It’s comparatively uncommon for a podcast to final 14 years, particularly a fiction one. In reality, so far as I can inform, Welcome to Night Vale is the longest frequently operating fiction podcast on the market. (Some will argue it’s truly We’re Alive, however that has taken a couple of important breaks between seasons.) The story of Night time Vale, the titular desert city, now spans 12 seasons, over 280 episodes, three books, and at the least 10 live standalone shows. Whereas dedicating a number of hundred hours of your life to listening to each episode would possibly appear to be an enormous ask, I consider you’ll be hooked when you dive in.
The present is written by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor, who draw closely on the work of H.P. Lovecraft. Each season has its personal arc, however broadly, the present tells the story of a city that exists in an alternate model of Earth. On this city Angels are actual, however acknowledging their existence is prohibited; librarians are harmful creatures with “hundreds of spiny legs” and “pincers”; and there’s a Faceless Previous Lady who secretly lives in your house.
These are clearly unsettling ideas when taken at face worth. However reasonably than attempting to scare the listener, Cranor and Fink lean into the pure absurdity of cosmic horror and refuse to take themselves too severely. Additionally they routinely subvert the bigotry of their inspiration, utilizing Lovecraftian creations to inform tales wealthy with LGBTQ+ characters.
In fact, having well-written scripts and telling a compelling story is simply a part of the equation. What elevates Welcome to Night time Vale to true greatness is the solid, particularly narrator Cecil Baldwin, who performs the host of the central radio present, Cecil Palmer. Cecil’s voice has the gravitas to inform ominous tales of secretive authorities businesses and historic gods. However he has the vary to ship light-hearted banter with a sentient patch of haze (her title is Deb, in case you have been questioning).
Cecil Baldwin has the charisma to make even the studying of a restore guide for a toaster compelling. He may be creepy, humorous, or soothing, typically all throughout the similar episode. (Because of this, I don’t counsel listening to Night time Vale at evening. I’ve fallen asleep to the dulcet sounds of Baldwin’s voice a number of occasions, just for the extra unsettling elements of the present to make their approach into my desires.)
Each episode additionally encompasses a musical interlude within the guise of “The Climate.” The present principally options lesser-known artists, however alumni embrace Jason Isbell, The Mountain Goats, Waxahatchee, Angel Olsen, Open Mike Eagle, and Sylvan Esso.
Welcome to Night time Vale can be a good way to introduce youthful listeners to horror. I’d by no means counsel my eight-year-old learn H.P. Lovecraft. Partly as a result of the person’s unrepentant racism is baked into the very cloth of his tales, but in addition as a result of the violence is usually an excessive amount of for youngsters. Night time Vale, then again, takes these horrors and exposes them for what they’re: leisure. I can put the podcast on, bond with my child over their burgeoning love of all issues creepy and bizarre, and belief that they’ll stroll away with an excellent message.
Welcome to Night time Vale is offered on most podcast platforms, together with Apple Podcasts, Pocketcasts, YouTube, and Spotify.