Please comment and help us compile the history of WGSU.
Late 1990s: Music office and Promotions office doors get covered in band stickers.
Around 1990: Music Director Joey Guisto changes WGSU's music format from Free Format to "Alternative" thereby bringing the sound of the station more in line with the "college radio" sound documented then and now by the magazine CMJ. This was a controversial decision on campus based on the opinions of students documented by the Lamron. Guisto is well-known in Rochester today as the music director of the Alternative station 90.5 WBER.
1982 - 1986: Opie of shock jock trio (duo? -Ed) Opie and Anthony has show on WGSU
Help us fill in the timeline.
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WGSU Official Site
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Listen to WGSU live (only active during Sports broadcasts)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WGSU
Map of territory
Flickr tagged photos
Listen to WGSU live (only active during Sports broadcasts)
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4 comments:
I arrived at Geneseo and WGSU in Fall of 2000. I had an interview with Program Director Kenny Z, which must have gone pretty poorly because I didn’t get a radio show even within the 24-hour/day DJ schedule at the time. But I was persistent and I ended up getting a show on Friday nights whenever there wasn’t a hockey game. So I probably had about 6-7 Friday shows that first semester.
Shane Lou, the Sports Director at the time, gave me a 15-minute training session at my first show. The first song I ever played on the air was “Old Folks,” by the band A. What an amazing song!
My main social activity that semester was going to Music Staff meetings, which seemed like the greatest deal in the world – digging through piles of new albums so that I could influence the tides of an excellent radio station. Led by Music Director Drew Metzar and Asst. Music Director Mike DiCaprio, the Friday afternoon meetings convened in the basement of the Union, in the GSTV meeting room. The first meeting was jam-packed with people but I still managed to bring home six CDs, including J Mascis + The Fog and Bjork’s Selmasongs, the soundtrack to that depressing movie Dancer in the Dark.
After the first meeting the crowds died down dramatically, so I started just showing up to talk about music and stuff with Drew, Mike D and Blair Schmelzer. I wasn’t sure if anyone but Drew liked me at all, but they sure had a lot of good music around. I later found out those other guys just didn’t know if I liked them, hence the trepidation. Geez, just get enough of us music nerds together, right? Fireworks of awkwardness!! Some other regulars at the meetings were Matt Gee and Courtney who loved KMFDM.
Me and Tracie Klusek became friends around the same time. I think she was the Traffic Director that year. We both went to promotion meetings, but I don’t remember doing much promotion with those guys. Rebecca and Margaret were two other members of that group and they ended up taking me to some pop punk shows at Water Street Music Hall and letting me sit in on their radio shows.
It seems like a majority of the WGSU staff at this time were Communication majors, a trend that did not continue throughout my tenure at the station. Here’s the staff from 2000-2001 as well as I can remember. Little help?
Lauren Hill – Station Manager
Kenny Z – Program Director
? – Business and Underwriting
Lisa ? – Promotions
Drew Metzar – Music Director
Mike DiCaprio – Asst. Music Director
Dave Weiss – News Director
Shane Lou – Sports Director
Brendan Simms – Production Director
Tracie Klusek – Traffic Director
Ralph Suarez - Webmaster
+ More?
The Blackouts formed in Geneseo in 1997: http://www.universalbuzz.com/catalogresults.asp?ArtistNumber=237
I've been told the Blackouts (featuring WGSU's Production Director Brendan Simms on vocals and trombone and On-Air DJ Jason Burner on drums) once executed a tour of Geneseo's dining halls. I'm pretty sure that at least one of their albums was recorded completely in WGSU's production studio.
IN 1986, I PRODUCED "LEFT OF THE DIAL", WGSU'S FIRST "NEW MUSIC" PROGRAM. IT WAS MET WITH MUCH CONTROVERSY, BUT PAVED THE WAY FOR ALL YOU HIPSTERS. THE INITIAL SLOGAN WAS "MUSIC FOR A CHANGING WORLD" WE WERE THE FIRST SHOW TO PLAY RAP MUSIC, NEW WAVE AND PUNK ROCK ON THE STATION, AND REPORTED SOME IMPORTANT PLAYLISTS TO CMJ WITH "NEW" GROUPS LIKE THE SMITHS, PUBLIC ENEMY, UB40, DEPECHE MODE, THE GODFATHERS, PREFAB SPROUT AND THE REPLACEMENTS TO NAME A FEW.
BILL CONNOLLY - MUSIC DIRECTOR - CLASS OF '88
donttry@verizon.net
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