seeing in the headlines.
Eliana Johnson joins the podcast to discuss the strange triumphalism of Nikki Haley's loser speech last night in New Hampshire and the strange negativity of Donald Trump's winner speech a few hours later. Does this portend a season in which Haley exposes Trump's flaws as she continues her run? Give a listen.
Could Africa's leaders be too old to lead the world's youngest population? The continent's newest democratically elected president Liberia's Joseph Boakai is 79
We meet Ghanaian Lesley Lokko the first African woman to win the prestigious gold medal for services to architecture.
And learn about British-Nigerian rapper Skepta's directorial debut with the short film Tribal Mark.
Audio for this episode was updated on 24th January 2024.
Polychain Capital founder and CIO Olaf Carlson-Wee has been through every single bubble in crypto history, from Bitcoin’s rise past the single digits in 2012 to the ICO craze of 2017 to 2021’s NFT mania, and he says his main thesis about crypto has remained consistent since the beginning. That is, that crypto constitutes an “incentive vortex” that will replace the world’s preoccupation with country-backed currencies.
Carlson-Wee, who was the first employee at Coinbase, joins Unchained to discuss the significance of the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs, how he successfully navigated all the industry blow-ups in 2022, the challenges of balancing incentives for early adopters versus new users, why EigenLayer is so significant, why Worldcoin’s distribution strategy is a “disaster,” and the strange places that the intersection between crypto and AI could take us.
Show highlights:
Why Olaf sees the current market as the cusp of another bull run and how his thesis has remained consistent since 2011
How the launch of spot Bitcoin ETFs marks a significant milestone
Why criticisms of the crypto space are really criticisms of money in general
The fundamental differences between Web3 applications and the Web2 ecosystem and why they matter
The importance of fair token distribution in enhancing the value of Web3 projects
When Olaf expects Bitcoin to replace legacy financial systems
The areas and technologies Olaf and his fund are keen to invest in
Why Olaf thinks a modular blockchain architecture is superior to a monolithic one in the long term
How EigenLayer is innovating to enable new types of applications and whether it competes with Celestia
How Polychain managed to avoid being hurt by the major market blowups of 2022, including Terra and FTX
The evolution of the space from an ideologically driven to a more pragmatic approach
The significance of incentive design in crypto ecosystems and the trade-offs involved in system design
Olaf’s perspective on the recent rise of points systems
The growth of privacy-focused crypto projects and the potential for private blockchains to become the norm
Why he thinks Worldcoin’s distribution strategy is a “disaster”
Olaf’s interest in the intersection of AI and crypto and potential developments in this area
Unchained Podcast is Produced by Laura Shin Media, LLC. Distributed by CoinDesk. Senior Producer is Michele Musso and Executive Producer is Jared Schwartz.
This episode was hosted by Jennifer Sanasie. “Markets Daily” is executive produced by Jared Schwartz and produced and edited by Eleanor Pahl, alongside Senior Booking Producer Melissa Montañez. All original music by Doc Blust and Colin Mealey.
This week, we talk about the big Polyamory article in New York Magazine and the proposition that breaking the bonds of monogamy might be a political statement, one that frees both sides from the constraints of marriage. Are we just reinventing ways to justify selfish behavior? And why does every personal decision in the lives of upper middle class, well-educated people need to turn into some movement that promises nothing?
We also continue our ongoing talk about visions of the climate future with a conversation about “Psalm for the Wild Built” by Becky Chambers, which, in turn, led to a longer conversation about surf movies and Tyler’s hobby of fishing at 3 AM in a wetsuit in the cold unruly waters of coastal Maine.
Enjoy!
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Donald Trump declares victory in New Hampshire as Nikki Haley vows to fight on. Wrong driveway shooting conviction. Remembering Charles Osgood. CBS News Correspondents Matt Pieper and Steve Kathan has today's World News Roundup.
As Chicago delayed its 60-day shelter-stay limit due to weather, New York has been enforcing its limit on single adults for months — and in January, started removing families. But advocates in New York City warn of chaos and inhumane conditions as the city has cast migrants on to the street. Reset compares the two city’s responses to the migrant crisis with Michael Loria, a reporter with the Chicago Sun-Times, and Giulia McDonnell Nieto del Rio with the New York-based outlet, Documented.
Laura answers a listener’s question about correcting a common HSA mistake and discusses resolving other confusing account issues that frequently occur.
Money Girl is hosted by Laura Adams. A transcript is available at Simplecast
