Type | Podcast and online streaming radio |
---|---|
Country | United Kingdom |
Availability | International |
Founded | Jon Chappell, Alex Malloy, She Who |
Launch date | 21 December 2002 |
Official website | http://www.koobaradio.co.uk/ |
Kooba Radio was an independent, non-profit, Internet-based radio station focused on alternative rock, playing unsigned bands and artists with independent record labels. Kooba is PRS (Performing Right Society) registered and played to a listenership in over 20 countries. [1]
Created 21 December 2002, Kooba Radio began was principally based in South East London. Starting initially with founders Jon Chappell (Jonny Yeah), Alex Malloy (The Boy Malloy) and She Who Must Not Be Named, the main ethos behind the station was "if you've signed, you've sold out" with a strong impetus towards the promotion of promising bands hitherto ignored by major record labels. This slogan was abandoned when it became prevalent that bands would release their music on their own labels. [1]
The flagship show of the station is the Jonny and Alex Show, originally featuring the principal founders (Jon and Alex) with the added participation of both occasional and regular guests appearing on a random basis. The content of the show, which often takes on the feel of the zoo format features occasional comedy sketches, irreverent chat, interviews and guest performances from musicians. [1]
One of the many local scenes from South East London which Kooba helped promote was the Basement Rock movement. [2]
The station started out with a once a week show which streamed on-demand over the Internet using SHOUTcast via a link on the website. It has since greatly expanded its listening audience following the advent of the popular podcast broadcast platform, [1] going on to be noted in Time Out London's Podcast of the Week in 2006. [3]
The style of music played on the shows is varied and includes alt rock, electro, post rock, punk, post punk, classic rock, metal, folk, pronk, hip hop, rock and roll, comedy, blues, experimental and a myriad of other styles. [4]
By far Kooba's most successful creation is Christathon – Kooba Radio’s annual crucifixion themed pub crawl. [5]
Christathon went viral in 2011 leading to media attention from timeout [6] and AllInLondon. [7]
Although Kooba Radio closed in 2012 another Christathon is planned for Easter Sunday 2014, [8] this time organised by people unaffiliated to Kooba Radio. [9]
Kooba Radio ceased recording new shows at the end of 2012, marking the end of a decade broadcasting unsigned bands and new music. The last show-proper was the run down of the 2012 Band of the Year Competition. This will be followed by Christathon 2013 and a 1-off live special later in 2013. [1]
Buzzcocks are an English punk rock band that singer-songwriter-guitarist Pete Shelley and singer-songwriter Howard Devoto formed in Bolton in 1976. During their career, the band combined elements of punk rock, power pop, and pop punk. They achieved commercial success with singles that fuse pop craftsmanship with rapid-fire punk energy; these singles were later collected on Singles Going Steady, an acclaimed compilation album music journalist and critic Ned Raggett described as a "punk masterpiece".
Pub rock is a subgenre of rock music that emerged in the early to mid-1970s in the United Kingdom. A back-to-basics movement, which incorporated roots rock, pub rock was a reaction against the expensively-recorded and produced progressive rock and flashy glam rock scenes at the time. Although short-lived, pub rock was played live in small traditional venues like pubs and clubs. Since major labels showed no interest in pub rock groups, pub bands sought out independent record labels such as Stiff Records. Indie labels used relatively inexpensive recording processes, so they had a much lower break-even point for a record than a major label.
Basement Jaxx are an English electronic music duo consisting of Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe. The pair got their name from the regular club night they held in Brixton, London, UK. They first rose to popularity in the underground house scene of the mid-1990s, but would go on to find international chart success and win Best Dance Act at both the 2002 and 2004 BRIT Awards. Their most successful singles are "Red Alert", "Rendez-Vu", "Romeo" and "Where's Your Head At".
Pansy Division are an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California, United States, in 1991 by guitarist and singer-songwriter Jon Ginoli along with bassist Chris Freeman.
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes are a punk rock supergroup and cover band that formed in San Francisco in 1995. The band's lineup consists of Spike Slawson, Fat Mike, Joey Cape, and Dave Raun. Chris Shiflett is a former member.
Marc Riley is an English radio DJ, alternative rock critic, musician, and former music businessman. He currently presents on BBC Radio 6 Music.
The Suicide Commandos are an American punk rock trio from Minneapolis. They formed in 1975 and released two 7-inch EPs on an indie label in 1976 and 1977 before signing with Blank Records in 1977 and releasing one album, Make a Record. Despite their short original 4-year stint together, the Suicide Commandos are considered the pioneers for jump-starting a punk rock music scene in the Twin Cities, which eventually produced bands like The Suburbs, Hüsker Dü, The Replacements and Soul Asylum.
Steven Alexander James, FRSA is an English musician, best known as the bassist of the rock band Blur. He has also played with temporary bands Fat Les, Me Me Me, WigWam and Bad Lieutenant.
Man Raze are an English three-piece alternative rock band originally from Finchley, London, England formed in 2004, featuring Phil Collen, Simon Laffy and Paul Cook.
Relient K is an American rock band formed in 1998 in Canton, Ohio, by Matt Thiessen, Matt Hoopes, and Brian Pittman during their third year in high school and time at Malone University. The band is named after guitarist Hoopes' automobile, a Plymouth Reliant K car, with the spelling intentionally altered to avoid trademark infringement over the Reliant name.
Josie Isabel Long is an English comedian. She started performing as a stand-up at the age of 14 and won the BBC New Comedy Awards at 17.
Jon Solomon is an American radio DJ. He has been the host of "Jon Solomon's Annual 25-Hour Holiday Radio Show" at WPRB in Princeton, New Jersey, since 1988, when he was fifteen years old.
The music of Cardiff has been dominated mainly by rock music since the early 1990s with later trends developing towards more extreme styles of the genre such as heavy metal and metalcore music. It, along with the nearby music scene in Newport, has brought a number of musicians to perform or begin their careers in South Wales.
"Bodysnatchers" is a song by the English rock band Radiohead, from their seventh album, In Rainbows (2007). In May 2008, it was released with the song "House of Cards" as a promotional single in the United Kingdom, and it was serviced to United States modern rock radio by ATO Records. It reached number eight on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart, Radiohead's highest placement since "Creep" in 1993.
The King Blues are a British punk rock band from London credited for fusing punk and hip hop together with influences from ska and spoken word. Tariq Ali described the band's sounds as "rough, radical music that should unsettle the rulers of this country. A new generation of musicians are challenging war-monger politicians and their courtiers". Influences include Public Enemy, The Clash and The Specials. Lead singer Jonny "Itch" Fox describes the band's sound as 'rebel street music.'
Jonathan Monroe Craig is an American-Canadian singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of the post-hardcore bands Dance Gavin Dance, Emarosa, Slaves, as well as the co-lead vocalist of the short-lived supergroup Isles & Glaciers. As a solo artist, he has released two studio albums, two EPs and a live album to date, and his distinct type of soul-based singing has earned him considerable acclaim.
The Display Team are a six-piece independent progressive punk band from South-East London, England. The group has received airplay in the UK on BBC Radio 6 Music and Phoenix FM, along with many shows podcast by DJs on Kooba Radio which is heard worldwide on the Internet.
Idobi Radio, is a prominent modern rock Internet radio station in the United States, with a distinct emphasis on new pop punk and alternative music. Since its establishment in 1999, the station has utilized its website, app, and iTunes platform for broadcasting over the Internet. Noteworthy for its comprehensive content, Idobi Radio presents a range of interviews, music coverage, and radio programs led by well-known artists. The station's stream amalgamates tracks from established alternative artists as well as emerging unsigned acts.
Basement are an English rock band formed in Ipswich, Suffolk, in 2009. Their debut studio album, I Wish I Could Stay Here, was released in 2011. The next year, Colourmeinkindness was released, charting on the US Billboard Top 200. After touring in support of Colourmeinkindness, the band went on hiatus in 2012. In 2014, they reunited to release the EP Further Sky. The next album, Promise Everything, charted in 2016 in Australia, the UK and the US. The band's fourth album, Beside Myself, was released in October 2018.
Colourmeinkindness is the second studio album by English rock band Basement. It was released on 23 October 2012 through Run for Cover Records.