Unlicensed stations provided a crucial service to local communities in Bristol in the 80’s. With commercial stations championing pop music and supporting an established set of (mostly) white male presenters, the pirate frequencies belted out early house, rare grooves, dub, emerging hip hop and latterly, jungle. By providing a platform for music and artists that would never be heard on the established airways, unlicensed radio brought communities together, highlighted a biased agenda on mainstream stations and also helped to facilitate a revolution in dance music.

Featuring contributions from DJ Flynnites, DJ Styles, DJ Queen Bee, DJ Alikat (Alice Perera), Paul Hassan, DJ Miranda Rae, John Stapleton and Roger Griffiths.

Produced by 2 Degrees West

Continue the journey with some further reading:
Original Rockers by Richard King
The Art and Sound of the Bristol Underground by Chris Burton and Gary Thompson
Bristol in Black and White by Mark Simmons
Wild Days by Beezer
Straight Outa Bristol by Phil Johnson
thepiratearchive.net

The fears and austerity of the post-war years were receding and as the 1960’s dawned, so did economic prosperity and new hope driven by youthful determination and an attitude that anything was possible. The emergence of Caribbean music and American soul as significant cultural drivers, dominating mod clubs and (what would become world famous) venues like the Bamboo Club, meant that for the first time, cultures were crossing, not clashing.

Produced by  2 Degrees West

With the 100^th anniversary of women’s suffrage so prominent in our thoughts this year, it seemed absolutely appropriate to honour the part women have played in the development and delivery of Bristol’s rich, diverse and plentiful music scene.

Featuring contributions from DJ Queen Bee (Roz Scordilis), DJ Miranda Rae, Harriet Robinson (BBC & BCfm), DJ Alikat, Laura Lewis Paul (Saffron Records), Louisa Jones (Sisterworks), Janine Rainforth (Maximum Joy), Lizzy Bowman (Red Light Management) and Yola Carter.

Produced by 2 Degrees West

No dress code, no searches, no burly bouncers… just kick-ass music!

1980’s Bristol: bouncers were often hostile towards customers who looked non-conformist and most of the city centre venues didn’t reflect the style of music that was growing in popularity amongst a generation steeped in funk, early hip hop and Chicago house. The popularity of the recreational dance drug, ecstasy and the proliferation of marijuana further added a growing imperative to find locations far away from the prying eyes of the local Bobbies. The warehouse party scene was born out of a need for a hassle-free environment, where everyone felt comfortable and were at liberty to express themselves and their music.

Featuring contributions from DJ Flynnites, DJ Styles, DJ Queen Bee, DJ Alikat (Alice Perera), Paul Hassan, DJ Miranda Rae and John Stapleton

Produced by 2 Degrees West

Continue the journey with some further reading:
Original Rockers by Richard King
The Art and Sound of the Bristol Underground by Chris Burton and Gary Thompson
Bristol in Black and White by Mark Simmons
Wild Days by Beezer
Straight Outa Bristol by Phil Johnson
thepiratearchive.net

The first gig I went to was to see Free at the Colston Hall (in 1970 I think). I subsequently saw groups such as Yes, King Crimson, Supertramp, Mott the Hoople, Ten Years After, Wishbone Ash, TRex, and David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars (just as Starman/Ziggy Stardust hit the charts. The seat was 40p!).
If I forfeited having my school lunch or walked to/from school to save my bus fares, I was able to go to the Colston Hall regularly. It was an affordable night out for teenagers and we got to see many groups and performers who are now legendary.If there was an encore it was always touch/go whether you’d get on the last bus from the bus station at 10.45pm so we often had to run to Marlborough Street.
One of the people I was privileged to see was Bob Marley in 1976…..one of the few performers who united a cross-section of fans from different communities in the city. I also recall attending Ashton Court Festival long hot summer of 1976 and seeing Bristol punk rockers The Cortinas.
I remember music being very accessible and affordable and probably one of the most memorable aspects of my teenage years in the city.

We were the first Bristol punk band to set up our own independent Bristol new wave record label.
We were trying to capture that mid 70’s zeitgeist of corporate rejection. That agit prop, do it yourself repudiation of the recording industry’s corporate machine. The corporate control that dominated, created and controlled the entertainment industry…..And our lives.
Music was everything, music was our world. We were young, but we were Punks. We truly believed anything was possible! We were anarchists, we just didn’t know what anarchy was. Naive of course, young, impressionable, ridiculously enthusiastic but we knew this was our teenage moment to have fun. We knew that in those moments of 1976 and 1977, things would never be the same again.
For us punk meant freedom. The freedom and the opportunity to say ‘NO’!

At Ashton Court Festival in the late 90s, I found myself standing at the exact spot where one ear was filled with searing drum’n’bass and the other by the cider-drenched tones of the Wurzels. Never had life sounded quite so bizarrely and uniquely Bristolian. I still can’t remember which one I chose…

I first saw Clayton Blizzard play at The Factory, Portland Square, Bristol circa 2009, it was a squatted old bank that was taken over by artists and activists for about a year until they were evicted. You could go in the the massive old volts where the money and perhaps gold would of been kept. Clayton Blizzard played folk/rap, influenced by local and global politics and not afraid to sing with his West country accent. It was a very transformational time for me and the people there. The Factory was left empty until developers started renovating posh flats in 2017.