Tuesday, June 24, 2008

The Shakey Shaman Experience

Honestly I thought this show was nearly impossible to watch from beginning to end when seen on TV, but as of last night I can see it's appeal. One of my best friends, Clint, is related to the guitar player/singer in that show. Actually it's Clint's father. I asked a few weeks back if I could come in and see how they do the show each week. I knew it was a live show and that it was a rather big production, but when I got there I realize how small it actually was. Normally the "band" is 5-7 strong but this night they were a few people short. All they had last night were three musicians and the lead singer, Shakey Shaman.

I was roped into being their camera man. I know that I am trained to use all equipment but it wasn't until last night that I was REALLY trained in. I had to operate three cameras throughout the entire show. During the first half hour it was a little bit stressful and I left a few of the cameras in bad positions, but after that I got the hang of it.

Those guys are really out there. Like from the Ninth Dimension and all. Shakey is one individual cat. He can really scream and yell into that microphone. By the end of the evening he was pretty horse. I really think the show is a lot of fun actually. Those guys who work on the show don't take it too seriously and neither should anyone watching it. I really like the way it's nearly totally free form. They have a few taped up lyrics sheets and some scribbled down chords for the basic songs, but after that the motto is just "let it rip and see what happens".

I have been asked to appear next week on the show with my guitar. I think I feel pretty nervous about it too. I know that I can stand there and play what those guys are playing but it's still a live show and that freaks me out a little bit. I think it's time to bust my "live show on cable access" cherry. And what better guys to bust it then the gentle yet energetic Shakey Shaman Crew. Personally it's going to be a highlight of my life and who knows, I might become a member of the show and be welcomed back at any time.

The NWCT team is like a second family in many ways. I am very glad to be a part of it. I should have done this a long time ago. Ryan and I could have been doing this since 1991 or so. We just missed the boat until now. We're going to start making up for lost time I think. So come sail away with us. Whether it's in the ninth dimension with Shakey Shaman or with our own show which will debut sometime in August (possibly LATE July). Hope to see you all then.

Michael

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Chronic Insomnia has a Green Light!

As of May 31st, 2008 Ryan and I have a green light to start producing a show for Cable Access channel 19 or 20. This happens on the heels of our show reaching it's 1 year anniversary on MyPodcast.com. Almost 50 "Issues" have been released as of this writing and we intend on doing more Podcasts into the future to compliment our video show which we will do once a month.

The look of the show and the promos for the show are in the works. We have some photos to take and some other things to smooth out but all in all a lot of the ideas for the show are still locked in our brains someplace. Ryan and I will be sitting down a few times in the next month to figure out the shows agenda and content. The live action video show will be based somewhat on the show we already do, with a few of the segments carrying over.

Market Spotlight, Time Machine, Chronic News, Next Weeks Books (Next Months Books) and possibly Whore of the Week should continue is some fashion or another. We are looking into new segments like Preorder Previews or What's new at DCBS? We can show the actual website on air and show us shopping at the same time.

Events are unfolding to bring a live action video show to our audience sometime in early August with the show continuing through the rest of the year at a once a month pace. We would like to bring two shows a month to the network but with fear of content being subpar, we want to give our viewers our best each time. So that means for now we are going to keep the show at one hour per month of the best stuff we can do. All killer, no filler.

Keep coming back here for more updates as we know more ourselves. We'll see you on the small screen soon enough. Don't be frightened by our extremely white skin, slightly bloated faces that always seem to need a shave. We are harmless.

Michael