Pirate radio used to be so hard to do. Setting up your own D.I.Y. radio station involved a lot of complicated circuit-building and other electronics knowledge. Only your friends knew about you because you had no reliable way of publicising your radical shows. Also, you were constantly running the risk of being shut down or arrested for public nuisancery. Those days are over now, my friend. Today, anyone with some basic recording equipment and a website can broadcast their own radio shows, bringing their kooky music tastes and offensive political views to the universe at large.
And that's just what the guys at
Radio Valerie are doing. A "small, non-profit, DIY internet radio station that endeavours to play music that would normally never make the local airwaves" (See Radio Valerie's
About page), Radio Valerie is run out of a makeshift radio studio in Brunswick, Melbourne. Radio Valerie aims to get people involved in Radio who would not ordinarily become involved.
On air, you'll hear everything from field recordings and sound art to experimental electronica. There are also shows about local culture, art and literature, among many other vaguely unpopular topics. But hey, not everyone wants to listen to classic hits from the Seventies all day. If you are one of those strange, strange people, Radio Valerie could be for you.
Radio Valerie starts regular broadcasts from the last week of July, 2011. You can check out their
schedule online, and you can
listen live and
podcast their shows. You can also connect with them via
Twitter and
Facebook. Radio Valerie is accepting proposals for new and innovative radio shows. If you have a fantastic idea for a radio show, you can get in contact with them via their
contact page. Who knows, maybe you could be the next underground radio star.
When it's cold and rainy outside, you no longer have to make do with this week's family telemovie or, god forbid, having a conversation with your loved ones. Now you can tune in to Radio Valerie on those cold Sunday nights, and be transported to somewhere much more satisfying than whatever personal hell you clearly inhabit.
