When this radio station first surfaced I immediately liked it because the playlist was along what KROQ used to be.
I've had a long standing love affair with radio. I grew up listening to KROQ, KWST, KNAC, KLOS, KMET and 91 X (when I could get it). When I was 9 going on 10 I listened to the radio constantly. Growing up in my house before my mom and dad split we didn't listen to music. After the split and found radio and music it almost became an obsession. Here were these cool sounding DJs bringing me all this stuff I had never heard before! I would look forward to hearing just even the first notes of the next song. These DJ's were my new babysitters and I practically idolized them.
I think part of it is the reason I got so interested in music. All this great stuff I hadn't heard before. Dr. Demento for laughing, Rodney On The Roq for new music, Breakfast With The Beatles on Sunday morning, The Seventh Day listening to albums in their entirety with the sound of the needle touching the vinyl. Ah!!!!! I loved that sound!!!
I also got to dance along and be a Tragedy with the Bee Gees, have some Good Times with Chic and Boogie Oogie Oogie till I just can't boogie no more!
I made endless tapes of the songs that I heard on the radio and would make recordings of me acting as a DJ. I kept lists of what radio played what song I liked at what time and the name of the song along with artist. Yeah, when your young and it's too dark to ride your bike, you find things to fill the hours.
When I got older I used to take the bus to KROQ (when it was in a little building in Pasadena) and started answering request lines. That was a dream! I met all the DJs back in the day and had an absolute blast in doing so. I loved it so much that I would ditch school and take the bus to go and answer request lines. I also got to meet a bunch of bands from being there which opened a bigger can of cool worms. Richard Blade was the reason why I got to meet my favorite band, INXS!! Thank you, Richard!! It was fun! I got to sit in with DJs endless times while they were on the air. I just thought it was the coolest! It was fun just hanging out in that musical atmosphere. I know I probably shouldn't being so young but I don't regret a thing and would do it again in a heartbeat.
So, hearing Indie, it kind of brought back some of those fun memories and I would get to hear actual new music! I loved Jonesy's Jukebox (with Steve Jones of the Sex Pistols) New Wave Nation (with Nina Blackwood of the old Mtv fame) and Harmony In My Head with Henry Rollins from Black Flag. Ah....swoon....
I will miss having this station easily accessable as it will still be online and I am glad they stuck to their format as best they could rather than head down the road that KROQ sadly took. For that reason I will listen to them online whenever I can. Hats off to you, Indie. Thank you for some great sounds on the airwaves.
