Bad Band Names and Good Lies

During the summer of 1999, Rob, his brother Ted, and their friend Ian decided to start a band.

There was only one small problem: none of them knew how to play.

They picked instruments and learned together. Rob chose drums, and one of the first songs he remembers playing was “Sabotage” by the Beastie Boys.

The band was called Blunt.

They were not particularly good, and even as teenagers they eventually recognized that Blunt was a terrible name. They became Short Wave Radio, began writing more original songs, and practiced constantly in Ian’s garage and Rob’s basement.

They played anywhere that would have them: open-mic nights, house parties, skate parks, and whatever East Coast shows they could talk their way onto.

Sometimes that required creativity.

With no social media available for promoters to check, the band would exaggerate—or completely invent—its accomplishments. Most people simply took their word for it.

Before Rob had even entered senior high school, Short Wave Radio was traveling and playing shows throughout the region. Music had begun as something to do in a small Pennsylvania town, but it quickly became the only thing he wanted to do.

After graduating from Pocono Mountain West High School, Rob attended Penn State Hazleton and later transferred to Penn State’s main campus in State College. He completed three years of college and was preparing to begin his senior year when he decided to step away and see how far music and touring could take him.

It became a very long detour.