Renowned Teesside promoters, Into Tomorrow, have set up their own radio show on Radio Stockton. Lee Allcock caught up with host Gary ‘Diz’ Walters to find out what listeners can expect.
Why did you decide to start your own show?
The simple answer is I was asked. TMA (Tees Music Alliance) received some funding to help promote the North East music scene and teamed up with Radio Stockton. They then asked me, along with Graham from Down By The River, Adam Gallagher, Sarah & Claire from Noisy Daughters, and Jodie Nicholson, if we wanted to present our own shows. It was an absolute no brainer for me as it’s something I’ve always fancied. The TMA shows go out at 6pm every day on radiostockton.co.uk, with mine being a monthly show on the last Sunday of the month.
What can listeners expect?
A very eclectic mix of quality music showcasing the enormous talent we have here in the North East, along with some of the great gigs we are putting on, and occasionally, I’ll throw in something from further afield that’s floating my boat such as Iraina Mancini or Teenage Waitress. Usually, with the latter, it’ll be someone I’m hoping to bring to Teesside for a gig in the future. Hopefully, someone will discover their new favourite band or artist and want to check them out further and come see them live.
How do you select the music that you play on each show?
There are three main criteria really: promoting upcoming gigs, picking out tracks that showcase the local scene, and tracks that have been sent to me, not necessarily in that order.
How can people get involved?
Send me an mp3 to diz.ithq@gmail.com, preferably with the name of the band or artist on it and the song name. I’m amazed how many I get that are titled something like “Track 3 Master” or something like that, which become a bit of a needle in a haystack to find once you’ve downloaded it. I can’t guarantee they’ll get played on the show but I promise I listen to them all and I will try to fit them in, not always immediately, but if I say I’ll play it, I will eventually. Also, they have to be ‘radio-friendly’, of course – in other words, no swearing.
You also host your own gigs under the Into Tomorrow handle. Tell me about what you have coming up over the next few months…
Yes! It’s such a buzz to have live music back – as you know. We have Steve Pilgrim at The Green Room in Stockton on Friday 23rd July, supported by George Boomsma. Steve is a member of Paul Weller’s band as well as a very talented singer-songwriter in his own right. We’re unbelievably thrilled to have him coming to Teesside! Then we come to yours on the August Bank Holiday Sunday (29th) of course, for our joint Feelgood Festival all-dayer with headliners Happy Daggers who were one of the highlights of Stockton Calling a couple of years back, a real indie-disco-funk force of nature. We also have local bands The Lulas, Head of Light Entertainment, Nice Guy, Finn Forster and Shore, plus two more out of town acts who people are going to love when they see them: Glue, a female-fronted bluesy rock band and The Lotts, a garage-punk band, both guaranteed to bring plenty of energy and excitement. Then in September, we have Nick Corbin, formerly of Acid Jazz record label band New Street Adventure, bringing his new band with support from The Thieves, to play The Green Room on the 11th, with The Spitfires returning to Stockton to play KU on the 30th, in association with Ku Promotions.
To find out more about the Into Tomorrow show on Radio Stockton, head to radiostockton.co.uk.
