Instrumental Invasion, 11/24/21 November 25, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Animation, Audio, Comedy, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Politics, Radio, TV, Video Games.add a comment
The November 24 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded one hour per day on October 4 and 6. I chose not to record on the 5th due to insomnia the night before. Recording was done on my laptop at my secondary location, but with my spare Audio-Technica AT2020 mic connected to my Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 that I used at home before receiving a new mixer for Christmas. The mic stood on a boom for three years under the false hope of conducting an interview with a house guest. Accepting reality, I brought the mic and interface to the other location to use with my laptop. I’d finally achieved a universal sound with the same mic model in both locations. The only problem is I noticed a hum on my talk breaks, which I determined was from the fluorescent lights on the ceiling. Apparently, I had gotten used to the hum and forgot it existed. I know now to turn off the lights before recording.
Pickups were recorded from home on October 8 and 21. Segments were also remixed on the 21st down to 18:30 or close to it.
The playlist was created on October 1 and annotated on the 2nd. The script was drafted before recording on the 4th.
To accommodate all the new music I received, I replaced the 1984 and earlier segment with a third 2017 to present segment.
This was the first show with a new Dan Siegel liner in mind. Segments from the previous four shows featuring his music were retrofitted to include the liner.
In addition to new music by Dan, the show also marked the debut of the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio after his music was sent my way for airplay consideration. I said the title of the song I played “Girly Face,” a la Arnold Schwarzenegger, in reference to his phrase “girlie men.” The phrase was co-opted from the Hans and Franz sketch on Saturday Night Live, in the same manner that “cheese-eatin[g] surrender monkeys” was co-opted from an episode of The Simpsons.
I averted an error when crafting the second segment of hour 1, but missed the one in hour 2’s second segment. Thinking I had 3:50 available rather than 2:50, I selected “Watch Your Step” by Chris Geith. I realized the error during the October 6 recording session, replacing it with “Nocturnal” by Lisa Hilton. You’ll hear Chris’s song next week.
I’ve been meaning to end a show with Gerald Albright‘s cover of “Crazy” for a while, but it never fit. There was finally time for it this week.
Little did I realize that the penultimate song of the night, “Looking Ahead” by Bill Heller, would get the music video treatment the day after I finished recording. Here it is, with all musicians except for the percussionist (Paula Atherton is featured in the thumbnail on flute):
I didn’t mention on the air, but it was my parents’ 44th wedding anniversary.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
8:45 AM UPDATE: I made another mistake that I didn’t notice until listening to the aircheck. When drafting the script, I mistook the first “i” in Dan Feiszli for an “r,” leading me to call him “Dan Ferszli” while back-selling “Full Sail” by Lawson Rollins.
Instrumental Invasion, 11/10/21 November 11, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Art, Audio, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, TV, Video, Video Games.add a comment
The November 10 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded over four days for the second week in a row: one segment per day on September 20 and the 21st, and two per day on the 22nd and 23rd. The latter pair of days were also when pickups were recorded. Additional pickups were recorded on October 21 while shortening segments to 18:30 or close to it.
This was the first show recorded with a new shock mount, which seemed to muffle my mic’s audio. In some talk breaks, I sound like I’m in a hollow tube. It’s because the mic was facing the wrong way, which I didn’t notice until afterward. I had to apply a “denoise” effect on the last talk break as construction machinery was running next door.
The playlist was created on September 19 with annotations and the script draft on the 20th.
I ended the show with Scott Wilkie‘s cover of “Eu Vim da Bahia” (I Came from Bahia) to make up for not crediting percussionist Gibi dos Santos in the February 3 show.
I’d been meaning to play “Buckle Up” by Nick Colionne ever since I heard it on SiriusXM’s Watercolors on July 3 while on the way home from my first cousin once removed’s first birthday party.
My reading of “Smartypants,” while back-selling the David Benoit and Russ Freeman collaboration, was a nod to an infamous TV ad for the original Sonic the Hedgehog game:
The glasses and voice led me, and several others, to believe Andy Dick was the actor playing the H.A.G. president. I learned while drafting this post that it was really Larry Cedar. I mostly know Larry through his voice over work, but have followed him, and his artist daughter Jaqueline, on social media.
As for my show, click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Not included in the scope is a community calendar spot that ran during the first break:
2021 LIU Post & WCWP Homecoming Weekend, WCWP’s 60th Anniversary October 19, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Aviation, Football, Health, History, Internet, Interviews, Jazz, Media, Music, News, Personal, Phone, Photography, Radio, Rock, Sports, Technology, Travel, Video, Video Games, Weather.add a comment
Other recaps: 2008, 2009, WCWP 50th Anniversary (2011), 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2022
After a year away, Homecoming Weekend was back in full force! And WCWP’s 60th anniversary on Monday made it a four-day weekend!
It was my first time back on the campus of LIU Post since October 28, 2019 – a week after the last Homecoming – with Ryan Grabow.
On Thursday, October 14, I charged up my camcorder and changed batteries in the shotgun mic and audio recorder. I also charged up my GoPro Hero 7 for multi camera production, but didn’t use it.
Friday, October 15
I left for LIU Post via Uber at 10:30. Upon arrival, I gave my COVID-19 self-check form – which I filled out before I left – to the gate attendant. Then, I was driven down to WCWP in the Abrams Communication Center. I immediately went to work as Art Beltrone and Hank Neimark pre-recorded an interview in studio 1 for Monday’s 60th anniversary broadcast. The guest and recorder was Samantha “Sami J” Negron.
Here is the interview:
After that, I moved my equipment into studio 2 to record part of Art Beltrone’s solo show, WCWP’s Early Years, which kicked off the 60-hour (hey, 60 hours + 60 years!) Homecoming Weekend programming block. Jeff Kroll was the board operator and his wife Pat was producer.
Hank Neimark was Art’s first guest:
Jay Elzweig introduced the songs, all from 1961, the year WCWP signed on:
Several WCWP alumni were interviewed via Zoom:
Two of the Zoom guests were Stewart Ain…:
…and Steve Radoff:
Another show feature had Art reading Post Pioneer newspaper articles. This one was “Message to the Students from the Provost”:
Jay showed off his t-shirt:
The show closed with a preview of 4:00’s Strictly Jazz with John LiBretto and Hank Neimark:
Art also asked Jeff and Pat Kroll their thoughts:
After Art’s closing remarks, the show was over.
Here’s video of portions of WCWP’s Early Years:
Joan Yonke, LIU Post Campus Director of Employer and Alumni Engagement, dropped by the station during Early Years and came back again afterward. It’s always nice to see her.
While the pre-recorded WCWP Career Paths with Bill Mozer ran, I took some photos in the lounge area:
Here’s Homecoming Weekend coordinator Zach’s dog Diesel:
Strictly Jazz started a few minutes after 4PM due to technical difficulties, but ran without a hitch after that.
As you saw, Jeff Kroll ran the board again.
Joining John LiBretto…:
…and Hank Neimark…:
…was Rita Sands, appearing by phone.
They spoke to Jon Korkes via Zoom (after John held Jeff’s “un-mute” message up to the webcam):
They spoke to me in studio 2:
And after my dad picked up to drive me home, Ted David on Zoom:
Here is my video of the first hour:
And the scope of the entire show, just as in 2019 when it aired before mine:
10/20 UPDATE: John Zoni took over studio 2 at 6PM:
Sami J was on at 8PM with Total Access:
My friend and ardent supporter Jay Mirabile had a special edition of his DFK Show at 10PM. Here’s a photo he posted with Sami and Peter Sacoulas:
And his aircheck:
Saturday, October 16
I spent much of the morning editing media and drafting this blog post. I left for Post, this time with my dad, shortly after 1PM.
Both gates were open with no need to check in. So, when we got to campus at 1:30, I photographed the turn into the east gate:
Bernie Bernard and Adam Smook were congregating in studio 3. Adam and I are both from Wantagh – Wantagh Woods, at that! – as we discussed. We also talked about fellow alumnus Frank D’Elia, who worked with Adam at WOR and then WABC.
Jay Elzweig and Jett Lightning came in, as our WABC discussion continued, eventually turning to jingles. Bernie mentioned how JAM Creative Productions recorded a name jingle for her. That jingle has become part of her annual Homecoming Weekend show, which airs after coverage of the football game.
The LIU Sharks‘ Homecoming football game was against the Merrimack Warriors. Merrimack won convincingly 43-5. The Sharks only got a safety and a field goal. I walked toward Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium during the third quarter.
I planespotted to and from Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium, watching planes turn toward JFK. This is Delta flight 169 from BCN (Barcelona El Prat Airport):
JetBlue flight B6192 from ACK (Nantucket Memorial Airport):
Carnival attractions in the parking lot:
“Hoco”? That’s a new one on me.
The stadium entrance:
A play on Bronko Piersall Field:
The scoreboard:
The new press box and stands:
The opposite side:
That’s enough for me. Back to the station.
Emirates flight 201 from DXB (Dubai International Airport):
Jeff Kroll told me he’s been on that flight in the past, all 13 hours of it.
Delta flight 858 from ATL (Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport):
Delta flight 4721 from BNA (Nashville International Airport):
WCWP’s transmitter:
When the game was over, I got to work photographing the postgame show, hosted by John Zoni:
Here is my aircheck of the postgame show, which includes final thoughts from the broadcast booth by Tom Scavetta and Alex Damiris:
Next, the aforementioned Bernie Bernard:
The first page of her playlist:
Jett Lightning was Bernie’s first guest:
Then, me:
Meanwhile, WCWP’s internet station, The Wave, hosted a barbecue outside. Zach was the grillmaster:
Dave asked for a picture:
Seconds later, Qatar Airways flight 701 from DOH (Doha Hamad International Airport) was flying about as low as the earlier Emirates plane:
Jeff’s been on that flight, too. It’s 14 hours long! Nonetheless, he raved about their service.
One last Delta plane: flight 1984 from SAL (San Salvador International Airport):
Back inside, John Zoni and Lew Scharfberg wrapped up the bagels from earlier in the day:
Jay Elzweig was the last of Bernie’s guests that I photographed and video recorded:
In addition to reminiscing, he gave the weather forecast, right up my alley as a fellow weather buff:
The weather Friday and Saturday was warm and a little humid, but a cold front came through Saturday night, leading to seasonably mild and dry conditions Sunday and Monday.
Video of all three segments (my vidcap is the thumbnail):
I chose to leave earlier this year, but there was more to do before I left.
I photographed Art Beltrone’s interview with Nick Mattina and Griffin Ward:
Art:
Nick:
Griffin:
Art’s notes:
A candid shot of Art’s off-air conversation with Lew Scharfberg:
Then, I recorded Art’s interview with me. Here are vidcaps:
…and the video itself:
I mentioned Dan Cox’s predecessor as WCWP’s Director of Broadcasting, and Dan himself who has held the position for 19 years and counting, but forgot to acknowledge Joe Manfredi, the Director of Operations when I was a student. He’s my fellow 2021 WCWP Hall of Fame inductee along with Jay Mirabile. Participating on Zoom during the broadcast to remedy my omission voided the chance for this interview to air; no double-dipping.
Finally on Saturday, posed photos, starting with Peter Sacoulas and Sami Jo Negron:
Me with Peter and Sami:
John Zoni:
…and Tom Scavetta:
Art Beltrone, Bobby Guthenberg (a.k.a. Bobby G.), Joel Mahan:
Art, Bobby G., Jerry Reilly, Joel:
I met Joel and Jerry in 2019 and was so glad to see them again this year. Joel was eager to listen to my regular Wednesday night show and Bobby complimented my work.
Jett Lightning and Jay Elzweig:
Bernie Bernard:
Bernie and John Mertz:
A candid shot of Art Beltrone and Alan Seltzer:
…and posed:
And with my dad having arrived in the parking lot, the last photo was me with Bobby and Alan:
Like Art at the end of his interview with me, Bobby thanked me for everything I do. I told him I appreciate that.
It’s an aircheck palooza from here on out, except for any photos I find in the WCWP Alumni Association Facebook group. To that end, here’s a photo of another guest on Bernie’s show: her former student Joe Connelly:
Alan Seltzer and Bobby G., followed by just Alan:
And Bernie’s outro:
Bobby G. and Mike Riccio were next at 7PM. Here is a scope of their first hour:
Again, courtesy of Bernie, it’s Bobby and Jett:
Mike Riccio:
And the four original hosts of The Rock Show: Bobby, Mike, Alan and Bernie:
A partial scope of Alan’s 10PM show, Seltzer with a Twist:
Sunday, October 17
Once again, I spent the morning editing content from the day before and the aircheck of Instrumental Invasion. Full details about the show are in a separate post, but here’s the scoped aircheck:
I airchecked a handful of Sunday’s shows, also of the partial scope variety. Jay LaPrise was on at 8AM with The Why I Work in Television Radio Show:
At noon, “Jammin'” Jamie Mazzo and Sara “Sadie” Dorchak hosted The Ladies of Prison Break Radio. This is a partial scope, but a long one: 49 minutes. The aircheck begins with a trailer-style Homecoming Weekend promo voiced by Zach:
10/20 UPDATE: Next, at 4PM, Joseph P. Honerkamp. You can call him Joe. Here’s a full scope:
I made a scoped version with re-synced audio and the end part that the video missed:
Jett Lightning came on at 6PM with Lightning’s Hits and Rarities Reliquary. As you’ll hear, Jay Elzweig – weather forecast in tow – joined Jett later in the show:
Rock ‘N’ Soul Gospel followed at 8PM, hosted by Grandfather Rock Chris MacIntosh. His scope includes a community calendar spot voiced by me and a promo for Monday’s 60th anniversary special voiced by Jeff Kroll:
And as midnight approached, Zach wrapped up the weekend that was:
Monday, October 18
I had yet another morning of editing; in this case, Sunday’s aircheck scopes heard above.
Noon came, and so began the WCWP 60th anniversary broadcast, hosted by Art Beltrone and Hank Neimark, board operated by Jeff Kroll, and produced by Pat Kroll; same as Friday.
My initial plan was to listen to the stream, but as noted earlier, I joined in on Zoom. Here are some screencaps:
Show timeline:
- Introduction with sign-on audio
- Dr. Jennifer Holmes, Dean of Arts, Communications, and Design; and Michael Berthel, Chief of Staff and Vice President for Student Affairs
- Hank counts down to 12:15, pops champagne, cuts cake
- Dr. Kimberly Cline, LIU President
- Jeff Kroll
- Dan Cox, WCWP Director of Broadcasting, reads citation from Nassau County Executive Laura Curran
- Hank Neimark
- Bruce Mahler (via Zoom)
- Jon Cole (via Zoom)
- John Commins (via Zoom)
- Joel Feltman (via Zoom)
- Diane Taylor (via Zoom)
- Stewart Ain (via Zoom)
- Joe Honerkamp (via Zoom)
- John LiBretto (via Zoom)
- Jon Korkes (via Zoom)
- Rita Sands (on the phone)
- Bernie Bernard (recorded Saturday)
- Jeff asks Art and Hank to share their recollections
- Harry Lowenthal (via Zoom)
- Mike Chimeri (via Zoom)
- Bobby Guthenberg (via Zoom)
- Zach Parker
- West Side Story opened in theaters the same day WCWP signed on
- Alan Seltzer (via Zoom)
- Ted David (recorded via Zoom)
- Jeff’s recollections, John Commins and Mike Chimeri’s interjections
- Aleen “Junie” Thomas (via Zoom)
- Dr. William Martinov, LIU Director of Athletics (recorded Saturday)
- Andrew Scarpaci (recorded Saturday)
- Art and Hank re-read citation
- Pat Kroll
- Joe Honerkamp and Stewart Ain share stories about Mrs. Abrams
- Lew Scharfberg (via Zoom)
- Bruce Leonard (via Zoom)
- Fred Gaudelli (via Zoom)
- Bill Mozer (on the phone)
- Jon Cole, Mike Chimeri, Fred Gaudelli, Joel Feltman speak to Bill
- Elise Person (recorded on the phone)
- End
The show was 2 1/2 hours, but I’m posting audio in three parts. Here’s part 1:
Part 2:
Part 3:
And my pre-record-voiding appearance:
Pat Kroll also took several photos, starting with the cake:
Art with the cake:
Hank, Jeff, Art:
Hank cutting the cake:
Dr. Cline:
Dan Cox reads County Executive Curran’s citation:
The citation:
Thank you very much for reading, viewing, and hearing all the way to the end. To repeat myself, I greatly appreciate the support I get for the work I do. This was a labor of love and friendship.
60 cheers to WCWP! See you next year.
Instrumental Invasion, 9/8/21 September 9, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, Video Games.add a comment
The September 8 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP, the 75th show overall, was recorded from July 26 to 29, alternating between one and two segments per day at times when construction was not in progress next door.
The playlist was created on July 25 with annotations carrying into the 26th, followed by the script draft.
As noted at the top of the show, I played through two versions Super Mario World over a couple of weeks in July, beating the game and finding the last of the exits on the 24th.
I played the Super Famicom version on an FXPak Pro flash cart…:
…and the North American Super Nintendo version via Nintendo Switch Online:
It was the first time I had completed the game in over 25 years. For more on my experience with Super Mario World and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, check out my post on Ultimate Nintendo: Guide to the SNES Library by Pat Contri.
As for the September 8 show, I chose not to acknowledge the 75th show milestone. I’ll save that for the 100th, if we get that far.
I learned last Friday that I had been mispronouncing trumpeter Tyler Mire’s last name while talking up “(It Gets) Better” by Ken Navarro. During the live listening party on Facebook for I Will Still Be Here, Ken pronounced it “meer” while I thought it rhymed with fire. I had submitted this week’s show, wherein I played “Straight Out the Gate,” the morning before. So, it was too late to correct my mistake, the third time I’d played a song with Tyler on trumpet. If I ever play any of those three songs again, rest assured I will use the correct pronunciation.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Instrumental Invasion, 9/1/21 September 2, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Film, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, Video, Video Games.add a comment
The September 1 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded an hour per day on July 22 and 23 amid construction next door.
The playlist was created on July 21 and annotated on the morning of the 22nd. The script was drafted before each recording session. That means the first hour was drafted on the afternoon of the 22nd and the second on the morning of the 23rd.
As usual, some segments ran long, requiring fast delivery or removing sentences, while others ran short, requiring padding, swapping out short liners for longer ones, and extra info. For example, I wasn’t planning on listing all the Hubert Laws albums Chick Corea played on.
I referenced the 1989 film The Wizard while back-selling “The Wizard” by Joyce Cooling. It’s a film I had heard about, but didn’t see until last September on HBO Max. It surely made moviegoers want a Nintendo Entertainment System, Power Glove (Lucas Barton loves it!), and Super Mario Bros. 3, key to the film’s climax. SMB3 was released in North America two months after The Wizard released.
The Power Glove was mentioned in The Gaming Historian‘s video on the U-Force, which creator Norman Caruso posted eight hours before airtime. Watch:
As for my show, click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
The stream audio was fine this week, clear as a bell in both channels, but there was a glitch toward the end of the first segment of hour 2. The stream (or automation) froze for about three minutes, resumed, froze again for several more seconds, resumed again, then jumped ahead to the next segment. For the part that didn’t air, I copied from my segment files and applied a multiband compressor filter.
9/3 UPDATE: Ken Navarro hosted a listening party tonight on Facebook for I Will Still Be Here, and I learned I’ve been mispronouncing the last name of trumpeter Tyler Mire. It’s “meer,” as in meerkat. It doesn’t rhyme with fire. Last week’s show and next week’s show, which I submitted yesterday morning, also have that mispronunciation.
Instrumental Invasion, 5/26/21 May 27, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Comedy, Country, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, TV, Video, Video Games.add a comment
The May 26 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded over three days. The first hour was completed on April 20 with a pickup on the 21st, while the second hour and additional pickups were done on the 22nd.
The playlist was created on April 18 with annotations and the script draft on the 19th.
It was a Brown namesake extravaganza with songs by Norman (guitar/vocals), Alison (banjo), Paul (guitar/vocals), and Dean (guitar), plus songs by Lisa Addeo – making her Instrumental Invasion debut – and Julian Vaughn that featured Mel Brown on bass. I’d love to see the five of them perform together someday.
For the first time in six shows, I had to replace a song because time was running short in a segment; in this case, the first segment of hour 2. “Through the Years” by Brian Culbertson was replaced with “Northern Lights.”
As I type this sentence, I have not played any version of Space Harrier, but through watching videos on YouTube, I’ve developed an appreciation for it. Thus, “Get Ready” by Jazmin Ghent (making her debut on the show) makes me think of the opening line in the game: “Welcome to the fantasy zone. Get ready!”
This video dares to compare every version of Space Harrier:
I also made reference to The Golden Girls. “Picture it!,” I exclaimed as Sophia Petrillo (Estelle Getty) while acknowledging Nick Petrillo on keyboards.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Instrumental Invasion, 5/5/21 May 6, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Football, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, Sports, Video, Video Games.add a comment
The May 5 Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was recorded two segments per day from March 31 to April 2.
The playlist was created on March 27 and annotated on the 28th. The script was drafted on the 29th.
I used the phrase “one compound word,” while back-selling “Magicsmiles” by Gregg Karukas, as an homage to a 2012 episode of The Angry Video Game Nerd (strong language):
The phrase was uttered by the Nerd (James Rolfe) toward the end of a monologue on football. The monologue starts at 1:27 with the phrase coming two minutes later.
And speaking of videos, here is the music video for “Motor City Sway” by Alexander Zonjic:
I didn’t have Cinco de Mayo in mind when I programmed “South of the Border” into the playlist, but I realized while drafting the script that the show would air that day.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Instrumental Invasion, 4/14/21 April 15, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, Travel, TV, Video, Video Games, Weather.add a comment
The April 14, 2021, Instrumental Invasion on WCWP was painstakingly recorded over four days. The first hour was recorded in the early morning and mid-afternoon of March 9. The second hour took three days with the first segment recorded on March 10 on my laptop through an Apogee MiC 96k, and the last two segments back at home on the 11th and 12th. Pickups were required for a talk break in the third segment of hour 1 and one talk break in each segment of hour 2.
The playlist was created and annotated on March 7, and the script was drafted on the 8th. For the second week in a row, I made a timing error. Worse yet, two timing errors. In the last segment of hour 1, I put in a 4:32 song rather than 5:32. The replacement song faded out incredibly early, which still left me with too much time in the talk break that followed. I had to vamp. I made the opposite mistake in hour 2, inserting a 4:55 song in the second segment when I needed 3:55. The irony is the first segment was mainly comprised of songs that I had to cut from the last two shows, one due to timing and the other because of a wordy talk break. (9:35 AM UPDATE: I forgot to account for the replacement, which was from 2011. That meant listeners heard me refer in the vamp to a 2010 song that they wouldn’t hear until a week later.)
The inclusion of “Outside Solaris” by Clifford Marshall Van Buren is another of my loving tributes to the heyday of local forecast music on The Weather Channel. You can find an example of its usage on Matt Marron’s TWC Classics tribute site. I don’t always do this, but I prefaced the description of Solaris with “according to Wikipedia” to acknowledge my lack of knowledge. You learn something new every day.
The “fun fact” preface to the Dan Ingram tidbit was an homage to a catchphrase on the Technology Connections YouTube channel.
Picking up on what I said coming out of “Whispered Confessions” by Lisa Hilton, here is a side-by-side comparison of the song’s melody and what’s played between levels in the NES port of Pac-Man:
That remains a pleasant coincidence seven years after hearing the song for the first time at Carnegie Hall.
Click here to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Instrumental Invasion, 3/31/21 April 1, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Airchecks, Audio, Internet, Jazz, Media, Music, Personal, Radio, Video, Video Games.add a comment
The March 31, 2021, Instrumental Invasion on WCWP marked one year since my Wednesday night premiere. The show was recorded one hour per day on February 25 and 26 with multiple pickups recorded on the second day, and still more on the morning of the 27th.
The playlist was created on February 23 with annotations continuing into the 24th, after which the script was drafted.
This was an incredibly hard show to do. I had to improvise multiple talk breaks because there wasn’t enough time to read from the lengthy scripts. The second talk break of the show was so lengthy that I had to replace “Lakeshore Cowboy” by Ramsey Lewis with “Heartsounds” by David Lanz. In future playlists, I’m expanding the back-sell length to 50 seconds. That may not even be enough.
“Giant Steps” and “Fly with the Wind” were included days after acquiring John Coltrane and McCoy Tyner‘s albums of the same name. Giant Steps is the first Trane album I ever bought.
My “Giant Steps” curiosity had been piqued by several YouTube videos that either covered the song…:
…or adapted the changes into other songs:
So, it was only right that I acquaint myself with the original.
I played “El Camino Real” by David Benoit to make up for the factual error I made when I first played it last August 19.
Click below to download the aircheck MP3 or listen below:
Requiem for Cygnus Destroyer, LJN Defender and IUPG March 6, 2021
Posted by Mike C. in Internet, Media, Personal, Radio, Video, Video Games.23 comments
10/5/23 UPDATE: Two comments came in since the June updates, which I will edit for brevity. The first was from Liz on September 9: “Matthew S’s comment made me laugh my ass off. … Kinda seems like a rude thing to claim you enjoyed somebody’s work and then just disregard their identity because of ‘SJWs’ … If some of the old fans are worried about weirdo conspiracy theories from the days of the Harlem Shake, then I don’t blame them from trying to distance themselves from us. However, I do also miss their content and I tried checking their X account as I wondered what they were up to and boom, it’s not there anymore … I tried searching up ‘Sapphic Sorceress’ and I do not think Morgan is going by that name. I hope that Morgan decides to bring back the series someday seeing as how LGBTQ friendly/identifying gaming channels are now way more accepted today … I’m just hoping they’re doing alright.” The second comment came today from Brandon M.: “Found my way here after YouTube started recommending reuploads of The LJN Defender to me and I went to figure out why the originals were gone. It’s kinda painful that this is the only explanation I could find and it’s marred by calling their new (well, three years old at this point) identity an SJW phase. I do appreciate that you’re trying to be respectful though, Mike. Wishing the best for Morgan. You can truly only make videos defending disliked games for so long, but I hope they know they’d be welcomed if they ever decided to mingle in retro gaming spaces again.” The reuploads can be found on The Slums Archive YouTube channel.
6/25/23 UPDATE: I learned yesterday that videos were posted to Archive.org back in December. I’ll leave it to the reader to seek out the page with the videos. (6/27: Or check the comments.)
5/24/23 UPDATE: I hoped this would never happen, but the same Matthew in the prior updates told me this: “Unfortunately, it appears Matt has deleted all his YT channels permanently. No more LJN Defender.” So, I said, “That’s terrible. Well, I’ll leave this post up for posterity, but update to reflect the deleted videos. Apparently, nothing is forever.” I fear I may be forced to take this post down altogether before long, but until then, it stays.
8/17/22 UPDATE: Again, from Matthew S.: “Hi, just a quick update on Matt’s channel… a change happened. Quite minor, but hey, it’s something. His Mx. Morgan Enby channel has now been renamed ‘Sapphic Sorceress.’ So seems like Matt is still embracing Enby philosophy, but given a lack of any updates or content for several years from now, I suppose it’s possible we may see something soon? [J]ust to clarify, I do not know Matt personally, however I’ve been following him since 2014. But I have read all his Disqus content and Morgan was just his internet handle/alias since 2020, so I would imagine given the lack of anything from that particular name anywhere, Matt is trying to distance himself from his former fanbase, likely to avoid the pressure/discussion of returning to videogame content. Just a quick update, nothing really substantial but its good to at least see SOMETHING. Thanks again Mike.” Thank you again, Matthew, whose initial comment is below.
7/30/22 UPDATE: I received this comment today from Matthew S.: “Morgan was Matt’s Reddit alias online at the time, but he never legally changed his name or did any kind of transition. He still lives in Peru, NY to this day in his childhood home as far as I can see, with his mother. I honestly think this is just another phase. Matt spent endless hours in his room, playing and recording games/videos for his YT channel. I think the SJW phase is just something else he fell into, as you can see BLM and LGBTQ stuff on the front of his home’s window as of 2021. I miss him greatly, he was a video editing genius and had an incredible natural sense of humor depicted in his early videos, even if it was just scripted.” I thanked Matthew for the clarification and said I miss Matt, too. The original update to the original post is below.
3/31/21 UPDATE: A comment from Greg B. noted that “Matt is now Mx. Morgan Constance Enby. [They] abandoned video game talk all together … focusing on Trans Rights/Awareness and Politics.” As I stated in my reply, thank you, Greg, for letting me know. I sincerely wish them luck in their current endeavor. If any readers share their political views and are equally active, you can follow them on Twitter. (It’s the same account as before, but with a new link. That’s why I couldn’t find it.)
Read the original post below.
In June 2017, I discovered a video game-centered YouTube channel run by the enthusiastic Matt Ezero (“ezzer-o”), who bears a striking resemblance to actor and director David Hyde Pierce. Matt had three series running concurrently:
- Cygnus Destroyer’s Retro Reviews – the channel’s original concept, reviewing retro video games and consoles that Matt grew up playing or recently acquired
- The LJN Defender – an alternate take on video games published by LJN, a company that incurred the wrath of The Angry Video Game Nerd, one of Matt’s influences
- Innocent Until Proven Guilty (IUPG) – a balanced look at flawed video games to determine whether they are innocent or guilty (or on rare occasions, guinnocent)
I had nearly five years of content to catch up on. There wasn’t much I didn’t like. Here are the first five videos I saw upon my discovery:
My only pet peeve was the unscripted status update outros, but Matt’s transparency was admirable. He had eschewed those outros a year before I discovered the channel. He had also upgraded his game capture methods from composite for pre-HD consoles to RGB and HDMI shortly before my discovery, starting with Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker:
Naturally, I became a loyal subscriber, and when Matt started a Patreon account in 2018, I was a proud pledge.
The content kept on coming, and as a patron, I provided feedback and voted on upcoming topics. Best of all, my name was featured in the credits. For example, Sonic and the Black Knight:
Incidentally, the Wiimote/nunchuk control demonstration in that video was hilarious: “Looks fun, doesn’t it?!” I love absurd humor.
Another example, Zelda CD-i games:
My Patreon post comments were even seen in the background. This was at the end of the Simon’s Quest video:
…and Matt’s tribute to the Sega Master System:
Unfortunately, any videos he posted to Patreon – mostly episode commentaries – were unscripted, which meant small things, like repeat phrases (i.e. “so…yeah,” “kind of”) or vocal quirks, got on my nerves. Not only that, but his persona was radically different. Main channel Matt was lively; Patreon Matt was staid. (He was also a political progressive who “liked” left-wing political posts on Twitter, but his tweets were apolitical.) I wasn’t expecting the same intense personality as the videos, but it was quite a contrast, akin to the chill energy of some Twitch streamers. And that was fine.
I think the reason phrases and quirks irk me is because I worked hard to improve my speech, or at least improve my presentation in a public forum. Hearing others speak how I used to, and still do to some extent in unguarded conversations, on recorded media is unnerving. I’m such a perfectionist that I edited all the fumfering and misspeaking out of old home audio recordings (late teens, early 20s) of play-by-play of my friends bowling at nearby AMF Wantagh Lanes.
With that said, though – to use one of his phrases – I gained insight into how he made his videos. For example, overhead camera shots of him playing Nintendo Switch games in handheld mode (as in this video) were actually recorded straight ahead with an upside down perspective. He would flip the video in Vegas Pro, his video editing software of choice, so that the view was right side up.
I also had the opportunity to vote in polls to determine episode topics. Among my votes was for an IUPG on Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival.
As 2019 progressed, Matt began to experience creative burnout. To counter that, he tried an experimental unscripted video on Bubsy: Paws on Fire. My black and white, all or nothing brain figured this was the way things would be from now on. So, I unpledged and unsubscribed. YouTube recommendations pointed me to a follow-up video where he announced a pivot back to the way things were. I promptly resubscribed and repledged. The scripted redo, the second video posted after his hiatus, came out this way:
That wasn’t the end, though. Content creation continued to be a struggle for Matt. After this IUPG video on WWE 2K20 (where, ironically, he ended the video on an uplifting, positive note about future content)…:
…the burnout reached its apex. The only solution was to go unscripted in 2020 to lessen the burden. I wouldn’t have that, unpledging and unsubscribing for good. I hoped for the best for him, but what he had in mind was not what I wanted.
As someone with weekly radio shows I record well in advance, and a compulsion to photograph and recap events I attend (i.e. UPLINK last year, Smooth Jazz for Scholars every normal year), I empathize with Matt’s struggle. There are times where I can’t handle the stress and want to quit. Somehow, I get through the creation process each week with the radio shows, but with the second UPLINK last month, I just couldn’t bring myself to take notes on four panels I chose to watch and adapt those notes into a recap as I did the first time. As for the radio shows, it takes at least five times as long to create, script, record, and produce each one. Yes, like I preferred Matt do, I script out my talk breaks with freedom to ad-lib occasionally. I started doing that last summer because there was a lot of information to disseminate and I didn’t want to forget anything. I feel I have enough voice over training and natural talent where I don’t always sound like I’m reading from a script. But even with all the work that goes into a show, I’ll make a mistake or forget something and need to redo a line or few. I don’t know how long my show’s run will be, but I greatly hope I don’t get burned out.
As 2020 dragged on, I assumed it was (new) business as usual for Matt, carrying on like any content creator. Other channels I unsubscribed from over small things – like mispronouncing words and phrases (some even intentionally to trigger pedants), saying “kind of” or “sort of” every other sentence, going on anti-humor tangents, and saying “at the end of the day” instead of “ultimately” or “in the end” – continue to put out content. They do just fine without my pedantry. Not Matt. On February 7 of this year, someone commented on one of my IUPG screencap Instagram posts (8/25 UPDATE: Instagram seems to have removed embedding for WordPress sites):
Whatever happened to him? The guy has completely disappeared. Even on his second channel. Along with social media.
The commenter was right. If you try to access the Cygnus Destroyer accounts on Twitter and Facebook, you’re told the pages no longer exist. Matt left up the YouTube channel for posterity, calling it simply “LJN Defender.”
He wrote this in the channel about tab:
This is the old channel for the LJN Defender and home to Innocent Until Proven Guilty. I’ve now stopped making these types of videos because I no longer enjoy making them, but you will always be able to watch my old content right here.
The last post in the community tab was 11 months ago. Looking at the comments for the post before that have me worried that I caused Matt’s demise.
Blindsided, I replied to the commenter:
Whoa, I had no idea. I quit following and supporting him early last year when he abandoned scripted videos. Sad to hear he’s disappeared from the public eye.
After visiting the channel, I wrote a follow-up:
And now I see that those videos aren’t even listed. It just stops at WWE 2K20. Well, I think I’ll resubscribe just so I can reacquaint myself with his videos. I was a diehard fan for three years and watched nearly every video he posted.
I did as I said, watching all 180 videos that Matt left up (8/25 UPDATE: two seem to have been removed) (9/19 UPDATE: another two were removed) over the past three weeks, from the evening of February 12 through this morning. (Oddly, he removed closed captioning from the remaining videos.) I even watched unscripted ones like his second anniversary video. Along the way, I noticed that some now-unlisted videos remained in the end screen. I watched one of them (9/19 UPDATE: removed). As my journey progressed, I occasionally felt wistful, knowing that the man I was watching had essentially disappeared off the face of the Earth. I also felt nostalgic for later videos, recalling what was going on in my life at the time they were published.
Wherever you are, Matt, know that you still have plenty of fans, including me, that are grateful for the seven years of content you gave us. The pedantic side of me may not like the small things from your unscripted moments, but your videos brought me joy. They were informative, enlightening, and entertaining. Thank you and God bless you.
MikeChimeri.com 