Station in Flames

WMFO's GM Drew is recovering from a broken foot and spending his extra time updating the WMFO site. Here you'll see pictures of the 1977 station fire that wiped out the top floor of Curtis Hall and most of our record collection. We're up on the top floor, so there's vinyl feeding those flames.

Legend has it that an enterprising WMFO staffer grabbed a turntable and a mic and plugged directly into the station's transmitter, keeping us on the air as the fire raged. The station was rebuilt, and a donation drive was held to recover the record library. Searching through the Rock stacks, you'll still find albums carrying a "WMFO Fire Donation" label.

Thankfully that was before the release of Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols. Any first-time visitor should demand to see our copy of the album. Back in the day, new vinyl had a "comments" sticker attached for DJs to sound off on quality. There's as much debate as one could possibly fit in tiny, hand-printed letters on that label. It's a rare glimpse at how college DJs viewed what would be one of the most influential albums of the '70s.

Maybe I'll get a scan of that up here some day.

Super Bowl Preview and Paul Blart, Mall Cop

Overcome your Oscar nomination hysteria for a moment, won't you, and tune in at 7PM Eastern on Wednesday, January 28, for a conversation with Donny Soares. Donny's a Boston comic and actor who's appeared in local commercials and worked as an extra in Paul Blart: Mall Cop, so we'll get some behind-the-scenes tales of what went down on the set. Plus you'll learn about what it's like to try and break into the acting biz. Nick Zaino of Funny Grown Here braves the snow at 8PM to call in with this week's comedy news.

This Sunday brings us The Big Game, so there'll also be plenty of football talk and tunes to enjoy, including a Deion Sanders dance track, the annual airing of "New England, The Patriots, and We," and the marginally worse "Let's Ram It" by the Los Angeles Rams.

If you're in need of some NFL music to get your iPod or Super Bowl party pumped, you'll find the old Pittsburgh Steeler and St. Louis Cardinal marches over on WFMU's Beware of the Blog. If you're looking to spice up that Lipton French Onion Dip, add a teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce.


If you're in Boston, you can hear the show on 91.5 FM. Outside of Boston, listen online for free by visiting wmfo.org and choosing Windows Media or iTunes in the Listen Now box at the top of the page.

Tonight: To Laugh and Die in L.A.

Recently back from his stint in Los Angeles, Boston comedy favorite Tony Moschetto ventures into the studio to compare and contrast the comedy scenes on the East and West coasts. If you're a West Coaster thinking of heading East, or an East Coaster dreaming of warm, snow-free nights and industry showcases, Tony will have the inside story of what to expect.

We're supposed to be talking about Dave Rattigan's new series at The Burren in Davis Square, by the way. That starts tonight, and Tony and I are both on the show, so you can catch us in person by staggering the small distance from Tufts to Davis Square. The show's free and it starts at 10.

Also tonight, Headlines, an update from Nick Zaino and cool tunes in honor of Martin Luther King Day and Barack Obama's inauguration. You get it all starting at 7PM Eastern on 91.5 FM in Boston, or on the Web at WMFO.org.

Meet Nick Zaino

As resolved on January 1, 2009, I'll be taking steps to bring more comedy into each week's edition of Hear It Wow. Fake news headlines are back, and this week features our first special guest from the Boston comedy scene (and a soon-to-be-regular contributor), Nick Zaino.

Nick was the voice of The Boston Globe's Comedy Notes column. He currently runs the Boston Comedy Blog and keeps track of everything that's happening around the city and around the area. We'll be discussing the state of Boston's comedy scene and letting you know who's worth seeing.

Nick's also a songwriter, so we'll be playing a few of his tracks on the air, along with a variety of songs to get ready for the Obamauguration next Tuedsay. (Thanks to fellow 'MFO DJ Jeremy for that fun new word.)

Whether you're a comic, want to be a comic, or just want to talk like one, tune in tonight at 7PM Eastern. Lock in 91.5 FM on your radio dial in Boston, or dial up our ginchy, CD-quality Web stream at WMFO.org.

New Year's Resolutions

Hear It Wow returns to the airwaves tonight at 7PM Eastern time for a belated tribute to winter. I always grapple with this one in December; the rest of the seasonal shows fall just before the start of the season, but I figure it's more appropriate to play winter songs in January than it is to play Christmas music.

Old and new favorites highlight tonight's collection, which is actually the first full show of Winter music I've done. I snuck a lot of New Year's stuff in there last year. Listen for Chris Rea, Sting, The Rolling Stones, Duran Duran, Donna Lynn, Squeeze, the Peppermint Kandy Kids, and, of course, the good people from Chromalox. Tune in to 91.5 in Boston, or listen free online at wmfo.org.

About Those Resolutions
Here's my list of New Year's Resolutions, some show-related, some personal. Maybe even a few for you, my listeners and readers.

1. Lose weight. I'm getting married in October. Not at this weight, I'm not. I really should figure out how that Wii Fit in the living room works.
2. Talk about comedy on the show. Living near Boston, I'm lucky to be surrounded by extremely talented people like Shane Mauss, Erin Judge, Dan Boulger, Zach Sherwin, and many, many more. You'll be hearing from them in the coming months. Whether you're interested in becoming a standup comic or just enjoy the shows, you'll get some inside perspective on the Boston scene and the business in general. Boston comedy blogger Nick Zaino will be a frequent guest on the show, keeping us up-to-date on what's happening around town.
3. Listen to independent radio. I've got my faves on the WMFO and WERS dials (you WUML guys still play too much death metal). I'm always looking for more. Make it a point this year, wherever you are, to tune out formatted commerical radio and to give the indie stations a try. You might hear something that you can't live without. There's plenty of indie stations available on the Internet, so good listening is just a few clicks away.
4. Shop at independent music stores. I'm harping on this one again, I know, but if you do only one thing this year, get to know the local music store that's closest to you. You might have to drive a while to find one, because they're dying fast. Spend more time on Main Street and less time at the mall. Small businesses need your support more than ever.
5. Donate some cash to WFMU. If you like my show, or if you like any of my posts over there, send them a few bucks. I'll have the donation widget up on the blog soon. Hear It Wow wouldn't exist without their amazing blog, and I could never afford the bandwidth to keep the MP3 goodness flowing over here. If WMFO needed your money, I'd ask for that, too, but we don't, so send it where it will do some good.
6. Donate more to Toys for Tots. These folks are my favorite charity for one simple reason: Those donations go straight to the kids. You're not giving money to someone and wondering how much of it gets spent on administrative fees. For every toy you donate, a child in need gets a happier holiday. I'm a big fan of can drives as well.
7. Start a podcast. Haven't I been talking about this for two years now? There's a reason this resolution is at the bottom of the list.