One part Prairie Home Companion, one part Los Alamos, one part H.P. Lovecraft, Night Vale is a half-hour podcast detailing the comings (and many goings) of an imaginary town Out West, where Hooded Figures infest the Dog Park (closed off for all residents, DO NOT THINK ABOUT THE DOG PARK). It's a sweet place off Route 800 somewhere between Desert Bluffs and Radon Canyon, where The Sheriff's Secret Police keeps a palatial Detention Center (complete with Wi-Fi, cable, and state of the art Torture Cells) in the Abandoned Mine Shaft.
Narrated by the voice of Cecil Baldwin, the quotidian events of Night Vale are relayed in a (mostly) impassive fashion, whether it be an invasion by tiny people who live underneath the Bowling Alley, the latest school closings (which happen frequently, without prior notice, and often for prolonged periods), or the doings of the shadowy City Council. Often, the news is censored, mid-broadcast: The Council (or other Unnamed Government Agency) will insist on a different version of the news, or even a flat contradiction, causing him severe cognitive dissonance. Coming in for guest shots are such people as the ever-cheery Kevin who lives in the shunned Desert Bluffs, home to the Corporation and its many secrets, Dana, an intrepid intern who may now be a ghost, and the Old Woman with No Face, who lives in your home and is currently seeking to become mayor. Further subplots include the romance of Cecil with Carlos, a handsome scientist who came to study this bizarre town, old woman Josie and her house full of angels, and a levitating cat.
Occasional commercials break the unending wail of terror and alarm with angsty poetry, noirish radio, and deeply artistic productions, the sponsors tend to be Coca-cola, Target and the like. "Weather" reports are given by various independent bands; these are very good, though I generally skip over them.
The brainchild of the team Jeffrey Cranor and Joseph Fink, it's now in its second year on Soundcloud, and the #1 most downloaded podcast on iTunes--it even has its own line of tea blends at Adagio. I'd give it a try.