"Doughboys" Deserve all the Medals for their Great Podcast

All Tacos are golden

For the past three weeks the excellent podcast "Doughboys" has been holding their own "Olympic" games. They have called it the Doughlympic Susser Games. Much like their Tournament of Chompions, which they did during March Madness, the hosts, Nick Wiger and Mike Mitchell, have proclaimed it a disaster. But, I have found myself really enjoying these games almost as much as the Tournament of Chompions. The Tournament of Chompions was more structured, but the Doughlympic Susser Games episodes of the podcast have been very listenable and very funny. Wiger and Mitchell continue to dump on themselves, but they have created a podcast that is very funny, and they have a lot of fans that look forward to each episode.

During the Doughlympics, they have placed contests between pizza chains, taco chains and they ended with coffee chains. Sure, they could have done it a bit differently, like placed Italian food versus Mexican food, but they chose to pit three of the same food stuffs against each other. At first I didn't think it was a good idea, but after a listen, it made total sense. For example, in the taco episode, they put the chains, Taco Bell, Del Taco and Chipotle up against each other. And, instead of just rating tacos, they had competitions for different types of food at the chains. They did hard and soft shell tacos. They also did burritos. They also compared nachos. As I said, it made sense. They gave themselves a short time limit to talk about each food, and when they were done, each restaurant got gold, silver or bronze. Then, Wiger would pick a song that "represented" that chain as their anthem, and he'd play a snippet from it. This was the theme throughout the past three weeks of the games. They did it with pizza chains and they ended the games this week with coffee chains. I thought it was a great idea to not just pick one food item to give medals to. That would have made the episodes way too short.

That is one of the best things about "Doughboys". I love the length of the episodes. I enjoy Mitchell and Wiger's back and forth. I love that their guests are, not only friends of theirs, but also fans of the podcast. They seem genuinely happy to be on the show. I have not thought, for one second, that the Doughlympic Susser Games was a waste of time. The only waste may have been Evan Susser himself, but that is his "role" on the podcast. He shoehorned his way in, but I find him funny on each episode. I even listened to the after show, "After Dough", and found it interesting.

The best thing about these particular episodes, they still kept the basis of their regular podcast. They still had a guest. They still did drops. Wiger still roasted Mitchell. They still read emails. They still did one of their many funny ending segments, i.e., "Snack or Wack". I found these games fun, but more importantly, funny.

I hope Mike Mitchell was just upset when he said they were going to end the podcast at the new year. He relented a bit on the most recent episode, saying that it might not end that soon, so there's still hope. I hope Nick Wiger and Mike Mitchell realize that they have fans that really enjoy this podcast. The fans, myself included, even like the episodes that the hosts may not care for. I can't recommend "Doughboys" enough. It's funny and a whole lot of fun to listen to, and yes, that includes the Doughlympic Susser Games. Keep up the great work guys.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. The editor is still upset that Ty dismissed the Quesalupa. That thing was awesome. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Cloves and Fedoras: You Should be Listening to the Podcast "High and Mighty"

Cloves and Fedoras is Seed Sings reviews for little known pieces of pop culture.  Feel free to contact us with your own submissions of undiscovered gems that must be known.

I've been on the hunt for a new podcast to listen to lately. I still have my standards like "Comedy Bang! Bang!", "How Did This Get Made", "The Bill Simmons Podcast" and "Sklarbro Country". Those are all great and I look forward to them every week, but I was in need of something new. I generally go for comedy podcasts, I do like a good NBA or something like "Serial", but comedy is where it's at for me.

Through listening and a little research, I found out that Jon Gabrus, an actor and comedian that I really enjoy, has his own podcast on the Headgum Network called "High and Mighty". For those of you not familiar with Jon Gabrus, he's appeared on "Comedy Bang! Bang!" a bunch, very recently in fact, as Geno the Intern. He is also on a lot of MTV talking heads shows like "Wild N Out" and "Guy Code". He's been on a lot of the VH1 talking head shows as well and he's had bit parts in quite a bit of movies and TV shows. In fact, he has a newer movie out on iTunes and On Demand called "4th Man Out", that I've heard some pretty good things about.

Odds are, you know who Jon Gabrus is, you just don't know it. People who listen to the specific podcasts I mentioned definitely know him and others, I'm sure you've seen him in something recently. Anyway, I really enjoy when I see that he is going to be on a new episode of "Comedy Bang! Bang!' as Geno. He's funny, crass, rude and great throughout the entirety of the episode. You can tell that even Scott Aukerman loves having him appear on the show because he is laughing throughout. So, when I found out that he had his own podcast, I was intrigued. I didn't know if it would be characters, just an interview show, if it would be improv, the possibilities were endless given his background and his group of comedian and actor friends.

After a few recent listens of "High and Mighty" that the podcast is an interview show, but it is so much more than just an interview show. Marc Maron has the market cornered on straight up one on one interviews as far as podcasting goes, and he's great at it. But, what makes Jon Gabrus' "High and Mighty" so great, at least for me is, he is a younger guy. I believe he is right around my age(33), and I can relate to the stories he and his guests, that are relatively the same age, talk about. The first episode I came across was entitled "Being Fat" with Nick Mundy and Mike Mitchell. For those of you that don't know, Jon Gabrus, Nick Mundy and Mike Mitchell are bigger guys. So am I. People who read my blogs already know that I enjoy Mike Mitchell and his work with the Birthday Boys and his podcast with Nick Wiger, "Doughboys", so the fact that he was a guest on the first episode I listened to was an added bonus. What made this episode great for me was the fact that being a bigger guy myself, so I related to almost 100 percent of what they talked about. When they talked about hitting on girls and how tough it is for chubby guys, I myself had many problems hitting on girls I liked while in high school because I was chunky. Mundy and Gabrus are both married and they both marveled at the fact that they could get such beautiful women to marry them. Me too. I don't know how I convinced my smoking hot wife to marry me, but I'm glad I did. All three of them have big bushy beards, and anyone that has read the site knows that I myself am a bearded fellow, but they all have beards for the same reason I do, laziness and a hatred for shaving. This was a perfect gateway episode for me because I related to everything and it featured two comedians that I really like. Even in the following episode, entitled "Wrasslin" with Matt McCarthy, a sport I have never watched or participated in, I was enamored by the conversation. You could really tell that these two were big time wrestling fans and that they still genuinely love pro wrestling. I liked their insight and their vast knowledge of wrestling old and new. That's the sign of a good podcast, when I don't care for the subject matter, but the conversation is so good, it pulls me in. He followed that episode up with one entitled "Badasses" with Outlook of the Poet(Ben Rodgers and Gavin Speiler). The topic was supposed to be about how they want to be badasses, which they do touch on, but you learn so much more about these three, like their early improv days, their dad issues and their love for action movies. The conversation can literally go anywhere it wants and that's awesome. The most recent episode of "High and Mighty" was about swimming with Anders Holm from "Wolkaholics", "How to Be Single", "Top Five" and many, many other things. Did they talk about all that stuff, yes, but barely. Instead, they had an in depth discussion about swimming and the commitment that it takes. I learned that Anders Holm was such a good swimmer, he got a scholarship to swim at the University of Wisconsin and that he still swims, now it's just for fun, to this day.

The great thing about "High and Mighty" is we always learn something new about Jon Gabrus. One thing I really like that he does on the show, he asks people to give him a 5 star review on iTunes and then to roast him in the comment section and he reads it on the next episode. So, people actually do this and he actually reads the awful things they say about him. It can vary anywhere from him being ugly and fat, to him just not being funny. But, the most common complaint is that he talks too much about himself and his "glory" days. Isn't that what podcasting is for though? People podcast just so they can hear themselves talk and so they can spread their point of view to the world via a free forum. I love that he hijacks the conversation and talks more than anyone else. It's his show and he can do whatever he wants. I know that I talk a whole hell of a lot more on "The X Milennial Man" podcast than RD does. I like to hear the sound of my own voice, just like Jon Gabrus.

I have only listened to the four most recent episodes of "High and Mighty", the podcast has a back catalog totaling 29 episodes. I will go back and listen to the older ones soon. He has had Eugene Cordero on a bunch to talk fitness and I want to hear those conversations because Cordero got in crazy shape and I'd like to know how he did that. Also, some of his early episodes are basically reviews of old action movies that he does with his friends. Those I will definitely go back and listen to. I like to hear people from my generation talk about movies like "Blood Sport" and "Predator".

I'm very happy that I have jumped aboard the "High and Mighty" bandwagon. This is a perfect podcast that appeals to the things that I like and can relate to. Keep doing what you're doing Jon Gabrus because it' awesome. I can't wait until Thursday for the new episode.

You can find "High and Mighty" right here.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the more talkative other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He may be a bigger man, but he is half the bigger man he was two years ago. We are proud of you Ty. Show your support for him by pushing the follow button on Ty's twitter @tykulik.

"Serial" Season 2 Joins the Ranks of Disappointing Sequels

Brings the good, and the boring, to your ears.

As the entire podcast listening world knows by now, season two of Serial began about 2 months ago. This season, Sarah Koenig is talking about Bowe Bergdahl. He's the soldier that was captured by the Taliban, but, others say that he is a war deserter. Opinions vary about both situations and Koenig and her podcast are trying to show both sides. One week it seems that he was legitimately captured and the next week, I change my mind and feel that he deserted the war because of the poor living conditions and war is scary as hell. I personally do not know where I fully stand yet, there's still a long way to go before they get to the bottom of this case. 

The path to the bottom has gotten a whole lot longer with the news that they are switching from every week to every other week. Also, this season of Serial doesn't feel the same as the first. That first season of Serial was phenomenal, although the finale left a lot to be desired, and this season just seems to be falling flat. During the first season, I was on pins and needles before, during and after each episode. Did Adnan do it, or was it one of many other suspects? Why would a seemingly good natured high school student turn on a dime like that? Did he really have this insanity deep down in his body? Did his attorney screw him over? Was he set up by his "friends" that were interviewed? What cell phone tower picked up the calls from that night the best? I could ask about a million more questions pertaining to Adnan Syed. For the record, I do not think he did it and I feel very sorry for him that he has had to spend the majority of his life in prison for a crime I don't think he committed. His new trial can prove me wrong and I'll sound like an asshole, but I don't think he did it. My wife, on the other hand, is 100 percent convinced that he did it. She thinks he's guilty, showing no doubt in her face or voice when we talk about it. We still talk about it to this day by the way. That first season had everything. Drama, intrigue, horror, guilt, flip flopping, it was perfect. I would be scared to go to sleep some nights, just thinking about it. I also have had sleepless nights thinking about whether Adnan is guilty or not. That is the mark of good podcasting.

This season of Serial doesn't have the same allure of the first season. That's my point today. I know it's very hard to follow up something that was so big and virtually came out of nowhere, at least to my generation. "Serial" type stories have been around as long as talk radio has been around, but with my generation, this was the first "serial" story we'd really paid attention to. I also think that expectations, mine included, were way too high going into this second season. There was no way Koenig could top the first season, but I thought she had a chance. It's like a sequel to a great movie. Not every sequel will be "Terminator 2:Judgement Day" or "The Godfather: Part 2", not even close. Most sequels are more "Speed 2: Cruise Control" or "The Godfather: Part 3". They are usually much, much worse because it's so hard to recreate what the actors and director nailed the first time around. It usually backfires and I feel that's what's happening with the second season of Serial. I don't find myself waiting for the new episode every other Thursday. Now, don't get me wrong, I still listen, but it feels like homework this time around. I feel almost obligated to listen because the first season was so groundbreaking. You should never feel obligated to listen to something that you get for free. It should be fun and you should want to listen to it. Much like the first season, you should be on pins and needles waiting for the new episodes.

A deeper problem I think they're having with this season, most people, if not everyone, knows the Bowe Bergdahl story, or they know of it. That wasn't the case with Adnan Syed. I had never even heard of this story that happened in Baltimore more than a decade ago. It was great to hear her uncover new evidence and things that the police and the attorney's missed the first time round. Every week she'd peel back a new layer on the onion of this pretty much unknown story to anyone outside of the Baltimore area and it was great. Like I said before, anytime there's new news on Bergdahl, it's national news. We all find out about it the same time Sarah Koenig does. There's no intrigue or drama in that. It's no fun. She will bring some "new" news to the story and I'll sit back, listen and yell into my phone, "We all already knew that!", there is nothing that she can bring to this story that we all don't already know.  I still listen because I like the way Sarah Koenig speaks. She has a very calm, perfect for NPR voice that only Cecily Strong from "SNL" can replicate. I commend her for taking on a much bigger story for the second season of Serial, but it just doesn't carry the same weight the first season did.

Hopefully for the third season, there will definitely be one, she picks a smaller story again that the entire nation doesn't already know about. This season though, has been pretty dull, at least so far.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He loves great storytelling, but dislikes being bored. Ty is a great storyteller who is not boring. Find out for yourself by following him on twitter @tykulik.

The SeedSing (half) year in Pop Culture: The Top Five Podcasts of 2015

Time to remember the mic's best guests

Continuing my week long best of 2015 countdown today I'll pick my top five podcast episodes of the year. I'm a very, very big fan of podcast, mostly comedy podcast. Comedy podcasts are very well represented in this countdown, but there's one pretty serious, not very comedic episode that tops my list. I could've easily done a top 25, 50 or even 100 for this topic, so paring it down to five was tough. Here it goes.

My number five podcast episode of 2015 was the return of "Go Bayside" when they critically deconstructed the "Saved By the Bell: Hawaiian Style" movie. By they I mean the excellent and very hilarious host, April Richardson and her equally as funny best friend, Millie De Chirico. I was so pleasantly surprised and happy when my podcast app showed me that there was a new "Go Bayside". I put time away to go on a hike so I would not be bothered while I listened. April Richardson took a long time off after she finished doing all the pertinent episodes of "Saved By the Bell", but she promised to return to do this movie and the one when Kelly and Zack get married. This episode made it well worth the wait. Richardson and De Chirico come out hot from the start, just chastising the racism in this movie. It was so funny. I loved how upset they both got t the fact that there was a principal's convention in the exact same spot of Hawaii that the students were vacationing in. They couldn't fathom a world that in all of Hawaii these people picked the same spot to vacation in. I couldn't agree more with them. They constantly bad mouthed Kelly's vacation boyfriend for being a creep and this actor totally deserved it, he was terrible. My favorite thing in the whole episode was how they kept going back to the piece of paper that the hotel lease was written on that was literally, a plain sheet of paper. They kept asking why this wasn't a more important document that they would keep in a special place and I found myself asking the same questions. It's baffling. This was such a great episode of my all time favorite podcast and I can't wait until April Richardson does the wedding of Zack and Kelly on what I assume will be the final episode ever of "Go Bayside".

Number four is the episode of "Doughboys" where they talk about In and Out Burger. "Doughboys" has been my new favorite podcast and this episode takes the cake. In most episodes, there's a back and forth between Mike Mitchell and Nick Wiger and the guest just chimes in with whomever they are friends with. It's all very funny, but this episode was bizarre in the best possible way. Their guest was Armen Weitzman. Comedy fans know who Weitzman is, and how weird he can be, but he was off the handles in this particular "Doughboys". He would go back and forth between talking about the food to talking straight nonsense. While I was listening, I was enthralled at how wacky this episode was becoming. Even Mitchell and Wiger seemed to be taken aback at where all this was going. They even stopped their bickering towards each other and let Weitzman go on some long, strange rants. The best part was Weitzman explaining why his basketball podcast with Mitchell never came to fruition. This was the most bizarre thing in a completely absurd episode. I loved every second and I've listened to it multiple times just to hear the craziness. Not every episode is like this one, but I'm glad they have this, because it's one for the ages.

Coming in at number three I have "The Bill Simmons Podcast" episode with Michael Rappaport. As we all know by now, Simmons was fired from ESPN, took a social media hiatus for a couple of months and finally announced he'd be returning with a podcast and a TV show soon. The podcast was first and his early episodes were with friends and former athletes. It was basically the same thing as the "B.S. Report". Then, he had Michael Rappaport on and it was magical. He talked about everything fro his love for Knicks basketball to Rocky's trainer being a ladies man. He professed his love for Knicks rookie Kristaps Porzingis, calling him the "Latvian Gangster". He also kept calling Latvia, Lativia. He added an "I" that didn't need to be there. He also pushed Simmons to say something bad about ESPN. I loved how he was all in his business trying to get Simmons to say anything about his firing and what led to it. Simmons didn't say anything on air, but I like to imagine he crushed ESPN off air. Rappaport was a great relief from all the Patriots, Red Sox and Celtics love that flooded the first month of Bill Simmons new podcast. He was lively, constantly cursing and just being himself. I loved it and I know most of his listeners did too. I can't wait for part two because there needs to be a part two.

My number two podcast episode was Comedy Bang Bang's fourth edition of "Farts and Procreation". This was bittersweet. Harris Wittels unfortunately overdosed and died the week before this episode came out. It was tragic and he has been greatly missed. He died way too young and had a horrible addiction problem. I didn't even know him and I miss him, so I can't even imagine what was going through Scott Aukerman's head when he did the intro. Well, his intro was an absolutely beautiful homage to his friend. He spoke of the good and the bad times they had and their close friendship. These two were very good friends. I'll admit, the intro brought me to tears. Then, they played their annual episode and it was as funny as one could've hoped for. Wittels, Chelsea Peretti and Adam Scott were as goofy and funny as they were on the previous three. Aukerman did his thing as the host, keeping the pace. Wittels did his classic "Harrison's Foam Corner" where he tells jokes that aren't ready for the stage yet and it was, once again, riotous. Peretti and Scott were great too. This was a great sendoff to the great career of Harris Wittels that was cut way too short. This is another episode I go back and listen to because it reminds me how truly talented Harris Wittels was. He was a great comedy writer nd he will be deeply missed.

And that brings us to my number one podcast episode of 2015, the "WTF with Marc Maron" episode where he interviewed President Barack Obama. This was a watermark moment in podcast history. I know that Obama was on other podcast, but not a comedian's podcast that thousands of hard core comedy fans listen to. This was a huge deal to me because I am an Obama supporter and I'm a Maron fan, so put those two together, I'm immediately on board. Maron did a great job with the interview, asking him all types of questions. Obama was even better, answering everything and telling more. He spoke of his father not really being around. He spoke of his love for his mom. He praised his wife. He talked about being a dad to teenage girls. He came off as a regular guy, not the President and I loved that. This was easily the best one hour of podcasting I listened to every year. And, I'm glad it was Maron that got the interview. He's gotten some big time people to be on his show, but he got the President and to people of my generation, this was great for us to hear this powerful man sound like an everyday guy. Maron and Obama did a great job with this episode. I mean, how could anything else be number one beside this episode.

So there you have my top five podcast episodes of 2015. Come back tomorrow where I wrap it up with my top five sports moments of 2015.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Next year his top five podcasts will all be ones he is a featured guest on. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik. 

Marc Maron's interview of Lorne Michaels was mostly gristle and very little steak

Sometimes a sword, sometimes a surrender flag

Last Monday, Marc Maron finally got his white whale.

He had an interview with Lorne Michaels. Saturday Night Live has been a big obsession for Maron. He has interviewed many SNL cast members. He is always very forward with these people. He wants to know about their audition. He wants to know about fellow cast members. He wants to talk about certain hosts and musical guests. But, most importantly he wants to know about Lorne Michaels. He has so many questions about Lorne Michaels. It can get uncomfortable at times and you can hear in some of the interviewees voices that they're uncomfortable with the barrage of questions about Michaels. Sure, most of them aren't on the show anymore, but they don't want to speak ill of Michaels. In most cases, he gave them their break, and without him, they probably wouldn't have a real career.

I, for one, like when Maron pushes the envelope. I like all the questions, because I want to know too. I'm from Saint Louis and New York and SNL are like mythical beings to me. I have a real love hate relationship with SNL, and I want to know all I can. I like to hear from these people about their experience. I like knowing that SNL is a cutthroat place to work, and you have to stay on your toes if you want to keep your job. But, much like Maron himself, I want to know about Lorne Michaels. He is a mysterious show biz person and he seems to be a real hard ass. He, at least on the surface, doesn't seem like a guy that takes crap from anyone. He's a star maker and may be a career ender, if you cross him.

I've been listening to Maron's podcast since the beginning. I'm a big fan of his and I look forward to listening to his podcast every Monday and Thursday. He's gotten pretty big recently as well, the interview with President Barack Obama putting him on everybody's map. I weirdly looked forward to this interview as much as I did the Presidents. As I stated before, I love SNL and I was very interested to see how hard Maron would come at Lorne Michaels. Maron has had a bone to pick since he wasn't picked to be on the show when he auditioned back in the 90's. He's brought this up a lot, so when I saw that Lorne Michaels was going to be on last Monday, I figured he would press him hard on this, and a lot of other things. The fact he wasn't picked for SNL has always been a big bone of contention for him. I figured, finally, some closure.

Then, I listened to the interview. It was fine. Maron asked some questions and Lorne Michaels answered in kind. But, the questions were softballs in my opinion. He just kind of lobbed some stuff to Michaels and he answered very predictably. It kind of felt like Maron was told by Michaels people that he could only ask certain questions, and to not push him too hard on the tough questions. The interview was like an appetizer. It was good, but not filling. We just got the tip of the iceberg. This was a two hour interview also, so the fact that nothing was pressed on Michaels, in two hours, left me disappointed. When Maron did ask about his audition and the process of not being selected, Michaels gave a very typical answer. He told Maron that "his voice wasn't right for the show". Yeah, no duh Lorne Michaels. Maron is a foul mouthed comedian. He is filthier than Norm Macdonald on his filthiest day. Maron assumed that he would be a Weekend Update guy, and while that fits his identity, his style isn't a good fit at SNL. We all already knew this. This was no revelation.

After they settled Maron being passed over, the rest of the interview was very blasé. It was like a pat on the back session after that. Lorne Michaels praised Maron's comic voice and what he's done with the podcast medium. I say again, we all know what he's done. They talked about doing an internet show before the internet was popular. Not that big a deal. Maron never really asked any really tough questions. When it comes to Lorne Michaels, he couldn't have been more congratulatory of himself. He gave himself the credit for young generations wanting to be on TV and do comedy. He credited himself for making Jimmy Fallon a late night star, something which makes me angry because I cannot stand Jimmy Fallon. He said that he's never forced anyone out of SNL, and that he's still friends with "pretty much everybody". He couldn't have been more pleased with himself. I understand what he's done for late night TV, and how big he made SNL, but show some humility. He claimed that while he wasn't the guy in charge for 5 years, he never watched the show. I believe that, because he comes off as arrogant, so why would he watch something he had nothing to do with?

I guess, overall, I was just disappointed with the interview. It left so much to be desired. And even at the end, when Maron does his usual sign off, he said he got closure. I don't know, because as a listener, I felt like he could've gotten so much more out of this once in a lifetime interview. My excitement was dashed pretty early on in this WTF episode, but not all of them can be winners. I think even Marc Maron would agree with me about this. I should also temper my expectations because, not every interview is going to be President Obama's interview. I love WTF and I'm a big Marc Maron fan, but this episode just left me wanting more.

Oh well, this Monday he has Harry Potter himself, Daniel Radcliffe on. Hopefully, this one will be better.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He figures Lorne Michaels should have more humility after the Donald Trump SNL appearance last week. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Comedy is thriving with podcasts. Get the best with the new app Howl.

Where do I turn the dial to hear this great comedy?

As all of you know, I'm a big, big fan of podcasts. 

I listen to podcast ranging from sports to comedy. Comedic podcasts are where my bread is buttered. I love listening to funny people being funny. There's something great about podcasting that allows these comedians and comedy writers to be funny in a free flowing environment. There's no real structure. Sure, you have an intro and an outro, but what happens in the middle is the best part. You get to hear these people use improv. That's so cool, because a lot of these people are great improvisors. People like Doug Benson, Scott Aukerman, Mike Mitchell, Nick Wiger, The Sklar Brothers, Paul F Tompkins and Matt Gourley are all great comics and actors, but on podcasts, they shine. Podcasting gives them the ability to do whatever they want. No notes from network executives, or people telling them to wrap something up. They have free rein. 

Podcasts have also introduced me to very funny up and coming actors and comedians like Lauren Lapkus, Jon Gabrus, Hayes Davenport, Sean Clements and even an old timer like Brendon Walsh. Ben Schwartz is so hilarious whenever he and Scott Aukerman do their "solo bolos" on Comedy Bang! Bang!. Actor Adam Scott is very, very funny during his appearances on multiple podcasts. Nick Kroll is a comedy powerhouse, especially with his many different characters on Comedy Bang! Bang!.  How Did This Get Made introduced me to Paul Scheer, June Diane Rapheal and the extremely funny, Jason Mantzoukas. I had barely ever seen or heard from Andy Daly until he started to pop up on different podcasts and now he has one of the best shows on TV, "Review". I could go on and on and on.

The main reason I'm writing today is to tell you about the great new podcast app called Howl. Howl gives you unlimited access to every single Earwolf, Wolfpop and WTF With Marc Maron that's ever been recorded. That means every episode of Comedy Bang! Bang!, How Did This Get Made, U Talkin U2 To Me, Analyze Phish, what I'm trying to say is, you get every single episode of every single Earwolf show. On most podcast apps, you get the last six months. On Howl, you get every episode ever, and the old ones are remastered with no commercial interruption. Same thing goes for the fairly new sister network of Earwolf, Wolfpop. You get Maltin on Movies with Baron Vaughn, I Was There Too, The Canon and so on and so forth. Every episode ever and the old ones are commercial free.

That would be enough for me, but they also give you every single WTF with Marc Maron. On his free app, he only gives the last sixty episodes for free. Howl gives you every episode ever. That's right, you can go back and listen to the two part Louis CK episode, voted best podcast ever, commercial free as many times as you want. You can hear Marc Maron interview Robin Williams. You can hear him from his start, interviewing his comedy buddies all the way to his high point of interviewing President Barack Obama.

Now, this app does cost money, but it's only 5 dollars a month. That's not much at all considering what you're getting. There is also shows that are only part of the premium Howl app. New shows from the Sklar Brothers, Lauren Lapkus and Jermaine Clement just to name a few will be on the premium app soon. There's also a TON of comedy albums available. You can hear albums from comics like Jen Kirkman, Doug Benson, Jim Gaffigan, Nick Kroll, Aziz Ansari and many, many more. I know, this sounds like an add, but it's not, I really just love this app and I think comedy podcast listeners will too. This is the holy grail for comedy podcasts. All these hours upon hours of uninterrupted shows is, in a word, phenomenal. It's a nice way to give back to these people that give us all this free content. Five dollars a month is nothing, and it's totally worth it. I love the Howl app and I'm really happy to have it. This is the first movement in the future of podcasting and I couldn't be happier about having all this content. Keep up the great work people of Earwolf, Wolfpop and WTF.

You guys have a fan for life.

Ty 

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and co-host of the X Millennial Man podcast. He did not get paid by any advertisers for writing this, . Follow Ty on twitter .

Ty recommends "The Wahlberg Solution" as one of your podcast pleasures.

You want me to listen to what now?

I have just recently started listening to a newish podcast called "The Wahlberg Solution" and I'm here to tell you, it's great.

You can get the podcast through the "Sklarbro Country" feed since "The Wahlberg Solution" is Daniel Van Kirk's show. Dan Van Kirk is the co host on every Tuesday's episode of "Sklarbro County" and he's a great comedian that's a phenomenal impressionist. He does impressions of a lot of famous and not so famous people. He does Steven Seagal, Rob Durst from "The Jinx, Dr. Phil, the recently deceased former pro football player Doug Bafone, a lonely TSA agent in the Chicago Airport and an annoying traveler who's been everywhere and seen everything. His best impression, in my opinion, is his Mark Wahlberg. It's spot on. I get excited every time I hear that there's going to be a surprise drop in or voicemail on "Sklarbro County" from Mark Wahlberg. Dan Van Kirk does a heightened version of Wahlberg, claiming that he's just run something like a 22k or will only drink water if it has creatine in it. Van Kirk's Wahlberg has popped up on other podcasts, most notably as a guest on "Doug Loves Movies". Fans love when he's on "DLM" and we get crazily excited when his segment, "Doing Lines with Mark", comes on. No, they're not doing cocaine. Doug Benson has "Wahlberg" read a line from a famous movie and the panelists have to guess the movie. If they don't get it right after three tries, "Wahlberg" loses his mind. It's quite funny.

So, when Van Kirk announced that he would have the great people at Earwolf show up to one of his live shows of "The Wahlberg Solution" and have them record it for an episode that you could get through "Sklarbro Country" I was super excited. So were his fans, because they've now done seven episodes. "The Wahlberg Solution" is a lot like Bill Maher's show on HBO "Real Time with Bill Maher". The structure is exactly the same, whereas on each show, the panelists discuss important political and social issues. The difference, "The Wahlberg Solution" is pretty damn hilarious. Van Kirk plays Wahlberg and he invites his comedian friends, that also do great impressions, to be his panelists. Comedians like Kenny Stevenson, who plays multiple people like Nic Cage and Michael Caine, or Marques Ray who plays Manny Pacquiao, or Madeline Walter who does a perfect Anne Hathaway and James Adomian who plays "presidential" candidate Bernie Sanders. Van Kirk has also had a heavy hitter on this show with Jay Mohr doing an excellent Harvey Keitel. He also gets other comedians to come on and just be themselves, comedians like Dominic Dierkes or Andy Peters. To hear these people discuss important topics is great, because they all play glorified versions of their character and they're so out of touch with the regular people. They usually don't understand how anyone anywhere can have problems. They all usually end up asking why people can't just solve their problems by buying some lavish, expensive items. As these celebrities usually do.

The podcast is very, very kooky and very funny. The shows last about 45 minutes to an hour and since there's only seven of them, it's really easy to get caught up. One can only hope that there's going to be a lot more "Wahlberg Solution" episodes since it's so great. Like I said earlier, you can get all the episodes through the "Sklarbro Country" feed. I love impressions and Dan Van Kirk is one of the best impressionist out there right now.

Do yourself a favor and give "The Wahlberg Solution" a listen. You will love it

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the co-host of The X-Millennial Man Podcast. Good comedy in downloadable form so it can be listened to at anytime is how Ty likes his entertainment. Follow him on twitter @tykulik.

A day in podcasting history. Ty talks about the President on WTF with Marc Maron.

This is a follow up to Ty's piece on WTF with Marc Maron.

Today was the WTF with President Obama and it did not disappoint.

During the historic episode politics were talked about, but that was not the majority of the interview. I'd say about 30 minutes focused on Barack Obama as a person, not just the President. Those thirty minutes will be what I focus on.

 President Obama openly talked about growing up with a single mother, candidly talking about writing a book about his father, commenting on the art and, as President Obama put it, the "knick knacks" on Marc Maron's walls and even talking about which comedians he enjoys. I was impressed with the President's knowledge of stand up comedy. He mentioned that he likes Richard Pryor, Dick Gregory and "newer" comics like Louis CK and Jerry Seinfeld. Marc Maron made a point to say that President Obama saying he likes Louis CK will make his life complete, CK's life that is. To hear President Obama so openly talk about his father being an abuser and womanizer and drunk was very humanizing. I think we see someone achieve the level of president and we think they most likely grew up with a "Leave it to Beaver" type home. This is not the case with President Obama. His dad was not there while he was growing up and becoming the person that he is today. To hear him be so candid was refreshing. Here's a person who had a shitty father and look at him now, he's on his second term as President. This goes to show you that, if you work hard enough, you can achieve a whole lot. He sang his mother's praises throughout the interview as well. He's very grateful and loves his mom a lot.

One of the big things that has stuck with me after listening to the interview was how relaxed and calm and almost carefree President Obama sounded. I have to believe that if I was the President, I'd be terrified every second of everyday and I feel like that would show. Not with Obama, he doesn't sound like every other politician I've ever heard or listened to, he doesn't sound like he's trying to sell me on his brand or fill my head with empty promises. He just sounds like a regular guy. THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES SOUNDED RELAXED! HOW CRAZY IS THAT! He was so at ease, he was giving Marc Maron advice on how to get over anger and other stuff.

I was immensely impressed with the President's interview today. This made me even more happy that I voted for him and that I support him still. Like I said in my lead up, he knows what the younger generation is in to, and by going on a very popular podcast made himself even cooler. I also want to say thank you to Marc Maron for doing this. This was just as big a deal to his listeners as it was to him. It may not seem like that to him now, but the fact that he got the leader of the free world to be open, honest and talked to him like he would interview anybody else is huge for his listeners. This was a great day for President Obama, Marc Maron and listeners of WTF.

A great day.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for Seed Sing. He is preparing his big debut on the X Millennial Man Podcast. Follow him on twitter @tykulik.

Cloves and Fedoras: Ty gives praise to Marc Maron, King of the Podcasts

Cloves and Fedoras is Seed Sings reviews for little known pieces of pop culture (or older pieces).  Feel free to contact us with your own submissions of undiscovered gems that must be known. 

When it comes to podcasting, one of the pioneers has to be Marc Maron.

He was one of the first people out there to start a podcast. His show, WTF With Marc Maron (you can find it here), was there in the beginning and continues to run strong, with two episodes every week. One on Mondays and one on Thursdays. The episodes will be there every week, it's like death and taxes, WTF will be there for you to listen to two times a week. IFC even gave him a TV show which is loosely based on his life as a comedian and podcaster. That's how popular his show is. Marc Maron has had pretty much every important person in comedy, from people like Eddie Peppitone, to heavy hitters like Louis CK. In fact, his episode with Louis CK was voted best podcast episode ever in a publication last year. WTF With Marc Maron has featured character actors like Kevin Corrigan on and he's had huge stars like Will Ferrell. He's had legends like Dick Van Dyke and Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner on. He's also had former big time stars such as Pauly Shore on his show. Some episodes went away from comedy and highlighted musicians. Marc Maron has interviewed smaller guys like Mark Oliver Everett(E from the Eels) to big time rock legends like David Byrne. He's brought on countless other people, he's done over six hundred episodes of WTF.  

This coming Monday, June 22nd, he's got the biggest, most important interview that any podcaster will ever have on their show. This Monday, he will be interviewing The President of the United States, Barack Obama. I cannot tell you how excited I am to listen to this episode. First of all, I voted for and support President Obama. I'm so happy that he's a smart, cool and hip enough President to realize how big a deal podcasts are to a younger generation. I'm also pumped that he's letting Marc Maron interview him. This is huge. People may forget that Maron was a part of the Air America family when they had a radio broadcast. So, he's no slouch when it comes to talking politics, but after at least three plus years of listening to WTF, I'm pretty sure politics will only be 10 to 15 minutes of the hour long interview. I'm hoping he asks President Obama stuff like, if he enjoys stand up comedy, or what it was like being a young kid growing up in the Midwest. Basically, I'm hoping, as hard as it's going to be, that Marc Maron treats this episode like every other WTF. President Obama is the most powerful man in the United States, but he's also a person with a story to tell, just like we all are people with different stories to tell. This is a huge deal for the millennials since the majority of us listen to podcasts everyday. To have someone as important and powerful as President Obama appear on a podcast is a huge deal. I cannot express that enough. IT"S HUGE. Please, if you're a conservative, a liberal, an independent, or whatever else there is out there, listen to WTF on Monday and I think you will see that we are all just people with stories, even if you happen to be the President. 

Thank you Marc Maron for doing this interview, you are a pioneer and you just keep getting better and better. You're the man.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for Seed Sing.  He is getting ready to co-host his own podcast The X Millennial Man. Follow him on twitter @tykulik

Cloves and Fedoras: If you love movies Ty says listen to Maltin on Movies

My podcast pick to talk about this week is Wolfpop's Maltin on Movies with co-host Baron Vaughn.

Each week, Leonard Maltin and Baron Vaughn take a subject and review three movies associated with the topic.  In the first segment they talk about a well known movie that they both enjoy. They tell you what they both like about the particular movie and why they think you should watch it. This weeks episode was titled Adult Cartoons, and they chose a French movie called Persepolis for their first segment. This movie takes place through the eyes of an Iranian French girl growing up through war times in Israel. I've never seen the movie before, but hearing the two of them talk about it, makes me want to watch it. According to Vaughn, it's a real tear jerker. In the second segment they talk about a movie neither of them like, or as they call it, a turkey. This segment might be my favorite. I like to hear them tear apart movies that almost no one likes. Both of them are very eloquent as well, so it doesn't sound like my friends and I ripping a movie apart. These two actually know what they're talking about. This week their turkey was Cool World. This movie sounds so bad that I want to watch it to see how bad it is. Apparently it was meant to be a horror cartoon, but the studio turned it into a dark noir comedy. Those words don't work together at all. The third and final segment, they talk about a sleeper movie. These movies are off the radar to most movie goers and not very well known, but highly regarded by both Vaughn and Maltin. I like the suggestions given during this part, because I hardly ever know what movie they're talking about, but every one that I've seen since I started this podcast, I've really enjoyed. The movie they mentioned this week is called Max and Mary. It's a story of friendship between two loners. One being a young outcast girl, Mary. The other, a 44 year old man with no family or friends named Max. According to Vaughn, this is a must watch, but it's very off beat and very dark at times. So, it may not be for everyone, but I'm going to check it out. The episodes come out every Wednesday and are no more than an hour long. They're 31 episodes in, but for movie buffs, this is a must listen.

I highly recommend it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for Seed Sing.  He loves movies and hearing people talk (or write) about movies.  Follow him on twitter @tykulik

Goodbye Reggie Watts, this fan of Comedy! Bang! Bang! will miss you

Last night marked the end of the Reggie Watts era on The Comedy Bang! Bang! TV show.

They gave him a pretty fitting send off. The episode opened with an aged Scott Aukerman giving an interview in the future about his old best friend Reggie Watts. Flash back to present time and the show started like it always does, with the theme song, intros and the guest coming to the couch. Judd Apatow was the guest last night, but he was only in the first five minutes of the episode. I appreciated this because this episode needed to be about Reggie and Scott's friendship and what it's like for a close friend to leave for higher profile job(Reggie Watts is the band leader for the new Late Late Show with James Corden).

Throughout the time Apatow was being interviewed, many jokes were made about how great a comedy team Scott and Reggie are and how it's great that they will always work together. During the interview though, US Army soldiers raid the stage and say they were sent to capture Reggie Watts because he's an alien and his race was coming to destroy Earth. I felt this was a good way to send him off. It wasn't sad or corny, it was a typical CBB bit. Reggie's alien race, made up of three different versions of himself, proceed on Earth, but Reggie and Scott come up with a plan to film a video saying that Earth was covered with water and this is very poisonous to their race. The video worked and the aliens retreated. Everyone was very happy and you thought that things would go on as normal.

Oh the contrary my friend. The Army was still planning on capturing Reggie and taking him away. Scott refused to let them do this, saying that they'd have to kill him if they wanted Reggie. Well, the lieutenant said okay and fired at Scott. Reggie stepped in front of the bullet and was hit in the chest and yellow goo oozed out of him. Seeing that they had taken care of Reggie, the army felt they did their job and left Scott to grieve over his friend. After the soldiers were gone, it was revealed that Reggie was okay, stating that bullets are like Viagra to his race. Seeing that his friend was alive Scott was relieved and thought the show would go on as it always had, with Reggie as his band leader.  Reggie pointed out that when the Army found out he was still alive they'd come back for him and he didn't want to put anyone in harms way. Scott asked him what he would do and Reggie said he would roam the Earth like a nomad. Scott and Reggie hug, say their good byes and Reggie walked out the stage door. Flash forward, back to old Scott Aukerman and he's doing a crossword puzzle and the clue is, someone who misses and loves his friend Scott dearly and they pan to a picture in the paper and it's an aged photo of Reggie Watts, the crossword puzzle author(a call back to a joke earlier in the episode). This was a great way to say good bye to a guy who's been with the show since its infancy. Very goofy and silly. Exactly what you'd expect from CBB. Reggie Watts wrote the theme song for the podcast, he wrote and performed most of the songs that are used for games and segments in the show and podcast. He did pretty much all the music stuff for Comedy Bang! Bang! He was an integral part. Kid Cudi will be the new band leader when the show comes back on July 9th and while I enjoy his music, he's no Reggie Watts. It will be interesting to see if Kid Cudi has the comedic chops Reggie Watts has.

You will be missed Mr Watts, but you are on to bigger and better things. And for all the alternative comedy fans out there, I'm sure he will still show up from time to time, so he's not really going away, he just got a new opportunity.

Good for him.
 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for Seed Sing.  He thinks one day people will leave network late night shows to join Comedy Bang Bang as a better opportunity.  Give him a twitter follow @tykulik.

Cloves and Fedoras: Ty thinks you should give "Womp it Up!" a listen

Cloves and Fedoras is Seed Sings reviews for little known pieces of pop culture.  Feel free to contact us with your own submissions of undiscovered gems that must be known. 

As you all know I listen to many, many podcasts. I'd say about ninety to ninety five percent are comedy. When I heard that Marissa Wompler(Jessica St Clair) and Charlotte Listler(Lennon Parham), who are beloved from their many appearances on the great "Comedy Bang Bang", were getting their own podcast,"Womp It Up!" I subscribed to it immediately I listened to the four mini preview clips with much anticipation. Now that they're four episodes deep, it has not disappointed.

Wompler and Listler are still up to their usual shenanigans. In episode one, they have Eric Gutterman AKA Gutterballs(Jason Mantzoukas) controlling the soundboard and he and Marissa still have their hilarious back and forth. Clearly she loves him, but he's not into her. Jessica St Clair and Jason Mantzoukas are both so excellent as these characters I'm filled with joy when I see that they're are going to be on a podcast together. They are great. Each episode of "Womp it Up!" is show is broken down into sections. On every podcast they will do a spot called "Hot Topix", where in, Marissa dishes the dirt on what's going down at Marina Del Ray High School(that's where the podcast takes place). Then there's "Listler's Love Lockdown", where Ms. Listler reads letters from someone who has a crush on someone else and proceeds to give them advice. They also have the "Spotlight On" section. In this part, they interview a friend, or teacher, or sometimes even former teachers from the school. In episode one, theater teacher, Dr. Lionel Drioche(the always hilarious Seth Morris) explains what it's like to be the theater teacher at Marina Del Ray High. In episode two, "Spotlight On" features Lil Nicky(Chris Gethard), a foreign exchange student from New Jersey, whose passions include ghost hunting and managing an acapella group called "Deep Treble". In episode three, we get to meet Mr. Jordache(Neil Casey). He's a former computer science teacher who had an incident in the men's locker room. Pretty hilarious to hear him explain the incident, I am not going to spoil it so just go listen. In the most recent "Womp It Up!" we get two guests for "Spotlight On". First, we have Marissa's step dad Seth(Brian Huskey reprising his role from "Comedy Bang Bang") and Dr Dennis Endercut, who writes a literary magazine and wants to talk about his bucket list. Each episode ends with Marissa reading a listeners email and giving her "sage" advice on what to do. In the beginning of the podcast we learn that this is a project for the STARS program that Ms. Listler started, which isn't a real thing. The STARS program they explain, is for the kids taking remedial classes. We also find out in the first episode that the podcast is all taking place in the library and that the principal does not know about it because her and Listler are enemies. I know this all sounds crazy and probably a little ridiculous, but fans of "Comedy Bang Bang" and the TV show "Playing House" know exactly what I'm talking about and they know how damn funny these two ladies are. The episodes, up to this point, come out every two weeks. As I said, they're only four in and each one is about an hour long, so there's plenty of time to catch up.

I highly recommend "Womp It Up!" Womp up the jamz everybody!

You can find "Womp it Up!" on the Earwolf network - here.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor at Seed Sing. What is better than reading about culture? Writing about Pop Culture. Join Ty's Pop culture team and write for Seed Sing. You can follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Cloves and Fedoras: Ty thinks you should give "Doughboys" a listen

Cloves and Fedoras is Seed Sings reviews for little known pieces of pop culture.  Feel free to contact us with your own submissions of undiscovered gems that must be known.

Ed note: The podcast is called Doughboys.  They do not feel the need to have the differentiated THE.  We have corrected the text.  Find this great podcast here.

I recently talked about a great podcast called "I Was There Too" by Matt Gourley.  I'm always on the hunt for new podcasts that are comedy centric and I've just discovered "Doughboys". The hosts of the show, Nick Wiger(writer for Comedy Bang Bang) and Mike Mitchell(Birthday Boys) have a guest join them each week and they go out and review restaurant chains. On the first episode, they go to Chili's and they review it as if they're professional restaurant critics, but with a comedy edge, since they're both comedy performers and writers. It's very funny, but they also take it kind of serious. I mean, they really give constructive feedback on the food. In the Chili's episode, they really take the ribs to task. Saying that they are too saucy and they look gray. But, with all that being said, they still seemed to enjoy the rest of their meal. The only other problem they had was, the drinks were too sweet. After they review the restaurant they give it a ranking of one to five forks and give their overall impression. While going through the review, there's always some kind of funny story or experience that they've had at said restaurant in the past. Following the fork review, they go to a segment they call "Snack or Wack", where they have some type of big brand name snack(Chocolate Chip Resse's Peanut Butter Cup Chocolate Chips Ahoy in the Chili's episode) and decide if the snack is good(Snack) or bad(Wack). Also, very funny to hear them rate these well known snack brands as if they are big time food critics. Being a fan of the Birthday Boys(both the comedy sketch team and the TV show) Mike Mitchell being attached to this made me excited to listen, since the Birthday Boys show was cancelled. I was just happy to see he was still doing things since he is my favorite Birthday Boy. They've only done three episodes, with the third one being released today, May 28th 2015. The restaurants they've reviewed are, the aforementioned Chili's, Taco Bell and today, IHOP. I highly recommend checking "Doughboys" out, it's pretty great.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for Seed Sing.  He will only visits restaurants that get reviewed.  He is eagerly looking forward to his first trip to Chili's, Taco Bell, and IHOP.

Cloves and Fedoras: Ty thinks you should give "I was there Too" a listen

Cloves and Fedoras is Seed Sings reviews for little known pieces of pop culture.  Feel free to contact us with your own submissions of undiscovered gems that must be known.

As with most people my age (let's say millennial) podcast are huge. They have a podcast for everything. From sports to comedy to food to politics and so on. It's all covered. I'm here to tell you about my new favorite podcast,  "I Was There Too". It's part of Earwolf's new sister network Wolfpop. Every two weeks Matt Gourley, who has been featured on other podcasts such as "James Bonding" and "SuperEgo". Matt interviews actors and actresses that have played semi small to bit part roles in classic movies. He's done 14 episodes so far and his guests have included, Paul F Tompkins from "There Will Be Blood", Ricco Ross from "Aliens", Greg Proops from "Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace", Peter Berkrot from "Caddyshack", Doug Benson from "Captain EO", the passengers from the bus in "Speed", Johnny Williams from "Goodfellas", Paul Rust from "Inglorious Basterds", Eileen Dietz from "The Exorcist", Jenette Goldstein from "Aliens", "T2", and "Titanic", DC Pierson from "Captain America: The Winter Soldier", Stephen Toblowsky from "Groundhog Day", and most recently, Diane Franklin from "Better Off Dead". All the episodes are great, even better for people who are fans of the movies. A couple of my favorites are, Doug Benson, Paul Rust and Peter Berkrot. Listening to Doug Benson talk about how odd Michael Jackson was on set to his(Doug Benson) exploits as a dancer in the movie are pretty funny. Paul Rust, who plays one of the grunts, talking about how cool and calm both Brad Pitt and Quentin Tarantino were give me even more respect for the two of them. And then there's Peter Berkrot AKA the kid who had the rake pushed against his neck by Bill Murray's Carl Spackler while telling him about caddying for the Dalai Lama, is excellent. According to him, most of Bill Murray's speech was improvised. That's incredible! But, my favorite episode so far is last weeks with Diane Franklin from "Better Off Dead". I'm a HUGE fan of that movie. My brother showed it to me when I was in my early twenties and I still quote it to this day. The movie holds up very well too. For those of you who don't know who Diane Franklin is she played the French foreign exchange student, Monique Junot Diane's character becomes John Cusack's love interest in the movie. Her stories range from her close friendship with John Cusack to, the fact that the director Savage Steve Holland wanted her character to not only have a French accent, but a lisp as well. Thankfully they got rid of the lisp before filming. It's a great episode of a wonderful podcast. Each episode is about an hour long which is a perfect amount of time in the podcast world. Their only 14 episodes in and it's bi weekly, so there's plenty of time for everyone to catch up. Give it a listen to, especially if you're a big time movie buff and enjoy.

Ty

Ty is the pop culture editor for Seed Sing.  He recommends other great Savage Steve Holland such as