Nostalgium Arcanum

2001 was nothing like what Stanley Kubrick promised, but the music of that year continued to expand into a wide variety of different directions. Guests Ami Lief, musician Kyle Lieberman, and comedian Rich Baker (@richbakercoaching) join us to roundtable our top ten songs of 2001. Be sure to also check out our monthy musical podcast, Playing By Ear! - https://playingbyear.fireside.fm If you want to...

1988's Ninja Gaiden was a leap forward in video game storytelling, featuring splashy cut scenes, a propulsive soundtrack, and notorious difficulty. Ryu Hayabusa faces off against military goons, relentless wildlife, and otherworldly grotesque demons in his quest to keep Jaquio and the forces of darkness at bay. Guest comedian Rich Baker (@richbakercoaching) joins us to give this unforgiving landma...

For the longest time Billy Joel's music has thrilled generations. Guests podcaster Matt Storm a.k.a. Stormageddon ("Fun" and Games, Reignite) and comedian / musician Dylan Ris ( www.lostmoonradio.com , www.themoonunits.com ) are in the mood for a melody, and this episode will have you feeling alright. Be sure to also check out our monthy musical podcast, Playing By Ear! - https://playingbyear.fire...

It's mosnters versus aliens as Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, and company find themselves at the mercy of an extraterrestrial menace in 1968's "Destroy All Monsters". Why have one kaiju when you can have them all? We don rubber suits and stomp on model cities with guest Joe Mastropiero aka Joedecahedron of the Dice Training podcast to celebrate a franchise that literally left an enormous footprint on ci...

You asked for something special for our 150th episode so all we can say is "as you wish." The Princess Bride is inconceivably perfect. The film has everything - fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles, and a superlative cast and script to bring it all together. Guest comedian and filmmaker Tarik Davis (@tarikrdavis, tarikrdavis.com) joins us to r...

By 1998 the grunge and gangsta rap of the early 1990s had petered out. Ska came and went. Musical tastes had begun to drift, and our year-review reflects these tectonic shifts with mainstream pop ascendant and indie artists beginning to peek through. Guests Ami Lief, musician Kyle Lieberman (Kyle and the Silver Dork), and comedian Rich Baker (@richbakercoaching) join us to roundtable our top ten s...

What is a nostalgia podcast if not a time machine? We're firing up the flux capacitor and setting the time circuits to Back to the Future for the 40th anniversary of this seminal temporal comedy. We're joined by guest Darren Lanning (darrenlanning.com) to celebrate a film so heavy that its success was practically density. Be sure to also check out our new monthy musical podcast, Playing By Ear! -...

Shall we play a game? 1983's WarGames presciently predicts the dangers of both human intelligence and artificial intelligence that we still wrestle with today. In this classic Matthew Broderick accidentally nearly sets World War III into motion by seemingly innocently challenging an AI to a game with potentially apocalyptic consequences. We're joined by returning guest B.T. Moorer to discuss the f...

The Sandlot is a perfect distillation of childhood dreams, fantasy, fears, and legends that will live on forever... forEVER... FOREVER!!! Guests sultan of swat Randy Allain and king of crash Kris Ingersoll of the Media/Lit podcast join the team to relive endless summers played one base at a time. If you have feedback, find us on the socials here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/265036650...

If adventure has a name, it must be Indiana Jones. The first film in the franchise pits archaeology against the Third Reich as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, John Williams, and of course, Harrison Ford unearth an icon. We're joined by "top men" comedian Dan Oster (MadTV, A Podcast But Evil) and filmmaker Alex Sosin (The Canyon) to excavate the origins of a cinematic legend, whip cracking dialogue...

We get in the ring with Mike Tyson's Punch-Out!! (later known as just Punch-Out!!). This NES classic cleverly disguises puzzles and pattern recognition within its colorful cast of memorable pugilists. Comedian Rich Baker (@richbakercoaching) joins us to put the smackdown on one of the most beloved titles in Nintendo's library. TKO! If you want to take an online improv class from Rich, go to www.da...

For our final episode of Patrick MAYze, we're covering perhaps his most eternal film. Ghost is comedic, inventive, suspenseful, and most of all, a moving story of love transcending death, a long lonely time. We're joined by guests Ami Lief and Ryan Merlo to sing Unchained Melody and the praises of Swayze, Demi Moore, and Academy Award winner Whoopi Goldberg. We'd say we love this film, but instead...

Our month of Patrick Swayze movies continues with 1989's Road House. The Double Deuce is in double trouble and only one man with beautiful hair and Buddhist philosophy can clean it up. Guest comedian Rich Baker (@richbakercoaching) gives a full-throated endorsement to this ripping good time of a movie. If you want to take an online improv class from Rich, go to www.daretofailimprov.com (first clas...

It's the end of the world as we know it, and we feel fine. Donnie Darko's convoluted sci-fi narrative is beside the point, as it's the emotional core of Richard Kelly's film about how our lives interweave and that we are not truly as alone as we may suspect that makes this an enduring classic. Guest podcaster and possible imaginary rabbit Case Aiken (Another Pass, Men of Steel) joins us to discuss...

For Cinco de Mayo it's "vaya con Dios" as we revisit surfing and bank robbing classic "Point Break". We start our Patrick MAYze month by hanging ten with Johnny Utah (Keanu Reeves) and Bodhi (Patrick Swayze) for a radical ride that never lets up. We're joined by superfan Tania Newton to give this tubular movie two guns fired in the air, way up. If you have feedback, find us on the socials here: Fa...

It's time to be kind and rewind back to the days when home media rental was a pillar of daily life. Whether it was Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, or your local mom-and-pop shop, renting movies and games was a ritual of living in the 80s an 90s that is now lost to the dominance of streaming. We're joined by Chris Coplien of the Retro Hangover podcast to rack up a few very late fees in service to the...

The midpoint of the 1990s found grunge transitioning to more pop-friendly versions of rock, hip hop finding its groove, and extraordinarily heartfelt hits dominating the charts. Guests Ami Lief, musician Kyle Lieberman, and comedian Rich Baker (@richbakercoaching) join us to roundtable our top ten songs of this unforgettable year of music. If you want to take an online improv class from Rich, go t...

In space, no one can hear you scream, or roll into a little ball. Super Metroid is yet another jewel in Nintendo's crown, and one whose labyrinthine corridors of sci-fi horror forever cemented a genre of gameplay that has cast a shadow for over three decades. Matt Storm aka Matt Stormageddon of the "Fun" and Games, and Reignite podcasts joins us to celebrate Samus Aran and this seminal entry in th...

It's the perfect cast... podcast! Today is the 30th anniversary of A Goofy Movie. While Goofy is, well, goofy, Disney's story of father/son bonding has for more depth than its dippy dog characters would suggest. We're seeing I 2 I on this film's excellence with a full Goof Troop with comedian Eileen Mayse (@i_lean) and podcaster Case Aiken (Another Pass, Men of Steel). A-hyuck! If you have feedbac...

We're celebrating the 50th anniversary of Monty Python and the Holy Grail as some podcasting nerds should, by quoting it to death. Guest comedians Rich Baker and Ned Record (of the Lost & Confounded podcast and www.nedrecord.com ) join us to discuss the unyielding hilarity and exceptional longevity of a film that just won't take "Ni" for an answer. And there was much rejoicing! If you want to...

Screaming "Roxanne" into the night, The Police's compact but impactful career featured incredible melodies, driving rock, keening vocals, and sophisticated musicianship. The trio fused punk with reggae, and later burgeoning synth with ease, and made it seem like every little thing they did was magic. We're once again joined by musical experts Dylan Ris ( www.lostmoonradio.com , The Moon Units) and...

For St. Patrick's day, we have a treat. A horror film that's pretty neat. We're revisiting Leprechaun In The Hood, and a Lep in the 'hood, come to do no good. Guest Jala Prendes (host of Jala-Chan' Place, Monster, Dear Monster, and Duckfeed.tv's The Level) and her husband, Dave (co-host of Monster, Dear Monster) have a direct-to-video sequel to praise and rave. It's podcast gold, but listener bewa...

Here we are now. Entertain us! 1991 ushered in a musical sea change as hair metal, new wave, and other genres were swept aside by grunge, alternative, and more. Guest musician Kyle Lieberman and comedian Rich Baker (@richbakercoaching) bust out their flannel and join us to rank our top ten songs of this unforgettable year of music. If you want to take an online improv class from Rich, go to www.da...

Get your ass to Mars! We're having total recall over Total Recall, one of Arnold Schwarzenegger's best films. Guest filmmaker Alex Sosin ("The Canyon") joins us to revisit Paul Verhoeven's take on Philip K. Dick that is relentlessly entertaining, funny, exciting, and over the top from the first frame to the last. Come do your best Arnold "nnyyaaarrrrgggh!" along with us for the memory of a lifetim...

A high-stakes heist with an all-star cast, 1992's Sneakers is one of the most entertaining capers ever put on screen. Returning guest filmmaker Tarik Davis (@tarikrdavis) joins us to decrypt a film with too many secrets. Our voices are your passport. You can find Tarik on NBC's The Amber Ruffin Show, and on his essential podcast, Brothers From Another Planet, see him perform live with Freestyle Lo...