ABOUT
Comedian Dave Maher makes existential, theatrical one-man shows. After performing his second show, Feed Wolf Ice Cream, at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2019, questions from the show lingered."What do you hope happens when you die?""If you could regularly relive one memory, which memory would it be?""What's your coma?"Dave added to these questions and launched This Is Your Afterlife in August 2020. Since then, the show has grown to feature one of the most diverse collections of guests in podcasting: legendary musicians (Low, Mike Watt), SNL writers (Gary Richardson), indie rock darlings (L'Rain, Mr Twin Sister, Pool Kids), experimental drag artists (Untitled Queen), wrestlers (Colt Cabana), established and up-and-coming comedians (Chris Gethard, Marcella Arguello, Ariel Elias, Michael Rice, Joz Norris, Carmen Christopher), independent pop stars (Calvero, Tiffany Topol), abolitionist organizers and authors (Dylan Rodriguez, Kennedy Bartley, Alyx Goodwin, Catlyn Savado, Liberation Library members), ambient musicians (M. Sage), jazz luminaries (Angel Bat Dawid, Patrick Shiroishi), rappers (SHOWYOUSUCK), performance artists (multiple Neo-Futurists), music writers (Sasha Geffen), illustrators, poets, mutual aid organizers, non-sex porn performers, scholars, magicians, clowns, death doulas, and Dave's mom.Sometimes people are surprised how little This Is Your Afterlife explores "typical" spiritual/death topics, e.g. past lives, near death experiences, psychedelics, mediums, astrology, etc. But that's because the show is about life! These are conversations that (gently) toss a middle finger to spiritual bypassing and toxic positivity in favor of facing sensitive topics head-on and with humor.This Is Your Afterlife is a podcast that resists easy categorization, just like you.Dave told his story of surviving a monthlong coma to read his Facebook eulogies on This American Life, and he appeared in Season 1 of FX's The Bear. He has performed at bars, DIY venues, and theaters all over the world, including Steppenwolf Theatre, the Neo-Futurist Theater, and the Annoyance. As an audio editor/engineer, he works with Haymarket Books on their podcast offerings and special projects. If you want even more Dave, check out Genre Reveal Party!, the TV/movie podcast he co-hosts with previous TIYA guest Madeline Lane-McKinley.
SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
Dave's open door policy extends to a select few groups, where he wants interviews with every member.The first is ambient jazz band Fuubutsushi:
MUSIC
All the show's music comes from Lake Mary, the life's work of musician Chaz Prymek. Chaz appeared on This Is Your Afterlife episode 165, "A Special Batch." Chaz and Dave hit it off so well that, starting with that episode, Lake Mary became the This Is Your Afterlife house band! Here are a few of Dave's favorite Lake Mary albums.
SPECIAL SECRET BONUS EPISODES
When you join the This Is Your Afterlife Patreon, you're not only showing support for the podcast. You're telling the world you believe in unique, sincere, independent art without corporate or algorithmic interference. And for just $5/month, you get regular bonus episodes. This is where the podcast gets experimental and really fun. Here are the current Patreon series.
Full Convos: Mostly unedited versions of the conversations that make up each week's episode
This Is Your Aftershow: Comedian Claire Favret hosts Dave in a go-anywhere conversation about a TIYA episode of her choice
Afterlife Movie Club: Dave and a guest discuss a movie related to death
Bracketology: Dave and his comedian friends perform an improvised argument game show to determine the Platonic ideal of various topics
Solo episodes where Dave speaks directly to listeners