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RVA Shows You Must See This Week: March 30 – April 5

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FEATURED SHOW
Saturday, April 2, 2 PM
WRIR‘s Party For the Rest Of Us, feat. Colin Phils, Ant The Symbol, Gritty City Records, Prabir Trio, Cassidy Snider & The Wranglers, The Wimps, Holy River @ Hardywood Park Craft Brewery – Free!
Y’all, it’s been 17 years since WRIR, the community-run, non-profit, low power station at 97.3 on your FM dial, started broadcasting from its studio up above The Camel on Broad St. And for those of us of a Certain Age, the obvious reaction is “Wow, time flies.” Meanwhile, I assume pretty much everyone in the local music scene under 30 feels like WRIR’s just kinda always been there. It’s an understandable reaction, considering how young y’all were when it started broadcasting. On a radio dial that is more than ever full of the same songs you’ve heard a million times before inbetween what feels like 45 minutes of advertising per hour, WRIR is a breath of fresh air, bringing us all community info, a finger on the pulse of the local culture, and music you’ve generally never heard before — often from right here in Virginia.

However! It’s important that none of us here in Richmond ever start to take WRIR for granted. This non-commercial station survives and thrives only through the valiant efforts of many volunteers, as well as all the donations they can scare up. That’s what WRIR’s Party For the Rest Of Us is about: bringing the Richmond community a really great event, full of music and fun, in return for all of our support to keep them going for another year. In previous years, this annual event has generally been coupled with a request for donations. This year, they’re advertising it as free, but you should still bring a few bucks to help them out — or drop those buckaroos into the virtual tip jar you can find over at wrir.org.

In exchange for your contribution (or even for your lack of one — which is OK, because between high heating bills and gas pump sticker shock, lord knows a lot of us don’t have a dime to spare right now), you get an amazing afternoon at Hardywood, full of outstanding musical talents from the Central Virginia area. There are too many to get to even if I hadn’t spent most of my space talking about how great WRIR is, but let’s go for a lightning round: Colin Phils bring delectable post-rock goodness, Ant The Symbol and Gritty City Records represent the finest in RVA hip hop, Prabir Trio and The Wimps show us all how great indie rock can be even in 2022, Cassidy Snider & The Wranglers dish out yet another helping of their buzzworthy Americana, and last but not least, there is the uncategorizable psychedelic folk atmospherics of Holy River. A truly formidable lineup that’ll be the perfect soundtrack as you while away your afternoon hanging out with the fine folks at Hardywood. What more could you ask for? Another great year of wonderfully unpredictable non-commercial community-run radio, you say? Well, you know what to do.

Wednesday, March 30, 6:30 PM
Drug Church, One Step Closer, Soul Blind, Lurk @ The Broadberry – $16 in advance, $18 day of show (order tickets HERE)
This one’s exciting. Drug Church, who hail from upstate New York, play an incredibly catchy brand of post-hardcore, and feature as frontman one of the current hardcore scene’s most colorful and fascinating veterans, just released their fourth album, Hygiene. Even if you, like me, already loved this band, you’re bound to be impressed with the quantum leap they’ve taken with this brand new release. In particular, the aforementioned frontman, Patrick Kindlon, has stepped up his game. His unique vocal style might not have been for everyone in the past, but he’s managed to bring significantly more melody to his approach on this album without losing an ounce of the frenetic urgency that’s always made him such a riveting frontman.

So yeah, what I’m saying is this: if you don’t have plans tonight, you gotta get over to the Broadberry and catch Drug Church. And if you do have plans, you probably should just break them and bring whoever it is you were gonna chill with to the show with you. The newest Drug Church material is so much fun, even your grandma will probably dig it. And it certainly doesn’t hurt that Drug Church are coming through accompanied by One Step Closer, whose intense, powerful, yet always subtly melodic take on hardcore will excite fans of Turning Point, Fiddlehead, Praise, and a whole ton of other classic bands. The lineup is rounded out by the grungified post-hardcore of Soul Blind and the chunky alt-rock of Lurk. This one’s gonna be a solid gold banger from beginning to end. Get there.

Thursday, March 31, 7 PM
The Warhawks, The Octavias, Sincerely Iris, Wallpaper @ Garden Grove Brewing – Free!
Do you like to rock? Who doesn’t, am I right? Those of us who do are certainly delighted to see the return of the semi-regular free rock shows at Garden Grove Brewing, a place that became a good under-the-radar spot to see some killer bands in the year or so before the pandemic destroyed live music as we knew it. Not every venue that used to be a solid bet for good music in the pre-pandemic days has made it back, but it’s good to see a few lately that I wasn’t hearing from back when I first restarted the column — especially this one.

Thursday night at Garden Grove will be a real rock n’ roll ripper, so get stoked! New Jersey’s The Warhawks are the out-of-town guest on this bill, and they’re touring right now in support of This Ain’t Art, a new six-song EP that brings us all plenty of loud guitars and moody vocals in the classic tradition of everything from Jesus And Mary Chain to the Black Keys before they jumped the shark. They’ll get the room rocking when they take the stage and crank up their amps, as will local garage-rock duo The Octavias, who more than make up in noise and fury what they lack in low-end amplification. Todd Murray’s prolific solo project, Sincerely Iris, who play what Murray calls “road trip music,” will add a more emotional flavor to the evening while keeping toes tapping. Meanwhile, slowcore newcomers Wallpaper will enrapture us all by evoking Mark Kozelek before he jumped the shark. Show up for this one — you won’t regret it. And hey… the price is right.

Friday, April 1, 7 PM
Flight Club, Keep Flying, Nancy Raygun, Shotclock, Plastic Flamingos @ Richmond Music Hall at Capital Ale House – $15 (order tickets HERE)
Pop-punk is supposed to be fun, and this show is definitely going to live up to that billing. I know, I know, local guitar-slingers Flight Club want everyone to stop thinking of them as pop-punk; they even released a single called “High Roller” a while back that did its best to convince us all that they went post-Killers disco-hipster rock. Thankfully, the rest of their new album, Until The Sun Drowns, shows that this RVA quintet has retained their flawless melodic sense and driving punk energy, and it’s a very safe bet that all of this will carry over to this Richmond Music Hall double bill.

Sharing headlining duties is New Jersey quintet Keep Flying, who somehow manage to be an upbeat poppy punk band with a horn player without turning into a ska band. Instead, said horn player adds saxophone melodies that do a great job augmenting the skate-punk leads, then contributes to the band’s multi-vocalist round robin. It sounds like a crazy idea, but it ends up totally working. If you can get into Knuckle Puck, Four Year Strong, or State Champs, you’re sure to enjoy what Keep Flying brings to the table for this show. This stacked bill also features a variety of openers, including North Carolina pop-punk goofballs Plastic Flamingos, Richmond alt-rockers Nancy Raygun, and local newcomers Shotclock. Be there.

Saturday, April 2, 7 PM
Spoken To: An Evening Of Spoken Word and Poetry, feat. Ryan Kent, Black Liquid, Denise Walters, Summer Storms, S. Preston Duncan @ Gallery 5 – Free?
Poetic and musical forms have always been closely linked, from Jim Morrison and Bob Dylan’s lyrics getting published as poetry to Jack Kerouac legendarily setting his writings to jazz accompaniment. And don’t even get me started on hip hop. For that reason, I have no qualms recommending that all of you spend your Saturday night at Gallery 5 taking in the non-musical sounds of Spoken To, an evening of spoken word and poetry. After all, the label up there at the top says “shows you must see,” right? It doesn’t say a damn thing about music.

Regardless, there’s music running through the words of Ryan Kent, a local poet who has also spent years singing in several different Richmond-based metal bands. However, he’s also published multiple poetry collections, and is currently preparing a spoken word LP for release. So yeah — where spoken word is concerned, Ryan knows what he’s doing. The same can be said of Richmond rapper Black Liquid, who has certainly written plenty of poetry set to hip hop beats over the years. Seeing what he comes up with when he doesn’t have a backing track will be fascinating. Story quilter Denise Walters, who is a member of the Nottoway Tribe, will bring us tales told through cloth as well as words. The lineup is rounded out by witch poet Summer Storms and poet/pyrography practitioner S. Preston Duncan. All have plenty to offer. Be there to appreciate their gifts.

Sunday, April 3, 7 PM
Daisychain, The Background Action, Death Plumes @ The Camel – $10 in advance, $12 day of show (order tickets HERE)
Sunday nights can be tough. Everyone’s gotten their ya-ya’s out on Friday and Saturday, and the weekend is coming to an end, so for many people, Sunday night is a night to head home early. However, true rock n’ roll heads know that some of the best underground sounds can be found on nights when there’s not all that much going on — because touring bands have always got a hole in their schedule to fill. Luckily, The Camel is there to take them in, and those of us who are truly dedicated to music as life get to be there and hear great new bands before everyone else has necessarily caught on.

All of this is a long way of getting to the point, which is that Chicago’s Daisychain are truly essential listening. This band of relatively young people pull from multiple prior generations of Windy City guitar legends, mixing everything from the classic electric blues of Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy to the 70s-influenced grunge-rock of 90s legends Urge Overkill. There’s even a little bit of Janis Joplin and Heart mixed in here, coming out through the angelic voices of singers Sophia Williams and Nickole Regala. I know you might be tempted to head home early Sunday night, but take a disco nap and head back out to catch Daisychain at The Camel instead. I promise you won’t regret it.

Monday, April 4, 7 PM
Soft Kill, Alien Boy, Topographies, True Body @ The Camel – $15 (order tickets HERE)
All Richmond live music heads need to give thanks to whatever deity they do or don’t believe in for The Camel. The only venue in this city who truly seems to share our belief that music doesn’t need a night off, we can always count on the Camel to have a show queued up for us on Monday night, when we’re in desperate need of some solid sounds to blow away the mental residue of another depressing Monday back at work. And it’s almost always a really good show, too — witness this excellent bill that brings us two killer touring bands for the price of one.

Soft Kill is the first; their 2020 LP, Dead Kids, RIP City, does a great job of mixing sharply ringing postpunk guitars with driving dance beats and synth textures, all in a decidedly noir-ish mode that leads one to imagine the Cure with the energy of first-LP Bauhaus. Whether you’re into dark, driving rock n’ roll or moody, gloomy goth, these guys have something you’ll like. As for co-headliners Alien Boy, this Portland quartet were already on my radar due to their excellent 2021 LP, Don’t Know What I Am, which is still growing on me six months later. Driving, melodic punk with a moody gothic undertone is what they bring to the table, in a manner that lands somewhere between Wax Idols and Veruca Salt. That’s enough to win me over right there. San Francisco gothic industrial group Topographies and Virginia’s own postpunk veterans True Body round this one out with aplomb. Shake off the Mondays with this one.

Tuesday, April 5, 7 PM
Escape From The Zoo, Crazy And The Brains, Chupaskabra @ Richmond Music Hall At Capital Ale House – $15 in advance, $20 day of show (Order tickets HERE)
I have a confession to make, y’all: I wasn’t necessarily all that on-board for the whole ska-punk thing back in the 90s. And if I’m even more honest, I really think I missed something by skipping out on all that stuff at the time. Today, I look back at stuff like Operation Ivy and Voodoo Glow Skulls, and I think: dang, those kids sure seem like they were having a lot of fun. Luckily for all of us who missed out — and for everyone who got it when it was originally going on — the whole ska-punk thing is experiencing a major revival right now. And Fat Wreck Chords signees Escape From The Zoo are at the forefront of all that.

Led by Jesse Sendejas of Houston folk-punk group Days N’ Daze and his mandolin-strumming wife Veronica, Escape From The Zoo take all that catchy, upbeat strumming that was the best part of the whole folk-punk thing and mix it with the electrified punk energy of the good bands of the 90s ska-punk revival: the ones that realized you have to lead with the punk and the speed, and just let everything else work itself out. That’s what Escape From The Zoo does on their brand new LP, Countin’ Cards, and that’s what’s gonna win you over when they take the stage Tuesday night at Capital Ale House. Xylophone-driven dance-punk veterans Crazy And The Brains and local ska-punk up-and-comers Chupaskabra round out this bill, and will do more than their fair share to increase the fun quotient and bring your Tuesday night to bright, glorious life. Get ready.

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Email me if you’ve got any tips for me about upcoming shows (that take place after the week this column covers -– this week’s column has obviously already been written): [email protected]

The Plug N Play Career of Filmmaker Andee Arches

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Sometimes you meet someone with so much energy, you have to take notice. That’s how it went recently when Andee Arches was helping out around the studio a bunch. Pretty soon, Kimberly Frost suggested I interview her. Andee is a young filmmaker, audio engineer, editor, and photographer. She’s currently working on a documentary called Sister Radio — you’ll hear more about that below — and she works super hard with a sense of purpose. Plus, she is fun to be around, so why not?

Immediately, I had a few questions about her. What is she about? Who does she want to be? Where did she learn all these skills?! I felt like her story could be one other young Richmond creatives would be inspired by — and I was right. Here is my conversation with her.

Andee Arches: Right now I’m a freelancer-slash-director of a documentary which I helped develop while volunteering for WRIR 97.3 FM. I have been volunteering since 2017 and was on the board of directors as a secretary. I’m still involved in there but am focused on this documentary.

R. Anthony Harris: You were born in the Philippines?

AA: Yes, I was born there and grew up there. I did half of my high school there, then moved when I was 15. We lived in the suburbs of DC, West Virginia for two years, then back to DC before I finally moved to Richmond.

RAH: You mentioned your work with WRIR, so I assume you love music. What do you like about American pop culture, music, and film? What interested you in that?

AA: It’s just the creativity of it all. You know, growing up in the Philippines, most of the American music that we would hear on the radio was commercial music. Without any internet access, I didn’t realize that there’s a completely different music culture that was happening here in America — the only little window that I could see that other music that was happening was through movie soundtracks.

When I moved to America, I found out that there’s a whole underground scene that was going on, and different types of creativity outside of commercial music. I just fell in love with it. And I started hunting down whatever interesting music that I could find — the more that I have not heard of something, the more that I like it. [laughs]

So that’s how that passion started.

photo by Kimberly Frost

RAH: And that lead you to your initial interest in [the local] independent radio station?

AA: I’ve always loved listening to it! I was introduced to WRIR by one of my friends, who was going to VCU. [I] used to come to visit Richmond a lot, and I would hear 97.3. Just the randomness of whatever they would play. Also, I was super crazy about krautrock, and there’s a lot of krautrock that I would hear there! [laughs]

I got involved because they had an audio workshop in 2017, a field recording workshop, for free. I was really into hiking and wanted to start my own collection of bird sounds. [laughs] So I went there and got introduced to other things that WRIR was doing. I just fell in love with it.

At that time, I didn’t really have any direction in life and thought that was a good thing to learn — radio production and DJing — and since it’s free, might as well just jump in it! So that’s how I got involved.

RAH: That’s amazing. And that led you into video production?

AA: Yeah, that led into video and it’s all happenstance.

I mean, before getting involved with the radio station, my passion really was photography. That’s what made me move here to Richmond — to get into the VCU Photography Program. But I didn’t get in. I just decided to stick around, and while at WRIR, I met Cameron Robinson, who was talking about video work. It kinda made me think. I was getting tired of photography. Like, there are certain niches that I like to take photos of, but I was tired of it, and I could never see myself doing portraiture. I thought portraiture was the easy way to make money, but that filmmaking is more creative. You can do a lot of things with it. So after listening to a couple of film theories, I’m like, “I should get into film.” I think it fits my personality of problem solving. We can just play around with it a lot more than photography.

So while I was at WRIR, the news and public affairs committee, wanted to do more run n’ gun kind of news in the city. In DC there was a Black Women’s March, and they wanted to take some video of it. So I volunteered, because I was about to get my own video camera around the same week that the Black Women’s March was happening. I did a bunch of shoots up there for the event and it wasn’t really great video, but I was able to compile three minutes of footage for it.

And then when there was an opportunity to create a documentary, Carol Olson, the President of WRIR, asked me if I wanted to take it — and I just took the challenge.

RAH: And you did the editing for The Black Woman’s March too?

AA: Yeah, I did. It took me, like, three days, because my laptop was like, 2012. [laughs] It was a lot of footage. It was mostly a rough cut, really, and was more like, “This is the ‘feel’ of the Black Woman’s March.” There is a marching band. People were very passionate about it. Those are the little shots that I was taking. We had journalists and they were trying to cover it as well, so I had shots of them interviewing people.

But yeah, that’s how it started.

RAH: You mentioned the documentary you’re working on. As a beginning filmmaker, how did you wrap your head around that? You just went from doing a three-minute clip to “we are gonna give you a documentary”? That’s a big jump, right? [laughs]

AA: [laughs] It was! Yeah. I’d say I was pretty ignorant when I said yes. I did not realize that documentary is–

RAH: …and I’m sorry Andee, for people reading this that don’t know — what is the focus of the documentary?

AA: The focus of the documentary is the importance of media representation, and: what does it actually take to bring in marginalized voices into the media? To bridge that big gap that we have as media representation. So that’s the basis of it. There’s still a lot in the works, so I cannot disclose any more information on that. But I did not realize that a documentary is gonna be this insanely hard.

RAH: And this is a full length piece?

AA: We are thinking maybe just an hour now, but it really depends. We were initially thinking it’d be 90 minutes long, but now we have realized it could probably do it in just an hour.

But my instinct was saying, if I’m going to create a documentary, I need to do as much research as possible. So when Carol gave me the assignment and the person who had the idea for the documentary was there — I just went ahead and interviewed him, on the same day, to get an idea of what the documentary is going to be.

On top of that I started having to learn technical skills with the camera. I did not know about the production side either, but definitely the research and the technical side, and I just started hopping into it.

RAH: And that’s been a little over a year now?

AA: It started in 2018, and then in 2019, we went to Mali, because part of the film is in Mali. I would say that’s my first real shooting experience. We shot for nine days and that was kind of like my film school in many ways.

RAH: Because you didn’t go to film school…?

AA: I didn’t go to film school, but I watched a lot of YouTube videos on film theory and technical film stuff.

RAH: Tell me about Secret Bonus Level.

AA: Oh, Secret Bonus Level is Noah Page‘s project. Secret Bonus Level used to be a 1-3am Wednesday show on WRIR. The initial idea for it is have a live band come into the station. Rappers could then cipher with them. But because of COVID, that had to stop.

It was maybe a year into COVID. Noah reached out to me with this idea to do a live stream show in her backyard. So around February or March of 2021, Noah, this guy Mayday, and I came together and figured out the technical aspects of how we could make this live stream as free as possible, as cheap as possible. We did a lot of troubleshooting. There’s a lot of trial and error and trying to figure out the flow of like having a show.

RAH: So let us go back. You have taught yourself how to do a live production, shoot and edit a documentary while creating journalistic pieces — all in the last two to three years?

AA: Pretty much.

RAH: Having talked with you before, I hope that someone will read this story and get involved somehow in the community and see how it can open doors. I hope that people can see that if you want to do creative things, you shouldn’t wait! Just start doing them and if you do them with passion, then that’s what your career is gonna be.

AA: Thank you so much!

RAH: I have one more question for you: what are you looking forward to in 2022?

AA: Oh my god. I mean, honestly, to make money out of this venture, have more opportunities to work, and collaborate with people. [laughs]

A big part of me is just like trying to finish this documentary, which is quite a big, big project, and I want to be able to move forward to other projects. But I really want to just establish some type of stability with all this because right now, all I am doing is all passion projects.

Right now, I’ve been freelancing as a PA on film sets. Sometimes I’d work for like, four or five days straight, and then I’m dead for two weeks. That does not pay the bills if I can’t work at all.

But yeah, I’d like find some stability with it. That’s, that’s my goal, right now, in 2022. And to just collaborate with people; more artists in Richmond.

RAH: So you’re saying if someone wants to collaborate or hire you — to hit you up? [laughs]

AA: Yes! Yay, thanks Tony!

RAH: Thank you Andee for taking the time to do this.

See more of Andee Arches’ work on Vimeo HERE
Also, you can give her a follow on Instagram HERE

Photos by Kimberly Frost

RadioRVA In the mix with Joanna O

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In order to document the vibrant, ever-growing electronic music scene in Richmond and surrounding regions, Radio RVA gets “In the Mix” through our electronic mix series digging into artists’ musical flavors. For the kickoff installment of this new series, we have Joanna O! Joanna has been a part of the electronic scene here in Richmond for many years. Turnstyle, the shop she ran with partner Jesse Split, was a fixture for vinyl and turntable culture in Richmond for many years, and supplied us with many records and oh-so-many headphones over the years. I still have those Technics headphones (which were tanks) somewhere. Turnstyle have been holding it down on WRIR 97.3 for 17 years as a staple of electronic music support in RVA.

Joanna O’s mix for RVA is perfect especially for all the Drum & Bass lovers, with all the jungle and jazzy sounds that define her silky sets.  Her fine track selection and hard-earned mixing skills have landed her slots alongside many notable dance music greats over the last two decades. She has shared the stage with prolific DnB artists like LTJ Bukem, Lenzman, Furney, DJ Marky, Artificial Intelligence, The Insiders, Stunna, Blade, and Random Movement, just to name a few. Joanna brings the vibes behind the decks where she is known for her smooth + sweet drum n’ bass sounds. Check out the mix, then read on for our interview with Joanna O.

JOANNA O. // RVA MAG MIX 2022

Tracklist:

Seba – Never Let You Go (Warm Communications)
Calibre – Jungle One (Samurai Red Seal)
Motiv – Slipped (Innerground Records)
Klute – Part of Me – Calibre Remix (Signature)
T.R.A.C. – Blue feat. Calibre (V Recordings)
Pablo & Jorge – Control (Soul Deep Digital)
Motiv & Surreal – Sunglasses (Innerground Records)
Dan Guidance – Underground Movement (Offworld Recordings)
Calibre – Stoned (CIA Records)
Logistics – Vega (Hospital Records)
Pablo & Jorge – Stirling (Soul Deep Recordings)
Ben Soundscape – Seize the Day (Intrigue Music)
Calibre – Hummer (Samurai Red Seal)
Break – Release Me  (Symmetry Recordings)
Echo Brown & Lenzman – Nokia Days (TNQ)
Rezilient – Keep You Safe (Beats in Mind)

How would you describe your overall sound to someone? 

I play on the deeper, more soulful side of the drum & bass music spectrum. I like to call it ‘Jazzy Jungle.’ 

Who are your past inspirations and current ones in the electronic music genre? 

I am always inspired by the amazing producers who make the tracks I play. If I had to name a few — Calibre, Lenzman, Random Movement, Ben Soundscape, DJ Marky, and I could go on & on. The local DMV DJ’s keeping the scene going and growing are inspiring to me too. 

You have been DJing all over and hosting WRIR nights for many years. What keeps you driven and continuing on this journey? 

I have been DJing dance music with Turnstyle for 23 years, holding it down on Saturday nights on 97.3fm for 17 years. I love it! There’s so much quality music constantly being released — that’s what keeps me going. Good music. 

What is the first thing you look for when listening to a new track to add to a set? 

I always ask myself… would I dance to this? I can usually tell in the first few bars if it sounds like an addition to an upcoming gig/set. 

What positive changes have you seen in the electronic music scene? 

The fact that our music went from small & underground to worldwide expansion is pretty positive. Every mainstream music genre is being infiltrated by electronic music (and current fashion too).  We are still raving! 

Lastly, can you give us the scoop on when to tune in, and on any upcoming events?

My FM Radio show: Frequency, every Saturday night from 9-11 PM ET on 97.3FM WRIR and streaming on WRIR.org. 

I’ll be up in DC on Saturday, March 19th @ El Techo (606 Florida Ave NW), playing a closing set of jazzy jungle. It’s a monthly party called AfroBoogie. Limited capacity & sweet vibes. Check it out!

IG:  @thejoanna_o
FB: JoannaOremland
SoundCloud / Mixcloud : joannao
Turnstyleonline.com
WRIR 97.3 fm – Richmond Independent Radio

https://www.twitch.tv/radiorva

For more Radio RVA Information, or to be featured in upcoming editions of this column, please contact [email protected]

Humorous Darkness: The Art of George Alexis

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You might know George Alexis from his show on WRIR, The Horsehead Nebula, but he’s also a visual artist whose work mixes a dark sensibility with odd humor. George Wethington spoke to Alexis to get a closer look at the unique mind that produces his intriguing, unusual art.

Context is everything. What does it mean to observe an artist? I’ll forgo the sanctified condescension of asking what an artist is. But I can’t forgo the need to contextualize the person I am speaking with. That thought was beneficial to me as I spoke with George Alexis, a visual artist in Richmond who has a refreshing and comedic style that is realist and often dark. Alexis may also be known around Richmond for a late-night black metal program he did for WRIR called The Horsehead Nebula, named for a dark nebula in the constellation of Orion.

The image of an artist is always removed from the original source of creation and inspiration. In the same way I must reduce an artist into words so you can have at least a fuzzy inclination of what they might be like, a smoothed residual image must be created by astronomers in order to study the vastness of a galaxy. That image is created by placing a two-dimensional window around pixels of light, and then averaging differences into a single pixel. With that in mind, I will put on my space suit to collect the images, provide a two-dimensional framework through which to perceive him, and together, we’ll figure out if these few pixels are enough to understand George Alexis. 

George Wethington: You are a visual artist and there are intrinsic things about your approach. One of those things is the balance between morbidity and humor, darkness and light. With that in mind, what were your formative cartoons?

George Alexis: Wow, that’s a good question.  I watched Ren and Stimpy for sure, plenty others that were relevant for a kid born in the early 90s. As far as formative cartoons go, we talked briefly before about things being residual. So, for me there was never like a one thing where I was like, “Ahh, that’s the one!” Instead, you look at everything years later, and say, “Oh, there’s a little bit of this, and this. There’s that, and that, and this.” And then you go back and look at something and say, “That’s cool.” But I didn’t see anything like that back then. 

GW: Absolutely.

GA: I think when I was younger, I really wanted Ren and Stimpy to be a formative experience for me. Not, like, when I was a kid watching, but when I was in my early 20s and late teens. But it wasn’t. [Laughs] You know, you want to make something like Ren and Stimpy, because for the time it was cutting edge, and edgy. You can’t force that stuff.

GW: Also, keeping in mind that it was hilarious.

GA: Aw, it was so funny dude.

GW: For me, seeing something like Ren and Stimpy when I was a kid, there was an aspect to the scenes that would be particularly grotesque, or just a little bit more over the top: there was this sense that I couldn’t pull away from it. Did you feel the same way as a child?

GA: I didn’t see anything wrong with it. Because when you’re a kid, there’s nobody to tell you that this was wrong or bad.

GW: Oh, your parents didn’t tell you that you couldn’t watch stuff like Ren and Stimpy?

GA: No. I guess that’s something to mention, that I was very uncensored as a kid. My dad gave me Alien and Predator to watch when I was under ten years old. I was always exposed to that stuff. I remember my mom made me watch the scene in Jurassic Park where the guy gets eaten on the toilet. I was old enough to comprehend and be scared by it. 

GW: So your parents were like, “Let the boy watch and understand.”

GA: Not even that. I just don’t think they cared. [Laughs] Both of my parents had to work, I had no one to watch me, other than babysitters and stuff like that. But their vested interest was simply getting bread on the table and making sure I didn’t burn the house down. I was unsupervised a lot. I got to go play outside a lot. I was also a pretty behaved kid. I didn’t do anything that necessarily warranted strict supervision.

GW: You were given this access to what could be somewhat jarring videos, movies, or cartoons and you internalized a little piece of each one that inspired you at the time, that you thought was cool. That’s pretty cool.

GA: I found some stuff scary, but it was tapping into the primal fear that little kids just have. There was an episode of a cartoon where they are afraid of a blanket under the bed because they think it’s a monster, and to me that was really scary. And it genuinely scared me, like I was legitimately afraid to watch it, but you look back on it now and it’s the least scary thing in the world.

GW: But at the time…

GA: Yeah. That’s what every kid feels, you know? Watching something like Ren and Stimpy… oddly enough, there wasn’t any fear there. It also didn’t occur to me that it was supposed to be ironically funny. To me, it was just a funny cartoon.

GW: Oh yeah, as a kid I did not catch the irony at all.

GA: I liked the “Happy! Happy! Joy! Joy!” song because I like the crocodile-looking guys who sang it. That stuff appealed to me, but at no point did I look at it and think, “This is disturbing and I must know more.” It just wasn’t disturbing to me. Honestly, what is kind of funny is I still have that now. I don’t think the art I make is that disturbing. I don’t think it is that weird.

GW: The thing that I have noticed about your art, which is good that we are touching on a cartoon like Ren and Stimpy so heavily, is there is a darkness and a silliness there that exists right next to each other. I know there are plenty of cartoons that we would be able to reference that have this exact thing, but it drives me to the question: when did you feel comfortable imbuing darkness into your own art? Or was that always just a natural product, because you did not believe that there was anything wrong with it?

GA: I don’t think I ever had a moment where I was uncomfortable sharing my art, except for when I was in San Diego. I was working with a lot of artists at an art supply store, and I was very nervous to show them the art that I was making, because I wanted to make a good impression. That’s when I made the realization that maybe people didn’t see it the way that I saw it. Before that, I never really felt uncomfortable making weird shit because I didn’t care what people thought of me. I was incredibly self-conscious — you know, wondering if people liked me and all that. But it didn’t click to me that people would think my art was weird. I was like, “Nah, they’ll think I’m cool and edgy.” [Laughs] At no point until then was I worried if someone was going to be disturbed by it.

It was like, “I’m really worried about how unlikable I am. But this drawing of a piece of shit coming out of an asshole and talking and smiling and saying stuff, this is what’s gonna get people to like me!” It never occurred to me that that would be why people wouldn’t like me. It was always like: “This is my saving grace.” Not being a normal, social being, no; it’s going to be this gross weird shit, and people are gonna see it and go, “Oh wow, you make really cool art.”

GW: [Dying laughing] Get the guy who’s drawing poop coming out of a butthole over here now, let’s party! 

That is so interesting and a bit of a surprise to me. I guess when I was looking over the images I started to romanticize this tortured spirit who wanted to work his through adversities. 

GA: There is definitely anxiety there, and dark thoughts there, and all sorts of shit that is really harrowing. And really, just stuff where I’m glad I’m in a different place now. But it’s residual. I’m not necessarily conscious of those things as I create. Those things are there as I formulate ideas, but it is never until I’m more lucid that I harness anything like that in a focused way. 

GW: Right. Like I said, there is a desire to romanticize that process. I guess it is easier from my perspective to say that A+B happens, and C comes along. It is interesting to hear you say and articulate something that is definitively true of life, art, any other thing; it is never just one factor. There is no formula to it, you just make dark art that is also funny. 

GA: I think of my darker pieces kind of like clowns, in a way. I’m not big on clowns. I don’t draw clowns. They are funny, and friendly-seeming, but there is an implied deception. 

GW: That is very interesting, and I see what you are saying. Clowns get a bad rap though. After Stephen King, things got tough.

GA: And let’s not forget John Wayne Gacy.

GW: Ah yes, lest we forget.

GA: A lot of my darker images, the characters are all smiling. They’re maniacs. They are here with malevolent intentions. There is an implied invader aspect to all of them that creates this trepidation to see them. They are planning. They are conniving. 

I showed them to my therapist, and he said, “Well, they are all smiling, so it’s not too bad.” And I understand what he meant. On a primal level, I can’t create when I’m in that place with those characters. I have to have some level of warmth, or levity, or mirth to get going. A lot of people will romanticize the artistic process and say, “Oh, well you make the best work when you’re depressed.” 

GW: I think there is a line out there that says, “If everything was going well, who would want to write a song?” 

GA: Exactly, but at the same time, when everything is going well, that’s when you produce the song. You can write a song whenever you want; you can make an image whenever you want. I think there is a difference between simply expressing, and expressing in a more focused and structured way, and that’s hard to do when you’re depressed. When you get in a depressive episode, and you are that depressed, it’s hard to make shit. It’s hard to do anything. It’s hard to function.

GW: Yeah. If I’m depressed enough, you can call it a fucking day.

GA: Exactly. You don’t use those times to harness those things. Instead, you tend to sit there, or lie there, or not do anything and be completely unproductive. All my art is produced in a time of good mental health. 

GW: It sounds like the ideas are formulated for you at times in a time of darkness, but they are not able to be articulated until you have found your way out and into the light.

GA: Right. We’re always going to carry our baggage with us, so if you think of something dark, and you observe it, allow it to pass, you can harness it for later. There is a weird creature that I draw that kind of manifested as a symbol for this exact thing, my depressive episodes and their modes and stages. It’s this blobby guy that kind of looks like a hammerhead shark, which I think came along because hammerheads look dangerous but are inherently peaceful. I can’t say that’s for sure why they look alike though. 

GW: That is awesome. We talked about darkness and light. We mentioned silliness and the characters that you make. We spoke that some inspiration has come from a negative place, but the characters are produced in a non-threatening place in your mind. Is that from a darkness you feel the need to get a grip on, or was that something you were only made self-conscious of once you had to present it to San Diegans?

GA: Probably the latter. At the time I don’t think anything that I make is weird, because it is just self-expression. It just makes sense to me. And some of it, of course it’s weird, but why would anyone be weirded out by it? We consume all sorts of weird media. People love horror movies. Any of this stuff is common in horror movies.

GW: In terms of weird media, the news.

GA: [Laughs] Yeah, the news is not as smiley, it tends to be a little more doom and gloom. 

GW: To drive the point though, darkness is a part of life. It has been so interesting talking to you. At first, I thought you would be coming from a point of almost working your way out of a jail cell, using humor to do so. Instead, it has been this wellspring of intelligent human comedy that just has this dark aspect to it. It is cool to see how the human spirit can manifest itself in so many different ways and still find itself relatable. Some of the more out-there images you have are still something that can bring a smile to my face. 

GA: When I make these drawings, all I want to do is make a good drawing. I don’t think too much about the unpacking part. That comes much later. I start with forms and shapes, and develop those, and anything else is just the process of making the drawing more interesting from a compositional standpoint, if there is not enough there. You create a scene. If it is particularly dark, you create a character that is afraid, or a protagonist to have someone to relate to. You create contrast, and thus the story is told. 

GW: The smiles are really what makes it all so funny to me. Even if it is scarier, it doesn’t necessarily make you afraid.  

GA: Making it too scary wouldn’t make sense because once again, that’s what gets people to like me. [Laughs] Cognitively, I’m a likable enough guy, I have friends, and a healthy relationship. But deep down, I source some of my self-worth in these drawings. When the art is an extension of yourself, you never set out to make anything in one particular way. You just make something. It’s like speaking. We have our own vocal intonations. 

GW: You just talk.

GA: Exactly! I just talk. How do you pick your nose? I don’t know, I just pick my nose. That’s how it is with this stuff. I just make it. Now that I’m older and more developed, I understand how it can come off, but I just make it at this point. 

GW: You’re not imprisoned by darkness; weird things are cool. I think it’s the folly of anyone with a preconceived notion, to set out with a presupposed idea. It’s interesting to see how far off I was. You can’t put anyone inside of a box. 

GA: For me, it is the constant pursuit of making a drawing visually interesting. 

GW: You kill it when you do it. 

Images courtesy George Alexis

WRIR Goes Remote

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With the pandemic stretching on for most of the past year, Richmond’s original community-oriented low power radio station is staying on the air with the help of a dedicated squad of volunteers.

WRIR 97.3 LP-FM, Richmond’s only independent community radio station, has always been rough and tumble. From its humble beginnings broadcasting online in 2004 and its FM debut on January 1, 2005 to this very day, the station has been on-air for fifteen years straight, continuously fueled by its DIY energy and the tireless determination of its all-volunteer staff. DJs, reporters, station managers, and more have all banded together through thick and thin based on a shared commitment: the desire to make great radio.  

When the coronavirus hit the United States in March, all branches of the media, including local radio, were taken off guard. The music scene here in Richmond was effectively shuttered as venues were forced to close. Musicians suddenly found themselves without an audience, and music lovers, required by state mandate to stay at home, felt their grip on the city’s musical pulse quickly begin to slacken. For a few scary moments, it seemed the connection to Richmond’s beloved music scene would be completely lost.  

But this only revitalized WRIR’s commitment to be there for Richmonders when the community needed it most.  

Led by the station’s Operations committee — the volunteer team that handles all technical and behind-the-scenes aspects of broadcasting — WRIR quickly and efficiently enabled its studios so that DJs and show creators could broadcast entirely from their homes. This made it easy for only one person to be in the studio at a time, minimizing contact with other volunteers while also keeping the station clean and safe for others to use.  

Bill Lupoletti, host of “Global-a-Go-Go” (Photo by Alyssa Salomon)

Melissa Vaughn, WRIR’s station president, recalls the mad rush to get the station’s regularly scheduled programming ready to operate remotely. “It was the weekend before St. Patrick’s Day,” she said. “The first thing I did was confirm that we were still the official station for statewide emergency  services. Then I knew we had to make sure our DJs could broadcast from home.”

Vaughn remembers many late-night discussions on Slack, the workplace communication platform, with the Operations team. “Working at 1am, 2am, they were brainstorming scenarios and ways to make this transition as quickly as possible. They were doing such great work.” 

While most of WRIR’s volunteers are able to use the station’s equipment for their shows with only a little bit of training, understanding the technical layout of WRIR’s broadcast studio can be complex. So to set up a remote broadcasting system, the solution had to be reliable and easy to  use. This led Peter Taffs and Zachary Klosko, two integral members of the Operations team, to begin testing and troubleshooting different network designs.  

“All of the members helped out to contribute to this model,” said Taffs, “and it’s worked out really well. It took probably a week from the first idea, to two weeks for the final product. All we had to do was set up an Icecast server” — an online service that allows broadcasters to route their shows from one location to another via the Internet — “and load their programs onto the stream. So all DJs had to do was be able to configure their own computer. Working with automation helped facilitate this process, but ultimately it really is that simple. And it’s all free! I like free stuff.”  

Zachary Klosko, Operations member (Photo by Zachary Klosko) 

Using the automation stream as a way to work around having an in-person board operator was Zachary Klosko’s idea. “It kind of felt like selling your soul, because we always have someone in the studio,” said Klosko. “But it turns out it was something that really saved us in the moment.” The solution was a program called LibreTime, which allowed shows to be pre-set remotely, and to air according to that schedule. “It wasn’t easy at first, but after experimenting  with some programs, we found a model that worked. Now Melissa [Vaughn] can pre-program the entire news/talk schedule the night or week before.” 

With the prototype for a remote broadcasting system in place, the time had finally come for it to go live. One of the first DJs to test it out was Sean Lovelace, host of “The Heavy Cosmic Rotation.” His show was on the Monday that the prototype was finished, so after Sean had hosted a two-hour show successfully, the Operations team was ready to share their project with the rest of the station.  

Otto Konrad and Carol Olson, veteran show hosts and both former board members of the Virginia Center for Public Press — the non-profit that operates WRIR — have been impressed with the station’s transition. “You know, there’s not some organized primer for how to remote broadcast,” said Konrad. “It was all set up by our volunteers. And to see how independent and DIY our station has been over the years, I think we really are the only community radio station in the country that has this culture. It’s a pretty incredible thing.” 

Otto Konrad, former VCPP board member, in Studio Two.

“I thought the Operations team did a great job,” said Olson. “The switch made it easier and safer for us, and it really helps anybody who wants to broadcast remotely. Plus, having the ability to do so will have less wear and tear on the equipment, which will help in the long run.” 

In the months after WRIR first went remote, Olson was even more impressed with the results of the Spring Fund Drive. “I’m so excited that the volunteers raised the standard amount of money for our fund drives. It was a great example of seeing our community come together when we needed them,” she said. “Because we are the last independent voices in the country. Most stations are owned by companies, but we are not. Independent media is one of the last places for free and accessible information for everyone. You don’t have to buy a subscription here; you just have to listen to us on the radio.”

Having established a reliable alternative to in-studio broadcasting, the Operations team continues to monitor their progress and seek out ways to improve. But as many of the DJs and hosts have utilized this new platform, the station’s volunteers have been quick to offer messages of hope. 

“You know, somehow we managed to get on the air in January 2005,” said Bill Lupoletti, host of “Global-a-Go-Go” and inaugural member of the WRIR staff. “And that was hard work. We got on air, but we didn’t know what would happen in February. It was just a single-minded kind of focus. So in  the right or wrong situation, people can really do anything. There are a lot of things that people can do that they think they can’t do.” 

Carol Olson, former VCPP board member and host of “Women in Politics,” in her home studio.

Peter Taffs agrees. “The resiliency from the volunteers is very good, and the commitment from our DJs is fantastic,” he said. “I’ve been glad to see how people adapt. Moments like that give me hope.” 

With no signs that the coronavirus pandemic will be giving up in the near future, WRIR’s remote operations will be part of the station’s new normal. But this is hardly a concern for Melissa Vaughn. “I have to say that when this first happened, nobody said, ‘We can’t do this.’ Nobody,” she said. “We were always open to getting through it. And anyway, we don’t believe in defeatism! If something is in our way, we move past it.” 

That resilient, community-focused, and DIY mindset is one that we all can aspire to as part of  our new normal.  

Top Photo: Peter Taffs at WRIR studio

The Beautiful Game Meets A Beautiful Life

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Rachel Scott Everett pays tribute to beloved local podcaster Daryl Grove, who passed away from cancer last week. Host of the Total Soccer Show, Grove was a soccer enthusiast who brought his love of the game to many in Richmond and beyond.

Last week the world lost an inspiring soccer enthusiast, devoted friend, and all-around good human being. Daryl Grove, co-founder and beloved host of the wildly popular podcast, the Total Soccer Show (TSS), based here in Richmond, passed away after a nearly two year battle with stage IV colon cancer. He was 40 years old. 

Soccer fans across the globe are mourning his death, as are Grove’s family, friends, and loved ones. For all who knew him, Daryl wasn’t just a podcasting pioneer, but the epitome of altruism and kindness. 

“[Daryl] was a man who woke up every day with… the absolute goal of making life better for those around him, and that level of effort isn’t easy,” says Taylor Rockwell, his co-host, business partner, and longtime friend. “It takes a belief in the goodness of the world and one’s ability to help out to believe that even the smallest gesture or kind word can make a difference.”

Originally from England, Daryl came to Richmond by way of Michigan, where his wife, Shannon O’Neill, grew up. They met at film school in Ireland and, after visiting a friend in Richmond, moved to RVA in 2004. 

Daryl joined the Central Virginia Soccer Association (CVSA) as a way to meet fellow soccer players and get involved with the community. It was here that he and Taylor became friends. On and off the field, their discussions revolved around all things soccer. When it came to the subject of podcasts, they realized that an American perspective was missing – an insight that became the inspiration behind their decision to create the Total Soccer Show.

Daryl Grove (left) and Taylor Rockwell recording the Total Soccer Show in studio (October 2017). Photo by Stephanie Dowda Demer.

In 2009, after pitching a demo to independent station WRIR, the Total Soccer Show made its humble debut as a local radio show, providing game insight, analysis, and commentary in an honest, entertaining way. Between the CVSA and Richmond Kickers, the show established a solid fan base among the city’s burgeoning soccer community. Slowly but surely, the podcast gained more attention, with thousands of listeners tuning in to each episode from all over the country. Since those early years, it’s grown and evolved into the #1 independent soccer podcast in the United States – one of the longest-running and most-listened-to shows of its kind in North American soccer.

While produced in Richmond, the Total Soccer Show has also garnered a huge international following, as evidenced by its loyal subscribers and 17K Twitter followers. Up until last year, it had no major network backing – a testament to the hard work and dedication that Daryl and Taylor put into the show, literally building it from the ground up. 

Much of the show’s success came from the natural rapport the two shared and their obvious passion for soccer. In the midst of thought-provoking dialogue, they exchanged jokes and clever banter, keeping listeners both informed and amused. Their knowledge of the sport impressed many, but it was their relatability that made the show so popular. For fans, who ranged from soccer novices to experts and even professionals, the show felt like an extension of their social life. Daryl and Taylor weren’t just voices on a podcast, they were like old friends.

As an expat with an unapologetic enthusiasm for US soccer, Daryl brought a unique point of view and personality to the Total Soccer Show. People were endeared by his charismatic British accent (Halesowen, to be exact), sharp wit and kind-hearted spirit. Daryl opened every episode with his signature greeting, a cheery “Hello and welcome,”  that immediately set a tone of familiarity and warmth to devout listeners. While the show must go on, the absence of Daryl and his contributions will surely be felt by all who tune in regularly.

Daryl and Taylor, in a typical banter, entertain crowds in their first performance at the Heineken Club at Audi Field (July 2019). Photo by Morgan Tencza.

Since his passing, an outpouring of fans have taken to social media to express their sentiments about Daryl, including some big names in the international soccer community and organizations like the U.S. Men’s National Team, Major League Soccer, and World Football Talk. 

American sports journalist Grant Wahl spoke of the Total Soccer Show’s indelible influence with US soccer fans, and described Daryl as “one of the kindest, most talented and hardest-working people I’ve ever met.” Sports columnist Tim Steller stated, “Those of us who love American soccer have lost one of our most enthusiastic friends, Daryl Grove of @TotalSoccerShow. An English immigrant who came to love the American game and players, he set a high standard for friendliness, humor, and enthusiasm and will be sorely missed.” 

In a tweet by U.S. Soccer, former pro and TV soccer analyst Jordan Angeli added, “This is a guy who’s going to live on forever in how many people he brought to the game here in the United States… what you hear and who he is on the podcast is exactly who he is in real life. He is a loving man. He loves the game and he loves people a lot.” 

Retired soccer legend and Fox Sports analyst Alexi Lalas offered some moving words as he contemplated the significant impact Daryl made on the soccer world:

“Daryl’s incredibly sweet and kind and curious mind was something to behold… and an incredible comfort, I know to myself, and to a lot of other people,” he said in a video on Twitter. “He is as important as anybody who ever kicked the ball and maybe even more so at times, because he furthered the conversation. He continually gave a platform. He continued to give us his opinion on things. He educated us. And in doing so, he made American soccer better.”

Daryl and Taylor meet up with retired soccer legend and Fox Sports analyst Alexi Lalas (January 2018). Photo courtesy of Alexi Lalas.

Last year, the Total Soccer Show began a partnership with the Richmond Kickers, producing a weekly review of their games. At last Saturday’s game, the team put out a signed, personalized jersey in Daryl’s honor and made this statement on the Richmond Kickers Facebook page: 

“Based here in Richmond, Daryl touched the lives of much of the United States soccer community both locally and throughout the country. Daryl passed away Thursday night [October 22, 2020] after a courageous and well-documented battle with cancer. A battle that has inspired millions and was further proof of the spirit and enthusiasm Daryl brought to every aspect of his life. We want to thank Daryl for always taking the time to talk with all of us. We love you, Daryl.” 

Meg Linehan, staff writer for sports journalism website The Athletic, expressed her appreciation for the Total Soccer Show’s thoughtful, meaningful coverage of women’s soccer. “As difficult as this moment is, I think it shows us the best of what this space can be… a community where we fight for each other and we appreciate each other and we support each other – with love.”

Yet another poignant tribute came from a young man who wrote an op-ed in The Post of Athens, Ohio. Will Cunningham, a sophomore at Ohio University and longtime fan of the Total Soccer Show, stated in his essay that Daryl was an inspiration to him and “one of the biggest reasons I got into sports journalism.” On a 2015 visit to Richmond, Will’s dad surprised him by organizing a lunch with Daryl and Taylor, who took the time to meet with the exuberant teenager. Will stated that Daryl “will be remembered by many as the perfect podcast host, who was able to combine thoughtful analysis, witty comments and more puns than you could count. He was the best of us, and he will be dearly missed.” 

Pondering the life of his good friend, Adam Whittaker Snavely wrote on his blog that he hoped Daryl would “excuse us, as we confront the impending reality of waking up in a world where he does not also wake up. We are sad because he made us all so happy, and interested, and intrigued with the universe around us and how it pertains to a little game we all like to talk about.”

The Richmond Kickers displayed a jersey in Daryl’s honor, at their game last weekend, signed by members of the team (October 2020). Photo courtesy of the Richmond Kickers.

Beyond the air waves of the Total Soccer Show, Daryl’s impact extended to hands-on work in the Richmond community. As founder and director of nonprofit Richmond Street Soccer, Daryl organized a soccer league for people in substance abuse recovery, many coming from The Healing Place, a local residential recovery program. In pre-pandemic times, the team typically practiced once a week and participated in the local CVSA league, as well as in regional and national Street Soccer USA tournaments. 

Having played with Daryl on the Richmond City Football Club, Thad Williamson attended that first kickoff meeting back in 2009. In a heartfelt Facebook post, he summed up his admiration for his cherished friend, stating: 

“As much as he loved the sport, for Daryl, soccer was the medium not the end. He mainly cared about people… he cared about the injustices of our society and wanted to do his part to address them. And he did – he used the game he loved to build community, and made a long-haul commitment, week after week, year after year. Daryl Grove was an amazing human being and one of the people who made Richmond worth living in. He was full of wit, intelligence, and humor. Daryl was always up for an on-point ironic observation – which is a major reason people loved hanging out with him. I feel privileged to have had so much time with him, and I am absolutely crushed that he has gone after a courageous fight, far too soon.”

Players from Richmond Street Soccer (May 2016), a nonprofit soccer league organized by Daryl (kneeling, second from left) to help people in substance abuse recovery. Photo courtesy of Richmond Street Soccer.

It’s no surprise that Daryl was admired by many in the soccer world, but he also had many adoring non-soccer fans – myself included. I came to know Daryl through his wife, my dear friend, Shannon. A few years ago, my husband and I were fortunate to be welcomed into their circle of friends. Over the course of various happy hours, porch gatherings, and dinner parties, I don’t think I fully grasped I was in the presence of a niche celebrity. But that’s Daryl for you – consistently humble, unassuming, and never seeking any fanfare. Often running late, Shannon would explain he was finishing up the podcast, and without fail, he showed up, fully present and by her side. As always, Daryl remained committed to the things – and people – that matter.

While Daryl and Taylor certainly had their own chemistry, it was nothing compared to the magic that he and Shannon shared. Their relationship was the ideal union of mutual love, care, and respect. They not only supported but championed each other’s independent interests and personal pursuits. Seeing the other thrive and in their element truly made them happy.

In a gripping, beautiful Facebook post, Shannon mentions that from the beginning of his diagnosis, Daryl made one thing clear: “he loved his life as it was and he would change nothing about it. He spent it loving and enjoying friends, daily FaceTime with his family back in England, traveling when he could, walking the dog, sitting on our porch, being my best friend and, of course, recording the Total Soccer Show.”

Daryl’s contentment to the everyday speaks volumes to his outlook on life. It wasn’t about grand celebrations (unless his favorite team, the Wolves, were winning, of course), it was about all the little moments that happen in between – over time, they added up to a glorious existence. 

Like analyzing soccer, Daryl focused on the details and nuances of life – things that many of us often overlook or take for granted. He wasn’t sentimental about material things (with maybe the exception of a few favorite tee shirts) but rather, provocative conversation, enthralling soccer, and good times with family and friends who felt like family. 

As American sportswriter Grantland Rice once said, “It’s not whether you win or lose, but how you play the game.” And Daryl played the game of life exceptionally well. It’s a reminder to all of us to pursue your passions, tell people you love them and in general, be kind.

Daryl with Shannon, his wife of nearly 15 years, enjoying life. Photo courtesy of Shannon O’Neill.

While Daryl’s legacy will live on in the Total Soccer Show and in all the different people whose lives he touched, Shannon wants more for him – namely, to increase awareness of colon cancer and the importance of early screenings to prevent others from the heartache they both experienced.

According to the American Cancer Society, “colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men and in women, and the second most common cause of cancer deaths when men and women are combined.” Earlier this year, RVA Mag ran a story on “Hitting Cancer Below The Belt,” about the silence that typically surrounds colorectal cancer. And just two months ago, the death of Hollywood celebrity Chadwick Boseman from colorectal cancer served as a wake-up call for young adults. The Black Panther star was 43 years old.

What’s particularly tragic is that colon cancer is treatable if detected early on – however, many who are diagnosed experience no signs or symptoms and the disease is often mistaken for less severe gastrointestinal disorders like irritable bowel syndrome. Additionally, most U.S. insurance plans only cover the costs for colorectal cancer screenings starting at age 50, despite the fact that colon cancer rates in younger adults are rising. 

For these reasons and more, it’s imperative to be proactive about medical checkups, because unfortunately, cancer can strike anyone – even the young, healthy, and active. 

Daryl being interviewed as “Richmond’s resident soccer-loving Brit” (June 2014). Photo courtesy of RVANews. 

In an interview with Protagonist Soccer last year, in the midst of intense chemotherapy, Daryl reflected on his situation with his trademark optimism: 

“Before the diagnosis, I was keenly aware that life was good. I love my wife, love my friends, love my family, love doing TSS. The diagnosis did make me take a brief pause to assess, like, am I doing what I’m supposed to be doing with my life? And I found the answer was yes. So in a paradoxical way it’s been really life affirming because I know not everyone is fortunate enough to have that same answer, often for reasons beyond their control. So now I wake up every day knowing how lucky I am and it makes me determined to really enjoy all the things in life that I love so much.”

Whether you knew Daryl for two years or twenty, lived in Richmond or thousands of miles away, laughed with him in person or through the podcast, you were a friend. As many have pointed out, Daryl wouldn’t want us to linger in our sadness and grief. Instead, he’d want us to channel our love for him into action. 

So let’s honor our friend Daryl, not only by spreading the word on colon cancer, but by living life to the fullest and never taking a single day for granted. 

If you would like to pay tribute to Daryl Grove, please consider being a part of Team Daryl Grove by making a donation on his GoFundMe page, or to the Colorectal Cancer Alliance.

Top Photo: Mixed media concept inspired by Man On! @QueerSporting with main (center) photo by Jonathan Elderfield. Design/layout by Brian Gibson.