Six years ago today, I had already done two “Beta” versions of The Overnightscape (on March 13, 2003 and March 20, 2003). On March 27, 2003, I did the very first official episode of the show… The Overnightscape #1 (hear it here).

So, this Friday, March 27, 2009, will be the 6th Anniversary of The Overnightscape. But this year things are a little different…

Doing The Overnightscape is very time-consuming. Often, I will spend an entire weekend working on the show. This became ingrained in my lifestyle and it has detracted from the rest of my life in many ways. This is coupled with the fact that even with all the effort, the show has only achieved a moderate success, in terms of audience and recognition.

In light of this, last August I began an experiment to see if there would be a way to do The Overnightscape in a way that would not have such an impact on my life. Thus began The Rampler.

The idea was to record in NYC during my walk back and forth from the Port Authority Bus Terminal to my job on 3rd Ave. The idea was to record and then release, with no post-production at all. The MP3 file recorded on the Edirol R-09 was the file that was released. All that would be needed would be to add tags to the MP3 file.

So I started this experiment, and it took off in a way I never imagined. Whereas the show is essentially the same as The Overnightscape, The Rampler became an exciting new variation on the theme for me.

In the seven months since The Rampler began, things have been changing. Slowly, I have been moving toward de-emphasising the studio aspect of my Internet radio show work. This was the original intent behind the development of The Rampler.

But… the original idea was that at some point, once the experiment was proven a success, “The Rampler” name would be retired, and it would be renamed “The Overnightscape”… thus The Overnightscape would continue on in this new form, with less of an impact on my life. However, The Rampler became something very distinct and new and unique…

So, The Rampler will remain The Rampler. This leaves the fate of  The Overnightscape somewhat uncertain. Certainly, I am not going to be doing The Overnightscape on a regular basis anymore. But I don’t know that it would need to be “shut down” either.

Right now, I am in the middle of this whole process. I know it might be kind of a “clean break” to end The Overnightscape on the 6th Anniversary. But that sounds so… severe. Especially in light of the fact that The Overnightscape lives on more vital than ever as The Rampler!!

So this is what I will be thinking about this week… exactly what to do with The Overnightscape.

Ultimately, The Rampler IS The Overnightscape. Just in a slightly different form.

I’m very excited about the further development of The Rampler… and I hope everyone comes along for the ride!!