By Sara Tompkins
Staff Writer
Posters of your favorite bands line the wall of your dorm. You collect their CD’s, their concert stubs, and listen for them when you tune in to campus radio. You watch for them on Fuse and you constantly check their Myspace pages to see when the next show will be.
You could take your chances and look for that backstage pass, but so many others have the same idea. So how do fans fulfill the ultimate music experience by connecting with their idols? It’s simple: Breaking the Mold.
Freshman Christian Wagner is what some could call a dreamer. However, this is actually what many would describe as an extremely focused individual. As a junior in high school, Wagner became interested in the music industry, being a musician himself. Knowing that he wanted to have some part in the business, he soon found ways that he could meet his favorite bands. Wagner continually searched for a way that he could share his experiences interviewing bands with the rest of the alternative rock community. With the help of a friend, he devised a television showcase of all bands he had met. However, it was just an idea being fine tuned.
This year, Wagner has brought his fine-tuned idea to life and to campus. Breaking the Mold, the new alternative music television show at Marywood, has been in production since the beginning of the semester. However, Wagner is not alone throughout this project. Freshman Gaetan DeSimone is also co-producing the fresh, new program. The show is filmed on campus and also off-campus at concerts and other venues.
Though the show has not aired on campus television yet, two episodes have been completed. The Status, The Gaslight Anthem, and Thieves and Villains have all brought their music to the Marywood television studio, and will be featured in the first two episodes of the show.
“The plan is to have a bi- weekly half hour show, but we may be weekly depending on how much footage of bands and interviews we are able to get in the future. A lot what it takes to get bands to come is because I have previous contacts with la- bels, management, and bands,” Wagner says. “Between Breaking the Mold and working for a mu- sic festival called Bamboozle, I have become friendly with many people in the industry.”
The Breaking the Mold team is trying to establish a solid base so it can hit the ground running. With the efforts to get the show on its feet, Wagner and DeSimone are currently working on a website in which they could build a larger audience.
“ I want Breaking the Mold to be the best college music show out there,” Wagner says. “Hope- fully some day it will be picked up by a national station, no matter how big or small the show is.”