TGM:Alright, here’s the drill. Easy question. Who are you and, what do you do?
David:I am David Silver and I am the host of Festival of Blood Radio. The show and the web site’s origin go back to 1998. You can find the show via iTunes, The Geek Media, or at www.festivalofblood.com

TGM:You have in the past shocked some members of TGM with something you said on Festival of Blood Radio. I can remember my own shock that caused me to almost drop my coffee. How do you deliver those statements with such a straight face?

David:For the record, I am pretty sure that Princess Peach really is a “skanky little whore”, unlike Ivy from DOA who is clearly a very classy chick. As many long time listeners know, my humor is very much on the dry side and I try to bring that to the show. If you really listen, every show has some comment or remark that is intended to make you ask yourself, “is he serious?” My humor has always been dry and practice has made adding it to the show easy. Even the show’s name is somewhat intended to draw feelings scandal and speculation!

TGM:You’ve been doing this for awhile now. Can you tell us how long you’ve been doing this?
David:I started the show sometime in 1998 before there was “podcasting”. The show was on my site, then known as The Silver Surfer. To be honest, the first few shows were intended for friends who attended a semi-annual LAN party (we called it a “Fest”) that a friend and I put to gether twice a year. Over time I found I really enjoyed doing the show and expanded it for the general public. The early days were simple MP3 downloads, then latter streaming WMA. As the show became more popular, I knew that “The Silver Surfer” was not the best name to have as the good folks at Marvel might have an issue with it. So, Festival of Blood was born.

TGM:How different is podcasting now compared to how it was when you began?
David:Distribution is so much better now! In 1998, unless someone passed on word of mouth or happened to type your show name into Yahoo, they did not find you. Since the show has been on iTunes, the show has grown beyond my wildest dreams. The critical mass that something like The Geek Media produces has also been amazing. It is not uncommon for my little 10-15MB show to produce Gigs of downloads in a single day! That was unheard of before.

TGM:your show sort of spans the genres. Gaming, tech and a little bit of everything geeky. Do you have an actual format or, do you just run with it?
David:Unlike many podcasts, Festival of Blood is a short, solo show. The idea is to make the show easy to listen to and get in a full plate of news in about 20-30 minutes. The format is generally this…. The first half of the show is pure “Verbal Diaherah.” I talk about whatever I feel like! In the second half, I squeez in pure news. (patch news, new releases, new drivers, etc.) The show is somewhat of the “CNN Headline News” of gaming. I like to think that for someone who does not spend alot of time browsing the internet could listen to my show and get the best of the best news that hit that week in a short and sweet download. Of course, I like to the think thay the dry humor doesn’t go over everyone’s head keeps people coming back too.

TGM:What do you think about the sense of community you have with your fellow podcasters/geeks?
David:Because of the “news” nature of Festival of Blood, my show is not very “conversational”. It is also very much a “drive time” style of show due to the length and format of the show. My community is great! I have had many listeners for years, but alot of the message board back and fourth that you see on alot of other shows does not really materalize with Festival of Blood. Every show does generate some level of response, most of it in recognition of some point or a lashing for an off color comment (ie, should Guitar Hero: Ded Lepoard have one drum stick or two?)

TGM:What is one of your most memorable episodes?
David:Not becasue of what was said or done on the show, but in 2001 I put out my first show in stereo at a much better bit rate than I had used before. The feedback was awesome and really raised the bar for the show’s quality and expectation of it’s listeners.

TGM:What upcoming game are you most looking forward to?
David:Well, not many people are aware of this little gem, but a little title called Diablo 3 has me in diapers.

TGM:What are some “off the internet” hobbies you have?
David:I operate Ham Radio under the licenced call sign KE4MUT on the the 2 and 6 meter bands. I am very much into astronomy and even cover “space” topics on the show from time to time. My 3rd cousin is some guy named Neil Armstrong, so mabey that has something to do with it. (I have 3 sons and their middle names put together are Neil Alden Armstrong) I am a licenced Scuba Diver and enjoy CCGs and paper RPGs.

TGM:You are one of two people involved with The Geek Media who has the whole family life deal going on. How do you juggle your time between work, hobbies, podcasting and family?
David:The kids have learned well and are avid gamers! (note to parents: teach your kids the cool “fishing game” in WoW) We strictly follow ESRB ratings in my house (ok, so Ratchet and Clank got through a few times). I do the show typically late in the evening, when there is little “family” responsiblilty and on the occasion my bride of thirteen years is at work. Out side of a few titles (say, Rock Band) Mrs. Silver is not a “big” gamer. However, she is currently on the hunt for her “dream” system on E-Bay…. the Atari 2600! (Circus Atari gamers are really Hard Core, so don’t question her)