Congratulations to Folk Radio UK who have been nominated in Trad Music in the media sponsored by Skipinnish in the MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards 2014. Vote now!
We asked Alex Gallacher of Folk Radio UK the following questions.
Tell us about yourself
Folk Radio UK is an independent webzine and Internet Radio Station founded in 2004 by Alex Gallacher.
The website features folk and roots music news, album reviews, interviews, articles, live sessions, on-demand audio content and more. We are supported by a team of volunteer reviewers who write reviews of new album releases, festivals and live gigs.
The Internet Radio Station runs 24 hours of back to back music featuring folk and roots, from traditional to contemporary. New playlists are created daily featuring new music as well as releases from the past from as far back as the late 1960’s.
In 2012 we also launched an additional radio channel on Deezer, a leading music streaming service accessed by 12 million users.
We recently (October 2014) launched our first live folk music night in partnership with Bridgwater Art Centre under the banner of The Levels Collective. Our launch night featured Mairearad Green & Anna Massie and Folk Rock band Galley Beggar. This will be run as a monthly event from 2015.
Why are you involved in Scottish music?
Scottish music has always been a core influence and motivator from the day we launched in 2004. At the time I felt it was under-represented in mainstream media, one of the initial motivations behind starting Folk Radio UK.
Since then our playlists and website coverage has grown to cover a broad selection of folk and roots but both Scottish traditional music as well as the more contemporary musical offerings feature prominently as it’s something we are very passionate about.
In the ten years we’ve been running we’ve watched the Scottish music scene take off in a huge way. It’s certainly one of the most dynamic music scenes in the UK as well as being one of the most innovative and inspiring for us and many more.
Any particular career highlights?
The first memorable highlight was receiving mainstream media recognition which came via The Guardian in 2011 when we were featured in their G2 supplement.
Since then we’ve been recommended by other areas of the press as well as BBC Radio DJs. We now attract over 50,000 unique visitors per month to our website.
We were approached by the music streaming service Deezer in 2012 and asked to set up a Folk Radio UK radio channel on their service, this is now their flagship folk music radio channel.
We’ve just recently launched a live folk music night (mentioned above) which is another great highlight. To take what we’ve been doing via the internet for ten years onto a stage is such a great feeling. After the launch night it just felt like we were more complete in what we were trying to achieve which is to not just bring people great music but to also explore more outside the mainstream media.
The biggest highlight is of course this nomination. Getting this sort of recognition for writing about music we love is a dream come true, it really does make a difference. We’re still on cloud nine.
What are your plans for the future?
To continue to grow and build a larger audience and bring greater coverage through a larger team of voulunteers, one which is steadily growing.
To make more people aware of the traditional music scene through our reviews, news and playlists.
To feature more articles written by musicians and artists to provide a greater insight into their field of music.
To potentially expand in all areas we cover including live events.
Thank you
Alex Gallacher
Read more about Folk Radio UK
http://www.folkradio.co.uk
Buy a ticket for the MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards on Saturday 13th December in Inverness Leisure, start time 7pm. You’ll have a great time!