Discussing the use of podcasts in developing talent inspired me to make a post dedicated to what I feel are the best of the best in this field. Since WWE doesn't have a podcast, that doesn't mean that you can't get an amazing audio wrestling fix from other places daily! The coverage that some of these shows give to the business side of things are usually the highest profile stories to come out of the wrestling world. If I were a serious investor or in management in WWE, the podcast scene would be my first place to get instant reactions, opinions and actual experiences in the company. Twitter is instant reactionary feedback, podcasts provide thought out feedback that can go into much greater detail as to the feelings of the fan.
Live Audio Wrestling/Review-A-Wai - This wins my vote for best podcast on the net. Live Audio Wrestling has been around since 1997 on terrestrial radio and the success of this show's witty and smart style led to a series of podcasts dedicated to reviewing retro events (usually events that sucked, so the podcast is even better), Monday Night Raw (broadcast live after Raw on Stickam) and TNA Impact. The LAW is live every Sunday night and always features the most insane and interesting callers that exist on sports radio. The only thing better than the callers would be the reactions of hosts John Pollock, Jason Agnew and Dan Lovranski, all of which present a distinct and interesting style. The shows with John Pollock and Wai Ting provide a different type of show that simply reviews the topic at hand, they are always excellent and are all worth listening to weekly. There is way more stuff the LAW guys do and it is all 100% free with no subscription, the quality and price of the content makes this the top gun right now. It currently can be found on TSN Radio 1050 in Toronto or online at www.liveaudiowrestling.com, www.reviewawai.com and www.stickam.com/reviewawai
Wrestling Observer Live/Figure Four Weekly - If you know about MMA and wrestling then you know about the history, quality and importance of the Observer. The content is subscription based at $10.99 a month, and is worth every penny. Tons of radio shows weekly with a variety of hosts including Lance Storm co-hosting two excellent shows a month. Along with the Observer (in the most obtuse and difficult to read format ever) and the Figure Four Weekly (in a very eye pleasing format) it is the only pay site on the net actually worth it. Dave Meltzer is the Walter Cronkite of journalism in this field, hands down the most respected, honest and knowledgeable person to ever analyze the business. His partner on the site, Bryan Alvarez is the reason to pay your monthly fee though, Alvarez is witty and has odd vocal expressions that somehow increase the entertainment level. The Bryan & Vinny Show from the website brought us this clip that was recently shown on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart:
If you consider yourself a true wrestling or MMA geek, you owe it to yourself to at least try it for one month, just remember to stay the hell off the board. Check them out at www.wrestlingobserver.com
Colt Cabana's Art Of Wrestling Podcast - I glanced over the true genius of this podcast in my last post but I will elaborate more. Colt sells and plugs stuff, plays a fun wrestling related song, interviews someone in a very relaxed atmosphere and then wraps it up. To be honest, before the podcast I felt that Cabana was overrated and he never really clicked with me, but it was clear he had talent. This podcast is the PERFECT platform for his talent, Cabana seems like a nice guy that has a little smartass in him ready to come out at any moment. In my eyes this podcast has given him a much higher level of stardom and fandom than he had at any time in his career (including his horribly horribly unlucky WWE run). The final and most important part of the podcast is the quality of guests, which is very high. Interviews with the previously mentioned Cliff "Domino" Compton, Luke Gallows, Insane Clown Posse and MVP stand out as some classics. Check out Art Of Wrestling at http://tsmradio.com/coltcabana/
Some other excellent wrestling podcasts worth checking out:
Dave Lagana's I Want Wrestling - This podcast unfortunately no longer exists as Lagana is currently employed by TNA Wrestling, but the insight this former Friends (Yes the TV show) and WWE writer gives on some of the older podcasts is fascinating. Backstage stories of Vince McMahon and other WWE Executives are riveting and ridiculous. The archives are still up and it's worth checking out if you are at all interested in the creative process of a wrestling company. Check out I Want Wrestling at www.iwantwrestling.com
Aftermath Radio - Hosted by Arda Ocal and former WWE Ref Jimmy Korderas, Aftermath is on directly after Raw to give an instant reaction to what happened. The shows are entertaining and interesting but the real gem is the weekly "Ask A Ref" podcast that is completely questions answered by Jimmy Korderas. Check out Aftermath at http://radio.thescore.com/programs/aftermath
Between The Ropes - This was formerly a radio show that slowly became an infrequently updated podcast. Recently it has been updated more so it is a good place to hear some wrestling audio. Check out Between The Ropes at www.betweentheropes.com
So there you go, hundreds of hours of wrestling audio at your fingertips.
