David Rysdahl joins Kyle Meredith to talk about starring in FX’s Alien Earth, his second collaboration with creator Noah Hawley after Fargo. Rysdahl digs into how the show goes beyond the franchise’s trademark monsters to explore AI, immortality, climate catastrophe, and humanity’s place in the world. He also reflects on playing Arthur, the conscience of the series, how his role parallels his Fargo character Wayne, and why he feels like he’s portraying a piece of Hawley himself. The conversation also touches on fatherhood metaphors, respecting the lore of the Alien franchise, the thrill of practical effects, and how the series’ unexpected soundtrack choices (from Tool to Nina) elevate each episode.

Listen to David Rysdahl or watch it on YouTube chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale of DEVO join Kyle Meredith to talk about the new Netflix documentary chronicling the band’s 50-year history. The two discuss why it took so long for a DEVO doc to happen, the challenge of condensing their complex story into 90 minutes, and the long career of having to constantly explain the ideas behind their art. They revisit the Kent State shooting's influence on their formation, share memories of meeting Neil Young years after “Ohio,” and talk about how their sound was inspired by European futurists and the industrial culture of the 1970s. Mothersbaugh and Casale also dive into their upcoming Cosmic De-Evolution tour with #TheB52s, the meaning behind “farewell… maybe,” and why Something for Everybody deserved more love.

Listen to Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale of DEVO or watch it on YouTube chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

For this special Rewind episode, Kyle Meredith talks with DJ Shadow, as well ass Black Eyed Peas’ Taboo and apl.de.ap, about pushing their artistry into bold new directions. Revisit the conversations now.

DJ Shadow takes us inside The Mountain Will Fall, which at the time was his first “artist show” in four years. Plus, he chats about the rediscovery of long-lost multi-tracks and how staying forward-thinking keeps his music vital.

Taboo and apl.de.ap discuss their song “Street Livin'” as a raw diagnosis of America’s social and political climate and their continued activism from Standing Rock to schools in the Philippines. Then, they touch on Masters Of The Sun, a Marvel-published graphic novel expanded into augmented and virtual reality that boasts an all-star voice cast and a Hans Zimmer-assisted soundtrack.

Listen to DJ Shadow and Black Eyed Peas’ Taboo and apl.de.ap chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

Genndy Tartakovsky has spent decades shaping the animation landscape with everything from Dexter’s Laboratory to Samurai Jack, but when he sat down with Kyle Meredith, the talk was all about his first leap into unapologetically adult animation. His new Netflix film Fixed follows a good-natured dog named Bull on the last wild night before his scheduled neutering, a premise Tartakovsky says came to him in a single lightning-strike moment. Seventeen years, multiple pitches, and one truly committed cast later, the result is a raunchy-but-heartfelt comedy that pushes cartoons beyond TV-safe snark. Listen now.

As Tartakovsky explains, the road to Fixed began with a character-driven buddy movie idea loosely inspired by his childhood friends, which studio execs insisted needed a hook. “They said maybe even an adult concept,” he recalls. “And instantly I said, ‘What if they’re dogs, and one finds out he’s getting neutered in the morning?’ Everyone laughed, and that was it.”

Idris Elba, voicing Rocco, got the lion’s share of euphemism-filled dialogue, which the actor embraced wholeheartedly despite being in the conversation for James Bond at the time. “He loved it,” Tartakovsky says. “One speech had five different ways to say balls, and he was cracking up.”

After a 17-year fight to get the movie made, Tartakovsky’s hope is that Fixed helps pry open the door for more full-length, adult-oriented animation in the US. Listen to Genndy Tartakovsky talk about Fixed and more in the new episode above or by watching the video below.

Listen to Genndy Tartakovsky chat about all this and more or watch it on YouTube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

The Alien franchise has never been short on xenomorphs, but FX’s Alien: Earth proves there’s plenty more to fear than acid blood and chestbursters. In a conversation with Kyle Meredith, showrunner Noah Hawley, producer David W. Zucker, and cast members Timothy Olyphant, Sydney Chandler, Samuel Blenkin, Alex Lawther, and Babou Ceesay unpacked the series’ deeper bite: AI ethics, corporate dystopias, and what happens when humanity hardwires itself into machines. Listen to all of the conversations now.

Hawley says his entry point wasn’t just the monster, but “the moment Sigourney Weaver leans back and Ian Holm is revealed to be an android,” sparking a story about “being trapped between the primordial past and an AI future you created that’s now turning on you.” Chandler adds that Alien: Earth doesn’t “feed the audience answers,” but leaves space for viewers to chew on questions long after the credits roll. And while the genre demands a little running-and-screaming, the cast was just as invested in the subtler moments. “I’m rooting for us,” Olyphant quips about his stance on AI, “but yeah, I’m a little iffy on it all.”

Even in a universe built on corporate greed and hybrid consciousness, the performers resisted the urge to play cyborgs and synthetics as soulless automatons. Ceesay framed his character’s dead-eyed determination as a coping mechanism for trauma, while Blenkin relished his Peter Pan–inspired villain’s warped morality: “He’s completely misread the book… He sees himself as a superhero.” Lawther sums up the on-set energy as being “like a magpie, collecting things” about AI, even if none of them could actually explain how it works. All agreed the humanity—flawed, obsessive, or childlike—is what makes the terror hit harder.

Listen to cast of Alien Earth chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

Documentarian Amy Berg has tackled powerful subjects before — from clergy abuse to the West Memphis Three — but this time, she's turned her lens on one of music’s most luminous and elusive figures: Jeff Buckley. In a conversation with Kyle Meredith, Berg opens up about It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley, a documentary that traces the short, brilliant life of the Grace singer through rare archival footage, intimate interviews, and a narrative woven with personal depth. It’s a project that took over a decade to come together, and one that goes beyond the myth to reveal a complicated, driven, and beautifully human artist. Listen now.

“There’s only going to be one time this is going to happen,” Berg explains, referencing the trust it took for Buckley’s mother Mary Guibert to allow the project to move forward. “I’ve wanted final cut since 2009, and she just finally felt ready.” The result is a film shaped just as much by vulnerability as by sound. Buckley’s infamous self-doubt, perfectionism, and emotional openness are front and center. “He knew he was great, but he didn’t really accept that he was great,” Berg says. “He was hard on himself because it had to be perfect.” The documentary dives deep into his relationships — not just with family or lovers, but with his gift, which Berg calls his greatest challenge.

The conversation also touched on Buckley’s kindred connection with Chris Cornell — another powerhouse vocalist who blurred the lines between vulnerability and intensity. “Some singers become method actors when they perform,” Berg notes, recalling a recent interview she did with Euphoria Morning producer Alain Johannes. “That’s what Jeff did, and that’s what Chris did, too.” She also reveals that her next documentary will focus on Cornell, making It’s Never Over feel like the first part of a larger conversation.

Bonus footage and even a possible Buckley biopic may follow, but for now, this film stands as a haunting, graceful tribute to an artist who never stopped feeling.

Listen to Amy Berg chat about all this and more our watch it on YouTube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

Revisit the time Kyle Meredith sat down with John Flansburgh and John Linnell of They Might Be Giants on this special Rewind episode. The crew chats about the albums Nanobots and I Like Fun, digging into how the band continues to find new ways to be weird 20 albums in. Listen to their insights now.

The Johns discuss the strange comfort fans find in their music during chaotic times, how short songs and dark characters let them explore new creative corners, and why they’ve never subscribed to the cliché rock lifestyle. Flansburgh shares how Jack Bruce’s homemade Mellotron choir helped shape “I Like Fun,” and both Johns reflect on writing about death, dread, and Peter Pan syndrome with equal parts humor and sincerity. Plus: opinions about James K. Polk, writing beats by email, and the eternal mystery of Louisville’s incredible junk stores.

Listen to John Flansburgh and John Linnell of They Might Be Giants chat about all this and more. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.

Luciane Buchanan joins Kyle Meredith With… to talk about her powerful role in Chief of War, the new Apple TV+ series created by and starring Jason Momoa. Set during the late 18th century, the show tells the story of the unification of the Hawaiian Islands—told through an Indigenous lens—and Buchanan plays Queen Ka'ahumanu whose political savvy and presence made the unification possible. It’s an expansive, lushly shot series about resistance, legacy, and the long shadow of colonization. Listen now.

“I had no idea about Hawaiian history at all,” Buchanan admitted. “I had heard of King Kamehameha, but that was about it.” Once cast, she took a deep dive into archives and oral histories, even tracking down the Queen’s birthplace in a cave on Maui. “I just kind of let her spirit know that I might not be the right person to do so… but I wanted to honor her in the best way I could,” she said of a solo pilgrimage that turned unexpectedly spiritual. “The trees started to shake. The wind picked up. And then it all went quiet.”

Beyond the emotional weight of the role, Buchanan had to tackle practical challenges—like learning the Hawaiian language and holding her own opposite 6’4” Momoa. “I required a lot of apple boxes because of our height difference,” she laughed. But the bigger challenge was mastering a language she didn’t grow up speaking: “There was a lot of pressure. You can’t ad-lib in another language. You can’t just get the gist of it.”

Listen to Luciane Buchanan chat about all this and more our watch it on YouTube. Please take the time to like, review, and subscribe to KMW wherever you get your podcasts, and keep up to date with all our series by following the Consequence Podcast Network.