stopGOstop: field recordings, sound collage, and sound art

About stopGOstop: field recordings, sound collage, and sound art

stopGOstop is a podcast that explores the idea that sound recordings can act as sediment — an accumulation of recorded cultural material — distributed via rss feed, and listened to on headphones. Each episode is a new sonic layer, incorporating field recordings, plunderphonics, and electroacoustic sound, all composed together in one episode or, alternately, presented individually as striations. The podcast has evolved over its existence, started as a field recording podcast in 2012 the first 19 episodes feature binaural and stereo recordings from everyday life. After a brief hiatus, it shifted between field recordings and ‘rebroadcasts’ of past work for radio. Since episode 30 the podcast has shifted between field recordings, new compositions and sound collages (with an occasional rebroadcast). stopGOstop continually juxtaposes two or three ideas — tending to move away from a focused theme, from new-worthy topics, or dependent on interviews of creative types — it is a podcast that is

Publisher

john wanzel

Category

arts · fiction · music

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

12 Nov 2012

Latest episode

22 Mar 2026

Latest episodes

215 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   22 Mar 2026

   207: blind spot : S1:EP10 : nautical night

   (https://i0.wp.com/www.stopgostop.com/blindspot/wp/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/10-ep.png) Over the past month and a half, I’ve been working on an archive project—digging up and remastering radio work I was involved in from 2004–2006. I’ll be re-releasing select episodes as a part of this podcast. If you are interested, you can follow the progress of the archive here (https://www.stopgostop.com/blindspot/wp). The first release is Episode 10, one of the more straightforward early shows, where Richard, Philip, and I showed up at the station with bags of records and a computer, mixing around a theme for an hour. Blurb: Field recordings, weathered songs, and distant whale calls drift and collide, forming a sonic choir of ocean life, with sounds real, recorded, fabricated and imaginary. Performed by Richard Holland, Philip von Zweck and John Wanzel. Nautical Night originally aired on August 8, 2004 live to air on WLUW 88.7 Chicago. Blind Spot (2004-2006) (https://www.stopgostop.com/blindspot/wp): a weekly live experimental radio program exploring sound collage, performance, music, improvisation, and field recordings as a broadcast form.

2. 

   11 Jan 2026

   206: Vim, Vigor and Vitality (or Arrangements Are in Hand or is it Self Hypnosis)

   Vim, Vigor and Vitality (or Arrangements Are in Hand or is it Self-Hypnosis) drifts between assertion and reassurance. A slow pulse moves underneath the piece, joined by the low, sustained presence of a cello. Voices surface in fragments, pause, and … Continue reading →

3. 

   1 Jan 2026

   206: Ice is forming on the river below

   As the air cools, the water does not freeze all at once—it slows. Heat rises from the surface and meets the cold air above, creating a thin fog that drifts like breath. Small crystals begin to form in the moving … Continue reading →

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.6 / 5

9 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 26 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

40

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

32