Presents The Golden Age Of Piracy

Joins the dots between the new and the old, charting a course through the influences that shaped the sound of today's artists.

How did you first connect with Triple R?

Sincethere is nothing better than being in an empty radio station with nothing but coffee, a bag of CDs and a microphone, I have been a proud Graveyarder for the past five years. RRR casts a very long shadow, and even since I was an extremely annoying 16 year old playing Fugazi and Buffalo Tom on a small community radio show in Perth, I knew of this hallowed place, so when I moved to Melbourne, it was my first port of call.

What/when was your first show?

My first Graveyard was in January 2004, I'm fairly sure I opened with 'Heard it through the Grapevine' as done by the Slits... The first Golden Age of Piracy was on April 29th 2009, where there was a pretty good chance I played the Slits.

What's your favourite Triple R story?

I once broke down on St Georges Road in peak hour in my old Subaru Vortex (incredibly stupid 80's sports car that looks like a door wedge) and this guy pulled over and helped me get the car off the road and gave me his phone to get a tow truck. He told me that at first he wasn't going to stop, but changed his mind when he saw the RRR sticker on the back window... Any station that has that kind of loyalty and comradeship is A-OK with me.

Your favourite other Triple R program and why?

I really enjoy Vital Bits and The Skull Cave. Tim Thorpe makes me laugh, he's got some evil wit, which is always welcome. I'm in awe of The Ghost's knowledge and the way he never speaks down to his listeners. Unless, of course, you happen to take more than half a second to answer a question on the quiz.

What does Triple R mean to you?

RRR is what community radio is all about. The music industry is trying its hardest to get every cent it can, which means pumping the musical equivalent of junkfood out at you 24-7, with no room for true art to shine through. This rubbish, although adored now, will be laughed at in ten years time by the same people who bought it, I mean Billy Ray Cyrus sold 20 million copies of his debut album... This is where RRR comes in. It is run by, and for, people who have no interest in disposable entertainment. Sign me up.

The studio door has accidentally jammed shut with you stuck inside. If there was only one CD in there with youwhat would you want it to be and why?

Yikes. Hard one. There is one album that no matter what I'm obsessed with that week, I always return to, that has been a constant in my life for the last ten years or so: Spiritualized - Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space. This is the only album that can take care of all my erratic musical moods in one 70 minute dose. Going from grand choral arrangements to psychedelic wig-out to quiet introspection to fuzz-laden walls of sound, it will do quite nicely until the nice man breaks through the door.