So wide can’t get around it, so low you can’t get under it, Brighton has always been one city under a groove. But in these days of lockdowns and shutdowns, it’s harder than ever for musicians to be seen and heard. Playing “late night radio in the daytime”, Slack City Radio, Brighton’s newest radio station, aims to put that right.
In the first of a new regular column on the Brighton and Hove music scene, Mick Robinson, one of Slack City’s DJs and a man steeped in Brighton and in music, talks about what they’re doing, when they’re doing it and the bands they’re playing.
The UK’s music scene & industry has one big pause button pushed on its sound system at the moment. From the venues, the sound engineers, lighting techs, roadies, merch sellers, ticket collectors, security to the musicians themselves, we probably have the most talented van drivers in the world at the moment.
As long as the venues can survive and as soon as restrictions are lifted, the scene will be reborn again overnight. The passion for the music here is so strong it can’t be suppressed for too long.
The independent radio stations on offer around the country at the moment is off the scale, created and hosted by genuine and knowledgeable lovers of music. No one gets paid and there’s no big sponsorship funding behind them. It’s all just built on love and passion.
Brighton has some excellent stations and excellent shows on them. Radio Reverb, 1BTN are fine examples, and the latest addition is Slack City, brought to you by the people behind Totallyradio and Juice FM before that.
Launched on January 1st this year, a station to reflect the eclectic & mavericks of this fine city, the base that the studio broadcasts live from is the wonderful Presuming Ed’s Café on London Rd.
I’m very honoured to host my own show in this set up. Called “Monty Platters”, it has evolved over the last five years on several local stations. The remit is a mix of old and new, a bit of punk, funk, any era or genre goes, pushing the boundaries a little with no compromise on quality.
A very important part of the weekly show is new Brighton bands, and the last few years the music scene here has never been better with an abundance of young exciting bands, Ditz (see link below), Sons, Rotten Foxes, Skinny Milk, Dirt Royal to name but a few.
Have a listen this Friday where we’ll be previewing some of the above & several other brand new tracks by Brighton’s crop of new talent.
Monty Platters live on Fridays 2pm till 4pm, repeated Sunday mornings 10-12.
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