We did it. We played another show outside of London—this time at Wolfson College in Cambridge—and we made sure to prep only the best. Did you know Boris Johnson wrote a horny, frustrated novel about terrorism called '72 Virgins'? Well, we read the damn book so you didn't have to. Enjoy!
2019-07-05 21:55:51 +0000 UTC View PostIt’s that time again! This month Riley is reading Benedict Anderson’s graduate seminar standby Imagined Communities. The “nation” is a concept much beloved of reactionaries and dismissed by Marxists as mere ideology. But it has serious psychological power nevertheless. Anderson’s book asks what is a “nation,” where did it come from, and how has the concept been used and misused over time? Riley then applies Anderson’s rubric to understanding the swell of white nationalism that...
2019-06-27 11:04:06 +0000 UTC View PostThe UK can't get enough of border forces. We want to fund them in our own country and in other countries, even when those countries want visa-free regional travel. We love making everyone a cop, and we're joined this week by Zoe Gardner (@ZoeJardiniere) from Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants (@JCWI_UK) to discuss this.
However, we also h...
2019-06-19 23:01:59 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, we're talking Logic Guys with Aisling McCrea (@ambientGillian), the author of a great Outline piece about debate and a canny observer of terrible Mind-Boomers online. Why is Andrew Doyle so angry and unfunny? Why does Stephen Crowder always ambush college students with his dumb garbage? All this and more is yours.
*LIVE SHOW ALERT* On June 15, we’ll perform at Wolfso...
2019-06-12 23:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostMetro UK is doing a feature on how the future will be (good? bad?), and in our search to answer that question, we've brought on their deputy editor Alex Hudson ( @alexhuds ) to discuss it. In the future, your boss will watch your irises constantly to see if you're looking at GettingYourDickSucked.com instead of doing your job. It's not looking rosy!
*LIVE SHOW ALERT* On June 15, ...
2019-06-05 23:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostAmerica desperately wants to go to war with Iran, so much that it's willing to engineer some extremely fake circumstances under which it can claim to be the victim of aggression. Why is that? Well, according to Bret Stephens, it's because they hate Ben Franklin, or something. To discuss this, we bring on Sina Rahmani, host of the The East is a Podcast, and ask him why the US can't seem to stop broadcasting its war horniness....
2019-05-29 23:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostDid you know that, despite renting space in basically every building in the world, WeWork incinerates money and cannot ever turn a profit? Did you know that there's an IoT-connected chastity belt that locks your dick to your phone? So much and more is here for you to discover -- and on this episode, you'll hear from the full gang of Riley, Milo, Hussein, Nate, and Alice.
*LIVE SHOW ALERT* We’ll be performing once again at the Star of Kings in Kings Cross (126 York Way...
2019-05-23 23:01:02 +0000 UTC View PostAnother instalment of Riley's Commie Book Club delivered to you, our delightful and beloved patrons. This month, Riley decided to take it in a bit of a different direction, and talk about an under-discussed field of study, Marxism and the Philosophy of Science. How should we think about knowledge, what is knowable, and how these questions are related to history and power? To get to these questions, he reads from Helena Sheehan's Marxism and the Philosophy of Science: A Critical History 2019-05-15 23:01:59 +0000 UTC View Post
Everyone knows YouTube: the place where you can watch Peppa Pig get beheaded, watch crocodiles turn into chickens, learn about why earth is flat, and so much more. However, YouTube as a cultural phenomenon has created an entire new generation of public figures — a bunch of damn celebrities — and this week Hussein, Milo, and Nate speak with author Chris Stokel-Walker (@stokel) about his new book "YouTubers:...
2019-05-08 23:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostIt was a special kind of Sunday morning in London, and the whole gang gathered to record yet another episode of our comedy special Balthasar Speedboat. This round features Riley, Milo, Nate, Olga, Alex Kealy, and Pierre Novellie--and covers important topics like: what if the Hubble telescope saw God's pussy? What happens when the bullied becomes the bully? What is a samovar? And why is it that kids always find something to rip on you about? Hope you enjoy.
2019-05-01 23:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, Riley, Milo, and Hussein speak with writer Karen Geier (@karengeier) about Butt-mentum—the sudden ubiquity of Pete Buttigieg—as well as other topics to include the Extinction Rebellion protests and an *insane* denunciation of Heathrow Airport by a man writing for Conservative Woman. It's good, folks.
Please vote for us at this year's British Podcast Awards, and make us the toast of the dumbest possible...
2019-04-25 23:06:28 +0000 UTC View PostThis week, we speak to jazz saxophonist and MC Soweto Kinch (@sowetokinch) about big tech's attempts to steal creative idea-generation concepts and apply them to high-stress startup culture. We also talk about certified genius Roger Scruton, and Milo brings back his south-of-south-of-Louisiana accent. You will enjoy this.
*LIVE SHOW ALERT* We’ll be performing once again at the Sta...
2019-04-17 23:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostThis is it, folks. The first live recording with our mobile space station, the first outside-London show, and the first leftist UK politics supergroup podcast featuring Dalia Gebrial of Novara Media and Jack Frayne-Reid of Reel Politik Podcast. Recorded live at Hamilton House, Stokes Croft, Bristol on April 5, 2019, it's a show about the things that matter: brain scanning helmets that write musical symphonies, Bristol's slave-trade past, its devotion to one particular slave-trading city fathe...
2019-04-10 23:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostAmericans love the Big Bang Theory, even if they think they're above it (when we watched an episode in studio, Nate couldn't keep himself from laughing). But why is it so oblivious to the horrors of true nerd culture? Because as special guest Eleanor Penny (@eleanorkpenny) points out, there's already an insanely misogynist show lurking under its adorkable exterior.
In addition, we also discuss Sue...
2019-04-03 23:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostAmazing how Titania McGrath, a fictional account that owns Millennials by making dad jokes, is the talk of the London Media. It's almost like the account is run by two middle-aged Tories whose friends all RT them out of a sense of obligation. This week, Riley, Milo, and Nate speak with Novara Media's Dalia Gebrial ( @daliagebrial ) about the Titania McGrath 'phenomenon,' and why it speaks to the deeply c...
2019-03-28 00:02:23 +0000 UTC View PostIt’s that time again: Riley sat down with a book, and now you have to hear him talk about it for an hour or so. This month, Riley read K-Punk, out now on Repeater Books. K-Punk collects the previously unpublished writing of British left cultural, political, and social critic Mark Fisher, who explored realism and imagination, future and memory, and...
2019-03-21 17:31:44 +0000 UTC View PostWe're back in the saddle for yet another edition of Balthasar Speedboat. This episode features Riley, Milo, Nate, Alex Kealy, Olga Koch, and Pierre Novellie -- and covers the usual spectrum of topics (but mostly Michael Jackson). Did you know Riley apparently sheds hair as a defensive mechanism? Did you know that Richard Nixon was convinced that gays brought down the Roman Empire? All this can be yours, and more.
2019-03-13 20:09:35 +0000 UTC View PostWe did it. We got Jonn Elledge @JonnElledge and Alice Caldwell-Kelly ( @AliceAvizandum) on the same podcast to discuss the UK's housing shortage, dorm-style accommodations being packaged as 'solutions,' some polycule chat, and a new VC-backed attempt to undercut Transport for London (and steal your data...
2019-03-07 16:09:28 +0000 UTC View PostWhen was the last time you looked at Bill Gates, a man who had bangs well into his forties, and said, 'He's got the solution to our problems'? Well, as it just so happens, there are clearly enough Bill-lievers to necessitate an annual philanthropy fanzine, which we managed to get a hold of.
Recorded live at the Star of Kings, this episode features friend of the show and founding member Charlie Palmer, a strung-together sound system, the errant noises of Nate crouching behind the DJ boot...
2019-02-28 16:16:39 +0000 UTC View PostFriends: the venue's audio setup was something of a disaster last night, and as such we had to nix the livestream in favor of actually getting the fucking sound system to work in the slightest bit. The good news is: the live recording itself sounds great, and we'll publish it here next week. We'll attempt a livestream again sometime in the future, preferably when we can control for other variables (lmao). Thank you for your patience and support — we couldn't do it without you. And thanks so...
2019-02-22 11:03:35 +0000 UTC View PostRiley and Milo sit down with Will Stronge, director of Autonomy and one of the principal authors of the four day work week report (linked here) that’s been generating so much interest lately. Sing it loud and sing it proud: work sucks!
2019-02-21 00:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostEdit: corrected the start time. Hello friends — tomorrow night we'll hold a live show in London which is now sold out. In an attempt to let you rejoice in our terrible jokes, we're going to attempt a livestream from the venue. We'll post a YouTube link here in the Patreon feed tomorrow once we have everything set up. The show begins at 8:00 pm GMT / 3:00 pm US Eastern / 12:00 pm US Pacific. Fingers crossed that it works, of course, but definitely follow this space if you're...
2019-02-20 20:50:40 +0000 UTC View PostDoes it surprise anyone that the Tories would decide that the issue of EU citizens in the UK could be solved with an app? And does it surprise anyone that that app doesn't work? In this week's bonus episode, comedian Victor Patrascan — recently of Romania — joins the Trashfuture crew to discuss the Samsung-only immigration policy. We also discuss a very dumb article about Vene-freaking-zuela.
This episode features a TF first: reporting segments that Hussein and Nate conducted —fea...
2019-02-15 15:42:22 +0000 UTC View Post
We now have a Discord server (this will be integral in our pivot to gaming). Please keep this private to the Trashfuture patrons only! Thanks, and enjoy even more access to your favourite lads.
2019-02-11 18:34:12 +0000 UTC View PostIt's that time again! Riley read a book, drank some wine, and is ready to talk about it to you fine people. This month, we're looking at State of Insecurity by Isabell Lorey, available now on Verso. It's all about precariousness and how neoliberalism has turned us into our own disciplinarians.
Check out the book here: https://www.versobooks.com/books/1737-state-of-insecurity
*...
2019-02-08 18:27:03 +0000 UTC View PostIt was admittedly a shock to all of us that any of you liked our previous Balthasar Speedboat show. However, you did, and as such we've decided to revisit it with a new episode. You can hear Riley, Milo, Olga, Alex Kealy, and Charlie Palmer for a near hour of riffs. Did you know the British had a song in World War II dedicated to Hitler's balls? Did you know that's actually body shaming? All this and more, on Balthasar Speedboat.
2019-01-31 00:02:00 +0000 UTC View PostOn this week's bonus episode, we're taking you to a brain expansion dimension that you've never visited before. Riley, Hussein, Milo, and Alice join special guest George Eaton, deputy editor at the New Statesman for a discussion of the HBO / Channel 4 feature film 'Brexit' starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Dominic Cummings.
Sure, it's bad, but is that really so surprising? We delve into it with the keen insights that you've come to expect from us.
*LIVE SHOW ALERT* We have an upcom...
2019-01-24 00:01:53 +0000 UTC View PostIn this week's bonus, Riley's Commie Book Club is a bit different. This time, Riley speaks with scholar and author Peter Fleming — you might recognize the name from a previous episode discussing his book 'The Death of Homo Economicus' — and this time they cover the subject of Peter's new book, 'The Worst Is Yet to Come: A Post-Capitalist Survival Guide.'
Peter Fleming is a professor at the University of London and the University of Technology, Sydney. He is the author of s...
2019-01-19 21:21:54 +0000 UTC View PostReal heads will appreciate this one: we've assembled the full Trashfuture roster, featuring Riley, Milo, Charlie Palmer, Hussein, and Nate, and we're discussing a great (read: bad) startup that wants to give your employees helpful nudges. We also talk Netflix's acquiescing to Saudi censorship, a terrible column that tries to defend UK rail fare hikes, and so much more.
*LIVE SHOW ALERT* We have an upcoming live show — with comedian Josie Long — in London on February...
2019-01-10 00:01:01 +0000 UTC View PostIn this week's bonus episode, Nate interviews writer and extreme Trashfuture Tolerator Edie Miller (@multiplebears) about her recent article in the Outline, in which she asks a crucial question: why is UK media so transphobic? Their discussion covers the strangeness of the TERF argument, the weird way in which it has more currency among liberals in the UK than in the US, and much more.
You can rea...
2019-01-03 14:47:18 +0000 UTC View Post