09 Sep 2007, ST
Blogs set up by indie-music devotees are drawing listeners and promoting local bands
By Melody Zaccheus
FOR over a decade, Mr Roland Ngoi harboured thoughts of being a deejay.
But he shunned the idea of working in mainstream radio stations because he disliked their choice of songs.
Mr Ngoi prefers alternative music - a range of music genres not commonly available on commercial channels and worlds apart from mainstream music.
'The music I enjoy is not really suitable for the masses,' the 31-year-old said.
So he decided to play his own brand of music online.
He set up a music blog called sweetmusic.fm on blogging portal Blogspot last February and began posting podcasts, live broadcasts and playlists of uploaded songs onto a server.
Because the full-time chef at NYDC wanted his music blog to be like a real radio station, music which he uploaded to his site is streamed to his listeners 24 hours a day from his rented flat in Holland Avenue.
The flow is interrupted only when it is time for his live shows to be broadcast.
This takes places once or twice a week, depending on his schedule. A few days before each show, he will send an e-mail to those on his mailing list.
Each live show lasts for about two hours, with Mr Ngoi actively promoting local indie bands and obscure acts such as Serenaide, I Am David Sparkle, Force Vomit and The Oddfellows.
The site gives him the freedom to shoot his mouth off, play music he takes a fancy to and communicate to his listeners through online channels like e-mail and messaging network MSN.
It is common for Mr Ngoi to swear and sprout vulgarities during his shows as the general idea is for his shows to be 'free of restrictions'.
He said: 'It's free and easy, there are no rules... the idea is to be as casual as I can on the show as I am in real life.'
Evidence of the casual manner in which Mr Ngoi runs his site is seen in how he deals with room-mates who accidentally barge into his room while he is recording a live show. When it happens, he embraces the 'mishap' and they become part of the show.
Nor does Mr Ngoi have to worry about copyright issues, because local bands featured on his shows have granted him permission to play their music.
Plain Sunset's guitarist Nor Sham Husaini, 32, is more than happy to collaborate with sites like sweetmusic.fm.
He said: 'Radio stations like 98.7 FM might have a designated time to play locally produced music, but sites like sweetmusic.fm play local indie music all the time.
'They introduce new acts on the scene to their listeners, so it's good for indie bands that are just starting out because the exposure is useful and effective.'
To fund his shows, Mr Ngoi has to dig into his own pockets to foot the monthly fee of $50 for server space.
He is against over-commercialising his site so advertisements - a sure profit generator - are a no-go.
But he is not complaining. 'It's never about commercial pursuits and advertisements. I have a day job after all.
'If you listen to the show long enough, you'll know my intentions are pure and concentrated solely on music.'
Besides sweetmusic.fm, sites like unpopular radio (unpopular-music.blogspot.com), rampage on the airwaves (rampageontheairwaves.blogspot.com) and eatyourinterpop (eatyourinterpop.blogspot.com) provide similar entertainment for the indie crowd looking for an alternative to traditional radio.
National University of Singapore student Han Yi Qian, 20, logs on to both sweetmusic.fm and unpopular radio.
She does not mind the on-and-off vulgarities because its usage is 'minimal'.
'What I find more important is for the deejays to have clear goals - to know what they are there for and to provide the listener with good music,' she added.
And that's what unpopular radio's owner, Mr Charanpal S. Bal, 29, does best. He entertains his listeners with his strong music content during the show.
'From a listener base of only five when we first started out two years ago, to 60 listeners a show now, we have definitely come a long way,' he said.
Blogs set up by indie-music devotees are drawing listeners and promoting local bands
By Melody Zaccheus
FOR over a decade, Mr Roland Ngoi harboured thoughts of being a deejay.
But he shunned the idea of working in mainstream radio stations because he disliked their choice of songs.
Mr Ngoi prefers alternative music - a range of music genres not commonly available on commercial channels and worlds apart from mainstream music.
'The music I enjoy is not really suitable for the masses,' the 31-year-old said.
So he decided to play his own brand of music online.
He set up a music blog called sweetmusic.fm on blogging portal Blogspot last February and began posting podcasts, live broadcasts and playlists of uploaded songs onto a server.
Because the full-time chef at NYDC wanted his music blog to be like a real radio station, music which he uploaded to his site is streamed to his listeners 24 hours a day from his rented flat in Holland Avenue.
The flow is interrupted only when it is time for his live shows to be broadcast.
This takes places once or twice a week, depending on his schedule. A few days before each show, he will send an e-mail to those on his mailing list.
Each live show lasts for about two hours, with Mr Ngoi actively promoting local indie bands and obscure acts such as Serenaide, I Am David Sparkle, Force Vomit and The Oddfellows.
The site gives him the freedom to shoot his mouth off, play music he takes a fancy to and communicate to his listeners through online channels like e-mail and messaging network MSN.
It is common for Mr Ngoi to swear and sprout vulgarities during his shows as the general idea is for his shows to be 'free of restrictions'.
He said: 'It's free and easy, there are no rules... the idea is to be as casual as I can on the show as I am in real life.'
Evidence of the casual manner in which Mr Ngoi runs his site is seen in how he deals with room-mates who accidentally barge into his room while he is recording a live show. When it happens, he embraces the 'mishap' and they become part of the show.
Nor does Mr Ngoi have to worry about copyright issues, because local bands featured on his shows have granted him permission to play their music.
Plain Sunset's guitarist Nor Sham Husaini, 32, is more than happy to collaborate with sites like sweetmusic.fm.
He said: 'Radio stations like 98.7 FM might have a designated time to play locally produced music, but sites like sweetmusic.fm play local indie music all the time.
'They introduce new acts on the scene to their listeners, so it's good for indie bands that are just starting out because the exposure is useful and effective.'
To fund his shows, Mr Ngoi has to dig into his own pockets to foot the monthly fee of $50 for server space.
He is against over-commercialising his site so advertisements - a sure profit generator - are a no-go.
But he is not complaining. 'It's never about commercial pursuits and advertisements. I have a day job after all.
'If you listen to the show long enough, you'll know my intentions are pure and concentrated solely on music.'
Besides sweetmusic.fm, sites like unpopular radio (unpopular-music.blogspot.com), rampage on the airwaves (rampageontheairwaves.blogspot.com) and eatyourinterpop (eatyourinterpop.blogspot.com) provide similar entertainment for the indie crowd looking for an alternative to traditional radio.
National University of Singapore student Han Yi Qian, 20, logs on to both sweetmusic.fm and unpopular radio.
She does not mind the on-and-off vulgarities because its usage is 'minimal'.
'What I find more important is for the deejays to have clear goals - to know what they are there for and to provide the listener with good music,' she added.
And that's what unpopular radio's owner, Mr Charanpal S. Bal, 29, does best. He entertains his listeners with his strong music content during the show.
'From a listener base of only five when we first started out two years ago, to 60 listeners a show now, we have definitely come a long way,' he said.
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