If I was where I would be, then I'd be
where I am not
Here I am where I must be, where I
would be, I can not
Nostalgia is the flavor of the day.
“I'm glad I grew up doing this instead of this” the mantra for
those more accustomed to looking back than looking forward. I got to
experience the “good old days”, not just for myself but for every
consequent generation after me. Those days are overrated. Not being
one of my generation that continually pines for the past, I embrace
change. Having spent part of my youth on a farm that still had an
outhouse and no hot water. I have since grown accustomed to porcelain
bathroom fixtures and electricity.
Change is good. The arrival of
television to our household was a momentous day. (1964, just in time
for the Republican and Democratic conventions that gave us LBJ vs.
Barry Goldwater) Television got us up to par. It exposed us to a
world that we rarely ever got to see (the fifty seven miles to the
nearest “big” city, may as well have been a thousand) We now knew
all about Ronald McDonald, Slush Puppies, Montgomery Ward and a place
called Pancho's, that let you eat all the Mexican food that you could
ever hope for.
Dirt City Chronicles was born of an
idea that a radio station playing primarily local music could be
feasible. It wasn't, although the advent of online streaming made
that a mute point. Terrestrial radio, hampered by the FCC's archaic
adherence to rules and regulations (in place since the early days of
radio) simply can't compete with streaming apps such as Pandora,
Slacker, Spotify etc. All of which allow users to program their own
tailor made streams. After exploring possible online broadcast apps
such as Shoutcast (too expensive, complicated) I determined that
podcasting was the obvious choice.
Thus Dirt City Radio was born.... with
a slight hitch, a local band was already using that name. Radio
became Chronicles and there you have it. All I lacked at that point
was a file host. After some research, I settled on Pod Bean, a
competent app that provided cool embedded players, though overall the
process of posting episodes was rather tedious. There was one major
drawback to Pod Bean, initially you pay $29.99, after that Pod Bean
essentially holds your audio files for ransom. Forcing you to renew
at their escalating rates or your links go dead. Dirt City Chronicles
is a not for profit undertaking, leaving me to explore whatever free
options the internet had to offer. YouTube was the obvious choice.
It's free, you can upload files of any
size (once you register your mobile number) and as long as you don't
run afoul of YouTube's copyright restrictions, the sky really is the
limit. Another option for those working on the cheap is Archive.org.
Unlimited uploads, no file size restrictions and little if any
copyright hassles. The internet is forever and these links will never
go dead. I've recently rediscovered a couple of free and reliable
options for posting podcast episodes: Dailymotion and Vimeo.
Dailymotion limits uploads to files under sixty minutes. Vimeo's free
version allows you upload up to 500mbs or approximately one podcast
episode per week. Far less draconian than YouTube, both take a
laissez-faire approach to copyright restrictions.
Editing previous episodes of Dirt City
Chronicles down to under an hour left me with several hours worth of
music that I've re-purposed as new episodes. New and improved, with
enhanced audio (no more volume drops) I'm posting all previous
episodes of Dirt City Chronicles on both Dailymotion and Vimeo....
for those that have no use for YouTube.
A grab bag of local music, alternative
country, modern surf music, homegrown reggae, dream pop, goth pop,
experimental and Americana..... yes, Americana. Tune in, turn up and
drop me a line, Dirt City Chronicles, your choice for local music,
Boy Howdy!
Swimming in Alcohol-
Youngsville
Vertigo- Dead Town Lovers
Vertigo- Dead Town Lovers
As We Ascend- Before This City
Burts Tiki Tear Drop- The Surf Lords
Let the Morning Come- Mondo
Vibrations
King of Whiskey Throne- Lousy Robot
King of Whiskey Throne- Lousy Robot
Hello Again- The Black Disciples
I'm Your Huckleberry- The Giranimals
The Revelator- I is for Ida
Oh No- Jenny Wren Sounds
Spider Walker- Javelina
Locked In- The Porter Draw
Moses Stuttered- Todd and the Fox
My Revolver- Lowlights
Myra Joyce- The Porter Draw
Locked In- The Porter Draw
Moses Stuttered- Todd and the Fox
My Revolver- Lowlights
Myra Joyce- The Porter Draw