Music soothes my soul.
A core memory of mine was when I was living in Bromley, holed up in the chaotic bedroom I shared with my younger sister which was filled with books, collections, musical instruments, hallucinogenic wallpaper (seriously, if you looked at it for too long it took you to places far beyond this realm) and all the belongings of two undiagnosed neurospicy minds. Fabulous!
I didn’t sleep. My sister did but had whacky dreams culminating in often times scary outbursts about witches and murders. I stayed awake because my mind had far too much going on to let me sleep. There was music to write, projects to finish, and ideas to process. There was also that wallpaper!
I had a few things to sooth me in the early hours – a book about deep sea fish, a joke book filled with awful one liners and a “wireless” gifted to me by my grandfather. I used to plug in my headphones and listen to this fascinating collection of sounds and announcements I later discovered was pirate rave radio. My goodness it soothed my mind! I’m not sure what that says about the state of everything going on in there.
I was massively into music already – influenced by the 80s sounds of the time. I loved synth sounds and proudly had 3 keyboards to call my own. I also had my own band (probably more accurately described as a dictatorship with yours truly at the fore). I was too young to go to raves, but this other world outside my bedroom was of endless fascination to me.
Then we moved away from Bromley and out to the countryside of Gloucestershire. My pirate radio connection was lost and forever stored to the recesses of my mind.
But in recent times, I have been learning how to DJ. I’ve attended a DJ studio in Birmingham and also used Youtube videos. It’s all digital now and I don’t really have room (or funds) for a vinyl deck…yet. I’ve been craving that sound that quieted the mind. The repetitive, fast beats and underground sound that gave my mind some peace.
I’ve also just discovered Green Apple Pirate Radio on Youtube fresh from the 90s!
“Big shoutout out to the Moreside ravers, and that’s from Neil in Oldham Greater Manchester. He says this station is top and keep it coming”.
Green Apple Pirate Radio, 1992
Neil in Oldham, you weren’t wrong.
The featured picture is one of my paintings – of my old bedroom wall. I used to collect the rave flyers and thankfully did attend a few clubs in the 90s. (Don’t tell mum!) Now I’m 50 I should get back out there! (Click follow on the link below to listen to some of my mixes).
