Future Sound of Exeter

Show name: Future Sound of Exeter

Presenters name: Paul Giblin and Gordon Ried

Show time and day: Tuesday 8pm to 10pm.

What type of music can we expect to hear on the show?
Paul: Innovate, exotic music from all over the world but also we showcase lots of local talented people.
Gordon: Good music!
Paul: We promote local bands but we act global because we play word music.
Gordon: Sex and drugs and rock’n'roll with out the sex and drugs!
Paul: Without the rock’n'roll as well!!

Why do you like this music?
Paul: We don’t just like it - we LOVE it! We also showcase and promote local acts and put on a night at the Phoenix where we cram as many local artists onto the bill as possible so we give them a good airing on our show and we play the sort of music we love.
Gordon: I think you’re supposed to do the adverts after the interview!!
Paul: I guess the reason I like this music is because I’m on old hippie and I like that sort of thing! What’s your excuse Gordon?
Gordon: It’s what I play at home!

What is the format of your show?
Paul: Anarchic! No we like to push the boundaries of music. For example we’ve had five people in here being interviewed, we’ve had bands attempting to play live in this tiny box. We push the boundaries of community radio!

Why should we listen to your show?
Gordon: Because we’ll break your legs if you don’t!
Paul: A better incentive, is that you can find out all sorts of things that are happening on the local scene and get your mind expanded by all sorts of music being played by people who have been playing music for years.
Gordon: And you don’t get your legs broken!

How did your show come about?
Paul: We’d been doing a show on Vibraphonic FM since the second year of broadcast and we were involved in the Vibraphonic festival. So when Vibraphonic FM turned into Phonic FM we carried on doing the business.

But Future Sound of Exeter is much bigger than just a radio show! Future Sound of Exeter is a non-profit collective which promotes local music. We started life in 1996 with a series of sessions promoting ambient, electronic and experimental music under the name St David’s Ambiance Society, which we still use for our record label. As the collective has grown our brief has widened.

Our monthly sessions were supplemented with full-on electronic dance music events at The Cavern to raise money, then we got a National Lottery grant for our first compilation CD of 14 local acts, who answered adverts on posters in record shops. The CD was called The Future Sound of Exeter (a gentle micky-take of the Future Sound of London experimental band’s name) and we decided to adopt that name for any non-ambient activities.

When Exeter and Devon Arts Centre was redeveloped into Exeter Phoenix we were one of the first organisations to hire the new venue and we established our successful formula of using a ‘big-name’ headline act as a platform to showcase as many local acts as possible, also introducing the use of DJs and adding live music in the bar as part of the same event, making all our events multi-faceted ones, not mere gigs. This has proved to be a winning combination we have stuck to over the years.

I present the Future Sound of Exeter Show as I am the main co-ordinator of all Future Sound of Exeter activities having invented the Future Sound of Exeter. Gordon is one of our main DJs so co-presents the show.

What goes on behind the scenes in the studio?
Paul: We try and work out what tune to play next!

What has been your best on air moment?
Paul: There are so many it’s been such a roller coaster. I reckon it was when we had the Peachy Farmer doing their stuff live – all five of them in here!

What has been your worst/ most embarrassing on air moment?
Paul: We came in one day with five people to interview and both microphones failed to work! We had to play some tunes crawl around under the desk fiddling with things until they started working!

Who is your favourite artist?
Gordon: Well I know. Captain Beefheart.
Paul: Well I’m going to go for Pink Floyd.
Gordon: But we don’t play any Pink Floyd.
Paul: Well we’ll have to rectify that then and play some Pink Floyd!

What is your all time favourite album?
Paul: Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd.
Gordon: Clear Spot by Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band.