It's a great experience and opportunity to network and pick the brains of experts, but in reality it wets my appetite for what I want to achieve in life. Earlier this evening I mentioned: Imagine if my personality allowed me to take a week off. It just doesn't happen, I'm going to be constantly on the go now until something big happens, then I'll be even busier. The important thing is I enjoy it all. If I didn't, I wouldn't do it.
This enjoyment factor leads me in to exactly what I want to share with you tonight. We'll revisit this point shortly.
After FITD, I took my seat alongside Producer James, an old colleague from Quidem, in the Quays Theatre at the Lowry and awaited the inaugural John Peel lecture. The session was opened by Radcliffe and Maconie, two treasures of broadcasting, then the lecture was delivered by Pete Townshend - a man with some strong views, most of which I agree with.
I'll elaborate. The lecture was broadcasted on 6music if you'd like to listen again, but Townshend went into detail about the 'lack' of John Peel-ism in the music world these days. Back in Peel's era, if you wanted new music, you had to listen to his show. And the music wasn't limited or restricted, John took home the records left at the radio station and sifted through the good and the bad until he'd found the music worthy of radio airplay.
This pioneering musical discovery is the very thing I am a great champion of at the moment. Finding a new band, especially in the acoustic/folk/roots and indie genres of music gives me the highest sense of satisfaction - then going to see that band live or even get to interview them is the next best thing!
However, I only know of a few other people who share the same passion for musical exploration beyond the realms of the Radio 1 playlist. This leads me back on to the point of enjoyment, I can't think of anything I'd rather do than introduce people to the outstanding new music that's out there. Being the new figurehead for up-and-coming music on the radio is what I'm so hungry for at the moment!
Happily, I have a brand new radio show launching in a few weeks time that will do just that. We'll start this programme on Shock Radio, but the same output could be translated on to any radio station that wants it's listenership to enjoy some seriously authentic and truly wonderful new music.
It's amazing what can happen in a year. Exactly 1 year previous to Monday on 31st October 2010 I was enjoying a fabulous Lissie gig in Birmingham with some of my best mates. That gig certainly opened my eyes to folk music of that kind, raw and authentic American folk rock delivered with true passion.
Since then, I've been interviewing bands on the radio, going to gigs at the brilliantly niche London Borderline and various Birmingham venues as well as the pubs and bars in the Banbury area.
I've been loving every second of the width and breadth of music I welcome into my world, and it is horrible to think of it going unappreciated, which is another of Townshend's points.
With so many opportunities to take advantage of new music on the internet and enjoy it for free on some platforms, it's no surprise that CD sales are plummeting downwards. We're constantly fed the grim details of how our precious music industry is in decline. Illegal downloading and sharing of music is resulting in less revenue for artists. So much so that Townshend enlightened his Lowry crowd into the sad truth of the matter that some new musicians 'would rather their music was stolen and enjoyed, than ignored'.
Townshend went on to suggest a number of worthy improvements to the the digital music world - picking a number of faults in iTunes. In short, new musicians should be supported way more in the creative process of making a record and getting it out there for the world to enjoy without having to suffer as a result of their music being exploited and robbed.
On the face of it, it does sound very depressing..... nobody to introduce us to new music, then nobody to buy it! But sure, the figures don't look good, but on the flipside of it, I think the music scene we enjoy today is healthier than ever. There is a wonderful array of talent out there across all genres and the ball is now in the court of the pioneering individual to go and find it!
I take full advantage of a Spotify Premium account, I go to gigs regularly, I get bands on my radio shows and I am generally a great supporter of new music. I buy albums. I take great pride in my CD catalogue and I have no problems paying for singles on Amazon MP3 or iTunes.
Charlie Simpson Interview & Single
I find it satisfying to, in essence, reward and appreciate the hard work, the skillful artistry and grafting that goes into making a record. It's sad to hear the financial side of our music industry is struggling, but with some love and support for the new music out there, it can continue to flourish creatively.
Where is the new music? New Music Saturday is my new show, every week, 8-10pm on Shock Radio. See you on air...
