Cultural Futures Exchange

In the what!?? You heard it right! Or did you? This episode we assess the wild world of ‘70s game shows—the questions, the answers, the blinking lights, the hosts (and hostesses), the celebrities, the ridiculous music, and most importantly, the sex! This was the peak of the sexy game show era and we explore the most popular and notorious of these shows on this episode. We evaluate the future prosp...

How do you follow up an epic two part magnum opus that covers an entire film franchise? How about with a single episode that is even longer than both of those parts combined about an album that was recorded for a few hundred bucks that is mainly notable for its cliched, goofy nonsense lyrics and the most cowbell ever used on a rock album? That’s right, this week, your hosts, Jeff Sixx and Slip Nei...

This week, CFX once again plunges back into the Phantasmverse for the thrilling conclusion to our epic review of the entire film franchise. In Part 2, we cover the final three films of the series which, as with the first two films, are all wildly different from each other but all share that same guerrilla film-making spirit. We evaluate the entire franchise at the end of the episode and, along the...

This week, CFX explores the dark world of Phantasm, but not just the first film! No, we dive into the entire film franchise, all 5 films. And this is such a dark, harrowing journey that we had to split this into two parts, lest our audience become too terrified to take it all in. In Part 1 of the episode, we discuss the origins of the franchise and the first two films. Along the way, we learn: Why...

This week we celebrate more than evaluate the great Earth, Wind and Fire and, as Jeff rightly points out, the one word that comes to mind is JOY. This is the perfect way to describe this music, which is irresistibly catchy and energetic but also extremely innovative and sophisticated. While Earth, Wind and Fire were extremely popular in their day, their historical importance and lasting impact is...

On this episode, we tackle ‘70s TV juggernaut Happy Days. This is a long one and it’s certainly our most ambitious. In addition to our usual historical overview and evaluations, we have a new segment called CFX Reenactment Theater and a trivia game that you can play along with at home. We also introduce you to the Marshall-verse, the often nonsensical, sometimes bizarre alternate 1950s that TV “ge...

On this episode, CFX looks at Unforgettable Fire by U2, an album which ironically has often been forgotten, lost in the shuffle when compared to the anthemic early albums of the band, and even more so when compared to the blockbusters that would follow it. We try to decide if this moody experimental album is a lost classic that stands the test of time or is just a peculiar stumbling block. Along t...

Hey HEY hey! What’s Happening?! This week we take on this classic ‘70s sitcom, and it’s an apt title because this episode does have some technical issues (Some delay-related f-ups…Slip may talk a lot but he’s not actually interrupting as much as it seems). But you should listen to it anyway because it may be one of the best episodes we’ve done, and where else are you going to hear about this too o...

This week we tackle Plastic Surgery Disasters, the blazing second album by classic hardcore punk band The Dead Kennedys. Is this still a relevant commentary of our time or as dated as Jerry Brown’s ‘70s loafers? We attempt to answer that question and along the way, we also find out… Why Jello Biafra could have made a good campaign manager for the Republican Party and why you should vote for Joey S...

On our tenth episode, we take on German metal gods, The Scorpions and their breakthrough 1982 album, Blackout. Does this intoxicating mix of irresistible hooks, technical, precise musicianship and extremely juvenile (and just plain gross) lyrics stand the test of time? We do our best to answer this question and along the way, we find out: How the band eschewed their native metric system in order t...

This week we take you for a ride on THE METRO to a DESTINATION UNKNOWN. That’s right, it’s our first battle of the bands episode! Who is better Missing Persons or Berlin? We each have our favorite. But as we dug into the history of these bands and their respective female leads, Dale Bozzio and Teri Nunn, we noticed some very strange parallels that kept popping up and it led us down a road that som...

“Hello there, ladies and gentleman! Hello there, ladies and gents, ARE YOU READY TO RAAHCK?” So begins one of the iconic live albums and one of the great underdog stories of the ‘70s. That’s right, this week we take on Cheap Trick Live At Budokan and decide if it stands the test of time or it “just seems a little weird”. Along the way, we find out… How Jeff discovered the “cheap” “tricks” behind t...

A few years ago in a movie theater not so far away, the world was blown away (sort of...) by the long-awaited sequel to The Return of the Jedi: The Force Awakens. Does it still hold up? This week your hosts Jeff-I and Slip-walker attempt to find out, and along the way we also ask… Why wasn’t this movie just called The Reboot of the Jedi? Why the resistance is STILL the resistance (how many damn De...

This week we really do take a step that is new because we aren’t talking about a band or an album but a TV show — Three’s Company! Does this salacious ‘70s sitcom stand the test of time or is it as tasteless as Mr. Roper’s home brew? Stay tuned to find out and along the way, we also discover… Why Three’s Company was the nuttiest show in 70’s prime time ( https://youtu.be/dod2br5fMSw ) Why the hipp...

Endless Summer? More like Endless EPISODE!! This week we take on the Big Kahuna of American bands - The Beach Boys. Along the way we find out… Why we don’t love Mike Love yet love The Beach Boys (that’s how good they are) Why we are praying that Al Jardine lives a long life (yes, so he will outlive Mike Love) How two pasty white boys spent too much time in the sun and surf growing up in SoCal  Why...

Is everybody in? Is EVERYBODY …in? Well, then wake the F@&$ UP THEN!! Because this shit is about to begin. For our 4th episode we take on the classic debut album by  THE FREAKING LIZARD KING and THE DOORS and we find out… How many times you can rhyme snake with lake in a poem that isn’t written for children Why the pressing question isn’t “Is Jim Morrison still alive” but “how did Jim Morrison NOT...

That’s Billy “F’in” Joel to you! In our third episode we decide whether Billy Joel’s Glass Houses is an unfairly maligned classic or if it really does deserve to have a few rocks thrown its way. Along the way, we find out… Why you shouldn’t answer the phone when Billy Joel calls late at night (Sometimes a Fantasy Video: https://youtu.be/hhJg1finpyU )  How Billy Joel once was part of an awesome hea...

Nevermind the Sex Pistols (we’ll get to them at some point) here’s Nirvana! In our second episode we decide whether an album that seemed to change the world in the early ‘90s will stand the test of time. Along the way, we find out… How a deodorant marketed to teenage girls changed the Sunset Strip almost overnight from a thriving music scene to a ghost town How NOT to use a fake ID Why Jeff should...

For our first episode, we decide the future prospects of Kiss “Alive”. Will it stand the test of time and increase in cultural values or will it plummet to the “Rock Bottom”? On this show we answer the pertinent questions: Why “Alive” is more like “Astudio” Why you might think twice about sharing a room with Ace Frehley How Peter Criss may look like a pussy cat but he’s really a badass former gang...