When I first moved to Brattleboro almost nine years ago, one of the things I dug about life here was the fact that radio free brattleboro was around. The thought of independent radio was appealing; they were a great David to root for in a world too full of Goliaths. I remember my ol' drinking buddy Chris Nixon and I were always threatening to start a show at rfb that would go on the air as soon as we finished closing down McNeill's. Somehow we never followed through on that idea. Probably a good thing.
I bring all this up because out of the seeds of rfb grew WVEW Brattleboro FM 107.7, an independend, community-based, but fully licensed 100-watt station. Their studio is in the Brooks House and overlooks Main Street, an unlikely location, yet somehow perfect, a great vantage point to keep an eye on a humming downtown and to reflect it.
I bring all this up, because on Friday, May 4, during Gallery Walk, WVEW is holding an open studio for people to come in, check things out and hopefully be inspired to get involved in some way. I had a chance to check out the studio a couple of weeks ago, and they exhibited a powerful pull. There's something romantic about being involved with grassroots radio, doing your thing and having a hand in shaping so elementally democratic as community radio. Why not check it out Friday?