10 OF THE BEST PODCASTS FOR MUSIC
As little as 15 years ago, nobody had even heard the word ’podcast’; nowadays, though, you can learn about anything from insects to dentistry in weekly instalments.
Here we’ve put together ten of our music favourites, which include some choice mixes, artist interviews and plenty of theory, history and music culture. So go forth to learn, discover and – most of all – enjoy.
SONG EXPLODER
This has fast become one of the most listened to and celebrated music podcasts going. The premise is simple: an artist speaks about one of their songs, breaking it apart – or exploding it – and explaining how it came to be. It has welcomed R.E.M, Lindsey Buckingham and Iggy Pop in its 162 episodes so far.
RESIDENT ADVISOR
If you’re on the hunt for an electronic mix, look no further than the RA podcast. It’s bagged 679 episodes since Troy Pierce first took the reins in 2006, hosting a variety of legends, heavyweights and emerging DJS along the way. The RA Exchange, meanwhile, is a series of 461 interviews (so far) with artists, labels and promoters discussing the electronic music landscape.
SWITCHED ON POP
Should you care about Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber? Can algorithms write pop songs? Why does every intro sound like it’s underwater? Musicologist Nate Sloan and songwriter Charlie Harding unlock the secrets of pop music construction with this offering, in which they explore the craft of creating some of the world’s biggest pop songs – and do so with genuine love and admiration for their subject matter.
MONDAY MORNING MIXTAPE
Okay, so this might not be a podcast in the truest sense, but Stamp The Wax’s Monday Morning Mixtape is a blissful weekly mix of laid-back sounds from around the world, easing you gently out of the weekend and back into work. It’s hosted on Mixcloud, which means you can download it from there using various apps as well as streaming from its website.
BBC WORLD MUSIC SERVICE
This next trio proves the BBC’S embarrassment of riches when it comes to music-related podcasts. Its World Music Service podcast is a globetrotting selection of documentaries on various artists and movements, with its sporadic episodes covering subjects such as Indian classical music, synth pioneer Yevgeny Murzin and Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin.
COMPOSER OF THE WEEK
A more regular podcast, Radio 3’s Composer Of The Week does precisely as its title promises: each Friday Donald Macleod takes a composer – some well known, others not so much – and views their life through their music. Expect to learn about Dora Pejacevic and Witold Lutoslawski as much as Beethoven and Bach.
SOUND OF CINEMA
The last of our BBC trio is Matthew Sweet’s weekly exploration of the world of film music. Rather than focusing on specific scores, Sound Of Cinema generally delves into cultural movements, movie genres and sonic themes, often finding ties that, until they’ve been explained, you might not have clocked.
BEATS IN SPACE
The creation of New York DJ Tim Sweeney, this is a weekly radio show dating back to 1999 (as well as a record label) and the mixes are uploaded to its website. Nearing its 1000th edition, like Resident Advisor, this is a go-to for discovering new electronic music and the DJS responsible for pushing the envelope.
REASONABLY SOUND
For those looking to get granular, the ever-fascinating Reasonably Sound isn’t focused only on music but on how certain sounds happen or are created, and why we interpret them the way we do. Thanks to some sympathetic explanation, you won’t need a doctorate to follow it, but it can get quite science-heavy at times so is perhaps not for the most casual of listeners.
TINY DESK CONCERTS
NPR’S All Songs Considered podcast, a weekly voyage of music discovery, could easily have made this list, but the Tiny Desk has become so iconic it would feel negligent to leave it out. The concept again is simple: NPR gets some of the world’s most interesting and exciting artists, crams them into a small space and has them perform stripped-back versions of their work. Available as audio-only too, so ideal for the commute.