My 10th anniversary of being in radio
Ten years ago this week, I nervously headed into the KPSU DJ booth, with a duffel bag full of records and CDs, and delivered the first broadcast of my show. Its original name was “The Post Modern Rock Show”, which was my attempt at coining the new term that we all use to encompass the types of music (indie, punk, new wave, electronic, garage, C86, etc) we all consider to be “the good stuff.” “Alternative” and “modern rock” had previously served this function, but had been eroded by commercial garbage. My hope was that “post modern rock” would catch on, and I would ride that wave. I even created an Urban Dictionary entry for it.
But eventually, it became clear that “post modern rock” was too ambiguous, and also a mouthful. And so “That Sound” was born.
Here is a streamable playlist of my first show. I have mercifully not included my cracking voice amongst these still-great songs.
Post Modern Rock Show - July 11, 2002 by Dave Cusick on Grooveshark
Two months in, delusions of grandeur still intact, I booked an interview with author and then-regular This American Life contributor Sarah Vowell. I had only done one interview previously (with They Might Be Giants), and so I didn’t yet know how to ask questions I didn’t have written down right in front of me, but she was a pro, and it went amazingly well.
So, here’s to ten years, and hopefully many tens to come. Keep your eyes out for a new podcast, coming soon!
March 5th, 2013 at 6:37 pm
Dave, I enjoyed your interview and first show. The mix of contemporary and older songs worked very well. You seem to have moved away from older songs (other than TMBG) over the years; I’d like to cast my vote in favor of some more older songs on your future shows. I think it leads to some great (re)discoveries. For example, I never got around to hearing the first Ladytron or Stereolab albums, but after hearing these songs I aim to track them down. And I need to revisit My Bloody Valentine’s Isn’t Anything. And see if I can find anything by Halou.
I don’t mean to knock the format of mostly new stuff; it is good to try new things in life. At the same time, in my own life, I’ve come to the point where I have something like 2,000 albums now and I still keep pursuing new music and hardly making any time for the stuff I know I’ll enjoy listening to from my collection. Point is, it’s nice to hear some older songs now and again. I guess you have to decide with your show, whether you want it to be a “Here’s what’s happening in the music scene right now” show or more of a “This is the music I like to listen to” show. And I know that that isn’t 100% applicable to your situation, because you do seem to thoroughly enjoy the music you play, so it’s not like you’re playing it just because.