Sydney community radio station FBi has turned 10 this week and will be ending the celebration with the party of all parties this weekend at Carriageworks on Sunday September 8 in Sydney as a special fund raiser to help keep the station alive and kicking!
The mini festival will celebrate the eclectic music, say thanks to it’s dedicated artists, listeners and volunteers behind the last ten incredibly impressive years of FBi Radio and will The Presets, Hermitude, Sarah Blasko, Urthboy, Midnight Juggernauts, Seekae, Decoder Ring, Bleeding Knees Club, Spit Syndicate, Kirin J Callinan, FBI DJs and loads more with the day playing homage to the breadth and depth of musical talent to come out of the country in the last decade.
To join in celebrations we asked Music Programmer Stephen Goodhew, to put together a FBI playlist for us.
SPOD – ‘Totally Rad’
A track taken from one of our earliest feature albums, Taste The Radness, SPOD is a party starter through and through. Tongue in cheek, over the top and a hell of a lot of fun SPOD’s in a class all of his/their own.
Boards Of Canada – ‘Dayvan Cowboy’
FBi’s always been 100% focused on growing Sydney’s local music scene and an important part of that has been making sure Sydney audiences are exposed to some of the groundbreaking work happening abroad. Being true pioneers of electronic music, Boards Of Canada are an act that we’re incredibly proud to have supported since day one. Dark and brooding with layers upon layers of hidden meaning, the Scottish duo single handledly represent so much of what we love about music.
Micachu And The Shapes – ‘Golden Phone’
Gloriously inventive weirdo pop from a long time favourite of the station. Across all three albums Mica has shown an ability to craft songs catchier than a summer cold, without ever feeling generic, which anyone who listens to pop music will know is a real gift.
Sierra Sisters – ‘Shake It’
A personal favourite Album of the Week of mine from 2012, Shake It by Sierra Sisters was just one of the many fantastic tracks from Lion Mountain Studio’s Sounds Of The Lion. The result of a larger not-for-profit project, the album was recorded by members of Sydney’s Sierra Leone community with the help of artists including Seekae, Killaqueenz, Thomas William and members of the ONEOFOUR Collective.
Gotye – ‘True To You’
It wasn’t that long ago that Wally De Backer was handing in his first demos to FBi’s then Music Director, Dan Zilber at a Music Open Day. While Wally’s story is certainly unique in the level of success he’s achieved, it’s indicative of our commitment to finding undiscovered talent and giving them their first leg up. This track was taken from his debut record, an Album of the Week here at the station in 2004.
Seekae – ‘Void’
With each release, Seekae have proven again and again they have an uncanny ability to mix intelligent production and beats with melodies so pretty they’ll leave your bottom lip trembling. The most recognisable track from their debut LP, for me it’s still this song more than any other that defines their approach to music.
Holy Fuck – ‘Stilettos’
More than any other band I can think of, it’s Holy Fuck that is most likely to leave you mouthing the words, ‘Holy Fuck’ as you’re left gaping in awe at how tremendously fucking awesome their live show is. This one is taken from their second record Latin, which is also quite possibly the greatest exercise album of all time.
Sarah Blasko – ‘All I Want’
Sarah Blasko has never been afraid to lay herself bare in her music, which is one of the reasons why she’s likely to go down as one of Australia’s all time greats. Achieving an emotional authenticity that most artists can only aspire to, Sarah Blasko is an artist that FBi is proud to have grown up with, supporting since day one.
Marnie Stern – ‘Transformers’
Interesting fact: Marnie Stern makes all you other guitar players look like kids rocking out with their ‘My First Guitar’ starter pack in front of their bedroom mirror. What’s even more impressive than her guitar playing is her ability to turn those chops into songs that are hugely fun and listenable. With a couple of FBi Albums of the Week to her name, Marnie regularly has the office rocking out air-guitar style.
Shabazz Palaces – ‘Are You…Can You…Were You? (Felt’)
One of the most inventive hip hop acts of recent times, Shabazz Palaces are a duo unafraid to do things a little differently. Their debut album Black Up was Sub Pop’s first ever hip hop signing and they couldn’t have chosen a better place to start.
