One thing we love about podcasts is the amount of diversity in the medium. True crime, sports, dramas, you name it! Today, we cover one of our favorite genres: suspense and horror. There are many ways of executing these pods through storytelling and immersion modes. We’ve gathered five suspenseful podcasts that keep us up at night and may keep you up! Most of the shows we have featured provide a warning at the beginning of the episodes, but it is always wise to check content warnings beforehand. Happy listening!
1. Mystery Hour Radio Show
What do you get when you mix friendship, horror movie references, and a killer with exceptional music taste? The answer is Mystery Hour. When best friends Persy and Sammy find out that their spooky radio show is going off the air, they decide to tell one more urban legend that had been kept under wraps in their town, Twin Oaks. Their episode may have been a hit, but their ratings aren’t the only things that rise back up. Mystery Hour Radio Show is a queer podcast that features a diverse cast of characters with unique, yet relatable, storylines. Not to mention, it gives nostalgia to listeners who love classic horror. Every other Sunday, the show airs live on Moon Glow Radio, an online station that highlights BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists. Head to their Mixcloud to catch up on the show before Episode 4 airs on May 22!
2. Mabel
The Mabel podcast describes itself as “a podcast about ghosts, family secrets, strange houses, and missed connections.” However, it far exceeds its simple description. The story follows Anna, a live-in caretaker, as she constantly tries to contact her client’s granddaughter, Mabel Martin, after discovering mysterious things around the Martin house. Listeners follow along on the journey by listening to the voicemails Anna leaves for Mabel in hopes that one day she will answer. With chilling storylines and suspense at every corner, the unique format serves the story in unimaginable ways. Mabel is currently on its seventh season, and you can catch up by listening on their website, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.
3. 5 Week Countdown
What if the fate of a story’s protagonist rested in your hands? From the creators of the How i Died podcast on Audiohm, 5 Week Countdown is an interactive and immersive way of storytelling. There are two seasons that center around different stories. The latest season follows Alexander and Hammond, who mysteriously wakes up with a metal chain around their necks. Each episode features the characters trying to find a means to get out alive, and the listener plays a hand in freeing them. With clues given in the episodes, listeners can go onto countdownpod.com to try and solve the puzzles. The show seems to be on an indefinite hiatus at the moment, so solving the puzzles won’t directly impact the previous seasons, but listeners can still figure out the clues on their own on the podcast’s website! To catch up on the first two seasons, you can listen on countdownpod.com, Apple, and Spotify.
4. Let’s Not Meet
If you’re looking for a non-fiction podcast, Let’s Not Meet is the one for you. This true-horror podcast, narrated and produced by Andrew Tate, recounts listeners’ first-person accounts of horrific experiences. Each episode features five to six stories and about three more if you are a Patreon member. The podcast is one out of two shows for “Cryptic County Podcasts,” with the other featuring Tate in Odd Trails, a podcast on paranormal experiences. Listeners can submit their own suspenseful stories via an email address on their website. To catch up on the past eight seasons and counting, you can find Let’s Not Meet on crypticcountypodcasts.com, Spotify, and many other podcast platforms.
5. Batman Unburied
Finally, we have one of the most anticipated podcasts of the year: Batman Unburied. This podcast is a Spotify Original and features a star-studded cast led by Winston Duke portraying Bruce Wayne. In this new take, Bruce has no recollection of being Batman and is instead a forensic pathologist at Gotham Hospital who becomes obsessed with a serial killer, The Harvester, after being attacked. With Batman nowhere to be found, detectives turn to The Riddler for help. Many other classic Batman villains are expected to appear at some point in the series. The podcast is Spotify’s largest simultaneous launch, with the show being streamed in nine different global markets. Two new episodes are released every Tuesday, so catch up on the last four episodes on Spotify.
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