The Pit FM

The Pit FM was a 24/7 Australian Internet Radio Station based in Perth, Western Australia that specialised in Punk, Hardcore Punk, Post-Hardcore, Heavy Metal and Alternative Rock.

History

Starting out in an apartment in Northbridge, Western Australia with a group of Australian "punk" and "metalheads", The Pit FM originally started as just an Idea from now owner Trevor McDonnel, into an internationally respected voice of alternative music that it is know today. The station moved from Northbridge to Midland in late 2011 to expand its on-site operations; filling the airwaves with a wide variety of genre-specific request and news programmes that engaged not only the local Western Australian punk community, but attracted listeners worldwide.

After a much anticipated launch, The Pit FM also played an integral part in promoting both the Never Say Die [...] Prevention Fundraiser and the East Africa Fundraising Gig. It is listed as an ally of Mannequin Republic and a member of Euromusic.

In December 2011, The Pit FM launched a full-blown journalism and editorial team, covering music related topics such as Gigs, Tours, Reviews, Previews, Punk history, and Op-eds. The stations website was taken down for a couple of months in mid-2012 due to being ReWorked and made over before finally being put back online on 5 August 2012 with a more user friendly application.

On the September 2, 2012, the PitFM ceased broadcasting.

The Pit FM Crew

Former

The PitFM crew were from or based all over Australia (unless stated) and the former members include:

Personnel

• Trev McDonnell – Owner, Managing Director, Promotions & Marketing
• Paul Macfarlan – Genre Head Metalcore/Deathcore
• Blake Heldt – Genre Head Metal
• Matt Williams – Genre Head Post-Hardcore
• Jake Leaudais – Genre Head Hardcore
• Patrick Dolan – Genre Head Punk
• Brett Jones – Submissions
• Tanaya Ferguson – News
• Lee Jonathon – Sales & Advertising

Presenters

• Kevin Bastien (Quebec, Canada)
• Trent Brand
• Daniel Cribb
• Pat Decline
• Colin Dickie
• Paul Di Scerni
• Tahnee Graham
• James Fox (United Kingdom)
• James Gamble
• Jacob Impson
• Kyle Jones
• Aaron Kenner
• Ryan Lee
• Jacob McDermott
• Daniel Molloy
• Mitchell Paton
• Pauly Righini
• Don Ruphard (Illinois, United States)
• William Silva
• Phil Smith
• Andy Storey
• James Thurlby (United Kingdom)
• Tom Watts

Programming

The Pit FM followed an organised broadcast schedule, with each show having its own hosts, genre or theme, and regular air-time.

New bands had the ability to send their own music to the station to be played on on-air. There were also pieces by well-known acts played at The Pit FM. The online radio station elected the album of the year, the proposals for this being voted on by listeners of the station.

Listenership/Audience demographic

By the end of 2011, The Pit FM managed 100,000 listeners per week mark, Before its closure in september, the station easily surpassed 250,000 listeners a week.

News and interviews

The Pit had already published on-air interviews with Four Year Strong, In This Moment, Eskimo Callboy, Steel Panther, Before The [...], You Me at Six, Saves the Day, Casino Madrid, A Traitor Among Us, Athena's Grace and Chunk, No Captain Chunk! These interviews can be listened to and downloaded as Podcasts.

Landmark interviews with music heavy-weights like Zakk Wylde, Parkway Drive, Anaal Nathrakh, Every Time I Die, Origin, and more have cemented The Pit as an up and coming source for all the latest news from the alternative music scene in Australia and Worldwide before it ceased operations.

External links

de:The Pit FM