A PODCAST ABOUT SOUND
Phantom Power is a podcast about sound, technology, and culture. In each episode, Mack Hagood interviews experts in sound studies, sound art, and acoustic ecology.
How Music Became an Instrument of War (David Suisman)
March 28, 2025 |
University of Delaware historian David Suisman is known for his research on music and capitalism, particularly his excellent book Selling Sounds: The Commercial Revolution in American Music (Harvard UP, 2009), which won numerous awards and accolades. Suisman’s new book, Instrument … Continue reading
Remembering Jonathan Sterne (1970-2025)
March 23, 2025 |
The sound studies community is reeling from the death of Jonathan Sterne this past Thursday. Jonathan’s presence and work were–and are–incredibly influential on the intellectual and ethical commitments of our field. He was a generous mentor to so many, including … Continue reading
How Spotify Dulls the Musical Mind (Liz Pelly)
February 28, 2025 |
Liz Pelly is our foremost journalist/critic on the Spotify beat. Her byline has appeared at the Baffler, Guardian, NPR, and many other outlets. She is also an adjunct instructor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Liz is also been … Continue reading
Are AI art and music really just noise? (Eryk Salvaggio)
January 29, 2025 |
In this episode, host Mack Hagood dives into the world of AI-generated music and art with digital artist and theorist Eryk Salvaggio. The conversation explores technical and philosophical aspects of AI art, its impact on culture, and the ‘age of … Continue reading
Podcasting’s Obsession with Obsession (Neil Verma)
May 24, 2024 |
Today we discuss how narrative podcasts work, the role they’ve played in American culture and how they’ve shaped our understanding of podcasting as a genre and an industry. Neil Verma’s new book, Narrative Podcasting in an Age of Obsession, offers a … Continue reading
Second Line: Footwork in New Orleans (Lowlines by Petra Barran)
May 10, 2024 |
A new podcast called Lowlines takes us to a New Orleans Second Line, the brass band tradition that comes out of Black funeral processions and social clubs and is known not only for the power of the music but for amazing dancing known as footwork. Continue reading
Beyond Listening: The Hidden Ways Sound Affects Us (Michael Heller)
April 26, 2024 |
Dr. Michael Heller examines sonic experiences that go “beyond listening.” Moments when sound overpowers us. When sound is sensed more in our bodies than in our ears. When sound engages in crosstalk with our other senses. Or when it affects us by being inaudible. Continue reading
Noise and Affect Theory (Marie Thompson)
April 12, 2024 |
Feminist sound scholar and musician Marie Thompson is a theorist of noise. She has also been one of the key thinkers in integrating the study of sound with the study of affect. Continue reading
From HAL to SIRI: How Computers Learned to Speak (Benjamin Lindquist)
March 29, 2024 |
Learn how computers learned to speak with computer historian Benjamin Lindquist. Ben tells the the fascinating backstory to HAL 9000 and the strange the analog history of digital computing. Continue reading
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