Aki Onda

During my one month travel in Europe and UK in June 2017, I recorded snapshots of radio programs as a daily practice. Starting from Brussels to Kassel, Toulouse, Amsterdam, Brussels again, then London, Berlin, and Bordeaux... In any city I was in, I would just turn on the radio and randomly capture news, talk radio, music, or, if between frequencies, just noise.  I used a compact AM/FM analogue radio, as opposed to a shortwave or Internet radio. Therefore I could focus on local programs, although at times foreign language sneaked in if the city was close to the border. Radio waves penetrate boundaries — there's no way to stop them.  It was a tumultuous and noisy time in the anxiety-shrouded continent and beyond - the arrival of refugees from the Middle East, multiple terror attacks, political set backs after Brexit and the confusing result of General Election... Alas, whatever happens people's lives goes on. This audio diary is a travelogue of my journey as well as my attempt to describe this sociopolitical tableau through a prism of different voices on air. Aki Onda

 

  Commissioned by Transmedia Borders / British Council in Mexico This work was released by Athens based label Thalamos in 2019