Fruitless

Horror month continues! On today's episode, Jackal and Josiah discuss the fantastic horror mockumentary about xenophobia and scapegoating, Savageland (2015).

References

Audio credits

On today's short bonus episode, Josiah interviews West Des Moines mayoral candidate, M.J. Hoag.

Find out more about M.J. here at his campaign website: https://mj4wdm.org

Audio credits

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Horror month continues! On today's episode, Jackal and Josiah discuss a classic of Italian horror, Lucio Fulci's 1981 surrealist gore film, The Beyond.

Music by Fabio Frizzi and SHADE08

It's horror month at Fruitless! On today's episode, Jackal and Josiah discuss Candyman (1991). 

References

Audio credits

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It's September's music exchange coming at you a few days late. Sorry about that. On this installment, Josh and I discuss City of Evil by Avenged Sevenfold and The Sunset Tree by The Mountain Goats. Also Josh went to RiotFest with Caleb.

Music by Avenged Sevenfold, The Mountain Goats, and SHADE08

On today's episode, Jacob Dallas (The Socialist Shelf) joins Jackal and Josiah to talk about Captain America and the way he evolved from a symbol of proud patriotic anti-fascism in the 1940s, to disenchanted liberal in the 70s, to heartbroken hero in the 2000s.

Pre-order Jacob's novel, They Called Her Rebel, here: https://www.collectiveinkbooks.com/roundfire-books/our-books/they-called-her-rebel

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Welcome to the Fruitless Sports Corner (FSC): a now semi-reoccurring series where Josiah, Nathan Thiessen, Chris Barker, and Jake the Lawyer talk about sports. On today's episode, we discuss the start of the NFL season while Josiah watches the Falcons @ Vikings, college football traditions, MLS being the most entertaining soccer, and the issues with Manchester United. Also, Chris tries to help Jake...

On today's episode, Josh, Alien, and Josiah tackle Matt Johnson's 2013 black comedy, The Dirties. We discuss Matt Johnson's filmmaking career and his unique mockumentary style before exploring what this film has to say about the media environment surrounding school shootings.

References

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Josh and I discuss Steal This Album by System of a Down and Wildlife by La Dispute. Also this is the 50th Patreon episode.

Music by System of a Down, La Dispute, and SHADE08

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Joseph (@gross_online), Josiah, Josh, and James (@cigarette_liker) all reconvene to run through the house with a pickle in our mouth and discuss the final season of The Righteous Gemstones. Shout out to Hayden Christensen.

Music by The Righteous Gemstones & SHADE08

On today's episode, Phil Christman joined Josiah to discuss Sam Tanenhaus' excellent new biography, Buckley: The Life and the Revolution That Changed America

References

On today's episode, Luke Savage (Michael & Us, @lukewsavage) joins Josiah to discuss the state of Resistance liberalism under the second Trump administration. 

Audio credits

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Content warning for in-depth and detailed discussion of school shootings.

On today's episode, Josh and I end Christian Rock Summer 2025 on a somber note by exploring the legacy of the Columbine shooting in Christian media, specifically the martyr narratives that developed around the murders of Cassie Bernall and Rachel Joy Scott.

Music by SHADE08 and Alvedon; audio...

Christian Rock Summer 2025 continues! On today's episode, Brian Alford (The Worst of All Possible Worlds, @spocksbrian) joined Josiah and Josh to discuss !Hero: The Rock Opera: a 2003 musical attempting to be "Jesus Christ Superstar for the MTV generation," featuring a CCM star-studded cast including Michael Tait, Rebecca St. James, Mark Stuart, and more. 

Content warning: Today's episode contains a lengthy discussion about the sexual assault allegations that have come out regarding Michael Tait.

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Christian Rock Summer 2025 continues! On today's episode, Josiah, Josh, Nate, and James discuss the kings of Christian post-hardcore/metalcore/screamo: Underoath.

Music by SHADE08 and Underoath

Christian Rock Summer is back for 2025! And this time, we're kicking it off with a more general introduction to the history of Christian rock. On today's episode, Josiah and Josh introduce Tom O'Mahony (@gotitatguineys, Beneath the Skin, Lions Led By Donkeys) to the edgier side of CCM.

References

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Josh and I discuss FIDLAR by FIDLAR and Freak Out! by The Mothers of Invention.

Music by FIDLAR, The Mothers of Invention, and SHADE08

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Alien and Josiah go through their ballots for the New York Times' 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century. 

Music by SHADE08

On today's episode, Keanu Heydari joins Josiah to discuss the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran in historical context.

References

On today's episode, Jackal, Alien, and Josiah discuss Weiner (2016) and Anthony Weiner's story since the events of the film.

References

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Josh and I discuss Hot Fuss by The Killers and Blue Record by Baroness. Also The Office and re-watch podcasts.

Music by The Killers, Baroness, and SHADE08

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On today's episode, Jackal, James C. Liker, and Josiah discuss the first season of Common Side Effects.

Music by SHADE08

On today's episode, Caleb, Josh, and Josiah discuss the early work of Nick Cave, The Birthday Party, and a Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds concert that both Caleb and Josiah attended. 

References

On today's episode, Finch joins Josiah to talk about the 2025 conclave, the Conclave (2024) fandom, and the last few weeks of Vatican news online.

References

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Josh and I discuss The Pleasure Principle by Gary Numan and The Suburbs by Arcade Fire. Also the Minecraft movie.

Music by Gary Numan, Arcade Fire, and SHADE08

On today's episode, Gaius from Tribunate joins Josiah to talk about Roman history and it's parallels to the present moments. Is the U.S. in a decline like the end of the Roman Republic? Or, perhaps, the end of the Roman Empire? Why are fascists and far right groypers so obsessed with Rome? All this and more.

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On today's episode, Alien, Josh, and Josiah turn up the dubstep, shotgun their Monster energy drinks, and get party rocking as they talk about Spring Breakers (2012) and the cinematic universe of Harmony Korine, as well as take a brief detour into the work and influence of Skrillex on American pop culture.

Music by SHADE08 and Skrillex

On today's episode, Phil Christman joins Josiah to discuss Amusing Ourselves to Death by Neil Postman. They explore Postman's intellectual trajectory and legacy, as well as the broader media ecology movement. Did Postman predict Donald Trump? Is Postman a conservative? Would Postman have liked podcasts? All this and more on today's episode.

This is the audio for a video essay on YouTube. If you choose to listen here, you will only get half the experience. For the full experience, check out Fruitless on YouTube.

The video essay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8ER82CgPZ0
The Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIZWDsDrQ0XvDQFWzE6s2gg

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Josh and I discuss Plagues Upon Plagues by Sect and The Body, The Blood, The Machine by The Thermals. Also Josiah is sick.

Music by Sect, The Thermals, and SHADE08

On today's episode, Jacob Dallas-Main (The Socialist Shelf) joins Josiah to talk about Bong Joon Ho's masterpiece about how to wage class war on a big train, Snowpiercer (2013).

Music & audio credits

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Imagine the title of this episode being said in the most annoying voice possible. Like, imagine the nerd emoji saying it. On today's episode, Nate Thiessen asks Josiah about his recent conversion to Sports Guy over the past year. We talk soccer, NFL, college football, and a bit of baseball.

Music by SHADE08 

On today's episode, Alien (aka Stewie Griffin DJ), Josh, and Josiah discuss Iowa by Slipknot, the impact Slipknot had on the Des Moines music scene, and the whole phenomenon of nu metal. 

References

Jackal and Josiah catch up on some current events. We discuss recent anti-trans legislation in Iowa and the chaos of the first few weeks of the second Trump admin before catching back up with our good friend, Eric Adams.

References

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Josh and I discuss Take as Needed for Pain by Eyehategod and Blue Valentine by Tom Waits. Also Josiah is watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Music by Eyehategod, Tom Waits, and SHADE08

On today's episode, AJ (@normalmaxxedajc) joins Josiah to teach you all how to be normal about sex, politics, and the internet.

Check out Normalmaxxing here: https://normalmaxxing.substack.com/
Follow AJ on Twitter @normalmaxxedajc and Bluesky @normalmaxxedajc.bsky.social
Check out AJ's previous episode of Fruitless here: https://share.transistor.fm/s/297ea2a7

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Check out Fruitless on YouTube

Find more of Josiah’s work: https://linktr.ee/josiahwsutton

Follow Josiah on Twitter @josiahwsutton

Mu...

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Josh and I discuss Crack the Skye by Mastadon and Thank You Happy Birthday by Cage the Elephant. Also Josh is playing a lot of Doom.

Music by Mastodon, Cage the Elephant, and SHADE08

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Josh and Josiah discuss American politics and the wonderful highs and lows of having a body. Also Josh keeps buying Doom.

Music by SHADE08

Jon from Christianity on the Spectrum (@ChristianityOn) joins Josiah to discuss his research into the relationship between autistic individuals and Christianity. They discuss why autistic people tend to leave Christianity as well as what many find compelling about the faith. They also discuss a few surprising results that Jon found in his data.

Check out Christianity on the Spectrum here: https://christianityonthespectrum.podbean.com/
Follow Jon on Twitter @ChristianityOn or Bluesky @christianityon.bsky.social

Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

Check out Fruitless on YouTube

...

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Caleb (@theboghog) joins Josiah to discuss Control (2007), Joy Division, and the life and work of Ian Curtis.

Music by SHADE08 & Joy Division

On today's episode, Josh, James (@cigarette_liker), and Caleb (@theboghog) join Josiah to welcome in the new year by hanging out, making some vague predictions about the coming year, sharing some resolutions, and then talking about escaping the imminent catastrophe through table top RPGs, video games, and sports.

Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

Check out Fruitless on YouTube

Find more of Josiah’s work: https://linktr.ee/josiahwsutton

Follow Josiah on Twitter @josiahwsutton

Recommendations

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It's the final music exchange of 2024! Sorry that I'm releasing it on the 1st of January; I had some personal stuff come up on New Year's Eve. So just close your eyes while listening and pretend it's 2024 still. Josh and I discuss Millennium by Backstreet Boys and Remain in Light by Talking Heads. Also I worked on Christmas and the online right...

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Against Josiah's will, the subject of Supernatural returns as Finch brings Jackal and Caleb back to discuss Destiel and how the internet is bad. Josiah only allows this coup d'état of his beloved podcast in the spirit of the holiday and because he is incredibly generous to his friends, but has issued an official ban on the topic of Supernatural going f...

Phil Cozzi joins Josiah to get in the holiday spirit and discuss The Holdovers (2023) and having a bad time around Christmas.

Music & audio credits

Amelia Schafer (@ameliaschafers, Rapid City Journal) returns to discuss her recent investigation into a South Dakota boarding school and the thirty-eight graves that were uncovered last year.

Donate

Tom O'Mahony (@gotitatguineys, Beneath the Skin, Lions Led By Donkeys) joins Josiah and Josh to discuss hardcore as a genre and a social movement. They do a crash course of the history of the genre and talk about why it rules.

Shout out to Bobby: @OnlyOnTuesday_s on Twitter, @OnlyOnTuesdays.bsky.social on Bluesky
Shout out to Keno
Shout out to Budang and Estorvo

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It's the music exchange! This month, Josh and I discuss Master of Puppets by Metallica and Wide Awaaaaake! by Parquet Courts. Also I'm returning to the service industry.

Music by Metallica, Parquet Courts, and SHADE08

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Okay, look. This episode is technically about Naked Lunch (1991), but it's mostly Alien and Josiah having a mental breakdown about the election while listening to Death Grips, and also there's some questions about Rivers Cuomo's sexuality.

Music by SHADE08

On today’s episode, Josh, James (@cigarette_liker), and Jake the Lawyer join Josiah in celebrating 50 years of Fruitless. That’s right: it’s the 50th episode. We reflect on the past few years of the show, go on a number of rabbit trails, and also address the election results (hence the "bittersweet").

Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

Check out Fruitless on YouTube

Find more of Josiah’s work: https://linktr.ee/josiahwsutton

Follow Josiah on Twitter @josiahwsutton

Music & audio credits

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It's the music exchange! This month, Josh and I discuss Worry by Jeff Rosenstock and Gold by Whores. Also we are sleepy.

Music by Jeff Rosenstock, Whores, and SHADE08

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Closing out horror month, Jackal and Josiah discuss the writings of H.P. Lovecraft, specifically The Shadow over Innsmouth and At the Mountains of Madness. We all know Lovecraft was a massive racist, and that he is also one of the most influential horror writers of all time. On today's episode, we discuss why his work still resonates with us despite it's...

Horror month continues! This week, Vita Breva (@vitabreva) joins Jackal and Josiah to discuss Jennifer's Body (2009). We discuss the movie's poor contemporary reception and later reappraisal, the film's exploration of feminism, sexuality, and the post-911 era, the attempted character assassination of Megan Fox, as well as Vita's Girardian read on the film.

Follow today's guest on Twitter @vitabreva

Follow today's guest on Letterboxd: https://letterboxd.com/vitabreva/

Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

Check out Fruitless on YouTube

Find more of Josiah’s work: ht...

Alt title: Despite Looking Like an Ogre, Danzig Does Not Have Layers

Horror Month at Fruitless continues! This week, Caleb Sutton (@theboghog) joins Jackal and Josiah to discuss Misfits and the king of horror punk, Glenn Danzig. Please listen, I suffered through Verotika (2019) for this one. 

References

It's Horror Month at Fruitless, and we're kicking it off with some Italian horror. Jesse Hawken (@jessehawken, Junk Filter) joins Josiah and Jackal to discuss Don't Torture a Duckling (1972), Lucio Fulci's rural giallo about a string of child murders happening in a small Italian village. We discuss Catholicism, modernity, and Disney in Italy. 

Content warning: discussion of sexual violence and pedophilia.

This is the sixth installment of the Fruitless Bookclub, a show-within-a-show, featuring Chris Barker and Jake the Lawyer, where we read all those nonfiction books we've been meaning to read. Today's episode is about ...And Forgive Them Their Debts: Lending, Foreclosure, and Redemption From Bronze Age Finance to the Jubilee Year by Michael Hudson. We're talking debt forgiveness! We're talking bronze age names that we can't pronounce! And we're talking about how a lot of modern political and religious concepts originate in bronze age practices that are now uniformly rejected by our institutions and their weird Austrian economists. Come...

Jackal and Josiah catch up on some current events before we launch into Horror Month in October. We discuss an article about the LAPD conducting a pot raid, Mark Robinson's "black Nazi" scandal, Israel's attack on Lebanon, and the fearmonger over Haitian immigrants before zooming in on the indictment of Eric Adams and why being the Mayor of New York is a curse.

References

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

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It's the music exchange! This month, Josh and I discuss Christmas Island by AJJ and Atomizer by Big Black. Also Josh talks about going to Riot Fest.

Music by AJJ, Big Black, and SHADE08

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Joseph (@gross_online) joins Josiah, Josh, and James (@cigarette_liker) to finally accomplish the dream of having four J names on one episode, and also to discuss the most recent season of The Righteous Gemstones. Shout out to monster trucks.

Music by The Righteous Gemstones & SHADE08

Alt title: The Iconic Movie Where John Goodman Voices a Parrot

With the help of neutral observer, Kelli (@Kellitoris444), Josiah and Caleb (@theboghog) meet their inner child by watching a forgotten Australian adventure film from the 90s where a parrot helps a young boy find treasure: The Real Macaw (1998).

Music & audio credits

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James (@cigarette_liker), Josh, and I don our baptismal rompers and continue our discussion of The Righteous Gemstones by taking a look at season 2. Shout out to masculinity.

Music by The Righteous Gemstones & SHADE08

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It's the music exchange! This is a monthly series where Josh Christianson and I exchange an album that's meaningful to us, and then compare and contrast them. This month we're discussing Sprained Ankle by Julien Baker and Monotheist by Celtic Frost.

Music by Julien Baker, Celtic Frost, and SHADE08

On today's episode, James C. Liker (@cigarette_liker), Josh Christianson, and Josiah are running through the house with a pickle in their mouth to kick off a series of episodes on The Righteous Gemstones. This month, we discuss the first season and introduce the show; over the next  months or two, we'll be discussing the rest of the show on the Patreon.

Alt title: Getting Queerbaited by God.
Note: We will be spoiling this whole show.

Caleb (@theboghog) tries to explain Supernatural to Josiah and Jackal by throwing them into the deep end: the big God reveal.

References

On today's episode, Jack Mirkinson (@jackmirkinson, The Nation, Discourse Blog) joins Josiah to discuss the "vibe shift" in electoral politics over the past two months from Biden dropping out to the Veepstakes. In a lot of left wing circles, there seems to be a real resurgence of hope, but does this vibe shift represent anything different for Gaza?

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I'm in Colorado Spring, Colorado with Leo Dickenson to see The Worst of All Possible Worlds live. We recorded this little conversation about Adventures in Odyssey and growing up evangelical in an EconoLodge. Originally it was going to be a quick little bonus episode but we talked long enough to make it a proper Patreon episode, so here you go. Enjoy.

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It's August now, but Fruitless is still stuck in Christian Rock Summer for one little encore. Nate Thiessen (@NateT93) joins Josiah to discuss his time playing worship bands, the weird business of CCLI, and the connection between his evangelical background and his career as a rock musician.

Music by SHADE08

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Here it is: the fifth and final episode of Christian Rock Summer, a month long exploration of the fringes of Christian music with Josh Christianson joining Josiah as co-host.

Today, we are wrapping up with the king of CCM: Rich Mullins. Focusing primarily on his life and his saint-like role in the world of worship music, we discuss Mullins...

It's Christian Rock Summer! This is the fourth episode in a month long exploration of the fringes of Christian music with Josh Christianson joining Josiah as co-host. However, we're pivoting away from rock and roll in the second half of the month to focus our hearts and minds on the Lord. We're talking worship music.

On today's episode, Kim Hensley joins Josh and Josiah to talk about her time as a worship leader. We talk about her education in music ministry, the politics and business of large evangelical churches, and why Kim ultimately left. 

Taking a brief* intermission from Christian Rock Summer, this is the fifth installment of the Fruitless Bookclub, a show-within-a-show, featuring Chris Barker and Jake the Lawyer, where we read all those nonfiction books we've been meaning to read.  Today's episode is about If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution by Vincent Bevins. We talk about Occupy, the Arab Spring, Euromaidan, and so many other massive, spontaneous political movements during the 2010s that, ultimately, ended in defeat. Why did this happen? And what can we learn from the decade of mass protest?

*the longest e...

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It's Christian Rock Summer! This is the second episode in a month long exploration of the fringes of Christian music with Josh Christianson joining me as co-host. We're talking "not a Christian band, just Christians in a band." We're talking Christianity being more of a relationship than a religion. 

On today's episode, Josh and I tackle the godfather of C...

It's Christian Rock Summer! This is the second episode in a month long exploration of the fringes of Christian music with Josh Christianson joining Josiah as co-host. We're talking "not a Christian band, just Christians in a band." We're talking Christianity being more of a relationship than a religion. 

On today's episode, Nathan Thiessen (@NateT93) joins Josh and Josiah to talk about the post-hardcore band, Emery, and the podcast it gave birth to: Bad Christian. They discuss the band's role in the world of Christian alternative music, the complex relationship with purity culture in their early lyrics, a...

It's Christian Rock Summer! This is the beginning of a month long exploration of the fringes of Christian music with Josh Christianson joining Josiah as co-host. We're talking "not a Christian band, just Christians in a band." We're talking Christianity being more of a relationship than a religion. 

On today's episode, James (@cigarette_liker) joins Josh and Josiah to discuss the hardcore/metalcore/mathcore band, The Chariot, and its charismatic front man, Josh Scogin. They discuss the band's discography, their notorious live shows, what made them unique at the time, and whether or not there is a p...

Hey everyone! Something came up and so I won't be able to release another free episode in June. To make up for that, I'm releasing this Patreon episode to the main feed. If you want a bit more detail, you can check out this Patreon post: https://www.patreon.com/posts/defeat-107021276

I kind of regretted pay-walling this one anyway, especially since I want to spread the word about this wonderful show. So enjoy!

Jackal joins Josiah to discuss the animated New Weird series, Scavengers Reign and, ultimately, pitch you all on watching it. They...

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/106929475

It's the music exchange! This is an monthly series where Josh Christianson and I exchange an album that's meaningful to us, and then compare and contrast them. This month we're discussing The Troubled Stateside by Crime in Stereo and Chaos A.D. by Sepultura.

Music by SHADE08

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/106824916

Jackal joins Josiah to discuss the animated New Weird series, Scavengers Reign and, ultimately, pitch you all on watching it. They try to avoid spoilers as they discuss body and environmental horror, the influence of Jeff VanderMeer, the return of working class sci-fi, and also a little bit about AI, Starfield, and the Gaia Hypothesis.

Music by SHADE08

Josiah is joined by Jason Kirk (@jasonkirk_fyi, Shutdown Fullcast, VBS Podcast) to discuss his novel, Hell is a World Without You, as well as growing up evangelical, the world of Christian alternative music, and the good news of universalism.

Audio & visual cr...

Josiah is joined by two members of Iowa CCI: Caitlin Golle, a farming & environment community organizer with the organization, and Julie Duhn, a board member who joined CCI to combat the construction of a factory farm in her town of Eldora, IA. We discuss the impact of factory farming and pipelines on the state, particularly their impact on the water quality, as well as the work CCI is doing to fight corporate power in rural communities.

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/im-wide-awake-mx-104674422

It's another music exchange! This is an monthly series where Josh Christianson and I exchange an album that's meaningful to us, and then compare and contrast them. This month we're discussing I'm Wide Awake, It's Morning by Bright Eyes and Arc by Agoraphobic Nosebleed.

Music by SHADE08

Austin Frerick joins Josiah to discuss his book, Barons: Money, Power, and the Corruption of America's Food Industry and the politics of food production in Iowa and around the country.

References

This is the audio for a video essay on YouTube. If you choose to listen here, you will only get half the experience. For the full experience, check out Fruitless on YouTube.

The video essay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_HQIbyJuuA
The Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIZWDsDrQ0XvDQFWzE6s2gg

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/103466040

Josh Boerman (@boshj, The Worst of All Possible Worlds) joins me on a last minute "emergency" episode about the Palestinian solidarity protests at Columbia, CUNY, UCLA, and elsewhere. We recorded this on the evening of May 1. Some things may have changed since events on campuses are moving fast.

Music by SHADE08

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/veggies-derechos-103210759

Chris Barker and Josiah talk about "environmental history." We talk a bit about Guns, Germs, and Steel by Jared Diamond, the ecology of the Midwest, and how vegetables are a technology. This is a pretty casual episode, mostly just to introduce a few themes to the show going forward.

Music by SHADE08

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/posts/people-who-eat-1-103024783

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/101162953 

This is a part of a new monthly series on Fruitless called the Music Exchange (MX), featuring Josh Christianson. Every month, Josh and I will pick out an album that's meaningful to us and we try to compare, contrast, and enjoy both.

This week we are discussing People Who Eat People Are the Luckiest People in the World by A...

Tyler Stone (@TylerStoneArt) joins Josiah to discuss his work as a freelance paleoartist. Paleoart (scientific illustration of prehistoric life) is a field with an interesting relationship between art and hard sciences. They discuss this relationship and the nitty gritty of the business side of paleoart, before delving into the challenges of being a science communicator in a field that attracts conspiracy theories, and how AI image generation is impacting the field.

Wesley Klingele (@MannnMiami) joins Josiah to discuss his new short film, Somnium, and the artistic themes he finds compelling. They talk about dreams, coming of age in your 20s, how religion and spirituality intersects with film, slow cinema vs. montage, and Wes' connection to the Pacific Northwest. 

Special thanks to Phil Cozzi for providing the microphone I used in today's episode and going forward.

This is the fourth installment of the Fruitless Bookclub, a show-within-a-show, featuring Chris Barker and Jake the Lawyer, where we read all those nonfiction books we've been meaning to read. Today's episode is about Ramp Hollow: The Ordeal of Appalachia by Steven Stoll. We talk peasants. We talk agrarians. We talk about peasants and agrarians getting destroyed by industry. We take a closer look at rural class dynamics and the history of the Appalachians. This is probably the longest episode of Fruitless yet. Sorry.

Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141
Check...

Alien aka Stewie Griffin DJ joins Josiah to discuss Synecdoche, New York and whether or not life is worth living. Happy Good Friday!

Follow today's guest on Bluesky @stewiegriffindj.bsky.social
Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141
Check out Fruitless on YouTube
Find more of Josiah’s work here: https://linktr.ee/josiahwsutton

Follow Josiah on Twitter & Bluesky @josiahwsutton(.bsky.social)

References

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/101162953

Josiah catches up with his brother, Caleb aka The Bog Hog. We talk about what we've been watching and listening to, and get a little into the history of punk, post-punk, folk punk, surf rock, and emo. We also spoil Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, and Train to Busan, and then have a conversation about blood donation.

...

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/101034575

Chris Barker returns to talk to Josiah about the war in Ukraine, reflect on the episode they did about the conflict in 2022, see what ways their views have changed in the following two years, and discuss the other global conflicts that have been impacted by the war in Ukraine. 

Music by SHADE08

Josiah is joined by Will Sloan (@WillSloanEsq, Important Cinema Club, Michael & Us) to discuss Motern Media and the artistic philosophy of Matt Farley and Charles Roxburgh.

Follow today’s guest on Twitter.
Check out the Important Cinema Club and Michael & Us
Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141
Check out Fruitless on YouTube

Find more of Josiah’s work here

Follow Josiah on Twitter @josiahwsutton

References

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/mumbling-safdies-99383330

Dylan Weaver (@DJWeaver29, WODFAMCHOCPOD) joins me in a final defense of Mumblecore (I promise I'll drop this subject next month) by discussing the Safdie brothers' first two films, The Pleasure of Being Robbed (2008) and Daddy Longlegs (2009). Also just some broader discussions about Mumblecore.

Follow today's guest on Letterboxd @djweaver29 or Twitter @djweaver29

Music by SHADE08

Josiah is joined by AJ Ditty (@thefuzzymask, The Worst of All Possible Worlds) to discuss The Puffy Chair (2005) and how Mumblecore can actually be pretty good sometimes.

Follow today’s guest on Twitter.
Check out The Worst of All Possible Worlds
Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141
Check out Fruitless on YouTube

Find more of Josiah’s work here

Follow Josiah on Twitter @josiahwsutton

References

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/98462326

Francis Cooper (@AttnFrancis) joins me to talk about how he ended up at a Jimmy Dore show and the strange political comedy he witnessed. 

Music by SHADE08

Josiah is joined by Finch (@santo_pinzon, Mammonburg) to talk about Society of the Snow (2023) and the discourse around the film in the Spanish-speaking world.

Finch’s essay about the film and Catholic spirituality on Substack: https://jmkazmierczak.substack.com/p/a-voice-cries-out-in-the-wilderness
Follow today's guest on Twitter @santo_pinzon
Check out Finch's Substack here: https://jmkazmierczak.substack.com/
Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141
Check out Fruitless on YouTube
Find more of Josiah’s work here: https://linktr.ee/josiahwsutton

Follow Josiah on Twitter & Bluesky @josi...

This is an unlocked episode from the Fruitless Patreon, originally published 1/12/2024. Enjoy!

James (@cigarette_liker) joins Josiah to talk about Idiocracy (2006). Yes, it's a eugenicist movie. Yes, it is a product of the smug, upper class liberalism of the Bush years, and it was popular during the resurgence of that sentiment during the Trump years. But what does it mean now? And is it funny?

Follow today's guest on Twitter @cigarette_liker and on Bluesky @cigaretteliker

References

Josiah is joined by Luke Savage (@LukewSavage, Michael & Us, Jacobin) to reflect on the last fifteen years of U.S. electoral politics in light of the current election year: the failures of the Obama administration, the hyperpolitics of the Trump administration, and the attempted 'return to normalcy' of Biden's first term.

Follow today's guest on Twitter @LukewSavage
Check out Michael & Us here: https://soundcloud.com/michael-and-us
Luke Savage in Jacobin: https://jacobin.com/author/luke-savage
Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141
Check out Fruitless on YouTube
Find...

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/96745407

Alien (aka Stewie Griffin DJ) returns to discuss two Aughts-era films about sex: Kissing on the Mouth (2005) and Shortbus (2006). They talk about Joe Swanberg's dick and ask the really hard question: Is Shortbus a Mumblecore movie?

Music by SHADE08

After some positive reception, I've decided to release this Patreon episode from 12/18/2023 to the free feed as a resource. Enjoy!

Keanu Heydari returns to teach Josiah the strange history of Christian Zionism and the story of how the United States became obsessed with Israel.

Follow today’s guest on Twitter, and remember to check out his podcast and his website.

Become a Fruitless Patron here: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=11922141
Check out Fruitless on YouTube
Find more of Josiah’s work here: https://linktr.ee/josiahwsutton

Follow Josiah on T...

THIS IS A PREVIEW. IF YOU WANT TO LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE, CHECK OUT FRUITLESS ON PATREON HERE: https://www.patreon.com/posts/96317794

EPISODE ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/posts/how-america-got-94875928

James Eric (@cigarette_liker) joins Josiah to talk about the comedy/documentary Idiocracy (2006). Yes, it's a eugenicist movie. Yes, it is a product of the smug, upper class liberalism of the Bush years, and it was popular during the resurgence of that sentiment during the Trump years. But what does it mean now? And is it funny?

Music by SHADE08<...

Josiah is joined by Jesse Goodman (@platofan402, Post-Cultural Amnesiac) to discuss 2023. Beginning with a focus on 2023 in personal media consumption, the conversation evolves into a broader discuss of the anecdotal "vibe shift," the sense of living in a hyperpolitical age, and the difficulty of talking about film or art while genocide and war unfolds in the background.

Correction: I (Josiah) briefly discuss the strange Osama Bin Laden going viral on TikTok situation and suggest that we will eventually find out who is behind that. We already have. It was Yashar Ali who platformed it.

Follow...