CD101: Soundtrack to My Life by Haley

When I was a sophomore in college, I was lucky enough to intern at my favorite local radio station, CD101. (Some of my earliest memories are of unloading hay with my dad {Oh heeeey, I’m from the country. Like… really, really country} while listening to CD101. “It actually sounds like an alternative station today!” I remember him shouting one time, when I was 10 or so.)

My internship was supposed to last for three months, but I fell in love and stayed there for a year. Some of my best college memories are from CD101… I’ll never forget the nights I feared for my life as rode home from promotions on the dash of the station’s delivery truck… because no matter which intern I was working with, they just happened to suffer from motion sickness, thereby automatically giving them privileges to the passenger seat... and seatbelt.

When I hear these songs, I automatically think of CD101 and the fantastic people I met there. I’m going back this Friday to volunteer at the station’s annual Andymanaton children's charity telethon, and although a lot of my favorite people are gone, I’m stoked to make some new memories.

1.) Used Kids by Earwig
Earwig is a local band, and I la-la-la-love them. You don’t generally hear them anywhere but CD101, and the band has a great relationship with the station. (The video actually shows a few clips from one of their CD101 “Big Room” performances… you’ll see the huge “101” backdrop.) For those unfamiliar, Used Kids is the name of a great local record store, and Ron House is its owner.



2.) Obvious by Watershed
Another local fave! Watershed actually had a recording contract with Epic for like five minutes in the 90s, and they’re also close with the station. I think this song is what I THOUGHT my college life would be like, but thankfully it wasn’t.
The years haven’t lessened my love of these lines:

“Back to your place after the bars close/ and I’m feeling strangely turned on at the sight of your dirty clothes. Critiquing your refrigerator magnet poetry/ Smelling the latest issue of Seventeen, wondering how this will read in your diary.”

3.) Cheated Hearts by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs
I can recall the exact moment I heard this song… I was sitting on the far intern computer, making captions for the Picture Pages, when the driving rhythm of the intro caught my ear. This song STILL gives me chills. Oh, Karen O.

4.) The Emperor’s New Clothes by Sinead O’Connor
Sinead O’Connor isn’t cool. I knew it. The DJs probably knew it. My favorite promotions assistant had to know that. Despite the knowledge, this song was a fixture of my time at the station. I remember speeding down 14th avenue on campus, going back to the station as the promotions asst. would ring the truck’s bell at passersby while singing into the cord.

5.) Bad Sun by the Bravery
The first place I heard the Bravery. That simple!

6.) Shout (Popple Mix) by De Novo Dahl
I never heard of De Novo Dahl after the spring they played the station’s annual CD101 Day concert, but I’ll never forget the Big Room performance I sat in on.. they band had these ridiculously awesome outfits that harkened back to the old country days…. But with a little more bling. Love!

7.) O Valencia by the Decemberists
I don’t think anyone ever used the Ice Cream Truck’s bell cord to sing this song, but they should’ve. Epic.

8.) Coin Operated Boy by the Dresden Dolls
I was a senior in high school when this song hit the airwaves, and I’m pretty sure it took me an unrespectable amount of time to get the message. Naiveté -- I miss it!

9.) Watching the Detectives by Elvis Costello
One of the CD101 songs from my youth… I got to Guest DJ for the station when I was 16, and this was one of the songs on my playlist. I can’t hear it without thinking of my dad singing his favorite line “She’s filing her nails as they’re dragging the lake.”

10.) No You Girls by Franz Ferdinand
This song came out quite a while after I left the station, but I still ran into the staff quite a bit. This song was HUGE on the station, and I remember the line “Flick your cigarette and kiss me” was really buzz-y at the time :)

11.) Only Happy When it Rains by Garbage
Everyone always seems to think I’m the nicest person ever…. They didn’t know my bitchy teenage years. This song kind of epitomizes that time frame.

12.) Glad Girls by Guided by Voices
Dayton, represent! Beautiful vocals. <3>

13.) The Bucket by Kings of Leon
Kings of Leon, please revert back to your sound from 2003. Thanks.

14.) We Are Beautiful, We Are Doomed by Los Campesinos
I don’t know that this strikes me as a CD101 song, but it’s the first place I heard it.

15.) Starlight by Muse
The station had this amazing cabinet full of promo CDs, DVDs, and random junk, and it’s where I got my first taste of Muse. “Starlight” was my gateway. Muse has since grown into an obsession. Thanks for the freebies, Karac.

16.) Life on a Chain by Pete Yorn
Pete is a big fan of CD101, and they have a really good relationship. I interviewed him a while after I left the station, and I asked him about the 101… “There are some really good people at that station.”

Agreed, Pete.


(And not to be plug-gy, but if you're interested in listening to the station or checking out more about the Andymanathon children's charity telethon, visit CD101 online.)