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ivan@stellysee.de
| From | Farrar Hudkins <fhudkins@gmail.com> |
| Subject | Re: podcast survey |
| Date | Wed, 11 Oct 2006 02:22:22 -0500 |
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I've been posting an awful lot, too, but I might as well keep on keepin'
on, 'til someone says "shaddap newbie."
ArthurBang2@aol.com wrote:
> - how often do you like to see a new podcast.. is once a week too often?
Not at all. My podcast software checks every 15 minutes for a new 'cast.
Some of the things I download are newscasts from services around the
world. Most of them are uploaded daily. But for a long music show,
weekly would probably be manageable without knocking yourself out. (Cue
Tower of Power...)
> - what is a good length for each one .. we were considering anywhere from 1
> (a song of the week) to 4 or 5 songs in each installment
I'd say at least twenty minutes. I tend to listen during the commute to
and from work, and the average commute I think is about half an hour.
Anything over an hour and you might be pushing it.
> - do you like to hear discussion of the songs being featured, or would you
> rather just have the music.
OK, I've been in radio for only five years, but here's what I have
found. If you can say something that people don't already know, or
something that is amusing (about the music or musicians), fantastic. If
not, just intro and outro. Play the tune. It's not about the DJ, it's
about the music. Some people listen to what I say on the radio -- yay
for my ego -- but the most important thing is the music. One of the most
annoying things I have heard (especially on podcasts) is a DJ announcing
a song, and -- before it even starts -- comparing it to five to twelve
well-known bands. "When you listen to this, you'll hear the influence of
Rush, Gentle Giant, King Crimson, and early Genesis..." (No offense to
the NotLame podcast.) But the listener can make up his own mind as to
what it sounds like; he is intelligent enough to make his own
comparisons. He begins to say "yeah yeah yeah, just play the effing song
already." The BEST thing you can do for the listener, especially since
it's a podcast, is give band (website), record title, label (website)
and release date info. The station I work for has a cool thing going
where we get a portion of the proceeds for CD sales thru our website,
and I've found the best way to get that to happen is by playing a track
off the disc, then telling what else is on there (similar? different?),
and giving them the info they need to buy the thing. Do NOT talk for
more than 90 seconds between tunes! Otherwise you start sounding like
bad college radio DJs. The pain! The pain! This is just my opinion,
though -- mine and mine alone.
Kudos to you for doing the 'cast! Go to it, and good luck.
Thus endeth my 2¢.
-Farrar Hudkins
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