Low Culture Boil

In this episode Amber and Rax talk about Thomas Kinkade. You might not recognize the name but you have seen his paintings hanging in AirBnb's or at your friend's grandma's house, or on a hallmark card. He is known as "The Painter of Light" because he called himself that and trademarked it. Why was this kitsch painter so hated by the art world? Why was he so loved by the masses? What did he have ag...

Author Greg Mania joins the girls in this salute to the gayest chain restaurant, Applebees! Did you know this restaurant used to be called T.J. Applebee's Edibles and Elixirs? Did you hate learning that as much as we did? Also, we reveal what dish Applebees cooks say never to order! Please don't be spinach artichoke dip, please don't be spinach artichoke dip...

What made these little plastic ponies so popular with girls and this cartoon for girls so popular with men? Amber and Rax dive into it with the magic of friendship in this episode! They talk about the true creator of My Little Ponies (Bonnie Zacherle, obvi), BronyCon, and Pester Power. Which reminds us, please bother your parents to sign up for our patreon! This episode is also in video form on ou...

Hustler magazine: close-up images of pussy, or First Amendment champion content? Larry Flynt: disgusting misogynist, or hero of journalistic integrity? In part one of our two parter on the magazine's legacy, we talk history, lawsuits, and what happened when Rax brought her copy of Hustler to the public library to research this episode. Also, a very special, extra incensed Gripe Zone!

Have you ever craved a dusty train ride to a sandy beach full of mosquitos and biting flies? If so, early Atlantic City might have been for you! In this episode Amber and Rax talk about the Lenape people convinced to leave for some finished goods, the first family to live there year round and Pitney, the doctor who fought God to turn a dusty swampy beach into a health resort? They also talk about...

Amber talks with friend and comedian C h a n e l A l i about MTV's reality show/cautionary tale, Teen Mom. Make yourself a nice meal and take some solace in the fact that you aren't a teen mother right now, unless you are, in which case watch for lessons. Huge shoutout to Tyler, of Catelyn and Tyler, who just got a vasectomy. Other teen dads, take note. If you want to hear more Amber and Chanel yo...

Rax and Amber are joined by film critic Jourdain Searles of Bad Romance Pod to show some love to the official Genre For Girls. When's the last time they even showed a romcom at a movie theater? What's your favorite romcom? Have they always been this maligned? All this plus the Gripe Zone today!

Fun fact: Rax failed to get a job here when she was 19. Actually, everything about the history of Hooters could be relayed in "fun fact" form, from the story of its founding to the rules its famous Hooters Girls have to obey on the clock. Just how did these guys get the idea to pair chicken wings with push-up bras? (Goes great with a side of our Sexy Scissors episode!)

(NYC culture-boilers, have you bought your tickets for our live show at Bushwick Public House on 5/11 yet? $12 for chads and gladiators who buy in advance, $15 for haters and losers who wait to get theirs at the door!) Amber and Rax are joined by comedian and writer Ellory Smith to talk about two of the missing links of reality TV, Flavor of Love and Rock of Love. Listen to hear about our shared l...

Rax and Amber are joined by quickie author Lily Lady to pay tribute to that motherlode of trash culture, the Real Housewives franchise. Tune in to hear about Rax's humiliating experience on Watch What Happens Live, plus anti-snoring discrimination, a dissection of the "real" self of reality TV, and airplane gripes.

Late post, but great post! In this episode Amber talks to Matt Christman about their favorite structured reality program, Shark Tank. They talk about the Sharks, which ones they would get into business with and which ones they would... Mostly it's a love letter to Kevin O'Leary, AKA Mr. Wonderful.

Rax and Amber dig into the surprisingly luxurious past of instant noodles. Did you know they were originally sold as a fun novelty food for rich people? Or why they're so quick and easy to cook? Or what percentage of rodent parts they're legally allowed to contain? Find out today!

This week Rax and Amber dive into glitter and why loving it is a sign of intelligence actually. Did you know glitter is sometimes put in animal feed to study their feces? There is also glitter you can put in cereal if that bowl of Fiber One is bumming you out. Or how about a glitter capsule for, well, listen to the ep for that one. Or watch it on our YouTube channel to see our glitter outfits: you...

Rax and Amber are joined by writer Chingy Nea ( @thegaychingy ) to chat about history's campiest backstage melodrama, Showgirls. Is it weird not having anyone come on you? Let's find out! Subcribe to our patreon to to hear the whole episode: patreon.com/lowcultureboil

Amber and Rax talk about THE classic hostess snack, Twinkies. Invented by an enterprising baker in 1930 trying to find another use for the strawberry short cake tins when strawberries were not in season. Did you know twinkies was orininally filled with a banana cream? Or that they are named after shoes? If not, have no fear, Amber and Rax cover tons of Twinkie history, including the Twinkie Defens...

Rax is joined by Vox's Rebecca Jennings to talk about her recent story on TikTok's hostile takeover of fashion and trend forecasting. Are the kids really dressing like clowns, apocalypse survivors, and Bridgerton characters these days? Should we really plan to accommodate two dozen new fashion trends per month? Is a vibe shift really coming?   (And with this, Rax's solo reign over the pod is over!...

Rax takes over for the day to talk to journalist Dave Infante about his experience in the Miller Lite...metaverse bar? Will the future be full of bars where you can't even drink? Is the outer limit of Web3's imagination really a virtual dive bar spattered in virtual filth? And what is the official Low Culture Boil position on the metaverse? (Anti, but Dave has other thoughts!) All this plus the us...

Why do we hate pigeons? Is it because they don't give a flying rat's ass about our designated boundaries? Or perhaps it's that they remind us of our animal nature? In this episode Amber and Courtney get into the history of our relationship with these little iridescent workers and why they deserve your respect.

The gals continue with the part 2 of fad diets. This ep they cover arsenic pills, the vogue grapefruit diet, slimfast and more! If you do the full 30 you are never full. Rax, Courtney and Amber are here to tell you all about it. To see Vera's guest spot watch the ep on YouTube: https://youtu.be/_XaGy-_b2aw

"Marry and Reproduce!" "Obey!" "Conform!" These are just a few suggestions the humanoid aliens from the 1988 movie They Live have for reaching your highest potential in a capitalist utopia. That's right, this week the ladies dive into the Rowdy Roddy Piper action-sci-fi-western magic that is John Carpenter's They Live and boy do they have a good time giving the ol' bird to President Regan. Interes...

Get ready for a romp as the gals take on the exciting history of rompers (and jumpsuits, catsuits, onesies, etc.). If you've ever wondered why babies and mechanics both love wearing bottoms connected to their tops, then this episode is for you. Strap in and buckle up your siren suit buddy, cause we're gonna drive down fashion highway To see all the fashion pics, check out the ep on YouTube: https:...

The gals continue with the part 2 of fad diets. This ep they cover arsenic pills, the vogue grapefruit diet, slimfast and more! If you do the full 30 you are never full. Rax, Courtney and Amber are here to tell you all about it. Hear the full ep on our patreon: patreon.com/lowcultureboil

In this episode the gals talk about the history of fad diets and why they are so popular in the US. Who doesn't chew every bite 118 times exactly? In fact this topic is so meaty that the LCBabes decided to portion control and split it into two parts. Part two will be released Thursday for patrons only! Subscribe here to hear it: www.patreon.com/lowcultureboil And check out the video for this ep on...

It takes only 7 ingredients to make this mystery meat that is eaten accross the globe. It's magic and yet we look down on it. In this episode Amber and Courtney talk about THE meat of WWII, SPAM.

Taking another cue from Rax's book, team LCB covers the musician Meat Loaf. His Wagnerian performances and complete earnestness are not only his trademark, they just might make him an irony-proof subject. The gals go deeper into the idea of ironic engagement with art, what it protects us from, and what it inhibits. Beyond that, Meat Loaf also turns out to have the soul of a poster and a soap opera...