By John Goering
Alex Meinhof is a second-year student majoring in philosophy at UC Santa Barbara. He is involved in the music scene on campus and works at UCSB’s radio station, KCSB-FM.
KCSB is a student-funded radio outlet that gives students like Alex a voice by letting them air their own shows. The station refuses to undertake commercial partnerships, allowing listeners to enjoy music and educational broadcasting free of advertisements.
The station not only serves as a means of entertainment, but also provides students with a sense of community.
Meinhof recently spoke to HFA about his experience.
Q. Can you give me a sense of your typical day as a student?
A. There are plenty of things I do on a regular basis. Eat, sleep, go to class, the basics. I drink a lot of coffee too, probably around three cups a day. I hear four is the limit and then after that it starts to get unhealthy. I sometimes drink Yerba Mate because it has a lot of caffeine and it’s less acidic. I also make music, of course.
Q. Music is clearly a big part of your life. How did you first get into making music? Do you play any instruments?
A. I play the piano. I first started when I was about seven or eight but quit when I got into middle school. In high school I got really into visual art and video-making, producing mostly Youtube videos for the videogame Call of Duty. An important part of the videos was the music so I started gaining more of an ear when I had to select songs. About a year and a half ago, I started getting into electronic music. I use analog synthesizers, which use electronics and circuitry to make sounds. I also use Ableton, a program that puts a plethora of different instruments at your disposal and makes mixing music easier.
Q. Tell me about your radio show on KCSB-FM. I know KCSB listeners are interested in a wide range of different genres. What is your favorite genre and what do you play on your show?
A. My radio show is called Research and Development and I started it as soon as I arrived at UC Santa Barbara. It is every Friday from 2 to 4 p.m. but the time slot changes every quarter. I like to play electronic music on my show, specifically ambient. Ambient music is a genre which focuses mostly on sounds you would hear out in nature. It is kind of the music you would hear in a movie trailer. The tracks are generally long, usually 10 to 20 minutes. They are not very catchy but still evoke emotion in their own way.
Q. Do you incorporate anything about your major, philosophy, into your show?
A. I sometimes include passages from books that I am reading at the moment, which are mostly philosophy books. I also discuss how the music relates to philosophy by explaining what the music means and how certain sounds can evoke certain feelings.
Q. Alongside being a host at the radio for KCSB, you work there as well. How is it working for the student-funded radio station and what can you tell us about what goes on behind the scenes?
A. Yeah, I am the digital media coordinator. The job can be quite serious at times because there is a lot at stake. The radio has to maintain its licensing from the government, many programmers dedicate a lot of time and energy to the station, and it costs money to be on air. Recently, the students of UCSB decided to continue their support of KCSB through the Associated Students election. This is where the majority of KCSB’s funding comes from and allows the station to do other things like throw events. The events are usually smaller than the ones thrown by the AS Program Board and feature more underground artists.
Q. What do you think KCSB’s impact is on UC Santa Barbara? How does it affect student life?
A. There are multiple ways that KCSB affects the UC Santa Barbara campus, such as providing a sense of community and employing students. I would say that KCSB gives a space for the hipster, or alternative, crowd here. It really balances out all the frat bros on campus and you can find yourself somewhere in the middle. I made most of my friends through KCSB freshman year. We have about three to four events a year, like open mic night, which is really fun even though I don’t sing. We also have artists like Negative Land, DJ Night, and Oshun performing soon.
John Goering is a second-year student studying psychology and brain sciences at UC Santa Barbara.