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Neil “Funno” Funston has been a great addition to our ranks here as a presenter at Indigo FM Beechworth since late 2019 with his regular show Baby Boomer’s Revenge.

In recent weeks, Funno stepped it up a notch when he was appointed to the voluntary role of Beechworth Site Co-ordinator.

Neil is a relatively new resident of Beechworth, however, he and wife Robyn for many years successfully ran the Boorhaman North “little oasis” Renaissance Chocolates just a few km west of Rutherglen. So from chocolatier to radio organiser might seem an unexpected leap but there’s that meticulous craft element common to each.

Whilst Indigo FM is Neil’s first official foray into grass roots radio, he almost joined Radio Mansfield (Mansfield Community Radio) a few years back. As Neil explains….

“I’ve always had a big interest in music particularly The Beatles as I am a Baby Boomer and grew up with them. Radio fascinated me and in 2019 when we moved to Bonnie Doon while our house was being built in Beechworth I investigated the local community radio station, but I decided not to progress because we would soon be moving. So when we landed in Beechworth one of the first things that happened was Indigo FM had a street stall drumming up interest for new members and presenters – I met Scott at the station – I was hooked.“

The role of a Site Co-ordinator is a key one here at Indigo FM. Essentially the role is organising and supporting local presenters with their shows while also liaising with the local community to pursue partnerships and opportunities that enhance the programming and keep a strong local community focus.

“I am very community focused and want to do all I can to be inclusive in the community and offer things that will benefit the community as a whole“, said Neil.

For enquiries about all things Indigo FM in Beechworth – be it membership, promoting your business or community group or becoming a presenter – you can drop Funno a line at [email protected]

It’s that time of the year when we say thanks for your support throughout the year. And feel free to tune in any time to our FM sites or to our online radio station or a podcast. There are a heap of them and they can be found here. This article explains a bit about what you might stumble across.

2021 was another very busy year. Like everyone more Covid-adjustments on the run. We did manage to increase our number of presenters as well as our membership. Our podcasts also kicked a lot of goals both in terms of volume and weekly rankings which we have done now year on year for the past 6 years. We also settled in our Internet Radio Station. And a new studio in Tangambalanga.

2022 sees live streaming as our main goal – which our web designer is working on as we speak.

We have purchased a Rodecaster PRO courtesy of an Indigo Shire Community Grant. Inspired by the amazing programs from the Yackandandah Primary School students in 2021, our plan is to use this “mobile studio” to establish regular programs with Osbornes Flat Primary School and Wooragee Primary School as well as local Landcare groups. And we’re planning on adding Pirmary Schools in Beechworth and Tangambalanga to the mix also.

Xmas Playlist On Air Now!
This week we have switched across to a Xmas Playlist of around 250 songs that will run for around the next week. It’s on air now at each site as well as on our Internet Radio Stream. You can view it here Xmas Playlist 2021

It was largely put together by our Tech-Programming Sub-Committee. We decided to opt against Christmas Carols and instead go for the many fun and quirky songs that have been written and recorded about Christmas over the years. 

Many presenters will also be re-charging their batteries although a few will opt to continue through the festive season.

Our volunteer admin team will be taking a well-earned official break from 24 Dec – 4 Jan, back on deck on Wednesday 5 Jan. We’ll catch you then, all set for a big 2022.

Wishing you an enjoyable, safe and relaxing Festive Season

Our Radiothon for 2021 concluded earlier this week and was a great success. We wish to thank our sponsors Feather and Drum Hats, Kev McGennan High Country Photography, Outlaw Entertainment, MEGAS Music Wodonga, Kiewa Valley Dance, Backwoods Distillery, CC’s Quality Meats & Smokehouse, TINY Cafe and Wodonga Eyecare for their generosity in donating some great prizes as well as support in general.

And thanks to every member who signed up during our Radiothon. Your support is greatly appreciated.

So…. who won what? Here’s the run down below. Congratulations to the major prize winner Nigel Jones from Yackandandah who won the Custom made hat from Feather and Drum Hat Co. Nigel’s name was pulled first from our warped vinyl record bowl by Mietta who is one of our Yack Primary School presenters. The draws for prizes were undertaken by our younger presenters, Charles at Beechworth and Ada, Irena and Mietta at Yackandandah. Congratulations to all other prize recipients.

Charles, Doug, Ada and Irena prepare to draw the Radiothon prize winners

1st prize

A custom-made Hat by Cat Leahy from “Feather and Drum Hats” Yackandandah – valued at $450

Winner – Nigel Jones, Yackandandah

2nd prize

A framed High Country Photographic Artwork from Kev McGennan – valued at $380

Winner – Duncan Phillips (Outlaw Entertainment), Melbourne

More prizes

10 x Gift Vouchers to the value of $25

Winners:

• Sarah Kohne, Osbornes Flat
• Graeme Neil, Yackandandah
• Tim Jarred, Beechworth
• Ray & Suze Purrington, Yackandandah
• Phil Fraser, Beechworth
• Neville Grigsby, Chiltern
• Anna Fraser, Beechworth
• Katrina Witherow, Beechworth
• Jean Dean, Tangambalanga
• Stephen Draper, Wodonga

More prizes

Gift Voucher for one term’s dance classes valued at $72

Winner – Ariene Sorgdrager, Tangambalanga

More prizes

Gift Voucher valued at $50

Winner – Kelly and Geordie Graham, Yackandandah

More prizes

Gift Voucher valued at $50

Winner – Frank Prem, Beechworth

More prizes

Gift Voucher valued at $50 – for use in distillery door

Winner – Harvey Ballantyne, Yackandandah

More prizes

Wodonga Eyecare Gift Voucher valued at $50

Winner – Phil Buerckner, Yackandandah

Join or Renew by Tues 7 Dec to Win Cool Prizes

Our 2021 Radiothon has been extended by one week to take in 3 big community events. And we will have a presence at each.

• Saturday 4 Dec: Kiewa-Tangam Open Day @ 50 Kiewa East Rd, Tangambalanga
  • 10am – 4pm
• Sunday 5 Dec: Yackandandah Christmas Fair @ Memorial Park, Yackandandah
  • 9:30am – 2:30pm

That spells a whole lot of fun as things get pretty hectic as we gear up for the big Radiothon Prize Draw next Wednesday 8 December.

We have several fabulous prizes which include:

1. A Custom Made Hat valued at $450 from Feather and Drum Custom Hat Co
2. A large framed High Country Photographic Artwork valued at $380 from Kev McGennan Photography
3. 10 x $25 vouchers from musicaccessories.com.au / MEGAS Music Wodonga
4. 1 x terms Dance classes from Kiewa Valley Dance valued at $72
5. 1 x Gift Voucher to Wodonga Eyecare valued at $50
6. 1 x Gift Voucher to CC Meats Beechworth and Yackandandah valued at $50
7. 1 x Gift Voucher to Backwood’s Distillery Yackandandah valued at $50
8. 1 x Gift Voucher to TINY Cafe Beechworth valued at $50

To be in the running for these fabulous prizes, join up before 5pm on Tuesday 7 December. Do it online at our website – membership module OR come and see us at one of the above community events

Our 2022 Membership rates are:

• Concession / Student $20
• Individual $30
• Family $50 (Parent/s and Child/ren aged 18 or under)
• Community Group $50
• Business $100

Internet Radio Station Stream Issues Fixed

It took longer than we would have liked but our perseverance has prevailed and as of mid-last week our Internet Radio Station resumed transmission.

A big thank you to Michael our web designer for working through the various issues. We had to overcome a raft of misunderstandings with our stream host who are based in Europe. Talk about something getting lost in translation – literally it seemed.

Along the way we have updated our website audio player which is now displaying the current show / track playing information.

There will be more improvements to come as we now turn our attention toward live streaming.

Tune in at your leisure – 24/7 – via our website – www.indigofmradio.com

It’s a cliched line but “owing to technical difficulties…..” has become an unfortunate reality for Indigo FM over the past 7 weeks as we try to work out what has happened to our stream that worked so reliably for a year.

The good news is, we are slightly encouraged by some of the communication coming from our stream hosts this past week. These snippets of information from them along with a lot of online research at our end has us feeling hopeful that a solution might be just a few days away.

Our stream is hosted by one of the largest providers globally. They are very affordable by a fair way compared to other competitors. As they are based in Europe, however, time differences mean that slightly complex issues – as we are finding out – seem to get fixed at a snail’s pace.

Their support system and tools are more akin to what you might have tolerated 20 years ago. We’ve struggled to comprehend how sub-standard their support is.

Nonetheless we persevere and we’re optimistic.

We are a bit embarrassed to find ourselves apologising to listeners like yourselves, who had become used to enjoying the convenience of tuning in to Indigo FM in their car, when out for a walk, bike ride or at work etc, without having to contend with the vagaries of FM radio signals.

So please hang in there, cross your fingers and know that every day we are trying to progress this one and resolve it.

We post updates on the Facebook page Indigo FM Streaming – and we will definitely post a new article here when we do fix this one.

Have you joined up or renewed your Membership for 2022? There’s still time so no panic, but for the 20 odd members who have paid up, there are some bonus prizes on offer.

These are 4 passes to the Americana Carnival at The Vine Hotel, Wangaratta on Saturday 27 November featuring Lachlan Bryan and the Wildes, Riley Catherall, Great Aunt, The Weeping Willows, Little Wise and many more. We’ll be drawing those out next Sunday 21 November on air in Yackandandah on Harvey’s Americana themed Asleep At The Wheel show around 2:30pm.

To join or renew your Indigo FM Membership for 2022, you can head here

Pay via a card or deposit cash into our WAW Bank account – details on the link above.

Major Prize Draw

We’ve decided to conduct our Major Prize Draw on Wednesday 8 December from 4-5pm on-air at both our Beechworth and Yackandandah 88.0 FM sites. Stay tuned for details.

Catching Up in your Community

Thank you to Quercus Beechworth for inviting us along to their Flea Market last Saturday. Here’s the current schedule of upcoming market stalls.

• Yackandandah – Sun 21 Nov – Lions Market 9am-1pm
• Tangambalanga – Sat 4 Dec – Indigo FM Open Day 8am – 4pm
• Chiltern – Sun 5 Dec – Market 9am-1pm (w BMF Van)
• Yackandandah – Sun 5 Dec – Christmas Fair 10am-2pm

At Chiltern – while we don’t presently have a site there, we do love their community and own a licence. We called in during the week and were met with overwhelming positive vibes from several members and business owners about our upcoming visit with the Beechworth Music Festival van. How nice is that?

Our new playlist version 18.0 has hit the airwaves in recent days and it’s another diverse offerings with a focus on Australian, Indigenous and Independent artists.

Our most recent playlist comprises 900 songs by over 700 different artists with Australian content around 63%. On top of that we are proud to push the Indigenous content which comes in around 6%. We’re looking to grow that to 10% over the next year or two.

Australian independent musicians have been among the hardest hit as a result of the COVID19 pandemic these past 2 years and Indigo FM again proudly champions the music of this sector of the industry. Many who have toured through our towns playing festivals and venues have their latest tunes here including Tennyson King, Montgomery Church, Riley Catherall, Michael Waugh, Sunset Stranger, Lachy Doley, The Maes, Matt Joe Gow, Melody Moon, Ben Salter, Jess Locke, Daniel Champagne, Sunfruits, Emma Russack and Lachlan Denton, The Ramshackle Army, Jae Laffer, Gallie, Al Matcott, Maja, Four Lions, DC Cross, Darren Hanlon, Watty Thompson, Luke Sinclair Set, Van Walker, The Weeping Willows, Hachiku, Nathan Power, Justin Bernasconi and James Ellis and the Jealous Guys to rattle off a few.

Local musicians Paul Dyason, Toby Mobbs, Asha Bright, Buddy Dingo, GG Music, This Way North, Nic Jean, Sal Kimber, Nick Keogh, Gordon Dickson, Surprise Chef, Dean Haitani, Fanny Lumsden and Julian James also have tracks on Playlist 18.0.

Again we have stuck to our protocol of offering each artist a maximum of 2 songs on the Playlist, with all music sourced from either presenters at our volunteer run local radio station as well as from various record labels and free music sources such as Triple J Unearthed.

Our Playlist is what you hear between pre-recorded and live radio shows and is changed over every 6 months by the station’s Programming team. So tune in and embrace the delightful diversity on show here at Indigo FM.

Click Playlist 18.0 to view the complete listing.

Indigo FM’s annual Radiothon begins Monday 1 November and will run through to the end of November. It’s our annual opportunity to unleash the best kept secret of NE Victoria onto the radios, media players, devices and events of the many proud and wonderful towns of Indigo Shire as we seek your support for 2022.

We have some very exciting prizes for this year’s Radiothon. They include:

1. A custom-made Hat by Cat Leahy from “Feather and Drum Hats” Yackandandah – valued at $450
2. A framed High Country Photographic Artwork from Kev McGennan – valued at $380
3. 6 x $50 Vouchers from MEGAS Music Wodonga – valued at $300

Our poster was designed by Felicity “Fizz” Rule, who has been designing Radiothon and Event posters for us since 2017. We think it’s another eye-catcher sure to look great on shop windows and noticeboards around our towns.

If you’re new to Indigo FM or keen to renew your Membership for 2022, head over to our Membership portal here.

We’ll be out in the community at a few markets, those being:

• Beechworth – Sat 6 Nov – Quercus Flea Market
• Chiltern – Sun 5 Dec – Chiltern Markets
• Yackandandah – Sun 5 Dec – Christmas Fair

We also have a range of cool new t-shirts – available in your size – that you can grab hot off the presses when you visit us at one of these markets.

Each site is holding a 24 hour radio marathon throughout November. Exact dates for each site are being worked out and we’ll have more on that next week. In the meantime, stay tuned to 88.0 Indigo FM in Beechworth, Kiewa-Tangambalanga and Yackandandah as well as via our stream on our website audio player.

To keep up with the latest Indigo FM updates, head along to our Facebook page or check in here and as always feel free to email us on [email protected] or [email protected].

‘Burning With Optimism’s Flames’ is a 1980 song from the quirky UK New Wave band XTC. You can check it out below.

This obscure lyrical reference also pretty aptly describes Indigo FM – following yesterday’s 2021 Annual General Meeting – as we enter the notoriously fun, yet mad-season that is the end of each year.

Indigo FM’s Committee line-up for 2021-22 welcomes in two new members – Tiff Ellis and Patrick Jovaras – to join 5 ongoing members – Jos Ceccanti, Greg Clydesdale, Nigel Jones, Bernie Jovaras and Scott Landells.

They offer a stable base going forwards, with a slight shuffle – previous Secretary Jos Ceccanti takes on a General Committee role and Greg Clydesdale returns to the executive as Vice-President replacing Phil Fraser who is stepping down for personal reasons. We thank Phil very much for his valuable contribution to the management of Indigo FM from 2018-21 and look forward to his wonderful soul show Scorcher returning in early 2022.

Tiff takes on the Secretary’s role, bringing to the group a wealth of community and business experience from Euroa and Wodonga as well as an interest in music, arts and the vibrant unique local communities of Indigo Shire and surrounds.

Patrick grew up in Beechworth but these days calls Melbourne’s outer north-east home. The first Covid-19 lockdown in March 2020 saw Patrick explore a musical podcasting project, launching The Nest – a 2 hour exploration of ambient, soul, electronic, kraut-rock, indigenous and world music genres, which have been airing Sunday nights on Indigo FM since mid-2020.

In our ever-evolving Covid-normal world, utilising Zoom technology and podcasting is enabling creative people everywhere to connect and overcome previously isolating geographic barriers. And Indigo FM is keen to put that into practice and bring Patrick’s many skills and interests to the management side of Indigo FM.

Incoming President Scott Landells will line-up in this role for an 8th consecutive year (and 9th on the Committee) whilst deputy Greg Clydesdale will contribute as VP for the first time in this role (and his 8th consecutive year on the Committee). Bernie Jovaras will go around again for this 3rd straight year as Treasurer (and 4th in this stint on Committee).

In summary the team for 2021-22 is:

• President – Scott Landells
• Vice-President – Greg Clydesdale
• Secretary – Tiffany Ellis
• Treasurer – Bernie Jovaras
• General Committee – Patrick Jovaras, Nigel Jones, Jocelyn Ceccanti

At their 2021 Annual General Meeting, 15 Indigo FM members attended via a combination of in-person and Zoom. They heard that Indigo FM had turned around a loss of over $1400 in 2019-20, to a profit of just over $4,300 in 2020-21. On an “oily rag” annual budget of around $10,000, this outstanding result was due to a Covid-enforced shift in Business model that, among other things, had unearthed new revenue streams in the growing market of listener on-demand podcasts.

President Scott Landells summarised the new Committee as follows:

“Diversity and community are right at the heart of Indigo FM and we are thrilled to offer a management team whose ages range from early 30’s to mid 60’s. We reside in multiple communities within and outside Indigo Shire. Specifically Beechworth, Rutherglen, Tawonga, Murmungee, Yackandandah and the beautiful outer Melbourne enclave of Diamond Creek. Importantly rather than viewing ourselves as delegates of competing towns, we share a broader vision of the richness that every community and every listener can add to the ongoing tapestry of Indigo FM. And we’re very much looking forward to another productive year ahead, which will no doubt bring it’s usual mix of the predictable and the unpredictable. We’re as confident as we can be about our capacity to keep rising to the challenge of our member’s expectations.”

Burning with optimism’s flames, indeed!