The Radio Stations

One. I have given up on clubbing for a more sober life. Gone are the Saturday nights when I let myself get carried away and see my hips, arms and body fling to House music. The ledge-mounting, shirtless Mugen is a stuff of legends and I doubt if those who see me now would believe I carry such reputation when I was a bit younger. 

But it doesn't mean the sound has already left my eardrums. I still collect Ministry of Sounds essentials for my work-out (until Furion got snatched, a story that deserves another entry) and turn Eclipse into my private dance club. 

I also tune in to U-Radio 107.9 for my daily dose of Electronica. The station has been my road companion since leaving the dance floor some years ago. It keeps me up, alert, and tireless. It connects me to the people who really appreciate the music, not because they can dance to it, but because the songs carry a memory of their younger, more hedonist selves.  

Unfortunately, U Radio has gone off the air for the nth time, and it's frustrating to know when it will return again.  

Two. Every weekend afternoon, Jam 88.3 has a radio show called "A Different Sunday." The show has no DJs. It plays non-stop music. And though it retains its Alternative and Adult Top 40 music format, the show has a unique and refreshing twist to its songs. 

The playlist is undeniably alternative. You get to hear tracks from Radiohead to The Pixies, only that the songs are sometimes covered by another artists. The re-imagined performances are very rare (Fake Plastic Trees sung by a choir, Where Is My Mind by a folk singer) and stripped down to its bare essentials (Acoustic Guitar). 

The songs blend well with the pervading mood, that one can't help but put his life down, recline in a couch, and just wile the afternoon away listening to song, after song, after song. The next thing you know, Monday is just several hours away. 

If only Jam 88.3 plays these songs at late nights as well. I'm sure a lot of sleepless, wounded souls would find respite from their troubled lives.  

Three. True to its slogan, Radio High 105.9 is not for everyone. The radio station appeals to "non-conformist" listeners who are passionate for the "finer things in life." The station plays music from Jazz to Lounge genres. The other night, I learned that they play New Wave and Bossa Nova as well. Basically, the songs you WILL never hear on Love Radio, MTV and Yes FM are found here. 

Radio High is just a new station, with - I guess - a tiny audience. I'd like to picture its regular listeners as the high society, old rich folks who yearn for the better days. Those who spend the nights in piano bars and cocktail lounges sipping Martinis while swapping scandal stories, or pouring out one's sorrow by simply getting drowned in music and alcohol. 

Musicians, eccentrics and struggling artists searching for inspiration (or something to listen to, while on the road) will find this station to their liking.