Podcasts Where the whole world can hear you talk Windsor’s newest talk radio program can’t be found anywhere on the radio dial — and that’s very much working in its favour. It’s hard to imagine a mainstream station giving air time to two amateurs whose idea of a show involves scribbling a word or two on a scrap of paper and then just winging it when the on-air light goes on. But, as it is for other similar podcasts, that spontaneous, uncensored spirit is the secret behind the growing success of Shane and Tom’s Squeeze Box, an online talk show produced by Windsorites Shane Potvin and Tom Lucier, who sometimes writes for this page. “Essentially, it was a chance for me to run into my friend Shane and actually be able to have the conversations we used to have before we ran out of time,� Lucier said of the show. “So, we basically behave the way we would if we were out with our other friends, except we have microphones.� The guys just completed their 19th episode and recently clocked in their 1,000th hit on their website shaneandtom.libsyn.com That’s quite the milestone considering their first show was posted barely two months ago. “The numbers are going up so it’s really, really exciting to see that,� said Potvin, a 28-year-old digital art director. The name Squeeze Box spun out of the first episode when Potvin picked up a toy accordion and began to play it as the opening theme song. Usually what follows is about 25 minutes to an hour of lighthearted, unscripted banter between the two friends on topics ranging from Potvin’s comedic childhood misadventures to Lucier’s notoriously entertaining letters of complaints to companies whose products failed him. Good chemistry “We always laugh and just kind of play off each other and we’re pretty good at that, I think,� Potvin said. Citizen broadcasting, while relatively new to Windsor, is huge in the United States, where an ex-MTV veejay helped develop a program that made the digital audio files compatible with MP3 players like the iPod. But listeners don’t need a portable player to tune in, as Windows Media Player and other similar programs will do the trick. New shows are mushrooming daily as more people are attracted to the appeal of producing raw radio-like programs for the worldwide Internet audience through minimal cost and effort. “It’s just something we get together, we have fun,� said the singlenamed Barry, who until October, was running what was potentially Windsor’s first podcast, Digital Anarchy Radio. “It’s just something for us to kill time, do something different.� rpennington@thestar.canwest.com or call 255-5529

Topics Include: Found Picture, The Kooky lady at Tom's Bar, Shane and Tom's Mountain Goat Hunt, Eating Balls, What Do Ya Know

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Topics Include: Comment Response Ping Pong, Tom's Fridgidare complaint letter, Shane's Thai scare.

Topics Include: Our Toilet Episode!. Padded, High, On a TV tray, you name it. Grab a newspaper and join us.

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Topics Include: Shane's Bizzaro head problems, Tom almost gets cut by a zero, Buying a belly shirt off a dude, Accupuncture is awesome, Tom wins a Kong Show shirt.

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