Pod Syndicate

After a couple of years apart, your Pod Syndicate hosts are reunited in the real world (mostly). And to celebrate, Marc, Jordan, Ian and a recently podcast-retired Noel are joined by Mike - who beams in live from New Zealand to test their geek knowledge!

Well, all good things must come to an end, and this bonus show is no different as we reach the final instalment in Peter Jackson's Middle-Earth saga, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Armies.

The show where your Pod Syndicate hosts gift one another an iTunes movie returns - with reviews of The Dark Tower (2017), Monkey Shines (1988), The Wild Hunt (2009) and Body of Evidence (1992).

We've slipped into our fake hobbit feet and donned our elven cloaks as we take yet another jump into Peter Jackson's Middle-earth saga. Join Becky, Ian and Jordan as they discuss the second instalment in the The Hobbit Trilogy, The Desolation of Smaug.

Smarter, better but still way too long - and that's just the title. Join Ian, Noel and Marc as they follow up on their chat through the Snyderverse films with a full review of Zack Snyder's The Justice League (2021).

We're missing the final episode of the Lord of the Rings movies and we apologise. Technology was not our friend and the podcast call unfortunately did not record. However, we're not letting that spoil the fun as Ian, Becky and Jordan start off their watched of The Hobbit trilogy.

Ridiculous, nonsensical and way too long - and that's just the title. Join Ian, Noel and Marc as they chat through the Snyderverse trilogy (and Suicide Squad) ahead of the release of Zack Snyder's The Justice League (2021).

The show where your Pod Syndicate hosts gift one another an iTunes movie returns - with reviews of The Dark Tower (2017), Monkey Shines (1988), The Wild Hunt (2009) and Body of Evidence (1992).

What is it about the Marvel Cinematic Universe that keeps us coming back for more? Is it the big, explosive action, special effects and larger than life costumes, or is it something much simpler? In this special, feature length essay podcast, Noel Mellor looks at the history of the MCU and how Marvel found its formula by focusing on character as a way to engage audiences and enhance the blockbuster experience. Using illustrative clips from the series, it inspects the concerns and motivations of these characters, what makes them do what they do, and how this makes them so much more compelling for audiences. ©Noel Mellor/Pod Syndicate. All copyright content used in accordance with fair use, for the purposes of historical document, research and education.

Noel and Marc return for the second part of their Tales From The Tapedeck special to discuss the career of their beloved Suede after the departure of their hugely talented and influential guitarist Bernard Butler. With new talent Richard Oakes (guitar) and Neil Codling (keyboards) in tow, the band hit their pop peak with the classic Coming Up in '96, before releasing the divisive Head Music in '99 and coming back with A New Morning in '02. But which are the key tracks that define the band during this period? Listen along with a specially curated playlist and go track by track through a fascinating chapter in Suede's long and illustrious career.

In the second episode of bonus show, Jordan and Ian discuss The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

We're back and coming in hot for 2021 with another stellar episode fo Play It Forward - the show where our Pod Syndicate hosts get together to gift one another a film on iTunes. This time around, In gifts 2019's Don't Let Go to Marc, Marc gifts 1995's Jade to Jordan, Jordan gifts 1975's Night Moves to Noel and Noel gifts 1978's Blue Collar to Ian. So yeah, another bumper show of great movies!

In this first ep of a new mini-series, Jordan (His Film Her Movie) and Ian (Film Basterds) take a look back at Peter Jackson's Middle-Earth saga. And of course, they start with the world's first cinematic trip into Tolkien's imagination, 2001's The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring.

Back before Pod Syndicate, Beyond the Neon and Adventures in VHS, Noel Mellor was the host of a show called Film Rant... a show that ran for a couple of years and culminated in the #FilmRant365 project. For this, Noel embarked on a plan to watch 365 films he'd never seen before over the course of a year, posting individual tweet reviews after every movie. It was a fantastic opportunity to watch unseen classics and cult movies, as well as new and nearly new features, documentaries, animated flicks and much, much more. A half-finished 'awards podcast', in which Noel talked about the best and worst films of the 365 project, was recently discovered on an old hard drive and so here it is, reassembled for your pleasure. Obviously there will be some dated references, URLs, email addresses etc mentioned in the show so ignore those, as well as a missing section that we don't thing was ever recorded, but hopefully this'll give you an hour or so worth of high quality entertainment!

It's been a while since Noel, Ian, Marc and Jordan had a real life meet up and with a recently abandoned 'Haloweekend' plan, it looks unlikely they'll be face to face any time soon! So for this episode of Play it Forward, we decided to shoot the breeze for a bit and then give you some reviews of movies that we've gifted each other. This time around Marc fired the fast-paced comedy actioner Stretch (2014) at Noel, Ian punted Neil Jordan's psychological thriller Greta (2018) at Marc, Noel assigned Jordan the German high school drama The Wave and Ian was asked to bathe in the Sweet Smell of Success by Jordan. Also, we chat about streaming services, Bond, the precarious future of movies and our respective lockdown rules, woes and more.

Volume 5 of Tales From The Tapedeck sees Marc wax lyrical to Noel about how the music of John Mayer... How he discovered him, his most essential works and why he doesn't give a god damn if people question why he would listen to Mayer! As always, the show comes with a specially curated 15-track Spotify playlist, which you can listen along to in your own time - or alongside the chat itself: Tales From The Tapedeck - John Mayer (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0JcBtI2yVnOHNCCJdtZQgh?si=224Is6HZRba7CgCnQLyV8w) Feedback: podsyndicate@gmail.com Sponsorships: off for this episode

Volume 4 of Tales From The Tapedeck has Noel travel back to the early 90s to tell Marc about how the music of Ice-T and Body Count became part of his life - and how Ice-T's cautionary gangster stories and punk attitude still hold a place in his heart today. As always, the show comes with a specially curated 15-track Spotify playlist, which you can listen along to in your own time - or alongside the chat itself: Tales From the Tapedeck: Ice-T & Body Count (https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0GWKDRMlJ45Oc4rwnRjjTc?si=9R5D1_MeTqSKKcJd8Y90Yw) Feedback: podsyndicate@gmail.com

Play it Forward returns to break up the summer of sadness with your Pod Syndicate hosts gifting a movie to one another that they feel will perfectly match one another specific tastes. In this episode, Noel gifts Ian a copy of The Jerk (1979), Ian gifts Marc The Kitchen (2019), Marc gifts Jordan Surviving The Game (1994) and Jordan gifts Noel Phantom of the Paradise (1974). So, will the recipients love or loathe the films? Find out here! Stream the show using the player below, subscribe via Apple Podcasts, stream on Spotify, or search your usual podcast provider.

In the third episode of Tales From the Tapedeck, Noel and Marc return to talk about a shared favourite band, Suede, how they came to discover and love them and talk through a Spotify Playlist curated specially for the show focused on their years with guitarist Bernard Butler. Listen along with the Tales From The Tapedeck - Suede (The Butler Years) Spotify Playlist here (link). https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4XEQSnXhRNKlW615egFNW4?si=wCeE72RqQW6QgKgCDHsueA

Join Marc (Film Basterds) and Noel (Beyond the Neon) as they dig deep into the world of their beloved Christian Slater, to discuss the man, the movies and more. In this first episode, the guys look at Slater's early years as a leading man and how he managed to to hit his stride with five great films in Gleaming the Cube, Heathers, Pump Up the Volume, Kuffs and True Romance.

Play it Forward returns, this time as a four-man show, as Noel, Ian and Marc bring Jordan into the show that tests just how well the Pod Syndicate crew know one another's tastes. In this episode, Jordan gifts Marc a copy of The American Friend (1977), Marc gifts Ian Hollow Man (2000), Ian gifts Noel Cold in July (2014) and Noel gifts Jordan The Howling (1981). So, will the recipients love or loathe the films? Find out here! You can stream the show using the player below, subscribe via Apple Podcasts, stream on Spotify, or search your usual podcast provider.

In the second episode of Tales From the Tapedeck, Noel and Marc return to talk about some of their favourite bands and how they came to discover and love them, while discussing a Spotify Playlist created specially for the show. This time around, Noel talks to Marc about Sacramento, California's Cake, going through some of their best work track-by-track and exploring the sounds, themes and influences of the band. Listen along with the Tales From The Tapedeck - Cake Spotify Playlist here (link). https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0qss7dgWJeXVr21OJ27uJH?si=0rBQ6KYFTbmp4Y1x5hdHbw

We go back even further into the archives to check out Noel (Beyond the Neon) and Mike's (Chinstroker VS Punter) first joint foray into the world of 1980s movies for their tragically short-lived show What's Your Damage. In this first episode, Mike introduces Noel to 1985's Young Sherlock Holmes, Noel introduces Mike to 1985's The Stuff and they both delve into the John Hughes classic from 1984, Sixteen Candles. Stream, listen and download... then go lobby Mike (@chinstroker) and Noel (@thenoelmellor) on Twitter to bring it back!

In the first of a new series of shows, Noel and Marc talk about some of their favourite bands and how they came to discover and love them, by discussing tracks from a specially created Spotify Playlist that goes along with the show. In this first episode, Marc introduces Noel to California blues-rock duo Two Gallants, and talks about the bands writing process, influences and growth while talking through some of their most essential tracks. Listen along with the Tales From The Tapedeck - Two Gallants Spotify Playlist here (link). https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0ve4dAr8tDBAD86KZz9faf?si=_DMtB62PT5S0wz9eWndkPA (copy and paste).

A real step back in time here for an archive episode of What's Your Damage - the 1980s movie show from Noel (Beyond the Neon) and Mike (Chinstroker vs Punter) which ran for just three shows. Randomly, this episode is episode two (we are digging out the others), but the pair get deep into some great flicks from the era - Escape From New York, Pee Wee's Big Adventure and Caddyshack. And at over two hours, there's some good listening here!

Adventures In VHS is the podcast and book dedicated to the lost format of VHS. In this third episode from the archives, it's back-to-back creatures from the deep with Lamberto Bava's Devouring Waves (1984) and Barbara Peeters' Monster (1980 - AKA Humanoids from the Deep). As always, Noel looks at the history of the movies themselves, the VHS tapes he acquired for the book and everything from the trailers to the artwork to whether or not you should be checking them out yourself.

Noel, Marc and Ian are back with a brand new episode of Play It Forward - the show where each host 'gifts' a co-host one iTunes movie they think the other will enjoy. So, how well do they know one another's tastes? Play It Forward ran for some time as a bonus show on the Film Basterds feed, but for 2020 we've come back to it with fresh eyes and will be publishing a new episode every month right here... with a fourth Pod Syndicate family member joining us for the upcoming February show! In this episode, Noel gifts Marc the 2005 corrupt cop drama Dirty, Marc gifts Ian the 1993 Neo noir Romeo is Bleeding, and Ian gifts Noel the 2015 blockbuster Tom Cruise smuggling adventure American Made.

In this bonus ep, Mike from Chin Stroker VS Punter chats with William Geradts, owner/operator of New Zealand's largest public expo events, Armageddon Expo. Having run these huge events for 25 years, nobody is better placed to discuss fandom, from the New Zealand perspective, like Bill. So join Mike as he gets to learn more about his adopted home through the lens of the 'Geek Boss' as well as a look behind the curtain into the business of expos/conventions.

Adventures In VHS is the podcast and book dedicated to the lost format of VHS. In this second episode from the archives, Noel looks at the 1986 Troma classic Class of Nuke 'Em High, and speak to its co-director, producer and Troma founding legend Lloyd Kaufman in an exclusive interview where he gets incredibly frank about hoe video and the Hollywood machine! If you like what you hear in the podcast, head to NoelMellor.com to buy a copy of the Adventures in VHS eBook for just £3.99.

Adventures In VHS is the podcast and book dedicated to the lost format of VHS. In this first episode from the archives, Noel looks at 1987's Creepozoids, directed by David DeCoteau and starring genre favourite Linnea Quigley. Explore the history of the movie, the UK VHS release and enjoy an exclusive chat about the era, the film and the with its director in an exclusive interview. If you like what you hear in the podcast, head to NoelMellor.com to buy a copy of the Adventures in VHS eBook for just £3.99.