If you want proof that Facebook is a fading social network, then my radio show is the evidence you need. I spend a reasonably long time on a Sunday morning doing the admin and promotion for The Sunday Alternative and The Sound of Nottingham UK on Facebook. I barely get any comments relating to the show on Facebook, even when I make subtle hints about the show being the first show in which someone will write a comment. Maybe none of the people on my Facebook can type and listen at the same time. While doing this, I listen to BBC 6 Music and turn to Radio 4 at midday for Just a Minute, and I still manage to type words using a computer, so why can’t anyone else. The show is getting good ratings both live and also does well in the download stakes, but it would be good to interact too. The music that I play is music that you aren’t going to catch by chance on the radio, so to hear from people who have heard something rather rare and maybe been moved to investigate the artists a bit further. Either that or say something about the bands.
There is yet another scandal rocking the BBC. You would think they would try as hard as possible to keep their heads down and not piss off the general public too much. However, Jarvis Cocker is absent from his Sunday afternoon show on BBC 6 Music, and I am not covering for him. Last time Cocker took leave from his show, I emailed the head of the station offering my services. I think if everyone refused to pay the licence fee then maybe they will see sense.
The show was a bit stressful tonight, as none of my music was ready in the system for me and I had to really improvise. I don’t want to play the same song twice if I can help it, and we can tell how often a song has been played, and how often. Luckily there were two bands performing live for me. It is nice to have a platform like The Sunday Alternative in which to bring bands to Nottingham and perform. Obviously I am chiefly a Nottingham home-grown music champion, but with already doing NottinghamLIVE and The Sound of Nottingham UK, I am also able with this show to play music from my collection and showcase other bands and singers too. Both of tonight’s bands had a CD to promote, and despite a bit of initial chaos, everything went very smoothly indeed. Explode The TV were on in the first hour, having just played an afternoon festival appearance nearby. They had been very keen to appear, although they originally didn’t want to play live in the studio, just come on and plug the CD and future gigs, none of which were in Nottingham. I didn’t really see the point in that to be honest, and after a lot of emails were exchanged eventually agreed to play. NYA, who I had been introducing as NYA pronounced in initials, ‘En Why Ay’ although they are actually called ‘nigher’ were up next. Two of the band, Anezka Piska and Dan Baker, did a four song acoustic set. It’s great when bands agree to this sort of thing when that isn’t their usual sound. To top and tail their set, I played two of their studio tracks even though they were performing them. Usually this is the last thing the band need, but it was cool to hear the contrast. Describing themselves as rock/metal/alternative, they proved tonight that they can also turn their hands to a beautiful one guitar and one vocal performance. They had done a similar thing the day before in Lincoln, and I recommended they do an EP or album like it, just as an aside to their regular output. I really hope that they do!
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