ProgScape Radio (or PSR for short) started out as a dream, really. As a broadcasting major in college, I spent my college internship at a very well-known rock station here in Philadelphia, PA. That experience ruined my dreams of ever being involved in "terrestrial" radio. Automated play lists via computer, DJs who were CLEARLY faking it for the sake of keeping their jobs, and the lack of playing anything real "new" or "exciting" made me realize that this was not the career for me. There was no way I could justify playing bad music and act like I loved it. No way. That wasn't radio to me. Radio, to me, should be the way it was back in the early 70's, where the DJs became your friends. They exposed you to new and beautiful music, simply because they thought it needed to be heard. Needless to say, my experience made me realize that simply wasn't going to happen. I finished my major in radio but started a career in the computer field - but always hoped that ONE DAY, I would be able to put together my perfect idea of what radio would be like - radio for the sake of the music, regardless of genres, trends, and other factors that detract from getting quality music heard.

My dream stayed asleep until NEARfest 2003, when I was approached by an Internet radio station who thought it might be an interesting idea to make my vision a reality. "Internet Radio? Who listens to Internet Radio?" I thought. As it turns out, more and more people who like progressive rock as well as ambient/electronic music find that internet-based radio stations are the only real way they can hear the music they want to be exposed to. With that knowledge, I said "sure, why not!" and started my first show on July 28, 2003. The show was on every Tuesday from 8 through 10pm. I was happy. People listened. Life was good.

On November 16, 2004, I moved the show to quite possibly the biggest name in progressive rock-based Internet radio, Delicious Agony. It was an opportunity that I couldn't afford to pass up. With a now 3-hour time slot (from 8 through 11pm) each and every Tuesday, my dream of putting together a show that matched my vision have been realized. So far, people seem to dig it, as PSR is one of the top-rated shows at Delicious Agony. Those of you who listen on a weekly basis know to "expect the unexpected," and by the comments I've received by many of you, you enjoy - and look forward - to the programming I bring to you on a weekly basis. It's your comments that allow PSR to continue.

So why should you listen to ProgScape Radio? Well, there are some special things that happen within every show that make this program a very unique one. First, there's the album of the week segment. Every week, around hour 2 of the broadcast (9pm Eastern), I spotlight a different album from my collection. I play roughly a half-hour of material from the album, spotlighting deep cuts and other songs you wouldn't normally hear. Secondly, I don't just play progressive rock. All sorts of genres are represented - ambient, electronic, metal, punk, ska-core, power pop, acoustic, etc. In the world we live in, to be pigeonholed into any specific genre is pointless. The tag line of the show really tells what PSR has tried to do - to push the boundaries of what you think "good" or "quality" music is, and to push that envelope as far as it can go - and hopefully, in the process, to expose you, the listener, to some music that you simply wouldn't hear anywhere else. Third, there's Hour 11 - something that, as far as I know, is unheard of these days. I invite requests - no matter how odd, weird, or bizarre, and if i own it, I'll play it. I don't care if it's Pantera or Jim Croce, Billy Joel or Porcupine Tree, I'll play it. Hour 11 goes on until all requests are played. It could be 10 minutes, it could be 2 hours. However long it takes.

Additionally (and this is important), I do not play any song on my show that I do not physically own. In this day and age of IPods and Peer-To-Peer file sharing, it is very easy to download and play bootlegged music. PSR, as a general rule, refuses to play any material that is not in our library. PSR rips the MP3s from the CDs that we own. That list (which gets updated about once every other week) is a great way to see the music currently available to get played on PSR. Don't hear your favorite band, and it's not in the library? Email us for our physical address, drop ua a CD in the mail, and you might just hear it in the next weeks' brodadcast!

PSR is simply a hobby for me; one that I enjoy quite a bit. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I do bringing it to you. If you have any questions or comments (or feel that I should be playing more - or less - of a band), feel free to drop me a line at any time. See you in the chat room on Tuesday night!

- mike.