I have always been a huge fan of podcasts, I have listened to podcasts as far back at 2008 I think it was although I never really listened to them until a few years later. My first real introduction to the world of podcasts was when I was in my last year of university and had to spend hours in the classroom with two of my friends working on our coursework into the very early hours of the morning. It would just be the three of us, myself, Matt and Tom and whilst we were working, the podcasts of The Ricky Gervais show was blasting out into the room. It was in the moment I realised that podcasts can create so much comedy and can really sort of act like a ‘best friend.’ It also sort of created a special bonding moment between the three of us and I am still very much close friends with them today.

Over the years, I have learnt that podcasts can really be so much more then the ‘laugh’ and whilst I do listen to a lot of podcasts to help get me through the tough days, the good days and the times I have to work through the night, I also have found that it can be so much more.

Over the years, the idea of what a podcast is has obviously developed, especially with the pandemic and so many more have arisen and so much more content is now available and in a saturated market it can be hard to find really good shows. I have learnt that sometimes episodes of certain podcasts can really have an effect and over time I have shown my appreciation for these episodes on my social media channels.

Last week, I spoke about the podcast episode that inspired me to start writing this feature, and you can read more about it here. However this week we are changing the tempo a bit and whilst this is another podcast I discovered this year – it again has had a huge impact on me.

Podcast Episodes That Changed My Life –
Episode: This Is Not Fanfiction
Podcast: Awsten + Travis Slumber Party

I am a huge fan of people that are ambitious, hardworking and passionate about their art form and approach it in a way completely different to others. I came across Waterparks in a really random way, I was in a queue to see a Yungblud concert I booked last minute in 2019 just so that I had something to do before a night shift and got talking to fans in the queue. I was already trying to get my head around the fandom of Yungblud as he was still very new on the scene and I was talking to the people next to me in the queue to find out why his fans had queued since 11pm the night before for an intimate concert. Through these conversations I discovered from the fans that a lot of them were also lovers of a newish band to the UK called Waterparks. In that queue they were showing me photos and videos of that gig and the singer with the ‘green hair’. I found it so random they described the lead by the colour of his hair but later discovered the hair colour really was a big ‘deal’ to this band and went hand in hand with the new music that they were releasing.

“…Awsten decides to ‘imagine this situation happened on a road trip in real life’ that he had recently with his band member. The humour is created when you can hear the squirms […] and regrets it automatically….”

After those discussions I had at Yungblud, I felt it was time to explore just who Waterparks were and delved into their music. I think the first song I heard was Turbulent and it stood out like a sore thumb because it was so unique to other music that was currently on the scene that I became addicted to this track that I found it on repeat a lot on my music.

When lockdown hit, Waterparks music became a huge part of my life, the song Watch What Happens Next became something that I became so addicted to, I would put it in my headphones full blast and dance to it and lip sync so much as it was one thing that really just made me happy. I started to really become interested in their music videos as well. I said in last weeks article that anything that inspires me to write is always something that excites me.

“…This really is such an unique podcast and I would recommend you giving it a try if you want something very different and incredibly bizarre. ..”

The music videos were something that completely fascinated me and that is why I wrote a whole months article about the Magic of The Music Video completely dedicated to their songs. The fact that the lead singer (who we will now be calling Awsten instead of ‘Green Haired singer’) had directed most of the videos also fascinated me – by finding out that one thing I started to realise and find out just how much Awsten is dedicated to making their music not just something to listen to but an actual art form.

I am going to talk about this more in a few weeks time as there was a podcast episode on a different show that was a fascinating listen in regards to this and so much more so I will be brief about this. One of the things that keeps me really amazed by this band is the way that they are constantly using art and social media in a way I haven’t see other bands really do before. Their album releases always come with the ‘hair colour change’ but it also comes with a lot more then that – for example the most recent album came with a sort of mini essay online with a in depth description as to why the album cover is the way that it is and the metaphors included. There is also a ‘cinematic experience’ for the people in LA to experience the album before the release. These are just an example, but there are many more if you search for them. It is all these things that have lead to their latest album gaining them their first top 10 charting with Intellectual Property in the UK.

All these sort of things truly fascinated me about this band and like I have said before when I get inspired by something I want to find out more about it. So I started looking into the world of Awsten Knight.

“…I decided to add this podcast to ‘episodes that changed my life’ because yet again, it is another venture by Awsten Knight that has made me ‘rethink’ the way I see or communicate with different things...”

Through this, I came across the musician De’Wayne, who had really fun music and through a collaboration between the duo, I started to listen to his music and have loved his last two albums as they have some great tracks on them. I also started to find out that there was a fashion company that he ran called HiiDef and then I made the discovery which is the reason behind this article.

It was only earlier this year that I stumbled upon this podcast, I was listening to another interview with Awsten about the new album and I sort of came across it by accident. Just as you would expect, it was not the ‘normal’ podcast that you would expect from a musician in the public eye but it is one that had such a huge impact on me right from the start.

Awsten + Travis Slumber Party is a podcast like no other, it is a show where Awsten and his friend Travis have opened up in someways ‘the gates of hell’ by deciding to read fan fiction that has been written about the band Waterparks by their fans. Firstly, I did not know that such thing actually happened for bands and musicians (I knew it did for films and television shows) but I guess I was ignorant in that way.

“…It feels like a fascinating experiment where the band crosses over to the fans and the ‘dark side….’

The whole concept of reading fan fiction about yourself already feels weird but the fact that they decided to read them for the first time ever on a podcast is the most bizarre thing I had ever heard. Also, to top it off, they also rate the stories that they read in each of the episodes.

There are many episodes that I could of written about here but I decided to talk about the first one because I find it fascinating as it is the beginning of this venture and ‘experiment’. The thing that I liked about this episode a lot is that as a podcast they are trying to find their feet and figure out what their show is going to be about. They decide early on that there is going to be a rating system as well where they describe the quality of the writing, taking the whole thing incredibly seriously. Which as the shows go on this gets a bit looser but the first few episodes it means something.

I really like this episode because it is a very rawly edited meaning that you get to really get an insight into the world of Awsten and his friend and it feels a lot more real and that is what makes it hilarious. I think the reason why I decided to choose this episode is because it is the first time that you realise how awkward Awsten can feel about the stuff that he is reading. This is by far not the worst episode for stories (there are some a lot later on in season 1 that are a lot worse) but the way that the reactions happen make it a very funny read.

“…In that queue [at Yungblud ] they were showing me photos and videos of that gig and the singer with the ‘green hair’…”

I decided to add this podcast to ‘episodes that changed my life’ because yet again, it is another venture by Awsten Knight that has made me ‘rethink’ the way I see or communicate with different things. I would never read fan fiction but hearing a band or someone talking about ones that are read about them is literally something refreshing and bizarre and a whole lot of weird at the same time and you can hear throughout this episode how the singer is trying to process all of this.

A great example is that half way through episode when they start to discuss the second story, Awsten decides to ‘imagine this situation happened on a road trip in real life’ that he had recently with his band member. The humour is created when you can hear the squirms and him trying to process what he just said and what is written when he starts to hear the filth that is coming out of the story and you can hear him regret it automatically.

This really is such a unique podcast and I would recommend you giving it a try if you want something very different and incredibly bizarre. It is rude so be warned but it feels like a fascinating experiment where the band crosses over to the fans and the ‘dark side….’