Go to the ‘Underground’ to get noticed

You might remember a recent column I wrote about WEAK Productions, a local company owned and operated by Makenzie and Heather Banbury.

The focus of that column was a documentary film about yet another production company, AK Soul. You might also recall if you read that previous article, a brief mention that Makenzie and crew were working on a new TV show for Channel 5 that also features local music. That’s the subject of this article.

Makenzie and company have been filming quite a bit at the Make-a-Scene! Venue here in Wasilla, and also at multiple Anchorage-based venues, preparing for their new television show, Underground Live. The show debuted last Saturday, at 4 p.m. on KYES Channel 5, where the show will be a regular Saturday event. This Saturday, the show features yours truly, Josh Fryfogle, performing an acoustic set. I love the synergy.

Television is a powerful medium. Of media in general, television is arguably the most influential segment of the media. It’s in our living rooms, it entertains us, informs us, guides our opinions and validates our hopes and fears. It’s also usually dominated by corporate interests, like American Idol and the seemingly endless imitations of that show. It’s encouraging knowing there’s a new show that is searching for — and finding — Alaskan talent, and then sharing that information and entertainment with thousands of Alaskans.

No matter what type of music, Underground Live is devoted to bringing it into the living rooms of local viewers, and that is worth a lot, considering the validating effect of television coverage. Local musicians should jump at the chance to be on this show. I should know, that’s what I did.

You can see the new show, along with my recent acoustic performance at Make-a-Scene! Venue, this Saturday at 4 p.m. on Channel 5.

Make-a-Scene!