While dinosaurs fascinate most young boys, Jay Crutti, faculty adviser of Loyola’s Crescent City Radio, was more interested in pirates – Pirate radio stations.
As a teenager, Crutti operated an (illegal) pirate radio station from his parents’ home and has also been involved with Tulane’s radio station WTUL 91.5. He now manages Crescent City Radio, although he insists his role is to serve only as supervisor, mentor and occasional host.
“The students call the shots,” he said. “They operate the station, they decide what they want to air on their shows.”
One of these shows, which premiered Feb. 7, is Live Band Party with Jay Crutti, which airs at 7 p.m. on Thursdays and features a different band playing live performances over the radio. Much like a live concert at a local venue, students and fans are invited to attend the recording, which will often be held in the recording studio on the fourth floor of the Communications/Music Complex.
“While the broadcast location may change from week to week, listeners can check the station’s Web site at www.crescentcityradio.com for an up to the minute schedule,” Crutti said.
For its inaugural broadcast, Live Band Party featured New Orleans band Smiley with a Knife.
The band, which formed in September 2007, performed an hour long set from their instrumental indie rock demo “This is What Happens When,” but would describe their sound differently.
“We’re post-crunk instrumental,” guitarist Justin Vicknair joked.
“No, pre-post-crunk instrumental,” bassist Michael Volpi corrected.
While the band has performed at several local venues, including the Dragon’s Den, Circle Bar and Artmosphere in Lafayette, the majority of their gigs occur at house parties. So when Crutti, who works with Smiley’s drummer Jared Marcell, a music industry studies senior and teaching assistant, offered the band performance time on the show, they didn’t hesitate to say yes.
“We got an invitation to perform here,” Vicknair said. “That’s all it takes for us.”
“We’re down with this place,” said Patrick Bailey, Smiley’s guitarist and son of university police chief Patrick X. Bailey. “We’ve spent many late nights here.”
The band has used the university’s recording studio, and they recorded “This is What Happens When” for Humidity Media here.
“What’s interesting about playing on a station like Crescent City Radio,” Crutti said, “is that for this one hour recording, the band gets more play in reruns. With a live show that just doesn’t happen.”
“That’s what influenced us to do this,” Marcell said. “Every rerun we get another plug. We sit down and play one time and for that get played multiple times and reach that many more people over time instead of trying to pull in 200 people into the Howling Wolf.”
Marcell describes it as the perfect “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” situation. “As our career grows it also boosts the radio station and vice-versa.”
For Vicknair, this opportunity could present itself at no other university than Loyola. “What better than to have our songs played at a renowned music studies school,” he said. “College students are open to so much more musically. Older listeners have found their niche while younger listeners are more interested in pop and Top 40 stuff.”
While Crutti is busy recruiting other local bands like Fay Wray and USAD for future performances, he insists that the station isn’t just for music industry studies students. Mass communication classes will also become involved with the station.
“While music industry was the driving force behind the opening of the station, all are welcome,” he said. “Since the launch of the station I’ve had 50-75 people come up to me wanting to get involved.”
Justin Templet can be reached at [email protected].
