Congratulations to Professor Philip Ford and his podcasting
partner JF Martel on the latest review of their podcast Weird Studies in the London Times, receiving 4 stars from critic James Marriott. This review comes on the tail of another recent write-up in The New York Times this past summer, which similarly recommended the podcast to its readers.
Weird Studies was first produced in 2018 and is self-described by its hosts as “a series of conversations on art and philosophy, dwelling on ideas that are hard to think and art that opens up rifts in what we are pleased to call ‘reality.’” In the London Times article, Marriott equates the podcast to “bumping into two of your favorite professors who are slightly stoned at the end of a party.” He commends the hosts on their informal yet informed banter over topics ranging from mustaches to the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper album.
Weird Studies is unique not just because of the eclectic erudition of its hosts, but for the philosophy underpinning the project, which Ford describes as a “commitment to maintaining a place in intellectual life for spiritual and even occult influences”. Indeed, the rejection of strict positivism opens up the conversational space for the hosts to blend their idiosyncratic views on science, intuition, and mysticism. As a public-facing site of scholarship, Ford hopes to develop podcasting into “a legitimate medium for scholarly work”, a commendable aim in a time when podcasts and other media are becoming increasingly valued as alternatives to a traditionally exclusive form of academia.
Since 2020, the podcast has also provided valuable production experience for IU Musicology Ph.D. student Meredith Michael. Meredith has served primarily as a production assistant but also occasionally joins Ford and Martel “on the mic” – check out Episode 140: That Ain’t Plot: On Hayao Miyazaki’s ‘Spirited Away’ — as well as with special projects, like the recovered Lost Episode.
Weird Studies is available on most audio listening platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, and Stitcher.
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