The Backstage Rider

The Backstage Rider

Author: Curiouscast November 12, 2025 Duration: 31:38
Going on tour is hard…you’re away from home for months at a time…there’s little sleep, bad food, too many drugs, a surfeit of alcohol, late nights, temptations into bad behavior, crazy people, and that bass player who refuses to wash his feet, probably because he’s on his phone moaning to his girlfriend about how miserable he is…   All that occupies about 22 hours of the day…the best times come when you’re at the venue…there’s the excitement of the lead-up, the after-show satisfaction, and in between, the gig itself…   But every show is different…a different city…a different place to sleep…vans, buses, and, if you’re lucky, airplanes…for that time on the road, your sanctuary becomes the dressing room, the one place over which you have some measure of control—if you know what you’re doing…   This brings me to the concert rider, the part of the contract with the promoter that specifies what an act has to be provided with before, during, and after a show…   Once the band arrives, the road manager is the point-person…he or she has to make sure the promoter adheres to the terms of the rider…   Most of the details are pretty mundane because they’re basically logistical…the times of the load-in and load-out…electrical requirements and the number of local electricians required to make them happen…how many forklifts and drivers are needed to move gear around…catering for the crew…parking for the tour buses…how merch sales are going to work…that kind of thing…   Where things get interesting are the artist’s requirements, the things they need backstage to ensure they’re in a good headspace to play a great show…mess up the rider and the promoter runs the risk of having a pouty, petulant, and otherwise pissed off performance…   And i get it…if you’re an artist and you don’t get what you need before a gig, then you’re going to feel disrespected…   Coming up with a list of requests that can be enforced night after night, venue after venue, city after city, and country after country is a delicate and essential thing…and let’s just say that some bands are better than others at this sort of thing…   Welcome to the wild work of the backstage rider… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For over two decades, the Ongoing History of New Music has served as an essential audio documentary series, digging deep into the stories that shaped alternative rock, hip hop, and everything in between. Hosted by the legendary music historian Alan Cross, this podcast functions as a curated archive of musical culture, moving far beyond simple artist profiles. Each episode is a thematic exploration, connecting sonic dots across decades to reveal the hidden contexts, forgotten pioneers, and cultural shifts that define what we listen to. You’ll hear about the scenes that birthed genres, the technologies that changed production, and the personalities whose influence ripples through today’s charts. It’s less a linear history lesson and more an ongoing conversation about why music matters, delivered with Cross’s authoritative yet accessible narrative style. Tune in and discover the rich, often surprising backstories behind the songs and artists you thought you knew, gaining insights you’re unlikely to find anywhere else. This is Canadian broadcasting at its most inquisitive and enduring, making the Ongoing History of New Music a foundational listen for anyone curious about the forces that continually reinvent our sonic landscape.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Ongoing History of New Music
Podcast Episodes
What's The Big Deal About Iggy Pop [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:44
For this week’s episode, we’re going to go back into the ongoing history of new music vault and our “what’s the big deal” series. This is where we try to figure out why we keep hearing and reading about these old names f…
It's A Family Affair [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:42
Music is one of those things that can bring families together…and sometimes, that togetherness grows into a business… The BeeGees had the three Gibb brothers…baby brother Andy Gibb was also part of that universe for a wh…
Weird and Shocking Rockers [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:12
Here’s a warning right from the outset: this is going to be a weird program…the performs and the music we’re going to talk about are famous because of their weird, shocking behaviour…they set out to get our attention—and…
Good Goth - Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:34
This is the second part of our examination of the legendary Alt-Rock scene known as "Goth", and this time we go from mid 80's... right up to today. Goth has always had a bad rap, so in our deep dive, we'll try to clear e…
Good Goth - Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:14
Goth has always had a bad rap and that's not fair to the music, the fans and the fashion so we're going to try to clear everything up with our deep dive. But don't worry...no one's going to get hurt. We are going to exam…
The Second Voice [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 22:09
When you’re the lead singer in a band, you’re pretty much guaranteed to get all the attention…after all, you are the visual and audio focal point for pretty much everything… Yeah, there might be a hot guitarist or someon…
The Original Ramones [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:47
Friday, August 16, 1974, was a hot summer day in New York City…it was 31 degrees, but the humidity made it feel a lot hotter…and if you were down in the Bowery amidst all the concrete, it was hotter still...and it smelle…
Rock's Most Iconic Instruments [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:21
Most of us probably go through a phase where we decide to make music for ourselves…maybe we’ll do it alone, or perhaps we want to be part of a band. The first thing you need to do is decide what instrument you will play……
Explaining Krautrock [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:52
After World War II, Germany was destroyed…the country was divided…the east was under the control of the USSR…the west was in democratic Europe…and then there was berlin, sitting in the east but cut into different zones d…
Stupid History 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:49
What do you remember from history class back in school?... Maybe a few dates and events…maybe the names some important people…and probably how dull a lot of history classes were. I remember being inundated with a bunch o…