97X - Rumblings from the Big Bush

Geography, fate -- and a cool dad -- turned David on to 97X in his preteen years. He never stopped listening, through high school (he and his dad went to a PiL show at Bogart's together!), his college years at Miami University and afterward when he moved back to Cincinnati. We chat with David about how he got hooked, and his 97X memories of college concerts, Oxford bars, local bands and dorm room...

Mike "Stead" Winstead grew up in Oxford and dreamed of working at 97X. When he got out of the Army in 1994, he "bugged" (his word) the station until he finally landed a job as Director of First Impressions ("Mike the Modern Rock Receptionist"). He also did weekend and fill-in shifts, and helped out at nearly every on-location promotional event that 97X did during his time there. We chat with Stead...

Bill Douglas (a.k.a. "Billy D the Fresh MC") spent most of the 90s working at 97X, starting out as a weekender back in 1990 when he was still in school at Miami University, and continuing on (in two stints) through December of 1998. We chat with Bill about the Free Music Break that gave him his 97X break, as well as his current radio gig(s) and his longtime side hustle with the Cincinnati Reds (tr...

Craig Snyder grew up in Oxford, Ohio, listening to 97X and making mixtapes for his friends. That love of music stayed with him as he interned at EMI, worked as a producer at Little Steven's Underground Garage, managed and promoted indie bands, and in his current role at Lyte.com helping venues and festivals get more music fans to shows. We chat with Craig about his how his love of 97X and his mixt...

Ali Castellini got her 97X gig by accident, when a fellow Miami student phoned her early one Friday morning and asked her to do the weather forecast on the Breakfast Club. She wound up spending a few years on the air at 97X in the early-to-mid 90s before moving on to a station in Virginia Beach, VA, then hosting the nationally syndicated radio show "Todays Women" and later working as an on-air hos...

Joe Long grew up a 97X fan and started his "Each Note Secure" music blog in 2004... right about the time the terrestrial station signed off. But when woxy.com got its second wind in 2006 (the Lala era), he joined as an on-air personality. He revived Local Lixx, started The Futurist blog, and uprooted his family to stay with the station as it moved to to Austin in the summer 2009. He was still on b...

A self-described "97X listener/scenester/scruffy little punky New Wave dude," Howard started playing in bands as a teenager and has never stopped rocking. His current band, Cereal Killers , played their first gig at Sudsy Malone's on Short Vine in 1989, and their current set list consists predominantly of songs that graced the 97X airwaves back in the day: punk, New Wave, garage rock... We chat wi...

In this coronavirus "Local Lockdown Lixx" bonus episode, singer/songwriter/guitarist Rob Fetters (The Raisins, The Bears, psychodots and solo releases) talks about the free house concert live streams he's been doing every weekend, provides some Zen guidance on how to cope during COVID craziness... and tells the tale of the time long ago when Ted Nugent ("The Motor City Madman") brought him from da...

Robin James is an Associate Professor of Philosophy at UNC Charlotte and the author of three books... with a book about 97X in the works. She grew up listening to the station from age 11 on, including her time as an oboe major (yes!) at Miami University. Robin still has a fond place in her heart for the 97X/woxy.com music community, and the DIY ethos that made it truly unique. Dave and Damian talk...

Musician. Producer. Recording Engineer. Photographer. Non-traditional college student... John Curley is best known for his work with the Afghan Whigs , but he's also played in a few local bands, and produced and/or engineered music for hundreds, mostly at Ultrasuede Studio. He's still playing, still producing, but recently went back to college as well. We chat with John about all those things -- a...

Joe Sampson joined 97X as a Miami University student intern (a.k.a. "Breakfast Club co-producer") in 1993 and stuck around as a weekender after he graduated before moving on to short stint as a writer for CityBeat, and a 12-year career as a news producer at Channel 19 and later Channel 9 in Cincinnati. He now has come full circle as a Miami U. professor. We chat with "Mighty Joe" about his late ni...

Kathie Lucas worked at 97X for a decade, yet was never live on the air. Instead she handled a number of crucial behind-the-scenes roles from 1994-2004... "Director of First Impressions," Traffic Director (i.e. scheduling the commercials), Promotions Director... she even raised her daughter at the station! Dave and Damian chat with Kathie about her many roles (including a starring role in a commerc...

A self-proclaimed "bit player" at 97X in the late 80s, Timothy Hiatt joined the station fresh out of high school, stayed for only a year, and has gone on to a great career as a world-renowned photographer based in Chicago. Tim talks to Dave and Damian about how 97X still influences his life, his gigs as a music photographer, and how he came full circle with Bob Mould.

Bryan Jay Miller joined 97X as a Breakfast Club student intern in the mid-90s, and stuck around after graduating from Miami U., working in sales, promotions and eventually managing the station's digital presence (website and stream) and serving as the station's general manager when it went online-only. Brian talks to Dave and Damian about his many roles, testifying before Congress, and living on a...

Matt Harris was already a radio veteran when he joined 97X in 1984, having worked in college radio at Ohio U. and the local rock station in Athens, Ohio. He spent a few years at WOXY, doing overnights briefly and then serving as Program Director for a long stint. Matt shares his favorite memories from his 97X days and updates Dave and Damian on his many roles in the radio game.

Daniel Jones was a Cleveland kid attending Miami University when 97X came to life back in 1983, and he was instantly hooked. He tuned in until he graduated and move to New York; his listening got a second wind many years later when 97X started streaming in the internet. Dave and Damian chat with Daniel about the bands he discovered via 97X, his own on-campus radio show ("Off the Wall But On The Ai...

Rob Ervin (also known as "Rowdy Rob" when he hosted Gridloxx) worked as a part-timer at 97X in the 90s. He also co-hosted the Chris & Rob Late Night Talk Show on WAIF-FM and later was part of the writing staff and cast of characters for the Gary Burbank Show on WLW-AM. But wait, there's more... Rob led the local bands Monkey Biscuit and the High Strung Lifters. Oh, and he wrote for the Hamilton Jo...

A few folks from Year One of "97X: Rumblings from the Big Bush" have a quick holiday message to share with you. Tune in next time for the Airing of Grievances.

Ron Poore, a.k.a. "Jetson" was only at 97X for a year back in the late 80s, but he moved on to record labels, where he has continued to work tirelessly to get great music into people's ears. Currently Senior VP of Alternative & Rock Promotion for the legendary Atlantic Records, Ron chats with Dave and Damian about how promoting a band actually got him his first gig at 97X, how a trip to New York C...

Mark Griffin tuned in to 97X as a teenager, and "the future of rock and roll" shaped his future. As he says in a great blog post about the station : Throughout life, but perhaps most profoundly in our youth, we encounter things or people that click on a cellular level—a movie; a book; a group of friends that awakens, challenges or reflects our feelings or worldview in ways that help define our ide...

In Part 2 of our conversation with Kevin Couche, the man of 1,000 jobs, you'll find out why Steve Baker is the best ever, you'll discover how Dave and Damian might become models for plus-sized lingerie, you'll uncover the 97X artist behind kids songs like "It's Raining Tacos"... and you'll learn why we owe Kevin $163.

Kevin Couch, a.k.a. Kevin Couche, was an Indiana kid who tuned in to 97X early and never looked back. He wound up working at the station, and later headed to Hollywood to work for the top ranked morning show, do interviews for other radio stations, host a comedy show on Sirius XM, do publicity for Death Row Records and a comedy club... and about a hundred other gigs we can't remember. Dave and Dam...

Aaron Borns started at 97X as a student intern (a.k.a. "co-producer") for the Breakfast Club in 1993, then worked part-time shifts, answered the phones and worked with Julie Maxwell doing promotions. He wasn't at the station long, but the lessons he learned there served him well during a 20-plus year career doing promotions and marketing at RCA Records. Dave and Damian talk to Aaron about his 97X...

Rik Helton was a mild-mannered record store owner by day, but CD World Guy by night (complete with cape and tights, no less). Dave and Damian chat with him about dropping tons of dirt in his parking lot, his close encounter with Richard Butler (Psychedelic Furs) and other amusing tales, plus we play a few other throwback ads from 97X, including Frank Eavey and Les Agee the True Value Hardware Man.

97X had dozens if not hundreds of part-time DJs over the lifetime of the station, but no one else can top the tenure of "Gentleman" Jim Mercer, who worked weekend and vacation fill-in shifts for a whopping 14 years, from 1990 through 2004. His dedication and professionalism made him the ultimate weekend warrior. Dave and Damian talk to Jim about his day job, how he got the DJ gig, and how he made...