About ProgScape Radio...

“If your a prog music fan, or if you just want to hear some (very!) different music, this is the place to go…” – Bill Fisher

“It truly is a great service you provide to we proggers.” – Michael Pomerantz

“You are a source of knowledge on awesome music. Thank you for your service.” – Matt Culbreth

“This show alone has ignited in me, a deeper passion for music.” – Alice Rolland

“Great variety and unpredictable yet mostly enjoyable playlists.” – Eric Smith

“Just found Progscape Radio a couple of weeks ago, and it’s such a great thing to have this curated selection of music available to us every week. It has become my main source of music lately, and I’ve enjoyed every episode I’ve listened to, always finding something new and enjoyable.” – Edmund Hershberger

“Thanks to you for re-awakening my interest in prog and introducing me to great music, new and old!” – Steve Brodders

“Thanks for spreading the word! May good karma be yours. :-)” – Bryan Beller (Mike Keneally, Steve Vai, Dethklok)

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 and started a full-time career in the computer field. However, the dream was always 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 now-defunct 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 Monday 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 30-40 minutes 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.

Additionally (and this is important), I do not play any song on my broadcast that I do not physically own. In this day and age of Bandcamp, iTunes and and Peer-To-Peer file sharing, it is very easy to download and play music that you don’t physically own. 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 not as often as it should) 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 my library? Email us for our physical address, drop us a CD in the mail, and you might just hear it in the next months’ brodadcast!

For those of you who are simply unable to listen to the broadcast live, we have a couple of options for you to still listen! The show is replayed on the second Wednesday of every month at 3pm Eastern over at Delicious Agony. Additionally, the most recent (and the previous 10 or so) shows are available to download via iTunes!. If you want a specific show that is a little older, just inquire – we’ve been podcasting since 2010, so every show since that point is archived.

Want to discuss the show with like-minded individuals? We have a Facebook Page set up so you can do just that! Comment on the selected album of the week, tell others about songs you heard on the show (or perhaps ones you want to hear). It’s a great way to have your voice heard. If Facebook isn’t your thing, you can tweet, too! (isn’t technology wonderful?)

PSR is a hobby; 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.

– mike.