R.I.P. The Goose

It's truly gutting to see someone who's still young and vital taken from this life, in such a brutal way. Mike Guzman -- "The Goose," to KSER listeners -- passed away yesterday afternoon. Fans of Goose's Wednesday night program "Unmitigated Audacity" know that he put his passion for music, his vast knowledge and his own personality into every episode. And what a personality he was. Intelligent, knowledgeable ... never one to form an opinion or viewpoint without knowing the facts first ... ready to argue, but ready to listen too. That seems harder and harder to find these days. He was also a generous, caring guy, whose passions and interests extended way beyond the world of music. And he had a great sense of humor. (It hurts to write about him in the past tense.)

He was a terrific concert buddy, who was eager to invite me on an evening's excursion into Seattle to check out some artist or band that he was confident I'd enjoy ... or to join me and check out my recommendations. He even convinced me to join him at a sports bar to watch a football game. (That's not usually my thing, so it says something about Goose's charisma that he could talk me into it.) He was my brother, my colleague, my good friend, my partner in crime ... and I felt genuinely honored that he would call me those same things on the air.

My heart aches for his family and friends, and especially for his girlfriend. "Condolences" and "sympathies" and "thoughts and prayers" don't seem nearly adequate. His death leaves a great big void ... one that won't be filled any time soon, or truly, ever.

Farewell, my brother. 51 is far too soon. You will always be loved, and you will always be missed deeply.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/24/2023 03:04PM by Delvin.

My condolences Delvin, and to others who might read this.

I think I remember hearing the Goose subbing for you on 20-Flight Rock and vice versa. I recall that he was passionate about music, and I'll always respect that, even if our particular musical tastes don't always mesh (although in Goose's case, that was not a problem).

I hope you pay him a heartfelt tribute on one of your upcoming shows. Maybe tracks from shows you've attended together, favorite tracks of his, and other appropriate material.

I'll be paying tribute to Goose this week. A more full-fledged tribute, in Goose's Wednesday night time slot, is in the works.

There was a story in Billboard this past week how non-commercial stations are proving to be vital to new music discovery (Billboard story specficially referring to KEXP, The Current in the Twin Cities, etc.) and your comment is yet another example of why I go out of my way to listen to KSER, etc., on TuneIn app or from KSER web site whenenever you've posted a playlist and it prompts me to go and listen.

Everyone always talks about the KEXP's and the WFMU's and the KCRW's but I really don't think the KSER's get talked about enough.

I am sorry for your loss and look forward to hearing the tribute show.

Thanks very much, BCE. Yeah, smaller independent stations in smaller markets do get swept under the rug. For me, nothing's driven the reality of that tunnel vision home more than KSER's repeated bids to become the broadcast promoter (or simply a broadcast promoter) for the Rock the Boat Festival and the Fisherman's Village Music Festival.

Both of these annual events started in Everett, the year after I moved here. Rock the Boat was a late-summer outdoor show, hosted on the Everett waterfront; it lasted for three years. Fisherman's Village still is an annual offering, with bands and artists performing at a variety of venues in downtown Everett over four days.

And year after year, KSER has gotten rebuffed in its efforts, as the promoters have turned to KEXP instead. It's certainly not a bargain for the promoters, relatively speaking ... and it certainly doesn't nurture the "home town spirit" that I'd like to experience at such an event. (I may be naive about that, but still.) But the promoters want to reach the larger, more lucrative Seattle market. They want to persuade hipsters in Seattle to make the drive up to Everett for this festival.

As someone who's spent most of his life living in a medium-sized city, in the shadow of a much larger one, I wish I could convince these promoters that it doesn't work. The hipsters in Seattle are no more likely to drive up to Everett for their entertainment than the ones in Denver are to drive down to Colorado Springs for theirs. They're even less likely to do it for an event spread out over multiple nights, since they'll have to put up with that drive repeatedly over the weekend. And especially not for an event where they have to find parking, once they get there. Whereas, if they stay in Seattle, they can take an Uber, and it won't cost them a small fortune.

The first year that Rock the Boat happened, a guy I knew from the neighborhood association meeting cornered me and asked me, point blank, why our hometown radio station wasn't promoting the hometown music festival. (Like I had anything to do with it.) It kinda churned my stomach to explain that, in the end, it was all about the cash.