Slate's Culture Gabfest

This is an episode of our advice show How To! with Charles Duhigg. Lorenzo is a dental student with big dreams—of becoming a rock star. Lorenzo plays a mean guitar at open mic night, but there’s one thing holding him back: He doesn’t know how to write his own songs. In this episode of How To!, we bring in master songwriter Ben Folds, former frontman of Ben Folds Five, and author of A Dream About Lightning Bugs: A Life of Music and Cheap Lessons. Many of those lessons are about how anyone can unlock their creativity. Ben breaks down his own music, and tinkers with Lorenzo’s attempt at writing a break-up song. He tells him to embrace cliché, then slip in something unexpected. Also, switch the first lyric with the second. Will it work? Do you have a problem that needs a creative solution? Send us a note at howto@slate.com. Slate Plus members get bonus segments and ad-free podcast feeds. Sign up now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the Spoiler Special podcast, Slate critics discuss movies, the occasional TV show, and, once in a blue moon, another podcast, in full spoiler-filled detail. This week, Marissa Martinelli and Heather Schwedel discuss Emma. Though certainly not the first adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel, director Autumn de Wilde’s film humanizes the familiar characters and departs at times from the source material to bring a certain freshness to this comedy. Will Emma’s meddling still result in matchmaking errors? How far does she have to go to right her wrongs? And what’s with the inopportune nosebleed? You can read Marissa Martinelli’s review here. Note: As the title indicates, spoilers galore. Email us at spoilers@slate.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clive Owen: is he dangerous or is he the love of our lives? As someone wise once asked, why not both? When Clive steps into a scene, we don’t know if he’s about to deliver a soul-stealing kiss or a scathing takedown, but we move to the edge of our seats to catch every second of it. From Chancer to Closer, Sin City to The Knick, and beyond, Clive’s demanding presence brings us to our knees, and we find we’re quite all right with that.  Slate Plus members get a bonus segment on Thirst Aid Kit each week. Sign up now to listen and support our show. On Slate Plus, we discuss the erotic fixation on the extended leg of a woman. Using scenes from Carmen Jones, Boomerang, From Dusk Till Dawn, and Something New, we examine the power play found in women’s feet—and areas north.  Our music is by Tanya Morgan. You can find show notes, gifs, and so much more on our Tumblr at thirstaidkitpodcast.tumblr.com. If the spirit moves you, send us your own drabbles by emailing thirstaidkit@slate.com.  Follow us on Twitter @ThirstAidKit. Bim is @bimadew and Nichole is @tnwhiskeywoman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on the Culture Gabfest, Stephen Metcalf is joined by two guests hosts: Sam Anderson, New York Times Magazine staff writer and author of Boom Time, and Dan Kois, Slate staff writer and author of How to Be a Family. First, the panel discusses The Assistant, the indie film with heavy Harvey Weinstein overtones. Next, they dive into Hulu’s reboot of High Fidelity, starring Zoë Kravitz. Finally, the panel breaks down the work of Jenny Odell, including her book How to Do Nothing and her recent Paris Review essay “The Myth of Self-Reliance.” On the Slate Plus segment this week, the panel discusses Dan Kois’s recent Slate story on a New Zealand fantasy masterpiece—an article that catalyzed the book’s publication in the U.S.  Podcast production by Jessamine Molli. Production assistance by Rachael Allen. Additional production help by Rosemary Belson. Outro Music: ‘Lonely World’ by Moses Sumney Endorsements Dan: The writing of Charles Portis, including True Grit and Norwood. Sam: John Cage’s performance of “Water Walk” on “I’ve Got a Secret” in 1960 (as Jenny Odell recommends). Steve: Seeing Parasite a second time.  “The Professor of Denial” by Amanda J. Crawford in The Chronicle of Higher Education. Moses Sumney’s Aromanticism Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the Spoiler Special podcast, Slate critics discuss movies, the occasional TV show, and, once in a blue moon, another podcast, in full spoiler-filled detail. This week, Dana Stevens is joined by June Thomas and Dan Kois to discuss Portrait of a Lady on Fire. Marianne is hired to paint Héloïse’s wedding portrait. But Héloïse can’t know she’s being painted. As the two grow closer, will Marianne come clean? Will their feelings affect the painting that’s supposed to be sent to Héloïse’s potential husband? What happens when the job is finished? You can read Dana Stevens’ review here. You can read Matthew Dessem’s piece about the film’s music here. Note: As the title indicates, spoilers galore. Email us at spoilers@slate.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices