The Great Concavity Matt Bucher & Dave Laird

I love this podcast, and I’ve listened for a long time, but the hosts’ lack of engagement with what the guest is saying has become distracting. Simply self-centered interviewing. One host often uses whatever the guest has said as a vehicle to circle back to his own MA thesis, hometown, or to hint at his friendships or connections in the Wallace community. Responding “cool” to the guests’ lengthy interpretation (highly original and interesting) of Wallace’s work does not promote the guest’s voice. This is lazy interviewing, and seemed to make the most recent guest feel awkward. This review may be harsh, but I have been hoping for more depth and engagement from the hosts, especially by the episode 48 mark.

An incredible cache of Wallace expertise, insider info, and insightful guests -- truly a must-listen for any DFW devotee. Matt and Dave are friendly, humorous, and wonderfully inclusive (not to mention admirably progressive). Listening to this podcast has a been a real source of joy and warmth for me. I've gotten a lot from the show, but more than that, Matt and Dave seem like genuinely sweet guys who just love to read and talk about ideas. It's a really special thing to have found, and I'm super grateful. Thanks, guys!

Hosted by two incredibly smart fellas, The Great Concavity is your guide to critical analysis (and super fun geeking out) of David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest and much of the rest of the DFW catalog. Guests will open your world and make connections between the texts and music, art, culture, history and literature. Plus lots of great recommendations for other books, films, TV shows and other media that DFW fans might like. Super enjoyable to listen to- I started with ep. 1 and worked my way to current and you can, too.