Consensus Unreality

Consensus Unreality
undefined
Mar 30, 2026 • 10min

Virtual Nihilism; Dark Forest Theory of the Internet Patreon Preview

Join Consensus Unreality Patreon for just $5 a month and get access to biweekly exclusive episodes, our full 6 year episode archive, written content, discord and more. Plus we present our printed Journal of Shells magazine exclusively through our Print Club Tier. Its the best and only way to support the show. https://www.patreon.com/consensusunreality Watch what you say in the forest, you don't know what you're feeding. In this conversation on Bogna Konior's book The Dark Forest Theory of the Internet, we talk about living in an age of strategic secrecy, ufological allegory, and hidden AI game theory mind control. Does this experiment in extreme nihilism reflect our current moment? Listen to find out. 
undefined
Mar 23, 2026 • 1h 31min

Photographic Hauntings, SORRAT, and American Parapsychology with Shannon Taggart

Join Consensus Unreality Patreon for just $5 a month and get access to biweekly exclusive episodes, our full 6 year episode archive, written content, discord and more. Plus we present our printed Journal of Shells magazine exclusively through our Print Club Tier. Its the best and only way to support the show. https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality In this interview with returning guest, artist and writer Shannon Taggart, we discuss her recent article and continued work on SORRAT, one of the most misunderstood and fascinating groups in parapsychological history. From their founder John Neihardt’s important Black Elk Speaks and Cycle of the West, through the tragedy which inspired the founding of SORRAT and the inner workings and later works of the group, we dive deep into this strange history. We also chat at length on Shannon’s thoughts on photography’s artistic legacy in the modern era, its inherent paranormality, her work at Lily Dale, and the photographic manifestations of Ted Serios. A lengthy and wide ranging conversation with one of the best in the biz!  ⁠https://www.shannontaggart.com/
undefined
Mar 16, 2026 • 52min

Finality Loops; Broken Time: Tempunauts; Dodleston Messages; Scole Experiment

Join our Patreon to unlock all our exclusive episodes, written content and more.. For just $5 come aboard, support the show and help us unlock the mystery. https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality Dave and Ben are stuck in a time loop... this episode presents the 500,000th precise replica of a conversation on Philip K. Dick's "A Little Something for Us Tempunauts," time weirdness and existential novelty, eternal returns, seances from the future, the inevitable return of IPAs, and more. We revisit the strange future incursions in The Dodleston Messages and compare similar interference channeled through the Scole Experiments.
undefined
Mar 6, 2026 • 1h 15min

Witchcraft, Occult Relics, and More with Steven Intermill of Buckland Museum of Witchcraft

Steven Intermill, curator and director of the Buckland Museum of Witchcraft, joins us for a wide ranging conversation on Ray Buckland, Michael Bertiaux, Nema, American occultism, occult book and object collecting, his work in noise project Telecult Powers, leg lamps, and more. Make sure to check out the astounding Buckland Museum next time you’re in Cleveland, or visit them online at ⁠https://bucklandmuseum.org⁠ Join Consensus Unreality Patreon for biweekly exclusive episodes, printed magazines and more https://www.patreon.com/consensusunreality
undefined
Feb 23, 2026 • 11min

Space Age Relics, Ghost Automata, New Paranoid Cinema

A brief summary of our latest Journal of Shells: cybernetics and automata, spirit and machine. There’s still time to join our Print Club on Patreon!    Plus, on Patreon: The space age’s corpse treated as a saint in Ballard’s Dead Astronaut; another diagnosis of the paranoid American in recent film Bugonia; syncs and thoughts galore.  Join our Patreon for this full episode, printed Journal of Shells, our full episode archive, and ongoing exclusive content. https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality
undefined
Feb 13, 2026 • 44min

Virtual Incursions: Neuromancer, Cyberpunk, Close Futurism

In this continuation of our discussions on artificial unrealities, we visit William Gibson's cyberspace. We talk Neuromancer, its influence and prophecies, and the feedback loops fiction and reality create when they meet in the human mind.  Join our Patreon for just 5$ to access our full episode archive, weekly exclusive episodes, written content and more.. Plus- our Printed Journal of Shells.. Volume 7 shipping shortly https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality
undefined
Jan 23, 2026 • 57min

Reality Deterioration: Ubik, Serial Experiments Lain, AI Psychosis, Fake Worlds

With some help from Philip K. Dick’s classic novel Ubik and cult favorite anime Serial Experiments Lain, we discuss the intellectual genealogy and current situation of our slipping reality. AI psychosis, corporate rulers, gods from the machines, and more.. Full 2 hour episode, full episode archive, ongoing exclusive episodes, printed magazine subscription and more at https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality
undefined
Jan 8, 2026 • 1h 1min

Paranormal Year in Review: Research and High Strangeness Patreon Plus Episode

2025 in the rearview, 2026 a big tunnel painted on the side of a mountain. Here's our lengthy public/ Patreon split episode recapping highlights and weirdnesses from a mixed up, wacky year. Plasmoids, out of body experiences, and tons of great interviews. It's like a whole year in under two hours! Patreon discussion of our personal strange experiences, looking forward to '26, and much more.  Join our patreon to access the second half of this episode, our full episode archive, and over 150 hours of exclusive episode audio + our printed Journal of Shells publication https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality  
undefined
Dec 19, 2025 • 9min

Solid State Intelligence, John C. Lilly Revisited, ECCO, 3I/Atlas PATREON PREVIEW

ECCO is calling. Will you answer? SSE is at your door. Do you let it in? Hear our advice in this breezy discussion of our beloved mad scientist mystic John C. Lilly. The spiritual insights of a Vitamin K. psychonaut; eerie AI prophecies; coincidence and synchronicity; and more!  Here this full episode and over 150 hours of exclusive episodes on Patreon, plus join our Print Club to receive our printed Journal of Shells publication and more.. https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality
undefined
Dec 12, 2025 • 54min

ESP, Remote Viewing, Parapsychology + Patreon: Savior Battles, Gnosticism, Punched by Bigfoot

SRI, PEAR, Duke, Monroe, and all that! An episode on remote viewing, ESP, psychics, and more. We even try it out ourselves, with an interesting result. This is your brief primer on the expanded mind. Plus: a lengthy Patreon addendum on Gnostic emo, further mindreading experiments, Bigfoot straight up punching you, and more! Join our Patreon for just 5$ a month and access over 150 hours of exclusive episodes, including the Patreon portion of this one, written content, discord and more..  https://www.patreon.com/c/consensusunreality And for 10$ a month our Print Club Tier will also get you access to our quarterly Journal of Shells publication, which features new writings and artwork and curated archival texts dealing in the many subjects we speak on. Issues are currently limited to the Print Tier, so its the only way to obtain this limited publication. 

The AI-powered Podcast Player

Save insights by tapping your headphones, chat with episodes, discover the best highlights - and more!
App store bannerPlay store banner
Get the app