Everything is Alive: Chioke, Grain of Sand

October 18, 2018 7:02 AM

Chioke is a grain of sand. He's not as small as he looks.
posted by eotvos (6 comments total)

So zen, that Chioke! I did not know that about white sand beaches, and the phone call might have been the best yet. Lovely.
posted by queensissy at 12:43 PM on October 19, 2018

I just want to say I really love this podcast.
posted by CheeseLouise at 12:56 PM on October 19, 2018

I've fallen in love with this podcast. In principle, I've always been a fan of media that combines fiction and fact. But, in practice, I'm often annoying by the lack of distinction. (I can't stand literary historical fiction.) This podcast has uniquely managed to mix the absurd with well-researched facts and real interviews in a way that never leaves the listener wondering which bits are fictional. It satisfies both my absurdist and scientist selves completely.

For years, I've been waiting for the next Joe Frank. There are many contenders - Nate DiMeo, Glynn Washington, etc. - but even though they do a fantastic job at producing great radio, the actual format of the programs they produce is rarely surprising. This is the first time in a long while that anyone's done something genuinely new and good in the medium.

40 seconds of dead-air while asking the audience to empathize with a grain of sand is a bad-ass move as a radio producer. I'm astonished collaborators signed off on it, but it was great.
posted by eotvos at 2:53 PM on October 21, 2018 [1 favorite]

Thank you for pointing out this neat thing.
posted by Glinn at 7:09 AM on October 22, 2018

I do love this podcast, but I feel a bit spoiled by episodes 1 and 2. I was pretty teary at the end of the lamp post episode, and the ones following have not quite, for me, reached that height.
posted by chazlarson at 1:33 PM on October 24, 2018 [3 favorites]

Can of cola absolutely had me in tears as well.
I so did not expect to like this podcast so much!
posted by exceptinsects at 9:05 PM on November 5, 2018