A Message from Ocho (creator and host of Song For The Night): I created this podcast to chronicle the counterculture and underground music scene of Pierre, SD, USA beginning in the mid 1990s. It’s a true story of do-it-yourself community building among teenagers. It’s a story of misfits and outcasts finding friendship and meaning despite our circumstances. The narrow worldview of our city’s leaders had left us out: forgotten, bored and depressed. Until, somehow, our talent, resourcefulness and appreciation managed to attract a healthy stream of raw, authentic rock music from all around, for thousands of miles. Bands from New York, California, Florida, Canada…they were all getting in their vans, and making Pierre a stop on their tours. Literally hundreds of bands have done this over the years, allowing us to experience culture from all over this continent. This continent that had surrounded us our whole lives, and yet, for all practical purposes, was still really far away. It’s almost stranger than fiction, because there was literally no reason to come to Pierre unless you were a hunting/fishing enthusiast or an actual legislator for the State of South Dakota. Those two types of people were the only ones you’d expect make the trek. Partly because it’s a trek, surrounded in all directions by nothing, except hundreds of miles of dry grass and fields. It’s not even on the interstate. Personally I think it’s included on the map just out of kindness or pity or something… To make it even more unlikely, when our scene started, we didn’t even have the internet yet. Which meant no social media, not even email. So how did we get in touch with bands? by writing letters, getting cassettes in the U.S. Mail, or more often by calling them up on the house phone after 7pm, because that’s when long-distance calling was cheaper because, oh yeah, we also didn’t have mobile phones yet. They were rare in the 20th century. But I suspect that they still weren’t as rare as our music scene was. I’m gonna find out! As I’ve described, for us to put on all these shows full of strange and obnoxious music in this isolated town which was pretty much characterized by a really stuffy attitude…it seems unthinkable that we would have succeeded. But on the other hand, when I look back, it seems like we started this scene kinda by accident. We didn’t have a plan. And at the first shows, nobody ever said, “this is gonna continue decades into the future.” But it did. And even when we would give up on it, it seemed to demand itself. So I’m gonna figure it out! Luckily, now I have a degree in social science. It might come in handy. On this podcast, I’ll be talking to the people who built and supported this wondrous spectacle: The booker/promoters, the fans, the touring bands, the two local bands who were around in the beginning, and many of those who have come after. We’ll reminisce about this phenomenon and put some of the pieces together. So do yourself a favor: Keep your eyes and ears open for Song For The Night, coming soon here, and wherever you stream.
