The music dork rocks blog

I wrote this as response to 3rrrfm here in Melbourne celebrating 40 years of subscriber funded service to the indie and underground scene.

I remember when I was little that there was always a radio in my room. My parents found as a baby, that I would become quiet and attentive, distracted by my own needs whenever there was music playing. Mum would do the house chores to Neil Diamond’s Hot August Night. And sit me in my baby bouncer in front of the radiogram/stereo. The Radiogram was a thing of beauty, a finely crafted wooden box with a dark grill and all the modern technology of 1972. But most importantly it had a feature like none other of its ilk. Sonic Video technology. Which meant inside the box, behind the grill were coloured electric lights. That would light up in time to the music from the record being played. This display was always more effective at night, when the lounge room ceiling lights were turned off. My cousins would always be bringing over the latest records like Rod Stewart, Fleetwood Mac, Kiss, John Lennon, Leo Sayer, Hall and Oates. I could go on and on.

The first record I was given as a child was a Patsy Biscoe record of nursery rhymes. By the age of 4 I had my own Bert and Ernie AM radio. I was given an AM/SW desk radio as I turned 6 and was now in primary school. Many other children’s records were given to me up until the age of 11. It was at age 11 I was allowed to choose a record of my very own, that I could buy with the cash money I had been given in cards from relatives. I had recently been taken by my parents in 1984 to see the Blockbuster Ghostbusters. So it was to be the Ghostbusters Soundtrack, that I wanted and I also bought a J&B records John Williams compilation which had main themes from Star Wars, ET, Close Encounters of the third kind, 2001 and other space movie music. I was fascinated by Space travel and sci fi movies in my entertainment. Ace Freheley was my favourite member of Kiss in 1985 after they took off the make up inherited my cousins kiss records who were more into Boy George and Culture Club, Marilyn and all that stuff I was more into 3XY music like U2, Simple Minds, Hothouse Flowers and Big Country.

When I started Highschool (1987). I got an AM/ FM Radio and Heavy Metal ruled Broady West Tech. A word from the wise was to listen to 102.7 on Sunday nights for Alan Thomas (RIP) Metal For Melbourne Show. It was not exactly what I was looking for in music but it kept me in street cred from getting bullied by the older guys in school. I found other shows on this station that played music I was fascinated by like Art Of Noise. Faith No More. The Smithereens. Sonic Youth. The Posies. Nirvana. Soundgarden. Then a few years later grunge and the big days out became more mainstream. I loved the Oddball humour of shows like Danger: Low Brow and later Fast Fictions. Visable Bikini Line. I love Trash. Tiger Beat too. I never looked back really until now. For me 3RRR has always been there for me. I am grateful to past subscribers for keeping it going.

I First Subscribed in 1993 and have done so most years the odd lapse when unemployed or I was so depressed I didn’t want to listen to the radio for a couple of years.
Fast Forward to 4 years ago. I got an opportunity to do the 3rrrfm Training course. I had done other work with a community station in Broadmedows when I was a 3rrrfm listener and subscriber in the 90s, but always thought it was too big a leap to make to be able to be a broadcaster here. Eventually I did do the training and my evaluation program demo and got the green light to do a graveyard. I Remember Jon Bailey (Stolen Moments) And Bushy (Greening the Apocalypse) were in my class and had done their graveyards already (which I listened to) After I did mine. I mustn’t have done too badly, because they still let me back on air when I nominate an agreeable date.