On the Air with Claire – A Bloggers Review
Working from home presents many challenges: What is an acceptable time to get out of bed? Which Australian soap opera should I work my lunch around? Does posting a Facebook status really count as business development? But quite possibly the biggest challenge is what boring clichéd local disc jockey should I tolerate for a couple of hours?
Whether it is the background soundtrack to my working day or the drive time escape, music plays an integral part of not only mine- but most people’s existence. Yes, I enjoy a Radio 1 chart topper as much as the next guy and sure Jeremy Vine’s heated lunch time debate gets the blood pumping by midday but I want real music. I want something different, and the next thing I know I’m listening to Exeter’s sound alternative, Phonic FM.
Unfortunately it’s taken me all day to find the station and I’ve actually had to do some work (minus a 23 minute break for Home and Away) but by 6pm I’m sat down and I am "On The Air with Claire".
This two hour monthly show presented and described by budding DJ Claire Rozario as “a whole mash of music that you don’t normally hear on the radio” was a pleasant and satisfying surprise.
Prior to my radical decision to give Phonic FM a chance, I was slightly concerned about listening to an alternative station and preceded with caution. I was expecting pretentious music snobbery and the overwhelming feeling that I should be sipping on a warm can of Red Stripe whilst engrossed in the latest addition of NME. However, it turned out that the show was an absolute revelation.
I myself would never claim to be a musical Jedi but I’d go as far to say that I have a reasonable ear and this certainly tickled my lobes.
Recovering well from last minute guest cancellations, Rozario soldiered on in style to present a fun, relaxed and welcoming show rivalling that of any mainstream DJ I have ever heard.
‘On The Air with Claire’ is about the music and giving air time to those bands that are perhaps overlooked or not considered commercially viable elsewhere, on that note she delivered.
A set list compiled with established artists such as The Lumineers, Bastille and Foals as well as new local talent such as The Rising and Life Thru Iris proved that this is not only a warm, hospitable show that is accessible to everyone but that Rozario knows her music.
In amongst the array of alternative songs there was just enough chit chat to keep me entertained until the very end. Ellie (A guest / friend drafted in to fill a gap) was the surprise hit, offering a fun if slightly disorientated outlook on Rozario’s topic’s, proving that this show also has the ability to improvise and think on its feet.
The show was concluded with a live set by quirky acoustic rockabilly group Mad Mash offering yet another sensational dimension to what could have been a disastrous show- considering the lack of time available to re-group after unfortunate guest withdrawals.
‘On The Air With Claire’ does exactly what it says on the tin. It is two hours of ambitious alternative radio coupled with fantastic music that served its purpose magnificently well: allowing me to wind down after a long day banging my ahead against a proverbial work related brick wall (my kitchen table).
Phonic Fm Thursday’s 6pm-8pm. 2nd week of the month.
Phil Sandercock
