Katie Daryl Helps Cement AXS TV’s Rock Cred
Perhaps one of the most unsung heroes of the L.A. music scene is Katie Daryl, a producer and on-air host whose music-themed shows on AXS TV have helped to define the network in recent years as a destination for all things classic rock.
That started with “The World’s Greatest Tribute Bands,” which ended its run last year and featured some pretty incredible musicians riffing on bands ranging from Pink Floyd to U2 to The Beatles in a series of live shows at the famous Whiskey A Go Go on Sunset. But that show hadn’t even finished winding down before Daryl was onto her next project for AXS, the addictively fun “The Top 10 Revealed,” which counts down some of the world’s most iconic songs and whose second 8-episode batch premieres on Sunday night and features 27 special guests including Dee Snider, Eddie Money, Steven Adler and Lita Ford, among other rock icons.
“We do what we call Hell Week,” notes Daryl, describing the 5 days of in-studio interviews that operate with a precision best described as “junket style.” Scheduling all of those guests back to back isn’t easy, but “it feels like we are on the verge of being a well-oiled machine,” she says.
One major challenge is assembling the footage, and that’s because Daryl prefers rare live footage to standard cuts from overplayed music videos. “I am just a fan of giving something an underground feel or that you’re gaining something new from a song that’s so old and well-known,” she says. One upcoming episode, for example, breaks down top 10 epic songs of 1973, including “Vehicle” by one-hit-wonder The Ides of March.
“It was in an era in which there wasn’t a lot of video production, so finding multiple versions of that was more difficult,” she says. It’s a fun ride, chock full of rare footage, interesting interviews and a number of factoids you probably didn’t know. As for her Tribute Band Hostess with the Mostest past… “I miss it so much,” she says. “I felt a bit like a fairy Godmother getting these bands on national television.”
Cablefax has been a big fan of Daryl, recognizing her last year with a Program Award in the “Best Host – Music” category. Entries are being accepted through midnight Friday for this year’s awards.
