A new FM radio station has popped up in Wellington central, broadcasting from the front of a Cuba St record store.
Rough Peel FM is on air and online 24/7, and wants to be a point of difference in the radiosphere.
"We grew increasingly frustrated with the FM band and commerce that takes place on the FM band, and the lack of focus on music," says creator Peter May.
May says it's a genuine love of music - and disdain for current radio offerings - which got the ball rolling, along with a little inspiration from Britain's pirate radio.
"The whole ethos of pirate radio excited me and it turned me on to a lot of music I never would have heard on commercial broadcasting."
And listeners within a two kilometre radius, and everywhere online, can expect an eclectic mix of tunes on Rough Peel Radio from its 21 DJs spread across the week.
"Everything from environmental recordings to sound art to minimal techno to Mongolian throat singing, to whatever you want to play," May says.
"You can come here and do that."
Rough Peel Music owner Paul Huggins is also getting in on the action, despite being a decade out of practice behind the mic.
"I do a couple of shows myself and enjoy that freedom and being able to play what I like, and we do that in the store anyway," he says.
The station has been on air for a few weeks but had its official launch party on Friday night, and has been well received by the local Cuba St community.
"They're coming in the door and asking how they can be involved and what we can do together, so there's lots of good sentiment here," May says.
"And it's something we want to tap into, the whole Cuba St vibe."
It's a vibe they hope to spread across the airways from their little corner on Cuba St.
Newshub.
