Agitator

107 - This Fool

We're talking the Hulu Original, Chris Estrada-led cholo comedy THIS FOOL. This is a major writing craft episode, inspired by how incredibly written this show is. We talk sitcom frameworks, rejecting brilliance, working while writing, and more. For Discord access, bonus and uncut episodes, previews of what we're working on, and more, go to patreon.com/agitator

106 - Into the Black Metal Void(con) with Evan Dean Shelton

Evan Dean Shelton is a writer, publisher, podcaster, occult practitioner, and all-around chill motherfucker. We had him on to discuss VOIDCON--what is it, why's it happening, and who will be there? We also discuss making art for offensive purposes, edgelords, posers, and the desire to feel bad sometimes. Then, mostly on the Patreon half, we're discussing some essential listening in the realm of Japanese black metal (links to bands below). Perfect follow-up to our talk last week with Adam Lehrer on Japanoise and psych rock. We totally planned that...  
Full uncut episode on patreon.com/agitator
Check out Castaigne Publishing: https://castaignepublishing.bigcartel.com/
Come to VOIDCON (several Broken River crew members will be there, including Kelby): https://castaignepublishing.bigcartel.com/product/void-con-2023
Listen to The Lurking Transmission, a music-fueled horror anthology podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-lurking-transmission/id1474507473
Follow Evan on Twitter @REALSONICDANGER @VOIDCON2023 @CastaignePub
Abigail: https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Abigail/1282
Barbatos: https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/barbatos/4239
Cataplexy: https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Cataplexy/11370
Barglar: https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/B%C3%A4rglar/3540401988
Sigh: https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/sigh/51

105 - Japanoise (ft. Adam Lehrer)

Today on the show we have multimedia artist, author, and jacked rockstar Adam Lehrer chopping it up about Japanese noise and psychedelic rock. We talk bodybuilding, the distinction between noise and noise rock, the entry point of noise, meditation, Osaka as Bohemian Japan, and the mysteries and histories of all these avant-garde power groups. Track list to follow who we're talking about:
Merzbow - Venereology https://youtu.be/clfYPSlAiG8
Incapacitants - REPO https://youtu.be/qvocYhRCGxU
Hijokaidan - Tapes https://youtu.be/5mTX853v6gg
Masonna - Inner Mind Mystique https://youtu.be/_vjfltA5Jso
CCCC - Loud Sounds Dopa https://youtu.be/MZoz8RnRm3s
Les Rallizes Denudes - Heavier than a Death in the Family https://youtu.be/JnlBgRpT7oo
Mainliner - Mellow Out https://youtu.be/qm8xZRVXFgk
Fushitsusha - Double Live https://youtu.be/7EyJ6CNJ7U8
High Rise - II https://youtu.be/7LMX_lmjUcI
Various Artists - Tokyo flashback https://youtu.be/T66gb0vt4kw
Check out Adam's noise project with Alex Bienstock BOTCHED CHADIFICATION - "MASCULINITY UNDER THREAT" on Bandcamp and Vimeo
Read Adam's Substack and check out his book Communions, and listen to System of Systems, and follow the man on IG @safetypropaganda
For the uncut episode: patreon.com/agitator

104 - Old Heads vs Young Bloods

On today’s episode, we’re chopping it up bout the legacy of Osamu Tezuka—in real time, as we learn about the godfather ourselves—plus: giving the OGs their flowers, being honest bout who can be considered a GOAT, continued development of inspiration yielding better shit than what came before. Also: Barbie, skateboarding, Jackie Chan, what were the best years for film/music/books, and more.
More at patreon.com/agitator

103 - Homunculus Pt. 2: Where Is My Soul?

Continuing our discussion on the Homunculus manga vs. film, we dive deep into shamanic soul retrieval, what even is a soul, being a person, manifest destiny, looking at our own and others' homunculi, and - regarding this work of art - we ask the important question: what would Miike do?
For the full conversation and a lot more, go to patreon.com/agitator

102 - Homunculus Pt. 1: Am I the Monster?

patreon.com/agitator
Homunculus (manga) by Hideo Yamamoto (2003-2011)
 
Homunculus (movie) dir. Takashi Shimizu (2021)
 
There's a lot to unpack here, plus the usual writing and publishing and hustle tangents, so this'll be a two-parter. We go more into themes and first impressions here, next week will be a deep dive comparison between the manga series and the film.

101 - The Tragedy of Gantz (ft. Zach Langley Chi-Chi)

Today on the show, we're talking Hiroya Oku's 37-volume manga Gantz, which ran from 2000-2013. Joining us is our favorite expat drag queen in Japan, author and airwave artist Zach Langley Chi-Chi of I'm So Popular. We dive into this libidinal freestyle epic and also dig into revisiting the artist's vault, and what we can learn from our past selves. This is a prime example of the craft talk we get into frequently behind the paywall, so we decided to make this entire episode free as an example of the sauce you get over on Agitator Z.
I'M SO POPULAR: https://www.patreon.com/imsopopular/posts
Follow Zach:
IG @langleychichi
Twitter @asukahomo
For our previous covering of the first 12 volumes of Gantz with Ryan Jackson: https://www.patreon.com/posts/77-gantz-part-1-77751866?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link
And to support the show and unlock hours of bonus content and other perks: patreon.com/agitator

100 - Agitator 2.0: The Return

For more, go to patreon.com/agitatorFor more on our books, go to brokenriverbooks.com

99 - On Fan Service: From Food Wars and Fire Force to The Idol and Hannibal

FAN SERVICE EPISODE!
 
 
 
JDO gets a business call from a bill collector, the city mafia, dumb money bullshit, living close to the bone, decision to steal, Robin Hood of Water, the cost of living has got people feeling down, The Idol, why does everyone hate this show?, what’s the criteria for “earning trashiness”?, getting opinions from Twitter, caring about tabloids, engaging with the backstory of art, sublimating the urge to do something with dumb shit, Vikings fans, Shinya Tsukamoto’s way of running a movie set, hiding old episodes, Hannibal lovefest, reaching your limits with gore, hating food sex, searching for the secret heart, music video style, agreeing to disagree, the monotone style of Succession, what is bad acting?, turning vocal chords into catgut violin strings, the many emotions of Mads Mikkelsen, Pusher II, Otaku: Database Animals, Beautiful Fighting Girls, and do otaku have a sexuality?
PATREON:
 
Fan service talk, different approaches to possession of work, management vs. embodiment, taking canon into your own hands, otakus as the zoomers of 90s japan, catgirls, a new type of queerness, being gay for your wife, Fire Force, spontaneous combustion, demon kids, big titties, shower rooms as safe zones, are girls bothered by any of this?, shirtless Jason Statham, alpha vs. beta responses, Food Wars, orgasming while eating, camel toe clenching, food hentai, great gifts from the wife, Dandadan, Turbo Granny, father and son chefs, self-editing writers, the alchemy of fun, the spontaneous nature of anime, passively reading hypersexual material, nerds who don’t fuck, Basic Instinct, what fantasy readers like, what people get out of art, wabi-sabi, Kima’s marker, John Scalzi’s Kaiju Preservation Society, red shirts, Joss Whedon style, The Oatmeal, an excerpt from KPS, Twitter hates Scalzi, The Sound and the Fury, not dismissing things you don’t care for, talking in memes, fast pacing, beer goggles, writing like Reddit, getting drunk and telling famous authors they suck, the Black Person Name Dictionary, the utility of having characters look at each other, grinning twice, a Snow Crash / Frozen joke, different humor life paths, ass booty writers, readers don’t pretend, giving readers a gift, having a nuanced opinion, figuring out why people like dumb shit, fulfilling a purpose, shopping for wives, reverse Christmas, figuring shit out live on the podcast, the urge to destroy art, I Am a Virgo, ordering shit on Amazon, alt-lit as the mumblecore of books, trips to the post office, and wives who put up with us.

98 - Way of the House Husband, Dead Monk Magic, & Dream World with Reverend Janglebones & Kurt Huggins

The Way of the Househusband (2021) by Kousuke Oono
 
On this episode we finally have our good friends from the Soapbox podcast on to chat about retired yakuza, the spirit world, and Thai occult magic.
Alligator car crashes, Willacochee or won’t it, alligator facts, taste of reptile, green things, sound board fail, shows that feel like manga, cut off from Netflix, trying to be normal after experiencing trauma, being a father with face tattoos, closets full of sneakers, the crazy rights issues with the character of Hannibal Lecter, spirits inhabiting archetypes, Unforgiven and The Hurt Locker, transformation as a new way to tell stories, Wreck-It Ralph, the four-act structure of kishotenketsu, no sex in John Wick, the holistic approach to archetypes, Pikachu as a god, becoming an attract vessel for the idea, 3 hours of morning writing routine, 0-1 thinking vs. 1-10 thinking, the history of Aeon office chair and letting artists cook.
 
PATREON SEGMENT:
 
Muzzling the Tourette’s, the difficulty of not saying the funny thing, humor as exorcism, responsibility to the idea, the blog post disaster, losing friends, John Dick, e-mailing Kurt every day to tell him what to think, Rev’s introduction to the Thai occult, astrological timing, ghost energy, selling curses online, the karmic risks of cursing, arguing on GameFAQs, the tea tree dick chemical burn, when to use curses and when to use alternatives, Backwoods Witchcraft, sending riddles back to the universe, Jodorowsky’s sexual psychomagic, Dune, metaphor as spirit language, where ideas come from, summoning angels, talking to ghosts, Jeffrey Kripal’s The Flip, saint power, carrying subjective experiences into material reality, the Dominant of Wider Inclusions, Twitter’s War of Witches, the pain of identifying with your thoughts, already having everything you need, Kelby’s tarot message to JDO, gripping swords, the wisdom of Dilbert, writing and reading as an altered state, the job of artists, books as a good hang, what amulets the boys are wearing, Eternal Jing shoutout, the odor of volcanic rock, JDO desk show and tell, Reservation Dogs, watching Deadwood while painting a house, 3D-printed Hermanubis, Rev’s magic courses, why spirit ancestors might be holding you back, where people go when they die, Kelby’s shamanic healing, the oblique angle of intention, capital-R Reality, and how to use Merit.
 
“From Unsavory to Sweet” by Reverend Janglebones
Kurt Huggins’ website and portfolio
Chapbooks and Amulets
Rev on Twitter
Soapbox podcast