Who are Sheena & Sam
and why are they saying
those outrageous things?

By G-Man

Fans make web sites for them. Callers wait 20 minutes on hold to talk to them. And listeners never know what direction their minds are going to bend. Who are they? Meet Sheena Metal and Sam Phillips, of the Sheena & Sam Show on 97.1 FM Talk in Los Angeles, the L.A. duo who will talk about anything.

Recently moving to 7-9p.m Saturdays after months in the post-midnight/pre-dawn netherworld, the two irrepressible talkers are proud to tackle any caller on any subject. Self-described as “two chicks going at it in the night” (yes, Sheena and Sam are girls), their show is often loud but just as often proud of its examination of life on the edge of sanity. Most of all, Sheena & Sam are downright funny.

Sheena mostly maintains an ear-friendly ambience, although she is very quick to adopt the sassy tones of a classic put-down artist when confronted by verbal outrage from listeners. This probably is the result of five years of live performances with her shock-rock band, Beer Bong.

Bong has won a following in L.A. based on its high-energy send-up of eighties rock, coupled with very funny lyrics that comment on everything in modern society, including drugs, sex, cosmetic surgery, KISS, politics, and morality (or lack thereof). Which is a perfect match for the Sheena & Sam program because it, too, deals with everything in modern society, including drugs, sex ... etc.

Unlike shock-jocks, Sheena & Sam don't go looking for people to attack or ridicule. “Nope, they come to us,” Sheena says with a smile. “Actually, we’re fine with whatever trip or vibe a caller or guest might be on. But if they get out of hand, we’re more than willing to fire back,” she adds. And fire back they do. With wicked timing and an offhand delivery that kind of sneaks up on you, they have deftly dispatched all forms of late-night callers from the belligerent, to the drunk, the drugged, to the the stu-, um, intellectually challenged in a way that makes even the most crass caller tame in the end. Response has been great, especially judging by the wild e-mail the duo has received on the 97.1 FM Talk Web site (www.fmtalk971.com).

“It's fun to have callers do funny things on their own initiative,” Sheena states. Sam agrees: “We listen with a sympathetic ear. And then I usually laugh about something Sheena or the caller says.” Funny and sometimes unsettling, but always entertaining, the program is the most unusual blend of high-energy concepts and laid-back delivery. Verbally, Sheena & Sam punch holes in the alternate reality of many people¹s warped minds. Or, as more than one listener has put it, “Sheena & Sam say what needs to be said.”