Sunshine Sound Center
Transforming lives by providing equitable access to music
Sunshine Sound Podcast: Making Music in Southern California
Your host Christine Mathias interviews music makers, producers, organizers, and others involved in the scene in Southern California. Listen to some original local music and hear the stories from the people who create. What does the music scene look like today? Why do we do what we do? How does it all come together? Sit back and enjoy that sunshine sound. Listen below, or you can find us on iTunes, Stitcher, GooglePlay, YouTube, or wherever you Podcast.
Are you a musician in southern California? Want to recommend a guest? Any other feedback? Contact your host at christine(at)sunshinesoundcenter.org.
Audio engineering and theme music by Tommy Bobcat.
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In this episode, I interview Emma Byrd, a music therapist based in San Diego. We talk all about music therapy – what it is, who can benefit from it, and how it’s done. We also talk about Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls San Diego, what it means to empower women, finding your voice, and the San Diego music scene (particularly as it compares to New England, where we both are from). We also have the chance to listen to one of Emma’s beautiful original songs.
In this episode, I interview Mat Rakers and Ryan Bradley of Fistfights With Wolves and the San Diego Music and Art Cooperative. Fistfights is an 8-piece progressive math rock band based here in San Diego, and their music is harmonically and rhythmically complex, weaving in elements of classical, folks, and rock music. We talk about the process of creating and performing these epic tracks, pushing yourself as a musician, their experience in running and teaching at SDMAC, and much more
In this episode, I interview Ken Santillan, also known as GrooveSquatch, an (almost intimidatingly) talented keyboardist based in San Diego. We talk about his experience playing top 40 music for 20 years, the fun of drunken audiences, working as a musician in theater, the magic of Open Oscillator, and much more.
In this episode, I interview Joe and Jaye MacAskill of Pony Death Ride, a half-Canadian musical comedy duo based in San Diego. We talk about their involvement in the burlesque scene, where inspiration comes from, why they have an entire album about cats, the role of comedy in music, their fantastic style, and of course their amazing Christmas shows.
In this episode, I interview Tommy Bobcat, local musician, sound engineer, and co-founder of Sunshine Sound Center. He plays guitar in Denim Robot, and also has his own experimental solo music, which we talk about. What is experimental music, anyway? How does being an audio engineer change the way you create music? Why do we get stage fright, and does it serve a purpose? All this and more. Enjoy.
In the second episode of the Sunshine Sound Podcast, I interview RC Krueger and Moses Constable. RC is a filmmaker and founder of Villains Records, and Mo IS Moans, a recording collective project putting out danceable groovy synth and bass-heavy tracks. RC directed the Moans video, Body Type, which won Best Video at the Music Video Extravaganza. Listen in to learn about the process for making that video, hear some great local music, and enjoy our observations on the music scene, having big dreams, and what it means to be an adult.
In the first episode of the Sunshine Sound Podcast, I interview Jeff Trageser. Jeff is the co-founder, host, and sometimes performer at Open Oscillator, a bi-monthly open mic for electronic musicians. We talk about how that event came together, what exactly electronic musicians are doing (and why they don’t like being called a “DJ”), the San Diego music scene, and Jeff’s other projects.