audio drama – Page 28

The Sonic Society: Pulpy, Mysterious, Funny

SFFaudio Online Audio

Season 3 of The Sonic Society, is well under way, their latest, and possibly greatest episode to date! Have a listen |MP3|.

This ep showcases Broken Sea‘s pulpy adventure series Jake Sampson: Monster Hunter. Scripting for JS: MH is well researched, and very fun. The two episodes included are from the second story arc entitled Jake Sampson And The Tears Of Ra. It is a supernatural tale primarily set in 1920s Egypt. Personally I could do without the footsteps in echoing corridors but other than that this is a highly recommended listen.

Also included in this show is the third episode of the increasingly mysterious audio drama from New Zealand. The show is called ~~Claibourne~~ Claybourne, it feels like a Kiwi version of Twin Peaks. It is quite slick. ~~but I can’t seem to find a website or much information about the program on the web though. Anybody know more about Claibourne?~~ Claybourne‘s own podcast can be found HERE, where it has already concluded with Episode 96!*

Also on tap in this show is the funniest listen ever heard on The Sonic Society, a skit from “wacko parody/absurdist/topical/musical/slapstick radio sketch comedy project” called Wasted Tape. It has nothing to do with Science Fiction, Fantasy, or even Horror but I think you’ll dig it anyway. The subject of the WT players’ jocularity: An all male cast of The Vagina Monologues.

And if you haven’t already, don’t forget to subscribe to The Sonic Society’s podcast feed:

http://sonic.libsyn.com/rss

*Thanks Roy!

Posted by Jesse Willis

Willamette Radio Workshop offering free Halloween content via PRX.org

OnlineAudio

The Willamette Radio Workshop has two Ogle Award winning audio dramas available through the Public Radio Exchange (PRX.org).The Public Radio Exchange is a nonprofit service for distribution, peer review, and licensing of radio pieces. Fans of radio drama can also sign up, woo-hoo! Available now are Willamette’s adaptations of Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Dick Dynamo Episode 3: bizzare fun

Online Audio

Dick Dynamo: The 5th Dimensional Man podcast is just about the wackiest show I’ve ever heard. I love it’s unpredictable plotting, hilarious dialogue and awesome production values. Episode two, which recently aired on the Sonic Society podcast, was knee-slappingly funny. Check out the all new Dick Dynamo website and the latest installment of Dick’s manly 5th dimensional adventures:

Dick Dynamo Episode 3

Dick’s podcast feed is here:

http://dickdynamo.libsyn.com/rss

|MP3| Episode 3: “The Unfortunate Heir”

Posted by Jesse Willis

New Releases

SFFaudio New Releases

Available through REB Audio Books and Fictionwise.com:

The Caretaker’s Story
Based on the story by Edith Olivier; Dramatized by Bill Mills
1 MP3 File – Approx. 30 Minutes [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: REB Audio Books
Published: October 8, 2007
A grisly tale of supernatural revenge. A terror tale worthy of Lovecraft or Poe written by a remarkable woman author in 1934! A rich English gentleman thinks he has found the perfect caretaker for an isolated cottage near the sea: a veteran sailor with a taste for
solitude. But when he returns to the cottage months later, the gentleman
can find no trace of the caretaker.

Previously released in 2005, first published in 2001, here’s a popular young adult audiobook…

The Dark Is Rising Sequence, Book Two: The Dark Is Rising
By Susan Cooper; Read by Alex Jennings
CDs – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Random House Audio
Published: 2007
ISBN: 9780739359730
On the Midwinter Day that is his eleventh birthday, Will Stanton discovers a special gift–he is the last of the Old Ones, immortals dedicated to keeping the world from domination by the forces of evil, the Dark. At once, he is plunged into a quest for the six magical Signs that will one day aid the Old Ones in the final battle between the Dark and the Light. And for the twelve days of Christmas, while the Dark is rising, life for Will is full of wonder, terror, and delight.

There may be a fist-fight over this one when it eventually lands in the SFFaudio mailbox…

Selections From Dreamsongs – Volume One
By George R.R. Martin; Read by various readers
12 CDs – 15 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Random House Audio
Published: October 2007
ISBN: 780739357125
George R. R. Martin delivers a rare treat for readers: a compendium of his shorter works, collected into two stunning volumes, that offers fascinating insight into his journey from young writer to award-winning master. Gathered here in Volume I are the very best of George R. R. Martin’s early works, including never-before-published fan pieces, his Hugo, Nebula, and Bram Stoker awards—winning stories–plus the original novella The Ice Dragon, from which Martin’s New York Times bestselling children’s book of the same title originated. A dazzling array that features extensive author commentary, Dreamsongs, Volume I, is the perfect collection for both Martin devotees and a new generation of fans.

Random House (which owns Books On Tape Inc.) has decided not to release an unabridged CD version of Naomi Novik’s latest alternative history/fantasy novel. But there is an abridged “download only” 6 hour version available exclusively through Audible.com (and therefore iTunes). Here’s the unabridged version…

Empire Of Ivory
By Naomi Novik; Read by Simon Vance
10 CDs – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Books on Tape
Published: September 2007
4th in the Temeraire series. An abridged “download only” 6 hour version is also exclusively available through Audible.com (and therefore iTunes).

posted by Jesse Willis

Theatre Of The Mind podcast – Audio Drama from another dimension

Online Audio

When you listen to The Theater Of The Mind podcast, you’ll wonder if you’ve somehow slipped into another dimension. The creator of the podcast, Professor Daniel H. Foster, has reconstructed, adapted and generally weirded-out familiar and unfamiliar stories, particularly those that came from old radio dramas. Check out the Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy as performed by Foster and friends |MP3|. Not only is some of the dialogue changed, all the characters speak with American accents too! And, Ford Prefect is now “Fran Prefect.” Which is all perfectly logical, if you’re from another dimension.

Also on tap is a Neil Gaiman story from the 1970s…

We Can Get Them For You Wholesale
Adapted from a story by Neil Gaiman; Performed with a full cast
1 MP3 – [AUDIO DRAMA]
Podcaster: The Theater Of The Mind
Podcast: 2006

Subscribe to the podcast feed via this url:

http://www.thetheaterofthemind.com/thetheaterofthemind.xml

posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Tears of the Tin God

Science Fiction Audiobook Review

Tears Of The Tin God
By T. Ray Gordon; Narrated by Richard Sellers and a Full Cast
1 CD – 80 Minutes [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: Apex Audio Theatre
Published: 2007
UPC: 701376158028
Themes: / Science fiction / Alien Artifact / Space travel /

If I were allowed only two words to review this audio drama, I would choose these: Harmless junk. But if I had to shave my word count, I wouldn’t know where to cut. Tears Of The Tin God is not a terrible audio drama. The sound and sound effects are fine, but the script is plagued by over-explanation of the familiar (as in: “…she frowned, making a face…”), juxtaposed with under-explanation of the novel. A few of the science fictional ideas are unconvincing, and the ending feels rushed and emotionally unsatisfying. Still, the enthusiastic production and the short running time make it kinda likable.

The plot is provocative, if not stunningly original: Seven future astronauts have been sent across space to investigate some immense alien artifacts on a planet called Borne 7. Upon landing on the surface of the largest artifact, one of the astronauts is ingested by it, becoming an integral part of a being with god-like power and knowledge. But are its intentions good or evil, alien or human?

The same concept is explored by Michael Crichton, sans space suits, in his novel Sphere. That one isn’t great, either, but it is superior to this one in the quality of its prose, the depth of its explanations, and the delicious thrill of its sustained tension. Tears Of The Tin God won’t take years off your life, but it kills an hour you might miss later.

Posted by Kurt Dietz