28
Jul
This post by J.C. Hutchins brings up some valid points and prompts me to lay out a more detailed mission statement of Astral Audio Productions. While a podcast is currently our main product, it is only the bait, (or more accurately, one form of bait), that grabs your attention. When I started thinking of what I wanted this place to represent, what I wanted to accomplish, and furthermore, how to achieve those goals, I knew that I wanted to be outside the box. I wanted to incorporate the things I enjoy into what I do and produce. The short answer is that Astral Audio Productions is here to entertain, inform, instruct, and inspire the community that is built through interaction. Let’s break it all down and remove the curtain and explain just how this has started. Since I love the whole concept of audio dramas, I started producing one. I listened to several established productions. I already had a basic storyline in mind. (It was something I had put on the back burner for years.) I already had a grasp of how to produce the podcast side of things thanks to my many conversations with Scott Sigler and research. I invested in the tools necessary to produce a good quality show. I sought volunteer actors that would be up to the task of bringing characters to life. But all of this made Astral Audio Productions no different than your standard podcasted audio drama. That brought me back to the “outside the box” concept. We have podcasts that fill a certain niche. Some like music. Some like audio dramas or storytelling. Why not combine the two? Couldn’t you build a world around the whole “broadcast” archetype? We’ve proven, (so far), that you can blend these forms of entertainment together. I personally am an eclectic fan of music. I knew that I didn’t want to just play one genre for [you] the listeners. Also, since I was still volunteering my time for a radio dj, I wanted to meld that into the final product. While that last part has been slow going, we are going to be introducing more and more segments from the broadcasted radio show as time permits. To further blend reality with fiction, Astral Audio Productions will be doing two things to generate interest. First, with Scott Sigler using maps to show his listeners the locations in his book, we see this as something we can do with the Astral Audio Experience whenever there are scenes that reference actual locations here in our world. And speaking of referencing, this brings me to the second way; using current events whenever possible. I won’t say how necessarily, but I will say that you might want to watch the news more or research online for some of the things we dredge up for content. And for the record, we won’t be taking a pro candidate stance if we happen to reference a political story; this is entertainment after all. Is there more that could be done? Yes. The above strategies aren’t ground breaking in their scope, but they are a start. The small network that has been built as a result of the formation of Astral Audio Productions allows us to do more than simply give you a podcast. We can teach you how we do what we do which would hopefully inspire you to participate. This means that you soon will be seeing tutorials on the writing, performing, producing, and marketing aspects. Also, we will present motivational videos that will help you become more than just a dreamer, but a doer. We want an inspired and active community of fans that will come back to us whenever possible. And not only do we want to show you how to do something, we want to examine what inspires elements of the Astral Audio Experience; namely, what inspires certain settings, plots, and characters. What better way than by profiling books, movies, and other sources that we come across in the research/writing process. Even though none of us are paid, we are a production company; we invest our time and effort. We hope to be as transparent and as engaging as Hutchins suggests. After all, the tag line is, “we are more than just a podcast; we are an interactive podcasting experience.” You experience the fruits of our labor, and in time, we hope that you will take the various tools we provide and use them to your advantage. This isn’t a one-sided deal. We will want your input so we can improve the quality of our work.
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In this episode of Astral Audio Extra, we highlight the Alternative Rock group Cowboy Mouth who hail from New Orleans by playing six of their songs. We also wish Jace Edwards Happy Birthday; the band selection is thanks to his time spent in the Crescent City. We update you on why I posted the cult horror film Phenomena directed by Dario argento a few days ago in what will be a recurring feature. Astral Audio Experience: Episode 6 is knocking at the door; a few more script tweaks, and then the cast will play. And speaking of the cast, Astral Audio Productions welcomes Mark Bruzee, (of Darker Projects fame), to the family. He has been involved with such hits as Night Terrors, the Sword of Windsor, Generation 1, Dark Matter, Star Trek: Lost Fronteer, the parsec nominated The Falcon Banner, among others.
The songs featured in this podcast are thanks to www.iodapromonet.com. Here is each song in order of appearance and it’s relevant album. Be sure to buy the ones you like using the links provided.
Cowboy Mouth
“Light it on Fire” (mp3)
from “Word of Mouth”
(Cowboy Mouth Records)
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Rhapsody
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Amazon
More On This Album
Cowboy Mouth
“Take Me Back To New Orleans” (mp3)
from “It Means Escape”
(Cowboy Mouth Records)
Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Rhapsody
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Amazon
More On This Album
Cowboy Mouth “Everybody Loves Jill” (mp3)
from “All You Need Is Live”
(Cowboy Mouth Records) Buy at iTunes Music Store Buy at eMusic Buy at Rhapsody Stream from Rhapsody Buy at Amazon More On This Album
Cowboy Mouth
“I Know It Shows” (mp3)
from “Easy”
(Cowboy Mouth Records)
Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Rhapsody
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Amazon
More On This Album
Cowboy Mouth
“Disconnected” (mp3)
from “Uh-Oh”
(Cowboy Mouth Records)
Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Amazon
Buy at Rhapsody
More On This Album
Cowboy Mouth
“Jenny Says” (mp3)
from “All You Need Is Live”
(Cowboy Mouth Records)
Buy at iTunes Music Store
Buy at eMusic
Buy at Rhapsody
Stream from Rhapsody
Buy at Amazon
More On This Album
Do you like this new format of having an episode dedicated to an artist ever so often? Leave feedback at 206-338-2138. Thanks for listening!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (42.3MB)
15
Jul
With the upgrade to wp 2.6, our usual podpress player is rendered inactive for the time being. I’ll be adding urls to the podcast files manually until the new version of podpress addresses this incompatibility issue.
Episode 6 of the Astral Audio Experience is finally almost ready for the performers to work their magic with it. Michael spence and I have been tossing about more ideas than all of the tenis balls used in the recent open at Wimbledon. Needless to say, things are shaping up rather well for this and upcoming episodes. Because there is a tie in the current poll, we are extending the voting deadline to next sunday. So click here and vote! Next episode of the Astral Audio Extra series will drop next monday July 21.