About Bone & Sickle
BONE AND SICKLE explores historical topics related to folklore and horror. Every episode offers a bounty of frightful tales, fantastic legends, and macabre historical anecdotes harvested by eccentric artist, collector, and rogue folklorist Al Ridenour, author of The Krampus and the Old, Dark Christmas (2016) and A Season of Madness: Fools, Monsters, and Marvels of the Old-World Carnival (Jan. 2025).
Sarah Chavez of the podcasts The Cabinet of Curiosities and Death in the Afternoon co-host to the show as “Mrs. Karswell.”
With acerbic wit and a scholarly penchant for the grotesque, Ridenour delves into a wide but carefully curated range of topics illustrated by stories told from historical texts. Narratives are given dramatic readings by Mrs. Karswell backed by richly produced soundscapes blending original music, sound design and effects. The source books, though real enough, are said to be pulled from an imaginary private library into which listeners are welcomed. Each episode begins with our hosts discussing recent goings-on and peculiar happenings on Ridenour’s fanciful estate, located somewhere in the neighborhood of Charles Addams and Edward Gorey.
Episodes are between 30 and 60 minutes long and released once or twice monthly. Occasional alternate-format episodes are devoted to readings of classic horror stories or curious texts of antiquarian interest.