How To Become A Radio DJ (#1)

It is with a small amount of fanfare and no amount of careful planning that Mid-Valley Mutations is proud to present it’s premier episode on KMUZ Radio. To help in this production, Austin has called upon his old friend Mike Staff to offer an audio essay about the trials and tribulations of radio DJs. It is not all free coffee and waiting for April Stevens to come on and deliver the weather.  Becoming a DJ is a long and arduous road, and for those of you who are not on the inside, this this program should give you a taste of what kinds of secrets exist for those of us on the inside.  Sit back, and enjoy 60 minutes of a little story called, “How To Become A Radio DJ,” in STEREO.

I’ve been spinning tunes on-air for nearly 20 years now, and in that time, I’ve picked up a thing or two about the world of DJing.  But when it comes to some of the more complicated mental gymnastics DJs have to go through to be successful, there’s only one person I turn to: the one and only Mike Staff, who in the mid-90’s released a self-help book / tape on that very subject.  If you are looking to become a NuRock Personlity in the rough and tumble world of radio circa 1999, then look no further than Mr. Staff.

Interleaved with Mike’s advice, I’ve curated an hour of music that helps light the way through what I want the show to be, AND through my own curious story in radio.  As the introduction suggests my life is starting over again, but I’ve used this track before.  It only makes sense that, much like the form and format of Mid-Valley Mutations, that this rebirth is an evolution above what has come before.  If you are familiar with my past radio work, then this shouldn’t be surprising.  But much like Fred Frith’s solo work, this show hopes to take radio and run it through an experimental filter all its own, and focus even more on the fringes of music, and music that is operating on a completely different wavelength.

This episode is broken into three sections, each with its own ebb and flow.  Mike Staff’s words of wisdom take many shapes and forms, and I tried my best to break it us as we went, in an effort to get a wider range of ideas into the show at hand.  I’m proud of the work here, and I hope that you enjoy what we’ve been able to cook up for you.  Being a radio DJ – as you’ll find out – is hard work.  But with some persistence and patience, you can be as good as someone as legendary as Mike Staff.

How To Become A Radio DJ

Part I: “Your dream is the most powerful thing you possess.”

01.) Diesel Lorry, 10-Ton, Interior, Start-Up, Constant Run, Stop [Excerpt] * BBC * BBC Sound Effects Libary
02.) The Mindset of Successful DJs * Mike Staff * How To Become A Radio DJ
03.) My Life Is Starting Over Again [Excerpt] * Daniel Johnston * Artistic Vice
04.) Evolution * Fred Frith * Cheap At Half The Price
05.) Begin The Beguine * Django Reinhardt * The Complete Django Reinhardt And Quintet of The Hot Club of France, Swing / HMV Sessions (1936 – 1948)
06.) Let’s Panic Later * The Ex * Starters Alternators
07.) Out There * Blue Faces * In The Days Of The Lightbulb On The Wall
08.) The Venerable Song (The Meaning Which Is No Longer Known) [Excerpt] * Sun City Girls * Bright Surroundings Dark Beginnings

Part II: “A goal is just a well defined dream.”

09.) CAR, Rolls Royce Silver Sprite, Exterior, Start-Up, Drive Off * BBC * BBC Sound Effects Libary
10.) New Walk (Live) * Liquid Liquid * Liquid Liquid
11.) Iggy * RLLRBLL * 4 Corners
12.) The New Old Pitch * Bob Crane * His Mighty Hurricane Machine
13.) We Found Answers * Leb Laze * Library Catalog Music Series: Music For Troubled Machinery
14.) Resist The New Way * Men’s Recovery Project * The Very Best of Men’s Recovery Project
15.) Retired Woman Starts New Career In Monkey Fashions * Jad Fair & Yo La Tengo * Strange But True

Part III: Radio in Smalltown USA

16.) Train Starts Constant Run * BBC * BBC Sound Effects Libary
17.) Listen To The * People Like Us * Abridged Too Far
18.) “Clutch Cargo ’81” * Negativland * “Points”
19.) [untitled – Track 2] * 200 Yang * 200 Yang
20.) Night Music * Christian Marclay * Records
21.) Plague of Madness * Moth Hunter * Dust
22.) “R” Plays The Fool [Excerpt] * Replikants * Slickaphonics
23.) The Venerable Song (The Meaning Which Is No Longer Known) [Excerpt II] * Sun City Girls * Bright Surroundings Dark Beginnings
24.) My Life Is Starting Over Again [Excerpt II] * Daniel Johnston * Artistic Vice

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