Live from 1st Avenue: East Village Radio continues to bolster its programming

The resurrected East Village Radio continues to add new programs to its schedule, expanding the station's mix of eclectic sounds, local voices and underground culture.

The tiny storefront studio on First Avenue adjacent to Lil' Frankie's between First Street and Second Street has been in beta mode for several months, as the EVR team — owner Frank Prisinzano, co-founder Jorge Parreira, and veteran program/music director Brian Turner (ex-WFMU) — worked out some kinks with streams and playlists. A piece in the Times on Sept. 29 officially lifted the veil on the station's return.

As for new shows, we'll start with this collaboration with Bandcamp: 

When we launched Bandcamp Daily back in 2016, we set for ourselves a simple and direct mission statement: Bandcamp Daily exists to shine a light on artists all over the world who are using Bandcamp to connect with fans. 

And almost 10 years later, we’re still excited about finding new ways to introduce people to great new artists... we're thrilled to announce that Bandcamp is expanding again, with a brand new weekly show on New York City's legendary East Village Radio.... Bandcamp is honored to be joining the station's rich legacy. You can tune in every Monday night starting Monday, Oct. 14, from 6-8 p.m. to hear music featured in Bandcamp Daily stories, as well as editors' picks, interviews with artists and Bandcamp Daily writers, and much more. 

Other newly launched programs include The East Village Radio Jazz Show, where host (and East Village resident) Jason Wald features jazz from the neighborhood — classic, contemporary, local and beyond. Last week, multi-instrumentalist and composer Joe McPhee was the guest. The show airs Fridays from 2 to 4 p.m. 

East Village Radio had several iterations, the first ending in May 2014 after an 11-year run. At the time, Prisinzano, the restaurateur who owns Frank, Supper and Lil' Frankie's, said licensing fees and Internet costs were too onerous, especially with a surging listener base. 

EVR returned for another year-plus-long go-around, this time on a new platform, in June 2015. 

EVR will use a different business model this time and rely on sponsors. As Prisinzano told the Post in March, operational costs for broadcasting music have decreased in the streaming age. 

During its heyday, EVR counted more than 1 million listeners worldwide a month (this after starting as a short-lived 10-watt FM radio station in April 2003). However, under the Congressional Digital Music Copyright Act of 1998, Internet broadcasters had to pay a digital performance royalty for every listener.

The street-level studio was a popular draw, bringing in guests ranging from Richard Hell to Duran Duran. 

You can find the EVR schedule and archives and listen live at this link.

Image via Bandcamp; studio photo by Stacie Joy