I found some of Lex's remarks and commentary during interviews insightful and intellectual. Like, we're listening to someone who thinks deeply in his own way about life, but doesn't really talk about his own thoughts so much, so have only the occasional glimpse. For me, this is enjoyable to listen to. But I haven't listened to all the interviews; perhaps I ended up choosing the ones that are more familiar subjects for him as well.
For example I really enjoyed the interview with Vitalik Buterin. It felt as much like two people chewing the cud about ideas for what's being created and what we might do in future, and around the economy and social development with an idealistic bent; the sorts of conversations we used to be able to enjoy in university, as it did an interview. I miss those conversations in real life. Nobody I know wants to have them any more. Of course that was driven by Vitalik's ideas, but it was a great setting to hear them; the interview was enjoyable for me.
I agree Lex's voice is remarkable and at first I found it off-putting though intriguing. But after listening for a while I found it different, and calm rather than off-putting. It may have helped me that he explained why he wears black so often, about maintaining a calm and prepared mind. I really respect thoughts expressed like that, I guess because I see myself as a mess (relatively!) and would like to be more like that myself. Just having someone articulate and demonstrate a calmness of mind is a gentle, everyday inspiration.
That calm mind is reminiscent of meditation for me. It makes other interviewers sound like they're trying too hard to be entertainers, zany and interesting, when that's not important to me. Having Lex as a counterpoint, I realised I don't like the zany interviewers at all. I'm not looking for fun, and I'm certainly not looking for the auditory equivalent of razzle-dazzle. I'm looking for calm and interesting thoughts with an air of intellectual curiosity in a calm and reflective timeframe.
I also really like the way the interviews have plenty of time to explore. Hours. It feels like they aren't force-scripted to fit in X questions into Y preset minutes as other podcast interviewers. I expect there is a fair amount of preparation, but it feels relaxed as a result. I don't have time to listen to them, to be honest. But the length makes them more of a treat. It's like reading a long book: Rather than having one hit like a short story, it's more like something which takes a week to read and is a bit of a treat at bedtime or at lunch, to read in pieces. I'll go back and listen to a single Lex podcast over repeated sessions. The continuity makes it something to look forward to, and it's pleasing to know the style of material will last me a while. It doesn't need to be densely packed to be an enjoyable listen, and this is a lovely antidote to the high-intensity workout of some other podcasts.