I just love the sound of old transistor radios. The crackle. The monophonic delivery. Their limited depth of tone. What’s not worth enjoying?
I don’t just like their sound and their look and feel, I love their smell, their shape and colour, their knobs and buttons, their history. I don’t care if they don’t pick up a solid signal; I love them anyway. I just can’t get enough of classic, old A.M. radios!
I’ve so much good audio and technology around me, why do I insist on going back to an old, scratchy-sounding AM radio?
It’s a kooky thing, right?
Sub-woofing thumps. I’ve got them. Digital, Bluetooth, high-bit-rate tech I have. But at times, they’re too intense. They’re too thumpy, too clean. Sometimes I just want background music – in the d*mn background! Maybe I’m getting old and fussy. A little bit of a fuddy-duddy. Industrial-strength bumps and crashes aren’t needed every time I turn on a gadget. I don’t want my body penetrated. On occasion, I prefer the sound of a low-resolution pocket AM radio.
There’s nothing like the comforting sound of a small AM radio when I’m writing or working on a homey project.
I can’t even use the FM feature.
FM is pure. Crystal clear. It offers a fantastic tonal range and channel separation. So why do I keep going back to AM when it sounds so low-res? I think the answer lies right there. AM strips out the offensive tones. It’s monophonic, with just a few mid-ranges holding it together. It gives me just enough to hear it, but never enough to block out the world. As I said, there are times when I want my music to fall behind rather than shout out in front.
I like the simplicity of a basic receiver with basic sound. When I switch it on, I don’t have to wait for it to boot up, check/load updates, pair with something, invite intrusive advertisements, or pause to receive notifications. That’s what a scratchy AM radio does for me.
Please read my novel, which features radios and other simple things.
–Michael (Dark fiction. Author of SEETHINGS (the first book), free for a limited time)
SEETHINGS promises a gripping psychological thriller that blends murder, passion, and secrets of a sexless marriage. Forman’s vivid prose draws readers into a world where lightning illuminates the skies and hidden truths. As the storm clouds gather, Mitchell’s journey promises to unravel more than just the mystery of the murders.
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‘Forman’s writing style is artful, with the protagonist Mitchell’s warped thought processes masterfully exposed. The author has a powerful and vivid command of language and his word pictures are stark and disturbingly real.’
Linda J Bettenay, author of ‘Secrets Mothers Keep’ and ‘Wishes For Starlight’
Discover more from Michael Forman – Author of Dark Fiction & Drama
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