Welcome back, y’all, it’s David Shoemaker from Frankenculture, here to bring you an interview done with an electronic duo named The Radio Broadcast.
The Radio Broadcast released their newest ep Arrived earlier this year in January. Arrived features music that makes me feel like I am in an intergalactic space club aboard Star Trek‘s USS Enterprise. The music makes me feel like I am experiencing “Space nightlife” for the first time. I equate it to that off walking into OZ. My personal favorite tracks off Arrived are; Ghost, Arrived, Drowning In Love and Superstar. Y’all be sure to give The Radio Broadcast a listen, you can find all their social media platforms and music at http://TRBmusic.com
What follows next is the interview…
Where and how did you/your band originate?
We met in a tattoo shop in Ohio 2005 and started playing music together in 2008 and formed TRB in 2009.
Michael grew up playing drums in punk bands and Kristin grew up playing the piano but at the time
when we met neither of us were involved in anything musically. We had both wanted to create our own
punk band but realized after purchasing a guitar neither of us knew how to play nor had the time or
patience to learn so we stuck with what we knew, drums and keys. Over the years our sound and style
has changed along with the overall setup of the equipment we use. Our style is always evolving.
What does your band name mean? How did it come about?
When we started The Radio Broadcast in 2008/2009 Myspace was the biggest social media site. Our
primary objective was to come up with a band name that wasn’t already on MySpace. We had several
names that we came up with that were not names on MySpace and that would have worked out but
nothing stuck with us like The Radio Broadcast. Imagine you are flipping through your music library and
you come across The Radio Broadcast. You tune in to listen and at that point We (The Radio Broadcast)
become your radio and you are listening to our broadcast and thus The Radio Broadcast.
What were some other potentially band names?
This was so long ago to us. We do not remember any other names we came up with
What artists and bands are your biggest influences?
There is a lot of inspiration and musical influence to be found in the world and
for us as far a music goes there are two major electronic groups that have stuck out the most
and helped shape our minds to develop the sounds of The Radio Broadcast and that would be Crystal
Castles and INNERPARTYSYSTEM. We love the DIY approach IPS takes when it comes to stage
lighting and we love their heavy and raw electronic feel. With CC they come across sort of mysterious.
We love their punk attitude in the electronic scene. We really like their lo-fi gritty electronic sounds. We
study these bands and many others to try and better ourselves as a band. We try to align our selves with
similar sounding artists but we do our best to remind our selves that other bands and musicians are just
like you and I and to tune into them as a reference or inspiration and not as a guide. But as crazy as life
can get it is always a good idea to take a step back and take a little time out and amerce yourself in
nature and tune in to the frequencies of the planet, clear your mind, and realign yourself. Once your
mind is clear and your body is well tuned it will be a lot easier for your creative ideas to flow into more
comprehensive complete ideas.
Who are some bands/artists you play/tour with?
We have played with so many other bands it is difficult for us to remember them all but some of the
bigger acts that we played with are as follows. Crystal Castles, INNERPARTYSYSTEM, Jeffree Star,
William Control, Blood On The Dance Floor, Freezepop, French Horn Rebelion, She Wants Revenge, and
Julian K.
How would you describe your writing process, when it comes to music and lyrics?
don’t
creative process and we don’t have any certain set guidelines or formula that works. When the time is
right the lyrics flow and the music grows.
Kristin writes the lyrics and some times she has several things already written and they just happen to
work with a track that we are currently working on or something that has been sitting. Other times she
listens to the music we are currently working on or working with and words just start to flow. As far as
instrumentals or the actual bulk or meat of the track they are always written independently from the lyrics.
We haven’t ever written a piece based on lyrics. Michael writes a vast majority of the music or
instrumentals and there isn’t any certain set of guidelines here to follow either. We both write what we feel
when the time is right.
Who are some artists and bands you are currently digging?
There is so much muisc out there and so much more that continues to be released.
We are always listening to Crystal Castles but some of our other favorites are INNERPARTYSYSTEM,
Pendulum, Hearts revolution, Tex Taiwan, and Kap Bambino.
We are also really into reggae dub. We love listening to OnDubGround(ODG), Brother Culture, Manu
Digital, Soom T, and Congo Natty.
What is your ultimate goal, as it pertains to your band? Fame, or for the art?
We aren’t doing this to become famous celebrities. We do what we do becasue we truely enjoy doing
what we do! We enjoy every aspect of what it takes to be The Radio Broadcast.
Evrything from creating and playing music, live performances, to lighting design, video and photo editing,
merch designs, and even all that it takes to push and promote.
I guess our ultimate goal is to spread the love of TRB and electronic music and to conect with as many
like minded people as we can while staying true to our selves and doing what we love.
What is your favorite song you have ever written? Do you have a favorite?
Our favorite song to date that we have created is Broken Dreams The sound and feel of that song is
something we have been striving for. You will be hearing a lot more of that style on our upcoming full
length album that will be released later in the year.
What is the one thing you want people to take away from your band??
Whether you love it or hate it remember the time and dedication that was put into this music that you
are now listening to. We are all on our own path and what may be fuel for one may not be fuel for the
next. Take a step back from your life and try to view the world from a different perspective. We do our
best to produce quality material but in the end quality is defined by you. Your thoughts and feelings
towards our music is on you but please remember what we have created was from the love of our souls
with positive intent to help connect like minded individuals.
Where can people go, to check out your music? social media etc.?
You can find everything you are looking for and more on our website TRBmusic.com
you will see all links to our social media and music outlets as well as videos, dates, and more.
~D.P Shoemaker
FrankenCulture 