Victims Family, Dan Potthast and Bam! Bam! on The Rising Tide tonight

Hey there,

With the new quarter fast approaching, expect to hear from some fresh new faces as our Rising Tide family grows to include even more DJs.

That being said, we've got a wonderful trio of guests for tonight's program. It's going to be one of the most musically diverse shows we've ever had!

We'll first welcome into our studio a band from Oakland by the name of Bam! Bam!


This Oakland based two-piece have been kicking around thrashy, lo-fi garage pop jams for the better part of the last year. Though the group has yet to officially release any of their recordings, they have been steadily building a fan-base, taking their no-frills sound with them up and down the coast of California and taking no prisoners along the way. Fans of Black Tambourine, Beat Happening and fellow s.f. lo-fi artist Grass Widow ought to take note of this band, for once they get around to putting out non-demo recordings into the world, their star is bound to take off.

Tune in at 8:30 to catch the ladies of Bam! Bam! as they come to our studio to perform some songs live in the studio and talk about what the future holds for the band.

Then we'll welcome Dan Potthast to our studio.


Once hailing from St. Louis, Missouri, this ska-punk legend has firmly planted himself in Santa Cruz. As a founding member of MU330, as well as the leader of Dan P. and the Bricks (among other projects), Dan has been making music for over twenty years. He's opened for acts like Streetlight Manifesto, continues to make music that appeals to fans of Buck-O-Nine, and is active to this day.

Dan P. will be joining us live in the studio tonight to talk about making music in his adopted home town and the upcoming show with his band The Stitch Up this Saturday night, March 26th at the Crepe Place, where they will be performing alongside The New Trust and The Smoking Popes.

Last but not least, we have for you a very special interview that was taped last night with Victims Family.


This legendary Santa Rosa punk band is world-reknown for their unique fusion of hardcore punk, jazz and experimental noise. As a Nor Cal institution that has existed for over 25 years, Victims Family have performed with the likes of The Dead Kennedys, Nirvana, Green Day, Faith No More, and hundreds of other incredible bands. Though the group has sporadically broken up over the years, they've come back together in 2010 to perform and re-release their first three records on vinyl, starting with 1990's White Bread Blues.

I chatted up the group's guitarist, Ralph Spight, last night via Skype on a breadth of subjects, and if you tune in to the show tonight, you can hear our conversation in full. One of the things we did talk about is Victims Family's show this Saturday night, March 26th at the Catalyst with Catacomb Creeps and (Rising Tide alum) Noise Clinic, which is bound to be a hellraiser of a concert.

These and more when you tune into the show tonight starting at 8:30pm! Listen live at www.kzsc.org or tune in to 88.1 fm.

Good People on The Rising Tide

Hey all,

The weather's been strange and my life has been stranger, so let's just get down to business and let me tell you about a little band that I know called Good People.

This rag-tag group of Santa Cruz musicians has been kicking it together since late 2009. Though individually schooled in different forms of music, the group music takes on indie rock, afro beat, math rock and dance rock with equal parts fervor and ambition. The group draws on influence as far flung as Fela Kuti, Discovery, Ryland Bouchard and Tera Melos.

The fivesome have pulled off a couple of coups in Santa Cruz, opening up for local folk punk heavyweights Blackbird Raum and also sharing a Crepe Place bill with the likes of Hermit Convention and Magic Bullets, but the band has stayed largely inactive since the summer, only venturing forth for a couple of shows. The reason for this is that the group has been hard at work completing their debut full-length (which has ten official titles, reflecting the band's quirky nature, but for simplicity's sake we'll call it Good People) which is bound to come out soon.

Good People will be coming into the studio this friday night to talk about their band, what it's like to balance the pressures of being students at UCSC while also trying to make a band work, and what 2011 holds for the group.

This and more on tomorrow night's Rising Tide! Tune in around 8:30pm at 88.1fm or listen online at www.kzsc.org!

- DJ PassiveTheory

The Scarring Party coming to the Crepe Place!

Hello all!

This announcement may be a bit premature and I will most likely post again as the time draws near but the Scarring Party are coming to the Crepe Place on April 28th with The Post Street Rhythm Peddlers. The Scarring Party is a dark cabaret band that has revived the sounds of 20's cabaret and vaudeville and mixed it with punk beats of a bygone age. They are descending on Santa Cruz from their native home of Milwaukee, a land renowned for its beer, post-industrial splendor and now The Scarring Party itself.

The band has recently released their second album and be sure to listen to the rising tide for a taste of dark cabaret more towards the 10 o'clock hour as April approaches. Also, for those who love dark cabaret, gypsy, and  klezmer music, keep an eye out for the Underscore Orchestra coming to the Crepe Place March 24th or go see Gogol Bordello at Coachellafest, about six minutes from my mom's house, no joke!

I used to play them on my old show Baro Faro Death Circus for those who listened to it on KZSC.

listen here or here

Pledge Drive Happenings This Friday Night!!!

Hey all,

As you may or may not know, this week is KZSC's fall pledge drive. This is the one time of the year where the little radio station in the forest asks folks like you to give what you can to our radio station and, in return, we'll send you guys some cool gifts ranging from KZSC t-shirts to CDs of your favorite artists and even some tickets to shows in and around the Santa Cruz area.

Also, we at the Rising Tide have been busy at work preparing a show befitting such an important event for this Friday night.

Behold, the fruits of our labor!

Fucking delicious.

First off, we managed to get an interview with one of the most promising Bay Area bands of the year, The Morning Benders, whose newest release Big Echo has earned the praise of critics both near and far.

Four-square.

DJ Rigmarole caught lead singer Chris Chu before the Morning Benders took the stage at the Rio Theatre last Friday night, and you'll be able to listen to hear what the indie rock frontman had to say about life, music, and whatever else was on his mind this Friday night at 8:30pm.

Also, last but certainly not least, this week's live local music spotlight will shine brightly on Santa Cruz's very own San Narciso.

Fine, upstanding citizens or criminal masterminds? YOU DECIDE.

The post-punk trio is in the midst of gearing up for the long-anticipated release of their debut EP, Friend Prices, which you can check out here at their BandCamp. The aforementioned release will take place this upcoming Sunday, October 24th at the Crepe Place where the bay area's own French Miami and XOXO will join San Narciso for some good jams with good people. But before then, San Narciso will come into KZSC's on-air studio to talk about Friend Prices and why you should be as excited as I am for it.

Tune in this Friday night for these and more on The Rising Tide. Tune in at 8:30pm and remember to pledge!

Photos, etc.

Hey all,

Just writing in to let you all see a number of the photos Brian took of last Friday night's show. Also, some time this week I should be finishing up splitting all of the 7 months-worth of recordings from our broadcasts. I'm really excited about the steps we'll be taking in the near future, so stay tuned!

Keith Petrocelli (Carry Yrself Home) - 8/13/10



Mouse Heaven - 8/13/10

Double Whammy! No, wait, TRIPLE WHAMMY.

Hellooooooo everybody!

Hope you're all having a lovely Wednesday. I am, because we have some great news, but first, let's get down to business and talk about this week's guests!

Santa Cruz is home to a number of venues, but one venue in particular has played host to more incredible shows during my time living in this town, and that is the Crepe Place. There are many figures who help run the show at The Crepe, but none are more prominent than Keith Petrocelli of Carry Yrself Home.

Having produced several local festivals over the year, and bookings shows running the gamut from Abe Vigoda to Judgment Day to Deer Tick to Wavves, Keith will be our first guest this upcoming Friday night, where he'll sit down in our little treehouse in the mountains to discuss several upcoming CYH shows, talk about his history in the Santa Cruz local music scene, and just generally chill out.

After that, we'll be featuring an interview with LA's own HoneyHoney.
This folk-rock duo is getting set to tackle The Catalyst on Monday, August 16th, as they open for Xavier Rudd. As a hard-working touring band, be sure to tune in and listen to hear what this So. Cal. act has to say about Santa Cruz, their experiences on the road, and what challenges await them.

BUT THAT'S NOT ALL!

For it's my pleasure to inform you all that Oakland's own Mouse Heaven will be our musical guests of the evening.


This bay area quartet's take on folk music is at times haunting, but always engaging. They aren't afraid to openly shift styles, going from slow-paced ballads to driving lo-fi fuzz rock in a matter of 2 to 3 songs. Also, Mouse Heaven were voted in to play at the Free For All festival in Los Angeles (on August 15th) where they'll be playing alongside such talent as Akron/Family, Active Child and Langhorn Slim.

Man, we're going to have like... 30 minutes for lo-fi indie rock this week. Goddamn.

- Lee B.

EDIT: OHYEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH READ ABOUT THE RADIO SHOW IN THE GOOD TIMES THIS WEEK!!!!! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

A double dose of local goodness

Hey there,

The Rising Tide usually features one local artist interview-and-performance-smorgasbord-type-thing each and every week, and with the exception of a few off weeks (due to illness, time mismanagement, etc.) we've stuck to that script.

Last week we decided to tamper with the show format a little bit and air an off-site interview with a group in Spirits of the Red City who visited our town and played a lovely show at SubRosa just over a week ago. In my opinion, it was a great success, so if I were you, I'd count on hearing more off-site interviews with artists playing Santa Cruz in the future!

Which brings me to this upcoming Friday night, where the show will play host to two special live studio interviews.

First off, Folk Yeah!'s Britt Govea has, in recent years, established his organization as a linchpin in Nor Cal's indie rock, psychedelic rock and (naturally) folk circles.
In addition to bringing artists as far-reaching and diverse as Animal Collective, Beach House, The Black Angels, The XX, Earth and Bert Jansch to our neck of the woods, Britt has also featured local artists such as Mountain Animal Hospital and Sleepy Sun, and helped make the Brookdale Lodge a local music hotspot.

A DJ in his own right (with a penchant for digging deep into his music library for psychedelia-tinged records from the 60s and 70s), Britt Govea will be coming on the show to talk about upcoming FolkYeah! shows, his own perspective and experiences on being a concert promoter, and to help give away tickets to the upcoming Akron/Family show at the Brookdale Lodge on Saturday, August 14th!

Our second guests this upcoming Friday night will be a band playing at The Crepe Place the following night, opening for Cannons & Clouds and Summer Darling; their name is Monsters Are Not Myths.


This local quartet has existed in different incarnations since 2004, and they are in the midst of riding the praise of their 2nd and most recent LP (2009's Corporate Growth).

At times recalling Son Volt, Spoon and Ryan Adams, Monsters Are Not Myths are going to take their lighthearted-at-times tunes and strip them down for this Friday's show. Tune in to catch them play live in the KZSC studio and answer some questions about their project!

See ya later,
- Lee B.