Bham.fm
bham.fm is a music blog that covers local bands, venues, and events, as well as other miscellaneous music-related information that may not necessarily be related to the Birmingham music scene. Site content includes show recommendations, reviews, news, interviews, a scene history page, mixtapes, photography, video, and more. Its focus is decidedly underground, independent local music and the local music clubs and venues that host them, although the site has also covered major local concerts such as Wilco, Mogwai, and TV on the Radio.
History
bham.fm was started in early November 2008 by editor Whitney Sides Mitchell and photo editor Chris Mitchell. Whitney, who also writes the Steel City Sound column at al.com, had previously been a music writer for the Timetable on The Terminal before going independent. Chris gave the site its initial design and resolved early issues with site maintenance. Shortly after getting bham.fm up and running, Whitney recruited several contributors to expand the scope of the site’s coverage beyond her own writings; among these are senior writers Adam Martin, Alex Holt, and Phil Lawless; contributors Daniel Daughhetee, Natalie Hummel, and Randall Turner ("R-Tist" of The Green Seed); and photographers Arik Sokol, George Atkinson, and Tony Dilberto. Adam specializes in documenting scene history, especially in his Indie Retrospective (1998-2005) series and his entry on the closing of Cave 9; Alex specializes in discovering major local news such as the Wilco, Avett Brothers, TV on the Radio, and the Thermals concerts; and Phil specializes in metal-related content including his “I Remember CDs” retrospective series and his four-part coverage of the Scion Rock Fest in Atlanta, Georgia.
On February 3, 2009, bham.fm issued a press release which revealed that Sam George of r3vrb and Bright Henry, also formerly a Timetable music writer, agreed to merge with bham.fm and became a coeditor and site designer. He overhauled the site’s design, incorporating features such as Twitter and FacebookConnect comment options, pop-out music player, Flash photo slideshows, video archives, and more. Sam also writes the “Daily Dose” column, which is the equivalent of his “Pick of the Day” on r3vrb in which he gives his recommendation for the day’s best music event.
Miscellaneous
In addition to covering local music events, bham.fm regularly presents shows featuring local bands. Past bham.fm shows have been hosted by Bottletree, O Kafés, Speakeasy, and WorkPlay and have featured acts including American Holiday, Bright Henry, Broken Letters, Daikaiju, The Dirty Lungs, the Green Seed, Imaginary Planes, Matthew Mayfield, Necronomikids, The Photonicas, Slow Masters, The Spots, Vulture Whale, and The White Oaks. Coeditor Sam George designed the posters for these events. bham.fm also co-sponsored Birmingham Goes to SXSW in which eight Birmingham bands were showcased at the SXSW Festival. bham.fm plans to sponsor this year’s Birmingham Folk Festival.
Bham.fm is sponsoring the "Secret Stages” music showcase at Speakeasy during the 2009 City Stages. The event was organized to take the place of City Stages' now-defunct HomeGrown Stage which featured local bands.
References
- "Check this out" (March 2009) Birmingham Magazine.
- Martin, Adam (n. d.) "Scene History" bham.fm.
- Natta, André (March 16, 2009) "Farewell, Cave 9" The Terminal.
- Mitchell, Chris (February 16, 2009) "Wilco! Sloss Furnace! April 22!" bham.fm.
- Holt, Alex (February 18, 2009) "Avett Brothers!! Sloss Furnace!! April 25!!" bham.fm.
- Martin, Adam (February 18, 2009) "TV on the Radio on my Birthday!" bham.fm.
- Holt, Alex (February 19, 2009) "The Thermals!! May 18!! Bottletree!!" bham.fm.
- Natta, André (February 6, 2009) "Speaking of Switches" The Terminal.
- Mitchell, Whitney Sides (May 28, 2009) "Dun Duh Duh Duuuuh: Secret Stages Lineup Announced". bham.fm.