Change can be scary sometimes. But sometimes it can also be really freaking cool. For instance, take WRFL’s show schedule. Every semester, there are changes to our programming, changes that are only natural in an environment that is entirely upheld by students and community volunteers. Life happens fast. Some people stick around longer than others. Sometimes we lose some of our favorite shows from the schedule. But things tend to balance themselves out. Sometimes we discover new favorites. Like I did a few weeks ago, when I first tuned into Savepoint, WRFL’s early morning block show which is hosted by one of our newer DJs—Toby H-H—and is focused entirely over ambient, new age and drone music. I’ve always been a massive fan of ambient music and its related subgenres, so I’d been meaning to give the show a listen since I heard about its debut at the start of the summer, which ended up being a bit of a challenge (getting up at 5AM on a Sunday morning is a Herculean feat even for me, someone who considers himself a morning person), but through the help of an early bedtime (and WRFL’s show archives), I managed to eventually catch up on a semester’s worth of broadcasts, and I was completely blown away by the beautifully soothing song selection, the absolutely seamless transitions, and Toby’s utter precision and professionalism as an on-air personality.
Seeing as how I have begun writing these interviews with both our current and former general staff members, I decided that it’d be a great opportunity to give Toby a chance to introduce himself and his show to the world. I reached out for an interview, and to my great fortune, he was so eager to do it that I received his responses to the questions less than two hours after I initially sent them. If this interview interests you, consider tuning into Savepoint on WRFL to get a healthy dose of mind-melting melodies to start your morning off right.
This interview took place over email in August of 2025 and has been edited for purposes of brevity and clarity. My questions will be labeled CJ and Toby’s answers will be labeled TH.
CJ: Tell us a bit about yourself! Who is the man behind the microphone?
TH: My name is Toby Holm-Hudson! I’m 27 years old and I was born in the Chicago area but my family moved to Lexington when I was still a toddler when my father got a position teaching music theory and composition at UK. I’ve spent my whole life here since then so I consider Lexington my hometown. Right now I work in a warehouse but music has always been my primary passion in my life. I’ve played drums since I was 12 and bass since I was 21, and in the past few years I’ve started tinkering with music production in Ableton and I hope to start making my own music soon!
CJ: Ableton is an awesome software. I’ve made a lot of ambient music with that myself, though I’m not sure if what you plan to make will necessarily follow your show’s typical programming. So let’s explore some of your general influences. First off, I wanted to ask a pretty basic question, just to establish your tastes. Who are some of your favorite artists/music acts of all time? Do you have any special connections with any musical acts you want to share with us?
TH: Throughout my life I’ve always listened to music in phases of hyperfixations, my earliest memories of which being listening to mixtape CDs my father would make for me before I had access to music on my own. I rediscovered a box of these a few years ago and it’s clear I really connected with techno and electronic music early, especially Squarepusher who I still regard as the king of IDM along with Aphex Twin. I went through a prog metal phase in middle and high school which culminated in me listening almost exclusively to Devin Townsend when I was around 19, and after that came the heavy psych garage rock and punk zone when I was introduced to King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard in 2018. All of these phases have led to me having a pretty varied taste in music but I tend to connect more with experimental ideas! Pop-leaning music is probably what I listen to the least (no disrespect for anyone’s taste of course!) My top 5 artists right now would have to be Osees, Deerhoof, Squarepusher, Oneohtrix Point Never, and Lightning Bolt.
CJ: Some fantastic picks. I know you’ve already mentioned a little bit of stuff that falls into this realm but I want to dive a bit further into the niche that your show occupies. Who are, in your opinion, some of the best ambient/new age musicians out there?
TH: Pre-2013 Oneohtrix Point Never was what first spurred my interest in this type of music though all of his stuff is fantastic. Brian Eno of course! There’s a smaller artist named Elijah Knutsen from Portland that consistently amazes me with his ambient work. Bitchin Bajas and Laraaji as well.
CJ: I’ll have to check Elijah Knutsen out, for sure. You have some wonderful picks here, which is no surprise to me at all, considering how you always play such absolutely amazing stuff on your show; some stuff I’m familiar with, and some that I’m not. How do you personally discover new music?
TH: I try to pull from as many sources as I can find so I’m not confined to one opinion or algorithm. Bandcamp Daily publishes monthly articles on their favorite ambient releases which have great finds. RateYourMusic, YouTube recommendations, and “similar artists” sections have also revealed good stuff. Collaboration is very common in the ambient field so if I find an artist I like, I always check out their discography to see if they’ve worked with another artist which tends to have a similar vibe.
CJ: RateYourMusic has a lot of unfairly negative connotations around it, honestly. The community may not be the best, per say, but I’ve found so many incredible life-changing albums and artists there that I would never have heard of otherwise! Ditto to the collaboration thing, too. I discovered both Harold Budd and Laraaji through their collaborations with Brian Eno—as well as some fun conversations with an anthropology professor of mine. Let’s keep that theme of music discovery going! How did you first discover WRFL? What convinced you to pursue having a radio show?
TH: Growing up in Lexington, I’ve always been at least somewhat aware of WRFL’s existence, but it wasn’t until close friends of mine started doing shows that I really started listening to it. Shoutouts to Kevin from The Clipboard and Ian from Dissident Discord! It wasn’t until recently that I felt like I had developed the confidence in myself and my taste to run a show and I’ve been having a blast.
CJ: Speaking as a fan here: it’s a blast to listen to your show! As a big ambient enthusiast myself, I’ve always wanted the genre to see more representation on the air, but I’ve always been too devoted to hip-hop to go all in on it the way you have. Did you know you wanted to have an ambient morning show when you finally came to WRFL, or was that an idea that developed over time? Did you see a particular niche that needed to be filled?
TH: My first show, a general format show, Caught Between Extremes, was on Monday mornings 2-5 AM last spring. I usually played whatever I was listening to at the time, along with stuff I always thought deserved more recognition. Being in the graveyard hours, I took full advantage of the timeslot and always tried to play some weird stuff, sometimes connecting very distant genres that I found sonically similar. Lots of intense electronic and noise rock. I realized that mixing ambient into that blend made it difficult to keep a consistent pace, and there’s so much of it out there that I didn’t just want to scratch the surface. Ambient has so much more variety and depth than I think a lot of people realize, and I wanted to run a block show so I could show off what it has to offer!
CJ: Everyone usually has a backstory on how they first came across their favorite genre of music. How did you discover ambient music? What is it about this distinctly unique sound that speaks to you in particular?
TH: I first discovered Oneohtrix Point Never in 2018 and got really obsessed with his more modern take on the sort of ideas found in Tangerine Dream. As I’ve listened to a wider variety of ambient music, it’s fascinating to me that it functions well as background music but also something that you can give your attention to and pick out all sorts of textures, unconfined by tempo. It’s like stepping into a sonic landscape, unobtrusive and allowing enough headspace to let your mind wander while still being interesting in its own right.
CJ: Every DJ has their own process of running their show. When you’re on the air, what’s your preferred method of DJing? I know, for example, Tommy Mizla does some cool turntable scratching stuff on the air. I personally use a digital software called VirtualDJ, and I know a lot of people that like to only use CDs. What’s your process like?
TH: I do pretty much all digital! I was late to the party with VirtualDJ but it has been a total gamechanger for the ease of programming, especially with crossfading which I feel suits ambient transitions very well.
CJ: A lot of DJs (note that I’m speaking from personal experience here) have trouble cultivating a good on-air personality for their show, or at least being confident when on the mic. You have such a smooth, intelligent and well-prepared manner of speech when you’re on the air, which really contributes to your show’s relaxing atmosphere. Was this skill something that you had to work to cultivate, or was it something that came fairly naturally to you?
TH: I’ve never been an exceptionally talkative or social person, so when I broadcast I always try to put the music above all. If I have something I feel is important to talk about I will, and I love sharing info about the music, but I’m more comfortable listening than rambling. Everyone is welcome to call in to the studio though!
CJ: How has being involved with WRFL shaped both your professional/personal skills and ambitions for life? Do you feel like it’s changed you significantly as a person? Or is it perhaps a bit too early to say?
TH: It has certainly helped me diversify my music taste more and introduced me to some really cool music! I had never worked a mixing board until volunteering so the whole process is an incredibly rewarding challenge for me within my interest in music. It’s also a cool feeling to be part of my local zeitgeist in some form.
CJ: You haven’t been a DJ for too long, but I wanted to ask and see if you had an answer of your own to this question. What do you think makes WRFL as an institution so special?
TH: The variety of genres you can listen to on WRFL is astounding! I love how much indie and experimental stuff gets played that you just can’t find on another station in Lexington. Each DJ segment really becomes its own world with different vibes going on 24/7. And the support for the local music scene is so necessary and awesome to see. My time with WRFL is still young but it always feels amazing to have somebody call in and say they’re listening. With my shows being only in the 2-7 AM zone so far it’s easy to feel like I’m the only one tuned in, but knowing that there are other Lexingtonians connecting with what’s on air is very validating.
CJ: The sheer eclecticism of the station has always been my favorite part too. I love how we can have shows based around the barbershop quartet sound and an ambient drone show airing back to back on the same station. You really can’t find stuff like that in many other places in Kentucky, man. So, speaking of other types of sound, do you have any favorite shows (besides your own) on the show schedule that you enjoy tuning into from time to time?
TH: Huge respect for Dissident Discord for playing the strangest stuff on air right now. Psychedelicatessen and The Matterhorn Mix have been longtime favorites. I’ve recently been listening to Old School Hip-Hop on my way home from work and Tommy Mizla’s charisma is unmatched. There are too many great shows to name but they all have awesome stuff going on!
CJ: Hell yeah, Dissident Discord and Old School Hip-Hop are awesome! I’ve also been tuning into The Matterhorn Mix on occasion if I’m ever in need of a big burst of energy. There’s just something so fun and special about tuning into a live DJ set as opposed to just shuffling my playlist on a streaming service. Speaking of, I noticed on one of your recent shows that you took a stand against Spotify. Could you care to talk a bit about that recent movement and what it means to you personally?
TH: Spotify seems like it has always been on the opposing side to the artists they need to function as a service. Streaming in general as a format has never been a good way to support artists but even then, Spotify pays the least, even though their subscription price is higher than similar services like Tidal or Deezer. They might have the most users so their music recommendation algorithm is more in depth, but there are countless other sources online for finding new music, not to mention in-person ways like concerts and record stores. The recent news that their CEO, Daniel Ek, invested $700 million into a company specializing in AI air strike drones is just the cherry on top. For me, the money that I once paid to Spotify every month doesn’t go to the artists I listen to, it’s powering the constant war machine we’re living in. Deerhoof and King Gizzard among others have already pulled their full catalogs off of Spotify, and I think we’ll see more in the future. Your money speaks louder than words, folks. Support your favorite artists by buying their music and merch directly.
CJ: Very well said! Let’s jump ahead a bit. If you wanted fellow music lovers and DJs in the distant future to remember a few things about you and your show, what would it be?
TH: I always hope that someone can tune in during my show and hear something they’re never heard before, maybe from a genre they’ve never even heard of. I have a lot of instances in my own life where I’ve heard something that was too “out there” for me at the time, and even if I hated it then, it plants a seed and I end up coming back to it months later, understanding where it’s coming from and getting hooked. Also: keep college radio weird!
CJ: That’s a great sentiment, man. Here’s to changing people’s minds! On that note (and our final note); if you had to pitch Savepoint to a listener that’s never heard of you before, what would you say? What do you think makes your programming stand out from the rest of the station’s shows?
TH: If you’re like me and you do your best thinking during slow mornings, consider tuning in to hear a calming mix perfect for working on projects, meditating, gazing at the sunrise, etc. ✌️