Best Manic Panic Podcasts (2025)

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Merle Haggard (Pt. 2): Surviving Christmas, Cosmic American Aliens, and Cocaine Clarity 36:30

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19h ago36:30

36:30

A cosmic-country dust-up with Gram Parsons. A months-long cocaine spiral. An alien obsession, and a bleak Christmas single that wouldn’t quit. Death threats, pistols, pardons, and “Pancho & Lefty.” Listen to find out how Merle Haggard survived another December and lived to rewrite country music. For the full list of contributors, visit ⁠⁠disgracela…

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Purging the Devil: Exorcism, Possession & Political Panic with Grafton Tanner 58:20

1h ago58:20

58:20

Why does the figure of the devil keep returning in moments of political panic, social anxiety, and cultural decay? In this episode, we sit down with author Grafton Tanner about exorcism, possession, moral panic, and the strange new life of demonology in contemporary America. We trace how neoliberal collapse, social media, and ideological confusion …

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Merle Haggard (Pt. 1): A Christmas Robbery Leads To Hard Time at San Quentin 36:01

5d ago36:01

36:01

Merle Haggard was what authorities liked to call a “repeat offender.” He was arrested for riding trains, for skipping school, for stealing cars, for robbing gas stations, and for attempting to knock over a restaurant – during the Christmas Eve rush. He was committed to juvenile halls, correctional facilities, and reform schools 17 times, and 17 tim…

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Bonus Episode: Killer Concert Films 42:22

5d ago42:22

42:22

Why The Last Waltz is the greatest concert film of all time plus, in the exclusive section of this bonus episode, a long list of other favorites and some criminally overlooked live gems with Jake and Zeth. You can become an All Access member and hear this and more exclusive content, along with ad-free listening of all Disgraceland episodes, by goin…

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Martin Scorsese, The Band, and The Last Waltz: A Thanksgiving Story 41:02

8d ago41:02

41:02

Martin Scorsese’s death wish. Bob Dylan’s theft. Robbie Robertson’s cocaine purchase. Four thousand pounds of turkey. Two thousand pounds of candied yams. Eight hundred pounds of pies and ninety gallons of gravy. What’s it all mean? It means that Disgraceland has a Thanksgiving episode about the making of The Last Waltz that you’ll be grateful you …

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The Revolt Eclipses Whatever the World Has to Offer: Idris Robinson on Martyrdom, Destituent Power, and Political Death 1:10:46

3d ago1:10:46

1:10:46

Craig and Adam are joined by Idris Robinson to ask the question of destituent revolt in a murderous and counter-revolutionary world. We discussed Idris' work on the nature of martyrdom, the relation of the insurgent to death, and the political meaning of duty, both to the dead and within the confines of an intolerable life. Reading from Idris lates…

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Martin Scorsese (Pt. 2): One Night. One Murder. Five Directors 46:36

12d ago46:36

46:36

Hollywood:1975. Martin Scorsese sits in his apartment, enraged. He wants to literally kill the man who is ruining his to-be-released film, Taxi Driver. Scorsese’s friends, filmmakers Stephen Spielberg, Brian De Palma, John Milius, and Paul Schraeder rush to Scorsese’s side to talk him out of committing murder, but when they arrive, their friend Mar…

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Bonus Episode: A Brief History of Gun Violence from Music’s Past 39:15

13d ago39:15

39:15

“The Devil’s Right Hand" – the gun. Many have died by it in music history. From the unknown piano player who helped influence rock ‘n’ roll to iconic stars like Marvin Gaye and John Lennon. On the heels of our Dr. John episode detailing the shooting that changed the trajectory of his career, and in advance of our Martin Scorsese archive episode det…

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Dr. John: A Shooting, Federal Prison, and Voodoo Healing 35:41

15d ago35:41

35:41

A gunshot ended his career as a guitar player, but opened up a path to becoming an iconic piano man. Heroin, pimping, and federal prison nearly ended him, but Voodoo––and music––saved him. Listen to find out how one of New Orleans’ most notorious musicians, Mac Rebennack, became Dr. John. For a full list of contributors, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠disgracela…

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Tommy James and the Shondells: Mony Mony and Mafia-Sanctioned Hits 43:46

19d ago43:46

43:46

Tommy James came up during a time when the music industry was in part controlled by New York’s Italian mafia. And for a period in the 1960s, that power was centralized at Roulette Records. The record label was run by convicted extortionist Morris Levy and operated in partnership with the Genovese crime family. Tommy James’ hits were sanctioned by t…

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Bonus: From the Nitrous Mafia to the Italian Mafia, the Criminal Enterprises That Infiltrate Music Culture 36:19

20d ago36:19

36:19

Gangsters, rude boys, drug dealers, soviet bootleggers, ticket scalping syndicates, and psychedelic chemists—why do criminals like the “Nitrous Mafia” associated with Phish, and the Italian Mafia linked to Tommy James, so often infiltrate and influence music culture? This topic, along with your voicemails, texts, and emails, and in the All Access p…

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Phish: Community, Hippie Crack, and the Nitrous Mafia 39:47

22d ago39:47

39:47

A parking lot ruled by shady nitrous oxide dealers. And a bandleader whose addiction nearly killed him. This is the story of Trey Anastasio and Phish – and their improbable comeback. For a full list of contributors, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠disgracelandpod.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To listen to Disgraceland ad free and hear an exclusive mini-episode that further explor…

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U2: Death Threats, a Song that Inspired a Killer, and the Murder of Rebecca Schaeffer 40:35

25d ago40:35

40:35

Years before a free album made them the most unpopular popular band on the planet, U2 ran into the arms of America. In 1987, touring behind their blockbuster album The Joshua Tree, their songs became lightning rods for violence. They received death threats in the States and became targets of terrorists back in their native Ireland. But it was the s…

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Bonus: The Next Incel Killer Already Has A Playlist 37:31

26d ago37:31

37:31

This episode is being published for the first time on Friday, November 7th. An episode of the same title was mistakenly published previously. The media blamed AC/DC for inspiring a serial killer. Rebecca Shaefer’s murderer claimed inspiration from a U2 song. When the next incel murder happens, will we blame Morrissey? Radiohead? Or will we finally …

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A Life in Rebellion: Up Against the Wall Motherfucker, Black Mask, and the Surrealist Struggle in 1960-70s New York 58:13

26d ago58:13

58:13

Adam is joined by comrades Abigail Susik (@abigailsusik7), Ben Morea (@ben_morea), and Breanne Fahs to discuss the synthesis of art and activism, as exemplified by Ben’s central role within such collectives as Up Against the Wall Motherfucker! Black Mask, and The Rat during the 60s and 70s in New York. We spoke about Ben’s life and work, from the “…

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AC/DC Pt. 2: Dirty Deeds, Dead Friends, and Murder for Hire 42:22

29d ago42:22

42:22

This is the story of the greatest rock ’n’ roll band on earth. AC/DC was forged in discipline, sharpened by grief, resurrected by obsession … and nearly undone by one final dirty deed that no one saw coming: murder. For a full list of contributors, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠disgracelandpod.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To listen to Disgraceland ad free and hear an exclusive m…

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AC/DC pt. 1: A Satanic Serial Killer, A Police Man Hunt, and a Media Witch Hunt 41:05

1M ago41:05

41:05

In the 1980s, AC/DC’s biggest fan was a notorious serial killer. The band was an international best-selling hit machine, and members like the late Bon Scott and die-hard Angus Young became rock icons. But when the press caught wind of the disturbing fandom of the serial killer Richard “The Night Stalker” Ramirez, the news quickly dragged the world’…

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Philosophy and Magic: Meredith Graves on the Politics of the Occult and Thinking Magically in a Disenchanted World 1:04:36

1M ago1:04:36

1:04:36

In this Halloween episode, Meredith Graves joins Acid Horizon to explore the occulted correspondences between philosophy, ritual, and the practice of magic. Together we trace the tangled histories of witchcraft, labor, and belief—from Aleister Crowley and Sylvia Federici to Gilles Deleuze, GWF Hegel, and the haunted legacies of modern materialism. …

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Bonus Episode: Why Does Hollywood Ignore The Most Impactful Music? 36:11

1M ago36:11

36:11

This week in the After Party, Jake wonders why horror film soundtracks, despite their importance to the mood of their films, are so often ignored by Hollywood when it comes to award season. Plus, we hear from you on the movies that scare you. Next week we're bringing you a brand new part 2 episode on AC/DC. AC/DC's Back in Black is the biggest sell…

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The Exorcist: Demonic Possession, Mass Hysteria, and NYC’s Unsolved Murders 41:26

1M ago41:26

41:26

William Friedkin's film The Exorcist terrified audiences upon its release in 1973. They fainted, vomited, and went into hysterics in the theaters. Some overwhelmed viewers left early, only to return the next day, buying another ticket to see if they could make it to the end. But the story behind The Exorcist is just as compelling as the story on th…

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Robert Johnson: Voodoo, Delta Blues, Cursing God, and a Crossroads 44:14

1M ago44:14

44:14

Robert Johnson didn’t just play the blues. He embodied them. He drank and womanized his way through the South, New York, and Chicago in the 1930s, until he finally met the devil at the crossroads for a little trade. So the legend goes, anyway. With the same soul he supposedly sold to the devil, Robert Johnson belted lightning blues that captured tr…

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Mark Fisher Meets James Hillman: Melancholy, Manic Culture & the End of Capitalist Realism (with Emma Stamm) 1:05:20

1M ago1:05:20

1:05:20

What if depression isn’t an illness to cure but a collective mood that reveals the soul of a broken world? In this episode, Mark Fisher meets James Hillman in a conversation that bridges depth psychology and cultural theory, asking how melancholy and mania shape life under late capitalism. Joined by Emma Stamm, we explore the intersections of acid …

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Bonus Episode: Backmasking and the Death of the Dangerous Rockstar 37:58

1M ago37:58

37:58

This week in the After Party, Jake looks back at the 1980s satanic panic and the uproar over supposed "backmasking" – the spurious claim that rock stars were hiding demonic messages in their music. Plus, we hear from you on your favorite Heavy Metal bands. Next week we're bringing you an episode on The Exorcist, and Jake wants to know: what movies …

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Judas Priest: Satanic Panic, Censorship, Heavy Metal Suicide, and Defenders of the Faith 45:25

1M ago45:25

45:25

They helped create the genre of heavy metal, and then Satan and the censors tried to destroy them. Judas Priest defended the metal faithful on stage and in the courts, and became icons in the process. For a full list of contributors, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠disgracelandpod.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ This episode contains themes that may be disturbing to some listeners, inc…

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The Misfits: Robbing Graves, Night of the Living Dead and the Teenagers from Mars 49:29

2M ago49:29

49:29

The Misfits were truly unique. Scary. Violent. Angry. Nihilistic. These words can easily describe not only their music, but also the band as people, particularly frontman Glenn Danzig. Rumored to have been arrested for grave robbery, locked up abroad and inciting riots here in the States, the Misfits blazed a path of annihilation trading on fiction…

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Witness to the Hellfire of Genocide: Wasim Said’s Testament from Gaza 49:04

1M ago49:04

49:04

In this episode, we present the work of Wasim Said, a comrade from Gaza who has documented the atrocities they and their people have experienced during the ongoing intensification of Israel's genocidal war on Palestine in his first book "Witness to the Hellfire of Genocide". The logistics and safety of an interview being made near impossible amidst…

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Norwegian Black Metal: Satanic Rebellion, Murder and Worse 35:21

2M ago35:21

35:21

Never has there been a more extreme form of musical rebellion than Norwegian Black Metal. The genre’s founding band, Mayhem, its sister act Burzum and supporting cast of musicians with names like Necrobutcher, Hellhammer, and Dead horrified Norway in the early nineties with supreme acts of terror, satanic ritualism, murder, arson, and cannibalism. …

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Bonus Episode: Music and Monsters 39:05

2M ago39:05

39:05

This week in the After Party, Jake is thinking about monsters – the fictitious kind and the kind that are all too real. Plus, we hear more spooky stories from you and get your recommendations on scary music. Next week we're bringing you an episode on Judas Priest and the Satanic Panic of the 1980s, and Jake wants to know: who is your favorite heavy…